Song of the Week 4/23/10

E.L.O. - "Telephone Line"



Before our gig the other night at Bar Nine, we got a little surprise--we had an opening act. Fortunately, Volunteers were very excellent. Their originals were quirky and catchy pop numbers, so their cover of E.L.O.'s "Telephone Line" fit in nicely. And they hit most of the high notes. That is an achievement. After hearing the studio version on CBS-FM this weekend, I knew I had a poptastic SOTW.

Song of the Week 4/16/10

Motley Crue - "Home Sweet Home"



If you've seen Hot Tub Time Machine, you know why this had to be SOTW after I laughed my ass off Friday night. Just outstanding.

RT 20 Podcast 32: Brian Cogan, Part 1

This week's guest Brian Cogan is a multitalented man--he's a professor, an author, a musician and--rather unfortunately this year--a fellow Mets fan.

To download this podcast or stream it, click here. To have your iTunes automatically download each new podcast, click here.

Song of the Week 4/9/10

LCD Soundsystem - "All My Friends"

Welcome back, James Murphy and company. We missed you. We'd forgotten just how amazing Sound of Silver was three years ago and how explosive those songs could be live. Thank you for tearing the roof off of the Music Hall of Williamsburg Thursday and Webster Hall Monday with "All My Friends."

Signed,

New York

Song of the Week 4/2/10

Wilco - "Thank You Friends"

It's kind of a cheat to repeat (ooooh, I'm a poet) a song I just did two weeks ago, but seeing Wilco perform this Big Star song Saturday night at the Wellmont Theater in Montclair, New Jersey was such a tremendous joy (John Stiratt and Pat Sansone on lead vocals everybody!) and a great tribute that it had to be done.

The always great NYCTaper.com was at the Wellmont on Friday night to capture the first night of the back to back dates. He's posted that entire show and an MP3 of "Thank You Friends" right here.

Song of the Week 3/26/10

Nada Surf - "What Is Your Secret"



I wanted to write pages upon pages about the joy that Nada Surf brought to my life last week when they did Let Go and The Weight is a Gift in their entirety over back to back nights at Bowery Ballroom and The Bell House. But this week has f-ing sucked and that part of my brain isn't coming around for a bit, me thinks. So I'll just say the Weight night was the better of the two and I chose "What is Your Secret" just because of the obvious joy The Long Winters' John Roderick got from replicating his incredible backing vocals from the album in a live setting. Such fun.

Thanks Matthew, Ira, Daniel and to all the musicians that helped them bring these albums to life. It was, no doubt, two of the best nights of my year.

Song of the Week 3/19/10

Big Star - "Thank You Friends"

I was going to write a lengthy post about the passing of Big Star's Alex Chilton. But what I said in the podcast seemed to sum it all up. "Thank You Friends" is the song I went back to a few times in the past 5 days.

I also thought Paul Westerberg (in the New York Times) and Tommy Stinson (in Philadelphia Weekly) had some great things to say about their late friend and inspiration.



Goodbye Alex. Thank you for the many songs that have meant so much to me over the past 20 years.

RT 20 Podcast 31: Alex Chilton RIP

The passing of Alex Chilton yesterday hit me pretty hard. I'll have an essay up over the weekend when I can process it all. Until then, here is a podcast that pays tribute to one of my all-time favorites.

To download this podcast or stream it, click here. To have your iTunes automatically download each new podcast, click here.

Song of the Week 3/12/10

Elvis Presley - "Suspicious Minds"



I heard this song four times this past week--once at rehearsal, twice on the radio and once walking into a bar. Odd.

But not as odd as that jumpsuit above. Whoa.

Song of the Week 3/5/10

Joni Mitchell - "Car on a Hill"



I've been meaning to reacquire 1974's Court and Spark lo these many years after I sold it during one of my apartment purges (or moves). I finally got around to it this week (gotta love the $1 used cds on Amazon) and I was stunned by how many songs I knew really well. I realized that all of Mitchell's songs that I knew very well--and more importantly, heard on WFUV for more than a decade--were from Court and Spark. I thought about this when I listened to "car on a Hill" on my commute home Wednesday night. Sure enough, I switch to WFUV Thursday morning and "Car on a Hill" comes on just as I'm about to pop my pills. Weird.

Song of the Week 2/26/10

James Hunter - "People Gonna Talk"



I heard the title track to Hunter's 2006 album enough this week to make me think it was 2006 again. For it to be played twice on WFUV and twice in two different Starbucks locations (one I've never been to before) is just odd. Nevertheless, it's a really pleasant song--and a great one to wake up to.

RT 20 Podcast 30: Mitch Bisschop

This podcast with my fellow Ithaca College alumnus features a bit of a different music format than the podcasts you're used to hearing. I kind of dig it.

To stream or download the podcast, click here. Or click here to subscribe with your iTunes.

Song of the Week 2/19/10

The Four Tops - "Ain't No Woman (Like the One I've Got)"



I must confess--I had no idea that this was a Four Tops song until last week. I happened to hear someone request it on the CBS-FM nighttime show. And when the guy said the song title and added "by The Four Tops," I did a double take. Then I went to the Internet to confirm what I heard. I always thought this 1973 hit, from the album Keeper of the Castle, was by the Spinners or some other R&B vocal group. It sounds nothing like The Four Tops of "I Can't Help Myself," that's for certain. It's drenched in that 70s funk I loved hearing on WGY growing up.

RT 20 Podcast 29: Ira Robbins, Part 2

The second part of my conversation with Trouser Press co-founder (and first time novelist) Ira Robbins is now available to download.

To listen or download to the podcast, click here to visit the podcast page. Or click here to have your iTunes subscribe you automatically.

Song of the Week 2/12/10

Buffalo Springfield - "Broken Arrow"

I never thought any band could pull off this suite that Neil Young created for Buffalo Springfield Again.

Then came Wilco, who did it for the Neil Young Musicares tribute show last month in Los Angeles. And now they're doing it on tour.

Words fail me. Watch the video.

RT 20 Podcast 28: Ira Robbins, Part 1

The guest format returns to the podcast this week with the first part of my conversation with Trouser Press co-founder (and my co-worker of 13 years) Ira Robbins.

Click here to go the podcast page to stream or download the MP3. Click here to subscribe to the podcast and have iTunes download each new episode.

Song of the Week 2/5/10

The Who - "The Real Me"

The band got to play at halftime of the Super Bowl at the Bell House, and "The Real Me" was the song I got to deliver after 2 hours plus of doing play by play for the game. Jeebus it hurt my throat. I'm amazed I could to speak today.

I'm even more amazed that The Who could perform that song this well in early part of the oughts:



BONUS: The Who's Super Bowl performance was easily the most widely seen in their 45 year career. But their last truly great performance -- in these eyes, at least -- came when they played the Concert for New York City at Madison Square Garden on October 20th, 2001. Anyone who was living in New York can tell you that the city was attempting to return to some sort of normalcy by that time. (For many, it involved staying out as late as possible as many nights as possible.) And I must admit to being ticked that I had to stay home and record and watch this concert when I could have been out trying to forget the previous six weeks. The show opened on a high note with David Bowie's radical re-arrangement of Simon & Garfunkel's "America" and his own anthem of the moment "Heroes." But after that the rest of the show could have been any all-star gig, except for the mentions of those lost and the numerous close-ups of drunk fireman and policeman.

Then The Who came on and turned the night into something special. Their four song set ranks as one of the most compelling music performances to come out of my TV. There were a few factors contributing to this:

The Who's relationship with New York. The band has been well known for delivering some of their most highly regarded performances here in the city in the late 60s and early 70s. And that reputation has lasted with fans from the 'burbs for decades. And it was apparent that this night Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle were determined to give it their all to show their respect and love for New York.

The emotion of the entire night. I said the city was returning to "normalcy" by then. That was in the sense of people going about their normal everyday lives. That doesn't apply to emotional wounds that were still lurking under the surface and could rise up at any time. Imagine an entire evening of one draining tale after another and you'll have an idea of how raw this crowd was.

The booze. From the first shots of fireman in the crowd, you could see that this folks were well lubricated. And it only got sloppier as the night went on. And on. And on.

The lineup. This was a star-studded evening. (Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Bon Jovi, Jay-Z, Destiny's Child, James Taylor, Billy Joel and John Mellencamp, just to name a few.) And while all the artists who performed were there on their own dime and for a good cause, it wouldn't be a rock concert without a bit of one-upsmanship. And Townshend and Daltrey performed as if they needed to show people who was boss.

And my goodness they most certainly did. After an overlong intro by John Cusack, the performance starts out with the CSI staple "Who Are You." And from the get go Townshend doesn't waste any time injecting this performance with a blast of energy. At the 1:35 mark he practically rips his arm out of socket breaking into one of his trademark windmills. And then he does it again at 1:48. The man is clearly possessed with an energy of a man 30 years younger. Throughout all four songs Townshend attacks his guitar, throwing off power chords and stinging leads as if one of them could heal everyone in attendance. And it doesn't take too long -- right around 3:47 in "Who Are You" -- where the crowd gets it. And I mean GETS it. They know right then, at that moment, that this band isn't here to play a massive Irish wake. The Who have arrived to make each and every person forget everything and feel good for the next 18 minutes. At 3:48 when Townshend does a series of windmills, the crowd responds as one with a roar that drowns the band out. And when Zak Starkey, the only man on the planet capable of playing in Keith Moon's league, does a series of crazy fills, the place goes totally fucking batshit.

Daltrey's vocal falters at the beginning of "Baba O'Riley," but at this point it doesn't matter. Townshend is conducting a windmill symphony. And when he steps to the mic to sing the "teenage wasteland" part, the crowd drowns him out, so he backs away from the mic lets them have the line. The smile on Daltrey's face at that is about as genuine as you'll ever see on the mug of a rock legend. "Behind Blue Eyes" features some top notch mic twirling by Daltrey and a truly goofy moment at 2:56 where Townshend bumps into Daltrey. And right after the song Townshend acknowledges the crowd (and how loud they are) by cupping his hands and yelling into the mic, "We are honored to be here."

And when "Won't get Fooled Again" starts, the crowd roars as one again. And it's just a bombastic, gloriously loud, rip-roaring take on an old warhorse. The whole band is just clicking on all cylinders. It's a totally cathartic experience. After the band takes their bows, Roger Daltrey sums it all up: "We could never follow what you did."

Enough of me writing. Watch the last great Who performance below.

"Who are You"


"Baba O'Riley"


"Behind Blue Eyes"


"Won't Get Fooled Again"

Song of the Week 1/26/10

Avett Brothers - "January Wedding"



I have been listening to a heckava lot of the Avetts as of late. These guys know how to turn a phrase that makes me stop and rewind the iPod just to catch it again. The line that always gets me in "January Wedding" from I And Love And You is "And I was sick with heartache and she was sick like Audrey Hepburn when I met her." I just laughed again transcribing that line.

And it seems like this track had to be a SOTW during the first month of the year at some point, yes?

RT 20 Podcast 27: 2010 Baker's Dozen (with a new server!)

So the podcasts are back after a month off--and they're on a new server. Click here to go to the new page, or click here to subscribe through iTunes. All the old podcasts are on this new server in case you missed a couple. (For those of you using the old iTunes link, delete that link and just use the new one.)

Co-Songs of the Week 1/22/10

Boston - "Amanda"

Friday night I went with Vanessa the bartender to see our friend Adam's new art exhibit at Last Exit on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. During our time there some woman got right in between us and asked the bartender for her tab. Because it was rather loud she had to yell her name, Amanda, twice. After she extricated herself from in between us, I started singing "Amanda" for no reason, except I couldn't remember the actual words. I started make up lines about this woman getting her tab, but that wasn't enough. After a few minutes of struggling to recall the original words, I finally convinced Vanessa to let me look up the lyrics. As I attempted to sing along, I realized that I couldn't do that without hearing the song. So I took out the iPod, gave an earbud to Vanessa, and we did a horribly out of tune duet for about 90 seconds. It made sense at the time to do, but not so much now, you know?



Will Ferrell, Conan O'Brien, Beck, Ben Harper, Billy Gibbons, Max Weinberg & The Tonight Show Band - "Freebird (Live)"

When I got home late Friday night I decided to watch the last episode of The Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien. I've been a big O'Brien supporter since his early days at Late Night (and have always hated Jay Leno) so I have been in the I'm With Coco party since day 1. And the way O'Brien ended his brief run, with Neil Young's performance of "Long may You Run," O'Brien's own classy farewell speech and the all-star jam on "Freebird" is worth watching again.