Archive for the ‘Music’ Category
Months after I said I would write about “my favorite songs of all time,” here I go with my first post. I’m starting in no particular order, of course.
In 1995-1996, I used to listen to “Flipside Fifties,” a program on Bellevue Community College radio that played a mix of 50s and 60s rock ‘n’ roll and R&B. I was influenced by the music I heard on this program to eventually host a similar program in college, on WBAR. One night, I heard a song called “I’ll Bring It Home to You” by Carla Thomas (although I didn’t know it at the time), which was an “answer song” to Sam Cooke’s “Bring It on Home to Me.” I was so jazzed when I heard this song. I already loved Sam’s version and hearing Carla’s version was like hearing that someone else loved the same music, too. (I usually didn’t share the same musical tastes as my peers, so I had to make connections somewhere.)
Around 1998-1999, I thought about “I’ll Bring It Home to You,” having only heard it that one time, and wondered who sang the song, since I never caught who was the singer, nor was I sure what was the actual song title. In those days, I didn’t automatically consult the Internet. I did things the old-fashioned way. I went to the Tower Records at 4th and Broadway in lower Manhattan and went through every CD in the Oldies section. It took me about 3 hours. I looked through every CD song list, looking for something that would pop out to me. Nothing did, so the next day I went to the Tower Records at 66th and Broadway and went through their Oldies section. Many of the CDs I had already seen the day before, so I was able to look through them quicker. It took about an hour, but I got to Carla Thomas and saw that she had a song called “I’ll Bring It Home to You” and I thought, “That’s gotta be it!” And it was.
Point of this story? Well, that in some way my obsession with “I’ll Bring It Home to You” was really my way of expressing how much I love the song “Bring It on Home to Me.” The song evokes such visceral emotions of love, longing, and desperation in less than three minutes. I love the piano intro. The studio version is great, but after I heard the live version on One Night Stand: Sam Cooke Live From the Harlem Square Club, 1963, I felt transformed. I’m not a big fan of studio-released live recordings, but this album is so visual. When Sam tells the crowd to twist their handkerchiefs around during “Twistin’ the Night Away” or gives anti-domestic violence advice during “It’s All Right/For Sentimental Reasons,” I feel like I’m there in the audience. When the crowd sings “Yeah” during “Bring It on Home to Me,” I feel it brought home to me.
If you’re interested in more answer songs, WFMU has a spazzy collection of them, including a downloadable version of “I’ll Bring It Home to You.”
22 April 2008 – 1:00 AM
Posted in Music | Tags: Carla Thomas, Flipside Fifties, My Favorite Songs of All Time, Sam Cooke | No Comments »
I have this habit of wanting to find out trivial facts about the music I like. So, a site I find interesting is bmi.com. (You can also visit ascap.com, but I don’t spend as much time on there.)
For instance, did you know that “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy,” the song recorded by Kenny Chesney, had an alternate title of “My Cell Mate Thinks I’m Sexy“? I can imagine the lyrics to that version of the song.
“My cell mate thinks I’m sexy, I really turn him on…”
Country music probably would implode on itself if Kenny Chesney sang a song like that.
I also love that the alternate title for “Mama He’s Crazy” is “Mama She’s Lazy.”
29 May 2007 – 7:30 AM
Posted in Music | Tags: BMI, Kenny Chesney, song titles | No Comments »
Wilson Pickett, the crooner behind my favorite song of 2005, “634-5789 (Soulsville U.S.A.),” died yesterday. He was 64.
If I be a little bit late, I hope that you’ll understand…
19 January 2006 – 11:00 PM
Posted in Music | Tags: Wilson Pickett | No Comments »
I was searching around for guitar tabs of Catherine Wheel songs when I came across the Catherine Wheel Cover Compilation. The website has .mp3s of covers of Catherine Wheel songs that were originally collected with the intention of making a tribute album. I listened to quite a few of them, but mostly I find it difficult to listen to covers. I’m kind of fascinated by the cover of Goodbye by Evelyn Downing & Jamie Field, though. I can imagine myself back in college, in the student center or somewhere else collegey, listening to this woman sing the song, thinking, “Where do I know this song from?” The song might be followed by a spoken word performance.
I didn’t find a ska cover in the collection, but I didn’t listen to every song. That would be interesting. I think “Show Me Mary” would be a prime candidate for a ska cover.
Meanwhile, I’ve been listening to (and watching) Rob Dickinson’s live performance on KCRW incessantly. Damn fine renditions of his songs. I’ve always had a crush on Rob, too. In the liner notes of Fresh Wine For The Horses, he refers to “Dick Robinson” as a backing vocalist and string orchestra conductor. I like a sense of humor about those things.
The night drags on…
Rob has another live performance on NPR, too.
14 January 2006 – 8:00 PM
Posted in Music | Tags: Catherine Wheel, KCRW, Rob Dickinson | No Comments »
Last March, I thought I won the Twangin’ From Phoenix To L.A. box set by Duane Eddy on eBay for $18.42. Now, I knew that I should have been suspicious, as I have tried unsuccessfully to find this out-of-print 5 CD box set for less than $200. But, I have an unusually large amount of trust in eBay, so I bought it and hoped for the best.
After getting the run-around from the seller for weeks, I received the single CD If You Don’t, Somebody Else Will by Jimmy & Johnny. WTF, right?
So, I was disappointed, to say the least, and the seller gave me a refund after two months of more running around. But, there’s a whole crop of sellers who claim to be selling Twangin’ From Phoenix To L.A. when it’s actually If You Don’t, Somebody Else Will. Why? Most of them are those huge sellers who couldn’t bother to actually look at the title of what they’re selling. So, I looked at the UPC of my copy and there were two sets of numbers. It turns out that Bear Family used one set of numbers for both albums. Very confusing.
I e-mailed some sellers to change their listings, and some of them did. I get automated e-mails from eBay tracking sellers who list Twangin’ From Phoenix To L.A., and sometimes the real set is listed (and I’ve lost those auctions). Other times, it’s still If You Don’t, Somebody Else Will.
Well, the moral of the story is that if it looks too good to be true…you know the rest…
Maybe I should give Jimmy & Johnny a listen?
1 January 2006 – 12:00 PM
Posted in Music | Tags: Duane Eddy, eBay | No Comments »
