Groovesharkin'

After receiving my message from management of having my Pandora music cut down to 40 hours per month, I was informed by oft commenter and pal, Douglas, about Grooveshark. It's sort of the next step up from Pandora, in my opinion, as listeners can create their own playlist. It's like having my own Ipod at work. Bannerman! I've got one ninety [*edited - now up to 111]songs long right now, and I'm gonna list if for you -- in order -- and see if you can get a little list going that's better than mine. It certainly doesn't have to be as long as mine. Also, you're welcome to flame me for some of my poorer choices.

1. Burden, The Connells

2. Slide, The Goo Goo Dolls

3. Bare, Matt Nathanson

4. The Lust, the Flesh, the Eyes, and The Pride of Life - 77s

5.Pickin' It Up - Hot Hot Heat

6. I Was Wrong - Social Distortion

7. Nod Over Coffee - Mark Heard

8. Love Your Mind - The Choir

9. Suspicious Minds - Elvis Presley

10. Train in Vain - The Clash

11. Just Like Heaven - The Cure

12. Deep End - 77s

13. Shimmer - Fuel

14. Mr. Tambourine Man - The Byrds

15. I Don't Like Mondays - Boomtown Rats

16. The Best of Jill Hives - Guided by Voices

17. When the World Gets Weak - Warren Zanes

18. Since Your Gone - The Cars

19. Where the Streets Have No Name - U2

20. Don't Forget to Dance - The Kinks

21. The Waiting - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

22. That Ain't Right - Pete Droge and the Sinners

23. Where Do the Children Go - Hooters

24. Dulce Et Decorum Est - Matthew Ryan

25. Hold on Hope - Guided by Voices

26. Wither, I'm a Flower - Whiskeytown

27. I Must Be High - Wilco

28. All These Things That I've Done - The Killers

29. Bent - Matthew Nathanson

30. If You Don't Love Me (I'll Kill Myself) - Pete Droge

31. I Don't Love You - Lost Dogs

32. Middle of the Road - The Pretenders

33. Bizarre Love Triangle - New Order

34. There She Goes - Sixpence None the Richer

35. Breathe - Michelle Branch

36. The Adventure - Angels and Airwaves

37. What's My Age Again - Blink 182

38. Lurgee - Radiohead

39. Time After Time - Cyndi Lauper

40. Hard Luck Woman - Kiss

41. Can't Help Falling in Love With You - Lick the Tins

42. It Could Be Worse - Matthew Ryan

43. Waiting to Derail - Whiskeytown

44. Left of the Dial - The Replacements

45. World Class Fad - Paul Westerberg

46. Truth Is - Sister Hazel

47. Jam - Toad the Wet Sprocket

48. Easier - Glen Phillips

49. When You Say Nothing at All - Allison Krauss

50. Does Your Mother Know - ABBA

51. Wolfgang - Pete Droge and the Sinners

52. Mr. Brightside - The Killers

53. Big Brown Eyes - Old 97s

54. Fallen World - Altar Boys

55. The Sunny Side of the Street - The Pogues

56. Camera One - Josh Joplin Group

57. That Much Further West - Lucero

58. Disappointed - The Connells

59. Saturday Night - Bay City Rollers

60. Nearly Lost You - Screaming Trees

61. Thunder Island - Jay Ferguson

62. That Thing You Do - The Wonders

63. Wedding Day - Rosie Thomas

64. New Madrid - Uncle Tupelo

65. Garden Days - Jolene

66. I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend - The Ramones

67. Basket Case - Green Day

68. Superman's Song - Crash Test Dummies

69. Alcoholiday - Teenage Fanclub

70. Ain't That Enough - Teenage Fanclub

71. Stone Cold Yesterday - The Connells

72. Always Saturday - Guadacanal Diary

73. Compositions of the Young and Old - Bob Mould

74. Girlfriend in a Coma - The Smiths

75. Vacation - The GoGos

76. Bonzo Goes to Bitburg - The Ramones

77. I Know You Know - Friendly Indians

78. Offer - Vigilantes of Love

79. Now as the Train Pulls Away - Bill Mallonee and Vigilantes of Love

80. Sing Me Sweet - Matt Nathanson

81. Welcome Back - John Sebastian

82. Do You Believe in Magic - The Lovin' Spoonful

83. All She Said - Toad the Wet Sprocket

84. P.S. - Toad the Wet Sprocket

85. Angels We Have Heard on High - Sixpence

86. If She Knew What She Wants - The Bangles

87. It's Raining Again - Supertramp

88. Brim Full of Asha - Cornershop

89. For Blue Skies - Strays Don't Sleep

90. Back into Your World - Son Volt

[*edited to 111

91. Feel the Pain - Dinosaur Jr.

92. Competition Smile - Gin Blossoms

93. To Call My Own - Golden Smog

94. Speed of Sound - Coldplay

95. Sick of Myself - Matthew Sweet

96. A Little Is Enough - Pete Townsend

97. Do It for Love - 77s

98. You Know That Is Nothing New - Vigilantes of Love

99. In a Big Country - Big Country

100. Build Me Up Buttercup - The Foundations

101. December - Collective Soul

102. Accidentally in Love - Counting Crows

103. The Things We Do for Love - 10cc

104. Blue Jean - David Bowie

105. Secondhand News - Fleetwood Mac

106. Surrender - Cheap Trick

107. Don't You (Forget about Me) - Simple Minds

108. Back on the Chain Gang - The Pretenders

109. Save It for a Rainy Day - The Jayhawks

110. First Date - Blink 182

111. That Thing You Do - The Wonders

okay, I'll stop adding - at least to the post - now :) ]

I list all these, not so you know what a goober I am with my musical choices, but rather so that you can see that Grooveshark's catalog of songs tha you can choose through is extensive. And all types of music are available. You want classical, R&B, soul, rap, country, Christian, metal... they're all there. You want 1950s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 2000s... all there. Like Pandora, there's a "Radio" button you can hit, and it has some kind of formula that tries to see what your tastes are and add songs that are similar. Actually, there are a lot of features as I'm just getting started. Anyway, wanted to let everyone know.

Let me know what I should add to my list as well.

A Song Posting

Obviously, anyone who has read this blog for some period of time knows that the music I'm usually most interested in, lyrically-speaking, is music that chronicles the human journey but often incorporates the spiritual (Christian) aspect. I don't listen to the radio that much, so I'm usually late coming across songs, and such is the case here - so you've probably heard the song. Nonetheless, I heard Carolina Liar's Show Me What I'm Looking For for the FIRST TIME last night, and I immediately thought I'd post it on the blog.

For me, the message is pretty simple. I'm all mixed up and messed up. I need the Lord. Don't know if that's the songwriter's (songwriters'?) message per se, but that's what I derived from it. And in general, that pretty much sums it up for me on my own human journey.



Hope you enjoy!

Why I Can't Stand Mainstream Radio Anymore

Billboard put out its Top 200 Albums of the Decade. Guess who topped it without looking at the pic. I have to go pretty far down the list to even find a CD I might enjoy.

Really, I have no words.

Smoking Cigarettes and Watching Captain (Kaaaaang) Kangaroo

Sorry to offend, if I did, with the old Statler Brothers "Counting Flowers on the Wall" number as a post title that I'm still sometimes subjected to when riding passenger in my dad's car. Actually, that's probably the Statler Bros. tune I enjoy the most, so I shouldn't crack on it. Some of the other artists I'm lucky enough to be exposed to in when in my dad's ride -- or he's cranking his music at our family get-togethers:

Oak Ridge Boys
Anne Murray
Elvis Presley (YES!!!)
Freddie Fender

If I'm lucky, I get some:

Johnny Cash
Emmylou Harris

And my brother has since introduced him to:

Over the Rhine

which he likes, and I can be very,very thankful for that. Dad seems to get annoyed when I put my music in, and I still can't figure that out, but oh well.

Now, growing up, the kids in my family heard more than our share of Anne Murray, who seemed to be his favorite, but we also had a lot of this:

Vicki Carr
Tom Jones
Bobby Gentry (one album I remember with Glenn Campbell)
Crystal Gayle
The Kingston Trio (who were his favs)
The Brothers Four (was that the Kingston Trio plus one?)
Roger Miller (whom I still look fondly upon)
Roy Clark
Waylon Jennings
Barbara Steisand

Let me just say for the record, the Vicki Carr lounge lizard stuff:

You're just too good to be true,
Can't take my eyes off of you,
You're like heaven to touch,
I just want to hold you so much,
You're just to be good to be true,
Can't take my eyes off of you.

(Music: BA DAM BA DAM BAM BAM BAMP BAM, BAM BAMP BA DAM BAM!)

I LOVE YOU BAAAAAAAAABY...

Yeah, that stuff. That stuff was merciless. So, too, was Babs, for the most part.

But my questions to The Realm at large are these:

1) What was the music your parents listened to?

and, more importantly (relatively speaking)

2) How do you look back on it?

As major or minor influences in your life or music appreciation? As those silly folks of mine? As in "Please, please no, not that... THE HORRRR-RRRRRRAH!!!"? As in thank you Mom and/or Dad for this or that but NOT THAT?! As in you never give it a second thought? As in "My parents were cool"?

And then the reciprocal question for those that might have children:

What do you think your kids think of your musical tastes now and what will they think when they're older?

Because, despite what I'm saying about my dad, I'm just sure, sure, sure, SURE, SURE... that my kids will think"

"My dad is COOL!!!"

Well, they better.

Matthew Ryan's Dear Lover

Christmas comes at Halloween with the release of Matthew Ryan's Dear Lover CD on sale now at Matthew Ryan's website. I've blogged before here about Matthew's last CD, Matthew Ryan Versus the Silver State, and just how absolutely fantastic that release was. Here's a musician and songwriter I just cannot recommend enough. He's one of those guys that if you like what you hear now, you want to go back and gobble up his whole discographic catalog. Here's a teaser track from the CD:



Take a listen and decide for yourself if this is a CD worth taking a flier on listening to and then talking about it to friends, family, work associates, school chums, and, heck, even strangers that love brilliant, poignant albeit ofttimes heartbreaking songwriting and excellent music. His songs are ones you listen to repeatedly and then think about long after the music's stopped.

I'm purchasing it today, but hearing what I've heard from Matthew Ryan's past, I'm recommending it sight unseen, or rather, CD unheard. Of course, I'll also be letting you know in the comments about my feelings once I receive it. Here's a few pre-release reviews:

PopDose
Glide Magazine
Metromix

Thanks for listening!

Who can take a sunrise, sprinkle it with dew...

Pick 1 or Pick 2: 1) 10 Best Songs of the '00s or 2) Top 5-10 Most Meaningful Songs to You

Posting slackard that I am, here's another at least half post on the shoulders of yet another of our faithful commenters - Anonymous, (signed) BP. Back on the MRVSS post, Brett mentioned to me:

Oh, and Rich, a silly project I've been torturing myself with in my spare time this week is trying to determine the 10 best songs (or my 10 favorite, anyway) of '00's. A blog post on this subject might be enough to make Ken's head explode?

Seeing Ken's head explode always being a good thing, this exercise might be a good one to try. What are your 10 (more or less) best songs of the 2000s? We should get a lot of divergence on this one, if people participate.

------

I had been thinking of this one for a while, and I just decided to include this one with the other because I think it's easier. Obviously, music is dynamic and fluctuating, and favorites and bests can come and go depending on moods, age or stages of life, hearing a new great song, and on and on. However, looking back over your life, what five or ten songs are the most meaningful to your life? This can be any type or genre of music, any type of song. Rock, country, jazz, blues, soul, gospel, and then hymns, holiday favorites, national anthems, lullabies, opera pieces ~ nothing is excluded. Music that has influenced you, moved you, gotten you through tough times, tunes that remind you of someone dear, these are the songs I'm looking for, not necessarily and likely not your favorite or best five to ten songs. That would be a different post. For instance, I know two of mine would be:

1) The Lust, the Flesh, the Eyes, and the Pride of Life by the 77s

and

2) The Little Drummer Boy

So, if you're game, pick a list and let me know what you think. Best songs of the '00s, which is tough, or most meaningful songs to you, which should be easier.

Lost Musical Treasures in My Closet # 2: The Connells - Ring

Back in 1993, yeah, that's sixteen years ago, after a few moderately successful albums but problems with a record label causing a three-year hiatus in their recording, this little re-energized band from Raleigh, North Carolina called The Connells put out the CD that I consider the height of their career, Ring. I had really enjoyed The Connells' One Simple Word previously, and Fun & Games and Boylan Heights had been pretty good as well. Ring, however, brought everything together for the band, as they hit on every song. Here's a CD that, for me, had no weak moments, and the music is as fresh today as it was sixteen years ago and will be after sixteen more, I'm quite certain.


What I really love is when every single song from a CD, at different times, encaptivates me. Very, very few CDs pull this off. Ring did for me. Over time, though, and even now, I'll still have one of Ring's tunes breezing through my mind. It's one thing to have a bad song stuck in your mind -- that's bothersome -- but when Doug MacMillan's soothing voice echoes one of Ring's ditties in between my ears, it's always welcome.

Of the twelve songs, I can only remember the up-tempo Slackjawed, the single New Boy, and the haunting '74-'75 getting any radio airplay at all. Nevertheless, any of the songs seemed radio-ready to me. Upbeat numbers like Carry My Picture, Hey You, and Burden along with the aforementioned Slackjawed were interspersed with mid- and slower-tempo songs, but all of them had immediate hooks, and I was in love. After a few Connells CDs that I thought were great in the front half but a little weaker on the B-side, Ring doesn't falter but actually picks up. Spiral and Disappointed, two slower songs, sandwich the the rocking Hey You and stellar New Boy, which is a string of songs that I'd say highlights the CD if Slackjawed and Running Mary, the fantastic closer, weren't also such banner songs.

When I found Ring just the other day in a stack of CDs, I fell in love all over again.

Catching Up to the Present: Ken Just Bought TP&tHBs Greatest Hits, and I Just Started Watching the X-Files

Just the other day, Ken called me from the music section of one of the department stores, I think it was Target, as he was leafing through CDs and picking a couple to buy. I started asking about his choices and if the store had this or that. Ken indulged me, like he often does, because he's a great guy. A lot of what I'd recommend, I knew Target wasn't the place, but that didn't stop me from trying. Subsequent to a few band names that probably had him shaking his head, Ken decided it'd be easier to tell me what they did have rather than search for a lot of CDs they wouldn't. He started listing some music where I was "no", "no, you don't want that" and "oh, you've got to be kidding". Then, he casually mentioned Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Greatest Hits, on sale. What? TP&tHBs? Even Ken, methinks, would have that staple. I mean, I know him enough to know that he'd like TP, and, really, I was kind of surprised that his CD collection didn't have at least one of the TP/HBs classics -Damn the Torpedoes, Hard Promises, Long After Dark, or Southern Accents. As he scanned the songs on the CD, he knew American Girl but after that, unless he was yanking my chain -- always possible, but he sounded honest -- he didn't recognize hardly anything. Listen to Her Heart? I Need to Know? Don't Do Me Like That? Even the Losers? Here Comes My Girl? The Waiting? No, no, no, no, no, and no - he said he didn't recognize anything - I think I may have gotten a hesitant yes at Don't Come Around Here No More or Freefallin'. Now, I'm no psychiatrist, but this, to me, sounded like an urgent cry for help. My thoughts were: where had Ken been all this time and please, Ken, be joking? Immediately, I told him to get the CD. I went so far as to say I'd buy it from him for the sale price plus tax if he didn't like it, even though I already have it and have had it for years. Inside, because I'm a little bit, or a lot a bit, of a jerk sometimes, that little "music elitist" (which is really a joke - because I have no talent for singing or playing an instrument, and really only have this subjective taste like anyone else, but mine is just a little more narrow - and for whatever reason, I take pride in that -- yeah, that's the SIN pride), part of me scoffed at my friend (I'm apologizing now Ken - SORRY!) for not being on the musical "in", whatever that is, for so, so long.

Mirror reflection.

Just a day before that, I was in Wal-Mart with my kids, and I saw a package deal, Season 1 and Season 2 of The X-Files, on for $16.99. I remember when the X-Files hit way back in the early to mid-1990s, and I had a lot of good folks recommend it to me. Because I am like I am (well, I've been working on it since), I resisted, then, in getting caught up in something about which everyone else raved, even though, when hearing about the episodes and arc, I knew I'd like it. Over the years, I've caught a few X-Files shows in syndication, and I've always gotten wrapped up in them when I've watched. Since the syndicated shows I watched were at 1 a.m., however, it made it hard to keep up a steady diet. Plus, there was no chronology in the shows I watched. A few had Mulder and Scully, but others had Scully and Doggett and then Doggett and someone else, and then I couldn't figure out what all had taken place. Anyway, to make a short story that I've made longer but am trying to rectify that from the rambling mess of where this post could go, I bought The X-Files Season 1/Season 2. I'm five episodes into Season 1 and, of course, am hooked. All the accolades, at least to this point in my watching, seem well-deserved. And it just makes me think, what in the world was I thinking back in time when other folks, people I trusted and that knew me, told me that I'd love The X-Files? Not hard to see that it was, once again, pride. On the scale of things, I'm fortunate that watching a TV show isn't a big deal, so this time, my pride hurting me is just looking silly for starting to watch a TV show now that I could have been "in on" sixteen years ago. No real harm. Unfortunately, and as an aside, my pride has, believe it or not, reared it's smirky face in other, BIGGER, instances, for real harm - but maybe those another time. And maybe not.

For now, if anyone is a fan of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers or The X-Files, you're welcome to crack on me and/or Ken for being so out of the loop for no good reason. You can especially crack on Ken, because my feelings get hurt easily. I like giving, but taking's not really my thing, if that's okay ;). Nah, I'm kidding, give me what you got!

OR! You could take a higher road, and share some of either your TP or X-File insight with us.

OR! Even better, you could join in my lament on living in the past, having to catch up to the present, and hardly ever glimpsing the future. What are some of the "in"-type things, that you're trying and/or might like now, that were more popular back then. Hopefully, not wearing plaid golfer pants (I've still got enough pride in me to scoff at you if you're doing that, and scoff I will).

AND! Just so everyone realizes I'm not sociopathic without a conscience, the moral I've learned from all this, because it's so very important to apply life lessons correctly, is this:

DON'T EVER LAUGH AT KEN. NEVER. NOT EVER.
NOT FOR ANY REASON AT ALL.

Lost Musical Treasures in My Closet # 1: Todd Snider - Songs for the Daily Planet

Every once in a while, you go digging through your old CDs and find one you've been dying to hear, but you just hadn't thought about it for awhile. Here's an oldie but a goodie. I'm pretty sure it was Todd Snider's first CD, and it's called Songs for the Daily Planet. It's a little alt-country, a little blues, a little folk, a little of a lot, and rootsy more than anything. Not everything is dynamite on any Snider CD in my opinion, but the gems are priceless. Todd's witty, intelligent, self-deprecating, wry, and sensitive, and his music is all his own. If I have to toss out some comparisons, maybe Jimmy Buffett, John Prine, Robert Earl Keen, John Hiatt... but only when these guys are at their best.

Heading down to the Destin beaches back in '95, I was listening to a modern rock radio station, and the song, Alright Guy played. It had been a long time since I had heard anything like this tune, and it was immediate, irreverent, and laugh out loud funny. Although the material in the song is dated, the music stands the test of time. Here's a link to a YouTube video of Alright Guy. That was my introduction to Todd Snider, and impulse buyer that I was in those days, I had to go get the CD. Am I glad I did. It's gotten a ton of play over the years, and it's one I force-feed upon unsuspecting friends when they least expect it!

I'll hit the highlights of the CD:

It starts out with My Generation, Part 2, a cool, little satirical number poking at today's society. Obviously, it harkens back to The Who's My Generation, but Snider's tune is totally its own. Similar to Alright Guy, the lyrical content dates it, but for this one, that's precisely the point. The song is a stellar intoduction into some of what you're going to get with Songs for the Daily Planet. Here's a lyrical sample:

We were raised up in the hallowed halls

Of half a million shopping malls

And there ain't any price that we're too proud to pay

We'll buy anything from Diet Sprite

To one thousand points of light

Hey, I admit we're not that bright

But I'm proud anyway

Here's to hair gel

Hanging out at the health spa

Using condom sense

Watching Arsenio Hall

Here's to drum machines

Stone-washed jeans

Credit cards, fax machines

Big bow-headed chicks and frat guys

Wearing forty dollar tie-dyed t-shirts

And big, bold paisley ties

Here's to living off dad as long as we can

And blending into the crowd

Oh, my generation

My generation

My generation

God, I hope I die before I get old

The fourth, fifth, and sixth songs are an incredible trio. This Land Is Our Land leads off the trifecta, and here's a live rendition of the tune on YouTube. The end of it breaks into CCR's It Ain't Me. It's pretty good, but because I'm touting the CD itself, you should also hear the studio versions of all these ditties. Here's one more live version and it's more straightforward. This Land Is Our Land rails against the extravagances and wastes of America and Americans today, reminding the listener that Native Americans were here before Western Europeans and were the better stewards of the land. The aforementioned Alright Guy follows. This tongue-in-cheek crack at the point of view character in the song is so perfect, you sing or hum along with a smile on your face the whole way. The last song of the three, I Spoke as a Child, is absolutely wonderful. The lyrics speak with a wisdom that comes only after the the tempests of life wring out the soul. Here's what I mean:

I'd like to find that old time feelin',

Somewhere in between what I've become,

Somewhere down the line it must have seemed appealing,

So I suppose that it must work for some,

But I wanna go back to going crazy,

Believing every word that I was told,

You know sometimes growing up I think I'm getting wiser

And then other times I think I'm getting old.

When I was a child I spoke as a child,

But all I heard was how I should get ahead.

Now growing up it ain't anything but all this indecision

With these debts and doubts and worries hangin' over my head.

When I was a child I spoke as a child,

I wish I could remember what I said.

When I was a child I spoke as a child,

God I wish I could remember what I said.

For me, the high point of the CD is the song, A Lot More. It won't be everybody's, but that's okay. It's mine. Although probably not written to be so, it's anthemic to me and a song I can plant my heart's flag in and want to claim for my own. Sorry to do this to you, but it's worth it on this one to lay down all the words to the song:

Some guys are looking for diamonds,

some guys just wanna pay their bills,

some guys are climbing up mountains,

while others are digging for thrills.

Some guys just wanna win trophies,

some guys just wanna get girls,

and some guys swear they won't stop working

till they own everything in the world.

Well, good luck at the end of that rainbow

if you think thats what your here for,

but make no mistake about it, baby,

I want a whole lot more.

I want a whole lot more.

A whole lot more.

Sometimes I see people out here,

playing every single one of their cards

for bigger this or better that,

or greener grass 'round the pools in their yard.

They work and they slave

just so they can save up a whole lot to leave behind.

Yeah, some guys are just so certain success

is the key to their piece of mind.

Well, good luck at the end of that rainbow
if you think thats what you're here for,
but make no mistake about it, baby,
I want a whole lot more.
I want a whole lot more.

I want a whole lot more than treasures

that I can store down here on earth.

Price 'em any way that you want to,

hey buddy, I know what they're worth.

Yeah, some guys want attention,

some guys want girls,

and some dig kickin' down doors.

Some guys will want everything in this whole wide world;

I want a whole lot more.

I want a whole lot more.

There's a whole lot more.

Subsequent to A Lot More is the tragic You Think You Know Somebody about two friends, one of who is abused by his father unbeknownst to the other until they grow up and the cycle repeats itself, but in a sorrowful ending. Really, really good song. I really like Suzanne Vega's Luka and how it illustrated child abuse, but this one is just as good at the very least.

Somebody's Coming is a rocker that heartens the downtrodden that Somebody is coming back for His children. While it might bother a few folks that in one song, Snider is singing about smoking dope, quitting school, or getting drunk off his arse, then in another, he's proclaiming Christ's return, well, let me just say, that's what you're going to get with Todd Snider. And I love it.

The final song, Joe's Blues, transitions into the ghost track, Talkin' Seattle Grunge Blues. Hilarious and sardonically cutting at the music scene in the 90s, here's a YouTube video of the song. When the CD first came out, this track was the one about which I heard the most buzz. Over time, as the grunge wave went its course, the song may not have the impact it once did. However, I dare you to listen to it without cracking a grin. Can't be done.

Songs for the Daily Planet is laced throughout with fantastic songwriting and is part of what's best in the Alt-Country music genre. If you've never heard it, I'm heartily recommending it. Take a listen! On every Snider CD, there're always jewels to be found. Songs for the Daily Planet is a crown full of them.

A Little Glen Phillips

I don't have much time today, so I thought I'd just toss out some song lyrics that move me from one of my favorites, Glen Phillips. Back in the '90s, he was the front man for the band Toad the Wet Sprocket, but since, he's embarked on his own solo career - one for which I'm very thankful. Very, very talented and intelligent guy. Here's some lyrical examples.

From his CD Mr. Lemons, here's a sample from the last track A Joyful Noise that exemplifies the grace of God.

Mouth open
lies pour out
you know we’re not leaving you, not leaving you alone now
you will make a joyful noise

Hallelujah

This is a song of thanks to the Creator also from Mr. Lemons. It's called Thank You. This is one you really have to hear the way it crescendos into a rhymic, tribal chanting at the end. It's really cool.

You made this world, You made this world
You made this world, Thank you, thank you
You gave me life, You gave me life
You gave me life, Thank you, thank you

Your love is everywhere, Your love is everywhere
Open me, open me
You sowed these seeds, You sowed these seeds,
You sowed these seeds, Thank you, thank you

You brought this peace, You brought this peace
You brought this peace, Thank you, thank you

Your love is everywhere, Your love is everywhere
Your love is everywhere, Open me, open me

And last, the whole song, Duck And Cover (bolded for emphasis by me), from the CD Winter Pays for Summer, pretty much explains itself:

Someone's in the back yard, banging on the door
Daddy's gone away, he's coming back no more
His baby's curled up on a stranger's floor
Mama's thinking family dinners weren't too much to ask for

Everybody here's got a story to tell,
Everybody's been through their own hell
There's nothing too special about getting hurt
Getting over it, that takes the work
Cause one way or another, we'll all need each other
Nothing's gonna turn out the way you thought it would
But friends and lovers, don't you duck and cover
Cause everything comes out the way it should

Blessed are the humble, blessed are the meek
Blessed are the hungry, blessed are the weak
Blessed are the ones on the other side
Blessed are we for just being alive
One day I stopped wanting anything at all
The heavens opened up like a waterfall
No use in worrying about when it ends
Just for now be thankful for what I get
Cause one way or another, a man's gonna suffer
It makes no difference the way you wanted it
But friends and lovers, don't you duck and cover
Cause everything comes out the way it should in the end

Seems like life is a palindrome
You cry when you die, you cry when you're born
In between it's all about the ups and downs
Add 'em all together, they cancel each other out
Cause one way or another, One way or another
You won't get what you wanted
You'll get enough, for sure
One way or another
Winter pays for the summer
Won't get what you wanted
What you got'll be good

Someone's in the back yard, banging on the door
Daddy's gone away, he's coming back no more
His baby's curled up on a stranger's floor Mama's
thinking happy endings weren't too much to ask for.

Glen's go so many great songs. Some of my other favorites are Everything But You, I Still Love You, Train Wreck, Easier, Thankful, Waiting, Sleep of the Blessed. And if that's not enough, go pick up a copy of the Toad retrospective P.S., which has a sixteen great songs, and almost any American adult will recognize at least a few of the tunes on that CD. YouTube any of the songs on P.S., and they'll take you back, I promise.

Just like I promise you'll love Glen Phillips' music. It's a money back guarantee!

MRVSS

You knew it had to be coming. I held out as long as I could. Run for the hills if you must.

Since three years ago, I have a new favorite CD, and it's never far from my car or house radio. Matthew Ryan Vs. The Silver State (MRVSS). This one's gold. If you haven't heard Matthew Ryan, as one reviewer comes close to nailing his rasped voice and incredible music, "Think: Leonard Cohen meets The Clash, Bruce Springsteen meets Nick Drake." For this one, I'm just going to jot down the song titles, a lyric or two from each one, and then perhaps make a note about the song. So, without further ado:

1) Dulce Et Decorum Est

I think

I am

heroic in a failing way

for some of us it goes that way

The title of this song comes from a famous WWI poem by Wilfred Owen. The translated Latin is, for the song's purposes, "it's sweet, it's right". I think I might blog on Owen's poem one day soon.

2) American Dirt

Honey, I swear it's not my fault,

they shut us down, the big door was locked,

the bigger the dream, the bigger the trap,

the bigger the black and disappointment...

---

I've been spitting out American dirt, all that money can buy, all that money can buy

---

I wish I done something with my life,

Something safe and sort of useless...

When I analyze the autos, toys, the Wiis, every new technology that comes along, the furniture... how lavish I live compared to the rest of the world, I get what Matthew Ryan is talking about here.

3) Meet Me by the River

But I recall watching you walk down the aisle,

and I recall the way flower girls made your mother smile.

We used to smile

4) It Could've Been Worse

Your love in a car, you promised her everything

not knowing what everything really was.

She's the first girl you kissed, she's the first girl you miss,

when you're feeling like this

broke and in the dark.

Her blonde hair was a setting sun;

her mascara was born to run.

You got scared when she started to show,

one more thing you'd have to let go.

---

...but i'll never believe, that you jumped and just ended there,

the note you left read "look everywhere", "you'll never bury me"

This song follows a tragic young life to it's tragic end. It's an awesome song. I'd say it's a high point on the CD, except I'd be saying that about so many of these tunes, it would just be pointless.

5) Hold on Firefly

The rotten apple of her eye, talks junk on weekends,

at a dump called the Firefly, he's laughing with his friends

---

Sugar gets bitter, she knows to watch her tongue

that bastard never hit her in front of anyone.

Hold on to me, hold on to me,

you're going to feel better, you're just afraid to leave.

The characters in a lot of Ryan's songs are similar this girl, tragic figures. Here, this one's caught in an abusive relationship that she doesn't know how to end.

6) Jane, I Still Feel the Same

You wore my shirt beside the ocean, your eyes were serious the air was blue,

and I've relived that simple notion when you're young does it make it any less true?

'Cause, Jane i still feel the same.

You were a good thing, you were a good thing, in a world gone wrong.

7) Killing the Ghost

Sleeping like a machine gun,

your bedroom was no fun.

Falling down hard on my head was shooting black stars,

never knew who you were now I know what you are.

I will carve from you my life

I couldn't care less, it feels all right.

I'm cutting it close, I'm cutting it close, I'm cutting it close,

I'm killing the ghost.

Unrepentant and hard-edged, if you've been in a bad relationship for a long time, this is just about the perfect break-up, separation, divorce song. The repetitive and driving lyric "I will carve you from my life, couldn't care less, feels alright. I'm cutting it close, cutting it close, cutting it close, killing the ghost" leaves one wondering whether he's getting it done or not, but there's no doubt what the sentiment is.

8) They Were Wrong

Here's the saddest song you never heard,

these Catholic kids get what they deserve.

We were in the front row at the sad last goodbye,

you were so pissed off you were trembling inside.

Why would you ever live to wish and wait by the front door,

that your daddy never answered and your momma won't any more?

They were wrong, they were wrong, they were wrong, they were wrong,

the day is never too long, when it's gone it's gone.

They were wrong.

My God, they're still wrong.

I haven't totally figured this song out yet, but if I guess, it sounds like a girl at a Catholic school for girls met up with a boy from a parochial school, one thing led to another, and she got prego. Her friends abandoned her as did her parents.

9) I Only Want to be the Man You Want

I only want to be the man you want,

the ring that you twist, the song you hum.

I only want to be the man you want.

Don't say it, don't say it, your thoughts are loud your worry heard.

You'll wave goodbye beside the things you think will get you by,

when you should land my hummingbird.

Maybe you should land my hummingbird.

Beautiful song that fills the mind with pictures.

10) Drunk and Disappointed

He parked his Lincoln underneath the trees,

about a quarter to nine, he walked inside the Applebee's.

And nothing was moving not even the sky,

Johnny wanted a lot of things, but Johnny didn't want to die.

How did you get so drunk and disappointed?

Ain't nothing here to pull you through.

How did you get so drunk and disappointed?

The worst you'd fear is coming true, it's coming true. It's coming true.

Another song about a character who has hit rock bottom, but he doesn't know what to do. He doesn't want to kill himself, but he's not sure how to live either.

11) Closing In

You put your hand in mine as the plane took off,

you said, "You don't know how lucky you are." Now I know I was.

Maybe I'll go for a walk, maybe I'll go to hell.

Maybe it's just that we're the only ones that save us from ourselves.

Step by step now, day by day, from where you been,

the hits come on still, one by one, maybe we'll never win,

but we're closing in, we're closing in, we're closing in.

Just a perfect closing song for a CD like this one - tinged with a little hope after the mess of life that's gone before with a little forgiveness and the feel of redemption mixed in.

*************

I suppose that if your music is all shiny, happy people or pick-up trucks or Marvin Gaye, you may want to steer clear of Matthew Ryan. However, if you enjoy thoughtful, intelligent, rock music with some pop sensibility, you might want to give MRVSS a try. In my car and home, I have quite a few CDs, and many that I love and listen to a lot. None, though, have come close to being played like Matthew Ryan Vs. the Silver State.

Trust me on this one. ;)

Musicational Song Quiz

Last night, the 4th of July, as my brother, sister, brother-in-law, nephews and I were riding home from watching the fireworks displays around town, we were listening to a 70s, 80s, and 90s station, and believe it or not, we heard the song, Saturday Night by the Bay City Rollers. It had been waaaaaaaaaaay tooooooooooo long!

Side note: Fantastic "Bad 70s" song for Ipods and mp3s everywhere including for me (except I don't have an Ipod or mp3)
Additional Side Note for no real reason: The Bay City Rollers were the first guys I ever noticed, as a child, on the Teen Beat and other mags of that ilk. Before the Cassidy boys or Leif Erickson. Before any of the Gibbs. They were the first guys I ever knew in those mags. Not that I ever bought one. I didn't!!!

Anyway, my brother, Brett, who has commented infrequently on this site before, made the astute point that not only was this song fun music but that it was also educational for its spelling content. So it got me to thinking, what songs can you name off the top of your head (NO CHEATING on Google or other search engines!!!) in which words are spelled out? Let's brainstorm.

And I'm not talking about children's songs like The Mickey Mouse Club Song, Bingo, or The B-I-B-L-E (That's the Book for Me)... that's not what I'm talking about at all. No, what I'm talking about is music by professional musicians in the rock, pop, soul, R&B, country, etc. categories.

Right now, I can only come up with four, but I know there have to be more. My four are:

Saturday Night by the Bay City Rollers (spell out "Saturday" in the song)
Respect by Aretha Franklin (song title is spelled out in song)
Safety Dance by Men Without Hats (at the song's intro, "Safety" is spelled)
Gloria by Van Morrison (song title is spelled out in song)

I'll list any more I can think of in the comments.

Alright, who's got more? Wow us!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark

Where have I been? Is this reality? I saw this link earlier today. Bono and The Edge writing the music. Oh. My. Word. This is the ultimate boom or bust, methinks. I plopped in another couple of links here and here. Anyone heard anything about this? I must have been in suspended animation for the past couple of months...

Silly Song Lyrics

Over at the Thinklings, they had a post about the Worst 111 songs. Since I can't leave well enough alone, I thought it might be fun to post some of the silliest lyrics that we've heard in songs that are supposed to be somewhat serious. Here were two I quoted over there:

Way down yonder on the Chattahoochie
It gets hotter than a hoochie coochie

-- Chattahoochie, Alan Jackson

and, from one of my fav bands of all time:

She’s so beautiful now,
She doesn’t wear her shoes

-- Let's Go, The Cars

Almost without exception, I love The Cars music. Great hooks, music well put together, excellent pop. But what in the world does someone not wearing shoes have to do with how beautiful they are? It's just a classic, "Huh?" headturner in an otherwise fantastic song. Likewise, in Jackson's Chattahoochie, are hoochie coochies hot? In fact, are hoochie coochies anything at all?

Welcome to the world of the musical senseless. Do you guys have examples of lyrics that just leave you dumbfounded in their idiocy when you listen to them? The list is long and plentiful, I'm quite certain. Give as many as you can.

Balaam's Ass -SQOTW

yeah i've always wandered by this riverside
i've always wondered what it's like to be more than alive
yeah the boss man says, "i'd advise you resist."
i just nod my head and look off in the distance, nod my head and look off in the distance

these days i never go out looking much
or feeling my best
i'm sorry! i'm sorry! i'm sorry! this stuff
it clings to my flesh

one is men's hearts that are failing for fear.
two see the carnage strewn on the shore.
three are the life boats full to capacity?
four is there room for just one more?
five you will feel like the great wallenda,
six as he stepped out over tallulah gorge.
seven i will bind myself to the truth
and speak it like balaam's ass once more.

-- Balaam's Ass, Vigilantes of Love, from the CD Blister Soul

Not much to say about these lyrics except how much imagery I get from them. The first verse speaks reflectively on what it means to really be alive. Then, the short bridge comments on the depression of loathing that part of yourself - the sin and love of self - that you cannot seem to get rid of. Lastly, there's the pounding chorus numbered off. The singer sees the state of mankind, asks if he can jump in with all those trying to save themselves, but finally decides to step out in faith and bind himself to the Lord.

I've been to Tallulah Falls and the Tallulah Gorge several times. I've attached a pic of the place where the Great Wallenda (of the Great Wallendas) crossed over on a tight rope. It's spectacular in its beauty, but as I'm one that's deathly afraid of heights, when you get too close to the edge of the cliff walls, fear seems to block out the grandeur. All I can think of is, "I don't want to fall." Unfortunately, that can be reminiscient of life too often. Instead of taking a step forward in faith, a la Indiana Jones in The Last Crusade movie, I'm running with others searching for my place on the life boat.

One major truism I've found in my walk with God is that He doesn't let me spend an inordinate amount of time in my comfort zone. Let me be clear: I'm a person that LOVES my comfort zone. If I could, I'd probably ball up in a fetal position and spend all my time there. However, it's hard to love others there, and it's certainly easy to love myself. I'm an easy target for certain, shall I say, luxuries of life, and, like Balaam, though my tongue might speak the right words, my actions betray me. Sooner of later, I'm kicking my ass - figuratively speaking - when the Holy Spirit starts goading me and I don't want to go. However, whenever anything profitable has come from my life at all, it's usually because, like Wallenda, I've stepped out from where I feel safe, and I've gone where God wants me to go -- or at least where I've thought He's wanted me to go.

Writing with Ken has been one of those things. There's not a long list because, like I said, I love my comfort zone. Best thing for me, however, is bind myself to the Truth, and speak like Balaam's ass.

Sidenote: For those of you guys who think I picked this song just so I could use the word "ass" a few times in a post, you win a prize - cuz it was cool :). Is that what you thought I was gonna say?

Vet - SQOTW

if you got a good home to go to
it's cool i guess i'll say
homeward bound and we touched down
there at the jfk
i'd like to forget that moment
there's the curse of video tape
screaming and all the clenched fists
spit rolling down my face

late at night tv's on
the kids are off to bed
under the haze of the cathode ray
step out of the cargo bay
women and children take them out first
the whole thing feels so hopeless
smile or a handshake and lookout baby
here comes the plastic explosive

ah take me down to the saigon river
ah take me down to the china sea
put myself unreservedly
in the stars and stripes forever
i got a little cauterized brain and a heart shot off at the knees
i got a little cauterized brain and a heart shot off at the knees
i got a little cauterized brain and a heart shot off at the knees

-- Vet, Vigilantes of Love, from the Welcome to Struggleville CD

Here are two of the verses and the chorus from Vet, a song Bill Mallonee wrote for a friend while working at Charter Winds Hospital. However you feel about the Vietnam War, I think it'd be difficult to listen to this song without being affected by the vivid and disturbing imagery from the POV of a Vietnam War vet.

It's too easy to say, "We take our armed forces for granted," when, then, we continue on doing what we do giving them hardly any thought as we live our lives. I'm sure many veterans would say that's why they do what they do -- so we can live our lives in freedom. But for us, those words should sound pretty hollow.

The sacrifices made by the men and women that fought in that war, and in others, aren't encapsulated just in the number of service personnel that died and for the years they served fighting abroad. Those years never leave the people that fought in them. My father-in-law fought in Korea, should have died, had great friends that did die, and to this day, he'll hardly ever talk about it. War doesn't leave them. They live on, but those remembrances are engrained, and we should all remember and respect them to our utmost. And, of course, as Jesus commands, love them as we should love everyone.

They've done something for which we owe countless sums, an intangible debt that can't be repaid. At the very least, let's think about them.

Musical-Inclined

I love Broadway musicals. I'm just gonna post a lyric line or two from my favorite one. Maybe later, I'll post a few more from some of my other favoites. Anyone who wishes to join in, feel free. Else, there'll just end up being a handful of "rich" comments, and what fun is that?

Here's my starter:

Will you give all you can give
So that our banner may advance?
Some will fall and some will live
Will you stand up and take your chance?
The blood of the martyrs
Will water the meadows of France!

-- Do You Hear the People Sing, from Les Miserables

I've mentioned it before here, but I just love Les Miserables. The barricade scenes are my favorite in the musical. When I was a kid, I loved the story of the Alamo. The handful against the unbeatable enemy -- the knowing that you'll be a martyr but fighting for a cause -- just really strikes a chord with me. Helm's Deep, in LOTR, gives me much the same feeling, although in that, our heroes miraculously triumphed. Still, it's the knowing you're going to die and still fighting for a cause greater than yourself that stokes my fires. The barricade scenes in Les Miserables give that same feeling. (Of course, they're written very well in Victor Hugo's masterpiece as well.)

Be that as it may, what are some lines from songs in your favorite musicals? And other Les Miserables songs are welcome.

Now as the Train Pulls Away - SQOTW

here on the platform, a well laid plan
pain in your pocket, ticket in your hand
rain on your lips, honey i wish you would stay
now as the train pulls away

no signs to read, no voices to warn
people don't stay, in love anymore
what about forever, 'til the end of our days
now as the train pulls away

rehearsed all my lines, but i forgot what to say
some things are just, too little too late

eyes they're all empty, mouths they're all dry
words they just stumble, and fail you every time
aching's all that's left, at the end of the day
now as the train pulls away

-- Now as the Train Pulls Away, Vigilantes of Love from the great, great Audible Sigh CD

This is it. If I had to pick one favorite over all the Bill Mallonee songs, this is the one. It's a simple lament over what's happened to love these days. It's beautiful in its sadness, and the rhythmic train-like start and finish fits just so well with the train image the song echoes.

My brother and I have talked a lot about musical perfection (specifically in rock music or its spawnings) before. I'm not sure there is such a reality of that ideal, although some songs rub up against it. For me, this tune is about as close as it gets for sustaining it for about three minutes.

The heartbreaking lyrics of broken love and broken marriage... mm... it hurts to think about, especially when you can identify or empathize with them. "What about forever to the end of our days?" We make and take these oaths when we're young (or sometimes not so young) with all best intentions, and then life happens. And time happens. A lot of taking without much giving. What started with forgiving and forgetting becomes remembering and remonstrating. Battlelines are drawn and defense mechanisms are aimed for counter-strikes to the bombs you know are coming until over time, all love gets bled out of a heart that becomes stone.

Aching's all that's left...

We live this life... we get one chance... and we end up with this mess on our hands and wonder how it came to this.

And we watch as the person we once loved just walks away.

Drunk on the Tears - SQOTW

alibis roll off my tongue
i'm looking for ruins to hide among
i got a soul piled high to excess
with the wonderfully useless and the frivolous

the praise due your name evades my lips
there's no helping hand on my fingertips
i used to be someone now i'm not worth a shit
i've got a truckload of things trying to forget

since back in the garden on the first page
something about the cradle and the grave
the promises broken more promises made
all in the image i've so defaced

played out on the pages of history
dripping in blood that flows from a tree
where the Father and Son part company
come back together for you and me

i don't know why you did it what was your motivation
crucifixion's not a cool sensation
You had something to say and You started to speak
the Cross was a place for Your coronation speech

-- Drunk on the Tears, VOL from the CD Jugular

Not much to say on this one except how much I identify. I'm great at making excuses, and I'm bad at accepting responsibility. Although I'm not big on blaming others, I'm even less big on blaming myself. That sentiment goes with the little things, the bigger things, and THE BIG THING. And then the praise due to God evading my lips... man, does this song have me pegged.

When it all comes down to it, I'm not much of a person but thankful (not nearly thankful enough, though) that Christ died and rose for me. It does and it doesn't end there, of course. I've got to live for Him. Part of that is recognizing my failures and giving those over along with my victories. But I'm a looooooooong way from where I need to be. I'm thankful for the Church, and that God has always seemingly provided Christians in my path, no matter which false trails I run down. Oh, that I can come to the point where, "To live is Christ," and that's it. I'm always trying to add to that or take away, whichever. Mostly, I'm a mess that I'm hoping the Lord will pick up. Nonetheless, I've got to follow and be a disciple. There's no getting out of that one.

Still, it all begins at the Cross and extends from there. And this song states it well. And it states me well.