What's playing in my deck...

At the moment, relatively obscure hip-hop acts of the '90s. Tell me, when's the last time you heard any of these joints on the radio? Satellite or otherwise?

1. Broken Language by Smoothe da Hustler feat. Trigga that Gambler
2. Won on Won by Cocoa Brovaz (formerly Smif N Wessun)
3. I'll Take Her by Ill Al Skratch feat. Brian McKnight
4. Black Connection by Camp Lo
5. Operation Lockdown by Heltah Skeltah
And a bonus No. 6. Good Dwellas by Cella Dwellas
And a bonus No. 7. Superhoes by FunkDoobiest

Shall we proceed? Continue Reading »

Stupid is as stupid does

Because I love YouTube so much, thought I'd dust off an oldie but goodie. Best part is homeboy with the camera - "ok, what's wrong?":

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Once again, back is the incredible

After several days of rest, hours of YouTube and dozens of bowls of soup (mostly creamy tomato), I'm feeling ready to conquer the world. Or at least work.

This week, posting will be light as I've got to catch up on work, get reacquainted with the treadmill and fill out mounds of paperwork related to some alternative goals. Also, I'm hoping that I can catch a few practices for Lingerie Bowl VI (hey, the First Lady said I could go. No foolin').

A few notes from my weekend and morning before we get into this:

1. I'm hoping it was merely a coincidence that I got sick the day after the inauguration. More likely, my stomach started churning after hearing people talk about a "dream fulfilled." Please, spare me.

2. I joined Sarah Palin's Facebook fan page over the weekend. It's really an unexpected source of comedy. The supporters' posts are like Letters to Santa but with more grammatical errors.

3. This morning, I interviewed an 89-year-old black woman for a story that I'm working on today. For no real reason, other than I like to hear people talk, I asked her about Obama. She told me: "It's nice to finally have a colored boy in there." For whatever reason, that made me smile. I promised to return sometime with her favorite beverage, an Old Milwaukee.

4. I watched "Sex, Lies and Videotape" for the first time late last night. Just wow. It's like an late '80s version of "Closer." Soderbergh's flick is a movie strictly for grown-ups, and not in a prurient kind of way. It got me to thinking about the sorts of questions we'd never ask of our intimates. But I guess I'm left wondering if those are the questions we really need to ask, or if we're better off not knowing the answers?

5. I spent hours and hours looking up old, mostly forgotten, hip-hop videos from the '90s. I'm trying to think of a way to drop some of that onto the site this week. But here's one for the moment, a nod to the title of this post ...

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Not ready for primetime

Maybe some of you have already heard, but we're supposed to have a big professional football contest here in Tampa next weekend. The Pittsburgh Steelers, Puffy, Bruce Springsteen and Rihanna will all be involved somehow. There will be parties and everything.

But honestly, how big can a football game be if the Arizona Cardinals are invited? I mean, this ain't the St. Petersburg Bowl.

As a lifelong football fan, the Cardinals - perennially one of the NFL's worst and worst-run franchises - playing in a Super Bowl seemed about as improbable as a black man with a foreign-sounding name running things in the Oval Office. You really can't believe it, even as it's actually happening.

It got me to thinking, what other professional sports teams would shock the hell out of me and most other sensible sports fans by intruding in the championship round? I'll go with a list of 10 (because I'm cliche like that) and I'm not going to bother with NHL teams since no one cares about that league, especially in Florida. Remember, this is not necessarily a list of the worst franchises. This is mostly a compilation of teams seemingly created to fill out the second half of SportsCenter:

10. Pittsburgh Pirates - From Bill Mazeroski's Game 7 walkoff homer against the Yankees to Roberto Clemente and the first all-black starting lineup in league history to the Killer Bs in the early '90s, the Pirates have something of a colorful, championship-like pedigree. One of their managers even invented the concept of the closer. But since 1992, the Pirates have the longest streak of losing seasons of any team in the country's four major professional leagues. They still have cool gear, though.

9. Cleveland Browns - Since Jim Brown left town, the Browns ain't been worth shit. Well, that's not necessarily true. Those teams with Bernie Kosar, Earnest Byner and Clay Matthews in the mid-80s were good but could never get past John Elway and the Broncos. As a result, the Browns are one of five NFL teams that haven't made it to the Super Bowl since the AFL-NFL merger. In 1970. (Consider, of course, that the original franchise moved to Baltimore in 1996 and won a Super Bowl five seasons later. The Cleveland Curse, indeed).

8. Denver Nuggets - Another team that has experienced intermittent success but nothing worth noting in the postseason. Though it was a nice historical footnote, it doesn't say much for your franchise when the signature playoff moment is a first-round upset of the top-seeded Seattle SuperSonics in 1994.

7. Milwaukee Bucks - Sometimes I forget that the Bucks came within one game of the NBA Finals in 2001, losing to the Sixers. But really, it's been all downhill since Kareem-Abdul Jabbar was traded to the Lakers in 1975. If the Bucks ever do advance to the Finals, David Stern and ABC executives will have an aneurysm.

6. Milwaukee Brewers - It could be that I'm simply biased against teams from Milwaukee. But honestly, the Brewers and Bucks would be ratings poison for any championship event. Also hurts that the Brewers have two playoff appearances in 39 seasons. No one outside of Wisconsin cares about them - I didn't realize they had been switched to the National League until, like, 1997.

5. New Orleans Saints - Another one of those NFL teams to never make it to the Super Bowl, the Saints are pretty much defined by their futility. The Aints. Ricky Williams. Their struggles after Katrina. Hell, it took the Saints two decades before they had their first winning season. But like most things about New Orleans, I can't help but love them a little.

4. Memphis Grizzlies - In their only three playoff appearances in franchise history, the Grizzlies are 0-12. That pretty much says it all, huh? I'm sure Vancouver is glad to be rid of them.

3. Detroit Lions - My father's favorite football player was Barry Sanders. He's somewhere in my top three. And it's a damn shame that he was stuck playing for the Lions, who cemented their status as the worst NFL franchise this season by completing the only 0-16 season in league history. Matt Millen didn't screw things up as much as he carried on the tradition.

2. Kansas City Royals - It's absolutely stunning to think the Royals won the World Series in 1985. But since I was 7 at the time, I'm not surprised that I don't remember much about it. Finishing 12 games under .500 last season was the Royals' best record in five years, which tells the story of their suckitude better than anything I could come up with. Not to mention, Kansas City has the same sort of ratings appeal as Milwaukee. Which is to say, none.

1. Los Angeles Clippers - No question, the reigning doormat of professional sports. At least once, SI agreed with me. Sad thing is, there's no one else to blame it on. They've mostly been victims of their own incompetence and spend-thrift ways.

Here's their first-round draft picks from 1989 to 1999: Danny Ferry, Bo Kimble, LeRon Ellis, Randy Woods, Elmore Spencer, Terry Dehere, LaMond Murray, Greg Minor, Antonio McDyess, Lorenzen Wright, Maurice Taylor, Michael Olowakandi and Lamar Odom. Since then, I guess their best draft choice is ... Chris Kaman?

Now the Clips are going to kill the career of another one of my favorite players, Baron Davis. This will likely be the only time they ever finish No. 1 in anything. Believe that.

Continue Reading »

Heckuva job

What, exactly, was Gray Davis recalled for again?

The controller says California is down to Plan D on its checklist of paying bills. Its cash reserves are piddling; the special funds it borrows from are tapped out, and no one in the private sector is going to lend it any cash at a reasonable interest rate.

That leaves what in state government circles are called "payment deferrals" and what in real life is called "stiffing your creditors."

In this case the creditors include income taxpayers expecting refunds, college students waiting on state aid, counties that operate public assistance programs, and companies that sell goods and services to state agencies.

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Eli Porter

From the Class of 2005. He's the best, mayne. And he got you roasted liked ever.



Honestly, what did we ever do before YouTube was around? Continue Reading »

Quietly judging you

One of my favorite scenes, from one of my favorite movies. Since I'm down and out for a minute, I might dust off that videotape and put my VCR to use tonight.

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Sick

Nothing going on here but the rent and some serious post-nasal drip. For obvious reasons, posting will be light today and possibly through the weekend.

A co-worker told me that I can expect to feel like crap for the next week or so.

On the bright side, I'm falling in love all over again with soup. Chicken noodle, chicken tortilla, tomato, French onion, miso, etc. Everyday is an adventure.

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Trouble and The First Couple

Kellybelle is falling in love:

Was it me, or was the President trying to sneak in a little slow-dragging at the Neighborhood Ball last night? LOL, I've said it before and I'll say it again, I love their love. Can you have a crush on a couple? (Not like that, clean your mind.)

... I will strangle any woman who comes near him with impure thoughts.

Our new president and First Lady do make a striking couple. No disputing that. By comparison, the Obamas make the Huxtables look like a pair of middle-class schlubs.

But I need to ask a question, something that I've joked about on the slick over the past few months: is there any married man in recent history who will be challenged to stay faithful more than President Obama?

In no way do I mean to impugn the character or fidelity of the man. But, in the end, President Obama is a man. No less than Michelle Obama has occasionally reminded us of her husband's relative normality: "He's a gifted man, but in the end, he's just a man."

He's also a man in possession of an unusual amount of power, celebrity, intelligence, good looks, charm, etc etc etc. President Obama is the Derek Jeter of politics or, more precisely, Derek Jeter is the President Obama of baseball.

And this worries me because the stakes have never been so high. Unfortunately, President Obama will be allowed no slip-ups, no mulligans and certainly no Lewinskys. Eliot Spitzer got off easy compared to what Obama might face in a similar situation.

Michelle is a lot of woman, no doubt. But I'm hoping Obama finds some sort of release for all the, uh, challenges facing him over the next four years. Can we publicly fund some sort of White House porn collection through his Web site or something?

Until we can figure this all out, enjoy one of the most poignant moments from the Obamas' night of ball-hopping. Gotta love Beyonce.

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The Replacements

Sorry, but I think Aretha Franklin has lost quite a few mphs on her fastball. Her rendition of "My Country 'Tis of Thee" at yesterday's inaguration was pretty mediocre, to be charitable.

Here's a short list of people I'd rather have seen perform at the inauguration instead of "The Queen of Soul" - I'll just assume that President Obama and Co. were looking for grown folks to handle this honor:

1. Gladys Knight

2. Chaka Khan

3. Roberta Flack

4. Patti LaBelle

5. Betty Wright

6. Mary J. Blige (Grudgingly)

7. Anita Baker (where is she?)

8. Chante Moore (she can invite Kenny, if she really wants to)

9. One of the Pointer Sisters

10. One of the Mary Jane Girls

But I guess I'll get to pick my own performers when I'm elected president someday. Yes I Can! Continue Reading »

Good question

Eli asks, "Why does Rush Limbaugh hate America?":

As you may be aware, the U.S. is in a bit of a pickle at the moment. Infrastructure crumbling, bureaucracy rotting, economy tanking, Big Three auto companies teetering, Iraq and Afghanistan simmering. If there's one thing everyone can agree on regardless of ideology, it's that we want to turn this mess around, right? Well, everyone except Rush...

Limbaugh is the fly in the ointment, the hair in the soup, the piss in the coffee, the rain on our national parade. I can only assume that Rush attended the Hater's Ball last evening:

We're talking about my country, the United States of America, my nieces, my
nephews, your kids, your grandkids. Why in the world do we want to saddle them
with more liberalism and socialism? Why would I want to do that? So I can answer
it, four words, "I hope he fails." And that would be the most outrageous thing anybody in this climate could say. Shows you just how far gone we are. Well, I know, I know. I am the last man standing.

Yeah, I'm the true maverick. I can do more than four words. I could say I hope he fails and I could do a brief explanation of why. You know, I want to win. If my party doesn't, I do. If my party has sacrificed the whole concept of victory, sorry, I'm now the Republican in name only, and they are the sellouts.

So, we're essentially talking about someone who looks at Americans as mere pawns in a chess game between Democrats and Republicans. Limbaugh wants to "win." I'm almost certain that I don't want to see what his sort of victory looks like.

Now, compare that to the following answer from Obama at a Jan. 9 press conference covering the basics of his economic stimulus plan:

Well, the — as I said before, Democrats or Republicans, we welcome good ideas. And so the challenge for all of us, I think, is to identify good ideas, good spending plans, that deliver on my commitment to create or save 3 million jobs. I want this to work. This is not an intellectual exercise, and there is no pride of authorship. If members of Congress have good ideas, if they can identify a project for me that will create jobs in an efficient way, that does not hamper our ability to — over the long term — get control of our deficit, that is good for the economy, then I’m going to accept it.

... So, you know, one of the things that I think I’m trying to communicate in this process is for everybody to get past the habit that sometimes occurs in Washington of whose idea is it, what ideological corner does it come from. Just show me. If you can show me that something is going to work, I will welcome it.

One guy is an unrepentant clown, as far from a patriot as someone can be. The other is a gracious, thoughtful public servant with an approval rating of 83 percent. Simple as that.

To paraphrase President Obama (wow, that actually sounds pretty cool), the ground is shifting beneath you, Rush Limbaugh. But we can at least agree on something: I truly hope that you're the last man standing. Continue Reading »

A classical day

There's a certain type of lofty, ethereal writing that is beyond my grasp on occasions like these. Most days, I'm really not up to the task of finding the deeper meaning or finding some subtle moment that reflects a larger theme. Especially when I still haven't had a chance to digest it all.

However, I will say that I was awestruck by the enormity of the moment. It was extremely humbling to watch the transfer of our government unfold in such a dignified way - the pomp and circumstance, the cheering millions at the Mall, Obama putting his hand on Lincoln's Bible.

And it really didn't hit me until, strangely enough, I heard the first strands of John Williams' "Air and Simple Gifts," which was performed by violinist Itzhak Perlman, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, pianist Gabriela Montero and clarinetist Anthony McGill.

For those of you who read this blog regularly, you know that I'm something of a music lover. I try to write only about what I know and ask about what I don't. So pardon my untrained ear, but to me, that classical music moment at the Capitol was simply beautiful. (This guy from the LA Times didn't feel quite the same.)

From that point forward, I pretty much thawed out. I embraced everything about the day. It also helps to have parents with some perspective.

My father, who learned to send text messages only a few months ago, dropped this one on me this morning: "GM, my wonderful son. This is a very exciting day! Just unreal. Make it a good day." And as I watched the inauguration from an event I was supposed to be covering for my newspaper, my mother tried to call me. I missed the call but got back at her a few minutes later.

"It is done, baby. It is done," she said. I knew she had been crying all morning.

Simple words, complex thoughts. I hope that I've inherited that gift.

In the end, I'm happy for them and all the other elders who never thought they'd live to see it happen. They deserved nothing less than something that beautiful.

Speaking of which ...




UPDATE: SEK with The Edge of the American West offers a suggestion for another inaugural score. Eh. Let's not. Continue Reading »

43's 43

Think Progress' Progress Report Team has compiled a list of 43 appointees by President Bush that helped him secure a spot among our worst presidents.

You really think Dubya could have accomplished all of this on his lonesome? No way.

To get a sense of the overwhelming incompetence Bush brought to Washington, here's a couple of guys who didn't make the cut: the former No. 3 official at the CIA, who allegedly received bribes in the form of prostitutes, and Homeland Security Deputy Press Secretary Brian Doyle, who resigned after being charged in an online child pornography sting.

Really, you almost have to be trying to be this bad of a leader. But Dubya has made it all look so easy.

Heckuva job!

Continue Reading »

Back to Life, Back to Reality

My vacation is over, and it's time to get back into a daily routine. To be honest, I'm not all that happy about either of those developments.

That said, there's a lot to be excited about. And I'm really wondering if I missed out on a golden opportunity to take in the proceedings in D.C. over the next couple of days.

Oh well. Que sera, sera. Here's a few things bouncing around the ol' cerebral cortex:

1. I've been trying to find the words to express my thoughts about how MLK's memory and work has, in many ways, been perverted and co-opted to water down his powerful message. These days, MLK's line about "not color of skin, but content of character" has endured a virtual whitewashing. The holiday honoring him has become a celebration of a milquetoast, sanitized version of the Civil Rights era. It's easy to forget that, during his heyday, MLK was actually considered an extremely divisive figure. I sometimes wonder if, were Dr. King alive today, he'd be generally trivialized along the lines of Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton. Here's some brain food about the man and the holiday from Ari and Matt Y.

2. At least one development from Obama's inaugural bash Sunday brought a smile to my face. Obama had New Hampshire Episcopal Bishop V. Gene Robinson, the nation's first openly gay bishop, open the concert at the Lincoln Memorial with a prayer. Robinson's inclusion in the festivities should be noted, especially in light all of the criticism Obama has taken for allowing Rick Warren to do the invocation at the inauguration Tuesday. Here's some video of the event and a transcript of the prayer. As Digby says, watching Obama hug Robinson "did my heart good."

3. Not to stir up old shyt, but I wonder what Rev. Jeremiah Wright is making of all of this?

4. Speaking of the inauguration, don't be mislead about how much this whole shindig is going to cost in comparison to previous ones. Via Steve Benen, we learn that some news organizations are making phony comparisons (perhaps deliberately) about the difference in cost between Obama's and Bush's inaugurations. For whatever reason, the AP, Yahoo, MSNBC and Fox News - to name a few - are factoring in the costs for Obama's security and not doing the same for Bush's tab. Media Matters drops the actual factuals here.

5. Unlike his predecessor, Obama seems to be quite the reader. Thus, The Washington Montly asked 25 of their favorite writers and thinkers (no, I didn't make the cut) to come up with their own reading suggestions for Obama, assuming he actually has time to read over the next four years. It's a list we'd all do well to take a swing at ourselves.

6. PostBourgie has up a couple of interesting posts related to our president-elect. One muses about the extraordinary task of keeping up with the "tinfoil" set likely to be plotting against Obama's life. Another links to a New York Times photo gallery of some of the players in the new Obama administration.

7. What do women need for good sex? Well, for a good many of them, money. No further comment necessary.

8. Sometimes, it's easy to forget that Obama isn't president yet. Then things like this happen: Bush pardoned a couple of Border Patrol agents who were imprisoned for shooting a rumored Mexican drug runner. Lou Dobbs and people of his ilk will be happy. I will not. And if you value law, you won't either. But as one prescient commenter noted, these guys are the mice. We should expect that the real rats will be pardoned soon.

9. A couple of things from Michael Tomasky: imagining the mood of the nation had McCain won on Nov. 4 (shorthand: things would suck worse) and his attempt to put into words what I'm feeling about the hype surrounding the inauguration. I too feel as if things are being cheapened, if only a little. I embrace the excitement but Ialso wonder if there's not enough humility being shown on our side. Maybe I'll snap out of this by tomorrow.

10. Scott D. Shuster from Watertown, Mass., asks Norman Chad "is the Obama presidency a direct result of the NFL's implementation of the Rooney Rule?" I was ready to get all upset about this until I cracked a smile.

11. Since we're talking football and all, a friend at work reminded me that Willis McGahee had suffered two of the worst season-ending injuries that he'd ever seen. Here's the evidence, from college and from Sunday. Say I'd have to agree. Thankfully, it seems as if he's going to make a full recovery. My prayers are with him.

12. Day after day, I read through arrest reports and see dozens of people arrested for some form of drug possession. Usually marijuana. Then I silently add it all up: the time deputies spent on the arrest, the paperwork, the jail time, the subsequent court costs. This shyt is costing us a lot of money. In off-the-record conversations with cops, most of them to a man (or woman) will tell you that it's a waste of time. But this is our War on Drugs, no? And America is well known for its tenacity in fighting stupid wars. Well, Anita Bartholomew details the real costs of this endless - and fruitless - war.

13. Some interesting news about Sarah Palin and her, ahem, in-laws, courtesy of MySpace. Please, let this all be true.

14. From Spencer Ackerman, possibly the quote of the day, if not the week: "It's not very likely that the 9-7 Arizona Cardinals would be NFC champions, but the next president of the United States is African-American."

15. And because it always comes back to music, please get familiar with Soul II Soul. Until later, that is all. Continue Reading »

My Video Soul

I make no apologies for getting my education in music from Video Soul, Midnight Love, Video LP and Video Vibrations.

Sure, I picked up some things from Friday Night Videos, The Box and Yo! MTV Raps. But BET was a virtual classroom for a kid interested in learning something, anything, about R&B music. Donnie Simpson? Sherry Carter? Rachel Stuart? These were some of my teachers.

The sun truly didn't set on my week until I had seen Video Soul's Top 20 Countdown on Friday nights - even though the No. 1 video would inevitably be cut off about 45 seconds short.

As I mentioned in the previous post, I found myself watching BETJ late the other night. The channel has become something of a gold mine for long-forgotten music acts and, I suppose, blogging ideas. I guess this is where Viacom has buried all its music for grown folks, a virtual soundtrack from my teenage years. Which, of course, got me to thinking.

As far as quality and quantity, how do the R&B groups from the 1990s stack up with other decades? The "oughts" certainly don't measure up - unless you're a fan of Pretty Ricky. But I have a hard time believing there was a more diverse pool of R&B male vocal groups in another decade.

To make things easy, I've broken the groups into three distinct categories: Platinum, for groups whose music still stands the test of time and who were the clear breakout stars of their era; Gold, for groups who sustained success through more than one album and still make the regular rotation on radio stations and video shows; and Plastic, which includes everyone from one-hit wonders to groups that never had more than a brief moment in stardom. I've included a link to their most popular video, according to the helpful robots at YouTube.

On another note, I had to leave off groups like Force MDs, Surface and Ready for the World because most of their success came in the 80s. Sorry about that. Anyway, let's do this:

PLATINUM
Boyz II Men - End of the Road.
Jodeci - Freek'N You. Pretty much, Boyz II Men and Jodeci was the R&B version of Biggie and Tupac. Your preference for the group said a lot more about you than your musical tastes. Basically, did you like a nice house salad or a pot of collard greens? It's all good food.
Blackstreet - No Diggity.
Tony! Toni! Tone! - Whatever You Want.

GOLD
112 - Cupid. Their self-titled debut album was one of the most underrated of the decade.
BBD - Poison. They did really well in spite of having no real lead vocalist. No, Ricky Bell doesn't count.
Dru Hill - How Deep is Your Love?
Guy - Let's Chill. I'm still not sure they should be on this list. Their first album, released in 1988, was their only real splash into the game.
Jagged Edge - I Gotta Be. Really, how many people got married to this song in the late '90s?
Mint Condition - Breakin' My Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes). In some ways, I've always thought of them as The Roots of R&B. It's hard not to love a true band.
Next - Too Close. Seriously. This is THAT song from every college party I ever went to. Wow.
Silk - Freak Me. The remix was better.

PLASTIC
II D Extreme - Cry No More.
3T - Anything. Tito's boys did good for a hot minute.

After 7 - Ready or Not.
Another Bad Creation - Iesha. I actually had a crush on a girl in middle school whose name rhymed with Iesha. It goes without saying that I annoyed the hell out of her.

AZ Yet - Last Night.

Color Me Badd - I Wanna Sex You Up. I simply can't find the original video. Sorry.

DRS - Gangsta Lean.

H-Town - Knockin The Boots. There's no way to describe how proud I was when they made it big. Finally, someone from Houston made it onto "Video Soul."

Hi-Five - I Like the Way (Kissing Game).
Immature - Please Don't Go. Think Marques Houston is a better actor today? No, really?
Intro - Let Me Be the One. For whatever reason, I just can't find "Come Inside," quite possibly one of the smoothest yet raunchiest songs of the '90s. (What a cruelly ironic song title for a group whose lead singer died of AIDS-related complications, no?)

Lo-Key - I Got A Thang For Ya. Back in the day when we were just friends, I played this song in the car for the First Lady to subliminally let her know the deal. Of course, she missed my "lo-key" signal.

Men at Large - So Alone.
Men of Vizion - House Keeper.

Mista - Blackberry Molasses.

Ol' Skool - Am I Dreaming. With a little help from Keith Sweat and Xscape, anyone can make it, uh, big.

PM Dawn - I'd Die Without You.
Portrait - Honey Dip.
Rude Boys - Written All Over Your Face.
Shai - If I Ever Fall in Love Again. Has there ever been another a cappella top 10 hit?

Soul IV Real - Candy Rain. This song still holds up today. For real.

Subway - This Little Game We Play. Damn. What happened to 702?

The Boys - Crazy.

Today - Why You Get Funky on Me?

Troop - Spread My Wings. Actually made the Gumby look cool. These were my dudes in middle school.

UNV - Something's Going On.

So, did I leave anyone out?

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go digging for a silk shirt, a pair of overalls, my Nefertiti medallion and some Air Jordans. I need to feel fresh.

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