Co-Songs of the Week 6/22/07

Wilco - "Side With the Seeds" and "Either Way"

I waited until after I saw Wilco at Hammerstein Ballroom Monday night to choose the Song of the Week. Of course, I listened to sooooo much Wilco the past five days that I couldn't just pick one. Damn you for being so good Wilco!

"Side With the Seeds" from Sky Blue Sky rocked at the Hammerstein. Nels Cline's guitar playing was smoking (check out the show here) and Jeff Tweedy really belted the lyrics out of the park--even if I have no idea what they mean.

Alas, they didn't play Sky Blue Sky's leadoff track, "Either Way." (Those lucky enough to go to Warsaw Tuesday night go that song and "Outtasite (Outta Mind)"--lucky bastards!) On Thursday I got some kind of upsetting news that was only cured by three hours of very late night drinking and great conversation with a friend of mine that this year has helped me rediscovered the Jamesons gene in my Irish DNA. Friday morning I woke up with a pretty clear idea that things were going to be alright. And when I heard these lyrics as I walked by P.S. 179 on my block, I knew Tweedy was telling me I was right:

"Maybe the sun will shine today

The clouds will blow away

Maybe I won't feel so afraid

I will try to understand either way"

Crap, now I have to wait until ACL to see them again.

Song of the Week 6/15/07

Queen - "Tie Your Mother Down"

A three weeks ago at Magnetic Field one of our singers broke the bottom of the mic stand. When they were done rocking through The Kinks, I climbed on stage and started joking about how I looked like Freddy Mercury holding this stand that could, well, no longer stand. I had no idea the guys had been fooling around with "Tie Your Mother Down" at their last rehearsal. Paul broke into the riff, I started yelling "oooh yeah", Paul and Troy kicked it in and I spent a verse making up lyrics about our broken mic stand until we hit the chorus.

It was exhilarating. Holy crap, it felt so good doing that song.

So the guys learned it and we opened with it Thursday night.

Oh my, I screamed so loud I didn't need the mic.

Seriously.

I mean, we didn't rock it like this:



But still, I felt like I was on stage at Wembley.

Wow.

UPDATE 6/20: In the comments below Mr. Boyd mentioned Queen (well, 1/2 of) and Foo Fighters (well, 1/2 of) performing it at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in 2001. I was at the ceremonies for work, and I do remember this performance really rocking. Dave Grohl's and Taylor Hawkins' enthusiasm for the song and Brian May and Roger Taylor just shines throughout. And May does some blistering guitar work too:



My favorite part comes at 2:47--they've just hit the end of the last chorus, and Grohl throws his head back and just listens to those distinctive May and Taylor backing vocals. Talk about "kid in a candy store" face.

Song of the Week 6/8/07

Paul McCartney - "Dance Tonight"



Yup, Paul McCartney. A man, pardon me, a BEATLE (caps required) who hasn't released a single song in the past decade that I've given more than one cursory listen to. A man who has just released his finest album in 25 years (I'm still a sucker for Tug of War). Memory Almost Full (and this is not a full review, just a first impression) sounds like McCartney wanted to make an album made for the iPod that sampled his entire solo career. I've listened to it through regular speakers and it just doesn't have the same impact. But my oh my, its an incredibly addictive pop gem when I'm riding on the F train with the headphones cranked. Some songs remind me of the 1980 quirky entirely solo work McCartney II, others of the great Wings single "Junior's Farm" and at other moments XTC and (I swear) Guided by Voices. This week I couldn't stop listening to "Dance Tonight." Its one of the three weakest songs on the album, yet the mandolin hook kept bringing me back.

If I had to nominate the most surprising Song of the Week--perhaps ever--this one would be it.
(And hey, Natalie Portman looks cute in that video.)

UPDATE 6/13
My junior year roommate Hank has it as his SOTW as well--he sent me this email the other day.

"I had to pick up the CD when it was released for two reasons - 1) I was driving to Philly for the day. 2) Its a new Paul McCartney cd.

As soon as I played the first track Cindy [Hank's wife] adopted 'Dance Tonight' as the song for the baby. As apparently babies an hear music in the womb. She constantly plays the song over and over when driving, when she wakes up and when just in the house. Apparently the baby has responded well to that song (as well as the third track, 'Sunshine').

I know it is a simple song, which to your point, has a great hook.

I also dig 'Mr. Bellamy' from the album as it is pretty artsy."

I do believe this is the first time a baby and I have ever agreed on anything.

Co-Songs of the Week 6/1/07

Bright Eyes - "The First Day of My Life" and "Road to Joy"

The best decision I've made so far in 2007: getting tickets to two shows during Bright Eyes seven night stand at Town Hall.

The worst decision I've made so far in 2007: not getting tickets to more shows during Bright Eyes seven night stand at Town Hall.

The shows I saw Monday and Wednesday nights with Moria the concert pal will easily go down as two of the best this year. Like the entire run, both nights had great special guests (Monday = Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis; Wednesday = Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard), great live versions of songs from the fine new album Cassadega ("Soul Singer in a Session Band" kicks ass), a great mix of covers and older tunes and frontman Conor Oberst in a really great mood. Props go to the Bowery Presents folks who convinced Oberst to do this run and try to make it something special every night.

Monday's highlight was a reworked version of "The First Day of My Life" from I'm Wide Awake Its Morning. It could be called a "rocking" version, but that doesn't quite capture the rollicking groove that stellar drummer Janet Weiss injected into the song. It made a happy tune about love even happier. Look for yourself:



I smiled at the end of the song in spite of myself. As I searched for a clip of this performance, I stumbled across the very heartwarming video as well:



Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Its sooooo cute I might poop my pants.

Anyway, Wednesday closed with a shake the rafters and rip the seats out of this joint take on "Road to Joy." When Oberst yelled, "Let's fuck it boys, make some noise," the 17 people on stage (yeah, that's right, seventeen) made a cacophony of sound that was still ringing in my ears and my brain the next day. And while I didn't find a version from that night, the version that closed out the entire run Friday night was just as apocalyptic:



I was so pumped after "Road to Joy" I forced Moria to high five me. (Sorry about that MM, but thanks yet again for turning me onto Bright Eyes.) When we got on the F train to head to Brooklyn, I couldn't help but think I had witnessed an artist taking a leap up to a higher level and that fans will be talking about these Town Hall shows in the same way Bruce Springsteen fans reminisce about those legendary shows at the Bottom Line in 1975.

Song of the Week 5/28/07

Arctic Monkeys - "You Know I'm No Good"

Amy Winehouse + Arctic Monkeys = a surprisingly great cover. Those folks at BBC Radio 1 know what they're doing--without them I don't think anyone would have covered Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy."

Okay, maybe not.

Song of the Week 5/18/07

Ace Frehley - "New York Groove"


I enjoy turning on "young" folks to some cheesy 70s rock every once in a while. Such was the case early Thursday morning as my friend Brian and some other folks took a slow crawling F back to Brooklyn after a rain-delayed Mets-Cubs game at Shea. One of Brian's friends mentioned he was going to play "New York Groove" at some party, and Brian commented that he never heard the song. I was surprised, since the Mets have played "New York Groove" during parts of games for many years (and Brian is only five years younger than me). So I took out the iPod, scrolled to the "A" section and turned over my headphones. It was funny watching Brian (who's a drummer) start bobbing his head as the slinky, late 70s beat took over during the chorus. It was even funnier when he kept singing the chorus during various parts of our seemingly never-ending subway ride. I'm sure the people sharing our car enjoyed it.

As if the Mets wanted to back up my point, during today's Subway Series game they played it again. Now I have no doubt--"New York Groove" sounds really great coming through big stadium speakers.

Song of the Week 5/11/07

Wilco - "What Light"

I've been listening to the new Wilco album for almost three months now (friendships with publicists do pay off once in a while) and I'd have to rate it among their finest--and definitely the best since Summerteeth. Jeff Tweedy has written his most direct and honest songs ever, and the rest of the sextet have created sympathetic arrangements that make those simple words and phrases shine. Alas, it seems most folks (a.k.a, the ones who bent over backwards for the experimental-leaning Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and A Ghost Is Born) don't seem to understand the open and tenderly optimistic vibe this album strives for. Oh well, its their loss. "What Light" is the lead track of the album, and it's opening lines seem to sum up its mission statement:

"If you feel like singing a song

And you want other people to sing along

Just sing what you feel

Don't let anyone say it's wrong."

I really hope that critics -- but more importantly -- the high and mighty music bloggers and indie geek fans come around to what is a stunning gem of an album.

Song of the Week 5/4/07

The Who - "How Many Friends"



Ever have a song just pummel you upon first listen? Where the lyrics make you sit still in one place and block out everything going on around you? And when its over you get that feeling deep in the pit of your stomach that things aren't ever going to be the same?

If so, then don't listen to this Song of the Week, cause you're not going to feel any chipper.

I had never heard The Who By Numbers all the way through until this week (I'd heard "Squeeze Box" a zillion times in my classic crock days), and after getting through "How Many Friends" I felt like a total fool for letting this album be the gap in my Who education. I'd go into an in depth discussion about songwriter Pete Townshend's mindstate in 1975 when he wrote this track, but my boss (and in-house Who expert) Ira Robbins nailed it all when we had this email conversation the day I first listened to "How Many Friends:"

SR: I'm listening to Who by Numbers for the first time ever right now, and I gotta say that this album is pretty damn good (especially "How Many Friends"). What were/are your thoughts on it?

IR: The first time I heard it was over the store system at what was the Sam Goody's across the street. I could hear it clearly, and knowing Pete's mind as well as I did then (which is to say more than now, if not very well at all), I found it absolutely heartbreaking. I recall "How Many Friends" brought a tear to my eye. I absolutely love that album (except for "Squeeze Box"). My favorite of theirs after the early ones

SR: Yeah, I always thought "Squeeze Box" was the weakest Who song that was in regular rotation on the rock station in Albany. "Slip Kid" was the only other song I knew on it. Geez, that "How Many Friends" is just a stunner when you read the lyrics on the page.

IR: Absolutely. I think he was close to suicidal.

I can only imagine. Take a peek and judge for yourself:

"I'm feelin' so good right now
There's a handsome boy tells me how I changed his past
He buys me a brandy
But could it be he's really just after my ass?

He likes the clothes I wear
He says he likes a man who's dressed in season
But no-one else ever stares, he's being so kind
What's the reason?

How many friends have I really got?
You can count 'em on one hand
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?

Suddenly it's the silver screen
And a face so beautiful that I have to cry out
Everybody hears me
But I look like a fool now
With a cry and I shy out

She knows all of my friends
But it's nice to find a woman who's keen on living
Now I think I've reached the end
I wonder in the dead of night - how do I rate?

How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?

It's all like a dream you know when you're still up early in the morning
And you all sit together to watch the sun come through

But things don't look so good when you could use a bit of warning
Then you know that no one will ever speak the truth
About you

How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?

When I first signed a contract
It was more than a handshake then
I know it still is
But there's a plain fact
We talk so much shit behind each other's backs I get the willies

People know nothing about their own soft gut
So how come they can sum us up
Without suffering all the hype we've known
How come they bum us up

How many friends have I really got?
Well you can count 'em on one hand
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?"

Geez, I am SO happy I didn't hear this song last May. I'd be in a looney bin right now, or perhaps worse.

Derby Day 2007: Steve's Indie Scrapbook 5/5/07

Wow.

Next Derby Day, please someone remind me not to have Maker's Mark at 4 a.m. Thank you.

Here's the songs you might have heard after the guys were done rocking last night:

The Replacements - “Can’t Hardly Wait”
Soul Asylum - “Sometime to Return”
The Hold Steady - “Chips Ahoy”
Sonic Youth - “Bull in the Heather”
Guided By Voices - “I Am a Tree”
The Figgs - “Bad Luck Sammie”
Nada Surf - “Do It Again”
Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians - “Flesh Number One”
The Lemonheads - “The Great Big No”
The Pixies - “Ed Is Dead”
Blur - “There’s No Other Way”
Jellyfish - “The King is Half-Undressed”
Let’s Active - “Every Dog Has Its Day”
Elvis Costello & the Attractions - “Blue Chair”
Echo & the Bunnymen - “People Are Strange”
Hoodoo Gurus - “What’s My Scene”
Teenage Fanclub - “What You Do to Me”
Sugar - “If I Can’t Change Your Mind”
Matthew Sweet - “Sick of Myself”
L7 - “Pretend We’re Dead”
Modest Mouse - “Dashboard”
Morrissey - “Suedehead”
Scruffy the Cat - “You Dirty Rat”
Buffalo Tom - “Treehouse”
The Strokes - “Under Control”
Ryan Adams - “Hallelujah”
The Pogues - “London Girl”
Talking Heads - “(Nothing But) Flowers”
Cake - “I Will Survive”
The Waterboys - “Fisherman’s Blues”
Guided By Voices - “Bulldog Skin”
World Party - “Ship of Fools”
Wilco - “What Light”
XTC - “That’s Really Super Supergirl”
Violent Femmes - “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me”
Lackthereof - “What a Fool Believes”
Fountains of Wayne - “It Must Be Summer”
Ben Folds Five - “Where’s Summer B.?”

Song of the Week 4/27/07

Graham Parker and the Shot - "Break Them Down"

I never expected to see a great rock show in Washington, D.C. when I booked my bi-annual trip to see the Mets play the Nationals back in February. Yet that's exactly what I got last night at the Black Cat from Graham Parker and The Latest Clowns. Parker was supporting his fine new album Don't Tell Columbus with a star-studded lineup of Boston musicians assembled by The Figgs' Mike Gent...who played drums on Don't Tell Columbus and was filling the same slot on the tour.

(I must admit, I found it odd watching Gent behind the kit the entire time, having to be the steady beatmaster instead of the passionate lead guitarist when The Figgs have backed Parker over the years.)

Don't Tell Columbus doesn't rock as much as Songs of No Consequence, the album Parker did with the Figgs two years ago. It's more of a mid-tempo singer-songwriter affair, with a healthy dose of keyboards. With the new album in mind, Gent pulled together a fine roster of folks to bring Parker's tunes to life on this tour--Rudds guitarist Brett Rosenberg, The Gentlemen and Gravel Pit bassist extraordinaire Ed Valauskas and keyboardist Scott Janovitz. Besides the hand-picked musicians, I'm sure Gent had a little bit to do with the set that featured songs Parker hasn't played with a band in at least a decade. The keyboards allowed Parker to dip into the first album in his catalog I ever heard, 1985's Steady Nerves. "Wake Up (Next to You)" did indeed sound great (with a soaring guitar solo from Rosenberg aptly filling in for the recorded version's sax solo), but "Break Them Down" was easily the best song of the night. This tale about Christian missionaries imposing their will upon Central and South America (which seems like a thinly veiled jab at Reagan's mid-80s policy in the same areas) had slipped through my memory banks for many years until it came up one day while I was listening to the WOXY Vintage Channel. Sunday night the Latest Clowns flat out rocked this track, making me wish that the next release in Parker's official bootleg will be something from this oh too short tour.

Song of the Week 4/20/07

Feist - "1 2 3 4"


My lifelong habit of singing and humming along to songs (especially in a car by myself) is something I picked up from my aunt. While I was visiting her this weekend she was humming along to some song, so I needed to get a tune into my head to combat the noise she was making. All of sudden "1 2 3 4" popped in there...and that was it. This song was stuck in my head for two full days until I was able to pop the iPod on and give it a spin. And another. And then another.

Such a simple chorus about moving on from a crappy relationship never seemed so uplifting:

"Oh, oh, oh,
You're changing your heart.
Oh, oh, oh,
You know who you are. "

You'd have to be even more of a cold-hearted son of a bitch than yours truly not to soak in the joy of this song. And while I know every other blog in the universe has linked to this, you'd have to be dead not top having fun watching the video:



Feist, I think you've reserved a place at the top of my singles chart for 2007.

Song of the Week 4/13/07

Guster - "Two At a Time"

If you're a band playing a sold out concert at New York's Beacon Theater the night before the biggest spring rain storm in the city's history hits, how do you mark this once in a lifetime occasion? If you're a great little quartet called Guster, you pull out a an old hidden track about Noah's Ark. "Two at a Time" isn't listed on the CD of Keep It Together (it is listed on iTunes, as you can see clicking the link above), yet when I interviewed drummer Brian Rosenworcel four years ago I felt compelled to ask him about it, even if we would never use that part of the interview for work purposes. The song has a weird keyboard loop that gets it rolling and features a ton of elementary school children singing the chorus. It's just a strange and hypnotic yet very catchy song, one of the many on Keep It Together that turned me into a full-fledged fan. When I asked Brian why the song was tucked away as a hidden track he said (I'm paraphrasing here), "Hmm...a song about Noah's Ark from three Jews with a bunch of kids singing background vocals on it--you try to drop that into an album sequence." I had to admit, he had a point.

During last night's show the band was joined on a few songs by their friends violinist Tom and cellist Jody (I didn't catch their last names). The live strings sounded just about perfect on "Two at a Time." And as I stepped into the rain after a few hours of boozing it up, I couldn't help but have these lyrics in my head:

"I could see the rains a-comin'
To wash away the filth and vermin
Hand-in-hand, we'll watch them runnin"

Alas, the filth and vermin didn't include Mr. Big. I think I'll let someone else tell that story down the road.

SOTW Bonus: Here's the aforementioned strings making "Satellite" sound the best I've ever heard it:

Song of the Week 4/6/07

The Hold Steady - "Atlantic City (Live)"

(pic borrowed from Fresh Bread)

It's not often I steal from myself, but what I sent in to the good folks at Stereogum about the Music for Bruce Springsteen tribute last night works just fine here:

"Overall, the gig was a snoozer (dear lord, why did someone let Kevin Bacon sing "Streets of Philadelphia") but the show's producers knew what they were doing by putting the best two performances at the end. First old folk legend Odetta came out (was wheeled out, actually) and did the best version ever of "57 Channels (and Nothing On)." And then the closing spot was our Brooklyn-via-Minneapolis guys. Not surprisingly, their version of Nebraska's "Atlantic City" was flat out amazing. Their arrangement was similar to the one Springsteen and the E Streeters used on their 99-00 reunion tour--slow through the first verse and chorus, and then exploding into a wall of sound for the rest of the song. The Springsteen fans in the audience ate it up. Craig Finn's smile and hand interpretations of the lyrics as he sang were infectious. These guys need to record that cover and put it out, maybe as a benefit for the event's charity, Music for Youth.

Then the crowd got the surprise they were waiting for with Springsteen walking on stage.

The Boss did "the Promised Land" and "Rosalita" solo acoustic then invited everyone on stage to do "Rosalita" again with the house band. He asked for volunteers to sing verses, and I felt compelled to yell out Craig's name. So he took the first verse and from my 8th row seat, I don't think I've ever seen Springsteen happier seeing someone else sing his word. Craig nailed it, and then pogoed to the side of the stage. Then as the song got to the fourth verse, Bruce called out for Craig to sing lead again. The best part was when Craig got to the line "There's a little cafe/where they play guitars all night and day," and he pointed to Bruce to do that infamous lick on the acoustic guitar. As a Springsteen and Hold Steady fan, it was a magical moment."

Damn, someone MUST have recorded it.

Song of the Week 3/30/07

Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 - "NY Doll"

Last fall I wrote the following line about this track from Ole Tarantula:

"'N.Y. Doll' is sung from the point of view of the late New York Dolls bassist Arthur Kane. I honestly don’t know much about Kane and his life, but I can’t imagine any man getting a finer tribute in song. It’s the perfect closer to great album."

Over the past few months I've listened to this track over and over again and I'm convinced it's one of the finest songs Hitchock has ever written. The day before seeing Hitchcock and the Venus 3 at the Knitting Factory, I discovered a clip on You Tube from the new documentary Sex, Food, Death...and Insects:


I couldn't help but think of what Peter Buck said in that clip when they played it Tuesday night. It was beautiful performance in another geat show put on by this group of musicans. One can only hope they'll continue to work together in between the times the R.E.M. machine has to roll around the world.

And just because I can, here's Hitchcock and company playing "N.Y. Doll" just a couple days ago:

Song of the Week 3/23/07

Hoodoo Gurus - "Like-Wow Wipeout"

The Police. Genesis. Hoodoo Gurus.

Okay, the first two are selling tens of thousands of tickets because they reunited for the first time in many years. But I was absolutely ecstatic to see the third act return to the U.S. after a 14 year absence. I was so excited that I even went to B.B. King's (blech) in Times Square (double blech) to see them. For a band marking the 25 year anniversary of their debut single, they rocked just as hard as groups half their age. And seeing "Like-Wow Wipeout" in a New York club was thrilling. I couldn't help but scream along to these words frontman Dave Faulkner penned about the band's first trip to the Big Apple:

"I kiss the ground on which you walk,
I kiss the lips through which you talk,
I kiss the city of New York where I first met you."

As a bonus, here's the very colorful video:



They're supposedly coming back in October. There were so good that I would skip a Mets playoff game to see them again.

Paul Gill's 40th Birthday 3/23/07

Friday night was a rollickin' good time at Magnetic Field as we celebrated my bandmate Paul's 40th birthday. As if to prove that life doesn't end at 40, the band played a wild and somewhat drunken set with great performances by a bunch of regulars. Then our stellar soundman Chris broke down the equipment so I could DJ for a couple of hours. Here's what you heard (or what you missed if you were a little too drunk to remember):

Nada Surf - “Blankest Year”
Cheap Trick - “Hot Love”
Guided By Voices - “Motor Away”
The Replacements - “Color Me Impressed”
The Figgs - “Ginger”
The Knack - “Good Girls Don’t”
MC5 - “High School”
Ramones - “Judy Is a Punk”
Big Star - “In the Street”
Blue Oyster Cult - “Godzilla”
The Monkees - “I’m Not Your Steppin’ Stone”
Joe Jackson - “I’m the Man”
Soul Asylum - “Sometime to Return”
The Only Ones - “Another Girl Another Planet”
Raspberries - “Go All the Way”
The Soft Boys - “I Wanna Destroy You”
Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians - “Madonna of the Wasps”
Hoodoo Gurus - “Leilani”
Humble Pie - “30 Days In the Hole”
Graham Parker and The Rumor - “Discovering Japan”
The Nazz - “Open My Eyes”
NRBQ - “Riding In My Car”
Badfinger - “Day After Day”
The db’s - “Love Is For Lovers”
The Beatles - “A Hard Day’s Night”
The Lovin’ Spoonful - “Do You Believe in Magic”
Nick Lowe - “Cruel to Be Kind”
The Strokes - “Someday”
XTC - The Mayor of Simpleton”
Jellyfish - “Baby’s Coming Back”
Lemonheads - “Different Drum”
Elvis Costello and The Attractions - “Radio Radio”
The Modern Lovers - “I’m Straight”
The Pretenders - “Stop Your Sobbing”
The Kinks - “Days”
Bee Gees - “To Love Somebody”
Teenage Fanclub - “What You Do to Me”
Nada Surf - “Happy Kid”
Sugar - “Helpless”
Matthew Sweet - “Sick of Myself”
Raspberries - “Tonight”
Big Star - “September Girls”
Weezer - “Photograph”
The Posies - “Dream All Day”
The Smithereens - “Only a Memory”
The Buzzcocks - “Even Fallen in Love”
Brendan Benson - “Spit It Out”
The Candy Skins - “Wembley”
The Cars - “Let’s Go”
The Figgs - “Jumping Again”
Guided By Voices - “A Salty Salute”
Jonathan Richman - “Springtime in New York”

Song of the Week 3/16/07

Pete Yorn - "Splendid Isolation"



I finally got to see Pete Yorn.

Finally.

I mean, I've missed this guy every time he's played in New York since 2002 because of:

--I had a DJ gig

--I was upstate visiting family

--I got to Jones Beach too late because of subway hassles and traffic on a Friday (Yorn was opening for R.E.M.)

--I was going out of town to see The Figgs (twice!)

--And I was in Austin for ACL.

I almost thought I wouldn't make it this time due to the snow/sleet/freezing rain/ice cube storm that seems to strike us every March just after we've gotten that taste of sunny spring weather. Yet I slid along the streets of midtown with my friend Molly up to Roseland to catch Yorn and his band deliver a great set that included this cover of my favorite song from Warren Zevon's 1989 album Transverse City. Yorn covered it for the Zevon tribute disc Enjoy Every Sandwich and threw it on his latest album Nightcrawler. This week I listened to that album a couple of times to refresh my memory and every time "Splendid Isolation" came on, I thought, "Wait, this is on this album? I love this cover."

And I really, really hope Viacom doesn't destroy You Tube. How else would I be able to show you visual proof of the song:



I love the shaky camera work. And I love these lyrics too, even if they are a bit dated:

"Michael Jackson in Disneyland
Don't have to share it with nobody else
Lock the gates, Goofy, take my hand
And lead me through the World of Self

Splendid Isolation
I don't need no one
Splendid Isolation"

And you know what, this bridge is pretty great as well:

"Don't want to wake up with no one beside me
Don't want to take up with nobody new
Don't want nobody coming by without calling first
Don't want nothing to do with you"

Yorn has written some really good songs, but he'll never match Zevon's pen.

Song of the Week 3/9/07

Ben Kweller - "Penny on a Train Track"

After watching BK's set get cut short last year due to a wicked nose bleed, I finally got to see my fellow Brooklynite play an entire set Friday night at Webster Hall. Last fall Kweller toured with a six piece band, allowing him to flesh out the arrangements from his fantastic self-made and self-titled 2006 album. This time around the States Kweller stripped his band down to a trio and I couldn't help but think it was an improvement. Since he had no one else to help out with guitar and keyboard parts, Kweller had to focus on carrying the songs by himself. And with the rhythm section of Chris Morrissey and Mark Stepro locked into a groove that can only be honed over a tour behind him, Kweller was--quite simply put--on fire. Great solos, powerful vocals and witty banter--the kid had it all on this night.

"Penny on The Train Track" was the final song, and the best, of the night. Kweller introduced it by saying he had shot a video with his grandmother dancing to the song, and he seemed genuinely surprised to announced that the video had been played on MTV's TRL. And then the pure enthusiasm and joy he poured into his performance was so infectious that I couldn't stop myself from singing along to every word.

When I got home (a trip which took 2 hours and 15 minutes, MTA fuckers!) I searched for this "Penny On the Train Track" clip. And Kweller was right--it's just a fun video of his grandmother dancing and occasionally lip-synching to the song. May it get played on TRL some more:

Song of the Week 3/2/07

Amy Winehouse - "Rehab"
I've heard this slice of British soul for a couple of weeks now on the World Cafe and it never fails to make me laugh. Not because of anything in the song itself--it's just that the celeb rehabs of the year (Britney, Lindsey, Isiah Washington) seem to have diluted the whole concept. Check in, check out, do whatever since you'll be out in 28 days not any better physically of emotionally. I suppose I could be wrong, I have been before.

Winehouse has a great smoky voice and looked pretty smoking...until the past few months. Looking at these comparison photos of Ms. Winehouse from 2004 till now, perhaps she needs a dose of rehab herself:

Last fall.........and here's 2004

Whew--where did all that sexy weight go? Maybe "Rehab" is a true life tale. In any case, Amy Winhouse's second album, Back to Black, is due out March 13th.

Song of the Week 2/23/07

The Figgs - "Gonna Get Out (Live in San Francisco 2001)"


This week I finally got my act together to catch a Figgs show outside of the NYC area as I hitched a ride down to Philadelphia with The Figgs own master of the drum kit Pete Hayes. It had been almost two years since I had seen the guys out of town. And even worse, it had been eight months since I had seen the band play anywhere, which is the longest I have ever gone in between Figgs gigs in 12 years.

12 years!

No wonder my life has seemed fucked up at times! It's a simple equation:

No live Figgs = Steve's life isn't as good as it should be

On Friday afternoon I made the quick trip from Brooklyn to meet Pete at his office, listening to a great bootleg from the second leg of the Sucking in Stereo tour. Recorded at the Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco in March of 2001 the show is just smoking. They were in the middle of a lengthy tour, they were feeling ragged (Mike Gent even says he's exhausted on mic a couple of times) and the generator in their truck was on the fritz--yet they still deliver a great gig. I chuckled out loud on the C train when Pete Donnelly said, "We can play that, and I know Mike wants to do a guitar solo and he can do it in this song." The band breaks into "Reject," which at the time was the template for any lengthy jamming the guys did. And oh does Mike rip one balls-to-the-wall solo. It's a work of sonic riff art.

Back to the present: Friday night's show was at a place called The Parlor...which was a former funeral parlor turned into performance space/dance studio. (And Pete and I must have passed 20 funeral parlors going down Broad Street, which was kind of creepy.) The gig was a release party for a local band Pete D knew and The Figgs were headlining. And this was a par-tay--a great appreciative crowd into all of the night's music; free food, beer and wine; a girl wearing a low cut shirt that almost made me and my buddy Dave snap our necks staring at her; and a drunk (and I think kinda insane) woman yelling in my ear while I was trying to dig the guys cover of Talking Heads' "Love->Building on Fire."

The show was a blast, even if the guys were a bit sloppy at times. But the best part was when Mike said he wanted to solo (and yes, I did laugh to myself, think about my subway trip early in the day) and he started playing the riff to "Gonna Get Out." This version (which I estimate clocked in at around 8 minutes) was the best performance I have ever seen of this song. And I mean ever. Here's what we saw:

--Mike singing along to the slowed down riff of the tune, stating that he was doing it "like George Benson."

--Mike changing the line "we're not gonna be here" to "we're still gonna be here," as if it was a statement of defiance.

--Mike and Pete D jumping off the stage into the crowd during the solo, in which they did a kind of dueling riff battle in front of a bunch of worshiping fans.

--While that was going on, one of the people working the event brought a six pack of beer up to the stage. Pete H started yelling at the guy to get his attention and then motioned repeatedly for this dude to open the beer and then put it up to Pete's mouth. At first this guy was kind of thick--Pete had to yell what he wanted at least five times before the guy caught on. Once the precious beer was in Pete's mouth, he preceded to keep playing and at the same time downed more than 2/3 of the bottle. As a fellow beer drinker, it was a sight to behold. The crowd started yelling, which in turn caused Mike and Pete D to turn around and see what caused all the commotion.

--After Mike and Pete D climbed back on stage, Mike suggested that they switch instruments and that Pete do a solo. So we were treated to a great guitar solo from Mr. Donnelly, this one a wall of noise that made me think of Sonic Youth, of all bands.

Finally they switched back to their regular instruments and they brought the song to a thrilling conclusion. After that performance, I think The Figgs should just retire "Gonna Get Out." It's never gonna get more entertaining than that night.

As a Song of the Week bonus, right click on "Gonna Get Out" in the title of this entry to download a solo-filled version of the song from the previously mentioned San Francisco bootleg. Or if you want the whole thing, head to Captain's Dead.