Song of the Week

I hope you've been checking out and enjoying the song of the week feature. This week's is a great pop rocker by The View. In keeping with my policy on new music I know absolutely nothing about this band. Good song!

Gonna Crawl

The sun has long since set. The volunteers left hours ago. The last brave runner who refuses to give in to his screaming muscles, his exhausted mind, crawls across the finish line.

The last six months have been grueling, at least by my standards. Starting a new job while still working at the old job was a bold move that paid off. The finish line is in sight now but still seems so far as my knees scrape along the asphalt. The last few weeks I've felt that the quality of work at both jobs had begun to suffer due to mental fatigue. This Thursday will be my last day of dual employment. I have almost two weeks off before I start the new  job as (still hard to say) a high school teacher. Already my mind is working on a way to avoid doing this job for the rest of my life. Is that crazy? Maybe, but I just don't see myself staying anywhere for the next 25 years. Five or ten, maybe. I won't give up the dream, though. I will be a real princess!

Of course I post this sob story here because I can't get the desired response (sympathy mixed with pity mixed with admiration mixed with a back rub) from my girlfriend. She works seven days a week and averages under four hours of sleep a night. I feel a little awkward groaning about waking up at seven thirty. I look to you, dear reader,  to aknowledge my heroic suffering.

Fight!

Although we mostly saw what we wanted to see, there was a lack of drama on this weekend's B.A.D. card. Guerrero didn't look great before quickly and rather nonchalantly forfeiting his fight due to a pretty bad cut. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt if he gives "Air" Yordan a rematch.

It's hard not to think Ortiz is the real thing after knocking out tough, but second tier, Arnoutis. Good stoppage too. Arnaoutis asked his corner what happened about twenty seconds after the ref waved it off. "You lost, that's what". I'd like to see Ortiz take on Malignaggi and perhaps separate Paulie's head from his neck.

We didn't get the climax and release that comes with a knock out in the Kirkland-Julio fight but we did get some nonstop pummeling. After the fourth round Julio looked like he'd rather be doing just about anything else than  fighting. His fists said "Let's fight" but his eyes said "Mommy, I want to go home".

Bandwagoning - Although I was already running along side it, I have jumped on the James Kirkland bandwagon. It may be speeding towards a brick wall or off a cliff but WoooooooWeeee! It's gonna be fun! The only time Kirkland moves his head it seems to be into an oncoming punch. I don't agree with those who question his chin, however. He got hit hard but never seemed dazed or even off balance in the last three fights I saw. O.k. he's been knocked down but he got up completely composed and proceeded to destroy.

Who can stop the tank? I think Santos would knock him out. Power plus skill. I think Paul Williams (I bought a pass for his bandwagon, I ride it so much) could find a solution to his straight ahead pressure as he did against Margarito.

De-Bandwagoning - No fallen heroes this week but I am slowly leaning towards Hatton in the upcoming mega showdown. De laHoya never really imposed his size (as a welter or above) on anyone and ,being the Golden Retard, he can't feed or nourish himself properly and thus came in weighing less than the Pacman, so it's not a gauge of how Manny will match up against strength. Hatton is strong and will outweigh Manny by 10 lbs. Is Manny strong enough? Then he better be fast enough.

The Number One Champion Sound

The proceeds from the success of Amy Winehouse along with those of Dreamgirls have financed a way back machine that has been used for more evil than good. Fake jazzy torch songs, big band swing, and Supremes like girl group pop. You know, as far as musical trends go, it's not that bad really. But like any trend, when you get down to the C, D, E level practitioners you get some heavy duty suck.

 

Let me draw your attention to two A levelers who, in quite different ways, take the way back machine for a spin. First is Grammy nominee (I think?) Estelle. The album, Shine, features some Jazz-ish vocals and some throw back 60's soul singing but it is backed by killer song writing and by Estelle who has the voice to pull it off without sounding like a desperate  wanna be (I'm looking at you Duffy). She mixes it up,quite nicely, as well with a good dose of hip-hop, with Kanye, and dance hall, with Kardinal Offshall. The album also contains too excellent duets, one with John Legend (whose golden voice combines with her golden voice to produce what I call super-double-gold) and one with Cee Lo (of Gnarls Barkely fame). If you need to add some solid r&b to your collection; here it is.

The next is Raphael Saadiq. You of course know him from Tony Toni Tone and, the excellent but underrated, Lucy Pearl. When I first heard about his newest album, The Way I See It, I must admit I winced a little. How many people praise Motown, talk about how they grew up listening to Marvin Gaye, list all the greats, only to unleash on the world the most viscous, chunky, deep brown shit? Well, why is this not some of that? First, Saadiq has hands down the best voice in r&b. At his best, when he sings a little high, he sounds a lot like my other favorite, Clarence Burke Jr. (Five Stairsteps). Second, Saadiq has the song writing chops to write a throw back song that doesn't simply ape, and pale next to, the original hits, as well as the musical chops, and sense, to pull it off in just the right way. It never sounds like someone reaching just a little too far, beyond what he can grasp. Third, it sounds friggin' great! I heard him say in an interview that he found an old Ludwig drum set that he thought sounded perfect for this kind of album. He bought it and then built a studio around it. Then he wrote and recorded the songs around what he had. And THAT my friend is how you make a record! When you listen, you can hear how everything is built around the fabulous drum sound and every instrument is tweaked right to the perfect sound without ever sounding fussed over. Production perfection. If you love music, buy this.

Fight!

Never considered myself to be much of a Juan Manuel Marquez fan. Never had anything against him. I cheered for Pacquiao when they fought. He just never fired my imagination. The "he coulda shoulda won" story line on him kind of rubbed me the wrong way too. If Pacquiao hadn't knocked him down four times... If Morales had given him a fight...If he hadn't fought John in Indonesia...Tough luck!

What he's done since moving up to lightweight, however, has been spectacular. While some boxers become weight division leapers, looking for the fame and the money, damning the significance, and ruling out the most intriguing match ups in favour of the obvious names and getting famous off of some one else's fame, Marquez has stepped up to a weight class many thought was a step beyond his comfort zone and knocked out the linear champ and the guy most considered the second best in the division. Wow. Yes and he knocked them out! Handing them both their first career stoppages. He should move up and knock out Nate Campbell while waiting to see what happens after the dust settles between the Pacman and the Hitman.

A Bit of Bitch - Funeka, Martinez, and John. All non-Americans fighting Americans in America and all three got the shaft. Let me never hear the US boxing press say an American boxer shouldn't go to Germany, Japan, Montreal,where ever because he'll get robbed. They act like somehow America is neutral ground for all fighters and the only place where an unbiased decision could ever be made. PFFTTTTTT! Wake up! Or Shut up!

De-bandwagoning - I am still seated on the Pavlik bandwagon but both feet are on the ground and with a mere straightening of  the knees and I will be off. It was not all his fault, but his last fight stank. They are talking about fighting Duddy who was arguably beaten by Walid Smichet. Not impressed. I heard a rumour about Trinidad. Ugh.And people have the nerve to criticize Abraham's opponents!  Actually, anything short of fighting Abraham before the year's end and I'm off. "But why should he fight in Berlin when he can sell 7000 tickets in Youngstown?" you ask. Well my friend last time I checked Youngstown wasn't exactly a world center and Abraham is selling 20,000 tickets in the heart of the European boxing market, where, by the way, people seem to give a shit about boxing. It's Kelly's call. Arthur can be king of the middleweights and he can be king of Ohio.

Bandwagoning - Tomasz Adamek boy! I've seen his last four or five fights and I love this guy! Since moving up to cruiser he's a one man gang. Knocking guys all over the ring. He's got a very sound and economical style. He throws punches to land them and he lands them hard. No wild bombs just well placed devastating punches. He gets hit back just enough to make it interesting, and at least once a fight he gets hit so hard it hurts your eyes. But he walks through shots that would bring down a stone age obelisk (too much History channel?). After knocking out a very large man last weekend he declared his desire to move up to heavyweight. Yes, please. He says he'll clean out the division. Yes, please. Can he? Right now I so want someone to, that I will put my faith in anyone who can box a bit (or a lot actually) and who looks like they spend more time in the gym than the tattoo parlor.