Ghost riders in the sky

The late great Johnny Cash takes his turn at interpreting a strange but fascinating song, arguably one of the best cowboy songs ever written. I remember loving it for its great rhythm whenever it came on the radio, but never listened carefully to the lyrics. I just did so and found them weird, but the song is still great. Here is a live performance from 1987 [Read more…]

The Ventures and drums

The Ventures were an instrumental rock group from the days of my youth who were known for their up-tempo, driving, pulsating beats that gave special prominence to drummers. They were one of the few purely instrumental rock bands that had an extended successful career, the British group The Shadows being another one.

Here are two examples. One is the tune Wipe Out. [Read more…]

Opera singing protesters

Portugal is one of those countries that decided that increased austerity for its people was the way to go in dealing with its financial crisis and the result has been massive hardship for many. This has led to protests outside parliament and other venues where prominent government leaders are assembled. A professional opera singer Ana Maria Pinto attended one such protest last October that took an unexpected turn. [Read more…]