A Yardstick for Lunatics

Themetime Themes, Anomalous Instrumentals & Unsung Covers, Pt. 5

2010-02-26T13:35:00.000-08:00

So... some of you (assuming that there is a "you") are probably wondering what happened to the "unsung covers" part of the title of this mix, which I added after the beginning. I think that you (assuming that there is a "you") will think well of your patience, after you hear these instrumental covers of previously vocally-enhanced songs.

"When You Walk In The Room" was a hit for Dusty Springfield, and The Searchers, too. You'd never know there were vocals missing if you heard The Ventures' (Live in Japan '65) version first.

Donovan's "Colours" was a hit in the UK, but I prefer this non-hit instrumental version released by Van Dyke Parks on his Song Cycle LP.

And finally, we have one of the most wonderful pop songs ever invented -- try playing it on the instrument of your choice if you don't believe me -- The Beatles' "Please Please Me", as codified (why re-invent the wheel?) by Link Wray. I mean, honestly... what more could you want?

Lick It Up

Podwalker's Dogcast, Pt. 5

2010-02-12T12:56:00.000-08:00

If you didn't already believe that chihuahuas are the creepiest dogs on the planet, the picture to the left would probably be enough to convince you. The thing is, they are -- at least, the mixed mutt SPCA versions are -- the most grateful, devoted, cuddly animals known to human pet-harborers. Well, cherchez le chien; this post is dedicated to the noble chihuahua, the least-likely to be bravest of the brave dogs.

Bite me!

Song list:

01. Mike Soloway - The Little Chihuahua
02. Frank Milano and the Golden Orchestra - Chihuahua (Cha Cha Cha)
03. El Vez - Chihuahua

Talk Dirty To Me, Pt.. 4

2010-01-29T10:30:00.001-08:00

A motherfucking double post -- 6 fucking tunes! Fuck yeah! Sure, I left out a lot of fucking great songs -- fact is, I've come to realize that I could put together an entire fucking CD with nothing but singers who drop the F-bomb in a fucking prominent way. Maybe I should. Maybe I fucking will, eh? Fucking A!

What the fuck?

Song List:

01. Robbie Fulks - Fuck This Town
02. Witchypoo - Fuck The Motherfucking President
03. Candy Snatchers - Fuck My Family
04. Steve Vai - Fuck Yourself
05. William S Burroughs with REM - Fuck Me Kitten
06. Ian Dury & The Blockheads - Fuck Off Noddy

Blues For Em, Again

2010-01-25T13:20:00.000-08:00

I dreamed about her again, yesterday. I don't suppose it'll ever stop. She welcomed me back with open arms, and asked me why I had to let her drop.

Or, "When Will The Blues Leave," as Ornette Coleman put it. And "There Aint No Cure For Love," which Leonard Cohen said. And perhaps "Broken Hearts Are For Assholes," according to Frank Zappa. Regarding that last one, I have to wonder if Zappa intended it as a corrective; my experience, at least in dealing with big city auto drivers, is that assholes don't mind being called assholes at all -- in fact, they relish it. Makes 'em feel badass. The only way to get under their skins at all is to impugn their intelligence. Call them stupid, or foolish, in other words. And that's how I'll think of myself, today.

Song List:

01. Merle Haggard - Always Wanting You
02. Saint Etienne - 4.35 In The Morning
03. Knitters - Trail Of Time

Time enough for regret.

Themetime Themes, Anomalous Instrumentals & Unsung Covers Pt. 4

2010-01-22T13:34:00.000-08:00

OOO-kay... so I have been away for a while... but, then, I'm probably only talking to myself. Continuing, then, where I left off before the Christmas freakout...

Here's three movie themes which I plan to feature prominently in this mix. The Casino Royale theme from the 1967 movie was written by Burt Bacharach, and has been a part of my internal soundtrack since I watched the movie on acid in 1972 or '73.

The instrumental version of the Repo Man theme has been a part of that same soundtrack since I walked into the movie on a whim back in 1984. It always pissed me off that the official soundtrack didn't include the throbbing, sans-lyrics version that accompanied the opening credits of the movie, so here is that version, ripped from the DVD. Iggy Pop is credited -- but this site claims, with considerable credibility (in my opinion), that the music was largely written by Steve Jones, former guitar player of The Sex Pistols, with Nigel Harrison and Clem Burke of Blondie on bass and drums.

And finally, we have the delicious goulash that is Jack Nitzsche's ending credit theme for The Hot Spot. I say "goulash" because, though it is credited to Nitzsche, I don't see how it could have been written. The musicians on this jam are supposed to be, roughly, Miles Davis, John Lee Hooker, Taj Mahal, Roy Rogers and Tim Drummond. Go argue with that!

Movie Madness!

Christmas Marathon, Pt. 4

2009-12-17T14:12:00.000-08:00

It's a Crackpot Christmas, from 2005! Somehow, I skipped 2004, perhaps because I did 3 mixes in '03. Then again, that doesn't explain how I could skip 2006 - '08, which I did, and may yet skip '09. Perhaps Christmas mixes have become too goddam common. It was about the time when I constructed this thing that it became so easy to find Christmas Constructions from The Web that you could easily download more than it was possible for one person to listen to, during the season, without risking severe dementia.

This baby is about halfway between the two preceding mixes, in regard to amusement vs. offensiveness. There's bad taste and cuss-words in a few songs, but most of them are not so bad.

A couple of songs here are so stupid that I can't think what I was thinking when I included them, and I wouldn't mind if you left them out if you decided to make a CD of this anthology. A few more are my favorites of this or any other mix -- The Tradewinds' "New York's A Lonely Town", in particular, is one of my all-time favorite Christmas songs even though it never makes the slightest mention of the holidays at all. I'm guessing that I first heard it during during a Christmas Eve substitute DJ shift on KPFA back in '76.

Let me be your jackass Santa Claus

Song list:

01 - Pete Rugolo - Jingle Bells Mambo
02 - The Cocktail Preachers - Linus And Lucy
03 - DJ John - The Christmas Massacre of Charlie Brown
04 - The Christmas Project - It's Xmas And I've Got A Hangover
05 - Billy Beau - Santa's Coffee
06 - Babs Gonzales - Teenage Santa Claus
07 - Gatemouth Moore with The Tiny Grimes Swingtet - Xmas Blues
08 - Hank Thompson - I'd Like To Have An Elephant For Christmas
09 - HP Lovecraft Historical Society - Carol Of The Old Ones
10 - Jason and The Straptones - I Found The Brains Of Santa Claus
11 - Rev Frost - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
12 - The Tradewinds - New York's A Lonely Town
13 - Mr Green Jeans - Crackerjack Christmas
14 - Louis Prima - Shake Hands With Santa Claus
15 - Linda Scott - Christmas Day
16 - Buck and Sandy Dharma - Baby It's Cold Outside
17 - Michael Landon - Santa Got Lost In Texas
18 - Kelley Ryan - It's Not Christmas
19 - Trailer Trash - Please Daddy Don't Get Drunk This Xmas
20 - Red Peters - Holy Shit It's Christmas
21 - Mel Blanc - Yah Das Ist Ein Christmas Tree
22 - Red Simpson - Truckin' Trees For Christmas
23 - The Christmas Jug Band - Somebody Stole My Santa Claus Suit
24 - Sonny Cash - Merry Xmas Polka
25 - Duke Tumatoe and The Power Trio - Christmas At Grandma's
26 - Voicedude - Santabenz
27 - June Christy - The Merriest (Thunderball Mix)
28 - RIAA - Santa's Acid Hawaiian Space Disco (Excerpt)
29 - Kids of Children's Psychiatric Hospital - O Come All Ye Faithful

PS: Oh, and that's Dan Hicks, if you're like me and care, who's singing in front of The Christmas Jug Band.

Christmas Marathon, Pt. 3

2009-12-14T12:56:00.000-08:00

Actually, I made more than one Christmas mix in 2003. The first was outrageously nasty, so I figured I had to have something different to play for a family-type audience -- and hence this little biscuit. All clean and safe to play for all but the most easily-offended folks (and for them, I had yet another mix, which is too boring to post).

One number here, Meryn Cadell's "The Cat Carol", is one of my top 5 favorite Christmas songs ever, and makes me weep like a slashed aloe plant every time I hear it. Be warned.

Almost nice...

Song List:

01 - Buck Owens - Christmas Time's A-Coming
02 - Loudon Wainwright III - Suddenly It's Christmas
03 - Mojo Nixon - Good King Wenceslas
04 - George Thorogood - Rock & Roll Christmas
05 - Li'l Ed & The Blues Imperials - I'm Your Santa
06 - Graham Parker & Nona Hendryx - Soul Christmas
07 - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Sleigh Ride
08 - Chi - Santa Claus Is A Black Man
09 - Shu-Bi-Dua - White Christmas
10 - Nashville Superpickers - Oh Come All Ye Faithful
11 - The Primitives - Silent Night
12 - Tiny Grimes & JB Summers - I Want A Christmas Present
13 - Ralph Marterie & His Orchestra - Dig That Crazy Santa Claus
14 - Gayle Peevey - I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas
15 - Troy Hess - Christmas On The Moon
16 - Thee Spivies - There's No Christmas On The Moon
17 - Webster Webfoot - Who Will Take Me Home For Christmas
18 - Art Carney - Santa And The Doodle Li Boop
19 - Old 97s - Have A Holly Jolly Christmas
20 - The Heptones - Christmas Time Is Here
21 - The Roches - Winter Wonderland
22 - Meryn Cadell - The Cat Carol
23 - Dash Rip Rock - Christmas In El Paso
24 - Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys - Empty Chair At The Christmas Table
25 - Pizzicato Five - Silent Night

Christmas Marathon, Pt. 2

2009-12-08T14:43:00.000-08:00

Uh... not so much a marathon, I guess. Too lazy. This is from Christmas 2003, shortly after I keeled over and stopped breathing, briefly. Hence, I think, the incredibly rude nature of the mix. The cover illustration is a product of the demented mind of Goopymart, all hail him. Speaking of stopping breathing, let's dedicate this one to Patrick Swayze, RIP -- I never saw any of his movies, but he is featured, in a way, on this disc.

The turd in the wassail bowl.

Song list:

01 - K Gordon Murray - Santa Claus, The Trailer
02 - Weird Al Yankovic - The Night Santa Went Crazy
03 - Flat Duo Jets - Christmas Time (Hey We're Gonna Rock)
04 - Root Boy Slim - Xmas @ Kmart
05 - Nerf Herder - I've Got A Boner For Christmas
06 - Squirrell Nut Zippers - Sleigh Ride
07 - Joseph Spence - Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
08 - The Showcase Showdown - Merry Christmas, I Fucked Your Snowman
09 - Tiny Tim - Santa Claus Has Got The AIDS This Year
10 - Tom Waits & Peter Murphy - Christmas Sucks
11 - Murder City Devils - Dead By Christmas
12 - Man Or Astroman - Frosty The Snowman
13 - Mack Rice - Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin'
14 - Kevin 'Bloody' Wilson - Hey Santa Claus You Cunt
15 - The Kids Of Widney High - Santa's In A Wheelchair
16 - MC Potbelly - Santa Is Dead
17 - Graham Parker - Christmas Is For Mugs
18 - MST3K - (Let's Have) A Patrick Swayze Christmas
19 - The HP Lovecraft Historical Society - I Saw Mommy Kissing Yog-Sothoth
20 - Venus Envy - Lesbians We Have Heard On High
21 - Pansy Division - Homo Christmas
22 - Bob Rivers - Who Put The Dick On The Snowman
23 - SNL - Dysfuntional Family Christmas
24 - Fear - Fuck Christmas
25 - Jimi Hendrix - Holiday Medley
26 - Snoop Dogg Vs. Nate Dogg - 'Twas The Night Before Christmas
27 - The Evolution Control Committee - The Christmas Wrong

Wine, Wine, Wine, Pt. 5

2009-12-04T14:10:00.001-08:00

Yeeaah! Ah feel olriight!

I'm betting that there is at least one song here that you have never heard before, and the Jeff Buckley number is far from the best candidate.

Did you know that "Alligator Wine" was written by Leiber and Stoller? I didn't. Wow.

First person to provide me with the complete lyrics to "Oysters and Wine at 2 A.M." wins something, I swear.

I'm drunk. Link fixed!

Song List:

01. Screamin' Jay Hawkins - Baptize Me In Wine
02. Old South Quartette - Oysters and Wine at 2 A.M.
03. Jeff Buckley - Alligator Wine

Happy Hippie Radio

2009-11-30T13:31:00.000-08:00

As promised, here's the complete version of the Happy Hippie Radio mix CD; if you're interested and haven't downloaded all the parts, just download this one -- it has all the same music as the individual episodes, in the same order.

This was my third attempt at making a mix of the kind of music I remember from listening to KSAN-FM, San Francisco, circa 1971, so I pretty much knew how I wanted it to go. There were some difficult choices to make, obviously, in condensing the times down to roughly 79 minutes, and some things got cut. If you're wondering why there's no Grateful Dead here, for instance, well... the station didn't really play all that much -- and when they did, it was usually "Uncle John's Band" or "Casey Jones" or "New Speedway Boogie", none of which I ever want to hear again. Besides, according to legend, Jerry Garcia is present here as the pedal-steel guitar player on "One Toke Over The Line".

Several of the choices to represent certain bands could have been different: "Coming Your Way" probably should have been "Oh Well" or "Station Man", but the song I used was representative enough and was the one I most wanted to hear; "Mama Told Me Not to Come" should have been "Yellow Man", and "Apeman" should have been "Lola", based on how well I remember hearing those songs, but the numbers I used fit the mix better; the Traffic, Steve Miller and John Prine tracks could have all been any of at least 2 or 3 other songs apiece -- and probably will be when I do this again.

Ah well, it's been fun, especially the music. Stay tuned!

The fake jive 95 is here.

Song list:

01 - The Allman Brothers Band - Midnight Rider
02 - The Band - The Shape I'm In
03 - Moby Grape - Murder In My Heart For The Judge
04 - Humble Pie - 30 Days In The Hole
05 - Spirit - Animal Zoo
06 - The Kinks - Apeman
07 - John Simon - The Song of the Elves
08 - Santana - Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen
09 - Fleetwood Mac - Coming Your Way
10 - Ten Years After - I'd Love to Change the World
11 - Quicksilver Messenger Service - Fresh Air
12 - The Fraternity of Man - Don't Bogart Me
13 - Brewer and Shipley - One Toke Over The Line
14 - Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen -
Seeds and Stems (Again)
15 - Randy Newman - Mama Told Me Not to Come
16 - Donovan - Season Of The Witch
17 - Traffic - Feelin' Alright?
18 - Steve Miller Band - Your Saving Grace
19 - Mike d'Abo - Handbags and Gladrags
20 - John Prine - Your Flag Decal Won't Get You
Into Heaven Anymore
21 - The Youngbloods - Hippie From Olema

Christmas Marathon, Pt. 1

2009-11-27T11:56:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is over, let the screaming begin! This is my Christmas mix CD from 2002. Ah, those were the days... when I had no broadband, when album-length mixes were not so readily available, when I made my own Christmas CDs almost every year...

I suffered for this music; now it's your turn (as they say).

Xmas on a stick.

Song List:

01 - Milton Kaye's Steam Calliope - Jingle Bells
02 - Bob Dalpe - Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
03 - The Eels - Everything's Gonna Be Cool This Christmas
04 - The Dismemberment Plan - This Christmas
05 - Lou Rawls - Christmas Is
06 - The Vince Guaraldi Trio - The Christmas Song
07 - John Fahey - Hark, The Herald Angels Sing / O Come, All Ye Faithful
08 - Suddenly, Tammy! - Deck The Halls
09 - The Jingle Cats - White Christmas
10 - Porky Pig - Blue Christmas
11 - El Vez - Brown Christmas
12 - The Emotions - Black Christmas
13 - Louis Armstrong & Benny Carter - Christmas Night In Harlem
14 - Louis Prima - What Will Santa Claus Say When He Finds Everybody Swingin'?
15 - Lou Monte - The Italian Christmas Donkey
16 - The Barking Dogs - Jingle Bells
17 - My First Keyboard - Christmas Is Only Good If You Are A Girl (Boy)
18 - Fountains Of Wayne - I Want An Alien For Christmas
19 - The Rubber Band - Jinglebell Rock
20 - Dean Martin - Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
21 - Catherine Irwin - Dirty Little Snowman
22 - The Flaming Lips - Christmas At The Zoo
23 - The Cocteau Twins - Winter Wonderland
24 - Astronaut Frank Borman - A Christmas Greeting From Space

Wine, Wine, Wine, Pt. 4

2009-11-27T05:13:00.000-08:00

Is there anything that goes better with the better half of a bottle of wine than the sound of a pedal-steel guitar? Well, actually, I learned to like that instrument from a dentist who served it with nitrous oxide, but that's another high entirely. Anyway, it's time to visit the countryside (of wine).

Is it wine country, or country wine?

Song List:

01. Wanda Jackson - Tears Will Be The Chaser For Your Wine
02. Commander Cody And His Lost Planet Airmen - Wine Do Yer Stuff
03. Emmylou Harris - Two More Bottles Of Wine

Themetime Themes, Anomalous Instrumentals & Unsung Covers, Pt. 3

2009-11-21T10:39:00.000-08:00

Careful readers will notice that the title of this mix has changed; I was doing some general tag housekeeping and decided to go ahead and rename this mix to indicate some similar material that I want to include later (coming soon). Meanwhile, here's some tunes that fall under the "anomalous instrumentals" part of the heading. I don't think any of them did much more than fill up space on albums -- I've certainly never heard any of them performed live -- but I like all 3 a lot.

Rockin' Instrumentals

Song List:

01. Shonen Knife - Milky Way
02. Kimberley Rew - Alice Klar
03. The Dictators - Channel Surfing

Podwalker's Dogcast, Pt. 4

2009-11-20T12:59:00.000-08:00

So, I was browsing eMusic for amusing songs about dogs, and what should I find but these guys, The Knuckle Heads, with 3 funny-as-hell songs about dealing with dogs (and their owners) in an urban setting. Just what the dogter ordered! I couldn't possibly choose just one for this mix, and leave the other two behind, so here are all three, to be scattered throughout or bunched together -- I'm really not sure which, right now.

Woof!

Song List:

01. Knuckle Heads - Pick Up That Doo-doo
02. Knuckle Heads - Dog Run Blues
03. Knuckle Heads - My Dog Is a Bigot

Happy Hippie Radio, Pt. 6

2009-11-06T13:33:00.000-08:00

This one took me by surprise; it seems we're out of time for our barefoot walk down the dirt road of hip radio at the end of the freak era in the San Francisco Bay Area (actually, I envision that road as existing somewhere in Marin, near the coast). Had to wrap things up in a hurry, leaving a few things behind. What do you say we do another, soon, eh? Meanwhile, look for the compiled Happy Hippie Radio, Volume 1 mix CD on this blog later this month. The other mixes continue...

PS: The version here of "Handbags and Gladrags" probably should have been Rod Stewart's, for the sake of accuracy, but I just couldn't face thinking about Rod every time I play this CD, so instead you have the original version.

"Hey, freak!"

Song list:

18. Steve Miller Band - Your Saving Grace
19. Mike d'Abo - Handbags and Gladrags
20. John Prine - Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore
21. Youngbloods - Hippie From Olema

Talk Dirty To Me, Pt. 3

2009-11-05T15:26:00.001-08:00

Heh heh. The story of my life, in 4 songs or less. I don't know how you feel about this subject, but I can't get enough of it. 'T'would be convenient, 'f't'were otherwise, t'wat?

Make no mistake, this is a man's blog; women most likely will call a cunt a cunt. I know, I know... ...wuss-boys.

Speaking of which, the first song was written by a man, despite the lady's voice, so that explains that. The second features Fred Schneider of The B52s on guest-vocal. The third is written and sung by Nick Cave, who was name-checked on the album from whence came the second song. And the fourth number is a revision of an old R&B tune performed by The Olympics, The Marathons and The Olsen Twins, and it seems, still chanted 'round the campfire by The Boy Scouts of America. (When I was a Boy Scout, we made up dirty lyrics to "Mellow Yellow".)

"Got it from some kitty next door..."

Song list:

01. The Waitresses - Pussy Strut
02. Bongwater - The Power of Pussy
03. Grinderman - No Pussy Blues
04. The Holy Modal Rounders - Snappin' Pussy

Themetime Themes, Anomalous Instrumentals & Unsung Covers, Pt. 2

2009-10-31T10:08:00.000-07:00

I remember all 3 of these tunes as themes for television shows back in the '60s. #1, "A Swingin' Safari," introduced, I think, The Match Game. #2, "The Syncopated Clock," signaled the beginning of more than one channel's late movie. #3, "Java," opened a hosted cartoon show in Los Angeles, the name of which I can no longer remember (I also tend to confuse #s 1 & 3 with "Baby Elephant Walk" and several tunes by The Tijuana Brass, which may also turn up here eventually).

Television swing!

Podwalker's Dogcast, Pt. 3

2009-10-30T13:56:00.000-07:00

The weepy part.

Dead Dogs

Song List:

01. The Byrds - Old Blue
02. Peter Stampfel - Me and Old Dog Tray
03. Killdozer - Knuckles the Dog (Who Helps People)

Talk Dirty To Me, Pt. 2

2009-10-23T12:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, so here we're jumping into the heart of this mix, with 1) A song (slash-rant) that might be a problem for playing in mixed politically-correct company, and 2) The greatest rock-n-roll song of all time, except for the lyrics, (and, well... perhaps the gender of the singer) which might tend to disturb many rockers, and 3) A fine answer song to #2, aside from the fact that it's not nearly as funny or as rockin' (yet it always makes me smile in juxtaposition). "Ooo, my head!" as Richie Valens once said.

No doubt about it, there's gonna be a bad word here, next episode.

"Efhugh!" - "Gozintight!"

Song list:

01. T. Valentine - Hello Lucille Are You A Lesbian?
02. Josie Cotton - Johnny, Are You Queer?
03. Leslie Nuss - He's Not Gay (He Just Doesn't Like You)

Happy Hippie Radio, Pt. 5

2009-10-23T05:09:00.001-07:00

After getting high, of course, you have to come down -- so that's what this set is about. Hippies had their share of songs about getting the creeps, and I have the feeling I'm forgetting some important ones. Left out David Crosby's "Almost Cut My Hair" on purpose, though, because he always gave me the creeps (hell, even Donovan pushes my limits)!

This is another one of those episodes where I could have picked any number of other songs by the same artists to represent the times. These just fit the flow, man.

Bad vibes!

Song list:

15. Randy Newman - Mama Told Me Not to Come
16. Donovan - Season Of The Witch
17. Traffic - Feelin' Alright

Go Away, Silly Bird!

2009-10-16T13:07:00.000-07:00

Another completed mix CD from olden times past. This one was made for a fan of cuckoo clocks, and I believe it was not well-liked because it was so all-over-the-place. Well, what can you expect from a cuckoo? Also, it runs a little short, which makes it just the right length for one side of a C-90.

What's in the cuckoo clock?

Song list:

01. Cuckoo Clock - Winding
02. Cuckoo Clock - Ticking
03. Cuckoo Clock - Cuckooing
04. Big Brother & The Holding Co - Coo Coo
05. The Monks - Cuckoo
06. Rachel Sweet - What's In The Cuckoo Clock
07. Dawn Of The Replicants - Cuckoo Clock
08. The Magnetic Fields - Absolutely Cuckoo
09. The Everly Brothers - The Cuckoo
10. The Beach Boys - Cuckoo Clock
11. The Andrews Sisters - Tico Tico
12. Benny Goodman & Johnny Mercer - The Cuckoo In The Clock Went Cuckoo
13. The Crazy Star Band - The Dance Of The Cuckoos
14. Gracie Fields - The Mockingbird Went Cuckoo
15. The Holy Modal Rounders - The Cuckoo
16. Syncropation Combonation - Serenade to a Cuckoo
17. PDQ Bach - The Cuckoo in the Depths of the Forest
18. György Ligeti - Cuckoo in the Pear-Tree
19. The Cuckoo - Cuculus Pallidus

Themetime Themes, Anomalous Instrumentals & Unsung Covers, Pt. 1

2009-10-09T13:14:00.000-07:00

Some things just go together -- trust me, this will work. Themes for movies and TV shows have to stand out -- they are introductions, they need to be ingratiating and set a tone to the proceedings. They establish leitmotifs, for heaven's sake! Anomalous instrumentals are the tunes that appear somewhere in otherwise vocally-oriented musical proceedings -- they stand out by their very nature, yet they exist only according to the whim of the artist. Usually, they fill a space that would otherwise be blank, or filled by an unfinished vocal number. These things work together, in some weird way; I hope to prove that here.

Introductory Themes

Song List:

01. Oingo Boingo - Hercules Family Theme (from Forbidden Zone)
02. Ben Charest - Belleville Rendez-Vous (French) (from The Triplets of Belleville)
03. The Real Tuesday Weld - Bathtime In Clerkenwell

Wine, Wine, Wine, Pt. 3

2009-10-09T06:54:00.000-07:00

Just my luck: I go looking for a picture of Loudon Wainwright III to use for this post, and I drown in pictures of his brats. Well, OK, there are a few pictures of him, but they all look so clean and sober! Clearly, things weren't always that way for ol' Lou, as I hope Part 3 of the Wine Mix, the all-Loudon Wainwright III set, will show.

"There has yet to be a perfectly straight line."

Song List:

01. Loudon Wainwright III - Wine With Dinner
02. Loudon Wainwright III - Down Drinking at the Bar
03. Loudon Wainwright III - Drinking Song
04. Loudon Wainwright III - Wine With Dinner (Night Cap)

Podwalker's Dogcast, Pt. 2

2009-10-06T13:54:00.000-07:00

If you haven't quite figured it out yet, this blog is part of my drive to complete mix CDs. Thinking-up ideas for them is loads of fun, but completing the song selection is a burden I can rarely bear. Our big picture, here, must therefore wait until several sub-assemblies are readied for final construction. Thus, "Pt. 1", "Pt. 2", etc. Mostly, these "parts" are put together in a definite order, ready to be patched into the mix, but this segment will be an exception. I couldn't do a dog-themed mix without several cover versions of The Stooges' "I Wanna Be Your Dog", but it seemed much easier to upload them all together, then scatter them around the mix later.

That said, I should add that I think the first track of this part fits perfectly with the last track of the previous part. The other two versions of this song will be fitted elsewhere in the mix, probably.

Also, I regret being forced to leave out all of Joan Jett's several versions from many bootlegs --I like her a lot, but the versions I had to choose from were all overlong and overidentical. Those performances were fine, in the context of a show, but useless here.

You know where that is!

Song list:

01. Uncle Tupelo - I Wanna Be Your Dog
02. La Grande Illusion - I Wanna Be Your Dog
03. Emilie Simon - I Wanna Be Your Dog

Happy Hippie Radio, Pt. 4

2009-10-02T19:53:00.000-07:00

Back again, and transitioning gracefully from Part 3 ("Have another hit... of fresh air...") to Part 4, the dope set. During the period I'm exploring, there were so many tunes about toking on the airwaves that this whole mix could have been compiled entirely from stoner songs (which is not to say that I could have listened to it if it were). Limiting this episode to only three numbers (heh), in fact, meant leaving out a couple of semi-essential goodies -- but I have other plans, later, for The New Riders of The Purple Sage and John Prine.

Roll another one.

Song list:

12. Fraternity of Man - Don't Bogart Me
13. Brewer and Shipley - One Toke Over The Line
14. Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen - Seeds and Stems (Again)

Talk Dirty To Me, Pt. 1

2009-09-25T04:21:00.001-07:00

I joke that I'm too old to fuck, and the truth is that I have more memories than expectations, but "hope springs eternal" (A. Pope) and, furthermore, grows well in the medium of memories (me). In other words, I think about sex a lot, and tend to like music that celebrates it. Like early Prince records, for example, even though his music doesn't really rock hard enough.

These 3 covers of Prince songs do rock a bit harder - that's why Marshall Crenshaw's version of "Take Me With U" is here; there's nothing dirty about it. Pansy Division's "Jack U Off", though, is punk and filthy as hell and, thanks to some clever re-writing, queer as hell, too. Finally, Hindu Love Gods (Warren Zevon backed by three-quarters of REM) completely thrash the fuck out of "Raspberry Beret" -- a track that stuck out like a sore something-or-other on the album it came from. It's nice to hear all these tunes together in like-minded company. Kind of a mild start for a deliberately rude mix but, don't worry, it gets juicier.

Podwalker's Dogcast, Pt. 1

2009-09-25T03:12:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the original title for this blog. A couple of years ago, I thought it might be fun to buy a digital voice recorder and add some bonus value to the hour-and-a-half I spend most days on assorted dog walks by making a walking diary. Afterward, I could edit in some appropriate dog-related music and post the show on one of those podcast-aggregating sites. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but I never got started -- mostly because of those people you see on the street talking into Bluetooth devices; they all look like crazy people to me, and I'd rather not look like that to myself.

My dog, by the way, is a beautiful, little red mutt who looks nothing like the dog depicted here. This drawing was chosen to go with the songs. If I catch you doing any of the terrible things in these songs, you will live to regret that you lived to regret that... etc.

Dog Abuse

Song List:

01. Rufus Thomas - Stop Kicking My Dog Around
02. George Coleman - Innocent Little Doggie
03. Count Markus Cross - Please Don't Spit Beer On My Dog

Happy Hippie Radio, Pt. 3

2009-09-18T01:36:00.000-07:00

A couple of themes, here.

Conga drums -- I really miss 'em. It used to be that every other band would use a conga-player to fill in the rhythm section. Three of the four selections in this batch have that. Drummers need to get the hell out of drum circles and join real bands.

All 4 of these groups could have been represented by a number of other songs; they were all got played a lot on FM radio in the early '70s (probably because they all played frequently at Bill Graham venues during that period). The Fleetwood Mac number, here, was a particularly difficult choice -- it probably should have been "Oh Well", but "Coming Your Way" has been drilled into my brain slightly less, and, well... the congas.

It was the beat! The beat!

Song list:

08. Santana - Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen
09. Fleetwood Mac - Coming Your Way
10. Ten Years After - I'd Love To Change The World
11. Quicksilver Messenger Service - Fresh Air

"Jim says, 'Some destinies should not be delivered"

2009-09-17T11:49:00.001-07:00

I don't know why this one bothers me so much; I haven't been paying much attention to his work these many years. The fact is, though, Jim Carroll seemed about due for a wider appreciation, re-appraisal... television commercials and movie cameos, like William Burroughs got. Even just listening to his music, again, it's striking, how in excess of the rewards he received his talent was.

One thing that really bothers me is how all the obits call him a punk-rocker or some such thing. From his early work with the St. Mark's Poetry Project on, his style is that of a post-, or neo-Beat poet. Jim never seemed to me to have that loser charisma that was so engaging in the Punks. He was a real poet, and he took words very seriously -- also unlike the Punks. Saying that he had more than a passing relationship with Punk is like calling Leonard Cohen a folk-singer.

Jim's musical roots were deep in the soil of the '60s -- The Rolling Stones and The Velvet Underground, for example, and a lot of metal-lite, like Steppenwolf and Blue Oyster Cult. I certainly hope to show a little bit of that with this post. The first song is "Day And Night", from Catholic Boy, co-written by Allen Lanier, keyboard player for BOC; it actually sounds a lot like something from a late-'70s Stones album. Second up is "In Thee", a really pretty Blue Oyster Cult song entirely written by Lanier, apparently about his break-up with Patti Smith, in which he quotes a line by Carroll from the first song. Then we have Jim's cover of Lou Reed's "Sweet Jane", from a bootleg recorded in Boston, Dec. 1st 1980. As usual, Carroll converts the lyrical reference to "Jim" into a "Lou", and also note the sly innuendo about Lou and chicken-fucking. Finally, we have Lou's updating of an old song, "Oh, Jim", originally included on 1973's Berlin, and (we should all be grateful for this) more recently performed as part of Berlin Live at St. Ann's Warehouse, from which this is an edited version. Whether it's about our Jim or not (and I think it is), it seems a none-too-early valediction for our hero.

4 songs for Jim

P.S. If I could think of a Patti Smith song about Jim, I would have put it in here with Jim's "Crow", to complete the circle.

Highway 61 Revisited, Revisited

2009-09-11T05:07:00.000-07:00

It's a sure sign of the greatness of a record if you can put together a collection of cover-versions of just the songs on that record. And, no, I'm not talking about tribute albums; this is my cherry-picked set of personal favorite covers of all the songs on Highway 61, plus 3 bonus versions of songs that were bumped from the original for various reasons. Some of these are live, some are rare, and one (the Winkies track) had to edited to remove an irrelevant introduction. Front and back artwork included.

Love ya, Bobby!

Song List:

01. Like A Rolling Stone - Jimi Hendrix Experience
02. Tombstone Blues - Richie Havens
03. It Takes A Lot To Laugh - The Winkies
04. From a Buick 6 - Mike Wilhelm
05. Ballad of A Thin Man - Willard Grant Conspiracy
06. Queen Jane, Approximately - Mojave 3
07. Highway 61 Revisited - Johnny Winter
08. Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues - Bryan Ferry
09. Desolation Row - Robyn Hitchcock
10. Positively 4th St - X
11. Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window - The Hold Steady
12. Sitting On A Barbed Wire Fence - Thurston Moore

She cut me down like Jesus blasted the fig tree / Last night, when I tried to dance with Amy Rigby.

2009-09-11T04:50:00.000-07:00

Well, not really. The truth is, I'm far too much in awe of Amy to ask her to dance. The last time she played here, I talked with her husband instead.

But, anyway, girls... what is it with you about Joey Ramone?

3 or 4 girls with a thing about Joey

Song List:

01. Sleater-Kinney - I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone
02. Amy Rigby - Dancing With Joey Ramone
03. Helen Love - Debbie Loves Joey

Wine, Wine Wine, Pt. 2

2009-09-10T13:31:00.000-07:00

Here you go... it aint all about the good stuff, you know. Matter of fact, I was wondering how cheezy this post needed to be... we coulda gone with the Arlo Guthrie version of one tune, and the Frank Zappa version of another. No one, however, can replace the late, great Townes Van Zandt!

P.S. There's no particular order, yet, to these wine entries -- if you're thinking about saving 'em up and burning 'em.

Cheap Wine

Song List:

01. Hoyt Axton - Lightnin' Bar Blues
02. Townes Van Zandt - Talking Thunderbird Blues
03. Hoodoo Rhythm Devils - W P L J

Happy Hippie Radio, Pt. 2

2009-09-10T05:39:00.000-07:00

Continuing, with goofy stuff -- two songs with automobile sound effects (sadly, at the beginnings of both, so no clever segue), one without.

Neo-primitives

Song list:

05. Spirit - Animal Zoo
06. The Kinks - Apeman
07. John Simon - The Song of the Elves

Happy Hippie Radio, Pt. 1

2009-09-03T10:28:00.000-07:00

When I first began listening to FM radio in late 1970-early '71 (previously, I had been a fan of KHJ in Los Angeles and KFRC in San Francisco), it was a result, oddly enough, of the simulcasts done by television station KQED from the Fillmore (and Winterland). I particularly remember the big show done the night Janis Joplin died; it seemed like the biggest thing in the universe, with a guy holding a microphone running around to interview anyone willing to reveal his or her private grief. It was like 9/11, if you can imagine it, to this teenager. After that, what was there to do but tap the pulse of modern album-oriented music by tuning-in to stations like KSAN and KSFX.

And it seemed that those radio station played many of the same songs over and over, just as their AM cousins did -- not in 3-hour rotations, but still...

What this portion is about, is some of the songs that I remember hearing many, many times during my first year of listening to what we once called "Underground Radio".

On The Lam

Song List:

01. Allman Brothers Band - Midnight Rider
02. The Band - The Shape I'm In
03. Moby Grape - Murder In My Heart For The Judge
04. Humble Pie - 30 Days In The Hole

Wine, Wine, Wine, Pt. 1

2009-08-31T12:36:00.000-07:00

Not much to say about this one. The thing about wine is, it's a conductor of memories. One glass will always remind you of another... another wine, and another day. Beer, too common; spirits, too amnesia-inducing.

Wine-cured curled tongue

Song list:

01. Dale Watson - California Wine
02. Alkaline Trio - Cooking Wine
03. Catch-22 - Wine Stained Lips

First post and general tone-setter

2009-08-28T03:11:00.000-07:00

Starting off with a long mix on the subject of the end game in romantic relations, with a couple of near-optimistic bookends. After much tinkering with song order, this is something that I can really mope over, yet want to hear all over again.

Blues For Em

Song list:

01 - Doris Day - For All We Know
02 - Dwight Twilley Band - You Were So Warm
03 - Tim Hardin - How Can We Hang On To A Dream
04 - Brenda Lee - The Crying Game
05 - Los Straitjackets w. Leigh Nash - The End of the World
06 - Oysterband w. June Tabor - Love Will Tear Us Apart
07 - Hearts And Flowers - Road To Nowhere
08 - Superette - Knowing Me Knowing You
09 - Billy Bragg - Walk Away Renee
10 - Dummy - Walk Away Renee
11 - Dave Alvin - Fourth Of July
12 - Jayhawks - Blue
13 - dBs - Black and White
14 - Sleater-Kinney - One More Hour
15 - Muck And The Mires - I Never Got Over You
16 - Magic Numbers - Love Me Like You
17 - Badfinger - Baby Blue (U.S. Single Mix)
18 - John Doe - The Unhappy Song
19 - Carole King - A Road To Nowhere
20 - Rodolphe Burger - Love Will Tear Us Apart
21 - Crazy Horse - I'll Get By
22 - Wreckless Eric & Amy Rigby - I Still Miss Someone
23 - Orioles - For All We Know