Getcha passports ready - the middle-aged dummies are going to the British Isles! Top 31 song countdown. (1 Viewer)

[Pip's Invitation]

Favorite new-to-me from #12:

At Home He Is a Tourist -- Gang of Four (OH). The same danceably angular stuff from their earlier selections, but even better due to tempo shifts.
I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor -- Arctic Monkeys (ilov80s). I've heard of this song but never heard it. My favorite of theirs selected so far -- insistent and propulsive.
The Irish Rover -- The Pogues (MAC 32). As I said earlier, this is my favorite of the Irish tweedleedee stuff taken so far. Catchy and doesn't fiddle around.
All Men Are Liars -- Nick Lowe (Worrierking). I like Lowe best as a power popper, but his Buddy Holly impersonation is pretty good too.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Shout-out to OH for Sway in this round. I love this track. There are a total of 6 songs from Sticky fingers, including this one that were in the running for my 31.

Sway is just a totally different sound for them - heavy (but not in a metal way) with darker lyrics. Another song Mick Taylor makes even better.

 

[timschochet]

My daughter is watching the red carpet for the Grammy awards and Lizzo showed up wearing a big orange feathered outfit- she looks like a bright orange Big Bird.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Of my top 10, 5 have not yet been selected by anyone else. The other 5 have been selected a total of 10 times.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Very cute to have Stay and Sway show up on the same day.

Saved a lot of money on lettering.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

I don't think I would have predicted this as a song that would show up both in the US countdown and this one.

I’d join you on that - but I’m not sure I knew the Idol one existed. I probably did, because I’ve heard that album, but just forgot it.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Shout-out to OH for Sway in this round. I love this track. There are a total of 6 songs from Sticky fingers, including this one that were in the running for my 31.

Sway is just a totally different sound for them - heavy (but not in a metal way) with darker lyrics. Another song Mick Taylor makes even better.

It just that demon, life
That’s got you in it’s sway

 

[krista4]

My daughter is watching the red carpet for the Grammy awards and Lizzo showed up wearing a big orange feathered outfit- she looks like a bright orange Big Bird.

This reminded me to check to see if my friend Justin won for children's album this year. He didn't. Five-time nominee, five-time loser. He's becoming the Susan Lucci of the Grammys!

 

[timschochet]

Here’s a blues version of “Sway” I like by Alvin Youngblood Hart:

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

youtu.be

 

[Eephus]

I don't think I would have predicted this as a song that would show up both in the US countdown and this one.

I’d join you on that - but I’m not sure I knew the Idol one existed. I probably did, because I’ve heard that album, but just forgot it.

Idol's version is two minutes shorter so there's that

 

[shuke]

Of my top 10, 5 have not yet been selected by anyone else. The other 5 have been selected a total of 10 times.

7 of my top 10 have been picked. 2 of the remaining artists have. I have one artist that hasn't been picked yet.

 

[Eephus]

Of my top 10, 5 have not yet been selected by anyone else. The other 5 have been selected a total of 10 times.

7 of my top 10 have been picked. 2 of the remaining artists have. I have one artist that hasn't been picked yet.

@ditkaburgers FTW with 8 unpicked artists and 10 unpicked songs

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Either 7 or 8 of my Top 10 have already been selected.

 

[Don Quixote]

I think 8 of my top 10 songs have been picked (and one of the two not picked was in a last five out).

 

[krista4]

I get to "own" three more songs. Two are from artists no one else selected. One is from an artist with many songs selected but not this one. I also have a couple more songs that haven't yet been revealed but will be before it gets to my turn.

 

[falguy]

Chaos34:

Rock On - David Essex

Heard this on Sirius yesterday and said to myself "kind of surprised nobody took this one"

 

[Mister CIA]

Sway is supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

 

[falguy]

Not surprisingly, 9 of my top 10 have been picked.

 

[New Binky the Doormat]

Prog is sometimes stereotyped as precious or foppish. This song puts the lie to that. It combines the ferocity of rock -- abetted by the distortion given to Greg Lake's vocals -- with the swing of jazz and the intricacy of classical. As track 1 of side 1 of album 1 for King Crimson, it marks one of the most auspicious debuts in the rock era.

Unfortunately, most 1960s/70s acts (including this one on this very LP) couldn't resist going overboard. P Funk, for one, had the same problem lest anyone think I'm only associating this trend with the Brit art rockers.

My warm take is Prog was hurt by an arms race of sorts to create ever more elaborate productions (e.g. Topographic Oceans, Works vol.1) that were too huge to achieve liftoff. This was coupled with rapid technological improvements in synths and effects pedals; once artists acquired them at no small expense, they were obliged to use them and their music became as much about sounds as songs. Many of the early Prog songs picked featured analog keyboards like pianos and organs.

I don't know if it was because of Punk or the commercial success of post-Gabriel Genesis but it's no coincidence that the next lineups of King Crimson and Yes were comparatively stripped down compared to their mid-70s excesses.

this is why I'm here - really insightful stuff from eephus ...

where else are you going to read comparisons of Tales of Topographical Oceans to the challenges of the "Spruce Goose".

 

[New Binky the Doormat]

Dunno the rationale with Crimson. Fripp just does what he does.

well I like the nutty covers he and his wife do these days ...

I have tried talking my wife into wearing that outfit ...she says yeah, as soon as I learn how to play guitar like that

 

[Mt. Man]

I think we’re using up a big part of the world’s comma supply with all these “Paint It, Black” selections.

Don't forget "Love, Reign O'er Me"!

Comma chameleon

I was going to say that I had a camouflaged lizard that intermittently brings me more punctuation. But I was beaten to it.

4 of my top 10 have been taken. That's pushed to 6 of 10 if we include the Last 5 Out and Dr. Octopus' buddies.

 

[Eephus]

I didn't write up the family picks yesterday

Mrs. Eephus: Gold - Spandau Ballet
Handsome, well-dressed Kemp boys is what you want. Me in a band t-shirt and cargo shorts is what you get.

@ditkaburgers: If You Leave - OMD
One of the life lessons I've told my kids is that you can learn from movies/books/music made before you were born. The fact that Pretty in Pink qualifies for her ought to make the rest of us feel old.

Eephus - Love Is The Drug - Roxy Music
You probably wouldn't have Spandau Ballet (or Duran Duran) if not for Roxy Music's sound, attitude and style. The intro to "Love is the Drug" with the footsteps and the car starting up sets things up but then the band takes it even higher.

 

[krista4]

It's really embarrassing when I've moved around so little that my Nest thermostat goes into "Away" mode.

 

[Westerberg]

Technically I still have one left but there is no way I'm the only one that listed it.

 

[krista4]

Also, simey chose my favorite Richard and Linda Thompson track.

Usually I skip the already-known songs on the playlists, but I couldn't bear to skip this one, and now I'm greatly regretting not putting it on my list. It would also give me another 0.5 female artists (for a grand total of...one)!

 

[The Dreaded Marco]

If my math is correct, I have 5 unpicked songs and 0 unpicked artists remaining.

I'm positive my #2 song was selected and pretty sure my 5 and 9 are in someone else's top 10, but the other 2 (my 10 and 8), probably not.

And #5 and #9 aren't givens.

 

[Eephus]

Family Sunday picks

Mrs. Eephus: I Found That Essence Rare - Gang of Four
Go4's debut Entertainment! is one of the most extraordinary albums in Rock music. It sounded like nothing that had come before. Mrs. E is a big fan of the band and has seen about every configuration of the group (King/Gill, Just Gill, Just King). I don't think she ever saw the first lineup live but she's seen Dave Allen as a member of Shriekback.

@ditkaburgers - Give It Up - Hard-Fi
I picked up a promo copy of Hard-Fi's debut in a dollar rack and it became a family favorite. This song comes from their final album in 2011. This is another band we had tickets to see but they canceled because the singer had a throat infection. The band reunited last year for some UK shows so maybe there's still hope.

Eephus - Love Vigilantes - New Order
There were a lot of ways to play the JD/NO pick so I hemmed and hawed between about a half dozen song. I went with "Love Vigilantes" because it's New Order at their most melodic and the song is a unique hybrid of a traditional folk song and mid-80s Post-Punk.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

My #9 and #1 songs have not been selected. I'm surprised that the latter hasn't been selected but not the former.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Eephus - Love Vigilantes - New Order
There were a lot of ways to play the JD/NO pick so I hemmed and hawed between about a half dozen song. I went with "Love Vigilantes" because it's New Order at their most melodic and the song is a unique hybrid of a traditional folk song and mid-80s Post-Punk.

Spotify played this one for me today. Such a good but sad song.

 

[KarmaPolice]

Shout-out to OH for Sway in this round. I love this track. There are a total of 6 songs from Sticky fingers, including this one that were in the running for my 31.

Sway is just a totally different sound for them - heavy (but not in a metal way) with darker lyrics. Another song Mick Taylor makes even better.

I've been listening to this tune a ton. Is that guitar cutting out on purpose during the song? About the 2:35 mark, it's just one of those odd things I obsess over.

 

[Eephus]

Eephus - Love Vigilantes - New Order
There were a lot of ways to play the JD/NO pick so I hemmed and hawed between about a half dozen song. I went with "Love Vigilantes" because it's New Order at their most melodic and the song is a unique hybrid of a traditional folk song and mid-80s Post-Punk.

Spotify played this one for me today. Such a good but sad song.

New Order released a new edition of the Low-Life album a couple of weeks ago. There's yet another re-master only seven years after the last one and a second rarities disc with demos. instrumentals and a 17 minute version of Elegia.

I'm sure the physical media is packaged beautifully but the whole thing seems unnecessary.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Shout-out to OH for Sway in this round. I love this track. There are a total of 6 songs from Sticky fingers, including this one that were in the running for my 31.

Sway is just a totally different sound for them - heavy (but not in a metal way) with darker lyrics. Another song Mick Taylor makes even better.

I've been listening to this tune a ton. Is that guitar cutting out on purpose during the song? About the 2:35 mark, it's just one of those odd things I obsess over.

Not sure - seems it’s to make room for the solo - but hadn’t ever really paid attention to it.

 

[Eephus]

Seven of my top ten songs are new to the countdown but only two of the artists.

 

[Manster]

If my math is correct, I have 5 unpicked songs and 0 unpicked artists remaining.

I'm positive my #2 song was selected and pretty sure my 5 and 9 are in someone else's top 10, but the other 2 (my 10 and 8), probably not.

And #5 and #9 aren't givens.

4 unpicked songs, but all artists picked already. I think I have 2 or 3 songs that might not get picked, but wouldn't be surprised if they do......pretty high on the chalk scale

 

[Eephus]

Seven of my top ten songs are new to the countdown but only two of the artists.

Mrs. Eephus does me one better on unique songs with eight.

Three new artists all in her top five.

 

[krista4]

I was thinking this morning that I wanted to figure out my Blaze Foley Award for the British Isles songs. Termed it the Blaze Foley Award after my favorite new-to-me song in the US countdown - Clay Pigeons by Blaze Foley, chosen by @landrys hat .

Need to go back and re-listen, but this morning I was considering that as of that moment, it would probably go to "Starry Eyes" by The Records. Then I got to today's playlist, and hoo-boy is it a good one! Added four songs to my new-to-me playlist: "Going Underground" by The Jam; "Stay" by David Bowie; "This Mess We're In" by PJ Harvey and Thom Yorke; and "Give It Up" by Hard-FI, with the first two being strong contenders for the Blaze Foley Award (the third one might have been if not for the spoken-word part near the end). I have 60+ songs on my new-to-me favorites now!

Others new-to-me I enjoyed a lot were "Willie McBride" (though wow, that was a downer), "If I Only Had The Time," and "Pale Shelter."

 

[Don Quixote]

Stevie and Smokey on the Grammy’s now, for anyone not watching but may be interested in that.

 

[zamboni]

Stevie and Smokey on the Grammy’s now, for anyone not watching but may be interested in that.

When Smokey sings

 

[Ilov80s]

Stevie and Smokey on the Grammy’s now, for anyone not watching but may be interested in that.

When Smokey sings

Looks and sounds great for 82

 

[Eephus]

Nice to see David Essex make an appearance. "Rock On" is such a wonderful and strange sounding record. Hard to believe in retrospect that it was such a huge global hit.

Also big ups for The Godfathers. Their brand of meat and potatoes rock 'n roll was like a breath of fresh air in 1988.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

my new-to-me playlist: "Going Underground" by The Jam; "Stay" by David Bowie

I'd love to relive the first time I heard those.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Nice to see David Essex make an appearance. "Rock On" is such a wonderful and strange sounding record. Hard to believe in retrospect that it was such a huge global hit.

Also big ups for The Godfathers. Their brand of meat and potatoes rock 'n roll was like a breath of fresh air in 1988.

I first heard the Michael Damien version of Rock On that was a hit in the '80s. Later when I heard the Essex version, I remember thinking how weird it sounded.

I only know that one Godfathers song that most people my age know. I wonder why they never caught on beyond that. Did they get swept away by grunge along with the hair metal bands?

 

[zamboni]

I only know that one Godfathers song that most people my age know. I wonder why they never caught on beyond that. Did they get swept away by grunge along with the hair metal bands?

Must have wound up sleeping with the fishes.

 

[Mt. Man]

Alright then. We’re on the edge of the Top 10s. But this list? Yeah, we’ll take it up to 11. That’s right: I’m (technically) picking 11 selections today. It only seems appropriate.

#11s
Recognized by title alone: 21
Sounded familiar: 2
Knew from this countdown: 4
Didn't know: 15

Selected Favorites:
Highway Star (Binky/simsarge)
Suicide Solution (Hawks64) - Bonus points for coming from Tribute.
Head Over Heels (higgins)
Rock On (Chaos34)
Modern Love (AAABatteries) - I limited myself to one Bowie song today, as tough as it was to do.

Some songs I didn't know that I ended up liking:
I Want To See the Bright Lights Tonight (simey)
If I Only Had Time (MisterCIA)
Vacant Chair (Hov34)
Give It Up (ditkaburgers)
Rubber Bullets (cosjobs)

 

[falguy]

higgins:

Head Over Heels - Tears for Fears
(duplicate – second vote)

Just for the record, I own this one.
Yay, me!

 

[falguy]

falguy:

Brown Eyed Girl - Van Morrison
(duplicate – third vote

I've always loved this song because I like dancing to it. It's only recently that I realized how great the bass line is. It's given it new life to me.

 

[Eephus]

I only know that one Godfathers song that most people my age know. I wonder why they never caught on beyond that. Did they get swept away by grunge along with the hair metal bands?

There were a LOT of trends happening in the late 80s-early 90s UK music scene. The Godfathers were out of sync with all of them.

 

[krista4]

Top ten starts tomorrow!

We have an individual tomorrow with five selections combined between solo works and those with his band - all five are different songs.

We'll also lose another one of the Ace Award guesses when a second song is selected from the artist in question.

 

[krista4]

I just realized there are still at least three huge songs that haven't yet shown up. Two will come tomorrow, and one on Tuesday. I think you'll know them when you see them.

 

[jwb]

Top ten starts tomorrow!

We have an individual tomorrow with five selections combined between solo works and those with his band - all five are different songs.

We'll also lose another one of the Ace Award guesses when a second song is selected from the artist in question.

I saw my Nick Lowe pick dropped the other day. As we got higher I got more confident in it.

Wrong!