absonderpop

[News]

2007-08-08T14:07:00.000+02:00

As you might have noticed, there weren't any new postings for more than a month now.

I'm totally flooded with work right now, so I'll probably won't be able to post regularly for another 6-8 weeks.

Sorry for that, but keep checking this blog (or it's German sibling), as I might manage to upload a little something every now and then.

Boss Week, Pt. 3: Maybe Everything That Dies Some Day Comes Back

2007-07-07T15:14:00.000+02:00

[In absonderland a week can be a lot longer than just seven days...]

While Darkness On The Edge of Town sort of saved me during the worst year of my life, it was Springsteen's Nebraska that had put the Boss on my personal musical map.

I could connect much more to stripped down 4-track home-recordings that had been intended as demo versions for his follow up to The River than to all of his full band stuff I had known before discovering this album.

My personal stand-out track from Nebraska has always been Atlantic City – and not just because there are a lot of fine cover versions of that one around...

~~Bruce Springsteen: Atlantic City~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Atlantic City (MTV Plugged 1992)~~
~~Bruce Springsteen And The Sessions Band: Atlantic City (live 2007)~~
~~The Band: Atlantic City~~
~~Kurt Neumann (BoDeans): Atlantic City~~
~~Hank Williams III: Atlantic City~~
~~Mike Rimbaud: Atlantic City~~
~~Pete Yorn: Atlantic City/Murray (live)~~
~~Doc Holiday: Atlantic City~~
~~Ed Harcourt: Atlantic City~~
~~Denis Fischer: Atlantic City~~
~~Tom Thumb And The Latter Day Saints: Atlantic City~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Boss Week, Pt. 2: Ain't Nobody Like To Be Alone

2007-06-28T10:30:00.000+02:00

Originally, Springsteen had written Hungry Heart for The Ramones, after seeing them play in 1979. On advice of his manager, he kept the song for himself and it went on to become his first top ten single in the USA.

Now, don't we all wish Springsteen had done as he intended to? Although it would have been included on the Phil Spector-produced End of the Century (which marked the departure from the formulaic early punk rock records), I firmly believe that (imaginary) version had shitted all over every other recording of this song.

The version that was released on The River is sped up quite considerably. Listen to the alternate mix included here for comparison – same recording, different speed and pitch.

~~Bruce Springsteen: Hungry Heart~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Hungry Heart (original speed)~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Hungry Heart (live)~~
~~Jeanne Newhall: Hungry Heart~~
~~Jesse Malin: Hungry Heart~~
~~Mike Love: Hungry Heart~~
~~Minnie Driver: Hungry Heart~~
~~Paul Young: Hungry Heart~~
~~Smokie: Hungry Heart~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Boss Week, Pt. 1: Maybe We Ain't That Young Anymore

2007-06-25T03:07:00.000+02:00

Nick Hornby wrote in 31 Songs, "[...] this four and three quarter minutes provided Jim Steinman and Meatloaf with a whole career".
And yes, Thunder Road is bombastic and cliché-ridden, but it was Bruce Springsteen that sort of invented this kind of bombasticism and the notion of cars and girls and running away together.

Having grown up in a part of the world that is anything but like New Jersey, I had to reach my thirties to "get" Springsteen. Still, this songs stands the test of time and ranges up there in my all-time top ten.

Thunder Road takes it's title from a 1958 movie starring Robert Mitchum, though Springsteen claimes never to have seen the film before writing the song.

~~Bruce Springsteen: Thunder Road~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Thunder Road (acoustic demo)~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Thunder Road (alternate take 1)~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Thunder Road (alternate take 2)~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Thunder Road (live)~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: The Story of Thunder Road (VH1 Storytellers)~~
~~Bruce Springsteen: Thunder Road (VH1 Storytellers)~~
~~Tori Amos: Thunder Road~~
~~Melissa Etheridge feat. Bruce Springsteen: Thunder Road (live)~~
~~Kevin Rowland: Thunder Road~~
~~Barbara Fasano: Thunder Road~~
~~Greg Kihn: Thunder Road~~
~~Mary Lou Lord: Thunder Road (live)~~
~~Badly Drawn Boy: Thunder Road~~
~~Dan Bern: Thunder Road~~
~~Cowboy Junkies: Thunder Road~~
~~Ashton Jones: Thunder Road~~
~~Tortoise and Bonnie "Prince" Billy: Thunder Road~~
~~Paul Baribeau: Thunder Road (live)~~
~~Matt Tyler: Thunder Road~~
~~Milow: Thunder Road~~
~~Hayward Williams: Thunder Road~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

While The Sun Is Bright Or In The Darkest Night

2007-06-20T09:50:00.000+02:00

I never cared much for the Rolling Stones, as I was raised on a steady diet of Beatles and German singer/songwriters before I came across AC/DC and The Clash.
Recently I re-discovered how fantastic Melanie's version of Ruby Tuesday is (the one from 1970, the '76 recording is lackluster shite…), so I started to go through my collection and assemble all versions I have (and then some).

Although credited to Jagger/Richards (as almost every other Rolling Stones song), Ruby Tuesday was written by Keith Richards and Brian Jones, with the latter contributing the recorder parts on the, erm, recording.

~~The Rolling Stones: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~The Rolling Stones: Ruby Tuesday (live)~~
~~¡Los Checkmates!: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Rotary Connection: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Melanie: Ruby Tuesday (1970)~~
~~Melanie: Ruby Tuesday (1976)~~
~~Melanie: Ruby Tuesday (Pop Version)~~
~~Melanie: Ruby Tuesday (Rock Version)~~
~~Melanie: Ruby Tuesday (Country Version)~~
~~Melanie: Ruby Tuesday (Club Version)~~
~~Don Williams with Pozo Seco: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Nazareth: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Rod Stewart: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Dick Gaughan: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Deanna Carter: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Franco Battiato: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Julian Lennon: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Over The Rhine: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Sex Mob: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Daniel Johnston & Jad Fair: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Chris Thompson: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Phe Cullen: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Gotthard: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Dual Sessions: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Dawn Kenny: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Thee S.T.P.: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~The Corrs feat. Ron Wood: Ruby Tuesday (live)~~
~~Bobby Goldsboro: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~James Lee Stanley: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~I Profeti: Rubacuori~~
~~Oliver: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~London Symphony Orchestra with Marianne Faithfull: Ruby Tuesday~~
~~Whatever: Ruby Tuesday~~

Bonus (listen, and you'll know…):
~~Carter U.S.M.: After The Watershed~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

[Elsewhere]

2007-06-19T10:32:00.000+02:00

If you like the stuff I'm posting here, you should check out Mainstream Isn't So Bad...Is It? for a number of versions of the classic "House Of The Rising Sun" (and make sure to look up the link posted in the comments there).

Fong Songs has a nice selection of versions of the Kenny Rogers hit "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)".

They Stole Their Land And They Won't Give It Back

2007-06-19T07:10:00.000+02:00

In a recent interview with German weekly Stern, producer/songwriter/musician Dieter Bohlen (infamous for 80s abomination Modern Talking) claimed that he stole most of his song titles except for Geronimo's Cadillac.

Just to prove him wrong, here's a couple of versions of the 1972 song of the same title written by "Cosmic Cowboy" Michael Martin Murphey and Charles Quattro.

~~Michael Martin Murphey: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Hoyt Axton: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Claire Hamill: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Johnny Rivers: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Manfred Mann's Earth Band: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Dick Gaughan: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~John P. Strohm and The Hello Strangers: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Mary McCaslin & Jim Ringer: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Lennie Harvey: Geronimo's Cadillac~~
~~Joe Reilly: Geronimo's Cadillac~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

You Gotta Roll With The Punches

2007-06-13T00:33:00.000+02:00

This song is the incarnation of everything that was wrong with rock music in the eighties. From the annoying synthesizer hook to the ridiculous show-offish guitar solo: Utterly disgusting and unlistenable crap.

So it's no wonder that every single cover version I found of this song strays in a completely different musical direction: There's the fantastic bluegrass version, sung by none other than Dave Lee Roth himselfs (where manages to make the lyrics sound as hilarious as they are, but which isn't a total piss-take), there's Big Daddy's mash-up with Eddie Cochrane's Summertime Blues, and there's Roddy Frame's version, that transforms the song into a sibling of Sweet Jane by The Velvet Underground with a Sister Ray-ish guitar solo tagged to the end.

~~Van Halen: Jump~~
~~John Jorgenson Bluegrass Band feat. Dave Lee Roth: Jump~~
~~Mary Lou Lord: Jump~~
~~Nick Barker: Jump~~
~~Paul Anka: Jump~~
~~The Indigo: Jump~~
~~Aztec Camera: Jump~~
~~Big Daddy: Jump~~
~~Giuliano Palma & The Bluebeaters: Jump~~
~~Eläkeläiset: Hump~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

[Elsewhere]

2007-06-06T16:12:00.000+02:00

If you like the stuff I'm posting here, you should check out auralfitness.com for a shitload of covers of the Screamin' Jay Hawkins classic "I Put A Spell On You".

And you might be lucky to find some versions of "I Think We're Alone Now" at Retro Music Snob's Site, as he has a policy of removing the files after like a minute or so again.

I myself was quite busy for the last couple of weeks, but there's new postings coming up in the next days (or maybe hours).

Tom Petty Week, Pt. 2: There Ain't No Easy Way Out

2007-05-10T20:14:00.000+02:00

Taken from Petty's first "solo" album, Full Moon Fever, I Won't Back Down was co-written by ELO's Jeff Lynne. Although the album is credited to Tom Petty (sans The Heartbreakers) all members of his band (and the complete Traveling Wilburys, except for Mr. Dylan) were involved in recording it. The video to this songs has Ringo Starr on drums, but he didn't play on the album.

Tom Petty, Mike Campbell and Benmont Trench would also back Johnny Cash on his version of the song on American III: Solitary Man.

~~Tom Petty: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Tom Petty: I Won't Back Down (live)~~
~~Johnny Cash: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Roy Tyler and New Directions: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Smokie: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Cujo: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Greg Walton: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Holly Nelson: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Yancy: I Won't Back Down~~
~~Wiglaf Droste und das Spardosenterzett: I Won't Back Down~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Tom Petty Week, Pt. 1: After All It Was A Great Big World

2007-05-08T17:29:00.000+02:00

And another song that spurred an urban legend…

American Girl by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers was seen as tribute to Roger McGuinn's trademark 12-string Rickenbacker-jangle sound when it was released in 1976, although Petty and Heartbreakers' guitarrist Mike Campbell achieved that effect with two 6-strings playing unisono.
McGuinn would fittingly be the first to cover this tune on his 1977 solo effort Thunderbyrd.

~~Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: American Girl~~
~~Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: American Girl (live)~~
~~Roger McGuinn: American Girl~~
~~Roger McGuinn: American Girl (live)~~
~~Brassknuckle Boys: American Girl~~
~~Cindy Alexander: American Girl~~
~~Dance Hall Crashers: American Girl (live)~~
~~Def Leppard: American Girl~~
~~Everclear: American Girl (live)~~
~~Frances Kramer: American Girl~~
~~Goo Goo Dolls: American Girl (live)~~
~~Humble Gods: American Girl~~
~~Ill Repute: American Girl~~
~~Matthew Sweet: American Girl~~
~~Melora Creager: American Girl~~
~~The Popsters: American Girl~~
~~The Relatives: American Girl~~
~~Venerea: American Girl~~
~~Wendy Newcomer: American Girl~~
~~Sexy Sadie: American Girl~~

Bonus (listen, and you'll know…):
~~The Strokes: Last Nite~~
~~Detroit Cobras: Last Nite~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Some Folks Are Born Silver Spoon In Hand

2007-05-04T14:48:00.000+02:00

Written by John Fogerty in 1969, Fortunate Son was released as the b-side to Creedence Clearwater Revival's single Down On The Corner, with both sides of the single charting in the USA.

Since the Vietnam War little has changed about the social background of those who sent off to fight for their countries – be it because of economic reasons or because of conscription.

Contrary to an urban legend, the person referred to in the lyrics is not Al Gore Jr.

~~Creedence Clearwater Revival: Fortunate Son~~
~~Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band: Fortunate Son (live)~~
~~Circle Jerks: Fortunate Son~~
~~Death Cab For Cutie with Sean Nelson: Fortunate Son~~
~~Decry: Fortunate Son~~
~~Dropkick Murphys: Fortunate Son~~
~~Uncle Tupelo: Fortunate Son (live)~~
~~U2: Fortunate Son~~
~~Wyclef Jean: Fortunate Son~~
~~Tony Furtado: Fortunate Son~~
~~Johnny Halliday: Fils de personne~~
~~Minutemen: Fortunate Son~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

[Elsewhere]

2007-05-01T20:31:00.000+02:00

If you like the stuff I'm posting here, you should check out I Am Fuel, You Are Friends for a shitload of versions of the Sam Cooke classic "Bring It On Home" and Pretending Life Is Like A Song for a nice collection of The Jam's "That's Entertainment".

(Of course, you all know the MOKB Cover Song Project.)

50,000 Watts Of Power

2007-04-26T15:08:00.000+02:00

Now, this one's a bit complicated.
Well, the song as such is all but complicated. Two chords (ok, a third one right at the end) and a guy mostly talking.

Roadrunner can be found on The Modern Lovers' only (self-titled) album, which was released in 1976, when the band had long ceased to exist. Jonathan Richman would name his backing band The Modern Lovers for quite some time, but none of the original members were ever part of that. Jerry Harrison had joined Talking Heads and drummer David Robinson had already become a member of The Cars.

I took the effort to track down and (hopefully) correctly identify all versions of this song (with a lot of help from Simes' Jonathan Richman Pages and Daniel Howards Modern Lovers Discography).

All versions (unless otherwise noted)
Jonathan Richman (git/voc)
Jerry Harrison (kb/voc)
Ernie Brooks (bg/voc)
David Robinson (dr/voc)

~~The Modern Lovers: Roadrunner (LP Version)~~
March or April 1972, Elektra Studios, Los Angeles, produced by John Cale

~~The Modern Lovers: Roadrunner (Alternate Version)~~
March or April 1972, Elektra Studios, Los Angeles, produced by John Cale

~~The Modern Lovers: Roadrunner #1~~
June 1972, Dinky Dawson's basement studio, produced by Kim Fowley

~~The Modern Lovers: Roadrunner #2~~
Autumn 1973, Gold Star Studios, Los Angeles, produced by Kim Fowley
additional musicians: Mars Bonfire (git)

~~The Modern Lovers: Roadrunner (live)~~
1971 or 1972, Harvard University, Cambridge MA, produced by Ernie Brooks
additional musicians: John Felice (git)

~~The Modern Lovers: Roadrunner (Demo)~~
Autumn 1971, Intermedia Sound, Boston

~~Jonathan Richman: Roadrunner (Once)~~
Spring/Summer 1974, CBS Studios, Fulson Street, San Fancisco, produced by Matthew King Kaufman and Glen Kolotin
Jonathan Richman & Earth Quake [Robbie Dunbar (git), Gary Philips (git/voc), Stan Miller (bg), Steve Nelson (dr), John Doukas (voc), Ron Rhoades (voc)]

~~Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers: Roadrunner (Thrice)~~
1977, Live
Leroy Radcliffe (git), Asa Brebner (bg) D. Sharpe (dr)

A posting like this one couldn't be complete without a couple of cover versions:
~~Greg Kihn: Roadrunner~~
~~Joan Jett and the Blackhearts: Roadrunner~~
~~Joan Jett: Roadrunner USA~~
~~The Jazz Butcher: Roadrunner~~
~~The Jazz Butcher: Roadrunner (live, 1985)~~
~~The Jazz Butcher: Roadrunner (live, 2000)~~
~~Ace Andres and the X-15's: Roadrunner~~
~~Yo La Tengo: Roadrunner~~
~~The Feelies: Roadrunner (live)~~
~~Sex Pistols: Johnny B. Goode/Roadrunner~~
~~R.E.M.: Eight Miles High/Roadrunner (live)~~
~~ADZ: Roadrunner~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

He's Already In Me

2007-04-23T08:08:00.000+02:00

You don't always have to write lyrics of epic proportions if you can convey your message in just two lines.

~~The Stone Roses: I Wanna Be Adored (7" version)~~
~~The Stone Roses: I Wanna Be Adored (12" version)~~
~~The Stone Roses: I Wanna Be Adored (Bloody Valentine Edit)~~
~~Joshua English: I Wanna Be Adored~~
~~Tangerine: I Wanna Be Adored~~
~~Year Of The Rabbit: I Wanna Be Adored~~
~~Axton Kincaid: I Wanna Be Adored~~
~~Death Cab For Cutie: I Wanna Be Adored (live)~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

I'm Not Going To Play Your Games Anymore

2007-04-19T01:16:00.000+02:00

When listing the most influential bands of the sixties, most people tend to forget The Byrds. They were one of the first groups to combine traditional or contemporary folk songs with electric guitars and drums and later in their career introduced country to the world of rock music. They inspired bands like R.E.M., Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers or Teenage Fanclub and almost everyone (including me) ever to choose a Rickenbacker guitar over one made by Fender or Gibson…

Until he left the band in 1966 – for reasons of, amongst others, fear of flying (!) – Gene Clark was the main songwriter of The Byrds. Although he rejoined the band for one album in 1973, he never again gained much commercial success. He died of drug- and alcohol-related health issues in 1991.

And yes, that is Katey "Peggy Bundy/Leela" Sagal…

~~The Byrds: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~The Byrds: Feel A Whole Lot Better (alternate take)~~
~~Gene Clark: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Gene Clark & Carla Olson: Feel A Whole Lot Better (live)~~
~~Dave & The Stone Hearts: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Marble Phrogg: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~The Barracudas: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~The Flamin' Groovies: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Dinosaur Jr: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Tom Petty: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Elf Power: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Teenage Fanclub: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Johnny Rivers: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Katey Sagal: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~Charles Lyonheart: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~
~~George Elliott: Feel A Whole Lot Better~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Clash Week, Pt. 4: Everybody They Wanna Go Home

2007-04-16T16:44:00.000+02:00

To finish off Clash Week in this blog, here's one of the highlights from the last album they recorded in their original line-up, Combat Rock.
The Clash have always been politically outspoken, as is Straight To Hell – a song which tackles a number of social issues ranging from drug abuse to immigration.

~~The Clash: Straight To Hell (unedited version)~~
~~The Clash: Straight To Hell (live)~~
~~Amy Loftus and Will Kimbrough: Straight To Hell~~
~~Emm Gryner: Straight To Hell~~
~~Josh Rouse: Straight To Hell~~
~~Moby feat. Heather Nova: Straight To Hell~~
~~Phil Cody: Straight To Hell~~
~~Red Letter Day: Straight To Hell~~
~~Skinnerbox: Straight To Hell~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Clash Week, Pt. 3: I Guess My Race Is Run

2007-04-13T18:14:00.000+02:00

And another song, not written by any of the members of The Clash. This one could even have been considered a classic by the time The Clash recorded their own version, as it had been recorded by The Crickets in 1960 and been made popular by The Bobby Fuller Four in 1964.
Written by Sonny Curtis, the guitarrist of The Crickets, I Fought The Law was included on the first album the band released after the death of their former lead singer Buddy Holly.

~~The Crickets: I Fought The Law~~
~~Bobby Fuller Four: I Fought The Law~~
~~The Clash: I Fought The Law~~
~~The Clash: I Fought The Law (live)~~
~~The Pogues feat. Joe Strummer: I Fought The Law (live)~~
~~Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros: I Fought The Law (live~~
~~Dead Kennedys: I Fought The Law~~
~~Stray Cats: I Fought The Law~~
~~Nanci Griffith: I Fought The Law~~
~~Mike Ness (Social Distortion): I Fought The Law~~
~~Waco Brothers: I Fought The Law~~
~~The Oyster Band: I Fought The Law (live)~~
~~Mano Negra: I Fought The Law (live)~~
~~Gene October (Chelsea): I Fought The Law~~
~~Hank Williams Jr.: I Fought The Law~~
~~Green Day: I Fought The Law~~
~~Henry Kaiser and David Lindley: I Fought The Law~~
~~Yo La Tengo: I Fought The Law~~
~~Bryan Adams: I Fought The Law (live)~~
~~Status Quo: I Fought The Law (live)~~
~~Birdland with Lester Bangs: I Fought The Law (live)~~
~~Claude François: J'ai Joué et J'ai Perdu~~
~~Ace Andres and the X-15's: I Fought The Law~~
~~Left Alone: I Fought The Law~~
~~Roy Orbison: I Fought The Law~~
~~The Freddy Steady 5: I Fought The Law~~
~~Tom Bee: I Fought The Law~~
~~Voodoo DeVille: I Fought The Law~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Clash Week, Pt. 2: Won't You Help Me Find The Speed I Lack?

2007-04-12T16:45:00.000+02:00

There are songs that you associate that much with one band, you are stunned to find out they haven't been written by this band.
Even so, if the original version of the song is by someone you only know from a couple of poppy reggae tunes from the 80s.
Eddy Grant, who was the main singer and songwriter for the British pop/reggae-group The Equals before he went solo, wrote "Police On My Back" and the band released the song as a single in 1968.

~~The Equals: Police On My Back~~
~~The Clash: Police On My Back~~
~~The Deadcats: Police On My Back~~
~~Asian Dub Foundation & Zebda: Police On My Back~~
~~Die Toten Hosen: Police On My Back~~
~~Levellers: Police On My Back~~
~~Micky Fitz: Police On My Back~~
~~Pressure Point: Police On My Back~~
~~The Hated: Police On My Back~~
~~The Rocketz: Police On My Back~~
~~Willie Nile: Police On My Back~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Clash Week, Pt. 1: The Money Feels Good

2007-04-09T19:25:00.000+02:00

The Guns Of Brixton was the only song written by Paul Simonon (who's now in The Good, The Bad And The Queen) ever to be released on an album of The Clash. There must be a gazillion cover versions of this one and the bassline has crossed over into mainstream pop via the sample used by Norman Cook's Beats International (before he became Fatboy Slim).

Interestingly enough, the song was released way before the Brixton Riot of 1981.

~~The Clash: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~The Clash: The Guns Of Brixton (live)~~
~~Arcade Fire: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Calexico: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~RTZ Global: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Nouvelle Vague: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Jeff Klein: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Rancho Deluxe: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~The Bandits: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Blaggers ITA: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~The Honeydippers: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Dropkick Murphys: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Die Toten Hosen: The Guns Of Brixton (live)~~
~~Die Toten Hosen feat. Gentleman: The Guns Of Brixton (live)~~
~~The Anacondas: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Los Fabulosos Cadillacs: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Enrico Ruggeri: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Bolchoi: The Guns Of Brixton~~
~~Inner Terrestrials: The Guns Of Brixton~~

Bonus (listen, and you'll know…):
~~Cypress Hill feat. Tim Armstrong: What's Your Number?~~
~~Soilent Grün: Spitz wie Lumpi~~
~~Beats International: Dub Be Good To Me~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

It's Better To Burn Out…

2007-04-05T00:04:00.000+02:00

There are those moments in everybody's lives that you won't forget, no matter how long in the past the may have occured.
Some of them are sad, some are filled with bliss.
Some are private, some are very, very public.
Some are quiet, some are very, very noisy.

The "Monsters of Spex"-festival at the Tanzbrunnen, Cologne, 8/24/1991, was one of those moments in my life.
Because there was this band that arrived too late for their allocated time-slot in the early afternoon and got squeezed in between Sonic Youth, Bob Mould (doing an acoustic set) and Dinosaur Jr.
Most of the folks at the festival (including me) had never heard of them before, but we all somehow knew, we were experiencing something very, very big.

Oh, name of the band? Nirvana.

13 years ago today, on April, 5th 1994 Kurt Cobain shot himself.
(Needless to say, I never returned my ticket for their show at the Sporthalle, Cologne on 4/14/1994…)

To commemorate one of the greatest musicians ever to walk this planet, here's a couple of cover versions of Nirvana's break-through song:

~~Nirvana: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Patti Smith: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Tori Amos: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Paul Anka: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~The Melvins & Leif Garrett: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Warp Brothers: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Scandal'us: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Scala: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~The Bad Plus: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Willie Nelson: Smells Like Teen Spirit~~
~~Weird Al Yankovic: Smells Like Nirvana~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.

Please Don't Confront Me With My Failures

2007-04-03T19:16:00.000+02:00

I had to put this blog on hiatus for quite some time for personal reasons, but I promise to post regularly from now on again…

To start afresh, here's a couple of versions of "These Days".
Jackson Browne wrote the song in 1967 for German-born ex-model Nico to be included on her first solo album Chelsea Girl.

Browne would later record the song himself for his 1973 sophomore album For Everyman.

~~Nico: These Days~~
~~Jackson Browne: These Days~~
~~Jackson Browne: These Days (solo acoustic)~~
~~David Allan Coe: These Days~~
~~10,000 Maniacs: These Days~~
~~Fountains of Wayne: These Days~~
~~Barbara Manning: These Days~~
~~Denison Witmer: These Days~~
~~Paul Westerberg: These Days~~
~~Mates of State: These Days~~
~~The Golden Palominos: These Days~~

If you happen to have another version of this song, feel free to send it in and I'll include it in this list.
(There are other songs titled "These Days" by R.E.M., Joy Division, The Jesus and Mary Chain and Ron Sexsmith, which shouldn't be confused with this one.)

My Old Kentucky Blog has the perfect companion piece to this posting.

I must warn you, though. It will be sexy…

2006-04-26T02:47:00.000+02:00

Best music video ever.

Maurice Colon interprets "Little by Little" by The Wannadies. With his body parts. (Watch it and you'll know...)

This video was made by Garth Jennings and Nick Goldsmith, who usually go by the name of Hammer & Tongs and are responsible for quite some real masterpieces such as the clips for Badly Drawn Boy's "Spitting in the Wind" (aka "Pissing in the Wind", featuring the fantastic Joan Collins), R.E.M.'s "Imitation of Life" und Fatboy Slim's "Right Here, Right Now", amongst others. But on the other hand this here as well.

Change every light bulb...

2006-04-05T02:51:00.000+02:00

What a depressing week for music lovers!

Buck Owens, Nikki Sudden and Dr. Eugene Landy. All Gone.

Last night, Martin Gilks the former The Wonderstuff drummer died following a motorcycle accident.

So here are some of my favourite The Wonderstuff tracks.

~~Change Every Light Bulb~~
~~Don't Let Me Down Gently~~
~~Give Give Give Me More More More~~
~~Welcome To The Cheap Seats~~
~~Room 512~~

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They're gonna find us some day

2006-04-03T02:22:00.000+02:00

A good song is not defined by its genre. Nor is it confined to just one genre.

A perfect example for this is the Chips Moman/Dan Penn penned (scnr) "Dark End of the Street", which was originally recorded by James Carr in 1966.

One might argue, that there is a close relationship between the soul/r&b-genre and the folk/country-genre, and the differences are mainly constituted by the predominant skin colour of the performers.

Besides these versions posted here, artists as diverse as Dolly Parton, Elvis Costello and Linda Ronstadt have recorded this song, but my collection lacks their respective take on this classic.

James Carr: ~~The Dark End of the Street~~
The Flying Burrito Brothers: ~~Dark End of the Street~~
Richard & Linda Thompson: ~~The Dark End of the Street~~
The Moving Hearts: ~~Dark End of the Street~~
The Afghan Whigs: ~~Dark End of the Street~~
Billy Bragg: ~~At the Dark End of the Street~~
Aretha Franklin: ~~The Dark End of the Street~~
Percy Sledge: ~~The Dark End of the Street~~
The Commitments: ~~The Dark End of the Street~~
Diamanda Galas & John Paul Jones: ~~Dark End of the Street~~

All that's left for us now are moments like these

2006-03-31T16:39:00.000+02:00

Now here's the inevitable The Mountain Goats posting…

I was sort of a late-comer to the music of John Darnielle, but if there ever was a contender for the "New Bob Dylan"-moniker, I'd put my money on this one.

Being brought up on Billy Bragg and the Pogues (and the former being the most prominent reason for me switching from playing keyboards to the guitar), you just have to love John Darnielle's guitar style. I prefer someone handling the strings the way he does a million times over the styles of what are usually regarded as "good" guitarists. And don't even let me start about his gifted songwriting...

I'd really appreciate, if he re-released ALL of his old stuff on CD. A couple of weeks ago, two of the Shrimper tapes (Hot Garden Stomp and The Hound Chronicles) went up for sale on ebay, selling for $56.36 and $81.56 respectively. Now this exceeded my budget by far and dampened my completist desire a good deal.

So if anyone out there is ready to sell their copies of said cassettes at a somewhat more reasonable price, feel free to contact me. I'm looking for the Come, Come to the Sunset Tree-vinyl as well, as John Darnielle hasn't toured Europe since the release. I'd be almost as grateful, if one of you was willing to share these albums ;-)

Now here are two The Mountain Goats b-sides. The first one was taken from See America Right, the second one from Letter to Belgium.

~~New Chevrolet in Flames~~
~~Attention All Pickpockets~~

Many girls have taken you for a ride

2006-03-28T18:15:00.000+02:00

A couple of years ago, I had the rare chance to see Daniel Johnston perform in Germany. As far as I know, he only visited Germany twice, although he had planned to play some gigs last summer, which sadly had to be cancelled due to his deteriorating health.

If you don't know about Daniel, be sure to check out this page.

Alas, without further ado, here's the music-related posting I had originally intended to be the first. It might or might not set the mood for upcoming postings, but starting off with one of my all time favourites in as many different versions as I have in my collection, doesn't seem to be a bad idea…

• ~~Daniel Johnston: Speeding Motorcycle~~
• ~~Yo La Tengo: Speeding Motorcycle~~
• ~~Yo La Tengo feat. Daniel Johnston: Speeding Motorcycle~~
• ~~Mary Lou Lord: Speeding Motorcycle~~
• ~~The Pastels: Speeding Motorcycle~~
• ~~Lou Barlow: Speeding Motorcycle~~

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R.I.P. Nikki…

2006-03-28T02:16:00.000+02:00

I was going to start this blog with something completely different and on a much lighter note…

But I just found out that one of my all time Rock'n'Roll heroes passed away last night, aged 49.

I had the chance to see him perform a couple of times over the last 20 years, both with bigger audiences and during more intimate solo-sets. The picture was taken at one such occasion on December, 30th 2004 at the MuK in Gießen, Germany.

I talked to Nikki about booking him for a private party not quite a year ago (a shame, that someone with as much talent as him could be booked for such little money!!!), which didn't work out because of scheduling problems.

Therefore, in honour of the late, great Mr. Sudden, a couple of tracks from his +30 years-spanning career.

~~Jacobites: Road of Broken Dreams~~
~~Jacobites: Before I Die~~
~~Nikki Sudden: Death is Hanging over Me~~

Yet another music-related blog

2006-03-22T02:30:00.000+01:00

I've been toying for quite some time with the idea to start my own mp3-blog.

So, here it is.