As I mentioned over on the Mothership, Pete Townshend has always been ambivalent (to say the least) about heroes and leaders.
All his iconic characters have clay feet as a mandatory component (think about the message of Tommy, none of the experts are worth a fart and even Tommy himself is used). This failed hero thing is brought to a peak in Quadrophenia. Jimmy idolises the Ace Face, the mod leader, who turns out to be a humble bell boy in a top hotel. However, the song that epitomises the dichotomy between heroes and followers is this one, The Punk and the Godfather. It is a kind of dialogue between a fan and a pop star (presumably one aspect of Townshend himself?)
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Heroic horns Nr. 1
Given this week's topic and Toffeeboy's promised Go-betweens retrospective I'm reminded that I made a rash statement a while ago to post an overview of 3 Miles Davis tracks.
At the time I was trying to quell the natural inclination to go off on a rave about my favourite artist, list 50+ tracks and, in doing so, rapidly end up somewhere no-one's particularly keen to follow. So three it is; I'll post them in instalments.
I'm not claiming these are his three best tracks; however, they are among my favourites and are not so well known, so may offer some perspective for anyone interested in getting into his work.
First up, Milestones, from the eponymous 1958 album. This has the distinction of being the only album I have ever bought in the U.K. incidentally, from Mole Jazz in north London. Milestones is a deceptively simple piece; the theme is stated in two parts, once with all three horns in unison, and once with the trumpet setting a counterpart and "slurring" slightly to establish tension with the two saxophonists; this tension is then released by a return to the more up-beat part of the theme.
The solos are played by Cannonball Adderley, followed by Miles, who darkens the tone, and then John Coltrane on tenor, just starting to develop his "sheets of sound" style. Drummer Philly Joe Jones plays his famous "rimshots" throughout, hitting the rim of the drums to keep a snapping pulse going.
The theme of the piece is quietly carried by the pianist Red Garland, while the mood is set by bassist Paul Chambers, who alternates between "walking" the bass and sitting on a repeated riff during the second part of the theme to create tension.
The solos look forward to the famous "Kind of Blue" album in that the players are starting to create their own melodic or "modal" lines based on the chords of the theme, rather than just "playing around" the individual notes bebop-style, although the harmony remains static and each of the rhythm players has quite a constrained role.
A perfectly balanced piece of music, glowing with freshness, clarity and invention.
Milestones
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Wild West Heroes, They Change the World.
Apologies for posting a link I think I've posted before, but....
(Audience video from The Liquid Rooms, Edinburgh, this spring)
CaroleBristol beat me to it for this weeks nominations - we'll have to let Maddy judge whether or not it fits the progressively narrower definitions of this week's subject.
Not many songs I know where I actually knew the person who the song's about, but this is one of them. The personal connection makes it stronger, for me at least. RIP, Howard. You were taken from us far too soon.
(Audience video from The Liquid Rooms, Edinburgh, this spring)
CaroleBristol beat me to it for this weeks nominations - we'll have to let Maddy judge whether or not it fits the progressively narrower definitions of this week's subject.
Not many songs I know where I actually knew the person who the song's about, but this is one of them. The personal connection makes it stronger, for me at least. RIP, Howard. You were taken from us far too soon.
Unfinished Business
This post is dedicated to the memory of one of my all time musical heroes, the late, great Grant McLennan. Together with Robert Forster, Grant founded The Go-Betweens in Brisbane in 1977 and over the next 28 years they recorded nine of the best albums you'd ever hope to hear. I had the great pleasure of seeing The Go-Betweens live in the mid-80s - standing right at the front of the audience in a small venue looking up at Robert Forster singing 'Part Company' is one of the greatest experiences I have ever ... err ... experienced at a live gig - the moment will stay with me forever.The particular reason for posting this now (other than the tenuous hero link) is a comment made by nilpferd a couple of weeks ago in which he referred to 1988's 16 Lovers Lane as the last Go-Betweens album. Which, of course it was - until they reformed in 2000. They then went on to record three more albums (including some of their best work) before Grant's tragic death (as a result of a heart attack) in May 2006.
So nilpferd, this is for you - the rest of you are allowed to listen in of course. A small selection of tracks from the final three albums - three from each but in no particular order - which I hope will convince you to take the plunge and invest in the recordings themselves.
If any of you don't feel up to listening to all nine tracks, please at least listen to Crooked Lines, The Statue and Unfinished Business - the latter, considering what happened soon after he recorded this beautiful song, has to be one of Grant's most poignant lyrics.
Further reading:
Free downloads
Robert Forster's new album
More on Robert's new album
Where was everyone??
We had an RR social in NYC and only 2 people showed up. But we talked about everyone, so that's okay. Were your ears burning?
I put you on a pedastel, you put me on the 'Spill...FP's heroic playlist
Someone mentioned Grace Darling over on the Mother Ship. She was one of the very first heroic beings I was aware of. Indeed, any kid growing up in the North East of England in the seventies was told of her exploits, taken to her museum, shown the grave and bought the compulsory mug, tea towel or t-shirt. Grace's parents were the keepers of Longstone Lighthouse on the Farne Islands, just off the coast of Northumberland (that's the North East of England) and nowadays reachable by car at low tide. One stormy September morning in 1838, Grace looked out of the upper window of the lighthouse and saw a stricken ship and a group of people clinging for dear life to a nearby rock, lashed by the wind and waves. Their boat, the SS Forfashire, had hit the rocks and broken in two some hours earlier. Judging by the weather conditions, there wasn't enough time to call the lifeboard from nearby Seahouses and so Grace and her father put out to sea in their rowing boat which was some 21 feet (6 metres) long. They reached the rock where 9 people including a woman still clutching her two dead children were holding on in desperation. In lashing wind and waves, Grace Darling, who was 22 years old at the time, held the boat steady while her father clambered onto the rocks and hauled the survivors into the boat. They managed to save 5 of them on their first trip back to the lighthouse, and then her father made a second trip to pick up those remaining. Grace Darling became a household name after this event and was feted by no less than William Wordsworth. People even wanted locks of her hair and she was made offers of London theatre appearances, all of which she declined. She died of TB at the age of 27 and is buried in St. Aiden's churchyard in Bamburgh.
Given the rough weather and waves we experience on the Northumbrian coast, I cannot begin to imagine how hard it must have been to keep that large rowing boat steady, just near enough the rocks to be of use, but at the same time prevent it from being smashed to pieces, thus adding two more casualties to the list. It was an incredible act of bravery for any era, but bear in mind also the context and womens' position in society. Hell, the girl put out to sea wearing a long dress and petticoats. Imagine the sheer weight once she was drenched through with salt water...A true heroine....
As for the playlist, I've left a symbolic space for The Waterboys and Whole of the Moon which is not on deezer. I do know that Fanfare for the Common Man was NOT written by Emmerson Lake and Palmer and am very familiar with Copland's original. I just included the rock version as I do think it brings something, an added dimension which I like very much.
And the question to go: Who are your heroes? You're allowed one dead and one alive. I'll have David Bowie for all the obvious reasons - I think he's the only person whose presence would reduce me to gibbering incoherence or tears. And Beethoven. For the simple fact that, when he went deaf, he sawed the legs off his piano and played it with his ear to the ground so he could pick up the vibrations and continue composing. Now THAT's heroic...
Découvrez Electric Light Orchestra!
The Ground You Walk On
Casiotone for the Painfully Alone
The Real Tuesday Weld
The Incredible Vickers Brothers
These three I love.. I guess because they are not the normal alternative option. if that makes sense.
Simple Kid
Common
The Postal Service
Different versions of hero worship I guess.
Horace Andy
Marianne Faithful
Negativland
Tower of Song would be perfect for this (Cohen has been a-zzeded)..
overlap gets you the only other vocalist (M.Faithful) to perfect...
"It's not my fault I had no choice...
I was born with the gift of a golden voice"
...and I love Negitivland...
Friday, August 29, 2008
worship from afar
Two contrasting torch carriers from down under..
A fantastic, Ramones like track from the Go-betweens- one of their earliest, from 1978. Robert Forster is in awe of a librarian... Karen.
Who isn't?
Graeme Downes of the Verlaines is aware of the hopelessness of his quest to get near the object of his desire, he knows he's only going to get lucky in his dreams..
Ursula Rucker honours her unsung sistas, while Syreeta loves every little thing about you.. although there's still one she'd place above you...
An object of boyhood admiration, the perfect example for you and me.. Joe 90.
Player removed.
And a pox on you, you tennis-loving ####er !
.
.Here is Phil Campbell's Hope, Faith And You.
You see? The Bachelor Boy got me so cross I got the name of an all-time fave song WRONG over on the Mothership! Gahh. Anyway ...
Phil Campbell / White Buffalo - Hope, Faith And You
Thursday, August 28, 2008
For fourfoot
For all you soft-rock lovers out there, here's my current "Africa", brought to my attention by coming up on the radio Tuesday, the last episode of The Sopranos, and rapper Cam'ron.
Music List Obsessive? Me? Nah....
Discussing with my mate Steve (Preston's funniest man) the art of jukebox discipline the other evening....we came up with our fantasy 100 jukebox classics.
Anyway, a link here to the saddest list of the day. And such a white Western one too.
Shame on me.....
This is weird, isn't it?
I had a dream about RR last night. Eek.
It went like this:
The blog came up early, at about ten to midnight, and the topic was 'Songs about Freedom'. There were two comments already and I very hastily typed the following:
'"Freedom" Gege Michael.
This is going to be huge.'
I then had to put in a follow up comment, humourously claiming that 'Gege Michael' was a famous Iranian pop star what I know about, like.
So you can either take this as a prediction and start preparing your lists (in which case, Gege Michael's song is MINE), or you can start digging out the phone numbers of people who might be able to help me... Ta.
Loose Ends
Tying up some threads I was pulling earlier. 1) Attempt to prove to Shane & Blimps that Magnetic Fields don't always suck. 2) Even favoriter cover (although the original was so great, why bother). 3) Gary Numan doing his NIN impression. 4) Wacko Jacko & Metallica for Japanther & Frag Proncess & anyone else who didn't find it. 5) Manics covering my not so guilty pleasure for Toffee.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
The Big Four Figures....
The 'Spill is rapidly reaching the big 1000 published posts, which is as big a milestone as you can get in blogging, especially as we've only been going since January this year!
Judging by the current rate of posting (about 100 per month) we should hit 1000 in September (currently on 893, or 894 if you count this posting).
The question is then:
what should we do to celebrate?
WTF? etc etc
I am a big fan, as I'm sure all the rest of you are, of the Southern-Country-Rock-Folk stylings of My Morning Jacket.They are a wonderfully reliable band; rustic as toast and as American as swinging saloon doors or large helpings of pancake.
You know what you'll get from Jim James and MMJ - dusty singalongs and big guitar freakouts. Reverb drenched vocals and aching croon. Long, meandering songs about dawn, fires and, er, dancefloors. They are one of the bands who made Americana fashionable again and hence paved the way for the likes of Band of Horses (yay!) and Fleet Foxes (meh!). And they also wrote this, probably the single greatest song to have on loud in the car whilst driving a bit fast:
My Morning Jacket - 05 - One Big Holiday.mp3
And they have a new album out! Hurrah! More of the same! Brilliant. I'll just dust off my chaps and be with you in a minute. In fact, whilst I'm out polishing my rhinestone (stop sniggering at the back, its a bugger to clean), why don't you have a listen to this track from Evil Urges? I'll be back with you in a minute to discuss the excellent banjo-picking, the howl-at-the-moon vocal and the dreamy, aching sense of reminiscence. I can't wait...
03 highly suspicious.mp3
Oh.
WTF?
Etc.
Y'see, Evil Urges is a great great album. It really is. It's brave, it's stylistically varied. It's emotional. It's playful. But it is getting very, VERY mixed reviews and I think this track may be the biggest reason of all. Its a total and complete curveball.
I actually quite like the song, in context. I reckon the chorus is stonking but I can't go for the lyrics in the verse and that weird giggling does my head in every time. Its such a shift that it really has taken reviewers and listeners by surprise.
Would pitchfork, DiS, the Guardian et al have given the album more praise without it? Or is that exactly the point? Its hard to say, but the album as a whole really does reward you, if you can get past the shock and give it some time.
So, can anyone else think of examples of artists making massive, surprising and not-always-effective handbrake turns like this?
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Jazz? 2.21% cheek!
The top graphic illustrates the lyrical preoccupations of Hip Hop, proportionally, when broken down by body part. The second graphic covers the representation of body parts in the alternative genre.
The artists behind the Fleshmap project have listened to 10000 songs and broken things down for us in their interactive map called "Listen", which is well worth a look, especially for us 'Spillers who like nothing more than to collate songs on a topic!
Personally speaking, and especially as it's eyes and hands that dominate the categories, I'd like to hear more songs about tummies.
And to prove the point above, here's an mp3 that mentions pussy, ass, coochie, dick, tits, and possibly more besides. Diplo cleverly steals the backing track from Peter, Bjorn and John's "Young Folks" and throws a load of filth over the top. Jobs a good 'un.
....guess what genre?
Monday, August 25, 2008
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Sea, sex and...oysters. What I did in my holidays
I very much enjoyed reading about what music some of you had taken on holiday. When music plays such an important part in your life then it's a decision which merits some consideration, particularly in view of the limited space you often have to store discs etc. I thought I'd share my holiday listening with you and at the same time give you a rather good holiday tip if you don't know the area already.We've just come back from a week in Arcachon which is about 70km south of Bordeaux. There were lots of Brits in the area and I discovered that this is due to the Easyjet flights from Luton or indeed Bristol to Bordeaux. We flew down to Bordeaux, picked up a car for the week (about £230 for the car) and drove south to Arcachon.
It's a beautiful seaside town with more than scent of the grandeur of its heyday: the period from about 1860 to the 1930s when Europe's aristocracy came to take the healthy sea air and inhale the pine scented breezes which were thought, at the time, to have a beneficial effect on tuberculosis sufferers. The Empress Sissi was a regular at the Grand Hotel which dominates the seafront and the young Gustave Eiffel cut his teeth on building metal walkway structures here before starting work on his tower.
We stayed in the Ville d'hiver where the wealthy built their magnificent villas, each one more imposing and elegant than the last. Many have been converted into hotels or holiday appartments, and if you aren't looking for the last word in mod cons (these are historical, listed buildings after all) then it's the place to stay. The Saki fans among you will understand why I expected to bump into Clovis Sangrail round every corner. That kind of vibe...
Arcachon is the main town on the bassin d'Arcachon which is, as the Arcachonnais realiably informed us, the centre of the oyster growing industry in France. They even sell their baby oysters to the Bretons, so Breton oysters are, again according to the Arcachonnais, really Arcachon oysters! All manner of seafood, fish, and of course the aforementioned molluscs are the local speciality and I like to think we did them justice... Basque traditions also pervade the local cuisine and very good tapas bars can be found in places such as Le Moulleau.
Around the bassin you have any number of extremely pretty beaches such as Pereire, Le Moulleau and across the bay, Cap Ferret. If you head south, you come to beaches such as Biscarosse which are also vast stretches of perfect white sand but lack the protection of the bassin. The Atlantic waves make these beaches into a surfers' haven and we saw more than one battered pick-up truck with daisies doodled on the side. We kept up our street cred level by talking about 'Point Break' in loud voices.
And then there's the wine. Ooooooh the wine. It really would be worth making the journey by car if you can handle it, just to fill up the boot with the precious liquid. Bordeaux is cheaper in the supermarkets than it is where we live, so I can only imagine what the price difference with Britain would be. We flew so we had to limit ourselves to 2 bottles wrapped in our beach towels (they made it) but we talked to a couple of viticulteurs who spoke, misty eyed, about les anglais who come and fill up their cars...
I was a bit limited in terms of music, but my beach sounds were essentially Grace Jones, Island Life, and Rufus Wainwright's Release the Stars. For the car, I managed to pick up, at one of the area's great markets (Oh my God, the food!!) a second hand copy of Laurent Voulzy's 'La Septième Vague' which consequently became the official soundtrack of the holidays. Voulzy is a French crooner with a great affinity for 1960s London, Carnaby Street, etc. He has even written songs about Mary Quant. For this album, he simply made a list of 18 songs he really loved enough to cover, and proceeded to do his own version. Some of them may surprise, but I wanted to draw your attention to this as it really was the perfect soundtrack for exploring the seaside scenery of the Bassin d'Arcachon. And listening to the words of 'La Madrague' as we were leaving elicited a heart-felt 'Waaaaaaaaaah' from yours truly. I hope you have all had splendid hols. FP.
Découvrez Laurent Voulzy!
Saturday, August 23, 2008
For Friendly Strangers & My Strange Friends
1) Best Stranglers song ever? 2) Marianne Faithful hooks up with Beck. 3) Howard's back again, more estranged than ever. Still can't choose between this & "I Want to Burn Again". 4) Laura Cantrell, great song, awesome voice. 5) Nick Cave covering Cash. 6) Hunters & Collectors. No idea what they are banging on about in (Australian) English or French (translation please?), but find something to bang along with them. Epic wonderfulness.Strange Little Girl
Sex With Strangers
You Never Knew Me
Bees
The Singer
Talking To A Stranger
The music was easy this week, but had to let a lot of "Strange" songs go by the wayside. Best I could for a picture was my 3rd favorite TV series (behind The Wire & Twin Peaks) about a group of strangers stuck on an island (this thing better have a pay-off). Who wants to be Jack?
Don't be a stranger.
Friday, August 22, 2008
THIS ONE'S FOR MRS. TRACY.
Tracy: When I put that poem up there for you I wanted to include this short piece by the author, Phillip Levine, but I no longer had the book wherein it appears. I just did a library search and found it.
I had bought the book, Poets Choice edited by Paul Engle in the early 60's, it's a collection of many poets favorite poems, each with a short descriptive piece but it went the wrong way in a divorce. I thought the poem and the descriptive piece were a perfect match, they had to be read together so here they are as part of our ongoing off-topic poetry thread. If it's hard to read, click on it.
FOR FRAN by PHILLIP LEVINE.
I had bought the book, Poets Choice edited by Paul Engle in the early 60's, it's a collection of many poets favorite poems, each with a short descriptive piece but it went the wrong way in a divorce. I thought the poem and the descriptive piece were a perfect match, they had to be read together so here they are as part of our ongoing off-topic poetry thread. If it's hard to read, click on it.
FOR FRAN by PHILLIP LEVINE.
Win!
What with 'Spillers forming a world beating footie prediction team, and Bolt beating world records at the Olympics - there seems to be a lot of winning going on these last few weeks, so in honour of that; there's two things I'm going to do....
Thing 1: Post the song "Olympic Cyclist" by ballboy, because there'll never be a better time to do so, especially as it's a Scot winning the medals, and especially because the lyrics are so fab:
You shaved your legs and you washed your bike
And you looked like an olympic cyclist to me
And in your tiny council flat
Relive the memories that take you back
To athens and your rain-soaked sprint for gold
Thing 2: List all the things I've ever won:
1. A mountain bike when I was 9 in a draw cos I'd bought a book (I couldn't ride it for 5 years after cos it was too big for me)
2. £10 on the first ever national lottery; lost the next week, and never bothered again
3. The school sports day triple jump in 1989, followed by a half decent result in the 4 x 100 relay
4. A steak pie in my local playgroup's raffle about 3 months ago; still haven't cashed it in
5. A copy of Black Grape's "It's Great When You're Straight, Yeah" cd album from a local newspaper for answering the question; "What was Shaun Ryder's previous band named?"
6. Some Bjork 12"s off Xfm back when they were doing their test broadcasts, back in the day
7. 3rd prize in a daffodil growing competition when I was in primary school
RIGHTO 'SPILLERS - What have YOU won??
The Lakes of Pontchartrain
Seemingly some people on the mothership don't know the Be Good Tanyas' version of 'The Lakes of Pontchartrain'. Also some people (including me) can't spell it.
The picture has been changed for a more benign image. You still need to watch out for alligators though.
The Lakes of Pontchartrain
Dada da da da da DA DA DADA DAAAA!
Little known recording artiste produces modern psychedelic classic for soundtrack to no-budget arthouse indie flick:
Luckily it fits this week's RR topic of strangers! As does this following Spill post from back on Valentines Day:
It's that old, old tale;
Boy sees strange girl waiting for the bus.
Boy hopes the bus doesn't show so he can continue to admire girl.
Boy is so in love he loses his place in the book.
Boy sits behind girl on the bus.
Girl gets off the same stop as boy.
Boy asks girl out.
Girl says 'No' to Boy.
Boy never forgets girl.
Boy writes song in the vain hope that the girl may hear it one day, and remember him.
This is that song:
"Girl At The Bus Stop" - My Drug Hell
File under: "lost classic (but hopefully not for long, eh )"...
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Radio Shoe
Some stories & sounds to keep you amused until the mothership launches.I'm 89
Endroar
Jack the Biscuit
Cognitive Moducles
Harry's Dilemma
Papadumb
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
STOP THE PRESS! Or internet or whatever. BEST BAND IN WORLD RELEASES NEW SONG INTO WORLD!!
Holy cow! New stuff from TV On The Radio! I'm so excited right now!
Man alive! That was good! Phew, I might go for a lie down now...
Antidote For A Soggy Wednesday
Soggy Wednesday! Never fear, oh my damp UK based 'Spillers! I have formulated the perfect trio of chipper tunes full of cheery goodness that will dispel the prospect of the wettest August for 100 years!!
First up, some rollicking jazz to get you bopping! The fab Five Corners Quintet play "Hot Rod", dig it? Don't dig it? Get back in the fridge, Dad!!
Dondarily, "Here Come The Popes Part Three" by Sergeant Buzfuz, the most interesting lyrics I've heard in well over a week, and more trumpets and added cheering too!! Get down! Get back up again! YEAH! Um....
Thridly but not lastly, from 'Spill admirer Radioclit, a hipstertastic "Get It Up" which features (deep breath) Esau Mwamwaya, Santogold, and MIA no less! Woh! Yer! Blerk! Etc!
***EDIT*** I have deemed Radioclit not sunny enough for this post, so they have been replaced by Apples In Stereo's insanely perkfest "Go" GO! GO BABY!!!
And remember my dear friends, it may be sunny tomorrow - you never know!!
Here Come The Popes Part 3 by Sergeant Buzfuz
Go by Apples In Stereo
Here! If you like what your hear here, please buy their records!!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
From out of the shadows...
Oh my stars, it works again! Thank you Jebus.I may be very behind in realising that the 'Spill now works on IE7 again, and I'll admit I was too lazy to work out why/download another browser in the interim. But still. Man. It feels like it has been a LONG time. Hi.
Without having yet been back over recent posts, I hope everyone is still well and prospering. Me, Mrs and Mini Frod are rapidly approaching big events like leaving Ireland and embarking on new adventures (more of which nearer the time of said adventuring...) and everything is really very busy round here. Still, though, the last couple of weeks' RR have seen a debut for Ben Folds (yay me!) and a first success for Mrs Frod. And there's a fantasy football league, too. So all is good.
Anyway, with loads to catch up on and too little time to do it, I'll just honour this huge (for me, at least) occasion by putting up two of my favourite songs off two very very fine new albums by The Hold Steady and Conor Oberst.
Oh its nice to be back.
Tra.
09 Moab.m4a
05 Lord, I\'m Discouraged.m4a
Why do I do it?
I know it's pointless but this revolting biddy just winds me up something chronic and it fits this week's theme.http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/08/cinema_stole_my_favourite_book.html
I sometimes play ATF bingo, key words being Derby/libraries/rock (she means all music)/rockers (all musicians, apart from classical)/drugs (NB: must always follow on from the word ROCK/crackheads/violence/Tolstoy/Ireland/music=violence/local councils/corruption/damaging to health.
Basically, modern life is rubbish. You'd think the Books blog would be more civilised than the music blogs, given the loftiness of the written word, but those guys are quite hostile and elitist. Who'd a thunk it? I think I'll stick with the filthy, violent crackwhores, over in Music.
Monday, August 18, 2008
The Machine That Endlessly Devours
My memory was jolted by sourpus' post about the pop charms of TikTak to this song - "No Sleep Tonight" by The Faders.
The Faders were a short lived (2 singles, one album) major label pop construct that attempted to cash in on the Avril Lavigne type buck a couple of years back. I dread to think how much money was sunk into the "Faders Project", or what effect being chewed up and spat out by the music industry money machine has had on these girls (the drummer now has to watch Mika prance about like a tit for hours at a time on a daily basis, poor wee scone). Maybe this sort of thing is symptomatic of the terrible state of the record industry.
But i don't wanna talk about that - all i want to say is that this is an awesome pop song....and......NAME THAT RIFF!! GO!!!
Bonus points for as many songs as possible that also use the same riff!!
A nice knock-down argument
Burns' house in Dumfries
Jeremy Paxman's been dissing Robert Burns, at the Edinburgh Festival no less, the great gowk. The bloggers are out on CiF; and here in Dumfries, where Burns is buried, I'm feeling a bit miffed on his behalf. Here's the first verse of 'Tam O' Shanter' which is too long to post in its entirety - you can read the rest
here.
"When chapman billies leave the street,
And drouthy neibors, neibors, meet;
As market days are wearing late,
And folk begin to tak the gate,
While we sit bousing at the nappy,
An' getting fou and unco happy,
We think na on the lang Scots miles,
The mosses, waters, slaps and stiles,
That lie between us and our hame,
Where sits our sulky, sullen dame,
Gathering her brows like gathering storm,
Nursing her wrath to keep it warm."
Bit of an argument brewing at the end there!
Fantasy Football
MrDNA has suggested that, if any RRs have entered the Grauniad Fantasy Football, we could set up a league of our own. It's very easy to join; once you've created your team, just go to 'Join a Friends' League' and join "The UniDond League" with the password "rr2008". I'm now in two minds about doing this meself, as I created my team with my real name and can't find any way of changing it to Abahachi - it's going to be like last.fm, with a lot of strangers claiming to be familiars...
And this is the winner of this year's Oddest Shaped Vegetable competition...
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Is this the right room for an argument?
David Holmes thinks so, in this "Who'd win a fight between James Bond and John Shaft" argument.
Next is The Avalanches' veritable boxing card: Mr Kirk v Miss Fishborne, Dexter v The Baltimore County School Board, Dexter v a strange old man, before the headline bout: Frontier Psychiatrist v Dexter.
Then Soulwax underscore a rowing couple with Funky Town.
To close, I Am Kloot's mysterious Twist. "We fuck and we fight, someone else does the dishes," sings Johnny Bramwell. "There's blood on your legs, I love you" is one of the oddest choruses around.
Next is The Avalanches' veritable boxing card: Mr Kirk v Miss Fishborne, Dexter v The Baltimore County School Board, Dexter v a strange old man, before the headline bout: Frontier Psychiatrist v Dexter.
Then Soulwax underscore a rowing couple with Funky Town.
To close, I Am Kloot's mysterious Twist. "We fuck and we fight, someone else does the dishes," sings Johnny Bramwell. "There's blood on your legs, I love you" is one of the oddest choruses around.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Mahalo!
Here's me and JonP on glorious Waimanalo beach, Oahu for our wedding. Eveything was perfect, the cd sounded good, everybody was lovely to us and there were no stresses (apart from the limo guy trying to charge us extra, even though we returned within our time limit: grrr!). Hawaiians really are the nicest people. The spirit of 'aloha', which means love, goes through everything they do and it's such a shock to be in such a caring and considerate community. Traffic stops to let anybody cross whenever they want and to let others through. People working in the service industry don't act like it's a chore to help you out or to answer your questions, and go out of their way to make sure you have a lovely time. For example, we went to The Cheesecake Factory (actually, quite a ritzy place, despite the awful name) the day after the wedding, and when they discovered we'd just got wed, they decorated our plates with sugar confetti and "Congratulations/happy/wedding/day!" drawn round the edges of our plates with chocolate sauce! Yes, we had 4 pieces of cheesecake, have you not seen us?Thanks for the comment on the dress FP, it was indeed tricky to find a pretty dress for the beach: thank god for Monsoon! It's actually going to cost me more to clean the dress than it did to buy the dress, shoes, veil and underwear. The beauty of Ebay! The flower-wreath (haku) was probably my favourite thing, so delicate and pretty. We went to a luau (again, preferential treament) the following day and I got to make a haku from plumeria, which I kept in the fridge for the rest of the hols and every time we opened the fridge there was this gorgeous waft of frangipani.
I've listened to all the tracks and am going to get the husband to make me a copy, I'm sure he'll figure it out. He did walk in while Prefab Sprout was playing and went "Ugh, jazz!". We are so right for each other! Thanks for the creative artwork and the poem too, very touching indeed. Should you really want to see more pics, and should you have Facebook or Myspace, let me know and I'll add you as a friend.
a little amount of RAAAAAAAAAH
saul williams
cure
Kenieckie
lush
buck 65
Plan B
sage francis
the mountain goats
Wild Billy Childish
Saul Williams ‘Talk To Strangers’
“I ain't trying to fit in……
As a great man once said
There is nothing more powerful
Than an idea
Whose time
Has come”
a great argument… well put.
The Cure ‘ Us or Them’
I got this album in Germany the day it came out, having not enjoyed the Cure for years.. Us or Them and alt.end were just great.
(It did help that I had just come out of a relationship and was feeling very teenage GRRRR!)
Kenickie ‘Classy’
“Break your face
Not that much to look at anyway
We make things out of dust
So we can smash them up
We never see the sights
We're out too late at night”
simply nights out with little spats.. the joys(!) of a drunken argument .
Lush ‘Ciao’
Miki:
Well, I've felt better since I slammed that door
You always cramped my style, I never noticed before
It's been a non-stop party since I flew the coop
I can't believe I fell for such a loser like you
Jarvis:
And is it any wonder that I felt so blue
When I was always having to put up with you
‘Ladykillers’ could have worked too, but as this didn’t get in to duets.. here it is.
Buck 65 ‘Exes’
“She came with heavy baggage and a stupid ass beagle
Man, I hated that dog, it would shit in the kitchen
And howl in the morning, always scratching and itching
Queen of the plastic bag, forked tongue and 80's retro
Everything from new wave, metal and electro…..”
“….The outcome was volcanic, disgusting and wonderful
Messy, confusing, exciting and depressing”
Sometimes you just make a wrong choice!
Plan B ‘Who Needs Actions When You Got Words’
“When trouble comes knockin i'll be ready alright,
put my fists up ready to fight,
but i aint gotta put my fists up everytime.
Who needs actions when you got, you got words”
Mr. Potty mouths best and least offensive song.
Sage Francis ‘Climb Trees’
“So I say shit loud in their ears and I spit a wretched verse in their face...
Disrespecting their personal space
In a split second, curtains and drapes get closed
They think they've shut me out, but I can see their ugly mouth in the shape of "O"s”
this is a man that could argue in an empty room.. hence…
“Yeah, if these walls could talk they wouldn't shut the fuck up”
the brilliant ‘Crack Pipes’ fits too
“It's like a whirlwind of emotions that occurs when mums and dads fight”
but I’ve nominated that in so many themes I’ve given up!
The Mountain Goats ‘Orange Ball Of Hate’
“I know that one of us,
I'm not saying who,
has got rocks in HER head”
Just genius line,
very early recording ‘Dance Music’ or ‘No Children’ gets my original vote though.
Wild Billy Childish And The Musicians Of The British Empire ‘Again and Again’
Cruising for a bruising as ever.
Friday, August 15, 2008
whatever I say, it's right
I have a bit of a reputation for being an argumentative sod, which is no wonder when you consider what I spend my time listening to..
Starting with Betty Davis- she's pretty damn sure it's her man, not yours..
The Clean forges ahead regardless- whatever they say, its right. Unless its wrong...
The Chills Effloresce and Deliquesce again, I posted this for science, now it's time to analyse the chemistry of a lover's tiff.. this time the Submarine Bells version.
The Go-betweens, You can't say no forever. Just don't try telling that to Betty Davis, Robert..
More conciliatory.. Ty, Wait a minute, remixed by Dwele. Ty is trying to do the right thing, although he may just be digging himself into a deeper hole.. see the above video...
Stripeybrat has requested I post Grant Mclennans "Dark stripey side of town" for Toffeeboy- apparently after some sort of cathartic experience they're getting back together again...
Player removed
The trouble with speaking too soon
Here is - in fact - an English version of the song I posted below, which Tiktak, ahem, "prepared earlier. A positively dire lyrical rewrite, completely losing the song's edge for me - although dont ask me to explain why I feel so. Clearly Universal Records thought the tune was catchy enough to put a toe in the water of the English language market and unless I missed that meeting, I dont remember hearing that it was a hit either in the UK or Stateside. Damned if you do (rewriting into English is so often a recipe for dilution), damned if you dont ("What? A record in what language?? Dont be soft!) - what's the solution? A great song is a great song - isn't it?
It's All Your Fault!
1) Dub Syndicate to start the row.2) Nina Nastasia in lost dolly incident.
3) Mountain Goats run for cover.
4) Black Keys with an old girlfriend.
5) Broken Family Band living up to their name.
6) Caberet Voltaire with some advice.
7) Andy Fairley covers the elections & makes some good arguments.
8) Stranglers with tough talk.
9) The Goats dialing up the argument to eleven.
10) Robert Wyatt with philosophical arguments to make your brain hurt.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Tiktak - Lopeta ("Stop")
Ever since I lived in Finland - for about 8 months, back in 1999/2000 - I've had this album (Frendit) and this track in my collection. Everytime I hear it, it has me clapping and singing along, even though I dont speak a word of Finnish. What I wanna know is...am I just a lolloping nutcase with earmuffs or is this a classic pop tune? Answers on a postcard, etc. sourpus
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
50.000 FUZZY GUITARS!!!
The not so white cliffs of Saint-Aubin s/ Mer
Well I'm back, back on the 'Spill, but also back in Europe (for good it seems), and after about a fortnight with only dial-up internet I'm finally catching up on the 'Spill, but most importantly I can finally share this song that has been driving me crazy this past week, because it's so amazingly brilliant: Why Can't There Be Love by Dee Edwards, (who also sang I Can Deal With That, which I think is in one my social Cds) and now I want fuzzy guitars everywhere. 50.000 FUZZY GUITARS!!!
Why Can't There Be Love
You Know Baby
The Opening Title Sequence
Going To California
Passin' Me By (Hot Chip Remix)
Sleepy Head
After the discussions on racism and hip-hop, it's a perfect opportunity to post this song by my new favourite rapper Wale:
The Kramer
An Imperfect List
Sometimes I like a list
Sometimes a list will make me explore things that I do not know
Sometimes I'm bored and rattle off a list to keep me from going F****** Insane
Sometimes other peoples lists make me feel like the sanest person in the world
I Love You (LISTen to this) Dexys Midnight Runners
LIST of demands Robyn
Let's make love and LISTen to death from above CSS
Personal JournaLIST Sage Francis
What else is new LIST His Name Is Alive
I had a LIST and I lost it The drift
"I received a lot of questions from some about why I would allow my song 'List of Demands' to be used in a Nike campaign. Ironically, half of the people now reading this post never heard of me until that commercial aired. That, indeed, was one of my reasons for allowing it. A small circle of poets and conscious do-gooders are not enough to effect the change necessary to shift our planet in peril. We must enlist people from all walks of life, people not accustomed to questioning the norm, people who may simply want to dance uninterrupted without message or slogan. I see no glory in 'preaching to the converted'. Furthermore, I believe fully in the power of music and have branded my work with it's own conscientious stamp and stomp of attitude fueled to steal the show in the face of the nonsensical. Quite simply, it was clear to me that people would not be rushing to the store to buy Nikes after seeing that commercial, but rather rushing to youtube or itunes to hear or download the song. I even imagined those who would be rushing to blogs to question how I could allow this to happen and the subsequent discussion of the ethical treatment of factory workers and how new minds would be informed and enlisted in the struggle for ethical change." -- Saul Williams
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