Musical Interlude: This Song is Stuck in my Head
So maybe if I post it up here I can clear out some much-needed space in the aging noodle. It’s that classic ballad–They Say It’s Wonderful–sung by Doris Day in a slice of pure Americana. If you’re wound up about something, take a few minutes of this and call me in the morning.
Musical Interlude: This Will Make You Happy
I know–it’s only Wednesday…why a musical interlude…aren’t they reserved for Friday? It’s because I was talking to my pal GL about the idea of variations on a theme and she’d never heard one. So I snapped into action and found this lovely treatment of Mozart’s variations on Twinkle, Twinkle. It’s just so damn charming that [...]
Musical Interlude…Outsourced.
[Outsourced to GL, age 22...that's right...this is part of my ongoing research into:] What The Kids Are Listening to These Days! I’m going to shake things up a bit around here with my Friday Musical Interlude guest spot — while Jared typically keeps things in the jazz or classic family [um...I have, on many occassions, [...]
Rare Tuesday Musical Interlude
A friend just shared this CD of a 1967 recoding by Lee Morgan and a bunch of jazz greats, including a young Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. I love this little minor blues, especially Herbie and Wayne’s solos. Wayne sounds to me like a space ship exploring the galaxy and touching down on interesting planets every [...]
Friday Musical Interlude: Outer Space Version
In honor of both that plucky little space rover, Curiosity, and space-cadet commander MB, this week’s interlude offers a couple of funky jams from beyond earth’s stratosphere. First, here’s Billy Preston’s Outta Space, which I understand is what Curiosity plays on its headphones as it goes around taking pictures up there on Mars. Second, for [...]
The People Want Music!
A few folks want to know what happened to the Friday music interlude. Well, here it is—a day late, but worth waiting for. In honor of those incredibly speedy Jamaicans, a paean to the red, gold, black, and green flag from the great Reggae band Steel Pulse. Libertation! True Democracy!
Friday Musical Interlude–Mozart at the Piano
OTE’ers help me! I can’t stop playing this piece: the last movement of Mozart’s piano concerto #9, KV 271. I should be listening to NPR on the way to and from work, but instead I just keep hitting repeat on the CD player. On second thought, don’t help me…join me! The piece is just rampant [...]
Matrix…and Mean
I’m deep into an early Chick Corea phase and strongly recommend you join me there. Just genius at work, exploring the harmonic reaches of jazz, in this case, through a little blues head called Matrix. He was playing this stuff in 1968 and it still sounds futuristic. Or, if you want something a lot more [...]
Monday AM Music: Isotope
Again, I’ve been remiss. I don’t think I’ve ever linked to something by one of my favorite jazz musicians: Joe Henderson. I’ve been listening to him for over 30 years and I’m still consistently blown away by the notes he chooses and the way he delivers them. Here he is on a typically odd little [...]
Friday Musical Interlude
Got home last night after an extremely intense and emotional day and soon thereafter stumbled on this Jimi Hendrix cut–Freedom–from one of his last albums (yes, it was an “album”). It jams an unbelieveable amount of amazingly creative music into about three minutes. Be sure to listen carefully to the way Jimi accompanies his singing [...]
Rare Saturday Afternoon Musical Interlude
Just had to share this—not that it’s unknown or anything…but what an amazing piece…the poetry, imagery, singing. If you can, like me, sit on the back porch with a sleepy black cat, a beer, and the sun setting after a beautiful day while you listen to this, I strongly recommend you do so.
Friday Musical Interlude: Uplifting Gospel Version
Again, I’ve been remiss–all these musical interludes and I’ve yet to post a gospel number. My bad, especially given the existence of Twinkie Clark and Clark Sisters. Here is that most holy, most funky, and most uplifting aggregation delivering a musical sermon called You Brought the Sunshine…LIVE. If this doesn’t get your inner holy roller [...]
Friday Musical Interlude: Hittin’ the Road w/ Nat Cole
First, thanks to all who contributed to the Funky Dance Party playlist. Who said wonks aren’t funky?! I must admit I’d never listened the Dap Kings but am now a big fan. However, what with summer vacations starting, and controlling for the fact that Americans are driving less, and given that I’ve somehow managed to [...]
Funky Dance Party!
A friend is having a funky dance party and asked me for some recommendations that would be sure to get even the shyest souls out on the dance floor. Here’s what I had off the top of my head–each of which has been featured here at OTE: I Wish, Stevie Wonder When I Think of [...]
Friday Musical Interlude
Driving in the car the other day, I heard this piece—the 3rd movement of Beethoven’s 3rd piano concerto—and loved it. Great melodies, great interplay between the piano and the orchestra, and without that self-involved sturm and drang stuff that I hear in later Beethoven. Wonderful performance too—the pianist, Daniel Barenboim, really gets it. Plus, check [...]
Friday Night, Funk Interlude
In honor of this week’s victory for marriage equality, I offer the deep and progressive groove of Do Your Thing by the great Isaac Hayes. Why? “Because whatever you do, you got to do your thing.”
Musical Interlude: Billy Boys
I’ve been terribly remiss regarding the posting of musical interludes. This is not good…not good at all. Great music is certainly much more important than all these silly twists and turns in the daily debate. I’ll try to be more mindful of my priorities. OTE’ers know that when it comes to jazz piano—of which, if [...]
The Political Economy of the Hunger Games (outsourced)
Last Friday’s interlude was outsourced to the youthful KM, who posted something that had something to do with the Hunger Games—(or not—following the origination is a little like the financing of CDOs). This generated a probing question from a commenter: “Is there such a thing as “economics of dictatorships”? The model in the book is [...]
Friday Music Interlude…Movie Version…Outsourced to KM
[Infusing OTE's musical selections with the vibrancy of youth, I turn this week's choice over to KM. She choose a great, haunting song--one I never would have stumbled on, so thanks!] Given the country’s current obsession with the Hunger Games, the novel and film about a young heroine in a dystopian future, I tried to [...]
Friday Music Interlude: Hey-Oh!
It’s party-time!—well, almost. And who better to get the weekend started than “N’awlens” own Huey (Piano) Smith singing Don’t You Just Know It? I challenge you not to sing along in the call and response part…can’t be done unless you’re terminally square.
On the Road Again
Headed off to Cali for a couple of talks…here are slides for the first one…light posting but currently enjoying free, high-quality Wi-Fi from the new Dulles terminal, so add that to my list of venerable airports (though not sure older terminals here have it yet). Meanwhile, just heard this last night and was reminded of [...]
Friday Musical Interlude: Jesse J Wants to Be Your Man (ooh, ooh, ooh)!
Thought I’d get this one out early today so you could groove to it all day. It’s (I Wanna) Be Your Man by the Jesse Johnson Review. Lock this in your mind and your cellular structure will be aptly and funkily aligned for the rest of the weekend. Jesse used to work for Prince I [...]
Friday Interlude…Day Late
This week’s musical interlude is outsourced to youthful colleague…a number of people have told me about these here Punch Bros, and I can hear why–very much the hybrid described below, and it works. So thanks, BH! Fans of bluegrass have watched the mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile for some time — Nickel Creek, the group [...]
Charles Murray/Louis Jordan
Lots of important things to cover—getting lots of interesting feedback on this model that links growth, inequality, opportunity, mobility, and political power (now on slideshare, h/t: PS). Also, finishing Charles Murray’s new book, Coming Apart, which is definitely interesting—I’ll have a lot more to say about it tomorrow. I’ve not seen much new in there [...]
Jared Bernstein’s areas of expertise include federal and state economic and fiscal policies, income inequality and mobility, trends in employment and earnings, international comparisons, and the analysis of financial and housing markets.
