Just so you all know I haven’t died — no, dears, listening to so much rock n roll these days I can hardly walk in a straight line — here’s a Mixtape from me to you:
Ten songs — just 10 songs! — of what ol’ Eddie has been listening to, and loving, these last several days.
Just samplers.
They all kick ass, for different reasons.
Play along, sons and daughters!
[And yes: I'm listening to each track as I post: consider it a shared experience.]
TURN IT ON AND TURN IT THE FUCK UP.
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1) ”Stop Breaking Down”, The White Stripes — from their 1999 debut album, The White Stripes.
Don’t think. Just bang your head.
A lot’s been said about Jack White integrating blues, punk, and hard rock into a modern framework … for now, throw out the academics, and enjoy this early, almost primitive track from the now-famous Detroit twosome.
After a decade of grunge, you might imagine how satisfying this sounded to 1999 ears. To my 2010 ears, it’s doubly delish.
Jack White is convincing me.
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2) ”Louie, Louie”, original recording by Richard Berry & the Pharoahs — released as a single in 1957.
Oh, NOW!
The famous version of “Louie, Louie” hit the airwaves in 1963, when an unknown Oregon garage band named The Kingsmen released their cover single, burning its imprint on jukeboxes everywhere.
But, like most early rock, it came from the soul of a rockin’ black artist; in this case, Richard Berry — he made other contributions to RnR, but this is the biggest.
Smooth as silk, sweet as sugar pie, baby!
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3) ”So Sad About Us”, The Who — from their second U.K. studio album, released in 1966, A Quick One. [The subsequent US release was called Happy Jack, because they did shit like that back then.]
Let’s not muck about the boo here, fellas. The Who KICKS ASS.
This is a lesser-known cut, off their sophomore album — an album best known for their first mini-opera, “A Quick One (While He’s Away)” (which is fantastic, by the by, and worth a week of study on its own).
But this cut is just DELISH; Pete Townshend had already established that he was in the top tier of English guitarists of the time; they had already laid down classic tracks like “My Generation”, “The Kids Are Alright”, and “I Can’t Explain” — all anthems for a ‘generation’ of Brits; but already by the second album, Townshend is stretching his songwriting chops.
And what mega-chops they are.
This deserves a blow by blow:
Keith Moon bangs us in, Pete on the riff — and right into a harmonic “la la la”, setting up the exquisite chorus …
Just laying the table. It’s pop. But rock and roll. All together in a banging, beautiful package.
Second verse, more of the same — building into a tense bridge …
And the wall of Moon drums!
Into the key change!
Pete punching the geet!
And they go out on “ooh’s” …
This from a nasty-ass rock band, the first band to destroy the shit out of their instruments on stage.
They’re dangerous, they’re grody … AND they can power-pop?!?!
Yes, folks. Many say power-pop started with The Who.
THE SURPRISES KEEP COMING.
{Excuse me, got a little hot under the collar, there.}
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4) ”Hate to Say I Told You So”, The Hives — from their second album, released in 2000, Veni Vidi Vicious.
Oh … are we rocking?!
The other musical bloodline The Who gets credit for co-fathering is … PUNK.
The early aughts brought us another punk-rock “revival” of sorts, with the White Stripes, the Strokes, The Killers, The Vines, The Libertines (and more) reminding everybody what shit-kicking smelled like.
One of those revivalists, and the one that’s my Extra Spesh so far, an absolute personal favorite — I am an unabashed convert to the power of this band — is the so-dirty-it-might-be-from-1981 small-town-Swedish quintet called The Hives.
They wear matching black-and-white suits.
They claim all songs are written by their own Svengali, a faceless man named Randy Fitzsimmons.
They have nicknames like “Dr. Matt Destruction” and “Chris Dangerous”.
And they rock like fuckin’ banshees.
For a long time I complained that there weren’t any singers out there with balls. Well, this whole band has balls — and the singer, ‘Howlin” Pelle Almqvist, is an Iggy/Jagger-love-child who puts every emo-dripping motherfucker to SHAME. Bless his heart.
This is their best, most memorable, early single. It may take a few times through to grow on you — but if you’re like me, you’ll thrash that melon, bang those air-drummin’ fists, and pump on the yummy bass set-up … before REALLY letting loose for the song’s final Huzzah.
Pray Lord: rock n roll isn’t dead!!!
(You may want to play this again right away — just to feel, you know… alive.)
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5) ”California Waiting”, Kings of Leon — this is the version off their debut 2001 EP, Holy Roller Novocaine; they re-recorded the version on debut full album, Youth & Young Manhood. This one’s cleaner.
Uh-oh. I just had to break out the Kings of Leon.
Whether you love em or hate em, you have to respect that this scruffy-from-the-South outfit has managed to break into the mainstream at a time when moving up a tier is extremely difficult.
But long before “Use Somebody” and “Sex on Fire” got overplayed to shit, there were songs like this one, right off the debut EP — straight ahead, radio-wistful tuners played without synth, no strings, no hyper-orchestration.
Just thoughts of your car, your girl, and California.
What the fuck — there’s nothing wrong with the 70s, man!
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6) ”When I Paint My Masterpiece”, Bob Dylan — I believe this song was originally recorded by Dylan and The Band during the Basement Tapes period; Dylan’s version was released first, on Greatest Hits, Volume II in 1971. The Band’s cover is on their 1971 release, Cahoots.
Not much to add here, just enjoy this end-of-the 60s country throwdown from the Greatest, ol’ Minnesota kid, Bobby Zimmerman.
He dominated the 60s so completely, that his unreleased throw-aways were often better than entire outputs from world-famous bands.
Here’s one of the “forgotten” Dylan classics.
Footnote: The Band’s version is used in the slow-mo montage sequence that opens Observe and Report, the Seth Rogen mall-cop movie — most overlooked comedy of recent years, says I. Check it out if you’re so inclined.
Or not.
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7) ”Animal”, Miike Snow — from last year’s debut, Miike Snow. FYI, people, Miike Snow is made up of one singer-songwriter and two producers. Not just one huge Norwegian with a computer.
Was I just knocking synth?
How dare I?
The Bloodshy & Avant pop-producing duo decided to lay some hooks down with singer Andrew Wyatt — all Swedes (what’s with me and the Swedes?) — and released the resulting long-player in 2009.
This is track one, and the functioning single. The reggae bounce pulled me in, and a techno-pop chorus brings the sunshine.
You got something to do? Great — go do it, and let this be your backround track.
Make sure you’re wearing sunglasses.
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8) ”Don’t Let Me Lose This Dream”, Aretha Franklin — from her star-making 1967 release, I Never Loved a Man (the Way I Loved You)”.
Every single song on this classic album is capable of knocking your socks off, if you’re at the right angle.
Recorded with sound engineering genius Tom Dowd, each track has unsurpassed quality — check out the pick-up on that bass line!!! — all in support of piano-prodigy, soul-gospel icon Aretha Franklin.
“Respect” is track one, and her Pantheon classic.
But today I’m grooving on dreams.
Yum it up — nobody does this better than the Queen.
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9) ”Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles)”, Arcade Fire — from their world splashing 2004 debut, Funeral.
The importance and impact of Arcade Fire’s first album is still being measured.
At the very least, it woke up a sagging indie rock culture, showed a balance of intimacy/maturity/ambition not seen in years, and blew away anyone who paid attention (including U2, who immediately booked them to open several shows, and always used “Wake Up” directly before their concerts).
Multi-instrumentalists from Montreal, these Canadian wonders showed they weren’t done yet, with a highly regarded follow-up in 2007, Neon Bible.
We’ll see where they go next, but for now, Funeral remains a touchstone album of the aughts, and is typically included in the top 5 albums of the decade.
Several songs are better known (“Wake Up”, “Rebellion (Lies)”, “Power Out”).
I’m playing “7 Kettles”, the fourth and last song of the Neighborhood cycle.
Epic, yearning, humble, personal … and it makes you think of your Grandma?
Boil some tea, darlings.
Rock and roll can take you anywhere.
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10) ”On to the Next One”, Jay-Z, with Swissbeatz — from Blueprint 3, released last year; his most recent single.
Speaking of rock n roll …
Why not a lil’ hip hop fer y’all to close this fucker down?
Probably the definitive song of the New Decade for ol’ Eddie. Just takes me there.
On to the next gig, the next day, the next song, the next dollar, the next dream … the next year, the next decade. The next Life, in a neon sign.
Go get it.
Jay-Z just dominated the aughts, peeps. OutKast could have, but didn’t. Jay-Z simply kept dropping albums, and spanked his way to the trophy.
What on earth is wrong with a single as good as this one?
Nothing, brohemes.
Nothing at all.
Thanks for listening to the mix — now go get yourself on to the next one.
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Hope you enjoyed this as much as I did, pals!
Now, let me know if you liked getting a mix; what songs you liked; if you’d listen to another one.
Thank ye, thank ye!
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The work goes on: I’m slogging through Bill Haley & His Comets, early Elvis Presley Sun session material, British Invasion bands like the Zombies, Manfred Mann, and Them; and many many impact albums of the aughts, including songs of the Strokes, Animal Collective, Spoon, Sigur Ros, the Flaming Lips… and more!
If you guys hear anything you want to beef about — bring it to Eddie’s house; I’d love to shoot the crap.
As always.
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This is Eddie Varese, saying fuck that Auto-Tune.
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