Luke Hill
@masscommons.bsky.social
Posting about: books, food, history, music, politics, religion, sports…and anything else that comes to mind.
https://masscommons.wordpress.com/
https://masscommons.wordpress.com/
We All Want to Change the World by @kareemabduljabbar.bsky.social
"I think the sound of #protests is more like an alarm clock waking us from the drowsy dream of bliss to the reality of...keeping the country as a free & functioning #democracy.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/w...
"I think the sound of #protests is more like an alarm clock waking us from the drowsy dream of bliss to the reality of...keeping the country as a free & functioning #democracy.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/w...
We All Want To Change The World
If you know of someone in the same category as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar when it comes to living the life of a citizen-scholar-athlete, please let me know in the comments below; because I’ve been t…
masscommons.wordpress.com
January 4, 2026 at 9:03 PM
We All Want to Change the World by @kareemabduljabbar.bsky.social
"I think the sound of #protests is more like an alarm clock waking us from the drowsy dream of bliss to the reality of...keeping the country as a free & functioning #democracy.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/w...
"I think the sound of #protests is more like an alarm clock waking us from the drowsy dream of bliss to the reality of...keeping the country as a free & functioning #democracy.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/w...
Morning Song - My Good Lord's Done Been Here by The Morehouse Glee Club
"...isn't a grammatical error. It's a theological affirmation."
#spiritual
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/m...
"...isn't a grammatical error. It's a theological affirmation."
#spiritual
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/m...
Morning Song – My Good Lord’s Done Been Here
This version of the old spiritual, “My Good Lord’s Done Been Here” by the Morehouse Glee Club captures–and encodes–some of the fugitive and subversive nature of the Go…
masscommons.wordpress.com
January 4, 2026 at 1:37 PM
Morning Song - My Good Lord's Done Been Here by The Morehouse Glee Club
"...isn't a grammatical error. It's a theological affirmation."
#spiritual
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/m...
"...isn't a grammatical error. It's a theological affirmation."
#spiritual
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/04/m...
Morning Song - A Child Is Born by the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis #Jazz Orchestra
"...sweet, lovely, awe-filled..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/03/m...
"...sweet, lovely, awe-filled..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/03/m...
Morning Song – A Child Is Born
No big band (that I know of) did a better job of incorporating the sounds of the 1960s into their music than the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra, but perhaps their best known piece is Jones’ s…
masscommons.wordpress.com
January 3, 2026 at 12:52 PM
Morning Song - A Child Is Born by the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis #Jazz Orchestra
"...sweet, lovely, awe-filled..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/03/m...
"...sweet, lovely, awe-filled..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/03/m...
Morning Song - You Got to Funkifize by Tower of Power
"Got to kick to the backbeat before you get too old,
You got to flash to the fire and let it grab your soul!"
#FunkyFriday
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/02/m...
"Got to kick to the backbeat before you get too old,
You got to flash to the fire and let it grab your soul!"
#FunkyFriday
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/02/m...
Morning Song – You Got To Funkifize
With the start of a new year, there are all sorts of resolutions, pop wisdom, and advice flying around. Here at this little blog we’re sticking with some tried-and-true wisdom from Tower of P…
masscommons.wordpress.com
January 2, 2026 at 12:49 PM
Morning Song - You Got to Funkifize by Tower of Power
"Got to kick to the backbeat before you get too old,
You got to flash to the fire and let it grab your soul!"
#FunkyFriday
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/02/m...
"Got to kick to the backbeat before you get too old,
You got to flash to the fire and let it grab your soul!"
#FunkyFriday
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/02/m...
"It doesn't really matter which #stocks you take to the desert island."
"'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' TV special...is the most racist version of #Santa that we've seen anywhere."
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged with @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
"'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' TV special...is the most racist version of #Santa that we've seen anywhere."
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged with @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
EPISODES — Money Unplugged Podcast
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com
January 1, 2026 at 5:43 PM
"It doesn't really matter which #stocks you take to the desert island."
"'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' TV special...is the most racist version of #Santa that we've seen anywhere."
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged with @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
"'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' TV special...is the most racist version of #Santa that we've seen anywhere."
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged with @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
Morning Song - #NewYearsDay by Taylor Swift
“Hold onto the memories, they will hold onto you.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/01/m...
“Hold onto the memories, they will hold onto you.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/01/m...
Morning Song – New Year’s Day
It takes a lot of nerve to write a song around a chord progression as iconic as Curtis Mayfield’s “People Get Ready”. Of course, Taylor Swift has never lacked for nerve; nor does …
masscommons.wordpress.com
January 1, 2026 at 1:04 PM
Morning Song - #NewYearsDay by Taylor Swift
“Hold onto the memories, they will hold onto you.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/01/m...
“Hold onto the memories, they will hold onto you.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2026/01/01/m...
"For 100 years now, revenue has been stuck at zero."
"I think it's a data organization. They're making revenues in different channels than you're thinking of."
#KringleGlobalEnterprises
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged w @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
"I think it's a data organization. They're making revenues in different channels than you're thinking of."
#KringleGlobalEnterprises
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged w @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
EPISODES — Money Unplugged Podcast
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com
December 31, 2025 at 9:36 PM
"For 100 years now, revenue has been stuck at zero."
"I think it's a data organization. They're making revenues in different channels than you're thinking of."
#KringleGlobalEnterprises
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged w @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
"I think it's a data organization. They're making revenues in different channels than you're thinking of."
#KringleGlobalEnterprises
Bill Barker & Bill Mann on #MoneyUnplugged w @chrishillalx.bsky.social
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
Morning Song - Auld Lang Syne #Boogie by the Freddie Mitchell Orchestra
Happy #NewYearsEve, y'all.
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/31/m...
Happy #NewYearsEve, y'all.
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/31/m...
Morning Song – Auld Lang Syne Boogie
Oldsters may remember 1979 as the Year of Disco, not just because Chic, Gloria Gaynor, Donna Summer, et al, topped the charts but because rockers like Blondie, Rod Stewart, and The Rolling Stones a…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 31, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Morning Song - Auld Lang Syne #Boogie by the Freddie Mitchell Orchestra
Happy #NewYearsEve, y'all.
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/31/m...
Happy #NewYearsEve, y'all.
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/31/m...
Morning Song - Little Drummer Girl by @christinaaguilera.bsky.social ft. Sheila E.
"Pah-rum pum pum pum" indeed.
#christmas #FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/m...
"Pah-rum pum pum pum" indeed.
#christmas #FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/m...
Morning Song – Little Drummer Girl
One of the confounding things about “Little Drummer Boy/Girl” is how boring the drum part usually is. It turns out there’s a simple solution to that problem: just let Sheila E. cu…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 30, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Morning Song - Little Drummer Girl by @christinaaguilera.bsky.social ft. Sheila E.
"Pah-rum pum pum pum" indeed.
#christmas #FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/m...
"Pah-rum pum pum pum" indeed.
#christmas #FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/m...
Morning Song - We Three Kings of Orient Are by Jimmy Smith
"Royalty never sounded more fun."
#christmas #hammondb3
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/29/m...
"Royalty never sounded more fun."
#christmas #hammondb3
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/29/m...
Morning Song – We Three Kings Of Orient Are
That’s an absolutely majestic horn section* playing in a stately and reverent 3/4 to open Jimmy Smith’s 1964 rendition of “We Three Kings Of Orient Are”, but the fun really …
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 29, 2025 at 2:04 PM
Morning Song - We Three Kings of Orient Are by Jimmy Smith
"Royalty never sounded more fun."
#christmas #hammondb3
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/29/m...
"Royalty never sounded more fun."
#christmas #hammondb3
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/29/m...
Morning Song - The Angel Said to Joseph Mild by Tom Jones
"...Fly with the Mother and the Child,
Out of this land to Egypt go..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/28/m...
"...Fly with the Mother and the Child,
Out of this land to Egypt go..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/28/m...
Morning Song – The Angel Said To Joseph Mild
Christianity, according to Matthew, was drenched in blood long before Jesus was executed by the Roman authorities. The first story Matthew tells, after the genealogy and birth of Jesus, is of Herod…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 28, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Morning Song - The Angel Said to Joseph Mild by Tom Jones
"...Fly with the Mother and the Child,
Out of this land to Egypt go..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/28/m...
"...Fly with the Mother and the Child,
Out of this land to Egypt go..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/28/m...
"It's a time for remembering.... We miss the people who just aren't here anymore, which is why it's all the more important to be with the people in our lives who *are* here."
@chrishillalx.bsky.social on #MoneyUnplugged podcast
#Christmas #Wisdom
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
@chrishillalx.bsky.social on #MoneyUnplugged podcast
#Christmas #Wisdom
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
EPISODES — Money Unplugged Podcast
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com
December 27, 2025 at 3:46 PM
"It's a time for remembering.... We miss the people who just aren't here anymore, which is why it's all the more important to be with the people in our lives who *are* here."
@chrishillalx.bsky.social on #MoneyUnplugged podcast
#Christmas #Wisdom
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
@chrishillalx.bsky.social on #MoneyUnplugged podcast
#Christmas #Wisdom
www.moneyunpluggedpodcast.com/episodes
Morning Song - Santa Claus is Coming to Town by Ramsey Lewis
Enjoy.
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/27/m...
Enjoy.
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/27/m...
Morning Song – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
Ramsey Lewis plays “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” like a fond and much-loved memory, and that’s how we’re listening to it here on the third day of Christmas at this little …
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 27, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Morning Song - Santa Claus is Coming to Town by Ramsey Lewis
Enjoy.
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/27/m...
Enjoy.
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/27/m...
Morning Song - #Umoja by Steve Cobb & Chanvunduka
"“...is the message, a call for #unity.“
#Kwanzaa
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/26/m...
"“...is the message, a call for #unity.“
#Kwanzaa
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/26/m...
Morning Song – Umoja
“…is the message, a call for unity.” Happy Kwanzaa, y’all.
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 26, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Morning Song - #Umoja by Steve Cobb & Chanvunduka
"“...is the message, a call for #unity.“
#Kwanzaa
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/26/m...
"“...is the message, a call for #unity.“
#Kwanzaa
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/26/m...
Morning Song - Merry #Christmas Baby by @melissaetheridge.bsky.social
"What the woman said."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/25/m...
"What the woman said."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/25/m...
Morning Song – Merry Christmas Baby
What the woman said. Merry Christmas, y’all.
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 25, 2025 at 12:20 PM
Morning Song - Merry #Christmas Baby by @melissaetheridge.bsky.social
"What the woman said."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/25/m...
"What the woman said."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/25/m...
Morning Song - White #Christmas by Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
"May all your dreams be merry & bright...."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
h/t: JHD
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/24/m...
"May all your dreams be merry & bright...."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
h/t: JHD
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/24/m...
Morning Song – White Christmas
We get questions. As, recently, when a longtime correspondent asked “Blog Cover Worthy?” and included a link to Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings’ blistering, note-perfect, 2015 ne…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 24, 2025 at 12:32 PM
Morning Song - White #Christmas by Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
"May all your dreams be merry & bright...."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
h/t: JHD
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/24/m...
"May all your dreams be merry & bright...."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
h/t: JHD
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/24/m...
Morning Song - Presents for #Christmas by Solomon Burke
"...around the world/Something mighty sweet to see..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/23/m...
"...around the world/Something mighty sweet to see..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/23/m...
Morning Song – Presents For Christmas
Solomon Burke was a man of prodigious appetites and ambitions so of course he’d write a song about wanting to be Santa so as to ensure every child on earth had a present. And because he was S…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 23, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Morning Song - Presents for #Christmas by Solomon Burke
"...around the world/Something mighty sweet to see..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/23/m...
"...around the world/Something mighty sweet to see..."
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/23/m...
Morning Song - Santa's Got a Bag of Soul by The Poets of Rhythm
“It appears that Santa does, in fact, have a bag of soul.”
#christmas #funk
h/t: @chrishillalx.bsky.social
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/22/m...
“It appears that Santa does, in fact, have a bag of soul.”
#christmas #funk
h/t: @chrishillalx.bsky.social
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/22/m...
Morning Song – Santa’s Got A Bag Of Soul
Outsourcing for commentary to longtime correspondent CAH: “It appears that Santa does, in fact, have a bag of soul.”
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 22, 2025 at 12:25 PM
Morning Song - Santa's Got a Bag of Soul by The Poets of Rhythm
“It appears that Santa does, in fact, have a bag of soul.”
#christmas #funk
h/t: @chrishillalx.bsky.social
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/22/m...
“It appears that Santa does, in fact, have a bag of soul.”
#christmas #funk
h/t: @chrishillalx.bsky.social
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/22/m...
Afternoon Song - Mary Don't You Weep by Roland Hayes
“One of these mornings bright and fair/Going to take my wings and cleave the air….”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/21/a...
“One of these mornings bright and fair/Going to take my wings and cleave the air….”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/21/a...
Afternoon Song – Mary Don’t You Weep
When the magisterial tenor Roland Hayes sings “Mary Don’t You Weep”, the air reverberates with conviction and authenticity such that you’re ready to follow him in whatever h…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 21, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Afternoon Song - Mary Don't You Weep by Roland Hayes
“One of these mornings bright and fair/Going to take my wings and cleave the air….”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/21/a...
“One of these mornings bright and fair/Going to take my wings and cleave the air….”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/21/a...
Morning Song - What Child Is This? by Oscar Peterson
#TicklingTheIvories
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/20/m...
#TicklingTheIvories
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/20/m...
Morning Song – What Child Is This?
Next to the phrase “tickling the ivories” in the online dictionary is a clip of Oscar Peterson playing “What Child Is This?”. Enjoy.
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 20, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Morning Song - What Child Is This? by Oscar Peterson
#TicklingTheIvories
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/20/m...
#TicklingTheIvories
#christmas #jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/20/m...
Morning Song - Visions of Johanna by Bob Dylan
“How can I explain/It’s so hard to get on,
And these visions of Johanna, they kept me up past the dawn.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/19/m...
“How can I explain/It’s so hard to get on,
And these visions of Johanna, they kept me up past the dawn.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/19/m...
Morning Song – Visions Of Johanna
All things considered, the Music Department here at MassCommons World Headquarters is surprisingly lacking in its appreciation of Bob Dylan’s work. It’s like an English department renow…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 19, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Morning Song - Visions of Johanna by Bob Dylan
“How can I explain/It’s so hard to get on,
And these visions of Johanna, they kept me up past the dawn.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/19/m...
“How can I explain/It’s so hard to get on,
And these visions of Johanna, they kept me up past the dawn.”
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/19/m...
Morning Song - Badlands by The Dropkick Murphys
"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/18/m...
"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/18/m...
Morning Song – Badlands
Bruce Springsteen’s “Badlands” is one of the great “angry young man” songs of its era, but the longer I listen to it, the more I gravitate toward this line in the fina…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 18, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Morning Song - Badlands by The Dropkick Murphys
"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/18/m...
"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive."
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/18/m...
Morning Song - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by The Temptations
"Santa's sleigh could fly on that groove alone."
#TheFunkBrothers
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/17/m...
"Santa's sleigh could fly on that groove alone."
#TheFunkBrothers
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/17/m...
Morning Song – Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
When it comes to fulfilling this little blog’s First Rule Of Cover Songs* on “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer”, The Temptations not only brought an exquisite five lead vocalist arr…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 17, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Morning Song - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by The Temptations
"Santa's sleigh could fly on that groove alone."
#TheFunkBrothers
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/17/m...
"Santa's sleigh could fly on that groove alone."
#TheFunkBrothers
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/17/m...
Morning Song - Heavy Foot by Mon Rovia
“And they tried to keep us all down,
No they’re never gonna keep us all down.”
h/t: NMH
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/16/m...
“And they tried to keep us all down,
No they’re never gonna keep us all down.”
h/t: NMH
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/16/m...
Morning Song – Heavy Foot
In his new single, Liberian-born Afro-Appalachian singer-songwriter Mon Rovia follows the time-honored tradition of putting the blues in the verses and the gospel in the chorus. Gun violence, homel…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 16, 2025 at 12:39 PM
Morning Song - Heavy Foot by Mon Rovia
“And they tried to keep us all down,
No they’re never gonna keep us all down.”
h/t: NMH
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/16/m...
“And they tried to keep us all down,
No they’re never gonna keep us all down.”
h/t: NMH
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/16/m...
Morning Song - The #Christmas Song by Samara Joy
"Although it's been said many times, many ways...."
Enjoy.
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs #Jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/13/m...
"Although it's been said many times, many ways...."
Enjoy.
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs #Jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/13/m...
Morning Song – The Christmas Song
Samara Joy grew up in a musical family. Her grandparents started one of Philadelphia’s premiere (and longest-lasting) gospel groups and her father toured with Andrae Crouch. So she knows that…
masscommons.wordpress.com
December 13, 2025 at 11:49 AM
Morning Song - The #Christmas Song by Samara Joy
"Although it's been said many times, many ways...."
Enjoy.
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs #Jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/13/m...
"Although it's been said many times, many ways...."
Enjoy.
#FirstRuleOfCoverSongs #Jazz
masscommons.wordpress.com/2025/12/13/m...