The Not-Pop Jukebox

Oh, my darlings, oh do I have something for you today.  I am, you see, in love.  With five German guys.  Don't tell my husband.

Hyperbole aside, not since I was introduced to Seeed have I geeked out over a new German band this hard. Combine three guys with what appear to be antique brass instruments, a head-banging bassist, and a drummer the drives them through it all and you get LaBrassBanda. One of the band members is listed as "Capt. Yossarian", which makes two literally references in two days if you're following my G+ posts as well! (Yes, blogging in two places about the same things is Catch 22, since you ask. /heavy hint)

In this video, you get the guys having a great time, some heavy-duty brass goodies, a Bavarian gent playing Tubissimo, a bunch of chair-dance-inspiring solos, and part of a Daft Punk cover. What more could you ask from less that seven well-spent minutes of your life? Now enjoy, dears, while I click the next song and see if I can get all their albums on-line.

Sometimes, you just want some funky drums. Thanks to Rusted Root, you can take a beat-heavy, Grateful Dead-esque Drum Trip, the first track on their 1994 release "When I Woke". Rusted Root lives in the genre I call "hippies", with the likes of Phish and WookieFoot. They're globally aware, world beat-influenced jam bands, all a mite more esoteric than strictly necessary. Rusted Root is also a lot of fun on songs like Drum Trip, Weave, and their better-known Send Me on My Way.

Sadly, much as I loved their first four albums (and the EP "Evil Ways"), when they took that long break after 2002's "Welcome to My Party" the seem to have lost something.  "Stereo Rodeo", released in 2009, seemed unfocused in comparison.   When they came out with "The Movement" a few years later the first song made me think they were back but, alas, the same dragging, badly-mixed sound dogged the rest of the album.  One of these days I'll post Monkey Pants for you, but for now take a Drum Trip back to Rusted Root's heyday instead.

When you hear "Boston-based folk trio" you likely don't picture anything like what you get with The Ballroom Thieves. Sure, they've got the classic upright bass and acoustic guitar, but they fall pretty far over on the alt end of the folk spectrum.

For one thing, they've got an enormous amount of energy that just shines both in their vocals and in their playing. In Vampires you can hear the guitar strings straining under the hammering they're getting but it's perfect for the song.

If you like Vampires, try Armada. Do let me know what you think, and big thanks to +Ferdinand Zebua for introducing me to them.  I'm definitely going to be keeping an ear out for more.

While Trout Fishing in America has more in common with Flight of the Conchords than they do Simon and Garfunkel, they did improve upon a wonderfully fun song that I thought I ought to share with you all. It's one of the few coffee songs I haven't posted.

I like this version better than the album version because they're not trying to get the audience to sing along. I would like them to keep going faster and faster at the end until they trip over their own tongues, though. That would be wildly entertaining.

At any rate, have a Proper Cup of Coffee with Trout Fishing in America. Whatever you do don't listen to the Andrews Sisters version of the song. It's dreadful. One would have thought they didn't have a copper pot between them!

For Friday, let's have the answer to yet another (not) oft-asked question: what do you get if you cross Cajun and Latin music? Naturally, the answer is The Iguanas. I'm not entirely sure who took the wheels off of Benny's Cadillac, but apparently he's not getting them back. Have a listen and see if you can enlighten me, once you've stopped dancing.

I have for you today the answer to that age-old question: what would you get if you crossed Jim Bianco with E? It's Mark Martyre. Aren't you glad I cleared that up for you?

Mr. Martyre bills himself as "folk" but he's pretty far into indie territory, to me. The sparse nature of the instrumentation lets his lyrics and his voice shine, certainly. I just tend to mentally hook "folk music" with "hippies and Americana" so those very lyrics slide him right out of the genre.

I've chosen to share Lauren Bacall from "Down, Record" because it snagged me from the first line: "Age is a terrible thief". As always, my love for the warm, rough voice of someone who can actually sing and play led me to replay this one several times, toes tapping along with each one. And who hasn't spent a night or ten watching black and white movies, all alone?

If you like Lauren Bacall, do click over to Mark Martyre's bandcamp page and have a listen to the rest of the album. It's beautifully done in so many ways. My only quibble is no credit for the woman who sings back-up with him. She was lovely, too.

Genre-bending bands rule! Now that I've gotten that sweeping generalization out of the way, I'll provide you with proof in the pudding rather than an exception to the rule: Punch Brothers and Who's Feeling Young Now?. While they could be categorized as a bluegrass band, they tend as much toward the indie sound as they do toward the twang. And the voices? More Pale Young Gentlemen than Soggy Bottom Boys.

Have a listen to the joy that is Who's Feeling Young Now? and, if you like it, try Soon or Never which couldn't be more gorgeously harmonized. There's a whole great whack of their stuff on Grooveshark so settle in for a good listen. Now don't say I never brought you anything nice.

I was going to just post a good song today, Black and White from INXS, but then I got to wondering what other songs there were out there with that title. That led me to develop this list specifically selected to induce genre whiplash. It's got Django Reinhardt, Static X, Three Dog Night, Eminem, and five more on top of the INXS song I meant to share. Enjoy, and let me know if I missed your favorite Black and White song. (Please note that Michael Jackson's song contains an "or" and thus is not eligible for this list even though I do like it.)

Today is the anniversary of Stephen Foster's death, that pioneering gent so far ahead of his time that he tried to make a living as a songwriter and died, penniless and destitute, at the age of 37. Even if you have never heard of the man I guarantee you know at least one or two of his songs. He was that influential, eventually, he just couldn't make any money.

For today, let's have takes by well-known folks on Stephen Foster's well-known songs. I've started with a fantastic version of Old Folks at Home by Ray Charles titled Swanee River Rock. Then Taj Mahal's bluesy, harmonica-filled Oh, Susannah, Sam Cooke's soulful I Dream of Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair, and noddle around with Dave Brubeck and his quartet offering their take on Camptown Races. Finally, we come around full-circle to Louis Armstrong back on Old Folks at Homes.

Spare a thought for the music makers among us today and, the next time you download something that's "pay what you like", throw in an extra buck for them. You never know who's going to be the next lynchpin in the musical vocabulary of a country or even the world.

It's Friday and we need a song about drinking, but it's got to be fun. Handily for you all, I've got Two Bottles of Wine just for you. You get the wacky Jason Webley and Rev Peyton's Big Damn Band, together at last just like you always wanted. Okay, maybe you didn't but they certainly work well together. Enjoy your Two Bottles of Wine and, if you're of a mood, you can hear Webley's Drinking Song oom-pah it's way along on Grooveshark. It's more drunken and maudlin than fun, though. I imagine it'd make a great sing-along right at the end of the night, though.

I have for you today six gallons of awesome sauce in hermetically sealed jars, ready to pour over your Saturday night. Don't crowd, now, there's plenty of Boban i Marko Marković Orkestar to go around!

In case you hadn't heard, this mass of gypsy horns has a new album coming out June 12 on which they have this version of Cinnamon Girl remixed by Dunkelbunt. As much as I like saying Dunkelbunt I'm not sure how much involvement, if any, he had in the rest of "Golden Horns".

Whatever the case, I defy you all to pour some of this over your evening and not find yourself dancing. It's a ridiculous amount of horn-filled joy, something by which you know I am often overcome. If you care for Hava Nagila you'll find a wild and wooly version on the album as well.

"Golden Horns" is, in fact, a best-of album for Boban i Marko Marković Orkestar. From the first song you'll find yourself wanting the throw your arms in the air, perhaps wave them like you just don't care, and shouting "oi" or something to that effect from time to time. You can sample more of the record via Flip Switch PR. If you've been missing the massive blare of a rockin' gypsy horn section in your life, I highly recommend giving these guys a try.

UPDATE: How's this for triple-awesome? For once I beat NPR to a great story. They did a fantastic piece about the Markovic Orkestar on July 3rd. I was grinning the entire drive home. Usually I hear great stuff from them but this time I did it first! Okay, I'll quit, now.

As we pass mid-week and begin our slide down to the weekend, let's wallow in some dirty, filthy boogie courtesy of Son of Dave: Shake a Bone. No, you nasty creature, not that kind of dirty and not that kind of bone.

Unless you want it to be. Heck, I don't care if you get down in your underwear while smearing bananas on your chest. Have a listen to the song, tell you didn't at the very least chair dance, and please do not share any other personal details. This post has gone awry and I'm going to stop writing it now. Son of Dave. Shake a Bone. Enjoy.

I admit to Googling Hintn Umi to find out what Attwenger was singing about in this video. Apparently, the expression is Austrian slang for "don't go behind my back" or "around the backside" like a shady deal. That doesn't really clear it up as there are more than two words in this song but it's still interesting to know.

Regardless, I'm thrilled to have discovered Attwenger. They're accordian-punk hip-folk, you see, and come in about as many flavors as that implies. They don't have a horn section but they certainly have samples and a sharp sense of humor. If you like Hintn Umi don't miss Shakin' My Brain which takes a little tour of early American rock and roll...in German...and shiny gold suits.

I've been listening to John Butler Trio for over a week, trying to decide how I feel about them as a whole. Overall, I've come to the decision that...meh. Except, that is, for Zebra on which I would like for them to re-center the entirety of their musical career. There just aren't enough great songs out there that make me believe the musicians are having at least as much fun as I am. I hope you enjoy this one, too, my dears.

I was going to save this for Mother's Day but in listening to Paul Simon's Loves Me Like a Rock I suddenly discovered Barack Obama's new theme song. 'Twas the verse that runs thus which inspired me:

And if I was President (was the President)
The minute Congress call my name (was the President)
I'd say "Who do,who do you think you're fooling?" (Who do you think you're fooling?)
I've got the Presidential Seal (was the President)
I'm up on the Presidential Podium
My mama loves me
She loves me
She get down on her knees and hug me
She love me like a rock

Considering the recess appointment hoorah going on right now this seems particularly appropriate. Whether you believe Obama did the right thing or not, the amount of ire likely to come his way over the next several weeks or months may well have him reminding himself of the basic premise of this song.

And before you point it out, I know I posted Loves Me Like a Rock before. But how often to I make a political post? Let me ease into the new year and say something a little different. Sheesh, you slave drivers!

I'm in love with this new Asa song, Why Can't We, which rather seems the point of the song, don't you think? The video is fun to watch but the song gives you more than enough to make you try these moves on your own, at home, in your living room. Or maybe that's just me. Watch the video and let me know.

Way back at the beginning, here at the NPJ, I added a slew of wonderful songs with unstable widgets that left you unable to enjoy them should you wish to explore the archives. That's why I do these "Jukebox Roots" posts: to fix those old dogs by teaching them new, Grooveshark tricks. Today I thought I'd carry on my recent paean to Martin Sexton when he does what he does best with a re-post of Diggin' Me. This was the very first song of his that I heard and one that I still love. You can read what I thought about it (and still do) on that old post. For today, I'm just going to let you enjoy the song. Don't miss the fantastic trumpet impression that slew me upon first hearing.

I bumped into Amy Rigby today and I had to share her with you. She's funny, clever, and sweet in equal parts, overlaid on a firm basis in snark. I've chosen to include I Don't Wanna Talk about Love No More because I know everyone has had this feeling at some point. The message of the song? Can't we talk about the billion other things in the world or does every conversation have to be about love and sex? If you like that one try Cynically Yours.

Now, Amy Rigby doesn't have a fantastic voice. What she does have is emotion, passion, and wit that carry her personality into every song. She's the kind of singer/songwriter you'd want to got out for coffee or a couple of beers with rather than just watching her in concert. She's been working in the music industry for decades, bouncing from project to project and putting every bit of her life experience, including motherhood and relationships, into the songs she writes. She's been punk, pop, country, and folk plus every combination and permutation thereof.

All of that makes for music that is fun and interesting. You know I have a serious weakness for that sort of thing, even if she doesn't have a horn section most of the time. So have a listen to I Don't Wanna Talk about Love No More and see if you like her as much as I do. And if you're an old, staid, married couple have a listen to Are We Ever Gonna Have Sex Again? and see if you don't find yourself in at least on of her examples.

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 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.