Journey to the Center of the Earth, circa '59

Journey to the Center of the Earth -- ahhh, the days before CGI
Based upon the Jules Verne novel, with a soundtrack composed and conducted by Bernard Herrmann, and starring.......Pat Boone(?). Only in the '50s.


Gertrude the Duck -- the story's true hero

Here is a review of the old and new version from NPR.

Still cool

Ebony's salute to "The 25 Coolest Brothers of All Time" in its August issue includes the late, great Sammy Davis, Jr. To celebrate that recognition, here he is performing "My Shining Hour" during his set at the St. Louis Benefit for Dismas House in 1965:


And here is Sammy in 1989 doing Michael Jackson's "Bad" as a part of his segment of "The Ultimate Event." Not surprisingly, he does a good version:


Sammy forgets to throw the required deuce while taking his profile pic

"I'm Getting Sentimental Over You"

I drove past this old motel in Timpson a few weeks ago, and "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" has been stuck in my head ever since.

From the Wikipedia entry:

"I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" was the theme song of the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. The words were written by Ned Washington and the music was written by George Bassman. It was first performed in 1932.

It was first recorded in September 1935. A second recording on October 18, 1935, is the exact arrangement Dorsey would henceforth feature. Dorsey's expert breath control, command of the upper register, and phrasing added to the sweetness of the song which typified his orchestra. Frank Sinatra, who got his start in the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, sang this song in the Dorsey Orchestra and also featured it in an album, I Remember Tommy (1961), after Tommy Dorsey's death in 1956. Sinatra achieved his first great success as a vocalist in the Dorsey band and claimed he learned breath control from watching Dorsey play trombone.

Dorsey and Sinatra, circa 1939-40
Sinatra and Dorsey in 1956 at the Paramount Theater
The tempo is considered a fox trot or swing. "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" became the most immediately recognizable and favorite theme song of the Swing Era.

The October 1935 recording:

I love how listening to this music is like time traveling.

"Uptown Girl"

From Billy Joel's tribute to the music of his childhood, An Innocent Man (1983), "Uptown Girl" peaked at #3 on the Billboard charts in the US, and #1 in the UK; in 1988, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Uptown Girl" #99 on its list of the 100 most important singles of the period 1963-1988. The song also has the somewhat unique feature of changing key from the original two times before going back, for a total of three keys.

Of course supermodel Christie Brinkley appears in the music video, and could very possibly have inspired Billy Joel to write the song in the first place. They divorced in 1994, and subsequently the song was missing from the setlist during Joel's 1994 River of Dreams tour.

Cat spray fever

I'm coming to this a little bit late, not catching the "Major Boobage" episode of South Park during the past season. But I'd still like to thank the show's creators for educating me as to the untapped potential of my two male cats (bastards!):


This has to be the coolest thing I've seen on TV in a while.
1982 Heavy Metal cover from this great collection of "old" magazine covers
Those who have seen the "Major Boobage" episode know it was an homage to the early '80s (1981) film Heavy Metal. Ironically, my parents would not allow me to see it, yet I somehow had a subscription to the magazine. Strange. But you couldn't be a kid that year and not hear stuff from the soundtrack all over the radio.

The music in the YouTube clip above was Don Felder of the Eagle's "Heavy Metal (Takin' a Ride)," really the theme of the movie. And other than Blue Öyster Cult's "Veteran of the Psychic Wars," it's the best tune on the soundtrack, in my humble opinion. I hadn't heard it in a while, so it sort of gave me goosebumps to hear it in "Major Boobage." This is a section of the scene from Heavy Metal in which the song was used:

"Time After Time"

"Time After Time" was written for the film It Happened in Brooklyn (1947) by Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn. The arrangement was done by Frank Sinatra's Columbia arranger, Axel Stordahl. This version (as well as the Columbia recording, which I think this one is -- the piano part sounds as if it was dubbed in, and seems discordant to me) demonstrates the impeccable phrasing and breath control of "The Voice." Here's the scene from It Happened in Brooklyn in which Sinatra's character sings it for Jimmy Durante, who knew a good tune when he heard it. Step back, briefly, to a different time:


Much love for Frank
Head and hair in the clouds

Zuehlke Store

Right outside of Brenham, Texas, on State Highway 105, the Zuehlke Store (a.k.a., Zuehlke's Store):