Nothing controversial on the blog today — just another installment of my weekly internet mixtape.
Mark Ronson’s new album is out — he’s forgone the 60s-soul horn-heavy sound that marked his debut (and most of his producer credits, like Amy Winehouse’s breakout album), in favor of a switch to 80s-influenced electro-pop. He’s also given his backing band title credit on the album as well. Here’s the title track, which features guest vocals on the refrain from Duran Duran frontman Simon LeBon (Ronson is currently producing DD’s forthcoming album) and UK Grime MC Wiley: Mark Ronson & The Business International – “Record Collection (feat. Simon LeBon and Wiley).”
Dotta Numba Two clued me into this track, which is from Yet Another Jack White Side Project. I swear, it seems every time that boy gets an itch to try a new musical style, he starts another band. This one is his alternative supergroup, featuring Alison Mosshart of The Kills, Dean Ferita of Queens of the Stone Age and Jack Lawrence from The Greenhornes (who plays with White in another project, The Raconteurs.). Good stuff. White may be a ADD-addled dilettante, but he’s an undeniably talented one. The Dead Weather – “Die By The Drop.”
Here’s the follow-up to Cee-Lo Green’s viral hit “Fuck You”, from his new album — more retro stylings, but this time around much more classy: Cee-Lo Green – “Old Fashioned.” (Copy and paste this link)
I haven’t posted much dubstep here, which I should remedy. Those of you unfamiliar with this branch of electronic music should click the previous link and read the Wiki article for more info. Or, just click the following, which is a brilliant example: J.O.B. feat Anjulie (with MadV & 12th Planet)- “Warrior.”
Last week’s post featuring Joan Jett had me thinking about how much I loved her stuff. This track doesn’t get as much love as “Bad Reputation” or “I Love Rock and Roll”, but at the time of its release, I was reading Free Fall in Crimson by John D. MacDonald, and the song and the book melded in my head to produce a really strong associative memory. Plus, it’s a really excellent cover tune. Joan Jett & The Blackhearts – “Crimson and Clover.”
I heard this song the other day on my iPod, and I realized that it had been a long time since I’d heard it. I was a fan of The Church way before they hit big in the US with this track, which made it all that much sweeter to me — the joy of other people discovering something that you already love. The Church – “Under the Milky Way.”
Lastly, a bit of instrumental rock, mixing progressive rock, jazz, electronic — my friend Scott gave me a copy of this on cassette in the mid-90s, and I stumbled across it the other day. The pulsing bassline still grabs me: Ozric Tentacles – “Sploosh!”
There you go kids. Enjoy!
For Your Eyes Only is a monument to the adage that the best writers never let a good idea go to waste. In 1958, CBS Television offered Ian Fleming a contract for a television show based on the James Bond character. Fleming agreed and prepared a set of outlines for the first episodes of the proposed series — a combination of adaptations of his earlier novels, along with new material. Unfortunately, CBS eventually dropped the idea, and the series never happened. The new material Fleming had created, though, wouldn’t go to waste.