So it's all over the news that there's a new cryptocurrency being introduced. Something called "Libra". Apparently we're not confused enough already by Bitcoins, so they decided to up the ante by giving us a new puzzle to decipher. It seems to be a perfect opportunity to return to the special feature known as the … Continue reading Squeaky Wheel Says: I Still Haven’t Figured Out Bitcoins!
If you were around at the time, you might remember when radio/TV host Arthur Godfrey fired popular crooner Julius La Rosa from his show. It caused a uproar at the time, and ended up being a pretty significant turning point for both entertainers' careers. But there's more to the story. Julius La Rosa was yet … Continue reading Julius La Rosa – The Rest Of The Story
Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong were busy and successful music pros who wrote a lot of memorable songs for the Temptations. But one that they avoided for a couple of years would end up as a #1 hit for the group and become a signature song. Written in 1969, "just My Imagination" was a ballad, … Continue reading Anatomy Of A Song – A Surprising Super Hit
Who doesn't like circus music? It brings memories of simpler days, when we were young and less jaded, a time before we were drowning in all the entertainment choices now available to everybody. If you didn't live in a big city, which most Americans didn't, the arrival of a traveling circus in your area was … Continue reading The Musical Side Of The Circus
If you're a geezer like me -- or even if you're not -- you might remember how kids would sometimes wrap cellophane around a pocket comb and hum through it. Although we didn't give a lot of thought to it, we were actually demonstrating the principles of a membranophone. Here at the Geezer Music Club … Continue reading Our Favorite Membranophone
Once again I've discovered that something I'd always more or less ignored is actually a pretty good idea. I have a habit of doing that, unfortunately. When something new comes along I tend to think it's just a fad, and has nothing to offer me. I guess I'm the opposite of an early adopter. . … Continue reading A New Way To Listen
You probably remember Johnny Nash's 1972 number-one hit "I Can See Clearly Now" (you can hear it below), but it has added meaning for me because I hope to sing it myself in the not too distant future. (Well, at least hum it -- my singing voice is something along the lines of the sound … Continue reading In Pursuit Of Seeing Clearly
The title of this latest installment of Anatomy of a Song is a little misleading, because the song we're featuring is much better known by it's English title -- "Return to Me"-- but when Dean Martin introduced it in 1958 the Italian name was included in parentheses, so I figure that makes it pretty official. … Continue reading Anatomy Of A Song: Ritorna-Me
A recent news article about the FBI recovering Dorothy's famous ruby slippers, thirteen years after they were stolen from a Museum in Minnesota, got me to thinking about The Wizard Oz. And since my thoughts often revolve around music, I also began thinking about the music from the movie. Of course, the iconic song from … Continue reading Ruby Slippers And The Music Of The Wizard Of Oz
(Note: this is the last post I had ready to go before my hospital adventure. From now on I'll have to come up with some new ones, so wish me luck! BG) A good friend of mine, who has been gone for many years now, had a working vintage jukebox in his living room. But … Continue reading Jukeboxes I Have Known
Geezer Music Club 