It takes sheer genius to make Burt Bacharach* songs deep and soulful, but he did it with ease.
* Don't get me wrong, I like Bacharach & David, but the original orchestrations do come across as a bit shallow.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Tuesday Jukebox Watches Daichi Miura Grow Up
Meet Daichi Miura, former child JPop star turned young adult JPop star. (In 12 days he can drink in the US, and he was born in 1987! I remember 1987--vividly--I'm getting old.)
Anyway, Daichi was originally part of a group called Folder, around the time he was 10, and as Wiki.theppn points out, he split when his voice changed. Personally, I think he's better now than as a preteen, but judge for yourself.
The Folder years:
It's pretty standard for any prepubescent male singer to tackle Jackson 5, but he manages a decent job with I Want You Back.
And as a solo artist:
Bonus: Completely unrelated to Daichi, here is something for the comedy files. The jukebox has already paid tribute to Mika Nakashima as well as SMAP, so it's quite appropriate to see what happens when the two collide. This past July, Mika along with a female comedy troupe released a single called I Don't Know under the name MICA 3 CHU. MICA 3 CHU went on SMAP's show and as always the SMAPers perform with them. Given that this is a collaboration with a comedy group, I'm going to say that the lyrics are meant to be funny, but what even makes it funnier is the earnest performance of SMAP--even though I reckon everyone onstage pretty much knew that they were singing a bunch of nonsensical English--and the aural/visual pleasure of seeing a demure Mika Nakashima (via Bif Naked) and a surprisingly mellow Masahiro Nakai sing "you've got a lot of balls."
Anyway, Daichi was originally part of a group called Folder, around the time he was 10, and as Wiki.theppn points out, he split when his voice changed. Personally, I think he's better now than as a preteen, but judge for yourself.
The Folder years:
It's pretty standard for any prepubescent male singer to tackle Jackson 5, but he manages a decent job with I Want You Back.
And as a solo artist:
Bonus: Completely unrelated to Daichi, here is something for the comedy files. The jukebox has already paid tribute to Mika Nakashima as well as SMAP, so it's quite appropriate to see what happens when the two collide. This past July, Mika along with a female comedy troupe released a single called I Don't Know under the name MICA 3 CHU. MICA 3 CHU went on SMAP's show and as always the SMAPers perform with them. Given that this is a collaboration with a comedy group, I'm going to say that the lyrics are meant to be funny, but what even makes it funnier is the earnest performance of SMAP--even though I reckon everyone onstage pretty much knew that they were singing a bunch of nonsensical English--and the aural/visual pleasure of seeing a demure Mika Nakashima (via Bif Naked) and a surprisingly mellow Masahiro Nakai sing "you've got a lot of balls."
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Thursday Jukebox Says German Rap Is A Different Animal
...and this is a good thing.
The visual combined with the audio with some of these groups is quite interesting, sort of like the balding and paunchy guys from accounting decided to try out their "skillz" on the mike while half-drunk. (Well, no one said that German is a pretty language, an extremely logical language, yes, but not necessarily pretty).
The visual combined with the audio with some of these groups is quite interesting, sort of like the balding and paunchy guys from accounting decided to try out their "skillz" on the mike while half-drunk. (Well, no one said that German is a pretty language, an extremely logical language, yes, but not necessarily pretty).
WHAT?!
(Still not here.)
The nation is truly changing.
It's worth looking past the Kilpatrick corruption drama in this regard.*
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
And they thought it wouldn't get past customs?
I'm technically not back, but this story from the ABC is too good not to miss, in fact the headline pretty much says it all:
Gay lube oil contained steroids.
Gives a new meaning to party and play.
Gay lube oil contained steroids.
Gives a new meaning to party and play.
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Wednesday Jukebox Goes D.I.S.C.O.
In Korean no less.
Uhm Junghwa (KPop diva supreme) has a new release entitled D.I.S.C.O. which should leave no imagination as to what the mini-album's theme is. This song will just embed itself in your ear, I'll tell you. Plus what better way to celebrate the 960th post at this corner of the internet?
In further upbeat news, I'm taking my first vacation of the year, so I'll be away for a good part of this month.
Enjoy midsummer!
Uhm Junghwa (KPop diva supreme) has a new release entitled D.I.S.C.O. which should leave no imagination as to what the mini-album's theme is. This song will just embed itself in your ear, I'll tell you. Plus what better way to celebrate the 960th post at this corner of the internet?
In further upbeat news, I'm taking my first vacation of the year, so I'll be away for a good part of this month.
Enjoy midsummer!
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Tuesday Jukebox Says "You try to sing 'Without You'"
It's one of these viral videos that everyone has seen, but since it has Kirkorova (aka the co-writer of Shady Lady) in it and makes a point about singers not having a clue what they are singing about, I thought it would be a good inclusion.
So as to give something new, here is Mitsuhiro Oikawa singing Shinin' Star live. Mr. Oikawa pulls off the interesting trick of being both fey and butch nearly simultaneously. ("CLAP YOUR HANDS" he doesn't so much shout as snarl.)
Proving his actor credentials and panache for drag, here is Mikkatsuki Hime (Crescent Moon Princess). Considerably less butch here.
A male trio, SUPER LIVE, covers SOULHEAD's SPARKLE TRAIN. Not bad, but the audio makes it a bit hard to give a good critique. At least they aren't singing "Ken Lee."
Finally, SOULHEAD & Tomita Lab's video for Like A Queen (seems appropriate for this jukebox), which seems to be very Manhattan Transfer-esque.
So as to give something new, here is Mitsuhiro Oikawa singing Shinin' Star live. Mr. Oikawa pulls off the interesting trick of being both fey and butch nearly simultaneously. ("CLAP YOUR HANDS" he doesn't so much shout as snarl.)
Proving his actor credentials and panache for drag, here is Mikkatsuki Hime (Crescent Moon Princess). Considerably less butch here.
A male trio, SUPER LIVE, covers SOULHEAD's SPARKLE TRAIN. Not bad, but the audio makes it a bit hard to give a good critique. At least they aren't singing "Ken Lee."
Finally, SOULHEAD & Tomita Lab's video for Like A Queen (seems appropriate for this jukebox), which seems to be very Manhattan Transfer-esque.
Happy Canada Day
According to a poll, the Maple Leaf & Hockey still reign supreme as the ultimate in Canadiana.
That said, it's what else made the list that is really interesting:
That said, it's what else made the list that is really interesting:
- Peacekeeping
- Universal Health Care
- The Rockies (I don't think those are exclusively Canadian, but that's just geography nerd that I am)
- Niagara Falls (ditto, although Canada by FAR has the better version)
Personally, I'd add sex scandals, because Canadian sex scandals are just plain more interesting than ours.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Pride 2008: Kill the closet
The 2006 Pride post talked strongly about the tendency amongst gay men to demean or denigrate other gay men in effort to establish themselves as "better than."
2008 sees things pretty much the same on that front. Yet, with the recent developments in respect to gay marriage in California, the current upturn in HIV infection rates amongst males, and well Matthew Rush's breakdown (link not particularly work friendly depending on one's place of employment) to be honest, I wonder if something is afoot.
All of these subjects--in my view at least--are symptoms of one thing: Gay is not sexy.
Lest you think that I've gotten very shallow here, I'll explain. By "sexy," I mean that it is STILL a world where tons of men (and likely a fair amount of women as well, one would assume) have no qualms whatsoever in participating in homosexual sex and activities, but vehemently deny the obvious fact that lies right in front of them: They are gay.
The fact that "gay" continues to be a pejorative amongst ill-informed people--both gay and straight of all ages--is alarming. Even moreso is the fact that they are rarely challenged on it.
The fact that there is still a fetishisation around supposedly "straight" men who are eager to participate in gay sex is alarming. What once was just another cliched porn theme has now emerged into the real world as a belief system complete with its own hierarchy of desirablity on full display on any internet sex site. While to some extent this may only involve fantasy role play, by it spilling into reality it's beginning to cost us our health. Not just our emotional health but our spiritual health as well.
And let us get into this fun subject of "gay for pay" while we're at it. How messed up is one's own sense of self when the idea of watching a man going against his own sexual drive--aided by god-knows-what--is actually a turn on? I could understand it if the point was to ridicule poor sexual performance, but it's not. It is merely a continuation of the belief that to be gay and open and honest about it is to be "less than," and openly gay men are making money off of it.
If I was just recently out these days, the very last kind of guy I would be chasing down would be someone who was closeted or even claimed discretion. It wouldn't be worth the medication nor the hit in terms of self-respect.
2008 sees things pretty much the same on that front. Yet, with the recent developments in respect to gay marriage in California, the current upturn in HIV infection rates amongst males, and well Matthew Rush's breakdown (link not particularly work friendly depending on one's place of employment) to be honest, I wonder if something is afoot.
All of these subjects--in my view at least--are symptoms of one thing: Gay is not sexy.
Lest you think that I've gotten very shallow here, I'll explain. By "sexy," I mean that it is STILL a world where tons of men (and likely a fair amount of women as well, one would assume) have no qualms whatsoever in participating in homosexual sex and activities, but vehemently deny the obvious fact that lies right in front of them: They are gay.
The fact that "gay" continues to be a pejorative amongst ill-informed people--both gay and straight of all ages--is alarming. Even moreso is the fact that they are rarely challenged on it.
The fact that there is still a fetishisation around supposedly "straight" men who are eager to participate in gay sex is alarming. What once was just another cliched porn theme has now emerged into the real world as a belief system complete with its own hierarchy of desirablity on full display on any internet sex site. While to some extent this may only involve fantasy role play, by it spilling into reality it's beginning to cost us our health. Not just our emotional health but our spiritual health as well.
And let us get into this fun subject of "gay for pay" while we're at it. How messed up is one's own sense of self when the idea of watching a man going against his own sexual drive--aided by god-knows-what--is actually a turn on? I could understand it if the point was to ridicule poor sexual performance, but it's not. It is merely a continuation of the belief that to be gay and open and honest about it is to be "less than," and openly gay men are making money off of it.
If I was just recently out these days, the very last kind of guy I would be chasing down would be someone who was closeted or even claimed discretion. It wouldn't be worth the medication nor the hit in terms of self-respect.
Pride 2008: Not Just For Us
But for everyone who has the courage to say this is who I am.
Pause today to think of what strides we have made and also what struggles wait ahead.
One day, perhaps sooner than we think, we may very well live in a world where the bigoted speech of a few is muted by the basic human compassion and understanding of many.
Pause today to think of what strides we have made and also what struggles wait ahead.
One day, perhaps sooner than we think, we may very well live in a world where the bigoted speech of a few is muted by the basic human compassion and understanding of many.
If he's on the list, then what exactly is the criteria?
If it was April, then I would believe this was a joke, but apparently it's not.
Nelson Mandela & The ANC were on the US government's terror watch list.
That's right, Nelson Mandela was on the terror watch list and only now is the US government making an effort to get him off it.
In theory, this would mean that Oprah and a slew of other celebrities associated with a possible terrorist. Publicly. In front of cameras.
What idiot during the past 2 administrations kept the man that helped end apartheid (which ended over a decade ago!) on the terror watch list?
Nelson Mandela & The ANC were on the US government's terror watch list.
That's right, Nelson Mandela was on the terror watch list and only now is the US government making an effort to get him off it.
In theory, this would mean that Oprah and a slew of other celebrities associated with a possible terrorist. Publicly. In front of cameras.
What idiot during the past 2 administrations kept the man that helped end apartheid (which ended over a decade ago!) on the terror watch list?
Saturday, June 28, 2008
The Zimbabwe Situation as I see it
Read the Wikipedia entry on Ian Smith, particularly on the fact that his old party is now the one of Mugabe's most prominent challenger.
Is anyone else thinking of a certain song by The Who?
Is anyone else thinking of a certain song by The Who?
Friday, June 27, 2008
And now everyone can shoot themselves (part 2)
Interesting coverage of the Supreme Court handgun decision on the Journal Sentinel's NewsWatch.
Guess who supports the decision? Russ Feingold.
Then again he is from Green Bay and not Madison.
Proof that a broken clock can be right twice a day, I'm with Tom Barrett and Bloomie.
This country is too big with too many variables to really definitively say that handguns in the home are acceptable everywhere...at least when loaded.
Chris Rock was onto something when he said that "what we need is not gun control, but bullet control."
Guess who supports the decision? Russ Feingold.
Then again he is from Green Bay and not Madison.
Proof that a broken clock can be right twice a day, I'm with Tom Barrett and Bloomie.
This country is too big with too many variables to really definitively say that handguns in the home are acceptable everywhere...at least when loaded.
Chris Rock was onto something when he said that "what we need is not gun control, but bullet control."
And now everyone can shoot themselves
So the Supreme court says that an individual has a right to have a handgun in their own home.
But the question is why would a person feel compelled to do so?
The one thing that I believe--and I admit that I am not a legal scholar--that the majority is missing is that the Constitution was meant to be flexible. If it wasn't I would (as well as Clarence Thomas) not even be considered a citizen, or even a human being.
Now I wonder if the Court is now courting (no pun intended) lawmakers to put a law--or even an amendment--in place that would put in no uncertain terms that handguns have no business being in someone's home in this day and age where we do not live under the tyranny of British troops marching in unannounced into our homes.
But the question is why would a person feel compelled to do so?
The one thing that I believe--and I admit that I am not a legal scholar--that the majority is missing is that the Constitution was meant to be flexible. If it wasn't I would (as well as Clarence Thomas) not even be considered a citizen, or even a human being.
Now I wonder if the Court is now courting (no pun intended) lawmakers to put a law--or even an amendment--in place that would put in no uncertain terms that handguns have no business being in someone's home in this day and age where we do not live under the tyranny of British troops marching in unannounced into our homes.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Just nationalise the damn thing
American outlines more cuts.
Dear lord, if the government effectively saved Bear Stearns, then why can't they just take over American and United. It's like the airlines are daring them to come in and do so.
Dear lord, if the government effectively saved Bear Stearns, then why can't they just take over American and United. It's like the airlines are daring them to come in and do so.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Tuesday Jukebox Says Loneliness Is Such A Sad Affair
Hands down--at least over here--no one beats The Carpenters' Superstar.
KPop singer Wheesung manages to do an adequate version, but I think there's a bit of disconnect between him and the meaning of the lyrics.
Sonic Youth gets the meaning, underlines it, and puts exclamation points on it.
Then there's Luther. Luther got the meaning, and I tell you, if you pay attention to the lyrics, his version allows for the interpretation that this is a love song sung by a man to another man who doesn't know the depth of the other man's feelings.
This interpretation is very clear when Usher sings Luther's version as a tribute.
And this may be just me that see this, but I always thought Karmen Stavec's Lep Poletni Dan is effectively an upbeat interpretation of Superstar.
KPop singer Wheesung manages to do an adequate version, but I think there's a bit of disconnect between him and the meaning of the lyrics.
Sonic Youth gets the meaning, underlines it, and puts exclamation points on it.
Then there's Luther. Luther got the meaning, and I tell you, if you pay attention to the lyrics, his version allows for the interpretation that this is a love song sung by a man to another man who doesn't know the depth of the other man's feelings.
This interpretation is very clear when Usher sings Luther's version as a tribute.
And this may be just me that see this, but I always thought Karmen Stavec's Lep Poletni Dan is effectively an upbeat interpretation of Superstar.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
And manna shall rain from the heavens
Joe Bruno won't be running again!
Now if we could just get rid of Sensenbrenner in Wisconsin. (Not that I hold out much hope that the North Shore bigotry and self-entitled brigade would actually do the right thing.)
Now if we could just get rid of Sensenbrenner in Wisconsin. (Not that I hold out much hope that the North Shore bigotry and self-entitled brigade would actually do the right thing.)
Just Give My Social Security Now
It is arguably a bit wrong to criticise fundraisers for AIDS charities, but I'm going to do it.
I just flat out do not understand, nor get the point of Broadway Bares.
You could argue that it's pastiche, but it's just rather inane in my point of view, particularly for 2008.
Is wearing next to nothing while making tons of camp and gay references really that shocking?
What I find surprising is that given that these days HIV is often transmitted via drug-fueled sex parties, the show seems to revel in encouraging a wild sexual abandon often found in (drum-roll please) drug-fueled sex parties.
Call me a crackpot, but it all seems like it's perpetuating a vicious circle: go see the show, get aroused, go off and have bareback sex, and seroconvert. (Not that everyone does this, but it certainly could serve as a tipping point.)
I feel the same way about the White Party.
Photos from this year's Broadway Bares can be found here.
I just flat out do not understand, nor get the point of Broadway Bares.
You could argue that it's pastiche, but it's just rather inane in my point of view, particularly for 2008.
Is wearing next to nothing while making tons of camp and gay references really that shocking?
What I find surprising is that given that these days HIV is often transmitted via drug-fueled sex parties, the show seems to revel in encouraging a wild sexual abandon often found in (drum-roll please) drug-fueled sex parties.
Call me a crackpot, but it all seems like it's perpetuating a vicious circle: go see the show, get aroused, go off and have bareback sex, and seroconvert. (Not that everyone does this, but it certainly could serve as a tipping point.)
I feel the same way about the White Party.
Photos from this year's Broadway Bares can be found here.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Something Heartwarming
From the Journal Sentinel: A Navy Reservist joins a community theatre group after watching their production during his tour in Afghanistan. (For those from the Milwaukee area: why am I not surprised he's from Shorewood?)
Now as sweet as that story is, one has to wonder what the state of the US military is when the navy is sent to Afghanistan.
Now as sweet as that story is, one has to wonder what the state of the US military is when the navy is sent to Afghanistan.
The Wisconsin Tourism Industry
Wisconsin Department of Tourism claims that the $13 billion state tourism industry is at risk due to the flooding and gas prices.
My question is this: When did Wisconsin get a $13 billion tourism industry?
Does seeing Frank Lloyd Wright's house and a state full of flat land and trees hold that much interest?
Is it the casino gaming? (That dog track has been losing money since the day it was founded.)
Is it the dairy & grain products?
I know Summerfest is big, but Jesus Wept, it's not that big.
I could understand it--somewhat--if they were concerned about the fall and winter travel seasons, but they shouldn't be worried a whit about summer. The Chicagoans & Twin Cities residents will still come, and I reckon most of the Wisconsinites will stay.
Why?
Because it's too expensive to go anywhere else.
My question is this: When did Wisconsin get a $13 billion tourism industry?
Does seeing Frank Lloyd Wright's house and a state full of flat land and trees hold that much interest?
Is it the casino gaming? (That dog track has been losing money since the day it was founded.)
Is it the dairy & grain products?
I know Summerfest is big, but Jesus Wept, it's not that big.
I could understand it--somewhat--if they were concerned about the fall and winter travel seasons, but they shouldn't be worried a whit about summer. The Chicagoans & Twin Cities residents will still come, and I reckon most of the Wisconsinites will stay.
Why?
Because it's too expensive to go anywhere else.
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