3 December 2018 - DNCE - Cake By The Ocean

Look closely at that lead vocalist.

Yep.  That's a Jonas brother. 

And a newly married one at that.  Congratulations to Joe Jonas and Priyanka Chopra on their wedding this last weekend.  I wish them both much cake by the ocean, and like this song, I ain't talkin' about baked goods.

29 November 2018 - Tubeway Army - Are 'Friends' Electric?

We're back!

And we return with the first synth-based song to hit #1 in the UK.   Tubeway Army was a three-piece led by Gary Numan which lasted for one album.  After that, he "went solo", and by that I mean he dropped the band's name but kept them as his backup group.

The song itself is a very paranoid, very lonely song, with no real hook or standard song structure, and yet it's infinitely catchy.  Enjoy!

16 August 2018 - Aretha Franklin - Think

This feminist anthem was originally released in 1968 and went to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the R&B chart.  It had a resurgence twelve years later, when it was featured in the film The Blues Brothers.  It's a feisty song....

By a woman who has passed within the last few hours.  Her voice will be missed - but she left behind a large number of songs, hits and otherwise.

15 August 2018 - Sonic Youth - Bull In The Heather

Something of a feminist anthem, I guess, by NYC noise band and friends of Mike Watt, Sonic Youth, this was an indie radio hit in the 90's.

But that's not why we're posting this.

Frequently asked question: who the hell is the young woman with the pigtails?



It's the original Riot Grrrl and founder of Bikini Kill, and friend of Mike Watt, Kathleen Hanna.

14 August 2018 - Dire Straits - The Bug

As a Dire Straits song, this isn't as well known as I would like. Which is a shame, because it's a fun song, with a bit of a country-rock feel. And a double shame, because it was their last single.



Of course, it became a hit when it was covered by Mary Chapin Carpenter, who somehow made a song about failure even MORE upbeat, in 1992.  Perhaps we will feature that on Totally Covered someday.  For now, let's listen to Mark Knopfler, who was the lead singer and face of Dire Straits, performing the song in the style of Mary Chapin Carpenter.

13 August 2018 - Sophie B. Hawkins - Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover

It's hard to believe that this song once had a video banned from MTV.  And YouTube.

This is not that video.  THAT video has been successfully squashed by Sony Music.  This is just a performance piece that was mid-90's sexy. And that's objectively OK.  Because the song itself is slow and sexy and cool, much like Ms. B. Hawkins herself.

And it was this song and video, her FIRST, that became her biggest hit, and a song that still endures more than a quarter century later.  Doesn't THAT make you feel old?!

30 July 2018 - Hoodoo Gurus - Leilani | Game Theory - Leilani

True story - I named my cat after these songs.

My name is Leilani.