Whuuurrraaaahh, uurrrhhhh, I’m still alive.

—Eddie Vedder

The above quote is a ham-handed reference to rock stars who die at twenty-seven years of age.* The phonetic approximation of the chorus from Pearl Jam’s biggest hit serves at once to celebrate this show’s survival past that landmark & to note the innate insignificance of that “achievement.” Did I struggle as much over the course of my august twenty-seven volumes as, say, Kurt Cobain did with his stomach pains & unfathomable fortune? Hard to say. Only my diary knows for sure—& it can’t be bought. (Well, not on your budget; trust me.) Anyhow, it’s in a locked box, under the care of my trusty native bearer, Carl, who has strict instructions not to open it until exactly one hundred years after my death.

It is a sobering thought, for example, that when Mozart was my age, he had been dead for two years.

—Tom Lehrer

Why all this fretting over the passage of time? Well, probably because Friday’s my birthday. No, no, shush, you couldn’t be expected to remember. I’m just thinking, as I always do at this time of year, about mortality, nostalgia & the future…

Ew, gross! Moving on: This week, you’ll hear Frida (of ABBA) singing songs by Bryan Ferry & Giorgio Moroder, plus Gregg Allman & Cher singing songs about how it feels to be in love for just about as long as it takes to make a record. I’ve also got more answers to the microcosmic musical questions I can only imagine are inflaming your curiosity even as I write this, such as:

• You know that classic rap song, “Roxanne, Roxanne,” by UTFO? What else did that label release?

• Did Frank Sinatra ever do a version, arranged by Gordon Jenkins, of “Are You Lonesome Tonight?”?

• Hey, are there words (written by the legendary Sammy Cahn) to the Odd Couple theme song?

• What about Lenny Kaye, from the Patti Smith Group & the Jim Carroll Band—did that guy ever make his own record?

If you will engage the mousian locator on your webular browse-a-tron with the hyperlink at the end of this post, you will be rewarded with the answers to all these questions, & maybe even one or two more. Who can say?

Enjoy the show! I swear it’s going to be worth all this.

* Amy Winehouse: rock star? Tough call.**

** (not really)

Note: There seem to be some technical glitches in the MP3 uploading/downloading process this week; it seems to work, but might take longer than usual. Hoping to sort out why, but for the moment, just act natural.

Revolutionary Plastics Hour: Volume Twenty-Eight

Neal Hefti—The Odd Couple (lyrics by Sammy Cahn)

Mac Davis—Lookin’ at Linda

Allman and Woman [Gregg Allman + Cher]—Move Me

Frida—To Turn the Stone (co-written by Giorgio Moroder)

The Brothers Johnson—This Had to Be (co-written & w/backing vocals by Michael Jackson)

Peter Brown—Fantasy Love Affair

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Sade—Siempre Hay Esperanza

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Frank Sinatra—Are You Lonesome Tonight?

Lenny Kaye—I’ve Got a Right

Nonnie & the Onnies—I’m in Love with a Rent Boy

Frida—The Way You Do

Allman and Woman—In for the Night

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Thawfor—Memories (instrumental, prod. by the Opus)

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Mark Ronson—Ooh Wee (ft. Ghostface Killah & Nate Dogg)

Bigg Juss—Poor People’s Day

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Arcadia—She’s Moody & Grey, She’s Mean & She’s Restless

Right-click the Download link below to download this podcast. I know it says the size is 0.0, but it’s been working fine, so just give it a shot. If it doesn’t work, I will happily refund your click.