We begin with a brief health update. I’m having more good days than bad. The little gray brain cells are firing at around 85%. My body lags behind but I’m up to 70-75%. I still tire easily and am not ready to fully reenter society, but it’s only been two months since I took ill. It feels like two years.

Repeat after me: Never get sick on Mardi Gras Day.

Let’s move on to more mundane matters. I hereby declare April Zappa-Ernst month, Odds & Sods wise. I’ll be pairing Frank and Max’s music and artwork for the rest of the month. They go together like peas and carrots or Abbott and Costello.

This week’s theme song is an instrumental that was the title track of Frank Zappa’s 1970 solo album. I picked it because we’re hearing a lot of bluster and bullshit about revenge from a certain crooked politician. I know which side Frank would be on if he were still with us.

We have two versions of Chunga’s Revenge for your listening pleasure: the studio original and a 1988 live version.

I did a search for songs about revenge. They’re mostly either metal or country numbers. I opted for John Prine:

We begin our second act with a segment about a TV show that just went off the air after 24 years and 12 seasons. I realize those numbers don’t add up but neither does Larry David.

Enthusiasm Curbed: As a sporadically irascible and cranky man of a certain age, I dig Curb Your Enthusiasm. Larry David’s caricature of himself says things that we’d all like to say but don’t because who wants to argue incessantly? Besides, TV Larry is an asshole and a jerk but he’s a funny asshole.

I loved the finale, which was like the much mocked Seinfeld finale only with a better set up. The entire season had been building to Larry’s trial. That brings me to our first link: a piece by Slate’s Sam Adams about the finale. Insert beer joke here.

Our second link is from Vulture and involves Larry’s catch phrase: pretty, pretty good.

Despite all the evidence to the contrary, there are right-wingers who think Larry David is one of them. They’re disappointed when they learn otherwise. Nitish Pahwa has the details.

I don’t know if there was a CYE farewell party. I wasn’t invited. Dr. A would have declined: she’s not a fan.

Let’s move from the tony suburbs of Southern California to the streets of New Orleans.

Where The Chads Are: I’ve written about the plague of parade route chads during Carnival many times. They’re the bozos who treat the public green as if it were their own backyard. They’re the bozos who conflate tailgating with Carnival parading. They’re the bozos who make Carnival less fun than it used to be.

My friend former Gambit Weekly editor, novelist, and all around good guy Kevin Allman has written an op-ed piece about chaddery for the Picvocate complete with an illustration by cartoonist Walt Handelsman and a chatty chaddy poem by Kevin.

The last word of our second act goes to New Orleans native turned Parisian Sidney Bechet:

We begin our third act with our favorite stolen feature.

Separated At Birth Casting Edition: Joseph Lash’s book Eleanor and Franklin caused a sensation upon its publication in 1971. It was an insider account of the life and bumpy times of the Roosevelts. It’s how the general public learned about Lucy Mercer and other juicy Eleanor and Franklin gossip.

The book was adapted as a TV mini-series in 1976. Edward Hermann played FDR and Jane Alexander played ER.

Your Weekly Oscar: I’m still not all there after my illness. The clearest indicator of that is that I forgot this segment last week. Woe is me, bop.

It’s still April, innit? Here’s the OP Trio with saxophone great Sonny Stitt:

Have I told you lately how much I love Oscar Peterson?

The Best Of Letterman: Here’s Frank Zappa bantering with Dave in 1983:

Saturday GIF Horse: It’s a GIF montage of Larry David saying pretty, pretty good. It’s pretty darn good if I do say so myself and I do.

Here’s another relevant John Prine song. This time, a cover by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band:

Glad not to be the only one to have stolen Odds & Sods from The Who. While we’re on the subject of that album:

Speaking of water, we had some major street flooding this week in New Orleans.

Tweet Of The Week: It comes from my friend Cait Gladow. She lives in the flood prone Broadmoor neighborhood. The tweet features some aquatic activity during the April 10th flood. It happened on Napoleon Avenue, which is one of the main drags Uptown.

I added music. #nolawx #nola #broadmoor pic.twitter.com/6hiLe56Xrs

— Cait (@nolanolegal) April 10, 2024

That reminds me of an early Lyle Lovett tune:

Let’s close down this virtual honky tonk with some more music.

Saturday Closer: I have no idea how long this Rolling Stones bootleg will stay online but it’s too cool to pass up. I’m old so I saw this tour at Winterland in San Francisco. Stevie Wonder opened. It was a memorable night to say the least.

That’s all for this week. The last word goes to Larry David and JB Smoove: