The Not-Pop Jukebox

For the first time a post here on The NPJ was inspired by something I wrote for One Step Forward, my blog on the English language, about reveille. I thought I'd long ago posted Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy (of Company B) if only because I do have a fascination with The Andrews Sisters. Finding that I'd failed to do so sent me on a lengthy trip through the various versions.

The song itself tells the story of a guy that plays boogie and gets drafted. He gets down so hard playing reveille in the morning that the Captain recruits a whole band to play with him and they make “the company jump eight to the bar”. Apparently he plays a boogie woogie taps at night to put them to sleep, as well.

Naturally, the Puppini Sisters have recorded their own cover, closer to ten to the bar than eight, as they speed up so many of their great swing versions. Bette Middler did a widely-known and heavily-swung cover of Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy as well, as did many big bands of the forties and fifties. I've included a live version from The Osmonds below and the short En Vogue twist that includes the ladies changing it to the hip hop boy playing reverie, which makes no sense, lovely voices notwithstanding.

I don't know the name of the male vocalist on the Woody Herman track here. I picture him standing in front of one of those old-fashioned microphones in a studio somewhere, full three-piece suit, drawling it out, but still cool enough to get down a little when the brass really starts wailing. But The Young Ambassadors come across as so shrill that I imagine them as a bunch of high school kids more excited about recording than loving the song.

I also tucked in a couple of instrumental versions, one from Empire Brass and the other a somewhat subdued take from Tim Zimmerman and the King's Brass. I don't know what empire or king either purports to represent but both do a good job showing how a strong melody doesn't need lyrics to work. I started with an actual reveille call, pure bugle with nothing to mar its dulcet tones, so that you'll understand what they're talking about, and ended, as seemed appropriate, with Taps just as clean.

Iconic songs get covered and punk is no different than any other genre in this respect. For today, let's take The Dead Kennedys and their Biafra extravaganza California Über Alles and see where it went. I've got Vitamin L, who did some interesting things with the song, They Might Be Giants, and even a weird glee club thing heavy with tympani that I can't decide if I like.

Naturally there was more! I left off the live Chumbawumba cover that had painfully-bad sound quality and The Delgados who weren't that great. But you can still hear Sheep on Drugs take on the song, electronized as it is. Six Feet Under made the list, too, because I always get distracted being concerned about the health of the singer's larynx with such bands than I do with the song so I can't tell if it's any good.

The other song comes from the best band name I've seen this week: Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy. Again, they've taken the song in a very different direction that really works with the fury of the original. Outside of the Dead Kennedys original it's my favorite version on this list. Do you have a California Über Alles cover that I've missed?

I'm never sure if Blue Öyster Cult used to be pop, outside of the played-to-death Don't Fear the Reaper, or if I just happened to hang out with a lot of people who listened to them. But it doesn't matter. They certainly aren't now. Yet I can't help but think that Tattoo Vampire ought to be enjoying a revival among the bloodsucker-obsessed that seem to be everywhere these days.

I have seen no indication that it has, however. Perhaps that's just as well. I rather like feeling like the only person who knows "Imaginos" by heart (yes, the whole album. I don't know why I like it so much.) And it isn't like the song is actually about vampires, except as an odd metaphor for tattoos. Bah, I'm musing. Just enjoy the song!

Today I present you another example of what an insular, self-directed music life (that means sans commercial radio) leads you to miss. Somewhere along the line Portugal. The Man (which I hate to type because grammatically it makes me want to kick someone) started making really interesting prog-rock music and it went right under (or, more likely, over) my radar.

Now, you may be saying to yourself, "Why is she using parentheses every few words?" That doesn't matter. Let's focus on the music rather than asking questions to which I have no answers. I listened to a pretty good whack of Portugal. The Man's catalog after seeing a social media mention and Children had enough 70s-style fuzz and vocal passion to bring me back a second time so I'm giving it the nod for today. But I think there's enough going on lyrically in their newer stuff that I can't say it's going to be my favorite from them, yet.

I'll definitely be listening (and likely posting) more. (What, you thought I was done writing parenthetically? Ha!) If you have a favorite song from the band please do give me a recommendation.

In honor of the fact that Champion is again performing, let's have another song from "Resistance". I admit, I have a bit of a thing for the voice of Pilou Côté and in this song it really shines. It's also an earworm for me: "But I like it, so much."

I was concerned, after Maxime Morin's announcement in January that he'd been declared cancer free was followed by months of silence, that his post had been premature. Happily, Champion and the G Strings seem to be taking it slow and getting back into the groove. I look forward to hearing more and am hoping that another album is in the works, whatever vocalist ends up joining this inventive crew for it.

I've spent the past hour listening to Somebody Told Me to Feel Good in a dozen different places looking for a place to recommend for download. Sadly, the song doesn't appear on the now-abandoned aggro1 site. It's been posted a few times on YouTube but this one actually includes clips of the relevant videos, un-synchronized though they are.

In case you hadn't guessed, Somebody Told Me to Feel Good is a mashup, and one of epic proportions. It takes The Killers' Somebody Told Me and stirs it into Gorillaz's Feel Good. As with all excellent mashups, the sum is greater than the total of its parts.

This is by far not the only mashup of what is probably the best-known Killers song out there. Heck, it's not even the only Somebody Told Me mashup I've posted! I believe I have one or two more lurking in my secret mashup box but this one has quickly become one of my favorites. If you know where I can download it I'd adore a recommendation!

For this, my 750th post, I am going to gush. I have been fiddling around on Spotify, checking out the playlists of the people subscribed to the playlists of the people with whom I'm connected. And in so doing I found Jim Bianco, with whom I am currently in deep smit. Naturally, I went straight to Grooveshark to see what they had to share with you all. As with many obscure and currently-producing artists, he had SXSW tracks and a few tidbits from his last couple of albums.

Happily, To Hell with the Devil was one of those bits. Like every song of his I've listened to, Jim Bianco has taken a familiar type--the love song--and taken it lyrically to a somewhat warped and clever place. His view of life and love is just that little bit skewed that makes me smile and the music is deep and wide enough, with horns included, that it strongly supports the vocals.

If you like this one, head over to his official web site where you can listen to and buy all of his albums. I can't recommend his latest, "Loudmouth", highly enough. In particular, have a listen to Elevator Operator and Shut Up and Kiss Me. And to give you a taste, try To Hell with the Devil right here. Let me know what you think!

Evolution Orange is one of those songs that made you assume all musicians in the 70s were consuming illicit substances of some sort. The falsetto! The aliens! The funk! Yet I've always loved it. Of late I've been reading a lot of science fiction and I sometimes I find it stuck in my head, which is always a good excuse to listen to Earth, Wind, & Fire more. And then I discovered that I've never shared the song with you, my patient and wonderful readers! As I've left you for months without the disco-funk goodness that Earth, Wind, and Fire offers please allow me to rectify both problems right now.

I seem to be addicted to cover songs of late. Today I'd like to share a baker's dozen versions of Rawhide, from the original Frankie Lane version through rock, blues, a capella, and punk, and including the version that absolutely slew my from The Chaps. I've got Johnny Cash and The Blues Brothers, naturally, plus The Tubes, the Dead Kennedys, and a live version from Oingo Boingo with terrible sound quality. What more can I say about a song that everyone knows, even if they don't know they do?

So just enjoy Jello Biafra's distinctive voice, The Coats doing their own commentary and sound effects, and the surf music twist from The Meteors. And if you've a favorite version of Rawhide that I've missed please do let me know. I can always use more frenetic cowboys!

So, I've been messing about on Spotify all weekend and saw an ad for Pitbull with T-Pain and a song called Shake Senora.  As a big fan of Harry Belafonte I had to see how badly they'd mangled Jump in the Line.  Much to my surprise, I quite liked the new version though nothing compares to the beloved original.

While Mr. Belafonte's terrific version enjoyed a surge of popularity a couple of decades or so ago thanks to Winona Ryder and Beetlejuice, you don't hear Jump in the Line much any more.  What you hear even less is the relatively unfortunate Cherry Poppin' Daddies and the cover they recorded for Baseketball.  This new version might change that, however.

I fully support people re-imagining great old songs like this under the theory that they will draw people's attention to the terrific originals.  That sometimes requires a concerted effort in the comments on YouTube and on blogs like The NPJ to get out the word, however.  So consider this my contribution to the cause: three versions of Jump in the Line from the past fifty years.  I have the album, "Jump Up Calypso", on which Harry Belafonte released the original in 1961 (yes, vinyl FROM 1961).  They don't make albums like that any more.  But with luck they'll keep finding ways to bring old, fantastic music back around to new generations.  Enjoy!

I was all set to post something else that I've put off until tomorrow because you, my dears, need a grrl power mashup. I know, you probably didn't realize it until just now. I certainly didn't. But I've got one for you, from the ever-creative Marc Johnce. This one takes Beyoncé, Madonna, and Kat Graham and squeezes in a little Christina Aguilera and Dev with The Cataracs around the edges.

Don't be shocked but I had never heard any of these songs before in my life. But if you've been a long-time reader you may remember my disdain for women who sing about a man paying for everything or taking his credit cards to the mall. I love Shemekia Copeland, for example, but Ka-Ching makes me want to kick her in the ankle. So Kat Graham's I Want It All made me jump up and down in my chair with glee. I have to say, though, that whoever choreographs Beyoncé freaks me out. She and her back-up dancers tend to look more spastic than talented.

As proof, I offer you the video for I Want All Girls (Who Run the World) and a link to Marc Johnce's official web site where you can download it for free with some bonus material from Katy Perry that isn't in the video cut below. Go get 'em, girls!

By the way, I want that flaming hat for Halloween. Seriously.

As another throwback to the bad old days at the beginning of The NPJ, when I didn't know how to post an awesome song properly, I bring you the wonder of Rage in the Cage from The J Geils Band. In short, this was the song that introduced me to the wonders of B sides, back when you bought a 45 that actually had an A and a B side.

My sister bought ours because of the pop hit on the front but from the first listen I loved Rage in the Cage about fifteen times more. I still have the thing, though, because I stole it from her when she was heavily into cassettes. She's still got the K-Tel records, though. It's a toss-up who won that round. What about you, my darlings? Do you have a favorite B side or a 45 you've been hoarding for thirty years (or more)?

I consider a lot of Beatles music pop, and certainly it's popular enough to justify that opinion. But covers of Beatles songs, those I love. And today I have for you a Russian cover band (or a recycle band, as the Pozitive Orchestra seems to style themselves) that does the sorts of things that make Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and Richard Cheese so popular: they genre-bend songs into something recognizable but undeniably changed. In this case, they use a string quartet and a guy with a pretty thick accent to do it.

I'm including Help as it's on-topic for this post and it's my favorite track on their album "Recycle Music". It gives you a pretty good taste of what they do, as well. I was first introduced to them via their cover of Dire Strait's Money for Nothing but that's been posted in a few other places. You can, of course, listen to it on Grooveshark if you like. And, of course, stay here for a little Help!

Long ago I posted about Midnight Star and had intended to post No Parking on the Dance Floor at some point. Then I found the Phunk Junkeez cover of the song and decided that you needed both. And then suddenly there was the Dazz Band version, which sounds almost identical to the original, and I couldn't resist giving you all three.

Though I love the old-school 80s electro-funk of the original I really do love what Phunk Junkeez did rocking out No Parking on the Dance Floor. The changes that Dazz Band made are relatively subtle except for the beginning. In fact, Dazz Band is not playing in The Masters of Funk with a couple of people that used to be a part of Midnight Star (plus The Bar-Kays, Brick, and a bunch of others). Naturally, that means you'll be getting more funk in the future. For now, remember not to park your booty on the dance floor and get with it!

Now, I went through my fascinated-by-The-Wall phase as so many teens do, but it was Learning to Fly that made me first listen to Pink Floyd (and got me into Roger Waters's solo stuff which I still find interesting).  Who hasn't had this very dream, that you can, under the right circumstances, leap from a cliff and fly away?

I suppose this might count as ex-pop as it certainly enjoyed its fair share of radio play back in the day, as they say. To be honest, I also had a major crush on the guy in the video, unfortunate shirt of odd texture notwithstanding.  And so I'm sharing Learning to Fly, complete with the video I watched on MTV back when they had videos, as a little piece of my teens and with the hopes that I can have another wondrous flying dream tonight myself.

This edition of You Pick the Winner will be a little different. It's a pair of versions of the same son, Chinese Rock by two different punk bands recording at the same time: The Ramones and Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers. There's a method to my madness.

You see, DeeDee Ramone wrote the music, the chorus, and a verse (and, yes, the rocks in questions are heroin) but couldn't get the band on-board with it so he took it to Richard Hell who was, at the time, with The Heartbreakers. He said, "Yeah, let's do it," and the two finished the song together. (That was a paraphrase, by the way.) Then The Heartbreakers recorded it in 1977, Hell left to join The Ramones, and Johnny Thunders ended up credited with writing the song for years.

The Ramones recorded the song as well and released their version in 1980. That's the one I know better and so when I bumped into the "original" I was very confused. I knew the song and it sounded almost right but one I realized what it was the credits and the release dates threw me for a loop, partly because it's an autobiographical song about DeeDee Ramone's life at the time.

At any rate, that's not the point of You Pick the Winner. I want to know which version you like better: The Ramones with Chinese Rock or the more-plural Johnny Thunders take on Chinese Rocks.

I can't believe how long it's been since I mentioned Michelle Shocked. I thought I'd share with you her terrific version of Frankie & Johnny, titled Hold Me Back. It's a bit country-fried in parts, but how can you resist the sentiments, the fantastic voice, and, oh!, those horns?

Now, I've written plenty about Frankie & Johnny but I heard TWO great versions on the radio today and I've got to add them both to the page I linked here. And when I went to see what else I'd posted from Michelle Shocked I discovered that it was only that one, terrific song from so very long ago. So I hereby promise more Shocked and more murderous folks tunes. But not on a Friday.

Speaking of random cover song musings (which you probably weren't), I accidentally found the Safri Duo cover of Eddie Floyd's Knock on Wood the other day and, having at least two other versions, decided that you all needed to hear at least that many. But I always like to give more so today I offer a full dozen takes on the song.

I have not only the Eddy Floyd version that started it all but the Amii Stewart disco version that was such a hit when I was but a wee lass, Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, David Bowie, Prince, and even Cher. Naturally, the afore-mentioned Safri Duo cover, which I adore, is on the list as well, along with Archie Bell & the Drells, Albert King, and a cover by Sting and James Taylor which, if I'm being honest (and I am) is rather dreadful.

One of the versions I have came from an album that apparently has never been uploaded, anywhere, ever, titled "Red Hot & Blue". But it includes a fantastic version that features Eddie Floyd with Steve Cropper. If anyone knows where I can get it to include here, please do share.

For the Fourth of July holiday in the US, I wanted a song about fireworks but I can't stand Katy Perry and apparently no one else has recorded one. So I thought I'd go with explosions. Most of the songs I found were lame in the extreme or were cheesy love songs. It's too hot out to put up with that sort of crap.

And so I ended up combining hot with explosions and bring you Hot Pants Explosion from The B-52s. And, really, don't you just know there are thousands of young ladies in hot pants at barbeques all over the country, sharing potato salad and sparklers with their families or neighbors. It's nice that the hold a holiday that requires you to go outside and explode things during the summer when you don't have to worry about setting your mittens on fire. What thoughtful forefathers we had, to arrange this thus for us. Happy Fourth!

As much as a live-action Spy vs. Spy movie fills me with a combination of facepalm horror and geeky glee I can't help but worry about the soundtrack. No, you're not surprised. My fear is that it will be filled with trendy garbage, to make it salable, rather than awesome, spy-appropriate music.

And so I want to suggest to the music-powers-that-be working on the upcoming film that they consider songs that sound like James Bond would have them on his mp3-playing, laser-shooting, zip-line-containing watch. And these days that means Dusty. In particular, songs like Voodoo (my favorite), Explosion, and Revolver Theme seem tailor-made for the sort of tongue-in-cheek, retro espionage thing that Spy vs. Spy ought to be. Judge for yourself (and let me know if I'm full of malarkey!)

Do you remember when I wrote yesterday that I was going to be deeper today? I lied. John, I'm Only Dancing (Again) is simply not a deep song. It is, however, fun and strange and fascinating in the way that only David Bowie covering his own work could be. I like the remake from the "Young Americans" album much better than the original take.

The second version has a lot more soul, both the sound (which has some serious funk going on in the background) and the voice, with a lot less falsetto. The lyrics are more accessible but still retain their "David Bowie wants you to believe he's a freak" flavor of the original. But at least I can see how he can get from this to Labyrinth in about ten years.

There, I did give you more than "I like this song"! And there you were, doubting me. Okay, folks, impress me: what's your favorite David Bowie song? No fair saying John, I'm Only Dancing (Again), I took that answer.

Sometimes I just want to share with you all a song I really like. I don't want to write a manifesto about how awesome it is or why I love it. Heck, it's Dream Police, people. You already know the song. Have a listen to Cheap Trick and have a great weekend. I'll be deeper tomorrow, promise.