Saturday 9: Back In The USA

SATURDAY 9: BACK IN THE USA (1978)

On Saturdays I take a break from the heavy stuff and have some fun…

Unfamiliar with this week's song? Hear it here. 

From the archives, with some tweaks

1) This song lists seven cities -- New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago, Chattanooga, Baton Rouge and St. Louis -- that Linda just loves. How many have you visited?

Of course New York but I have also visited Chicago, Chattanooga, and St. Louis.

Chicago when I was doing field trips for work, I landed at O'Hara and rented a car to drive to one of the rural towns. Chattanooga when I was knee high to a grasshopper and we were visiting all the Civil War battlefields like Lookout Mountain and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Mammoth Cave National Park, and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

2) The lyrics refer to hamburgers sizzling on the grill. What toppings do you believe make a perfect burger?

Oh… as I rub my hands thinking about hamburgers for the 4^th

• Tomato,
• Lettuce,
• A mild onion because you want it to overpower the other ingredient.
• The hamburger meat which has a high fat content I mix with an egg, bread crumbs, Worcestershire sauce, a dash of Montreal Steak Seasoning and blue cheese.
• On a hard roll and hope that the roll doesn’t crumble.

3) The original recording of this song by Chuck Berry has always been one of Linda Ronstadt's favorites, one she used to enjoy singing along with in the car. What's the most recent song you sang?

Ha! it was so long ago that I don’t remember. I know when Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody comes on I sing it.

4) Linda performed The National Anthem at Game 3 of the 1977 World Series. The New York Yankees won both that game and the series. How is your baseball team doing this season?

What team? I really don’t have any favorite, the close that I come is the Red Sox. Being in New England you do not have a choice.

I was asked why Connecticut is divided between the Yankee and the Red Sox I think that the rivalry was created by radio and then TV. A long the shore the media stations carry the Yankee’s and in the Hartford area the media follows the Red Sox. Also it is passed down through generations, many times my brother has taken his grandchildren to Fenway Park. 

5) On the sleeve for this record, Linda was photographed on roller skates. Emergency rooms report a spike in wrist injuries, with people falling off skates and skateboards and jamming their wrists catching softballs. Have you recently been to the Emergency Room or Urgent Care? 

Not since 1998.

6) It's July, so summer is in full swing. Bug bites are a big summer annoyance. Are you itching and scratching this morning?

Ha, ha, they mosquito were so bad up here on the Cape that it made national news.

‘Biblical' Mosquito Swarms Plague Town on Cape Cod

P.S. My cottage is in Wellfleet.

Since this is our last Saturday 9 before Independence Day, let's ask some questions related to the holiday. 

6) The Pennsylvania Evening Post was the first newspaper to print the Declaration of Independence. What's the most recent printed media you have read (newspaper, magazine, newsletter, etc.)?

My local rag, a free town newspaper.

7) In high school, Sam was crazy about American history and got good grades. Science was her worst subject. In high school, where did you shine? In what subject were your grades not so hot?

Science. I hated English, they give all these rules to follow and then they say “Oh by the way, these are the exceptions to the rules” it seems like there are more exceptions to the rules than there are rules. In math 2 + 2 = 4 with no exceptions.

8) The first 4th of July parade each year is held at 12:01 AM in Gatlinberg, TN. Will you attend a parade or fireworks to celebrate the 4th?

No, I was thinking about going to the beach to photograph the fireworks in P’town but see my answer to #6.

9) Americans love to celebrate our independence. In fact, there are more than 30 towns all across the US called Independence. There are two in MN alone (one outside Duluth, the other west of Minneapolis). Please google it and let us know: does your state have an Independence?

Nope.

Did you know that New England has two Mount Washington?