Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCLV--Train: Meet Virginia

After my first marriage ended, I suffered from insomnia for a number of years and as a result spent many a late night channel surfing in the dark in the living room of my first post-divorce apartment.  As such, I came across many tunes (such as this week's) on either MTV or VH-1 that have been, or will be, featured here on Friday Night Jukebox.  While I certainly wouldn't endorse it as a good way to find new music, if you're one of those people always looking for a silver lining...there you go.

Train formed in my old stomping grounds, the city of San Francisco, in 1993.  Over the course of their first few years they recruited the members that would make up their original incarnation, and self-released their first album.  In 1998 Columbia Records took a chance on them and it paid off handsomely, as the band had its first of many hits to come.  Over the last twenty-eight years, Train has sold over ten million albums and thirty million tracks.  For their career, they have released ten studio albums (with five hitting the top ten) and thirty-four singles (with three reaching the top ten).  The band is still recording and touring, with lead singer Pat Monahan being the only original member remaining (though some past members continue to play periodically with whatever current line-ups the band is presenting).

Fun Fact:  Train's mega-hit, "Hey Soul Sister" is the greatest selling single in the history of Columbia Records, which considering that Columbia has been around longer than I have (sixty-two years and counting) and has had numerous substantial artists (Aretha, Dylan, and Springsteen come immediately to mind) is quite a feat.  

"Meet Virginia" was released in 1999 as the second single from their major label debut LP, the cleverly titled Train.  The single would be the first hit of their career, reaching #20 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100, while the album peaked at a rather pedestrian #76.

Train is one of those bands that ordinarily I would shrug my shoulders at, being just so much vanilla pudding, but for some odd ass reason I find myself with five of their songs on my Spotify playlist and can honestly say for all their generic flavor I find them quite tasty.  "Meet Virginia" was the first of those singles, and it laid the groundwork for most of those to come.  Monahan has a voice that's tailor made for singing rocking pop songs, and the band is more than capable of providing the chops and the hooks to keep you singing along.  With this week's song, the band tells the tale of a free spirited woman with both a heart of gold and a head full of questions that might never be answered.  It's a nice study, and the band fills her and her story with just the right amounts of passion and compassion.  It's a real gift to have the ability to write a song that sounds like new twenty-two years down the road, and Train  has done that for me with a song that sounds just as good today as it did when I first heard it late one sleepless night in a dark living room....

Lyric Sheet:  "She doesn't own a dress/Her hair is always a mess/If you catch her stealin' she won't confess/She's beautiful....

Enjoy:

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

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCXXIII--Paolo Nutini: New Shoes

In which we touch upon emaycee's love for blue-eyed soul and good old fashioned top forty pop....

Paolo Nutini hails from Paisley, Scotland and released his debut album at the ripe old age of 19 in 2006.  Over the last fifteen years Nutini has carved out quite a career for himself, especially in his native U.K.  He has had two #1 LPs on the U.K. Album Chart, as well as a #3.  He's also had four top twenty singles on the U.K. Singles Chart.  He's been nominated for three Brit Awards.  For his career, Nutini has released three studio albums, one live album, and twelve singles.  While the bulk of his success has been on the British Isles, all three of Nutini's albums have charted here in America.  While Nutini has not spoken of it, he has been on hiatus since 2017, but one supposes with his track record of success it's only a matter of time before he's recording and touring again.

"New Shoes" was released on his debut album in 2006, These Streets.  The single reached #21 in the U.K., but did not chart here in the States.  The album was #3 in his home county, and reached #48 on the Billboard 200.

The first time I heard "New Shoes" (either MTV or VH-1, can't remember which), it reminded me of the top forty singles I heard in the early to middle 70's that were the genesis of my love for rock and roll.  This one is just plain fun--a ditty about a guy who makes his day better by putting on some new shoes (oh, if only it was that easy).  The stanzas are a cool warm up to the chorus, which is to catchy what sugar is to sweet.  But Nutini's vocals are what turn the song into a pure pop dream--his voice is smooth and silky with the same swagger that propelled Van Morrison and Rod Stewart to long careers.  It's not going to end up on any all-time top ten lists, but it's a shot of musical joy, a jolt of blue-eyed soul that I can guarantee you I'll be bopping along to it until it's time for me to start preparing next week's Jukebox post....

Lyric Sheet:  "Oh, short on money but long on time/Slowly strolling in the sweet sunshine..."

Enjoy:

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCXI--Death Cab for Cutie: I Will Follow You into the Dark

Another week, another kick in the ass to my New Year's resolution of actually publishing Jukebox posts on their scheduled Friday....

This week's tune comes courtesy of another late night of not being able to sleep and channel surfing which somehow made it to VH-1 before finding anything else of interest to watch.  Doesn't help the coolness quotient much, does it?

Every now and again while doing my half-assed weekly research for FNJ I'll come across a band that hasn't been as commercially successful as I would have guessed, but Death Cab for Cutie is the first that I recall as having been more successful than I would have thought.  Formed in Bellingham, Washington is 1997, Death Cab for Cutie was originally a solo project for band leader Ben Gibbard, but after having been signed to a recording contract, he decided to make a band of it.  Over the last twenty-one years they have released nine studio albums, six EPs, and thirty singles.  They've had a #1 album, three other albums in the top ten, and one more in the top twenty.  Surprisingly (at least to me), they've done this without much help from hit singles--of the thirty they've released, only two have hit the Billboard Hot 100, and those two topped out at #60 and #70.  The band has also been nominated for eight Grammy Awards, toured the world over (they've done especially well in the UK--so many cool kids in the UK!), and have another five years to wait for their shot at being enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Damn fine career if you ask me....

Fun Fact:  For the three people who probably don't know already, Death Cab for Cutie was named for a song by the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band called, surprisingly enough, "Death Cab for Cutie."  The song was originally released in 1967, making the band's name choice a bit odder than it already is (we're talking thirty years down the road, for God's sake).  Gibbard has admitted if he'd known what a pain in the ass the name would become, he'd have chosen a different band name.  For those who don't have my curiosity, the original song is actually quite listenable...and don't let the fact that it's a take off of Elvis (Presley, not Costello) stop you from giving it a listen.  It's actually quite clever and catchy.

"I Will Follow You into the Dark" was the third single released from the band's 2005 album Plans.  It was not one of the two singles they had that actually cracked the Billboard Hot 100, though in an odd turn of events, it was eventually certified as a gold single, and is the band's best selling single in their history.  Sometimes greatness isn't as evident in the present as it should be (see also, Van Gogh, Vincent).

I've noted a time or two here on FNJ that simplicity is not an impediment to greatness in a pop song, and "I Will Follow You into the Dark" does nothing to dispel that notion--well, at least as simple as a  song that's about following one's love into the Great Beyond at the end of one's days can be.  The song is just Gibbard and acoustic guitar--Gibbard's vocals are a delight, almost reminding me of a softly played clarinet, and the guitar matches the whimsical nature of the song word for word.  Gibbard has a way with turning a phrase ("...everything to see from Bangkok to Calgary" "...in Catholic school as vicious as Roman rule"), and takes what could easily have been a maudlin song and imbues it with a touch of humor and a lot of heart.  In the end, it's a quirky masterpiece that'll bring a smile--and those are always most welcome.

Liner Notes:  "If Heaven and Hell decide/That they both are satisfied/Illuminate the 'No's' on their vacancy signs/ If there's no one beside you/When your soul embarks/Then I'll follow you into the dark..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CXCVIII--Patti Rothberg: Inside

This week's tune, once again, brought to you by the letter "R"...

Patti Rothberg has been playing music since she was three, joined her first band (a Rod Stewart cover band--not a bad start) at age 15, and released her first album at the ripe old age of 24.  While Rothberg immediately struck me as a poor man's Liz Phair (nothing wrong with that and it sure beats the hell out of being a poor man's Britney Spears), she's still managed to work a 22 year (and still going) career out of her debut effort.  Rothberg had a modicum of success with a cover version of Carl Douglas' "Kung Fu Fighting" for the Beverly Hills Ninja soundtrack, and her debut album sold close to a half million copies worldwide.  Rothberg has released six albums in her career (the last in 2016) and fifteen singles.  She also is a painter--which is probably a not too bad side career for a musician.

"Inside" was released in 1996 on her first album, Between the 1 and the 9.  It did not hit the Billboard Hot 100, though it did hit #25 (with an alternative bullet!) on the Alternative chart.  In somewhat of an oddity here on FNJ, neither her album nor her single had a listing in Wikipedia.  Usually get at least one of the two....

Fun Fact:  Mr. Potato Head makes a cameo appearance in the official video for "Inside...."

I discovered this week's tune late one night in 1996 on VH-1 on one of the many evenings back in those days when sleep escaped me.  It was love at first listen--as regular readers (both of you) know, I have a fondness for a) female vocalists, b) catchy pop tunes, and c) the sound of acoustic guitars, all of which "Inside" has.  Somewhat akin to--though not as powerful as--Rilo Kiley's "A Better Son/Daughter," "Inside" deals with trying to put up a brave front despite the fact that one knows one isn't quite right in the head.  But whereas Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley sings with a forced bravado, Rothberg seems to almost border on brusqueness, which may or may not be the difference between being raised in L.A. (Lewis) and New York (Rothberg).  In any event, Rothberg managed to create two minutes and twenty-three seconds of a good enough single that some old doofus still remembers it with fondness twenty some odd years down the road....

Lyric Sheet: "I've been thinking about my friends/Saying they'll be with me to the bitter end/I don't know how I get that far/When I don't even know who the hell they are..."

Enjoy: 

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CLIV--Marcy Playground: Sex and Candy

A few years back I was killing time before going to bed watching one of those ubiquitous VH-1 One Hit Wonder retrospectives, and they were interviewing the guys from Marcy Playground about this week's tune--and unlike so many other bands, they were thrilled to death with everything their one hit had brought them and were truly grateful for the opportunity to play music for the rest of their lives that having a hit single had given them.  It was just a breath of fresh air--a bit of insight that those of us who are amateur (key word) musicians (and would give an eyetooth for the thrill of having a hit single) could really appreciate.

Marcy Playground formed in 1994 in New York City via Minneapolis (lead singer John Wozniak's home), bounced around clubs and half-assed studios for a few years, and then released their debut album in 1997--with the single that would allow them to keep playing music for a living for the next 20 years (and counting).  There isn't a lot of success to report--they've only released  a grand total of 4 studio albums (none of which have sold into the millions), have no record breaking world tours, no Grammy Awards, and most certainly won't be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Still, they released a single that has brought joy to millions and that's a pretty damn good legacy in my book.

For those wondering...the band name comes from a park at the school John Wozniak attended when he was a wee lad in Minneapolis.

Released in 1997 on their oh-so-imaginatively titled debut LP, Marcy Playground, "Sex and Candy" would rise to #8 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100.  It was an even bigger hit on the Modern Rock Tracks (see also, Alternative) chart, reaching #1 and staying there for a then record 15 weeks (and breaking the record of another FNJ fave, "Wonderwall" by Oasis).  They've released thirteen other singles over the course of their career...and not a single one of them has hit the charts.  C'est la vie!

I was originally going to note that "Sex and Candy" was one of those songs that may not be for everyone, but as I was doing my weekly half-assed research I noticed that Rolling Stone hated it and since Rolling Stone hasn't been musically relevant since, oh, the 70's, I figured it was probably a much better single that I was giving it credit for.  Backed with a lightly picked guitar and some modest yet potent drumming, John Wozniak drops some blue eyed soul vocals on us as he drawls his way through the way one can be having a perfectly uneventful day and a woman can suddenly come into the picture and make that day so much more memorable.  As I've listened to it this week one of the things that I noticed is how well Wozniak makes use of cadence--the way he slows certain lyrics, or stops for a pause, or drags out a line, and I realized it as one of those magical little moments that make a good song a great song.  And a hell of a one hit wonder for Marcy Playground to call its own.

Lyric Sheet:  "And then there she was/Like double cherry pie/Yeah there she was/Like disco superfly..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. XLI--The Breeders: Cannonball

Some years ago I read a piece (no idea where, though I think it might have been written by Dave Marsh) wherein the author claimed that rock and roll lyrics were more or less vapid, and we listened to such tunes for the music.  While I wouldn't say I buy into this theory, it does have some merit.  For instance, I have loved "Cannonball" by The Breeders for a number of years now, and until I looked up the lyrics today I had absolutely no fucking clue what the hell they were singing.

Of course, I still don't know what they're singing about, but at least now I know they're using actual words....

I came a little bit late to "Cannonball"--like about a dozen years after its release (better late than never...).  I was watching some VH1 top 100 songs of something or other sometime in the 2000s when it came up on the list and as I listened it turned into one of those "How the hell did I miss this one?" moments.  Turns out The Breeders were a hiatus project for Kim Deal of the Pixies (a band that, oddly enough, I also came to sometime after the fact).  Formed in 1990, The Breeders have stayed together (more or less) in several different incarnations until the present, though outside of Last Splash (the album that spawned "Cannonball") the band has not enjoyed a wealth of popular success.  "Cannonball reached #44 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100.

"Cannonball" starts with a chant that's sounds like it came from the mouths of the Wicked Witch of the West's Winkie Guards (and who the hell knew they were called Winkie Guards?  Certainly not me, at least until about five minutes ago).  It quickly morphs into a bass line that is a wicked rat-a-tat-tat, to which a guitar solo is added which can best be described as what walking through a House of Mirrors would sound like musically.  Next in are some power chords, by which time if you're not shaking to the music you're probably in a coma.  And it's only then that Kim Deal's vocals come bounding in, and they're a cross between the pop sensibilities of The Bangles and the throatiness of Joan Jett.  The bass and guitars continue echoing around the vocals, with a few false stops thrown in, until the end--all in all, the best description I can give of the song is that it sounds like a roller coaster feels.  And just like a roller coaster, it's about four minutes of unbounded exhilaration.

Embarrassing Factoid:  While I'd love to use the line "The bong in this reggae song" as this week's lyric link, I have to admit that until just a couple of months ago, I thought the band was singing "Shimmy shake, shimmy shake" when they were actually singing, "In the shade, in the shade."  And my coolness quotient sinks like a rock....

Enjoy:

Peace,
emaycee