You love potatoes?  Yeah me too!  Sometimes we try to make great breakfast foods at home and we hit a home run, and sometimes it's like....eh...OK.....

Let's crank up your Home fries Game right here, right now!

Eggs, sausage, these, and English Muffin, and a Bloody Mary?  I'm in!

Best Home Fries Ever!

Dustin Lynch not only released a new single today, "Party Mode", he released a whole new album called 'Blue In The Sky'! Getting back to the song though, this is a post-break up anthem about going out and having fun with your friends to get your mind off your ex. But, also looking at that silver lining in a heartbreak and the future that lies ahead.

Lots of yak the past few days about the fact that the Bengals are in the Superbowl and the Browns are not. There is no shortage of opinions on this from ESPN and local sports radio and TV.  Reminder, the only people that thought is was preordained that Browns would be there are those  - frankly talking heads and their lousy take about the Browns last August.  The Browns had to earn it, they did not, but why?

Joe Burrow and Baker Mayfield have some things in common and some not.  Both first pick QB's in the draft, both charged with turning around terrible teams and both in a tough division.  Both suffering a big injury.  The differences? Baker has played for more years, two of them with a clown show coaching staff that is now gone, and he is injured right now.  Burrow has played two years with a solid coaching staff and plan and is over his injury and is healthy now. 

Burrow is better, but that has nothing to do with Baker. Burrow is better than virtually all others from the neck up, and has incredible skills from the neck down. He is a generational guy.  Cerebral, smart, prepared, Brady-like.  If he stays healthy, he will be better than most that have ever played the game. And that again has nothing to do with Baker. Browns fans can't compare the two, but they do for some reason. If Burrow was there the year the Browns had the top pick, they would have taken him of course.

Baker was significantly hurt all year, as was the Browns offensive line, as was basically Kareem Hunt, and Jarvis Landry.  Covid hit the Browns late in the year and cost us a win or two.  The head coach gets bored watching the best running attack in the NFL for some reason and abandons it in big games and calls plays that are head scratching at best and ridiculous at worst.  There were some players here doggin' it all year making it very problematic in the locker room too. They have absolutely awful special teams, and a kicker that doesn't make field goals in big games.  Fair question, what team survives all that and has a great year?

Tough words? Yes, and all true. We are not in the Superbowl and those are among the reasons why. If the narrative over the next number of years is going to be about Burrow and Baker that's time and energy wasted. Burrow is a Bengal and Baker is a Brown and that's just the luck of the draft.

So, why is Burrow in the Superbowl?  Or more accurately and honestly, why are the BENGALS in the Superbowl? He's 100% healthy, as is most of his team. They are well coached, and they have sunk about 200 million (fact) into their defense over the past two years.  They have a GREAT kicker that they drafted and drafted an amazing receiver that Burrow wanted badly and he's made all the difference.  They also beat the Steelers twice and the Ravens twice to get in position to make the playoffs. I have said that here for years, you must beat the Steelers TWICE a year and they did, we did not. If we would have, we would be in the playoffs. BTW who beat the Bengals TWICE this year?  The Browns.  And Baker has never lost to Burrow. 

And another BTW, if the horribly coached Browns could have won just 1 more game of the five they SHOULD have won but blew from the sidelines, the last game against the Bengals would have been for the playoffs.  Math says the Browns are not far away, but reality says they might be. The Browns issue is not solely Baker, who needs to get healthy and play the way he can.  It's organizational. They need to be better in many avenues outside of that.

But here is the good news.  With all that went wrong this year there is next year to learn from this and get it right.  Sign Baker to a deal that makes sense and get that behind you, rid yourselves of guys who are not loyal and don't want to be here.  Start beating the Steelers, and Ravens and beat Burrow when it's his turn. Get healthy all across the board, and get smart for the love of God and make play calls, coaching, roster and draft decisions that make at least some kind of sense. As a fan, I would ask you maybe lay off Baker (who needs to be better) and jump on the coaching staff, they are far more of the problem.

I will not moan about the fact they have Burrow and we have Baker. 30 other teams don't have Burrow either.  I will look forward to the meetings where Baker and the Browns beat Burrows Bengals in the years ahead.   I hope Burrow wins this weekend, it'll be fun to beat the best next year.

GO BROWNS!

In case you missed some of these from the recent past, let's get you caught up. Here's some GREAT stars from a few different era's I've written recently  - Grab a coffee, and your earbuds, and get comfy!  Thanks for reading!

Alabama

Marie Osmond

Doug Stone

Suzy Bogguss

Steve Wariner

Rosanne Cash

Earl Thomas Conley

Faith Hill

John Anderson

The area team that many thought would never be be good again, is!  The Cavaliers are one of the best teams in the NBA right now.  Yep, the Cavs are still in the league and are really good!

For those who thought they would never be good again after LeBron left just simply watch too much ESPN, and probably never played the game or don't really know the game.  The Cavs have been in the league since 1970 and had very good and very bad teams before Lebron was even born. And the same will be said long after he retires. 

This team is fun to watch. I went to a game a couple months ago with the Beautiful Windy, and we want to go again.  This team likes each other, plays hard and is very talented. If they stay healthy and make a move or two more this week, they will be very tough to beat in the regular season, and post season.

It's fun to see the Cavs good again.  GO CAVS!!!

Box Office Results - Jackass Forever 24 million~!

New This Week - Blacklight (Neeson)

Death On The Nile 

Marry Me (JLo)

Jackass – Is also a hit with movie critics surprising approval 

Catherine Zeta-Jones - Will be in the upcoming Disney Plus series National Treasure, based on the Nicolas Cage movie.(Story) 

NBC - Has renewed That’s My Jam, hosted by Jimmy Fallon, for a second season  (Story)  

Yellowstone - Season 5 is now officially a go (Story)

Oscars Are Out 

BEST PICTURE 

Belfast 

Coda
Don't Look Up
Drive My Car
Dune
King Richard

Licorice Pizza
Nightmare Alley
The Power of the Dog
West Side Story

Razzies Are Out

WORST PICTURE

Diana the Musical (The Netflix Version)
Infinite
Karen
Space Jam: A New Legacy
The Woman in the Window

This Weekend – Check out my Country Music Memory Lane (link)

Kassi Ashton celebrated her birthday yesterday, and today she is giving us a gift. New music! She's released her debut radio single "Dates In Pickup Trucks", which she co-wrote with David Garcia and Luke Laird. The song will take you back to distant care-free memories of the past. Kassi said in a press release, "'Dates In Pickup Trucks' is meant to be sang along to, with the wheels rolling you forward and the speakers taking you back."

Beth asked that I could feature one of her favs, Mary Chapin Carpenter. Of course!  There are certain artists in country music where the long range history is not overly kind to them.  She fits that bill.  Her terrific talent, incredible originality and big success is 100% undeniable.  There was so much amazing music out there during her run.  But make zero mistake, MCC was terrific!

To Me, This Is The Absolute Right Idea For A New Artist To Get Noticed

MCC came along at the right time for her and for us. Country was in a big boom and yes the traditionalists were solidly here and there was no shortage of mega-stars. Her music was a bit different  - as was she.  She was from the East Coast originally, and not a lot of country singers from there.  Also her music, although charting country, seemed to be coming to us from the outside. There was a certain, folk, or Americana sound to her songs, voice, style, arrangements and her appeal.  I always felt the subject matter and lyrics of many of her songs came from a slightly different place and perspective than most.  I also think that was the absolute key to her big success.  She had the musical DNA to be just different enough to cut through and get noticed.  For some fans who were new to us, and maybe not sure about us yet, MCC convinced them they were in the right place.  She was a truly amazing vocalist.

Early Success From Her Breakthrough Album

She broke through in 1989 after a couple of albums that misfired, and introduced herself with a terrific little two minute song called, How Do from the album, State Of The Heart.  How Do  only went to number 19, but it without question got her noticed.  It was a fun and easy to listen to song that led to three more songs off that breakthrough album with two going top ten.  To me, that song is about the best example of what new artists today should do. Find a good little positive song, do it right, keep it short and introduce yourself as a vocalist and talent that people want to get to know better.  Leave them wanting more  -  To me, How Do,  is the blueprint song for that. That little song sent her on her way to selling millions of albums.  Very savvy.

Big Song -  A Real Listener Fav!  This Song Will Live Forever

I remember her breakthrough very well. I was at KLIK -The Big 950 in Jefferson City, Missouri doing the morning show there, and I remember having conversations with the rest of the staff off the air, that there was something different here that was worth listening to.  That song made me want to hear more from her.  You see, I have always felt that's all that a debut song is really supposed to do.  Her music was straight forward, honest and delivered by someone you believed. There was nothing phony about MCC.

Again, A Very Unpredictable Big Hit Song

She came along around the same time as the amazing Suzy Bogguss, and there were some similarities with the two of them. I felt that there was room for this sound that mildly blended a few different styles together and worked in country without alienating the newly rejuvenated country core. Bogguss to me was a big more folksy and MCC was a bit more Americana, but each was coming from a new place.  Both exceedingly talented and a real nice new branch on our tree.  They were not pop-country, fans has had enough of that, but they were not true traditionalists. Country was the trunk, and they were a new and accepted branch.

Listeners Loved This Song - I Did Too

MCC's next album, Shooting Straight In The Dark was a big hit, selling a million on the heels of the previous album going GOLD.  But it was all leading up to her next album, her masterpiece, Come On, Come On in 1992 that sold an incredible 5 million and had a staggering SEVEN hit songs off of it.  By any stretch of any imagination anywhere, it is one of the outstanding country albums of the 1990's.  That sales figure was incredible for the time, or any time really. Only a few studio albums of the entire decade would sell more than this one.  In that regard, she is on the same list with the heavyweights of the decade.

Her Only Charted Number One Song

Her next two albums were big successes and her popularity was here to stay.  She is the only artist to win four consecutive Grammy's for Best Female Country Performance. She has sold about 14 million albums and has been inducted into a few Hall's Of Fame.  She is a first class songwriter and performer.  She is one of those incredible artists that when you see her again on these videos you are reminded just how great she was.

Another From The Incredible  - Come On, Come On Album

She contended and won in a very competitive era in country.  She led the way for a good long while -  Pre-Shania on the charts. For a period of about six years she was a dominant artist in our format and brought us a sound that was slightly different than most of the artists did.  I think one of her great calling cards was that she was unpredictable in her music.  You never really knew what you were gonna get, she seldom if ever recorded the same song twice. I call that versatile and that's a darn rare thing. I was a fan, I felt she brought us a different kind of seasoning in the country music soup, and it was refreshing.

A Real Fan Favorite

She is also a great example of how tough the biz can be. You are not promised a 15 or 20 year chart run, it does happen, but it is not the rule.  MCC had her great run, and today we thankfully have her fantastic music to remember just how good her music was and is.

Mary Chapin Carpenter was a different kind of star, that put a different color on our country music canvas, and we are better for it.

I like eggs.  I mean, I am not obsessed with them or anything.  But at weekend breakfast time either at home or if we are eating out somewhere, it's always a "egg" breakfast for me and not a "carby one."  for me.   Poached is my fav, I also like omelets, and scrambled.  BUT sometimes I like a real special kind of egg dish, and here are two of them. 

Give 'em a go!

Spanish Fried Eggs!

Scotch Eggs!  - Love when Windy makes these!  Incredible!

One of the beef's we hear at WQMX, and heck at every country station I have worked for over the last 40 years is on certain songs is, "That ain't Country."  Country is an ever evolving format and there are many different kinds of country. Truth be told, there are some artists out there, that are trying to pretend they are country and they, and we know they are not.  And that can be a problem sometimes.  But it's not a new one.

Over all those decades, some of the time these fans have been absolutely right.  But in the case of my Song Of The Week this week, they can't say that here. Flower Shops by Ernest (with Morgan Wallen) is exceedingly traditional country that could have been big in Conway Twitty's era, Alabama's, Garth's, Toby Keith's, and today. This is flat out traditional and a very powerful song.  Fantastically written song, classic arrangement, GREAT steel guitar work.

Take a listen if you have not heard it yet!