The Not-Pop Jukebox

Today on You Pick the Winner, I offer you a selection between two songs about old people in love, or at least people with dentures. There's a tenuous Memorial Day connection, in that you may well have had grandparents and one or more of them likely had dentures if they reached a ripe old age. I'm pretty sure you don't want to think about them in this particular context, however, although I don't really know you well enough to say for certain. Whatever the case with your predilections, I offer you the ever-delightful Frank Zappa's Baby Take Your Teeth Out (from his fabulously-titled "Sheik Yabouti" album) and Southern Culture on the Skids exhorting you to Put Your Teeth up on the Windowsill (from their "Ditch Diggin'" album, if you care). So tell me, who did a better job with this rather unsavory subject?

Perhaps unsurprisingly, I wanted to share some Zydeco with you all today and had a tough time finding anything on Grooveshark that wasn't Clifton Chenier or his protege Buckwheat Zydeco. Now, these two are rightly famous for being talented and Bayou ambassadors but they aren't the only acts in the business. (Well, they weren't. Chenier's dead, of course.) At any rate, I wanted to give you all something a little different that the better-known names. I know you're surprised that I would go off the beaten track like this but sometimes you just have to do it. If you've got a favorite Zydeco band or song, drop me a line!

I know that there are a lot of Motorhead fans out there, but it's this song I think of when I hear the term. Before there was "hard rock" there was the blues, which could rock pretty hard indeed. Jimmy Vaughan keeps up the great BB King tradition of demonstrating that with great licks, saucy lyrics, and delivery that defies dating. When I first heard this one I thought it had to be pretty old. Nope, it's Jimmy Vaughan from an album released in 1998. The song, of course, dates back to 1951 and Chuck Higgins but it was written by none other than Johnny "Guitar" Watson. With that sort of provenance, you know it's got to be great.

Let me first say that I like Kids of 88. I like Just a Little Bit more than a little bit. But I have a bone to pick with whoever wrote the Wikipedia article about them. They are described as a "New Wave music duo", complete with a link to the article on New Wave music that explains that there has been a fabulous revival of the sound with many artists having been influenced by 80s music that was written when they were toddlers or even before they were born. As a woman of a certain age, I categorically deny the label New Wave for any of the bands listed because, well, it's not new. I'd be okay with post-Wave, I don't mind the post-punk label for such groups, and they can have a whole new name if they like. But darlings, Kids of 88 are not New Wave. I still like 'em, though.

Today is theme day here at The NPJ. I wanted to post a particular song but I couldn't remember the name except that it ended with the word shuffle. I eventually did figure out what it was called , but by the time I realized it wasn't there I'd already picked out a dozen other shuffles to enjoy. I thought I'd share a round dozen with you folks, from some of the biggest names in shuffle history, including BB King, Bela Fleck, Django Reinhardt, Herb Alpert, and Chick Corea. I bookmarked the list with two versions of Boogie Stop Shuffle, the first from Quincy Jones and the last from Charlie Mingus. How could you resist? (You'll have to be patient with the latter, though. It takes them a good minute and a half to get started. It's worth the wait, though.) Happy Wednesday and let me know if you've got a favorite shuffle that isn't on the list.

I've been debating posting Slade's Run Runaway for days but it just so happens that I like the song. It's been stuck in my head the whole time. I heard it the other day and I realized that I couldn't think of another song by the band. Luckily, Grooveshark was there to help, as always, and I quickly found out why. It's a ridiculously happy song and I was expecting some sproingy early New Wave, someone just on the weird side of bubble-gum pop. My mind associates this song with Iko Iko and the heady days of making mix tapes on actual tapes. It turns out that Slade was actually a cheesy, wanna-be-hard rock band. They recorded some cover songs, including a notably bad but faithful attempt at Cum on Feel the Noize (someday I'll subject you to a Versions post on that song), and a few more albums but none of it sound like Run Runaway. That's too bad, really. I think they'd have had a lot more success.

For those of you who missed early hip hop, Sam Kinneson, and who Anthrax used to be, I offer for you Saturday evening enjoyment the best heavy metal hip hop song known to man, complete with sound clips and...well...a distinct lack of rhymes. I'm the Man combines a lot of elements from the late 80s, when Aerosmith was recording with Run DMC and The Beastie Boys were showing people that white boys really could do this rap stuff. I had considered posting Startin' Up a Posse because it really showcases what Anthrax used to be but since the whole point of the song is to be as offensive as possible I thought it might be a bit much for my mostly-SFW style. Instead, enjoy the much less offensive (but still filled with raunchy goodness) I'm the Man and revel in the goofy goodness that was heavy metal in the 80s (as opposed to death metal, which was a whole 'nother thing).

Is it wrong to describe a band with a male lead singer as "twee"? Miniature Tigers reminds me a great deal of Vampire Weekend but without the Paul Simon vibe. They've got an interesting set songs on their first album, "Tell It to the Volcano", that display a sense of imagery just far enough outside the usual to keep you listening. They sound pretty happy with themselves and their creative lyrics but not enough so to come across as smug. It's a fine balance that the band walks with fair success, tongues in cheeks. Have a listen to the title track and give their love song Hot Venom a try, while you're at it.

I've decided to start a new game here at The NPJ. I'm going to post two songs about the topic and you tell me which one you like the best. I got this idea when I heard Timbaland's Carry Out with Justin Timberlake, which reminded me immediately of George Clinton's Do Fries Go with that Shake? I've loved the latter for years and the two bear such a striking resemblance in subject matter that I wondered if Timbaland was a George Clinton fan. (In case you're wondering how in the world I could possibly post a mainstream song like Carry Out, well, my kids can't have such esoteric taste just yet. They still listen to commercial radio.) In any case, drop me a note and let me know which song you think is better. or at least manages to make you hungry for a greasy burger...and fries.

This one's for Polybore, creator of lovely promotional videos and source of many musical suggestions. Today he reminded me of The Stranglers, which of course got me listening to music from their 70s and 80s catalog. I'd completely forgotten about Nuclear Devices, which made me fondly recall the days when we were all convinced that The Reds were going to nuke us in our sleep one night, also known as The Cold War. Looking back, I see how much propaganda and hysteria fed into a "conflict" that was pure politics and very little ideology. But that doesn't lessen the awesomeness of this song.

I named this song as one of my favorites of the last decade but I've never posted it. Grooveshark has been long battling to find agreements with various labels and for a time Keb' Mo' was not widely available on their site. I'm please to announce that there is now a lovely string of his work available from that site. And The Flat Fleet Floogie is still one of my favorite songs. What Grooveshark doesn't have is the amazing older versions of the song, including a great one from Louis Armstrong or the original Slim Gaillard recording. Maybe someday I'll hunt them up and find a way to post them. Until then, Keb' Mo' does a bang-up enough job with this fun tune to keep you entertained on a Saturday night.

I had intended to post It's Tricky by itself, but honestly how can you resist a mix like this? Run DMC jam with The Knack doing My Sharona and indie darlings Frans Ferdinand asking Do You Wanna? I'd have just included the song except that, well, I forgot that Penn and Teller were in the Run DMC video for It's Tricky. It was a weird combination then and it's almost as bizarre now. The whole mashed-up mess makes me grin so I thought I'd share it with you for a Friday evening. You can download this one (and a bunch other remixes and mashes) at ThriftshopXL's official site.

This post is dedicated to AngieA of BlogCatalog, with whom I once briefly engaged in a mutual love-fest for Tower of Power. I was shocked to realize that I haven't posted a ToP song since January, 2009. I am often shocked at how few people know of Tower of Power at all, this horn-filled bundle of funk and soul. Then again, not everyone goes weak at the knees from a truly grand horn flourish, either. I know that I've frequently written of my love for enormous bands, generally based on the statistical probability that more members equals a higher likelihood of brass instruments. Tower of Power simply illustrates a part of the source of that love. I thought I'd share Squib Cakes because it's mostly a series of solos but it holds enough funk to keep you interested for the whole seven and a half minutes, plus there are some great blasts that start around the 6:30 mark.

Okay, hands up everyone who's old enough to remember when Agent Orange move from hardcore surf punk like Bloodstains to 80s cheese like Fire in the Rain and then back to punk like El Dorado. Just me? Dangit. Those three songs spanned a crucial decade in my musical development and pretty much the only decade of Agent Orange's popularity except when Tony Hawk let them put a later version of Bloodstains in his fourth skateboarding game. I like the original better. I've included all three here as I'm trying to make a point that would be lost without all of them (and the first and last together total about three and a half minutes). My point? Sometimes bands that forget why the started making music in the first place can remember, but there may have to be drastic personnel changes to make it happen and by then it can be too late. At least we'll always have Secret Agent Man.

It's Mother's Day here in the US. I had intended to post Suicidal Tendencies's I Saw Your Mommy for today's song but I thought that might be a little off-color, even for me. Don't get me wrong--I love the song. I've instead compiled a list of eighteen Mom songs with I Saw Your Mommy at the top and a track filled with bonus cheese at the end. But I had to include a versions of Momsense as well. While Anita Renfroe did it first, this woman did it best, whoever she is. I haven't found her name anywhere so if you know it please, please share! Until then, have a watch and a laugh.

And now for something completely different:

A breezy, sunny day calls for a breezy, funny song. Thank heavens for Dr. Manhattan and his Biscuits and Groovy, which is lyrically just about as off the wall as the Tom Waits song I posted yesterday. It's almost anthemic, except for the part about being zombies from Mozambique. If that doesn't pique your curiosity enough to get you listening, I'll through in a few dozen Woo!s and an observation that "your butt is so booty". C'mon, you know you want to give it a listen.

While I'm a fan of Tom Waits in general, it's mostly because he writes such quirky lyrics. The Piano Has Been Drinking (Not Me) stands as one of his best but I would never have posted it here because it drags so sadly. Along came Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks to play the song with Mr. Waits. Suddenly, they transformed it to a tongue-in-cheek bit of piano bar mockery. It's not quite up-tempo but it's no longer an incoherent rant from a drunkard but a...well, it's still pretty much incoherent but with a sly eye-wink tone that's a great deal more fun. For contrast, I'm including both versions here. I'll leave it up to you to decide which fits your mood better on this Friday night.

I've posted before that our grandparent and great-grandparents were just as dirty in their day as we are now, they just weren't as explicit. I never have compiled the play list I talked about in that post but I thought I'd share another example today of the misbehavior up to which people got 'way back in the 1940s. This time I picked a woman, in particular the feisty Helen Humes. I wanted to include My Handy Man because it was a much better example but I couldn't find her version on Grooveshark or YouTube. I did find a version from Ethel Waters but it isn't nearly as sassy as the original.

You'll have to settle for I'm Gonna Let Him Ride, which is a lot like the more-popular He May Be Your Man at the beginning but wanders off into naughtier territory as it goes. And you wonder why the young folks of today are so dirty, with ancestors like these!

A cruddy May day requires something a little different. For this one, I've decided that Galactic fits the bill. It's jazzy, it's funky, it's got horns, and it sneaks up on you if you let it play in the background. I keep finding myself chair dancing as I work, which is a sure sign of some good music. I will admit that every time I write Everybody Wants Some, of which this is only Part 1, I get the Van Halen song stuck in my head, complete with dancing hamburgers. I blame that on watching Better Off Dead a thousand times rather than any similarity between the songs, though.

How about some grungy slacker punk for a lazy Sunday afternoon, folks? I don't know about your weather, but here it's chilly, rainy, and dull. Spring sprang itself early this year and the excitement of budding trees and singing birds has paled. I want to do nothing more than laze about the house this afternoon playing video games and drinking coffee. I thought, "What better accompaniment than The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything?" More the fool I, since Reliant K has made their lazy pirates awfully high-energy and excitable. As an added bonus, they're very silly in enumerating the things they have not done. Dangit! I may end up doing laundry and cleaning the bathroom after all. Here's hoping that the pirates in Reliant K's song give you day a little boost as well.

It's been a couple of month since I inflicted any Oingo Boingo on you fine folks. I thought I'd share one of my favorite examples of what drew me to Danny Elfman and company so long ago. The picture of this Lilliputian army, so vividly drawn, makes absolutely no sense. Surely, you think, there must be social commentary about military service or rabid patriotism without reflection. Danny Elfman usually had something relevant to say about the state of American society.

If there is a moral, I've never been able to find a hint of it. I've probably listened to this song five hundred times over the course of the past twenty-three years and it's just a beautiful little piece of the bizarre. What more could you need, really, on a lazy Saturday morning than a perfect cartoon image that leads you nowhere but your next cup of coffee? It'll definitely do for me.