Who's Line is it Anyway?

Alright, so I was flipping through channels one night and I stumbled upon a show that I had only seen a few other times. When I finished watching it, I realized why I had only seen it a few times as a young kid. It was a pretty dirty and adult show but it was very funny and impressive. It is called Who's Line is it Anyway? It starred three very talented actors: Wayne Brady, Ryan Stiles, and Colin Mochrie and one more comedian with them. The show is an improve comedy performance. That means that none of the show is scripted and nothing they do is planned. They do lots of different games on the show and they all have their strong points but I think my favorite game is Greatest hits. In the game, Colin, the bald one, and Ryan, the tall one, are tv sales people trying to sell a CD to the viewers with strange songs on it about a topic. Then, when they say a style and a title for the song, Wayne, the black one, and the guest artist perform the song. This is possibly my favorite because this takes talent as a singer and an improve artist.

WARNING: THESE VIDEOS AREN'T CLEAN AND IF YOU DON'T WANT TO HEAR SEXUAL JOKES YOU SHOULD NOT WATCH THESE!





this is another game called Irish Drinking Song. They have to sing a song one line at a time. This is very impressive as well all though not as much for the great singing but for the funny jokes.

WARNING: THESE SONGS ARE WORSE THAN THE FIRST SET AND MORE CAUTION SHOULD BE TAKEN!







And here is another thing they do. On the show, they sometimes have special guests. Usually they are women because the show normally stars men. But there are cases when they just want to be funny and bring on someone different, like Richard Simmons.

WARNING: THIS IS VERY VERY DIRTY. YOU SHOULD NOT WATCH THIS IF YOU WOULD BE OFFENDED AND DON'T BLAME ME IF YOU ARE. I WARNED YOU.

But Where is the Audience?

I am, as most of you know, writing this blog for my language arts class. The point that we originally said was that we were writing to an audience but is that really the case? I have tried to put questions into my blog posts so that I could see if people were reading my blog but so far I have never had any of those questions answered. So I have concluded that I am merely writing this blog for no reason except for the grade and my teacher. If I am wrong, please respond to this post with some answer. I don't care what you say, just that you comment somewhere on this post or another one. I want to know that I actually have viewers so that I can fell like there is a point in trying to write well and not just putting random words on a page. This video is of a crazy old and funny show that I recently rediscovered called Who's Line is it Anyway? It is on weekdays from 11:00pm to 12:00am. If you haven't seen it I suggest you do. I am attempting to put up a funny post to try and get more follwers and people who will write comments, so tell your friends to look if you like it.

The work of a Prodigy

This song is my dream song to play in an orchestra some day. I loved the movie and the music from it. This song is basically the culmination of all the sounds in the whole movie. I wish that I could be as talented as the Character August Rush was.

What American Pie Means

I have recently become obsessed with this song and I I have been thinking about what it means. I don't like to sing songs and not know what I mean or what was meant by the lyrics. In this case the song isn't dirty or bad but I had very little idea of what this song meant. The song is American Pie by Don McLean.



I looked on the Internet to find a brief idea of what to look at. Here's what About.com said. The song was written in the 1970's which was a confusing time for the world. He mentions Lenin and Marx, the leader of the USSR and the founder of communism respectively. Communists were the USA's enemy at the time since it was during the Cold war when this song was written. It also discussed fallout shelters which would have been important since the Cold war was a race for nuclear arms between the USA and the USSR and there was always the chance that one side could start to use there weapons and we would need a place to be safe.

You can't use dates and events for everything. some of the things were do to the mood of the world and music. It is sometimes mentioned that it was a song for three singers who died in a 1950s plane crash. It is clear that he had other reasons for writing such a song. It has strange lyrics and references that are disputed but have never really had confirmed meanings. So we just have to wonder and let the song mean what we think it does.

This is from a time when there were always hidden meanings to songs or at least there was emotion behind the lyrics. Because there is no concrete meaning for this song, it can mean whatever the person listening to it needs it to mean for them. This is the miricle of this song. It is the longest song ever to be number one on the Billboard 100 songs at 8:32!

Here are the lyrics so you can find a meaning for yourself:

A long, long time ago...
I can still remember
How that music used to make me smile.
And I knew if I had my chance
That I could make those people dance
And, maybe, they'd be happy for a while.

But february made me shiver
With every paper I'd deliver.
Bad news on the doorstep;
I couldn't take one more step.

I can't remember if I cried
When I read about his widowed bride,
But something touched me deep inside
The day the music died.

So bye-bye, miss american pie.
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
And them good old boys were drinkin� whiskey and rye
Singin', "this'll be the day that I die.
"this'll be the day that I die."

Did you write the book of love,
And do you have faith in God above,
If the Bible tells you so?
Do you believe in rock 'n roll,
Can music save your mortal soul,
And can you teach me how to dance real slow?

Well, I know that you're in love with him
`cause I saw you dancin' in the gym.
You both kicked off your shoes.
Man, I dig those rhythm and blues.

I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck
With a pink carnation and a pickup truck,
But I knew I was out of luck
The day the music died.

I started singin',
"bye-bye, miss american pie."
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
Them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
And singin', "this'll be the day that I die.
"this'll be the day that I die."

Now for ten years we've been on our own
And moss grows fat on a rollin' stone,
But that's not how it used to be.
When the jester sang for the king and queen,
In a coat he borrowed from james dean
And a voice that came from you and me,

Oh, and while the king was looking down,
The jester stole his thorny crown.
The courtroom was adjourned;
No verdict was returned.
And while lennon read a book of marx,
The quartet practiced in the park,
And we sang dirges in the dark
The day the music died.

We were singing,
"bye-bye, miss american pie."
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
Them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
And singin', "this'll be the day that I die.
"this'll be the day that I die."

Helter skelter in a summer swelter.
The birds flew off with a fallout shelter,
Eight miles high and falling fast.
It landed foul on the grass.
The players tried for a forward pass,
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast.

Now the half-time air was sweet perfume
While the sergeants played a marching tune.
We all got up to dance,
Oh, but we never got the chance!
`cause the players tried to take the field;
The marching band refused to yield.
Do you recall what was revealed
The day the music died?

We started singing,
"bye-bye, miss american pie."
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
Them good old boys were drinkin� whiskey and rye
And singin', "this'll be the day that I die.
"this'll be the day that I die."

Oh, and there we were all in one place,
A generation lost in space
With no time left to start again.
So come on: jack be nimble, jack be quick!
Jack flash sat on a candlestick
Cause fire is the devil's only friend.

Oh, and as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage.
No angel born in hell
Could break that satan's spell.
And as the flames climbed high into the night
To light the sacrificial rite,
I saw satan laughing with delight
The day the music died

He was singing,
"bye-bye, miss american pie."
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
Them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
And singin', "this'll be the day that I die.
"this'll be the day that I die."

I met a girl who sang the blues
And I asked her for some happy news,
But she just smiled and turned away.
I went down to the sacred store
Where I'd heard the music years before,
But the man there said the music wouldn't play.

And in the streets: the children screamed,
The lovers cried, and the poets dreamed.
But not a word was spoken;
The church bells all were broken.
And the three men I admire most:
The father, son, and the holy ghost,
They caught the last train for the coast
The day the music died.

And they were singing,
"bye-bye, miss american pie."
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
Singin', "this'll be the day that I die.
"this'll be the day that I die."

They were singing,
"bye-bye, miss american pie."
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
Them good old boys were drinkin� whiskey and rye
Singin', "this'll be the day that I die."

Who are the Greats?

I have recently found a list of the best singers of all time according to Rolling Stone Magazine and I don't know that I agree with it. I need some help, however. I can't put together a list of singers that I think are the best if I don't have help. Please leave comments on who you want to see on the list and where. here is the list I found.

100 Mary J. Blige 99 Steven Tyler 98 Stevie Nicks 97 Joe Cocker 96 B.B. King 95 Patti LaBelle 94 Karen Carpenter 93 Annie Lennox 92 Morrissey 91 Levon Helm 90 The Everly Brothers 89 Solomon Burke 88 Willie Nelson 87 Don Henley 86 Art Garfunkel 85 Sam Moore 84 Darlene Love 83 Patti Smith 82 Tom Waits 81 John Lee Hooker 80 Frankie Valli 79 Mariah Carey 78 Sly Stone 77 Merle Haggard 76 Steve Perry 75 Iggy Pop 74 James Taylor 73 Dolly Parton 72 John Fogerty 71 Toots Hibbert 70 Gregg Allman 69 Ronnie Spector 68 Wilson Pickett 67 Jerry Lee Lewis 66 Thom Yorke 65 David Ruffin
64 Axl Rose 63 Dion 62 Lou Reed 61 Roger Daltrey 60 Björk 59 Rod Stewart 58 Christina Aguilera 57 Eric Bourdon 56 Mavis Staples 55 Paul Rodgers 54 Luther Vandross 53 Muddy Waters 52 Brian Wilson 51 Gladys Knight 50 Bonnie Raitt 49 Donny Hathaway 48 Buddy Holly 47 Jim Morrison 46 Patsy Cline 45 Kurt Cobain 44 Bobby “Blue” Bland 43 George Jones 42 Joni Mitchell 41 Chuck Berry 40 Curtis Mayfield
39 Jeff Buckley 38 Elton John 37 Neil Young 36 Bruce Springsteen 35 Dusty Sprinfield
34 Whitney Houston 33 Steve Winwood 32 Bono 31 Howlin’ Wolf 30 Prince 29 Nina Simone
28 Janis Joplin 27 Hank Williams 26 Jackie Wilson 25 Michael Jackson 24 Van Morrison
23 David Bowie 22 Etta James 21 Johnny Cash 20 Smokey Robinson 19 Bob Marley 18 Freddie Mercury 17 Tina Turner 16 Mick Jagger 15 Robert Plant 14 Al Green 13 Roy Orbison 12 Little Richard 11 Paul McCartney 10 James Brown 09 Stevie Wonder 08 Otis Redding 07 Bob Dylan 06 Marvin Gaye 05 John Lennon 04 Sam Cooke 03 Elvis Presley
02 Ray Charles 01 Aretha Franklin

Can you Imagine?

I was on the song analyzing run this week so here is my final one. Can you imagine a world that is perfect? Maybe but my guess is that if you can, it doesn't have a plan to get to there in the world. Your dreams skip the part of what has to happen so that they can actually be real. Heres one that doesn't.



John Lennon lived during a very strange and uncertain time in the world. We sometimes forget that they sixties were hard because all we see is hippies saying life is good. We block out the bad that they were fighting against and all the wrongs done to them. So, it is no wonder why John Lennon wrote this song. He wanted the world to be united and for the wars and fights to end. He was being slightly direct on what he thinks we need to do to make that happen but that is understandable. At least he understood that we were going to have to work hard to make world peace but he knew that it could eventually come. Peace isn't easy to achieve and Lennon wasn't blind to that but if we all believed what he did then there wouldn't be a problem making peace with everyone. Unity is the way.

How many of his ways do you think are possible?

Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

Send in the Clowns

Recently, I discovered a song that seemed very sad. It's called Send in the Clowns which seems very happy at first but it is truly a very depressing song when you look at the words. It has two meanings though and either one is melancholy for different reasons.

The real meaning is that there is an actress who is in love with this man but she didn't want to marry him when he asked her years before. Now that she does, however, he has married a very young woman and can't be with her. she sings this after he has told her that he can't be with her. The title, Send in the Clowns, in this interpretation means send in the fools or make jokes because the show is dying and we don't know what to do next. This is what she thinks about her life, it is falling apart and she doesn't know what to do now.

The interpretation I found was put in my head when we were discussing show choir ballads. We started talking about ballads that have that long silence at the end before the applause. Someone said there was a school in the 1990s that did Send in the Clowns, and wen they got done this person thought the crowd wasn't going to cheer because the silence was so long. The way he saw it was that the person singing was an acrobat in a circus. They hadn't been using nets and they fell and were dying on the ground singing this song. The title literally meant send in the clowns because they didn't want the circus ruined because they had died and the clowns would make people happy. This is the same idea as the post The show must go on.



Here are the lyrics. See which side you are on:

Isn't it rich?
Are we a pair?
Me here at last on the ground,
You in mid-air.
Send in the clowns.

Isn't it bliss?
Don't you approve?
One who keeps tearing around,
One who can't move.
Where are the clowns?
Send in the clowns.

Just when I'd stopped opening doors,
Finally knowing the one that I wanted was yours,
Making my entrance again with my usual flair,
Sure of my lines,
No one is there.

Don't you love farce?
My fault I fear.
I thought that you'd want what I want.
Sorry, my dear.
But where are the clowns?
Quick, send in the clowns.
Don't bother, they're here.

Isn't it rich?
Isn't it queer,
Losing my timing this late
In my career?
And where are the clowns?
There ought to be clowns.
Well, maybe next year.