Did you ever catch up with a pop culture phenomenon a year or two late? [View all]

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

The phenomenon known as Adele has been going on in the background of my life for what seems like well over a year. Two or three of the hugest hits from her latest album are always in some kind of rotation, pleasantly burbling at low volume over satellite radio or Pandora when I'm at work. I've heard these songs so often that I can recognize and hum the tunes even if I didn't know their names.

I took a little notice when I saw the latest James Bond movie, I've always been partial to the musical themes and songs, particularly the old Shirley Bassey stuff, and I thought the theme for "Skyfall" was particularly well done and in keeping with the classic Bond themes.

For whatever reason, last night, for the first time, I actually sat down and LISTENED to a number of her songs as Youtube videos, including the smash radio hits, and I was totally amazed at her voice and the quality of the songs. So I feel like a total dope!