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The Fourth on 4

Published Wednesday, July 05, 2006 by seanlmccarthy | E-mail this post

Now, I'm OK with a little pomp and circumstance from time to time -- particularly on holidays such as the Fourth of July -- but why, oh why, do some of the TV broadcasters (particularly, you, Lisa Hughes and Joyce Kulhawik) have to sound so breathless in your praise every year? Seriously, Hughes acted as if she had never seen the Esplanade spectacular before. And when you're telling viewers that the crowd is bonkers for Rockapella, well, even we know that's a stretch. We saw that silliness ourselves. The best thing about them was it gave us enough time for a bathroom break. Also found in the nonsense department: Dr. Phil and his wife with their unintentionally humorous lack of timing as co-emcees; Keith Lockhart aping for the cameras and the crowd -- when is this guy going to do something newsworthy like his "illustrious predecessors" John Williams or Arthur Fiedler and be known for something musical rather than his shockingly awful Dunkin Donuts ad? And don't say allowing Elvis Costello and My Morning Jacket sit in with the Boston Pops counts, because it doesn't. Lockhart needs to make his own mark.

That said, the fireworks were noticeably fun, thanks to some new additions that came from abroad. Could you tell which fireworks were foreign-born? I could.

Related:
The Fourth on 4 (video highlights)