Diary of a Newspaper Hawk

Ain't no sunshine when she's gone? Not much here in Chicago whether's she's here or not. Warmer temps don't mean sun. They mean slush.   Stories about the dark side of Chicago continue. Terrorism suspects . Cops who tortue suspects . Corrupt lawyers going to prison . How much the Chicago Bears suck .   And this isn't getting into our corrupt politics. President Obama, Illinois' holy child, hasn't done squat for Chicago. We are not better of than we were in 2008 under George Bush. Unemployment is worse, state and city politics is as bad as when Blago tried to sell Obama's seat. So Mr. Yes We Can is just Mr. I Hope We Will.  

Been looking around. What do I see? Crabby people who don't know how good they've got it. So what, the Cubbies are being sold? You think they'd be sold if they were making tons of money? No way. Why aren't they making tons? Because the present management can't get the job done. The White Sox take it all the way. What do Cubs fans do? Whine about a guy named Bartman who had a ball land in his lap. Bears fans are no better. They gripe about QBs. It could be worse. We could've had Brett Favre. Instead, all they got on their lips are two words: Nineteen. Eightyfive. What's that? Right. 24 years ago. It ain't just sports. Politics too. Whoa is me, whoa is the nation, whoa is the world. I call talk show lemmings. The Pied Piper of the Air Waves gets on, complains about the president. This year, they hate Obama. Last year, it was Bush. Their supporters can't hear any wrong, and their detractors can't hear anything good. Both blame the media, but it is t...

Now no one out there who knows Chicago doesn't Koko. Know the blues? You know Koko. Know anything about music? Maybe, maybe not. She wasn't famous like Bach, but she is a legend like Elvis. Koko's dead. I saw her in a few blues bars over the years, and caught her from the lawn seats at the Chicago Blues Fest . The Chicago Tribune collected what others are saying . They describe her Koko Taylor, born Cora Walton in Memphis, Tennessee, moved to Chicago in 1955 and is known as Queen of the Blues. In 1966, she had a major hit with her cover of Willie Dixon's "Wang Dang Doodle (see video below)," a tune that's since become a signature hit for her. Her smoky, almost-masculine-like vocals have influenced some of the most revered female singers around, including Bonnie Raitt and Janis Joplin. Even now, at 79, she pretty much owns the blues scene, having won 25 W.C. Hardy Awards (now known as the Blues Music Awards), more than any other artist.