The Kinks – Philip Nel

Be an optimist instead. #PlagueSongs, no. 6

The final song on the Kinks’ Give the People What They Want (1981) is also one of the most hopeful songs in the band’s oeuvre. It has long been a favorite of mine, but I only just learned it for this Plague Songs series. Unlike previous entries in this series, I had to record this

Dallas 1963, New York 1980, Washington 1981

November 22, 2013Philip NelAssassination, Autobiography, Death, Don DeLillo, John F. Kennedy, John Lennon, Ronald Reagan, Steinski, The KinksAssassination, Autobiography, Death, Don DeLillo, John F. Kennedy, John Lennon, Ronald Reagan, Steinski, The Kinks4 Comments

On the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy, I happen to be staying at the Washington Hilton – the hotel in front of which President Reagan was not assassinated 32 and a half years ago. Don DeLillo called the Kennedy assassination, “The seven seconds that broke the back of the American century.” But