Are we over-beaned as a society? As a people?  As a country? Probably so.  I am not anti-bean by any stretch of the imagination. I like a good bean as much as the next person.  I prefer green beans more than baked.  I go Navy bean once a year, and I sprint away from Lima beans like an Olympic gold medalist.  National Bean Day was last week I found out.  Who Knew??

But I know that tons of people LOVE a good baked bean. One that has been lovingly prepared in the kitchen by somone of age and not having much else to do. Then married with bacon and brown sugar before being sunbathed in the oven for a couple of hours.  All before being served to the hungry masses, after mass with our Sunday Dinner.  So here's a recipe.  It does look good!

Big Time Beans

Some of My Other Recent Eats Of The Week

London Broil

Egg Plant Parm

French Onion Soup

The Browns season is mercifully over and now we can look forward to what's next.

As Americans, we love an underdog. The nation was founded as such. A bunch of scrappy militia taking on the worlds most powerful army at the time and winning independence.  It's in our DNA.  As Northeast Ohioans, we double down on that. We are tired of being made fun of by others. We cheer for our perennial under-dogged teams with a passion seldom seen in the most bujee of markets.  So what's next for us, our Browns, our QB?

Baker Mayfield is the perennial underdog.  He has been told his whole life he's not this or that and proved them wrong.  Full disclosure - I am not huge fan of his, BUT I respect his toughness and I respect that HE wants to be the guy to bring glory to the Browns. I also respect he never complained about coming to Cleveland.  He was drafted #1 for exactly that reason. To be a hero with fans he could identify with directly and to change the culture of a losing team.  But this season was a lost one for him and our team.  Much of it not his fault if you're being honest about it. Some of it was, as were injuries, COVID, and incredibly bad coaching didn't help either.

I see people screaming with powerful opinions on Social Media about running him out of town, or he's not NFL quality, or the Browns will never get it right with him.  I understand fans are frustrated and he's the easy target. OK, I'll respect that opinion. But here's the question those fans seldom think about.  What is next? And here's one more.  WHO is next?  This town for some silly reason that I have never understood, loves the second string QB -  always has.  I remember when fans were screaming for Paul McDonald to play QB here in the 1980's and bench Brian Sipe.  Oh my.

Then it was Kelly Holcomb, as fans turned their backs on a nearly dead Tim Couch who was getting his brains beat out every Sunday afternoon. Then it was Johnny Manziel. Oh yeah, put Johnny in that will fix everything, and there have been others.  Those fans got what they wanted and the stinking continued. It's never, ever a good thing when the most popular guy on the team is the backup QB.  It never, ever goes well.  To his credit, Case Keenum handled himself very well this season, even when fans were screaming to put him in.  If Keenum was a real answer, there are plenty of teams that needed QB in June and he wouldn't be here in the first place.  If the Browns think he IS the answer for next year, those fans will get thier wish  -  again.

So, as much as angry fan is yelling, can you answer the question at all?  Who and what is next?  It would take a large miracle to get Aaron Rodgers, or Russell Wilson here, please move on. So we trade for Garropolo, OK.  How about next season when he's out for 6-9 weeks with some injury, that is his reality. You trade for Deshaun Watson, you want those ongoing legal problems?  Derek Carr? Possible sure, if he leaves Las Vegas for Cleveland?  Would you as a 30-ish rich young guy?  Then there's Matt Ryan. Sure the Browns could probably get him in a trade. But he's 37, and has been to a Superbowl.  I don't hate that, Baker would probably be in the trade, then you could draft a QB and let the pick sit and learn for a couple years. Also keep in mind, we are not the only team looking for a QB, we don't have dibs.

They say draft someone. OK, who?  There is no instant franchise changer out there. So if you dump Baker and draft a kid from college, then you have to go tell Miles Garrett, Joe Bitonio, Nick Chubb, Jack Conklin, Jarvis Landry and a ton of other great veterans that you're starting over. When you told them last year that our Superbowl window was open. You want to do that?  Yeah, me either.  Then you have to convince free agents to stay, (and that you know what you're doing), and beg new ones to come here.  You could make a trade and find someone off the current radar, but you may have to give up a Kareem Hunt and big draft picks.  You see, it's a lot easier to scream for a Baker change than it is to actually get meaningful change.

Be careful what you are wishing for. Baker had a GREAT 2020, and won a playoff game in Pittsburgh and took the Chiefs to the brink on the road. That's just fact.  He also had a terrible 2021 with a broken shoulder and countless other aches and COVID issues.  That too is fact.  So who is the answer? I have no idea,this is not a Baker problem, as a total team, this team needs to do and be a whole lot better next year to win. Even if Aaron Rodgers is here, because bad play calling and bad coaching is a problem no matter who is under center.  Also keep in mind, places like New Orleans, Miami, Denver, and PITTSBURGH are looking for QB's too.

Whether Baker is here next year or not, and I hope he is for many reasons, as fans we need to hope that the Browns organization understands fully that Baker alone was and is not the entire problem.  The whole thing needs to be better when it matters, in games that matter on both sides of the ball and on the sidelines.  If he stays, get him healthy and commit to him, and get the contract behind him and all of us.

Simply blaming Baker is an absolute recipe for 9-8 next year and watching Cincy win the division again.  Be wise Browns - and Browns fan.

Box Office Results - Spiderman  -  About 53 million

Spiderman - Biggest grossing movie of 2021

New This Week - The 355  -   Jessica Chastain / Penelope Cruz / Fan Bingbing / Diane Krueger / Lupita Nyong'o

2022 - Batman / Thor / Scream 5 / Top Gun - Most anticipated movies this year

ALSO - Killers of the Flower Moon / Jurassic World Dominion  / Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness  / Mission: Impossible 7  / Uncharted and The Flash.

Movies – Box office up about 100% from 2020, but still about 60% of what it was from 2019

This Weekend – Check out my Country Music Memory Lane (link)

Carly Pearce made an appearance last night on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to sing "Diamondback" off of her album '29: Written In Stone': 

I get asked about certain artists and why are they not around anymore.  Tara asked about one and it got me thinking.  We will call them "Flashes."  These artists flashed in and had a BIG song, maybe two and then were just gone. 

In fairness, many are still recording music, BUT for this article, we will talk about their success on the Country Charts and Country Radio only.  These are not "one hit wonders" in all cases, but some are.  They are all talented, but sadly, not all get a 5, 10 or 20 year run. Some just have that magical year or so where they are on top and hear their songs on the radio.  Here are some, but there are many more and I will feature more up the line - No ranking, no order, just artists.  -   Flashes!  

Wade Hayes

The first time I heard the big voice of Wade Hayes and his incredible debut single, Old Enough To Know Better, I thought he was here to stay. It was 1995 and country was surging. The song went #1 and fans loved it. The album was GOLD, and had a couple more hits off of it that went top 10 and it looked like we had a new star. He had a big song, a great look and was about 26 years old.  His second album was also GOLD and the first single, On A Good Night was a #2 hit in 1996.  But that was about the extent of his real charting success. The 1990's were very competitive and sadly there was not room for everyone to have a long run.  But for a short time, Wade Hayes was big news.

This Was A Very Big Song

Cyndi Tompson

This is a very interesting story. In 2001, 25 year old Cyndi Tompson had a huge hit with What I Really Meant To Say, as it went #1 for three weeks.  It was a very sexy, sultry, powerful and honest song that fans simply loved. It is still the only debut song for a country female to stay #1 for multiple weeks.  She was a model and singer and looked to be the next big thing. Her second song, I Always Liked That Best was a song I really liked but it stumbled and stopped in the 20's. Her album, My World was a big success awarded GOLD.  Then in 2002, she just ..quit.  She walked away from the biz and never really returned to any success.  I think she is still one of our biggest mysteries.

What A Hit!  It Made History....

T. Graham Brown

I loved TGB.  Here's a guy that has/had a great voice and a real cool way about him.  For a couple years he was a big deal, and he did have three #1 songs in a short time.  Two of them off his I Tell It Like It Used To Be  (great song too) album from 1986, including Hell And High Water and Don't Go To Strangers.  That album is really slick and his bluesy style was a breath of fresh clean air in the 1980's.  And even though there were some hit songs later and some success, that first album was in my view his crown jewel.  Just a fantastic voice and talent.  Very, very underrated singer, no matter what music you love. I strongly recommend listening to these cuts if you are not familiar with him.

A Fantastic Song

Jessica Andrews

In 2001 JA released her second album at 18 years old. Who I Am was a #1 hit and a real favorite with fans. The album of the same name went GOLD and got a lot of airplay. We worked with her a few times here at WQMX, and there were signs that said -  full steam ahead. She was much like LeAnn Rimes in the fact her beautiful voice was far more grown up than someone 18 years old, it was strong and confident. This song was a more than honest tribute to her family and has a very nice feel to it that really hits some people right in the heart.  But after this song, there was virtually no chart success to follow. Sometimes that really big song can be tough to follow. 

Big Song, Fans Loved It....

The Tractors

Were a bunch of great musicians that played with rock legends for years before forming the Tractors.  They played with Eric Clapton, Peter Frampton, Bob Seger, Bob Dylan and others.  In 1994 the Tractors recorded Baby Likes To Rock It, (Like a Boogie-Woogie Choo Choo Train)  and it was a #11 song.  It was insanely popular and got a ton of airplay. It was a dance hall staple and was one of the most recognized songs of the 1990's. It was so unique it became legendary. They later did a Christmas version of the same song.  The album was #2 on the charts and sold a staggering 2 million copies. To show you how big that song was, it sold that many albums without another successful song release from it.  One and done but what a hit, and what a fan fav as it was one of the most requested songs of my ongoing 42 year country radio career.

This Song Was Very Popular

Lila McCann

Seldom does an artist do what she did.  At 16 she released her first song, Down Came A Blackbird from her first album, and it went to only #28 on the charts in 1997.  Fans LOVED that song. Her next single, I Wanna Fall In Love was #3. That album, Lila, sold a million copies. Her next album, Something In The Air was GOLD and only had one real hit, With You that went to #4 in 1999. And that was about it.  BUT, it shows that sometimes the charts don't always get it right.  Fans loved her, and her music and bought it by the truckloads even though the charts were unkind to her. I worked with her a few times, always fun to work with.  No real other charting success.

Her Biggest Hit Song On The Charts

Steve Azar

I remember Steve Azar putting on a show for us here at WQMX outdoors at the Lakemore Plaza in Akron in 2002. We had this Classified Concert Series promotion going, where no one knew who was going to perform till they hit the stage. (Jessica Andrews did one for us too that summer)  I emceed the show, it stormed and thousands of fans had to leave. He ripped off his shirt and played as long as he could until they made us stop. Azar then came back to the radio station and put on the show, on the air so everyone could hear.  Total pro, great guy.  I Don't Wanna Be Me Till Monday was a #2 song and fans loved it. The follow up, Waitin' On Joe was a very mild hit, and that was about it on the country charts. Vocal chord cysts slowed him down, but one of the really nice guys in our biz at the time.

Monday Anthem Tough Not To Love This Song

James Bonamy

Had a very big and popular song in 1996, I Don't Think I Will, and it went to #2 on the charts.  I loved that song, but the problem was he was not overly versatile. But for this time, fans loved his hit song.  He had been on Star Search, and had a great look. But he recorded his last album in 1997, and is now a church pastor in Texas.

This Was A Big Song

I will admit that when Windy and I got our first air fryer a few years ago, we were temporarily obsessed with it. In fact, we wore one out and had to get a replacement. After that we resumed normal "air fry-ed-ness."   

And then we went through the stage of "forget-ness! "  We forgot we had it, until one fine day, it dawned on us it was still on the counter for all to see, and then we settled in to the perfect usage and that's where we reside today.

But I found this link that will help you instantly become a good steward of your new air fryer.  If you just got one for Christmas, this will help you become the aristocrat of the air fryer!

Air Fryer Fun!

The Browns disappointing season is now about over and it's time to move on to next year.  So, now what?  This season has been a failure by any measuring stick and the process now demands that we plug the holes and get the ship upright.

An easy target has been Baker Mayfield, and I feel that holding him solely responsible is lazy, convenient and not well thought through.  True, he has not played overly well for many reasons, the two major ones - being hurt since week two, and Kevin Stefanski who did him no favors at all the entire season.  Baker could have been rested some to heal the best he could, and the Stefanski play calling all year long was nothing short of the worst in the league. And that more than anything has to be cleaned up, or we will be right here again next year.   Last night again proved that, Stefanski called a game that was about unwatchable, and horrible and amateurish

Many fans calling for a new QB.  OKAY I'll listen - who?  Fair question, who? Let's check the list of QB avails this off season. Aaron Rodgers?  No way he comes here, and if he leaves Green Bay, he will want something very different, Vegas likely as it is near Hollywood.  Russell Wilson?  No way - he wants big media. Deshaun Watson?  Legal problems everywhere, distractions.  That's the cream of the crop.  Then there's this list. 

Jimmy Garrapolo - possible, but he can't stay anywhere near healthy.  Tua from Miami?  He can hardly get on the field there. Derek Carr?  Is he an upgrade?  Big Ben?  He may be out there, you want him?  Teddy Bridgewater?   C'mon, seriously?  Matt Ryan from Atlanta?  He's about 37, healthy and may be the best of the bunch.  But are any of these a legit upgrade?  If you traded Baker to Atlanta for Ryan, it might be your best deal if you are bent on making one, and that deal is possible. Ryan is a good player and veteran. Could be interesting.

Some say draft a QB.  Well congrats, you just started over from square one and set your team back about 2 or 3 years best scenario.  There is no "can't miss guy"  out there this year.  And some say make a big trade and get someone that no one see's coming, but that's expensive and who knows what others would want.  Truth is, Baker is more than likely the guy next year, so let's get him healthy and let's adjust.

Adjust is the key word. This team must adjust and understand that the ONLY thing that matters is winning! Win any way you have to. Stefanski does not understand this. Win with running, with defense, with special teams, with anything at his disposal. Stefanski only understands winning with a QB throwing the ball40 times a game and that alone has killed his season. His outright refusal to adjust his thinking and style sunk the ship.  He is about solely responsible for all of this.  I am not saying fire Stefanski, in fact just the opposite. Grow, adjust, and understand what you have.  Asking a very compromised QB all year to win you big games when there were other options and ways to do it was just bone-headed.

Sure, injuries, COVID, bad breaks and a brutal schedule, especially on the road made this a tough season. The Browns learned a few things. Consistency is the key.  You must beat good teams, and no more moral victories. You must FIND A WAY to win games no matter what. And I said it before the season started, you are going nowhere, until you start beating the Steelers twice a year! Period.  Think about this, two wins this year against them?  You're in the playoffs.  (Beat The Steelers Twice?)

Complain all you want about Baker. I am not a huge fan, but he did not lose the Kansas City game (special teams did). He did not lose the Charger game (defense did).  He did not lose the first Steelers game (play calling did).  He did not lose the first Ravens game (Stefanski did).  He did not lose the Raider game (play calling did).  All of those games if managed better from the sidelines were wins.  Very sad, but in the end, you win on the field.

Coach, next year, please put the team first and your ego somewhere else. Adopt the Raider Nation mantra "Just Win Baby".  The Browns players, and the fans deserve better.  Can Baker be better? Of course, let's get healthy and go from there. I don't see a better option out there if winning right now is the goal.

GO BROWNS~!!

Now that the tinsel and fake snow has settled...  Let's look at a few great surprises by our country artists to their families.

My favorite is Chris Janson making his children's world with a special gift:

 

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Chris Janson (@thechrisjanson)

 Chris Young gives his dad a new set of wheels: 

 

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Chris Young (@chrisyoungmusic)

 Dylan Scott shows off some of his skills with his son Beckett's new 4-wheeler.

 

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Dylan Scott (@dylanscottcountry)

How would these movies fair at the Box Office with the new country artists starring?  I love "Jingle All The Way"... 

Kudos to ACM Awards for their photoshopping! 

Our famous friends @ChrisYoungMusic & @kanebrown in "Jingle All The Way" ? pic.twitter.com/lbkxf7MY07

— ACM Awards (@ACMawards) December 22, 2021

The gang's all here for our Country take on "Love Actually" ❤️? pic.twitter.com/Z7IyNLyemo

— ACM Awards (@ACMawards) December 22, 2021

The Academy's "How The Grinch Stole Christmas" with @blakeshelton & @gwenstefani ❤️ pic.twitter.com/8O86QqUGVI

— ACM Awards (@ACMawards) December 22, 2021

All December long I wrote and posted a series on the Country Music boom on the 1990's.  And why it was SO GREAT!  What factors made it so?

In case you missed my 3 part series, here it is.

So grab a coffee, your earbuds and a comfy couch, and let's remember the 1990's!

The 1990's (Part 1)

The 1990's (Part 2)

The 1990's (Part 3)

Thanks for reading  -  and get ready for some great articles in January I have planned!