Some random cerebral impulse this morning reminded me of the D.C.-based blues band The Nighthawks, who were a very big deal in the club scene back in the day. So here they are with a sizzling version of “Sixteen Tons” (which has always been a sort of alternative national anthem in my mind) performed in 1984.

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Ed Kilgore is a political columnist for New York and managing editor at the Democratic Strategist website. He was a contributing writer at the Washington Monthly from January 2012 until November 2015, and was the principal contributor to the Political Animal blog.