February 11, 2025

Look 109: Stone Soup II, The Link Up

Fellow angler,

I planned to write about how we, as a society, fetishize the tortured artists who know nothing in life but the singular passion they feel toward their art. And how we shouldn’t do that. But I’m postponing that post until next time. It’s been a busy couple of weeks and I’m too tired to be clever.

Instead, you’re getting links to videos I have enjoyed on TikTok, sandwiched between a couple of sections with random history.

George Washington, 1783

Last November, in Look 105, I spoke about creation myths. Here’s an extra bit that I wrote but didn’t include:

The United Colonies declared independence from Britain on July 4, 1776 (they didn’t officially adopt the name United States until September 9, 1776).

In many people’s minds (or at least in mine and I’ll generalize here so I don’t sound dumb) the U.S. was a country at that point. Sure there was fighting with the British, but the Revolutionary War had started a year earlier and by Independence Day the image most of us have is the founding fathers hammering the final nail in the lobster backs and emerging as the fully formed United States of America.

However, in response to the Declaration of Independence, the British began a plan to retake the country, starting with New York City. On August 27, 1776, British troops fought and won the Battle of Long Island (later rebranded as the Battle of Brooklyn since we now know that part of Long Island as Brooklyn).

Those nasty Brits successfully chased George Washington out of the city and occupied New York (Manhattan and Brooklyn) for more than seven (!) years.

It wasn’t until November 25, 1783 — more than two full months after the Revolutionary War was ended via the Treaty of Paris — that George Washington rode back into New York and the British left.

I share this because when talking of founding myths, it’s important to remember that historians and politicians often leave out details that are unsavory or muddy the waters of what they want their followers to believe.

If you want to learn more about the Battle of Brooklyn, and especially if you want John Turturro to briefly explain the battle’s history to you, check out this page from the Old Stone House.

10 TikTok

These are all videos I’ve liked on TikTok, though some are years old. For what it’s worth, sound is necessary for all of these.

1. Me, at work, as the crying dog meme.

2. An Italian lemon

3. Foolish backtalk

4. A starving cat

5. Swan Lake 1, the avocado

6. Swan Lake 2, the swan

7. Getting the bill

8. Sacrifice

9. Tiny chef

10. I am fish

Title track: Rumble by Link Wray

If you’re above a certain age you may be familiar with rock guitarist Link Wray. He’s pretty well known and was recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Recently, I was listening to his first single from 1958, Rumble. It’s a simple song. It’s only two minutes long and it’s instrumental. But it’s also one of the earliest (successful) rock songs to use distortion on an electric guitar.

Imagine what it must have been like in 1958. Rock was a nascent genre, finding its way between rockabilly and the rhythm and blues songs that black artists struggled to get noticed by white recording artists. Chuck Berry and Little Richard were around but bands like The Beach Boys and The Beatles were still years away. To hear a song on the radio with a distorted guitar sound must have been quite a revelation for teen listeners.

Too much, it turned out. Radio stations in major cities like New York and Boston banned the song because they were afraid its gritty sound and suggestive title (rumble was slang for a gang fight) would glorify violence.

According to Wikipedia, Rumble is the only instrumental single ever banned from the radio in the United States.

It still had a huge impact though. It helped usher in the age of punk rock and the heavier rock sound we know today. Greats like Iggy Pop, Bob Dylan, Jimmy Page, and Eric Clapton have cited the song’s (and Link Wray’s) influence on them.

So there you go: a tiny bit of rock history.

Until next time,

Happy fishing!