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Middle-aged Dummies are back and bursting at the "themes" to get going! Full theme ahead! (1 Viewer)

He probably could have given me 20 guesses and I wouldn't have thought that one of the songs @Yambag and I had the same was Kickstart My Heart. :headbang: I was getting away from the more hair metal bands by this time, but there were a few core albums that I had and listened to a bit like Dr. Feelgood, and especially this song.

First we had the same #14, and now we had the same #18 song. We have one more song the same and I have that narrowed down to 2 songs thanks to yambag. My guess is we have 5 of my next 7 bands the same, and one of those is that song.
 
shuke – Saxytime

Do You Think I'm Pretty (Spotify) - Racing Mountain Pleasant
I don't hear any reeded insturments here. I think I need the manager.

:confused:
It's a nice song. But I just hear a trumpet, not a sax. Not that I can check. They are so obscure that it's difficult to get info.

Hmm. Is that not sax at 3:38 mark?

I couldn't find anything to confirm on this track either. Only live video I can find is this, showing two saxophonists in the band. Granted, it's a different song.
Maybe? Shouldn't it be easier to tell in a Saxytime selection?
 
shuke – Saxytime

Do You Think I'm Pretty (Spotify) - Racing Mountain Pleasant
I don't hear any reeded insturments here. I think I need the manager.

:confused:
It's a nice song. But I just hear a trumpet, not a sax. Not that I can check. They are so obscure that it's difficult to get info.

Hmm. Is that not sax at 3:38 mark?

I couldn't find anything to confirm on this track either. Only live video I can find is this, showing two saxophonists in the band. Granted, it's a different song.
Maybe? Shouldn't it be easier to tell in a Saxytime selection?

FWIW I think it's a saxophone but it's not prominent in the mix.
 
Theme: 31 Best Albums of 1984

14. Pink Turns to Blue by Husker Du

Album: Zen Arcade
Released: July 1



Label SST touted this as “The most important and relevant double album to be released since the Beatles’ White Album". Bold statement for a band that had probably sold 10,000 records in their entire careers to that point. A melodic punk concept album from a hardcore band known for playing faster and louder than anyone else doesn't seem to make sense let alone be historic. Whoever that SST exec was sure knew his music and called his freaking shot. Zen Arcade became the album to sort the cool kids, the people who knew real music, the real from everyone else. Mixing in folk, piano, production effects and even interludes. This had all kinds of stuff that punk bands with legit punk chops weren't doing but it's not a gimmick. It's great musicians and great song writing.

If the album has a single standout track that really captures what made Husker Du different, it's Punk Turns to Blue. Fuzzy guitars and catchy but melancholic hooks.

 
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Theme: 31 Best Albums of 1984

14. Pink Turns Blue by Husker Du

Album: Zen Arcade
Released: July 1



Label SST touted this as “The most important and relevant double album to be released since the Beatles’ White Album". Bold statement for a band that had probably sold 10,000 records in their entire careers to that point. A melodic punk concept album from a hardcore band known for playing faster and louder than anyone else doesn't seem to make sense let alone be historic. Whoever that SST exec was sure knew his music and called his freaking shot. Zen Arcade became the album to sort the cool kids, the people who knew real music, the real from everyone else. Mixing in folk, piano, production effects and even interludes. This had all kinds of stuff that punk bands with legit punk chops weren't doing but it's not a gimmick. It's great musicians and great song writing.

If the album has a single standout track that really captures what made Husker Du different, it's Punk Turns Blue. Fuzzy guitars and catchy but melancholic hooks.

Something I learned today is that ilov80s thinks the best song on Zen Arcade is Pink Turns Blue.
 
14s were an absolute smash! Starting with two Led Zeppelin songs, hit after hit here.

It’s hard to standout from this crowd, but those that did:

kupcho1 – rain

Fool in the Rain - Led Zeppelin

A top 5, many days my favorite LZ song.

simey – train songs

Railroad Man - Bill Withers

I didn’t know this one, 👍

Yambag – Metal songs from 1988-1992 that became the gateway into the world of music for a young Yambag

Kickstart My Heart - Motley Crue

I think this was in a previous countdown, gets me going.

Dr. Octopus – guitarists I’ve seen live

Alabama - Tedeschi Trucks Band (Derek Trucks)

New to me but sounds really familiar. Excellent.

Yo Mama – World’s Worst Superheroes

Man In A Suitcase - The Police

Fun tune.


KarmaPolice – songs from artists not on shuke’s list

On & On - Film School

new to me, another added to my likes.

JMLs secret identity – songs in D#Minor, the saddest key of all

Boogie Wonderland (Spotify) - Earth, Wind and Fire & The Emotions

Yeah, awesome.


Mt. Man – Number, Please

50 Ways To Leave Your Lover - Paul Simon

Mr Simon is coming up soon on my deep dives, probably April as I’m going ☘️ for March

titusbramble – Grand Theft Auto, specifically the 3D era

Low Rider - War (SA - Master Sounds 98.3)

Classic

John Maddens Lunchbox – Batman

Heroes (We Could be) (Spotify) - Alesso featuring Tove Lo

👍


rockaction - Songs that state the genre they’re in

Rock N' Roll Girl - The Beat

Another new 👍

MrsKarmaPolice – Animal Kingdom

The Underdog - Spoon
👍

higgins – Instrumentals with places in the title

Going Home - Dire Straits

👍

Zegras11 – New wave

Don't You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds

a strong contender for best 80s song.


Anonymous Mystery Theme Dictator - ???

Don't Stop Me Now - Queen

👸🏾

MAC_32 – Songs to play during (and after) a funeral

I Will Follow You Into The Dark - Death Cab For Cutie

yet another new win.

DrIanMalcolm – Songs about New York

Midnight in Harlem - Tedeschi Trucks Band

This one sent me down a rabbit hole. Now I’m listening to their whole playlist.
 
Zen Arcade became the album to sort the cool kids, the people who knew real music, the real from everyone else
Good Lord :lol:
I don’t sincerely mean that. I was very late to them and not super well versed in their music growing up. But they had a reputation for being the best punk band that most dumb kids like me who were just sort of getting into punk didn’t know about.
 
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Zen Arcade became the album to sort the cool kids, the people who knew real music, the real from everyone else
Good Lord :lol:
I don’t sincerely mean that. I was very late to them and not super well versed in their music growing up. But they had a reputation for being the best punk band that most dumb kids like me who were miss sort of getting into punk didn’t know about.
I wasn't busting on you, my friend. I knew you were quoting someone else. It just amazes me when folks who should know better say stuff like that - because then it becomes exclusionary. I jump on Rolling Stone a lot in these threads because I think they ruined how people should think about popular music. Whoever wrote that comment I quoted should be ashamed of themselves. "You're not cool if you don't get it" - eff that person.
 
shuke – Saxytime

Do You Think I'm Pretty (Spotify) - Racing Mountain Pleasant
I don't hear any reeded insturments here. I think I need the manager.

:confused:
It's a nice song. But I just hear a trumpet, not a sax. Not that I can check. They are so obscure that it's difficult to get info.

Hmm. Is that not sax at 3:38 mark?

I couldn't find anything to confirm on this track either. Only live video I can find is this, showing two saxophonists in the band. Granted, it's a different song.
Maybe? Shouldn't it be easier to tell in a Saxytime selection?

FWIW I think it's a saxophone but it's not prominent in the mix.
Yeah, there’s definitely a saxophone at the heart of the chorus, think mostly alto and then a tenor too at some point. I think it sets the vibe/mood nicely but isn’t supposed to be the center of the song.

Glad it was written for saxes; on behalf of all former trumpet players, we’d rather be melting faces than playing background for songs about feelings, unless we feel like wearing weird hats and playing flugelhorn that day.
 
I'm back. Did ya miss me? Didn't even know I was gone did ya?

15. Dope Lemon - Marinade

Dope Lemon isn't a garage band. It's a farm band. Angus and julia Stone is the name of a brother sister Aussie folk act that met with enough success in the 00s for Angus to buy a farm. Jam sessions with friends in the barn exploring a laid back indie surf rock sound led to the creation of not a side project, but his main project, Dope Lemon.

Marinade is one of a couple Aussie hits off the 2016 debut album, Honey Bones. The Lou Reed vibe makes it a personal favorite. He's gone on to produce 4 more albums since the debut. It's remained pretty laid back though drenched with guitars moving towards a slow blues ethos. All good listens but I prefer the debut. It's the surfiest.


14 - Stufft Crust - Italian Jeans

San Francisco's Stufft Crust: The mystery surf punk band they still rave about on X. Under the pseudonyms Mickey Crumbles, Billy Knife and Brandon Heart, they released a 12 track self-titled LP in 2017. Genre fans loved it top to bottom. There was a ruckus. Live shows wanted. Who are these guys? Well, nothing. Silence. That's all folks.

Now it's who were these guys? :shrug:

Italian Jeans is my favorite track though a half dozen of them went to the playlist I used to make this list.
 
After being caught up for about 8 hours I've now fallen hopelessly behind.
The 17's
Known and liked songs

One
Ice Cream Man
Send Me an Angel
65 Love Affair
Heart of Glass
Beginnings
Better be Good to Me
Modern Day Cowboy
Rockaway Beach
If You Leave
Inside Out
The Warmth

New to me likes
You Don't have to say you love me
Blood on the Tracks
I Don't wanna go There
Zoo of Death
Speechless
 
After being caught up for about 8 hours I've now fallen hopelessly behind.
The 17's
Known and liked songs

One
Ice Cream Man
Send Me an Angel
65 Love Affair
Heart of Glass
Beginnings
Better be Good to Me
Modern Day Cowboy
Rockaway Beach
If You Leave
Inside Out
The Warmth

New to me likes
You Don't have to say you love me
Blood on the Tracks
I Don't wanna go There
Zoo of Death
Speechless
:<_<:
 
#13 songs

kupcho1 – rain

Who'll Stop The Rain - Creedence Clearwater Revival


Eephus – Single (Named) Ladies

You Put a Move on My Heart - Tamia


Charlie Steiner – songs from Mad Men


You Only Live Twice - Nancy Sinatra


simey – train songs

All Aboard - The Del McCoury Band


Yambag – Metal songs from 1988-1992 that became the gateway into the world of music for a young Yambag

Last - Nine Inch Nails


Dr. Octopus – guitarists I’ve seen live


Freeway Jam (feat. Jan Hammer) - Jeff Beck


Yo Mama – World’s Worst Superheroes

The Rubberband Man - The Spinners


Mrs. Rannous – umlauts

Spiderman - Moxy Früvous


KarmaPolice – songs from artists not on shuke’s list

Photos Of Ghosts - Premiata Forneria Marconi


Don Quixote – Afrobeat

Sweet Mother (Spotify) - Prince Nico Mbarga & Rocafil Jazz (Nigeria)


JMLs secret identity – songs in D#Minor, the saddest key of all

Poor Leno (Forever Istanbul Take) (Spotify) - Röyksopp


-OZ- - song / music moments from the Marvel cinematic universe

Come On Get Happy - The Partridge Family Theme - David Cassidy


Mt. Man – Number, Please

40oz. To Freedom - Sublime


Pip’s Invitation – songs from albums produced and/or engineered by Todd Rundgren

You're Much Too Soon - Daryl Hall & John Oates


falguy – songs by 31 different Canadian artists

Home For a Rest - Spirit of the West


Raging weasel – name-checking Beatles or their songs

Be My Yoko Ono - Barenaked Ladies


jwb – songs that sound great on a decent 2-channel system


Spirit in the Night – Bruce Springsteen


scorchy – songs by Manchester(-ish) artists

Muzzle #1- The Whip


titusbramble – Grand Theft Auto, specifically the 3D era


Cokane In My Brain - Dillinger (SA - K-Jah West)


shuke – Saxytime

What is Life (Spotify) - George Harrison


Ilov80s - One song from each of the 31 best albums of 1984

Why Can't We Be Together- Sade


John Maddens Lunchbox – Batman

Face to Face (Spotify) - Siouxsie and the Banshees


Mister CIA – Texas Places in Song Titles

Dallas Alice - Sir Douglas Quintet


El Floppo – Mallet Rock

Untitled #1 - Vaka - Sigur Ros


landrys hat - favorite Side 2 Track 1s from my record collection

Lord of Light - Hawkwind - Doremi Fasol Latido (1972)


rockaction - Songs that state the genre they’re in


Western Swing & Waltz - Colter Wall


ditkaburgers - Girl Groups X Boy Bands

C'est La Vie - B*Witched


MrsKarmaPolice – Animal Kingdom

Flightless Bird, American Mouth - Iron & Wine


Tau837 – Hair metal

Heaven Sent - Dokken


DrIanMalcolm – Songs about New York

Meeting Across the River - Bruce Springsteen


higgins – Instrumentals with places in the title

54 Duncan Terrace - Allan Holdsworth


Zegras11 – New wave

Never Say Never - Romeo Void


Chaos34 - Post Surf Rock Surf Rockish (80s fwd)

No Waves - Fidlar


krista4 – Chicagoland

Summertime Chi – Hayley May, Lee Foss, John Summit


Anonymous Mystery Theme Dictator - ???

Moving - Supergrass


MAC_32 – Songs to play during (and after) a funeral


Brat - Green Day
 
I haven't caught up because I'm likely dying, so if your guess isn't on here, sorry. It's probably wrong anyway.

Selections:

31. If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next - Manic Street Preachers

30. Hear The Drummer Get Wicked - Chad Jackson

29. Pick Up The Pieces - Average White Band

28. Virtual Insanity – Jamiroquai

27. Another Chance - Roger Sanchez

26. Living On My Own - Freddie Mercury

25. Sharp Dressed Man - ZZ Top

24. Better Off Alone - Alice Deejay

23. Love Is The Drug - Roxy Music

22. By The Time I Get To Arizona - Public Enemy

21. I Kissed A Girl - Katy Perry

20. Goddess On A Hiway - Mercury Rev

19. Dark Therapy – Echobelly

18. Run To You - Bryan Adams

17. Inside Out – Anthrax

16. There's Nothing I Won't Do – JX

15. You - Bad Religion

14. Don't Stop Me Now – Queen

13. Moving - Supergrass



Incorrect guesses:

Songs that give advice

Bands That Have Never Been in My Kitchen

Songs by artists who have headlined Glastonbury

Songs featuring the Mellotron

Fear mongering

Song titles that could be part of geometry proofs

Bands who have a member whose first or last name is a James Bond reference

Bands with family members

Songs that reference a location in another country

Songs that have nine or more words in the title

Songs that mention famous streets

Bands who had a member mysteriously disappear, get declared dead, but no body has ever been found

Songs that reference footballguys user names

Songs without a guitar

Song titles that are commands

First two words of song titles in order of lyrics from The Youngbloods’ Get Together

Songs about resilience in the face of adversity

Songs about the importance of progress

Songs to make people overthink and speculate about an imaginary theme that doesn't really exist

31 songs that MADs submitted in prior MAD rounds, but judge disqualified because the submitting MAD failed to get the long-form birth certificate of all band members before submitting

Songs NOT produced by Todd Rundgren

Artists without umlauts

Songs Sam Rockwell has danced to in a movie

Songs about navigating and adapting to a constantly changing world

Songs credited to more than one songwriter

UK top ten singles

Singles released by UK artist/bands

31 British Isles Songs That Did Not Appear in the MAD British Isles Countdown

Non-guitar driven songs

Songs in 4/4 time

Broadway shows

Songs that all charted in the same six countries:
UK
Australia
Germany
France
Ireland
Netherlands

Songs under 5 minutes

Songs where artists let out excessive vocalizations of the “ahh,” “ooh,” “dee,” etc. variety

A break up and starting over

Things that will drive a bunch of middle aged dummies who are trying to find a pattern go crazy

Stages in Rustoleum’s marriage

Guinness World Records

Songs that can qualify for other people’s themes

Songs by people with facial hair

All songs use an instrument with keys

Songs that are the narrative arc of a divorce

Addiction

Songs with 125 BPM or more

Songs that sample other songs on the list

Songs representing different Nicholas Cage movies / characters

Songs

This is your life, Krista

Something to do with Tina Turner/abused women

Jimi Hendrix

Detailing Britney Spears’ descent into madness

Addiction ... to love

Songs in A Minor

The plot to Thelma and Louise

Kourtney Kardashian

Songs about a major change in someone's life

Midlife crisis

Songs with a subject you should see a therapist about

Mental illness

Songs about the world's worst super heros

Mania

Things you do impulsively

Songs that use the word “The” at some stage in the lyrics

The Ballad of @krista4 and OH

Songs the were on the UK official singles chart for the week ending on Aug 16, 2008

Songs from multiple decades

Songs about exploration of identity

Dancing

Each of these songs holds a special place in the hearts of listeners, and they remain influential in the genres they represent

krista's iconic playlist

struggle, rebellion, and survival

songs that have no connection to each other whatsoever - y'all are just wasting your time - ha ha ha suckers

Id, ego, and superego

Each song is somehow connected to one of the first 31 themes submitted for this countdown

Songs that qualify for more than one of the MAD31 themes submitted

Obscure chess strategies

All of these songs tie into the movie Thelma and Louise

history repeating itself

Songs for which there exists another song with the exact same title

Songs that implicate the seven deadly sins

The plot of a movie

the arc of Pink Floyd’s The Wall

Being in an oppressive relationship, and the journey to take back control of your life

the arc of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

trapped in a continuous cycle and finding a release that feels like freedom
 
13.

Who?
– Jeff Beck

What? – Jeff Beck

Where? – Garden State Arts Center

When? – 1995

Why? – This ranking is more based on reputation and his recordings than the actual show I saw, which sounded a bit muddled and was a bit dull. Don’t get me wrong, the cat can play, but he was a bit off that night and lost some points in my book when Carlos Santana (Beck was co-headlining with Santana but went on first) said he asks Jeff to come out and play with him each night of the tour and Jeff refuses. He called for Beck to come out and play with him that night. Beck would not come out.
 
I haven't caught up because I'm likely dying, so if your guess isn't on here, sorry. It's probably wrong anyway.

Selections:

31. If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next - Manic Street Preachers

30. Hear The Drummer Get Wicked - Chad Jackson

29. Pick Up The Pieces - Average White Band

28. Virtual Insanity – Jamiroquai

27. Another Chance - Roger Sanchez

26. Living On My Own - Freddie Mercury

25. Sharp Dressed Man - ZZ Top

24. Better Off Alone - Alice Deejay

23. Love Is The Drug - Roxy Music

22. By The Time I Get To Arizona - Public Enemy

21. I Kissed A Girl - Katy Perry

20. Goddess On A Hiway - Mercury Rev

19. Dark Therapy – Echobelly

18. Run To You - Bryan Adams

17. Inside Out – Anthrax

16. There's Nothing I Won't Do – JX

15. You - Bad Religion

14. Don't Stop Me Now – Queen

13. Moving - Supergrass



Incorrect guesses:

Songs that give advice

Bands That Have Never Been in My Kitchen

Songs by artists who have headlined Glastonbury

Songs featuring the Mellotron

Fear mongering

Song titles that could be part of geometry proofs

Bands who have a member whose first or last name is a James Bond reference

Bands with family members

Songs that reference a location in another country

Songs that have nine or more words in the title

Songs that mention famous streets

Bands who had a member mysteriously disappear, get declared dead, but no body has ever been found

Songs that reference footballguys user names

Songs without a guitar

Song titles that are commands

First two words of song titles in order of lyrics from The Youngbloods’ Get Together

Songs about resilience in the face of adversity

Songs about the importance of progress

Songs to make people overthink and speculate about an imaginary theme that doesn't really exist

31 songs that MADs submitted in prior MAD rounds, but judge disqualified because the submitting MAD failed to get the long-form birth certificate of all band members before submitting

Songs NOT produced by Todd Rundgren

Artists without umlauts

Songs Sam Rockwell has danced to in a movie

Songs about navigating and adapting to a constantly changing world

Songs credited to more than one songwriter

UK top ten singles

Singles released by UK artist/bands

31 British Isles Songs That Did Not Appear in the MAD British Isles Countdown

Non-guitar driven songs

Songs in 4/4 time

Broadway shows

Songs that all charted in the same six countries:
UK
Australia
Germany
France
Ireland
Netherlands

Songs under 5 minutes

Songs where artists let out excessive vocalizations of the “ahh,” “ooh,” “dee,” etc. variety

A break up and starting over

Things that will drive a bunch of middle aged dummies who are trying to find a pattern go crazy

Stages in Rustoleum’s marriage

Guinness World Records

Songs that can qualify for other people’s themes

Songs by people with facial hair

All songs use an instrument with keys

Songs that are the narrative arc of a divorce

Addiction

Songs with 125 BPM or more

Songs that sample other songs on the list

Songs representing different Nicholas Cage movies / characters

Songs

This is your life, Krista

Something to do with Tina Turner/abused women

Jimi Hendrix

Detailing Britney Spears’ descent into madness

Addiction ... to love

Songs in A Minor

The plot to Thelma and Louise

Kourtney Kardashian

Songs about a major change in someone's life

Midlife crisis

Songs with a subject you should see a therapist about

Mental illness

Songs about the world's worst super heros

Mania

Things you do impulsively

Songs that use the word “The” at some stage in the lyrics

The Ballad of @krista4 and OH

Songs the were on the UK official singles chart for the week ending on Aug 16, 2008

Songs from multiple decades

Songs about exploration of identity

Dancing

Each of these songs holds a special place in the hearts of listeners, and they remain influential in the genres they represent

krista's iconic playlist

struggle, rebellion, and survival

songs that have no connection to each other whatsoever - y'all are just wasting your time - ha ha ha suckers

Id, ego, and superego

Each song is somehow connected to one of the first 31 themes submitted for this countdown

Songs that qualify for more than one of the MAD31 themes submitted

Obscure chess strategies

All of these songs tie into the movie Thelma and Louise

history repeating itself

Songs for which there exists another song with the exact same title

Songs that implicate the seven deadly sins

The plot of a movie

the arc of Pink Floyd’s The Wall

Being in an oppressive relationship, and the journey to take back control of your life

the arc of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

trapped in a continuous cycle and finding a release that feels like freedom
Moving on through suicide.

I've wondered if this is where the songs are leading, so I'm going to go ahead and guess it as the theme.

thelma: "let's keep going." :drive:
 
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OZ- - song / music moments from the Marvel cinematic universe

Come On Get Happy - The Partridge Family Theme - David Cassidy

FEATURE FILMS​

An Extremely Goofy Movie
Ant-Man and the Wasp

PERFORMERS​

The Partridge Family

"C'mon Get Happy", also credited as "Come On Get Happy", is the theme song from The Partridge Family. It can be heard in An Extremely Goofy Movie when Goofy goes into a daydream after being depressed during the first round of midterm exams when Max tells him to get his own life. The song however ends with an alternative theme when Max starts to grow, and ferociously swipes the table cloth to throw Goofy off before the exam ends. It is also heard in the 2018 Marvel Studios film Ant-Man and the Wasp when Scott Lang was listening and singing the karaoke version of it during a montage of his house arrest.

Scott being Paul Rudd, making the most of a crappy situation

Hello world, here's a song that we're singin'
Come on, get happy
A whole lotta lovin' is what we'll be bringin'
We'll make you happy
We had a dream we'd go travelin' together
And spread a little lovin' if we'll keep movin' on
Somethin' always happens whenever we're together
We get a happy feelin' when we're singin' a song
Travelin' along, there's a song that we're singin'
Come on, get happy
A whole lotta lovin' is what we'll be bringin'
We'll make you happy


Next up - a song that is on another theme list.
 
13. You Only Live Twice - Nancy Sinatra

He needed to let off some steam, he needed adventure, he needed to feel handsome again. He needed to feel that he knew something, that all this aging was worth something because he knew things young people didn't know yet. He probably thought it would be like having a few tall drinks and feeling very, very good. And then he'd go back to his life and say, "That was nice." When it went away, he was heartbroken. And then he realized everything he already had was not right either and that was why it had happened at all. And that his life with his family was some temporary bandage on a permanent wound.- Pete Campbell, season 5, episode 13, The Phantom


Fun fact for you: the producers of the movie originally wanted Frank Sinatra to sing this theme song, but he suggested his daughter Nancy instead. Hot off the success of These Boots are Made for Walkin', Nancy was an acceptable alternative, though she was scared to death in the studio and took nearly 30 takes. Released as a single, it reached #11 on the UK Singles Chart, #44 on Billboard's Hot 100, and #3 on their Easy Listening chart.

The song appears, like so many of my selections, over the closing sequence of the episode, though this time I dare say this ending is more 'cinematic' than most of the series. I couldn't help but link this extended shot because it proves my point, and shows us how much they love to advance the story without using words.

It's tough to watch Don go through the process of compromising himself in his mind while watching Meagan's audition reel, and how he responds. We saw something similar back in season 1 when celebrating Sally's birthday, when Betty asked him multiple times to go get the birthday cake and instead went off on his own and sat alone for hours. In both events, I think he may have been thinking what Pete said in the quote I started this write-up with. Right or wrong, I think having to bend to Meagan's wishes opened the door for him to be selfish again. When he was married to Betty, we got the impression that he always behaved like that. Watching him react to Meagan's audition film, I was led to believe he had changed, and the unresolved final shot of him glancing at the woman in the bar leaves open the hope that it was going to be different this time; but that's when this show got me. Season 2 ended with Don pronouncing that "people don't change," so for all the hope this sequence seems to provide, sharper viewers than myself weren't fooled at all.

In this last shot, we also get two examples of the show's use of humor like a surgeon's scalpel. Peggy, with ideations of business travel having the glamor of Paris but instead getting dogs humping on the grass outside of her room at the budget motel somewhere deep in Virginia tobacco country., Then we get a callback to Roger's plotline and wanting Marie to take LSD with him. Maybe if I had ever dropped acid, that scene wouldn't have been as funny to me, but there was something about it that made me laugh, maybe the absurdity of the image.
 
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simey – train songs

All Aboard - The Del McCoury Band
Del is my favorite bluegrass artist. He is 86 and still puts on a great show with his two sons and two other bandmates. He is full of joy, and I love hearing the stories he tells as much as hearing him sing and play. I also love his giggles.

Take that woman with the frown sitting 'cross the aisle
With her briefcase open, nigh on 90 miles
She never even noticed that lake back at Horseshoe Bend

And that couple with the kids at the front of the car
Fussing all the way 'bout some cookie jar
I'm gonna ask them what they saw at their journey's end

And there's a fellow I left sitting in the back
Keeps a smile on his face through a paper sack
Looking out the window, but he can't see past the pain

And the train keeps rolling (the train keeps rolling)
And the world keeps turning (the world keeps turning)
All aboard, all aboard
Everybody's gotta get on board 🪕🎻
 
Don Quixote – Afrobeat

Sweet Mother (Spotify) - Prince Nico Mbarga & Rocafil Jazz (Nigeria)
I’ve had a King, a Sir, and now a Prince on my list. “Sweet Mother” is often referred to Africa’s Anthem, and has been voted the most popular African song. It is more straight highlife than Afrobeat, but, as I’ve mentioned, I’m not limiting to strictly Afrobeat music. Below is article about the life of Prince Nico Mbarga and Sweet Mother.


It was a love song from a son to a mother that, in its old-fashioned way, never actually once says “I love you.” Instead, it’s a grateful son praising what his mother did for him as a child: drying his tears, putting him to bed, feeding him, praying when he’s ill:

When I dey hungry my mother go run up and down / she dey find me something when I go chop oh! / Sweet Mother a-aah / Sweet Mother oh-e-oh!

And if “Sweet Mother” was dedicated to all mothers and the things they do for children, it was inspired by the loving sacrifices Mbarga saw his own mother, a widowed farmer, make after his father died. The lyrics began, “Sweet Mother, I no go forget you, for dey suffer wey you suffer for me.”…

And what was the reason for its success? Certainly, with its Congolese guitar-picking, its West African highlife beat and its pidgin lyrics, “Sweet Mother” had something for people all over.

Yet even beyond that, perhaps what it really caught was differing shades of Africa at the time. For, by the 1970s, these were societies that – after the profound changes wrought first by colonialism, then by the liberation movements that challenged it, and finally by the mixed records of those same movements once in power – had reason to feel both excited and uneasy at the new continent these encounters had created. It was a creative tension at the heart of “Sweet Mother.” In its style, with its hybrid English and its electric guitars calling its listeners to dance, it was unquestionably modern; but in its content, with its heartfelt praise for the nurturing role of mothers, “Sweet Mother” nodded to a more traditional life. It was a contradiction that Mbarga embodied himself. He was a man who would later, in “Green Revolution,” bemoan the flight of the sons and daughters of the land for the lure of the city – singing, “let’s go farming, and be self-sufficient!” – while he himself performed on stage in Nigeria’s biggest towns in his famous three-inch platform shoes. As his best friend Ojong would say, “He’s a blender.”

Or perhaps it was just a great tune…
 
#13 songs

Yambag – Metal songs from 1988-1992 that became the gateway into the world of music for a young Yambag

Last - Nine Inch Nails
Summary: Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1988 by Trent Reznor. They have sold over 20 million records and been nominated for 13 Grammy Awards, winning for the songs "Wish" in 1992 and "Happiness in Slavery" in 1996. Trent is also still very much involved with producing and scoring many video games and movies and has won academy awards, golden globes, grammys and an emmy.

Times Seen Live in Concert: 0 (hoping to go this summer)

Personal Connection: This is one of the main reasons I wanted to include 1992 in my 5-year timeline. Nine Inch Nail’s 1992 Broken is one of my favorite albums ever. While I was not a stereotypical angry teen, this album always gave me some sort of catharsis listening to it. Fun fact was that it was recorded in the house where Charles Manson’s “family” murdered Sharon Tate. As I discovered the band with this album, it was quite a shock to then go back and listen to Pretty Hate Machine, a more synth-based musical style. I followed them for many years and to this day wish is one of the two bands I wish I had seen live.

Other songs to consider: Happiness in Slavery
 
kupcho1 – rain

Who'll Stop The Rain - Creedence Clearwater Revival
Now that we're past Creedence Clearwater Revival and Led Zeppelin, I will spoil things a little bit by saying I did not include the same artist more than once in my countdown.

Who'll Stop The Rain is from the 1970 release Cosmo's Factory. It was only a few years in to music's evolution from a singles-based medium to album oriented. And while there were a lot of good albums to come out in 1970 (Velvet Underground, Neil Young, Traffic, The Kinks, just to name a few, all had notable releases), I think CCR's release was the best of the bunch. In addition to the song I selected, Cosmo's Factory also had Travelin Band, Lookin' Out My Back Door (I alway's wondered why there's an apostrophe in one and not the other), Run Through The Jungle and Up Around The Bend.

Just Fantastic.

Long as I remember, the rain been coming down
Clouds of mystery pouring, confusion on the ground
Good men through the ages, trying to find the sun

And I wonder, still I wonder
Who'll stop the rain
 
13. You're Much Too Soon
Artist: Daryl Hall & John Oates
Album: War Babies (1974)
Todd's role(s): producer, engineer, guitar, backing vocals
Writer(s): Daryl Hall

The song: Daryl Hall and John Oates were from Philadelphia. So was Todd Rundgren. Daryl Hall and John Oates love soul music. So does Todd Rundgren. When they teamed up to make the duo's third album War Babies, you'd think soul, Philly soul in particular, would dominate the proceedings. But it's mostly absent except on one song, "You're Much Too Soon." But what a song it is. Most of the song is lilting and breezy and would fit in with the kinds of things Gamble and Huff were doing over at Philly International, but the chopping chords and cowbell that come in the first instrumental passage suggest something different is at work, and the vocal arrangement from 2:45 until the end is one long burst of orgasmic glory.

In keeping with the odd decisions surrounding this album (see below), this song was not released as a single.

The album: Daryl Hall & John Oates are household names now but were not in 1974. (And don't you dare refer to them as Hall & Oates: They have always insisted that the name of their act is Daryl Hall & John Oates.) Their first two albums produced one minor hit ("She's Gone," which did not become a major hit until it was re-released in 1976) and their label Atlantic Records had no idea what to do with them.

So the duo decided to switch producers from Arif Mardin to Rundgren for War Babies and to make a darker, more densely produced and harder-rocking record than their first two. In retrospect, the decision "didn't make sense," Hall told Mojo in 2005. "But 'She's Gone' wasn't a real hit until 1975 [sic], so we had no reason to stay put. People talk about [their 1973 album] Abandoned Luncheonette as this groundbreaking album, but we felt like an obscurity at the time. Why not take a chance? War Babies was the first and most extreme example [of putting their soul influences in different contexts]. Taking something familiar, and heading to Mars. And sometimes Mars is a good place, and sometimes a cold place. That album represents both."

Fun fact: On a Live from Daryl's House episode, Hall said that George Martin was interested in producing the duo's third album, but they decided to go with Rundgren instead. Oops.

Two other elements were at work here. One, the duo had opened for David Bowie on the U.S. dates of his Ziggy Stardust tour and came away impressed with what could be accomplished with glam rock. "We sounded very musical and grounded, and he came on like Godzilla," Hall told Mojo. "We realized we could kick *** a lot harder." Two, Rundgren had entered his prog phase and was itching to experiment with more expansive and experimental sounds, both on his own records and those of others. "He has a very urban New York electronic thing," Hall told Sounds in 1976. "We couldn't think of anyone else who could actually simulate what a monitor beam sounds like when it scans, or portray that visual image on a record." (Oh yes, and one track, "Screaming Through December," has a bona fide jazz-rock fusion instrumental in the middle of it.)

The duo were "possibly chafing at the idea that they only would be able to do one kind of music," Rundgren told Record Collector in 2015. "So coming into the record that became War Babies, the material already had an experimental and exploratory quality. They were on the cusp of deciding what direction to go in and War Babies gave them all kinds of opportunities and places that they wouldn't go later!" He said the record was meant to convey what it was like to grow up in the nuclear age, and also touched on themes of paranoia that comes from incessant touring.

With recording taking place at Rundgren's own studio, the duo and their producer were able to craft the sounds they wanted over two months with enough time to experiment however they pleased, both musically and drug-wise. In addition to Hall, Oates and Rundgren (who played many of the guitar parts), performers included Utopia bassist John Siegler and future Utopia drummer John "Willie" Wilcox, who had performed on the Abandoned Luncheonette tour and met Rundgren for the first time at these sessions.

Atlantic was baffled by War Babies -- they thought Rundgren was going to give them Something/Anything? and he gave them A Wizard, A True Star -- and the duo's manager Tommy Mottola -- future boss of Columbia Records and spouse of Mariah Carey -- thought it was the death knell for their career. The album stalled at #86 on the Billboard charts, which was actually higher than what the first two records did, and the Oates-penned single "Can't Stop the Music" -- which bears similarities to the title track of Rundgren's 1975 album Initiation -- did not chart. Contemporary reviews were overwhelmingly negative, and Oates hates the record to this day. But time has been kinder, especially in the minds of people who like it for what it is, which is essentially a bonus prog-era Todd Rundgren album.

"It was a great album," Hall said in the liner notes of a compilation of the band's Atlantic recordings. "But it wasn't really ours."

War Babies caused Atlantic to give up on Daryl Hall & John Oates, which turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to the duo's career. They moved to RCA, a label that knew what to do with them and how to promote them, and enjoyed a decade and a half of major hits, starting with "Sara Smile" the very next year.

The careers of Hall, Oates and Rundgren would intersect again over the years. Hall and Oates are among the cavalcade of guest stars who show up to sing on the "Hello It's Me" finale of Todd's 1979 live album Back to the Bars. Rundgren plays guitar on two tracks on the duo's 1978 album Along the Red Ledge (which also included guest guitarists Robert Fripp, George Harrison and Rick Nielsen.) Todd recorded two episodes of Live from Daryl's House with Hall, one at Daryl's house in upstate New York and one at Todd's house in Hawaii. And Hall and Rundgren toured together in 2022. In addition, John Siegler returned to play bass for the duo in 1979 and 1980; you can see him in the performance-based videos for four songs from the hit album Voices.

You Might Also Like: The super-spacey "Is It a Star" is the yacht rockers like you've never heard them before. https://open.spotify.com/track/3JtmKRoCBogkIn6P79Qq7n?si=f206828a840b4d7e

Rundgren covered this song on the (re)Production album. https://open.spotify.com/track/2ew3Rcks4ysIY77UK1KuSk?si=5ce1e743cc82447a

"Can't Stop the Music" and "Is It a Star" are linked together via a drum machine, and the best way to experience that on digital media is with this Youtube file: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1cSyBJvQ8I

At #12, an artist that didn't like the production of their first three albums -- and ended up not liking Todd's production of their fourth album either. But as on War Babies, he did produce a Something/Anything?-caliber track.
 
jwb – songs that sound great on a decent 2-channel system

Spirit in the Night – Bruce Springsteen

This one is all about the sax.

This is where Clarence Clemons enters the E-Street Band. The story is essentially Bruce had already recorded his debut album, but the record executives felt there were no commercial singles. Bruce and Clarence were starting to hang around together, so when the record execs wanted a little more, Bruce wrote and recorded two more songs. Most of his band had dispersed and were doing other projects, so it was essentially Bruce playing most of the instruments except the drums and piano, and of course the sax, which he brought his new friend in to play, thinking it would add a missing element to his sound. The two songs were Blinded by the Light and this one. I guess you could say they were hits lol.

The sax in this song is fantastic, and really sets the mood. I also like the little rolling drum fills in the background and the piano, but really give the sax a good long listen - to me, it's almost like a second vocalist.
 
jwb – songs that sound great on a decent 2-channel system

Spirit in the Night – Bruce Springsteen

This one is all about the sax.

This is where Clarence Clemons enters the E-Street Band. The story is essentially Bruce had already recorded his debut album, but the record executives felt there were no commercial singles. Bruce and Clarence were starting to hang around together, so when the record execs wanted a little more, Bruce wrote and recorded two more songs. Most of his band had dispersed and were doing other projects, so it was essentially Bruce playing most of the instruments except the drums and piano, and of course the sax, which he brought his new friend in to play, thinking it would add a missing element to his sound. The two songs were Blinded by the Light and this one. I guess you could say they were hits lol.

The sax in this song is fantastic, and really sets the mood. I also like the little rolling drum fills in the background and the piano, but really give the sax a good long listen - to me, it's almost like a second vocalist.
Love the Big Man.
 
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This is where Clarence Clemons enters the E-Street Band.
One of my favorite stories came from an interview on ESPN Radio of former Jets RB Emerson Boozer who played college football with Clarence (Clemons was actually drafted by the Dallas Cowboys but a preseason car accident ended his career).

After Boozer lost touch with Clemons he ran into him randomly on the streets of NYC one day. Boozer asked Clemons if he was still playing his horn and Clarence got all excited responding “Yes, and I found myself a blue eyed white boy that’s gonna make me rich”.
 
Maybe the most played song on KROQ ever.


"Never Say Never" is a 1982 song by the new wave band Romeo Void. One of their best-known songs, "Never Say Never" was a favorite on early MTV, featuring a black-and-white music video that spoofs Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless. The song is driven by a throbbing, funky bassline and punctuated by jagged guitar and saxophone, incorporating post-punk influences. The song reached #17 on the Billboard Dance / Disco chart chart on the 27th of March, 1982.

Originally released on an EP through 415 Records, "Never Say Never" was re-recorded for the band's second album and major label debut, Benefactor. The album version is more radio friendly, cutting the song's length almost in half and removing expletives.



 
World’s Worst Superheroes #13

The Rubberband Man

Artist - The Spinners (1976)

Strengths - knows how to do lots of cool things with rubber bands - extreme accuracy when shooting them across a room, that annoying thing when he smacks your leg with one, tying a bunch together to create a catapult from office supplies, he even won second place at the science fair for creating a rubber band-propelled boat made out of a milk carton; this dude is outta sight - everything he does seems to come out right!

Weaknesses - no, he’s not made of plastic like Mister Fantastic, Elastigirl, or Plastic Man - that would be pretty cool; tends to be very annoying and gets in trouble at school and work a lot


There Goes My Hero

Situation
- you are the top salesman and assistant regional manager assistant to the regional manager at a mid-size regional paper wholesaler. You are attempting to collate and assemble sales packages for your most important clients, but your arch-nemesis co-worker continues to annoy you.

You: “Excellent! All the materials are printed out and perfectly in order. I just need to attach all the papers together and I’m ready to hit the road. Oh hey Jim, you look very handsome today.”

Rubberband Man: [fixes cheap glasses and adjusts his brown tie over olive short-sleeved shirt] “Question - what bear is best? And I told you to call me Rubberband man!” [shoots rubber band at your head] “Bears! Beets! Battlestar Gallactica!”

You: [dodging incoming rubber bands] “Hey! Knock that off! Stop bugging me - I’m trying to work!”

You look for your stapler to get your sales packages together but can’t find it. You open your desk drawer and see your stapler completely molded in jello.

You: “Dammit Rubberband Man! I know you did this!”

RBM: [smiles at you while flirting with the admin assistant and bouncing a ball made of rubber bands that must have taken months to create] “Why don’t you use one of these to pull everything together?” [flings another barrage in your direction]

You: “Ow, stop it! I’ll just use paper clips instead.”

You search everywhere, but can’t find your paper clip cup anywhere. You ultimately look in the break room and find that all your office supplies have been placed in the vending machine.

You: “I hate you, Rubberband Man! Michael!!!”

RBM: [looks directly at camera with his typical smug look on his face, theme music plays]
 
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El Floppo – Mallet Rock

Untitled #1 - Vaka - Sigur Ros
#13

Out of the 80s and into the Aughts. A band that always has a lot of sounds and musicians (there's another band with similarities coming up)... Pretty sure they have other tracks using mallets, but I love this tune. Didn't know they were singing hopelandic (made up gibberish) for a long time.

glockenspiel gets used as an accompaniment to the piano lead.. so not exactly featured as previous tunes but still an integral, albeit backing part to a lovely song.
 
13. Western Swing and Waltzes - Colter Wall

When you're out in Calgary, Alberta, and the going gets lonely on the ranch, you head into town to hear some music and maybe get a smile from a pretty woman. Following in the tradition of the great Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys from the thirties, who played swing band techniques with fiddles, guitars, and drums, Wall plays some steel guitar to a swing beat in waltz time while describing life on the range. Time to look across the floor and ask somebody for a dance. It's Western Swing, folks, and it's almost as old as swing itself.
 

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