I suddenly have a bunch of links to share. Not all of them are fully cooked, but I’ll go ahead and serve up what has been simmering for awhile.
As I get older I realize how hard it is to do big lists like those in the next two links. I’m way overdue for updating my Favorite Songs of All Time list but it seems like a much more daunting task than it did two years ago. I just keep listening to more-and-more music and it’s hard to keep track of all the new stuff and give the old stuff its proper credit. I can’t imagine putting together a truly large list like either of these.
The 100 Best TV Episodes of the Century
I don’t watch a ton of TV so some of this is lost on me, but it was still fun to scroll through. I would argue for a few episodes to either be higher, or replaced by others in their series.
The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time
This one is more up my alley. I think it is interesting how these lists have changed in my life. Probably even 20 years ago you would see very little hip hop. Maybe a Public Enemy album and/or The Chronic. But nothing like the representation the genre has now. It’s tough to argue with the number one choice, mostly because it is in my Top Five list.
A highly scientific survey confirms what we all knew.
Candid Coaches: Which arenas boast the best home-court environments in college basketball?
“We played there, kept it a game, were in the game and then it turned at halftime and the crowd took over more than Kansas did. They had a significant impact on the outcome of that game and I was like, ‘Holy s—, this is all f—— up.’ We rolled up to the gym and we get there an hour and a half early and it’s cold, freezing, snow on the ground. And they’re all out there, a mile-long line to get into the arena. And we’re like, ‘Oh, f—.’”
Since I’m obligated to share any news about the Voyager probes, there has been an update on one of them.
NASA fixed the glitch that caused Voyager 1 to send back jumbled data
A good profile of Michael Mann, who has made some amazing movies and TV over his career. My hold request for his Heat 2 just came in, so I’m looking forward to getting to it next week.
Mann’s artistic signature is to establish a core of painstaking realism, then create around it a heightened visual and emotional atmosphere that can edge, at times, into a kind of hallucinatory, macho camp.
I think the whole retro shoe thing is cool, but other than helping L to buy a couple pairs, I’ve never jumped into that game. These are tempting me, though.
The Nike Mac Attack Is Finally Coming Back
If there is a given in sports it is that the powers that control each sport will always pick the method of maximizing revenue that creates the least amount of joy for the fans. With the college football playoff set to be revamped – again – Kevin Clark offers a terrific plan for what the new system should look like. Meaning it will look nothing like this.
It is not just about the cathedrals of the game hosting playoff matchups; it’s about a smaller team—a 2017 UCF, a 2006 Boise State, a 2010 TCU—making a regular-season run from outside the Power 5 and hosting a massive program in their own stadium. It would combine the stakes of the Champions League with the charm of the FA Cup. Who doesn’t want that? As luck would have it, there are only a small handful of people who don’t, and they all happen to run the bowls and the College Football Playoff.
The Expanded College Football Playoff Can Be Great—If It Follows These Five Steps
Last week’s Pitchfork retro review was right up my alley. It inspired me to listen to another old album – in this case one that isn’t super great – and possibly put some thoughts together about it.
Guy: Guy Album Review | Pitchfork
Finally, one of the strangest things I’ve run across recently.