Here’s a completely pleasant surprise: a power-pop supergroup composed of Taylor Hanson (from Hanson) on vocals, James Iha (from the Smashing Pumpkins) on guitar, Bun E. Carlos (from Cheap Trick) on drums, and Adam Schlesinger (from Fountains of Wayne) on bass. In a better world, “Messing with my Head” would be a massive hit. However, I heard it 4 years after it was recorded on Little Steven’s Underground Garage. Ah well, a great song is a great song is a great song … It’s never too late to appreciate something cool.
I’m warning all of you. Hide your wives … hide your girlfriends … hide your daughters … hide your grandmothers … and while you’re at it … hide your cats, your dogs, your sheep, your socks, the flank steak in the fridge …
Because the Troggs are in town … and they WILL hook up with something. There’s no profanity in this song from 1972, but this has got to be one of the dirtiest, filthiest, sleaziest songs ever recorded. I love Iggy Pop, but he never sounded quite this nasty. For those who love this kind of thing, one of the greatest knuckle-dragging anthems of all-time. Even if you’re a guy, when they sneer “Get ’em all!” you’ll want to make sure you’re wearing steel underwear.
Three scarily relevant songs from the 1979 album “Low Budget,” the very British Kinks sing from the perspective of a down-on-their-luck America. It is now 2013 and these songs seem more relevant than ever. I realize it’s a cliche to say that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. But at some point, you can only build the gates of your gated communities so high before the have-nots find a way over. Just buy some more guns and I’m sure you’ll be just fine …
My fellow Welshman, John Cale, does an ultra-cool, rockin’ 50-style cover of Jim Carroll’s most (in)famous song. Many thanks to Westiedad for turning me on to this.
An eerie and minimalistic piano version of one of Zevon’s most famous songs, recorded live for WMMS-FM in Cleveland in 1976. The song contains some of my favorite lyrics of all-time:
“And if California slides into the ocean
Like the mystics and statistics say it will
I predict this motel will be standing … until I pay my bill.”
After watching this again recently, I’m happy to report that Judd Apatow’s directorial debut is still as fresh and funny as it was when it was released 8 years ago. Based on a routine that Steve Carrell did back when he was a member of Second City, “The 40-Year Old Virgin” pulls off an extremely tricky balancing act: an extremely raunchy, painfully funny film that also contains a lot of heart. I realize the “raunch with heart” genre has become a cliche unto itself, but Apatow perfected this genre and in my opinion, has a better batting average than most directors.
The scene above is the now-classic scene where Steve Carrell’s 40-year old virgin character tries to fake his way through a bull session with “the guys.” As a late bloomer who suffered through many of these sessions in high school and college, the only thing I can say about this scene is … Carrell’s character pulls it off way better than I ever did. Though I think every guy, regardless of the age they lost their virginity, was in Carrell’s position at some point. And, this is why the scene is a classic.
As a bonus, I’ve also attached the scene where Carrell’s character attempts a hook-up with an extremely drunk woman he’s met at a bar, played by Apatow’s wife Leslie Mann. According to the DVD commentary, Mann prepared for this role by getting s–tfaced with Seth Rogen and having Rogen videotape her so she could later imitate her drunken self for the film. She said it was one of the most painful things she’s ever witnessed, because before then, she said she was under the delusion she was funny and charming when drunk.
Here’s a funny and fascinating multi-part monologue from Henry Rollins on seeing Ratt in concert, long past their prime. The monologue rambles a bit, but is never boring. Rollins not only touches on hair metal, but also on Los Angeles, middle age, the English language, and other topics. Unfortunately, I can only find the first three parts of this five-part monologue, so if you like this, you should definitely check out Rollins’ “Live at the Westbeth” on CD or MP3.
Remember, Ratt s–t’s better than cat s–t … cat s–t’s just gross.
From the terrific 1980 album “Catholic Boy,” this is the late Jim Carroll’s most (in)famous song. I remember a DJ once saying that not many know what this song is, but every time he played it, it would get more calls into the station wanting to know what the song was and who did it than anything else he plaeyd. It is … in my 8-year old son’s immortal words … pretty “epic.” This is one of those songs that should have been a huge hit, but wasn’t. Granted, the lyrics are really f–king grim. But the song is so damn catchy! It shows up frequently on Sirius First Wave, FYI.
Jaw-dropping trivia note: This song was featured in Steven Spielberg’s “E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial.” It’s not particularly prominent, but it’s definitely there when the boys are playing Dungeons and Dragons near the beginning of the film. That … along with the lyrics for Elvis Costello’s “Accidents Will Happen” casually uttered by Elliott’s brother in the scene where he’s raiding the refrigerator … points to the fact that Spielberg may be more of a hipster than most people typically give him credit for.
From the 1970 album “Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround Part 1,” is the Kinks’ “Apeman.” I don’t have anything profound to say about “Apeman” other than that I’ve always loved this song. The Kinks created a mild controversy with the line “the air pollution is a-foggin’ up my eyes,” because the way Ray Davies phrased “foggin’,” it sounded like another f-word we all know and love. This looks like a “Top of the Pops” performance … part live, part lip sync. No word yet on when “Lola … Part 2” will ever see the light of day.
Here’s Detroit’s Dirtbombs doing more classic punk soul covers … this time laying down their grungy groove on Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give it Up.” From the album “Ultraglide in Black.”
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