...Well, it's a better title than "CD Update 2," right...?
Here at KTAD, we strive 2 play nothing but the very best upbeat oldies & off-the-wall weird stuff 4 yer working hours. Along with the usual Motown, Bare Naked Ladies, Ronettes & Phil Spector-produced oldies, this weekend's playlist looked something like this:
Lighthouse -- Sunny Days, One Fine Morning.
Sly -- Thank You Falletinme etc.
Pogues -- If I Should Fall from Grace with God, Lorelei, Thousands are Sailing.
Nektar -- Cast Your Fate, King of Twilight, Fidgety Queen.
Squeeze -- ARGYBARGY: Pulling Mussels from the Shell, Another Nail in My Heart, Separate Beds, Misadventure, I Think I'm Go-Go, If I Didn't Love You, Farfisa Beat, Here Comes That Feeling, Vicky Verky, Wrong Side of the Moon, There at the Top.
The Jam -- Strange Town, When You're Young, Eton Rifles, That's Entertainment, Funeral Pyre.
Caravan -- Memory Lain/Hugh/Headloss, Be All Right, A Hunting We Shall Go....
Tommy James and the Shondells -- I Think We're Alone Now, Mirage, Baby Baby I Can't Take it No More, Mony Mony, Sweet Cherry Wine, Ball of Fire.
Todd Rundgren -- We Gotta Get You a Woman, I Saw the Light, Couldn't I Just Tell You, Just One Victory, A Dream Goes on Forever, Real Man, The Very Last Time, Bang the Drum All Day.
Comments? Well, 1 20-something who claimed he played bass 4 jazz & R&B groups had 2 ASK ME 2 identify Sly.... Another youngster said he liked my music choice while The Jam's "That's Entertainment" was playing -- that track really IS a bitter all-acoustic classic. I've found that "Funeral Pyre" has also gained power & grimness from playing in public. & "Strange Town" I hereby nominate as Port Orchard's Official Theme Song....
Played Lighthouse's "Sunny Days" Bcos Sat was 1 of the prettiest days we've had here this Spring, sunny & near 80 degrees. Nektar's "Fidgety Queen" is still a 4gotten heavy-rock classic, but the CD version of the formerly-killer "King of Twilight" seems a bit trebly.
Started playing Squeeze 4 the great "Pulling Mussels," then couldn't stop. The ARGYBARGY album gains in charm & bounciness when played in public on a CD player with some actual BASS. The runner-up trax on this CD sound much better now: "Another Nail," "Misadventure," "If I Didn't Love You," Jools Holland's great "Wrong Side of the Moon," even the formerly-drab "There at the Top."
Caravan sounds as great as ever, with the driving "Memory Lain" & the locomotive-like power of "Be All Right," & the zap&pow effects of the early parts of "Hunting" -- the orchestra really adds a lot 2 the sweeping final section.
Tommy James still sounds great, especially on the wondrous, spectral "Sweet Cherry Wine" & "Mirage." Folks looking at TJ's DEFINITIVE COLLECTION 4 possible purchase might want 2 know that the mixes of some singles sound significantly diffrent -- the great "Ball of Fire" especially is about 30+ seconds longer, & the CD really highlights the bubbly keyboards in "Mirage" & the shimmery guitar in "Baby Baby"....
All Todd's best still sound great, especially "Couldn't I" & "Dream" & the high-tech "Real Man," even the bitter "Very Last Time." "Bang the Drum" is still a great silly singalong.
Hoping 2 add more weirdness in the days ahead. Can't wait 2 inflict Weather Report's live "Boogie Woogie Waltz" on summa my nitetime customers -- they'll love it!
...Oh, & regarding the Bare Naked Ladies (you got the list of trax in my last installment) -- I still think they R WAY underrated: Great song construction, killer hooks, high memorability, lotsa layers of tunes & meaning (try "In the Car," "I'll Be That Girl," "Light Up My Room"), the instrumentation is amazing, & their lyrics R often hilarious. But they're a lot more than just a comedy group. When they swing in2 something that's sincere & heartfelt (like the amazing "What a Good Boy"), the impact is that much heavier Bcos of the contrast with their lighter stuff. Their STUNT album has maybe 2 weak trax outta 15. & tho their GREATEST HITS is a lot more scattered, it's still well worth investigating....
...On a personal note, gotta LOT of work done around the house on Mon: Mowed the lawn, washed the dishes, took out the trash, unloaded a pickup-load-full of brush-garbage. It's amazing what a little sunshine will do. Hope you're getting some where you're at....
More soon....
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1 comment:
Hey Tad
As much as The Barenaked Ladies are highly thought of, I have their best of to which I continue to forget that I have in my collection. Stunt was by far their biggest selling album (It's All Been Done or One Week got oodles of airplay in 1990s) my fave is Shoebox to which I went out and got Born on A Pirate Ship and never got into.
Todd Rundgren always made hooky singles but some of his albums are bombastic at best (A Wizard/True Star) although the Runt albums have fun stuff with We Gotta Get You A Woman, I'm in The Clique and Long Time, Long Way To Go). Something/Anything remains a hard listen for me although I did locate a cheap 2 CD set at Goodwill and found it better with each listen. Bang The Drum All Day is stupid fun.
As for Sly, he made some of the greatest singles and then pissed everybody off with There's A War Goin On but I find it charming more than Fresh or Dance To The Music the album which plays that song to death is other versions. Too much paranoia and drugs ruined him after Fresh since most of the albums showed him either uninterested or trying too hard. Such a shame really but Sly is doing fine with the royalties from radio playing those singles we all grew up with.
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