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Song of the Day #2,669: ‘The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll’ – Bob Dylan

timestheyareachanging‘The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll’ is a traditional protest song typical of Bob Dylan’s first few albums. This one appears on The Times They Are A-Changin’, Dylan’s most socially and politically charged record, which he released when he was just 22.

The song chronicles the true story of racist tobacco farm heir William Zantzinger (Dylan changed the spelling) who assaulted a 51-year-old black maid with a cane, after which she died. Zantzinger was charged with first-degree murder but ended up serving only six months. This was in early 1963.

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Song of the Day #2,668: ‘Candle In The Wind (Goodbye England’s Rose)’ – Elton John

20130829184844b43I’m still in awe of the gaudy stats amassed by Elton John’s revisiting of ‘Candle in the Wind’ in the wake of Princess Diana’s death. As I mentioned in this week’s post about Adele’s ‘Hello,’ ‘Candle in the Wind (Goodbye England’s Rose)’ is the best-selling single of all-time.

Strictly speaking, it’s the best-selling single since the 1950s, when the singles charts began, but the Guinness Book of World Records gives the overall title to Bing Crosby’s ‘White Christmas,’ released in 1942.

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Song of the Day #2,667: ‘Tennessee Whiskey (Live)’ – Chris Stapleton & Justin Timberlake

stapleton_timberlakeI always mean to watch the Country Music Awards but usually I forget. It’s an entertaining show, with the winning duo of Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood as hosts and plenty of memorable performances.

And as artists such as Kacey Musgraves, Ashley Monroe and Brandy Clark join Miranda Lambert and Paisley among my favorites, the number of acts worth watching goes up.

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Song of the Day #2,666: ‘Viva La Vida’ – Coldplay

viva_la_vida_coldplayMy 9-year-old, Fiona, just started her second year of violin lessons and she’s gotten pretty good at it. I played a little piano as a kid but it never came natural to me, so it’s nice to see one of my offspring exhibit some musical chops.

As a member of the YouTube generation, Fiona spends a lot of time watching violin tutorials. Recently she came across one for Coldplay’s ‘Viva La Vida’ and acquired a whole new appreciation for the song.

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Song of the Day #2,665: ‘Focus’ – Ariana Grande

ariana_grande_focusWhen I heard ‘Focus,’ the latest single from Ariana Grande, I told my daughter Sophia I might go ahead and buy her latest album, My Everything, because this was the fourth or fifth enjoyable track I’ve heard from it.

Sure, it’s a rehash of ‘Problem’ (with Jamie Foxx handling the spoken word chorus accompaniment this time around) but ‘Problem’ is friggin’ great.

Sophia pointed out that ‘Focus’ is actually the lead single from a new Grande album — titled Moonlight — due out in the next few months.

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