Friday Morning Music: For Once in My Life

Loving the mini-dresses on those dancers. Or are they cheerleaders? Happy Friday, one and all.

Friday Morning Music: Brown Eyed Girl

For all of us brown eyed girls, here's Van Morrison. Happy Spring!

Friday Morning Music: All This Useless Beauty

Listened to this tune on my walk to Tenleytown Metro this morning.

And this marks the blog's 100th post. A milestone I will enjoy celebrating this weekend. For your enjoyment!

Friday Morning Music: Outside of Space and Time

To commemorate the Earth's close encounter with Asteroid 2012 DA14 close by the Indian Ocean around 2:25 ET today, here's David Byrne and St. Vincent with 'Outside of Space and Time'. DA14 will miss us by little over 17,000 miles, a mere blip in galactic terms. 

Friday Morning Music: Get on the Good Foot

It's a dreary, rainy day in DC today. I need to get charged up! Here's the Godfather, showing us his moves in his prime. And love Don Cornelius' hair!

Friday Morning Music: Pua Ahihi

Here's slack key guitar virtuoso Jeff Peterson, playing at George Kahumoku's weekly show at the Napili Kai Beach Resort in Napili, Maui. Jeff is every bit as nice as he appears in this video. Aloha!

Friday Morning Music: Quiet Village

For my friends and family who are enduring the deep freeze on the East Coast, here is a little Hawaiian exotica to finish out the week. Throw a couple more coals on the fire and warm up with Quiet Village, one of my favorites from Arthur Lyman. 

Friday Morning Music: Better Things

"Learn from yesterday,
Live for today."

The best way I can think of to end this particular week is to look ahead. So turn up the volume and enjoy the most optimistic, hopeful song I know of:  "Here's wishing you the bluest sky, And hoping something better comes tomorrow." The Kinks, 1981. Thanks, Dave and Ray!

Friday Morning Music: The Jetsons

While driving home this evening, I learned on NPR that The Jetsons are celebrating their 50th anniversary. The report focused on the cartoon characters, but I couldn't help thinking, "Hey, that was a great theme song." Just listen to those strings! 

The music in the closing credits is ten times more awesome. What a sassy horn section!

Friday Morning Music: Move On Up

Here's some funk and energy from Curtis Mayfield to liven up the end of the first week of 2013. At nearly nine minutes, it's a long one, so enjoy!

I'm taking liberties with the order of the lyrics here, but this song really resonates:

Though there may be complications .... Remember your dreams are your only schemes .... Take nothing less, not even second best .... if you put your mind into it, you can surely do it .... Just move on up towards your destination ....

According to Mayfield's Wikipedia entry, Curtis Mayfield was "inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on March 15, 1999 .... [with] fellow inductees Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Dusty Springfield, [Beatles producer] George Martin, and ... The Staple Singers." He also holds the distinction of being one of Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

Take a moment to check out his impressive list of professional achievements near the bottom of the entry. Best known for the album that formed the soundtrack for the 1972 movie Super Fly, Mayfield was a leader in the Black Power Movement. A singer-songwriter, record producer and multi-instrumentalist, Mayfield, along with James Brown, Sly Stone and others, was a pioneer of R&B, Funk and Soul. His music continues to influence Rap and Hip Hop to this day. 

Friday Morning Music: Lean on Me

Inspired by my discovery of the wooden stars on Hunter Avenue on Staten Island, here is the 1973 live version of Bill Withers singing 'Lean on Me'.

One stanza in particular has special meaning for me this year:

Please swallow your pride
If I have things you need to borrow
For no one can fill those of your needs
That you won't let show

You just call on me brother, when you need a hand (Chorus)
We all need somebody to lean on
I just might have a problem that you'd understand
We all need somebody to lean on

'Lean on Me', from the album Still Bill reached number one the week of July 8, 1972. According to Withers' official website, the West Virginia native recorded with the likes of Booker T. Jones (Booker T. & The MG’s), Stephen Stills, and Benorce Blackmon (The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band), among many others. 

'Lean on Me' was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2007.

Bill Withers:  The Everyman Singer with a Poet's Soul
Still Bill: 5 Bill Withers Covers
Bill Withers:  The Complete Sussex and Columbia Albums

Friday Morning Music: What the World Needs Now (Is Love Sweet Love)

The best message I can think of for Christmas:  Dionne Warwick singing 'What the World Needs Now'.

I've experienced some dreadful behavior this week in Bethesda. Monday morning on my way to work, I encountered one of the most hostile drivers ever, a woman looking for street parking. (She got out of her car to confront me, but I smiled and drove away before she could get too close to me.) On Tuesday, it was an especially angry and impatient line of customers at the Post Office on Wisconsin Avenue. Wednesday, money was stolen from my purse by a stranger who walked into our office. And yesterday morning as I crossed Montgomery Avenue in front of my office building, a left turning Prius running a red light nearly plowed right into me. (See previous post, Driven to Tears.)

Come on, folks. There's a better way.

Try meditating. I've been doing this for years:  in the car, sitting on Metro, waiting to cross a busy intersection, standing in line (at the grocery store, post office, you name it).

My favorite time to meditate is when I am sitting in my living room in the early morning quiet with my first cup of coffee. I've done that for many years now, going back to when my kids were very young. It allowed me to gather my thoughts for the day, summon some strength and then drift away for a little while.

All this is done in a mindful way. I'm still paying attention to my place in line, waiting for my Metro stop, moving forward in line, or watching the clock so I could shuttle the kids to school (back in the day). But I'm shutting out the negative stuff and focusing on good thoughts that calm me and make me happy.

You will still make all of your holiday preparations. You will still get to your destination and still accomplish the day's tasks. Yes, you will indeed still do everything you need to do. And if a few holiday details slip by, so what? You'll lower your blood pressure and still have a smile for your family, friends and co-workers.

Give it a try, and spread a little bit of joy and love this coming week. And have a peaceful and happy holiday.

Friday Morning Music: Skylark - Maxine Sullivan

Welcome to a new weekly feature on RPD.

While there are many fine versions of the Hoagy Carmichael/Jerome Kern song 'Skylark', for my money Ms. Sullivan's is one of the very best. Enjoy!