Tag Archives: On Music

I hide in my music: 10 Essential Albums of 1976

June 29, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on June 27, 2026)

Forget America 250-I think I’m having a Bicentennial Minute:

Okay, that was only 30 seconds…here’s a Bicentennial Minute:

And that’s the way it was, back in 1976. America celebrated its 200th birthday, a couple of scruffy-looking nerds named Steve founded Apple Computer, the unmanned Viking 1 landed on Mars, a peanut farmer named Jimmy beat incumbent Gerald Ford for the presidency, Rocky was the top-grossing film, Happy Days was the TV ratings winner, and Billboard’s #1 song of the year was:

Of course, there was a lot more going on with music outside of the sales-driven pop charts; arena rock was at its zenith, disco and funk were fighting for the lead in the clubs, and the burgeoning punk scenes in New York and London were threatening to tear it all down.

Hard to believe that was 50 flippin’ years ago. So it goes.

Here are my top 10 album picks of 1976, with an additional 10 appended (to temper the hate mail that I’m going to get anyway).

And just remember kids…it’s only rock ‘n’ roll.

Boston – Boston

I remember the first time I heard Boston’s “More Than a Feeling” wafting from my car radio. Nighttime, miles from nowhere. I was driving my 1976 Subaru DL sedan (paid for in cash with Alaska pipeline loot) from upstate New York to Fairbanks (it’s a long-ass drive). Those fat power chords, soaring lead vocals and precise harmonies shot straight through my Nucleus Accumbens and lit my 20 year-old Amygdala up like a Christmas tree. And that was just the first single from a debut that turned out to be pretty, pretty good overall.

Choice cuts: “More Than a Feeling”, “Foreplay/Long Time”, “Hitch a Ride”, “Smokin'”.

Frampton Comes Alive! – Peter Frampton

I’m convinced that there was a law on the books in the late 70s that required every record collector to own a copy, regardless of whether or not they actually were an avid Peter Frampton fan. Personally, I’ve never begrudged the success of this 2-LP set (8x Platinum sales in the U.S.), because I happen to think he is one of the guitar greats, and have been a fan since his Humble Pie days. Granted, some cuts have been run into the ground by classic rock radio, but Frampton Comes Alive! remains one of the best live albums of all time.

Choice cuts: “Show Me the Way”, “It’s a Plain Shame”, “All I Want to Be (Is by Your Side)”, “Wind of Change”, “Shine On”, “Do You Feel Like We Do”.

Private Eyes – Tommy Bolin

Although his recorded legacy spans less than a decade, guitarist-songwriter Tommy Bolin’s place in the rock pantheon is assured. Between 1968 and his untimely death at 25 in 1976, he co-founded the Colorado-based hard rock band Zephyr, played sessions on seminal jazz-fusion albums by Billy Cobham (Spectrum) and Alphonse Mouzon (Mind Transplant), and was a full-fledged member of The James Gang (Bang, Miami) and Deep Purple (Come Taste the Band).

Private Eyes was Bolin’s followup to his excellent first solo album Teaser (released the previous year). A strong set of songs, showcasing Bolin’s eclectic guitar chops (incorporating samba, reggae, country, jazz, fusion and hard rock) and his distinctive vocal phrasing. Sadly, just 3 months after Private Eyes was released Bolin died of a drug overdose, following a concert where he opened forJeff Beck (Beck once credited Bolin’s playing on Billy Cobham’s Spectrum album as the inspiration for his own foray into fusion). Gone too soon.

Choice cuts: “Sweet Burgundy”, “Post Toastee”, “Shake the Devil”, “Gypsy Soul”, “You Told Me That You Loved Me”.

Quantum Jump – Quantum Jump

This genre-defying debut didn’t make a huge splash, but is chock full of memorable tunes. Fronted by vocalist-keyboardist Rupert Hine (who composed the bulk of the music with lyricist David MacIver), it’s a unique fusion of funk, jazz, rock and prog, with tight arrangements and top-flight production. MacIver’s playful and enigmatic lyrics recall Steely Dan. Hine (who died in 2020) went on to release a number of solo albums; he also composed TV and movie soundtracks and became an in-demand studio producer (Tina Turner, Rush, Howard Jones, Suzanne Vega, Thompson Twins, et.al.).

Choice cuts: “The Lone Ranger”, “No American Starship”, “Over Rio”, “Alta Loma Road”.

Shake Some Action – The Flamin’ Groovies

While they started out as a proto-punk garage band, this San Francisco outfit made a profound transformation after they traveled across the pond to Wales in 1972 to work with producer Dave Edmunds (two songs from those 1972 sessions ended up on Shake Some Action, the remainder of which wasn’t recorded until 1976, with additional production by Greg Shaw). The result was an album power pop aficionados consider the gold standard. Nary a weak cut.

Choice cuts: “Shake Some Action”, “Yes, It’s True”, “You Tore Me Down”, “Please Please Girl”, “I’ll Cry Alone”.

Smile – Laura Nyro

One of the great American songwriters, Laura Nyro remains underappreciated as a recording artist. Granted, to the public at large her most well-known compositions will always be associated with the artists who made them hits (e.g. “Wedding Bell Blues”, “Save the Country”, and “Stoned Soul Picnic” by the Fifth Dimension, “And When I Die” by Blood, Sweat, & Tears, “Eli’s Coming” by Three Dog Night, “Stoney End”, “Flim-Flam Man”, and “Time and Love” by Barbara Streisand), but she has been cited as an inspiration by the likes of Carole King, Todd Rundgren, Joni Mitchell, and Elton John.

Smile marked a second wind of sorts for Nyro, who had taken a 4-year breather from the music business. Many of the songs have a relaxed, warm jazzy-pop vibe, some are more textural, with quiet interludes that incorporate traditional Asian instrumentation (reminiscent of Jade Warrior). Nyro’s vocals are heavenly throughout.

Choice Cuts: “Children of the Junks”, “Money”, “Midnite Blue”, “Stormy Love”, “Smile (With Mars at the End)”.

The Ramones – The Ramones

“Hey ho, let’s go!” …and we’re off to the races. Recorded in a week, The Ramones’ debut crams 14 songs into 29 minutes, which was indicative of the brief yet brain-rattling sets the band had been performing in New York clubs like CBGB and Max’s Kansas City (get in and get out before the audience knows what hit ’em). Not unlike AC/DC, the band came steamrolling out of the gate with their formula, ignored trends and held fast until the rest of the world caught up with them. The album only sold around 6,000 units in its first year of release (!) but eventually reached gold status in 2014. However, the influence of this album cannot be overstated. Two words: Punk rock.

Choice cuts: “Blitzkrieg Bop”, “Beat on the Brat”, “Judy is a Punk”, “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend”, “Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue”, “Let’s Dance”.

The Runaways – The Runaways

This may be tough to fathom now, but the idea of an all-female rock band, who actually played their own instruments and wrote their own songs, was still considered a “novelty” in the mid-70s. In 1975, a music industry hustler and self-proclaimed idol-maker named Kim Fowley had an epiphany. If he could assemble an all-female rock band with the ability to capture the appeal of The Beatles by way of the sexy tomboy ethos of glam-punk queen Suzi Quatro, he could conquer the charts and make a bazillion dollars.

Ladies and gentlemen…the fabulous Runaways.

Depending on which camp is doing the talking in any tell-all book you may read or documentary you might watch, it was either due to, or in spite of, Fowley’s dubious manipulations that Cherie Currie (lead singer), Joan Jett (guitar and vocals), Sandy West (drums), Lita Ford (lead guitar) and bass player Jackie Fox (and her eventual replacement Vicki Blue) did make quite a name for themselves, and high-kicked a breach in rock ’n’ roll’s glass ceiling with those platform boots, empowering a generation of young women to plug in and crank it to “11”. Their 1976 debut album has held up quite well.

Choice cuts: “Cherry Bomb”, “You Drive Me Wild”, “Rock and Roll”, “American Nights”.

Year of the Cat – Al Stewart

Fun fact: The wispy-voiced troubadour who sang about “strolling through the crowd like Peter Lorre” once took guitar lessons from King Crimson founder Robert Fripp. OK, they were teenagers at the time, and were destined to go off in very different musical directions…but that happened. Stewart toyed with different genres early in his career, eventually settling on the London folk club scene in the mid-60s as a solo artist.

By the time he released The Year of the Cat (his seventh album) he had developed a more sophisticated hybrid of folk, soft rock, and light orchestral prog. While I wouldn’t call it a “concept album”, every song tells a story (it’s very cinematic, like an omnibus of character studies). Beautifully produced and arranged by Alan Parsons.

Choice cuts: “Lord Grenville”, “On the Border”, “Broadway Hotel”, “One Stage Before”, “Year of the Cat”.

Third World – Third World

While they wouldn’t fully find their voice until their outstanding 1977 followup 96 Degrees in the Shade, this is still a strong debut from this innovative reggae outfit, who seamlessly incorporated hard funk, sweet soul, smooth jazz and world beat into their sound (recalling similar cross-genre bands like War and Osibisa). I had the pleasure of catching them in 1980 at The Old Waldorf in San Francisco; it was one of the best live shows I’ve ever attended.

Choice cuts: “Satta Massagana”, “Slavery Days”, “Brand New Beggar”, “Got to Get Along”, “Sun Won’t Shine”

Bonus Tracks!

Here are 10 more gems from 1976 worth a spin:

Blondie – Blondie

Faithful – Todd Rundgren

Hejira – Joni Mitchell

Legalise It – Peter Tosh

The Modern Lovers – The Modern Lovers

Romantic Warrior – Return to Forever

Sad Wings of Destiny – Judas Priest

Sincerely – Dwight Twilley Band

Songs in the Key of Life – Stevie Wonder

Unorthodox Behaviour – Brand X

Previous posts with related themes:

10 Essential Albums of 1970

10 Essential Albums of 1971

10 Essential Albums of 1972

10 Essential Albums of 1973

10 Essential Albums of 1974

10 Essential Albums of 1975

On Music

Happy Solstice: A Summer Mixtape

June 22, 2026 Dennis Hartley Leave a comment

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on June 20, 2026)

I didn’t move to the Puget Sound for this kind of abuse:

First-time visitors in town for Seattle’s World Cup Monday game must have thought we’ve been lying about rain, fog and Juneuarys all this time.

As the first men’s soccer game got underway at Lumen Field, temperatures at nearby Sea-Tac Airport rose to 90 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. That breaks a 1963 record of 88 degrees for the warmest on this date.

Hot damn, summer in the city. Speaking of El Niño (God help us)-here are a few of my fave songs of the season. You’ve heard some a bazillion times; others, not so much.

Stay cool!

Martin Newell– “Another Sunny Day” – Despite the fact he’s been cranking out hook-laden, Beatle-esque pop gems for five decades, endearingly eccentric singer-musician-songwriter-poet Martin Newell (Cleaners From Venus, Brotherhood of Lizards) remains a selfishly-guarded secret by cult-ish admirers (guilty as charged). This summery confection is from his 2007 album A Summer Tamarind.

First Class – “Beach Baby” – UK studio band First Class was the brainchild of singer-songwriter Tony Burrows, who also sang lead on other one-hit wonders, including “Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes” (The Edison Lighthouse), “My Baby Loves Lovin’” (White Plains), and “United We Stand” (The Brotherhood of Man). This pop confection was a Top 10 song in the U.S. in 1974.

Jade Warrior– “Bride of Summer” – Here’s a summer tune you’ve never heard on the radio. This hard-to-categorize band has been around since the early 70s; progressive jazz-folk-rock-world beat is the best I can do. Sadly, original guitarist Tony Duhig passed away in 1990. His multi-tracked lead on this song is sublime.

Bananarama– “Cruel Summer” – A more melancholy take on the season from the Ronettes of New Wave. I seem to recall a rather heavy rotation of this video on MTV in the summer of ’84. The video is a great time capsule of 1980s NYC.

Takuya Kuroda – “Everybody Loves the Sunshine” – Japanese trumpeter Takuya Kuroda’s 2014 cover of a Roy Ayers composition is a hypnotic, transporting “headphone song”. Immerse yourself.

The Beatles – “Good Day Sunshine” – The kickoff to Side 2 of Revolver finds Paul McCartney in full cockeyed optimist mode. Everything about his song is “happy”, from the lyrics (I feel good, in a special way / I’m in love and it’s a sunny day) and the bright harmonies, to George Martin’s jaunty ragtime piano solo. Paul has said that he was inspired by the Lovin’ Spoonful.

Pink Floyd – “Granchester Meadows” – This is from one of Pink Floyd’s more obscure albums, Ummagumma. Anyone who has ever sat under a shady tree on a summer’s day strumming a guitar will “get” this song, which is one of David Gilmour’s most beautiful compositions. I love how he incorporates nature sounds. Aaahh…

Joni Mitchell– “The Hissing of Summer Lawns” – The haunting title cut from Joni’s 1975 album, co-written by drummer John Guernin (who also plays Moog). The song also features Victor Feldman on keyboards and James Taylor on guitar.

Sly & the Family Stone– “Hot Fun in the Summertime” – A quintessential summer song and an oldies radio staple. And don’t forget…I “cloud nine” when I want to.

Walter Egan– “Hot Summer Nights” – While it didn’t achieve the gold status of his 1978 chart hit “Magnet and Steel”, Walter Egan’s first single (taken from his 1977 debut album Fundamental Roll) is a minor classic that still sounds so right blasting out of your car radio.

Mungo Jerry– “In the Summertime” – It wouldn’t have worked without the jug.

Marshall Crenshaw– “Starless Summer Sky” – In a just world, this power pop genius would have ruled the airwaves. Here’s one of many perfect examples why.

The Isley Brothers– “Summer Breeze” – Seals & Crofts wrote and performed the original version, but the Isleys always had a knack for making covers their own. Ernie Isley’s guitar work is superb.

Weekend –”Summerdays” – Weekend was a spin-off of The Young Marble Giants. Formed in 1981, the Welsh band only released one studio album (1982’s La Variete), but they created a distinctive sound that ages well, compared to many of their indie contemporaries. This breezy number encapsulates the vibe-an infusion of jazz, samba, pop and world beat topped off by Allison Statton’s soothing vocals.

The Lovin’ Spoonful– “Summer in the City” – All around, people lookin’ half-dead/walkin’ on the sidewalk, hotter than a match head. Written by John Sebastian, Mark Sebastian and Steve Boone, this 1966 hit is a clever portmanteau of music, lyrics and effects that quite literally sounds like…summer in the city.

XTC– “Summer’s Cauldron/Grass” – A mini-suite of sorts, all about summer romance, lazy days, and the uh, things we did on grass. Produced by Todd Rundgren.

Blue Cheer– “Summertime Blues” – Eddie Cochran wrote and performed it originally, and the Who did a great cover on Live at Leeds, but for sheer attitude, I have to go with this proto-punk (some have argued, proto-metal) classic from 1968.

The Kinks– “Sunny Afternoon” – This poor guy. Taxman’s taken all his dough, girlfriend’s run off with his car…but he’s not going to let that ruin his summer: Now I’m sittin here/ sippin’ at my ice-cooled beer/ lazin’ on a sunny afternoon…

Central Line– “Walking Into Sunshine” – Gotta walk into the sun, ah-ah. A hook-laden jam by the now-defunct UK funk outfit. If this 1984 club hit doesn’t brighten your day…I’d seriously look into it.

The Beach Boys– “The Warmth of the Sun” – This song (featuring one of Brian Wilson’s most gorgeous melodies), appeared on the 1964 album Shut Down Vol 2. Granted, not as celebratory and upbeat as your typical Beach Boys summer jam; but still a favorite.

Behind the Music, Documentary, On Music

Tribeca 2026: Earth, Wind, and Fire (To Be Celestial VS That’s the Weight of the World) (****)

June 14, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on June 13, 2026)

As a self-proclaimed, smarty-pants “musicologist”, I thought I already knew everything there was to know about the wildly successful pop-funk institution Earth, Wind, and Fire. I was wrong. In his absorbing documentary (this year’s Opening Night world premiere), musician and filmmaker Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (Summer of Soul, Sly Lives!) takes a deep dive into the group’s evolution and flowering, tracing both its musical and spiritual roots.

The lion’s share of screen time is devoted to the group’s late founder and bandleader Maurice White, an ambitious, dynamic and (as it turns out) somewhat complicated and enigmatic individual. I’ll admit that I had no idea White played drums in the Ramsey Lewis Trio from 1966 until 1970 (when he left to form the first iteration of Earth, Wind and Fire). The most fascinating revelation for me was White’s embrace of Afro-futurism, and how he incorporated it into the group’s ethos (while the two bandleaders’ musical styles were quite different, I was struck by a number of similarities with free jazz pioneer Sun Ra’s journey).

The vibe is largely joyful and celebratory, but this is no hagiography. Former group members pull no punches about how mercurial and controlling White could be; some recall how they were made to feel less like creative collaborators and more like employees. Still, they all acknowledge White’s total commitment to his musical vision and how he tirelessly strove for excellence. Inspiring, moving, and packed with jams from a top-shelf catalog. (Now streaming on HBO/MAX).

On Music, War

Soldier’s things: a Memorial Day mix tape

May 25, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on May 23, 2026)

Memorial Day, like war itself, stirs up conflicting emotions. First and foremost, grief…for those who have been taken away (and for loved ones left behind). But there’s also anger…raging at the stupidity of a species that has been hell-bent on self destruction since Day 1.

And so the songs I’ve curated for this playlist run that gamut; from honoring the fallen and offering comfort to the grieving, to questioning those in power who start wars and ship off the sons and daughters of others to finish them, to righteous railing at the utter fucking madness of it all, and sentiments falling somewhere in between.

The Doors- “The Unknown Soldier” – A eulogy; then…a wish.

Pete Seeger- “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” An excellent question. You may not like the answer. When will we ever learn?

Tom Waits- “Soldier’s Things” – The reductive power of a simple inventory. Kleenex on standby.

Bob Marley- “War”– Lyrics by Haile Selassie I. But you knew that.

The Isley Brothers- “Harvest for the World”– Dress me up for battle, when all I want is peace/Those of us who pay the price, come home with the least.

Buffy Sainte Marie- “Universal Soldier”– Sacrifice has no borders.

Bob Dylan- “With God On Our Side” – Amen, and pass the ammunition.

John Prine- “Sam Stone” – An ode to the walking wounded.

Joshua James- “Crash This Train” – Just make it stop. Please.

Kate Bush- “Army Dreamers”– For loved ones left behind…

Posts with related themes:

Bringing the war back home: A Top 10 list

All This and WW III: A Mixtape

Inglourious Basterds

Five Graves to Cairo

King of Hearts

The Wind Rises & Generation War

City of Life and Death

Le Grande Illusion

Paths of Glory

Apocalypse Now

Behind the Music, Documentary, Radio Biz, Rock 'n' Roll

SIFF 2026: Radioheart: The Drive and Times of DJ Kevin Cole (***)

May 17, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on May 16, 2026)

First, full disclosure…from my 2008 review of The Gits:

In the fall of 1992, I moved to Seattle with no particular action plan, and stumbled into a job hosting the Monday-Friday morning drive show on KCMU (now KEXP) , a mostly volunteer, low-wattage, listener supported FM station broadcasting from the UW campus with the hopeful slogan: “Where the music matters.” I remember joking to my friends that my career was going in reverse order, because after 18 years of commercial radio experience, here I was at age 36, finally getting my first part-time college radio gig. I loved it. […]

What I didn’t realize until several years following my 7-month stint there, is that KCMU was semi-legendary in college/alt-underground circles; not only was it literally the first station in the country to “break” Nirvana, but counted members of Mudhoney and Pearl Jam among former DJ staff. I was just a music geek, enthusiastically exploring somebody else’s incredibly cool record collection, whilst taking my listeners along for the ride; in the meantime I obliviously became a peripheral participant in Seattle’s early 90’s “scene”.

And now, I find myself in 2026, writing a review of a documentary about the 25-year tenure of a popular KEXP DJ who started his gig at my old alma mater 7 years after my stint (even on a good day, Time is cruel).

Peter Hilgendorf and Andrew Franks co-directed this absorbing portrait of KEXP’s longtime afternoon drive host Kevin Cole. I’ve often tuned in to his show over the years and enjoyed his knowledgeable, laid-back on-air persona and thoughtful music curation, but had no inkling of his fascinating backstory.

As it turns out, Cole is like the Zelig of alt-music, starting with his involvement in the Minneapolis underground nightclub scene in the ’70s. More specifically, he was a popular house DJ at the legendary First Avenue, right at the time Prince was first making his mark at the venue (in the film, Cole recalls the time the artist shyly approached him at the club and asked him to DJ one of his house parties).

In 1994, Cole was one of the founders of the short-lived but highly influential “REV105”, a Twin Cities-based alternative music FM station. It was a “commercial” radio station, but its programming philosophy was closer in spirit to the free-form, music community-oriented “underground” FM stations that flourished in the late 60s and early 70s. When he moved to Seattle in the early 2000s, he briefly worked for Amazon music.

What emerges is an inspiring portrait of someone whose enthusiasm for discovering and sharing new music is showing no signs of waning. And it’s particularly heartening to learn that rumors about the death of true community radio have been greatly exaggerated.

Behind the Music, On Music, On Pop Culture

Paul is back (he never really left us, luv)

April 13, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on April 11, 2026)

I swear, Paul is everywhere, man. This documentary premieres on BBC-2 tonight:

Damn, I wish I could get BBC-2 here in the colonies; that’s right in my wheelhouse (yes, I know there are various “ways” to tap into the live feed, but I get the impression they all involve hoisting the pirate flag to the toppermost of the poppermost before setting sail).

Oprah shared a great Macca story with Stephen Colbert this week:

Two weeks ago, Sir Paul rocked L.A. in his first concert dates for 2026:

Playing the first of two nights at the Fonda Theatre in Hollywood Friday night, Paul McCartney acknowledged the tiered arrangement that had VIPs up in the balcony and the hoi polloi down on the floor. “Hello, you people upstairs, in the posh seats,” he said early in the show, and then, “You poor people down here have gotta stand up.” It almost seemed as if he might be alluding to a similar, famous speech given when the Beatles played for British royalty in 1963 — “The people in the cheaper seats, clap your hands, and the rest of you, if you’d just rattle your jewelry.” That was John’s thing, back then, but leave it to both Beatles to have a bemused sense of class consciousness.

Of course, when the world’s most celebrated living musician is playing at a 1,200-capacity venue, everyone in attendance is feeling like a VIP. Maybe most of all those on the floor, who, perhaps more to the point, had reason to feel like lottery winners. While there were some guest-listers at ground level as well, most of those in attendance had made it through a system in which they pre-registered with AXS and were selected for the opportunity to purchase $200 tickets (or a more expensive tier with exclusive merch bags). […]

Although they also got the chance to buy freshly minted merch with the logo of his forthcoming album, “The Boys of Dungeon Lane,” he did not premiere anything from that impending set, nor even play “Days We Left Behind,” which was just released Thursday as his first new single in five and a half years.

McCartney did mention “Days We Left Behind,” which led to the expectation he was about to play the nostalgic ballad, before he set the crowd straight. “We’re in the process of learning it, so don’t ask us to do it” he said, going on to explain what was giving him a little trouble in getting it down for live purposes. “And it’s in B, but I wrote it in C, but for some reason it’s in B.. I said, no, too much for me!” he quipped, apparently writing the disparity off as an Andrew Watt thing. Nonetheless, there were appreciative shouts about the new song, and McCartney replied, “I’m glad you love it.”

The new single is quite lovely, actually:

I daresay, at 83, Paul is starting to act his age:

Looking back at white and black
Reminders of my past
Smoky bars and cheap guitars
But nothing built to last

[CHORUS]
Nothing ever stays
Nothing comes to mind
No one can erase
The days we left behind

See the boys of Dungeon Lane
Along the Mersey shore
Some of them will feel the pain
But some were meant for more

[CHORUS]

[BRIDGE]
We met at Forthlin Road
And wrote a secret code
To never be spoken
I stand by what I said
The promise that I made
Will never be broken

[CHORUS]

In the skies, the skylarks rise
Above the sounds of war
Since that day, I knew they’d stay
With me for evermore

He had me at “…along the Mersey shore”.

Then there’s the new Wings doc that recently dropped on Prime Video:

Yeah, I know…this poor bloke doesn’t get enough coverage. That said, Morgan Neville’s intimate, candid portrait is an absorbing watch; beginning with the dissolution of the Beatles and covering the entire span of Wings’ history (1971-1981). The story of Paul and Linda’s relationship instills the film with a deeply emotional resonance. Worthwhile for fans.

Oh…and Sir Paul will be the musical guest on SNL on May 16th.

You can “OK Boomer” me until the troops come home, but as fucked-up as the world is right now (and on so many levels)…the fact that NASA is back on track and Paul McCartney has released a new one assures me that somewhere, out there in the ether…hope remains for humanity.

Previous posts with related themes:

Here, There, and Everywhere Now and Then

A Cellar Full of Goys: The Beatles Get Back

Turn off your mind and empty your wallet: ‘Revolver’ Deluxe review

Fab Faux: 25 Best Songs the Beatles Never Wrote

On Music, On Politics

Starry eyes: A mixtape

April 6, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on April 4, 2026)

Earth from space, photographed by an Artemis II crew member

For those of us of “a certain age”, that is to say, old enough to have actually witnessed the moon landing live on TV… the fact that “we” were even able to achieve this feat “by the end of the decade” (as President Kennedy projected in 1961) still feels like a pretty big deal to me.

Of course, there are still big unanswered questions out there about Life, the Universe, and Everything, but I’ll leave that to future generations. I feel that I’ve done my part…spending my formative years plunked in front of a B&W TV in my PJs eating Sugar Smacks and watching Walter Cronkite reporting live from the Cape.

Those particular memories resurfaced recently as I watched Richard Linklater’s charming 2022 animated memoir Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood, which I stumbled across on Netflix:

Of course, 10 year-old Linklater didn’t land on the moon and return safely to the Earth just ahead of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin; that’s the fantasy part of his tale. It was the earthbound elements of his narrative that triggered an emotional sense memory of being a kid again, living in suburbia in 1969 (and watching the moon landing on a boxy black and white television set).

This past Wednesday, those memories came flooding back to me like a hot flash from the end of a Saturn V rocket:

One “teeny, tiny curb” for a human…one giant leap for humankind. Flick my pocket protector and call me a space geek, but we seem to have lost that collective feeling of wonder and curiosity about the cosmos (people are too busy doom scrolling to look up and stargaze anymore). As far as I’m concerned, the Artemis II mission is a good thing.

With the madness and mayhem dominating the current news cycle, the timing of NASA’s first manned lunar mission since 1972 couldn’t be better. Frankly, it’s been a minute since I’ve had a reason to feel pride in being an American. Surely, this is a galvanizing moment for our politically fractured country; something we can all get behind, yes?

Oh, crap:

President Donald Trump released a budget blueprint on Friday calling for a 23 percent cut to NASA’s budget, two days after the agency launched four astronauts on the first crewed lunar mission in more than 50 years.

The spending proposal for fiscal year 2027 is the opening salvo in a multi-month budget process. Both houses of Congress must pass their own appropriations bills, reconcile any differences between the two, and then send the final budget to the White House for President Trump’s signature. Fiscal year 2027 begins on October 1.

The White House requested a similar cut to NASA last year. The Republican-led Congress resoundingly rejected the proposal and kept NASA’s budget close to its level in the final year of the Biden administration. Like last year’s budget, the proposal from the Trump administration will undergo major changes as Congress weighs in over the coming months.

In a document explaining the NASA cuts, the Trump administration said it seeks to slash funding for “unnecessary and overpriced activities.” Under the White House plan, NASA will focus on the administration’s priority of landing humans on the Moon before the end of Trump’s term in office, then building a Moon base.ch was already effectively canceled last year due to cost overruns. […]

The most severe cuts are aimed at NASA’s science programs. The Trump administration proposes reducing science funding by nearly half, a $3.4 billion reduction compared to fiscal year 2026. The budget would cancel more than 40 “low-priority missions.” The budget overview released by the White House on Friday does not identify which missions would be terminated, other than Mars Sample Return, which was already effectively canceled last year due to cost overruns.

The White House asked for a cut to NASA’s science budget of a similar magnitude for fiscal year 2026, but Congress balked.

The Planetary Society decried the cuts as “draconian” in a press release on Friday.

And yes, I’ve seen the friendly fire on social media regarding the cost of the Artemis II mission. I “get” what some of my fellow well-meaning social progressives are saying, but here’s a little perspective. The 2026 fiscal budget for NASA was $24.44 billion. Granted, that is a hefty chunk of change, but a mere pittance, compared to this:

President Donald Trump has proposed boosting defense spending to $1.5 trillion in his 2027 budget released Friday, the largest such request in decades, reflecting his emphasis on U.S. military investments over domestic programs.

The sizable increase for the Pentagon, some 44%, had been telegraphed by the Republican president even before the U.S.-led war against Iran. The president’s plan would also reduce spending on non-defense programs by 10%.

“President Trump promised to reinvest in America’s national security infrastructure, to make sure our nation is safe in a dangerous world,” wrote Budget Director Russell Vought.

The president’s annual budget is considered a reflection of the administration’s values and does not carry the force of law. The massive document typically highlights an administration’s priorities, but Congress, which handles federal spending issues, is free to reject it and often does.

Trump, speaking ahead of an address to the nation this week about the Iran war, signaled the military is his priority, setting up a clash ahead in Congress.

I don’t know about you, but I would much rather see my hard-earned tax dollars go toward exploring strange new worlds; to seek out new life and new civilizations; to boldly go where no one has gone before…as opposed to empowering the baser instincts of an earthbound species that has been hell-bent on self destruction since Day 1.

Back to the mission at hand-a musical voyage to the far side of the moon, and returning you safely back to the Earth. Take your protein pills and put your headphones on:

Frank Sinatra – “Fly Me to the Moon”

Moxy Früvous – “You Will Go to the Moon”

Jonathan King – “Everyone’s Gone to the Moon”

Rush – “Countdown”

David Bowie – “Space Oddity”

Elton John – “Rocket Man”

Harry Nilsson – “Spaceman”

Deep Purple – “Space Truckin”

Montrose – “Space Station #5”

Kate Bush – “The Big Sky”

Prism – “Spaceship Superstar”

Yes – “Starship Trooper”

Moody Blues – “Floating”

The Rolling Stones – “2000 Light Years From Home”

The Orb – “Backside of the Moon”

The Police – “Walking on the Moon”

Ian Gillan Band – “Five Moons”

King Crimson – “Moonchild”

Nick Drake – “Pink Moon”

Paul McCartney & Wings – “Venus and Mars”

Jefferson Starship – “Have You Seen the Stars Tonight?”

The Church – “Under the Milky Way”

Gamma – “Voyager”

Peter Schilling – “Major Tom”

The Stories – “Earthbound/Freefall”

Previous posts with related themes:

A NASA Film Festival

Any World (That I’m Welcome To)-25 Sci-Fi Favorites

U Are the Universe

On Music, On Politics

I’m Not Tired: A “No Kings” mixtape

March 30, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on March 28, 2026)

Rather proclaim it, Westmoreland, through my host,
That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart; his passport shall be made
And crowns for convoy put into his purse:
We would not die in that man’s company
That fears his fellowship to die with us

— from Henry V, by William Shakespeare

Five to one, baby, one in five:

OK-it wasn’t exactly the St. Crispin’s Day speech, but close enough.

On his MSNOW show this morning, Ali Velshi highlighted a fascinating bit of civil rights history, recounted in this PBS article:

Imagine climbing up 83 steps. Perhaps that doesn’t seem like such a big deal—but that’s likely because you’d be walking. What would you do, though, if you couldn’t?

That was the premise behind the Capitol Crawl, a now-iconic protest to demand the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA was a landmark civil rights bill aimed at providing basic amenities and protections to some 40 million mentally and physically disabled citizens. Today we take many of the ADA’s changes to society—curb cuts in sidewalks and closed captioning on entertainment, to name just two examples—for granted. But the act’s passage, in 1990, was anything but guaranteed.

By spring of that year, the ADA had been trapped in legislative limbo for months. Despite the strong support of then-President George H.W. Bush, the act was languishing in Congress, caught in the deliberations of House subcommittees. Many U.S. Representatives balked at the expense and complication posed by the ADA’s requirements.

Enter ADAPT—American Disabled for Accessible Public Transit—a grassroots disability rights organization that had been staging protests across the country even before its official founding in 1983. On March 12, 1990, ADAPT led a procession of more than 500 marchers, including other disability activists and lobbyists, from the White House to the west side of the U.S. Capitol. There, in the kind of guerrilla civic action for which the organization had become known, scores of marchers dropped to the ground and began the long journey up the hard marble stairs leading to the “People’s House.” They climbed backwards or on their hands and knees, step-by-painstaking-step. “As I’m seeing the people around me,” recalled Anita Cameron, one of the ADAPT activists who made her way up that day, “I’m like, ‘whoa, we are doing it. We are really doing it. We’re, like, crawling into history.’”

Rolled up in their pockets, protestors carried copies of the Declaration of Independence. Once they finally summitted the stairs, ADAPT reps delivered those scrolls to members of Congress as a reminder of the ADA’s importance. And while media coverage of the event wasn’t extensive, but the publicity that was garnered by the Crawl was impactful. “The pictures were striking,” said The New York Times several days later, “just as they were intended to be: Children paralyzed from the waist down crawling up the steps of the Capitol.” Six months later, following the bill’s now-remarkably swift passage through the House, President George H. W. Bush signed the ADA into law.

“We did it to show that we disabled people, as second class citizens, needed change. And the vehicle for how it was going to change was the ADA,” Cameron told American Experience, reflecting on the Capitol Crawl’s significance. “But I think a lot of people forget that the ADA was the floor. It was not the ceiling. So it was the beginning of rights for us, but it was not the end.”

One of the youngest participants in the Capitol Crawl was 8 year-old Jennifer Keelan:

(engage shame mode) For the life of me, I don’t remember hearing about this action at the time; Velshi’s retrospective today was my first awareness (and let me tell you-it certainly turned on the waterworks). How could I have missed it? It really bothered me; I turned it over in my mind. It wasn’t like I wasn’t aware of world events (I was working in radio…I announced news stories gathered off the AP wire as part of my weekday morning show, for god’s sake).

I contemplated further. In 1990, I was 34. Over the previous 2 years, I had shed 75 pounds, and had walked, jogged, biked and cross-country skied myself into the best physical shape of my adult life. So I wasn’t thinking twice about everyday physical activities like walking up and down stairs, stepping on or off curbs, or simply walking, for that matter. Consequently, like most able-bodied people, I didn’t stop and think about what it was like to be one of those folks who find such everyday physical activities a genuine challenge (if not insurmountable).

But nowadays, as I am “one of those folks” (stairs and curbs are a challenge, and I can’t walk far without some kind of assistive device)…I “get” it. Hence the waterworks when Ali Velshi ran the clip of Jennifer Keelan reaching that top step; I instantly grokked that it was thanks to the courage of activists like that little girl and her cohorts that I have the dedicated access to parking, transit and buildings that I take for granted as a (now) disabled person (pushing 70).

I also connected the dots between 88 year-old Jane Fonda and 8 year-old Jennifer Keelan:

They aren’t/weren’t too tired to keep pushing for change.

It’s in that spirit that I tip my hat to everyone hitting the streets today to exercise their First Amendment rights and (peacefully) push for change, and humbly offer this mixtape to perk them up should they feel…tired.

Bruce Springsteen – “Streets of Minneapolis”

Billy Bragg – “City of Heroes”

The Beatles – “Revolution“

Frank Zappa – “Trouble Every Day”

Elvis Costello – “Night Rally”

Green Day – “American Idiot”

The Clash – “Clampdown”

Woody Guthrie – “All You Fascists Bound to Lose”

Bob Marley & the Wailers – “Get Up, Stand Up”

The Doors – “Five to One”

Graham Nash – “Chicago“

The Style Council – “The Whole Point of No Return”

Tracy Chapman – “Talkin’ About a Revolution”

John Lennon – “Power to the People”

Sly & the Family Stone – “Stand!”

Heaven 17 – “(We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang”

Public Enemy – “Fight the Power”

Gil Scott-Heron – “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”

The Buffalo Springfield – “For What It’s Worth”

Malvina Reynolds – “It Isn’t Nice”

Previous posts with related themes:

Gotta Get Down to It

404 Terror

The Edge of Democracy

Battleground

On Mad Kings, Death Cults, and Altman’s Secret Honor

Michael and Me in Trumpland

The Queen of Versailles

In the Seattle Mist with Confederate Dead

Under the Grey Sky

Hacking Hate

Against All Enemies

Martin Eden

The Trial of the Chicago 7

Deja Vu

The U.S. vs. John Lennon

Now We See the Light: A Mixtape

A Trump Era Survival Guide

On Music, On Politics

Gotta get down to it

January 29, 2026 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on January 28, 2026)

“Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.”

— Victor Hugo

On April 7, 1968-just 3 days after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Nina Simone performed this song in New York:

Simone’s bassist Gene Taylor had composed it right after Dr. King was killed; the song (and Simone’s emotional performance) is all the more remarkable for being at once so timely, and timeless.

In 1968, music was our social media. Otis Spann was another artist who paid musical tribute to Dr. King, writing and performing two songs about the slain civil rights leader just days after his death. His “Blues for Martin Luther King” gives us the news and preaches the blues:

On May 4, 1970, 4 students at Ohio’s Kent State University died when National Guard troops opened fire on protestors. When Neil Young saw the photos of the incident in Life magazine soon afterwards, he was moved to write the now-iconic protest anthem “Ohio”, which was recorded by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young just two weeks later and rush-released as a single one month to the day after the killings:

The following year, Bob Dylan felt similarly compelled to express outrage in song, after Black Panther leader/author/prison activist George Jackson was shot to death by guards during an escape attempt at San Quentin (there was contention over whether or not his killing was a set-up). Dylan’s single “George Jackson” was released just three months after the incident:

Flash forward to 2026. Folk singer Phil Ochs once said, “A protest song is a song that’s so specific that you cannot mistake it for bullshit.”

When they came for the immigrants
I got in their face
When they came for the refugees
I got in their face
When they came for the five year olds
I got in their face…

You may be thinking: “Those lyrics could have been written this week!”

If that’s what you’re thinking…you’re right. They were written this week, by political song smith extraordinaire/activist Billy Bragg, who posted this song on YouTube yesterday:

And we got this memo from the Boss today, posted on BlueSky:

I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.

Stay free.

You can’t mistake that for bullshit. It’s tough not to despair right now, but as Kris Kristofferson advised:“Don’t let the bastards get you down.”

On Music

Getting better all the time (can’t get no worse): A New Year’s Eve mix tape

December 29, 2025 Dennis Hartley

By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on December 27, 2025)

All is quiet, on New Year’s Day. Except for this mixtape (you may adjust your volume per hangover conditions New Year’s morning). Cheers!

“This Will Be Our Year” – The Zombies – Starting on a positive note. Lovely Beatle-esque number from the Odyssey and Oracle album.

You don’t have to worry
All your worried days are gone
This will be our year
Took a long time to come

At least…we can always hope, right?

“Time” – David Bowie – A song as timeless as Bowie himself. Time, he’s waiting in the wings/He speaks of senseless things…

“New Year” – Beach House – Could be…who knows? A lovely slice of dream pop from this Baltimore trio to usher in the new year.

Can you call it? See it coming?Just enough to tell a story ’bout aPortrait of a young girl waitingFor the ending of an era

“1999″ – Prince – Sadly, it’s a perennial question: “Mommy…why does everybody have a bomb?”

“1921” – The Who – Got a feeling ’21 is gonna be a good year. OK, back to the drawing board …let’s make ’26 a better one.

“Time” – Oscar Brown, Jr. – A wise and soulful gem…tick, tock.

“New Year’s Day” – U2 – I know… “Edgy pick, Captain Obvious!” But it’s still a great song.

“The New Year” – Death Cab for Cutie – Did you ever wake up on January 1st, look around, shrug, and think to yourself “So this is the new year?” This one’s for you.

So this is the new yearAnd I have no resolutionsOr self assigned penanceFor problems with easy solutions

“Year of the Cat” – Al Stewart – Old Grey Whistle Test clip. Strolling through the crowd like Peter Lorre, contemplating a crime…

“Reeling in the Years” – Steely Dan – Taking inventory with a classic, featuring a killer solo by Elliot Randall.

Encore! Fantastic live version from 2002. Randall and the backup band are on fire.

“New Year’s Resolution” – Otis Redding & Carla Thomas – Ace Stax B-side from 1968, with that unmistakable “Memphis sound”. Speaking of which… check out my review of the Stax music doc, Take Me to the River.

“Same Old Lang Syne” – Dan Fogelberg – OK, a nod to those who insist on waxing sentimental. A beautiful tune from the late singer-songwriter.

Bonus track!

Not a “New Year’s song” per se, but an evergreen new year’s wish.