Word count: 84 (grid is 17×15)
Average Length: 5.07
Difficulty: Between 3 and 4 out of 5, depending on the overlap between your musical memories and mine.
Statue of The Beatles, taken in July 2019 in Liverpool.
Enjoy this musical mash-up, and please share freely with kith and kin alike. Comments and suggestions are welcomed. Question for constructors using CrossFire: is there a way to specify the type of symmetry, or are you stuck with rotational unless you hand-insert the blocks to create central symmetry?
26A: The long-ago anthropology major in me finds it fascinating how various cultures have disparate takes (and bestow different significance) on very similar foods, as with the dishes in this clue and answer (cousins of which appear in cuisines from around the world); crepes/blintzes/blini/enchiladas are another example.
62A: The last song in the set list was first performed by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, but Andy Williams is most closely identified with the tune.
71A: In cluing this, it just occurred to me that several common synonyms for “try” are pretty violent – this answer, “shot,” and “tackle” come immediately to mind. I wonder if that’s true only in English or whether other languages have similarly aggressive formulations. Any ideas?
76A: My favorite Steely Dan album, containing my favorite Steely Dan song (the deliciously paranoid and gentrification-bemoaning Kid Charlemagne). Several years ago, I saw them on back-to-back nights at DAR Constitution Hall. They played this complete album the first night and Aja the second. I’m (Can’t-Buy-a) Thrill(ed) to see the recent proliferation of Steely Dan references from independent constructors.
45D: My apologies if you like this stuff, and no offense intended, but this is one unappetizing flavor combination as far as I’m concerned.
Jeff's Puzzles 