David Byrne Covers Biz Markie's "Just A Friend"

Talk about your mash-ups! David Byrne, former lead singer of Talking Heads covered Biz Markie's 1980s hip-hop classic "Just A Friend" last night at Le Poisson Rouge in NYC.

And even more surprising, he actually pulled it off fairly well.....Although I don't think there's any wrong way you can do this song.....

Gatorade Cola

A short lived competitor in the cola wars, Gatorade Cola was introduced in the late 1960's. It was made and distributed by the RC Cola company for Stokely-Van Camp, the then-makers of Gatorade thirst quencher drink.

Liberty Proudly Presents STEREO...The Visual Sound (1959)

From the Golden Age of Stereo Demonstration LPs!

The Red Balloon (Le Balon Rouge, 1956)

I've always loved this little French movie. For three reasons.

First, there was almost no dialogue whatsoever in the film. This was not uncommon in classic French cinema. The visuals say everything.

Second, it's a whimsical little story about a little boy and a balloon he finds in the street.

Third (and especially.) This was the LONGEST film in the A/V library at my elementary school back in the 1970s, clocking in at just over a half hour.

Almost missed it for the third time when the substitute teacher filled in and she didn't know how to run the film projector (long before VCRs and DVD players, plain ordinary Bell & Howell 16mm film projectors and white pull-down screens that hung over the chalkboard were mandatory equipment in every classroom.) I happily took care of all that for her (nudge, wink.)

Most films we had rarely ran longer than 15 minutes. A half hour film like The Red Balloon was a godsend.....

When she left in the middle of the film to talk to another teacher in the hallway, I stopped and rewound the film to the beginning, starting it the second the classroom door opened. She stared at me rather suspiciously the rest of the film, knowing I had thrown a deliberate wrench in her schedule. Whatever kept us from doing school work and gave me cool points with the rest of the kids....

Enjoy!

Big Mouth Billy Bass

Invented in 1998 and sold originally in Bass Pro Shops, the Big Mouth Billy Bass was THE redneck novelty item of the early 2000s. They were originally equipped with motion sensors and when an unsuspecting person would walk by, the Big Mouth Billy Bass would wiggle it's tail, turn it's head towards the person and sing cover versions of "Don't Worry, Be Happy" and "Take Me To The River". The motion sensor was later replaced by a red button (as I heard it, after some people with heart conditions and anxiety disorders had complained.)