Lunch Break: The Bottle Rockets, “Indianapolis”

This is a great little cut from a fun little band.

How can anyone resist this couplet?

“Can’t go west, can’t go east,
I’m stuck in Indianapolis with a fuel pump that’s deceased”

My Favorite Underground, Controversial Alice Video

Dig that vintage Orange bass rig:

Good Early Stuff

Never heard this before, never released they say. Why not I wonder. Another good song to punk up.

 

Afternoon Snack: My Morning Jacket “I’m Amazed”

When I was going through yesterday’s mix disc that had Avi Buffalo on it, I also ran into a fave for a while in My Morning Jacket, Jim James’ band out of Kentucky.

I like them a lot–at least I love a pair of their albums, Z, and Evil Urges–which were in regular rotation and recommendations from Mojo, as was Avi Buffalo.

I will keep it short as the video pretty much speaks for itself, but how can you not love the pop, harmonies, reverb, and cranked guitar?

 

Political Song with no illusions

I can’t get away from all this political bullshit – yeah, “both” “sides”  – so might as well join in. I represent the Reverb Party. I might have posted this before but I love it because it rocks LAMF AND it’s pop. And the words that I can understand are great. I don’t want to understand all the words at first, it’s better when you discover them gradually. It took me 25 years to figure out that Jagger was saying “burns like a red coal carpet” in the 2nd verse of Gimme Shelter. I never looked at a lyric sheet, which are often wrong anyway, especially with the Stones and others who are hard to decipher.

 

Lunch Break: “Jar (Jar) of Whiskey,” Metallica (sigh, Star Wars)

jarjarDon’t get me wrong, I love the first six Star Wars films. In fact I saw the new one, The Force Awakens last Friday, and I will review the film at my Mastersball site Wednesday.

But, the local rock station was doing Star Wars for lunch last Friday which meant space songs mostly, but this one cracked me up because it is such a stretch, so right, and a pretty tight little sort of pop tune for Metallica (whom we rarely cover, if ever here).

(BTW, reading the comments under the video is a very strange seemingly non-sequitur randomoness that is kind of funny in a sad and weird way.)

Paths Cross

I think I posted this before, but hadn’t heard it in a while and it is some smoking spew. This is where I really line up with Steve, at least I would expect him to love this as I do. Even the words aren’t bad considering but the guitars are right in my garage.

 

The Zombies, “She’s Not There”

More classic rock, inspired by reading Bob Lefsetz’s post about last saturday’s gig in LA. It looks like they’ve got one more show in the states, in San Francisco. I wish I could be there.

 

Rollicking LAMF

“I bet two dollars on her nose, one dollar on her tail, if she don’t win by a nose she’s bound to win by her tail.” All the DFS gambling talk makes me wanna go to the track with Champion Jack Dupree. Jack played the percentages cannily by moving to Europe in 1960. He died in 1992 at the age of 78 or 82 maybe.

 

Song of the Week – Four and Twenty Miles, The Flat Earth Society

IGNORED OBSCURED RESTORED

The SotW features lots of cool bands that have been undeservedly destined for obscurity. The reasons are varied, but none is more peculiar than that of the mid 60s, Lynn, MA psych band, the Flat Earth Society.

The Flat Earth Society was discovered by a Boston advertising agency that was running a campaign for the F.B. Washburn Candy Company. The idea was to find a hip, young band to record an album and a jingle for their Waleeco candy bar. If you sent in 6 Waleeco bar wrappers and a buck and a half, you got a copy of the album. It wasn’t sold in stores. Needless to say, that wasn’t a strategy to get the record heard by the masses. (Most of the copies ended up in a landfill.)

But the album survived and is recognized by serious collectors as a psychedelic rock classic.

My choice for the SotW is “Four and Twenty Miles.” A rewrite of this song was the basis for the Waleeco bar jingle.

Inspired by acts like the Jefferson Airplane, it has all the hallmarks of 60s psych/garage rock – fuzz guitar, a solid beat, etc. While it’s not particularly unique sounding, you have to admit that these high school kids could play and sing.

By the way, a Waleeco bar was F.B. Washburn’s take on a coconut macaroon – sort of like a Mounds. If you grew up in New England you (or your parents) may remember it.

Enjoy… until next week.