Burl Ives- Mr. Rabbit

The rabbit died.

I suspect that most people only know Burl Ives today through his role as the voice of the friendly snowman in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. It's a nice way to be remembered, but long before the advent of Raffi and Sesame Street, Ives recorded a great deal of popular children's classics. And he didn't sugarcoat it. "Mr. Rabbit" sounds sweet enough, but the ditty ends with the revelation that the subject is "almost dead." Sleep tight, kids! Find it on the excellently subtitled collection Lavender Blue: Songs of Charm, Humour and Sincerity. This thirty-second television commercial is very revealing on several different levels.

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The terror continues for Mexican musicians. Jose Luis Aquino of Los Condes is the most recent victim.

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Like most YouTube addicts, I'm a connoisseur of homemade tribute videos. Since the Streets didn't provide one, a fan filled the void with a clever video of "It Was Supposed To Be So Easy".

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Kansas City Click: I plan to limp into the Sprint Center for tonight's R. Kelly, Keisha Cole and J. Holiday concert.

Here's the deal: I'll pay someone's $25 entrance fee for Mac Lethal's show on Saturday if they're willing to pick me up and safely return me to my home 13 miles away. The cover charge includes the show and unlimited beer at the Flying Monkey Brewery in Olathe. Email or call me.

The Lemonheads and Racoon are at the Record Bar on Sunday night. (Oh, how I love this song.)