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Random Notes: Beijing, Bernie Mac and New Music

Posted: Aug 09, 2008

Well the Summer Olympics are underway in Beijing, and I watched a good bit of the opening ceremony last night on the boob tube. While some of it bored me to tears, I must admit that the show was filled with grandeur and color, especially during the march of the nations, with various countries athletes and representatives dressed in their nation’s colors. Of course, I had my headphones on and was listening to Southern Rock while I watched. That made it easier. Rest assured, the headphones came off today during the competition.

I was really saddened to hear about the relatives of the US Olympic men’s volleyball team, who were attacked out of nowhere by a knife-wielding Chinese man while visiting one of Beijing’s tourist sites. Todd Bachman of Minnesota was killed and his wife Barbara was seriously injured by the man who then threw himself from the second story of the site to his death.The couple was there with their daughter Elisabeth, who was not injured. She is a 2004 Olympic US Volleyball player and the wife of men's volleyball head coach, Hugh McCutcheon.

Hopefully, this was an isolated incident, and the Olympics can continue without any more hate crimes. That is on thing I have never understood. I have never been able to wrap my head around hating people of different races or nationalities. Why? It makes no sense.

On a more positive note -Go Team USA!

I just heard that one of my favorite comics has died. Bernie Mac died early today from complications from pneumonia. He was 50 years  old.

I first became a Bernie Mac fan when he starred with Billy Bob Thornton in Bad Santa, and followed his career in the Oceans 11 franchise, as well as his stand up comedy. He had just wrapped up filming Soul Men, a comedy with Samuel L. Jackson, about a Sam & Dave type soul duo making a comeback.

Rest in peace Bernie. Thanks for all the laughs brother.

People keep asking me what CD’s I am listening to right now. The truth is, there are a lot of them. But if I had to pick my current top five in my CD changer, they would be: Beautiful, Bonnie Bramlett; Live in Europe/Someone Else’s Shoes, Tommy Talton; The Boxmasters, The Boxmasters; One Foot in the Groove, Donnie Fritts; and Nobody’s Fault From Mine, Edwin McCain. I highly recommend all five of them.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be posting more later today, including a review of the new Delbert McClinton Blues Cruise DVD.

Keep it Real. Keep it Southern.
Buffalo

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Comments

says...

tennesseewaltz says...

First Bernie, then Isac Hayes. Very sad.

copperhead says...

Buff have you heard Jamey Johnson [ that lonesome sound] Honky Tonk is alive and well. This Cd will bring tears, It will make your dog cry. You can close youe eyes and feel the smoke filled baroom. You can hear his boots on the hard floor and hear the beer bottles rattle. This is dark , lost hiway dark, deep in the backwoods dark. His girl leaves him he gets on his John Deer and mows down her roses. No one has put out anything like this in country for a while.This is pain filled what you see is what you get and if you din't like it then get on down the road. If you like Waylon, Dale Watson This is the deal. There are no happy songs on this CD No Country Lite just dark backraod country stew.

countryrocker1967 says...

Hard to believe Bernie Mack is dead. He was funny as hell. I loved his TV show the Bernie Mack Show and his roll in Oceans 11. RIP

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