Songs You Forgot About
You know what I love?
You.
That's right. You, sitting right there wherever you are, waiting on the edge of your eager little ass to help me out.
Because the caption contest submissions were so fantastic, I'm going to go back to the well. I am going to spin the little crank handle and lower my bucked down into you, fantastic readers, and let you do the work for me.
(This is, of course, in no way related to the fact that my dissertation is due in less than forty-eight hours and I am so emotionally and mentally fragile that I actually titled my final chapter, "Indians and Settlers and Irish, Oh My! Parody of Ownership and Aggression in Nineteenth-Century Melodrama," a title which several sources confirmed was brilliant but which my questionably responsible advisor dismissed as "glib." My brain is a little fried. That I have typed this much without complete syntactical breakdown is nothing short of a muffin dandy tree face monkey.)
So what I need from you, dear reader, is a nice lively discussion on the subject of:
Music!
Specifically: I have always thought that if I could get in a time machine and go back to the days when people actually made mixes, it would be fun to make a mix entirely of forgotten songs. These are not obscure hits by bands you've never heard of, but rather the 9th or 10th song on the album by your favorite band that you really love, but that never gets played on the radio, at parties, etc. These sadly neglected works of genius need some attention, so I leave it to you to add to my list:
"In God's Country," U2, The Joshua Tree
"Rain King," Counting Crows, August and Everything After
"King of Birds," R.E.M., Document
"Same Thing," Barenaked Ladies, Born on a Pirate Ship
"The Maestro," Beastie Boys, Check Your Head
"This Ain't Livin'," G. Love and Special Sauce, G. Love and Special Sauce
"Come Downstairs and Say Hello," Guster, Keep it Together
"Dead," They Might Be Giants, Flood
Please, if you like, provide justification for your submissions. I'm going to decline to do so, partly because I like to think that these songs speak for themselves, but mostly because of the muffin dandy tree face monkey thing, which is kind of making me reconsider my caffeine intake.
posted by Tyler @ 6:37 PM
10 comments
10 Comments:
No. I defy your attempt to continue your blog's slow slide into user contributed content mediocrity. You create the content. I read it and am amused. You dance for me, monkey. Understand? Dance monkey! Dance!
Uh oh, looks like somebody's asking for me to post pages and pages of my dissertation.
Don't make me angry, anonymous. I'll do it. I swear I will. I'm on the edge, maaaaannnn...
4 Words...... Yodelin' in tha Valley
Arright, Smith. I'm up to your challenge:
"We Can Work It Out," The Beatles, originally released as a single (so maybe this song isn't THAT forgotten, but it's certainly underrated and underplayed. Most overrated Beatles song: "All You Need is Love". Gag.)
"Braille," Regina Spektor, 11:11
"Pure and Easy," The Who, Who's Next
"Sweet Dreams," Tori Amos (shut up, I know), not released on CD
"Shanti/Ashtangi," Madonna, Ray of Light (it's entirely in Hindi, and another one of Madge's obnoxious attempts to reinvent herself as some kind of New Age-y spiritual figure, but the melody is pretty)
"Little Martha," The Allman Brothers Band, Eat a Peach (not EXACTLY "forgotten," but I never hear this one on the radio and I don't know why)
"So Pure," Alanis Morissette, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie
These "reader participation" blorrrg entries are fun but also fall under the category of "Procrastination Traps of Death". If my grades suffer this semester, I'm blaming you.
P.S.--Don't listen to your questionably responsible advisor. You know what I think.
I am with the anonymous and shadowy figure. You write, I read. Entertain me! As for my participation, you know that I cannot see this subject and not respond, but it will have to wait until I get home. Bastard.
Also, I move to strike all Tori Amos submissions. Chad's roommate freshman year was an up and coming Amway salesman who listened to nothing but Tori.[shudders] Though "Cornflake Girl" isn't terrible all of the time.
Also, would you classify Tori Amos as one of those 95% certain signs that your child is at least depressed if not more likely on drugs? I figure if I find that my kids have pulled out my old Cure or Smiths CDs, then I will need to seriously alter my parenting style. Lord knows we don't need any more people like me running around.
I told you not to f*** with me!
...burlesque was humorous and topical both in its target and in its references. It contained no overtly offensive material or controversial political or cultural commentary, and those jabs that it did make were largely in good fun. The Bowery Boys could scoff at the mocking of Macready’s intellectual snobbery while the business-class and social elite could enjoy the exploitation of the specific foibles of an actor with whom they were happily familiar. Unlike opera parody, however, there was no need for the level of technical excellence with regards to the musical aspects of the production. While opera parody targeted a specific and culturally contested genre of theatre, Shakespeare parody targeted a theatrical quantity that was not yet overtly problematic or contested.
Historically speaking, the dual purpose of Shakespeare parody is well demonstrated by Macbeth Travestie. One of the earliest Shakespeare burlesques written in America, Northall’s play is an excellent starting point from which to measure national perception of both the bard and his parodies. As a mirror for the status of Shakespeare, its mockery of Macready’s intellectual, aristocratic, elevating attitude reflects the beginnings of a strain that would grow increasingly problematic. The degree to which this mockery was deliberately subtle – ideologically covert to the point of being nearly inert – demonstrates that the issue of Shakespeare’s status...
Re: "Louis"
You're right. Most of my Tori Amos-listening teenage years were spent in a sullen, rebellious, bipolar daze...that, or they were spent attending youth group, singing in show choir, and making the honor roll. It's a struggle to remember which, though, because of all the drugs.
That being said: yeah, Tori Amos is a weirdo. And re: The Amway Salesman Roommate...when guys claim to be Tori fans, it's always like, "...I see." That's a little strange.
Yes, "Cornflake Girl" is fantastic.
A delicious break from potatoes!!!!
In response to Barenaked Ladies "Same Thing" (I love the cadence of the verses here, feels free form but is so syncopated its almost percussive.)
I will put 3 songs from BNL that most probably don't know but should
1) I live with it Everyday (If only for the part, "The laugh lines on your face."
2) Spider in my room (possibly the greatest intro to any BNL song ever. Really shows their breadth. Unfortunately this was from their early days, and they've lost touch with this world.)
3) Blame it on Me (Milli Vanilli told you to blame it on the rain but if you blame it on the rain tell me what can be gained...)
So, I haven't really been keeping up on Tyler's blogging lately - busy with moving - but this is too interesting to pass up:
Moby Dick - Led Zep II - I think this is the only song on that album that doesn't get any radio play. While I realize that this is about 50% drum solo, the intro/outro groove is too unstoppable to ignore. If I ever decide to become a rap producer, I am absolutely going to use that groove as the bedrock for my first multi-platinum single.
Rats - Pearl Jam's Vs. - Again, this is a groove-driven song. That strange, stacato-stutter bass in the intro is one of my favorite moments of this entire album. Also, Pearl Jam usually couldn't find a serious groove with both hands and a flashlight, but on this track they show what a summer of co-headlining with the Chili Peppers can do for you.
Europa and the Pirate Twins - Thomas Dolby's The Golden Age of Wireless - OK, so a song from the same album as a one-hit wonder may/may not qualify as a forgotten fav, but a really good song: boy and girl meet as kids on vacation, 9 years later she becomes a star, they never meet again. For some reason, I find this song compelling.
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