Author Archives: Therese Trouserzoff

Rolling Stone 500 best songs of all time

15 Friday Oct 2021

Posted by in Algernon

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Playlist borrowed by Algernon

Last month Rolling Stone Magazine released their 500 best songs of all time. They did the same thing in December 2003which was referred to as the 2004 list, so it could be said a generation has passed since that list was prepared. The 2021 list has many songs from the 90’s, 00’s and 10’s and less from earlier decades particularly the 50’s, which probably reflects the contributors to the latest. In the new list only one songcomes from the period between 2004 and 2021 and only four of the top 10 from 2003 survive in the latest. Dreams by Fleetwood Mac didn’t even appear in the 2004 top 500.

The most represented year in the current list was 1971. The decades with the most entries in both lists were the 60’s and 70’s, nearly 70% in the 2004 and around 50% in the 2021. The 80’s and 90s account for about 30% in the latest list compared with half that in the previous.

The number in brackets is the songs place in each other’s list.

2021 top 10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iayJ8u4Qew1. Respect – Aretha Franklin (5)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRJKjiCtVco2. Fight the Power – Public Enemy (322)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEBlaMOmKV43. A change is gonna come – Sam Cooke (12)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwOfCgkyEj04. Like a rolling stone – Bob Dylan (1)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljUtuoFt-8c5. Smells like teen spirit – Nirvana (9)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApthDWoPMFQ6. What’s going on – Marvin Gaye (4)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUH9z_Oey87. Strawberry Fields forever – The Beatles (76)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPoKiGQzbSQ8. Get ur freak on – Missy Elliott (-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oWyMakvQew9. Dreams – Fleetwood Mac (-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWgvGjAhvIw10. Hey ya – Outkast (180)

2003 – top 101. Like a rolling stone – Bob Dylan (4)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSSxnv1_J2g2. Satisfaction – The Rolling Stones (31)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkgkThdzX-83. Imagine – John Lennon (19)4. What’s going on – Marvin Gaye (6)5. Respect – Aretha Franklin (1)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apBWI6xrbLY6. Good Vibrations – The Beach Boys (53)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf4rxCB4lys7. Johnny B Good – Chuck Berry (33)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_MjCqQoLLA8. Hey Jude – The Beatles (89)9. Smells like teen spirit – Nirvana (5)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezCZ3P5qzMs10. What I’d say – Ray Charles (80)

Open Letter to Elon Musk

12 Tuesday Oct 2021

Posted by in Emmjay

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https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/11/lebanon-suffers-24-hour-blackout-food-poisoning-business-closures-amid-fuel-crisis.html

G’day, Elon. Emmjay here.

Today CNBC reported that there was a 24 hour blackout in Lebanon.

That’s catastrophic for a bankrupt nation with severe food shortages and as the CNBC report says, this caused food spoilage and food poisoning and God herself knows how anyone can operate a Covid hospital under those conditions.

So I thought I’d check up and see how you’re going cash wise, because, let’s face it, nobody wants to embarrass themselves by putting the bite on a pauper.

Boy was I relieved to see that you have $2 billion dollars. No wait, that was $202 billion. So I guess you’re probably not wandering around with the backside out of your pants and holes in your socks.

And then I remembered that the good people of Lebanon are out of cash and out of electricity. However, being in the Middle East, I’m guessing that they do have a fair bit of sunlight.

And I remembered that your company is in the business of generating electricity from sunlight and storing it in huge batteries.

Now you’re a famously smart guy and I’m betting that you can see where I’m going with this.

So what about you join the dots and show some magnificent global philanthropy. Nobody’s going to call you a mug for stepping in.

And I’ll be happy to put in a good word for you with the Nobel people. If they have’t got a category for single-handedly saving a failed national state, I’ll ask them to make one.

After all, you saved South Australia as a warm up for the major league.

Your friend,
Emmjay

Easing the Lockdown in NSW

11 Monday Oct 2021

Posted by in Emmjay

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This one’s for you Asty.

Story by Emmjay

If I see another news item showing a clip of a person getting a jab, I’ll spit.

As much as I’m keen on not being locked down – and I’m looking forward to seeing my kids and grand kids, I think it’s important to remember that 80% single vaxxed New South Welshpeople means that there will be over a million people in NSW including kids under 12 – ALL of whom have the potential to be Covid infected and infective in the community. (So do we, vaxxed people. It’s just unlikely that we’ll get very sick).

Let’s take a wildly optimistic guess that only 5% unvaxxed people will get infected = 20,000 and that only 5% of these end up in IC = 1,000 seriously sick people.

Did you know that NSW recently published the fact that 47% of people currently in intensive care (IC) are unvaccinated – and ALL the people on ventilators (which means they are seriously up shit creek) are unvaccinated.

This will put a massive massive strain on the whole health system in our state. FM works at a large private hospital (600 beds) and they are gearing up for a huge influx of Covid patients six weeks on from doing what Victoria did easing the lockdown and remember that that resulted in nearly 2,000 infections a day. So my guesses above could be WAAAY under the reality.

Let’s hope I’m wrong.

I’m not saying that NSW should continue being locked down like Fort Knox, but do take care brothers and sisters – and vax up to the eyeballs.

Fond regards to all our Pig’s Arms patrons,

Emmjay

Bluey – the Original Bluey

07 Thursday Oct 2021

Posted by in Emmjay

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Whoever doesn’t believe that the ’70s were the epitome of Australian Cop Dramas, cop this …

Lockdown has provided a massive opportunity to romp through the best TV ever made. Once we exhausted Vera (The modern British version of Colombo), I slept through most of Midsummer Murders (REALLY ? Every week somebody gets knocked off in some bizarre ritual killing driven usually by greed and revenge). Surely if that happened in your borough, you’d move somewhere else.

Of course, there’s the many series of Death in Paradise. Same – but on a Caribbean Island. Shetland… what is it with islands and houses in isolated places that draws the murderers ?

Nora Linde with her Cop de Jour

And on SBS On Demand, for Pete’s (or was it Olaf’s) sake Sandhamn Murders on a Swedish Island where people go to bed in broad daylight. There’s more sex and a lot of drinking, teenage misadventure, infidelity, quite a lot of bicycle riding, running and scooting about in boats, more drinking, a lot of cop procedural but with that freelance nordic style casual dress and fine dining detective work.

There is a good looking boy cop played by a series of handsome nordic blokes, whose rather attractive – not too attractive but rather available female offsider would be a good sub at a pinch but the up close work is never consummated – leaving room for some tension with the female lead who starts out being a banking lawyer, and somehow morphs into a prosecutor who frequently finds herself running alternatively into the handsome detective and her ex-husband. There’s quite a lot of teenage girls being drugged and locked up in boats, and small lighthouse towers, quite a few mysterious drownings, amazing tans, lots of Volvos and BMWs and truly lovely seaside houses. Broken and repaired marriages. Traumatised children of divorced marriages, dodgy real estate deals and fraud. This is one island rich in motives, heads banged on rocks and bodies recovered from the sea in various stages of disrepair. Did I mention the drinking ? There are many bedside hospital scenes with people clinging to life and but for one or two, pulling through (Go for it Big and Hung !)

And everyone sounds like the Swedish chef in the Muppets.

But when it all boils down, Columbo is the real deal. The daddy sleuth of them all. Peter Falk won several golden globes / emmys and millions of fans.

…Inimitable style, incredibly slow pace, relentless pressure on the murderer., inexorable logic.. and smart arse murderers who take Colombo for a fool – big mistake…- this episode has a cameo appearance by Eddie Albert. Great line “Mr Colombo,. some men don’t like to go out looking like an unmade bed.

Note Colombo started at the same time as Bluey – what contrasting styles !

ANd the late night send-up… revoiced Bargearse

Sounds a lot like Judith Lucy, Tony Martin and Rob Sitch doing the voice overs…

Story by Emmjay

A BANKING STORY

12 Sunday Sep 2021

Posted by in Vivienne

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100th anniversary of the opening of the Bank of NSW in Wodonga – Mayor Stone and original stone laying party

In which Viv takes on the vicissitudes of the retail finance industry

Five years ago I wanted to transfer a large sum of money to my daughter for her wedding.  I went to my local branch and must have picked a day where I got the thickest person possible.  This is what happened when I told her what I wanted to do:

Bank woman: Do you have internet banking?

Me:  no.   (Me, thinks to herself, well der, if I did why would I fucking come here to do a transfer)

Bank woman: $30 fee to do transfer

Bank woman:  or $12 to do a bank cheque.  

Me – I wanted it done electronically.  I can write a cheque out anytime.

Bank woman:   I could give you $ CASH and you could walk over and up to ANZ bank in Lavington.

Me:   I might get mugged.

Me:  here is the account number and BSB details

Bank:    we need the address of the bank

Me:  somewhere in Wodonga

Bank:   have to have the street address.     I could give you cash ….. blah blah

Me:  I think I’ll just give my daughter a cheque after all.

(I now have internet banking.)

Mad Dogs and Englishmen – The Album

11 Saturday Sep 2021

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Album presentation by Algernon.

This week’s presentation is a request and one that has been an enjoyable dive into the album and the backing musicians involved. This is the first in a two part series which looks at the album and the songs behind the name.

Joe Cockers Mad Dogs and Englishmen was the product of live concerts in Filmore East, New York City on 27-28 March 1970 with the album released in August that year. The name comes from the 1931 recording by Noel Coward of the same name along with Leon Russell’s Ballad of Mad dogs and Englishmen. Only four of the songs on this album came from Cockers first two studio albums; Delta Lady, Girl from the North Country, She came in through the bathroom window and Bird on a wire.

The album borrows heavily from The Rolling Stones, Traffic, Bob Dylan, the Beatles, Ray Charles, Otis Redding & Sam and Dave. Leon Russell also wrote three of the songs as well as producing the album along with Denny Cordell.

The album featured Joe Cocker, Rita Coolidge, Donna Washburn, Claudia Lennear, Denny Cordell, Daniel More, Pamela Pollard, Matthew Moore, Nicole Barclay & Bobby Jones on vocals. Leon Russell on lead guitar, piano, vocals and backing vocals. Don Preston on guitar, vocals and backing voacls, Chris Stainton on organ and Piano. Cark Radle on bass guitar, Jim Gordon, Jim Keltner, Chuck Blackwell on drums. Chuck Blackwell, Sandy Konikoff, Bobby Torres on percussion, Jim Horn, Bobby Keys on Saxophone and Jim Price on Trumpet.

The next part will explore some of the work from some of these musicians.

The album charted at number one in Australia.

Mad dogs and Englishmen – Noel Coward

Ballad of Mad Dogs and Englishmen – Leon Russell

Mad dogs and Englishmen – Joe Cocker (Album)

Stoned Again

02 Thursday Sep 2021

Posted by in Emmjay

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I was too young to be allowed to go to the 196x concert, but I was there in 1973!

Somewhat up he back – closer to Redfern than the Randwick Racecourse stage and with the aid of herbal chemistry, I have to admit I might have missed a bit of the Sydney concert. So many distractions…and so few big screens (none, really since it was way before they were invented).

Around the same time I went to Santana at the Horden Pavilion – although I can’t forget “Black Magic Woman”, I can and have forgotten everything else. Drats.

POSSUMS ARE CONTORTIONISTS AND ACROBATS*

26 Thursday Aug 2021

Posted by in Vivienne

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Story by Vivienne

Early this year my family of possums abandoned their tree homes (which we’d planted for them) and took to living in the ceiling of my home.  For some months I puzzled as to how they were getting in.  They took to fighting or mating just above my bedroom and another was doing the same at the opposite end of the house.  I had thumps and bumps and hissing and growling going on when they were heading out for the night and coming back in for sleep.  Then about two months ago I finally woke up to how they were getting in at one end.  Above the roller door.

I enlisted help of son in law and together we dismantled a wooden bed using the wooden slats as timber to cover up the hole.  Yay, peace at one end for one night and then they were back.  The buggers had chewed off chunks of timber and squeezed themselves back in.  So, piss on my car and poo on the floor continued at a pace. 

I then enlisted help of neighbour John.  He’s very handy and has tools.  (Also, in and out of lockdown meant son in law couldn’t cross the border.)  John inspected and agreed with my diagnosis.  One continuous piece of timber instead of six slats (three for each roller door – it’s a big garage, six squares).  This would give them less opportunity to find a grip.  The timber was beautifully stained to match the surrounding timber of the house.  Yay, peace again – but only for one night.  The buggers still managed to chew a gap out of the new timber.  Unbelievable.

John also had a better look at the east end of the house and found one corner where there was a gap that they could squeeze through.

Now, the big problem with all this is blocking up the entry points while the possums are outside.  The garage door was okay as I could leave it open a bit and then close it when I knew possums were out.  Not so the east end of the house.   John decided a heap of non-grip metal sheeting would stop them getting back in.  He did a beautiful job.  But that night there was so much kerfuffle going on in the roof I wondered if they couldn’t get out.  John came up with a long piece of 2 x 4 and put it there as a ladder.  Of course once I was sure they were out I had to remove the ‘ladder’.

Meanwhile we’re thinking about the garage end.  Metal, metal all the way.  John had scrap bits of long metal and we completely closed off one door and left a gap in the other.  The darn lock stuck out a bit and so it had to have a gap left.  This should do the trick, we thought.  Next day I do the morning inspection.  The whole roller door is covered in piss and the possums have squeezed in. After a lot of cleaning I called John to come and see what happened. Decided to move the metal in a little bit.  A little bit in this case was only a centimetre.  More unscrewing and screwing.  Next day it is a big yay.

This still left the matter of blocking up the east end hole.  So dear John agreed to come up at 7.30 pm in the damp and cold and do the job.  Down came the metal sheeting and in went a piece of wood which he’d mentally calculated the perfect width and length.  Nailed in.

Next day it is a big yay. 

But in their grumpiness the possums had a go at the other side of the east end and knocked out two bricks (put there to block entry to birds).  John fixed that with another piece of timber.

So, now one week later I have no possums in the garage or squeezed into the ceiling.  Bliss.  No more fighting or fucking, hissing or running around at 3.30 to 4.30 am.

John lives in the farm about 500 metres down our little road.  We’ve known each other for about 35 years.  He’s lent us his ram to service our ewes and made new fittings for the gully trap, shared Christmas gatherings with us and another neighbour (since moved north).  He’s a fitter and turner as well as a farmer.  I’m 71 and he’s 72 (happily married to second wife).  I was his assistant.  Beating the possums at their own game was a bit of a marathon.

The possums occasionally express their displeasure by doing a few laps on the roof.

Fur-clad miscreant

I managed to get this photograph when I saw him on the verandah – I shot up and put the outdoor light on and caught him frozen on the rafter pretending he wasn’t there.

When you see the size of one of my possums it is hard to image that they can get in a gap which is about 4 x 8 centimetres.  Piece of cake apparently.  Roller access was also improved by their ability to push the door in (it’s actually flexible).  One also has to be a contortionist and an acrobat.

Vivienne’s story August 2021

* Editors Translation – Bastards who are not protected in New Zealand and who make good insulation when their fur is spun into merino wool and made into jumpers.