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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #50-60

It’s been 4 years since we last counted down the Top 200 artists in my iTunes library.  Since my iTunes stats are still intact, across multiple PCs, iPods, iPads, and iPhones, I figured it was time to take another look at the artists that have entertained me the most based on number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2021.

We wrap up the first three quarters of the list today with the next batch of 10 artists, with ties at 56th, 54th, and 50th.

#60: Frank Sinatra
iTunes stats: 142 plays
Previous ranking: #81

The crooner from New Jersey and the leader of the Rat Pack jumps 19 slots thanks mostly to former White Sox third baseman Todd Frazier, who uses Sinatra tunes as his at bat music.

#59: TLC
iTunes stats: 143 plays
Previous ranking: #64

Adding a seventh song to my collection helps push the hip hop trio up 5 spots after a 104% increase.

#58: Smashing Pumpkins
iTunes stats: 145 plays
Previous ranking: #58

64 new listens over the past 4 years enables the Chicago based alternative band to remain stable in the rankings.

#56: Cheap Trick
iTunes stats: 153 plays
Previous ranking: #55

The boys from Rockford, who I have seen open up for two other bands on this list, add an additional 67 listens, which puts them down 1 spot on the list.

#56: Cracker
iTunes stats: 153 plays
Previous ranking: #51

Only 58 new listens over the past 4 years, a small 61% increase, led to a 5 spot drop for the Georgia rockers.

#54: Sam Kinison
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By The Numbers – 57

In 1929, uniform numbers appeared on the back of baseball jerseys for the first time, thanks to the Indians and the Yankees.  By 1937, numbers finally appeared across all uniforms, both home and away, across both major leagues.  Since that time, 81 distinct numbers have been worn by members of the White Sox, while the Cubs boast 76.

Today, we continue our look at those players, picking our favorite, if not the best, player to wear each uniform number for both Chicago teams with #57.  30 players have donned #57 while playing in Chicago, 17 for the White Sox and 13 for the Cubs.

Acquired by the Cubs, along with Matt Clement, in the deal that sent Dontrelle Willis, among others, to the Marlins in March of 2002, Antonio Alfonseca became the closer for a miserable 2002 Cubs team, which just so happened to be my first as a season ticket holder.  The 12-fingered Alfonseca went 2-5 with a 4.00 ERA and 19 saves in his first go-around with the team.  In 2003, he lost the closer role and was not particularly effective, going 3-1 with a 5.83 ERA.  He was suspended for 5 games in September after bumping an umpire with his generous stomach.  He was perfect in the post-season, appearing in 4 games total giving up no runs in 3 1/3 innings against the Braves and the Marlins.  He became a free agent following that 2003 season.

#57 has been a mainstay of the back end of the White Sox bullpen for many years, shared amongst such luminaries as Jace Fry, Zach Putnam, Tony Pena, and Boone Logan.

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Fun In Wisconsin

For May, we turn our gaze to the north and the great state of Wisconsin.  We start with two pictures from our miniature golfing stop during the road trip to Minneapolis in 2014, the first with Danny and Michael posing with a giant Bucky Badger and the second with Danny sticking his head in a plaster rhinoceros.  The final picture comes from 2019’s trip to Miller Park to see the Cubs battler the Brewers.

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April All Time Leaders – Through 2020

With a full year of baseball on tap after last year’s troubles due to a combination of the corona virus and needless labor squabbles, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for each month in games that I have attended.

The traditional beginning of the baseball season, opening day has played a part in my attending 155 games during the month.  I’ve managed to see a game on every day of the month, with 9 games on the 5th, 7th. and 12th and a single game on both the 1st and the 3rd.

Home Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 18
Adam Dunn 12
Jim Thome 8

Hits

Name Total
Paul Konerko 67
Aramis Ramirez 45
Derrek Lee 44

Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 36
Derrek Lee 36
Aramis Ramirez 31

RBI

Name Total
Paul Konerko 42
Aramis Ramirez 33
Adam Dunn 30

Doubles

Name Total
Paul Konerko 14
Aramis Ramirez 12
Derrek Lee 10

Triples Continue reading →

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Book 17 (of 52) – Football For A Buck

Football for a Buck: The Crazy Rise and Crazier Demise of the USFL – Jeff Pearlman

Originally conceived in 1965, the United States Football League finally took shape in 1982, taking the field for the first time in the spring of 1983.  While not a huge success, the fledgling league showed promise.  For the 1984 season, the league, unwisely, expanded and brought in new ownership, including a young, brash real estate developer from New York named Donald Trump.  Angling for a merger with the NFL, Trump pushed the USFL to abandon the concept of spring football and, following that second season, the league announced that it would move its schedule to the fall and take the NFL on head-to-head.  Following a lame duck season in the spring of 1985, the future of the USFL depended on the vision of Donald Trump and the outcome of a lawsuit he thought would pave the way to NFL riches.

Even if you have never heard of the USFL, if you’ve lived through the past 5-6 years of American history, you can imagine how this turned out.  The NFL’s lawyers used Trump’s general unlikability and inability to be truthful against him.  When the dust settled, the USFL did indeed win their lawsuit against the NFL. with damages assessed at $1.  The league had followed Donald Trump into the abyss and, as a result, was out of business after only 4 years.

Jeff Pearlman recaps the strange experience that was the USFL in Football for a Buck.  The players, a mixture of over-the-hill NFL pros looking for one last chance, college players who couldn’t quite make it at that next level, and actual college star who were showered with money in an attempt to legitimatize the upstart league, joined a motley crew of owners, many of whom were not fully vetted and did not actually have the funds necessary to run a franchise, to make an entertaining product in hindsight, even if they didn’t get the full recognition at the time.  The parallels between Trump’s actions as the ringleader of the USFL’s destruction and his actions as president are uncanny.  All told, the story of the USFL is one that deserved to be told, and Pearlman does an admirable job in doing so.

 

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Fitbit VII – Week 13

Another week headed in the wrong direction.  A chilly Sunday ended with a chilly step total, falling 25 steps shy of 2800.  Monday saw a decent enough increase, going up to 4800 steps even.  Tuesday was a little worse, finishing 9 steps over 4000.  Wednesday jumped back up to over 4900.  Thursday was the highlight of the week, as my first trip to Wrigley Field in 16 months left me with 9100 steps.  Friday was nowhere near as good, coming in at 3500 steps.  Saturday was even worse, finishing with only 2800 steps.

Total steps: 32,024

Daily average: 4574.9

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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #61-69

It’s been 4 years since we last counted down the Top 200 artists in my iTunes library.  Since my iTunes stats are still intact, across multiple PCs, iPods, iPads, and iPhones, I figured it was time to take another look at the artists that have entertained me the most based on number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2021.

We continue today with the next batch of 10 artists, with the 2 tied for 69th place followed by the single artists at 68th through 61st.

#69: Black Eyed Peas
iTunes stats: 126 plays
Previous ranking: #74

The six-time Grammy Award winners see a 110% increase in plays over the past 4 years, moving up 5 spots.

#69: Sheryl Crow
iTunes stats: 126 plays
Previous ranking: #81

The one-time backup singer for Michael Jackson jumps 12 spots after adding 69 additional listens to the 8 songs I’ve listened to in my collection.

#68: John Williams
iTunes stats: 127 plays
Previous ranking: #66

The composer of some of the most popular and recognizable film scores in cinematic history, including the Star Wars and Superman series, picks up 62 new listens over the last 4 years.

#67: Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
iTunes stats: 129 plays
Previous ranking: #57

The inspiration for the musical Jersey Boys drops 10 spots after gaining a mere 46 new plays.

#66: Red Hot Chili Peppers
iTunes stats: 130 plays
Previous ranking: #74

The California-based rockers, who I saw briefly at Lollapalooza back in 2016, increase their plays by 117% over the last 4 years.

#65: Warrant
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By The Numbers – 58

In 1929, uniform numbers appeared on the back of baseball jerseys for the first time, thanks to the Indians and the Yankees.  By 1937, numbers finally appeared across all uniforms, both home and away, across both major leagues.  Since that time, 81 distinct numbers have been worn by members of the White Sox, while the Cubs boast 76.

Today, we continue our look at those players, picking our favorite, if not the best, player to wear each uniform number for both Chicago teams with #58.  25 players have donned #58 while playing in Chicago, 20 for the White Sox and 5 for the Cubs.

Catcher Geovany Soto donned #58 during three cups of coffee with the Cubs, in 2005 – 2007.  Earning increased playing time each year, he garnered a single at bat in 05, 25 in 06, and 54 in 07.  He finally broke through in 2008, changing his number to #18 while earning Rookie of the Year honors.  He remained the main backstop for the team until the 2012 season, when he was traded to the Rangers in August.

On the south side of town, Bobby Thigpen wore #58 during his first go-around with the team, going 2-0 with a 1.77 ERA in 20 games for the 1986 White Sox.  He switched to #37 the following year, which he wore for the remainder of his White Sox career, which ended with a 1993 trade to the Phillies.

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The (Socially Distanced) Oscar Goes To

side_oscarAs they finish polishing up the statues for tomorrow’s awards ceremony, it’s time to finish up our predictions with the major categories. In a strange change of pace, not only haven’t I’ve seen these films, I haven’t actually heard of many of them. So, without further ado, we begin with:

Best Picture

The Father
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
Minari
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

I’ve seen a grand total of zero of these, so I’ll go with Mank, since Hollywood certainly loves films about itself.

Best Actor

Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Anthony Hopkins, The Father
Gary Oldman, Mank
Steven Yeun, Minari

Having seen none of these, I’ll go with the sentimental pick of Boseman in what I believe was his final performance.

Best Actress

Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Andra Day, The United States vs. Billie Holiday
Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman
Frances McDormand, Nomadland
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

Again, I’ve seen none of these, so I’ll take a stab in the dark and pick Carey Mulligan.

Continue reading →

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And The (Socially Distanced) Nominees Are

side_oscarAfter a year like no other, the 93rd Academy Awards are going down Sunday night.  Given that movie theaters were closed for the majority of 2020 thanks to the corona virus, I don’t know that I’ve heard of many of these movies let alone seen them.  So, with less basis in fact than most years, here’s my uneducated predictions for the non-acting awards.

Best Original Screenplay

Will Berson and Shaka King, Judas and the Black Messiah
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
Darius Marder and Abraham Marder, Sound of Metal
Aaron Sorkin, The Trial of the Chicago 7

I’ve seen none of these films, so this is a total shot in the dark, but I’ve at least heard of The Trial of the Chicago 7.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Peter Baynham, Erica Rivinoja, Dan Mazer, Jena Friedman, Lee Kern, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller, The Father
Chloe Zhao, Nomadland
Kemp Powers, One Night In Miami…
Ramin Bahrani, The White Tiger

I don’t want to live in a world where a Borat movie wins a writing Oscar, so I’ll go with Nomadland.

Best Animated Feature

Onward
Over The Moon
A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Soul
Wolfwalkers

Soul is the only one I’ve heard of.

Best Cinematography

Sean Bobbitt, Judas and the Black Messiah
Erik Messerschmidt, Mank
Dariusz Wolski, News of the World
Joshua James Richards, Nomadland
Phedon Papamichael, The Trial of the Chicago 7

I’ve got no clue.

Best Costume Design

Alexandra Byrne, Emma
Ann Roth, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Trish Sumemrville, Mank
Bina Daigeler, Mulan
Massimo Cantini Parrini, Pinocchio

A tale of Hollywood’s past is my choice to win this particular prize.

Continue reading →