Top Ten Of The Week-A Bunch Of Awesome Tunes

Okay, so I'm back after taking a week off. Never a shortage of music around here so let's see what I got for awesome tunes this week.

1. Addiction-The Almighty 1993 Forgotten heavy metal band that made a couple albums for Polydor in the early 90s and got to play at 3rd Street Live around 1993 to promote their album Powertrippin. Labeled at grunge to appease the hip crowd but this was more metal to my ears. Their big hit was Jesus Loves You....But I Don't. Still made albums via imports after Polydor dropped them.

2. Bad Attitude-Honeymoon Suite 1985 Since I've been working in the dreaded packaging department, this song pretty much sums up my feeling after being sent down to Sealing books. This is a fun job, you seal about seven sections of a book with wet tape and sticks to your fingers while asshole seniors scream at you to make rate. God, I wish printing would pick up, I'm getting mighty tired of dealing with these folk and then they expect us to do Thanksgiving dinner in their department? Fuck that, I'm going to IHOP for pancakes.

3. Who Says You Can't Go Home-Bon Jovi 2005 I suppose it's a cold day in hell when I start adding Bon Jovi to my top ten but GD it, his Greatest Hits collection really does show that the dood could put together a catchy single. Although I think he pretty much remains Springsteen light if you strip away the hair metal and reliance on the cliche. Features one Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland on vocal counterpoint, I actually do enjoy this song and do recommend the single edition of Greatest Hits. After all I'm sure he will be the newest induction to the RnRHOF this winter, if not already.

4. Bird Has Flown-Deep Purple 1969 Lamenting the great Rod Evans on lead vocals, he gave the original Deep Purple a unique sound all its own and despite what Martin Popoff tells you, the first 3 DP albums are a worthy addition to your collection. Unfortunately, a bad business deal in 1980 and involving a bogus Deep Purple with only Evans being the familiar ended up getting sued and losing all royalty rights to any DP albums he was with and was never heard from again. Their third album may have been the most prog rock sounding of the trio and sometimes get played on Beaker Street on Sunday Nights. Spitfire/Eagle Rock reissued the first three DP albums with bonus tracks and better sound in the early 2000's but they have seem to gone out of print once again.

5. I Think It's Understood-Octopus 1969 Not to be confused with a UK band that put out an album on Page One Records, this was 4 guys getting to make a record with ESP Disk, the avant garde label out of New York famous for the free form jazz of Sun Ra, Albert Ayler and the out there music of Cromagnon or The Godz. In fact, Octopus was the most rock sounding of anything coming out of ESP Disk, they sounded a bit like Steven Stills fronting The Stooges via Fun House. Not much is known about these four guys, a couple of them would set in on another ESP Disk artist's album and then disappeared. Reissued in the mid 90's via German label ZYX but it's so unknown that Amazon doesn't even have it listed anywhere. Consider it a oddball find at Real Records the other day.

6. A Higher Place-Tom Petty 1994 From his bloated Wildflowers album. It starts out great but by the time this song ends, the rest of the album I can live without hearing again. Sold a ton of this record but I've seen a few in the dollar bins at the pawnshop, in fact I bought this for a dollar at Pawn America up in Madison last month and finally gotten around to playing it.

7. A Minha Menina-Os Mutantes 1968 Translation: My Girl. Band was from Brazil and came across like a crazed Brazil 66 with lotsa of fuzz guitar that was used at that time and place. To picture how this song would sound, think Tremolos Here Comes My Baby with the fuzz guitar from The Great Airplane Strike from Paul Revere & The Raiders. More fun and hi jinx try the David Bryne compiled Everything Is Possible Best Of that Luka Bop/Virgin/WB put out in 1999.

8. I Think I'm Going Bald-Rush 1975 From the problematical Caress Of Steel, not one of my favorite Rush albums but had to pick it up after watching Beneath The Lighted Stage DVD and because it was the last Rush album I have yet to hear. The way they titled this song makes me think somebody was listening to Budgie. Reminds me a lot of Budgie too.

9. Night Ride To Trinidad-Robyn Hitchcock 1982 From the Groovy Decoy album, an record that Hitchcock hated so much that after the original got put out, he redid it and remixed again and still hated it. Really it wasn't that bad of an album, in fact some of it was pretty damn good new wave but that sax sound made it sound like ABC. But still bizarre as Mr. Hitchcock would put it to be. Later reissed on Rhino as The Complete Groovy Decay/Decoy Sessions or Gravy Deco. And he still hates it to this day.

10. Bo Diddley-Buddy Holly 1955 From For The First Time Anywhere compilation that MCA put out on record in 1982 and later on CD a few years later. Compiled by Steve Hoffman, who makes some of the best sounding CDs without the use of 24 bit mastering however this cut seemed to come from a cracked acetate 45, you can hear the pops and scratches, even with CD technology. Not as essential as the original but you can't fault the man from trying. After all anything who covers Bo Diddley has good taste in music anyhow.
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