Country, when Country was cool

Happy New Year!

We made it through another year and 309 SSS posts, which nearly qualifies as a "blogospheric body of work." Whatever that gets me. A cup of fresh Sendik's Supreme!

(And that supplies me with my first thought of 2010, which is ... my that Sendik's coffee really is pretty good. I wonder if it's really Alterra coffee hiding in a Sendik's package? Think I'll pick some more up on my next trip to the store.)

And now on to weightier less caffeinated matters, like:

Whatever became of Country Joe McDonald? It's his birthday today and we were hoping to catch up with him. Turns out he's as easy to find as clicking here. It's a very cool place, Country Joe's Place, and I highly recommend you check it out if you, too, are curious what's happening with the only guy at Woodstock who could count to seven.

And it's 1-2-3 what are we fightin' for?
Don't ask me I don't give a damn, next stop is Vietnam
And it's 5-6-7 open up the Pearly Gates
There aint no time to wonder why
Whoopie we're all gonna die

(It's kind of interesting, now that we've seen Inglourious Basterds, to compare Country Joe's pronounciation of "Vietnam" to Brad Pitt's "Nazis." Anything for a rhyme, I guess.)

As war protest songs go -- and couldn't we use another great one right about now? -- "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' To Die Rag" has to rank near the top. What a memorable song, an unforgettable era, a raucously rebellious moment in time...

Among the cool and interesting links on wwww.countryjoe.com are:
-- Next Stop is Vietnam (news and blues for vets)
-- Section 43 (strange/familiar stuff)
-- Musical notes (including the music and chords to the Rag)
-- A Tribute to Florence Nightingale (I'm really not sure)

Under Wuzzup, we discover that Country Joe's next gig is a Tribute to Woody Guthrie at Mississippi Studies in Portland, Oregon on Jan. 29. He also hosts what sounds like a very cool open mic night the second Friday of every month at the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists Hall in Berkeley.

And there's a chance to score great savings at the Country Store, where Joe proclaims: "Because the capitalist pigs have caused us to plunge into another Not So Great Depression and endless war, I -- Country Joe McDonald -- will bring good times to the working class of the world, be they black, white, or whatever, in the form of FANTASTIC SAVINGS on Country Joe merchandise. Take a look at the brand new offers below."

You really should check it out.