Daily Dirt: Hey Jude, have a great Thanksgiving!

Daily Dirt for Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023

The question of the day remains, “White Room” or “Sunshine of Your Love?” Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 790 of The Daily Dirt.

1. I hope everyone reading this has an awesome Thanksgiving. What could make a great Turkey Day even greater? (Besides football and apple pie, of course.)

Music, that’s what.

So while you’re asking yourself what made you take that third helping of turkey and/or that fourth piece of pie, look at the following top 10 pop songs on Thanksgiving from 55 years ago today — Nov. 23, 1968.

• 1. “Hey Jude,” by the Beatles: Personally, I preferred the flip side of this two-sided gazillion seller. “Revolution” was a great effort from the Fab Four, but it always will be overlooked by “Hey Jude,” one of the all-time snoozefests. 
• 2. “Love Child,” by the Supremes: At this point in time, Diana Ross and the Supremes were far and away the No. 1 female attraction in pop music.
• 3. “Those Were the Days,” by Mary Hopkin: This was the first non-Beatles hit from Apple Records.
• 4. “Magic Carpet Ride,” by Steppenwolf: In my humble opinion, the best Steppenwolf song ever.
• 5. “Abraham, Martin and John,” by Dion: A song that has truly bridged the ages.
• 6. “White Room,” by Cream: All of these years later, I still can’t decide what Cream song was best, this or “Sunshine of Your Love”.
• 7. “Hold Me Tight,” by Johnny Nash: Nash is often overlooked when discussing the hitmakers of this era, but he had a nice run of Top 40 songs.
• 8. “Who’s Making Love,” by Johnnie Taylor: This was mildly controversial at the time and not played on certain airvwaves. The line “Who’s makin’ love to your old lady, while you are out makin’ love?” did not sit well with some censors.
• 9. “Little Green Apples,” by O.C. Smith: I used to cringe every time this song came on the radio. I thought it would never end.
• 10. “Wichita Lineman,” by Glen Campbell: See No. 9.

2. Since it’s Thanksgiving, here’s some food for thought: What has ….

• 15 actors?
• 4 settings?
• 2 writers?
• 1 plot?

Answer: 633 Hallmark movies.

3. Here’s the Daily Dirt’s top five NFL teams and three key games to watch during this busy football-filled weekend:

• 1. Philadelphia (9-1): It’s safe to say the Eagles have solidified their hold as not only the best team in the NFL but to the claim of being the most balanced when it comes to both passing-rushing and offense-defense. These guys do not have a glaring weakness.
• 2. Kansas City (7-3): Did you see the note earlier this week about Chiefs receivers leading the NFL in dropped passes?
• 3. San Francisco (7-3): First place is on the line today in NFC West when the 49ers and Seahawks (6-4) clash.
• 4. Cleveland (7-3): If defenses truly win championships, you might want to get on this particular bandwagon right now.
• 5. Detroit (8-2): The Lions remind me of one of those old AFL teams. Very little defense, but man can they score!

This week’s selected games:

(Sunday) Cleveland at Denver: Offensively speaking, this has the makings of a real yawner.
Prediction: Cleveland 14, Denver 3. The Browns’ top “playmaker” is kicker Dustin Hopkins.

(Sunday) Buffalo at Philadelphia: Do you just the feeling this is Philadelphia’s season? Yeah, me too. Prediction: Philadelphia 35, Buffalo 20. Is Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts the NFL MVP at this point?

(Sunday) Kansas City at Las Vegas: I would say the over/under for Patrick Mahomes touchdown passes this game would be four. 
Prediction: Kansas City 32, Las Vegas 21. Will Taylor Swift make an appearance?

Steve Thought O’ The Day
Happy Thanksgiving! (And Go Buckeyes!!)

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. “Hey Jude” is a snoozefest? Where is that hand slapping the forehead emoji?