21 March 2014 - Gerry Rafferty - Baker Street

The late 1970s and early 1980s were a great time for saxophone solos.  The greatest of all came in Gerry Rafferty's masterpiece. At its core, this song is a simple jazz piece with folk undertones, but its iconic saxophone solos make it a classic of modern music.   Even when it was new.  The song peaked at #2 in the US and was a hit worldwide.

The sax riff itself was played by a musician named Raphael Ravenscroft.  To this day, it's out of tune to his ear - it's flatter than the rest of the song.  Which isn't a surprise, since the intention wasn't for that to be a sax solo until Ravenscroft suggested it. And his tone was beautiful, even if his solo was flat. 

Everyone else thinks it's the greatest sax solo ever performed, by the way.

I really can't think of any more to say about this song that hasn't already been said by the music.



(It's not like Scott has the market cornered on corny closing lines)

(except, if you think I'm kidding about the out-of-tune reference.....check at about the 2:00 mark for the details)

20 March 2014 - Madness - Our House

IT'S MARCH MADNESS BABY ! ! ! This is my favorite time of the year. Two weeks of yelling at the TV and screaming at the crumpled up piece of paper that was once a bracket with so much promise. I wouldn't miss it for the world (which is also why I have three TVs in my basement bar . . . the laptop will have the fourth game when such occurrences deem it necessary). So while I'll be watching the first few games today at my favorite saloon, most of the time I will be enjoying the Madness in Our House.



Please Note: I'd hate myself for that last line if it wasn't for the fact that it was the most clever sentence I've written here in months.

19 March 2014 - Iggy Azalea feat. Charli XCX - Fancy

(Goddamn it, Tony, enough Charli XCX!!!!)

OK, but hear me out. Two young white non-American women have written and performed a song that has become a high-charting song on an American hip-hop chart! Co-written by Charlotte Aitchison and Amethyst Kelly - Charli and Iggy, respectively (why Amethyst Kelly needed to change her name to a different one for a stage name is beyond me.  Amethyst Kelly would be a great stage name!) - the song is an ode to glam, the video a tribute to "Clueless". 



But even this great, catchy, fun song wouldn't have been enough for me to ONCE AGAIN put Charli XCX on this blog - this is her 7th appearance - if not for Seth Meyers.  He had both of them on Late Night this week.  We'd love to have it here for you, but NBC isn't letting me post, so go here and see this really solid performance.

And, if you are too lazy to do that, watch their performance from SXSW.  It's clearly Iggy's song - she's the one in the murda bizness - but she's also clearly gracious for Charli's appearance, who knows what she's doing.




(Update: 10 June 2014) - This song has been #1 for the last two weeks. And you knew so long ago. Congratulations for being in on the ground floor.

14 March 2014 - Soul Coughing - Circles

I think anyone with a decent Internet connection and a passing knowledge of mathematics knows that today - 3.14 - is Pi Day.

But, have you ever stopped to think what pi - the number, not the letter in the Greek alphabet - really is?  Well, this math major can tell you! Put simply, it's a constant number, equal to the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter.  A circle is a funny shape - every point on it is equidistant from the center, so a constant like this is possible.

And since we're talking about circles, I think it is appropriate to use the greatest song ever written about this cool shape!

12 March 2014 - Kristin Hersh - A Loon

I was a long time Throwing Muses fan (still am) but I still love Kristin Hersh's solo work, which tends more to the acoustic side of things.  It's hard to pick just one song as a favorite.  But this one - a song that really is, in my view, two songs - floats to the top.

The first half of the song is an angry, string-filled piece that seems to be a tribute to Kristin's bipolar disorder.  The second half, when the video switches to color, seems to be more reflective on the same subject matter.  At any rate, it is a masterfully crafted song.  Check it out!

11 March 2014 - 311 - Down

This one seemed kind of obvious. So much so, that I wonder why I didn't think about it before. Anyway, let's celebrate 3/11 with one of my favorite 311 songs. Truth time: I actually liked their first and third albums and saw them in a small club before Down blew up. I can't say I've really liked anything they've done since, but that may have more to do with a change in my musical tastes. Seriously 311, it's not you, it's me.

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10 March 2014 - Charli XCX feat. Brooke Candy - Cloud Aura

I know what a lot of you are thinking.

"Enough with the goddamn Charli XCX."

The reason I am posting this anyway?  I mean, besides my undying respect for anything that Charlotte Aitchison touches?  It's the bravery in partnering with the intensely charismatic and immensely polarizing Brooke Candy, and not getting overshadowed.   Brooke Candy, to her credit, is far less in-your-face than usual.

Also, it's a lesbian love song.  Well, a lesbian break-up song, anyway.


So what happens when Brooke Candy isn't available?  It still works - Charli has some hip hop chops, if not the metal bra and absolutely insane hair.