Here's Volume 4 Of RA's Quarantine Mailbag
Not sure how much people are digging these or not but I'm in Keith Sweat mode.
The New Jack Era hauled ass.
Let's kick it one time to the correspondence.....
Who is the greatest drummer in rock and roll?
My man didn't specify dead or alive so I'm going to assume he meant all-time. Now, I'm no Smitty Frankie Borrelli so I can't break down the technical reasons why one guy is better than another; I might be a big classic rock fan but I'm still tone deaf with a tin ear. I know some answers are almost clichés but that's often because they're true. For example: I think John Bonham is the greatest drummer in rock and roll. Largely because of his bombastic work, heavy metal/headbanging became a whole new genre. Also because I'm a big Led Zeppelin guy. Before Bonzo, nobody pummeled the skins quite to the extent that he did.
But I'd also understand if people thought The Who's wildman drummer Keith Moon was the greatest.
And if I was a Rush fan, I'm sure I'd say Neil Peart because he was a GD legend and look at this set-up.
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While we're on the subject, Aerosmith's Joey Kramer is among the most underrated R&R drummers.
"But hey RA, you're a huge Stones nut. Where's Charlie Watts?" Valid point. But I always likened the Rolling Stones to another legendary outfit considered by many to be the Greatest Of All Time---the 1986 Boston Celtics. They might not have had the best individual guy in the industry at each position* but their collective power resulted in something magical that couldn't be replicated. Bird/Jagger, Johnson/Charlie, Ainge/Wood, Wyman/Parish, McHale/Richards
I love Charlie, think he's been a great backbeat for damn near 60 fucking years. But I don't know that he reinvented the game in any way. Like Bonzo did. Watts is also an expert jazz drummer and often performs jazz when he's not on the road with the boys. So if we're talking greatest drummer in all categories, Charlie's in the convo.
*---for the record, I dare you to find me a better low-post man than McHale. And yeah, of course I think Michael Philip is best frontman ever but there are a lot of quality contenders. Also, Bill Walton = Ian Stewart.
Hi RA,
Im Robert from Vancouver and I love your show thanks for helping us get through this time!
I know your an old school wrestling fan and I just want to know if you have any memories or thoughts on Howard Finkel, WWE’s first employee and legendary ring announcer who passed away today. For me it was when he announced the NEWW Champion, always gave it a big time feel.
Thanks keep up the great work! Stay Safe
Love our Vancouver fans, Robert. Thanks for the support. I'm old enough to remember the pre-Howard Finkel days when it was known as the WWWF and another fella had his own distinct flair on his calls, particularly on his own name.
For the last 40+ years and still to this day, me and my cousin Stork have imitated McHugh's brilliant work. He was the house announcer for many of the WWF shows that aired on Boston TV on Saturday mornings in the late '70s and early '80s. His pre-show preamble as much a staple of the show as Frankie Williams getting pinned. And for all of those years, I just realized we've been wrong. While looking up shit to answer your question, I realized his first name was, in fact, Joe and not Jim. But in our defense...
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To me, his "AndAMyNameIsAJoooooooeeeeMcHugh" is as legendary a part of WWF announcing history as anything Mean Gene, JR, or Fink ever said. As for Finkel, he's a legend in his own right. I caught mostly all of his early (televised) work in addition to whatever Boston Garden cards he worked that I happened to attend. When I tapped out of wrestling in the mid-'80s, Finkel still had many years of work left. But in the years that I did follow, his distinct, booming call was something that had already become part of the burgeoning territory's lore.
I would definitely go with either an Australian accent (fuck the letter 'R' forever) or the New Zealand accent. Everyone knows things sound 58% better in an Aussie accent. Also receiving votes: a brogue, Spanish (as in "from the country of Spain" not as in "what white people call somebody who speaks Spanish"), and South African.
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RA,
Mailbag question for you. What’s a conspiracy theory that you 100%, absolutely believe in and why do you believe in it? Mine would be courtney love hiring a hit man to get Kurt Cobain. Anyways, thanks for your time and stay safe!
Conspiracy theories possible segment on the pod?
Grant
Thank for listening and you stay safe too, Grant. First off, let's get it out there that most conspiracy theories are batshit crazy and make zero sense. The overwhelmingly majority of the subjects have perfectly reasonable explanations but some people prefer to not engage with reality. And hey, it's a free country. We can believe or mock whatever we want. There will not be a segment on the pod.
Having said all that, you have rocks in your head if you think Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. As a JFK assassination-obsessed kid who watched and read everything he could on the hit, I'd always grown up believing that. When I visited Dealey Plaza during the Patriots Season That Shan't Be Named, it was a crystallizing moment. Visiting the Texas Schoolbook Depository and standing right behind where LHO stood, you realize he had a straight-ahead, clean head shot for several seconds but opted to wait...until the car turned left, giving him a much tougher shot. That would make zero sense for a man who was trying to act alone in murdering the president. Then you walk down to the Grassy Knoll and stand exactly where the other shooter stood. You picture Kennedy's head rocking back and to the left then look up at the depository and realize it's impossible for that to happen if he was shot in the back of the head from behind. Only a shot from...right where you are standing would cause such a reaction. Then you look behind you and see the ample getaway points, particularly in the mayhem that followed, and it just hammers the point home.
Oh, and then there was this quote.
Keep 'em coming: rearadchiclets@yahoo.com