ohtani's jacket

I could be wrong, but I don't think there's been this level of interest in Jordan in a while. I suppose the timing of the documentary helped since there's very little live sport being broadcast right now. And to be fair to Jordan, it took years for him to sign off on a documentary because he wasn't prepared to accept the role of the older guy looking back on his career. But I still think this was a pretty savvy move from Jordan. He told his own story instead of somebody telling it for him.

Finished The Last Dance. I don't know if I'd call it a great documentary, but it was enjoyable if you're a basketball fan. It was pretty smart of Jordan to propel his name back into the mainstream and frame his own narrative.

That '90 Finals was pretty close, though. They only got blown out in Game 3, which was the game where Dumars waited until after the game to hear if his father had died. In Game 4, they had the tying three pointer waved off, and in Game 5, the Microwave heated up. In '92, the Bulls dominated them in two out of their three home games.

1970 I wasn't enamoured with the stuff they chose from 1970. 1970 was a weird, sort of transitional year, and I'm not saying they didn't dig in the crates a bit. I just don't like many of the songs they chose. In some cases, I think they got the song wrong. There are cases where the more obvious pick would have been better -- Paranoid over War Pigs, for example -- and other cases where the B side was better, eg. Speed King is a better Deep Purple song than Black Night. I didn't realize that Layla had that piano part at the end. I wonder if that was chopped for radio. I also didn't know that Gil Scott-Heron's The Revolution Will Not Be Televised was a response to that Last Poets song. The best song they chose was Band of Gold. I dismissed it at first, but it ended up becoming an ear worm. Really catchy stuff. Interesting that she's singing about not being able to consummate a marriage on the wedding night. I've been listening to a lot the past week or so. For some reason, I dislike James Taylor. Stephen Sills is kind of middle of the road too. I like the chorus of that song, though. I kind of liked the full length Ain't No Mountain High Enough. At least it wasn't boring. War is played out. One of the strange things about the list is the way they date the songs. Tears of a Clown was listed as being from 1967 because of the album it was on, but it wasn't released as a single until 1970. To me, that makes it a 1970 song but whatever. If you want to hear Young, Gifted and Black done properly, you need to listen to Nina Simone's version. There's been too much Nina Simone on the list, but that Bob and Marcia version didn't do the song justice, There are songs I'd put above Ball of Confusion. The French song sounded depressing. I'm pretty sure they chose that Bowie song because of the Nirvana cover. It's a better song that a lot of the other picks from 1970, though. Maybe I'm being a dick, but I didn't like how they included three songs from the Beatles post-breakup. I thought Lennon's song was the most interesting. Harrison's My Sweet Lord would have been the best if they'd picked it. I like Van Morrison but that song didn't do much for me. I've never really gotten into Nick Drake but that was a pretty song. I flat out don't understand why they went with the Simon and Garfunkel pick that they chose. I can kind of give and take the Creedence Clearwater Revival, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and Grateful Dead too. Neil Young is one of my all-time favourite artists but apparently they did him dirty on this list. "That sounds like Rod Stewart, oh it is Rod Stewart" was about my only reaction to the Python Lee Jackson song. The Mytals song wasn't as good as Pressure Drop (another song with an unclear release date). Sex Machine, if nothing else, is a gateway into the harder funk James Brown was producing at the time. Songs I like from 1970: Pretty much says it all: The best rock band in 1970, IMO: I know I said there was too much Kinks, but how can you overlook this one? No Exuma? I got really into Jorge Ben when we did the best of the 70s album list on DVDVR: Groovy: Not a bad early Alice Cooper song: Eric Burdon and War: If you want to go singer-songwriter, this one does it for me: Brings a tear to the eye: Preach it, Johnny: Double up on it! I really like Little Richard's comeback album from this year: Pretty derivative, but I love this song:

To me, terms like sociopath seem too strong. I'm not a Jordan fan. I thought his HOF speech was petty, and I feel bad for guys like Rodney McCray, whose career Jordan destroyed. But I do like digging beneath the surface. I think the Jordan/Cartwright issue is interesting, for example. I found this article about it from 1991 -- https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1991-11-18-9104140692-story.html The documentary touched on Jordan having to learn to trust his teammates, and that it took time for him to buy into the triangle offense, but I liked the extra layer of detail that this article adds. You can't tell me that this time of issue hasn't happened on countless NBA teams over the years. I'm not denying that Jordan wasn't petulant or immature when it came to Cartwright, and Cartwright definitely comes across as being wiser and more mature, but is this really an unprecedented case? Here is an article about how some of the Lakers players reacted when Norm Nixon was traded for Byron Scott -- https://lakeshowlife.com/2015/03/12/rebuilding-the-lakers-byron-scott-was-the-teammate-no-one-wanted/

Russell, Wilt and Kareem were all complex individuals. They had a lot of anger. Russell had a strained relationship with the press and his teammates at times. Not because of his competitiveness but because of the stance he took during the civil rights movement. Magic fooled a lot of people with his smile, but once his diagnosis was publicized, the facade crumbled and people discovered how ridiculous his behavior at been. He may have been loved by his teammates, but he was far from perfect. And Larry behaved the same way on the court as Jordan except people find the stories amusing. Jordan is clearly flawed, but he's human too. To me, he comes across as a more emotional guy than I realized. It seemed like the burden of leadership weighed on him and that he had some regrets about how he treated people even if, in his words, he had no choice.

Uh oh, 307-309 slipped through the cracks.

Episodes 7 and 8 were pretty emotional. Definitely the best episodes in the series. The price of winning stuff cast Jordan in a new light. I mean, we all know he wanted to win at any cost, but I didn't know how aware he was of the cost.

Bump.

They didn't include any instrumentals on the list. EDIT: I suppose 21st Century Schizoid Man isn't technically an instrumental but it's pretty borderline by this list's standards.

1969 The 60s are over with 700 songs to go. Feels like we could have stuck around for longer. Still, the only omission that surprised me from this year was Bowie, and I figure he'll feature a few times before it's all said and done. My Way is a great song, no amount of funerals and karaoke nights can tarnish that. It's not surprising that Sinatra hated it, though. I like the original French song, too. Did you know the singer died in the shower trying to fix a light bulb? That Robert Flack song is beautiful. Another song I included on the soundtrack for my wedding reception. I was happy to see them include Candi Staton and Jimmy Cliff, too. I wasn't expecting those picks. The Fairport Convention song was a bit too ethereal for my liking. I can't take In the Ghetto seriously. Not after South Park. Anyway, if you want to hear a better song about the ghetto from '69 listen to Donny Hathaway's The Ghetto or Marlena Shaw's epic Woman of the Ghetto. There's some stuff I could give or take -- like early Fleetwood Mac, Crosby, Stills and Nash, The Who, and Led Zeppelin -- but I'm sure others feel that way about my soul picks. That Russell Morris song was interesting. I'm pretty sure I've heard the chorus before. It felt quite experimental. Is it just me or was Marianne Faithful trying to sound like Mick Jaggar at this time? I love Merle Haggard, but even if the lyrics to Okie from Muskogee were meant to be humourous, I'm not sure I like the chord that it struck. Especially in the present climate. Peggy Lee's song felt like a relic. It was okay but spoken word has always bothered me unless it's the blues or Southern soul. Sweetness is a nice mellow tune. Suspicious Minds is a great karaoke track. I'm sure there are people who prefer Elvis' early stuff but I like Elvis tunes like The Wonder of You and Always on my Mind. The fake fade on Suspicious Minds is awesome. Je t'aime… moi non plus reminds me of that Marvin Gaye song where he says, " Tu etais incroyable. Oh, that's French, baby. Means you were incredible." Man, I forgot how bluesy that Syl Johnson song is. That's a great song. Nice to see them pick a Sly and the Family Stone tune too. That was some funky shit. I Want You Back is one of the most uplifting break up songs ever. It makes me chuckle to think it's sung by a 6th grader. I did a deep dive of prog once. King Crimson were just getting started here. The Stooges and MC5 kick ass. BUT, the best song of the lot -- The Thrill Is Gone. Jesus, what a tune. I can hear what they mean about the strings. Normally, I hate it when they use strings, but nothing can stop this song. I swear BB King revitalized the blues with this gem and paved the way for 70s soul and r'n'b. Did I mention how much I like this song?? Other stuff: Perhaps even more influential than The Thrill is Gone: Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time): The Isley Brothers sure liked the phrase "sock it to": James Carr covers the Bee Gees. Unbelievable tune. Those horns! David Ruffin split from the Temptations and delivered this monster solo track: Fuzz soul? Bob Dylan was a fan of this song: How high can this man's voice go? Nice slice of country soul: Trust me, your good thing is about to end: Marsha Hunt covers Dr. John and crushes it: If you need a drink: A cover of an early Parliament song. I cannot stop moving to this: Sonic Youth fans will recognize this one: Weird enough for ya? One for Marvel fans: One more for comic book fans:

Liam, 277-282 please.

Does anyone have any Obayashi recommendations? I just finished House and I'm interested in seeing more.

1968 I wasn't thrilled with the choices they made here. I know the point of the list isn't to represent a particular year, but 1968 was more interesting than the list would have you believe. First off some positives -- The Snake was a song I'd never head before. Apparently, it was a big hit in the Northern Soul scene. That was cool. I really liked the Toots & The Mytals tune as well. I was wondering when reggae would start popping up. That's about it for the positives. I like that Otis song but there is any number of Southern Soul tunes they could have included in its place. I like gospel but Happy Day didn't do a lot for me. And of course, the Marvin song is a classic. My main gripe with the list is more tracks from Nina Simone, The Kinks, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. I like all those artists -- in fact, I love Nina and the Kinks -- but I think there's room for more diversity. I know they justify their reasons for each track in the book, but I feel like they could have left off those Nina Simone and Kinks' tracks from the list and we would have been none the lesser for it. I like Glenn Campbell's voice but the orchestration on that track is a bit lush. I'd like to hear a stripped down version of that song with just Glenn and a guitar. One thing I learned from the choices is that Erna Franklin was Aretha's sister. I kind of like her version of Another Piece of My Heart better than Joplin's. It was nice to see them include Os Mutantes. And that Hendrix track is still epic. I didn't like the Simon and Garfunkel or Van Morrison tracks as much as Liam. Pusher was an interesting pick. Can't say I've delved into Steppenwolf much so that was at least new. Personally, I'm surprised they haven't included anything from the Zombies yet. The Zombies and Muddy Waters are the two omissions that stand out the most to me thus far. Anyway, enough of the complaining. Here are the songs that interest me from this year: Everyday People, Sly and the Family Stone Folsom Prison Blues (live), Johnny Cash Waitin' Around to Die, Townes Van Zandt I Walk on Guilded Splinters, Dr. John, The Night Tripper Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In), First Edition A song I am currently obsessed with: Should have been on the list, IMO: Todd Rundgren's band before he went solo: Dutch rock: The original single: Garage punk: I'm not a big fan of psychedelic rock but this is cool: Nice garage rock tune: Nice piece of garage bubblegum: FIRE! More fire! Watch out, Big Mama Thorton is pissed: Worth watching for the video if nothing else: Who's makin' love to your old lady? A beautiful song Eddie Floyd wrote after Redding's death: Did you know soul could be this sexy? I really love William Bell if you couldn't tell: Always listen to mama: Hip hop fans will recognize this one: Do Your Thing! Lastly, a Motown song that breaks all the songwriting rules. One of my very favorite songs:

Of course you'd draft Hakeem over Jordan. There was no guarantee that Jordan on the Rockets, or even Jordan on the Bulls for that matter, would have been anymore success than Drexler was in Portland. Hell, you can see on the documentary that a huge part of Jordan's success was that the Bulls locked Pippen into an awful contract. People assume that whatever team Jordan landed on it would have won multiple championships. We all know how fickle sport is. Having said that, it helps that Hakeem has the titles to justify the pick. And Hakeem was the greatest. At their peaks, I would rather watch Hakeem over Jordan any day of the week.

The NBA exploded in popularity due to the rise of satellite TV. At that time, Magic was just as famous as Jordan. Depending on your country's jumping on point, folks had seen Magic win the MVP in 1990, make the finals in 1991, shock the world with his HIV announcement, make his comeback at the 1992 All Star game and play at the Olympics. Jordan went on to become an icon, and the most popular player in the history of the game, but Magic was a big deal in the early 90s especially with the AIDS scare.

The first two episodes were all right. Not sure how they're going to draw this thing out to 10 episodes unless they're holding back on a lot of the behind the scenes footage. It's a topic that's been covered in documentaries before so none of it is new. The interesting part is the behind the scenes stuff like Stern schmoozing with Jordan. If it had been the modern NBA, Pippen would have forced a trade.

1967 I keep on jumping the gun about artists the list has left off. Let's run through the choices quickly: The End would be a decent song if it was half the length. That spoken word part is atrocious -- the west is the best? Get here and we'll do the rest? I'm a poet and I don't even know it. Like most teenagers from my era, I went through a Jim Morrison phase. I still like some Doors songs, but man, that spoken word shit. I love Captain Beefheart. I went through a period where I listened to a huge amount of his work. I swear he could release that record in any era and it would sound completely unique. Amazing artist. What is that Sinatra song doing here? That was an incredibly weak pick in my book. Worst pick since the Elvis cover of Bob Dylan. Pick a real bossa nova track if you're so inclined. Heroin is one of my favorite Lou Reed tracks. Great song. I prefer it to Venus in Furs or Nico's song Chelsea Girls. I've never used the stuff but I imagine it's the same rush as this song. The Buffalo Springfield song reminds me of every 80s TV show/film about 'Nam. Not it's fault. It's actually about protests but all I can picture is soldiers creeping through the jungle on patrol. And helicopters and napalm bombs. The Look of Love isn't my favorite Dusty song but I appreciate the talents involved. I'd Rather Go Blind is a massive tune. Actually, this song and Dark End of the Street, I first discovered through Clarence Carter, who himself was blind: The intro to this song is amazing: That Jackie Wilson song is one of my all-time favorite songs. You really need to watch him sing it high: Beatles songs are a given. There's not much you can say about them. I figure everyone would make their own picks if they were in the authors' shoes. Am I the only one who thinks that Jefferson Airplane song is god awful? If you're gonna write a song about drugs, Purple Haze is much better. The only Spencer Davis Group song I would have considered is Gimme Some Lovin'. I like Jimi but I don't think Fire needs to be on this list. I was hanging out with a friend in New Zealand at Christmas time and I asked him what he thought the perfect pop song was. We both shouted "Waterloo Sunset!" What a beautiful piece of music. I don't mind Ode to Billie Joe. I like country music and I like a good story song. But it's not something I can put to ease whatever mood I'm in. Some good stuff at the end. I like Leonard Cohen a lot, one of the few Love songs that really strikes a chord in me, and I really like the Lennon parts of Day in the Life. That Walker song was a decent impersonation of Brel. Lots of Aretha creeping into the list. One of the first funk songs. I like Pink Floyd more than I should for someone who's stoner friends thrashed it to death when I was a kid, but Emily Plays doesn't belong anywhere near this list. A Whiter Shade of Pale depresses the fuck out of me. Great Smokey Robinson song. I'm glad they included his stuff. Cream do nothing for me as a super group. I actually prefer the Cat Stevens' version of The First Cut is the Deepest but the P.P. Arnold story is a compelling one. Other stuff from 1967: And the incredible:

Liam, you skipped 247-249.

1966 You can feel the psychedelic influence creeping into a lot of these songs. That leads to a cliched sound at times, but I liked most of these choices. There were some sneaky re-releases, though. Interesting that they snubbed The Velvet Underground. That Jacques Dutronc song was cool. I swear when this is all said and done I'm doing a deep dive on French pop. Stay with Me shouldn't have worked but ended up being epic. The chorus was a belter. Umm Kulthum is an artist I knew nothing about before this book (or thread, really.) Reading up about her, she seems like an absolute titan of the music world. Originally, I thought the song was a nice bit of exposure to something I might otherwise only hear in an old film, but now I am intrigued by the woman. I like the fact that she sang genuine Arabic songs while other musicians were trying to copy Western songs. I LOVE Roky Erickson. You're Gonna Miss Me is a great song. The Who and The Byrds I can give or take. Paint it Black has been hashed to death. I like that they recognized the complexity of the Beach Boy's music and they seem to share a lot of people's opinion that for a brief period Ray Davies of the Kinks' songwriting was on par with Lennon and McCartney. I didn't get the Elvis pick. Did they choose it because he was singing a Dylan song? I like the Odetta version better. I also prefer the Jorge Ben version of Mas que nada. I really liked the Peret song. That was a cheerful, uplifting song. Lots of classic garage rock in this batch. A bit of Motown and an interesting Beatles choice there at the end. Two of my favorite artists didn't make the cut. Sam and Dave need to be seen live too. Would have picked this over some of the Motown choices so far: The great Lee Dorsey needed to be included too: There was a lot of great garage rock from this year, as well as garage punk: I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night), The Electric Prunes Undecided, The Masters Apprentices Trouble Comin' Every Day, The Mothers of Invention Going All the Way, The Squires (We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet, The Blues Magoo Talk Talk, The Music Machine Come See Me, The Pretty Things} Save My Soul, The Wimple Wench Can't Tame Me, The Benders Don't Look Back, The Remains Project Blue, The Banshees Primitive, The Groupies Voices Green and Purple, The Bees Security, Thane Russal & Three Bad Girl, The Zakary Thaks Jack the Ripper, One Way Street Journey to Tyme, Kenny and The Kasuals Last Time Round, The Del-Vetts ...the list goes on and on. I think I would have picked Hendrix' Hey Joe, myself. Koko Taylor sings a pretty fantastic version of Wang Dang Doodle with Willie Dixon from this year. I was really taken with this Small Faces song recently: And this was the oddest song I discovered:

Well, now the Olympics have been postponed, the Japanese government are finally admitting we have a problem.

Sweet. I listened to the EP it comes from. Saw the Cramps live once when I was just a kid.

Never heard that Count Five song before. Nice!

1965 1965 and finally we see some Beatles, Rolling Stones and Dylan. I feel like this is the most mainstream the list has been so far. I'm glad they finally included some Nina Simone as she is one of my all-time favorite artists. Nice to see some James Brown as well, though I prefer the harder funk he recorded with the JB's to his early stuff. Otis gets a nod here as well with that slow burner. California Dreamin' has those beautiful vocal harmonies. It's one of those songs that can be uplifting and joyous or depressing as f**k depending on your mood. Kind of like the way it's used in Chungking Express. At first I thought Ticket to Ride was a strange choice as the first Beatles song on the list. Then I listened to it and remembered that it's a great tune. The Stones' rune is iconic and has one of the best riffs in rock history. Subterranean Homesick Blues seemed like an odd choice for a Dylan track, but it does have an awesome video and it's a rocking, bluesy tune: Like a Rolling Stone is an amazing track. To think the world's most renowned folk singer would pen such a sneering and vengeful rock song, and play it on the electric guitar. It didn't turn the music world upside down, but it should have. La Paloma is a song that I don't understand but it must speak to people to have been recorded so many times. La boheme felt like a nice little jaunt through the streets of Paris. I'm not exactly sure what it's about. I think it's a wistful love song or something. Ignorance. The Irish Rover was great. The Pogues & Dubliners version is also great. I love how the description of the boat grows more ridiculous with each verse. I don't remember hearing Needle of Death before. That was pretty raw for the time. Interesting choice to represent folk music as well. We're starting to get into the era where every song sounds like the soundtrack to the Vietnam War, but I love The Tracks of My Tears. Smokey Robinson had such a beautiful voice. The Supremes needed to be on the list in some form or another. I always loved that little piano intro to Stop! In the Name of Love. The production on that song is amazing. Some of Motown's finest. I don't know how they left The Four Tops off the list, though. Criminally underrated Motown act. I'm gonna come out and say it, that Seekers song is the worst song to make the list so far. What was that all about? Did they include it just because it was Australian? I can tell you, Australia has produced finer songs than that over the years. I would rather listen to Dylan sing Tambourine Man. I'm not a big fan of early Curtis Mayfield either, so the Impressions song didn't win me over. Who Do You Love? and Psycho seem to be the garage rock picks for this year. Both are great songs. There was a garage rock explosion in '65, which I'll get to in a sec. The final three songs they chose -- Sounds of Silence, My Generation and Unchained Melody -- aren't likely to be in heavy rotation on my playlists, but I can recognize their greatness and placement on the list. I went through a phase when I was a teenager where I was a huge Who fan, and Unchained Melody is an amazing vocal performance by Bobby Hatfield. But for my generation (ha), that song was shoved down our throats by the Swayze movie. 1965 was a bad year for a lot of the music I like. In fact, there is only one blues song of any real note and that is Howin' Wolf's Killing Floor. I find that a bit sad since garage rock exploded around this time, which obviously wouldn't exist without the blues. Still, the explosion of bands around this time was amazing. You can go down a foxhole with all of the records. Here are some memorable ones for me: I Fought the Law, Bobby Fuller Four You're Pushing Too Hard & Can't Seem to Make You Mine, The Seeds I Ain't No Miracle Worker, The Brogues What a Way to Die, The Pleasure Seekers Demolicion, Los Saicos Just Like Me, Paul Revere & The Raiders Liar, Liar, The Castaways Some other stuff: Ride Your Pony, Lee Dorsey Do I Love You, Frank Wilson Blues Run the Game, Frank C. Jackson Heart Full of Soul, The Yardbirds

I'm pretty sure the book made a mistake with Irish Rover. It says it was a B side to a single named "The Rising of the Moon," but that was another track called Wild Rover. Irish Rover was the B side to an earlier 1963 release, Brennan on the Moor. Not important, but you know...