ickmusic

It’s my wife’s birthday in the coming week and as a special wink and nod to her I thought it appropriate to dedicate this week’s entry of “The Theme Days of Summer” to her (cue the “aww’s”).  That said here’s the playlist:

Match ANY of the following conditions

NAME contains Happy
NAME contains Birthday
NAME contains Wish
NAME contains Cake
NAME contains Party
NAME contains Celebrate

This pulled up considerably less tracks then I expected and at least half of them were “Partyup” or “Partyman” by Prince.

Last weeks “Question the Answers” playlist is the first that has been promoted to a full-time playlist. From the comments from the Faithful Friends of Five it would seem that you are all enjoying these as well. So much so that I’d like to invite some of you to send me your ideas for future playlists. There are four Fridays left this summer and I’m giving two of the four back to the Fivers! So send your ideas to michael at ickmusic dot com with the subject line “The Theme Days of Summer” and I’ll choose the best two to be featured in a coming Friday Five.

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 some words for each track (and on occasion the song itself).

Then it’s your turn! You can play along with the themed playlist or just share the first five of your shuffle, either way the fun is in playing musical voyeur for the day.

Here are this week’s tracks:

1. Van Halen – Poundcake (from Best Of, Volume 1)

Originally from the cheeky titled For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, this was, to me, the second pinnacle in the bands career. Sure 5150 and OU812 were both excellent in their own right, but it was on For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge that the band hit their stride. From the Makita vs. Guitar intro of “Poundcake” to the smash hit “Right Now” to the closer “Top of the World” (the opening lick which, for you astute students of Ed know, is actually the closing tag to “Jump”) the record never let up and delivered. It also was the last good record that the band has put out (save for the single “Humans Being” which kicks all sorts of ass).

2. DJ Shadow – The Number Song (Cut Chemist Party mix) (MP3) (from Midnight in a Perfect World)

DJ Shadow showing up twice in two weeks, what’s the chance? This is a great remix of “The Number Song” by Shadow’s partner in crime Cut Chemist, with a bit of Latin flair to bring that real party vibe. Seeing how it’s out of print, here is your chance to hear it as well.

3. Bobby McFerrin – Don’t Worry Be Happy (from Billboard Top Hits: 1988)

Here’s an admission of a guilty pleasure, I absolutely dig “So You Think You Can Dance?” and this week the aptly named Twitch performed his solo piece to this track and I’ve got to say he perfectly embodied the joy that this song brings. For the record I’m predicting Joshua to win, though any one of them really could and I’d be satisfied.

4. Prince – Life ‘O’ the Party (from Musicology)

Mama said if you ain’t got nuthin nice to say, don’t say anything at all. I will say that this is the only track on Musicology that I skip. Not as bad as “Jughead”, but damned close.

5. Beastie Boys – (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party) (from Def Jam Music Group Inc.: 10th Year Anniversary)

Now this is a send off into the weekend! From the box set that no one on this earth should be without this is the single that made all of suburbia sit up and take notice (and tremble a bit). The Beasties trademark blend of Hip-Hop and Rock with a three chord punk aesthetic. For the record, I tried to find and embed the video but apparently Universal does not like that. Hrmph!

So that’s the Five for this week, Happy Birthday to my beautiful wife Christine and if you see Pete around be sure to buy him a drink and give him a pound as I believe he’s got a birthday coming up in the next week as well… so now what’s helping you party through the day?

This week it’s time to “Question the Answers” on the Friday Five with the following playlist…

Match ANY of the following conditions

NAME contains Who
NAME contains What
NAME contains Where
NAME contains When
NAME contains Why
NAME contains How

As we continue “The Theme Days of Summer” I’m calling this in as I do some chores around the house.

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 some words (and the occasional rant) for each track.

Then it’s your turn! You can play along with the themed playlist or just share the first five of your shuffle, either way the fun is in playing musical voyeur for the day.

Here are this week’s tracks:

1. Prince – Whole Lotta Love (from My Band’s Tight!)

From a 2002 aftershow in Copenhagen, the recordings title says it all. This is as rockin’ a version as I’ve ever heard Led Zeppelin perform. This is a classic aftershow and is well worth seeking out.

2. Grant Green – So What (MP3) (from Sunday Mornin’)

From Prince covering Led Zeppelin to the criminally underrated Grant Green covering Miles Davis it would appear that the shuffle is doing a little theme of its own. While not the household name that his contemporaries Wes Montgomery and Charlie Parker became, Grant Green had a swing and groove that was all his own. Sunday Mornin’ is his ‘Gospel’ record, showcasing the brilliant tone and bop that he possessed. The record is out of print, so here’s the track for ya’ll to groove to.

3. Def Leppard – No Matter What (from Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection)

If I were a betting man, I would not have guessed but the third track up on the shuffle would be another cover, this time its Sheffield’s favorite son’s Def Leppard covering the Badfinger classic “No Matter What”. This kicked off a record (the peculiarly titled Yeah!) that I did not care much for. Let’s move on.

4. DJ Shadow – What Does Your Soul Look Like, Part 1: Blue Sky Revisit / Transmission 3 (from Endtroducing…)

If you had asked me what my favorite record was in 1997 the record that would immediately spring to mind is Entroducing…. Culled from a record collection so deep it knows no bounds the record was later cited in Guinness World Records as being the first album created entirely from sampled sources. This is a brilliant record that came out at just the right time.

5. The Afghan Whigs – What Jail is Like (from Gentlemen)

Speaking of brilliant records, Gentlemen is a record that has stood the test of time. I can listen to this record twenty times in a month and it still inspires and sounds brand new.

So what’s answering your questions?