Tuesday Tunes - Week 36: Word Association

From Music Memoirs, Tuesday Tunes - Week 36

What's the first artist/song/album etc that comes to mind when you see the following words?

jazz: Louis Armstrong

cool: The Birth of the Cool by Miles Davis

swing: Louis Prima

club: The Club At the End of the Street by Elton John

street: Where the Streets Have No Name by U2

thank: I Thank You by Sam and Dave

rose: Paper Roses by Marie Osmond

party: Havin' A Party by Sam Cooke

sex: I Want Your Sex by George Michael

water: You Don't Miss Your Water by Otis Redding

Final Results of Summer TV Poll

Pictured from l-r: Jason Gray-Stanford, Traylor Howard, Tony Shalhoub, and Ted Levine

Receiving just over 40% of the vote, "Monk" was voted as the cable series you are most looking forward to seeing once it returns with new episodes this summer. In case you aren't familiar with it, "Monk" stars Tony Shalhoub as Adrian Monk, a brilliant detective who serves as a special consultant for the San Francisco Police Department. Because Monk suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and a multitude of phobias, the series has been described as a cross between "Columbo" and "As Good As It Gets". The cast also includes Traylor Howard as Natalie (Monk's personal assistant), Ted Levine as Capt. Leland Stottlemeyer, and Jason Gray-Stanford as Lt. Randy Disher.

There were more than a few of you who mentioned that you weren't able to take part in the poll because you don't watch any of the series that were included. Of the poll entries, I can personally say that "Monk", "The Closer", "Weeds", "Army Wives", and "Mad Men" are all worth a look. Because made-for-cable series generally have longer lapses between seasons than programs that air on the broadcast networks, it's easier to catch up if you are late to the party. The cable networks also often air series marathons, which provide another opportunity to catch episodes you may have missed. The longer than normal lapse between seasons that I mentioned earlier can sometimes test a viewer's loyalty. However, I think it's worth the wait because the quality of made-for-cable episodic programming is generally better than that on the broadcast networks.

Here are the final poll results:

Monk- 42%
The Closer- 31%
Psych and Weeds- 15% each
Army Wives, Mad Men, and Saving Grace- 10% each
Burn Notice- 5%

Below is a clip from an episode of "Monk" with guest-star Sarah Silverman. In it, she plays Marci Maven (Monk's biggest fan). The new season of "Monk" premieres Friday July 18th on the USA Network.

Retro Jingle/Slogan Quiz At Pop Art Diva's Blog

If you have the time, swing over to Pop Art Diva's blog and play her retro jingle/slogan trivia game. Along with the trivia, she has a soundboard installed where you can listen to a few jingles from year's past.

The Retro Mix Playlist For 6/6/08

7 pm hour

Staying Alive- The Bee Gees
Lucky Charm- The Boys
Just Be Good To Me- The S.O.S. Band
You're My Best Friend- Queen
Albert Flasher- The Guess Who
Tell Me Something Good- Rufus
Nights (Feel Like Getting Down)- Billy Ocean

Common Thread segment: In honor of the late Bo Diddley, songs feat. "The Bo Diddley Beat"
Bo Diddley- Bo Diddley
Love Is A Battlefield- Pat Benatar
Faith- George Michael
Shame Shame Shame- Shirley and Company
New York Groove- Ace Frehley

Hard Times- Run DMC
You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)- Dead or Alive
Stick Up- Honey Cone

8 pm hour

My Sharona- The Knack
Caravan of Love- The Housemartins
P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)- Michael Jackson
Bad Weather- The Supremes
Domino- Van Morrison
Masterpiece- The Temptations
Funkytown- Lipps, Inc.

With or Without You segment's feat. artist: David Lee Roth
Everybody Wants Some- Van Halen
Just Like Paradise- solo

I Can Understand It- Bobby Womack
Don't Leave Me This Way- Thelma Houston
My Secret (Didja Gitit Yet)- New Edition
Armageddon It- Def Leppard

The Retro Mix video of the week: My Secret (Didja Gitit Yet) by New Edition

From the summer of 1985, the video for My Secret (Didja Gitit Yet) shows the quintet having fun with neighborhood locals, one of which is played by Tyra Ferrell (Boyz In the Hood, White Men Can't Jump, Poetic Justice, etc.). They then head off to the Forum to watch the Los Angeles Lakers take on the Portland Trailblazers. Making cameo appearances are Laker legend Magic Johnson and then-coach Pat Riley (back when that slicked back 'do actually was kinda cool). The Laker Girls even show up briefly (sorry, no sign of Paula Abdul). New Edition member Ralph Tresvant even gets asked to suit up as a Laker for some last second heroics!

It's ironic that New Edition (a group from Boston) are shown supporting the Lakers instead of the Celtics. Especially since the Celtics/Lakers rivalry was extremely heated at the time. My guess is that it was deemed cooler for NE to be seen hanging with Magic than Larry Bird; or maybe Larry was asked to appear in the video, but turned them down.

Please Take A Moment To Vote In the Current Summer TV Poll... Thank You.

Since some of you may watch more than one of these shows, this poll allows you to make multiple selections. My apologies for not stating this earlier.

The Drive-In Theater Celebrates Its 75th Anniversary

June 6th marks the 75th anniversary of the drive-in movie theater. Created by chemical company magnate Richard M. Hollingshead, Jr., the first drive-in opened in 1933 in Camden, NJ and was advertised with the promise "The whole family is welcome, regardless of how noisy the children are". I have vague recollections of my parents packing me, two of my siblings, and some of my other young relatives into the Buick Wildcat so that we could all go to the drive-in movie. Because I more than likely would fall asleep at some point while at the drive-in, I would be dressed in my PJs before we left for the theater; that way, I would be ready for bed once we got home. If memory serves me, one of the movies we saw during one of our drive-in excursions was THX 1138 (all I remember is that the characters were bald headed).

The drive-in theater saw its peak popularity in the late 50s and early 60s, with about 4,000 screens spread throughout the U.S. The drive-in is also one of the key pop culture touchstones, being featured in films (Grease, Christine, The Outsiders, etc.) as well as songs by artists such as Elvis Presley (I Don't Care If the Sun Don't Shine), Nat "King" Cole (Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days Of Summer), Bryan Adams (Summer of '69), and Gwen Stefani (Bubblepop Electric). Due to a variety of reasons (economics, the rise of color TV, the VCR, etc.), the drive-in theater eventually experienced a sharp decline. Today, there are about 500 drive-in theaters operating throughout the world.

If you get the chance, I recommend checking out http://www.drive-ins.com/. Billed as the definitive source of drive-in information, the site features an historical overview, a searchable database to locate both open and closed theaters, an FAQ page and much more.

If you have any, what are some of your recollections of going to the drive-in theater?

The Detroit Red Wings Are Stanley Cup Champs!!

Red Wings captain Niklas Lidstrom hoists the Stanley Cup

Although this blog is mainly pop culture-based, sometimes I delve off into sports because that is another one of my passions. As some of you may know, the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 in game 6 last night of the NHL Finals to win the Stanley Cup 4 games to 2. The Wings' latest Stanley Cup triumph gives them 4 in the last 11 years, an amazing feat in any team sport. Technically, you could say that they won 4 Stanley Cups in 10 years due to the 2004-2005 NHL lockout.

Last night's game had one of the best finishes I have ever seen in any sport. The Penguins were literally inches away from tying the game as time expired. The sound you heard around 11:00 PM EST last night was the simultaneous exhale by Wings fans because that puck didn't get into the net.

With times being as tough as they are economically, sports for me and many others is a great escape. For at least a few hours a day/night, you can forget about your troubles and just revel in the joy of rooting for your favorite team. As a fan of Michigan-based teams, I consider myself fortunate because of the number of quality teams that we have had in the area over the last few years.

Below is the footage of the 2008 Stanley Cup presentation. Congratulations to the Detroit Red Wings' organization!

Thursday Thirteen #46: Teen Idols, Past and Present

Thirteen Teen Idols, Past and Present

Some wanted to be them. Some wanted to look like them. Some just wanted them. Below, in chronological order, are a few of the stars who graced the covers of mags like Tiger Beat and 16. In some instances where the teen idol was part of a group, I chose to include just the one who mainly fit the mold of "teen idol". After all, I don't think the image of Tito Jackson by himself was plastered over the walls of many teenyboppers.

Note: Narrowing down this list to just 13 was harder than I thought it would be. To cover a longer timespan and to make the list a little broader, some of the biggest teen idols of their day sadly didn't make the cut. Having said that, feel free to comment on any of the 13 idols below or the ones who didn't make my list.


1. Frank Sinatra- It's easy to forget, but Frank was arguably the first teen idol. When he zoomed to stardom in the 1940s, he had the bobby soxers swooning. Ask your grandparents, they'll tell you.

2. Annette Funicello- Up until Britney, Justin, and Christina experienced superstardom, Annette was without question the most famous performer to don the Mouse ears.

3. Ricky Nelson- I would have been remiss if I didn't include the guy who recorded a song called "Teenage Idol".

4. Fabian- Sometimes it pays to be spotted on the front steps of your house crying because your father is being taken away in an ambulance (this is how Fabian was discovered).

5. Davy Jones- If there were a hall of fame for tambourine/maracas players, the Monkee from Manchester would be its charter member.

6. Bobby Sherman- Bobby came on the scene in the 60s and supplanted Davy Jones as the top teen idol. Shortly thereafter, Bobby himself saw his popularity wane after the emergence of #7 below... Oh well, "Easy Come, Easy Go".

7. David Cassidy- How many of you girls were "Looking Through the Eyes of Love" when you looked at David/Keith?

8. Michael Jackson- Perhaps the only performer who was a teen idol as both a kid and an adult.

9. New Edition- After the success of New Edition, mastermind Maurice Starr figured that a teenaged white group would have more mainstream appeal. As a result, you get #10.

10. New Kids On the Block- If fans of the Grateful Dead were "Deadheads", does that mean that fans of the New Kids were "Blockheads"?

11. Debbie Gibson- The Electric Youth of the world circa 1987 had a hard time shaking their love for the Debster.

12. Hanson- A boy band in the purest sense, the Hanson boys actually sang AND played their own instruments. Can you believe that all three of them are dads now?!

13. Miley Cyrus (aka Hannah Montana)- Let's cut the girl some slack for the Vanity Fair pics. After all, everybody makes mistakes... everybody has those days.

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Rock and Roll Legend Bo Diddley Dies At Age 79

Bo Diddley, one of the pioneers of rock and roll has died at the age of 79. According to his spokeswoman, Diddley died Monday morning of heart failure at his home in Archer, FL. He had suffered a heart attack in August 2007, three months after suffering a stroke while touring in Iowa. Doctors said the stroke affected his ability to speak, and he had returned to Florida to continue rehabilitation.

Earlier, I had written another post about Bo Diddley in honor of his 79th birthday. You can access it by clicking the following link:

Happy birthday

Below is a clip of Bo Diddley performing on the 1966 concert showcase "The Big TNT Show". Bo may be gone, but his music lives on.

The Hannah Montana Crew Has the Fever

For any of you Peter Gibbons "wish you weren'ts" who are having a case of "The Mondays", maybe the video below will help brighten things up a bit. The montage includes various clips from the series "Hannah Montana" in which cast members are dancing. The clip is set to the song "Who Let the Dogs Out" by The Baha Men.