Morning Drive, Boys' Selection: David Bowie; Dead Man Walking

I've done it before--for the first ten years of life as a mother of one, then eventually three school-aged children, I battled the murderous traffic that lies between my rural outpost and their school in Tampa--but I have to say, getting back into the routine of a 50-minute commute to their school, this time in Saint Pete, is killing me proving, well, exceedingly stressful shall we say.

For this sort of medium-long road trip, you need entertainment and distraction (and no small quantity of caffeine, and a good radar detector). It's very important to only keep your favorite CD's in the car, too: that way, you can say to Son One, for example, Here, choose something good, and no matter what he selects, it will invariably make you happy as you wend your way through the chugging dump trucks and swerving SUV's stretched out before you as far as the eye can see.

This morning, as we approached the Sunshine Skyway, the normally glassy Tampa Bay was roiling like a pot of soup on high flame, and the winds whipped around us as we ascended. People were slowing down--probably because strong winds can make you feel as though you're losing your steering--but it was okay, because Son Two had chosen one of my all-time favorite-favorite Bowie CD's, and this was the track that was playing:



As soon as I heard that wonderful big guitar sound and thumpy bass, I knew I was going to sit down at my computer the minute I got home and dig through YouTube until I found it. Voilà! Not only did I find a clip of Dead Man Walking, but it's a recording of the very David Letterman episode on which I'd first heard the song, back in the late 90's. Bonuses: the exquisite Liv Tyler, who sweetly introduces David Bowie and then pantomimes a classic Wayne's World We Are Not Worthy bow. And then there's Maestro Bowie himself, who kisses Liv's hand and then grins as she kisses his in return.

Oh, and how badly do I want that Alexander McQueen frock coat that David's wearing? Almost as much as I want bass player Gail Ann Dorsey's outrageously gorgeous evening gown.

Also at Shakesville.