THOUGHTS & SONGS FOR A VERY SPECIAL DAY
This should be a week of celebration, a confirmation of the fact this country is truly a melting pot, a glimpse of what Tracy Morgan so optimistically dubbed a post-racial America, as Barack Obama takes the oath of office against a backdrop of partying and enough rock and roll stars to book the next Woodstock. I’m not immune to the symbolism of a (half) black President standing where Martin Luther King Jr. (whose own holiday will occur just a day before) had a dream a little more than 40 years ago, but this new Chief Executive has a harder job on his plate than the next coach of the Jets. Can he rise to the occasion like FDR or his own role model Abraham Lincoln? Certainly the historical moment makes the man, and these are some incredibly challenging times indeed. It will undoubtedly be nice to have a leader who can string together sentences into paragraphs and coherent thoughts, but I’m also afraid we’ve gone past the point of rhetoric. We need more than blind hope, we need actions to drag us out of this morass, which doesn’t just threaten the American way of life, but reverberates around the world in this contracting, digitally connected global universe. We want leadership, sure, but we also need solutions, novel ways of thinking, new revenue streams, jobs, and not just paving roads or building bridges. The infrastructure that needs fixing is both physical and mental; not just our public works, but our private lives, are in need of renovation. I’m willing to be optimistic, but the clock starts ticking Jan. 20. And while Obama’s first 100 days might not be as crucial as the average 24 hours, the stakes are way higher…after all, this is real life.
TODAY’S PLAYLIST
American Tunes
"Chimes of Freedom," Bob Dylan
“Begin the Begin,” R.E.M.
“Golden Age,” TV on the Radio
“Sun It Rises,” Fleet Foxes
“A Change Is Gonna Come,” Sam Cooke
“My Mathematical Mind,” Spoon
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“Troubled Land,” John Mellencamp
"Ashes of American Flags," Wilco
"Don't Let It Bring You Down," Neil Young
“Don’t Dream It’s Over,” Crowded House
"Walk On," U2
“Divine Intervention,” Matthew Sweet
“Welcome to the Boomtown,” David & David
“What’s Going On,” Marvin Gaye
“Scare Easy,” Mudcrutch
"Flume,” Bon Iver
“Time of the Season,” The Zombies
“Every War,” Pictures and Sound w/Willie Nelson
“Don’t Stop,” Fleetwood Mac
“Chinese Translation,” M. Ward
“Revolution,” The Beatles
“Chicago,” Sufjan Stevens
“The Rising,” Bruce Springsteen
"Turn! Turn! Turn!," The Byrds
“American Tune,” Paul Simon
"I Shall Be Released," Wilco w/Fleet Foxes
