Top of the morning to ye. It's Saint Paddy's Day, so have a bit of a pint and enjoy the day.
1. Whiskey In The Jar-The Dubliners 1968 Taken from the Irish Drinking Songs Cd that Sony Music put out in the 1990s, this is your typical drink em down and sing it loud songs that would have fit in quite well at Paddy O'Learys or The Irish Democrat here in town. Some of the fun is hearing some of the laddies trying to outshout one another when they sing this song. Me thinks the local band Wyde Night might be doing this at the Democrat today. A thousand apologies for not getting their name right but me thinks thy might be in the neighborhood.
2. Love Song-Elton John 1971 Written by the late great Lesley Duncan who passed away the other day after a bout with cancer at age 66 which Elton recorded it for Tumbleweed Connection and later had a minor hit with it off Here And There, an live album that I never bought. Duncan did record for Columbia and Mercury if me memory serves me well.
3. The Indifference Of Heaven-Warren Zevon 1993 To compare Warren's time with Giant Records is like Neil Young when he was on Geffen, Zevon did a fairly good album with Waddy Wachtel and then did a bunch of jamming around with REM and called it the Hindu Love Gods and then made a one man show with Learning To Flinch, an album that didn't get very good reviews. But still, here's another example that Warren was just more than Warewolves Of London, even though he did do a version of that on this album. You can find this in the 5.99 bins at Barnes & Noble. Or even cheaper at Amazon dot com. Heh, might even have a used copy you can buy from me too.
4. The Impression That I Get-The Mighty Mighty Bosstones 1997 In the 1990s, this has to be one of the most unusual songs ever to hit the top spot on radio. They were a ska punk band and got signed before No Doubt did but at the time, only The Untouchables had a recording contract (with ill-fated Restless/Enigma) that was doing that Ska-punk thingy. Dicky Barrett had a voice that sounded more like a tuneful Lemmy and best described as "sounding like he drank a bottle of Drano in the process" but the guy is a lotta fun. Hard to imagine The Bosstones even having a recording contract in this day and age and I betcha it would be fun to hear Barrett using autotuner with that voice. Number 1 record for a couple weeks, followup didn't even clear top fifty.
5. Got To Get Better In A Little While-Derek And The Dominoes 1971 The studio version appeared on that boxset Crossroads but I'm more familiar with the 14 minute version that appears on Derek & The Dominoes In Concert and paid something like 20 bucks at Rock n Bach for a scratchy album but once I got the CD set, tried to take it back to trade and Jim Henson didn't want it back. I think I unloaded it at at Relics with about 30 other albums to get then, the big 4 CD Led Zeppelin box set to which I think I played about 10 times since getting it. One of a few CDs that I took up on that ill fated Waterloo trip last weekend.
6. I'm In With The Out Crowd-Sam The Sham & The Pharaohs 1966 The guy was a total freak and then freaked out and ended up becoming a bible belting panhandler on some Memphis street but I'm sure he's getting some kind of royalties from Wooly Bully but this is a lesser known track b/w The Hair Of My Chinny Chin Chin aka Little Red Riding Hood Part 2. Polydor quietly reissued The Best Of Sam The Sham around 1987 and then Rhino did a more complete job a few years later with most of the hits. Both are now out of print but The Best Of was one of the first 10 CDs that I bought. I can relate to this song cuz it's about me. ha ha.
7. Favorite Son-Green Day 2004 Off the Rock Against Bush album, this wasn't on American Idiot but supposedly it's on a Japan Import. Back then, Fat Mike from Fat Wreck Chords was trying to get a grassroots campaign of getting musicians to contribute songs on his Rock Against Bush since George W Bush was not well liked but still the effort failed and W got another four years. Which leads to......
8. War-Edwin Starr 1970 A massive hit and first of two anti war songs drummed up by Norman Whitfield and sang with conviction by Starr. The followup Stop The War Now got a bit of airplay on the AM station but didn't chart as well.
9. The Party's Over-Willie Nelson 1966 Dedicated to Kate Winslet whose leaving her hubby after seven years. Amicable differences it's called. I don't buy that. Divorces or breakups are never that friendly, too much bickering and backstabbing and I guess Kate thought her husband was too boring and not outgoing as much as she is. Some guys are that way, get older and want to stick around the house. I used to have a big crush on Kate during the Titantic movie and really thought her body was the perfect type to have, not too skinny and a bit of shape to her. But once she lost most of that weight she became yet another lookalike skinny actress that probably smokes too much. I'm sure Kate will find another stud, hang out with him for a few months or years and then move on. Kinda like Kate Hudson all over again. The trick to everlasting true love is to roll with the changes and for better or worse. In Hollywood, it's usually till the one making the most money gets bored and moves on after the slight difference. And your typical hollywood actress is usually too much high maintenance and a pain in a ass, no matter how beautiful they are. Or so they think.
10. Third Week In The Chelsea-Jefferson Airplane 1971 To me, the ending of the Jefferson Airplane was the departure of Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Cassidy after Bark, the half classic album that came out in a brown paper bag. Most of the Paul Kantner, Grace Slick songs were forgettable but this song proved to be the highlight of that album. While Jorma and Jack moved on to Hot Tuna, Jefferson Airplane would crash into the ground and then arise from the ashes to become the corporate rockers Jefferson Starship and mutated into Starship. We built this city indeed. Third Week in The Chelsea proved that once and for all, the 60s were dead and gone.
And another passing to pass on. Alex Chilton, the lead singer from Big Star and the voice behind the Box Tops died from a heart attack. He was 59.
5 comments:
Crabby: Alex Chilton really did do some great stuff -- I think "Soul Deep" is a real classic, & I've always bn a sucker 4 the Box Tops' cheezy "Sweet Cream Ladies, Forward March."
But: Hadn't Chilton been abusing himself w/ drugz & alcohol 4 yrs? Or mayB that was just the image he wanted 2 put out there. He hadda whole string of releases in the '70s & '80s that were allegedly just barely releasable, scraped 2gether from Ndless drunken sessions, etc. The impression I got was, whatever demons were driving him, this was how he wanted 2 B presented -- or it was the best he could do. Still, he did some great stuff when he was younger. & 59 is WAY 2 young. I myself plan 2 hang around til I'm 118, no matter how bad I feel, just so I can B a pain 2 my future grandchildren. U have NE other thots on this? -- TAD.
TAD-I don't think Alex was into drugs at this stage in his life, I think he was clean from that. His band Big Star was slated to play at some festivals in May at Memphis but that won't be taking place anytime soon.
Myself if I want to hear Alex I tend to pull out The Box Tops Greatest Hits more than I do of Big Star's simply of the fact that I love the Box Tops while liking Big Star. As for Alex's solo stuff it was hit and miss. Rhino had a good overview called 19 Years which can be found in the bargain bins (it has been replaced by Top 30-a 2 CD set). I did have Man Called Destruction one time, it was good in spots but unless your a big fan don't recommend it unless you can find it in the dollar bins.
Big Star is alright, but Soul Deep has the songs that make me smile and sing along. Some people might disagree but each to their own. I go with The Box Tops. ;)
Crabby: I 4got, Chilton DID write 1 of my faverite Bangles songs, "September Gurls".... -- TAD.
Crabby: Not sure about the "BX" issues U talk about in yr March 19 post, but U Cm 2 B getting all my stuff OK, at least Blogger posted my last comment 2 U. Guess we'll C what happens 2 this 1. Hang in there! -- TAD.
Must have been a Firefox problem. I can read your postings here at home all right TAD.
Further reports said that Alex Chilton died of a heart attack mowing the yard! Gawd, I better find somebody to mow my yard then, don't wanna end up that way.
And a shout to Beaker Street for playing People Gonna Talk on their show sunday night.
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