Now What?

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I don’t write much about the current occupant of the White House. There is never anything good to say, and it requires a shower afterward. But once a year, usually around this time, I have a few thoughts after drinking from the firehose of depravity that is his administration.

Last week the president got away with his high crimes and misdemeanors. With the notable exception of Senator Mitt Romney who had the moral courage to vote for conviction on abuse of power, the Republican majority in the Senate voted to acquit Donald Trump on his impeachment articles. While not surprising this was tragic. The worst thing about the GOP’s (mostly) collective shrug on holding the president accountable is that in the future there will be another bad actor — someone much smarter and more capable than Trump — with precedent set that he or she can do whatever they want. What party they hail from will not matter. That is where a republic dies. These are just the seeds of our own destruction willingly sewn while the mass media breathlessly calls it like a ballgame.

The Trump administration is largely functioning as a monarchy while conservatives in Congress embrace reactionary politics. It has been an odd thing to watch over the last three years, but I also believe it is the result of changing political demographics. That means a dangerous year lies ahead.

From now until November American politics is a runaway train — a train engulfed in flames! The president will continue his behavior pattern, quite comfortable knowing there will be no repercussions other than stern looks and “troubled” speeches from party members in front of cable news microphones. While I cannot see another impeachment happening, despite suggestions to the contrary, there remain numerous investigations of this president for much more serious crimes than what he was impeached for — the kind that earn a person jail time. Those are going to be out in the open as the year progresses, and it is not going to help the GOP, which has steadfastly tied its credibility and election fortunes to his. Trump knows he is in trouble and that his best course of action is to stay in office to avoid prosecution. He will fight as though his life depends on winning reelection. With his visibly worsening health, there is also a chance that if he wins in November, he resigns midterm after negotiating a non-prosecution agreement. Infuriating, but getting him out of the White House would be worth it. Justice doesn’t always mean vengeance.

That said, I don’t see Trump getting reelected. He’s deeply unpopular and there are far too many people affected by his policies who don’t believe the picture he tried to paint at his reality television-inspired State of the Union last week. In what seemed unfathomable a year ago, even the Senate isn’t a lock for keeping a Republican majority. It’s not just Democrats that are incensed. There are prominent and equally furious conservatives rolling out attack ads against the president’s sycophants, and they are just getting started. The Republican Party has consistently administered fatal wounds to itself through fealty to an emperor who has no clothes, which adheres well to the pattern that whatever Trump touches he destroys…or bankrupts. Whatever the GOP is going forward is not what it was, and legacies have been forever ruined. History will not be kind.

While Trump has only been a symptom of what is wrong with the country, I’m sad for those who have embraced him as the answer to our problems. History consistently shows that embracing these kinds of leaders is a common occurrence that never leads to good outcomes. The bold lying with impunity, gaslighting, criminality, and the lurching toward an authoritarian government while using these tactics of totalitarian regimes is thoroughly depressing to witness, but there is hope.

I firmly believe that truth still matters. I believe that the arc of the moral universe bends toward justice. And I believe that what is coming in November will be devastating to Trump, the merry band of grifters in his administration, and his cronies in Congress. Vote. Bring your friends. Don’t give up. It may not look or feel like it at this very moment, but we’re winning. The only way we lose is by not showing up.

Tales of the Uke – Part 10

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Hey! It’s World Ukulele Day, a perfect time to add to the repertoire. It has been a while since the last Tale, as the Christmas songs kept me busy at the end of 2019, and I had a recital to prepare for as well. Back at it now!

We’re going from the King to the British Invasion. From the Revolver album came a song by the Beatles unlike what they had done before. Eleanor Rigby is about loneliness in old age. Written mainly by Paul McCartney, it details the bleak existence of fictional characters Eleanor Rigby and Father McKenzie, a priest:

Ah, look at all the lonely people
Ah, look at all the lonely people

Eleanor Rigby
Picks up the rice in the church where a wedding has been
Lives in a dream
Waits at the window
Wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door
Who is it for?

All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?

Father McKenzie
Writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear
No one comes near
Look at him working
Darning his socks in the night when there’s nobody there
What does he care?

All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?

Ah, look at all the lonely people
Ah, look at all the lonely people

Eleanor Rigby
Died in the church and was buried along with her name
Nobody came
Father McKenzie
Wiping the dirt from his hands as he walks from the grave
No one was saved

All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?

Catchy melody. Stark sentiment.

The Beatles sang but did not play any instruments on this song. A string ensemble of session musicians was hired to perform the score written by producer George Martin. Eleanor Rigby incorporated four violins, two violas and two cellos. Released in the summer of 1966 the song made it to number 11 on the Billboard  Hot 100.

My teacher, Trevor found the music in a guitar book but suggested the arrangement would work for ukulele, especially with the low G string. This is the first recording using my new Audio-Technica 2021 microphone, specifically designed for instruments:

I’ll start working on something new shortly. When the song is done, I’ll add another tale to the saga.

Remember the Song? – No. 1

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I’m writing a new series of posts on obscure or forgotten songs, one-hit wonders included. A lot of these songs I used to play on the radio, but they’ve faded from the collective memory. Others I’ve heard on soundtracks. I’ve got a large enough list that it should be fun to reminisce or hear something new that’s old! I’ll give a little background on the song, make a few comments, and then post the video. Here we go…

Dave Loggins – Please Come to Boston. Kenny Loggins has a cousin! Second cousin, actually. Dave Loggins is also a singer-songwriter. He has written a number of hits for major artists, but in 1974 he performed his own composition, which made it to number five on the Billboard  Hot 100.

Please Come to Boston  is a love song with a rambling man as the narrator. He is from Tennessee but aimlessly travels the country, asking his girlfriend to join him in Boston, or Denver, or perhaps Los Angeles. She tells him no; she wants him to come home to her. They’re both a bit caught up in their selfish desires, which keeps them apart, and the song ends in a standoff.

The track has great stereo separation with a lot of different instruments. The lead vocal is raw and plaintive with mellow verses and a lively chorus that is supported by clean backing vocals. Until I listened to the song a few times while writing this, I never noticed the background vocals in the bridge and final verse. They fit beautifully. (I just discovered why I never noticed them. They don’t exist in the mix I have at home!)

The first time I heard this song was at KSND in Newport where it was in our gold library. I heard it many nights, which is the perfect time to listen to it. Sad and memorable with maybe a touch of hope because impasses can be overcome.

What are your thoughts? Like it? Hate it? Indifferent? Comment below. ↓