Obituaries for 2017

[goatprairie]

@Freya
The songs we've been talking about are almost enough to forgive him for "MacArthur's Park!" ;)

MacArthur Park...not MacArthur's Park.  Supposedly, Jimmy Webb went to Ireland to rehearse the song with Richard  Harris. No matter how many times they rehearsed it, Harris kept on saying "MacArthur's Park" instead of "MacArthur Park" which is the real name of the park.  It's also the name of the song on the record.
Webb finally gave up and allowed the song to go with Harris singing "MacArthur's Park."
By the way, it's one of my favorite songs although millions of people like you hate it...including my wife who threatens to brain me everytime I turn the volume up when it comes on the car radio.

[Gefn]

MacArthur Park...not MacArthur's Park.  Supposedly, Jimmy Webb went to Ireland to rehearse the song with Richard  Harris. No matter how many times they rehearsed it, Harris kept on saying "MacArthur's Park" instead of "MacArthur Park" which is the real name of the park.  It's also the name of the song on the record.
Webb finally gave up and allowed the song to go with Harris singing "MacArthur's Park."
By the way, it's one of my favorite songs although millions of people like you hate it...including my wife who threatens to brain me everytime I turn the volume up when it comes on the car radio.

It's an incredibly complex song. Lots of chords. I'm learning how to play guitar and that's a song I don't think I'd want to tackle

[EasyAce]

MacArthur Park...not MacArthur's Park.  Supposedly, Jimmy Webb went to Ireland to rehearse the song with Richard  Harris. No matter how many times they rehearsed it, Harris kept on saying "MacArthur's Park" instead of "MacArthur Park" which is the real name of the park.  It's also the name of the song on the record.
Webb finally gave up and allowed the song to go with Harris singing "MacArthur's Park."
By the way, it's one of my favorite songs although millions of people like you hate it...including my wife who threatens to brain me everytime I turn the volume up when it comes on the car radio.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF_o7aSjl_E

[Bigun]

 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73v1RqRPKGk

[mountaineer]

It's an incredibly complex song. Lots of chords. I'm learning how to play guitar and that's a song I don't think I'd want to tackle

I used to have the piano sheet music. It's very fun to play, notwithstanding the fact that I really can't stand the song itself.

[goatprairie]

It's an incredibly complex song. Lots of chords. I'm learning how to play guitar and that's a song I don't think I'd want to tackle

I've been playing guitar for more than forty years.  The chords I see in the songbooks with the song are almost impossible. I won't even try even though I love the third ryhthmic part.

[debrawiest]

Quite by accident my 1st Glen Campbell 45 I ever bought was "Wichita Lineman" 

I thought it was a football song.  Turns out it was a pretty good little song.  I kept it.

"And I need you more than want you.
And I want you for all time."

Haunting lyrics sung to perfection. 

[sneakypete]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8TsAh-zYFI&feature=share

@mountaineer

Either I am stupid,or that is the stupidest damn song I have ever heard.

[mountaineer]

Either I am stupid,or that is the stupidest damn song I have ever heard.

Apparently it refers to his fading memory.

[musiclady]

Apparently it refers to his fading memory.

I thought its meaning was quite clear.


And sad......

[sneakypete]

Apparently it refers to his fading memory.

@mountaineer

Thanks,I didn't pick up on that,but even then it's still a stupid self-centered song that is him basically getting in his wife's face and saying she no longer matters.

[EasyAce]

@mountaineer

Thanks,I didn't pick up on that,but even then it's still a stupid self-centered song that is him basically getting in his wife's face and saying she no longer matters.

This is what Julian Raymond, who co-wrote the song, says about its origin:

[Campbell] had a hard day of people asking him about Alzheimer's and how he felt about it. He didn't talk too
much about it, but came up to me and said, 'I don’t know what everybody's worried about. It's not like I’m going
to miss anyone, anyway.' The song by design is simple. I knew we couldn’t do something like "Wichita
Lineman" that had complicated key changes or bigger-range stuff.

[Wingnut]

Apparently it refers to his fading memory.

I thought its meaning was quite clear.



And sad......

The minute I saw the title and also knowing he had alzheimer's....  I knew exactlywhat he meant.  In fact it reminded me of the joke on the subject.
What's the best thing about living with alzheimer's? You get to meet new people everyday.

Any other interpretation of it is pure bunk and should be ridiculed.

[sneakypete]

This is what Julian Raymond, who co-wrote the song, says about its origin:

[Campbell] had a hard day of people asking him about Alzheimer's and how he felt about it. He didn't talk too
much about it, but came up to me and said, 'I don’t know what everybody's worried about. It's not like I’m going
to miss anyone, anyway.' The song by design is simple. I knew we couldn’t do something like "Wichita
Lineman" that had complicated key changes or bigger-range stuff.

@EasyAce

Once again,the selfish "Me,ME,ME,DAMMIT!" attitude. Just because HE won't suffer doesn't mean those who love him won't suffer.

I may be/probably am wrong on this,but it is how I see it.

[Applewood]

For what it's worth -- an interview of Alice Cooper regarding Glen Campbell.  Alice and Glen were good friends:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6q2hsdXenQ

[EasyAce]

@EasyAce

Once again,the selfish "Me,ME,ME,DAMMIT!" attitude. Just because HE won't suffer doesn't mean those who love him won't suffer.

I may be/probably am wrong on this,but it is how I see it.

My paternal grandmother spent the last decade of her life with Alzheimer's. (She died in 2002). Everything I saw,
everything I was told otherwise when I didn't talk to her, told me an Alzheimer's patient is trapped in a world where
he or she are both the center of that world and a lost soul in it. And they suffer accordingly, just as those who love
them suffer over it. It's not a "selfish" attitude, it's the attitude of a genuinely diseased mind robbing a person of
self and compelling that person to fight the robber, ever more futilely, even as the disease strips them of their
knowledge of those they've known and loved for decades to the point where they see even those people as perfect
strangers interfering in their lives. It's an insidious disease, for its victims and for those who love them alike.

[Free Vulcan]

For what it's worth -- an interview of Alice Cooper regarding Glen Campbell.  Alice and Glen were good friends:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6q2hsdXenQ

Great piece. I had forgot - and Alice is right - Campbell was an insanely good guitar player. One of the best ever.

I've also come to respect Cooper and his music in later years. His songs are solid. Even the younglings like him.

[Wingnut]

For what it's worth -- an interview of Alice Cooper regarding Glen Campbell.  Alice and Glen were good friends:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6q2hsdXenQ

I enjoyed that.

This is good too.  His last tour. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqRXOPJzgdY&ab_channel=CBSSundayMorning

[mountaineer]

an Alzheimer's patient is trapped in a world where
he or she are both the center of that world and a lost soul in it. And they suffer accordingly, just as those who love
them suffer over it.

The sad thing is that we don't know how much - or whom - Alzheimers patients actually remember, because they can't express it. My grandmother and father had dementia (different varieties, as my grandmother died at 93 and my father at 69). Late in the process, my father remembered my mother and said, "I love you, sweetie." My grandmother spoke of things that had happened when she was a child. But the rest of us couldn't just ask what they remembered and get a coherent response. You're right, it's horrible. I feel sorry for Glen, because I know he suffered, but even more for his family.

[truth_seeker]

The sad thing is that we don't know how much - or whom - Alzheimers patients actually remember, because they can't express it. My grandmother and father had dementia (different varieties, as my grandmother died at 93 and my father at 69). Late in the process, my father remembered my mother and said, "I love you, sweetie." My grandmother spoke of things that had happened when she was a child. But the rest of us couldn't just ask what they remembered and get a coherent response. You're right, it's horrible. I feel sorry for Glen, because I know he suffered, but even more for his family.

I had a friend, a few years back. He had fairly rapidly advancing Alzheimer's. He was mostly a happy upbeat guy.

But I was seriously injured, arm in a sling. Twice in one hour, he slugged me in that arm.....as if the sling was not there.

I was unable at the time, to deal with it, so I let him go. He died within a few months. I still feel bad, that I didn't know how to handle it.

My mother is 92.5 and in fairly good physical health. But she is uneven, mentally. Remembers the distant past, better than yesterday. She is stuck on a few items.

For example, at a big get-together around the table, she will repetitively inform guests about me: "...you know, he is my first." As if my guests don't all know that.

She is a cable news junkie. My sister explains to her that CNN, repeats every hour or so. But the old gal insists, no it is "new."

[musiclady]

The minute I saw the title and also knowing he had alzheimer's....  I knew exactlywhat he meant.  In fact it reminded me of the joke on the subject.
What's the best thing about living with alzheimer's? You get to meet new people everyday.

Any other interpretation of it is pure bunk and should be ridiculed.

Completely agree.

[musiclady]

My paternal grandmother spent the last decade of her life with Alzheimer's. (She died in 2002). Everything I saw,
everything I was told otherwise when I didn't talk to her, told me an Alzheimer's patient is trapped in a world where
he or she are both the center of that world and a lost soul in it. And they suffer accordingly, just as those who love
them suffer over it. It's not a "selfish" attitude, it's the attitude of a genuinely diseased mind robbing a person of
self and compelling that person to fight the robber, ever more futilely, even as the disease strips them of their
knowledge of those they've known and loved for decades to the point where they see even those people as perfect
strangers interfering in their lives. It's an insidious disease, for its victims and for those who love them alike.

Thank you for that.

[libertybele]

@mountaineer

Thanks,I didn't pick up on that,but even then it's still a stupid self-centered song that is him basically getting in his wife's face and saying she no longer matters.

No.  Not the point of the song at all; with Alzheimer 'victim's' they don't remember people whom they are close to ... she mattered to him and he loved her deeply; the disease caused him to forget her; her face being the last face he remembered and because he doesn't remember, he'll never know what his wife is going through as she loses him to Alzheimer's.

Very sad.  Watch the video of his last days of touring.  I've watched it twice and I cried through the whole thing.  It will make you appreciate how tremendously, incredibly talented Campbell was and even though the disease had taken hold, his music was one part of the brain that was amazingly still functioning.  From my understanding, music utilizes a different part of the brain.  For Glen Campbell, that part of the brain was so developed because of his tremendous musical talent, that it was the very last part of the brain that was consumed by Alzheimer's.

Lyrics - I'm Not Gonna Miss You

I'm still here, but yet I'm gone
I don't play guitar or sing my songs
They never defined who I am
The man that loves you 'til the end

You're the last person I will love
You're the last face I will recall
And best of all, I'm not gonna miss you
Not gonna miss you

I'm never gonna hold you like I did
Or say I love you to the kids
You're never gonna see it in my eyes
It's not gonna hurt me when you cry

I'm never gonna know what you go through
All the things I say or do
All the hurt and all the pain
One thing selfishly remains

I'm not gonna miss you
I'm not gonna miss you


www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-6Vjzq8dAk

[libertybele]

Session Men offline: Glen Campbell & The Wrecking Crew

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9-FfwwXRDg&ab_channel=TheProductionCompanyUSA

It wasn't until I had watched the "I'll Be Me" documentary that I realized he was part of the "Wrecking Crew" ... he had tremendous natural born talent; and he played many instruments.  I was very moved by the documentary and hope it is the beginning in finding a cure for Alzheimer's.  It robs so many people of their lives and affects family members so adversely, so sad.

[truth_seeker]

No.  Not the point of the song at all; with Alzheimer 'victim's' they don't remember people whom they are close to ...

Correct. My sister looks after our mother, 92 yrs of age, and gradually slipping away..

She said within the last year, she has trouble remembering our father, husband of 49 years and father of her five children.

[libertybele]

Two great ones, that died in the last year


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vm3NoFsaKQ0

I usually don't get emotional over celebrities; but Leon and Glen were absolutely amazingly talented and both are legendary.  Their stories each different, but similar in the aspect that few really know how talented they really were; being a part of the "Wrecking Crew" is a story all in it's own.

[libertybele]

Sung in 2012 -- Alzheimer's had already set in.  He's still absolutely fantastic!!!!  It was incredible that his family helped him to continue to tour ... till he just couldn't!  Love it...  Yep ... I'm emotional over this one folks!


www.youtube.com/watch?v=fufM9cICV_g

[libertybele]

Try A Little Kidness!!  Guitar pickin' at its best!!  Amazing! 


www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAPCYoVEjv0

[libertybele]

Gentle On My Mind -- Last Live Performance


www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgTcAZyAzX4

[libertybele]

Glen Campbell - Adios     RIP!


www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzQQoUx1oOU

[TomSea]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Khq8YkZPP64

I prefer the original.

[Wingnut]

Y'all should start a Glen Campbell thread over in the Music forum. Post up your favorite youtube videos and such  Then you could revisit it when you need a Rhinestone Cowboy fix!
Link to forum is:
http://www.gopbriefingroom.com/index.php/board,96.0.html

[libertybele]

Glen Campbell - Amazing Grace (with bagpipes)!


www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUAiWDRh5tU

[corbe]

Glen Campbell album sales soar 13,000 percent after singer's death
 Reuters
5 hrs ago

Analytics company BuzzAngle Music said Campbell's digital album sales rose more than 13,000 percent on Tuesday after news of the musician's passing at the age of 81.

Most of the sales came for Campbell's greatest hits albums, but streaming and sales of his hit songs were also up more than 6,000 percent, BuzzAngle Music reported on Wednesday.

Campbell's death in Nashville, following a nationwide farewell tour in 2012 following his Alzheimer's announcement, brought emotional tributes from country music stars and fans alike.

<..snip..>

http://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/glen-campbell-album-sales-soar-13000-percent-after-singers-death/ar-AApNjfT?li=BBmkt5R&ocid=ientp

[anubias]

My personal favorite that always brings back some sweet memories.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTbTHlTmDX8

[AllThatJazzZ]

Glenn Campbell has died.

http://www.tmz.com/2017/08/08/glen-campbell-dead/

I'm really bummed out about this. RIP, Rhinestone Cowboy

I was at the vet when I read it on Drudge. When the vet and her tech came back in the room, I told them that Glen Campbell had just passed. They looked at me blankly. "Who?"

Honestly! How do you go through life and not know who Glen Campbell is? She said that they were rockers and didn't listen to country stations. I explained to her that he wasn't limited to country stations. His music was Top 40. I named some of the songs he was well known for -- "Galveston" being one of them, and told them that he was in "True Grit." No light came on for them. I really kinda thought "Galveston" would trigger something they could recognize since the vet I visited was at Animal Alliance of GALVESTON County.

[AllThatJazzZ]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8TsAh-zYFI&feature=share

It stuns me when someone criticizes this song. I've only seen a handful of negative comments about it, so I understand that most people do get it. It's such a poignant and haunting lyric about such a devastatingly cruel disease. I remember feeling conflicted when Maureen Reagan passed. I was glad that her dad didn't have to experience the pain of losing her, and yet sad that he couldn't experience the pain of losing her. That's the tragic dichotomy of Alzheimer's.

One of my BFFs takes care of elderly folks, some of whom have dementia. One of her Alzheimer's patients sadly says of herself that she's just a blank sheet of paper. I'm sure in his moments of clarity before his mind completely succumbed to the disease, Glen knew exactly what was ahead of him.   

[AllThatJazzZ]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5cc7xNUA2w

My favorite version of this song.

[Gefn]

I was at the vet when I read it on Drudge. When the vet and her tech came back in the room, I told them that Glen Campbell had just passed. They looked at me blankly. "Who?"

Honestly! How do you go through life and not know who Glen Campbell is? She said that they were rockers and didn't listen to country stations. I explained to her that he wasn't limited to country stations. His music was Top 40. I named some of the songs he was well known for -- "Galveston" being one of them, and told them that he was in "True Grit." No light came on for them. I really kinda thought "Galveston" would trigger something they could recognize since the vet I visited was at Animal Alliance of GALVESTON County.

Netflix just put up that Alzheimer's movie about Glen Campbell so I would assume if you are of the generation who only knows bs like the kardashians, you might be  familiar with that.

Galveston was used as the closing on one of the episodes of that HBO special they did on Robert Hurst. Again, I would think people would recognize him for that.

Unfortunately I think people are indeed getting dumber and dumber, and Mike Judge was correct a decade ago with his movie. We are culturally illiterate

[mountaineer]

It stuns me when someone criticizes this song.

I hope you didn't take any of my comments as criticism of the Campbell video. As one with family members who have had dementia, I certainly wouldn't do that. It's a sad song.

Also sad is that people in Galveston could be unfamiliar with him!

[goatprairie]

I was at the vet when I read it on Drudge. When the vet and her tech came back in the room, I told them that Glen Campbell had just passed. They looked at me blankly. "Who?"

Honestly! How do you go through life and not know who Glen Campbell is? She said that they were rockers and didn't listen to country stations. I explained to her that he wasn't limited to country stations. His music was Top 40. I named some of the songs he was well known for -- "Galveston" being one of them, and told them that he was in "True Grit." No light came on for them. I really kinda thought "Galveston" would trigger something they could recognize since the vet I visited was at Animal Alliance of GALVESTON County.

How old did they look?  If they were at least in their late thirties or early forties, they haven't gotten out much.
But then again I'm nearing seventy, and I'd probably wouldn't recognize many famous, young entertainers today. Never listen to any of them.
However, when I was in my teens many of the people/entertainers I liked (such as Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Red Skelton, etal) were as much as fifty years or more older than I was.  We didn't care what age they were.

[AllThatJazzZ]

Unfortunately I think people are indeed getting dumber and dumber...

I agree. And isn't it ironic that that's happening in such an era as this one where people have access to more information at their fingertips than any previous generation ever has.

[dfwgator]

I agree. And isn't it ironic that that's happening in such an era as this one where people have access to more information at their fingertips than any previous generation ever has.

Because people think they don't have to learn anything, because if they actually do need to know something they can just "Google" it.

[AllThatJazzZ]

I hope you didn't take any of my comments as criticism of the Campbell video. As one with family members who have had dementia, I certainly wouldn't do that. It's a sad song.

Also sad is that people in Galveston could be unfamiliar with him!

Not at all did I consider you to be critical of Glen's song. I had seen someone on this thread say some rather ugly things but then I considered the source.

I remember viewing the song for the first time on YouTube the night he passed. Even, on YouTube -- where people say some of the most hideous, vile things behind their masks of anonymity -- about 98% of the commenters understood the song's message. I think it's a rather remarkable song.

[AllThatJazzZ]

How old did they look?  If they were at least in their late thirties or early forties, they haven't gotten out much.
But then again I'm nearing seventy, and I'd probably wouldn't recognize many famous, young entertainers today. Never listen to any of them.
However, when I was in my teens many of the people/entertainers I liked (such as Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Red Skelton, etal) were as much as fifty years or more older than I was.  We didn't care what age they were.

The vet wasn't a spring chicken but wasn't as old as I am (this year I reached that 7th decade that you're nearing). The tech was quite young. She did know of Glen Campbell but only because of her parents. Both drew a blank when I sang a few notes of "Galveston." (Yes, I sang in the exam room. I'm eccentric that way.)

Like you, I don't have much knowledge of today's singers, except for the few whose work is present in many media venues. Before the groping trial, I knew who Taylor Swift was. The only song I know of hers is from that viral video of the policeman lip syncing it in his car, which I thought was just a hoot. Reminded me of myself and some of my own "performances" behind the wheel. Also, like you, I was well acquainted with the names of the entertainers you mentioned.

Policeman performing Taylor Swift song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XFBUM8dMqw

[berdie]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8TsAh-zYFI&feature=share

The first time I heard that song I broke down in tears. He was still at the point that he knew what was happening @mountaineer

[berdie]

Sung in 2012 -- Alzheimer's had already set in.  He's still absolutely fantastic!!!!  It was incredible that his family helped him to continue to tour ... till he just couldn't!  Love it...  Yep ... I'm emotional over this one folks!


www.youtube.com/watch?v=fufM9cICV_g

I saw a concert on tv he did with his family as back up. His son was feeding him the lyrics. But Glenn, ever the performer, kept a smile on his face and his voice sounded true.

I'm emotional about it as well.

[TomSea]

World's oldest man, Auschwitz survivor Yisrael Kristal dies
    11 August 2017

The world's oldest man - the only member of his immediate family to survive the Holocaust - has died at the age of 113.

Polish-born Yisrael Kristal died on Friday, a month before he was due to turn 114, Israeli media reported.

Mr Kristal, who lived in Haifa, Israel, hit the headlines last year after deciding to celebrate his bar mitzvah a century late.

The original celebration had not taken place because World War One broke out.

Continued: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-40904907

[sneakypete]

The world's oldest man - the only member of his immediate family to survive the Holocaust - has died at the age of 113.

Polish-born Yisrael Kristal died on Friday, a month before he was due to turn 114, Israeli media reported.

Mr Kristal, who lived in Haifa, Israel, hit the headlines last year after deciding to celebrate his bar mitzvah a century late.

The original celebration had not taken place because World War One broke out.

Continued: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-40904907

@TomSea

He WAS the Worlds Oldest Man yesterday.

Today it's someone else.

[Suppressed]

Blanche Blackwell, mistress and muse of James Bond's creator, dies at 104
By Matt Schudel The Washington Post 17 hrs ago

Fascinating... http://www.roanoke.com/news/blanche-blackwell-mistress-and-muse-of-james-bond-s-creator/article_92d89725-1768-5ea9-8945-6c2381bb0a19.html