• Let’s Go Crazy

    Last Tuesday CBS aired a very important program. Officially titled Let’s Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince, the show as a tribute to the late Prince, who died exactly four years ago from its initial air date. The show got such a great reaction that CBS re-aired it Saturday night. I recorded the Tuesday broadcast and watched it Thursday…

  • Friday Playlist

    https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7ddMMjiHleKoYQxrbqYtS6?si=X92EEij0R8-j-eVxPIdeQg “Runaway Dog” – Retirement Party Seems like there have been several songs I’ve shared lately that have a strong, mid–90s vibe. Not sure if that means the grunge years are coming back. Add this one to the list. Especially in the rhythm section this has the feel of a Belly song. “Wash it Away” – Black Lab This wasn’t…

  • Reaching for the Stars, Vol 41

    Chart Week: April 10, 1982 Song: “Genius of Love” – Tom Tom Club Chart Position: #37, 12th week on the chart. Peaked at #31 for two weeks. (Administrative note: this is the second RFTS entry from this chart week. The first is here.) This entry is both about the song and about the radio station on which I heard it…

  • Friday Playlist

    I’m going to try to mix these up a little more than I have been lately. The focus will still be on sharing new(-ish) music. But I’m also going to throw in a few more older songs each week, just to stretch this out a little and make it feel a little more like my old podcast. If I could…

  • Reaching for the Stars, Vol. 40

    Chart Week: March 30, 1985 Songs: “Missing You” – Diana Ross, “Nightshift” – The Commodores Chart Positions: #15, 18th week on the chart. Peaked at #10 for two weeks in April. #10, 10th week on the chart. Peaked at #3 the week of April 20. Music fans know where I’m going with this entry. These two songs were both tributes…

  • Friday Playlist

    I think of myself as pretty knowledgable about tech things, or at least tech things that I use regularly. For months, years maybe, I’ve been lamenting how I have to delete my Friday Playlists out of Spotify after a month so my local library doesn’t get too unwieldy to scroll through. “If only you could do nesting folders like in…

  • Friday Playlist

    https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2IPr9tKB4PIXoAOtBfcs0P?si=Oct24QEbS4K9B16v3Kv4QQ “I Know That Much” – The Lathums This band is from England, but there is a distinctly 80s, Australian vibe to their music. To be fair, there is also a strong early 90s jangle pop feel to it as well. I also hear REM and Johnny Marr. This is turning into a wine description: “Oaky, but with a hint…

  • Friday Vid

    “The Rising” – Bruce Springsteen and the E. Street Band It’s a big new music week. I’m a few songs into my first pass at the new Pearl Jam album. There are at least four more new albums that require my attention today. So just a video today, and something to hopefully give a little hope that things will get…

  • Reaching for the Stars, Vol. 39

    Chart Week: March 24, 1984Song: “They Don’t Know” – Tracey UllmanChart Position: #30, 5th week on the chart. Peaked at #8 for two weeks in April/May. It’s been a minute or two since I’ve done one of these. Part of that is because my AT40 workflow has changed. My normal, weekday routine is to turn on the iHeart Radio Classic…

  • Friday Playlist

    Shit was real this week. Let’s go ahead and call it the worst week ever and hope that next week doesn’t immediately grab that title away. The only bright spot is my new music playlist is absolutely bursting with great tracks right now. So another extra large edition for today. Take a few moments to chill out and listen to…