the clash

Playlist #119

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Hey, folks! Sorry this is late, but time and house hunting make fools of us all.

  1. case/lang/viers, “Atomic Number”: Still a heartbreakingly beautiful song. These three women sing with so much soul and urgency that it’s hard not to fall in love with the song.
  2. Cat Stevens, “Father and Son”: What always cracks me up about this song is when Cat Stevens sings, “Look at me, I am old, but I’m happy,” and I’m just like, dude, you’re all of 22 when you recorded this song. I have t-shirts older than that.
  3. The Chicks, “Gaslighter”: I’m a sucker for a female empowerment song, especially one as rowdy and fun as this one.
  4. The Clash, “Rebel Waltz”: It’s an actual waltz from The Clash. It has a harpsichord in it.
  5. Courtney Barnett, “Pedestrian At Best”: “I think you’re a joke, but I don’t find you very funny” is one of the best put-downs since Dylan’s “Positively 4th Street.”
  6. Daniel Lanois, “Where Will I Be”: I like the murky atmosphere this guy develops in all his songs.
  7. Elliott Smith, “Oh Well, Okay”: If I can one day be half the singer, songwriter, or guitar player that Elliott Smith was, I will be able to die a happy man.
  8. Foo Fighters, “Cold Day In The Sun”: An acoustic Foo Fighters song? In this economy?
  9. Hem, “Great Houses of New York”: Every song by this band has a sweeping, panoramic, cinematic feel to it, and I love them.
  10. Huey Lewis & the News, “You Crack Me Up”: You know that band your dad always talked about making with his buddies, but it was really just an excuse to get together in the garage and drink some beer and jam on the weekends? That’s Huey Lewis & the News. And they remain glorious.

Playlist #72

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The Queen is dead, long live the King.

  1. The Clash, “I Fought The Law”: Man, never fight the law. The law always wins, the jerk.
  2. Sex Pistols, “God Save The Queen”: Too soon?
  3. Oasis, “She’s Electric”: I swear, this sounds like a Bob Dylan song, I just don’t know what one.
  4. Queen, “Killer Queen”: Originally, this whole list was gonna be Queen songs, but even I felt bad about the fact that I’d have put “Another One Bites the Dust” on here if I did that, so you’re welcome.
  5. The Police, “Masoko Tanga”: Sting just mumbles gibberish for the entire runtime of the song. Good times.
  6. Pink Floyd, “Fearless”: I love this song for the use of the football fans singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” at the end of the song, if nothing else.
  7. Jeff Lynne, “Lift Me Up”: Jeff Lynne at his Jeff Lynne-iest.
  8. The Who, “The Seeker”: “I asked Bobby Dylan/I asked the Beatles/I asked Timothy Leary, but he couldn’t help me, either.”
  9. The Animals, “We Gotta Get Out Of This Place”: One of the few riffs I can play on the guitar is the one from this song. Most of it, anyway.
  10. The Beatles, “And Your Bird Can Sing”: Mmm, harmonies.

Playlist #68

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Happy Monday! I’m back in the school building, or at least adjacent to it in one of the “learning cottages” (what they’re calling the portable buildings) where our classes will be held this year. In the meantime, I am still doing the Patreon thing.

  1. Jimi Hendrix, “Fire”: Brother Clyde was telling me a story from Woodstock ’99 yesterday, about how they handed out candles to everyone and everyone immediately started setting things on fire. They asked the Red Hot Chili Peppers, of all people, to calm the crowd, but instead the band ripped into this song.
  2. Buddy Guy (Featuring Jason Isbell), “Gunsmoke Blues”: Too topical. Far too timely. It’s always too timely when you’re talking about gun violence in America, but Buddy Guy does it beautifully.
  3. The Clash, “Spanish Bombs”: Poor Andalucía.
  4. Colin Hay, “Beautiful World”: Yes, I originally heard this acoustic version on Scrubs, like so many other people. Doesn’t matter, it’s still amazing and beautiful.
  5. Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers, “The Ballad of Speedy Atkins”: Psychobilly at its finest.
  6. Tom Waits, “No One Knows I’m Gone”: I’m still waiting to hear the version of this song my brother recorded, but I think it probably still needs vocals from his vocalist on it.
  7. Andrew Bird, “Not A Robot, But A Ghost”: Either way, Mystery Inc is on the case!
  8. Paul McCartney, “Try Not To Cry”: A McCartney rave up, because why not?
  9. Frank Turner, “Silent Key”: We’re fairly certain at least a couple of the astronauts from the doomed Challenger space shuttle survived the explosion that destroyed the shuttle, because their personal egress air packs (PEAPs) were used. There is no indication they radioed to let anyone know they were still alive in freefall, but it’s still a touching song.
  10. Loose Fur, “Laminated Cat”: Please do not laminate your cats. They do not like it.

Playlist #49

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Whoops, it’s Thursday and I totally forgot to post this week’s playlist. My bad. In my defense, it’s been Spring Break all week, and I’ve been trying my damnedest to relax the whole time. Don’t forget to give me a follow on Patreon!

  1. Bon Iver, “Blood Bank”: I remember, many years ago, sitting down in my classroom with a coworker to record him doing a selection of songs. This was one of them, and it’s been one of my favorite Bon Iver songs since even before then.
  2. Cake, “Comfort Eagle”: “He is now accepting callers for these pendant keychains.”
  3. Camper Van Beethoven, “Pictures Of Matchstick Men”: Back at Accotink, I occasionally taught a Humanities class. We spent a quarter on art, a quarter on poetry, a quarter on theater, and the final quarter on the history of popular music. I’d put together short playlists for each genre of music we covered, and then I had the kids research a genre of their choice and put together a playlist for it. One of my coworkers put together a playlist that I can’t recall the genre for, and this song was on it.
  4. The Clash, “Train In Vain (Stand By Me)”: I do dig the album London Calling, and this is one of the best songs on their best album.
  5. Traveling Wilburys, “Heading For The Light”: I used to play this song on the guitar all the time. I should relearn the chords for it.
  6. Laurie & John Stirratt, “Juniper”: Someday, I’ll put together that list of songs by bands related to Wilco. These two will appear on that list, since John Stirratt is the bass player for Wilco (and one of the musicians in The Autumn Defense).
  7. Tom Waits, “Cold, Cold Ground”: “Lay down together in the cold, cold ground.” Beautiful and weird, Tom.
  8. Mark Knopfler, “The Trawlerman’s Song”: A song about a fisherman who has to keep going out and fishing because he owes money on his boat? Classic Knopfler.
  9. Counting Crows, “Up All Night (Frankie Miller Goes To Hollywood)”: One of my favorite songs off of Hard Candy, which is otherwise a pretty great album as well.
  10. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Who’ll Stop The Rain”: Still just one of the best CCR songs out there, which is saying a lot.

Playlist #48: Cover Songs

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Happy Monday after my birthday! It’s a chilly one here in northern Virginia, where they apparently turned off the heat in my school building a wee bit too early this year (don’t worry, I am quite comfortable). Anyway, don’t forget you can support me on Patreon, and here’s a list of fun cover songs to get you through the last week before I go on Spring Break and don’t have to think about anything for a whole week!

  1. Postmodern Jukebox, “Rude (featuring Von Smith)”: Tried listening to the original version of this song by the band Magic! (the exclamation mark is a vital part of the name), and just didn’t dig it. Not a fan of the reggae vibes, I guess.
  2. The Rolling Stones, “Not Fade Away”: A rough and tumble cover of the Buddy Holly classic and a classic in its own right.
  3. The Clash, “I Fought The Law”: The damn law won.
  4. Hem, “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes”: This song was what made me a fan of both the band Hem and Elvis Costello’s songwriting.
  5. Spoon, “Held”: Apparently they used to play this one in their live act, and if it was anything like this rendition, it must’ve blown the doors off.
  6. Patty Griffin, “Stolen Car”: I love me a Bruce Springsteen cover, and this one is damn-near as iconic as the original.
  7. The Decemberists, “Think About Me”: A band with zero interpersonal squabbles/drama covering the band best known for its interpersonal squabbles/drama (Fleetwood Mac)? Yes, please.
  8. The Highwomen, “The Chain”: More Fleetwood Mac. Because more Fleetwood Mac.
  9. The Eagles, “Ol’ 55”: It’s a ballsy move, covering a Tom Waits song, when you’re a band as known for being smooth and unoffensive as the Eagles were.
  10. Pomplamoose, “Maneater”: “Whoa-oh, here she comes…”