Elvis Costello - Sulphur to Sugarcane

ok, so this song has a touch of country in it, but in a very endearing way. Jules and I first heard this song when we saw Deckland McMannis at Summerfest this year, and the live version of this song was absolutely incredible which made me seek out this version. This one is still great, but doesn't hold a candle to that live version; but of course, great artists can do that, they can suck you in by referencing your town in their songs. So I fell for it. But it really was great. The song itself is perhaps a little long, but it's a lot of fun to sing along to; kind of a tour-du-sin and who knows how much of it is true, eh? Maybe Elvis is a player. "None of them as wild as I discovered in Columbus"

Waitin' on a sunny day - Bruce Springsteen

One of the highlights of the Bruce concert that Julie and I went to this past November was this song off the rising; Bruce actually brought a little kid up out of the audience to sing the refrain, which was pretty cool. This song has a great solid beat (thank you Max W.) and the usual wall of sound associated with Bruce and the E Street Band. All that, and it's just a fun song, it makes you want to sing along. It's kind of a pick me up. So check it out!

Weekly Top 20s

 So, it's been a while kids since we did a Weekly Top 20s, I'm falling behind! As you could probably figure out, the track I reviewed yesterday (I think, I love) is my most listened to track. Go figure.

I think, I love - Jamie Cullum - The Pursuit

As a big Jamie Cullum fan I'm pretty disappointed that this CD has been available in the UK and other places since November, and we can't get it here until March. I realize that's not all that far off, but it's been a while since I've heard any new material from him. To their credit iTunes does have about 5 of the tracks available spread across a couple of albums, so I was able to pick them up. I think, I love is one of those new tracks and I for one am a big fan. It's a soft, piano song that to my ear is reminiscent of many jazz standards, but it's really funny in that English humor sort of way, which is probably one of those things that I love about Jamie's style. Suffice to say, you know what I'll be doing on March 2nd, but in the meantime, you should check out this track.

Mr. Bitterness - Soul Coughing

This may in fact be my favorite Soul Coughing track (thank you Sarah); the drum work, and standard stream of consciousness lyrics appeal to me, what can I say? It's a great track, and if you haven't heard it, you're missing out. Soul Coughing, especially on their first album had a knack for injecting samples that really grabbed me. In another track they built a song around a famous looney tunes diddy. Overall it's a great album, but for me Mr. Bitterness has long been the standout track.

The Who - The Seeker

I love this track, and it's certainly not new, but I thought in honor of the Who's appearance at the Super Bowl I would pick a track that I believe should have made the lineup for that night. For me, this song is all about Townshend's guitar, it's so powerful throughout the song. That double rake he does across the guitar strings is like a riff in and of itself. Then the solo! I don't know what peddle he kicks on, but the almost country flair of the guitar was spot on for this track. I have a version by Rush, I don't think it even compares. Don't get me wrong, technically it's fine and I know people who would argue the technical superiority of Neil Peart over Keith Moon any day, but I think the Daltrey vocals are superior to Geddy Lee's in this case, and also don't really dig the way Lifeson handled the solo. Doesn't really flow like Townshend's.

Vampire Weekend - Ruby Soho

So this one isn't exactly fair in that you can't actually go purchase this track or anything. I found a version of Vampire Weekend covering Rancid's Ruby Soho. It's done in that VW style, but it's a great song; in my estimation the definition of a minimalist cover, soft vocals, dominate, driving drumming and sort of spacey ambient guitar. Look around for this track, you may be able to locate it. (it could be here) but that's not my link, so I make no guarantees.

Tell me Why - Neil Young

I've come to love this song; I was first introduced to it when I obtained the "After the Goldrush" album by Neil from Julie's Dad, and honestly, there isn't a bad track on the whole album for me. Most times I don't single out one track, I just listen to the album straight through, it is that good. There is something that stands out about Tell Me Why though and I don't know that I can explain what it is apart from to say that while I find something rather cryptic about the lyrics, I somehow still identify with the song itself. I recommend taking a listen for yourself to see what I mean.

The Weekly Top 20s

So I realized last night that I forgot to do my Top 20 charts this week; so for you viewing pleasure....

 You can see that this week was really dominated by Clapton, I guess I was just in that kinda mood this week, you know? Nothing else that appears on that list should be any surprise to anyone who knows me; lots of classic rock, with a splash of my "workin music" thrown in for good measure. Check out some of the individual tracks after the jump.

Fiona Apple & Nickel Creek - Tonight You Belong to Me

So today's post isn't so much a track that you can download; see I discovered a method of grabbing audio from video files that have no downloadable track associated with them off of say itunes or amazon (and that's the only way I use it!). Armed with this method I happened upon an old track that had special meaning (for me at least) because my mom and her siblings would sing this every time they got together. (you can view the original track here).

What I love about this version is that it feels vintage, and yet completely improvised (I know it's probably anything but). So take a moment and listen to this old tune; I''m a big fan of the way the guitar really just sits and plucks out a beat in the background, but the violin and piano are the real stars. As I quickly realized, in subsequent versions (of what I can only imagine is a tour) they added another female harmony, which for me detracts from this version of the song (though I am a fan of harmony in general in this song). So take 3:32 out of your day and check out this old gem.

Fried Neck bones and Some Home Fries - Carlos Santana (live at the Fillmore 1968)

First off, the link below is for Willie Bobo, not Santana. The version I've been listening to non stop is from Santana (live at the Fillmore 1968). This song however, and whoever plays it, represents more or less the ultimate license to just jam. I think that's what I like about the live version from Santana. It's got a vintage feel, because it is vintage, but more to the point this is a long track, like 10 minutes. Radios won't play that! So it represents another time; it is just an extended jam which you don't get from a lot of artists today.

This song makes me think of old world Cuba, I can't tell you why, it's just a feeling I get. The organ is a constant throughout the song, and the drums have this poly-rhythmic thing going on the entire time. And then of course there's Santana! In my estimation, Santana is to guitar what Wisconsin is to beer, cheese and snow: he's not the only game in town, but one of the best examples you could think of. This track is so good, even if you only listen to it once, it's so worth it. Check it out!

Clapton - I've Got A Rock N Roll Heart

Many of you will recognize this commercial from the Eric Clapton TMobile Fender phone commercial. That's exactly where I heard the song, and the reason I went looking for it, only to discover that it was an old song off of Money and Cigarettes. Turns out thanks to Kev, I had it already. Great song, it's been stuck in my head for a couple days now, and I'm great with that. Check it out!

Crooked Teeth - Death Cab for Cutie

So I'm not a huge Death Cab for Cutie fan, but this track really grabs me. I'll put it as Death Cab for Cutie for people who don't like Death Cab for Cutie. Good beat, good melody, just a song you can nod your head to, and before long you'll find yourself singing along. This ranks as one of my highest played tracks of 2009 if that tells you anything. Check the preview below to create your own opinions, but this song is well worth checking out.

It's time for the Weekly Top 20s!

Looking over this list of tracks, it's no surprise to me considering all the things I've been listening too over the past week; I blame the apple Genius feature on iTunes. Once you find a track you dig, it can just throw together a bunch of similar ones really easily. That's exactly what happened here as you will see after the jump. 

more

Empire of the Sun - Standing on the Shore

I've been a fan of Empire of the Sun for a while, thanks to a track I will cover in another post, but I did want to bring up this little number. "Standing on the shore" is probably the second standout track (IMHO) on the initial album from this up and coming band. Parts of the intro remind me of an old Midnight Oil track, but the song itself has it's own unique qualities and beats making it pretty infectious to your brain.These guys and this track are well worth investigating.














RIYL: Friendly Fire, Phoenix, MGMT, Hot Chip, Cut Copy