My 100 Favorite Tracks of All Time (80-71)

I really should restrict myself to a more consistent regiment of when I post these. I have no firm schedule. But my goal is to have it all available by the end of next week.

Alright. Part three!! Definitely out of the 70s and 80s punk realm for a while, I believe. I think the list will bring a little bit more variety from here on on (though, for the record, it has been pretty eclectic thus far, in my opinion). Note: I encourage all of you who check this out to make a similar list! It's a fun exercise if you're serious about the music you love. I also encourage you to discuss/judge this list.

A recap of parts ONE and TWO:

100. Stuck in America - Sugarcult
099. History Lesson - Part II - Minutemen
098. To Clean (Acoustic) - Woods
097. Furr - Blitzen Trapper
096. At the Chime of a City Clock - Nick Drake
095. Search and Destroy - The Stooges
094. Scott Farcas Takes It On The Chin - Less Than Jake
093. Ruby Soho - Rancid
092. B.O.B. - Outkast
091. Monk Time - The Monks
090. Waiting Room - Fugazi
089. Ain't That Peculiar - Marvin Gaye
088. (I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone - Minor Threat
087. Daylight - Aesop Rock
086. In the New Year - The Walkmen
085. Judy is a Punk - Ramones
084. I'm the Man Who Loves You - Wilco
083. My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes To Bitburg) - Ramones
082. White Riot - The Clash
081. Many Rivers to Cross - Jimmy Cliff

080. Lived In Bars - Cat Power (http://is.gd/9uaOC)
Chan Marshall turns me to putty. Ugh. It's not fair to have a voice so velvety and sultry (and to also look like she looks!? So mean.). This song just puts me outside on a warm summer night drinking with friends underneath stars and moons and tiki torches. And then that turn at 2:30 just seals the deal. Check your pulse if your toe isn't tapping.

079. Venus - Television (http://is.gd/9ucOO)
And we're back to CBGB in the 70s (you were warned!). For those of you who have listened to Marquee Moon in it's entirety you know it is just unbelievable. For those of you who haven't; please get with the program. There are a lot of songs on this list that offer little snapshots of a given time or place; I like to think of this song as a little picture of New York in '76-'77, complete with references to Richard Hell. But the highlight of this track are the guitars. The technique and interplay is fantastic. I prefer this track to the more notable title track just for length. I get tired in most 10-minute songs. But the whole album is sellar.

078. In The Neighborhood - Tom Waits (http://is.gd/9ugaH)
"With Swordfishtrombones, The Black Rider was thrown out of the nightclub into the alley and, finding himself in his true element, he made its trashcan residents and urine stink the genetic code of the rest of his career." -Rob Mitchum, Pitchfork. "In the Neighborhood" is like a cartoon sketch of any inner city. It's simultaneously playful and depressing, sugar and spice, and, of course, it's Tom Wait's as the ringmaster, drunkenly spewing concrete on a piano somewhere dirty. And oh how I love it so.

077. Losing My Edge - LCD Soundsystem (http://is.gd/9ukZA)
What is the point in doing anything if you take yourself so seriously? I love the music video, because I feel with every reference he throws out that I understand I'm catching a slap in the face. And it's totally fine. I can relate to a lot of the sentiment in this track ("the kids are coming up from behind.") And you can dance to it too, which is always nice. And because I'm the master of meta (ugh I feel like an asshole right now):

076. Vitamin C - Can (http://is.gd/9uqpz)
Krautrock was a bizarre, bizarre movement in Germany in the late 60s and 70s. I think what made it so fascinating, to me, was how disjointed everything was. From early electronic experiments to crazy jam rock, it encompassed nearly everything. But my personal favorite of the entire "genre" is, and always will be, Can. Those drums! Do you breakdance? Well you do now! I love this track so much because it doesn't sound like it belongs anywhere. It just mysteriously came from this crazy nebula of jazz, funk, rock and punk and burrowed into our ears.

075. International Player's Anthem - UGK (feat. Outkast) (http://is.gd/9urYY)
Andre 3000's verse.

074. Someday - The Strokes (http://is.gd/9utTp)
There are some songs on this list that I can't even fully explain. They just hit me. "Someday" is one of those songs. Maybe it's Julian Casablancas' voice, or the simple yet perfect guitar riff, or the lovely nostalgic lyrics, or the consistent and effortlessly excellent rhythm section, or the, shit, it's obviously all of the above and more.

073. These Days - Nico (http://is.gd/9uvLD)
I think in order to really appreciate the Nico version you have to know the original Jackson Browne version. Her version is completely turned on its ear. Instead of being one of the millions of songs about regret after a relationship, little twists in the words made her version about regret at the end of life. This song just levels me. Especially Nico's haunting voice and the orchestration. Just beautiful.

072. All Falls Down - Kanye West (http://is.gd/9uwYt)
This track comes from notorious doucher Kanye West. I want to hate him so much (and in many ways I do), but then I go back and listen to his old albums when he had shreds of sincerity and get completely blown away. The beat is so soulful and the lyrics are such a refreshing change of pace from the kind of rap that populated manstream hip-hop for the majority of the decade. I guess this song is also bittersweet to me, because I see what happened to Kanye, who I sort of regarded as a bastion of honesty in the world of rap, and see what's become of him. "When it falls down, who you gonna call now," indeed.

071. Debaser - Pixies (http://is.gd/9uAcD)
This song is a sort of late edition. Originally I had "Here Comes Your Man," but then I went back and listened to the Pixies a bit more. And I realized "Here Comes Your Man" doesn't really capture what I really love about the Pixies, or what they do best: and that is rock. "Debaser" fuckin' rocks, man. And as a film student, I was forcefed "Un Chien Andalou" like a billion times.

8Tracks: External:


OK! You know where we're headed from here.
-Erik

Day 87: Wildcard (18)

Yay! A new Wildcard! Just so you know, I'm probably going to take next week off. I'm moving, and keeping this baby up might be a bit hard with the commotion and lack of Internet. Enjoy!

YouTube:
01. Monkees - Daydream Believer
02. Mary Wells - My Guy
03. The Righteous Brothers - You've Lost That Loving Feeling
04. Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - Where Have All The Rudeboys Gone?
05. The Walkmen - In The New Year
06. The Avalanches - Since I Left You
07. Coolio - I'll C U When U Get There
08. Dr. Dre - Bad Intentions
09. Phoenix - Countdown (Sick For The Big Sun) (N/A on imeem, "Lisztomania" instead)
10. Black Sabbath - Die Young
11. Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Love Comes In Spurts
12. Don McLean - American Pie (Our national anthem)
13. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - The Carny
14. Eminem - Like Toy Soldiers
15. Nina Simone - To Love Somebody
16. Q-Tip - Vivrant Thing
17. The Human League - Open Your Heart
18. Tim Buckley - Song to the Siren
19. The Zombies - This Will Be Our Year (Great song/video!)
20. Ducktails - Beach Point Pleasant (N/A on imeem, "No Hope Kids" by Wavves instead)

imeem: External:

Day 87: Wildcard (18)

$$$$$$,
Erik

Videos!!!
Milwaukee, represent!


and


(Image by Kevin Law, Licensed Under Creative Commons)

Day 66: Krautrock

This week's genre tour is Krautrock; an interesting music experiment that existed primarily in Germany, obviously, in the late 60s and early 70s. Drawing influences from all over the place from pop music and jazz to bands like the Velvet Underground, Krautrock laid the groundwork for heaps of other genres (electronic, some hip-hop, ambient, post punk, etc.)

Now, Krautrock isn't for everyone. A lot of it is based on minimalism and repetition, which doesn't appeal to most. But be patient with it.

I've assembled a list of what I consider some essential introductions to the genre, in order to provide a decent cross-section to get a full feel of the breadth of Krautrock (it does not all sound the same). I am greatly indebted to the A.V. Club and its readers, for this article, which really helped flesh out the list.

YouTube:
01. Tangerine Dream - Sequent C
02. Harmonia - Notre Dame
03. Can - Mushroom
04. Faust - Jennifer
05. Amon Düül II - Deutsch Nepal
06. Kraftwerk - Ruckzuck
07. NEU! - Negativland
08. Popol Vuh - Through Pain to Heaven
09. Embryo - Ticket to India (N/A)
10. Agitation Free - Laila
11. Cluster - Marzipan (N/A)
12. Ash Ra Tempel - Day Dream
13. Pink Floyd - Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun

imeem: External:

Day 66: Krautrock

Auf Wiedersehen,
Erik

Bonus Video!


(Image by Aenneken, Licensed Under Creative Commons)

Day 53: Wildcard (11)

We have quite a diverse little Wildcard this week. Unfortunately, to get them all onto imeem I had to delete a couple old songs I uploaded. But it's all good. Enjoy.

YouTube:
01. Gangstarr - Work
02. Björk - Army of Me
03. Hey Marseilles - Goodbye Versailles (N/A, Web site)
04. Van Dyke Parks - Vine Street (N/A)
05. Jethro Tull - Skating Away
06. Stars - Your Ex-Lover is Dead
07. Naked Eyes - Always Something There To Remind Me
08. M83 - Kim & Jessie
09. The Streets - Don't Mug Yourself
10. American Cream Team - It's Not A Game (N/A on imeem, instead, Beatnuts - Watch Out Now)
11. The Creators - The Music (N/A)
12. Funkadelic - Hit It and Quit It
13. The Spinners - It's A Shame
14. Lynn Anderson - Rose Garden
15. T Rex - Cosmic Dancer
16. X - Los Angeles
17. No Age - Teen Creeps
18. Margot and the Nuclear So and So's - Vampires In Blue Dresses
19. Laura Marling - Ghosts
20. Kiss - Beth

imeem: External:

Day 53: Wildcard (11)

Best,
Erik

Bonus Video!


(Image by Roadsidepictures, Licensed Under Creative Commons)

Day 4: The Moustache

As I'm sure you're aware, January 29th is legendary actor and sex symbol Tom Selleck's Birthday. In honor of this man, and in honor of his excellent achievement in moustache, I've compiled a play-list featuring artists who also excel in this fine form of facial hair.

The run-down:
David Crosby
Paul Simon
Jim Croce
Lemmy Kilmister
Greg Norton (of Hüsker Dü)
Freddie Mercury
Ed Sanford (of The Sanford-Townsend Band)
England Dan & John Ford Coley
Little Richard
Lionel Richie
John Oates
Basically Everyone in Firefall
Zappa
Slick Rick

Bonus! The Beatles 1967

Day 4: The Moustache

Dig It,
Erik

PS: Bonus Video!!



(Image by Ben Piddington licensed under Creative Commons)