#90 Substitute -- The Who (1966)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts9-4jbFWGg

This is the first song by The Who that I ever heard. Back in the mid-60s, WFEC (1400 on the AM dial) was the big Top 40 station in Harrisburg PA, where I grew up, so that’s what all of us kids listened to most of the time. At some point in the fall of 1965, I discovered that another local AM station (WKBO 1230) had a one-hour show every Sunday night that featured the music that was current in England at the time. I listened to that religiously every week and picked up on a lot of great tracks that were big across the Atlantic but never made it over here, including “Substitute.”

Somewhat unbelievably, The Who only had one Top 10 hit in the U.S. (This one wasn’t it.)

#91 The Walk -- Mayer Hawthorne (2011)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMrNn2azgQY

This is definitely one of the best retro, neo-soul songs from the current century. The album version can’t quite get played on the radio in its unedited form, which is why the link above goes to a David Letterman performance.

Postie #3

(from a 12/24 article on shootouts in the National Hockey League)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/nhl-shootout-isnt-going-anywhere-but-it-could-use-some-improvements/2013/12/24/6dbe3158-6c1c-11e3-b405-7e360f7e9fd2_story.html

“[The Caps’] overall record of 19-14-4 is buffeted by the eight shootout wins; two overtime wins and four post-regulation losses: one in overtime, three in shootouts.”

Merriam-Webster definition of “buffet”:
1 :  to strike sharply especially with the hand :  cuff
2 :  to strike repeatedly :  batter <the waves buffeted the shore>
3 :  to drive, force, move, or attack by or as if by repeated blows

This is a nice column by the always-perceptive John Feinstein, but somehow I don’t think this is the word he wanted here. Maybe "bolstered?"

Teddy Thompson / Danny Burns at Jammin’ Java, 12/17/2013

Great show by Teddy Thompson – one of the best I’ve seen this year (including Thompson père at the Birchmere in September). It was the first time I had seen him as a headliner; previous encounters had been opening for Emmylou Harris at Strathmore and doing a set with his band at the WXPN music festival in the summer of 2008. 

Although his albums feature quite a bit of production, including the occasional string section, the songs came across just as well if not better with just Teddy and his acoustic guitar as they do on CD. He also had a great rapport with the audience, including talking us into helping out with the chorus to “What’s This.” 

He did 14 songs (if my notes are correct) during the main  set, starting with “Delilah” and ending with “Don’t Know What I Was Thinking.” Came back for 2 encore sets, the second of which consisted of “Brink of Love” (a new one for me, but obviously not for others in the audience) and the classic “Separate Ways” (video of a performance from 2011), which really should have made my Top 100 list. Whole show ran about 90 minutes. 

He announced during the show that he had some copies of an EP that he had done several years ago for sale – had just found some extra copies, apparently. I was lucky enough to get the last one (for a mere 5 bucks, no less). 

I also enjoyed the opening set by Irish singer / guitarist Danny Burns, accompanied by a fiddle player. Highlights included a slowed-down version of the Pogue’s Christmas classic “Fairytale of New York” (although it made me miss the late Kirsty MacColl who sang on the original). 

Strangely, this was my first trip ever to Jammin’ Java in Vienna VA. Everything was great except for the getting there, which took an hour and ten minutes. (For you locals, Route 123 was jammed (pun intended) all the way from Tyson’s into downtown Vienna.) It took less than 30 minutes to get home, well after the rush hour was over. 

Jammin’ Java has reserved tables/seats, which is a big plus since it eliminates the need to get there really early and line up for a good spot. Food-wise, I can recommend the SPICY PORK ‘N TOMATILLO chili; I didn’t find it all that spicy, but it was good and there was plenty of it.

#92 Where The Boys Are -- Connie Francis (1961)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUBT69YWqBA

What’s a Top 100 list without Connie Francis???

 

#93 Fools Fall In Love -- The Drifters (1957)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSpk5hSDoTQ

“Fools Fall in Love” is one of the greatest songs ever written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, although certainly not one of their better-known. This is the original “classic” version of the Drifters that featured Clyde McPhatter, not the later (but equally great) incarnation with Ben E. King that produced such classics as “Under the Boardwalk” and “Up on the Roof.” The original Drifters were also responsible for the greatest version of “White Christmas” ever (sorry Bing), which was featured in the first Home Alone movie.

 

#94 Twisting By The Pool -- Dire Straits (1983)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMX_B8Iumsg

 

I apologize in advance to the Mark Knopfler fans who really don’t like this song – it was a hit in England but not in the U.S. – but it’s probably the greatest summer party track they ever did.

 

 

#95 Melting Pot -- Booker T. & The MG's (1971)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8wvt-HuZ4c (short version)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10NLGNzEly4 (long version)

This is for those of you who may have thought that “Green Onions” was the only song they did.  ;-) This one didn’t get nearly as much attention or radio airplay; I believe the first time I heard it was when I purchased The Very Best of Booker T. & the MG’s compilation. I’ve always thought it would be a great lead-in track for a musically eclectic radio show (or blog, perhaps). 

 

The version on the Best-Of CD is 3:50 – presumably the “single” version. The version on the original Melting Pot album is considerably longer, and I hadn’t heard the whole thing until a week ago. To me, the shorter version really says it all.

 

#96 There Was A Time -- James Brown (1968)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri9U8AnKKQI

I really didn’t get heavily into pop/rock/soul music until late in the summer of 1965, right before going into junior high school (7^th-9^th grades, for you younger folks). Back in the day, most of the radio stations that played “top 40” music had a weekly countdown of the top 25 or 40 songs. They printed copies of the lists every week (no Internet in those days), which you could pick up in your favorite record store. The first list I got in late August ’65, from WFEC radio in Harrisburg PA, featured Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag by James Brown as the #1 song. 

James did many great songs over the years besides that one, but for some reason There Was A Time (which was not even a big hit) particularly appealed to me. I still prefer the original studio version, although many give the edge to the live rendition that is included in the Star Time boxed set.

Jim Hall

I'm certainly not the world's biggest jazz fan or expert, but I was saddened last week to hear that one of my favorites, jazz guitarist Jim Hall, had died. I particularly enjoyed his work with Paul Desmond and on the CTI record label. His 1975 Concierto album, featuring his version of Rodrigo's "Concierto de Aranjuez," is wonderful, a must-have for any jazz aficionado.

Another Rambler

I wasn’t planning to post any more today, but I had to make a note of the 3 songs that WXPN afternoon host Dan Reed played this afternoon at the beginning of his Highs in the 70s segment:

• Ramblin' Man -- The Allman Brothers
• I'm A Ramblin' Man -- Waylon Jennings
• Ramble On -- Led Zeppelin 

Maybe he found the blog???

 

Notable Quotes #2

A former teammate of Michael Morse, referring to his reported one-year deal with the Giants:

"He'll either miss most of the season or hit 28 homers. But he's worth the risk."

http://m.mlb.com/news/2013/12/12/64622438/giants-agree-to-one-year-deal-with-outfielder-michael-morse

Notable Quotes #1

Republican pollster Glen Bolger, on the December 2013 budget deal: 

“We are either a party that is serious about governing when control of Washington is split, or we are an unserious party that doesn’t care about realistic incremental gains ... We have to stop being the dysfunctional equivalent of the Washington Redskins.”

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/house-republicans-appear-to-be-rallying-behind-85billion-budget-deal/2013/12/11/e26ce50a-629c-11e3-a373-0f9f2d1c2b61_story.html?hpid=z1

 

Best Music of 2013

(Updated 1/7/2014 to note how the songs/albums did in the radio station countdowns.)

I voted in 3 radio station “best of the year” polls recently, two for best songs and one for best albums. My selections were as follows: 

Songs 

1. From A Window Seat -- Dawes (#16 WXPN)
2. Can't Hold Us -- Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
3. Never Wanted Your Love -- She & Him
4. Feel It All -- K T Tunstall
5. Same Love -- Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
6. You Never Need Nobody -- The Lone Bellow (#6)
7. Good Things Happen To Bad People -- Richard Thompson (#32)
8. Heavy Feet -- Local Natives (#71)
9. Out Of My League -- Fitz and the Tantrums (#34)
10. Stranger To My Happiness -- Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings (#130)

Honorable mention: True Love – Pink

Albums 

1. Electric – Richard Thompson
2. Invisible Empire/Crescent Moon – K T Tunstall
3. Volume 3 – She & Him
4. Old Yellow Moon -- Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell (#24 mvyradio)
5. Minute By Minute – James Hunter 

Honorable mention: Stories Don’t End -- Dawes (#6)

#97 I Want You -- Marvin Gaye (1976)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RRCZ0QjM2k  

This was not Marvin’s biggest hit or most significant song, but it may have been his best groove (which probably means that Robin Thicke will borrow it for his next album). 

Memory can be a funny thing. I could have sworn that the song was performed on the legendary Motown 25 TV special, but I can’t find any trace of such a performance online.

Postie #2

(from a 12/11/2013 article on the Caps' 6-5 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/alex-ovechkin-scores-four-goals-as-capitals-rally-to-beat-tampa-bay-lightning-in-shootout/2013/12/10/2408e668-6210-11e3-94ad-004fefa61ee6_story.html

One of the paragraphs from my print version of the paper started out as follows:

"Ovechkin’s third four-goal game of his career and his 13th career hat trick."

There certainly does seem to be something missing from that sentence. To someone's credit, the online version was updated to add "It was" to the beginning.

#98 I'm In A Different World -- Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin (1985)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF68OyTlP4E

Like #99 and #100, this is a classic from back in the salad days of WHFS. This is a Holland/Dozier/Holland tune that was one of the less successful singles for the Four Tops back in 1968. Note that this Dave Stewart is NOT the David A. Stewart who was half of the Eurythmics.

 

Speaking of Motown covers … there was one small flaw in my methodology for coming up with the top 100 list. In order to be eligible, songs had to be in my iTunes library. Normally this is a low bar to cross, but there are a couple of worthy contenders for which I have never been able to find the “right” version in either iTunes or Amazon. "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell is the most prominent example. The killer version of this on the radio featured "Tainted Love," with the end running right into their version of "Where Did Our Love Go" (another Motown cover), with no filler or aimless noodling in between. You can find the correct version, at right around 4 minutes, on YouTube. 

#99 Only the Lonely -- The Motels (1982)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaPTELylZ1s

The more senior among you may remember that "Only the Lonely" was the first big hit for Roy Orbison, way back in 1960. This is a completely different (although equally great) song, although the last repetition of the title by Martha Davis near the very end has always brought back memories of Roy. 

For a great short set of related tunes, throw in "When You’re Only Lonely" by J. D. Souther. (And of course "Thunder Road.")

#100 Somewhere In America There's A Street Named After My Dad -- Was (Not Was) (1988)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PGV1Xofhcg

 

If you were alive and listening to any radio in the 1980s, you almost certainly heard “Walk the Dinosaur” by the “band” Was (Not Was). It’s a great song, as was their other (largely underrated) hit, “Spy in the House of Love”. Both of these are from their great album What Up, Dog?, all of whose songs are as quirky as the singles would suggest. In fact, a few of them make Dinosaur sound almost normal. Somewhere in America, while still a bit offbase, is surprisingly poignant as well, with a small touch of politics (“no showbiz beginners making global decisions”) thrown in.

I'm not sure there are very many great songs relating to fatherhood. "Let Me Be the Man My Daddy Was" by the Chi-Lites certainly qualifies.

Favorite 100 Songs

This is an admittedly imperfect, one-moment-in-time stab at my favorite songs of all time. It was inspired by Dave Marsh’s classic “The Heart Of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Every Made.” For much more information on Marsh’s list, see Lex Jansen’s great web site (another SAS guy).

Although I fully expect to live to a ripe old age, coming up with 1000 songs in order and with commentary felt overly ambitious to me. (Marsh is a professional music writer and critic, after all.) On the other hand, with all the great songs that have come out over the years, cutting down to 100 also presented a challenge. To make it easier, I instituted a one-song-per-performer rule. Once I finish posting the top 100, I’ll probably put up some mini-lists of favorite tunes by some of my favorite artists. I may also do some “honorable mentions” of other songs that didn’t quite make the main list.

 

I started out in November 2013 by putting together a spreadsheet with all of the 2800+ songs I’ve loaded into iTunes, and then did an initial cut, which produced 170 songs. On December 9, I cut the 170 down to 100 (certainly the hardest part), divided the survivors into 10 groups, and then came up with the final numerical order. Don’t take the latter too seriously; I don’t think I could actually argue that I like my #53 song better than the one that is at #67.

Postie #1

(from a 12/9 article on the Georgetown-Colgate men’s basketball game)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/georgetown-hoyas-do-just-enough-to-escape-colgate-despite-shooting-woes/2013/12/07/1ff9b612-5ee4-11e3-be07-006c776266ed_story.html

“But Colgate hung around, reeling off nine answered points to pull within five, 47-38.”

OK, I assume that they really meant “unanswered” points. But I am still baffled by the math.

Posties Intro

I’m a hopeless newspaper addict – have to have that sports section to read over breakfast, even when on vacation. Consequently, I’ve subscribed to the Washington Post for well over 30 years, pretty much since I moved to the area. While it still has much to offer, especially its coverage of national politics, the years and the Internet have not been kind to newspapers. Unfortunately there are times when the Post reminds me of an old, dear friend with a terminal illness, who is slowly declining without you being able to do anything about it. These entries memorialize some bloopers, blunders, and pet peeves. I don’t go out of my way to find these – they’re just there (mainly due to the apparent lack of attention to copy editing).

Serendipity #1

Whenever You’re On My Mind – Marshall Crenshaw (1983)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXo4vS-81a8

Heard 12/9/2013 around noon, Cosi restaurant in Rockville

Serendipity Intro

These entries exist due to the sorry state of music radio in Washington DC. For whatever reason, since the classic days of WHFS, Washington totally lacks any progressive or AAA (Adult Album Alternative) stations, such as WXPN in Philadelphia, WTMD in Towson MD, WRNR in Annapolis (the spiritual successor to WHFS), and mvyradio (Martha’s Vineyard). At the moment, there’s not even a real Oldies station.

Consequently, it’s not uncommon in the Washington area to wander into a restaurant or other retail establishment and hear in the background a great song that no local radio station would be caught dead playing. I thought it might be interesting to capture these serendipitous moments as blog entries.

Initial Post

As a fan of a wide variety of popular (and not-so-popular) music from the 1950s (and sometimes even earlier) up through the present, one of my bucket list projects for years has been to put together a list of my 100 favorite songs of all time. At some point I decided that, once I got around to figuring that out, I could put it out on a blog, for the infinitesimally small proportion of the Internet world that might be interested.

So, here we are. While the Top 100 will be a major focus, I also plan to post on a variety of other musical (and occasionally non-musical) topics, in which you may or may not be interested. If a particular posting doesn’t ring your bell, you’re only a few clicks away from a dancing cat video on YouTube. 

 

I’ve never been particularly good about coming up with catchy names for things, so at the end of a business meeting this past October (“Blaise Technical Coordinating Committee” for you Westatians reading this), I started a “name the blog” contest. Thanks to Patrick Mayer for submitting the winning entry (along with many, many others). I expect that “rambling” will accurately describe the tone of these entries, along with being a good pun and a nice reference to a great old Nat King Cole song. Patrick’s prize is still TBD.

About me (answering Bart Simpson’s eternal question): 

• sexagenarian
• proud resident of Rockville MD since 1978
• Former Westat vice president (now retired)
• SAS guy
• Flying Dutchman, class of '75
• Split-personality baseball fan (Side 1 and Side 2) (my quandary set to music)

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