Riffin’ on Diddy

In case you missed it, Sean “Diddy” Combs is on trial for sex trafficking. What do I think? I say he’s innocent until proven guilty, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a little fun with his numerous aliases. He is known as the aforementioned “Diddy”. He has also been known as “Puff Daddy”, AKA “Puffy.” Man, that’s almost as many aliases as John Cougar Mellencamp! Here are some of my immediate and hopefully comedic alternative suggestions on his name(s).

Diddy or Didn’t He? I’ll be surprised if that hasn’t been a newspaper headline to date.
Puff Doodie. What does Diddy’s dog do or is it dog doo? He could sell officially licensed pooper scoopers to offset his legal fees.
Katydiddy. In case he ever wants to get his inner Kafka on and run around like a bug.
H.R. Did-N-Stuff. When I was in 4th grade, I was out sick for a week or more. When I returned, I found my classmates had started playing this bizarre record “H.R. Pufnstuf” in art class. I wanted to do a double Van Gogh and cut off both ears.
Maybe we should just call him “Manfred”?

6. In keeping with the musical theme, maybe “Diddie Wah” would be more appropriate?

7. How about a t-shirt with Mr. T on it? “I Pity the Diddy.”

8. Another t-shirt idea: Don’t tase me, Diddy! It’s a stretch, but thinking about that guy cracks me up.

9. Sean “Brushy” Combs. I wonder if he got called this on the playground?

10. Supercalifragilisticexpial DIDDY osous. This would only apply when it’s raining or he’s sweeping chimneys.

11. TAFKAD: The Artist Formerly Known As Diddy. I’m going to let him come up with his own non-verbal symbol for this one and hope it’s G-Rated. Or should it be TAFKADWFKAPD: The Artist Formerly Known As Diddy Who Was Formerly Known As Puff Daddy?

12. Cheesy Poof Daddy. He could advertise these snacks during South Park.

If I think of more, I’ll let you know.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

J.D. Who? — Word Search Included

I watched a film about J.D. Salinger…the author of “The Catcher in the Rye” today and it got me thinking about famous people who go by the moniker of “J.D.” In Salinger’s case, the letters actually stand for Jerome David, which is an interesting bit of trivia I most likely won’t remember. Friends of his in the film refer to him as “Jerry.” I thought about doing a series on him, but I don’t know that it will happen. Some considered him to be reclusive after the success of his aforementioned book. Apparently, people kept tracking him down and treating him like their own personal 8-ball fortune teller. “The Seeker” by The Who seems appropriate here.

Next on the list is J.D. Souther (pronounced SOUTH err). To me, he’s best known as a songwriter and an associate of The Eagles and penned “How Long”, which they recorded. The song was originally released on his album “John David Souther.”

Souther also co-wrote a number of other Eagles hits and worked with Linda Ronstadt. Apparently he did some acting a long the way and also grew up in Amarillo, TX.

Perhaps the best known “J.D.” of all time would be Jack Daniel, the Tennessee distiller whose name appears on the black and white label which bears his name. I don’t know if he people ever called him “J.D.”, but it would have been shorter than his actual name of Jasper Newton “Jack” Daniel.

As a Mother’s Day bonus, I have included a word search which includes the last names of the three famous dudes named “J.D.” My mom likes word puzzles.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

There’s a Place…

I’ve seen a couple episodes of the American TV show “Mysteries of the Abandoned” and I have to say… it’s my kind of party. I can’t tell you exactly how many episodes I’ve seen, but the one I happened to see today has a few freaky structures which really grabbed my attention. The first one is located in Nekoma, North Dakota and is officially known as the “Stanley R. Mickelsen Safeguard Complex”, but I think of it as the “Nekoma Pyramid.”

Apparently, it was created for use as a missile launch site. I wonder if the Egyptians had the same vision with their pyramids or of this is purely a ‘Murican concept. Also, would it be considered a “Safe Space” nowadays? It has a couple of big circles on it, which I believe were some sort of radar devices.

The second set of structures is a really interesting looking leftover from World War II. The Maunsell Forts were built in England’s Thames and Mersey Rivers. and are also known as “Red Sands Sea Forts” .

In my opinion, they look like something out of a monster or sci-fi movie…maybe War of the Worlds? There are army and navy style forts. The army styled forts are the ones pictured here which look like they could walk off at any minute. Years later they were used by pirate radio stations in the U.K., which only added to their cool history. I wonder how much longer they will keep standing…

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Maschinenmensch

Are there certain films, books, TV shows, albums one should know? Yes, I think there are. If nothing else, it makes for great discussion when you meet someone who has different taste than your own. One film I’ve been meaning to watch for a while is Fritz Lang’s “Metropolis”(1927). If you’re like me, you’ve probably seen clips of it or heard about it, but might not have watched the entire hour and 54 or minutes of it — that or maybe you’re just not into silent German sci-fi. The title of this blog is taken from a robotic character in the film so I’m including Bush’s “Machinehead” in its honor.

So what’s the deal with “Metropolis”? Even though it’s in black and white, it’s a visually striking film. (I don’t know if Ted Turner ever considered colorizing it.) Trying to describe some of the skyline buildings won’t do it justice. “Very artistic” is the best I can do. The storyline has elements of Frankenstein, upper vs. lower class, and man vs. machine. Apparently, it’s in the public domain so it’s ripe for the picking.

The film has been restored/re-released a few different times and with different music to boot. There’s a 1984 version with songs from Jon Anderson (Yes), Freddie Mercury, Loverboy, and more. “Metropolis” has had a lasting impact in popular culture. Apparently, Star Wars character C-3PO was inspired by the aforementioned “Maschinenmensch”. There are plenty of other works inspired by the film as well.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Rabid Anti-Dentite, Part One?

It’s pop quiz time!

Going to the dentist:

A. Is necessary for overall health and wellness.

B. Is a necessary evil.

C. Was mistakenly left out of the Geneva Convention.

Hmmm… ? Yes, I made it into the dentist’s office for my 6 month checkup this morning and got out with ZERO cavities! I credit my brushing discipline to my preference for keeping foreign objects, power tools, and adult human hands out of my mouth as much as possible. My biggest issue with the whole visit is the SOUND of getting the plaque scraped off my teeth. There’s some device called “Cavitron” which uses water and high frequency to minimize my suffering on this front. That said, there are still other discomforts to endure. For example, the hygienist was still completing Phase One cleaning when she leveraged the device so hard against my back teeth I thought she was going to pole vault over my head. It reminds of the AC/DC song “Kicked in the Teeth”. (Sometimes you lose, sometimes you win.)

Getting back to my latest chapter in “Surviving Dental Adventures”, the hygienist eventually completed Phase One cleaning. I got the refreshing, minty rinse and was starting to relax ever so slightly…then came the flossing. I’m sorry, but ramming a piece of string in between every single one of your teeth hasn’t really advanced so much, has it? For better or worse, I was born with a physically small mouth so it doesn’t naturally lend itself to being a tug of war field. I rebelled (refused) to get braces as a teen and I have to say I don’t see as many teens wearing braces these days.

Part Two may be coming, but there’s a Mountain Dew calling my name.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Maseratis and Caddies

In the interest of motivation, I started the day with some rockin’ blues music and it got me thinking about a song that has been recorded over 40 times. It features a few lyrics about having cars, hitting the lottery, having a charge account, women all around you, but “I Ain’t Got You.” During the cassette tape era, a buddy of mine had a collection of hits from The Yardbirds so I have to credit them for this catchy version which turned me on to the song.

The Yardbirds are known for having guitarists Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, and Eric Clapton in the band at various points in time. (I believe this version features the fiery guitar playing of Clapton.) The version I happened to hear this morning was by Jimmy Reed.

I didn’t think Reed wrote the song, but couldn’t place who it was. It turns out it was written by Calvin Carter, but first recorded by Reed’s Vee-Jay Records’ label mate Billy Boy Arnold.

I really love the guitar intro on the original Arnold version. It’s ironic that it’s not part of the Yardbirds’ version. If you don’t enjoy any of these, you can always try versions by Delbert McClinton, Gary Moore, or Ron Wood. There are plenty of LIVE versions by bands like Aerosmith, Blue Oyster Cult, and The Blues Brothers.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

New Siege-land?

New Zealand. It’s a country somewhere near Australia. It has a flag almost identical to Australia’s except, you know, it’s different. If I sound hard pressed for information about New Zealand, you’re right. That hasn’t stopped me from watching a couple of true crime films set there.

The first one called “Siege” (2012) is a made for TV movie based on events which happened during May 2009. Basically, cops went to serve a routine search warrant for marijuana and the property owner, Jan or Jaan Molenaar, opened up a literal arsenal of military grade weapons on them including sniper rifles. Not only that, but Molenaar’s house was portrayed as high up on a hill in the film.

As New Zealand band OMC might say, “How Bizarre”.

By the way, I worked at a Top 40 radio station during the late 90s and played this song about a billion times as per the set list. Apparently the name OMC stood for Otara Millionaires Club, which referenced Otara’s status as a less than affluent suburb of Auckland, New Zealand.

Getting back to the film, it’s a good one. I watched it as part of some series on Netflix years ago and still remembered the truth-is-stranger-than-fiction storyline. One police officer died during the incident, two others were seriously injured, and at least one civilian was also shot. (I think one was a neighbor and the other was some dude who stopped by to buy weed.) The actual siege lasted for days.

Molenaar, the bad guy, is ably played by Mark Mitchinson. One of the cops is played by actor Joel Tobeck. You might recognize him from “One Lane Bridge”. Tobeck reminds me a little bit of Red Forman (actor Kurtwood Smith) from “That ’70s Show”, but I could be wrong.

What do you think? It’s probably hard for Americans to believe, but New Zealand police officers don’t routinely carry firearms. Then again, there isn’t a mass shooting there every other day either.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

‘Murican Monsters

“How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” Naturally, I’m talking about monsters. Call them an appeal to my imagination or an escape from everyday life, but they are powerful. I’m a sucker for shows about Sasquatch, lake monsters, or any other random creature you’d rather not encounter in everyday life. One hour long documentary I really enjoyed watching is called “American Monsters: Werewolves, Wildmen and Sea Creatures”.

J. Michael Long directed this 2015 effort. I really enjoyed the cool graphics, minimalist descriptions, and spooky voice over. It’s sort of like a cross between the original “In Search Of” program and a guide to birdwatching. I think “I Was a Teenage Werewolf” by The Cramps is the most appropriate music for this one.

I couldn’t remember the name of this film so when I found it again on the Tubi network, I immediately had to blog about it. It’s my kind of party.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Burley Men & Bad Teeth

St. Patrick’s Day has definitely snuck up on me this year. It’s on a Monday so I wonder how many working men and women will suddenly come down with “The Irish Flu”? Regardless, in America it’s a day of drinking, parades, and partying. Finding the appropriate music is always a good idea. Instead of Willie Nelson’s “Whiskey River”, I recommend “Streams of Whiskey” by Irish band The Pogues.

If you’re unfamiliar with The Pogues, here’s the short version. They took their name from the old Irish expression “póg mo thóin“, which is “kiss my arse” and were fronted by phenomenal singer and storyteller Shane MacGowan. MacGowan wrote the aforementioned song and was the undisputed world title holder of World’s Worst Teeth.

If MacGowan and Co. aren’t your cup of tea (or whiskey), you can always keep it mellow with Burl Ives and his rendition of Irish folk song “Mrs. McGrath”.

“Mrs. McGrath” apparently dates back to the early 1800s and has even been recorded by the likes of Bruce Springsteen. I remember discovering this song via a cassette tape and guitar accompaniment book I purchased at the Mel Bay Music Store in Kirkwood, Missouri many years ago. Here’s hoping you find the perfect song for you this St. Patrick’s Day!

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!

Left or Right Brained Rush?

When you think about the band Rush (or RUSH), what pops into your mind? For me, I get a couple of specific visual images. Both come from my 1970s upbringing in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. The first is the image of the circled pentagram and “2112” spray painted on specific subdivision streets. The second is a large belt buckle emblazoned with the nude dude from the same album cover.

Musically, Rush is known for musical talent (if not virtuosity) a la Neil Peart, Geddy Lee, and Alex Lifeson who are all considered to be monster players on their instruments. Their songwriting is a whole other lengthy discussion. Suffice to say, there are normally some heavy concepts involved, which brings me to “Circumstances” from Rush’s 1978 album “Hemispheres”.

The chorus of the song is based around the cliche that “The more that things change, The more they stay the same”, which I have found to be true. The song also features the same sentiment au Francais as, “Plus ca change, Plus c’est la meme chose”. I was in college when I bought the cassette tape of the album. I can remember discussing another song on the same album with a college buddy of mine. Prior to our discussion, I had not heard about “The Trees” from the same record.

I’ve read things about what inspired the song, but I suppose the beauty of “The Trees” is its open to interpretation in its own Orwellian sort of way. Kudos on the lyrics.

The rest of “Hemispheres” is perhaps where the whole progressive rock thing applies — sophisticated, lengthy instrumentals. I was a psychology major so I can relate to the two hemispheres or sides of our brains which control logic, reasoning, and math (left side) along with creativity (right side). Rush is an interesting mix of both.

Till next time, keep your Mojo on the Horizon!