The Friday Five: August 28, 2009
Friday Five : ˈfrī-(ˌ)dā,-dē ˈfīv : On the sixth day of every week I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and share my five and drop a little knowledge and insight for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, sometimes there isn’t. Sometimes we have 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:
Björk – “Headphones (Ø remix)” (from Telegram, 1996)
I can only admit to being a pedestrian fan to Björk‘s career after this record, but Debut and Post rank high on my list of favorite records from the ’90s. Telegram was essentially the remixed version of Post with the exception of “The Modern Things” and “It’s Oh So Quiet”. Out of all the tracks on the record The Brodsky Quartet version of “Hyperballad” was my favorite and was featured on many of my mix tapes of the era.
Jay-Z – “Girls, Girls, Girls” (from The Blueprint, 2001)
I have a strange love/hate relationship with Jay-Z. If you were to peek at my library you’d see every single record he’s put out since 1996 but I’d be hard pressed to name even one album cut outside of the singles. I’ll buy The Blueprint 3 when it comes out and will listen to it twice and it will get cataloged with the rest. This track is irresistible though. Featuring Q-Tip, Slick Rick and Biz Markie on the hook and Hov flowing with more swagger than Al Pacino in Scarface it’s an instant classic.
Megadeth – “Holy Wars… The Punishment Due” (mp3) (from Rust in Peace, 1990)
In retrospect, Rust in Peace has aged considerably better than most metal records from that time period – I’m looking at you Metallica‘s Black Album – and this track in particular has resonated time and again. While the timing of it’s release made most assume it was commentary on the first Gulf War, Mustaine has gone on the record stating that the inspiration for the song was the ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland.
Primitive Radio Gods – “Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money in My Hand” (mp3) (from Rocket, 1996)
The ’90s produced more ‘One-Hit Wonders’ then you can shake a stick at. Primitive Radio Gods fell in alongside acts like Sneaker Pimps and Ruby with a mix of downtempo beats juxtaposed against alternative leaning instrumentation and vocals. Built off a sample of B. B. King‘s “How Blue Can You Get?” the track managed to peak at #1 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart and #7 on the Hot 100 before the Primitive Radio Gods faded into obscurity.
Paramore – “Misery Business” (mp3) (from RIOT!, 2007)
The first time I heard Paramore‘s Hayley Williams‘ voice it instantly had my attention. How could this tiny (then) teenage girl have such a huge voice was my first thought. The second thought was that they were going to be huge. Williams‘ voice combined with the killer hooks the band is known for have brought them tons of fans and critical praise, not to mention an opening slot on the No Doubt reunion tour.
Five down, who’s got five more to share?
9 Comments
bill
Radio Radio- Elvis Costello Live at the El Mocambo
Back in My Hometown-Wreckless Eric
With Tears in My Eyes-Hank Williams
The Mighty Ship-The Housemartins
Fan Club (Demo)- Cheap Trick
So, mostly 80’s power pop and punk plus Hank Williams. Interesting mix this week.
Anne
Love my 5 today!
1. The Police–Message in a Bottle
2. Brendan Benson–Alternative to Love
3. Spoon–Black Like Me
4. Blue Merle–Either Way It Goes
5. Nada Surf–Imaginary Friends
Rob Smith (EightE1)
1. Thin Lizzy – The Boys Are Back in Town. Cuz on occasion I like to drink beer and rock out. All alone, of course. It’s kinda sad, actually.
2. Justin Timberlake – Summer Love. Cuz all my kid’s iPod stuff is in my iTunes. Gotta remedy that.
3. Rolling Stones – She’s So Cold. See Number 1.
4. Aerosmith – Big Ten Inch Record. My least favorite song off Toys in the Attic, but I can’t rip the whole thing minus one song — it just wouldn’t be right.
5. Silversun Pickups – Growing Old is Getting Old. Cool atmospheric stuff from a record (Swoon) I should really give another listen to.
KathyB
1. Pista 22 from Act 2 of the Catalan version of Sweeney Todd. It’s right at the climax, when Sweeney realizes exactly who’s about to be thrown into the oven. (Technically, it’s the Spanish version, performed by a Catalan company. Unfortunately, the only words I recognize are “Sí, Señor Todd.”)
2. “I Want You Back” by Anne McCue from “Roll” (2005?) Nice Australian alt country.
3. Mozart, “La Ci Darem La Mano” from “Don Giovanni.”
4. “Turning Colours into Greys” by Paper Moon from “Broken Hearts Beat Faster Every Day” (2007). I got this from the SXSW site a couple of years ago, and I really like this band.
5. “The Story” by Tristan Prettyman from “Twentythree” (2005). I sort of “borrowed” this from someone I work with. I have yet to listen to it, so I don’t know if I like it or not.
Slappy
Say You’re Mine – Venice Malki
Bette Davis Eyes – Kim Carnes (somehow I have three copies by Kim, one acoustic, and a cover version by Sexton Blake LOL)
How to Grow Up Big and Strong – RIch Mullins
The Shoe’s on the other foot – Scotty Campbell (suprisingly good country guy from Canada)
5 O’Clock in the Morning – The Donnas
And because it was playing while I was typing this up in Notepad:
All N My Grill (feat. Big Boi & Nicole) – Missy Elliott
No wonder I’m not allowed to play mix tapes in people’s cars…
And another while I was waiting for the comments page to load:
All The Pigs, All Lined Up – nin
For giggles i filtered on nin…I have 15.5 hours of his stuff, 195 songs…LOL
Anne
Rob–I have a lot of my daughter’s music on my iPod too. It can be annoying but the good side is that occasionally I can slip in some good music for her to listen to along with the overplayed pop.
Rob Smith (EightE1)
@Anne
Oh, I agree, definitely. When he started bopping around the house to Foo Fighters’ “The Pretender,” I knew I’d done SOMETHING right. :^)
Gonzo
@ Michael –
I’m with you 100% on Rust in Peace. And Bjork for that matter, though I was a pretty big fan of Homogenic as well.
johnnyb
hey, so i was reading hypem.com and saw that u enjoy Paramore (i read ur Friday Five). wellllll, i just wanted to take a minute to say that my band, the make believe, is semi-similar to them (in terms of musical styling and the fact that we have a female singer). we are also giving out our ep for free at http://www.themakebelieve.net/is. we always love talking so let us know what u think! 🙂 we’re also going on a cross country tour beginning this coming tuesday, sept 8.