another week, another mix. here are the contents of my latest compilation.
1. blondie, "hanging on the telephone" (from parallel lines lp, 1978)
-a telephone ringing seemed like the perfect place to start; in this age, it's environmental static.
2. kitchens of distinction, "drive that fast" (from mp3, orig. 1991)
-band's name came up when the topic of interpol was broached. hearing this is a brilliant outgrowth of that discussion. like bunnymen for u2 fans. i'd buy this album if i could find it.
3. patrick hernandez, "born to be alive"(from disco box box, orig. 1979)
-i remember hearing this on the radio and thinking it was new order. until i realized radio doesn't play new order.
4. golden boy ft. miss kittin, "rippin kittin" (from mp3, orig. 2002)
-not a reinterpretation of the misfits' "mommy, can i go out and kill tonight?" or a nod to mother, may i sleep with danger? or even a rape fantasy about la kittin, but immensely enjoyable all the same.
5. madonna, "die another day" (from mp3, orig. 2002)
-oh, i want to say more about this later.
6 beck, "lost cause" (from sea change lp, 2002)
-supposedly the "winona" song. somehow she came up in my class about victorian literature. beck, however, did not.
7. prince, "when you were mine" (from dirty mind lp, 1980)
-because i couldn't find a decent-sounding version of mitch ryder's cover.
8. al green, "i tried to tell myself" (from have a good time lp, 1976)
-his most insidious hook. i find myself singing it more than any of his other songs, so i put it on a disc.
9. coral, "dreaming of you" (from mp3, orig. 2002)
-probably the most garage-sounding song of any i've heard during this whole 'revival.'
10. rolling stones, "i just want to make love you" (from the london singles collection comp, orig. 1964.)
-because i do.
11. buddy holly, "i'm gonna love you too" (from the buddy holly collection comp, orig. 1957)
-much better than the blondie cover. though the above's "not fade away" is better than his.
12. creedence clearwater revival, "travelin band" (from chronicle, vol. 1 comp, orig. 1970)
-long one of the gaps in my listening. quite intentionally since i find most of their hits boring. but columbia house interceded, said i needed to fulfill my obligation and the pickins were slim. so i ordered chronicle. this is my favorite, currently, as it plays into my love of little richard, and then throws in a little chuck berry and chubby checker for the hell of it. i like my rock loud and fast. just like my women. (i also like my rock short, but that's not necessarily always the case with my women.)
13. ramones, "do you want to dance?" (from rocket to russia lp, 1977)
-i had the beach boys cover on one of my recent mixes. i had heard the original -- by bobby freeman -- on the radio the other day and was impressed by how three very different versions were made from such paltry original material.
14. mitch ryder & the detroit wheels, "jenny take a ride!" (from rev-up: the best of... lp, orig.
-the first bootleg? combines chuck willis's "c.c. rider" and little richard's "jenny, jenny," mixes them up, and gives it a clever title. neat!
15. aerosmith, "mama kin" (from aerosmith lp, 1973)
-covered, but not improved by guns 'n' roses. aerosmith at their most doll-ish, like "human being." which guns 'n' roses did improve upon.
16. sinead o'connor, "mandinka" (from the lion & the cobra lp, 1987)
-i love sinead: her look (and her looks), her attitude, her sound. but there are few of her songs that i really like. this is one of them.
17. playgroup, "number one" (from playgroup lp, 2002)
-i'd really love new daft punk, but this will do for now.
18. sam cooke, "tennesse waltz" (from keep movin' on comp, orig. 1964)
-never has this sad song seemed so celebratory. credit it to cooke's vocals, among his best and most exuberant.
19. gene pitney, "every breath i take" (from back to mono (1958-1969) box, orig. 1961)
-i really don't know how this song got here. i suppose i hear a collection of songs and then another song starts to float through my head, suggesting itself as a fine compliment to the rest. this would be one.
20. new edition, "can you stand the rain?" (from greatest hits, vol. 1 comp, orig. 1989)
-nostalgia. pure nostalgia.
21. elvis presley, "in the ghetto" (from elvis 30 #1 hits comp, orig. 1969)
-as mentioned earlier, the track with the best remastering. and a damn fine song besides.
22. coldplay, "amsterdam" (from a rush of blood to the head lp, 2002)
-oh, i know. i know.
23. frank sinatra, "dancing on the ceiling" (from in the wee small hours lp, 1954)
-the last track selected for the disc. it struck me as a perfect coda -- to-the-point longing, a suitable response to coldplay's vague melancholy.