listen.

on how strange it is to be anything at all

Don't worry: I won't be making a habit of celebrating the 10- (or 5- or 7- or 25-) year anniversary of any good album ever released.  But Feb. 10th marked the 10th anniversary (golden birthday!) of Neutral Milk Hotel's In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, arguably one of the most important albums of the 90s, and unequivocally my own personal favorite album of all time. so please indulge me while I dive back into NMH's world for just a bit.

I highly recommend checking out Pitchfork's double-header of 1997 interviews with Jeff here. He talks about a lot of things, including the "I love you Jesus Christ" song which no one ever seems to get -- it invariably weirds someone out.  Here's part of what Jeff has to say about it:

The thing about me singing about Christ; I'm not saying "I love you Christianity." I'm not saying "I love all the fucked-up terrible shit that people have done in the name of God." And I'm not preaching belief in Christ. It's just expression. I'm just expressing something I might not even understand. It's a song of confusion, it's a song of hope, it's a song that says this whole world is a big dream-- and who knows what's gonna happen.

I also love this part of the interview:

Pitchfork: [After moving to the kitchen for some reason] Wow, you have a lot of melodicas lying around!
Jeff Mangum: Yeah.

Since a good many of you have heard the album (if you haven't, please go buy it now), I thought I could post a few "deep cuts", as iTunes grossly calls them -- some obscure-ish live tracks (is anything really obscure anymore with youtube and 18million musicblogs wherever you turn?) from Jeff Mangum and Neutral Milk Hotel.

Neutral Milk Hotel - Ferris Wheel on Fire
something about this song gets under my skin.  i don't know if it's the terrifying imagery of a ferris wheel falling apart while the crowd below cheers, or the way the catastrophe described is matched by an escalating chaos in the music, or that last line "now finally fading from view is everything we ever knew". a song about the ephemerality of our material surroundings.

Neutral Milk Hotel - Oh Sister
if you're familiar with the album, some of this song will seem familiar -- lyrically it overlaps particularly with Oh Comely and Holland 1945. not sure why it didn't end up on the album... i like it as much as a lot that did. some great lines, and a simple but terrific melody, all matched with Jeff's otherwordly caterwaul (which truly becomes a caterwaul at the end).

Neutral Milk Hotel - Engine
as he says, "a children's song". this was the b-side to Holland 1945.

Jeff Mangum - Little Birds
the only recording (as far as I know) of any song Jeff wrote after Aeroplane. an intensely haunting and creepy song about a little boy whose body becomes inhabited by little birds. it gives a glimpse of what NMH's next album might have been like, had they ever made one. i also feel compelled (as I would) to point out the unsettling gay subplot, sung from the boy's father's perspective:

did you know the burning hell it took your baby brother?
did you see how far he fell and how he made us suffer?
another boy in town at night he took him for his lover,
and deep in sin, they held each other.
so i took a hammer, nearly beat his little brains in,
knowing god in heaven would have never could forgive him.

I was actually going to stop there, but that's a pretty depressing note to end on, so here are a few more treats:

Jeff Mangum - I Love How You Love Me
An adorable Phil Spector cover from Jeff's solo Live at Jittery Joe's album (pardon the extended spoken intro for Engine, tacked at the end of this track)

And two touching video recordings of Jeff solo and with band performing the album's gorgeous title track, one of the most beautiful songs ever written about life, love and death.  The second video is from Dec. 31, 1998, one of the last shows they ever played.

xoB

covers for the weekend!

so i've really been digging this handful of covers lately.  they're somewhat all over the map musically, but i guess they're sort of all about longing.  in very different ways.  i always get obsessed with revisiting the originals when i get really into a good cover version, so i've included those as well.

HEAD OVER HEELS
what a f-ing good song. you know a good cover when it makes you hear a song in a completely different way, and this Samamidon version really cracked the Tears For Fears song open for me.  And now the T4F version is killing me too.  Some really hard-hitting lines throughout, but this section leading into the chorus really drives it home for me:

You keep your distance with a system of touch
And gentle persuasion
I'm lost in admiration could I need you this much
Oh, you're wasting my time
You're just wasting time
Something happens and I'm head over heels
I never find out till I'm head over heels

I never find out till I'm head over heels.  Seriously.

Samamidon - Head Over Heels
This fella has a new album "All is Well" coming out... omg MONDAY.  So... more on him soon.

Tears For Fears - Head Over Heels
hearing this song and revisiting whatever my emotional landscape was in the late 80s gives me a very bizarre feeling.

and here's the buh-zarre video from T4F, just for good measure.

IRREPLACEABLE
Beyoncé's version is, of course, pretty awesome.  But I rather like D's take... he seems to be playing against a surface reading of the lyrics which I think is a more compelling interpretation: whereas Beyoncé is empowered and on top of her shi*, i think D sounds a little more precarious, like deep down he fears his lady actually might NOT be so irreplaceable...

D - Irreplaceable

Beyoncé - Irreplaceable

SEXUAL HEALING
It's just such a good song, with one of the best opening lines ever: "Baby, I'm hot just like an oven, I need some lovin'."  And these three versions are so awesomely different; so differently awesome.  I couldn't possibly pick a favorite. Though I might say I'd have to choose Hot Chip's version as the soundtrack for the healing it describes. Possibly with the fellow on the right there. If that's an option. Thanks.

Hot Chip - Sexual Healing

Hot 8 Brass Band - Sexual Healing

Marvin Gaye - Sexual Healing

alright kiddos. enjoy and have a beautiful saturdaysunday.

xoBen

oh patsy!

every now and then i go through a phase where i want to listen to is patsy cline.

and for some reason i am in that phase right now.

there are many reasons to appreciate this woman.

for one, you can't really beat her in terms of songs about heartbreak.

and let's face it - whatever your feelings about contemporary country music are - old country is great.

and patsy cline is pretty amazing. her voice is unreal.  it's kind of a surreal sound -very theatrical -- as if it isn't from the late 1950's but rather something david lynch created for a movie.  and, like i said, if you're looking for songs about heart break and not being able to get over your man who left you - well, you have come to the right post!

get ready for it.

CLEARLY we must start with one of her iconic songs:

walkin after midnight, patsy cline
i can, and plan on, posting all the other covers of this song - because they're all great.  is it because we all know what a lonely walk at night looking for our lover is like? probably.
it's kind of a bizarre story either about a woman so lovesick and forlorn she has to walk at night due to her solitary insomnia or it's a song about a prostitute? either way it has universal appeal.

i fall to pieces, patsy cline
one of her biggest hits that features some of the dramatic heart ache i was talking about earlier: "i fall to pieces each time some one speaks your name." damn. that's intense. and i can judge because i've never been unable to see or be near someone because they couldn't return my love.

back in baby's arms, patsy cline
there is hope! i'm back where i belong! back in baby's arms!  i need a relationship in order to feel complete!

okay no let's take it up a notch, patsy:

these songs all get a little rockabilly twangy, and it's awesome - there's even a hint of yodeling.

they are currently the most played on my itunes.  (with the staples singer's i'll take you there coming in 4th)

seven lonely days, patsy clines

blue moon of kentucky, patsy cline
i love this song.

lovesick blues, patsy cline

here's a rather fascinating tidbit* i found whilst researching patsy cline:  both dottie west and june carter cash recall cline telling them about feeling a sense of impending doom in the months leading up to her death.  she began giving away personal possessions, writing out a will and arranging for care of her children.  she then died in a plane crash on march 3, 1963.  (march 3 is my birthday, so there's also that.)
isn't that interesting?  kind of creepy, kind of sad, sort of makes me want to write a play about it.

okay. before we go here's one more classic patsy tune that i love:

crazy, patsy cline.

have a good day!

*take that with a grain of salt: i found that on wikipedia. so it might not be true at all. (i kind of don't trust that website.)

My wild sweet love

So lately I've been really into the Jimmy Webb song "Do What You Gotta Do".  I've known the Nina Simone version for a long time, and was vaguely aware of Roberta Flack's.  But then I ran across two more recent versions, along with a Linda Ronstadt take from the early '90s! 

It's just such a heartbreaking song.  Sort of a more complex take on that old "If you love something, set it free" cliché, it's all about letting someone go do their thing and figure their shi* out, even though you still really love them.  And you know you might "never kiss those sweet lips again."  Sigh.

Nina's is by far the most robust of these takes.  I like how she doesn't bother herself with protocol, and just kicks off the song by jumping straight into the chorus.  Her delivery strikes me as pretty self-assured - not quite as vulnerable as one might expect from the lyrics.
Nina Simone - Do What You Gotta Do

As much as I love Nina's, I feel like Roberta's version comes a little closer to capturing the essence of the song.  Her confidence seems like it's on the verge of cracking, while assuring her man that he's doing what's right.  It's mostly quiet and pretty understated, but when she decides to wail she'll break your heart.  I love her slight variation of the melody on "come on back and see me when you can" near the end of the song.
Roberta Flack - Do What You Gotta Do

Linda's definitely sounds like the year in which it was released (1993), but despite our collective distaste for early 90s adult contemporary (i know i don't speak for everyone!), she's got some good things going here.  I like the contrast between the delicate breathlessness on the verses and the force on the choruses.  And when she holds out - for 10 full seconds - the "can" on "see me when you can" at the end, that's pretty awesome.  I'm not crazy about the backup vocals or the instrumental arrangement, but you can't really blame her.  It was '93!
Linda Ronstadt - Do What You Gotta Do

Running across this Meg Baird version is what kicked off my whole obsession with this song.  Meg Baird is in the (awesome) band Espers, but she released a solo album last year called Dear Companion with this track.  Totally different from the versions above, she makes it a lilting acoustic folk ballad. Gorgeous.
Meg Baird - Do What You Gotta Do

And finally, a man!  Okkervil River does a bang-up job on this song.  I particularly love that frontman Will Sheff doesn't change the gender in the "girl like me" line at the beginning.  I think this might be the most emotionally vulnerable vocal performance of all these. I love it.
Okkervil River - Do What You Gotta Do

xoben

ps - Geo and Amanda and Ricky and I are seeing Mavis Staples tonight at BAM!  In her honor, I'll leave one more track from her.  I don't think she ever recorded DWYGD, so... here's my favorite track of hers.
Mavis Staples - How Many Times

A Christmas Mix from listen.

Listeners: Geo. Ben.
Geo and Ben: Hm?
L: Where have you been?
G&B: What are you talking about?
L: You haven't posted in, like, three weeks.
G&B: Oh. About that...
L: No, it doesn't matter. It's fine. I know you guys both have really unsatisfying, time-consuming dayjobs.
G&B: ...
L: But I'm home for the holidays right now, and... my mom just keeps playing the Kenny G and Michael Bolton Christmas albums on repeat.
G&B: Oh my god.
L: So... maybe you could hook me up with some non-gag-inducing christmas tunes.
G&B: You got it.  Let's start with some tunes from the old masters.

Ella Fitzgerald - Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Ella Fitzgerald - Sleigh Ride
Ella Fitzgerald - Winter Wonderland
Aretha Franklin - Blue Holiday
Elvis Presley - Blue Christmas
Elvis Presley - Silent Night
Otis Redding - Merry Christmas, Baby
Otis Redding - White Christmas
David Bowie and Bing Crosby - Little Drummer Boy
James Brown - Funky Christmas
James Brown - Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto
The Jackson 5 - Up on the Housetop
Stevie Wonder - One Little Christmas Tree
Stevie Wonder - What Christmas Means to Me
Donny Hathaway - This Christmas
Judy Garland - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

And moving along to some more recent interpretations of the classics, along with some original tunes to add to the catalog.  We'll start with the obligatory block from old Sufjan.

Sufjan Stevens - Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming
Sufjan Stevens - O Come O Come Emmanuel
Sufjan Stevens - Amazing Grace
Sufjan Stevens - That was the Worst Christmas Ever!
Chris Garneau - Christmas Song
The Innocence Mission - Little Town of Bethlehem
Aimee Mann - I'll be Home for Christmas
Low - Just Like Christmas
Low - If You Were Born Today
Low - Silent Night
Pedro The Lion - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Belle & Sebastian - O Come O Come Emmanuel
Belle & Sebastian - O Little Town of Bethlehem
Clem Snide - Joy to the World
Tracy Chapman - O Holy Night
Feist - Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming

AND!  If you want to download the whole shebang in one fell swoop, just go HERE (part 1) and HERE (part 2).  So I guess that's actually two fell swoops. sorry.  [but beware!  These links expire Dec. 29th.]

Merry Christmas from listen.

and stay tuned for some year-end lists in the next week or so.

xo,
ben

she works hard for her money

guys. work is really getting in the way of my blogging career.  it's verging on the ridiculous.  the past few weeks in particular have taken a lot out of me, and I've hardly found the time to rigorously curate daily, or even weekly, helpings of fresh tracks for the likes of you all. thank god geo's around to keep it real.

but today i thought we could all commiserate over our shared hatred for our day jobs by way of some songs about ... hating our day jobs.

we'll start with some old songs from Quasi, who hail from Portland, Oregon, where some of us boys may or may not be trekking to in the new year.  Quasi is Sam Coomes and Janet Weiss, they used to be married, and then they got divorced, but they're still in a band together.  Janet also was the drumming third of Sleater-Kinney before they went on indefinite hiatus.  Both of these songs are from the late '90s:

quasi, the happy prole

um, "everyday, we earn our meager pay, but it takes its toll, to play the happy prole."  yes, yes it does.

quasi, smile

that one's not so explicitly about work, but it is about feeling sorry for yourself. which i usually do, when i'm at work. or going to work. or leaving work.

now for some smiths.

the smiths, frankly mr shankly

this position i've held, it pays my way, and it corrodes my soul.

the smiths, work is a four letter word

this is a cover of a song originally performed by Cilla Black (think along the same lines as Petula Clark).  I tried to find the original version but no dice.

and a lovely song from our favorite Glaswegians about a man who's put up with enough bullshi* at work.

belle and sebastian, take your carriage clock and shove it

so good.

and to conclude, probably the best song ever written about white collar malaise. she ain't no dalai lama...

dolly parton, 9 to 5

and on this note, I leave you:

 

go. run free. enjoy your weekend before you have to be back in that office chair monday morning.

(ps - if you haven't been to someecards.com yet, go now and send at least 5 inappropriate ecards to your friends and exes.)

xoben

Blue Monday* redux

Before we begin – let me say that I am quite a happy fellow lately.

It’s just this rain.

These gray skies and wet sidewalks.

It just begs me to fall down the (aforementioned) rabbit hole of somber folk and blues.

And fall I do – gladly.

Blues run the game, Jackson C Frank

It doesn’t get much sadder than this man’s life. And this song is just so gorgeous.

"wherever you go, the blues are all the same."

Basically his school furnace blew up – covering his adolescent body in burns, he started playing the guitar, moved to new york, and was drawn into the folk coffee house scene of Greenwich village  - then he came into money through an insurance settlement – and moved to London, released an album – which never caught on in the US – his money ran out so he had to go back to nyc and fell into a deep depression and was then cripple with stage fright.
Broke, he lived on the streets, eventually he grew very unhealthy and became a ward of the state.
A fan found him in a housing project in the Bronx and took him to woodstock, ny where he started to sing and write songs again. he died in 1999.  i mean, the man has a right to sing the blues.

fountains of sorrow, joan baez
the title says it all.  If this isn’t an evening-commute-ipod-on-repeat kinda song – I don’t know what is.

both sides, now – joni mitchell
My good friend rebecita brought this song into my life.  And shortly after being introduced to it i listened to it whilst smokin grass – and my body almost shut down. i don't listen to joni stoned anymore.  talk about a coming of age song. 

court and spark – joni mitchell
my dear friend/collaborator jesica brought this album into my life. And I am ever so grateful.

that’s a nice trend – wonderful woman bringing the wonderful joni Mitchell into my life.

Ne Me Quitte Pa, jaques brel
literlally translated it means – do not leave me – but the English version of the song is called IF YOU GO AWAY. which works – but I think do not leave me is more tragic – it’s really desperate. – especially repeated at the end.  my french pen pal, lo, sent this to me. he's filled my ipod with a lot of great music -- expect a paris-post soon...

-----------------

my knowledge of classic rock and musical tastes were heavily defined by my parents - my mom's peter, paul and mary and donovan albums (not to mention linda ronstadt and sinatra) - my dad always listening to jethro tull and the stones (and some patsy cline or hendrix) -our family taking a drive while listening to loggins and messina or gordon lightfoot.   one artist they never listened to all that much was neil young, i am not sure why - they just didn't; or they did - but i don't remember it.  as i've grown, and my tastes have matured into my own, i've folded all sorts of new genres and artists into the mix.  for whatever reason, neil young never found it's way into my music library. then this cute guy, named sean, started playing him for me -- and i am really digging it.

one day, sean and i were on our way to the MoMA and we wandered down into the york street station to hop on the F.  the platform was empty - save for one dude waiting for the train and a subway musician (an "official" one, with the MTA sign, etc.) sitting on the bench - singing harvest moon. he was really good - and the york station is so unique and the song is so beautiful - it was like a scene out of some less polished looking wes anderson movie. definitely a moment when i was very happy to be living in this city.

harvest moon, neil young

have i posted this song:

ticket to ride, the carpenters

i mean, really? just the saddest cover of this song ever, ever, EVER. if a sadder one exists - i shan't listen to it. my head might implode.  "i think i'm gonna be sad, i think it's today."  mateo, for better or worse, emailed it to me one day - and i really appreciate it.

and what somber rabbit hole would be complete without a little indigo girls?

ghost, indigo girls.

"And the mississippis mighty
But it starts in minnesota
At a place that you could walk across
With five steps down
And I guess thats how you started
Like a pinprick to my heart
But at this point you rush right through me
And I start to drown"

enough said.

 

and for good measure - here's the wonderful rosemary clooney:
blues in the night, rosemary clooney

i love music. 

to prove i don't ONLY listen to sad music -- i'll post happy stuff tomorrow.

enjoy

g

*yes, it's tuesday. i was supposed to post this yesterday - but, you know, sometimes you just don't get around to it....

 

Día de los Muertos

¡Feliz Día de los Muertos muchachos!

what a wonderful holiday

really any holiday that would make building something like this

part of the rituals of the holiday - is a holiday for me.

it's also nice to celebrate life and honor those that have died.
plus you get to eat sugar skulls.
did i mention the skeleton dioramas that everyone makes?
it's also a joyous holiday (well, according to wikipedia).
i should again mention skeleton dioramas.

anyway - today's post is in honor of the day of the dead.
sort of.... or rather INSPIRED by.

i said to derek this morning: what songs should i post for the day of the dead?
and without blinking an eye he said: Marianne Faithfull's The Ballad of Lucy Jordan.

so here it is:
The Ballad of Lucy Jordan, Marriane Faithfull

he also shared this Calexico Vocal Mix of the Goldfrapp song HUMAN

human (calexico vocal mix), goldfrapp

me gusta.

i think this Johnny Cash song is quite day of the dead as well
from the AMAZING mariachi-like trumpets to the wonderful carnival that is falling in love -- it is such a great song.
ring of fire, johnny cash

the taste of love is sweet, when hearts like ours meet
i fell for you like a child
ooooh, but the fire went wild.

i fell into a burning ring of fire
i went down, down, down and the flames went higher.
and it burns, burns, burns, the ring of fire.


cat stevens. oh cat.  this is another one of mom's albums from my childhood.  i just couldn't get enough of teaser and the firecat when i was wee lad.
tuesday's dead, cat stevens

the other woman it brought to mind was Kate Bush.
now, i don't appreciate her as much as i should (but derek has supplied me with all the essential tracks)

and she also sings about ghost loving (that's what that novel is about right?)

wuthering heights, kate bush

has everyone heard of the puppini sisters? they sing andrew's sisters-like close 3 part harmony.  they do a lot of covers, and i DIG THEM, A LOT.
here's their version of this song:

wuthering heights, the puppini sisters.

do you not know why you should appreciate kate bush?
well. i'll let my friend micah break it down for you:
-----------------------------------------
Dear Geo and Listeners:

Kate Bush is, quite simply, the mother of all.

Kate Bush's works are the grand harbinger of the works of any female
(and even male) artist working in pop music today.

Even Tricky says that he carries a copy of her debut album "The Kick
Inside" EVERYWHERE he goes and has bought dozens of copies because he
scatters them all over the globe. Seriously, TRICKY himself cops to
this.

And you know who wouldn't exist without Kate? Tori Amos. Yep.
Goldfrapp. You bet. BJÖRK. Darn right, I went there.

Kate's genius goes so far, that she was only able to tour ONCE and
then never did it again. That's an ARTIST. And, even without touring,
her single "Hounds Of Love" knocked Madonna's "Like A Virgin" out of
the number one spot on the UK charts. Holy cow.

Right now. No, I mean it. RIGHT NOW, get your hands on the following
ESSENTIAL tracks:
"Wuthering Heights"  (you have this now!)
"Babooshka"  (now you have two!)

"The Infant Kiss"
"The Wedding List"
"Hounds Of Love"
"Cloudbusting"
"Army Dreamers"
"Running Up That Hill"
"This Woman's Work" (No, not the Maxwell version. Come on.)
"Wow"
"There Goes A Tenner"
"Rubberband Girl"

I'll be looking forward to the thank-you notes.

Love,
Micah!
-------------------------------
well, that's enough music for any esqueleto, no?

happy day of the dead!
g

covers for friday

boy and girls.

this heat and humidity? sigh.

you know what we need?

COVERS!!!

am i right, or am i RIGHT?

(this may or may not be because i just keep listen.ing to the songs from the melancholia post and all the new amazing barbra that was brought into my life...)

anyway. put your heart on your sleeve and get ready to FEEL.

hearts and bones, jessica molasky
the AMAZING jonathan schwartz brought this AMAZING song into my life on his AMAZING saturday/sunday show on wnyc.  he rocks and so does jessica molasky.  i wish mr. schwartz was my uncle - and we could meet up for lunch - or go see a concert somewhere every once and a while.  i digress: he said, and i agree, that not many people can cover paul simon - for most people can't convey all the emotion needed for his songs  - except ms. molasky and this cover.
tonight: pour a glass of wine, dim the lights and put this song on repeat. 
"why won't you love me for who i am, where i am?
that's not the way the world is baby..."

LIFE!

god only knows, john pizzarelli
coincidentally - ms. molasky's husband (life partner? not sure what their technical definition is) and this past may they were at the OAK ROOM. alas tickets were about $70 with a two drink minimum.... if they ever read this - you guys are amazing and if you feel like doing a show at pete's candy store in williamsburg - it would be packed. and i would be the happiest boy in the world. 

and this song? gorgeous.

hey jude, ella fitzgerald
goddammit. jordan actually threatened to hit ella in the mouth for singing this amazing cover. what a song. let her into your heart jude. do it. for ella.

a case of you, diana krall
i could drink a case of you and still be on my feet. oh joni. my life will not be complete until i give joni (and now diana) a hug.

angel of the morning, nina simone
less of a cover and more of a standard.
i'm old enough to face the dawn.
the most poetic walkin-home-after-a-hook-up song ever. period.

and for good measure - here is the feist video for my moon, my man:

have a good friday!

g

sing you sinners!

hey hey kiddos!
have you all heard about erin mckeown? 
after you read this post and listen -- you will have heard. (i LOVE the future perfect!)
how did we find out about her?

well.... several months ago my friend dan s. gave me a copy of PASTE magazine
paste comes with a cd of all these tracks of various artists (i think it is an emusic tie in... no?)
anyway! the one track was:

melody, erin mckeown.

and i dug it. emailed it to ben.  times passes....

a week or two ago ben emails me some more erin mckeown.
i dig it even more.

if you a viper, erin mckeon

(i love it when people sing about smokin grass!)

he tells me to go to emusic and buy her new album LAFAYETTE.
(which is a live recording of her Joe's Pub show. get it? Lafayette? yeah, it took me a few minutes)

anyway - i am sharing a few tracks and encouraging all to go to emusic and get SING YOU SINNERS or LAFAYETTE or any of the other albums.  it's folksy - country - type music with a little love for the american songbook/songs popular during the vaudville era.  her voice is great - quiet at first - then she kicks it into gear with a full sound.   i like troubadours, and she reminds me of one.

from lafayette

slung-lo

blackbirds

(this isn't bye bye blackbird. so chill out)

how cute is she????

----------------
also. yesterday was coming out day! did you shame your closeted friends?

just kidding! did you call your fancy little cousin/nephew that loves unicorns and/or your niece that is most likely a lesbian just to tell them you love them?  here is what bush's new abstinence campaign says about a kid coming out....
good to know money is being put to that as opposed to an HPV vaccine for all teenage girls or education that would actually do some good.  here's what the hater had to say.

-----
AWARD TIME
and awards for worst movie tag line goes to......

BEE MOVIE with HONEY JUST GOT FUNNY!
(applause)


i mean. what the fuck are you talking about?
if there is one thing i have been waiting for it's honey to finally get funny.
is this movie about honey FINALLY loosening up? like some sort of along came polly but with a pot of honey instead of ben stiller? or is it about a bee falling in love with renee z?
either way: i'm not seeing it AND someone was, most likely paid a lot of $$$ for that sentence. sigh.

other tag lines they should have used:
bees say the darndest things!

don't worry about all those bees dying. as you can see here they are alive and CRAZY!

pretend we're pixar.

------

and the award for THE STUPIDEST AND  MOST ANNOYING AD CAMPAIGN CURRENTLY CLOGGING OUR SUBWAY (the SAMACCCOG pronounced SAM-a-kog or THE SAMMY for folks in the biz)

goes to our favorite waste of paper/resources: PAGE 6!
with their six = sex campaign.

so hard to find images of all 300 CLEVER CLEVER CLEVER variations....BUT my personal faves are:

Feeling SIXy?
SIX Therapy
and
Put More SIX in your sunday

DAMMIT! WE GET IT! you swith out the i for an e and it is the word sex. are you 8?
does saying the word SEX make you giggle?

i picture waking up on a sunday morning...thinking...damn, i sure do feel SIXy...i wonder what i could...
BAM! all the sudden my brain flashes image after image of the horrible ad campaign and i am running down the street to the deli to buy my very own NY POST (i don't have to buy the magazine becomes it comes FREE with the paper.  which is like saying the Metro section comes free with the NY TIMES. i still have to buy the fucker to get it....so....it isn't...free...the price just isn't changing...)

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and finally:

did you all hear about 88 yr old Doris Lessing and the Nobel Prize for Lit?

the press pounced on her when as she was getting out of a cab with her groceries asking her about winning - she hadn't even heard. HA! it's a funny clip.

that website calls her a bitch -- but i don't think she was that nasty. she's just an old lady.

i LOVE it when she says: "Look, I've won every award in europe - every bloody one - so this is..delightful."

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if you made it this far:

onion radio news is funny!

have a good weekend!
geo