Sunday Shuffle

“Look What They’ve Done To My Song” – Ray Charles & The Count Basie Orchestra. Oh man, does it swing! So excellent! I’d prefer to not open a can of worms, but here I go anyway. I think this version of it is quite interesting. Thanks to my friend Charlie for showing it to me.

“Ensemble” – by Scala & Kolacny Brothers, the all-female Belgian choir. I love their stuff. I first heard them when I saw the trailer for The Social Network, which was overlaid with the creepiest cover of “Creep” on the planet. I remember thinking: “Who the hell is singing that? I must know.” At that time, their stuff was not widely known and also not really available. That has since changed. Their albums are on iTunes. Check them out. And also check out their performances on Youtube. They’re extremely dramatic with a very melodramatic conductor.

“Bombay” – Timbaland, featuring Amar & Jim Beanz. Fantastic. I love that whole album (Shock Value).

“Dancin'” – Olivia Newton-John and The Tubes, from Xanadu. We were just laughing about this on Facebook the other day. That guy from The Tubes is such a Bossypants that if I were on a date with him I’d have to remind him of my boundaries because he is crossing the line. Sir, I know you’ve “got dancin’ to do”, you don’t need to keep saying it over and over, and also insisting that you “won’t take a backseat” won’t help get you laid. Stop being so BOSSY.

“The Bottle Let Me Down” – the great Merle Haggard. The guitar in this is so awesome. It sounds drunk, floating along on the periphery, weaving in and out.

“I Believe” – churchy Elvis Presley. Dramatic!

“Go to the Mirror” – The Who, from Tommy (of course). An anthem. See me, feel me, touch me, heal me …

“Somebody Bigger Than You and I” (take 15) – Elvis Presley. More gospel from The King. Big chorus behind him, with Elvis the leader. I think one of the reasons why Gospel Elvis is one of my favorite Elvises is that, while he is always sincere, no matter the style, he feels most sincere in the gospel. There is nothing between us and him.

“Talk to Me of Mendocino” – sisters Kate & Anna McGarrigle. Too much. Too much heart, pain, regret, nostalgia, love. “Never had the blues from whence I came, but in New York State I caught ’em…” Speaking of Kate McGarrigle, please keep your eyes peeled for Lian Lunson’s new concert film Sing the Songs That Say I Love You.

“The Beautiful People” – Marilyn Manson. I don’t have a lot of his stuff, but I love him, in general. This song is ferocious. It’s overwhelming if you turn those speakers way way up. Great stuff.

“The Tears of a Clown” – Smokey Robinson & The Miracles. Put this song at a party, any time, anywhere, and people will start to move.

“For My Friends” – Beth Hart. She is a fucking rock star. Does anyone else know who she is? Her voice. Her songs. I discovered her years ago. I feel so grateful for that. I don’t even know how she came across my path.

“Snuff That Girl” – a big hilarious production number from Urinetown. It’s awesome.

“Seven Deadly Sins” – The Dubliners. A point by point justification for being Bad. It’s funny.

“Lollipops and Roses” – Jack Jones. I honestly don’t know who I would have become if I had grown up in an era where this was the representation of marriage and gender relations. It’s fucking psychotic propaganda.

“Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere” – the great Faye Adams. I needed my brain and soul cleansed after Jack Jones passing down his condescending rules for Love. God, Faye Adams is just so out there, she just puts herself, her voice, her feelings, OUT there. No holding back. Sexy. Yearning. Mad. Dirty. Sad. It’s all there. She’s like Judy Garland that way. The voice is big enough, powerful enough, to express the big-ness of the emotions (that is not always the case).

“Work B**ch” – Britney Spears. I was a fan from the first song. I am a huge supporter. I think how she was treated during her bad years was horrendous, ugly, frightening. I think the South Park episode about her bordered on documentary. Sure, a troubled woman, who has made some bad choices. Whatever, who the fuck HASN’T, you moralistic heartless cads? She certainly was made to PAY for her mistakes TEN-fold. I think she’s fabulous. She’s a hit machine. Go, Brit-Brit. This is her new single. It is, typically, totally ridiculous and totally rocking.

“Radio and TV” – The Everly Brothers. They are so perfect. Why are they so perfect? The harmonies, the rhythms, the lyrics/songs themselves … You would never mistake them for anyone else. Adore them.

“Save Me For a Day” – Amanda Jenssen. I somehow tripped over her on iTunes, listened to a couple of tracks, bought them promptly. Catchy stuff. I like her. She was a runner-up on a season of the Swedish version of Idol.

“Free to Be … You and Me” – The New Seekers. Oh good grief.

“She’s About a Mover” – The Sir Douglas Quartet. Hot as hell.

“Battle of Evermore” – The Lovemongers (aka Heart). Wow, I forgot I even owned this. That guitar, just so good. I love them.

“The Four Horsemen” – Metallica. So fast, it’s overwhelming. From Kill ‘Em All. You can hear the melding of influences. It sounds like punk, rock, metal, but it’s faster. It’s also 7 minutes long.

“Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” – Crystal Gayle. Beautiful. The piano is lovely accompaniment.

“Wait” – The Beatles. From Rubber Soul which may very well be my favorite album of theirs. The rhythm of those verses are so … odd … so almost, herky-jerky – the stop-start, the hesitations, pauses. Which is perfect, when you consider the title. The chorus finds a smooth rhythm, and then it all goes to hell during the verses. So complex, so good.

“Polly” – Nirvana, during their MTV Unplugged concert. I still miss him.

“Calling In the Wind” – The Judds. This was the song that got me into the Judds. I’m not as into them as I was back then (Chicago days) but I still like them.

“Long Tall Sally” – the 100% lunatic Little Richard. Some of the things he does with his voice, the screaming, the sudden swoops up into falsetto, make me laugh.

“Sugar Dumpling” – Sam Cooke. His songs have this weird sweetness to them, an innocence and simplicity, which is striking when you know even a tiny bit about him. He was a hit-writer, that’s clear. He focused on the details of life, he zoomed in on the everyday moments that spoke to him, that suggested “there’s a song in this”. He understood the greatest lesson of all: by keeping it simple and personal, you reach the universal.

“The Call of Ktulu” – Metallica. This 9-minute monstrosity takes its time. It’s an almost unbearable build. You ACHE for it to start to get loud and heavy. It doesn’t do so until a minute and a half in, and then it goes NUTS.

“When Johnny Comes Marching Home” – the United States Military Academy Band. Where the heck did this come from? It’s fanTAStic. I want to go to war.

“Lonely Teardrops” – Jackie Wilson. What a showman.

“I’m With a Crowd But So Alone” – Elvis Presley, part of the Million Dollar Quartet. Hangin’ out at Sun Records, December, 1956. Thank goodness Sam Phillips had the wherewithal to turn the mic on and capture the whole thing. (And even though this is clearly casual, with people talking in the background … it’s a bit eerie. Seems to sum up the Elvis Experience of Life.)

“I’m Comin’ On Back to You” – Jackie Wilson again! You can really really hear why/how he was such an influence on Elvis.

“Here We Go Again” – Everclear. I find this to be rocking. Not as transcendent as those songs that were a lifeline for me through 2009. This is more stock, more cliched. But still good.

“Amazing Grace” (alternate take 2) – Elvis, letting it all hang out. Great church-y piano, and a slow emotional build, the choir supporting him in the background. He is so iN it.

“My Apocalypse” – Metallica. Such a light-hearted melody.

“I Like You Best” – Pat McCurdy. I think he’s at Summer Fest here. The crowd sounds huge.

“Suspension Without Suspense” – No Doubt. I was so into them for a hot second. Basically as long as they lasted. I love this song. Beautiful melancholy melody.

“Drink To Me Only / When You’re Smiling / The Lady Is a Tramp” – Dean Martin. This is live, and it’s so entertaining. He’s doing his “drunk” thing, messing up the lyrics, pausing for no reason … and the audience ROARS no matter what he does. He was “touched”. In the same way Elvis was “touched”. We all have magic in us, but only some of us have show business magic. He changes the words to “Lady Is a Tramp” and it’s hilarious.

“Just For a Thrill” – Ray Charles. Achey and romantic, the big strings in the background.

“Pavement Artist” – Dick Van Dyke, from Mary Poppins. It is this kind of juxtaposition for which iPod Shuffle was made.

“I Feel Fine” – The Beatles. This is “live at the BBC”. You know, when they break into harmony … it’s still pleasing, and I’ve heard this song, what, 2000 times? And I love “I’m so glad that she’s my little girl …” That whole section, its arrangement, harmonies, etc., just FEELS so right. This has the rough edge of a live performance, it’s great.

“It’s So Easy” – Buddy Holly. Sexy. I like when he roughs up his voice. He doesn’t do it often, but when he does? Rowr.

“Black Hole Sun” – Soundgarden. Good makeout song. Or … so I’ve heard.

“Rockin’ Years” – Dolly Parton and George Jones. I just can’t … with how beautiful these two are together.

“Personality” – Lloyd Price. He’s amazing.

“Centerfold” – J. Geils Band. A huge hit when I was in high school. The dance floor would fill up when this one came on. It’s kind of a disturbing message, but whatever, it’s got a good beat.

“Get Down (You’re the One For Me)” – The Backstreet Boys. All of their songs sound exactly the same. Interchangeable. But catchy. Good tunes for running.

“Don’t Blame Me” – the gorgeous Everly Brothers. I can’t get enough of them. This one is dreamy.

“Rescue Me” – Madonna. One of my favorite Madonna songs.

“Rent” – the cast of the Broadway show. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Guys, paying rent does not mean you are oppressed. It means you are an adult. Grow up.

“All Of Your Love” – Hellogoodbye. My friend Emily sent me a tape of theirs a couple years ago, and they’ve become a favorite. They even have an album of ukelele tunes. They’re terrific.

“Overture” – from Oliver! I know this so well I could probably write out the entire score. And in come the oboes, now the crashing cymbals, bring on the strings …

“Cemetery Drive” – My Chemical Romance. These guys are so melodramatic. I want to them to chill out for two seconds, everything’s going to be okay. When I saw them perform at Dick Clark’s New Year’s Eve extravaganza, I was struck by how TERRIBLE they were in performance. Like … dreadful. Embarrassing.

“My Father’s Father” – The Civil Wars. Cousin Mike introduced me to this devastating duo. Apparently they broke up … but now they’re back together again? I think they have a new one on iTunes. Their songs are killer, not to be listened to when you are in a tender mood. Too much.

“A Future Me” – my wonderful sister Siobhan O’Malley! This is a song she wrote about our sister Jean, and their special relationship. I remember when she debuted this for us at the piano at home. Not a dry eye in the house.

“Surrender” – Elvis Presley. This went to #1 for him, if I’m not mistaken. He’s out of control here. Latin, operatic, melodramatic, totally in control of his effects. Listen to what he does with his voice. It’s crazy!

“I Just Don’t Like This Kind of Living” – the Cox family. I love them.

“I’m Your Man” – Michael Buble. He’s a bit of a tool. I enjoy him anyway.

“My Bionic Eyes” – Liz Phair. Yes! She’s such a rock star. Light as a feather, stiff as a board … that she would incorporate that childhood seance mantra … I have such a feeling of identification with her.

“The Unforgiven” – Metallica. Very Spaghetti Western-ish.

“Sandy” – John Travolta, from Grease. Member those dancing hot dogs? A not-so-subtle reminder of his blue-balled condition?

“Rape Me” – Nirvana. One of their best.

“The Last Song” – Foo Fighters. Wow, look at that – Dave Grohl, back to back. I was wondering when Foo Fighters would show up. This is a great song, which features one of my favorite sounds: Dave Grohl screaming on tune.

“Bulldog” – Tracy Bonham, from her breakout album “The Burdens of Being Upright”, which I can see right now in front of my eyes. Her super-skinny body, the white tank-top, the direct stare, the smirk. She happened to hit right before the Pop-Queen-Sexualized-Tween brigade took over. And then … whoosh. She vanished.

“Fashion of His Love (Fernando Garibay Remix)” – Lady GaGa. I love the GaGa, and she can actually sing, whereas that was not really Madonna’s thing – Madonna’s thing was more image/dance/video/persona, etc. But come on, GaGa, you protest too much, some of these songs are interchangeable with some of Madonna’s songs. I don’t know what any of her songs mean, although I get that her main message is: “Love yourself!” but I honestly don’t know what else she is saying. It doesn’t really matter.

“Penny Lane” – The Beatles. So freakin’ British I can’t even stand it.

“Right Now” – Garth Brooks, during his weird mid-life Chris Gaines crisis. I did like this album although I didn’t quite understand what he was doing. If the music had been … glam-rock, or punk, or thrash, or anything radically different from country … it might have made more sense. Like … why are you wearing Harlequin tights, Garth? What is going on?

“Girl from the North Country” – Link Wray covering Bob Dylan. I’m so happy.

“Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses” – U2. Don’t look at me, boys.