Ickmusic’s Friday Five: February 1, 2008
by Michael
On an average week, most of my Friday afternoon is spent resisting the urge to count the minutes until the weekend and getting the last of my work done before ‘unplugging’.
Last week’s five ran the gamut from the ‘so unusual’ Cyndi Lauper to Pantera with a detour through Compton. It also seems like the Ickmusic crowd likes to share right along. If you missed last week the premise is this I’ll share the first five tracks that comes up in my shuffle (and some thoughts, anecdotes and defenses, you know in case a Panic! At The Disco or Poison track comes up) with all of you.
In turn, feel free to add your random ‘Friday Five’ in the comments and be honest! We all have those guilty pleasures…
Here are this week’s tracks:
1. Johnny Cash – Ring of Fire (from The Legend of Jonny Cash)
Growing up my definition of “Country” music was the likes of Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Hank Williams Jr. and Johnny Cash. I would listen to them on every family road trip and around the house and still listen to this day with the same reverence for what are really some of the greatest songwriters and performers ever to grace a stage.
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2. Great Big Sea – Sweet Forget Me Not (Graceful And Charming) (from Courage & Patience & Grit)
I was actually fortunate enough to see Newfoundland and Labrador’s favorite son’s on this tour at The Town Hall in NYC. The studio version of this song was actually part of the music played as a prelude to my wedding ceremony. Part of a collection of traditional Newfoundland songs this is one of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard.
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3. Red Hot Chili Peppers – Pretty Little Ditty (from Mother’s Milk)
I hate that this tune was forever ruined by it’s inclusion in the Crazy Town track “Butterfly”. It’s one of those tracks where you almost feel like a fly on the wall while they band is doing what they do best.
4. Pink Floyd – Coming Back To Life (from The Division Bell)
I remember what a big deal this record, which turned out to be the bands last, was at the time of its release. I was managing a record store and recall that it was one of the first times that I had to deal with an actual line to buy a single release. While not my favorite track from this album, I always connected to this tune.
5. Black Flag – Louie Louie (from Duck and Cover)
Henry Rollins singing “Louie Louie” is an instant classic and not to be missed!
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So now it’s your turn, what comes up in your shuffle?
February 1, 2008 - 5:00 pm
The still-at-work 8GB iPhone version….
Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros – “Ramshackle Day Parade” – must have Joe wherever one may go. This one’s from his posthumous album Streetcore.
Elvis Presley – “In the Ghetto” – Elvis is well represented on my iPhone iPod. Always happy to let Elvis take me back to the early 70’s Chicago ghetto.
Elvis Presley – “Milky White Way” – the iPod chooses 2 Elvi tunes in a row! Never a problem for me. This is a great gospel tune, not a song in tribute to a white chocolate candy bar, as the title and singer may suggest (hey, we DO both love our food).
Matt Wilson’s Arts & Crafts – “The Bat” – laid back trumpet and B3 sounds from cool-ass contemporary jazz man Matt Wilson and friends.
Elvis Presley – “Heartbreak Hotel” – Honestly, I have 8 gigs of music on my iPod, and not THAT much Elvis. 3 out of 5 songs = Elvis? Must be a sign from the King… What is it King? What do you want from me? A shipment of 1,000 Jiffy Peanut Butter jars and 500 Chiquita Bananas? Crikey, King, have Priscilla wire over some money….
February 2, 2008 - 12:30 am
I like this game. We get to see some interesting stuff.
Let’s see what the last five that came up on mine were:
Green Day / King for a day (Nimrod, 1995) – my daughter doesn’t believe that these guys have been playing together since before she was born
McCoy Tyner with Carlos Santana / Prelude to a kiss (Kool Jazz Festival, San Francisco, 1983) — you can find some great boots on the net. Carlos guesting with McCoy is a treat
John Lennon / Just because (Rock and Roll, 1975) – I played this album to death when it came out
John Fogerty / Walking in a hurricane (Rokslide Festival, Denmark 1997) — another concert boot, and a good one
Vashti Bunyan / Winter is blue (demo version, 1967) — fabulous song from an artist who made a big splash and then disappeared for thirty years
February 2, 2008 - 6:00 pm
Done late – Saturday evening in the Midwest:
“Dream Intro/Dream’s A Dream” by Darden Smith from “Little Victories” (1993). Smith is one of the great unknown singer-songwriters, living at the intersection of country, rock and folk. One of my faves, and his best album (though all are good).
“Gone At Last” by Paul Simon from “Still Crazy After All These Years” (1975). One of the great American albums, and the song is graced by Phoebe Snow’s guest vocal.
“Down by the Water” by Cry Cry Cry from “Cry Cry Cry” (1998). A nicely done folkish album. Another relative obscurity worth finding.
“Six Pack” by the Apostles, Kapp single 2011 (1969). A little bit funky, a little bit clunky. Not sure I ever heard it coming out of the radio speaker.
“Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us” by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss from “Raising Sand” (2007). A combination that seemed curious at first, the two of them put together a nice album. This track is a tribute to 1930s and 1940s gospel star Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
Fun to do and fun to read the other entries! Thanks a lot!
February 2, 2008 - 9:42 pm
1. Brand New Kind of Actress–Jason Isbell
I like this album a lot–I definitely like him solor more than I like Drive-by Truckers
2. Speed of Sound–Coldplay
OK every once in awhile
3. Kate–Ben Folds Five
Fun song
4. Nobody’s Baby–Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings
Love, love, love Sharon Jones
5. Love and You–Barbarossa
Don’t know much about this guy or even where I got this song but I enjoy it. Very mellow.
February 3, 2008 - 1:41 pm
I’ve got weird stuff.
1. Part of “Wall To Wall Sondheim,” a 12-hour concert that was broadcast on satellite radio in March, 2005 for Stephen Sondheim’s 75th birthday. This particular part is “Waiting for the Girls Upstairs” from “Follies”–broadcast at approximately 10:26 p.m Eastern Time.
2. “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen. Yes, the original.
3. “Unwound” by George Strait.
4. “Summer Song” by James Yorkston.
5. “Four Rows of Jacks” by Mannheim Steamroller, from “Fresh Aire IV.” My high school art teacher introduced me to them before they became known for their ubiquitous Christmas recordings (they had only one at the time, and nobody had ever heard of it yet). I don’t think anyone else in the class actually liked it–probably typical of teenagers in the ’80s. And why should they? It was some weird mellow music on an audiophile label–I don’t even think the name “New Age” had been invented for its genre yet. Or that it even WAS a genre. Anyway, for me it was fascinating, mind-blowing stuff that was different from anything played on the radio. I’m not sure what the purpose of that little diatribe was, other to show that Mannheim Steamroller and I have a history that goes way back.