My son used to think the line was “Mom you’re just jealous it’s the B Street Boys!” The B Street Boys were some kind of Disney boy band, kind of like the Jonas Brothers. I don’t think they ever sang—let alone rapped—about porno mags.
Author: Joe
Beach Boys
The Beach Boys’ America and my America have just about nothing in common. I like the ones that aren’t about surfing or fast cars best. That pretty much leaves the ones about girls, but hey, I can pretend that “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” was an early call for gay marriage, right?
B. B. King
B. B. King gets kind of a bad reputation for being a “supper club” blues musician. I don’t know if that’s warranted or not. I do know that I wish old school musicians would stop recording duet albums with younger musicians to try to seem hip to a new generation. Dude, you’re already more hip than Clapton.
Band
I know exactly zero about the Band. I know they backed Dylan for a while. I know the Staple Singers covered “The Weight.” I know Joni Mitchell appeared in their concert movie “The Last Waltz.” OK, I guess I know three things about them.
Aretha Franklin
How embarrassed should I be that the first time I put Aretha Franklin the person together with all those great Aretha Franklin songs was seeing her sing “Think” in “The Blues Brothers”? (Answer: Very.) All I know is, you can have Whitney, Mariah, and all those other female R&B singers who can “really sing”—I’d rather listen to Aretha Franklin 1,000 times over.
Animals
The Animals are one of those groups that had a lot of hits and you would recognize them if you heard them, but if someone said, “Name an Animals song,” you would have no idea.
Al Green
If hearing an Al Green song doesn’t instantly make you smile, you must be having a really bad day.
Aerosmith
Not sure what to say about Aerosmith. A group that went from “Dream On” to “Dude Looks Like a Lady” to American Idol. That’s quite a career.
AC/DC
I’m probably about to lose a lot of cred with my jazzbo/Joni Mitchell friends, but I love AC/DC. A lot. Nothing like hearing “Back in Black” at the beginning of a Raiders game—just ask Max.
Abbey Lincoln
The only time I saw Abbey Lincoln live, she spent most of her time yelling at the band. I think she was drunk. Nonetheless, she is amazing. This one is for Cedric, who reminded me that “Abbey” comes before “AC/DC.”
Playlist of the Day 