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Hackneyed Diamonds

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Not like I give two hoots about the Rolling Stones.  The last album I bought of theirs was Some Girls, which came out in 1978.  Here we are 45 years later and they release a new album on the Tonight Show for all their adoring fans who can't seem to get enough of these octogenarians.  They're the same age as Biden but you don't hear anyone demanding they take cognitive tests.

They look as spry as ever and have partners half their age.  Their songs still play to eternal youth as seen in their video for Angry, although the red Mercedes-Benz traveling down what I assume to be Rodeo Drive looks hopelessly dated.  First thing that came to mind was the Aerosmith video for Crazy with Alicia Silverstone and Liv Tyler in the mid 90s.  Nothing like a "Little T&A" to spice up your song.  In this case a nubile Sydney Sweeney.  I find the whole thing sad really as these guys try to defy their age. 

They're not the only ones.  Recently, Al Pacino and Robert De Niro announced the births of new children to wives a fraction of their ages.  It didn't take long for 29 year-old Noor Alfallah to split from Pacino.  At least 45 year-old Tiffany Chen is sticking with Bob.  You have to wonder what these dirty grandpas want with babies at their age.  Then there is Alec Baldwin making up for lost children with no less than six from his latest squeeze Hilaria, although he is still a relatively young 65.  Maybe all these guys discovered the fountain of youth or just that the Viagra keeps the semen flowing.  I don't know.

The entertainment industry is desperately in need of new blood that's for sure, but it seems like it is hard for the younger talent to break through when the older stars still garner so much of the limelight.  As a result younger talent teams up with older talent.  Lady Gaga joining the Stones for a song on their new album.  Bridging the age span seems to be a good money maker, as it introduces the Stones to a whole new generation and lets the Boomers know there is somebody else out there.

My biggest gripe is with Keith Richards who has badmouthed pretty much everyone over the years but plays the same old tired riffs himself.  I'm not the only one who thinks this way.  He tops many overrated guitarist lists with Sir Macca jabbing back at him that the Stones were never anything more than a Blues cover band.

No thanks on the retread.  There is so much that is new and refreshing in music.  I recently found out about Florence Welch thanks to a funny little video on the Tonight Show where Jimmy Fallon had her complete Margaritaville after Jimmy Buffett cut the song short over a shaker of salt.  The old Florida boy acted like it was the first time he heard Florence as well. What an incredible voice!  I've been streaming concert clips on YouTube ever since.  Her new album Dance Fever is a real treat, pleasingly different from the stuff you hear on Spotify.  She's become so popular that everyone wants a piece of her.  Even she is not above hitching a ride with an older celebrity like in this video of Free with Bill Nighy, but somehow it fits within the context of the song.  You can have Hackneyed Diamonds, I mean Hackney Diamonds.  I will take Florence + the Machine any day. 

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