irrepressible

At the outset of his career in 1998, his unique genre of songwriting was dubbed “popera” by a family friend — and his music does somehow encompass the catchy tune and the irrepressible rhythm of great pop within complex classical chord sequences and a Verdi-sized ambition.

Wrote Pat Calabria in Newsday after Rose was banished, “Behind the gleaming All-America smile and the irrepressible charm, Pete Rose has spent much of his career putting out one brushfire after another. Until now, he always managed to escape unharmed. . . . Rose was a remarkable hitter and enormously popular . . . his face was on the front of a Wheaties box. But the public image never did square with the private reality.”

Harris’ irrepressible, gorgeous grin symbolizes the shift and sums it up perfectly.

Who would want to be uptight when you could be irrepressible?

Who would want to be uptight when you could be irrepressible?