Sunday, February 1, 2009

You lucky, lucky bastards

We'll start with a classic bit of Python ...



... then move on to the Fast Show ...



... and then we'll have some music, kicking off with The Lightning Seeds and Lucky You. Ian Broudie, I have to agree with gremlinfc, rather blotted his copybook with his involvement in the 3 Lions atrocity. Having said that, the proceeds probably paid for a small extension, chez Broudie, and possibly even a garage conversion/games room. Whichever way you look at it, this is a fantastic pop song and I don't feel any need to defend my recommendation of it.

Next up we have Dean Friedman's Lucky Stars. I don't think the song is quite on topic but when has that ever stopped me? I'm still determined to get Dean Friedman on the RR A-List - let's just hope that Mr Fitzpatrick is an admirer of the whiny-voiced one. I know I am...

Track number 3 is The Strokes' Trying Your Luck. I'm not a huge fan of theirs but I played Is This It? rather a lot when it was first released and I think it stands up fairly well despite the appalling, Spinal Tap 'smell the glove' style cover - what were they thinking????

Here's one that you might not expect from me. It's Johnny Cash with That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day) from American III: Solitary Man. I love the work he did with Rick Rubin - particularly this album where you can hear his voice is breaking up. He's vulnerable, but he had so much still to offer and, even though he knew he was dying, he retains a passion for the sheer joy of singing.

And then we have a lovely track by the post-Victoria Bergsman version of The Concretes. It's called If We're Lucky We Don't Get There On Time and ably demonstrates that there's still life in Sweden's finest indie poppers.

Next it's this weeks tangenital nom (courtesy of theboydaz): I present to you the one and only Go-Betweens with The Wrong Road. I'll let the song speak for itself - just listen to the lyrics for a fine example of story-telling in pop music at its very best.

And last but not least it's Ben Folds with The Luckiest. Simply gorgeous. 'Nuff said. Enjoy...

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

My sister and I used to sing Lucky Star as a joke duo. I unfortunately got to sing Dean Friedman and gave it my all with the nasal whine. Top class Toffee. Excellent to hear that one again. Great memories. Thanks for that. "We're not as smoorrt as we like to think we arrrreeee!!!!"

Anonymous said...

Top of voice
"I may not be all that broight but I know how to hold you toight!"
Oh dear. Neighbours are knocking. Oooops.

ToffeeBoy said...

@ fp - glad to be of service. It is impossible not to join in, isn't it?

Blimpy said...

i remember the unlucky alf clip, i love that it takes a full minute for him to walk in silence up the road, and you know what's gonna happen, and it's still funny when it does.

the concretes song is nice, but don't you keep thinking "this'd be better with VB on it"?

off-topic; has anyone seen Generation Kill yet? Is it worth a cheeky wee DL?

i haven't joined in on RR this week, cos I'm not a fan of the topic. I don't like concepts like "luck" or "destiny" or anything like that.

gremlinfc said...

Oh my god - sort of makes me proud to have nominated "Lucky Stars" this week on t'other side...but it truly is a sort of dreadful song...oh bugger...my fave Unlucky Alf is when he comes home with a parrot and says to camera "Knowing my luck it'll probably not say owt". He stares at it. Silence. Whsipers "bugger" and goes to sit down + as he sits down it Squawks "Wanker" followed by "twat"- cue the usual..."bugger" ...different class!

ToffeeBoy said...

@ blimpy - The Concretes without Victoria Bergsman - well, that's kinda like tennis without Sue Barker!

@ gremlinfc - Unlucky Alf is my role model. There's lots of good clips on You Tube - I like this one.

gremlinfc said...

@Beefy foot - top shout ! That's gotta be a classic too : "Mrs. Bainbridge"..genius.

TracyK said...

Loved this selection, as I hear more and more GoBetweens, I realise I should maybe own an lp. I adore Cattle and Cane, can anyone suggest the next step?

ToffeeBoy said...

@ TracyK - thanks - glad you liked it. As for the Go-Betweens, the album which this track is taken from, Liberty Belle & The Black Diamond Express is probably the best starter.

nilpferd said...

Alternatively you could try "the singles- 1979-1990", which will give you a good overview of the (pre-reformed!) GBs, without doubling up too much if you decide to invest in some albums. And it also has Cattle and Cane, and at least on the cassette version, Wrong Road. Liberty Belle.., while I'm not disputing its place at the pinnacle, is perhaps at the "country" end of the GBs; I think I prefer the more pop oriented "16 lovers lane" or the darker "Tallulah", and I also love the earlier, simpler, rockier feel on "Spring Hill Fair".

ToffeeBoy said...

@ nilpf - no argument from me on any of that!

nilpferd said...

BTW, Toffeeboy, we ought to start thinking about a suitable G.M. Mclennan memorial playlist..

ToffeeBoy said...

G.W. surely? Unless it's Grant Milliam McLennan??

Anyway, pedantry aside, I think we need to come up with a selection of representative tracks from his whole career - 1978 to 2006. The question is, how do whittle it down to an acceptable number of tracks?

I think I've confessed this sin before, but I don't have his third and fourth solo albums so I can't contribute anything from them.