America Archives - The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit

Sep52012 by Chris Holmes1 Comment

Vintage Photo Wednesday: Back to Old School

Related articles Vintage Photo Wednesday, Vol. 1 - Photochrom Prints, 1890s-1900s Vintage Photo Wednesday, Vol. 8 - Radiation Dummy Vintage Photo Wednesday, Vol. 4 - Baseball Images of Yesteryear Vintage Photo Wednesday, Vol. 5 - 1950s Family Nuclear Fallout Shelter Vintage Photo Wednesday, Vol. 9 - Republican National Conventions Vintage Photo Wednesday, Vol. 2 - New York City Street Views, 1896

Jun272012 by Chris Holmes1 Comment

Time Capsule: An Old-Fashioned 4th of July, 1954

Capsules, Photography

I don't think I need to offer much commentary on this gallery. It was taken by Life magazine photographer N.R. Farbman on the 4th of July, 1954, in an unknown town in America. All the classic Independence Day scenes are here -- a family picnic, a parade complete with fire trucks, kids buying fireworks and holding sparklers, and smiles all around. Click on any thumbnail for a larger image. Related articles Time Capsule: Los Angeles Smog, 1954(grayflannelsuit.net) Photo Gallery: Memorial Day Army Parade, Washington, D.C., May 1942(grayflannelsuit.net) Car Capsule: Life Magazine 1949 Ford Photo Shoot(grayflannelsuit.net)

Jun122012 by Chris Holmes2 Comments

Get to Know… Seals & Crofts

Featured Posts, Music

There was once a time when the term "soft rock" wasn't used as a pejorative, but that was long before I started listening to music. These days it's just lazy music critic/fan shorthand for "boring" or "bland." Seals & Crofts often gets trotted out as one of the textbook examples of the bad kind of soft rock, and in all honesty it's not entirely undeserved. But for a time in the 1970s, they were among the finest purveyors of pop music in America -- regardless of label. If any act from the era deserves to have their legacy re-evaluated, it's the duo of Jim Seals and Dash Crofts. So that's what this edition of "Get to Know..." will set out to do. I hope by the end you'll agree with me that just because music is soft doesn't mean it's not good. (Previous editions of this series c...

Jun12011 by Chris HolmesNo Comments

My favorite music: 1972

Music

If there's one thing the internet lacks, it's pointless music lists. So to fill that void, here's a sampling of my favorite albums from some random year. Let's say, 1972. Fleetwood Mac, Bare Trees -- Oh sure, I love Rumours as much as the next person. But there's something about this particular, pre-Buckingham/Nicks incarnation of the band that speaks to me. Bare Trees is a bit uneven in spots but I keep coming back to it just the same. That said, the original version of Bob Welch's "Sentimental Lady" found on this record is far superior to the 1977 hit single version. Steely Dan, Can't Buy a Thrill -- I don't care if Donald Fagen and Walter Becker want to disown this record, I love it and I know a ton of Dan fans love it. Like all classic Steely Dan records, the hits are only part o...

Mar182011 by Chris HolmesNo Comments

Here’s some stuff I enjoyed this week

Internet, Links

Here’s a fresh batch of some quality interweb finds I’ve come across over the last 7 days (it's been a slow week): Ever wanted to lick Professor Dumbledore? Now's your chance, with the latest set of stamps from the Royal Mail celebrating famous wizards and witches. (Guardian) It's nice when journalists agree with everything I say; like Michael J. West, who agrees with me that artists like Robert Glasper represent jazz's best hopes for the future. (Washington CityPaper) If there is one good thing to come from the latest YouTube viral abomination — and there is just one thing so far — it's this Bob Dylan-esque cover of tone-deaf tween singer Rebecca Black's insipid good-time anthem, "Friday." (StumbleUpon via YouTube) I helped retrieve a lost World War II-era tank from a bog th