Cliffk

Third World also had these two great crossover hits: the first a cover of the O"jays" tune and the second a collab with Stevie. Nobody sits down for these. [video:youtube] [video:youtube]

[video:youtube]

This is such sad news. Sue"s wry humour and sharp wit meant she could hold her own easily in the KC - notoriously hard to do! RIP Gangsu.

Very interesting to see Alanis here. I"ve got a vivid memory of seeing this performance on some awards show in the late 90s. I was spellbound. Also, this song for me is as good as a song gets: music, lyrics, artist - it"s just complete. [video:youtube]

Such sad news. RIP maestro.

Tasty doubling of the bass here. Great pop-rock groove and melody. [video:youtube]

Once asked which song he wished he"d written, Paul McCartney said this one. Ace.

Okay, this is way overthought and another example of an artist's idiosyncratic expression trumping external analysis (with due respect to your wife ). The lyric is this, not these - this is just how Annie wants to sing it. To use your words though, there's no way you can meaningfully conflate singing and speaking articulation differences, even when analysing dialects. The vocal 'exaggeration' that happens in singing can and does go anywhere the artist wants it to. But don't take my word for it: a like-for-like example should illustrate this more handily. Listen to the last word of each of the first two lines of this track: [video:youtube]

Polly's aftershave of choice is Aqua Velva. Who am I to judge? Oh wow ... initially read this with a 'u" for the 'e".

Such sad sad news. RIP brother BluesKeys.

Rock me Amadeus

Lots of time for the Pointer Sisters. They flaunted some deliciously natural tight harmonies. RIP Bonnie.

Sorry no; this.

I can"t even tell you how much I love this song.

Tightrope here but focusing on music, it"s my sincere hope that the general climate of upheaval regionally and globally generates music as authentic as that of 1969. Peace and love.

Have followed Theo's 'How hard is it to play around in some Latin Music' thread with interest, and I think this relates. These cats might not literally appear to have 'authentic' funk credentials, but man they take Alicia's tired arrangement to another level. Sure, maybe it's not the sleaziest funk out there, but these guys are enjoying the hell out of their playing - and there's no denying that groove when you can't sit still. Just inspiring to me. [video:youtube]

Sincere commiserations, Dan. It"s bad enough to lose your job, but so much worse to have it happen unexpectedly. I"ve also just today heard we"re facing redundancies at my college - and the criteria make me eminently eligible for the chop. It"s an awful time we"re going through. But judging from your posts, you"re definitely a smart cat. You"ll land on your feet, brother. No doubt.

Really sorry to hear this, Paul. Hope things bounce back for you. What this virus has brought home to me is how precarious our existence as a species is, and ultimately how insignificant our spats with each other are. I mean, a puny respiratory bug is taking us out like flies and making us soil our pants in dread. And I"m betting that there are stronger ones just waiting on their cue in future. At the very least, just hope all this instils some humility in us.

Have just got a directive from work (a university in London) saying that all face to face teaching activities (lectures, seminars, tutorials, AND exams etc.) have been suspended with immediate effect. All remaining classes from tomorrow are to be conducted online. Even graduation ceremonies have been summarily cancelled, leaving parents who"ve travelled from all over the world in a bit of a headspin. Seems the UK - the institutions at least, still not the government - is finally making sensible decisions. Weird times.

Two great deals: 1) my ankle has finally healed from being messed up by the severely oversoft #35 iteration of the Nike Pegasus, a shoe I"ve worn religiously for years (great for walking, though) 2) I"ve been enjoying beautiful early morning runs on a road trip in the Canadian Rockies. This is a very thankful puppy.

What an extraordinary talent!

I was a 70s kid and distinctly recall loving songs that had that cushiony, bell-like, often rhythmic sound. Only later did I discover it was the 'Rhodes effect'. Among the most obvious are the intros to Stevie's 'You are the sunshine of my life', 'As', 'Ordinary Pain' etc., and Billy Joel's 'Just the way you are'. For some weird reason, even today, that sound stirs me like nothing else.

All the best for a full and speedy recovery, Dave.

1B - reading, especially literature, which I guess is related to my day job, teaching. My goal is to read as many of the world classics as possible - completely unattainable, but what a joy trying. Right now working my way through the Russian masters (Dostoevsky, Chekhov, Tolstoy etc.). As someone said earlier, time's the enemy, man! 1C - running. Have just started again, very tentatively, having been off the road for 5 months due to a persistent ankle injury. Frustrating as hell, and soooooo happy to be getting out there again. 1D - road trips particularly, and travelling generally. More a luxury (time wise) than anything else, this never fails to put my tiny footprint in our universe firmly in perspective, and to remind me what a lucky sonofagun I am.

Raisins are the fruit equivalent of eating dead people. [if you like silly British middle class randoms like this, check out 'Word on the street' from Timeout magazine].