Let Your Love Flow  - The Bellamy Brothers 

I proudly played this song for 20 years on country radio and it always sounded good.  I know songs #2, #3 and #4 were powerful and very deep on my favorites list, so this is the perfect finish.  A different kind of powerful.

I've loved this song my whole life, as it's one of the most positive and feel good songs ever. It launched Howard and David Bellamy to incredible heights.  The Bellamy Brothers were shot into stardom by this one recording and went on to have a lot of big country songs over the next 20 years, with 52 singles and 20 #1 hits.  This is one of the most loved and most played songs of the 20th Century (fact).  It had a very long life as it was a big hit in dozens of countries around the world over the course of many years.  It even climbed back onto the charts in the UK in 2010. It's been in movies, TV programs, advertising campaigns and has been recorded by dozens since.

The Bellamy's are from rural Pasco County Florida and moved to Los Angeles to start a musical career.  This song was written by an unknown roadie for superstar Neil Diamond named Larry E. Williams.  He offered it to Diamond but he said "no."   Hit maker Johnny Rivers also said "no."  Then Dennis St John, Diamonds drummer called the Bellamy's who were unknown studio session players and said basically, "This song is perfect for you guys."  The legend says they went over, used Diamonds band and recorded it in "2 or 3 takes."  Done!   This went on to be spun on about every country, pop, adult contemporary radio station there was, and even some Christian stations played it.

This is the perfect 3 minute mix of artist, musicians, arrangement, and production. This also possesses a very rare attribute most songs don't.  The second this starts, somehow you know it's a special song, you almost have to listen as its positive vibe is undeniable.  It makes you happy and glad you're alive.  It's also the kind of song we don't record much anymore, as positive isn't as prevalent as it once was in music.  But read the comments as you play this video.  This song is high on many all time favorites lists.  Every artist, regardless of stature, from Luke Combs to the artist that just got off the bus in Nashville today, hopes and prays one day they have a song this big and this remembered.  

I asked them once in an interview if they had any clue they just recorded a song that would be that big, and they said essentially, "We just hoped someone would play it on the radio."   -  We did.

Let Your Love Flow was in international hit and one of the best, most successful country, pop, hit songs ever recorded. But don't just ask me, ask the world.

Last Week #2

My Full Profile On The Bellamy Brothers

Big meal season is still here and maybe you are getting ready to host a big holiday gathering. Mashed taters are always a favorite and here are the keys to making the best ones imaginable. 

Delish!

The Best Mashed Potatoes

Last Sunday may have been the Browns best win all year.  They beat the Jags in a game they had to have.  It was not their cleanest game by any means, but they got it done and in December, that's all that matters.  Well done!

It was good to see the Browns play like a veteran team.  There were no stupid behind the back double reverse calls on offense that kill drives and games.  They made the plays that had to be made on both sides of the ball and on special teams, while facing a team that wanted this game just as badly.

Remember a few years ago when the owner was quoted, "We need an adult in the room." ?  The reference was to the on and off the field maturity level they perceived from Baker Mayfield and traded him a short time later. Of course that stuff is subjective, and honestly it was uncalled for in a professional setting.  Sure Baker had his moments that were not his best, but I suspect a lot of that was due to the immense generation gap between Baker, the owner, and the coaching staff.  The next move was to sign a guy with a highly checkered past and guaranteed him a kings treasure.  A move that has yet to pay dividends.

Enter Joe Flacco.  38 years old, Superbowl Champion and MVP.  The Browns got him off his couch after no one else wanted him, and honestly I don't think the Browns did either.  But under these extraordinarily tough circumstances, they had no choice.  They worked him out, agreed to sign, and then tried hard not to play him in favor of a rookie draft pick.  Then, at the end of their very short rope, they decided to give him a go.  And guess what?  After running Baker out of town, dumping a few QB's for nothing, and the rest of their newly drafted and freshly chosen cast of QB characters one by one got hurt, failed with some doing both, Old Man Flacco has been by far the best.  Finally, a football adult!

Flacco is a grown man that's done all there is to do in the NFL over many years.  He's the oldest QB playing right now, and has been a starter, a backup, a clip board holder, cut, released, uninvited, mocked  -  and a champion.  He makes the Browns offense look calmer and more cohesive than any one player has in years.  He's smart, has a cannon arm and is a leader.  It's impossible for these players not to look at him as such, as many played "him" in Madden, or watched him growing up. He's brought a sense of order to a tough situation.

There's no drama, no lawyers, no social media nonsense and there are no excuses.  He has a job to do, and by his own words, there is still more to do and to learn.  He's come here humble, professional and prepared.  If Stefanski and the front office is smart, they should get out of Flacco's way and let him do what guys with champion pedigree do - WIN!  Joe Flacco is a leader, and I don't think the organization knew that they just wanted a healthy body.  Plus, he's pretty much the only champion on this roster.  He's been where no one running this team has ever been.

It's the irony of Browns ironies.  Sign and draft a bunch of guys that were never gonna win the games you needed to for various reasons, then reluctantly put a guy in you really wish you didn't have to and he gets it done. Seems in the end the owner was right, we did need an adult in the room and now we have one kind of by accident and luck.  Joe Flacco right now is making the front office look good for finding him, but even that has a large double edge.  The further we go with Flacco, the worse half of 240 million guaranteed dollars out the window looks.

How far can Flacco take the Browns?  He took the Ravens all the way in a different time. But the great gift Joe Flacco has given the Browns is this.  With his age, story,  demeanor, unassuming way, skill level and incredible professionalism, plus his gratitude for this last big opportunity.  He is going to make a lot of Browns fans want to cheer for the Browns again. 

All of that, is how adults act and what adults do.

In case you missed some of my articles this week from WQMX.com here is a recap. Thanks for reading and listening today and every day!

BROWNS - Standing In Your Own Way

Eat Of The Week

50 Favorites From 40+ Years #2

Forgotten Jukebox - M-90

Country Music Memory Lane - John Anderson B-Day (revisit)

Wynn At The Movies And More

Box Office Results - The Boy And The Heron   -  13 million

#2 – Hunger Games

#3 - Godzilla

New This Week - Wonka

Barbie - Will premiere on Max today

Barbie – Leads list of nominations for the Critics Choice Awards - 18 nominations - A Record

Showtime – Is over 40 years old, but as of January 8^th will be renamed - Paramount+ With Showtime.

Netflx - Leave The World Behind - caused a big stir

Production - On the fifth and final season of Stranger Things is set to begin in early January

Sheesh - Last week's top movie, Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé, - fell to sixth with $5 million, In 10 days, the music documentary has earned $28.1 million

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

Also - My 50 Favorites Over 40+ Years This Week #2  (Link)

This week Country Music Legend, John Anderson is having a birthday.  If you are not familiar with him, he's worth knowing. His run in the 80's and then again in the 90's was great, and I feel his absolute "country" sound during the Urban Cowboy craze was highly influential to the future stars that would take the reins years later and become the new traditionalists.

Anderson was loved for his sound and his "defiance" of pop country when it was the rule.  He is one of the most influential artists we have had in my 40 plus years.  Many future stars point to him as their favorite, including Alan Jackson. 

MY FULL PROFILE ON JOHN ANDERSON

The Influencers (Part One)  

Marty Stuart  - Hillbilly Rock - 1990 -  (Album - Hillbilly Rock)

The 90's had all kinds of stars and Marty Stuart was a true original.  With a bunch of hits over the years, he had a great following. This is a very cool song that was as much fun to play on the radio as it was to hear on the radio.  It was a short, catchy little song with a "big bass" bouncy bass line, dancy beat and it was almost impossible not to sing with.  It has that bluesy riff, great vocals and backing vocals too.  It was just "cool".  Marty Stuart was one of those guys too, with his loud signature clothing choices, hair style, and his "way",  he was also just flat out "cool."  Stuart also became an incredible ambassador for country music for many years.  It is no surprise that his very successful style of marrying many types of music was exceedingly respected within the music undustry as he is a five time Grammy Winner, and he's in the Country Music Hall Of Fame.  Im a fan.  This is one of the really great songs at the start of country's biggest decade.  Marty Stuart is a terrific artist and you can see him this summer with Hank Williams Jr at Blossom!

#2 - Keith Whitley - I'm No Stranger To The Rain - 1989

Keith Whitley deserves a lot of credit for a lot of good things.  He debuted in 1985 and Country didn't know it yet, but it was looking for a few heroes to show up and change the path of country.  Whitley, Randy Travis and others all hit about the same time to set the stage for the Neo-Traditionalists movement.  Fans loved Whitley for every reason there is to love a new superstar.  This was the last single released during his lifetime, as he died suddenly at 34. This song was a #1, and was the CMA Single Of The Year for 1989. This song is the perfect country song about tough times and overcoming them. It struck a nerve with many battling demons as Whitley quietly was.  It's a song of strength, resolve and the ongoing battle that simmers slightly below the surface for many.  His delivery on this is perfect, the song is beautiful and the message is clear. Songs this honest, relatable and good is the reason why millions of us love country music.  It speaks for many, and makes others feel empathy for many and it is a testimony for good.  This was in the middle of an incredible run of #1 songs he had going, as he was just starting to sing along side the new superstars he paved the way for before his very sad and untimely death.  This song is better than most songs of any kind, it's fantastic and so was he. Keith Whitley with his relatively short run, is in the Country Music Hall Of Fame.  This is a country music masterpiece.

The ONLY reason this isn't my #1 - Because #1 is one of the most played songs of any kind of the 20th century on radio and was a #1 song in virtually every country on earth at one time or another over the course of many years.

Last Week #3

My Full Profile On Keith Whitley

It's really that time of the year. We are ordering pizza all the time with football, and indoor parties and when we are SICK of cooking.  Then there are the leftovers and you can't wait to eat them.  I am not big on cold pizza as many are.  I mean, I'll eat it, but I prefer it hot.  But getting that right is tough.  There methods that can make it better, and in some cases, better than the first time around.

Check This OUT!

The ONLY And PROPER Way To Reheat Pizza

For my entire life I never remember us being a good west coast team, new Browns or old.  Losing to the Rams is not unheard of as they did win the Superbowl a few years back.  But truth be told, this week and last at Denver, we didn't lose to the Broncos or Rams, we lost to the Sean's.  Sean Payton and Sean McVay, two Superbowl winning coaches that saw us coming and constructed very confident game plans against us, knowing as coaches and organizations, they clearly had the upper hand.

It would be easy to sit here and bash Stefanski, but being honest, that's not fair, nor productive. Taking nothing away from Stefanski, the two Sean's are just light years ahead of him and both have far less talented rosters than us.  Let's clear this up right here. The Browns have significant injuries to many pivotal players and that can't be hidden or minimized.  We're playing a QB that was on his couch two weeks ago resting his 38 year old self.  But Joe Flacco played extremely well and didn't embarrass himself or the Browns. He looked really good considering.

I knew each of the last two games would be tough for us to win, because good NFL coaches know it's December and know how to win games that need to be won.  Both Sean's devised game plans that used our strengths against us and that's the sign of real football IQ.  They both knew the tendencies and predictability of our staff and counted on them to play into their hands, and we did in both games. They each knew that we want to throw the ball as much as possible with two QB's that are different, one being a rookie and one being rusty and we did. In the last two games, we threw about 90 passes and just scored 31 points total.  Only about 3 teams have run the ball as well as us in the entire NFL, and yet we refuse to do it to control the game. 

The Broncos and Rams both knew that going in. They knew that we would NOT play to our own strengths, even under these incredible circumstances of injuries and with new or geriatric QB's.  They were counting on the desire for us to implement a passing game that overall has not been effective all year.  We did it, and we lost.  It's just being outsmarted by far better football people that know you better than you know them - and know you better than you know yourself.  They breathed a sigh of relief we had no desire to figure it out.  They also have their first team QB's on the field and we don't.  But the coaches haven't gotten that memo yet.

Over the course of time our defense gets worn down, and plays poorly late and that's a problem. They're an attacking bunch and they have a tough time late in games when we can't move the ball or we turn it over.  No one has turned the ball over more than us in the NFL.  And you get that when you have injuries, third stringers playing and players being asked to do things that are not their strengths.  We're not scoring points and we're not this offensive machine we think we are.  But we're determined to prepare that way.

And here come the Jags with Doug Pederson who is another fantastic head coach.  He took the Jags from the outhouse, to a playoff win last year and then gave the Chiefs all the could handle in the playoffs before bowing out.  They are good, they are trying to get playoff games too and they're going to want to beat the Browns.  He's a good football man and this is critical for the Browns with many teams we are wrestling with for the playoffs having easier games this week than us.  But the Jags may be dealing with their own injured QB issues today.

And BTW - name a starting QB.  You're fooling no one except yourself thinking this strategy makes a difference. The Jags couldn't care less.

BUT through it all, the Browns still have their destiny in their own hands. Just win and things take care of themselves.  But winning in the NFL is hard when good competition is standing in your way.   And even harder when you're standing in your own way.

GO BROWNS