Friday Night Videos - Finest Worksong Edition

Show me the Bunny!

This is my second take on this post, the first go-round I had a bit of writers block because I don't think much about the 1990s in terms of entertainment. But, I've walked the dog and had a little late night air and now I think I can rewrite this a little better. So these two songs are about the feeling of getting up in the morning to go to work on days in the 90's when I didn't really feel like going. I still went in and gave 100% but sometimes wished I was somewhere else.

First is "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" by The Smashing Pumpkins. Led by dictator/band leader Billy Corgan, the Pumpkins fired off hard riffing alternative rock with braying vocals and strong melodies. For anyone who has been stuck in traffic on the way to work or trapped in an office desk or cubicle, this is a must have song.

Second is "Self Esteem" by The Offspring. Every morning, some guy in a Jeep would drive by our place blasting this song. The guy was obviously an arrogant jerk that insisted we all hear his one song. I imagined he was some kind of coffee achiever who tells co-workers how one song pumps him up every morning for work. The fact that his happiness was at the expense of the rest of the trailer park who may not have wanted to hear that song at 8 or 7:30 in the morning probably never occurred to him. Or maybe it did.

It occurred to me that this was the theme that I had but couldn't quite get at while writing the first version of this post. Everyone has days they would prefer not to work, that's just human nature. But most of the time I enjoyed working and when I didn't, I just listened to a little music to get me by. So, let's remember-be good to each other. And that's Springer's final thought.

Smashing Pumpkins "Bullet With Butterfly Wings"

The Offspring "Self Esteem"

Friday Night Videos - The Road Warrior Edition

Would you believe this is when Mel Gibson was considered tolerant of other people?

It is the future. Mankind is dwindling to a primitive state where civilization tries to hold on in the face of anarchy. Mohawked motor bike riding leather chap wearing anarchy. And the most precious resource in the future? Gasoline...Petrol...Fuel!

That was the premise of the first two Mad Max movies, back then after surviving the gas shortages of the 70's this type of dystopian (ooh, big word) future seemed far far away. Now, living in an age of road rage and outrageous gasoline prices those movies seem prescient (I'm in a dictionary mood tonight). So, for all my homies who are paying at least $40.00 a tank (about $100.00 if you have a truck or SUV) this Friday Night Videos is for you.

You know, if this type of gas pricing continues pretty soon we'll all be riding bicycles. That would be interesting, you'll probably see these teenage girls on MTV's My Super Sweet Sixteen get tricked out 10 speeds with DVD players and surround sound instead of Escalades. They'll make those spinning rims that keep going after the wheel stops for bikes. And they'll remake CHiPs with those bicycle riding cops, we'll see bicycle crashes in slow motion to a disco beat. Won't that be cool?

So I've got a triple play of videos for this one. First up, Metallica. "Fuel" is one of the best Metallica songs of the late 90's when they decided they weren't metal heads as much as Artists. The best song on the Reload (1997) album, slash and burn vocals meet bone crunching riffs for a smashing good time. Second is Moving Pictures (1980) era Rush with "Red Barchetta", tellin' the tale of a boy taking a joyride in a car during a future where combustion engines are outlawed. Last is Sheryl Crow with "Gasoline" from this year's Detours record, spinning a fanciful tune about a near future of social unrest over...you guessed it, Gasoline. Love that chorus "Gasoline / will be free / will be free /yeah yeah" - Yeah, I wish.

So, celebrate 2008 style fill up your gas tank, drive home and don't go anywhere. You can Pimp Your Ride all day long because like Bob Dylan says, you ain't goin' nowhere.

Metallica "Fuel"

Rush "Red Barchetta"

Sheryl Crow "Gasoline / Gimmie Shelter"

Midnight Madness 6/1/08 Edition

Clay Aiken, you ARE the father! Oh wait, you're not denying it...Everybody Wang Chung tonight!

It's been awhile since I've done a Midnight Madness post at midnight and I was dreaming as I wrote this, so forgive me if it goes astray...

Prince gets Creepy - While headlining the recent Coacherella festival, Prince performed Radiohead's "Creep" which was posted at You Tube. Prince went Lars Ulrich again and ordered it off just like all his other videos, but the problem is he was covering a song by a band that likes the internet and has told him to let it back on. This could turn into a nasty feud that will probably be fought with purple feathers and masters degrees. It's East coast versus West coast all over again.

Did we forget about them? - Simple Minds is reuniting it's original lineup to see if they can get alive and kicking again. I didn't even know it wasn't the original lineup anymore, I hope the reunion is more of the Breakfast Club sell out variety than the "Up in the Catwalk" era because I like my Simple Minds commercial.

You call him Dr. Jones, Doll! - Indiana Jones dominated the Memorial Day Weekend box office with something like $300 million plus in receipts. I'm looking forward to seeing this flick despite the following part...

The Heat is On - Eddie Murphy has officially joined in on Hollywood's latest trend of 80's movie francishise necrophilia by signing on for Beverly Hills Cop 4. All I know is they better bring back Judge Reinhold. Send in the Judge!

Sex and the City movie now out - Good, now the advertising for it can finally stop. Single women, raunchy talk, flashy dresses, prissy drinks- yes, I get it, I get it. Just not my bag baby.

Steve Perry Speaks - the website Melodicrock found a current interview with "The Voice" to coincide with the upcoming release of Journey's Revelation disc at http://men.style.com/gq/blogs/gqeditors/2008/05/foolish-foolish.html. Also included on the site is an article on Arnel Pineda's joining the group and a counter interview from Neal Schon where he says what he thinks of Perry.

Journey week - I think I'll make this a Journey (and Journey related to keep it varied) theme week to get ready for the upcoming CD. Even though I had initial doubts about Pineda, I can't help but get pumped for a new Journey CD. And Pineda is turning out to be a fine addition to the band, providing the spark the band needed to get back into gear.

Throwin' a curve - The Women's College World Series is constantly on ESPN right now and I'm finding it more entertaining than Major League Baseball. Having played coed Softball I have respect for women players and am finding more heart out of these college teams than any multi million dollar contract star players in the majors. These ladies throw some heat.

Go Speed Go! - The one good thing about the big let down that has been Speed Racer the movie is that it's revived the Alpha Team remix from the early 90's. I used to have the cassette single but I've lost it and couldn't find it online until hype for the movie kicked in. I'm not big on Techno, but like classic Speed Racer and found this song to be inventive and fun. Never saw the video until now though, it's awesomely bad in itself as it looks like a C&C Music Factory "Gonna Make You Sweat" video on a $5.00 budget. I didn't post it here, but the cassette single had three different mixes one of which took the Anime gasps of the characters to similate sex between Speed and Trixie. It's one of the funniest things I've ever heard.

Alpha Team "Speed Racer Remix"

Wish For A Revolution?

I spent a lot of time staring at this album cover as a boy. I think I found their appearance interesting because I hadn't known anyone who looked like this. All sloppy and dirty, as a kid you look at this picture and think "someday I won't have to take baths either."

Thought I would kick off the two new features in one post, choosing one song from the '60's and another from the '90's. First up: Groovy Times with The Beatles.

It always seems like a cliche' to associate 60's Rock with The Beatles just because they were the biggest band ever in history. Their music has achieved a societal status that ranks as high as Elvis, Sinatra and Duke Ellington. But the reason I'm choosing a Beatles song isn't because of it's historical status but for personal reasons. "Revolution" was one of the first songs I ever listened to out of choice. My Mom had a Beatles album that included "Revolution" and as a kid I was really facinated with it. The loud burst of guitar at the start, the loping beat, the thought of a Revolution which to me would have been something like not cleaning my room at the time. Of course I didn't think in these terms at 7 or 8 years old, I just liked it because I did. It started loud and then the song seemed to go around and around. I have nice memories of sitting on the living room floor, staring at these four shaggy dudes on the album cover. Ultimately, I think what attracted me to the song was the feeling of freedom that is imbued in it. A feeling so strong even an atrocious Thompson Twins cover in the mid-80's couldn't kill it (but it came close). I'm glad I watched the video for this today, all these years I thought Paul McCartney sang this song.

Beatles "Revolution"

And now...Whoomp! There it is!! Even now, I have a tough time thinking of songs I like from the 1990's. So again I'll start off with a band I'm listening a bit to right now, Nine Inch Nails. I can't claim to being the Nail's biggest fan, I'm a casual listener who can take their Industrial Noise Rock in doses but not in large quantities. But while listening to their new album The Slip, I remembered I didn't have my favorite NIN song "Wish". When this song came on MTV, I found them visually tough to watch but really liked the sound. "Wish" was a dark, angry song (as all Nine Inch Nails songs are) that came at a low point in my life. It was a time where I was unemployed and the job market was really bad, I even had friends claiming it was the end of Western Civilization. Thankfully I was able to find work eventually, but the song is still good anyway. When you're out of work and things aren't going well in life, a song that starts off "This is the first day / of my last day" followed by a barrage of guitar sounds pretty meaningful.

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Sort of the yin to The Beatles yang, "Wish" was anarchic where "Revolution" said you could count them out of destruction. The peacenik 60's versus the backlash against political correctness in the 90's, a pretty decent summation of those eras. Now I'm going to do some work so I don't get all mad and throw a Revolution.

Nine Inch Nails "Wish"