"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" - April 2020

A monthly, music-themed meta crossword published at noon on the first Tuesday of every month. The puzzles increase in difficulty each month, and at year end there is a 13th puzzle (the "Mega-Meta") that invokes each of the 12 monthly puzzles. Currently available at https://pmxwords.com/, as well as through the Washington Post website here: MMMM at WaPo
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BrianMac
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"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" - April 2020

#1

Post by BrianMac »

April MMMM is up. The answer to the meta is a song from the '60s.

Enjoy and good luck!
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Al Sisti
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#2

Post by Al Sisti »

Really enjoyed this one...
docison
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#3

Post by docison »

Al Sisti wrote: Tue Apr 07, 2020 1:55 pm Really enjoyed this one...
Agreed!
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Hector
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#4

Post by Hector »

Cool puzzle. One grid entry has me baffled, though. If anyone can read my mind as to which it is and can offer an insight via PM, I'll be grateful.

Edit: thanks for filling me in on this rather out-there entry!
Last edited by Hector on Tue Apr 07, 2020 3:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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TMart
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#5

Post by TMart »

Puzzle was nicely done, and one of my favorite songs. Hector, I’ll take a shot at your question.
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FrankieHeck
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#6

Post by FrankieHeck »

Hector wrote: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:28 pm Cool puzzle. One grid entry has me baffled, though. If anyone can read my mind as to which it is and can offer an insight via PM, I'll be grateful.
I have a question mark by one of my answers, but I wouldn't be able to offer any insights!
Tom Wilson
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#7

Post by Tom Wilson »

I'm with you, Hector! I'll keep staring at it and scratching my head; something's bound to hit me. Besides, it's not like I'm going anywhere,
Laura M
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#8

Post by Laura M »

Got it!
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FrankieHeck
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#9

Post by FrankieHeck »

Ok, got this one!
LesY
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#10

Post by LesY »

Another good one from Pete! And there are so many other metas to solve today...it's awesome!
Dplass
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#11

Post by Dplass »

Got it, I think.
Tom Wilson
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#12

Post by Tom Wilson »

I thought I had it, too ... but the magical meta machine didn't like my answer.
damefox
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#13

Post by damefox »

On the board! I was nervous for a second. Dunno why this was a weird one for me. Also, did anyone else think the grid felt much harder than normal?

Now to look for that pesky red herring...
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Hector
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#14

Post by Hector »

damefox wrote: Tue Apr 07, 2020 5:32 pm On the board! I was nervous for a second. Dunno why this was a weird one for me. Also, did anyone else think the grid felt much harder than normal?
A lot of trivia (if 42A even qualifies as that --- it reminds me of Cliff Clavin's Jeopardy response, "Who are three people who have never been in my kitchen?"), which makes it very hard if you don't google (I googled liberally).
damefox
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#15

Post by damefox »

Hector wrote: Tue Apr 07, 2020 5:48 pm (I googled liberally).
Me too. I would still be working on the grid if I hadn't!
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hcbirker
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#16

Post by hcbirker »

On the board! Grid was harder, but it had to be!
Heidi
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Thurman8er
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#17

Post by Thurman8er »

Haven't seen confirmation yet, but I'm sure I got it. I didn't love this one...way too much Googling for me.
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BarbaraK
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#18

Post by BarbaraK »

This was not my favorite of Pete's puzzles.

There is often a lot of stuff that I don't know in his grids, but normally I can get through them with patience, crosses, intelligent guesses. Not this month. I found the grid difficult/tedious and had a lot of blank squares when I decided I was totally stuck and started to google. If this had been anyone else, I'm not sure I would have bothered finishing it and going on to the meta. But I do generally love Pete's puzzles, so I did.

The meta was clever; I did enjoy that. I'm not sure I agree that the grid had to be as hard as it was, but I'll wait til after the deadline to say more about that.
Laura M
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#19

Post by Laura M »

Hey, I got the mega-meta!
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ChrisKochmanski
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#20

Post by ChrisKochmanski »

Kinda agree with Barbara K on the grid. It wasn't the most satisfying. But I enjoyed finding the solution. Mostly because I'm a big fan of what I found.
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