I Don’t Believe in Illusions ‘Cuz Too Much is Real
Tuesday. Well so far this has been a good day. I just got off a conference call with The Big Boss Lady and other co-workers of various rank and departments. The meeting concerned deductions on a particular account that I have worked hard on the past month or so to clean up, and during the call The Big Boss Lady announced that in just this month alone I have brought in $350K of aged receivables. If you add this to the $1.3 mil that she told me came in on another one of my accounts, it looks like darthjohnny might actually be having a good month. The hard work is far from over, but I'm happy to see some of this effort is finally paying off (literally). Sorry to blow my own horn a bit, but I am just a little excited I guess from the BBL's kudos.
So, they recently announced the 2006 inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Now in past years the inductee list has been somewhat controversial, such as when they inducted Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five and incited a huge debate over whether rap artists should be allowed into the "rock'n'roll" hall of fame. However, there seems to be a pretty decent field this year. Black Sabbath will be inducted, and while I am not a huge Ozzy or Sabbath fan, there is no argument over their influence on rock music (however, didn't Ozzy once say he never wanted to be inducted into the hall of fame?). Lynyrd Skynyrd will also make it in, answering Freebird's question that even if they did leave here tomorrow (or in a 1977 plane crash), they would still be remembered. Blondie is on the list, and while they definitely had some hits in the 70's, they are probably the weakest of the inductees. I know a bunch of Debbie Harry fans will probably be upset at that statement, but I just don't see them as having the same amount of influence as some of the other current and past inductees. The most controversial name on the list is Miles Davis, since he is widely known as a jazz musician, not a rock'n'roller. However, as I mentioned in this review, Davis' experiments in jazz/rock fusion is widely seen as some of the most phenomenal music ever made.
Finally, despite a relatively short musical career together, The 5ex Pistols will be inducted into the hall of fame. This one goes after my own heart. You see I have a particular fondness for the Pistols. Never Mind the Bollocks played an instrumental part of my youthful development. Along with The Ramones and The Misfits, the Pistols made up a large part of my junior high/freshman years. Bollocks was brilliant and terrible at the same time. The music was discordant, the lyrics were inaudible, and the attitude was definitely f-off. They were the exact opposite of what a pop music act should be. They were the real anti-establishment, in-your-face punk rockers. What angst-ridden 13-year-old boy couldn't latch on to that message? Sure, I'm older and assimilated now, but as soon as I started listening to Bollocks this morning I was transported to a time when it was me-against-the-world and when my friends and I thought our rebellion actually meant something. I still see underage kids hanging out in front of the mall smoking cigarettes and wearing Misfits T-shirts, and I laugh because some things never change. Then, sadly, I'm reminded that despite it all some things never change.
Never Mind the Bollocks is highly recommended for those who think the compromised and commercialized music of Blink 182, Good Charlotte, Sum 41, et al, is punk rock. Take a listen to Anarchy in the UK, God Save the Queen, Pretty Vacant, Holiday in the Sun, etc. and then tell me that Stacy's Mom is a punk rock song. Really.
So, they recently announced the 2006 inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Now in past years the inductee list has been somewhat controversial, such as when they inducted Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five and incited a huge debate over whether rap artists should be allowed into the "rock'n'roll" hall of fame. However, there seems to be a pretty decent field this year. Black Sabbath will be inducted, and while I am not a huge Ozzy or Sabbath fan, there is no argument over their influence on rock music (however, didn't Ozzy once say he never wanted to be inducted into the hall of fame?). Lynyrd Skynyrd will also make it in, answering Freebird's question that even if they did leave here tomorrow (or in a 1977 plane crash), they would still be remembered. Blondie is on the list, and while they definitely had some hits in the 70's, they are probably the weakest of the inductees. I know a bunch of Debbie Harry fans will probably be upset at that statement, but I just don't see them as having the same amount of influence as some of the other current and past inductees. The most controversial name on the list is Miles Davis, since he is widely known as a jazz musician, not a rock'n'roller. However, as I mentioned in this review, Davis' experiments in jazz/rock fusion is widely seen as some of the most phenomenal music ever made.
Finally, despite a relatively short musical career together, The 5ex Pistols will be inducted into the hall of fame. This one goes after my own heart. You see I have a particular fondness for the Pistols. Never Mind the Bollocks played an instrumental part of my youthful development. Along with The Ramones and The Misfits, the Pistols made up a large part of my junior high/freshman years. Bollocks was brilliant and terrible at the same time. The music was discordant, the lyrics were inaudible, and the attitude was definitely f-off. They were the exact opposite of what a pop music act should be. They were the real anti-establishment, in-your-face punk rockers. What angst-ridden 13-year-old boy couldn't latch on to that message? Sure, I'm older and assimilated now, but as soon as I started listening to Bollocks this morning I was transported to a time when it was me-against-the-world and when my friends and I thought our rebellion actually meant something. I still see underage kids hanging out in front of the mall smoking cigarettes and wearing Misfits T-shirts, and I laugh because some things never change. Then, sadly, I'm reminded that despite it all some things never change.
Never Mind the Bollocks is highly recommended for those who think the compromised and commercialized music of Blink 182, Good Charlotte, Sum 41, et al, is punk rock. Take a listen to Anarchy in the UK, God Save the Queen, Pretty Vacant, Holiday in the Sun, etc. and then tell me that Stacy's Mom is a punk rock song. Really.
posted by john at 11:31 AM
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