Did you ever have one of those times when you fell down a YouTube rabbit hole and discovered something truly great? It just happened to me.
I'm reading the new biography of Alex Chilton, and as a result listening to a lot of Box Tops and Big Star. One of my work colleagues came of age in the late 60s, and knew the Box Tops, but didn't realize Chilton was 16 when their classic single "The Letter" was released.
So then I tried to explain Big Star, and how Chilton went in a completely different direction with that band. I played "September Gurls" (which is probably in my Top 15 all-time) and he thought of Marshall Crenshaw. So I went looking for Marshall Crenshaw songs -- other than "Someday, Someway" which everyone of a certain age knows -- and found this:
Those of you who know me already know how I feel about this topic. Without a doubt, 1990's "World in Motion" by New Order (rebadged as England New Order in support of their home side) is not just the best World Cup Anthem of all time, but the only one you can actually listen to. There's nothing not to like about it, unless - like me - you stumble upon the myriad occasions when John Barnes performs his rap. He's apparently willing to do it anywhere, anytime. Here he is at Mark Wright's 50th birthday party:
And here he is in a tight bathing suit sitting poolside last month in Dubai. No joke -- someone with a camera asked him to rap, and he obliged.
Barnes may be a good sport, but that's just embarrassing for everyone involved.
But even that's not as bad as Germany's 1994 effort -- the one that enlisted the Village People to sing about all the great things that happen in America, where that year's Cup was held.
At least that has kitschy charm. And if Juergen Klinsmann succeeds with the USA team, the song and video can be forgiven.
The songs that deserve the title of worst World Cup anthem ever are the typical run-of-the-mill dreck that the corporate entities try to feed us. Take "We Are One (Ole Ola)", this year's collaboration between Pitbull and Jennifer Lopez.
Pure garbage. Ditto for 2010's "Waka Waka" by Shakira.
I much prefer this year's "England's Heartbeat" by Shuttleworth featuring Mark E. Smith of The Fall. It sounds promising....
But no. And then there was this 1998's official England anthem "(How Does it Feel) To Be on Top of the World" featuring the ill-conceived pairing of the Spice Girls and Echo and the Bunnymen.
Here's a nearly forgotten gem, and it's hard to believe it's been more than 20 years since its release. In the summer of 1993, California punk band Face to Face released "Disconnected" as a single, only to re-mix it for a subsequent EP and re-record it for a later album. That's a lot of mileage off of one track, but two decades later it's still a hell of a track.
I found this tune last week when I posted about the 90s alt-rock nonsense lyrics supercut. And a week and half later, I can't get Sloan's "People of the Sky" out of my head. I didn't know this Halifax band at their admittedly modest zenith back in the 90s, but on the strength of this song alone I went and listened to more of their work. Sadly, the rest of the Sloan back catalog doesn't seem to stand up to this track. That's OK -- "People of the Sky" is just another perfect power-pop gem that is nearly gone ... and virtually forgotten.
Where were these when I was a kid? I loved LEGOS and music. Combining the two rock my world. You can get all sorts of great bands: The Smiths, Cypress Hill, Joy Division, The Beastie Boys, KISS, Blur...you name it. LEGO ROCK BANDS
I haven't listened to this in a good six or seven years, but I recently re-discovered Art Brut's 2007 album It's a Bit Complicated and once again I'm hooked. And now -- just like then -- the irresistible track that's stuck n my head is "Direct Hit".
There's no one in music quite like Art Brut lead singer Eddie Argus. He spends all of his time talking through his I-can't-believe-he-said-that lyrics while the rest of the band plays tight power-pop behind him.But Art Brut works in large part because of Argus. On this track -- and the accompanying video -- the literate Argus does just what you'd expect him to do: He's imploring a bunch of toga-wearing party-goers to overcome their fears of commitment and cajoling them to get on the dance floor, even if their friends have already left the party. It's a mouthful, and it may not be as direct a hit as just saying "Everybody Dance Now", but face it, it's a whole lot more fun.
I love it when I go to a show with no expectations and come away wowed. That's what happened Wednesday night when I saw tUnE-yArDs at Rough Trade NYC in Williamsburg. In all honesty, I hadn't listened to a lot of tUnE-yArDs before, and the studio stuff I heard I was kind of meh on. I knew Merrill Garbus, the brains behind tUnE-yArDs, has faced criticism in some quarters for cultural appropriation but isn't that what music is all about? We wouldn't have had had the Rolling Stones or the British Invasion had English kids in the 1960s not appropriated the music of another culture, namely African-American rhythm and blues. And some of my favorite artists -- from the Beastie Boys to Damon Albarn -- could be accused of doing the same thing. So I'm not one for cultural criticism in this case.
Musically, tUnE-yArDs reminds me of a cross between M.I.A. and Graceland-era Paul Simon, if you can imagine that. Garbus relies on a lot of sampling and looping, so I wondered how that was going to work live. Turns out, it was very cool. Garbus would just drum a few bars, record what she drummed on her loop pedal, and build her backing beats on the spot. And that itself was entertaining to watch, as if it was all part of the show and not just sausage-making.
Someone at the show recorded a couple of tunes and posted them to YouTube. The audio is rough in spots, but you can clearly watch Garbus doing her loop sampling before launching into "Bizness".
And on this clip, it's a more straightforward performance of her current single "Water Fountain", in which I think you can really hear those M.I.A. and Paul Simon influences.
One more thought: Rough Trade NYC is a great place to see a show. It's small, intimate and it sounds great. And there's good beer on tap -- locally brewed Six Point for $7, which is what you'd pay in an actual bar. Plus the record store is open until 11pm, so you can shop between the opening act and the headliner. I can't say enough about the place!
