155: Good Night
Album: The Beatles
Writer: Lennon
Singer: Starr
Verdict: Curious as to why John wrote this for his son but didn’t wind up singing it. Perhaps because he knew he couldn’t top Paul’s ode to his son, Hey Jude? I mean, why else dump it on Ringo? Ringo’s voice ain’t too bad here, but it is incredibly cheesy with lush orchestral arrangements by George Martin. Continue reading Beatles Song Countdown: 155-151
160: Blue Jay Way
Album: Magical Mystery Tour
Writer: Harrison
Singer: Harrison
Verdict: Another song where Harrison seems to be intentionally avoiding any semblance of range. Almost monotone, and I’m also referring to the lyrics. Plus, the endless repetition of “don’t be long” gets very tiresome. And there’s that Hammond organ again I don’t like. Continue reading Beatles Song Countdown: 160-156
165: Another Girl
Album: Help!
Writer: McCartney
Singer: McCartney
Verdict: An unusual verse structure and I enjoy the swing-beat. Paul’s guitar playing ain’t bad either. But there’s not a lot of energy to this one and it’s very forgettable. Continue reading Beatles Song Countdown: 165-161
170: Hold Me Tight
Album: With the Beatles
Writer: McCartney
Singer: McCartney
Verdict: I like this better than the band did that’s for sure. The verses, like most of their early stuff, is garbage. But I think the chorus has a pretty neat hook. Paul and John harmonize well, and I like how it crescendos upwards until Paul belts “It’s you!” But yeah, faint praise. Continue reading Beatles Song Countdown: 170-166
175: Long, Long, Long
Album: The Beatles
Writer: Harrison
Singer: Harrison
Verdict: I’ve been really picking on George lately. While reading up a bit on this song, I found little but endless accolades, with some even considering it George’s best song, doubling as both a love song and a painful and moving message to God. So I just fired it up again to give it another chance. Nope. The lyrics are fine, but it sounds like George is mumbling into a tunnel. I want to shake him and tell him to sing already. The ending also sounds like someone is farting aluminum cans. Continue reading Beatles Song Countdown: 175-171
I recently published the 1,000th post on this blog. I started this thing just over four years ago. Wasn’t married. No kid. Lived in a different city. I started this blog with an already written Star Trek episode countdown. I knew I wanted to write about other stuff being a child of the 80’s, hence the title of my blog. I didn’t know if I’d have this much inertia to keep it going. Thank you to my friends who still read this day in and day out and for the hundred or so strangers who have subscribed over the years. Here’s a sneak peak at some things I have in store for the year.
The Beatles Countdown: As you may have guessed, I love exhaustive lists. Then there’s no potential hand-wringing over what was left off. We’ll start the year with me counting down every Beatles song, from worst to best. I want to keep this exercise to about a month, and there are 215 songs, so I’m thinking each post will have about ten songs. That sounds about right. No need for page long articles for each entry; this ain’t Star Trek!
Other Music Countdowns: There are three other artists where I have already ranked all their songs: Creedence Clearwater Revival, Garth Brooks, Brooks & Dunn. I’m sure I’ll do at least one more this year, maybe more. I’m also a couple album listens away from doing the same for Ben Folds and Jenny Lewis and a few other artists. I’m starting with The Beatles, because everyone knows them. We’ll see how popular it is.
Best Interactive Fiction Games: Remember Zork? There’s an online community that has been making similar (and way, way, way better) text adventures since the 1990s. It used to be a huge hobby of mine, though I haven’t played much in the past ten years. However, I played a lot of amazing games and I should really make a list of them.
Good Smartphone Games: I don’t play smartphone games often, but when I do, I like playing good ones. And there are so many bad ones. I’m looking at you, free games that you can only win if you spend money after getting hooked. This list would probably only take a couple of weeks. Like I said, so many bad games. And I really don’t get the appeal of the tower defense genre.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Countdown: Really? Well, I hope so. Sad to say I’m still stuck in season five. But the good news is that I’ve already written up my reviews on the first three seasons. So if I can just finish the series off, I’ll get back to my roots.
Trial at the Gateway.
Your lead character is freshly dead, and is at the gates of…whatever positive afterlife you feel like writing about. However, there is a trial at the gateway that must be passed in order to earn admission.
Word Limit: 600 words
Time Limit: 50 minutes
Continue reading Turbo Survivor II, Challenge 8: Trial at the Gateway
Continue reading Turbo Survivor II, Challenge 5: Smart Feature
There is nothing more to be said about the Opera House, is there?
Death By Troggles 
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