Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (January 2017)

Imagine a song like Klymaxx's "I Miss You", Lillo Thomas' "Wanna Make Love (All Night Long)" or TWENTY ØNE PILØTS' "Heathens" being on your mind for five to ten minutes straight.  None of those songs might be your favorites, but it wouldn't be the end of the world either way because they didn't stay on your mind for long.  Now imagine the equivalent of hearing the same song stuck in your brain space for nearly nine hours straight.  If you tend to be on the depressed side of the game or you're not wrapped too tight, then you might look a little more at that nearby bottle of Bacardi 151 to drown your sorrows and/or even a revolver to put yourself out of your misery.  While the No. 1 song in this month's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown didn't quite put me in that mindset, I believe you all have a better idea of what I deal with from month to month.  With seven brand new culprits and three repeat offenders ranging from residual Christmas music to a few shameless plugs, let's kick off 2017 with some insanity and I don't mean Shaun T...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (November 2016)

With so much on my mind during the month of October, music was the John Stockton to my Karl Malone of adversity and dished a much needed assist.  For a while, most of the songs which made the list at the beginning of the month seemed like they would prevail.  Alexander O'Neal tried to do like his entry attempt and "Hang On" by virtue of The Original Quiet Storm nostalgia and a "RANDOM THOUGHT ALERTS!!!" post.  Composer Vangelis' "Love Theme" from Blade Runner possessed more sparkle within the song than its possibility of withstanding the challenge from its future competitors.  George Benson tried to sneak in a second entry (spoiler alert) with "Turn Your Love Around," but couldn't reverse his fortune.  With appearances in commercials and made-for-TV biopics, Chance The Rapper and Michel'le both had late pushes with "No Problems" (featuring Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz) and "Something in My Heart", respectively.  However, with the passing of a legendary producer, songwriter, musician and singer as well as brand new music surfacing, it created the following playlist inside of my head which ended up more like a predominantly 80s version of Black Music Month...

In Heavy Rotation (October 2016)

When you take a month off from one of your most popular series, things can change without fair warning.  What was supposed to be the September edition was on the verge of being a "Late AF Post of the Week" anyway and, to be honest, I wasn't extremely pumped to write it in the first place.  However, a family tragedy ended up being less of an obstacle and more of a blessing as skipping my birth month's edition made way for newer and disputably better music to surface and allowed me as a music lover to stay true to the spirit of this series.  Long story short, only two of the original albums in my rotation for September remained on the list for October while the other three were pushed back for the last two posts for 2016.  Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if the next two months give me even better albums to listen to and those other projects get bumped altogether.  So since you didn't come here for lengthy backstories and stall tactics, I apologize to the most faithful supporters of "In Heavy Rotation" and bring you the long-awaited good part...

RANDOM THOUGHT ALERTS (Vol. 1, No. 13)

If you rode behind a truck which said "Follow me to your perfect paint color" on your way out of town, what would be your first set of thoughts?  Well, as I inadvertently followed this True Value tractor trailer on I-495 through the wonderful city of Wilmington, Delaware, my vivid imagination took a dark turn.  Instead of perhaps some jovial gentleman being armed with paintball gear and taking you to the time of your life--which I literally thought as I began typing this intro--it's some poor soul with an axe to grind with both his company as well as his wife who he believes is cheating on him because he's always on the road.  You decide to follow him without knowing his rig is actually a front for his paint bootlegging business.  He leads you down a secluded alley in a sketchy neighborhood to meet a few unsavory characters.  While the deal is going down, your inability to be incognito in life-or-death situations spells your demise as you are spotted by the truck driver.  He thinks it's a setup, pulls out a pistol and shoots in your direction.  If you didn't high tail it out of there like you were playing Need for Speed, then you would've found out the "perfect color" he was leading you to was crimson.  Moral of the story (and with my DIRECTV voice-over narrator swagger): don't follow anyone to your perfect paint color.  Get the Sherwin Williams app instead.  Now that you're creeped out, let's fly into some safer havens...

Scribbler's Rave & Favorite Five Special Edition: A Tribute to Rod Temperton

Whenever Party City runs their annual Happy Halloween advertisements featuring "Thriller", the man responsible for the original musical arrangement and lyrics to one of pop's most iconic songs is Rod Temperton.  When I heard about him succumbing to a battle with cancer weeks before his 67th birthday, I was befuddled after I was singing Temperton's praises for his work with Quincy Jones on Michael Jackson's Off the Wall album a day before hearing of his death.  He was part of the reason why I was excited to get a copy of the Thriller album because the liner notes put me front and center with his genius.  Making his claim to fame as the keyboardist and songwriter for British R&B band Heatwave, Temperton's pen has part of hits like "Stomp!" by The Brothers Johnson, "Baby, Come to Me" by Patti Austin with James Ingram, "Yah Mo B There" by James Ingram featuring Michael McDonald, the Oscar-nominated "Miss Celie's Blues" from The Color Purple (co-written with Jones and Lionel Richie) and the original lyrics for "You Put a Move on My Heart" by Quincy Jones featuring Tamia (originally recorded by Mica Paris in 1993). The rest of his impressive resume includes work for Rufus, Bob James, Herbie Hancock, Klymaxx, Jeffrey Osborne, Aretha Franklin, The Manhattan Transfer, Siedah Garrett and Stephanie Mills.  So although 2016 continues to be the worst year ever, New Problem Tuesdays takes this opportunity to do what we've done all year long: celebrate the best from our fallen heroes.  If you knew nothing about "The Invisible Man" before, then get ready to sing along...

RANDOM THOUGHT ALERTS!!! (Vol. 1, No. 12)

Have you ever had a hankering for food and watching TV or going on social media only intensified your cravings?!?!  Because I worked on Labor Day, I missed my last opportunity for a summer cookout--not like I was invited to any cookouts, but still--and had a taste for some BBQ ribs.  Of course, what was one of the first pictures I see on Facebook from somebody's cookout?  That's right: a delicious looking slab of BBQ ribs sprawled across the grill--and the brother looked like he knew what he was doing.  Add insult to injury, I DVR'd both General Hospital and Atlanta, watched them two days later and what did both episodes feature??  What else...ribs.  In fact, they didn't even show the ribs on GH; all they had to do was mention ribs and I was ready to head to Port Charles.  Sadly, it took me nearly three weeks to satisfy the basic craving and nearly a month to get a super-tasty half rack of baby back ribs.  (MORE RANDOMNESS: as I typed that, I thought of Fat Bastard from Austin Powers in Goldmember singing, "I want my baby back, baby back, baby back, baby back, baby back...ribs."  You did, too.  Admit it.)  As long as I don't have to see anybody post pictures of sushi anytime soon, then I'll manage with that craving for another week before I have to buckle down for a Volcano Roll.  Now that I've made your mouth water--which is becoming the new theme over D.C. Metro and PBS Kids--let's get to the madness...

Scribbler's Rave & Favorite Five Special Edition: A Tribute to Kashif

When I heard news of the passing of legendary music producer, songwriter, musician and artist Kashif Saleem (born Michael Jones) at the age of 56, I was heartbroken and could only think was, "Another person connected to my youth has died???  Seriously...2016 is the worst year of all time."  It wasn't long ago when TV One profiled him on their critically-acclaimed Unsung series and took us R&B lovers down memory lane from his beginnings with B.T. Express to his unmatched production and songwriting resume to his solo recording career.  So when I was figuring out what my favorite songs of his were, the top three choices were pretty easy.  However, I felt some kind of way leaving out such great songs like the majority of his eponymous debut, "Are You the Woman" (featuring background vocals by two of my favorite artists in Whitney Houston and Lillo Thomas), his remake of Mother's Finest's "Love Changes" with Meli'sa Morgan, "Love the One I'm With (A Lot of Love)" with Melba Moore and arguably the biggest snub in "Love Come Down" by Evelyn "Champagne" King.  Nevertheless, y'all know how my anything-but-typical countdowns work, so let's celebrate some of Kashif's best work New Problem Tuesdays style...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (October 2016)

Although I'm not someone who vehemently resists change, my subconscious somehow didn't get that memo.  Out of the ten songs from last month's countdown, five of them have returned for this month's list in their original form while another one has haunted me in an alternative form.  Out of those six songs, the beginning of this month's cycle began with a three-horse race between Ralph Tresvant, Silk and Sherrick for pole position, but if Simone Manuel's historic accomplishment taught us nothing, the initial leaders or favorites don't always win in the end.  (I know...hella dramatic.)  Of course, we always have to talk about the losers.  Mariah Carey's "Vision of Love" greeted me ferociously one morning as I reminisced about the summer of 1990, but she didn't make it past noon.  Even with Jermaine Jackson's "Two Ships" hitting me at two different points of the month, perhaps the waves from the passing ships didn't make enough of a splash in my mind.  "The Love I Lost" by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes harassed me at work for a day or two, but my brain may have lost love for it.  Finally, discussing Babyface's brilliance on the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack immediately brought Mary J. Blige's "Not Gon' Cry" to mind.  However, her awkward rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "American Skin (41 Shots)" to Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in a promo for her upcoming series on Apple TV, The 411, may have quickly unseated one of my faves from the Queen of Hip Hop Soul from the rotation.  So enough of the rambling about nonentities and on with the cut makers...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (September 2016)

You never know how a month's worth of random songs being lodged in the corners of your mind will work.  Once the last batch of brain invaders left the scene of the crime, the first culprit looking to raid was "In My House" by the Mary Jane Girls.  Truth be told, I can't even tell you what made me think of that song recently because as much as I've always liked it, I don't think about it very often.  Hence, I had a feeling neither "In My House" would make the cut nor "Put It In Your Mouth" by Akinyele, "Tonight, I Celebrate My Love" by Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack", "My Dad's Gone Crazy" by Eminem nor "The Lovers" by Alexander O'Neal.  Guy's "Goodbye Love" had three opportunities to make the list--twice on its own and once via sampling on Mary J. Blige's "Don't Go"--but still didn't make it despite a strong resurgence.  Of all people, Rihanna nearly made "Get Out of My Brain!" history with three entries including "Sex With Me" and "Needed Me", but you will soon see which one endured.  Now that the losers have been accounted for, let's talk about the winners...

Scribbler's Late AF Post of the Week: In Heavy Rotation (August 2016)

Whereas I went from a "Black Music Matters" in June to mainly "White Boy Wasted" in July, the August edition of "In Heavy Rotation" has its own swagger.  Not only could many of these picks be interchangeable, but most of them are from artists who I like and respect, but I'm nowhere near the head of their fan clubs.  However, that's the marvel of music: there's always an opportunity for an artist to change your mind or make you more of a believer in their work--especially if it's evident they have the talent and charisma to keep your attention for the majority or the entirety of a project.  So enough talking, let's get to the tunes...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (August 2016)

The month of July leading into August was an interesting time for music for a few reasons.  First and foremost, this is one of the few times where every song that entered the countdown stayed on the countdown--which is ironic because the beginning of the month found me flooding my ears with music, but I was probably tired of having melodies and beats on my mind for the majority of the last 24 days.  Second, there were a lot of times where one song would make me think of another song or one moment would remind me of another moment where I was thinking about the same song or sets of songs...pretty much a real fustercluck.  Third, I've had quite a few instances where I've had the desire to hear music either from those with whom I've broken bread or who I've known better than the back of my hand.  (Hold on...checking this extra hairy patch on the back of my hand...okay, I'm good.)  So in the August edition of the "'Get Out of My Brain!' Countdown of the Month", you all will witness "Moments In Intersectionality", "Moments In Shameless Plugging" and two other songs that won't leave me alone.  Let's jump to it...

Scribbler's Rave & Favorite Five: A Countdown for Mrs. Scribbler

If I've said it before, then I'll say it again: as much as music keeps me going on my own, music is often the life blood between me and my closest family members, friends, lovers lost and lovers kept and Mrs. Scribbler is certainly no exception to that rule.  Whether it's been on long road trips, date nights, hanging out in the house or just random moments, there are so many songs and albums that have provided the soundtrack to our life as best friends, boyfriend and girlfriend and eventually husband and wife.  So to kick off the celebration of our eighth wedding anniversary, I share with you all a special "Rave & Favorite Five" dedicated to my Babushka.  Be warned: the majority of it might make you need a barf bag and be on your Ice Pick from Don't Be a Menace "aiight, that's enough of that sentimental sh--" flow.  Let's go...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (July 2016)

Poor The Last Dragon soundtrack. You did your best to stay in my consciousness.  I wrote a solid post about your movie and constantly had you on my mind because, like The Last Dragon itself, you're pretty friggin' awesome.  You had a firm leg up on such competition as Miki Howard's "Baby, Be Mine"--which was only holding on until recently because of the TV One movie, Love Under New Management: The Miki Howard Story--by having not one but two songs stuck in my brain: Willie Hutch's "The Glow" and DeBarge's "Rhythm of the Night".  In the end, however, you got beat out by party records, indie artists, originals and remakes, Philly soul and children's songs.  This was your best shot to make this countdown, but you blew it.  Maybe if I watch The Last Dragon again sometime soon, then you'll make the cut.  Okay...so now that I've effectively dragged a soundtrack as if it were a real person--yes, I'm a bit touched--let's get to the songs that harassed me even more...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (May 2016)

So in yet another attempt to expand my blog and include as many facets of myself as you can stand, I thought about how songs frequently get stuck in our heads for hours, days, weeks and even months.  There are some that we absolutely love, some that we are in like with and nails scratching on a chalkboard might pale in comparison to the rest.  Most times, they're renting out brain space because we associate them with a memory, a place or a person; other times, it's completely inexplicable.  Hence, I bring to you all a new monthly posting series: "Scribbler's 'Get Out of My Brain!' Countdown of the Month."  Now before we begin, two things.  First, I don't have an ASCAP or BMI representative in my head tracking every single spin in my own head, so these are totally metric-less estimations.  Second, y'all know that I can't kick off the inaugural post of a series like this without naming the songs that got bumped out like "Grateful" by Hezekiah Walker & LFC, "Hold On (Change Is Comin')" by Sounds of Blackness, "5 Steps" by Dru Hill (which almost came back into the countdown), "Truffle Butter" by Nicki Minaj and "Splackavellie" by Pressha (which some of y'all either don't remember, have never heard or haven't heard since it was out, so that would've need a nice throwback to '98).  It would've been nice to include those songs--all of which I fool with--but they didn't flood my brain as much as these ten little numbers...