Songs You May Have Missed #144

04 Jul 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

jackson

Joe Jackson: “Kinda Kute” (1979)

 

“I’m the guy with the big feet but plenty of nerve” sings Joe as he tells the cutest girl in the room to go ahead and dance without him while he watches. Jackson’s first two albums, Look Sharp! and I’m the Man, both released in 1979, were full of seemingly effortless pop ditties like this.

He’s explored a lot of other territory since, from Louis Jordan-style big band jazz to his latest release, a tribute to Duke Ellington. But for fans of pure pop, the early stuff is essential.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2016/04/27/songs-you-may-have-missed-586/

Songs You May Have Missed #143

04 Jul 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

eros

Chris Spheeris: “Carino” (1997)

Greek-American producer and multi-instrumentalist Chris Spheeris can be categorized either as New Flamenco (if you think he’s good) or New Age (if you think he’s lame). While not a huge fan of his stuff in general, I find this song to be one of the most beautiful of its kind that I’ve come across. I think of it as New Flamenco…

Songs You May Have Missed #142

04 Jul 2012 1 Comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

mosely

Ocean Colour Scene: “The Day We Caught the Train” (1996)

Britpop band OCS wear their devotion to 70’s music on their sleeves. Like counterparts Pulp (Songs You May Have Missed #101) and Stone Roses (#121) they were part of a wave that never really washed ashore in America. But they carry on, having released an album as recently as 2010. They make highly listenable–if unfashionable–stuff.

“The Day We Caught the Train” is from their most successful album, the 1996 UK triple platinum Moseley Shoals. From the sound of it, I’m thinking they’re fans of Big Star.

Here’s a nice live TV performance of the same song with a little more guitar snarl. They sound more like Jellyfish (another unheralded British band) here:

 

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/02/08/songs-you-may-have-missed-324/

Songs You May Have Missed #141

02 Jul 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

gilbert

Kevin Gilbert: “Suit Fugue (Dance of the A&R Men)” (2000)

Talented songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Gilbert fronted such household name bands as Giraffe and Toy Matinee. He was a member of the songwriting collective known as the Tuesday Night Music Club–the very same referred to in the title of Sheryl Crow’s breakout debut album. Gilbert co-wrote much of that record, including the 1995 Grammy Record of the Year “All I Wanna Do”.

Gilbert died at age 29 and his second solo LP, The Shaming of the True, released posthumously, yielded this mind-blowing arrangement–a perhaps semi-autobiographical skewering of record execs and their treatment of up-and-coming acts.

The dizzying vocal collage can be hard to follow. If you wish to discern all the layers of lyric, here’s a mix that isolates the individual parts

p.s. Gilbert was briefly under consideration by Genesis when they were in search of a front man to replace Phil Collins.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2022/07/03/video-of-the-week-the-story-of-toy-matinee/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2022/07/16/songs-you-may-have-missed-734/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2024/11/24/songs-you-may-have-missed-757/

Songs You May Have Missed #140

02 Jul 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

kiss

Kiss: “Hard Luck Woman” (1978)

This is one you may not have missed, actually, considering it was a top twenty hit. But listen again if you will and make sure you don’t miss the sound of a band “out of their element” that I described in song #138 (https://edcyphers.wordpress.com/2012/06/26/songs-you-may-have-missed-138/).

Ragged vocals, un-subtle drumming, a sort of love song that lands just this side of too much sentimentality…power ballad hallmarks all. And a bit of the “power” comes from the fact that it’s sung by a band who’s avowed intent was to rock and roll all nite and party every day. Nothing in their mission statement about “letting feelings show” or “wiping tears from…eyes”.

I deliberately sourced the rarer Double Platinum version of the song because I prefer its slower-building arrangement at the beginning (drums and bass come in only after the first verse).

Another power ballad prototype would be the Rolling Stones’ “Angie”. When it came out I’d heard nothing of the kind from the Stones. Had they put one heart-wrenching ballad on each album, “Angie” would never have carried such weight.

Songs You May Have Missed #139

27 Jun 2012 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

redwells

The Redwalls: “Thank You” (2005)

Another song which possesses a degree of that power ballad magic, the Redwalls’ soulful “Thank You”. You can hear the muscles they aren’t flexing here.

I really like this band’s look, and was surprised to see they were from Chicago. Their Stones-inflected licks and snarled, Lennonesque vocals had me assuming they were British.

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