Hey, bring it on, girl, No welcome everybody here we go Happy
Friday. It is Matt Connerton Unleashed and we are live from the studios of
w m n H ninety five point three FM in glorious downtown Manchester, New
Hampshire, also on Comcast ninety seven if you're in Manchester, and hello to
all of our online listeners across the nation and around the globe. You can
go to my website Matt Connerton dot com for all of your live streaming options,
social media links, conduct in fosh, archives, etc. Etc.
Today is a Friday, July twenty one, two thousand twenty three, so
nice have you all with me? Friday, of course my favorite day of
the week here at WMNH. It's my long day. I get to do
double duty and I do love it. Of course. I'm here with you
until six pm for this program, and then I am back tonight from eight
to eleven pm for Retro Spectrum Radio with Paul ec I have the honor and
privilege of being one of excuse me, I'm being one of Paul's co hosts
on that show. My allergies have really been bothering me today, along with
of course DJ Steve and Mike from Queen City Cabinetry. And this is what
Paul posted regarding tonight's show on retro Spectrum Radio. Will be featuring our third
installment of original versions of popular songs that you had no idea were covered by
your favorite bands. And of course in new name that nine at nine will
DJ Steve hold his title join us for the fun at eight pm Eastern this
Friday, and don't forget next Friday Night on July twenty eight, will be
joined in studio by the lovely and talented producer and director Aaron Zadofski don't miss
it. So that's tonight from eight to eleven pm. And one thing we
like to tell people about Retrospectrum Radio, Please join us on Facebook on the
Retrospectrum Radio Facebook page in the chat room. But Paul mutes the show so
that we don't get kicked off Facebook. So then also open a second tab
on your browser for WMNH Radio dot org and click listen live so you can
listen online on the WMH website, but hang out with us in the chat
room. We love having people in the chat room, just like we love
having people in the chat room on this show. And we will say hello
at everybody in there at a moment. But let me give you the contact
info for the show and I'll tell you what we've got coming up today on
this program. Six zo three two five six seven is a studio line six
zo three two five ozho six zoo seven. You can text me at six
one seven nine one seven four four seven six. I'm on social media at
Matt Connerton. You can email me Matt at Matt Connerton dot com. And
of course you can interact endo Pine in the aforementioned Facebook live chat. But
the best thing to do so that we can hear and enjoy your dulcet tones
is to give us a call at six zo three two five six zo seven
six zo three two five six zo seven. And by the way, if
you happen to be in the Manchester, New Hampshire area, if you're outdoors,
I would expect to get rained on if you're not already, because actually
it looks like it might already be raining. It got very very dark outside.
It is not supposed to be that dark outside in the middle of July,
so definitely some storms coming. Once again, I think I probably made
it here at just in time. Today to avoid the wetness coming up on
this show. Today, at the top of the hour, we have Eric
Pilcher's classic film review, as we do every Friday, and this week the
subject is Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which I did see for the
first time when I was a kid. Great film, and I would also
say it might be timely in a sense because not that this is one of
the things I want to get into today in depth necessarily, but although it
would be an appropriate day for it because of Eric's review. But you know,
the government, a little by little we learn more about the possibility of
extra terrestrial life or something something going on in the skies that can't be fully
explained. Mike says in the chat room, I was thinking the same thing.
Oh, or were you referring to Easyg's comment about there is nothing better
than a Queen City cupcake on a hot day. Yeah, it's nothing like
a delicious cupcake on a hot day. But yeah, so so we're gonna
be doing that today. At the top of the hour, I do want
to another thing that we are going to do today too, is I want
to kind of pick up where we left off. But we'll we'll circle back
to this the discussion yesterday at the end of the show about the new Jason
Aldean song Try That in a Small Town and the video I had a chance
to after the show, I watched the video that goes with the song,
So I have some additional thoughts and reflections. Plus I've I've had Oh how
dark it is. That's what Mike was saying. I was thinking the same
thing. Yes, it's very dark outside for four o'clock or four fifteen on
a summer day. But yeah, I have some more thoughts to share about
that and that controversy, and I also want to read you something a recent
guest of ours set about it on social media that I thought was particularly interesting.
So I do want to get to that. But I want to open
the show with talking a little bit about Tony Bennett passing away at the age
of ninety six. Although he was just shy of ninety seven, he was
only a couple of weeks away from hitting ninety seven. Now. Obviously,
people are talking today about his music, his music career, his you know
how he was able to bridge generations with his music and have a lot of
success, not only early in his career but later in his career as well
and all of that, and I feel like everybody else kind of has that
covered already. But what I wanted to look at a little bit was his
his work as a civil rights activist. And this is what I thought was
particularly interesting. And Nbcnews dot Com as a story up that kind of focuses
on this, and this is how I kind of wanted to honor him.
It says here in the nineteen fifties, Tony Bennett watched with dismay as black
musicians like nat King Cole and Duke Ellington were denied admission to concert hall,
dining rooms, and hotels. The injustice he witnessed infuriated the younger singer.
By the way, that kind of mirrors what also we know about Frank Sinatra
during his career. He was very upset. There's a famous story about how
when he was first getting to know Sammy Davis Junior, he invited Sammy Davis
Junior to open for him or something, and Sammy never showed up, and
it turned out it was because he wasn't allowed in, which made Frank Sinatra
angry. Bennett wrote this quote, I'd never been politically inclined, but these
things went beyond politics. He wrote this in the Good Life, his nineteen
ninety eight autobiography, quote, Nate and Duke were geniuses, brilliant human beings
who gave the world some of the most beautiful music it's ever heard, and
yet they were treated like second class citizens. The whole situation enraged me unquote.
That's why when the artist and activists Harry Bellifonte called up Bennett and asked
him to join the Reverend Martin Luther King Juniors Voting Rights March from Selma to
Montgomery in nineteen sixty five, Bennett accepted without hesitation. He flew to Alabama
and linked arms with his allies in the fight for justice. By the way,
I'm embarrassed to say I didn't know that. I did not know that
Tony Bennett had participated in the Selma March. I did not realize that.
Bennett, who died today at age ninety six, entered the American musical pantheon
thanks to his velvety vocals, velvety vocals, and seemingly effortless command of the
standard songbook. But his civil rights activism is another essential part of his legacy,
and he viewed his entrance into King's political movement as a crucial chapter in
his life. He wrote in his biography, quote, when the march started,
I had a strange sense of deja vu. I kept flashing back to
a time twenty years earlier when my buddies and I had fought our way into
Germany. Unquote. Serving in World War Two, Bennett's friendship with a black
serviceman was condemned by white army officers. Bennett wrote, quote, it felt
the same way down in Selma. The white state troopers were really hostile,
and they were not shy about showing it. There was the threat of violence
all along the march route from Montgomery to Selma, some of which was broadcast
on the nightly news, and really helped to make the country aware of the
ugliness that was still going on in the South. Un Bennett was terrified,
he recalled, but Bellefonte kept a school and helped make sure everyone focus on
the road ahead. In a side note, Bellefonte, who just died in
April, he was also ninety six at the time of his death, says
here Bennett did not walk all fifty four miles. Instead, he went ahead
to Montgomery so he could be there on March twenty four to greet King and
sing for the marchers alongside Ella Fitzgerald, Pete Seeger, Joan Baias, Sammy
Davis Jr. Mahalia Jackson, and others. The day after the Stars for
Freedom Rally, King delivered the how Long Not Long speech on the steps of
the Alabama State Capitol. Bennett wrote, quote, I'm enormously proud that I
was able to take part in such an historic event, but I'm saddened to
think that it was ever necessary and that any person should suffer simply because of
the color of his skin. Unquote. When the Selma to Montgomery march came
to an end, Bennett was driven to the airport by one of King's supporters,
Biola Liuzo, a white woman from Detroit who had three children. He
later learned that she was killed by white supremacists on the drive back to Selma.
Bennet committed himself to the cause of racial equality. In the decades that
followed, he advocated for gifted black artists and pushed the corporate music industry to
release their records. He joined the artistic boycott of apartheid South Africa and performed
for Nelson Mandela during the South African president's first state visit to Britain. The
crooner's abiding spirit of inclusion was clear to his children, including his eldest son
Danny, who recalled the wonderful childhood. In an interview with Good Housekeeping in
nineteen ninety five, Danny Bennett recalled quote, waking up to hear Count Basie
and Duke Ellington jamming in our basement unquote. Danny was proud that his father
joined King's March quote before it became fashionable among celebrities to publicly crusade against racist
discrimination. He is a good man and a good father, NTE. In
two thousand and seven, Tony Bennett was inducted into the International Civil Rights Walk
of Fame, a promenade at the Martin Luther King Junior National Historical Park in
Atlanta. The other inductees that year included the Hollywood Icon Sidney Portier, who
died last year, and Representative Maxine Waters, Democrat of California, five years
earlier. The King Center for Non Violent Social Change, a nonprofit organization in
Atlanta, bestowed on Bennett its twentieth annual Salute to Greatness Award. King's widow
Coretta Scott King, and the singer richly deserved. I'm sorry, I said,
the singer richly deserved the honor, she said. Quote Tony is not
only one of America's premier performing artists, but he was a deeply committed friend
and supporter of my husband and the civil rights movement. He has continued to
support the efforts of the King Center to fulfill Martin's dream, along with so
many other great causes. Bennett, for his part, told the Atlanta Journal
Constitution that he was over the moon. In an interview with the newspaper,
Bennett reflected warmly on his friendship with Bellefonte and the inspiration he drew from the
latter's example. He said, quote, Harry just reaffirmed for me that we're
all political animals. When injustice is happening, We're all such a small speck
in the face of the universe. Every single person on this planet is important
and should be respected equally. Unquote. So that's that's a story from oh
DJ, Steve says in the Facebook live chat, good afternoon, Matt.
My father's cousin, the late Tory Zito, was his pianist and musical director
for eight years. That's right. I think I remember you mentioning that on
Paul Show, Steve. Yeah, very interesting. One other thing, uh,
regarding Tony Bennett two that I wanted to mention, and this also relates
to, you know, he talks about his time fighting in World War Two
and uh, you know, and some of what he had to deal with
in terms of, you know, being friends with black soldiers and how not
everyone approved. Um. This is from media dot Com. Tony Bennett's gripping
account of fighting in World War Two during iconic Howard Stern interview, says here
he gave us seventy years of music, and now the iconic Tony Bennett is
gone. The Grammy winning singer who appealed to multiple generations, died at age
ninety six. While he was lucky enough to spend the vast majority of his
life doing what he loved, Bennett's life took a detour when he was drafted
to serve in World War Two. He described the experience in a famous twenty
eleven interview with Howard Stern. Admitted he was scared and said his time in
the military made him a pacifist and quote eliminated all bigotry from my life unquote.
So here's some of that exchange. So Stern said, so, when
you were this young boy and you wanted to sing, this war going into
the army interrupted your life and interrupted this passion. Bennett, I didn't look
at it like that. Just everybody had to go to war. It was
just one of those things. It was the most horrible war. Studs Circle
in Chicago called it the good War because it had to happen. Stern,
there was nobody to stop Hitler. The Japanese were Bennett, the worst philosophe
in the world was created there. Bennett also talked about witnessing racism against a
black friend of his, a best friend, pointing out that he quote had
my stripes slice from a bigot captain in the army. Un So here's that
story that exchange. So Tony Bennett on Howard's Show said this. He was
the greatest guy. He was a fantastic drummer, and we used to be
in high school together. We met in Mannheim, Germany, in the Truman
Hotel. It was Thanksgiving. He took me to his Baptist church and I
said, well, they're allowing me one guest in the Mannheim Truman Hotel.
Why don't you join me? Well, if Thanksgiving dinner, he said,
great, And so we were having fun, and the captain came over and
he said, Benedetto, that's my family name. Get your gear, you're
shipping out. They sent me to the graves registration digging up bodies. Stern.
You had to go to the graves, I guess of Americans and dig
their graves and exhume their bodies. Bennett, Yes, Stern. What was
the point of that to bring them home? Bennett? No, just to
bury them. Stern. That's a how horrible thing to see, Bennett.
It's eliminated all bigotry from my life as a result of that. It's a
premise in my life that I think one of the most important, I'm sorry,
one of the most ignorant things that could ever happen are people that are
bigoted about other people. And there's there's a clip here from that interview contained
in this article, although I'm not going to play it just in case there's
any profanity in it. Tony Bennett, I'm sure it doesn't swear at all,
but Howard occasionally will. It's on satellite radio, of course, But
so I I didn't really know honestly until today. I mean, you know,
obviously I knew a lot about Tony Bennett's career. I did not know
much about his civil rights activism and advocacy, and I or is world War
Two experience, And it's interesting how one informed the other, how his experience
in World War Two really kind of solidify in him his uh rejection of any
sort of bigotry or prejudice. And uh so that's that's really interesting. So
I wanted to focus on that, um a little bit. Of course,
you know, everyone's talking about his music, but well then that's important too.
I mean, he really was able to to bridge across multiple generations with
his music. We have a call. Hi, welcome to Matt Connerton.
Unleash. Who's this? It's John Hopwood, John Hopwood. How are you
sir? Fine? How are you you found fine? Except for being frightened
by the coming storm? I am I'm frightened by the coming storm. I'm
gonna hide under the desk. I'm not really the microphone won't reach. Yeah,
I'm older than you. So I did know that Tony Bennett was part
of the civil rights movement. Yes, the woman was named violently ozzo.
I believe, and she was murdered by the ku Klux plan that after driving
Tony to the you know, the place of the concert that came out in
the nineteen mid nineteen seventies because they were making a TV movie about this uh
FBI informants with the Klan as a hero, played by Don Meredith. Of
all people, I know, you won't know who Don Meredith him because he
was not only a football player, but he was one of the co hosts
with Howard Cosell, you know, Monday Night Football. And it came out
during the hearings about into the abuses of FBI and CIA that he was an
agent provocateur and that you know, he was likely responsible for the woman's murder.
Then he turns the people that killed her in Oh wow, and yeah
it was And yeah, but Tony Bennett was well known. Two other things.
The army was segregated during World War Two. I actually have a friend
who was long gone, Max, who was in the segregated army. He
was African American. He was in patents. Oh yeah, you've talked about
him. Yeah, yeah. So, but Tony Bennett being Apalion probably was
probably the subject of racism himself because you know he's talking. I think the
captain was from the South. The clan wasn't just about white supremacy. He
was also against the Roman Catholic Church. And uh, but and the other
thing that uh, this is just a When The Good War, which is
in our oral history about World War two came out, it was in quotes
the Good War because people like Studds Circle who was a left winger, and
people of that generation, you know, the great writers like Norman Naylor and
and Joseph Holler who wrote Catch twenty two is the best novel ever written about
the military, and they were a cynical about World War two, as the
World War One generation was a cynical about that war. So it was in
quote. In other words, it wasn't such a great war, right,
But they actually took the quote. The publisher, after being a big took
the clothes out and and the Studds wasn't very happy about that because he was
pretty much a lefty and against war. Yeah, I remember on of course,
on all in the family, Archie Bunker would refer to it as w
W two, the big one. Well, sixteen million men, quite a
few women went to war, and the population was much smaller than because you
know, people got drafted, and when they drafted everybody from eight eighteen blee
eighteen to forty four. Oh really, I went as high as forty four.
Yeah, because up in nineteen forty two the Europe to Pearl Harbor people
were not enlisting. Yeah, no, enlisting in the numbers. They needed
to fight two wars, one in the Pacific and one in Europe. By
the way, when when did the army when did the military desegregate? Would
that would that have been in line with the civil rights movement? Or where
was that? Nineteen eighty eight by executive order? Okay, And that's one
of the reason strong Ferments and Southern Democrats broke off and created the Dixiecrat Party
because in the nineteen Democratic platform there was civil rights planks. The Party of
Civil Rights up and pulled I would say Reagan or at least you know,
it was the Republican Party. The Rockefeller family financially supported the NAACP and all
of the historic black colleges in the South. That was part of the Republican
legacy. But you know that kite that changed and Eisenhower President eis that was
very much pro civil rights, Yes, yep, but but then you know,
things shifted to the whole to control, like a whole week store at
the junk about that. But by the way, the storm is here apparently
because the EAS alert just went off here in the studio take cover. But
I'll just say my father was a World War two when he said, there's
anti Semites. Everybody was. Everybody hated each other. Go white people,
which we call white people now or called urban ethnics. When I went to
the university in the seventies, and they all dislide to each other until the
you know, aides are married, and even then they disliked each other.
Yeah. But Tony Bennett, yeah, he was a great one, and
he was there at Salmo. Yes, yes, yeah, no, it's
been here all right, John, thank you for the call. I appreciate
it, all right. That was the great John Hopwood. That does open
up the studio line for you. Six zo three two five six seven six
three two five oh six o seven. By the way, if you are
in some people listening might have missed part of that discussion because the EAS alert
did go off. It doesn't but you can always go back later and check
the podcast for what you missed. Not that the eas interrupts for very long,
but but if you are in the Manchester, New Hampshire area, it's
probably for all of in the surrounding areas. I would assume there is a
terrible storm on the way, if it hasn't already started. It is very
dark outside for this time on a summer afternoon. Six O three two five
six zo seven six zo three two five oh six Z seven. I do
want to move on, and I have more to say about the Jason Aldean
song, but I also want to say hello everybody quickly in the Facebook live
chat. Mike from Queen City Cabinetry is in the chat room. As we
mentioned earlier, Mike, of course not only one of our great sponsors here
with Queen City Cabinetry. In the Historic Sunbeam mall speaking of war, named
of course for the great General Sunbeam, the greatest military mind since slic spread
you remember that next time you're enjoying a delicious sandwich, remember and reflect on
the freedom you have to enjoy that sandwich and be thankful to General Sunbeam.
And as you're thinking about that, think about taking a visit to Queen City
Cabinetry for all your kitchen needs, bring your kitchen to life with Mike.
But not only is Mike one of our sponsors here at WMH ninety five point
three, but he's one of our co hosts on retro Spectrum Radio, so
I look forward to seeing him on Friday nights. Jay Fed joins us in
the chat from the great state of Vermont, says a good afternoon and everyone.
Jenny is in the chat room, of course, and says shaloha and
peeps. E ZG joins us in the chat and says, happy freaking Friday
to all peeps. My goodness, Jay Fed says we are getting some much
needed rain. I think he's being he's making a joke. Of course,
if Vermont it does not currently need any more rain. And if you've seen
those images from Mont Peleier, Vermont, you know exactly what I'm talking about.
Eric Pilcher is in the Facebook live chat. Of course, it is
Friday, which means in a little bit we're gonna hear Eric's classic film review,
as we do every Friday, and this week the subject is Close Encounters
of the Third Kind. And this week also, sorry if I sounded distracted
there, one of the computers just had a window pop open on it that
I've never seen before. Must have something to do with the storm. But
of course he also joins us on Wednesdays for a segment that I call my
favorite Conservative in the first hour on Wednesdays, and this week John Hopwood joined
us, and John expressed his deep displeasure with Eric's chosen candidate to endorse for
the Republican nomination. But it is actually pretty funny. Should go back and
listen to a John's reaction was funny. Melanie Liberty, also from the Great
state of Vermont, says, happy blanking Friday. I can't say that naughty
word on the air, of course, but the chat room is uncensored.
Tom Blanchard joins us in the chat room and says, I better get more
gas for the lawnmower. Yeah, that's true. The rain does make everything
grow, all this rain we've had. Melanie says, h, I just
notice Easy G and I have the same almost comment. Yeah, not quite.
I don't think Easy G has much of a potty mouth. I think
I think he blushes at naughty words. Let's see. E says welcome back
to me, Yes, welcome back. John Hopwood is in the chat room
and says, h, I thought you were going to talk about Tony Bennett's
career as an actor, playing Himie Kelly in the Oscar. You're nineteen sixty
six. I'm not familiar with that. I didn't know that. Let's see
DJ cve I mentioned is In the chat room, Melanie says, didn't you
sit in with Tony Bennett one night? That's kind of a running joke around
here. Rondo Favro joins us in the chat room from Californias. She says,
I saw Tony in concert, voice like silk, Yes, yes,
by the way. Oh, And Miriam Bannish joins us in the chatroom and
says, good afternoon. Quite a storm out there. Yeah, I'm glad
I'm safe and sounded here. I actually enjoy a good thunderstorm as long as
I'm not driving in it or caught in it. I don't like I'm one
of those people. I don't like to get caught in the rain. I
don't like the way wet clothes feel on my skin. It's the something grows
about it. I'm like a cat. I don't like to get wet,
except when I bathe obviously, one other interesting thing about Tony Bennett and then
we will move on because I do want to talk more about the Jason Aldean
controversy about that song, but just interesting to me. So what was it?
It had to be at least a couple of years ago. He had
done something with Lady Gaga. They did a concert and I'm sure it's on
DVD and you can stream it. They did a duets concert together, or
maybe they put out an album, or maybe maybe both. I'm sure there's
a video of it too, and Lady Gaga. I think this was also
in a Howard Stern interview. She was talking about how you know, Tony
Bennett had been diagnosed, I think in twenty sixteen with Alzheimer's disease, and
apparently at the point where he and Lady Gaga did that concert together, he
was he was really struggling at that point to remember a lot of things.
But when he was on stage, anytime, you know, if she said
to him or someone said to him, Tony, it's time for whatever the
song was that they were about to do, he could remember the lyrics and
sing the song flawlessly like he wouldn't he like, like just like when he
was younger, Just no problem. He could. And it is interesting too
how people with whether it's Alzheimer's or types of dementia, very often, you
know, they'll they'll forget things, of course, and that's what happens,
but or even just you know, getting older and just the memory starts to
slip a little bit. But people who have these issues, you know,
they might have difficulty remembering certain things, but when it comes to music,
they can. And there's been studies the show, even people with advanced Alzheimer's
they can remember songs. It's like songs are just so permanently ingrained in the
mind. It's just really interesting. Yeah, Miriam says music is something that
stays with you. John Hopwood says music comes from the other side of the
brain, doesn't it. I don't know. I couldn't tell you. I
just I thought that was interesting. All right. I want to circle back
to if you missed yesterday's show. We spent some time on this yesterday in
the second hour. But the new Jason Aldean's single Try That in a Small
Town is getting some controversy, and I shared my thoughts yesterday. Now,
people who are very critical of the song are saying that the song is racist
and the video for it is racist. And I played the song yesterday on
the show, and this controversy had been going on for a little bit.
But I had intentionally avoided listening to the song because I wanted to listen to
it live on the air and give it my off the cuff, on the
spot reactions to it, and get feedback from the audience, of course,
and you know, without any I wanted to do that, without really having
time to think about it or sit on it for a while. I wanted
to just give you my instant reaction. And my verdict upon listening to the
song was not guilty. I do not feel that the song in and of
itself is racist. Now, what I did say is and we'll get to
the video in a moment, because I hadn't seen the video yet. I
was actually initially I was going to play the video and not that you would
see it because it's a radio show, but I was going to play it
here on this computer and listen to the song while the video was playing,
so I could see the video at the same time I was listening to the
song. But then DJ Stephen the chat room gave me the heads up and
said, Matt, I think there's an s bomb in there, and he
was right, there is. So I had to find a radio edit of
the song. When I was a kid, you know, country artist never
swore in songs. But you know these days everyone's trying to be edge.
You know, use a bad word. It makes it edgy and cool.
So I had to find a radio edit. So I did not play the
video. I just played the radio edit of the song that has the bad
word removed. Miriam says in the chat room, I did not like the
video at all, and I'm not sure if listening gives the same message.
We'll get to that. Yeah, I have some thoughts on that, But
my verdict on the song itself, I said, not guilty. But what
I did say was I can see how someone who maybe is racist would really
like the song, really like the lyrics, because some of the imagery in
it about good old boys and don't mess with us and whatnot. Some of
that I can see how that might evoke for some people as it did for
me, I guess, because I can empathize with someone having a certain kind
of reaction to those lyrics. But I did not feel that the lyrics in
and of themselves were racist. And you know art, music is art,
and art is subjective and you can project onto or take from whatever it is.
When it's art. It doesn't matter if it's music or if it's a
painting that you look at. You know, two people can look at a
painting and see completely different things, or it might affect them in different ways.
People read books and have different interpretations about what they've read. And you
know, anything any any kind of art that's created. Now, some things
are blatant, some things are subtle, including you know what the message is
that maybe the person who created the art is trying to put across. But
listen, I mean it is not unusual. We had a discussion, in
fact, it was with John Hopwood. Yeah I see your comment, John,
and yes we will. I did talk about that yesterday, by the
way, but we'll get to that with the video. That is a very
good point. But speaking of John, so we discussion here one day on
the show about Sweet Home Alabama by Leonard skinnerd and some of the lyrics and
that some people interpret I say interpret because again even music critics have different ideas
about what the song is really saying in terms of you know it mentions it
mentions George Wallace and the song not by name, but he's mentioned in there,
you know, segregationist of course, as he was a governor of Alabama.
But people have different interpretations of that. Some people think Sweet Home Alabama
by Leonard skinnerd is racist, some people don't. Some people say, I
don't know. I think that again, talking only about the song, not
the video yet, but speaking only about the song itself, I don't think
the song is racist. But again, I understand how someone coming from a
particular point of view might project something onto it that may or may not be
intended. Maybe is intended. You know, there are such things as dog
whistles and you know, subtly implied messages. But I think that I tried
to think of it this way. If you were to play that song for
me, if you were to say, Matt, listen to this song and
I had no idea about any of the controversy, and you just played me
that song and said, Matt, pay attention to the lyrics and then tell
me what you think. Do you think does anything about this bother you?
And I just listened to it, I would say no. It sounds like
a standard modern country song about life. In a small town and we're tough
and don't mess with us. And you know, I probably wouldn't think of
it much more beyond that, to be honest. So I do not think
the song itself is racist. Now the video. Let's get to the video.
I did watch the video after the show. My ultimate conclusion, my
verdict actually does not change. I come to the same conclusion. I don't
think that I did not perceive the video as racist, but I did not
perceive the video as sort of innocuous as the song either. The video definitely
very politically charged, with the imagery of riots. And although there is one
thing I well, never mind, I don't want to get I don't want
to muddle things with mentioning that. But most of the imagery was, you
know, a lot of people rioting and things like that, people burning the
American flag and whatnot. Again, the video in and of itself definitely politically
charged and definitely coming from a certain political point of view, shall we say,
ideologically, no question, no question about that. The song itself I
don't think is politically charged. The video is absolutely is. But the video
in and of itself, that's probably as much as I would say about it.
But again, as we discussed yesterday on the show, and John brings
it up in the chat room, the video was filmed at a courthouse where
a black man was lynched. That is problematic. That bothers me quite a
bit. Now, Apparently that location a lot of things are filmed there.
That's a popular filming location. It is quite possible. You might think this
naive of me, but I do think that sometimes people, when people are
culturally insensitive or racially insensitive, however you want to think about it, sometimes
it's because you know, they do have some prejudice, be it over or
or sort of beneath the surface. And sometimes people are just oblivious because they
don't think about those things. I can imagine that it is. I'm willing
to let me put it this way. I'm willing to give the benefit of
the doubt that either they didn't know or it didn't occur to them that that
might be a problem. It's entirely possible just nobody realized it. Now,
I can tell you that when I first read that, you know, that
bothered me. I said, well, that's that's not good. But again,
I'm willing to offer some benefit of the doubt on that we have a
call. Hi, welcome to Matt Connorton Unleashed. Who's this, Hey,
Matt, it's Eric Pilch calling in. Well, Hello, Eric Pilcher.
Hey, I just wanted to chime in on this Jason Albean situation here real
quick. I have a few minutes left of my lunch break. Oh cool.
Yeah, let's let's not act like here that Jason Alban has never been
in the headlines for any reason for his political views. His views are at
best borderline alt right. His wife has said some pretty inflammatory things. So
while I understand and appreciate your point about how you don't think there was any
malicious intent there, I'm gonna flip it and say I think the evidence against
him dictates otherwise. Interesting. Help me out with something here, Eric,
because I don't know. I don't know anything about his wife. His wife
has said some pretty inflammatory things. I mean, I don't have the information
in front of me because I'm at my work desk. Yeah, I don't
dare look it up on my work computer. Yeah. But yeah, his
wife, Brittany I believe as her name, has said some pretty shocking things,
and he has as well. I mean, they've been borderline like typical
conservative views on certain aspects of society. Sure, but then you coupled those
statements with the music video in the song, and it's like, Okay,
the evidence doesn't give you a free pass, right, And that's my point.
It's the evidence the past actions he has committed doesn't give him this free
pass. I asked this, if Kid Rock had done this song, would
Kid Rock be given a free pass? No? No, With Ted nug
absolutely not. Would. Hank Williams Junior, who called us sitting president,
compared him to Hitler. Ted Nugent also comes to mind. Yeah. Um,
by the way, when when I look up, when I look up
Brittany Aldine, um, I don't find anything racist, but I do find
I guess she she caused quite a bit of a stir over some transphobic comments.
Oh yeah, I'm just saying in general, so pretty plorable views from
that family. So this isn't like ye to me. When I heard who
the artist was that did it, I'm like, oh, okay, not
entirely shocking. Okay, it's interesting. It's interesting the same boat as Kid
Rock in Ted mug In, Hank Williams Junior just a conservative And I'm not
even going to call him a conservative. To me, they are all right,
all right, individual that has a very large platform with a very ignorant
fan base that buys into this crap. Interesting, I M see, I
didn't know much. I've never I'm not a big country guy. I've never
paid much attention. Obviously. I've always been aware of Jason Aldeen, especially
you know, working in the music business, but I never knew much about
him. I kind of just assume that most of these arests are pretty right
wing anyway, although sometimes people get it wrong. For example, Toby Keith
when when he put out that song after nine to eleven, after we went
to war invading Iraq and Afghanistan, he put out that song courtesy of the
Red, White, and Blue, everyone assumed that he was a right wing
conservative and he was actually a registered Democrat at the time. So you never
know. But um, but yeah, I didn't. I didn't know much
about Jason Aldeen until this, to be honest with you. Yeah, yeah,
it's I guess wish that again. I want to say this carefully.
I just wish if you have that platform you would use it for good,
right and use it in a way that could bring people together. You can't
sit there. And he didn't even write the song. Someone posted in the
group right about all and everything they posted is one hundred percent factual. It
came out May. They did use Paola to get the MT to ban it.
They it wasn't even written by him. Yeah, apparently he doesn't write.
From what I understand, that is something I did learn about him.
I guess most of his hits are written by other people. He performs,
but he doesn't actually write. Not that there's anything wrong, not that there's
anything wrong with that. That's not a knock on him. I'm just saying,
though, it's interesting that he doesn't, you know, because most of
you know, most country artists, they do write their own music, right,
And probably should have chosen a better word there than right, but whatever.
Yeah, it's just utterly insane to me that, like, there are
people defending this, especially I get it's a popular place to film scenes.
Yeah, but then you look again the totality of the evidence, right,
right, How do you not know this? And I mean I haven't watched
the music video. I honestly have no desire to watch the music video.
I listened to the song and I was just like, this is up there
with the forty five band singing the national anthem. This is just it's it's
just a way to generate fake controversy for him to puff his chest out and
be patriotic. Well, it does, I mean to make it worse?
I was governor, posted on Facebook today a great day to listen to Jason
Aldan. Yeah, a lot of people are posting on social media. You
know, I stand with Jason Alden and all this. But but let me
let me ask you this though, Eric, if you had heard that song,
just understand what you're saying about, you know, the totality of the
evidence and the context and everything. But if you had just heard that song
without no who it was, do you think he would have had the same
reaction. I probably would have been like, oh, it's a modern country
song. Yeah, most of them are black John Yokels, So probably a
touch of racism there, okay, But again I would have aired on the
side of how do I would have aired on this side of that to begin
with, um, without of hearing this song, So I'm probably the wrong
guy to ask, Well, no, I'm just I'm curious. It's it's
very because one of the things that's interesting to me about a moment like this
where something like this is happening. It isn't even so much the controversy itself
that I'm fascinated by. I'm fascinated by how how different people process this,
you know, especially someone like you who thinks about these things a little bit
deeper, instead of just saying, Okay, I'm going to check a box.
I'm either outraged or I'm not outraged. You actually you actually think about
these things. Um. So it's it's that's why it's interesting to discuss something
like this with you and get your perspective. Yeah, well I appreciate that.
Um yeah. I just to me, I just looked at I heard
that. I read the name, and I'm like, oh, oh no,
oh why But if you why But if you didn't know who it was
and you heard the song, you wouldn't. I just want to know if
I have this right, you would I would have. I'm kind of in
the boat with you on it. Yeah, I wouldn't have inferred much from
it than what I've heard from people that have watched the video. Okay,
okay, um, so yeah, I mean I don't watch this show anymore,
but I have a funny feeling South Park is going to take a hit
on this one. Oh I'm sure. Wow, south Park that's still on.
That's amazing, isn't it. That's been that's over thirty years, right,
that that's been on nineteen ninety seven. Oh my god, I'm not
as long as the Simpsons, but still that's a long time. Wow.
Yes, But my lunch break is over. I just wanted to chime in.
I'm glad you did. Thank you for the call, Eric, I
appreciate it, my friend, Thanks for having me anytime. All right,
bye bye, all right. That was our friend Eric Pilcher. And I'm
going to hold off just a couple more minutes though on Eric's review, because
I see Billy Panter from Outlaw Radio is in the chat room and he says,
I have to call in once Eric has done. So Billy, go
ahead. The line is open, sir if you want to get in and
then we can we can hold for a few minutes on Eric's review, and
uh, yep, here he is. Billy Painter is on the line.
Hey, Billy or bad Billy as you like to say, Hey, how
you doing? Actually for the new podcast? I do I actually go by
Billy Painter for that one. I think. I think that's good. I've
always thought Billy Painter is just a cool sounding name to begin with. So
I if I've influenced you in any way, I'm glad. But if I
haven't, that's fine too. But I think that's great. You should.
You should use that name. That's good. You're fading out a little bit.
I don't know what's wrong with the lines, but no outlaw radios where
I take off the gloves. Where this new one I keep it more clean
and professional. Gotcha, gotcha? But um, I didn't call so much
to talk about Jason Alden and try that in a small town. I will
just make a quick comment on that is me being from a small town myself.
Eric Filcher, I'll love you to death, brother, but I have
to disagree with you that because I listened to the lyrics very closely, and
whereas the video is very controversial, I don't think there's anything racist about that
song. I from a small town, I understand it a lot more than
others, I think so, And to me, it's about a community that
stands together. Um when the poop hits the fan. So yeah, I
think, um, well, I think that's basically what Eric was saying,
but he but he's looking at it as he's looking at Jason Aldeen in a
larger contextum instead of instead of necessarily the song itself. But I wanted that's
all I'm going to say on that, because Jason Aldean is not the only
country artist who's in the line of fire right now. I don't know if
I can't remember if he commented on Luke Combs and his cover of Tracy Chapman's
Fast Car, I did. I think I did catch something about that.
Yeah, some people are mad about about Luke Combs covering her song. I
think that that controversy started to bubble up. But then I think, at
least on my radar, the Jason Aldeen thing kind of flew in and crowded
out the Luke Combs Tracy Chapman thing, and I lost track of it.
But I think I know where you're going with this, and I think I'm
going to end up a green with you. But go ahead, Well,
I think this is I mean, you know, I can understand why there's
a controversy over Jason Aldein and what he did, but this is just utterly,
very very stupid, and you know, The reason why Luke Combs covered
the song is because he fell in love with it as a child and connected
to the song and just felt the need to cover it. Not only that,
he didn't change any lyrics. He even, you know, just Tracy
Chapman wrote in the song, I work in the market as a checkout girl,
and he didn't change that. He said checkout girl, even though we
know he's a guy. And when that song was nominated for Grammys, she
grossed millions off of it. But some idiot over at the Washington Post,
I'm gonna I'm gonna quote what was said here. As Luke combs hit cover
of Tracy Chapman's Fast Car dominates the country charts, it's bringing up some complicated
emotions and fans and singers who know that Chapman, as a queer black woman,
would would have almost no chance of that kind of that achievement herself.
I mean, you know, she's nominated for Grammy. She gross millions off
of that off of her first album. And then Tracy Chapman herself came out
and praised the song and that Luke Combs did a good job and said she
never expected to be on the country charts, but she's honored to be there,
right, And so for somebody who just came out and said that is
just complete ignorance that on their part without doing any research on the song.
Because not only is you know, obviously Luke Combs is making money off of
this himself, but so is Tracy Chapman. Every time it plays, they're
both getting paid. Yeah, and actually, because she's the one who wrote
it, she's getting more of that money than he is. And uh,
you're right. It says it says here there's a quote from Tracy Chapman.
She says, the success of my cover is unreal and I think it's so
cool. Oh no, I'm sorry, that's Luke. That's Luke Combs quote.
He said, the success of my cover is unreal, and I think
it's so cool that Tracy is getting recognized and has reached new milestones. But
it does say in this article too that Tracy Chapman has been very supportive and
approves of his cover of her song, so she's on board. So yeah,
so there's really yeah, there's always going to be somebody who finds something
wrong in a situation like this, but oh yeah, here's I found the
quote from Chapman, She said, I never expected to find myself on the
country charts, but I'm honored to be there. I'm happy for Luke and
his success and grateful that new fans have found and embraced Fast Car. Yep.
So there you go. You know, there's a reason why Tracy Chapman
doesn't have a smartphone, doesn't have a Facebook or a Twitter, or stays
off all that. She very rarely talks to the press. There's there's got
to be a reason too that, you know. I mean, obviously she
hasn't said anything about the stupidity, and I don't think she wants to be
tied up in it. Yeah, yeah, better to remain above above the
fray if you can, you know. And I'm sure she's you know,
she she's had a lot of success. I'm sure she has enough money she
can kind of stay out of it not have to, uh get into the
muck and the mire of it all. A Fast Car is probably her biggest
hit, but she's she had a couple other really big hits. Uh.
Give me one reason, I think is the title that's a that's also a
big song. That might even be a bigger hit now that I'm thinking about
it, but yeah, she's had a lot of success herself. Yeah,
give me one reason that that came out. I think of what ninety six
and I remember it didn't get stopped playing for the longest time. Oh yeah,
yeah. So she's done, and she had a couple of others suits.
She's done very well. Yeah. So I mean to put her race
and her sexual preference into it and say she can't make that kind of achievement
is just pure ignorance, right right. Absolutely, I agree with you,
Billy. I thought I might. I figured I knew where you were going
with that, and uh no, I'm in complete agreement. Absolutely. Anyway,
I don't know what's wrong with the connection, but you're fading in and
out, so I'm gonna go ahead and end it here. There's some very
bad weather going on here, so that probably has something to do with it.
But Billy Painter, wonderful to hear from you, my friend. You
bet you have a you have a wonderful day, all right, man,
you two take care, Bye bye bye bye. All right. That was
Billy Painter from Outlaw Radio and he also has his newer show that he does
with John Grosvenor. Out of Nashua. Billy is in uh In, Idaho,
but John Grover or is local here in Nashua, New Hampshire, just
up the road there, and they do a show together called Patriot Confederation.
We are yeah, let's do this. We are a little bit past stop
the r so we're gonna go ahead and get to Eric's film review. Let's
see, and this week the subject is Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
Great film. I haven't watched that in a long time, but we got
into a little bit of a discussion about it too recently with John Hopwood when
he was here. But we're gonna do this. Actually, I'm sorry,
I'm I've got things in the wrong order here. We're gonna take a break
and show some love to our amazing sponsors first and then you know, they
pay the bills, so we'll do that, and then we're going to go
from there directly into Eric's film review, and then after that we will come
back with the balance of our program. So there is plenty more to come
today here on Matt Connerton Unleashed, Don't go away. Come on down to
the Hop Night at one end Elms Street, Manchester's premiere Craft Beer and gourmet
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We make a variety of styles of pretzels and serve craft beer cocktails and
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Best cotails abound comment as friends, a leamless family, w M N
h rips the no more more Humber flight more Knights, don't tell me something?
What the hell it's happening here? It's flight number nine jan nineteen.
Watch it's that training region from the name of the last station at Fort Waterdale.
They were doing talking grunts on at all off both flights. Great flight
these anymore no one. These planes were reported missing in nineteen forty five.
When it looks brand new, where's the miling? I don't understand the row.
Hey, I'm a heller get hair, aliens, extraterrestrials, pod people,
martians, space invaders. No matter what they have been called. Beings
from other planets or even other galaxies, have enthralled, captivated, and even
caused fear in film audiences since the beginning of film One film made audience feel
all of these emotions and even added one of the most important feelings we can
have, that is hope. Released in nineteen seventy seven, directed by Steven
Spielberg, coming off his successful third film Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third
Kind introduces us to Roy Neary played by Richard Dreyfus, a line worker in
Indiana that, while on a job, encounters an alien spacecraft that changes him
from everyday working stiff to a man obsessed with beings from other worlds. Rounding
out the starring cast is Terry Gar, Melinda Dillon, Bob Balaban, and
declaimed French director Francois Truffaux. The introductory clip sets up the arrival of the
beings with the mysterious reappearance of planes in the Sonoran Desert that has long been
thought to be lost flying over the Bermuda Triangle. Our next clip builds the
tension when air traffic controllers have to prevent two aircrafts from colliding in the air
with a UFO. What makes this scene important is it beautifully builds tension that
is noticeable throughout the film, and notice at the end of the scene the
unwillingness by multiple parties to a knowledge a possible UFO that could be interpreted as
disbelief that is constantly present throughout this film. Let's take e WA four twenty
one nine one three four point four four four wards here Ryn Island point out.
I gave you as on one twenty two point five. I'll be running
one and then aft. Kind of you having traffic for every thirty one one
very thirty one negative. The only traffic I have is a t W a
L ten eleven in your six o'clock position range fifteen miles ended out a gainy
DC nine in your twelve o'clock position fifty miles. It's done by one.
I'll take a look at rossendel Erry thirty one tic criary of pro very is
thirty one, Roger. I have a primary target about that position. Now,
I have no known high light field traffics done by one. Check lover
Dick what you're check low altitude and you've been a who this is thy one.
The topic is not lower than us one o'clock. Now they'll about me
into ending. Every is thirty one can use the aircraft type negative center.
We distinct outline the two at the time, it is rather break it.
That's the brightest to any quisition lights. I think I've ever seen all any
white to rest colors are a little striking center. D W. Way finds
in the team traffic man of extra bright landing light. I thought airing at
his landing light off it being satellite. Every is dirty one. Now you
have the primary target now, and you're kind about position. I've never had
anyone rugged center be a problem. Now you can about being too lonely way
exact. Everybody one, okay, every even Donny one the Trammick can he
had he went from my way hill were turning way and maybe pla a whole
free fight year down every thirty one to sign nineteen finalvel three one yar own
great Knaghan and troop a corn turn right twenty degree, you know on the
part of the forty five there and every jet decent Napolis only test operations Restricted
area two fives YERL eight, Ryny one Rocker traffic here quite long with internator
to gibling some non bolistic motion over roger very is thirty one? Continue to
sign a joy this question over? Okay? Now, Donna filas distress had
approved the trafficking approaching head on altered right and really moving and right by it
right now. But that was really close very thirty one. It's out of
three to four year old. The traffic past them if they want to report
officially A five seventeen? Do you want to report a UFO A five seventeen?
Do you want to report a UFO over making it food men water report
are is thirty one? Do you wish to report a UFO those data are
is thirty one? Do you wish to find a report of any kind of
him? However, what kind of report? Twilve n are he's thirty one?
Me neither. I'll try to track traffic the destination of him. That
disbelief and unwillingness to acknowledge eventually turns into panic in fear. Our next scene
takes place at a radio telescope center where a group of individuals are trying to
decipher the signal being sent from the beings. Their inability to do so leads
to them comedically rolling a twenty five hundred dollars giant globe down the hallway to
pin down the coordinates that the beings are sending them. The conclusion of this
scene also the fleet introduces us to truro Foes, famed role of Claude laying
comb. Here are the pedals. We just received two fifteen minute broadcasts.
These non randoms like one hundred and four rapid pulses after a five second innival,
forty pulses, another five second break and the thirty pulses, sixty seconds
of silence, and then an entirely new set of numbers forty break five,
thirty six, break five ten, one hundred and four rapid pulses come hard,
wait sixty seconds, and the whole dogs one thing repeats. Where these
signals coming from right in the neighborhood, light travel time rockby seven seconds.
It's well within the plane of the eclipance missions. He's non randoms are forty
thirty sixty ten. Response to that, no, they should be. We've
been sending out this musical combination for weeks before were getting back a number.
This could mean the Indy of Sounds reached the Dandy to help me the thing.
There's so much that we don't know about where the signals originally. Excuse
me, excuse me. Before I got paid to uh speak French, I
U I used to read maps. This first number is a longitude. Yeah,
two sets of three numbers degrees, minutes, and seconds. And the
first number has three digits and the last two were below sixty. Obviously it's
not in right ascension and declination on the sky. You have to be Earth
coordinates. Truly, somebody. There's a globe in the County Supervisor's office.
There's a release, it's a tent. What are you guys doing all the
thing? The antenna? How um hold? Each way? Is the antenna
point northeast. We're going to need a geodetic survey map of Wyoming. I
want this down to the square. Yeah, man, I don't know,
I don't know. Just this any day, inky day this year. There
are quite a few memorable performances in this film, the aforementioned Trufaux in Balaband
Melinda Dillon. You may know her as the mother from the film A Christmas
Story, But there is one that does stand out, and that is the
performance of Dryfuss as NEARI. There were many considered for this role, as
mentioned on Wednesday's episode of Matt Connerton Unleashed, including Gene Hackman, and one
of the biggest film debates is how this role would have been with Gene Hackman
as Near. Despite this, Dryfus does this role justice in encapsulating the essence
of nearing. Our last two scenes show this. First, we here Neary
as an everyday family man trying to teach his son about fractions. Then,
at the peak of his obsession, in broad daylight, Neary begins digging up
dirt trees and throwing it through the windows of his house and even trash.
His neighbors are watching this crazed behavior, and this eventually leads to his family
leaving him. This clip also showcases Terry gars amazing understated performance as his wife
Ronnie. I don't you do your problems for you? That's why I graduated,
so I don't have to do problems. I don't understand these fractions,
all right? What's one third of sixty? That's a fraction I don't understanding.
All right. Let's say that this box car is six defeat long,
okay, and one third of it is across this switch here, all right,
okay, and now another train is coming now how far do you have
to move this box car off the track so that the other train doesn't smash
it? Quickly? Brad? If there are thousands of lives at stake,
Brad, any answer and now Roy's breakdown. That's what I was gonna say.
All right, come on, man, do this? Can we go
good? In my window? Stop? Stop funny? If I don't do
this, that's what I'm gonna need a doctor. Do it? What are
you doing? I got it? What are you thinking? Well, I'm
figuring it out. That's all we could. Just listen, no running.
Look you ever look at something when it's crazy and then you look at it
in another way and it's not crazy? I haven't come on, Ronnie,
just listen. I don't know if you just close your rise with finness,
because close your eyes and hold your breath. No, it'll be really pretty
right. That's scaring us. Now, don't be scared. Just don't be
scared. I feel really good. You think he's gonna be all right?
I haven't felt this good in years. Okay, don't know what else?
What else? Right? Thank you? Chicken wire. Whatever you're doing is
against the law. He's putting it fat missus life I'll take it, take
it ill. You look on this fence right here? You come with me?
Do you want me to hit you? You look doing at this show?
We listen to me, Listen to me. Please come on right now,
we're we're going. Come on, come on here here, let's go
in the come on, he shre we going? Where are we going?
There? We going in the car? There we go. We quickly get
Arey's going to ye lock the doors? What just lock the door? Un
right house? You need funny? Where are you gonna? What are you
gonna taking kids to my sisters? It's crazy? Not even dressed? What
he said? What funny? The holy one minute. This film was wrought
with production problems that led to the film's release being delayed from a summer blockbuster
to a limited release in November of nineteen seventy seven and a national release December
fourteenth of nineteen seventy seven. It started slow, grossing over a tad over
ten million dollars its opening weekend. More theaters were added the week before Christmas,
and the film made over twenty four million by the end of the second
week. Overall, it made two hundred and eighty eight million dollars worldwide.
It was the most successful Columbia Pictures film at that point and saved the fledgling
studio from ruin. Critics have heralded the film since, and it is one
of the most highly regarded science fiction film films. The Academy Awards took notice,
giving the film nine nominations, including Best Director for Spielberg and Best Supporting
Actress for Melinda Dillon. It won two for Best Cinematography and Special Achievement.
This film is breathtaking with its music, lighting, special effects, and its
gripping, compelling story was one not seen in science fiction to that point.
When this review started, I spoke of hope. The hope this film conveys
is that we should not fear those beings humans are otherwise that we do not
know. We should seek them to find answers and make the unknown known.
That is the message of hope that this film conveys to me, in a
message we should all view and carry with us in earnest. I hope you
joined me next week when we will look at the film that gave Quentin Tarantino
his start in Hollywood. This film is written by Tarantino and directed by Tony
Scott. We will look at the crime romance Caper, True Romance for WMNH
and Matt Connerton Unleashed. This has been a classic film review with Eric Pilcher.
Welcome back everybody as we cruise into our final segment today or of the
week, really here on Matt Connerton Unleashed on this Friday afternoon. By the
way, there were a couple of eas warnings, so I did hear the
words flash flood, which we hear quite a bit lately. So I hope
everybody is safe out there. If you're local to this area or wherever you
are, wherever you might be listening from, I hope you're safe. But
this is Matt Connerton Unleashed and we are live from the studios of WMNH ninety
five point three FM in glorious downtown Manchester, New Hampshire, also on Comcast
ninety seven if you're in Manchester, and hello to all of our online listeners
across the nation and around the globe. You can go to my website Matt
Connerton dot com for all your live streaming options, social media lenks, contact
in folk show archives, etc. Etc. Today is Friday, July twenty
one, two thousand, twenty three. Nice to have you all with me.
By the way, it is Friday, which means it's my long day
here at WMH, and I do love it so because not only do we
have this program for another about twenty two minutes, but I will be back
tonight from eight to eleven PM for retro Spectrum Radio with Paul Lec as we
do every Friday night, and I have the honor and privilege of being one
of Paul's co hosts on that show, along with our friends DJ Steve and
of course Mike from Queen City Cabinetry in the historic son b Mall, who
not only one of our great sponsors here at WMH, but also one of
our co hosts on retro Spectrum Radio. And here's what Paul posted on social
media. For tonight's show, We'll be featuring our third installment of original versions
of popular songs that you had no idea were covers by your favorite bands.
By the way, this is a kind of show I love where I get
to learn stuff. I'm really looking forward to tonight, and of course,
an all new name at nine at nine will DJ Steve hold this title?
That's part I don't look forward to as much because DJ Steve always rushes me
and it is humiliating and embarrassing, as I experienced the defeat at the hands
of DJ Steve. But you know I swear too like when we do that,
and if you don't know what I'm talking about, so we do that.
Name that nine at nine Paul plays nine riffs, just little snippets of
songs, and then we have to figure out what they are. And very
very often Steve just beats me by a hair. You know, one of
us has to say, got it when we know what it is. And
as Steve will just he's just stop. He gets it a half second quicker
than I do. But perhaps tonight I will make my rousing come back.
I'm not sure I've ever beaten him. I think he wins every week.
But that's okay. It's fun. It's a lot of fun. Join us
for the fun. Speaking of fun at eight pm Eastern tonight, and don't
forget next Friday night on the twenty eighth, will be joined in studio by
the lovely and talented producer and director Aaron Zadofski. Don't miss it. That'll
be fun too. And by the way, we do recommend if you're going
to join us online for retro Spectrum Radio. Please sign into the Facebook live
chat, but also open a second tab on your browser at WMNH radio dot
org and click listen live. Paul does mute the audio on the Facebook feed,
so we'd love to have you in the chat room to talk with us,
but open a second tab on your browser to listen to the show uninterrupted,
unimpeded in stereo. If you heard about this, it's a new thing
stereo, stereophonic or something. It's great. All the kids are talking about
it. It's very exciting. But no, but we do look forward to
to that. So that will be tonight from a to eleven pm in the
meantime, so we have a few minutes left on today's show. If you'd
like to get in with a call, six zo three two five six z
seven is the number six zo three two five zero six zoo seven. You
can also text me at six one seven nine one seven four four seven six.
I'm on social media at Matt Connerton. You can email me Matt at
Matt Connerton dot com. Then of course you can interact endo Pine in the
Facebook live chat. But the best thing to do so that we can hear
and enjoy your dulcet tones is to give us a call at six three two
five six Z seven six zo three two five zero six zo seven. By
the way, thank you to our friend Eric Pilcher for a great film review
Close Encounters of the Third Kind. It's a Eric's reviews are a very popular
segment on the show. We look forward to every Friday with those. I
also threw in a little bonus after that before we came back, I played
a Fast Car by Luke Combs, the cover of the Tracy Chapman song that
our friend Billy Painter was talking about when he called in, And there was
a little bit of controversy about that, but that seems to have blown over
and been replaced largely by the Jason Aldean controversy. But the Luke Combs controversy
is really much ado about nothing. I really I had not listened to his
version of that. I'm gonna tell you this, and this might get me
in a little trouble with some people, but I'm just gonna be honest with
you. I kind of like his version better now. Part of that might
be because I've just heard the original one hundred thousand times, because that was
a that was a monster hit when I was a kid. That was a
huge hit song. Um, So maybe part of it is just being tired
of hearing the Tracy Chapman version. But I really like I'm not a big
country guy, so I haven't heard much of Luke Combs. I've been aware
of him. I think he's I think he's young. I think he's relatively
new on the scene, so we say. But I really like his voice,
and I really like the way he does that song, and I do
appreciate and I was listening for it too, because Billy had pointed this out
when he puts it in when he when he called in rather U when uh,
when Luke Combs uh did the song, he was so respectful and so
faithful to the original in terms of the lyrics that he doesn't even change that
line about you know, working as a checkout girl. He kept the line
exactly the way it is. He doesn't change it to working as a checkout
boy, or working as a checkout guy or something, you know, he
kept he kept the lyrics exactly the way she wrote them, which very very
cool that he did that. So no, I like it. I like
it. I'm glad Billy mentioned that when he called Eric. Nana Rone says
in the chat room, good song, and Tom Lanchard says, I'm going
to have some birthday cake this weekend and maybe get a little wiser. I
don't know about that. Lol. Does birthday cake make you? Why?
Oh, I get it. It's your birthday and you'll be older and wiser.
Yes, well, happy birthday, Tom Blanchard. Apparently it is Tom's
birthday this weekend, So very good. I don't eat birthday cake anymore myself.
The last time I had a piece of birthday cake I talked about this
on the show is a couple of months ago. I hadn't eaten anything like
that for a really long time, with that much sugar. I never had
much of a sweet tooth anyway. Maybe growing up I did, but as
an adult I never have. So it's not like I eat a lot of
that stuff. But I had gone a really long time without eating anything like
that. And the last time I had a piece of birthday cake, the
stomach ache that I had after going a long time without having that all that
sugar, all that white sugar at once. Oh, it was so uncomfortable,
And I really think that that was my body's way of saying, hey,
dude, you don't eat this stuff anymore. What are you doing?
It was so I'm not trying to ruin your thoughts of birthday cake. Tom,
I'm sorry. I just it was so uncomfortable. I almost thought there
was something medically wrong with me. The best way I can describe it is
this, you know, the sensation you get when you have heartburn. It
was like having heartburn, but in my stomach. It wasn't a normal stomach
ache like we feel like, oh I ate too much or something like that.
No, it was like having heartburn. But in my stomach it was
alarming, frankly, and I just said, that's it no more for me.
Tom says, chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. See that does sound good,
Tom, that sounds delicious. And yet, and yet I would not
eat it myself, only because of what happened to me the last time.
Granted, the last time when I did have a piece of somebody's birthday cake,
it was vanilla. It was not chocolate. Maybe the chocolate would be
okay, I don't know. Scott Robinson says, what about pineapple upside down
cake? That's delicious I have to tell you, Scott, that sounds disgusting
to me. Actually, but pineapple, anything sounds disgusting to me. I
think that pineapple, I dare say, is the devil's food. What do
they put in devil's food cake? Is it pineapple? I have no idea,
but it wouldn't surprise me. Wouldn't surprise me at all. By the
way, lots of positive feedback in the chat room for Eric's film review.
Mike from Queen City Cabinetry says, of course, Erica reviewed Close Encounters of
the Third Kind of Mike from Queen City Cabinetry says absolutely my favorite movie,
and Melanie says great movie makes me crave mashed potatoes. Yes, that is
a famous scene in the film. Jeff Nyan joins us in the Chireman says,
Hawaiian pizza with extra pineapple is the best? Are you out of your
mind? Are you literally really from hell? That is the food of Satan?
You cannot eat that? That is horrible? I can't. I frankly,
Jeff, I like you. I think you're a wonderful person. But
I must tell you, in this particular moment, I am a gast.
A gast, I say oh, I'm gonna This has never happened in the
history of the program, and I don't think it would necessarily. I don't
think management would like this very much. But I might actually begin vomiting uncontrollably
right here on the air. Miriam Bannish says, there is no pineapple in
Devil's food cake lll okay, Well, you know, but you can understand
why I wondered if there might be, you know, the food of Satan
that pineapple, anything pineapple flavored, pineapple itself. I mean, I can't
think of a single pineapple flavored thing that I would find even remotely enjoyable.
You know how they have the multiverse theory, the idea that there's an infinite
number of multiverses and different version of all of us in these different multiverses.
Even if that's true, Even if that's true, I know this, Even
if there is an infinite number of other versions of me, none of them
like pineapple on anything. I know this. I don't even really believe in
the multiverse theory, but I'm just saying, if there is such a thing
or things, there is no version of me that likes pineapple. And even
if there was, it's not like we would ever know. You can't prove
that there's a version of me that like spineapple, And granted I can't prove
that there isn't. Tom Blanchard says, yeah, Matt, why do you
have to get cut off? Why do you have to cut off an inch
of peel to get those what? I don't I don't even know what you're
talking about, Tom, I don't what. I don't eat. I don't
eat that, So I don't even know what's what you're talking about about.
I don't. Yeah, I don't need anything where you have to, you
know, cut things off and peel things off, and oh, that's disgusting.
I like food that is low maintenance. You don't have to peel things.
You just eat it. You just you take the food and you just
eat it and enjoy it. That's why I like pizza. You don't have
to you don't even need utensils. You just pick up a piece of pizza,
you shove it in your mouth. No pineapple on the pizza. If
this pineapple on the pizza, I won't be eating the pizza at all.
But if there's no pineapple, I'm just gonna take that pizza. And no
olives either I don't like olives or onions. Onions on pizza is also discussing.
There's a lot of really strangely discussing things that people put on pizza.
Sometimes people ask me, They'll say, Matt, what do you recommend?
How do you keep your pizza delicious? I'll tell you how. It's very
very simple. When you're choosing your toppings for your pizza, you should only
choose delicious toppings. If you put delicious toppings on your pizza, your pizza
will be delicious. On the other hand, if you choose disgusting toppings for
your pizza, guess what happens to your pizza. Your pizza will also be
disgusting. Your pizza should be delicious. Pizza was meant to be delicious.
Make pizza delicious again. You get a hat that says that make pizza delicious
again. Miriam Mannish says, I think white chocolate is an abomination, but
we all have different taste buds. I agree white chocolate is weird. I
like chocolate again, I don't really eat it anymore. I don't really eat
any of that kind of stuff anymore. The only time I'll have chocolate at
this point is if I have a really bad headache and it just won't go
away. Sometimes chocolate can help a headache, but dark chocolate actually can be
somewhat healthy because it has antioxidants. And regular chocolate in moderation is fine,
but white chocolate is odd. I don't know. I don't know quite what
to make of it. It just tastes strange. It doesn't taste like anything
else I can think of. It's just I'm not disgusted by it. If
you put it on pizza, i'd be disgusted, but I'm not disgusted by
white chocolate. I can eat it, but I won't necessarily enjoy it.
It almost tastes like soap, Like like I've never eaten soap, but it's
what I kind of imagine. Well, of course i've tasted. You know,
we've all gotten soap or shampoo, at least in our mouths right when
we're taking a shower. It tastes like soap to me. That's what white
chocolate is like. Maybe it is supposed to be soap. Maybe is there
a like I'm gonna have to look up online later. Maybe you can wash
yourself with white chocolate. I don't know. Miriam says, delicious is in
the tongue of the beholder. Well, except when it comes to what I'm
talking about with the pizza, because also had somebody asked me once, Matt,
who put you in charge of deciding what should and should not be on
pizza? And I said, no, one put me in charge. This
is just how it is. This just happened. I just am the person,
you know. Sometimes it just happens that way. Dj C says,
Matt, you only like to shove pizza in your mouth and sing that's a
more. Yes, a classic moment on retro Spectrum Radio. I sang,
that's a more. Well, well, we don't, that's in the past.
We don't. We don't have food on the show. Um Miriam says
it's referring to white chocolate. It's sugar and fat without the yum. Yeah
it doesn't. It doesn't actually taste good, but you're still getting the sugar.
Yeah, no good, no good. Wow. We're almost out of
time already. It's ten minutes of six. Um Miriam says, I feel
like eating pineapple on pizza and protests, Now, while you can do that,
but I don't recommend it. Culinarily speaking, if that is a word.
Culinarily, I think it's a terrible idea, Miriamu. Tom Blanchard says,
you demand Matt, thank you, thank you. I appreciate being dumb
man. All right, hey, by the way, because we don't really
have time to get in anything else. One other thing about the Jason Aldean
thing that we spent a lot of time on both yesterday and today on the
show. Oh now I can't find it. That figures. So Stevens Blanchard,
who is in the band The Conniption Fits, and he was in a
band years ago called Motor Plant. And he's also a radio guy too.
He works at he works at a radio station in Boston. He had made
an interesting comment that I shared out. He made a comment on social media
regarding the Jason Aldean controversy last night, and I did share it out to
the Matt connors an unleashed Facebook page. And I'm trying to get back to
it now, and of course now it won't come up. The internet's being
a little slow, probably the weather. Here we go. I think I
think it's loading. I think it's let me close out these other windows maybe
to load a little quicker, since we're not gonna get to anything else anyway.
He posted something about the controversy being somewhat staged, saying that the label
actually paid for actually paid. Okay, here we go, here's the full
comment. I want to read this to you. This is what STEVENS.
Blanchard put on Facebook on the whole, Jason Aldean try that in a small
town thing. They arranged to have it quote unquote banned from CNT, Like
do they even play videos anyway? They knew, damn well, this song
would fall flat unless it's stirred controversy. Controversy that just isn't there, by
the way, so they paid to promote it to being banned. Everybody just
eats it up. Also, he didn't write the song, written by Neil
Thrasher, Kurt Allison, Tully Kennedy and Kelly Lovely, like a lot of
country hits, as he points out. Also, the hook of the guitar
solo was ripped right off of Michael Jackson's beat. It directly from the fingers
of Eddie Van Halen. It would be just another average country rock song if
it wasn't for the fake controversy well played. Also, the song has been
out since May. Nobody heard of it. Until it was quote unquote band
I call bs. Yeah, I've been hearing that too. They arranged to
have it banned because controversy does generate. By the way, that's all kind
of a longstanding thing. That type of thing is done, and it used
to be done a lot in radio. You create controversy around a song,
and doing so creates interests in the song. If you want to break a
record, as they say in the business, you know, have a hit
single. There's a lot of old like radio scams and schemes that are like
that, and of cour us now it's carried over into this if his theory
is correct, which I believe it is, because I've read that other places
too, that they arranged to have a band to try to stir up more
controversy. I'll give you an example of just a quick classic radio scam,
just so you know what I'm talking about, and any other radio people listening
we'll probably know what I'm talking about too. So back in the day,
I don't think anybody does this kind of thing anymore. There's really no point.
But there was a time when radio stations and major markets. I remember
those a station in Boston that did it once at least once they would say,
Okay, we've got a I think I feel like it was a Pearl
Jam song that was coming out. A radio station will say would say back
then, okay, we've got a new we've got a new single. There's
a new single coming out from this band. We'll say Pearl Jam because I
think that's the example I'm thinking of, but I can't remember all the details
new Pearl Jam singles coming out. We're not authorized to play it yet,
it hasn't officially been released to radio yet. But we're such a badass radio
station, we're gonna go ahead and play it even though we're not allowed to.
We'll suffer the consequences. We think you should hear it. And then
they would play the song, and then the record label would publicly be upset.
You know, this radio station broke the rules. That's not fair.
They're not supposed to do that. It was all a scam. Of course,
no radio station, no corporately owned radio station, is going to break
any rules. It was And by the way, I appreciate this kind of
thing, being a fan of Andy Kaufman, being a fan of professional wrestling,
I always think this kind of thing's kind of fun. But they would
do this where you know, everyone would play their part. So the radio
station plays the song quote unquote early. They get unquote unquote trouble for it
with the record label whose quote unquote really upset. But in reality, they're
all working together and it's just to create controversy around the song. So it
generates interest, gets people talking about it. Everybody comes out of it looking
good. The radio station looks great because they look like, Ooh, they're
the cool radio station. They break the rules ooh, and the the artist
and the record company they benefit because you know, it boosts the single.
So that kind of thing is not anything new in radio or in music television
CMT country music television. I'm sure. I'm sure they've had other instances of
this type of thing, and none of it's new. None of it's new
in the entertainment industry. You know, uh stunts where not everything as quite
as it seems that generate interests to create buzz. Alice Cooper did. They
did something like that Alice Cooper in the early days of his career when he
first signed with whatever record label he was on at the time. I think
it was for the album Constrictor they they had They had a truck, like
a box truck with a picture on the side of it of Alice Cooper nude
with the snake, you know, a big, a big snake, a
big boa constrictor, you know, covering up everything you can't show publicly,
but very provocative picture on the side of this box truck. And they had
the truck driving around New York City, I think it was New York.
But they intentionally stalled the truck in the middle of a busy intersection during rush
hour. The driver pretended that the truck had stalled out in the middle of
this busy intersection. So that draws all kinds of attention. There's news crews
showing up, the traffic coptors looking, you know, oh look look at
this. Look at this truck stalled out right in the middle of this busy
intersection at rush hour in this very busy city, and it generates all of
course, the truck hadn't actually stalled, but that generated all kinds of publicity
and buzz. I'm just saying that kind of thing goes on all the time.
So if that is true, and some of this controversy was sort of
self generating, that's not unusual. It's not unusual for controversy to be self
generating. Okay, we're gonna wrap up. I will be back tonight for
retro Spectrum Radio with Policy from eight to eleven PM. Join us, won't
you. It's gonna be a lot of fun. Always is always look forward
to my Friday nights here at WMNH. And if you miss any part of
today's show, it will be up in just a little bit at WMH radio
dot org and on my website Matt Connerton dot com. And don't forget,
of course, Saturday mornings here on WMNH. You've got classic episode of the
Morning Show from seven to nine am, followed by the best of Matt Connerton
Unleashed from nine to eleven AM here on Saturday. And then I'll be back
with this program on Monday. And I'll be back tonight for Retrospectrum Radio.
Oh and one other thing, the Hopknot, as they do on Saturday night.
Tomorrow night, they have live music. They have Ryan Gagney Hall playing
live from seven to nine pm at the Hopknot tomorrow night. And don't forget
those delicious scoremet pretzels and that ever burgeoning assortment of Kraft Beer. All Right,
we gotta go. I will talk to y'all a little bit later