So what to write about. Philip Galanes has another Tables for Three up in the Style Section of the New York Times, but his guests are Gayle King and Mika Brzezinski, and since King didn't mention Oprah until she was asked, there's not really anything I can get out of it. It's the end of the month anyhow, which means a music diary, but I have now confused myself SO thoroughly on those, who or what to feature? I've done everyone I wanted to do from the Monterey Pop Festival, plus Love and the Doors, and I've discussed the Rolling Stones, and I've made some forays into disco, but some of the historical stuff I use to introduce Disco is just SO bad that, well . . . disco is just going to wait a little longer.
So we're into the 70s. I've been listening to a lot of stuff on my mp3 player (no, not an iPod and until Virgin Mobile sends me an SD card for my replacement phone, not on my cell either - ironic, they sent me a phone because I couldn't do data and now I can't text on it) and I like a lot of David Bowie's songs. Interesting thing is that Rolling Stone did a readers' poll on the ten top Bowie songs and NONE of them are among my top ten for him. So, I suppose, a carefully curated collection of what I think is David Bowie's best work.
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David Robert Jones was born in Brixton January 7, 1947, and he's been through a LOT since then as a singer/songwriter. It's safe to say that he's one of the most influential figures in the history of rock and roll, and you can find a full, honest bio here at his website.. He cut his first hit single in 1969, and his first album in 1971. EVERYTHING on the Rolling Stone list is from this earlier period, but you know about my eccentricities. I pick up on Bowie at the very end of the Ziggy Stardust glam phase, from the 1973 album Aladdin Sane, with a song about maybe Iggy Pop's memory of growing up in Detroit or about the Detroit riots of 1967. Anyhow, we're going there for NN 14.
Next, from the second album he recorded in Philadelphia, Young Americans, the last song on the album. His first #1 hit in the United States, co-written by John Lennon. Not quite in the Thin White Duke phase yet, although in this live performance from 1978, well, yes.
Then, yes, the title cut of Station to Station, his first Thin White Duke album. Here, we understand exactly who Bowie is as an artist. Wikipedia says it has gnostic elements, just like my favorite song by Love, 7 and 7 Is is supposed to have. Whatever. Just lots of good stuff. It's long. Stay with it.
From the 1980 album, Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) a music video. You wouldn't expect any less from David Bowie, would you?
And finally, from the 1983 album Let's Dance, produced by Nile Rodgers (I really ACTIVELY don't like some of the songs on this album), a song he composed for the movies, rearranged. Music by Giorgio Moroder, who wrote all of Donna Summer's best stuff. Another music video, and a creepy music video at that.
Those are my favorites, at least right now.
On another note, the two polls I did about which course I should give you as I'm teaching it in my History for Kossacks diaries this fall came out in the 51-49 range so I figured I should use an even more basic rule to decide: what's easier for me, both in terms of my knowledge base and in terms of what I'll be able to write most easily on Friday. Accordingly, History of California it is, mostly because I HAVE the beginnings of my introductory diary for it in my draft file (where it has been since last December). So next Saturday morning look for Progressives You Should Know: Carey McWilliams, because Wednesday I'm teaching him, Joan Didion and Kevin Starr, all of whom who will be my students' main sources for information this semester.
I wonder what this semester will be like. Last semester, Mon-Wed, 9 units. This semester, Mon-Thurs, 16, and maybe 19, units. You'll know all about it as I experience it. At this point I KNOW I won't be here Tuesdays until mid December, but I think that's the only night that will be affected. I'll try to write once a week.
And now for the stuff that makes this Top Comments:
TOP COMMENTS, August 25, 2013: Thanks to tonight's Top Comments contributors! Let us hear from YOU when you find that proficient comment.
From reginahny:
Thomasina made a moving tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. AND an important point about communication in Ray Pensador's latest NSA diary.
From
steveningen:
In Meteor Blades's excellent tribute diary John Lewis's speech at the 1963 March on Washington, as delivered (and an unredacted version), Eric Nelson embellished it beautifully with this comment.
From
Youffraita:
Dumbo's comment about his adolescent obsession with drawing in Ellid's Books So Bad They're Good diary is just classic.
From
your intrepid diarist:
SixSixSix flagged James Hepburn's comment that Keith Alexander's spying is worse than Nixon's (invoking David Sirota) in Ray Pensador's latest NSA diary
Kestrel flagged skillet's pithy comment in her own diary, "What is the point of republicans?"
TOP MOJO, August 24, 2013 (excluding Tip Jars and first comments):
1) 867-5309 by jayden — 109
2) Raw Story posting by xxdr zombiexx — 110
3) Cute, but America will never accept by Crashing Vor — 106
4) Emptywheel by LieparDestin — 106
5) It's come to this? by anastasia p — 101
6) Agree by Dallasdoc — 90
7) That'll work well by pajoly — 83
8) Hmmmm.... by Lilyvt — 85
9) Remember When Someone Calculated That If He'd by Gooserock — 81
10) And just like Ted Cruz by blue aardvark — 76
11) Exellent post. by TomP — 76
12) Thank you, Rena!!! by asimbagirl — 75
13) Slowly, But Surely by JekyllnHyde — 74
14) You aren't suggesting...... by CwV — 74
15) Such bullshit. by GustavMahler — 75
16) Why not boycott all Wild Wings until there is a by shigeru — 74
17) In the absence of information caused by secrecy by Dallasdoc — 71
18) yeah--I got the same run-around yesterday by bevenro — 70
19) What struck me was they arrived mobhanded by peterfallow — 70
20) In PA the liquor control board by Dartagnan — 69
21) It's cost-effective by SouthernLiberalinMD — 69
22) Trump and entitlement by Dave in Northridge — 68
23) Part of the pro-gun strategy by Hugh Jim Bissell — 68
24) Forget black - let's talk about green by xxdr zombiexx — 69
25) It is also illegal under the Civil Rights Act by Mimikatz — 65
26) Let's hope his call is answered by Dallasdoc — 62
27) This ^^ by joanneleon — 62
28) From the paper itself: by LieparDestin — 61
29) It's not necessarily stupidity. by xxdr zombiexx — 60
30) That's why Manning and Snowden have been by RFK Lives — 60
31) I worked on 8 inch howitzers. by SpecialKinFlag — 60
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TOP PHOTOS, August 24, 2013: Enjoy jotter's wonderful PictureQuilt below. Just click on the picture and it will magically take you to the comment that features that photo. Have fun, Kossacks!