All We Hear is...Radio Ga-Ga...
...Radio Goo-Goo...Radio Blah-Blah...

No, I haven't lost my mind. Not yet, anyway. "Radio Ga-Ga" is a song that was recorded by QUEEN, back in 1984. Although Queen remained popular world-wide for a number of years, we in the States didn't hear much from Queen after the turn of the '80s; their last big hit here was "Another One Bites The Dust". "Radio Ga-Ga" did show up on the charts, but it never did all that well in the U.S. The song itself refers to what's happened to Radio over the years, how it's been taken over by various programming interests, how it's not once what it was...the song's lyrics depict someone who remembers growing up, listening to music on the radio and refers back to the days when "Radio was new...Radio, Someone Still Loves You..."

Queen recorded several more albums before lead singer Freddie Mercury died of AIDS, and they've all got some great music on them. After 1986, Queen didn't tour anymore because of Freddie's rapidly worsening condition; the album "Innuendo" was written and recorded while Freddie was almost too weak to go to the recording studio; it's a great record. Freddie and the band even recorded some tracks after that, which ended up on a 1995 posthumous album, "Made In Heaven". Freddie died in November 1991. I don't approve of his lifestyle, but the fact remains he was Undeniably Brave to keep going like he did; although he was suffering tremendously, his voice was strong and clear until the end. And Queen was one of the great groups, and all of them were really great musicians.


The "Radio Ga-Ga" picture sleeve, signed by All Four 'Queens'...(1984)
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I had to write 'all of the above' in order to be able to 'tie-in' intelligently the Original Subject that I was gonna write about; namely, that I went to the beach, and while listening to the Car Radio, I began getting tired of the Same Old Songs always played by the Oldies' Station, so I went over to the "A.M." band and you know what that's like...talk, talk, talk talk talktalktalktalk.....honestly, this is a great age to live in, because if you can't think for yourself, there's plenty of people on the airwaves who'll gladly do your thinking for you...and when starting this post, the "Radio Ga-Ga" title came screaming out at me...

Today on 'talk radio', I heard a female radio host say that President Obama is destined to become really, really ineffective as soon as everyone Really Learns about the pitfalls of the bail-out program, pushed by the President, and passed by Congress. Then I went elsewhere on the dial and heard a couple of guys posing as economic wizards say that Things Are So Much Better now that Prezzident Bush is No Longer Prezzident. So in other words, a person can listen to talk radio and no matter what their political belief system is, find someone that agrees with his/her viewpoint. I support President Obama, but, is there A Dark Side, Something That I'm Missing if I don't regularly listen to Dr. Laura Ingram, who actually said that "It's going to be a long four years" when referring to the President, or Rush Limbaugh, that blowhard windbag? Must I listen to that right-wing radio stuff in order to become Really Educated About Politics?

I've found a radio host, Ed Schultz, whose approach I like. He's got a rough-and-tumble style, a matter-of-fact outlook, and he appears to be just a little 'Left' of center. So he's not a wacko, and he's not a naysayer. He sounds more like a "Mr. Practical" kind-of-guy. But when I listen to him, is it because I seek a radio show that conforms to MY beliefs, or is it because Mr. Schultz is really telling it like it is? And you know, I don't know. I can't answer that. I do know I'm more comfortable listening to him than I am to Rush Limbaugh. Maybe it's just that I'm tired of naysayers who want to Expose the Democratic Party, and then, what, return the Republicans to Power again?

I do know I'm not a dippy bleeding-heart liberal, because I've listened to Ron Reagan (Yep, Ronald Reagan's kid is now a Radio Host), and he's just a little bit too-far Out There for my taste; he's certainly bright, but he reminds me of my Philosophy Instructor in college...that class was so Way Out There that to this day, I am not sure I learned anything. I mean, I read, I wrote, and I participated in class discussions, but I Have No Idea What That Semester Of Philosophy Was All About. I guess I'm not an egghead. And I guess I'd make a really Poor Politician as well. All the debating, all the conferencing, all the pontificating and gesturing that Politicans do. No thanks. It's all just too much for me to comprehend. That's the source of much of the "Radio Ga-Ga" that I was referring to. Talk, talk, talk, yak, yak, yak...it all just goes on and on and on endlessly. Or until I hit the "off" switch. Click. Aaaaaah, silence...
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So where did the title, "Radio Ga-Ga" come from? Queen's drummer, Roger Taylor, heard his little boy say something about "Radio poo-poo" while listening to the radio...and out of such inspiration a song was born. So now you know.