One Verse Wonder

The lyrical brevity of Fleetwood Mac's "Bare Trees (featured yesterday) brought to mind the song that introduced the world to Paul Carrack, pop music's ultimate journeyman vocalist.

Over the course of his lengthy career his finest work often came at the expense of his own identity as a performer while a member of Ace, Squeeze or Mike + the Mechanics. Few, if any, can get as much mileage out of a minimal lyric.

Song: How Long By: Ace Album: Five A Side Year: 1974

Too Bad About The Hooker

Elizabeth Warren is the the chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel created to oversee the U.S. banking bailout, formally known as the Troubled Assets Relief Program. She appeared on May 11th's Charlie Rose Show. (22 minutes)

Thumbs Down

Ten states and the District of Columbia ban drivers from sending text messages, dozens more are considering bans. And there have been recent public transit accidents involving texting in Boston and Los Angeles - so why do people still continue the behavior? Dr. Michael Siegel, a Professor of of Behavioral and Social Science at the Boston University School of Public Health, blames it on people experiencing “optimistic bias,” They think accidents won’t happen to them despite risky behavior.

Audio: BBC, PRI & WBUR's Here & Now May 13th. Host: Robin Young.

Meanwhile LG, sponsors of previous Canadian Texting Championships, have brought the contest to the US with a $ 50,000 prize, on MTV and advertising heavily.

No Escaping Commercials

TIVO pioneered the digital video recorder (DVR), which allows people to easily record shows and skip over commercials during playback. But now TIVO is helping to pioneer a way to force people to watch commercials - by wedging them into the fast-forward mode of the DVR. Here & Now Media Analyst John Carroll explains this is one of many ways that television executives are looking to raise ad dollars.

Audio: BBC, PRI & WBUR's Here & Now, May 11th. Host: Robin Young.

George Lucas Unhappy About 'Star Trek' Success

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And now for something completely different...

Happy Birthday DK

From the band's inception through its first seven years, no incarnation of Fleetwood Mac lasted as long as two years. Later versions lasted longer but still displayed a need for serious psychological counselling.

Casual listeners of "Classic Rock" radio could easily mistake the band's debut as their self titled album in 1975, introducing the era of Lindsey Buckingham & Stevie Nicks and their first wide acceptance in pop.

Other's may remember the early days when Peter Green headlined a line-up of blues-rockers: the era of Black Magic Woman, Oh Well and Green Manalishi.

But in between were 7 other albums, including three in which Danny Kirwan (the youngest member) served as the principal guitarist, singer, songwriter and agent of change:

1970's transitional four-piece lineup on Kiln House,
1971's Future Games in which the band's softer, more adult, side began to emerge,
1972's Bare Trees -- the only one of the three to go platinum, and cited by AllMusic.com as the band's first album of consistently great songwriting.

It was Danny Kirwan, himself hired by bluesman Peter Green at age 17, who recruited Christine Perfect (later McVie) after playing guitar on her self-titled solo album. And during this time of leading the band, 1970 - 1972, he was only 20 - 22.

Today Danny Kirwan, the unsung hero who kept Fleetwood Mac alive, turns 59.

Song: Bare Trees By: Fleetwood Mac Album: Bare Trees Year: 1972

The Marx Brothers

Zeppo, Groucho, Chico, Harpo, Richard & Karl.