Fall has finally arrived, and I’m in a great mood. So, without further ado:
Kicking things off with one of my favorite bass riffs ever: The English Beat – “Twist and Crawl”. Nothing like a little bit of second-wave ska to get people bouncing at their desks on a Friday.
Take what may be the best Bond theme ever, composed by John Barry, add David Arnold’s production and conducting skills and then give it to a couple of electronic musicians to screw around with it, and you end up with this brilliant bit of work: The Propellerheads – “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.” Give it a listen all the way through. Trust me — when the bass synth and drums finally kick in, well over a minute into the track, you’ll agree that this might be one of the best driving-really-fast-to-very-loud-music songs EVER.
My favorite track from Prince’s 1988 soundtrack to the film Batman. A lot of comic geeks were annoyed by the funked-up music, preferring instead Danny Elfman’s dark and brooding score. They missed out on some really excellent music…especially if all they heard was the awful single “Batdance” (which was needlessly schizophrenic, as it contained samples of every song on the album). This song, however, stood out (for me at least): Prince – “Electric Chair.” “If a man is considered guilty for what goes on in his mind, then give me the electric chair for all my future crimes.”
I saw the video for this song on VH1 Classic last night, and I literally had not heard it in almost 20 years. I had complete forgotten about it, and how much I liked it at the time (especially the brass-synth fanfare that forms the main hook). So, I had to track down a copy, and here ya go: Emerson, Lake and Powell – “Touch and Go.”
A nice bit of UK alternative from the heady days of the 1990s. I love the lyrics of this one. Lush – “Ladykillers.”
I’ve heard that Kate Bush is working on a new album. I’m looking forward to that — in the meantime, though, I’ll share with you the last song of hers that really grabbed me, from her early-nineties album The Sensual World: Kate Bush – “Love and Anger.”
Lastly, here’s another track from DJ Shadow’s groundbreaking debut album Endtroducing. The slow sax riff in this song makes it a perfect soundtrack to a crisp Fall day: DJ Shadow – “What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1 – Blue Sky Revisit)”
Another week done.
The Lush song is frankly an anthem for my life. I’ve literally lived the relationships she describes…
D.
There’s always at least one or two gems in Friday Music.
I thank you and my iTunes thanks you…
Wah. Can’t get the Propellerheads one to open. =( Have tried three times today.
I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned this, but thanks for the MP3 links. I’ve come across some fun oldies, and a lot of new stuff.
Danke!
Oh and you are straight up right about the Propellerheads…
D.
You’ve mentioned the OHMSS one before. I grabbed it and it gets wheeled out often. Ta very much.