I do not consider myself an authority on “Country” music; I am not really an authority on “Pop” music either. However, I am more knowledgeable about the latter than I am the former.

Bear with me. . . .

“Traditional Pop” (or “Classic Pop”) embraces the song output of the Broadway and Hollywood show tune writers from around World War I to the 1950’s. The works of these songwriters and composers are usually considered part of the canon known as the “Great American Songbook.” When I think of traditional pop, I think of vocal interpreters like Frank Sinatra. Frank Sinatra not only had a voice, he also chose good songs. While there are contemporary artists that have worked in the style of classic pop (i.e.: Michael Bublé, Harry Connick, Jr., and Diana Krall), I believe the genre has died.

I cannot really pinpoint when traditional pop died. It might have been a gradual process; perhaps beginning in the mid 1950’s when “Rock & Roll” became more dominant on the radio. Now, this is not to say that rock music dealt the deathblow to pop music; Frank Sinatra was still making records. But I do believe that much of what Baby Boomers considered to be their parents’ music was pushed aside. Popular music sung by Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, and their contemporaries was relegated in the 1960’s and 1970’s to Las Vegas club acts and elevator music.

The 1970’s saw the emergence of “Soft Rock” (i.e.: Barry Manilow, the Carpenters). Soft rock evolved into what came to be known as “Adult Contemporary.” Then, in the mid 1990’s, “Hip-Hop” became the dominant force on radio. The good news for me is that soft rock radio has no problems keeping songs in high rotation for a long time; so I don’t have to change radio stations yet.

Unfortunately, many established artists of soft rock have begun recording cover albums. Rod Stewart has released four CD’s of standards. Barry Manilow has released cover albums exclusively since 1991 (with the exception of two CD’s of original material in 2001 and 2004 during his tenure with the jazz-orientated Concord label). Elton John’s record label wanted him to record an album of Motown covers. To his credit, he refused.

Now . . . at the risk of sounding like a broken record, country music is not my forte. While there is a lot of country music I enjoy, I don’t really identify with the genre as a whole. I know there have been many facets of country music – “Rockabilly,” “Outlaw,” “Bakersfield sound,” “Nashville sound.” There are “new traditionalists” like George Strait, Randy Travis, and Alan Jackson. But a lot of what I hear on country radio today, I think, falls under “country pop.” This, to me, sounds just like soft rock . . . only with fiddles and maybe a steel guitar.

I think fans of soft rock agree, as artists like Martina McBride, Faith Hill, and LeAnn Rimes have had success in both markets. This begs the question: Has “Country” become the new “Soft Rock”?

Visitors of this blog may have noticed that its theme has been in a state of flux. I have been trying out different themes, deciding which one I want to stick with. Hopefully WordPress will expand its selection of themes. For the time being, I think I’ll leave it as is . . . or not.

Here’s the thing: This has nothing whatsoever to do with illegal immigration!

DHS may send 2-year-old girl to Mexico
By Dan Tilkin and KATU Web Staff
http://www.katu.com/news/17444484.html

HILLSBORO, Ore. – The state of Oregon may try to take a 2-year-old girl from her grandparents in Hillsboro and send her to Mexico to live with relatives of her half-siblings – people she doesn’t know.

State officials say they aim to keep the three children together, a move that the grandparents, Luz and Maurice Cephus, are fighting.

The girl at the center of the conflict is 23-month-old Faith Cephus. Her grandparents, (pictured below) who became the girl’s certified foster parents, want to adopt her but are living in fear of losing her.

“Her being our blood granddaughter, we thought it was a shoe-in,” Maurice Cephus said. “We have a home here. We have an ample amount of space for her. We love her. She’s our son’s daughter.”

But it is not that simple.

To understand why, you have to get a handle on her complicated family tree.

Faith’s mother and father are both in prison and are on the verge of losing their parental rights.

That’s why the girl lives with her paternal grandparents.

But Faith’s mother also has two other children in Oregon, which are Faith’s half-brother and half-sister.

The father of those kids is also in prison, and his parents live in Mexico City.

The state is examining whether to send all three children south to Mexico City together, where Faith would live with people she’s not related to.

Greg Parker, a spokesman for the Department of Human Services, said the process is just beginning.

“Should siblings remain together? What weight do we give biological grandparents?” Parker said, describing some of the questions involved in such a case. “So it’s a tough decision, but it’s a decision that we have to make every day, and we start with what’s best for the child. Right now it’s a little premature to talk about that.”

The state said Faith’s grandparents need to wait for the process to move forward, adding that a number of court hearings still need to take place before a final decision is made.

That’s of no comfort to the Cephuses.

“We’re fit to be tied at this present time,” Maurice Cephus said. “It’s really gotten out of hand. And we don’t know what else to do.”

Someone in a message board once posted a link to a website that gives information about the #1 song in the United States on a particular date in history. As an experiment to myself, I decided to start from the date of my birth and move froward to the present.

I can think of no finer example that demonstrates the current state of popular music.

AUGUST 11

1980 - “Magic” by Olivia Newton-John
1981 - “Endless Love” by Diana Ross & Lionel Richie
1982 - “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor
1983 - “Every Breath You Take” by The Police
1984 - “Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker, Jr.
1985 - “Shout” by Tears for Fears
1986 - “Papa, Don’t Preach” by Madonna
1987 - “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” by U2
1988 - “Roll with It” by Steve Winwood
1989 - “Right Here Waiting” by Richard Marx
1990 - “Vision of Love” by Mariah Carey
1991 - “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You” by Bryan Adams
1992 - “End of the Road” by Boyz II Men
1993 - “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by UB40
1994 - “Stay (I Missed You)” by Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories

Regarding the above list: So far, so good. Nothing really out of the ordinary here. Moving onward. . . .

Here’s where things head south. . . .

1995 - “Waterfalls” by TLC
1996 - “Macarena [Bayside Boys Mix]” by Los Del Rio
1997 - “I’ll Be Missing You” by Puff Daddy & Faith Evans
1998 - “The Boy Is Mine” by Brandy & Monica
1999 - “Genie in a Bottle” by Christina Aguilera
2000 - “Incomplete” by Sisqó
2001 - “Bootylicious” by Destiny’s Child
2002 - “Dilemma” by Nelly
2003 - “Crazy in Love” by Beyoncé
2004 - “Slow Motion” by Juvenile
2005 - “We Belong Together” by Mariah Carey
2006 - “Promiscuous” by Nelly Furtado
2007 - “Beautiful Girls” by Sean Kingston

Wow! I don’t know what’s worse: that pop radio took that much of a nose dive or that people actually bought into this unmitigated crap.

Newly discovered, via Tomfoolery.

Google Fight

Just for kicks, I staged some random virtual cockfights. . . .

Round #1: Barry Manilow vs. Keith Olbermann
Barry Manilow = 2,960,000 results (WINNER)
Keith Olbermann = 1,350,000 results

Round #2: Barry Manilow vs. Stephen Colbert
Barry Manilow = 2,960,000 results (WINNER)
Stephen Colbert = 2,260,000 results

Barry Manilow is still in the lead.

Round #3: Barry Manilow vs. John McCain
Barry Manilow = 2,960,000 results
John McCain = 16,100,000 results (WINNER)

Personally, I do not believe that this proposed fence is practical, for two reasons:

1. A person that is desperate enough will find a way to cross the border, either by climbing over the fence or crawling under it.
2. The proposed fence only covers a portion of our southern border and not the entire border. A terrorist thug can still come in via the Canadian border.

One simple solution to our illegal immigration problems would be to eliminate the socialism that serves as an incentive.

I also believe that we need to reform our laws regarding birthright citizenship. It is not fair that a pregnant woman can sneak across our border to have her child and have the expectation that the child, by virtue of being born within the United States, will be granted U.S. citizenship. Birthright citizenship should only be bestowed upon when the parent(s) are U.S. citizens or maybe if they’re legal residents . . . but never when the they’re illegal.

Oh, and one more thing. . . . Border security is not racist and it’s not xenophobic. It’s about national security. If you disagree, then you sir are worse than Hitler.