Monday, April 24

Tragedy Strikes the BZA

My computer crashed this weekend. Fortunately, I was able to recover all of my info, which is now sitting on a hard drive in my care, but I'm not going to be able to publish a mix this week. Sorry for the inconvenience, and we should be back up and running by next week. For the time being, tell me things I don't know in the comment section.

Monday, April 17

1975

Because 1975 was a pretty weak year, I was able to include the 13 minute Fela Kuti track “Expensive Shit” without losing anything I’m really going to miss. It’s a great song, and while Fela didn’t have the huge impact he deserved in America, he’s certainly the biggest African musician to ever hit over here.

But to say that this is a weak year is to take nothing away from the few great tracks there were, as everything here is pretty fantastic. Although a lot of people don’t like “Young Americans,” I get a big kick out of it, and “Born to Run,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and “Low Rider” are really fun cuts. “Shame, Shame, Shame” and “Tear the Roof Off the Sucker” are both great party tracks, and Little Johnny Jewel” was the first (and best) Television song, a lesser known track because it was not included on a record.

Two woman had big records in 1975, Patti Smith with her cover/reworking of Van Morrison’s “Gloria,” and Loretta Lynn’s feminist anthem “The Pill,” and both were easy selections for this compilation, as they are both extremely important and fucking awesome. On the other side of the singer/songwriter sexual coin, Paul Simon and Bob Dylan had two of their biggest hits. “Tangled Up In Blue,” in particular, comes pretty close to being my favorite Bob Dylan song. He’ll be included in a few more mixes, obviously.

Finally, a note about J.D. Crowe. I know most people who take a look at this blog every week don’t know or care too much about Bluegrass, but as someone who has only recently (within the past two years) been delving into the genre, I have to include what I think is one of the most important records in the modern bluegrass era, and one of the best songs from that album. Great musicianship and beautiful recordings, J.D. Crowe and the New South is highly recommended for anyone interested in the genre, and if you like the song I included, the rest of the album is equally enjoyable.

Enjoy and comment below.

Download the mix here.

1. Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen - 4:31
2. Young Americans - David Bowie - 5:09
3. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen - 5:53
4. Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd - 5:17
5. St. Elmo's Fire - Brian Eno - 3:03
6. Low Rider - War - 3:13
7. Tear the Roof off the Sucker (Give Up the Funk) - Parliament - 3:41
8. Shame, Shame, Shame - Shirley & Company - 4:05
9. Little Johnny Jewel (Parts 1 & 2) - Television - 7:09
10. Gloria - Patti Smith - 5:56
11. The Pill - Loretta Lynn - 2:38
12. Old Home Place - J.D. Crowe & The New South - 2:49
13. 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover - Paul Simon - 3:32
14. Tangled Up in Blue - Bob Dylan - 5:41
15. King Tubby Meets The Rockers Uptown - Augustus Pablo - 2:31
16. Expensive Shit - Fela Kuti and The Africa 70 - 13:13

Monday, April 10

1976

The Ramones and the Sex Pistols are widely considered the creators of Punk, and if the genre was around before them under a different name, then the least that can be said for the two groups from opposite sides of the Atlantic is that they kick started a movement. What’s obvious even from first listen is how different they are, it’s hard to imagine any genre that would include them both. But The Ramones were doggedly persistent in their pop structure musically, and the Sex Pistols molded themselves into the image of a pop group, albeit a kind of pop group that had never been seen before. I’m not particularly a huge fan of either group – the Sex Pistols have survived because of image and three great songs, and if you’ve heard one Ramones song you’ve heard them all – but both bands have an undeniable appeal in style and presentation that has influenced hundreds, if not thousands, of groups since. Sitting next to an average Bowie single and some strong if not exciting rock ‘n’ roll on this mix, it’s easy to see why punk seemed so relevant in the late 70s.

Elsewhere, 1976 was a great year for reggae, and I included three great songs: Max Romeo’s “War In a Babylon,” Culture’s “Two Sevens Clash,” and one of the greatest reggae singles ever, Junior Murvin’s “Police and Thieves.”

This also marks the first appearance of Stevie Wonder, from his last great record, Songs in the Key of Life. There will obviously be much more from him as we go back into the soul era.

And of course, there’s some cowbell.

Enjoy, and comment below.
Download the mix.

1. Blitzkrieg Bop - The Ramones
2. Police And Thieves - Junior Murvin
3. Roadrunner - The Modern Lovers
4. X Offender - Blondie
5. (I'm) Stranded - The Saints
6. Don't Fear The Reaper - Blue Oyster Cult
7. Fly Like An Eagle - Steve Miller Band
8. Wild Is The Wind - David Bowie
9. Young Hearts Run Free - Candi Staton
10. I Wish - Stevie Wonder
11. The Bottle - Gill Scott Heron
12. Legalize It - Peter Tosh
13. Love Hangover - Diana Ross
14. Two Sevens Clash - Culture
15. New Rose - The Damned
16. Anarchy In The UK - Sex Pistols
17. American Girl - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
18. War In A Babylon (w/Lee Scratch Perry) - Max Romeo W
19. Love and Affection - Joan Armatrading
20. Tom Traubert's Blues - Tom Waits

Tuesday, April 4

1977

Sorry to come in late this week, I was on a plane yesterday, so Tuesday will have to for 1977.

This is a very similar - if slightly better - mix to 1978: lots of punk, and some mid-era disco. The biggest difference here is the reggae, two very different tracks from great artists. The Congos self-titled LP is one of the great reggae albums ever, and Jamming may be one of Bob Marley's most famous songs. I also decided to pick the live version of "Got to Give it Up." It was Marvin Gaye's last number one, and it's a sexy, sexy track.

Two notable tracks are Giorgio Moroder's "First Hand Experience in Second Hand Love" and the Giorgio Moroder-produced track "I Feel Love." The latter was one of the first songs backed completely by electronics to hit the charts (maybe the first, but I could be mistaken). Both are cheesy as hell, but so fun and infectious as to not matter in the least.

I open with "Lust for Life," which our generation probably remembers from Trainspotting and the younger generation will probably remember from Norwegian Cruise line commercials, a very sad fate for such a great song. All this reappropriation for commercials in recent years hasn't really been questioned, and call me old-fashioned, but I really think artists should think twice before forever associating their music - and their legacy - with a product, essentially turning their songs into jingles. While many of the songs used recently don't have the same emotional connection that, say, "Revolution" had when it was sold to Nike ("Just What I Needed" for Circuit City is pop going pop), it's still sad to think that young kids will see that commercial and, never having heard the song before, will assume it is a Circuit City jingle, and will never discover it in its original context. I know those ads are made for people old enough to recognize the song, but commecials are played for everyone. Maybe we need a different kind of v-chip, to block out good songs from being spoiled by crappy commercials.

Anyway, enjoy.

Download the mix here.

1. Lust For Life - Iggy Pop
2. Psycho Killer - Talking Heads
3. Blank Generation - Richard Hell and the Voidoids
4. Sheena Is A Punk Rocker - The Ramones
5. Orgasm Addict - Buzzcocks
6. In The City - The Jam
7. Oh Bondage Up Yours! - X-Ray Spex
8. Complete Control - The Clash
9. See No Evil - Television
10. Heroes - David Bowie
11. Allison - Elvis Costello
12. Mr. Blue Sky - Electric Light Orchestra
13. I Feel Love - Donna Summer
14. Fist Hand Experience in Second Hand Love - Giorgio Moroder
15. Flash Light - Parliament
16. Best of My Love - Emotions
17. Trans-Europe Express - Kraftwerk
18. Got To Give It Up - Marvin Gaye
19. Congoman - The Congos
20. Jamming - Bob Marley