CollisionWorks

Oh, I was driving most of yesterday and spending the time before and after with family, so no Friday post happened.

I'm trying to get back to the family quickly now, so instead of a new Random 10 now, I'll post the first ten songs that played randomly during our car trip from Portland, ME to Mattapoisett, MA yesterday, from a playlist entitled "Big Blue Plymouth" - named both for the vehicle it's been built for (it's meant to be a good "driving" playlist) and the David Byrne song from The Catherine Wheel.

Berit picked the first song, and let it go on random for there, so I'll extend the "Random 10" by one:

1. "A Slim McShady" - Go Home Productions (Mark Vidler) - GHP Complete . . .

A mashup of Eminem and Macca's "Silly Love Songs."
2. "Oh, Afghanistan" - The Firesign Theatre - Fighting Clowns
3. "Finiancial Responsibility" - American Association of . . . - Drive Like a Pro
4. "New Girl in School" - Alex Chilton - A Man Called Destruction
5. "See Saw" - Aretha Franklin - Respect: the Very Best of Aretha Franklin
6. "The Stooges Live at the American Theatre, St. Louis - radio promo - Psychedelic Promos and Radio Spots volume 4
7. "Alcoa Aluminum Pull-Top-Spot" - The First Edition - Psychedelic Promos and Radio Spots volume 1It's Time for
9. "Shazam!" - Jim Nabors - Shazam!
10. "Payed Vacation: Greece" - Camper Van Beethoven - Telephone Free Landslide Victory
11. "Momma's in the Kitchen" - Slim Galliard - Laughing in Rhythm #4: Opera in Vout

Okay, I'm being called for a family shopping thing . . . gotta go!

In a rush right now to get myself together and leave Maine, so I can get home at a reasonable mid-afternoon time, rest a bit, and get myself together again to go into Manhattan for the second reading of Ian W. Hill's Hamlet tonight with the (almost) full cast (we're down one due to a schedule error, unfortunately).


So while I have the needed cup of coffee, and before I do the last little jobs around the house I promised my mom I'd do, here's a couple of cats, and a few songs.





Hooker, and his Floppy Ear, approve. And meanwhile, back in the iPod . . .


1. "Things You Only Know If You Don't Drive" - The Amateurs - download

Nice alt-rock country-tinged pop song. Must of got this from some site where I'm downloading lots of current (?) music in a vague attempt to have some sense of surfing the zeitgeist.


2. "So Many Roads, So Many Trains" - Otis Rush - Living the Blues: Blues Masters

Beautiful, in a distant, recorded across a big empty room, way.


3. "Bumble Bee '65" - The Motions - Wavy Gravy - For Adult Enthusiasts Only

Preceded on this record (and track) with a radio ad for an exploitation film called Pickup on 101 "starring Leslie Warren, Jack Albertson, and Martin Sheen!" Gotta find that film someday. "She looks easy but she's seen and done it all!" "Going . . . my way?"

Then a nasty fast guitar instrumental, with vague "Misirlou" tendencies. I think I have the group's earlier version of this somewhere, too. Guess it was the only song of theirs to make it.


4. "Bedazzled" - Bongwater - The Power of Pussy

Ann Magnuson and Kramer cover the Dudley Moore classic from the film of the same title (yes I know Peter Cook performed it in the film, Moore wrote it).

I had dreamed of covering this on my 4-track for years when I heard this version, and decided "It's been done." Especially as Magnuson does it in the same faux-German accent I had been planning on using.


5. "Ebb Tide" - The Platters - The Magic Touch: An Anthology

Great version of the standard. Obviously late Platters - a clean, 60s-sounding, stereo recording - and almost a little syrupy in the arrangement, but not quite, but the vocals are magnificent! The Platters should be remembered for more than the one or two "big" hits they had. They were special.


6. "Death Walks in High Heels" - Jerry Van Rooyen - At 250 MPH

Slick, spy movie upbeat jazz, from a collection of European (German, specifically?) movie music of the 60s by Van Rooyen, who I don't know otherwise. Much more jazz than pop/lounge based, as most other low-budget spy movie music of the time was. Real nice drum and trumpet solos. Pretty classy, really.


7. "Year of the Parrot" - Primus - Tales from the Punchbowl

And in another universe, 1990s spiky, odd altrock from this power trio, heavily influenced by The Residents, Captain Beefheart, and King Crimson (maybe more precisely by Tony Levin) but making pop music you can groove and dance to.


8. "Shub-a-dooe" - The Peter Thomas Sound Orchestra - Raumpatrouille

What the HELL is this track? Oh, this is great! Also from a collection of a composer's 60s movie soundtracks. It's like a sweet lullaby of nonsense lyrics sung by a jazz-voiced man over a syrupy string arrangement with a roller-rink organ way up front.

Oh, I HAVE to use this somewhere!


9. "Midway Down" - The Creation - How Does It Feel To Feel?

More cool, snotty late-60s "heavy" psychedelic rock that I found in researching the music for Temptation. I used a song by these guys in the show, but I like the whole album. It's kind of typical, but better than most. The lyrics would probably get on my nerves if I bothered to really try to hear what they're saying.

Very poppy "la-la" chorus that would not be out of place, songwise, with The Archies or The Monkees. Helps leven the attempted "heaviness."


10. "Rammstein (edit)" - Rammstein - Lost Highway

A little something from a Lynch soundtrack. Heavy, Laibach-sounding German rock with intoning bass vocalist. Works to provide memories of this, a favorite film.

And also then to remind me I have to be on the highway this dreary, overcast morning myself.


But waiting at home for me . . .





As well as Berit, who would probably prefer no photo of her here. So none. So, more than worth it driving home now.