Denis Leary - "Asshole"

When I took on this daily song blog I knew there would be times when I would struggle to deliver. And that is what is happening at the moment. Due to a lot of things going on rather than a shortage of songs to share... because that will never be a problem. Anyway, I made a promise that I'm not keeping... so I suppose that makes me an asshole.

Erlend Øye - Sheltered Life (The Youngsters Remix)

Erlend Øye is a Norwegian musician who first came to my attention as one half of the indie-folk duo Kings of Convenience. He transformed into an electronica artist with his solo releases and continued that style through to his next band 'The Whitest Boy alive'. However, over time they moved away from electronica and back to where he had started. I bought his solo EP/CD Single (when I used to buy CD's) 'Sheltered Life' and it featured a few remixes of "Sheltered Life" and the one that gets most airtime on Bitter FM is The Youngsters Remix. Bergen brilliance.

The History of Pan!c - "The Chase"

The History of Pan!c is a musical project for Detroit multi-instrumentalist Gerald Roesser... a member of Pas/Cal previously. "The Chase" explores the classic boy meets girl but this time the complications are diverted after a mature conversation about what may, or may not, happen next... quite simple really. Well, not quite, it still ends up as complicated as ever and with a high degree of disappointment. They say the fun is in the chase.... but only if you succeed. The female vocals are by Leah Diehl from the band 'Lightning Love'.

Amy Rigby - "Are We Ever Gonna Have Sex Again?"

"Are We Ever Gonna Have Sex Again?" is from Amy Rigby's 2003 album 'Til the Wheels Fall Off' and it is a great example of the sense of humour she brings to her songwriting. Quite often her songs are from the perspective of the struggling solo mother. This time she explores life from the opposite side... where it turned from x-rated to domesticated. Brilliant!

"Are We Ever Gonna Have Sex Again?" Live

Are We Ever Gonna Have Sex Again?

Lyrics to Are We Ever Gonna Have Sex Again? :
Life's become a great big list

Of things to do and buy and fix

At night we pass out before ten

Are we ever gonna have sex again?



I looked for your id today

Seemed that id had gone away

Ain't been used since who knows when

Are we ever gonna have sex again?



We used to be triple x rated

Look at us now, so domesticated



What happened to babe and stud?

Too much KFC and Bud

I shout it out into the wind

Are we ever gonna have sex again?



Come here baby, scratch my itch

Or I'll show you one mean ass bitch

I'm so tired of acting Zen

Are we ever gonna have sex again?



Screw making love

It's way too ambitious

Let's get down on the rug

After you finish the dishes



Not now hon, the eggs are frying

But you get extra points for trying

Maybe I can squeeze you in

Between the PTA and CNN

Are we ever gonna have sex again?
---

The Velvet Underground - "Some Kind of Love"

Sorry, haven't got time to give you my thoughts on this song. Other than the fact it is another great song from one of the greatest and most influential bands ever. Catch ya later.

Pussy Riot (Trilogy)

(1) The crime
An element of blasphemy without a doubt... but it isn't any more than a radical punk band doing what radical punk bands do.



(2) The sentence
WTF?



(3) The support
Bjork Dedicates "Declare Independence" To Pussy Riot

Norman Gunston interviews Mohammad Ali

Remember Norman Gunston? He can adequately fill in for my lack of time to post a song today.

The Legendary Stardust Cowboy - "Paralyzed"

Years ago I got a book from the library called 'Songs in the Key of Z' by Irwin Chusid and it opened up a world of outsider music and artists that I (mostly) hadn't heard of. It was years later before I even got to hear some of the artists. For a start, the companion CD's were not available in NZ, and downloading wasn't an option back then. Now if I got another chance to read the book I could stream the music as I'm reading about it... you can't knock new technology. Ever since I started Bitter FM an outsider music show was on the cards. However, a guest DJ known as Uncle Muz, put together a show that was perfect. It covered all the artists and it was clear a lot of his interest also came from reading Irwin Chusid's book. One such artist was The Legendary Stardust Cowboy. His song "Paralyzed" just has to be heard.



David Bowie explains his affection and where the name Ziggy Stardust came from.



The other legend Irwin Chusid talking about the book and some of the artists.

Dirty Projectors - "Gun Has No Trigger"

Dirty Projectors released their seventh album 'Swing Lo Magellan' recently and the first single "Gun Has No Trigger" didn't do much for me after the first listen. They have always been a bit of an enigma to me, songs like "Stillness Is the Move" blowing me away, and then not warming so much to other material. "Gun Has No Trigger" as mentioned earlier, was like another song of theirs that I didn't quite get... well, until a couple of listens later, when I more than got it. In fact, I couldn't get enough of it. Maybe I've just been too impatient with them in the past. The album will be the real test and I suspect that they will win me over.

Bjork - "I love to love" (1976)

All I can say about this is... thank god they didn't have those reality 'got talent' or 'idol' shows back in 1976. She may never have recovered from some has-been diva or pseudo celebrity telling her what they thought of this performance. Although, the more I think about, she probably would have attacked one of them, even at that young age. This recording actually got her signed to record a solo album a year later... but there is no surprise that it would be no more than novelty value today. By the time she was in the band 'The Sugarcubes' her real talent was apparent.



Below - Bjork says something like "I am very religious - but I have my own religion"... That sounds like the Bjork we know today.

Anna Coddington - "Bolt"

The Olympics have taken over this blog - so here is just one more Olympics themed blog post and then I'll move on. Usain Bolt won the 200m to complete the double. Is this guy amazing or what? There should be a song about him! Well there is... it's called "Bolt" and it is by Anna Coddington. She wrote it after the 2008 Olympics when she had become a little bit obsessed with Usain Bolt (like most of us). The song is from the perspective of his girlfriend (although she had no idea if he even had one) sitting back in Jamaica while he becomes the superstar he now is. She is so proud of him, but at the same time, fearful of his success effecting their relationship.



Lyrics

BOLT

Run, run, he runs very fast
He wins, wins every race
He turns around before the finish line
to watch the others cry

He prays to God, thinks of his sweetheart
He left sitting under palm trees
She looks up and sees a strong wind
and she thinks of

him

Run, run but don’t leave me
My life is not easy
I want the best for you
but I have dreams too
Why can’t we both win?

She’s so proud it breaks her both ways
Her whole life she ached for him
To dream big and live the good life,
but live it by my side

Run, run but don’t leave me
My life is not easy
I want the best for you
but I have dreams too
Why can’t we both win?

Go the Fuck to Sleep - Read by Samuel L. Jackson

Okay, too many late nights watching the Olympics. Tonight I'm going to get some sleep. All I need is a good book... maybe an audiobook. Here's one read by Samuel L. Jackson... looks interesting enough. It's obviously more for kids but it will do.

Usain Bolt sings some Bob Marley with James McOnie

The Olympic games from the other side of the world = Sleep deprivation and unfinished jobs... but I'm not complaining. Here is a quick post that combines the Olympics with a little bit of Bob Marley from the fastest man in the world.

NANCY SINATRA - "Sugar Town"

One of the best Nancy Sinatra songs that doesn't feature Lee Hazlewood. Although, he did write and produce it. Probably the greatest LSD song recorded and one that would've been quite risque in 1966, you would think... well, it seems the record company were none the wiser. I shu shu shu, shu shu shu shushushu sure love this song.

From Scratch - "GUNG HO 1,2,3d"

From Scratch were an avant garde performance band. They use home made instruments which are primarily percussion based and here on "Gung Ho 1, 2, 3d" they chose PVC pipes as the prominent instrument - along with drums and chimes. The gung ho in the title was derived from the slogan of the 'Chinese Industrial Cooperative Society' meaning "Work Together".... the triangle in a circle was a gung ho symbol and From Scratch recreated that with their live performances. "Gung Ho 1, 2, 3d" was originally released in 1983 and was performed by Geoff Chapple, Philip Dadson, Wayne Laird and Don McGlashan. It would be great to see a reunion tour at some stage... who knows? maybe Plumbing World would even choose to sponsor it.

Shed Seven - "Going For Gold"

It has been a long time coming - but we finally got our first gold medal at the London Olympics. Hopefully we can emulate that effort with another one or two in the rowing tomorrow night. Where ever you are reading this from, I hope your Olympic team are doing you proud as well.

John Cage - 4'33"

John Cage was an American experimental composer and was an important avant-garde figure in the 20th century. Possibly best known now for his composition 4'33" from 1952. It is a three movement piece for any instrument or combination of instruments. Okay, I'm not going to break this down too much. Basically, it is three pieces of silence over the combined time of four minutes and thirty three seconds. I had never actually heard a performance of this until now... is that an oxymoron?

Mr Wright - "The Moon And The Stars"

Kevin Wright released his second album 'Star Time' under the Mr Wright name in 1999. It was released on the Le Grand Magistery label and I think it was a compilation from the label that introduced me to this song "The Moon And The Stars" from the album. It is typical of the Le Grand Magistery sound. The lounge baroque pop arrangements but on this one there are some elements of Euro-style Bossa Nova coming through. Enchantingly nice.