Daftie does Dallas

While discussing about how corporations are leaving the country, Trump cites the example of ExxonMobil moving to Dallas pic.twitter.com/nryRgfPjkA

— Acyn (@Acyn) December 10, 2023

Republicans = Nazis

Peace,

emaycee

 

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CDXLVI--Gary Myrick and the Figures: She Talks in Stereo

 Once again, my introduction to the weekly featured tune was through the promotional singles the major record labels used to send to music stores back in the day.  This one, though, had to be one of the earliest ones I ever received, as it was released the year I began with Camelot Music (1980).  Time does, my friends, indeed fly....

To call Gary Myrick a one hit wonder would be generous, but he's still managed to have over forty years in the music business.  Starting in 1980 with his band the Figures (which lasted an entire two years), Myrick then went on to a solo career, joined forces with Paul Simonon of the Clash fame to form a band called Havana 3am, returned to his solo career, reunited with the Figures, before once again returning to his solo career.  Myrick has also done guitar work in the studio and touring with John Waite, Todd Rundgren, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Brian Wilson, and Stevie Wonder, among others.  For his career, counting bands and his solo work, he has released ten studio albums.  Considering that the highest charting album Myrick ever had hit #138 on the Billboard 200, one has to admit that Myrick has done quite well for himself.

"She Talks in Stereo" was the first single released from Myrick's quite innovatively entitled debut album, Gary Myrick and the Figures.  The single did not chart in America but did hit #56 in Australia (so many cool kids in Australia!).  The album just missed the Billboard 200, reaching #203.

Like many a tune before it here on Friday Night Jukebox, "She Talks in Stereo" isn't likely to go on any best singles of all-time lists, but it's still a hell of a pop song.  Featuring an 80's new wave vibe with a hint of jangly guitars and plenty of synthesizers, the song is a paean to the early days of a love relationship--and how the voice of a lover can sound like the lilts of angels.  The chorus is about as catchy as a chorus can get and Myricks staccato vocals do just enough to capture the rapture of being in love.  Sweet emotion, indeed--all courtesy of an infectious piece of pop pie.

Lyric Sheet:  "Slippin' slidin' we go drivin' by/And I can hear her say/ My baby says hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey..."

Enjoy:

Republicans = Nazis

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CDXV--Old 97's: Question

 For whatever reason, this week's tune marks the seventh straight that comes from this century (and the next couple will make it nine).  God knows the 21st century's music is not my forte, but it's a reminder that good music is as enduring as the sun rising in the east every morning.  If nothing else, it's proof that you can teach an old fart new tricks.  (Mercifully, this was the first of the bunch that didn't have multiple Wikipedia entries that were as lengthy as a novella....)

The Old 97's formed in 1992 in Dallas, Texas and were initially at the forefront of the alt-country movement before transitioning into a power pop band.  While the band hasn't had quite the commercial success of the past few featured artists, five of their albums have charted with one of them hitting #30.  They've also had several of their songs featured in various TV shows and feature films.  For their career, the Old 97's have released twelve studio albums, two EP's, one live album, and twelve singles (with nary a one hitting the Billboard Hot 100).  They are also noted for being a vibrant live band.

(Not so?) Fun Fact:  The Old 97's are named for a famous rail disaster, the Wreck of the Old 97.  There is also a well-known song (apparently--I'd never heard of it, though I did give Johnny Cash's version of it a listen and found it palatable), which over the course of the nearly hundred years it has existed has been recorded by artists too numerous to mention.

"Question" was not released as a single, and it appeared on their 2001 album Satellite Rides.  The album was one of their five that reached the Billboard 200, peaking at #121.

Two minutes, fifteen seconds.  That's how long "Question" lasts, and in that short time it says volumes.  Featuring nothing more than lead singer Rhett Miller and an acoustic guitar, Miller weaves the tale of a man asking the love of his life to marry him, and the question in the title is probably the most important question many of us will ever ask--and answer.  Miller's vocals are to die for--just the right touch of emotion and not a bit maudlin.  Throw in some folk music at its finest guitar picking and playing, and a chorus that's as sweet as cherry wine and you have one hell of a song...and a nice reminder of how wonderful the idea of sharing a life with someone truly is.

Lyric Sheet:  "Some day somebody's gonna ask you/A question you should say yes to/Once in your life/Maybe tonight I've got a question for you..."

Enjoy:

Republicans = Losers

Peace,

emaycee

Quackers

JFK Jr. is so fucking embarrassed by these QAnon dipshits that he's decided to stay dead for now

— Jeff Tiedrich (@itsJeffTiedrich) November 2, 2021

Republican = Racist

Peace,

emaycee

 

Batshit insanity

UPDATE: I am JFK Jr. https://t.co/1fPFE5B8tH

— steven monacelli (@stevanzetti) November 2, 2021

The Republican Party Is Now a Fascist Cult Just Like Nazi Germany

Peace,

emaycee

 

 

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCXLII--The Polyphonic Spree: Hold Me Now

Getting a wee bit behind here again...

I discovered this week's tune as I have a few others here on Friday Night Jukebox as I flipped channels and came across an episode of Austin City Limits in which The Polyphonic Spree was the weekly featured artist.  While I haven't explored much of their catalog, I like to think that if I live to a hundred and win a million dollars I might find the time and cash to check them out further....

The Polyphonic Spree (gotta admit, it's a great name) were formed in Dallas, Texas, in 2000, though it's beginning is of a sad nature:  the catalysts behind The Polyphonic Spree were originally in a band called Tripping Daisy (they had a minor MTV hit with "I Got a Girl" which I vaguely remembered after a couple of listens) which disbanded and formed their new group in the wake of the death from a drug overdose of Tripping Daisy guitarist Wes Berggren.  Tim DeLaughter became the de facto leader of the band, and over the past nearly twenty years the Polyphonic Spree have released six studio albums, none of which have cracked the top 100 of the Billboard 200 (though two did chart, hitting #113 and #121), and three EPs.  The band is known for a) having numerous members--the current lineup features 23 band members, and past members would push the number close to a hundred, and b) for wearing colorful robes--a la a choir--in their live peformances.  While commercial success may have eluded them, the band has had a hand in a number of songs for soundtrack albums, continues to tour, and released their latest LP in 2014.  As I've noted numerous times before, beats the hell out of  slaving away in a grocery store....

"Hold Me Now" (not to be confused with the Thompson Twins single "Hold Me Now" which was a not particularly good single released in the 80's new wave frenzy) was released in 2004 on their album Together We're Heavy.  While "Hold Me Now" was not released as a single here in the States, it did reach #87 in Scotland, and #72 in the U.K.--there's just so many cool kids in the U.K., isn't there?

While I was lying in bed, unable to sleep, and trying desperately to think of who The Polyphonic Spree reminded me of--and, yes, I do need to get more of a life--I could have saved myself the trouble by doing my half-assed research a bit earlier.  It was the Electric Light Orchestra, with a little Queen, the Beatles, and the Beach Boys mixed in.  "Hold Me Now" features lush orchestration, with--surprise!--choir-like vocals, and a hell of a hook in the chorus.  There's definitely an anthemic vibe to the song--numerous instruments (my best guess is somewhere around fourteen different instruments) are featured as well as a theme of reminding us that no one is alone in this world (or that getting old isn't a death sentence...so to speak).  There's also a grandiose instrumental break which reminded me (blasphemy alert!) of the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album.  All in all, it's a song just a bit off the beaten path, and in a just world, would have been a top ten single that we all run around humming to ourselves every time we hear it on the radio...which pretty much describes my week after several listens....

Lyric Sheet:  "He's walking along with his soul in his lungs/Ya stare at him long you can find a new song/Everyone thinks they've got a new phrase/But you're still miles away..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CC--The Secret Machines: Sad and Lonely

You'd think for #200 that I'd have come up with some super special single--nah, just another rock solid tune from a small band who did their part, like so many other bands, to bring a little musical joy into my life.

The Secret Machines started out in Dallas in the late 1990's, moved on to Chicago where they released their first EP, and eventually landed in New York where buzz about their music brought them interest from Warner Brothers and shortly thereafter they released their first LP.  The trio's music has been described as krautrock (new to me--experimental music from German bands of the late 60's...so many cool kids in Germany!), shoegazing (also new to me--experimental music from Brit bands of the late 1980's...so many cool kids in Great Britain!), psychedelic rock (see also, Zeppelin, Led and Floyd, Pink), and they themselves describe their music as space rock (experimental music by the Secret Machines...so many cool kids here in the States!).  David Bowie (who really should have an FNJ tune of his own by now...someday!) was a big fan of the band.  Since 2002 they've released three LP's and four EP's and while the last was in 2010, the rumor mill has another one just around the corner (or not).  Original members Brandon Curtis and Josh Garza still remain, though sadly, other founding member Benjamin Curtis (brother of Brandon) died in 2013 at the all too young age of 35 from lymphoma.

"Sad and Lonely" appeared on the Secret Machines debut album Now Here Is Nowhere  (great title) in 2004,  and although it was released as the album's second single, never made any dent on the Billboard charts..  I've often felt, though, that if it had been released in the 1970's. it would have been a staple of FM radio for the last forty years.

The first thing I'd note about "Sad and Lonely" is...how it doesn't really seem like the type of song that would make a list of my favorites.  The Secret Machines have been compared to Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, both of which rank right up there with The Doors for three of my least favorite bands of all time (as millions of 70's hard rock fans think to themselves, "emaycee sucks!").  The song opens with over a minute of instrumental, and originally it was the drumming from the intro that got me hooked on the song.  There's some nice industrial guitar throughout, and though the vocals are awfully reminiscent of Zeppelin's Robert Plant, there's an urgency to them that draws you into the song.  "Sad and Lonely" closes with roughly a minute of what could best be described as ethereal ambience--space music for the masses.  All in all, it's one of those out of left field tunes that continues to surprise me with each new listen, for both its simplicity and its complexity--and how much I just love the song despite its not being much like my usual musical tastes.

Lyric Sheet:  "And it feels like those around want you to die/Well sometimes you feel just like crying/You're still in love with me and you don't know why..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee