Song of the Week 6/25/10

Bee Gees - "More Than a Woman"

Saturday night I felt compelled, for no particular reason, to listen to some Bee Gees hits. I always get a special thrill out of walking through my borough listening to the Gibb brothers sing. I had their songs percolating in my brain when I went to sleep and when I woke up Sunday morning. And then on Sunday afternoon, while I was doing a little work in the air conditioned environment of my office, "More Than a Woman" came on.

So I had to find a clip on YouTube. They did a pretty good job of it in 1997:

Song of the Week 6/18/10

B.o.B featuring Hayley Williams of Paramore - "Airplanes"

I heard this song in an Old Navy the other day while buying a pair of pants. I was singing along to the chorus by the time it was over. This might be my summer jam, 2010 edition.

Song of the Week 6/11/10

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - "I Should Have Known It"

The first time I heard the first single from Petty and company's new album Mojo, I was not happy. I even wrote on my Twitter, "Uh-oh--TP w/o hooks? Not good." Where was the classic Petty chorus that I would want to sing at the top of my lungs while driving my car with the windows down? I just didn't hear anything that would stick with me.

Then I finally watched their performance on the season finale of Saturday Night Live.



Holy shit, I was wrong. EVERYTHING about the song is a hook. Mike Campbell and Scott Thurston's intertwined guitar lines, Steve Ferrone's Bonhamesque thump, Petty's venomous vocal. Fuck me, it's all fantastic. I even recorded the SNL performance to put it my iTunes, just so I could relive that adrenaline rush again and again. I can't wait to see the Heartbreakers rip into it at the Garden next month.

U.S. vs. England 6/12/10

This was about as last minute of a themed DJ stint I’ve done. I got the call yesterday to spin at The Bell House in between World Cup matches -- specifically before the U.S. versus England match. So I scrambled to come up with enough acts from both sides to make it work. I think it turned out rather well. See what rock bands battled it out to a draw below.

The Beach Boys - “Wouldn’t It be Nice”
The Beatles - “A Hard Day’s Night”
Ramones - “Beat on the Brat”
Sex Pistols - “God Save the Queen”
Guided by Voices - “Glad Girls”
The Who - “I Can see For Miles”
Big Star - “September Gurls”
Oasis - “Rock n Roll Star”
Beck - “New Pollution”
Bloc Party - “Helicopter”
Wilco - “War on War”
Radiohead - “My Iron Lung”
Black Flag - “TV Party”
Black Sabbath - “Paranoid”
Queens of the Stone Age - “No One Knows”
Queen - “Tie Your Mother Down”
Van Halen - “(Oh) Pretty Woman”
The Darkness - “I Believe In a Thing Called Love”
Kiss - “King of the Night Time World”
The Kinks - “Destroyer”
Dio - “Rainbow in the Dark”
Def Leppard - “Photograph”
Joe Walsh - “Walk Away”
Joe Jackson - “Look Sharp”
The Shins - “So Says I”
Blur - “Parklife”
Talking Heads - “Once in a Lifetime”
English Beat - “Save It for Later”
Cheap Trick - “I Want You to Want Me”
Buzzcocks - “Ever Fallen in Love”
Devo - “Whip It”
The Stone Roses - “She Bangs the Drums”
Dinosaur Jr. - “Just Like Heaven”
The Cure - “Why Can’t I Be You”
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - “Don’t Do Me Like That”
Tom Jones - “It’s Not Unusual”
Elvis Presley - “Burning Love”
Elvis Costello & The Attractions - “Oliver’s Army”
The Smithereens - “Behind the Wall of Sleep”
The Smiths - “Panic”
Husker Du - “Could You be the One?”
The Clash - “Julie’s Been Working for the Drug Squad”
The J. Geils Band - “Love Stinks”
The Rolling Stones - “Rocks Off”
Superdrag - “Sucked Out”
Supertramp - “Breakfast in America”

Song of the Week 6/4/10

Guster - "What You Call Love"

I'd be disclosing this fact later in the year on the RT20 albums list, but I might as well spill the beans early. I've been hired to write the bio for the new Guster album. It's a great album, maybe their best. I actually feel more pressure doing this bio because it's so great. And "What You Call Love" is the track that's been stuck in my head since I first listened to the album 10 days ago. It starts with a ukelele playing and builds into a masterful pop song that reminds me of the Beach Boys in spots and Jellyfish in others. Oh goodness I can't wait for people to hear it. Expect it on any mixes I make from September on.

Gee, I hope I don't mess up their bio.

PS: I wrote this on my iPhone on the Amtrak back to the city. I needed to do something so I didn't kill the idiots in this car.