Tag / Michael Jackson

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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #81-88

3 years ago, we first counted down the then Top 100 artists in my iTunes library.  Since that time, I’ve successfully managed to migrate my music collection to a new PC with the stats intact.  So, I figured it was time to take another look, expanding out the field to the top 200 artists, based on number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2017.

We continue our march up through the the top 100 with this next batch of artists, which includes:

#88: Soul Asylum
iTunes stats: 54 plays
Previous ranking: #70

20 new listens for the Minneapolis-based band causes them to drop 18 spots in the rankings.

#88: John Morris
iTunes stats: 54 plays
Previous ranking: N/A

The composer of the score from the best movie ever made, Clue: The Movie.

#88: Artie Lange
iTunes stats: 54 plays
Previous ranking: #76

The comedy stylings of Arthur Lange drop 12 spots despite 23 new listens in the past 3 years.

#84: The Cranberries
iTunes stats: 56 plays
Previous ranking: #80

A small 4 spot drop for the Irish band, who picked up 26 new listens to their 8 tracks over the last 3 years.

#84: The Beastie Boys
iTunes stats: 56 plays
Previous ranking: #91

30 new listens in the last 3 years bumps the Beastie Boys up 7 spots in the rankings.

#84: Gin Blossoms
iTunes stats: 56 plays
Previous ranking: #63

25 years after the release of their debut album, the Arizona group drops 21 spots due to a small increase of 18 listens over the past 3 years.

#84: Christina Aguilera
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#190 – Michael Jackson

Name: Michael Jackson

Rank: 190

Position: P

Year With White Sox: 2004

After sitting out the 2003 season, Michael Jackson signed a minor league deal with the White Sox along with a non-roster invite to spring training in 2004.  The wily 39-year old veteran earned a spot in the bullpen and went north with the parent club.  Sadly, Jackson was at the end of his line and things did not go well for him.

Jackson appeared in 45 games for the White Sox through August 29, when he gave up 3 runs and 3 hits without recording an out in a loss to the Indians, raising his ERA to 5.01, the worst of his career.  The next day, he was released, ending his White Sox and major league careers.

Jackson’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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Concert Flashback: Paul McCartney

11paulmccartney

One of the perks of having season tickets for the Cubs is getting an opportunity for pre-sales to non-baseball events that have been happening at Wrigley Field with increasing frequency the last few years.  None of the concert offerings gave me reason to splurge until 2011, when Paul McCartney announced he was bringing his On The Run tour to Chicago for his first local performance since 2005, and his first local baseball stadium performance since the Beatles played Comiskey Park in 1965.

On a hot July night, the then-69 year old McCartney used his 5 decades of hits to cobble together a 37 song set list, covering his time with the Beatles, Wings, and his more recent solo work.  The crowd was with him the entire night, including Ronnie Woo-Woo, who used the occasion to don a sparkling glove just like McCartney’s one-time duet partner Michael Jackson.

The opportunities to see a Beatle live are few and far between and I’m glad that this is one that I can now cross off the list of things to accomplish.  I haven’t been back to Wrigley for a concert since, but I wouldn’t mind doing so if the right band were to come through town.