OBSESSED: Everything We Can't Stop Talking About This Week

Milky Edwards and the Chamberlings

I love David Bowie. Not only do I have a Ziggy Stardust tattoo, I’ve spent many hours pushing my vocal chords to the brink, trying to hit the high notes on “Life on Mars.” I also love ’60s soul music, which was the soundtrack to my wedding reception. So when someone posted the Milky Edwards version of “Moonage Daydream” on Facebook, it was like discovering manna from heaven.

At the time, I was starving for music to be excited about, so imagine my disappointment when I discovered that there were only three songs posted on YouTube! As a matter of fact, there’s no proof of the band ever existing, and there are many reasons to believe it’s a hoax. Still, it’s quite an elaborate hoax, and personally, I don’t care if the band never existed. I just want more soul bands doing Bowie covers — or at least for Milky Edwards to do a version of “Suffragette City.”

Timothy Olyphant’s Nerdist episode

To anyone that’s known me for more than a minute (or just had the misfortune of engaging me on public transit), my longstanding crush on Justified actor Timothy Olyphant is no secret. But even if you don’t share my “preoccupation,” this episode he recorded for the Nerdist podcast is still a total treat. The main attraction: so many disarmingly frank (and unexpectedly wise) stories about the reality of being an actor in Hollywood. He talks about his need to make certified mind-rotter Hitman to pay the bills after the sudden cancellation of HBO’s Deadwood, which coincided with his family’s purchase of a new house. Seriously, when was the last time you heard a movie star talking about mortgage anxiety?

And if you’re also obsessed with that much-missed TV masterpiece, the anecdotes from the Deadwood set—including creator David Milch’s decision to kill off a child character because the young actor’s mother was being irritating—are just the best. If you’re not a little in love with Olyphant after listening to the hour and then some of this episode, I do not want to hear about it. Listen now!

Yuna’s Frank Ocean Cover

I love Frank Ocean and I love Yuna, so it should come as no surprise that I can’t stop listening to Yuna’s cover of Frank Ocean’s “Thinkin Bout You.” It’s from 2012, but I stumbled upon it it while doing some research on Yuna for The Do List (she’ll be in the Bay Area in May). The video is recorded and shot at her home in L.A.; the song is from Frank Ocean’s debut solo album, Channel Orange. The cover doesn’t speak to a lingering longing that reminds me of a special someone like the old school songs of K-Ci and JoJo, but with lyrics like “I don’t like you, I just thought you were cool enough to kick it” and Yuna’s sweet delivery and sweeter hair wrap, all I can think is damn, she’s cool enough to kick it.

This Hummingbird

It’s not every day one gets to hold a baby hummingbird, but after discovering this small, beautiful bird right in front of KQED, what other choice did we have? The poor creature lay there immobile, directly in the path of foot traffic, so my coworker Kevin Jones gently picked it up. It tried, and failed, to fly, while I looked up San Francisco Animal Care and Control. Turns out it was only three blocks away! Hence, the uncommon sight of two public media employees carrying a tiny colorful hummingbird down Bryant Street and over to “Rescue Row.”

Luckily, Animal Care and Control assured us that it could take the bird, and that it wasn’t injured — just young and inexperienced at flight. To celebrate, our little friend suddenly took to the air, flew around the lobby a little bit, hovered near the counter and even tried to stick its long, needlelike beak into a receptionist’s ear. Hooray! All will be well. Adieu, little buddy…and thanks, San Francisco Animal Care and Control!

“One Sweet Day”

Earlier this week, The Bold Italic announced they were shutting down. I ended my KQED Pop post about the news with this music video for Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men’s 1995 monster hit “One Sweet Day,” a song about the dearly departed. This has led me to listen to it at least 20 times over the past two days. Why, you ask? Because it captures the spirit of ’90s pop and R&B perfectly, plus the video features the braces of one of the Boyz II Men members and Mariah wearing Converse.

It’s not just me; history supports my obsession with this song. Did you know that it spent 16 weeks at the top of the charts and still holds the record for the longest running number one song in Billboard history? Mark Ronson & Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk” (ugh, make it stop!) just tied Mariah’s “We Belong Together” and Boyz II Men’s “I’ll Make Love To You” for second place with 14 weeks. I whitehousepetition.org you to stop listening to “Uptown Funk” immediately and start listening to “One Sweet Day” again. It’s the only way to keep things right in the world.