The Friday Five: February 19, 2010
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:
“Another Day” by Dream Theater (from Images and Words, 1992)
Oh Dream Theater, how your melodrama seems to haunt the Friday Five. You may recall that this tune reared its ugly head back in October, where I speculated on David Fosters’ involvement in the high gloss production of the power ballad. Upon further research, it turns out that it was producer Jay Beckenstein — of the Smooth Jazz/Fusion group Spyro Gyra — that supplied the soprano saxophone solo. This doesn’t change the fact that this tune is a sappy lump of crap on an otherwise quality record.
“The Best of My Love” by The Eagles (from On the Border, 1974)
I unapologetically will proclaim my love for this song, though. Penned by Henley, Frey and J.D. Souther, this holds some magical nostalgia for me as I can recall listening to this, followed by England Dan & John Ford Coley’s “I’d Really Love to See You Tonight” and “She’s Gone” by Hall & Oates in the back seat of my mothers Pontiac.
“Stuck With You” by Huey Lewis & The News (from Fore!, 1986)
Come on, how can you resist?
By the by, Huey and the boys recently spent some time in Ardent Studios in Memphis cutting a new record paying tribute to the Stax catalog.
“Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” by Black Sabbath (from Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, 1973)
I had nearly given up on this week’s shuffle providing some bite; enter my favorite Sabbath tune. I will admit that my introduction to the song came by way of Anthrax’s faithful cover on their I’m the Man EP. I had heard the tune before, both on Ozzy’s Speak of the Devil and a mix-tape a friend had made me with the original Sabbath version, but it was Anthrax’s take that sold me on the song originally. To this day, I’ll reach for this one when I want to bring the RAWK.
“Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” by Elton John (from The Greatest Hits 1970-2002, 2002)
The Saturday nights of my youth were often spent glued to the radio, listening to the “All-request Saturday Night with Dr. John Barron.” This track would make its weekly appearance and signal the start of the more rock-oriented portion of the evening.
What’s on your shuffle today?
Ickmusic’s Friday Five: September 19, 2008
The mark of a truly great song is the ability to make minutes seem like seconds making time itself seem almost irrelevant. When used as a tool to make time fly it not only serves the purpose, but makes it all the more enjoyable. I’ve found myself counting units of time in measure of how many songs I can listen two. My commute to work used to be 6-8 tunes long depending on the traffic. My dentist appointment last week was 5 songs (one of which was that Miley Cyrus song “7 Things” which somehow made the work being done seem less painful by comparison). So it should come to no surprise to anyone that the Friday Five is my way of counting the minutes down to the end of the week and the start of the weekend.
Last weeks shuffle exposed my geeky soft spot for sci-fi soundtracks and confirmed that I’m not alone. Our regular cast of participants chimed in with everything from show tunes to a bit of heavy metal. How’s that for disparate genre representation? For those who have not joined in the Five, here’s how it works: … I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and share my five with a bit of insight for each track.
Then it’s your turn! Just share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments and see what your fellow readers are listening to as well.
Here are this week’s tracks:
1. Black Sabbath – Paranoid (from We Sold Our Soul for Rock ‘n’ Roll)
Pete may have his AC/DC but for me it’s all about Sabbath. Would you believe that this tune was intended to be a filler track after the record company complained about the records length? Not bad for a throwaway track, eh?
2. The Toasters – Johnny Go Ska (from Thrill Me Up)
100% Ska from NYC’s The Toasters. Much in the same way that Sabbath defines the roots of Metal, The Toasters are, in my opinion, the defining Third Wave Ska band. This Five is really taking shape!
3. Toad the Wet Sprocket – Pray Your Gods (from Fear)
I’ve written at length about my love of Toad the Wet Sprocket and this song is one of the finest examples of why.
4. The Roots – Rising Up (feat. Wale & Chrisette Michele) (from Rising Down)
I geeked out on this track when it first was hot and I’m still feeling it every single time it comes on. I have to stop to give thanks to The Roots for introducing me to the brilliant Chrisette Michele who’s record will definitely fill the top spot on my year end “Best ‘New to Me'” chart.
5. Leona Lewis – Bleeding Love (from Spirit)
I’ll admit that I really did not like this song when I first heard it. It’s inclusion in a brilliant number on So You Think You Can Dance brought me around though.
It looks like Billy Joel was denied the first Friday Five Triple Crown, maybe next time Billy! What’s passing the time in your neck of the woods?