Barguments #10

From page 240:  Name the five best sitcoms of all time.

I love comedies, whether they be movies, T.V. shows or even catching a stand-up show on Comedy Central.  I ike stuff that makes me laugh almost as much as I like making people laugh myself.  And I'll give every show that (purports to be) a comedy at least a couple of shots before I trash them.  For instance, I tried to watch "The Office", but I think its just stupid.  Maybe because I work in a different environment it just doesn't hit me the same way it does others.

On the other hand, I enjoyed working class blue-collar comedies like "Taxi", so maybe it is that different environment thing that runs my comedy sensibilities.



To get to the best, I will start out, as I am wont to do, running them down from #5 to #1.

5.Three's Company:  I don't know if this show would fly in today's politically correct world.  Not a guy living with two girls.  I mean a straight guy pretending to be gay.  The reason it made it in the 70's was because the idea was not deemed offensive, but I think it would be today.  "Will and Grace" worked in the modern era because the characters actually were gay.  And the landlords (Audra Lindley and Norman fell in the first half and Don Knotts in the last half) were all great as supporting characters.

4. Sanford and Son:  Of all the comedies geared towards an African-American audience, this is the one that appealed most to me.  The love-hate dysfunctional relationship between Lamont and his father Fred made #4 on my list because I always made sure that I was in front of a T.V. when it came on (even when I was on family vacation...)

3. Night Court: The goings on in a New York judicial system was absolutely hilarious before John Astin started making regular appearances oin  the show, but the addition of him as a ditzy stepfather of Harry Stone was the best thing that happened in the show.

2. Seinfeld: I never had a neighbor like Kramer.  I never had a ego-centric emotionally unstable friend like George, and I never had a needy ex-girlfriend like Elaine, but i related to the show because i could see elements of the characters in my own life.  {The apology" episode was the funniest, even before I joined A.A. myself.)

1, Taxi: Number one on my show list.  I wanted to date Elaine Nardo.  I wanted to party with Reverend Jim.  I wanted Alex to be my best friend.  I wanted, just once, to have a chance to kick Louie DePalma in the kneecap.  The show was only slightly funny in the early years, but when Chritopher Lloyd was added as Reverend Jim it got to be another regular weekly ritual.  See the episode where Jim takes his driver's test to be a taxi driver.
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvn-tBeLpCk

Barguments #9

The Basrguments thread returns.  This weeks Bargument comes from page 14: Name the best television theme song of all time:



 Here's the biggest question I had with this.  Can you like a theme song and not like the TV show?  I hate soap opras, and even more so the thinly disguised soap operas that pass for nighttime shows, like Melrose Place, the OC, and others, (though I don't watch much TV these days, so my knowledge is limited to before 2009)  That said, one of my favorites is the opening to Beverley Hills 90210, even though I never watched the show.


I always liked the hard driving Lots of horns type themes the best.  These almost always accompanied the action shows, for which I also had more of a liking.  The coolest ones were almost always instrumental.  The A-Team, Magnum P.I. and Petr Gunn to name a few had the driving beat (and of course, who would really get into an action show if the opening theme was Eine Kleine Nachtmusik ?)

Every website and TV show I've seen on this subject names Cheers as the show with the number one theme song.  Although I will agree that it is pretty good, it still doesn't inspire me to excitement.  Neither does the theme to my absolute favorite TV show, Monk.  (I mean, Randy Newman...really? Short People and I Love L.A. weren't enough of an annoyance to inflict on the public?)

Which brings me down to the entry that takes the blue ribbon.  and that is...

Just the opening drum roll alone would be enough to bring it into the top ten.  Then there's those horns.  And while Dick Dale and surf music are kinda dated this far into the 21st century, I do like that music that makes me think of surfing.  And this is one of the few that still gets played on the radio, with or without a reference to Hawaii or the TV show.  (When was the last time you heard the Cheers theme on the radio?  'nuff said.)

Barguments: Topic #8

From page #47 : Name the five best bands of all time.










OK. This doesn't actually specify whether or not you are to list best bands in concert or best bands for music, so I am just going to list the best bands for playing their CDs in the CD player.





1.Steely Dan: Musically, I prefer Walter Becker and Donald Fagen et.al. over all others. Maybe its because I like jazz so much and the jazz feel to their albums is very relaxing and enjoyable. The best album by far is Aja









2. ZZ Top: The best band to ever come out of Texas, and still going strong some forty years later. They are also the answer to my favorite trivia question: What band, still performing, has always had the same lineup without ever changing band members? Eliminator put them on the national map, but they were big in Texas for years before.
































3. R.E.O. Speedwagon: Up until Hi Infidelity this band was a great rock n' roll band. In recent years they have gone a little too far towards the mainstream radio friendly stuff, but the really kick-ass stuff was done before their primo guitarist Gary Richrath left the band. Nowadays, only one original member, Neal Doughty, is still with the band. (Kevin Cronin doesn't count since he was only on R.E.O./T.W.O. and then went off and didn't return the sixth album.) For the best tracks I chose the You Get What You Play For live album, but my favorite all-time studio album is R.E.O./.T.W.O.




4. Foghat:Unfortunately, Lonesome Dave, the driving vocal force of Foghat died several years ago. They still tour, I think, I never got a chance to see them, though, with the original lineup. The blues driven tunes are all feel good crank up the volume songs. Some radio stations play a severely shortened version of "Slow Ride" (the original Fool for the City version is just over 8 minutes long, not the typical 3 or 4 you hear most of the time).






























If I had to pick a band based just on lyrics and political philosophy, definitely my first choice would be my number 5 band of this list, Rush. You only have to listen to a few songs before you get the impression that Rush is a thinking man's band. And they are. My favorite track, which doesn't get airplay unless I call in and request it, is "The Trees" from Hemispheres. Give it a listen, not only for the sound, but the words.

Barguments: Topic #7

From page 79: Which U.S. city has the best food? With a twist: Which has the best music?

As far as food is concerned, well, I haven't had the chance to eat in a lot of cities that aren't located in Texas. I've been to New Orleans, and I've been to D.C. (and a couple of stops on the way to D.C., but apparently they were pretty forgettable because I can't remember where they were).

All in all, I have to say the far superior experience was New Orleans. In particular, I went to a regular dine-in restaurant in the Garden District, Copeland's, that was owned by the same guy who owned the Popeye's chicken franchise. Had a bowl of gumbo that was fantastic. Also I stayed at the Clarion on Canal Street, and just a block or two up Canal was a little hole-in-the-wall Po'Boy shop that made an oyster po'boy that was worth every penny.

As for music, well, they don't call Austin the music capital of the world for nothing. No matter what your tastes, there's a venue for it; piano bars, rock halls, country taverns, jazz bistros etc. And 6th St. is as far as you have to go. It's a party atmosphere every night of the week. Thursday is the best night though, because most bars have no cover to get in.

Barguments: Topic #6

From page 101:

What song do you play on the jukebox if you absolutely want the entire bar to sing along?

There are two. And both of them are guaranteed to inspire a bunch of drunks to sing. One of them is Jimmy Buffet's Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw? The two things that are on the mind of nearly every guy in the bar and probably a significant number of the women. Getting drunk and hooking up, (assuming they are not already hooked up, but then they are still trying to get to that point at some time during the night.

The other is the last verse of David Allan Coe's You Never Even Called Me By My Name.


Well a friend of mine named Steve Goodman wrote that song, and he told me it was the perfect country and western song. Well, I wrote him back a letter and told him it was not the perfect country and western song 'cause he hadn't said anything at all about mama or trains or trucks or prison or gettin' drunk. Well, he sat down and wrote another verse to this song and he sent it to me and after readin' it I realized that my friend had written the perfect country and western song. I felt obliged to include it on this album. The last verse goes like this here:


Well I was drunk the day my mama got outta prison
And I went to pick 'er up in the rain
But before I could get to the station in my pickup..truck,
She got runned over by a damned old train.


I guarantee you if you play that one, there will be a loud chorus of drunks who wouldn't even get up and karaoke the song by themselves joining in with the rest of the crowd.

Barguments Topic #5

from page 36:

What is the greatest sports movie of all time?

I can't do justice to this one in general terms. I know it violates the spirit of the question, but I have to divide it into a few categories. it all depends on what sport I want to watch a movie about. And I am a big football fan, but i like movies on many different sports.

Baseball: I find my personal favorite is Eight Men Out, the movie about the "Black Sox scandal", where members of the Chicago White Sox worked in collusion with gamblers to throw the 1919 World Series. A lot of names on the horizon were in this one: John Cusack, Charlie Sheen, David Strathairn, D. B. Sweeney.

Basketball: Nothing tops Hoosiers for sheer fun and feel-goodness. The story of a small town Indiana team whose high school team, against all odds, makes it to the state playoffs in basketball. With great performances by Gene Hackman as a down on his luck coach and Dennis Hopper as a former high school star and current town drunk.

Boxing: Is there anything better than Rocky? The Academy Award winner was well deserving of its accolades, and besides, anything in which Sly doesn't play his usual cardboard tough guy character is worth the time.

Football: One that misses most lists, but I can watch this one again and again. The Longest Yard. Not that piece of crap remake with Adam Sandler but the original with Burt Reynolds. Not an across the board big time Burt fan, but he had a few in the 70's that I can stand to watch multiple times.

Barguments Topic #4

from page 247:
You've been accused of murder. You can pick one attorney from television to represent you. Who do you hire?

Geez. The first question I have is "Am I guilty?" (There are a couple of people who only for lack of the proper weapon at the time who have escaped my being in that situation...)

For the purpose of the topic, though, lets assume I'm innocent, and being falsely accused. There are several who come to mind right off the bat:

Perry Mason:

Has the advantage because he "never lost a case". But hold the phone, Mason did lose at least one case, and in the TV series, he lost three.







Ben Matlock:

Well, I like the man, but those down-home homilies can get pretty annoying. Its kind of like having Jed Clampett as your parole officer. You get a good representation, but you gotta put up with the hog waller.





Dan Fielding:

Well, only if the prosecuting attorney is a homeless midget with an affectation for bright pink ties. Then my attorney might offend him enough to drop the case....







And the winner is: Charles Kingsfield!


As the hard-nosed professor of law (and former attorney, whom I would convince my case was well worth coming out of retirement for), Kingfield has the personality, verve and keen intuition to make it as the best legal defender. And besides, he gets it, because he did it the old-fashioned way.

He eeeeeeaaaaaaaaarrrrrned it.

(If you have to ask, you are too young...)

Barguments: Topic #3

From page 169:
What was the best team to ever win the Super Bowl?

Most people probably rank the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins or maybe the 1985 Chicago Bears in this position. And all the Cowboy fans will put one of the Cowboys winning teams as #1, no matter what. Having never had my team make the big game when they were still the Houston Oilers (and they lost the only time they made it after moving to Tennessee), I had to choose some other team.

Despite the fact that whenever the Oilers were in Houston the hated rival was the Pittsburgh Steelers, my biggest Super Bowl team is the 1978 Pittsburgh team. Terry Bradshaw and Lynn Swann and the rest of that storied team of the 70's literally dominated that season and ended up with one of the most spectacular wins in Super Bowl history. It ranks as one of only two Super Bowls that I watched from kickoff to final whistle without even so much as a restroom break. (The other was the New England win over St. Louis (but I had $300 riding on that one).

Now, if the New Orleans Saints have the dominant game that I am hoping they have over the Colts this year, my opinion could change.

Barguments: Topic #2

From page 21:
What is the most exciting sports event of the year?

I'll give you a couple of hints:

1. There is only one game for all the marbles, not the best of five or six or seven. One team comes out the rest go home and sulk until next year.

2. If that doesn't give it away, the current one is due to kick off in 6 days.

Of course, its the Super Bowl. And if theyd just take out the halftime shows, it would be perfect. The best commercials get their start on the Super Bowl, too. And time and again, the most memorable moments of sports are in the Super Bowl. Adam Viatieri's field goal with 7 seconds left in Super Bowl XXXVI. Lynn Swann's two big catches in Super Bowl X. Ricky Sanders' 80-yard touchdown run in Super Bowl XXII (all the more memorable for me because I was attending SWTSU and in the dorm lobby with a bunch of guys watching the game and the entire lobby erupted in cheers when the screen said "Ricky Sanders from SWTSU") (even the Broncos rooters cheered...)

I love the Super Bowl more than all the others also, because it was the one sport I wanted to play in school, but I was way too small. I could've tried out for baseball, but found it boring. I was short for basketball, but Muggsy Boggues was an inch shorter than me and he had a pretty good pro career, so it may not have been a foredrawn conclusion... But football was my favorite sport from grade school on to watch.

Barguments: Topic #1

A note about the Barguments threads: I reserve the right to change. I said yesterday that Barguments was going to be Monday's regular topic. well, on further consideration, I decided to add it as Thursday's topic, too. After all, with 250 or so topics, I can do two a week and it will still take me over 2 years to go through the book.







From page 88: List the top three guitar players in history.

This is a great topic for this thread to start out. I mean there is so much freaking debate here. Someone is bound to say, "Dude, I can't believe you didn't list Eddie Van Halen!" (or Jimi Hendrix, or Carlos Santana or any number of great guitarists.)

But then, that is why its a great topic. Everyone has their top three, and no one's is going to be identical to another (if it were that would just be plain freaky...)

So without further ado, here are my choices.

1. Robert Fripp:

Anyone who is saying "Robert Who???" should check out a late 60's-early 70's band called King Crimson. Especially listen to the albums "Red" and "In the Court of the Crimson King". I feel that Fripp is an extremely talented an innovative musician.

2. Yngwie Malmsteen:

I saw Yngwie open for AC/DC in the mid-80's. Never heard of him before. In my opinion, that night, he kicked AC/DC's proverbial a**. He is a classically trained guitarist and most of his albums include a track or two of classical music influnced or outright interpretations of classical pieces.

3. Gary Richrath:

OK, I admit that 25% of the reason Gary makes number three is because I saw him on his solo tour and he had the graciousness to sign my R.E.O. album. :-) But his solo work on the "You Get What You Play For" R.E.O. live album, and the song "Golden Country" which he wrote are both excellent, and I would gladly pay to see him perform again.




OK, now its your turn. Leave me a message and if you decide to put up your own choices on your blog leave me a link.