The Ballad of the Green Beret

In the early 1970's, when acid rock and glam rock were top on the radio, this straight-forward song by Staff Seargent Barry Sadler was an unusual hit.  I loved this song when I was around five or six.  It's a good song to remind us what Memorial Day is all about.

Tubthumping

This is one of my favorite songs from the 90's, Chumbawamba's "Tubthumping."  What does "tubthumping" mean?  I have no idea.  But I figure this is a good time to tell you two, Katherine and Ethan, the secret of life.  Ready?  Here it is.  Whenever you fall, get back up and keep going.  Whenever someone pushes you down or trips you, get back up, and keep going on.  That's it.  That's the secret of life.  With that said, enjoy this song. 

Centerfield

This one's for you Ethan.  It's spring time... you know what that means. 

No Doubt End of the World

Here's one you'll remember Cheri.  This is one of my favorite Orange County bands, no doubt, covering a song that was a hit when you were in high school.  This live version was sung just after midnight of the New Year's Party ringing in the New Millennium from 1999 to 2000.  See how many of the words you still remember. 

Who's On First

This isn't a song, but it's for you Ethan.  This was Grandpa Tom's favorite comedy bit of all time.  Since baseball is your life, you may have seen this before.  The comedians are Abbott and Costello, a comedy team from the 1940's and 50's I think.  They were in a lot of funny movies back then, and this bit is from one of those movies.  Grandpa Tom first showed me this bit when I was about your age Ethan, and way back in those olden days, we didn't have DVR's, Netflix, or even a VCR.  So when the movie was playing on TV, Grandpa would yell, "Steve! Hurry up, 'Who's on First' is going to be on," and I'd run to the TV to watch it with him.  He knew every word of this bit.  So anytime you're watching this, it's not only funny, but it's kind of like hanging out with grandpa, too. 

A Little Something Refreshing

Here's another fun ska song from the early 1990's.  If the woman stuffing her face above looks familiar, that's because it's Orange County girl Gwen Stefani.  Two or three years before they became famous, when they were still playing small clubs and parties, No Doubt recorded this song about pigging out.  I know the cheerleaders have a trip this weekend, so maybe they'll have some fun with this song.  Enjoy. 

Save Ferris Under 21

This song is for Katherine.  When you're in high school, and the early years of college, there are a lot of clubs and local shows you can't get into.  That's what this song is all about.  Save Ferris is a ska band from the early 90's.  What's ska?  It's a combination of reggae music and punk rock, sometimes with a little bit of swing in it.  For a while, Save Ferris and No Doubt, another ska band from Southern California, were duking it out to see who would be more famous.  No Doubt won, and their singer, Gwen Stefani, is now a household name.  But Save Ferris was a great band as well, and their singer, Monique Powell belted out some great and energetic tunes back then.  Enjoy.

The Birth of Rap and Hip Hop

OK kids, time for a history lesson in music.  I know you guys like rap and hip hop.  But what you call rap today actually started in about 1980 with this song, "Rapper's Delight," by the Sugarhill Gang.  At that time, disco was still really popular.  Disco was short for discotecque, which were the dance clubs of that time.  Women wore lots of sparkles and sequins, and the men had tight pants.  The dancing was far different than what we see today.  As far away as it seems from today's hip hop, this song spread the idea of rapping lyrics instead of singing them, and that idea caught on with the young, poor kids in the street.  Rap as we know it was born.  Once again, the African-American community changed music for the rest of the world.

Hey Mickey

Katherine, this one's for you.  This is the really weird video to Tony Basil's song "Hey Mickey" in the early 80's.  Tony was a high school cheerleader, and this song was inspired by her cheer experience.  believe it or not, this was a huge hit when it came out.

Pretty Fly For A White Guy

I love this song.  The Offspring is one of my favorite punk bands, from Huntington Beach, where I used to live.  I had a few beers with the band once, a couple years before they became famous.  Anyhow, this song, from the late 90's, is making fun of white kids who try to act gangsta.  There are a few good white rappers, like the Beastie Boys, Eminem, and even my skateboarder friend Chris Gentry.  But when white kids from the suburbs try to pretend they're from the 'hood, it just looks stupid.  That's what this song is all about.  There's nothing wrong with listening to rap/hip hop, but just don't try to be something you're not. 

Kids in America

I was a little younger than my niece is now when this song came out.  Somehow in the early 1980's synthesizers and punk rock merged into a form of pop called New Wave.  The funny thing is that the guys in this video have haircuts that would look pretty normal today.  I wasn't a big New Wave fan, but always liked this song.   

What I Like About You

A little over a month ago, I decided to draw pictures for my niece and nephew for Christmas.  My nephew Ethan is a big Boston Red Sox fan, so I knew he'd like a pic of one of his favorite baseball players.  My niece Katherine is 16, and I wasn't sure what she would like.  So I asked my sister (her mom) who her favorite singers or performers were.  The answer came back: Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber.  I thought, "Really?  Kids today have the whole internet, they don'y even have to pay for music, and her favorites are the biggest pop stars?"  My next thought was that I need to introduce my niece and nephew to some new music.  Well, actually to some old music that's new to them.  If they like it, great.  If not, that's OK, too. 

So that's what this blog is about, showing a bunch of my favorite music to my niece and nephew, and anyone else interested, to broaden their musical horizons a bit.  Since pop music is their favorite right now, I thought a poppy tune like The Romantics "What I Like About You" is a good place to start.  Enjoy.