themusicaddict's Feeling Disco Fever In 2013: Donna Summer, The Bee Gees and Others

Hello,

I was checking out various things on the internet yesterday when I stumbled across the music of Andy Gibb. Thanks to my friends at Spotify I listened to Andy Gibb's Greatest Hits, I'd forgotten how many great songs he recorded. That of course lead me to the Bee Gees, whose music is absolutely amazing. Their main style of music was disco of course, but they also incorporated funk, rock and pop that helps take their music to the next level. This morning I listened to the Bee Gees triumphant "One Night Only" which lead me to the Queen of Disco, Miss Donna Summer.

I'm thinking about writing a greatest CD of all-time blog for Summer's "Bad Girls" CD, but I'm going to have to listen to it a couple of times before I can decide if it's worthy of that designation. But I wanted to write a blog today while I'm considering that potential "Bad Girls" blog.

Thus here's a collection of some of my favorite Disco songs of all-time. I do remember the Disco Sucks movement at the end of the 70s, but I never understood that. Sure there was some ridiculous elements in Disco, just like there is in all sorts of music. But there are also a lot of damn fine Disco songs. A sign of a good song is that it still sounds good years later. The music of Donna Summer, the Bee Gees and others still sound amazing. (I know this is a blasphemous thought but do I hear a bit of disco in Pink Floyd's "The Wall"? It was conceived during the Disco craze.)

Here's over 3 hours of classic disco, if I were to create a video I would only include a few songs from this video. That being said this is still a very representative sample of classic disco music. Thanks to ti2SSO for creating this compilation for all to enjoy.



I don't know if this is the ultimate Disco song, but if it isn't it's pretty darn close. Everything about this song is great. The Kings of Disco, the Bee Gees and "Stayin' Alive":



The Bee Gees had many other great songs, "Jive Talkin", "Nights On Broadway", "More Than A Woman", "Too Much Heaven" etc. Those are all great songs, but one of my favorite of their songs is "Tragedy":



Let's do a couple from the Queen of Disco, Miss Donna Summer. She has so many great songs to pick from though. One of my favorites of Ms. Summers songs is "McArthur Park". This is the 6:26 version, if this isn't long enough for you, Youtube has a 17:53 minute version available as well. Remember not to leave the cake out in the rain. Damn this is a great song:



"Last Dance":



I'd be remiss if I didn't include "Dim All The Lights":



Is it just my perception or did Disco have the most one hit wonders of any genre? Here's some of my favorite Disco one or two hit wonders. First up is Hot Chocolate's "You Sexy Thing", I love Errol Brown's vocal on this song:



I love the funk in Hot Chocolate's "Every 1's A Winner":



This can't be considered a true Disco blog unless I add Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive":



Sister Sledge "We Are Family":



Anita Ward's "Ring My Bell":



Lipps Inc. "Funky Town":



Shannon's "Let The Music Play":



Alicia 's "I Love The Nightlife":



Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music":



And how can we forget The Village People? They had a few hits. I know this isn't one of their most well-known songs, but "Go West" is also a great song:



Who hasn't done the "YMCA" dance in their life?:



And of course we can't forget the incredible "Earth, Wind and Fire". Seriously if this song doesn't make you want to get up and dance, then you are dead. This is the funkalicious "September":



"Let's Groove":



The S.O.S. Band's "Take Your Time (Do It Right)":



File these bands under bands that weren't disco bands per se, but spent time in the disco realm.

The Commodores weren't considered a Disco band, they were more of a R&B/Soul band. However they did have the discolicious "Brick House", it's a shame this song isn't longer. "What a winning hand":



My favorite band growing up was Blondie, this is their disco classic "Heart Of Glass":



Diana Ross "I'm Coming Out":



"Upside Down":



themusicaddict

Merry Christmas, One Year on From the Greinke and Ryu Deals, What Will the 2014 Dodgers Look Like?

Hello,

One year ago today I wrote two blogs. The first blog I wished everyone a Merry Christmas! I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas this year as well. I hope that whatever your festivities are that they are truly joyous and you are able to spend a lot of time with those you love the most.

The second blog I wrote a year ago is about the Dodgers signing both Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu. I would say after the first year that both of those deals worked out well for LA. Behind Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw, those two were the most consistent Dodgers starters. Granted there wasn't much competition, but all 3 of those guys were solid pitchers last year. I also like that all three are a threat with the bat, especially Greinke.

The Dodgers seem to be acting more financially conservative this year, which I think is the right course. Just because a team has a lot of money, doesn't mean they should spend it. Much thanks to the entire Dodgers organization for not participating in the Robinson Cano sweepstakes. I'm guessing about half way through that contract the Mariners will be regretting it. It won't be as bad as the horrendous Alex Rodriguez contract, but the last few years are going to be painful for Seattle.

Thankfully the Dodgers signed Dan Haren to a $10 million one year contract (with a second year option.) (Thanks to ESPN LA.) That should give the Dodgers a solid fourth or fifth starter. Then I'm hoping that Chad Billingsley can turn into a solid starter once he returns from injury. That would give the Dodgers 5 solid starters and the carcass of Josh Beckett. Thankfully only one more year of having Beckett on the roster. I'm so glad that the Dodgers don't owe the oft injured Ted Lilly any more money.
I liked what Ricky Nolasco added to the Dodgers, but it was clear he was just a rental for the playoffs.

I'm also happy that the Dodgers resigned Brian Wilson. That gives the Dodgers a solid 8th and 9th inning pitching duo with him and Kenley Jansen.

The Dodgers seem to be well situated when it comes to pitching, now what they will do about their inept offense? For the amount of payroll the Dodgers paid out last season, they scored too few runs. Of course they'll be managing the consequences of their big 2012 trade with the Red Sox for a few more years. Although that trade cost the Dodgers a lot of money, it also brought them their most consistent player in Adrian Gonzalez. He played the whole season, flirting with .300 the entire time.

I'm glad Yasiel Puig will be coming back, one more year more mature and hopefully fundamentally more sound. Will Hanley Ramirez have another solid season? Puig got the love last season, but Hanley was just as much of a spark plug as was Puig. Honestly the Dodgers season would have been kaput if either of those players hadn't played up to that level last season. Carl Crawford will miss several games as usual, but hopefully he can be a solid lead off man and bat around .300 when he does play. What will Joc Pederson and Alexander Guerrero bring to the line up?

It looks like the Dodgers big off season question now is will Juan Uribe return. Honestly if LA is truly going to a more cost effective youth movement, wouldn't it make more sense to let him move on?

No I didn't forget either Matt Kemp or Andre Ethier, but honestly I'd be glad if those two players aren't with the Dodgers next season. I've grown tired of the injury prone and underperforming Kemp and Ethier. After starting out so hot in 2012, Kemp has been a colossal disappointment. He has simply missed too many games, he was on the DL 3 different times last season. If the Dodgers can dump both players, by throwing some money in, and get back solid pitching and back up players I suggest that would be a win for the Dodgers.

themusicaddict

The Floundering Franchises of Mediocrity: Solutions For the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Knicks (Updated December 11th, 2013)

Hello,

For the record I'd like to acknowledge that I know relatively little about professional sports. I know some of the lingo but would be hard pressed to explain advanced principles to others. I know enough that if I was an owner of a professional sports team to hire someone who knows what they are doing to make the team related decisions. In spite of my lack of knowledge about pro sports I'm able to see when a team is bad. For instance, the Cowboys, who gave up points on Chicago's first 8 possessions are very bad. Yes, that's right the Cowboys couldn't stop the Bears from scoring. Dallas' best defense was when there were only 6 seconds in the game and Chicago kneeled down to end the game. It's a sign of a bad defense when a team doesn't force their opponent to punt an entire game.

If you are picking a sports franchise to cheer for, the worst franchise to be a fan of are those that have a rich, delusional and out of touch owner. Two such franchises are the Dallas Cowboys with Jerry Jones and the New York Knicks with James Dolan. Neither Dolan or Jones seem to have any self-awareness, neither seems to realize they are the main thing holding their own franchises back. For some reason it seems when one has a ton of money that they lose touch with reality. Is it because they start living in a bubble? Is it that they surround themselves with yes men? Is it because they've been so successful in past endeavors that they think they can't fail? I'm not sure what it is, but both owners exhibit many of the above traits.

One sign that both owners are out of touch with reality, they both think their bad teams can actually win a championship. Before the season Dolan stated that he expected the Knicks to win the NBA title this year. To which the rest of the NBA laughed. From ESPN's Ian Begley:

"In a recent meeting with the coaching staff and some team executives, Dolan said he believes the Knicks have enough talent to win a title and that he expects them to do so this season, league sources with knowledge of the owner's message during the meeting confirmed."

If it wasn't so pathetic, that delusion would be laughable. I've written previous blogs about these two dysfunctional franchises multiple times, especially the Cowboys. The NFL team I grew up cheering for has been destroyed by the stupidity, narcissism and lack of football IQ of Jerry Jones. Once again Jerry's stupidity came out Tuesday, he's still supporting defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin. What has Kiffin's defense done this year, not much. They are about 160 yards away from the NFL's all-time worst statistical defense- yes all-time worst. Of course instead of firing Kiffin like he should, Jones is supporting his fellow senior citizen today.

The following stats come from a Jean-Jacques Taylor article on ESPN Dallas:

"This defense has yielded at least 490 yards in a game five times this season. No other team has done it more than twice. The Cowboys have allowed an NFL record four 400-yard passers, and three times they have allowed 200 yards rushing. Chicago became the third team to score more than 40 points against defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin's unit."

From a Todd Archer column on ESPN Dallas: the Cowboys have allowed 426.8 yards per game, 6.2 yards per play, 24.9 first downs and 26.8 points per game. I'm going to break down these numbers a bit. To get a new first down a team must travel 10 yards and have four plays to do so. Thus Dallas's opponents are averaging a first down every second play. Think about that for a minute. While the Cowboys defense has been pathetic, their offense has been solid. The only reason the Cowboys have more wins than losses is because their offense is averaging 27.46 points per game. But still that offense leaves much to be desired.

Jerry's puppet coach Jason Garrett says about the defense ""We just gotta go back and work and fix it." It's 13 games into the season, how are the Cowboys going to "fix it"now? They haven't been able to fix it or even improve the defense throughout the season. What's going to change in the last 3 weeks of the regular season that would suddenly make this defense competent? That's right: not a damn thing. I expect an announcement in the next couple of days that Sean Lee is going to be out for the season after being injured again last night. At the least the Cowboys should insist he skip the rest of the season and Lee should seriously consider playing football ever again. Update: As of Wednesday morning it seems that Lee will be fine, but how much will be be able to play the rest of the season.

Now I've never been a Tony Romo fan and I highly doubt I'll ever be. He's failed too many times in big situations. There's a reason he only has one playoff win. Yes, I know a lot of that is because of the terrible team GM Jerry gives him. Again so not a Romo fan, but I say to those who criticize him for the loss last night clearly aren't paying attention. That's the kind of thinking that got the Cowboys into this mess in the first place. Jerry watched the game last night, saw his offense be out scored by 17 points and probably thought what the Cowboys needed to do is get a better offense. Obviously I don't know that, but it wouldn't surprise me. Jones has made so many head scratching decisions in his dictatorship.

However Monday's loss is all placed on the tissue thin Dallas "defense". A too old coach, using a scheme that's no longer effective in the NFL, with many defensive players that are afterthoughts. Jerry is all about getting the flashy player, rather than a bunch of effective, non-flashy, hard working players. Jones also favors the offense when drafting, neglecting the defense. Well you can see the result of that thinking last night.

The Dallas defense is the so-called Tampa 2 which Kiffin was one of the people who created it. Jon Gruden and Kiffin rode that defense to the Super Bowl a few years ago. But the Tampa 2's time has passed and no longer has much usefulness in the modern NFL. Even Gruden said on last night's Monday Night Football that the time for the Tampa 2 has passed.

How bad was the defense? Well Dallas' defense made the previously unheralded Josh McCown look like an All-Pro quarterback. McCown, who isn't even the Bears starter, was 27 of 36 for 348 yards. He also passed for 4 touchdowns and ran for another touchdown. I can't remember the exact stat, but it seems McCown last scored a rushing touchdown about 8 years ago.

Let's discuss the alleged head coach, Jason Garrett, the man obviously isn't cut out to be head coach. But what can you expect of a coach that has no head coaching experience or even full authority over his team? What can you expect of a coach who's hamstrung by his own owner who thinks he knows what he's doing. And even if Jones fires Garrett, will that make much of an effect? No, because Jones is just going to hire another puppet.

After facing a back up quarterback in McCown, it looks like Dallas will face back up quarterbacks in their next two games. It seems Aaron Rodgers won't be playing Sunday, which means the mediocre Matt Flynn will probably be playing. Then it was leaked this morning that Kirk Cousins will be the quarterback when the Cowboys visit the Redskins in about 1 1/2 weeks. Then Dallas closes out the season at home against the Eagles, a team they only allowed 3 points to in their first meeting. Although Nick Foles has been playing better of late than he did in that game. The Cowboys schedule is giving them all the breaks. If the Cowboys can't reach the playoffs in the weak NFC East, that shows truly how much Jones has ruined this team.

Solutions to solve the Cowboys' problems. The Cowboys need drastic action if they ever want to be relevant on the field ever again. I could care less how much money the team makes or how valuable it is, those aren't reasons why I cheer for the Cowboys. All I care about is hard and smart effort on the field and intelligence off the field. Even in the best of circumstances the Cowboys aren't going to win every game, but I sure would like to see them fight like hell to win every game. Gruden said the 'Boys weren't playing with urgency Monday night.

Jones has proven for over 17 years that he has no clue what he's doing. So the first drastic action Dallas fans must do is stop buying anything that has the Cowboys logo on it and stop attending games. We must do this until Jones becomes so miserable that he's forced to sell. Sadly that will probably take at least a few years, but it's better than being in this annual rut of mediocrity.

Once the stank of the Jones family is gone the Cowboys must hire a real GM and a real coach. No more deluded GM or puppet coaches, both must be true football men. They must work together to build a solid foundation in order to move forward. They must sign and draft the best players not the flashiest players- one of Jones' many weaknesses as a GM. In other words they must run the franchise almost completely opposite of the way it's being run now.

Monday night's game and the Lions-Eagles game on Sunday are two good examples of how the Super Bowl likely will be. Why did the NFL choose to place the Super Bowl in New York in the winter? (Of course due to the idiocy of corporate America, it's all about money.) As my kids would say "massive fail". I'm hoping the weather is absolutely brutal to expose how horrid of an idea the NFL had. The idea alone is bad enough, but the NFL actually acted on it. What the hell?

If the Super Bowl was played in a warm weather site, I think a Saints-Broncos Super Bowl would be a blast. But this season's Super Bowl is probably going to be more of a war of attrition than an aesthetic pleasure.

Then in New York I had to laugh as I followed the Knicks-Celtics game Sunday morning. The Knicks were completely outplayed in every facet of the game. New York fell to 5-14 following their 114-73 beating at the hands of the rebuilding Boston Celtics. With a score like that of course the game was played in Boston right? Nope the game was played at the supposed basketball mecca known as Madison Square Garden.

Let's look at some of the hilarious stats from that game. The NBA's greatest player, at least in his own mind, Carmelo Anthony was 5 for 15. The supposed great offensive player is only shooting 43% on the season. My favorite stat of the entire game is that that the Knicks were out scored by 40 points with Anthony on the floor. There goes Anthony's reputation as a defensive stopper. The Knicks starters only scored a total of 29 points, whereas the Celtics starters scored 89 points. Two Knicks starters, Iman Shumpert and Raymond Felton, didn't score the entire game!

It's no wonder the Knicks are so bad, they signed the terrible shooting Ron Arrest in the offseason, as apparently they didn't have enough bad shooters. Arrest is shooting 39% on the season. They also resigned the brick laying J.R. Smith to a multiple year contract- read that again. Smith was 1-5 on Sunday's game and is shooting 34% this season. Yes, these are professional basketball players!

The Knicks lost again Tuesday night and lost to another rebuilding team. The irony is that New York should be a rebuilding team, this steaming pile of crap isn't going anywhere. Not having a grasp of the true state of one's team is only one of the many bad things about being run by a delusional owner. The Knicks lost 109-94 to the Cavaliers, but they actually shot pretty well, 46%. And more good news, their starters actually scored 50 points in this game. Even Anthony had a good shooting game,  he easily surpassed the Meads Metric. That's something that doesn't happen often for so called "volume shooter". (That means you have to shoot a lot of shots to score a lot of points.) Then how did the Knicks lose by 15 points to a not very good team? That's what happens when you give up 57% shooting.

The Knicks will be featured in their game Wednesday against the Bulls. Both teams will be playing  their second game in back to back games. The Bulls will be coming off a game where they shot 37% and scored only 74 points Tuesday night. ESPN may want to reconsider showing what's sure to be an ugly game between the Eastern Conference's 8th placed team and their 14th placed team.

The Knicks need to blow up their atrocious scouting department. They must find scouts that will find the Knicks great players. Who are the Knicks players the scouts badly missed on? The first is Carmelo Anthony. He could be a great player, but he would have to completely change up his game. They also signed the poor shooting J. R. Smith- to a multi-year contract no less. Read that last sentence again. They also willingly signed the poor shooting and thug Ron Arrest. Smith is shooting 35% and Arrest is shooting 39% from the field. They also signed the what's the point? guard Raymond Felton. But the worst contract is the Amar'e Stoudemire's albatross. He actually has one of the better shooting percentages on the team at 53%, of course a lot of shots he takes are close to the basket.

Knicks fans are allegedly some of the smartest fans in the NBA. First of all I think that's bullshit, if they are so smart why are they supporting such a terribly run franchise? Why do they continue to put money into Dolan's pockets?

If you wanted to watch a real NBA game, then you should've watch Tuesday night's Heat-Pacers game. A hard fought game between two very good and evenly matched teams. It was a battle between two well run organizations and two very good teams. Unlike the Knicks and the Cowboys, those two organizations do things the right way. Both teams have General Managers that actually know what they are doing. And that has made all the difference.

themusicaddict

themusicaddict's Greatest CD's Of All-Time: Meat Loaf's "Bat Out of Hell 2: Back Into Hell"

Hello,

At this point Meat Loaf has released three "Bat Out Of Hell" CDs, I'm unaware if he plans to release any more. The first two "Bat Out Of Hell" CDs are classics, however the third one isn't. Perhaps Meat Loaf should stop at 3 "Bat Out Of Hell" CDs. One of my first greatest CDs blogs of all-time was for the original "Bat Out Of Hell". Of course you can't mention the music and success of Meat Loaf and not mention the amazing Jim Steinman. Steinman's fingerprints and genius are all over the "Bat Out of Hell" CDs.

Although Meat Loaf released other music after the first "Bat Out Of Hell" CD was released in 1977, it didn't have the same impact. Honestly Meat Loaf's career was on the wane and it looked like his career could be over. When he released new music it wasn't considered relevant to most music listeners. That's probably why after 16 years of diminishing returns he released "Bat Out Of Hell 2: Back Into Hell". His career once again went on the upswing. The first musical announcement that he was back was the extra long and soaring single "I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)".

Now 20 years later  Meat Loaf's career is again on the wane and has been for several years.  In 2006 he released "Bat of of Hell 3: The Monster Is Loose" to a bit of fanfare. It probably sold a few more CDs because of the trilogy it's part of, but in no way did it have a lasting impact. Of the three CDs it's the worst by far. In terms of classic songs, it came nowhere close to the quality of it's two predecessors.

But lovers of music will never forget his first two "Bat Out Of Hell" CDs. Here's the first "Bat Out Of Hell" CD for those of you who want a refresher:



According to Wikipedia, "Bat Out Of Hell" 2 sold over 20 million CDs. This entire CD is meant to be played on a great stereo at full blast! It's CDs and music like this that helps me love music so much!

Enjoy one of the greatest CD's of all-time. I couldn't find the full album, this is the best I can do:



1) "I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That): (Here's the song in it's absolute full glory). From the opening notes this album grabs you by the shirt and pulls you in. At 12:00 minutes long, is this version a bit indulgent? Yes! But does it kick your butt and rock your world? Most definitely yes.



Here's the video for a shortened version of the song (you can't play the full length version on the radio or MTV as that would cut into the amount of commercials they can broadcast.) :



2) "Life Is a Lemon and I Want My Money Back": If the mandate that Meat Loaf intended to kick your butt wasn't clear enough after the first song, the second song is "Life Is A Lemon (And I Want My Money Back)". A song I relate to more and more as I grow older, especially most of the following:

What about love?
It's defective! It's always breaking in half

What about sex?
It's defective! It's never built to really last

What about your family?
It's defective! All the batteries are shot

What about your friends?
It's defective! All the parts are out of stock

What about hope?
It's defective! It's corroded and decayed

What about faith?
It's defective! It's tattered and it's frayed

What about you gods?
They're defective! They forgot the warranty

What about your town?
It's defective! It's a dead-end street to me

What about your school?
It's defective! It's a pack of useless lies

What about your work?
It's defective! It's a crock and then you die

What about your childhood?
It's defective! It's dead and buried in the past

What about your future?
It's defective! And you can shove it up your ass
(Thanks to az.lyrics.com.)



Here's the kick ass version of "Life Is A Lemon (And I Want My Money Back)":



3) "Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through" (yes that's Angelina Jolie): If you haven't figured out yet that this is a rock and roll record yet, this song actually has rock and roll in the title. Are you getting it now?:



4) "It Just Won't Quit" (and either will the rock and roll):



5) "Out of the Frying Pan (And into the Fire):



Live:



6) "Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are":



Live:



7) "Wasted Youth":



8) "Everything Louder Than Everything Else":



Live:



9) "Good Girls Go To Heaven (Bad Girls Go Everywhere):



10) "Back Into Hell" (you know a CD rocks when even the instrumental tracks rock) :



11) "Lost Boys and Golden Girls":



Live:



What a great CD!

For those of you who are wondering about "Bat Out Of Hell 3", here it is in it's entirety:



Thanks Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman for all the great music. themusicaddict

themusicaddict's Greatest CDs Of All-Time: U2's "Achtung Baby"

Hello,

If someone were to ask you what the greatest CDs of U2 are, what would you say? For most people "Achtung Baby" probably wouldn't come to mind. For me the first U2 CD that would come to mind is 1987's "Joshua Tree", of course it a deserves classic status. Some might say 1988's "Rattle And Hum", which I wouldn't be able to argue with either. I'm sure you'd also get votes for 2000's "All That You Can't Believe" (which is another classic) and some old school U2 fans might also name "War" as a classic. 

But I do wonder how many people would think of "Achtung Baby". That's too bad as it's a definite musicaddict classic and it just might be U2's best CD. Listen to the CD again and read the lyrics before disagreeing with me.

Here's the entire "Achtung Baby" in all it's glory:

1) "Zoo Station":

2) "Even Better Than The Real Thing":

The live version with "Mysterious Ways"

3) "One" may have the greatest lyrics of any popular song ever, I especially love these lyrics:

Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without

I also like these lyrics as the song slowly builds:

Did I ask too much?
More than a lot.
You gave me nothing,
Now it's all I got
We're one
But we're not the same
Well we
Hurt each other
Then we do it again
You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love the higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't be holding on
To what you got
When all you got is hurt

Here's "One" with the lyrics:

4) "Until The End Of The World": This might be my favorite of all of U2's songs, not just on this CD. This song not only rocks, but the lyrics are great and an all around great song. (It also reminds me of someone from my past.)



Here's the live version:



5) "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses":



6) "So Cruel" (Although not one of U2's most well known songs, this is a pretty great song):



7) "The Fly":



Live:



8) "Mysterious Ways":



9) "Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World":



10) "Ultra Violet (Light My Way)":



11) "Acrobat" (A song that sadly is nowhere as well known as it should be):



Live:



12) "Love Is Blindness":

And from 2012's extremely heartbreaking "The Great Gatsby", here's Jack White's haunting cover of "Love Is Blindness":



I suggest that U2 is one of the most influential bands of the 80s. If that's true though why haven't more people made covers of their songs? Other than the above song I can't think of one U2 song that's been covered by someone else.

themusicaddict

themusicaddict's Things I'm Not Writing About Today, December 2nd, 2013: Thank Goodness The Governor Is Dead!

Hello,

The Cowboys are 7-5 and tied for the lead in the NFC East with the Eagles. Due to beating the Eagles in Philadelphia earlier in the season, the Cowboys hold the tiebreaker. Dallas is also 4-0 in the NFC Least Division, which gives them another leg up. As long as the Cowboys finish the season with the same record as the Eagles, the Cowboys should be going to their first playoffs in 4 years. Also as a division winner, they'll probably be hosting a playoff game on Wild Card weekend. All that good, so why is it that I have no faith in this Cowboys team?

It seems everything is set up for the Cowboys to reach the playoffs, which would have to be considered a success for this beleaguered franchise. This once great franchise who was been hamstrung by their own owner. But I do wonder if this is just another mirage? The Cowboys have a tendency to fade badly in December. Even if the Cowboys do get to the playoffs, how will they perform against either in all likelihood the 49ers, Saints or Panthers. Remember the Saints completely destroyed Dallas when they played earlier in the year. Or Dallas could either play a team that played in the Super Bowl last season, the 49ers, or the NFL's hottest team currently, the Panthers.

Will the Cowboys finally break out and reach the playoffs or will it be another year of frustration and disappointment? If the Cowboys don't make the playoffs, will someone finally be able to convince Jerruh that he needs to step down as GM? I doubt that will happen too, but it would be nice to see him make some real changes, not the cosmetic changes he usually makes. Of course when Jerruh makes a real decision it's usually not for the good of the Cowboys. Firing Rob Ryan and hiring Monte Kiffin as Defensive Coordinator has been exposed as a complete failure. The Cowboys have one of the worst defenses in the NFL. They perform adequately against the bad teams, but they get shredded by the great teams. Does anyone really want to see a repeat of the Cowboys-Saints game in the playoffs?

I wish someone could make Jerruh "uncomfortable" and force him out of the GM position.

I have to laugh at the Knicks 3-13 start, why does that surprise anyone? Ive long wondered why people love Carmelo Anthony's game. He's one dimensional and even that one dimension isn't that good. He's a prolific shooter, but not a great scorer. Sure he scores a lot of points, but he has to shoot a lot of shots to get those points. He rarely meets the Meads Metric, which is to score at least one point for every free throw and field goal attempted. On Sunday night he was relatively good on the Meads Metric. He took 25 total shots and scored 23 points. Although that 1 for 7 from the 3 pointer is an eyesore. He did have 10 rebounds, he has been a much better rebounder this season. Amazingly he had 3 assists, that was kind of counteracted by his 3 turnovers though.

Who else on that team would you want besides Tyson Chandler. If I was a NBA GM I'd say  no thanks to Ray Felton, Amare Stoudemire (one of the worst contracts ever signed) or any of their other players. If I was the Knicks I'd do what the Nuggets did and dump Anthony for as much as they can get for him. His game is too limited and he doesn't know how to play team basketball well enough to ever lead a team to a NBA title. I think it would be hilarious if he ended up on the Lakers next season. There's no way he and Kobe could coexist, those two on the same team might be the first two teammates to fight each other during the game.

Also I'll be cheering on my Jazz tonight when they go against the Rockets. Come on Jazz this would be a great time to get your fourth win of the season!

TV:

Last night was the mid-season finale for Season 4 of "The Walking Dead". This episode, titled "Too Far Gone" was okay. It was very similar to the Season 3 finale, other than there was actually action in this episode.

I have to laugh that these people who have all this training and shooting can't hit another human being when firing automatic weapons. But of course the young girl steps up, shoots someone in the head and saves Tyrese's life.

But if nothing else thank goodness The Governor is finally dead. I hated The Governor, the show died every time he was on the screen. The Season 3 finale would have been better if he had died then. A lot of people say that David Morrissey is a great actor, but I just don't see that. He's not a great actor in "The Walking Dead". If Morrissey was suppose to play that character in a very boring way, then he definitely is a great actor.

I've been enjoying the cult favorite "Firefly". I found the discs at my local library and have watched through all the episodes but the final three in the last few days. I can see why it's such a cult favorite, although I'm not sure why it was cancelled. It's very funny, has great characters and the incredibly gorgeous Morena Baccarin. Nathan Fillion is also a great actor and brings such likability to characters he plays. He's great as either Richard Castle, Malcolm Reynolds or in his brief appearance on "Lost".

Baccarin is easily one of the most beautiful women in the world:

Would someone please explain to me how Malcolm Reynolds can withstand such a gorgeous woman. I know her profession isn't the best and he mocks her for it. But she likes him and he's clearly attracted to her, why can't he pull the trigger. Also Inara, her character, is very sweet.

Also it was great to see the lovely Christina Hendricks, Joan from "Mad Men", on "Firefly". She's another amazingly beautiful woman, who actually looks better on "Firefly" than "Mad Men".

themusicaddict

Merry Christmas from themusicaddict: Some Of My Favorite Christmas Songs

Hello,

On this first of December, 2013 I just want to wish a very Merry Christmas to everyone. For this blog I'm presenting some of my favorite Christmas songs from all sorts of genres. As a practicing Mormon I very much desire the spirit of the holiday to be focused on the Christ in Christmas. But I won't give a long lecture. Although I do ask let's remember the reason for the season and let's treat everyone else a bit better than we usually do.

Now here are some of my favorite Christmas songs:

Mormon Tabernacle Choir's "Hallelujah Chorus":



Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker Suite":



"Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy"(Traditional):



Trans-Siberian Orchestra's "Queen of The Winter Night" (Live):



Honestly I could make a full blog just of my favorite TSO Christmas songs but I won't do that. If you like Christmas music with rock, check out TSO on Spotify or even Youtube. This is "Old City Bar":



I couldn't find Michael Crawford's version of "What A Strange Way To Save The World", which is my favorite version. If you are looking for a great Christmas CD, I strongly suggest Michael Crawford's Christmas CD, it's very solid. This version of "What A Strange Way To Save The World" is decent and I love the accompanying video.



Here's a medley of "Angels We Have Heard On High" and "Joy To The World" by Crawford.



Another great Christmas CD is Casting Crowns "Peace On Earth" and this is my favorite song on that excellent CD. "I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day":



One of our greatest vocalists of all-time, the amazing Whitney Houston, singing one of my favorite Christmas songs. Be prepared for goose bumps as you listen to Ms. Houston's amazing version of "Do You Hear What I Hear?":



Here's the full Whitney Houston Christmas CD "One Wish" for fellow Whitney fans:



From one amazing female vocalist to another amazing female vocalist, this is Mariah Carey's "O Holy Night":



Elvis Presley's "Santa Bring My Baby Back To Me":



One of the most fun Christmas songs is The Waitresses' "Christmas Wrapping":



I love this quirky song, Jeremy Fisher's "Snowflakes":



"What Child Is This" by the lovely Carrie Underwood:



Rascal Flatts "Mary Did You Know":



Merry Christmas,

themusicaddict