MAD's ROUND 2!! # 1's have been posted!! (2 Viewers)

[Eephus]

Beastie Boys #12 - Hey Ladies
Album - Paul's Boutique (1989)

Peacockin'
Ad-Rock: 0, MCA: 1, Mike D: 0, Beastie Boys: 0, Greater NYC: 0

Name Rockin'
Saduharo Oh, Tom Thumb, Tom Cushman, Chuck Wollery, Chachi in Charge, Vincent Van Gogh

Rhyme Squawkin'
With the white sasoons and the looks that kill
Makin' love in the back of my Coup de Ville

Yo Mama Talkin'
This awesomely fun song was an homage to 70s funk and had samples to back it up from the Commodores, Kurtis Blow, Afrika Bambaataa, Kool & the Gang, Cameo, Zapp & Roger, Fab 5 Freddy, James Brown, and . . . Deep Purple?

Another amazing video accompanies this song and has the same funky 70s vibe ala Dolemite and Saturday Night Fever.

- 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

Also, Chachi in Charge was my fantasy football team name back in the day (with another Beastie Boys themed team name upcoming further in the countdown).

Cowbell

 

[Zegras11]

Just want to let everyone know that there will not be a one week break when we get to number 10. Want to get this finished before Christmas.

 

[John Maddens Lunchbox]

Röyksopp
12 - Never Ever feat Susanne Sundfør

Röyksopp Never Ever ft Susanne Sundfør

m.youtube.com

Year - 2016
Appears on - Standalone singles
Vocalist - Susanne Sundfør
Key Lyric - Never ever gonna let you go now
Never ever gonna let you go now
Get, get, get, get, get you, you, you
Get, get, get, get, get you, you, you

Notes
1- From Rolling Stone - Norwegian electronic duo Röyksopp have released an outrageous new video for “Never Ever,” featuring singer-songwriter Susanne Sundfør.
The self-directed clip uses endearingly campy special effects. Psychedelic neon backgrounds and an egregious use of superimposition match the bubblegum disco of “Never Ever.” The clip also features cast of bizarre characters — including an old man jamming on a Gibson SG and a knock-off Daft Punk robot – who dance in and out of the fantasy.

2- From stereogum
And today, they’ve teamed up with the beloved Norwegian singer-songwriter Susanne Sundfør on a new single called “Never Ever.” It’s a grand, dizzy dance-pop love song with big, bright keyboards that explode from every possible corner of the track. Sundfør isn’t exactly known for this sort of music, but she throws herself into it completely.

3- from pop matters
Scott Zuppardo: Best known for the super cool spa song in the Geico commercial to mainstream America, “You Remind Me”, the electronic team is tripled with the powerful pipes of Susanne Sundfør for this number. Infectious, uplifting, and groovy, a throwback to early house/first wave soundscapes. Keys, keys, and more keys, the boys still keeping it funky cool, this time perhaps a bit more in the vein of their Daft Punk cohorts.

Chris Ingalls: This shiny, gleaming collaboration with Susanne Sundfør is a pure pop confection, and a damn catchy one at that. Diving deep into a retro dance sound, the production is thick with layers of keyboards, slippery synth bass lines and an infectious beat that all but guarantees a club smash. It’s like day-glo ABBA in a shopping mall in the ’80s.

Running Vocal Count
Röyksopp - 6
Robyn - 4
Susanne Sundfør - 3
Karin Dreijer - 2
Maurissa Rose - 1
Gunhild Ramsay Kovacs - 1
Alison Goldfrapp - 1
Jamie Irrepressible - 1
Karen Harding - 1
Instrumental - 3

Where to find
Melody A.M - 0
The Understanding - 1
Röyksopp’s Night Out - 1
Back to Mine Series - 1
Junior - 2
Senior - 1
Late Night Tales Series - 1
Do It Again EP - 2
The Inevitable End - 2
Profound Mysteries I - 0
Profound Mysteries II - 1
Profound Mysteries III - 5
Other/Non Album Songs - 3

Year
1999 - 0
2001 - 0
2002 - 1
2005 - 1
2006 - 1
2007 - 1
2008 - 0
2009 - 2
2010 - 1
2013 - 1
2014 - 4
2016 - 2
2022 - 6

Next up another collaboration, this time with someone we havent seen. One of the older tracks.

 

[John Maddens Lunchbox]

Tears for Fears
#12 - I Believe (A Soulful Re-Recording)

Tears For Fears - I Believe

Listen to more from Tears For Fears: https://TearsForFears.lnk.to/Essentials'Songs For A Nervous Planet' – out now: https://found.ee/SongsForANervousPlanetDi...

m.youtube.com

Appears - Songs from the Big Chair
Year - 1985
UK Highest Chart Position - #23
US Highest Chart Position - Not released
Key Lyric - I believe that if you're bristling while you hear this song
I could be wrong
Or have I hit a nerve?

Notes
1- The song was written by Roland who had originally planned to offer it to British musician Robert Wyatt to record, although it was later decided that Tears for Fears would record the song themselves for their album. The liner notes specifically state: "Dedicated to Robert Wyatt (If he's Listening)." This is a reference to "Dedicated To You But You Weren't Listening" by Wyatt's former band Soft Machine

2- Roland Orzabal has confirmed the song is about Primal Therapy, particularly in the last line (which includes references to "a newborn scream" and "the shaping of a life").

3- I have been looking fir a link between Tears for Fears and Röyksopp and finally found one. In the course of the song, Orzabal shouts "William!" prior to a saxophone solo. The shout was directed to Tears for Fears' touring saxophonist of the time, Will Gregory, best known today as the keyboardist, producer, and composer of the electronic music duo Goldfrapp. The other half of that duo, Alison Goldfrapp of course appeared on the Röyksopp play list.

4- For some reason the video of this song features a shirtless Roland (beefcake!). Like a lot of their videos it was directed by Nigel ****, one of the most famous and prolific music directors of all time. Here is a select list of his credits
Band Aid - Do they Know It’s Christmas
Guns N Roses - Sweet Child o Mine and Patience
Alice in Chains - Down in a Hole
Oasis - Wonderwall
Celine Dion - It’s All Coming Back to Me Now
Britney Spears - …..Baby One More Time
Cher - Believe
Lots for Nickelback, Def Leppard, Anastacia etc

Where to find
The Hurting - 3
Songs from the Big Chair - 2
The Seeds of Love - 0
Elemental - 1
Raoul and the Kings of Spain - 1
Everybody Loves a Happy Ending - 5
Ready Boy and Girls - 1
The Tipping Point - 2
Greatest Hits only - 1
B- Sides - Other/Non Album Songs - 4

Year
1981 - 1
1982 - 0
1983 - 5
1984 - 0
1985 - 1
1986 - 1
1989 - 0
1993 - 1
1995 - 2
2004 - 5
2014 - 1
2017 - 1
2021 - 0
2022 - 2

Next up, we go right back to the beginning

 

[Ramsay Hunt Experience]

Beastie Boys #12 - Hey Ladies
Album - Paul's Boutique (1989)

Peacockin'
Ad-Rock: 0, MCA: 1, Mike D: 0, Beastie Boys: 0, Greater NYC: 0

Name Rockin'
Saduharo Oh, Tom Thumb, Tom Cushman, Chuck Wollery, Chachi in Charge, Vincent Van Gogh

Rhyme Squawkin'
With the white sasoons and the looks that kill
Makin' love in the back of my Coup de Ville

Yo Mama Talkin'
This awesomely fun song was an homage to 70s funk and had samples to back it up from the Commodores, Kurtis Blow, Afrika Bambaataa, Kool & the Gang, Cameo, Zapp & Roger, Fab 5 Freddy, James Brown, and . . . Deep Purple?

Another amazing video accompanies this song and has the same funky 70s vibe ala Dolemite and Saturday Night Fever.

- 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

Also, Chachi in Charge was my fantasy football team name back in the day (with another Beastie Boys themed team name upcoming further in the countdown).

Cowbell

Whip

 

[Don Quixote]

12. Nina Simone, Backlash Blues (from Nina Simone Sings the Blues, 1967)
YouTube Spotify

Mr. Backlash, Mr. Backlash
Just who do you think I am?
You raise my taxes, freeze my wages
And send my son to Vietnam

You give me second class houses
And second class schools
Do you think that all colored folks
Are just second class fools?

The lyrics to this one are from a poem written by one of Nina Simone’s mentors and friends, the poet Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes wrote the poem and passed it along to Nina Simone to see if she could write some music for it and turn it into a song.

In the lyrics, you can see the merging of the Civil Rights movement with anti-Vietnam protests that would become even more prominent in the late 1960s.

Nina Simone and Langston Hughes went back a little bit. She apparently first saw him speech when she was in school in NC. But the first connection to her career is when he invited her to appear at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1960, where she performed my #25 song You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To and Little Liza Jane, in a performance that really sent her career going.

 

[kupcho1]

Beastie Boys #12 - Hey Ladies

No, no, no this is my favorite Beastie Boys song.

 

[kupcho1]

Talking Heads
#12 (Nothing But) Flowers

This is the one and only selection from 1988's Naked. Sorry if that spoiled anything for anyone, but I expect it didn't because there's not much love for Talking Heads material after 1985 (or even 1983 for some).

However, (Nothing But) Flowers is a great tune with a sort of calypso feel and insightful lyrics. From Cash Box:

"A vision of a future where civilization is overrun by nature, much to the chagrin of the natives. Byrne is a genius at saying it all between the lines, and this little gem is a light-hearted romp into our greener-grass lives."

One of the nice things about this exercise is that in doing the research for these write-ups I find out new things. Now I knew Talking Heads had a lot of guests, but was unaware that on (Nothing But) Flowers they had Kirsty MacColl on backing vocals and Johnny Marr on lead guitar. Three African musicians played on this track: percussionists Brice Wassy and Abdou M'Boup, and guitarist Yves N'Djock. Wassy and N'Djock are from Cameroon; M'Boup is from Senegal. They all also appear in the video, which is actually pretty good.

If this is paradise
I wish I had a lawnmower

 

[Dr. Octopus]

12.

• Song: When He’s Gone
• Album: English Oceans
• Released: 2014
• Lead Vocals: Patterson Hood

Women, can’t live with them and can’t live without them and they feel the same about men.


She burns like an effigy when he's gone it makes her mad
How attached she's become
And if it were up to me, I'd prove her wrong, but it's too bad
It's someone else's song
He might come home, after she's sleeping and quietly admire
The smile on her lips
He crawls up beside her, she presses it all up against him
And dreams

She can't stand to have him around
But she always misses him when he's gone

 

[AAABatteries]

Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats

AAABatteries

Time Stands Time Stands Nathaniel Rateliff · And It’s Still Alright · Song · 2020 open.spotify.com - 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

I mentioned before that I felt like my list had tiers to it. This begins the top 12 which I consider to be “The Essential Nathaniel Rateliff”. After a long run of songs with the Night Sweats - Time Stands is a gorgeous ballad from the solo album, And It's Still Alright.

Time Stands is some of Rateliff's best song writing, IMO. The social, political, religious and existential commentary make this one of my favorite whiskey-drinking songs when I'm ready to fix the world.

Time stands in a duel and I stand for you
.....
I can take the pain, but I can't take all the hatred
Laziness of mind and simplest of thoughts
.....
Now you're pouring out your hate at every difference you found
You won't even listen to reason at all
Not questioning your faith, far be it from me
But you would speak of love while tying one's hands
.....
Now lean and use your weight
That's what a shoulder's made for
Carry all the dead and children from here
Curses on the men and the greed that seems to plague them
I can't raise my hand, so I'm raising my voice
.....
Time stands in a duel and I stand for you

 

[AAABatteries]

And while I haven't been pimping any of the music videos, this is one I do recommend watching this one - and apparently the link I originally provided is dead:

Nathaniel Rateliff - Time Stands

Check out Nathaniel Rateliff’s discography, start here: https://found.ee/RateliffCompleteListen to "Time Stands" - the latest track off the new album, "And I...

www.youtube.com

 

[-OZ-]

#12, This is the one I screwed up on. No idea why but I forgot this was a cover. I do like the song a lot.

- 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

My wife even likes this song, partly because the dog wasn’t supposed to be mine. She’s a make a wish dog that my daughter chose instead of a boat or Disney but like most dads, the dog adopted me as her primary.

https://imgur.com/a/ZW87CZU

I want you to love me like my dog does, baby
When I come home, want you to just go crazy
She never looks at me like she might hate me
I want you to love me like my dog

She never acts like she don't care for my friends
She never asks me, "Where the hell have you been?"
She don't play dead any time I walk in

So far the buffet list are songs I really like, but the next 11 are songs I love.

 

[sneveneleven]

I have been very late to the forum (despite many reminders @The Dreaded Marco ) and also not completely sure how the forum works (so hopefully I’m in the right place ) but am happy to see some enjoying Scott Hutchison’s music. It was an easy choice for me, since Scott Hutchison—primarily Frightened Rabbit—has been my absolute favorite for a long time. There is something about Scott’s lyrics that I have always found so intense but accessible, and has been so special to me for the past decade. I have yet to find that again in another artist that resonates with me on that level. He took his own life in 2018, which is an awful loss on a multitude of levels. It was actually his birthday yesterday. I think his music leaves such a legacy, but it doesn’t take away from the tragedy.


I am also late to listen, but here were my favorite songs from this most recent list
Familiar artists:

(Favorite this round) Fake Headlines — The New Pornographers

Time Stands — Nathaniel Rateliff

Punks In The Beerlight — David Berman

Artists new to me:

I Am the Highway — Chris Cornell

Collective Soul — Gel

 

[Yo Mama]

Beastie Boys #12 - Hey Ladies

No, no, no this is my favorite Beastie Boys song.

I listened to my playlist the other day and kept saying this for every song in my top 13-14.

There were also some hits that didn’t make my top 31 that might surprise some.

 

[-OZ-]

Love Army by Ben folds.

Well I thought about the army
Dad said, "Son, you're ****in' high"
And I thought, yeah there's a first for everything

Playing this while sitting in a major Army building in beautiful Alabama.

 

[tuffnutt]

12.
Crumblin' Down- John Mellencamp
from Uh-Huh Album

Our 2nd of four songs from Uh-HUh... It was the last song recorded for the album, but the first song released as a single in 1983. The song was a top 10 hit reaching #9 on the charts. John said of the song..."Crumblin' Down is a very political song that I wrote with my childhood friend George Green. Reagan was president - he was deregulating everything and the walls were crumbling down on the poor."

To me this one stands out... no banjos, mandolins, fiddles etc that we get in some of his other "heartland hits"... this is just a straight forward kick *** rock song.

 

[jwb]

Better Days

Better Days

Graham Nash · Songs For Beginners · Song · 1971

open.spotify.com

Laughing

Laughing - 2021 Remaster

David Crosby · If I Could Only Remember My Name (50th Anniversary Edition; 2021 Remaster) · Song · 1971

open.spotify.com

Last two rounds = two solo tunes from Nash and Crosby. Both are quite good, but probably won't make a fan out of someone who isn't already one. Graham sings about the love triangle betwee him, Stills and Rita Coolidge. Crosby's song was inspired by George Harrison going on about the teachings of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi that he was into - instead of stating his skepticism to George, he put it in this song.

These guys were good songwriters, all four of them.

 

[Mister CIA]

Love Army by Ben folds.

Well I thought about the army
Dad said, "Son, you're ****in' high"
And I thought, yeah there's a first for everything

Playing this while sitting in a major Army building in beautiful Alabama.

Easily my favorite BFF song.

 

[MAC_32]

Artists new to me:

I Am the Highway — Chris Cornell

Collective Soul — Gel

Some solid hits this round, but these two would be my #1 for each artist.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Known-to-me favorites from #13:

Girlfriend Is Better
Don't Worry Baby
Root Down
Better Days -- One of the best tracks from Nash's solo debut.
Lonely Ol' Night
Set It Off
Feel Good Hit of the Summer
Free Fallin'
War on the East Coast
Since You've Been Gone

Known-to-me favorites from #12:

Raspberry Beret
Hey Ladies
Laughing -- A song Crosby had written around the time he left the Byrds, and which is an atmospheric wonder. He recorded two versions very similar to one another, one for his first solo album, 1971's If I Could Only Remember My Name, and one for the Byrds' original lineup's self-titled reunion album in 1973.
Hang on to Yourself
Crumblin' Down -- The first song that made me realize there was more to him than a tough-guy persona.
I Am the Highway
Gel
You Wreck Me
Army
Fake Headlines
All Night Long

 

[Tau837]

Mike Shinoda

Just Win Baby

Burning In The Skies - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. www.youtube.com

This is the 3rd song in my top 31 from Linkin Park's A Thousand Suns album. About the song structure:

The song features prominent use of piano and ambient electronics, and also features a guitar solo during the bridge. The song's verses are composed in 6/4 time, while the choruses are in 4/4. Along with its uniqueness, it is one of few Linkin Park songs to feature fingerpicked guitar.

From Songfacts:

The lyrics are awash with references of ruin and appears to be a self-chastising lament for mistakes of the past. It finds co-frontman Chester Bennington beseeching in the chorus: "I'm swimming in the smoke of bridges I've burnt/ So don't apologize I'm losing what I don't deserve."

From Loudwire:

Mike Shinoda took lead vocals on a majority of this mid-tempo post-apocalyptic cautionary tale, affecting a bit of regret but asking for no apologies amidst “bridges burned” at one’s own hands.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

14. Strange Town
Album: Non-album single (1979)
Released as a single? Yes (UK #15)

This song has a lot going on and pulls it off deftly. Beginning with a stuttering guitar riff, the song shifts quickly into a bass-driven romp that swings like The Jam had never done up to this point. It pushes into a chorus with some nice harmonies that wouldn't sound out of place on a Squeeze single, and then the romp continues, this time with something (synthesizer?) providing a countermelody. A brisk guitar solo sets up a bridge in which Paul Weller's voice and guitar grow ever-more frenzied, and then the song shifts into a stuttering instrumental passage before charging into verse three, which adds a new element not seen in verses one and two, Bruce Foxton harmonizing with Weller. After the chorus, the song careens into a home stretch, with martial beats from Rick Buckler and powerful riffs from Weller taking turns in the spotlight before the band gives us a triumphant coda that resolves brilliantly. Weller told The Guardian that he has written only three "perfect" songs, and this is one of them. (The other two are album tracks from his solo career.)

It's easy to see why he thinks that way, so well-crafted is this tune, which was the first of two standalone singles released between All Mod Cons and Setting Sons (but was included on the Canadian version of Setting Sons). I would not be surprised if the suits thought it was too busy for American ears, as the US version of the single was flipped and the other, simpler song was promoted here. More on that later. The lyrics are about the struggle to fit in:

You've got to move in a straight line
You've got to walk and talk in four-four time
You can't be weird in a strange town
You'll be betrayed by your accent and manners
You've got to wear the right clothes
Be careful not to pick or scratch your nose
You can't be nice in a strange town
'Cause we don't know, don't care and we got to go, man

Top of the Pops appearance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBKHQcjQYek
Live Jam version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJRi5ZleQXQ
Live version from 1979 that appears on the deluxe version of Setting Sons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrcRtPR9270
Live version from 1979 that appears on the super deluxe version of Setting Sons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5ZBR39ONpI
Fire and Skill 1980 disc: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9cIcO37X1U

Cover #14: Stoned Out of My Mind

Stoned Out Of My Mind

Provided to YouTube by Universal Music GroupStoned Out Of My Mind · The JamExtras℗ 1982 Polydor Ltd. (UK)Released on: 1992-01-01Producer: Peter WilsonCompose...

www.youtube.com

Included on expanded version (12" or double 7") of Beat Surrender single (1982)
Writers: Eugene Record and Barbara Acklin
Original or best known version: The Chi-Lites

The Chi-Lites' Stoned Out of My Mind was one of three soul songs The Jam recorded for inclusion on the expanded version of their final single. As these recordings were made after Weller's decision to break up the band, they bear little resemblance to The Jam's previous work and serve as early drafts of the approach Weller was developing for The Style Council. The Jam's version is tight -- the rhythm guitar is particularly crunchy -- and Weller's lilting vocal suits the song well without trying to duplicate Eugene Record's.

At #13, the A-side of said final single.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

Gel by Collective Soul is very nice.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

I just saw an ad that said AARP members get special access to Stones tickets.

Should I be offended?

 

[Mt. Man]

Selected favorites from the #12s. As expected, the playlists are getting generally stronger, and trimming down so that I don’t list half the songs is getting more difficult. Perhaps especially for the bands I knew well coming into this, but there’s still many surprises in here, as always. Shuffled once again.

–
Familiar songs:
Hang on to Yourself - David Bowie
Hey Ladies - Beastie Boys
You Wreck Me - Tom Petty
California Dreamin’ - Sia
I Am the Highway - Audioslave/Chris Cornell

New discoveries:
Send Him Back - The Pointer Sisters
The Fear - Los Lobos
Video Games - Sufjan Stevens
Burning in the Skies - Linkin Park/Mike Shinoda
Punks in the Beerlight - Silver Jews/David Berman

Shuffle Adventures
Fairly early on, I hit the combo of Nina Simone, Ben Folds and Tanya Donelly’s cover of Moon River. “Army” obviously isn’t the best song for meshing with the other two artists, but it still worked very well for me.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

The Pointer Sisters have a lot of good songs that I had never heard before.

 

[MAC_32]

Sia's California Dreamin'...

 

[Scoresman]

I wasn't sure what the reaction would be to Sia's cover of California Dreamin' since that is such a classic song. I included it because chronologically, it's really the first song that showcases how powerful her voice becomes in her pop years. Such a change from her Zero 7 years.

 

[-OZ-]

Sia's California Dreamin'...

I had to check whether Alecia Hart (P!nk) got in our playlist. Which, from my perspective is high praise.

 

[Raging weasel]

The 13's
Known favs
The Real Thing
Strange Fruit
Warning
Feel Good Hit....
Tightrope- only knew the original
Rosalie- only knew the Bob Seger original
Free Fallin'
Since You've Been Gone

New Favs
Girlfriend is Better
Don't Worry Baby
Borne on the FM.....
Henry Lee-(wish someone would do a PJH 31)
Better Days

 

[jwb]

The Pointer Sisters have a lot of good songs that I had never heard before.

I agree with this. Very talented and versatile.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

13. Beat Surrender
Album: Non-album single (1982)
Released as a single? Yes (UK #1)

As you might expect, The Jam's final single (and last of its four UK #1 hits) sounds more like The Style Council, Paul Weller's next project, than it does The Jam, who were kaput when it was released; Weller wrote the song to punctuate his decision to disband the group. The title is a play on the British military term "Beat Retreat" and the Anita Ward disco hit "Sweet Surrender".

The song contains one of my favorite Weller lyrics:

And as it was in the beginning, so shall it be in the end
That bullsh!t is bullsh!t, it just goes by different names

In keeping with its transitional nature, the most prominent instruments on this track are horns and keyboards, none of which are played by the actual members of The Jam. Nonetheless, it is a bop, as the kids today say. The music is a gleeful romp and Weller channels the vocal Bowie-isms he started to develop during the Sound Affects sessions. It also makes you wonder why Weller thought The Jam could no longer be a vehicle for the soul music he wanted to make. Bruce Foxton told MusicRadar: "We were thinking 'Why are we going to split up?' We were Number One in the single and album chart at the time. I've only just got over it!"

This was one of the four Jam videos I remember seeing in the early years of MTV and thus it evokes nostalgia for me. Two of the others were Absolute Beginners (#31) and The Bitterest Pill (I Ever Had to Swallow) (#27). The fourth will appear later.

Music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHP0UxBuuGQ
Fire and Skill 1982 disc: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbf-p1-Hes4

Cover #13: Sweet Soul Music

- YouTube

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

www.youtube.com

- YouTube

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

www.youtube.com

Performed live at various times; a 1981 version was released on The Jam at the BBC (2002); a 1977 version was released on the 1977 disc of Fire and Skill (2015).
Writers: Sam Cooke, Arthur Conley and Otis Redding
Original or best known version: Arthur Conley

The Jam's two released live performances of Arthur Conley's 1967 hit Sweet Soul Music (which he co-wrote with Otis Redding; Sam Cooke was added to the writing credits after his business partner sued Conley and Redding for appropriating Cooke's "Yeah Man") are as good a marker as any for how the band's relationship to soul music progressed over their career. The 1977 version is pure adrenaline, more sweat than sweet. The 1981 version, recorded in a BBC studio, features horns and bears more resemblance to the arrangement of the original, which the 1977 edition of the band could probably not have pulled off.

At #12, more Kinksian goodness from All Mod Cons.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

12. In the Crowd
Album: All Mod Cons (1978)
Released as a single? No

All Mod Cons marked a major shift in The Jam's sound and a great leap in Paul Weller's songwriting. In the Crowd is one of the best examples of both and remains one of Weller's best-loved songs to this day. (It's also one of the few Jam songs he has performed somewhat regularly since deciding to play Jam material in concert again.) The song's arrangement lets the band breathe in a way they hadn't done before, and the Kinks and Beatles influences are very prominent, though the Who dynamics remain. The glorious mostly instrumental second half of the song combines the experimental guitar sounds of Revolver with the rhythmic thrust of Entwhistle and Moon.

The song was written at a pivotal time for Weller and the band, when they were unsure whether they would be able to sustain their fanbase after the relatively poor reception of their second album. As they did on the first two albums, Weller's lyrics rail against the conformity demanded by society, but in a new twist, they also allude to the fickleness of scenesters who follow media-dictated trends:

And everyone seems that they're acting a dream
Cause they're just not thinking about each other
And they're taking orders, which are media spawned
And they should know better, now you have been warned

Over the ending guitar freakout, Weller chants "away from the numbers," a callback to the In the City track (#26 on this countdown) that also celebrates standing out from the crowd.

Dig the New Breed version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKx6jtq45bA
At the BBC version from 1981: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM3-8rcsU2I
Fire and Skill 1981 disc (segues into their cover of David Watts): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0hZYGP7gYc
Fire and Skill 1982 disc: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqY5veT8IX8
Paul Weller at a 2003 bookstore appearance. How do you get THAT sweaty at a BOOKSTORE APPEARANCE? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fYafUpCylI

Oddly, The Jam don't appear to have performed the instrumental coda live, shortening the song by half. You can only hear that live from Weller solo.

Cover #12: In the Midnight Hour

In The Midnight Hour

Provided to YouTube by Universal Music GroupIn The Midnight Hour · The JamDirection Reaction Creation℗ 1977 Polydor Ltd. (UK)Released on: 1997-01-01Producer:...

www.youtube.com

Album track, This Is the Modern World (1977)
Writers: Wilson Pickett and Steve Cropper
Original or best known performance: Wilson Pickett

The Jam's adrenaline-fueled take on In the Midnight Hour closes This Is the Modern World. Paul Weller's vocal isn't subtle, but then again, neither was Wilson Pickett's, so this is a good match. The band is still very much in Who "Maximum R&B" mode here, but the cover has a better balance of slam and swing than Slow Down from earlier in 1977. The decision to close the album with the cover was a good one, as it doesn't mess up the flow of the originals. We will see this tactic again.

At #11, a song that was way too good to be a B-side -- and got flipped over in this country.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

The Jam were a band I knew some songs and liked but my knowledge wasn’t deep. They’ve been one of the bands I’ve liked more than I thought I did.

 

[Zegras11]

Happy Turkey Day to all you Dummies out there!!

#11's PLAYLIST

		#11 -
Prince	Ramsay Hunt Experience	D.M.S.R. D.M.S.R. - 2019 Remaster Prince · Song · 1982 open.spotify.com Prince - D.M.S.R. (Live) (Musicology Tour Los Angeles, 2004) youtu.be
Tanya Donelly	plinko	Slow Dog Star, 1993 Slow Dog Belly · Song · 1993 open.spotify.com
Talking Heads	kupcho1	Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On) Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On) Talking Heads · Song · 1980 open.spotify.com
Sia Furler	Scoresman	Dressed In Black Dressed In Black Sia · Song · 2015 open.spotify.com
Los Lobos	eephus	Wicked Rain / Across 110th Street (feat. Bobby Womack) Wicked Rain / Across 110th Street Los Lobos, Bobby Womack · Song · 2004 open.spotify.com
The Seldom Scene	Charlie Steiner	Pictures from Life's Other Side Pictures From Life's Other Side Provided to YouTube by Entertainment One U.S., LPPictures From Life's Other Side · Seldom SceneThe New Seldom Scene Album℗ Rebel Records LlcReleased on: 2005... www.youtube.com
Kid Rock	snellman	Roll On Roll On Kid Rock · Song · 2007 open.spotify.com
Against Me!	scorchy	The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton (Mountain Goats cover, LJG solo) The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton Laura Jane Grace · Song · 2017 open.spotify.com
Mastodon	KarmaPolice	Quintessence Quintessence Mastodon · Song · 2009 open.spotify.com Mastodon - Quintessence [Official Visualizer] Exclusive 'Crack The Skye' 10th Anniversary Merch: http://mastodonrocks.com/cracktheskyeConnect with Mastodon:http://mastodonrocks.comhttp://facebook.com/mas... www.youtube.com
Neko Case	Mister CIA	Runnin' Out Of Fools Neko Case - "Runnin' Out Of Fools" (Full Album Stream) Listen to the full album: https://antircrds.io/3bTXcUi"Runnin' Out Of Fools" by @nekocaseofficial from the album 'Blacklisted'Order, stream & download at htt... www.youtube.com
Faith No More	JBBreakfastClub	Ricochet Ricochet Faith No More · Song · 1995 open.spotify.com
black midi	Juxtatarot	[skip]
Nina Simone	Don Quixote	Four Women, from Wild is the Wind Nina Simone - Four Women (Audio) "Four Women" by Nina Simone from the album “Wild Is The Wind.” Subscribe and ring the bell to never miss an update: https://NinaSimone.lnk.to/NinaSimoneYoutu... youtu.be Four Women Nina Simone · Song · 1966 open.spotify.com
Beastie Boys	Yo Mama	Stand Together Stand Together - Remastered 2009 Beastie Boys · Song · 1992 open.spotify.com
Drive-By Truckers	Dr. Octopus	The Southern Thing The Southern Thing Drive-By Truckers · Song · 2001 open.spotify.com
Jimmy Buffet	-OZ-	Take it back Take It Back Jimmy Buffett · Song · 1992 open.spotify.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTT2AehclcE
The Jam	Pip's Invitation	The Butterfly Collector The Butterfly Collector The Jam · Song · 2015 open.spotify.com
Röyksopp	JMLs secret identity	11 - Only this Moment feat Kate Havnevik Röyksopp 'Only This Moment' The first single from Röyksopp's second album The Understanding m.youtube.com
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds	salteriffic	God is in the house God Is in the House - 2011 Remastered Version Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds · Song · 2001 open.spotify.com
CSNY	jwb	Love the One You’re With Love the One You're With Stephen Stills · Stephen Stills · Song · 1970 open.spotify.com
Roger Clyne	Mt. Man	Beautiful Disaster Beautiful Disaster Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers · Song · 1999 open.spotify.com
David Berman	The Dreaded Marco	Black and Brown Blues Silver Jews-- Black and Brown Blues From Natural BridgeBaby let's get dressed upI got two pairs of shoesDarling you look so beautifulwhen your hair's all hung in jewelsand sometimes I find it r... www.youtube.com
David Bowie	Binky the Doormat	Cracked Actor Cracked Actor (2013 Remaster) Provided to YouTube by Parlophone UKCracked Actor (2013 Remaster) · David BowieAladdin Sane℗ 1973, 2013 Jones/Tintoretto Entertainment Company LLC under excl... www.youtube.com
Pointer Sisters	Mrs. Rannous	River Boulevard River Boulevard Provided to YouTube by Universal Music GroupRiver Boulevard · The Pointer SistersThe Pointer Sisters℗ 1973 UMG Recordings, Inc.Released on: 1973-01-01Compose... www.youtube.com Search | Spotify Looking for something? Find artists, songs, albums, playlists, and more. open.spotify.com
Incubus	MAC_32	Diamonds & Coal Diamonds and Coal Incubus · Song · 2006 open.spotify.com
John Mellencamp	tuffnutt	Wild Night John Mellencamp - Wild Night ft. Me'Shell Ndegeocello Music video by John Mellencamp performing Wild Night. (C) 1994 John Mellencamp under exclusive license to The Island Def Jam Music Group www.youtube.com
Sufjan Stevens	Ilov80s	Movement II- Sleeping Invader Movement II—Sleeping Invader Sufjan Stevens · Song · 2009 open.spotify.com
Mike Shinoda	Just Win Baby	Crossing A Line - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. www.youtube.com
Chris Cornell	Raging Weasel	Times Of Trouble Times Of Trouble Temple Of The Dog · Song · 1990 open.spotify.com
Josh Homme	titusbramble	Dead End Friends Dead End Friends Them Crooked Vultures · Song · 2009 open.spotify.com
Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats	AAABatteries	Face Down in the Moment Face Down In The Moment Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats · Song · 2021 open.spotify.com Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats - "Face Down In The Moment" (Live) Live at The Beacon Theater, “Face Down In The Moment” is from the Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats album, The Future. Listen here: https://found.ee/NRNS... youtu.be
Kim Mitchell	Sullie	O Mercy Louise Kim Mitchell - O Mercy Louise Kim Mitchell - Rockland - O Mercy Louisehttp://www.lobsterlightinginc.com/normal.html www.youtube.com
Thin Lizzy	zamboni	Dancing in the Moonlight (It's Caught Me In Its Spotlight) Dancing In The Moonlight (It's Caught Me In It's Spotlight) Provided to YouTube by Universal Music GroupDancing In The Moonlight (It's Caught Me In It's Spotlight) · Thin LizzyBad Reputation℗ 1977 Mercury Records Limi... www.youtube.com
Collective Soul	falguy	Listen Listen Collective Soul · Song · 1997 open.spotify.com
Tears for Fears	John Maddens Lunchbox	Suffer the Children (Vocals Roland) - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. m.youtube.com
Cheap Trick	FairWarning	Stop This Game Stop This Game Cheap Trick · Song · 1980 open.spotify.com
John Prine	landrys hat	Crazy As a Loon Crazy as a Loon John Prine · Song · 2005 open.spotify.com
Ben Folds	Hov34	One Angry Dwarf and 20 Solemn Faces One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces Ben Folds Five · Song · 1997 open.spotify.com
Tom Petty	Zegras11	The Waiting The Waiting Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers · Song · 1981 open.spotify.com
Scott Hutchison	sneveneleven	An Otherwise Disappointing Life An Otherwise Disappointing Life Provided to YouTube by Canvasback/ATLAn Otherwise Disappointing Life · Frightened RabbitPainting of a Panic Attack℗ 2016 Atlantic Records UK, Warner Music UK... www.youtube.com
The New Pornographers	Northern Voice	Laws Have Changed Laws Have Changed The New Pornographers · Electric Version · Song · 2003 open.spotify.com
John Lee Hooker	DrIan Malcolm	John Lee's House Rent Boogie John L's House Rent Boogie John Lee Hooker · Song · 2017 open.spotify.com
Rainbow	Sam Quentin	Eyes of the World Eyes Of The World Rainbow · Song · 1979 open.spotify.com
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky	zazale	String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11, TH 111: IV. Finale. Allegro giusto String Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11, TH 111: IV. Finale. Allegro giusto Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Borodin Quartet · Song · 2017 open.spotify.com

 

[Charlie Steiner]

11. Pictures from Life's Other Side

This is the second song from The New Seldom Scene Album, and another one I saw live multiple times. Honestly it doesn't do a lot for me, but it was one of their favorites.

Yet another 'traditional' song of undetermined origin, this song had also been covered by the likes of Woody Guthrie and Hank Williams. It is described as an appeal for compassion and understanding for the downtrodden. Given the time of its release (1976, an election year and the nation still coping with fallout from Viet Nam and Watergate), perhaps Duffey and co. were playing some 4-D chess with us and subtly telling everyone to keep their heads during those troubling times.

While I was way too young to get the context and appreciate everything that was going on at the time, I do know that I felt then that they were acting as a type of balm against the complications of their times. I know that their talent, despite being a part-time band, made them one of the hottest tickets in the DMV and the bluegrass world in general, as well as a key contributor to the rise of a college radio station, 88.5 WAMU (American University) to NPR juggernaut and must-listen radio for bluegrass on Sunday mornings and multiple days during the week. The demographics have naturally changed over the last 50+ years and time marches on, but the fact that that the 'Scene was the tip of the fundraising spear during a pivotal time in both the station and the region's history should never be forgotten.

 

[Tau837]

Mike Shinoda

Just Win Baby

Crossing A Line - YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. www.youtube.com

This is the third song so far in my top 31 from Mike Shinoda's Post Traumatic album. When I first listened to the album, this was immediately one of my favorite songs on the album. Love the opening piano, the structure, the slow build.

As mentioned previously, this album was Mike's first solo album under his own name, and it was his first music after Chester Bennington's death. He decided to release the album in his name rather than his pseudonym, Fort Minor, because of the issues addressed in the songs. Moving forward with solo music is essentially the subject of the song.

Mike has said this about the song:

"Crossing A Line is actually about venturing out into the unknown, down a path of uncertainty. Sometimes, making the decision to follow a path means separating from what is "normal" or "expected" of you. In this case, my career and lifestyle were inevitably going to be changed forever, and I needed to seek out a new artistic, creative, professional path that was healthy for me."

"Grief is a very personal thing. And as I was making these songs, I realized two things I needed as I processed everything were a.) an ability to process and talk about things directly from my point of view and b.) feeling like I was regaining control of my life, and creating my own momentum. So I decided to make this a solo album. But I worried that my band mates, some of my best friends, would feel abandoned. Looking back, I'm very grateful the other four guys have been super supportive of my solo music. But there was a moment in the beginning, before I told them, that I wondered if they would not be."

"Part of making hard decisions in life is looking at your motivation. Any time I make a big decision, I ask "why am I doing this?" What I was looking for at this moment was reassurance that my closest friends understood that I was not abandoning them."

Here is a live version from a 2018 KROQ Christmas concert.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Known-to-me favorites from #11:

Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On) -- We have now seen all three songs from side 1 of Remain in Light. They may be three of my top five TH songs.
Love the One You're With -- The lyrics are odious but man, could Stills write a good melody and groove.
Cracked Actor
Times of Trouble
Dead End Friend
Dancing in the Moonlight (It's Caught Me In Its Spotlight) -- I know this from a previous MAD countdown.
One Angry Dwarf and 20 Solemn Faces
The Waiting
Laws Have Changed

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

The Pointer Sisters have a lot of good songs that I had never heard before.

I agree with this. Very talented and versatile.

Besides their familiar hits, there are still more surprises from them. Yay! I had the best time finding all this out.

So far, Brian Setzer is putting out some great tunes as well. Also, his guitar playing doesn't exactly suck.

 

[Yo Mama]

Beastie Boys #11 - Stand Together
Album - Check Your Head (1992)

Peacockin'
Ad-Rock: 0, MCA: 0, Mike D: 0, Beastie Boys: 0, Greater NYC: 0

Name Rockin'
na

Rhyme Squawkin'
I don't see things quite the same as I used to
As I live my life I've got just me to be true to
And when I find that I don't know about just what to do
I turn and look within to see what I should do

Yo Mama Talkin'
This is the least “hit” of the top of my list, but it’s always been one of my favorites. The insane guitar work, MCA going nuts throughout, the weird funky noises like from a @Don Quixote song last round - it’s all awesome.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

Love the One You're With -- The lyrics are odious but man, could Stills write a good melody and groove.

Probably why the Isleys did such a great cover

 

[-OZ-]

Jimmy Buffett's "Take it Back" Cedar Mills Yacht Club 2018 Race Series

A compilation of video footage from the 2018 Cedar Mills Yacht Club race series. Video captured by Captain Dan from the sailing vessel, SUMMERZCOOL using th...

youtu.be

Admittedly, the first time I heard this I thought it was something to do with how Europeans and Americans stole many artifacts / treasure from Africa and other cultures. But no, this is much simpler than that. It’s just a fun, upbeat motivational song to win back America’s cup.

Jimmy’s Notes: I got a call one day to write a song for the Stars and Stripes challenge. The Americans were trying to win the American Cup back from the Australians. Soon after that, my first trip to Australia came together, and we opened the tour in Perth at the time of the race. For me, it was the party of the 80’s, and I think of this as the background music for an incredible stay down under.

Hit us hard, took our treasure
That was the worst thing they could do
It will be our great pleasure
To take it back from that captain kangaroo

Yo ho ho, and a bottle of suds
It's a pirates fight we choose
No we don't want a bucket of blood
Just a cup is all we could use
Just a cup

The sails are up and the bets are down
Let's lighten up this harbor town
By hook or crook or new design
We're streakin' for that finish line

We ain't stealin' we're just takin' back
Very simple plan of attack
It's our job and a labor of love
Take it home to the up above

 

[Mt. Man]

#11 Beautiful Disaster (off Honky Tonk Union, 1999)

So if were short on years,
baby we're long on miles
So let's grind the gears,
and sink the needle in the red on all the dials

(Youtube Version) Beautiful Disaster
(Live Version) Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers - "Beautiful Disaster" - Smith's Olde Bar, Atlanta

Why I chose this:
Going back to quoting Clyne himself here. "It's just a fun rock song. I'd never used the highway metaphor before, and when I started to use that, I started finding myself running into the same literary devices that Bruce Springsteen uses all the time, he couldn't get around them. So I decided to put that middle section, 'Take the wheel, the highway's clear,' and basically lift that out of Born To Run for however many bars that is, like 6 or 8 bars, and just to acknowledge that it's a tribute, and not a pilfering, I put the glockenspiel behind it, because it comes right out of Born To Run. But it's about being very, very enthusiastic about your power and freedom."

Yeah, “fun rock song” covers it well. Along with the sense of adventure, and the chaotic but heartfelt romance that’s the foundation of this song. Plus there’s the fun juxtaposition of the title! It might even be worth, say, naming a playlist after. But I could be wrong there.
–
Bonus Song
I’d planned to have a song or two for the break. But instead, we press on! Still, some folks have a longer weekend, so bonus song! Like last time, I’m pulling from the same album and a reasonably similar style as the countdown song.

So here’s Tow Chain (Youtube: Tow Chain). A fairly straightforward rock song about (what the narrator feels) is an one-sided relationship.

 

[Don Quixote]

11. Nina Simone, Four Women (from Wild is the Wind, 1966)

…My skin is brown
my manner is tough
I'll kill the first mother I see
my life has been too rough
I'm awfully bitter these days
because my parents were slaves
What do they call me
My name is PEACHES

This song was written by Nina Simone, and tells the stories of four black women and the legacy and impacts of slavery on them, with Simone’s build-up of intensity that is characteristic of many of her other songs. The Village Voice published this about it after Nina Simone’s passing:

But it was “Four Women,” an instantly accessible analysis of the damning legacy of slavery, that made iconographic the real women we knew and would become. For African American women it became an anthem affirming our existence, our sanity, and our struggle to survive a culture which regards us as anti-feminine. It acknowledged the loss of childhoods among African American women, our invisibility, exploitation, defiance, and even subtly reminded that in slavery and patriarchy, your name is what they call you. Simone’s final defiant scream of the name Peaches was our invitation to get over color and class difference and step with the sister who said: My skin is brown/My manner is tough/I’ll kill the first mother I see/ My life has been rough/I’m awfully bitter these days/Because my parents were slaves.

For African American women artists of my generation, “Four Women” became the core of works to come, notably Julie Dash’s film of the same name, and it should be regarded a direct ancestor of Ntozake Shange’s For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf. This Simone song was a call heard by Alice Walker, Toni Cade Bambara, Gayl Jones, and countless artists who come to mind as women who gave us a whole generation of the stories of Aunt Sara, Safronia, Sweet Thing, and Peaches.

May the High Priestess’s cult widen to take in the unwise who made her as outrageous as she was.

Another one that has influenced hip-hop as well. Sampled in Jay-Z’s “The Story of OJ.” The song was also turned into a play a few years ago.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Some of my favorites from rounds 12-15, not a to be seen:

Talking Heads - Nothing But Flowers
Sia - California Dreamin'
David Bowie - Hang On To Yourself
Cheap Trick - California Man
The Jam - Beat Surrender
Prince - When Doves Cry
Talking Heads - Crosseyed And Painless
Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker
Pointer Sisters - Dirty Work
Cheap Trick - I Can't Take It
Rainbow - Difficult To Cure

 

[kupcho1]

Talking Heads
#11 Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)

Song #5 from Remain in Light for my 31 Talking Heads songs! This also marks consecutive songs that use parentheses in the title (spoiler: there's one more yet to come; Talking Heads sure like their punctuation.
Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On) is the lead off for the album and really sets the tone. I think this blurb sums it up best:

The opening track of Remain in Light, “Born Under Punches,” preserves the frenetic speed but dispenses with beat in favor of rhythm. It bursts into a multilayered guitar, bass, and drum pattern that resists counting but demands dancing, yanking the listener into a cloud of short, sharp noises with only involuntary movements to guide us through.

Over this background, Byrne bellows: “Take a look at these hands/The hand speaks/The hand of a government man.” Later he adds, “I’m so thin.” These words do not make sense. They mimic the condition of the listener amid the swirl of polyrhythms, though, caught in a moment of reflection that yields no insight but only feelings. It is the sound of stage-two cocaine addiction, when you are always doing something but never know what to do. The hand speaks: We lose control of ourselves, and what we have done becomes our new identity. The elliptical lyrics at the beginning of Remain in Light can be read as an artist’s statement: Taking their music in an unpredictable new direction, Talking Heads have found their essence by losing control over what they do.

Don't you miss it, don't you miss it
Some of you people just about missed it

 

[Mister CIA]

"If you come at the queen, you best not miss." This is the first of several stunners to be found at the top end of my playlist.

Number 11 goes up to 11 as Neko covers Aretha's Runnin' Out of Fools.

Neko Case - Runnin' Out of Fools (Aretha Franklin cover)

From the Blacklisted album. Go buy it!

youtu.be

Jorts version:

Neko Case_Running out of Fools_Crocodile Cafe_2000

Neko Case live at the Crocodile Cafe 2000. Production Team: Gregory D'Elia, Kenneth Thomas, Joel Bergstrom. I want to thank you for all the responses and c...

youtu.be

 

[tuffnutt]

11.
Wild Night- John Mellencamp
from Dance Naked Album

Our last song from the Dance Naked album is "Wild Night". It is, of course a cover, of a Van Morrison song that Mellencamp and Meshell Ndegeocello teamed up on in 1994. It was a huge hit that summer going to #3 and remained in the top 40 for 33 weeks.

I LOVED this song back in 94... I was in college and this song seemed to be everywhere... BUT it is a cover (a damn fine one) so I cant put it in the top 10 so it lands at #11. Is it better than the original? Probably not... but that bass line adds so much funk and the horns from the original are replaced with a wall of guitars makes this one a GREAT tune!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone... I will get caught up on reviews tomorrow.

 

[Don Quixote]

MAD spotting: Chicago on the Wonder Bread float singing “You’re the Inspiration” at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

11. The Butterfly Collector
Album: Non-album B-side (1979); appears on certain US pressings of All Mod Cons (1978)
Released as a single? B-side of Strange Town (but A-side in the US)

The Butterfly Collector is a highly compelling song that deserved better than relegation to a B-side. However, in the US, it was more than that. The US issue of the Strange Town/Butterfly Collector single was flipped over and The Butterfly Collector was promoted as the A-side. And for the second US pressing of All Mod Cons in 1979, Polydor swapped in The Butterfly Collector as track 1 of side 2, replacing Billy Hunt. So clearly, the sentiment from the suits was that this song had a better chance of becoming a US hit than most Jam songs.

And there's no reason it couldn't have been with better promotion and luck. The opening guitar-and-vocal-only passage is attention-grabbing, and when the bass and drums kick in just before the 40-second mark, they are joined by an incredible chorus melody that is instantly memorable. The rest of the song repeats the pattern until the end, when we get two chorus melodies back-to-back followed by a final guitar-and-vocal-only passage. Simple, clean and catchy -- there's no reason why we Yanks couldn't have embraced this if we weren't so obsessed with disco and Yacht Rock at the time.

The lyrics pertain to a woman who has spent her life using people but it's now come back to bite her because she has aged and lost her sex appeal. Might seem a little misogynistic now but I doubt it raised any eyebrows back then.

And you started looking much older
And your fashion sense is second-rate like your perfume
But to you in your little dream world
You're still the queen of the butterfly collectors

As you carry on 'cause it's all you know
You can't light a fire, you can't cook or sew
You get from day to day by filling your head
But surely you must know the appeal between your legs
Has worn off

This is one of only three Jam songs that Paul Weller played the only time I saw him, in NYC in 2008. And it was the only one that appeared in his regular set. The other two are coming later.

Live Jam version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMx4FTkuwsc
Fire and Skill 1982 disc: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35gUW-VKgIw
Acoustic version from Days of Speed, Weller's live album from the tour where he first started playing Jam songs again: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WA9PXLNLNAA
Weller performed it with Noel Gallagher at the Teenage Cancer Trust benefit in 2010: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KObNG4B_yuo

Garbage has covered this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJ8HUdJfVYQ

Cover #11: Pity Poor Alfie/Fever

Pity Poor Alfie / Fever

Provided to YouTube by Universal Music GroupPity Poor Alfie / Fever · The JamExtras℗ 1982 Polydor Ltd. (UK)Released on: 1992-01-01Producer: Peter WilsonAssoc...

www.youtube.com

B-side of The Bitterest Pill (I Ever Had to Swallow) (1982)
Writers: Paul Weller / Eddie Cooley and John Davenport
Original or best known version: Little Willie John

The B-side of The Jam's next-to-last single, The Bitterest Pill (I Ever Had to Swallow), combines a Weller original that was worked on during sessions for The Gift and a cover of Little Willie John's signature song, which has also been performed by Peggy Lee, Elvis, Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Michael Buble and Beyonce, among others. Both parts of the medley are dominated by horns, but the glue is the rhythm that they share. A YouTube commenter put it better than I could: "Sublime work, a distinct sound and terrific reach. This pairing is like a shot and a beer, different and yet so similar."

At #10, the band lets its funk flag fly.