Count On My Love - Liz Phair

Count On My Love - Liz Phair

3:41

Somebody's Miracle, 2005

Written by Liz Phair and John Shanks

I was a huge, huge Liz Phair fan back in the day, but I pretty much stopped listening after four albums.  The fourth, the self-titled one, while not terrible, was comparatively a disappointment compared to the shock, awe, and pure genius of her first three.  The little I've heard that followed did not make me want to investigate further.  This song is fine enough, an indie rock love song, smooth and polished, with Phair's thin vocals sounding tired.  She's never been a technically great vocalist, but on her early albums, she used that quaver in her voice to produce a raw, fierce sound, and belted out ferocious lyrics.  The words here, in contrast, are basic and simple.  "You can count on my love / An umbrella when it's raining."  A far cry from "Flower."

Crackin' Up - Bo Diddley

Crackin' Up - Bo Diddley

2:03

Go Bo Diddley, 1959

Written by Bo Diddley

The narrator of this song has been mistreated by his woman!  Now normally in a song like that, especially from this era, it means the lady in question has snubbed him.  But in this case, he really is being mistreated.  She's hollering at him, screaming, stealing his money!  And he does so much for her.  "I used to do your cookin', your laundry too / Now what more for a woman could a man like me do?"  I'm with Bo here!  That's progressive!  Why are you yelling at poor Bo?  This is pure Diddley beat, with some echo and reverb, giving it a full sound.  It's simple, but it's the groundwork of rock.

Coquet Coquette - Of Montreal

Coquet Coquette - Of Montreal

3:44

False Priest, 2010

Written by Kevin Barnes

Baroque indie-pop with a funk flavor.  The typical Barnes sexy come-on lyrics are on display here, a sort of poetic Prince.  "Coquet coquette, you know I won't forget / How you made me cry to prove I was beautiful / Oh, my coquet, my teenage lust for you is so pitiful."  Dramatic guitar stings and a thunderous percussion punctuate his high tenor as he delineates this beautiful breakup, or whatever it is.

Classical Gas - Mason Williams

Classical Gas - Mason Williams

3:04

The Mason Williams Phonograph Record, 1968

Written by Mason Williams

What's with that title?  The song was originally named "Classical Gasoline," as in metaphorical "fuel" for the classical guitar repertoire.  It peaked on the charts at number two, behind the Doors' "Hello, I Love You."  Those were the days when the charts were more organic and had a lot of variety, and music was warm and real and the streets were paved with gold.  This is an orchestral pop based around fingerpicked guitar, with lush arrangements and rhythmic urgency.  There are even hints of what would later be called disco (some of more intense flourishes on this song would be at home on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack).   

Come Out And Play - Hayseed Dixie

Come Out And Play - Hayseed Dixie

2:52

Grasswhoopin' Party Pack, Vol. 1, 2013

Written by Dexter Holland, 1994

This brings back memories.  The year was 1994.  Dookie was dominating music on TV.  The Offspring released this song and we all sat around on the couch, much like in Green Day's brilliant classic "Longview," watching the video, bemused and hesitantly disdainful.  Was this song a bit racist?  Was this a case of a young neo-con-cum-punk making remarks about the violent crime rate of certain demographics?  "Your never-ending spree of death and violence and hate / Is gonna tie your own rope."  Is that a racist trope or a stock image from the genre?  Later, "Get a Job" would further enhance these suspicions.  Anyhoo, Hayseed Dixie does a great job with this song.

Chirac en prison - Les Wampas

Chirac en prison - Les Wampas

2:55

Rock 'n' roll Part 9, 2006

Written by Les Wampas

A very pop-indie track from a punk band, with an uptempo go-go beeping melody and "yeah yeah" type background vocals.  It concerns a man whose friend really wants Chirac to go to prison.  "La seule chose qui lui ferait plaisir / Ce serait de voir Chirac en prison." Predictably the song was banned and censored, which makes these guys punk no matter how pop their songs might be.  Another song of theirs criticizes Manu Chao, the leader of Mano Negra whose song "It's My Heart" was covered on this blog.

Billy And Bonnie - Steve Earle

Billy And Bonnie - Steve Earle

3:38

I Feel Alright, 1996

Written by Steve Earle

A modern "Bonnie and Clyde," an outlaw "Jack and Diane" from that most take-no-nonsense outlaw of alt-country pioneers.  "So they knocked off a Texaco south of town / Blew down the highway with the ragtop down."  It's a tale as old as the highway itself, ground Springsteen has traveled as well.  "Now Billy wasn't sweatin' no APB / 'Cause they didn't leave a single soul alive to see."  Earle's lyrics have always been storylike and cinematic; this song could be turned into a movie; there's even a twist.

Big Me - Foo Fighters

Big Me - Foo Fighters

2:13

Foo Fighters, 1995

Written by Dave Grohl

A catchy indie pop-rock song off the Foos' debut.  It's a lot more pop-oriented than the typical, more aggressive sound I think of them as having.  I was never into the Foos, although I don't dislike the music, either.  This song's lyrics are fairly recondite: "When I talk about it / It carries on / Reasons only knew."  I see.  Some commentators affirm that they're about a breakup and others citing passages suggesting it's about getting over Cobain's suicide.  They could both be true, I guess, as both are a kind of heartbreak and being left.   

Beatnik Beach - The Go-Go's

Beatnik Beach - The Go-Go's

2:53

Vacation, 1982

Written by Charlotte Caffey and Belinda Carlisle

After a machine-gun drum fill, the Go's launch into a surf-rock beach party.  Heavy on the 1950s and early 1960s imagery, the song celebrates simple good times like in those Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello movies.  It's a bit tongue in cheek but still all in good fun.  "Groove on that groovy beat / It'll be boss keen neat, yeah."  There's some deliberate genre-blending as the song calls out paisleys and black berets, the beatnik part of the equation, although a bit out of place on a beach.  Most obscure reference, utterly unknown today: "The Lloyd Thaxton Show."

Black And White World - Suicide Machines

Black And White World - Suicide Machines

1:52

Battle Hymns, 1998

Written by the Suicide Machines

Unfortunately, this is not the punk cover of the Elvis Costello song that we all want and need, but an original.  It's more fast-paced hardcore musically and snarling vocally than their typical ska-punk sound, but the new approach fits the theme of this song.  The lyrics are a good-intentioned, if somewhat ham-fisted, declaration against racism.  "Some persecute their brothers because of the color of their skin, oh yeah / Well that's wrong." Seems pretty on the nose, but the people who need to hear it aren't known for subtlety, anyway.

Bru's Boogie Woogie - Dave Brubeck Quartet

Bru's Boogie Woogie - Dave Brubeck Quartet

2:27

Time Further Out, 1961

Written by Dave Brubeck

This song's album is supposedly a jazz interpretation of a Miro painting called "Calculation."  You could have fooled me.  This song is a upbeat number that swings with energetic rhythm.  I especially like the machine-gun piano run around the middle of the piece.  I don't know the first thing about time signatures and don't understand what Brubeck is doing when he plays with them, but I really like the results. 

Greenbacks - Ray Charles

Greenbacks - Ray Charles

2:51

Ray Charles, 1957

Written by Renald Richard

The album this song is on is Charles' debut.  It was re-released in 1962 under the title Hallelujah I Love Her So.  This is a humorous story song.  Told in a half-spoken vocal, punctuated with a buzzy sax, it relates how the narrator met a lady who might be described as a gold-digger.  He's got money, but she wants more. "But look here, daddy, I wear furs on my back / So if you want to have fun in this man's land / Let Lincoln and Jackson start shaking hands."  So he gets out a few more greenbacks.  He thinks he'll have a great time with her, but of course these things don't always go as planned.

Little Green - Joni Mitchell

Little Green - Joni Mitchell

3:27

Blue, 1971

Written by Joni Mitchell

This song is about Mitchell's daughter, whom she gave up for adoption in 1965 (they later reunited).  This was not publicly known until someone who knew Mitchell in the 1960s sold the story, one that was clearly not hers to tell.  "So you sign all the papers in the family name / You're sad and you're sorry, but you're not ashamed / Little Green, have a happy ending."  This is not the kind of song I usually put on here; I like songs that are fun to listen to in the car.  This is raw and personal, but it is pretty.

Green Grass & High Tides - Outlaws

Green Grass & High Tides - Outlaws

9:51

Outlaws, 1975

Written by Hughie Thomasson

I had to consider a while before putting this song on here, because of its absurd length (which it reaches by including not one but two indulgent Southern-rock guitar noodling solos).  But then I thought, well, it's a classic, a very famous song, and I don't know about it.  And Thomasson's unique voice is quite engaging.  The title, an inverse of the famous Roling Stones greatest hits compilation, refers to rock legends gone too soon: "All my stars of love who died / Came from somewhere beyond the scene you see / These lovely people played just for me."  The line about "castles made of stone" might be a reference to Hendrix, another inverse to his gone-too-soon song about castles made of sand.

Green Light - Lorde

Green Light - Lorde

3:54

Melodrama, 2017

Written by Lorde, Jack Antonoff, and Joel Little

The narrator goes about her life after a breakup, still carrying baggage, hoping for that "green light" that will let her move on.  "'Cause honey I'll come get my things, but I can't let go / I'm waiting for it, that green light, I want it."  The lyrics are somewhat simple and threadbare, necessitating the kind of repetition that turns me off a song, typically.  But here, Lorde's vocal delivery is so intense and skilled as she switches up styles, first pleading and then in a staccato burst telling us how it's going to be, that it keeps me engaged throughout.  The bass, piano, handcaps and looping drums all give it a powerful push.

Forty Shades Of Green - Johnny Cash

Forty Shades Of Green - Johnny Cash

2:53

single, 1961

Written by Johnny Cash

A gentle, midtempo ballad that extols the places and geography of Ireland, as well as a certain lady that resides there.  "I miss the river Shannon / And the folks at Skibbereen / The moorlands and the meddle / With their forty shades of green / But most of all I miss a girl / In Tipperary town."  Obviously, it's a Cash song, but he makes it pretty authentic.  I could easily hear the Clancy Brothers doing this song.

Orange Colored Sky - Nat King Cole

Orange Colored Sky - Nat King Cole

2:34

single, 1950

Written by Milton Delugg and Willie Stein

In this song, the narrator is struck, quite literally, with love, as if by an epiphany, yea, like unto Saul on the road to Damascus."I was walking along, minding my business / when love came and hit me in the eye / Flash! Bam! Alakazam! / Out of an orange colored sky."  The song doesn't mention anything about the object of his affections.  Does he like her walk, her talk, her light brown hair, jeepers creepers, her peepers?  This is like Homer deliberately not describing Helen of Troy so the listener can use his imagination.

Open And Honest - Mighty Mighty Bosstones

Open And Honest - Mighty Mighty Bosstones

2:52

The Magic Of Youth, 2011

Written by Dicky Barrett, Joe Gittleman, and Kevin Lenear

I'm a fan of most anything the 'Tones record; I regard them as one of the best ska bands.  This is up there with their best songs, in my opinion.  In addition to the sharp horn section, it's got some rocking guitar licks.  And the lyrics are not only Barrett's usual avalanche of wordplay — he seems to love just playing with the sounds and senses of words — it's got a message of being genuine with each other.  "Let′s face what you're afraid of / To find out what we′re made of / In the process made aware / That there is nothing here worth fearing."

Old Becomes New - The Real McKenzies

Old Becomes New - The Real McKenzies

2:13

Off the Leash, 2008

Written by the Real McKenzies

I'm a sucker for fast Celtic punk with bagpipes!  It doesn't really matter what Paul McKenzie is singing — one of my favorites is about the Loch Ness Monster.  This song is a cry to carpe diem, a rumination on how the pendulum of time swings back and cultures refute then embrace the past.  "If you hang around long enough / You'll see that everything starts to rust / Then shine it all up til it's tip-top /And old becomes new again."  This belief, of course, is an old one, dating to even before Ecclesiastes ("there is nothing new under the sun").  Hey, that's what the song is saying!

Open the Door - Clive & Naomi

Open the Door - Clive & Naomi

2:09

single, 1965

Written by Duke Reid

This group recorded just two sides and virtually no information about them is available on the web.  The song is a typical rocksteady ska beat, with the male and female vocalists trading call-and-response verses.  It's midtempo, with a relaxed horn break in the middle.  The song itself is a droll argument, possibly of a newlywed couple, in duet form, with Clive demanding to come inside ("Your wicked doin' lock me outside / You will never live it to be my bride"), while Naomi is just as determined to keep him out ("You will never live to burst it down").

O-o-h Child - Nina Simone

O-o-h Child - Nina Simone

3:15

Here Comes the Sun, 1971

Written by Stan Vincent, 1970

Nina Simone is one fo the all-time great voices as well as one of the great interpreters.  This rendition of the Five Stairsteps classic doesn't change much, but I like to think that she adds a little ironic emphasis on the word "Someday" in "Someday, when the world's much brighter."  Nina was too somber and too much of a realist to swallow the hippie Shangri-la vision whole cloth.

Needles In the Camel's Eye - Brian Eno

Needles in the Camel's Eye - Brian Eno

3:11

Here Come the Warm Jets, 1974

Written by Brian Eno and Phil Manzanera

I wouldn't call this experimental, which is what you think of when you think of Eno.  I'd call it maybe glam pop.  Over a repeated and simple but effective major guitar riff, Eno's voice and synths blend into a hypnotic melody.  The lyrics are, as often with his collaborator David Byrne, apparently secondary and without much surface meaning.  "Why ask why? / For by the by and by / All mysteries are just more / Needles in the camel's eye."  Indeed, Wikipedia tells us, Eno has attempted to dissuade fans from reading too much into his words; he claims that the song "Needles in the Camel's Eye" was "written in less time than it takes to sing ... I regard [the song] as an instrumental with singing on it."  

Night Time Train - Dan Patlansky

Night Time Train - Dan Patlansky

2:43

True Blues, 2004

Written by Dan Patlansky?

Never heard of this South Africa artist.  This is a straight electric blues number with a catchy sing-along chorus.  The first verse seems to be about a tough life on the road, but the second verse is a bit more obscure: "You live in a dream with a head full of green / Lots of vibes coming on so strong."  Maybe a weed reference?  Well, Patlansky may not be a poet lurking among us, but this is a feel-good toe-tapping blues.  Ironic or not, I can see a mellow, happy crowd chanting "My life is easy" along with him.

Nobody But You Baby - Steve Miller Band

Nobody But You Baby - Steve Miller Band

4:05

Living in the 20th Century, 1986

Written by Steve Miller

Around this time, Miller was experimenting with keyboard and synthesizer, so this come-on of a song is pretty firmly set in its '80s era.  He also chooses to sing it in a higher register than normal, giving the whole a rather glossy, yacht-rock vibe. Some might see it as Miller trying to be futuristic, but to me it just seems tinny and synthetic, not as warm as his more guitar-oriented material.  But it's got an upbeat vibe and has a nice easy-listening melody.

Nuevo Laredo - Sir Douglas Quintet

Nuevo Laredo - Sir Douglas Quintet

2:41

Together After Five, 1970

Written by Doug Sahm

Another fun slice of Tex-Mex, slightly cajun, folk-rock from the Quintet.  Here, the narrator is smitten with a raven-haired senorita he espies "in a dimly lit cafe."  (This is an unusually common situation in popular song, from "El Paso" to "Down In Mexico.")  Anyhoo, it seems like a match made in a border town: "Sittin' on an old bar stool / Lookin′ like nobody's fool / Her heart was meant that she was going to go home with only me."  Just then, though, like in "Gimme Three Steps," a hulking fellow about an inch shorter than Bad, Bad Leroy Brown comes in and the narrator's hopes are shattered.  Así es la vida.

Nothing's Going To Happen - Tall Dwarfs

Nothing's Going To Happen - Tall Dwarfs

3:54

Three Songs, 1981

Written by Alec Bathgate and Chris Knox

I really love the Elf Power version of this song (it's more fierce and exuberant), but this is the original.  It's stripped-back, lo-fi, and has a slow, almost menacing tempo, and the song is quite dark and cynical, speaking to a general sense of alienation and ennui.  A primitive guitar riff, a shaken tambourine, some ghostly "la la la"s.  Perhaps, the narrator muses, at some point somewhere children might be entranced "Because of some beauty / That has not been altered, damned or pointed out / By the clumsy dark oafs that train them."  But then again... 

This Boy Is Exhausted - The Wrens

This Boy Is Exhausted - The Wrens

4:17

The Meadowlands, 2003

Written by Charles Bissell, Greg Whelan, Kevin Whelan, & Jerry MacDonald

A self-referential anthem.  Tired of being on the outs with record companies, no promotion for their record, tired of being told their sound isn't radio friendly.  Why not quit?  This boy is exhausted.  "But then once a while / We'll play a show / Then it makes it worthwhile."  But he "can't tell a hit from hell."  Soaring double guitars and powerhouse drumming belie the broken hopelessness of the lyrics.

Oogum Boogum Song - Brenton Wood

Oogum Boogum Song - Brenton Wood

3:06

Oogum Boogum, 1967

Written by Brenton Wood (as Alfred Smith)

There's always something that's new to you, no matter how much of an expert you are.  Despite nearly four decades of listening and learning about music, I had never heard of Wood until he died, yesterday.  Too bad.  An urgent, falsetto soul vocal makes this silly song ("When you wear your bell bottom pants / I just stand there in a trance") more than a novelty, despite the equally silly title.  After some funky piano and drum chords, Wood hits us with that out of sight vocal.  Go on with your bad self! 

Battleship Chains - Hindu Love Gods

Battleship Chains - Hindu Love Gods

3:08

Hindu Love Gods, 1990

Written by Terry Anderson, 1985

This song was written by the front man of a little-known band called Woods and made famous by the Georgie Satellites.  Woods released their own version in 1987.  I haven't heard either band's take on it, just this one.  Zevon's muscular vocals carry the day here.  Its lyrics consist of verse, chorus, same verse as before, chorus, same verse as before, chorus.  Super repetitive, but its catchiness helps.  There was just something magical about the collaboration of R.E.M. and Zevon and we're lucky to have it on wax.  Tape.  The cloud.

C'mon C'mon - The Von Bondies

C'mon C'mon - The Von Bondies

2:13

Pawn Shoppe Heart, 2004

Written by Jason Stollsteimer

After a few beats of surf guitar this song erupts into a super-catchy, rollicking swagger of a rock track.  The vocals are booming, the bass line is thumping, the chorus hooks into you and demands you sing along.  The quiet/loud approach is the Pixies, the lyrics are Danzig ("With my teeth locked down, I could see the blood / Of a thousand men who have come and gone").  This is the band's only successful single; they're best known for being produced by, and then punched by, Jack White.

After the War - Peter Breinholt

After the War - Peter Breinholt

4:30

single, 2024

Written by Peter Breinholt

I've never heard of this musician, but he's a recording artist based out of Salt Lake City who's been publishing music since 1993.  I was surprised to learn this, as I thought I heard a faint but distinct German or Nordic accent in his singing.  This song is the homecoming of a soldier at Christmastime, set after some unspecified war.  He is stunned, ebullient at what he sees, the town all covered in white and a choir singing.  It's a story song, an epic, chugging to a triumphant finish punched up with bells and horns.