Kansas City Playlist Freeze Out: Inflation & War Amid Election 2024

There's a myth that the U.S. has avoided a recession despite dire economic circumstances for most Americans.

Sketchy reporting might convince Americans to keep running up credit card debt but the underlying fear is hard to shake.

A few stories that might send a shiver up the spine of economists . . . 

CBS: 56 million credit cardholders have been in debt for at least a year, survey finds

CNN:  Credit card delinquencies surpass pre-pandemic levels

Quartz: US credit card balances hit a new record as delinquencies rise in the background

Accordingly . . . 

Here's an apt "data driven" quote about our collective economic subconscious . . .

"Citi Research listed five of the biggest market and investment themes anticipated for 2024: delayed easing cycles, inflation risks, diverging growth from central banks, broadening of earnings and markets, and the risk of recession."

Meanwhile . . . 

The world is losing interest in Eastern European conflict still raging whilst the Holy Land war expands and signs up new combatants every day.

And all of this gives us a rather chilling glimpse at the future when politicos aren't motivated to make crazy promises ahead of election cycles.

Nevertheless, our www.TonysKansasCity.com blog community will take a quick pause from bad news in order to celebrate some of our favorite chill tunes amid subzero temperatures . . .

Let's start with this iconic tune as we contend that The White Stripes were never a "millennial" band but instead represented Gen X unwilling to go gently into the good night. 

Here's our favorite B-side wherein Meg White takes the lead and reminds us that spirit, charm and bravery earned her a place in American music history despite the fact that she's a terrible drummer and an even worse singer . . .

The last remaining terrestrial radio listeners in Kansas City know this Foreigner song all to well given that the machines that program local "classic" stations play it far, far too often for those brave Boomer souls still reliving their 1977 glory days on metro highways during drive time.

Our Saturday night nostalgia isn't just for melancholy songs but also features a bit of fun only because watching 40-something middle-class white women recite every word of this 90s hip-hop anthem is always a good time before the wine crying hits later in the evening/early morning.

On a brighter note . . . 

Kansas City is a jazz town and this classic from Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong will raise spirits even amid arctic temperatures.

Finally . . . 

A Hazy Shade of Winter was initially written & performed by Simon & Garfunkel in 1966 but this 1987 cover by The Bangles hits home a bit harder. The tune was featured in "Less Than Zero" — One of the better 80s movies based on a Brett Easton Ellis novel that not only signaled the rise of America's debilitating drug problem but also revealed that the elite weren't ever going to be able to hide from epidemics impacting the rest of the nation.

As always, thanks for reading this week and have a safe & fun Saturday night.