Friday Five

The Friday Five: March 4, 2011

Friday Five

Friday Five : ‘frī-(,)dā,-dē ‘fīv : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes, then share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.

The Five:

“New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel (from Turnstiles, 1976)

I was going to wax poetic about Billy, but I just read this brilliant review of his upcoming Last Play at Shea and would rather you take the moment to go read Jeff Giles’ thoughts. It’s okay, I’ll wait.

Okay, you’re back? On with the five!

“Push” by Matchbox Twenty (from Yourself or Someone Like You, 1996)

You know what? I still kind of like this tune.

“Real Vacation” by Caleb Hawley (from Steps, 2009)

No truer words have been spoken.

So, for those of you that partake in the American Idol, you might recognize the name Caleb Hawley. He managed to make it all the way to the Las Vegas stage, before being given his walking papers. It’s a damn shame, really. Rather than wallow, get over to iTunes or Amazon and pick up Steps, and his latest We’ve All Got Problems, and celebrate a great singer/songwriter.

“Cold Truth” by  The Guggenheim Grotto (from …Waltzing Alone, 2006)

“Hey Maria, I’ve been thinking, been thinking bout moving … far away, cross the sea, maybe, somewhere cold and magnificent.” From Caleb to the duo that introduced me to him! Over the course of the last year I’ve had the pleasure of seeing The Guggenheim Grotto perform five or six times, and this song specifically at least three or four times. Like most tunes by the duo, it is beautifully simple, with soaring vocal harmonies.

“Down By the Water” by The Decemberists (from The King Is Dead, 2011)

Until hearing The Damnwells’ No One Listens to the Band Anymore I was pretty certain that I was going to crown The King Is Dead my favorite record of the first quarter of 2011. The funny thing is, I wouldn’t categorize myself as a fan of the band. I listened to Hazards of Love a few times, and while I liked what I heard, nothing stuck. Flash forward to the band’s latest, which managed to grab me by the ears with its none too subtle nod to a certain little band from Athens, GA. If you haven’t given this a listen for fear of shanty songs and prog-rock leanings, fear not! This is one of the best records of 2011.

What’s on your shuffle today?

28 Comments

  • Anonymous

    “A Means to an End” by Joy Division (from Closer, 1980)
    “Downer” by Nirvana (from Incesticide, 1992)
    “Dirty Boots” by Sonic Youth (from Goo, 1990)
    “Temple of Gloom” by Kid Koala (from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, 2000)
    “Houses on the Hill” by Whiskeytown (from Strangers Almanac, 1997)

    Lifton sent me

  • Mike Duquette

    What a week! On with the Five…

    1. Daryl Hall & John Oates, “Maneater”: This is one of those songs that always confuses me when I hear it on the radio. When a song starts with a low bassline like this one it always sounds like it’s in the wrong key to me. (I have the same problem with “My Girl.”) Not my favorite H&O hit, but that drum fill at 3:25 is pretty awesome.

    2. John Williams, “Adventure on Earth”: the 15-minute finale of the E.T. soundtrack, and the subject of a piece I contributed to for Popdose last month. That soundtrack was the first CD I ever bought; I’ve since bought two other pressings, and if a fourth ever comes out, I’ll buy that, too.

    3. Arcadia, “Say the Word”: one of the poppiest things this Duran Duran side project ever did, for a soundtrack to a movie I’ve never seen (“Playing for Keeps,” I think?). Sounds less like what Duran would do with “Notorious” months later and more like a “Seven and the Ragged Tiger” outtake, only better than most of what was on that album.

    4. Prince and The Revolution, “Paisley Park”: YES. One of my favorite Revolution-era tracks, and one of the many songs whose 12″ remix was never put on CD. (It only ever got a U.K. release, anyway.) The guitar solo that ends the track is gold, and the stomping rhythm track (with those finger cymbals!) is something else.

    5. Prince, “If I Was Your Girlfriend.” DOUBLE YES. I almost never stumble upon the full LP version (like all good pop nerds I keep single edits obsessively), but today was an exception. Damn it can we just get the Camille album from Rhino?

  • de10ero

    Mighty Sam McClain-New Man In Town

    Combining the blues and the divine

    Sharon Shannon and Steve Earle-That Galway Girl

    Warming up for St. Patrick’s day?

    Bachman Cummings-Judy In Disguise (With Glasses)

    Guess Who? Correct! A Jukebox of rarely covered tunes

    The Stompers-Never Tell An Angel

    My favorite all time live band

    Grand Funk Railroad-Mean Mistreater

    I wouldn’t call them funky but they were loud as a passing train

  • Chris Holmes

    This week’s 5 brought to you by Slacker.

    1. Michael Hedges, “Scenes” – Never heard this before. Pleasant background music in a New Age/smooth jazz style I guess.
    2. Spoon, “The Mystery Zone” – I was really let down by the Transference album, but this is one of the bright spots.
    3. The Carpenters, “Oldies Medley”- 15 minutes of this shit? No fucking way. SKIP.
    4. Be Bop Deluxe, “Lost in the Neon World” – This is more like it. A nice palate cleanser.
    5. John Lennon, “Mother” – Songs like this seem even more powerful when balanced against John’s propensity for snark with the Beatles.

  • Anonymous

    “Cold Truth” is one of those songs, like many on Waltzing Alone, that I didn’t love until I heard it live. Now I tend to listen to it on repeat.

    Here’s my five:

    1) “My Favorite Things,” Outkast. My god, this track is really long.
    2) “Workin’ for the Weekend,” Loverboy. Seriously? This seriously came on randomly on a Friday?
    3) “I’ve Got To See You Again,” Norah Jones. I fell asleep to this album many a night, and then I saw her live and fell asleep again.
    4) “Staying in Love,” Raphael Saadiq. My iTunes is making me look so awesome right now.
    5) “Hard Day (Shep Pettibone Remix), George Michael. YES!

  • Anonymous

    1. “Acadian Driftwood” – Richard Shindell from “South of Delia”
    2. “Rhythm In The Pews” – Ray Lynch from “Deep Breakfast”
    3. “Everybody Hurts” – REM from “In Time- The Best of REM 1988-2003”
    4. “Empty Glass” – Stoney LaRue from “Stoney LaRue-Live Acoustic”
    5. “I’m Not In Love” – The Pretenders from “Indecent Proposal”

  • Mike

    Happy Friday, everyone. My five…

    1. “My Baby Just Cares for Me” by Nina Simone-Is this my second straight week with a Nina track?

    2. “Say You Will” by Sly & the Family Stone- I made a crass Sly Stone joke this morning, and now my iTunes is coming back to haunt me!! NOOOOOOO!!!

    3. “Fix It” by Teena Marie- Rick may have discovered Teena, but her records hold up much better, and she remained relevant long after Rick lost his mojo. She’ll definitely be missed.

    4. “Stay With You” by John Legend-One of the best tracks from Legend’s first album. It’s pretty much an audio warm fuzzy, but very few people do them better than Mr. Legend.

    5. “We Were Always Sweethearts” by Boz Scaggs- Not sure when this came out originally, but I’d peg it as early Seventies post-Motown soul. Sounds a bit like “Too Late to Turn Back Now” by The Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose. Pissed I missed my chance to see him and McD in Boston last year. Hope they both (individually or together) come back around soon.

  • Mindy

    1. Adele – Set Fire to the Rain
    2. Lea Michele – I Dreamed a Dream
    3. Michael Jackson – 19 Someone in the Dark
    4. The Cranberries – Bosnia
    5. Bruce Springsteen – Born in the USA

  • Anonymous

    “Coldest Days” by The Rural Alberta Advantage from Departing (2011)
    “It’s Tricky” by RUN-D.M.C. from Greatest Hits (2002)
    “Girl from the North Country” by Rosanne Cash from The List (2009)
    “Heathen Child” by Grinderman from Grinderman 2 (2010)
    “Blue Skies Again” by Jessica Lea Mayfield from Tell Me (2011)

  • dslifton

    “Fallen” – Silver Sun (not The Silversun Pickups)
    “Just Got Lucky” – JoBoxers
    “A Rockin’ Good Way” – Priscilla Bowman
    “We Can Work It Out” – One For The Team (not a Beatles cover)
    “Echo” – Mia Riddle

    In all honesty, I don’t know any of these songs and, apart from Silver Sun and Priscilla Bowman – both of which came from albums I’ve reviewed – have no idea how they would up on my iPod. Mia Riddle might have been an eMusic Song Of The Day.

    • Bill C

      Just Got Lucky was one of my absolutely favorite songs of the 80’s. It doesn’t last well, but it was great in its time.

  • terje

    These posts are great for listening inspiration.

    “Skin” – Darden Smith. I don’t remember exactly why or when, but I think his presence in my collection has something to do with a recommendation from Jason Hare or Jeff Giles.
    “It Just Keeps You Dancin'” – Rita Coolidge. Erm.
    “Tangaria” – Richard Galliano. Tango and a French accordion virtuoso.
    “I Go to Pieces” – Linda Ronstadt. Heavily layered synth pads.
    “October is Eternal” – Of Montreal. Frustrating.

  • Bill C

    I Wanna Be Your Man-Rolling Stones Mono version. Great song. Timeless
    Mr. Tambourine Man-Dylan Live at Budokan. I remember when this came out and the the Dylan purists went berserk. I loved it then, and I love it now.
    Tell The Truth. Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood Live at Madison Square Garden. Wonderful, wonderful song.
    Mr. Soul-Nils Lofgren from Nils sings Neil. I really looked forward to this release, and I really hated it.
    Someday Baby-Dylan from Modern Times. A Bob twofer. His new work is amazing, and this song is one of his best.

  • Anonymous

    My Five:

    Start Me Up – The Rolling Stones
    Someone Will (demo) – The Jayhawks
    What About Me – Moving Pictures
    Possession – Bad English
    Black Dog – Heart

    I was just talking to somebody about how much I like The King Is Dead the other night. Agree, one of the best so far!

  • judd6149

    With less than an hour to spare in London – my Friday 5

    1. Only A Pawn in Their Game – Bob Dylan. Storyteller. Son of Aesop. Truth Teller. Not a pawn – more like a Queen
    2. The Boston Rag – Steely Dan. I think I dated her when I lived in Beantown circa ’98.
    3. Hannah – Ray Lamontagne. Brilliant first album – I’m loving his methods lately. He is in control.
    4. Don’t Come Home Drinkin’ (with loving on your mind) – Tammy Wynette. How many times did she have to beat George Jones off with a stick?
    5. An Old Raincoat Will Never Let You Down – Rod Stewart. That may be true, but Rod has since the late 70s. The songbook albums might as well be sold on street corners wearing fluorescent pleather mini skirts.

  • Shannon J

    “Up to the Mountain (MLK Song)”, Patty Griffin, from Children Running Through. I prefer her version to any cover I’ve heard. That pretty much goes for all her songs, though.

    “Martha”, Tom Waits, from Closing Time. One of the all-time great songs of regret. I love this album in its entirety.

    “Peg”, Steely Dan, from Aja. Sometimes all I hear on this song is Michael McDonald, and then I think of the 40-Year-Old-Virgin.

    “Jimmy James”, Beastie Boys, from their Anthology-Sounds of Science collection. First known song about the frontman of My Morning Jacket. No?

    “Old Folk’s Boogie”, Little Feat, from Waiting for Columbus. I remember when I was introduced to this album. I couldn’t get enough of it. And still, sometimes nothing else will do.

  • EightE1

    Having spent too much time in front of the monitor this week, I swore I’d stay offline tonight. But I am hopping on briefly, cuz I can’t have a Friday night without my Friday Five.

    Neil Diamond, “Kentucky Woman.” I’ve known a couple Kentucky women in my time. Both were older. Neither got to know me or own me. One bought me a drink once, though. That was a long, long time ago.

    Kim Carnes, “Does It Make You Remember.” Drama, drama, drama. I think this was on the Flashdance soundtrack. Love the chorus. Lovers scorned never sounded so much like Rod Stewart.

    Brian Eno, “Sky Saw.” A bit of weird jazzy goodness from Another Green World.

    Jimi Hendrix, “Machine Gun.” Band of Gypsys Hendrix. Funky, funky Hendrix.

    Dave Matthews Band, “Warehouse.” From Live at Piedmont Park. All 12 and a half minutes of it. Zzzzzzzzz …

  • Dennis Corrigan

    “Southtown Girls (live)” by the Hold Steady from A Positive Rage. I’m with Dave, Michael Parr bears more than a passing resemblance to Craig Finn
    “I Threw a Brick Through a Window” by U2 from October – This record turns 30 later this year. Geez
    “Tempted (live)” by Richard Thompson from 1,000 Years of Popular Music. Richard covering Squeeze as part of his tour of Western musical history
    “Frederick” by Patti Smith from Land
    “Let’s Save Tony Orlando’s House” by Yo La Tengo from And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out. OK, I’m just going to mellow out & enjoy it. Happy Fridays!

  • Anonymous

    1. “Got to Rock On”- Kansas, Audio-Visions
    2. “Oh! Camil”- Graham Nash, Wild Tales
    3.”Tearing the Place Apart”- Sparks, Big Beat
    4. “Eddy’s Rock”- Roy Wood’s Wizzard, Introducing Eddy and the Falcons
    5. “Wait for Me”- Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Album

    • marc

      I don’t know how you feel about the Sparks track (although if it’s in your library…), but I love this vaudevillian-like turn from them.

  • marc

    1. “Take a Bow” by Miniature Tigers (from Truffles, 2010)

    One of a set of remakes, online only, I believe. This is Madonna,of course. Male lead sings what sounds like an octave above Mo’s original. Sprinkled with pixie dust. Kinda interesting. From a favorite band of mine–loved last year’s album Fortress.

    2. “The Most Beautiful Girl” by Charlie Rich (from Behind Closed Doors, 1973)

    I only know the singles, really. Syrupy doesn’t work for me most times, and this is so very sweetened with strings. But I really do like this very much.

    3. “Can’t Be Beat” by Quiet Village (from SIlent Movie, 2008)

    I think of it as ambient music. Some call it chillout. Very listenable imaginary soundtrack kind of stuff.

    4. “False Positive” by Anders Parker (from Anders Parker, 2006)

    Gently grooving country-rock. I love the close-miked full-sounding acoustic guitars.

    5. “Mona’s Mood” by Blue Mitchell (from The Thing to Do, 1964)

    Lovely, pensive trumpet jazz.

  • Catfish Vegas

    1. Band of Horses – Northwest Apartment
    2. Modest Mouse – Autumn Beds
    3. Okkervil River – No Key No Plan
    4. Violent Femmes – Add It Up
    5. Bob Dylan – Sooner or Later One Of Us Must Know

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