The Concept Album Mix Tape: Happy 35th Birthday, Manny Ramirez!!
Boston Red Sox OF and resident alien Manny Ramirez turns 35 today.
It is a good time to be a Red Sox fan these days. The Sox played incredible baseball for the first two months of the season and the New York Yankees have been awful!
Hey, religious types… you want to know what the mark of the beast is? It’s the NY logo on the Yankee ballcaps. That means the Kingdom of Heaven shall not open for Roger Clemens, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, or the rest of those louts. Check it out. It’s in Leviticus.
So, back to Manny. There aren’t a lot of people who fit the description of “eccentric.” Manny Ramirez is one of those guys. When we refer to him as Planet Manny, we’re only half joking. I think we all believe he might actually be from another planet. One thing is for certain: after April, he can really hit the ball. I wonder if his alien calendar doesn’t include April. He’s usually awful for the first month of the season — and was again this year — but seems to be heating up again, although a little behind schedule.
Happy Birthday, Manny. Go Sox! Here’s a playlist in your honor:
- “Pega Luna, Manny” | Joe Pernice |
This was a charity download single written by a great Red Sox fan. I don’t know if it’s still readily available, but it’s a fun song. There’s also a David “Papi” Ortiz reference. - “Still Crazy After All These Years” | Paul Simon | Negotiations & Love Songs
I probably shouldn’t include the work of a Yankee fan in this playlist, but Paul Simon is fabulous. I won’t hold his impending eternal damnation against his music. - “Space Oddity” | David Bowie | Space Oddity
“Ground control to Major Tom!” I wonder if Terry Francona has ever said that to Manny. The two words of the title are brilliantly appropriate. - “Hallo Spaceboy” | David Bowie | Outside
One of the better latter-day Bowie songs. - “Surfing With the Alien” | Joe Satriani | Surfing With the Alien
A classic! - “Man On The Moon” | R.E.M. | Automatic for the People
Another classic, this. It mentions every famous person but Manny Ramirez. Any excuse to listen to the Automatic album is a good one. - “Walking on the Moon” | The Police | Regatta De Blanc
Personally, I think Manny’s orbit is well beyond the moon but The Police just reunited and I like this song.
Pega luna, Manny!
Filed under: Tags: Joe Pernice, Joe Satriani, R.E.M., The Concept Album Mix Tape, The Police
