Monday Metal (Non Canadian Version)

You people are probably expecting something on the death of Neal Peart, but to be honest, we've never been a Rush guy and we know next to nothing about drummers. Peart, Moon, Bonham, Guy, Rich, it's all the same to us.

As it happens, middle daughter got a little electronic drum set for Hanukkah. Nightly we've been working on it with her. While we know nothing about drumming we are able to teach her some beats. So we started with We Will Rock You, moved on to Poor Some Sugar on Me, advanced to All Right Now, and are now on Paradise City.

She thinks the music videos are funny.

Exit Question: How come nobody ever talks about Country & Western musicianship? Style, yes of course? But where are the Country guitar gods? Whose the Tennessee Three's Eddie Van Halen?

Metal Monday

Rush (Rush)
Hush (Hush)

So we were listening to Rush's first album this week.

We once heard Gene Simmons say he originally thought Rush was the Canadian Led Zeppelin. Listening to Rush (Rush) we can see why.

Since this Album came out in 1974 we can't decide if we want to call it Led Zeppelin, Houses of the Rush or Led Zeppelin II.V.

'Finding my Way' sounds like it could have come off of Led Zeppelin II with its face paced beat while 'Need Some Love' sounds inspired by 'Whole lotta Love'. 'Take a Friend' has a groove that belongs on Led Zeppelin II and the riffs sound like Jimmy Page. 'In the Mood' sounds like a Zeppelin throw away song that would have ended up on 'CO/DA'.

This is not the Rush that Rush nerds came to love. This is not the Rush of '2112'.

Which is probably why we kind of like this album.

Tuesday Tally Comes Skulking in Late

Most Important Political Influences Edition

Well here they are:

-Alan Alda

-Rob Reiner

-Rush Limbaugh

-PJ O'Rourke

-Matt Drudge

-Mark Steyn

-Andrew Breitbart (PBUH)

Twenty five years ago William Stroock was a Conservative Democrat looking forward to Bill Clinton's inauguration. Now he was never a lefty. He favored all kinds of government action at home but also wanted a strong military. He supported the Gulf War, he  hated communism, two things that will get you primaried in today's Democrat party. In fact, in his famous 1993 English 101 Essay, 'The 1992 Presidential Campaign, a panoramic view of a myriad of divergent choices' he specifically stated, 'If it comes down to Bush and some schmuck Democrat, I'm voting for Bush'.

A few years ago in the faculty lounge a very leftwing colleague of mine who now runs something called the Hunterdon County Anti-Racism Coalition asked, upon hearing this asked, 'So what happened.'

'Well,' I replied as I adjusted my tie, 'I guess I fell in with the wrong crowd.'

In a way that's true. Because in the spring of 1993 I was hanging out with a guy who would later be my post college roommate and wedding usher, and he listened to Rush Limbaugh while we played Madden on his Sega. My buddy is now a lobbyist, btw. My most important take away from Rush was to be a happy warrior. Have fun. I always did so teaching, ok not with those little bastard Orthodox Yeshiva students.

While Limbaugh was it important, that summer I's already read what was for me a landmark book: Give War a Chance by PJ O'Rourke. Here was an irreverent baby boomer making fun of the world's crisis, retelling his own time in the Balto-Cong in 1970 and poking holes in a lot of the things I took for granted. He slammed We Are the World (its a Gen X thing, guys) and showed how it was pointless and dangerous and above all, stupid:

We are the world [solipsism], we are the children [average age forty].
We are the ones to make a brighter day [unproven], so let’s start giving [logical inference supplied without argument].
There’s a choice we’re making, so let’s start giving [true as far as it goes].
We’re saving our own lives [absurd].
It’s true we’ll make a better day [see line 2 above],
Just you and me [statistically unlikely].
That’s three palpable untruths, two dubious assertions, and nine uses of a first person pro-noun, not a single reference to trouble and anybody in it and no facts. The verse contains, literally, neither rhyme nor reason. And these musical riots of philanthropy address themselves to the wrong problems.

Going back even further, I'd say yuuge influences were Alana Alda and Rob Reiner (meathead).  I Every night of my childhood they were on channel 5 at 7 and 7:30, I mean every goddamn night. I just got sick of listening to them bad mouth American. I never need to see All in the Family again, but I really need to go back and give MASH a binge watch.

Moving on to manhood we come to Matt Drudge. He broke the Lewinsky story, of course and showed just how corrupt the media was, simply through his editorial choices. Simple really,and going strong. A real news man in the old style.

Mark Steyn. Like everyone else in America I hadn't heard of him till after 9/11. There's really no point in my trying to pick a few examples those interested should just go to his website or CRTV where he has new show. I've most importantly followed and participated in his crusade against the Canadian Human Rights Commission and now the climate fraudster Dr. Michael Mann. Free speech at any price.

Finally there's Andrew Breitbart, He began as Drudge's partner in crime and branched out or exploded out, anyway. I knew Breitbart was important after the California Prop-8 initiative when he challenged the screaming homosexuals to 'Protest a Mosque'. I was hooked. He knew me, though he never met me, and I sure knew him. I wept openly the day he died and am getting a little teary just writing this. I know he would love the way I found out, via Drudge. I can still see the screen now.

Breitbart taught me that enemy was the institutional left. He taught me how to fight it. He taught me the media is scum. He's no doubt  looking down from heavens with a giant smile. and an extended middle finger.