Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CDXC--Pete Droge: Going Whichever Way the Wind Blows

 It's Friday, I'm...on time?

My introduction to this week's tune came from a commercial for Toyota's Sequoia, which probably drops my coolness quotient another notch or two.  Ah, well--old enough now that it doesn't much matter....

I wrote about Pete Droge in Vol. CDXVIII, and as there's nothing new in his career, I'll leave his bio at that write-up.  I would like to note, though, that I am somewhat surprised to be featuring a second song by an artist whose career could be called middling at best, though a middling career as a musician beats most other professions by quite a bit.  I'd also like to pass along that because of that bio I took a chance and gave a listen to his debut album (that'd been sitting in my CD collection gathering dust since whenever I grabbed the promo copy that was sent my way in my Camelot Music days), Necktie Second, and thoroughly enjoyed it, listening to it for a good couple of months.  Half-assed research pays off!

Fun Fact:  One thing I did learn this time in my half-assed research was that Droge's career got a huge boost from his friendship with Mike McCready, the lead guitarist for a little band you might have heard of:  Pearl Jam.  Friends in high places and all that....

"Going Whichever Way the Wind Blows" appeared on Droge's fifth solo album, the rather swimmingly entitled Under the Waves.  Near as I can tell from the rather sparse references I found, the song was not released as a single and the album, which was released on Droge's own label, did not chart.  And if you read the album review under the AllMusic reference above, you'd probably not listen to Droge at all....

While Droge is often compared to either Tom Petty or Neil Young (kind of hear Petty, you got me on Young), I thought this week's tune had more of a Simon and Garfunkel vibe to it.  It's definitely a whimsical tune, the major theme being to not let life get in the way and just enjoy the ride (plenty of imagery related to driving a car, too).  Truth be told, I'm pretty much at that point in my life so the song may have a bit more significance (if any song can have significance to the real world) to me than others.  Droge's vocals capture the carefree simplicity of the lyrics, both of which are buffered by some fine acoustic guitar (can't ever get enough of acoustic guitars).  "Going Whichever Way the Wind Blows" is a short and sweet folk tune, performed by a troubadour, signifying that contentment is yours for the taking....

Lyric Sheet:  "Going whichever way the wind blows/Staring through the windshield/Seeing the other side/Let it go, it will get easier/Let it go, just enjoy the ride..."

Enjoy:

Republicans = Nazis

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CDXXIII--Pearl Jam: Yellow Ledbetter

 This week we have another in the "Ah, But You Never Know Files" as the tune was recorded during the sessions for, but was eventually left off of, the band's ginormous debut album, Ten.  It would be resurrected as the B-side of the single "Jeremy" from said album, and through the years has become so popular that both fans and critics have ranked it in the band's all-time top ten songs.  Every band should be so fortunate....

I wrote about Pearl Jam's song "Black" in 2018, and in the intervening years they have released another album and begun another tour.  As there isn't much else to add to my original half-assed bio paragraph, I would like to note how amazing it is to me that four of the original five members of the band are still together more than thirty years down the road, and the fifth, drummer Matt Cameron, has been with the band since 1998.  Not many bands (though U2 and REM come to mind, and of course the Rolling Stones) have that kind of commitment not only to making music but to each other for that many years.  Kudos!

As noted above, "Yellow Ledbetter" was not released as a single and did not appear on an album until Pearl Jam released Lost Dogs (a collection of B-sides and outtakes) in 2003.  It also appeared on Rearview (Greatest Hits 1991-2003).

Fun Fact:  I am notoriously bad at hearing lyrics and was surprised to find as I did my half-assed research this week that the first line of the song does not contain the words "yellow ledbetter" and instead is just the words "yellow letter."  Thank God for lyric sheets....

"Yellow Ledbetter" started with music by bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder created lyrics on the fly as they were recording it.  There is much debate over the song's meaning, though the most prominent theory is that it's about a friend of Vedder's whose brother was killed in a war the U.S. fought overseas.  Vedder's vocals are somewhat mumbled, and he's been known to change the lyrics in concert--add it all together and it shows just how amazing the song truly is.  I mean, no one is certain what it means, the lyrics can change, and the vocals are almost impossible to decipher, and still it's among the most popular songs Pearl Jam has ever done.  I would be remiss if I did not mention McCready's gorgeous and otherworldly guitar work on the song, which further adds to the mystique of the song.  In the end, it's one of those rare pieces of music that carry you away literally on its spirit--and, oh, what a beautiful journey it is.

Lyric Sheet:  "Oh, yeah can you see them/Out on the porch/Yeah, but they don't wave/I see them.."

Enjoy:

Republicans = Nazis

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CLXXXVIII--Pearl Jam: Black

Repeat after me...if there is any one subject upon which pop music can pontificate with the poets, it's that of a broken heart.  And this week we are featuring, beyond a doubt, bar none, and bet your bottom dollar the best song ever written on being the lover left out in the cold.

After an historic start (their debut album sold 13 million copies, and its follow-up, Vs., set a then record for most copies sold in its initial week), Pearl Jam has quietly continued to make music for the better part of 28 years, and continued the tradition of bands such as the Rolling Stones and The Who, on to REM and U2,  who have had long careers and continuously gave their fans the best that music has to offer.  There's a lot more to Pearl Jam's history than can be covered in a brief recap such as this, but four of the five original members are still with the band, with the fifth having been with the Pearl Jam for twenty years.  Through that time they've released ten albums, won a couple of Grammy Awards, lost an epic battle with Ticketmaster over the pricing of their tickets, toured worldwide and been featured in just about every music festival at some point, and were eventually elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility in 2017.  Pearl Jam has been something of an oddity, as the band as a whole has never been comfortable with its fame, and in fact, since its debut album, doesn't do much television, gives few interviews, and has completely refused, even when music videos were still an interesting vehicle, to do any more music videos.  And while the band may not have had quite the success they had in its early years, it has nonetheless thrived.  Kudos also to Pearl Jam for being strong supporters of a woman's right to choose (all five members are male, too), supporting numerous liberal causes, and helping the greatest President of my lifetime, Barack Obama, in both of his Presidential campaigns.

Released in 1991 on Ten, Pearl Jam's hella debut album, "Black" was never promoted as a single because the band refused to let the label release it as such, feeling the song was too personal in nature and that overplaying it would destroy the song's heart and soul.  The song has, though, gone on to become a fan favorite, and in 2011 was voted the ninth best ballad of all time by the readers of Rolling Stone (for whatever that award is worth...).

Written by Eddie Vedder with music by guitarist Stone Gossard, "Black," Vedder has said, is a song about first relationships.  Be that as it may, Vedder has written a song about a failed relationship that is succinct without being maudlin, using imagery such as clouds, broken glass, and children playing.  Vedder's vocals convey anger and hurt and sorrow with each breath, while the band keeps the music low key, but rises when Vedder's anger or hurt or sorrow rises, and follows his emotions concordantly throughout.  One of the things I noticed when listening to it this week in prep for this piece (other than how much I still really fucking love the song) is that there are very few rock and roll singers who can do as much with grunts such as ooh, ah, and uh as Eddie Vedder--it almost amazed me what can be done with a single syllable to capture a person's emotions.  The song closes with some doot doot doos (the lyrics say they're too doo doos, but it doesn't sound like that to me) somewhat reminiscent of the Stones "Sympathy for the Devil" which only adds to the spinning and swirling in one's head and one's gut at the time one realizes that a love is lost forever.  In the end, "Black" is a song not only about the bleakness today of a relationship's end, but also how it can also darken one's future in that life may well go on, but one's perception of it will never be the same.

Lyric Sheet:  "I know someday you'll have a beautiful life/I know you'll be a star in somebody else's sky/But why, why, why  can't it be, can't it be mine?"

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CXXV--Foster the People: Pumped Up Kicks

This week's tune--which is the most recently released of the 125 songs covered thus far here on FNJ--follows in the tradition of other troubled youth songs ("I Don't Like Mondays" by the Boomtown Rats,"Jeremy" by Pearl Jam, among several others) except for one major difference:  you can dance to it.  Considering the gun violence epidemic that currently is ripping so many of our youth to pieces, if we can get them dancing instead we might eventually make some progress...

Foster the People was formed in 2009 in Los Angeles and shortly thereafter received international acclaim following the release of their first song, "Pumped Up Kicks."  They were quickly signed to a recording deal after a homemade version of the song went viral, and have parlayed that into two albums with a third on its way later this year.  The song also garnered them three Grammy nominations, numerous music festival invitations, and a steady stream of touring.  And in thirty years if I'm still here and haven't run out of tunes for Friday Night Jukebox (not bloody likely) I'll probably be marveling over how the members of Foster the People managed to turn one song into a thirty year career...

Fun Fact:  The video for "Pumped Up Kicks" has received over 284 million views on Youtube.  That's enough views that nearly every American could have seen it once.  I know, I know--fascinating, my God...

Officially released in 2010 on their Torches LP, "Pumped Up Kicks" (for those who are old like me and may not know, "pumped up kicks" are nice/expensive tennis shoes) went on to become quite the sensation, ending up at #3 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100.  The song is really a one of a kind single--driven mostly by its bass guitar and its drums, it is as funky as a pop song can get.  It features vocals that sound like they've been recorded in a tin can (but it works), followed by a catchy as all hell chorus, all dedicated to a young man having homicidal fantasies which may or may not come to fruition.  And despite the rather upbeat music, there is a certain eeriness to the song and its lyrics that take it to another level rather than being just another misguided pop song.  There's even a section where the chorus is whistled and, once again, despite the oddness, it works.  I remember being taken the first time I heard it and it still sounds as good to me today as it did back then.  Every now and again a heretofore unknown band creates a magical song, and Foster the People were lucky enough to do just that with "Pumped Up Kicks."

Rap Sheet:  "I reason with my cigarette/Then say, "Your hair's on fire, you must've lost your wits, yeah?"

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. LIII--The Dismemberment Plan: The Ice of Boston

If this is number 53 that means,,,yup, another year has passed.

The truest sign of its greatness is how easily "The Ice of Boston"  could have devolved into little more than a novelty song, but didn't.  It's basically the monologue of a very drunk and very heartsick young man detailing his lonesome yet defiant actions one New Year's Eve, interspersed with a rousing chorus.  As the saying goes, from small things big things come.

Named for a throwaway line in Groundhog Day, The Dismemberment Plan formed in Washington, D.C. in 1993.  They stayed together until 2003, reformed in 2011, released a comeback album in 2013, and along the way developed a devoted, though commercially small, following.  Their live shows were considered high energy affairs, and they opened for Pearl Jam on a tour of Europe in 2000 (not a bad gig if you can get it) and co-toured with Death Cab for Cutie in 2002 (ditto).

Released on their The Dismemberment Plan Is Terrified album, "The Ice of Boston" is a tour de force of songwriting and performing.  Lead singer Travis Morrison weaves the tale of a young man watching thousands of Bostonians celebrate New Year's Eve while he stays alone in his domicile while hinting at a love gone bad.  Morrison speaks the lyrics with bravado and impudence over the quiet beat of a guitar, a bass, and some drums, before breaking into wailing the chorus, opening with an attention grabbing "Hey!" before telling us of the muddy ice of Boston.  There are literally too many wondrous moments in the lyrics to pick out just one, but suffice it to say that they reference New Year's Eve, champagne, Boston, "Auld Lang Syne," his mother, Gladys Knight and the Pips, and their hit "Midnight Train to Georgia," and somehow it all melds into an opus of pathos and humor that you'll likely never forget.

Too easy this week:  "Here's to another goddamn New Year...."

Enjoy (Part the first):

Bonus Video:  For those of us who have spent an inordinate amount of our time devoting our lives to pop music, the following makes it all crystal clear why.  I wasn't familiar with The Dismemberment Plan's live version before doing my usual half-ass weekly research for Jukebox, but apparently they do this regularly while performing "The Ice of Boston."  Enjoy (Part the second):

Happy New Year,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. XVI--Temple of the Dog: Hunger Strike

This week we'll be taking the "A" Train from Saccharine City back to Coolsville....

If I was being sent to a deserted island and told I could have only ten songs on my iPod (and, no smartasses, I have no idea how I'd keep the iPod charged on a deserted island), I don't know that I would choose "Hunger Strike" by Temple of the Dog, but I'm certain I would spend the rest of my time on the island wondering if I should have.

I could tell you that the band was formed in the wake of the death of Andrew Wood (heroin overdose), lead singer of Mother Love Bone, as a tribute by his friend and roommate Chris Cornell (Soundgarden), and that the band also featured four members who would eventually become the heart and soul of Pearl Jam.  I could also tell you that it's the only album the members ever made together, though they've performed it live since a number of times.  I could tell you that it's on their appropriately titled  album Temple of the Dog  which was released in 1991, and while critically well-received, it didn't have much popular success until both Soundgarden and Pearl Jam found large mainstream audiences.  All of which has about as much relevance as does the Big Bang to my existence--yes, I wouldn't be here without it, but I don't spend much time thinking about it while I'm enjoying my life.

Simple put, "Hunger Strike" is one of those moments of pop utopia where everything came together to produce a stunning song.  From the gentle string strumming of the opening to the overtly political lyrics to the bursts of power guitar, the song is a masterpiece of rock.  But what really makes the song, turns it into a slice of rock and roll heaven, is the dueling vocals between the worldly-wise depth of Eddie Vedder's (his first recorded vocal, no less) singing and the plaintive wail of Chris Cornell.  Whether it was karma or luck or the touch of the music gods we'll never know, but everytime I hear "Hunger Strike" their vocal back and forth never ceases to amaze me.

And, no, "I don't mind stealing bread from the mouths of decadence..." one bit.

Enjoy:

Peace,
emaycee