Kansas City Playlist: Memorial Read-Along

As always, our veteran pals remind us that this weekend and Memorial Day is about more than just BBQ, swimming pools and the start of summer fun times. 

More than anything, it's a time to remember our dearly departed and consider the sacrifice made by so many members of the U.S. military over the course of American history.  

For Kansas City, this weekend takes on special meaning given that Liberty Memorial is the single greatest monument against military conflict that was built following the devastation of WWI that was completely pointless, without meaning or justification. 

In respect to "The War To End All Wars" but didn't . . .

We wanted to invite our most dedicated readers to do a bit of Summer reading with us . . .  

A recent Pulitzer winner captured our attention and it's worth mentioning tonight . . . 

Angel Down is a World War I novel, written as a single unbroken sentence. The protagonist is a draft dodger and then an army private who encounters an angel on the battlefield.

The plan . . . 

We're recommending this book and hope that we can finish it by the end of the Summer so that we can talk about it with TKC readers who are also intrigued by the premise.

For tonight . . . 

We share our www.TonysKansasCity.com playlist on the topic of memories and tribute. . .

Let's start with an early 2000s-era band that is getting much kinder reviews after reactionary hipster backlash earlier at the apex of their career . . . Here's a fun fact about their most sentimental song . . . Frontman Chad Kroeger sings about breaking into his high school "half a dozen times". He actually got charged with 11 counts of breaking and entering, but he admitted in interviews that "11 times" didn't rhyme well so he changed the lyrics.

A somewhat more recent clip from the world of blue-eyed hip-hop: Macklemore convinced Kesha to collaborate on the nostalgic track "Good Old Days" by sending her "heavy texting guilt trips". Kesha had been in Seattle on a day off, and Macklemore finally talked her into stopping by the studio, where the two friends ended up writing and recording the song in just a couple of hours.

Possibly the most underrated heavy metal tribute that still holds up after all these years . . . Or at least not many middle-aged dudes will debate us on the merits of the track . . . "Back in Black" by AC/DC: A hard-hitting, fast-paced rock anthem written as an powerhouse tribute to their late lead singer, Bon Scott, celebrating his rock-and-roll spirit rather than mourning him.

Yacht rock for the bridge . . . Not just the source material for Warren G & Nate Dogg's "Regulate" from 1994 . . . There's a much nicer bit of backstory: The 1982 smooth-soul classic "I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)" features a famous family connection: Michael McDonald brought in his sister, Maureen, to sing the background vocals.

Finally, we finish with a classic that pays tribute to musical legends who often played in Kansas City during our golden era . . . "Sir Duke" is Stevie Wonder's joyful, horn-heavy tribute to jazz legend Duke Ellington and other pioneers of Black music. Wonder explicitly namechecks musical royalty in the lyrics, honoring Count Basie, Glenn Miller, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald.

Wonder wrote the track following the death of Ellington in 1974. Having previously lost idols like Wes Montgomery before getting to collaborate with them, Wonder wanted to pay his respects while these musical giants were still fondly remembered.

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