Friday Five

Ickmusic’s Friday Five: April 25, 2008

It's A Bit Of A Shuffle.

While I’m doing my best Tim Allen impression (the TV version, not the reality version) I’m again going to have to phone in the very late edition of the Friday Five.

As I had mentioned last week I’m in the midst of a home remodeling project and have had the tunes on non-stop to get me through the trying experiences of being a non-handy type being handy. That said, here’s what came up the most during the last 7 days of home ownership bliss. Last week the Fivers played along with the playlist theme and no one seemed to have a single tune with improvement in the title (yours truly included). We’ll do more themed weeks in the coming months and perhaps a guest feature or two! Due to the lack of time, this week will be an all-video edition but never fear, we’ll be back to the random MP3 format next week.

Now, on with the show!

Here are this week’s tracks:

1. Jason Mraz – I’m Yours (from We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things)

I’ve made my no secret of appreciation for Mr. A-Z, and this tune in particular happens to have a wonderful video that reminds me very much of my Honeymoon in Hawaii. This has been in heavy rotation for weeks and I think that everyone should get his new record when it comes out May 13th.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkHTsc9PU2A 336 278]

2. Beastie Boys – Shadrach (from Paul’s Boutique)

Aside from being a damn funky record, this is one of my default ‘working’ albums.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFolUn88q-o 336 278]

3. Rolling Stones – Paint it Black (from Forty Licks)

Apparently this is my son’s favorite song as he’s played it on his iPod 20 times in the last few weeks and so it worked it’s way into my playlists more often as well. It could be worse, he could be listening to Miley Cyrus.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLFGLHIfVTU 336 278]

4. Pearl Jam – Black (from Ten)

Another one of my default ‘working’ records. Even over 15 years later it stands as one of the best records I’ve ever heard.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFVlJAi3Cso 336 278]

5. Billy Joel – A Matter of Trust (from The Bridge)

Billy came up a whole lot this week for some reason. I don’t know why… this has always been one of my favorites.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx53c_6h-W4 336 278]

Now it’s your turn, what’s helping keep you sane?

6 Comments

  • girasol

    1. “Take Me With U” by Prince, Purple Rain – I don’t have a lot of Prince, but this is one of my favorites.

    2. “St. Ann’s Gold” by Daniel Lanois, Acadie – Daniel Lanois is probably better known for being a record producer (U2, Brian Eno and many others). I really love this CD and rediscovered it about a year ago. Yes, some of the songs are moody, but DL writes some good songs and has a great singing voice.

    3. “Someday Never Comes” by Brandi Carlile, Brandi Carlile – A singer/songwriter from the Seattle area; kind of folky.

    4. “Al Otro Lado del Rio” by Ana Laan, Ben Sidran, et al, Soundtrack from The Motorcycle Diaries – I fell in love with this song when I saw Antonio Banderas sing it a few years ago on the Academy Awards show. This song was up for an award. If you haven’t seen the movie, rent it – it’s a wonderful movie with a great soundtrack.

    5. “Could We” by Cat Power, The Greatest – My favorite song from this CD.

  • ceriddell

    1 “Hold On I’m Comin'” by Sam & Dave
    2 “Great Balls Of Fire” by Jerry Lee Lewis
    3 “I’m Yours” by Prince
    4 “For Crying Out Loud” by Meatloaf
    5 “You’ll Be Coming Down” by Bruce Springsteen

  • RobC

    I’m a little late, so here are my random plays:

    1. Deee-Lite – Groove Is In The Heart (from Much Dance 90s)
    -This is the first track I’ve hit that I’m actually embarrassed about. This is a 90s dance compilation that my wife owns. I’ve never been able to stand this song (I immediately skipped past it, but I had to include it in my list).

    2. Bruce Springsteen – Bobby Jean (from Born In The U.S.A.)
    – Two Born In The U.S.A. songs in two weeks. I’ve actually been listening to this album for the first time in a while. Good stuff!

    3. Bob Dylan – If Not For You (from Biograph Disc 1)
    – Not much to say. Dylan=Excellent (usually!).

    4. Third Eye Blind – God Of Wine (from Third Eye Blind)
    – This is an album I’ve really liked, and I never really understood why it seemed to get dumped on. I find most of the songs catchy as hell. Fairly typical 90s stuff, I guess.

    5. Spirit Of The West – Home For A Rest (from Save This House)
    – One of the all-time best drinking songs. It’s impossible to sit still when this song is playing. SOTW were one of the best live bands in their prime.

    As for Miley Cyrus, my daughter is listening her, so there’s the possibility she may show up here one day!! (I’m hoping not).

  • whiteray

    Late, late, late! It’s already Sunday, but I’m sure in some alternate universe, it’s still Friday, so . . .

    1. “Love Come Shining Through” by Graham Bond, probably from the “Love is the Law” sessions, 1969. Good solid rock, and great work on the organ, of course!

    2. “Queen of Memphis” by the Confederate Railroad from “Confederate Railroad,” 1992. Country, of course. What else could it be?

    3. “Burn On” by Randy Newman from “Sail Away,” 1972. Randy’s tribute to the time Ohio’s Cuyahoga River — horribly polluted — caught fire.

    4. “No Place To Go” by Fleetwood Mac from “Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac,” 1968. Still a British blues band, the boys take on a variation of Howlin’ Wolf’s “How Many More Years.”

    5. “Yield Not To Temptation” by The Cate Brothers from early sessions, likely around 1972. These guys had some great albums a few years after this gospelly rave-up was recorded but never got any attention. Too bad.

  • Jim Russell

    Here I am, bringing up the rear again…

    1. Don McLean / Fashion victim (1991, from “Headroom”) — McLean can be very cynical when he wants to be, and he sure wants to be on this track. The chorus: “I hate fashion / I hate it with a passion / Are you a fashion victim? / I’ll bet you are”.

    2. Czechoslovak Radio Symphony Orchestra / Aaron Copland: Rodeo — Hoedown (1989) — If you can forget the Beef Council commercials conjured up in your memory by this piece, it’s still a bit of compositional brilliance, and this orchestra does a nice job with it.

    3. Chuck Berry / Nadine (1964, single) — I always marvel at Berry’s lyrics. He was the absolute master of fitting every syllable perfectly into the music with not a single word sounding forced.

    4. Neil Young / Greensleeves (1974 @ The Bottom Line, NYC, boot) — Yes, “Greensleeves”, and without a trace of irony.

    5. Christian Howes / New pastorale (2007, from a CD sampler) — An incredible jazz violinist that I saw play with Les Paul at his weekly gig at Iridium in NYC. When we left the club, Christian was out on the street hawking his CD sampler, and I was happy to buy a copy.

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