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TAG: 90s music
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songspeak
Barenaked Ladies Are Me…and my friend
Last Friday, I met a friend at Mohegan Sun to see Barenaked Ladies, for which I had complimentary tickets. The show, in a nutshell, was great.I left work promptly at 5pm and made it to Mohegan Sun in an hour and 40 minutes. Not too shabby. My friend arrived shortly thereafter and we went to the ticket window to get the tickets about a half hour before the start of the show. No offense to the first opener, Angel Taylor, but our first priority was getting dinner rather than catching the opening act. Luckily, we were able to get an immediate seat at Big Bubba’s BBQ and had a nice meal (I opted for the chicken and ribs combo, and she had meatloaf. Because two out of three ain’t bad.).
After dinner, we headed into the arena in the middle of Ben Kweller’s set. He was pretty darn good. I especially enjoyed Sawdust Man. After Ben Kweller, though, it was the moment of truth. Barenaked Ladies were going to take the stage and this was my first time seeing them without Steven Page.
And you know what? I didn’t miss him at all. They opened their set with Who Needs Sleep? (an always odd choice, in my opinion), and then broke into The Old Apartment. It was as it always is with them. They rocked the house. It wasn’t long before Ed Robertson was freestyle-rapping about playing at Mohegan Sun, and then him and the band started talking about how he’d gotten schooled at poker that day. It appears he played a $200 buy-in tournament and learned a couple lessons along the way. Lesson 1: Trip 9’s aren’t worth a damn (“I was outkicked!”), and lesson 2: Queens full of 10’s? Fold ‘em! (“He slowplayed me!”). All was right with the world. I’m not familiar with much of the new stuff, but Angel Taylor did come out to sing with Ed on one of the songs I DO know, Every Subway Car, and it sounded really good. They even played a song called Eraser from their kid’s CD Snack Time, which was great fun. The other band members (mainly Kevin Hearn) took over a lot of Steven Page’s vocals, and his absence was barely felt. In fact, the only time I really thought about him was when they played You Run Away, off their new All in Good Time album, which is clearly about him.
And as always, as I was hoping, they did their famous medley finale. It started with Kevin Hearn playing the piano and singing Magic by Pilot. This led into the band doing a song and dance routine that included Empire State of Mind by Jay Z, I Gotta Feeling by Black Eyed Peas (who were coincidentally playing the XL Center in Hartford the very same night), Baby by Justin Bieber, and California Gurls by Katy Perry, topped off by “Mohegan Sun, won’t you come” at the very end to the tune of Black Hole Sun by Soundgarden (which they’ve done at their previous Mohegan Sun shows). The crowd, of course, clamored for an encore, and BNL gladly obliged. They played 3 songs for their encore, and for the first, Ed Robertson played drums while Tyler Stewart stumbled across the stage belting out Alcohol (that song was made for him to perform), and they finished the night with Brian Wilson (the song, not the Beach Boys singer).
We left thoroughly satisfied with the show, and continued to do a little gambling on the penny slots. And even though it only took me an hour and twenty minutes to get home, it was still 2:15am. But who needs sleep, right?
Tags: 10s music, 70s music, 80s music, 90s music, alcohol, all in good time, angel taylor, baby, barenaked ladies, beach boys, ben kweller, big bubba's bbq, black eyed peas, black hole sun, bnl, brian wilson, california gurls, ed robertson, empire state of mind, eraser, every subway car, hartford, i gotta feeling, jay z, jim creegan, justin bieber, katy perry, kevin hearn, life in a nutshell, meat loaf, mohegan sun, pilot, poker, sawdust man, snack time, soundgarden, steven page, the old apartment, two out of three ain't bad, tyler stewart, who needs sleep, xl center, you run away
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songspeak
A boombox is not a toy
Imagine my joy when SNL featured a Digital Short this past weekend of my favorite track off the Lonely Island CD, Boombox. Julian Casablancas from the Strokes appears, as he provided vocals for the song. The video pretty much tells the story I envisioned in my head, and any song and/or video that references the 1990 hit Do the Bartman is aces in my book.Tags: 00s music, 10s tv, 90s music, andy samberg, digital short, do the bartman, julian casablancas, saturday night live, snl, the lonely island, the simpsons, the strokes
1 comment
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songspeak
Paula Cole is the pits
Matt and I had a brief IM conversation this morning resulting from I Don’t Want to Wait by Paula Cole playing on the radio:
jamie: wearing shrap-NEL in his SKIN
jamie: that was just on the radio
matt: how nice for you
matt: I don’t hate any songs more than that one
jamie: really? ANY songs?
matt: I can’t think of a single song I hate more
jamie: wow…including Celine Dion? Whitney Houston?
matt: them i can tolerate
matt: if I need to
jamie: you don’t wanna wait? for your life to be over?
matt: but Paula Cole is like nails on a chalkboard for me, which come to think of it, still sounds better than Paula ColeEver since the song came out, we’ve made fun of the way she sings “wearing shrapnel in his skin”, but until this conversation, I never quite realized the level of hatred that Matt has for her. Not that I’m a fan by any means. Hearing the song and having this conversation reminded me of many years ago when Matt and I were staying at his cousin Eric’s apartment near Boston for some reason, and we were planning on getting tickets to see Radiohead at the Worcester Centrum later that summer. Tickets went on sale the morning we were at Eric’s, so I called Ticketmaster or whoever the hell you’d call back then to order concert tickets, but since they had just gone on sale, it was hard to get through, and I was put on hold. And the entire time I was on hold (at least 15-20 minutes, possibly much longer), I Don’t Want to Wait by Paula Cole was played on a loop. Part of me thought whoever set that up was incredibly clever, and part of me wanted to find them and kill them in cold blood.
I don't wanna wait, for my brains to be blown out...
Speaking of Paula Cole and Boston, she performed at the first Mixfest in Boston that Matt and I went to, along with our friends Lisa and Erica. We stayed at Eric’s apartment that weekend as well. When Paula Cole came on stage, Erica climbed up into a tree to get a better view of Paula’s hairy armpits while Matt, Lisa, and I wandered off to do something a lot less depressing. I think we went to see the Holocaust Memorial. We were also there for most of Third Eye Blind’s set as well.
Anyway, long story short: Matt hates Paula Cole and she has hairy pits. And eff Radiohead for making me listen to her song for an eternity.
Tags: 90s music, boston, celine dion, eric's apartment, holocaust memorial, i don't want to wait, mixfest, paula cole, radiohead, third eye blind, ticketmaster, wearing shrapnel in his skin, whitney houston
9 comments
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songspeak
Wouldn’t Black Sabbath make more sense?
Thanks to Bill for sending me this link earlier today. It seems that the soundtrack for Iron Man 2 will consist of solely AC/DC songs, and the soundtrack, available April 19, 2010, will be called AC/DC: Iron Man 2. One would think that AC/DC recorded a new track or two for the soundtrack, like Big Gun from Last Action Hero or Who Made Who for Maximum Overdrive, but nope, no new songs…just old stuff. So really, it’s kind of a “greatest hits” package of sorts. Which is fine, I’m sure the music in the movie will be rockin’, but would it have killed them to record a new song for the movie? (As I mentioned to Bill earlier, given their age, it just might). And didn’t Black Sabbath have a song titled Iron Man? Maybe it was in the first movie, who knows…I still haven’t gotten around to watching it yet. It appears as though Jon Favreau is a big AC/DC fan, and that was one of the factors that contributed to this whole scenario. Very reminiscent of how Stephen King wanted AC/DC exclusively for the soundtrack of Maximum Overdrive (based on his short story Trucks) because he’s a fan. Oh, Maximum Overdrive. Emilio Estevez. And remember when that other dude got clobbered by that truck that came to life? That was awesome. Anyway, enough reminiscing.It looks like the soundtrack does a good job encompassing AC/DC’s whole career with some classic old Bon Scott songs right up to a song off their most recent CD Black Ice. You can see the track listing at the link above, but here it is anyway:
1. Shoot to Thrill
2. Rock ‘N’ Roll Damnation
3. Guns for Hire
4. Cold Hearted Man
5. Back in Black
6. Thunderstruck
7. If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)
8. Evil Walks
9. T.N.T.
10. Hell Ain’t a Bad Place to Be
11. Have a Drink on Me
12. The Razor’s Edge
13. Let There Be Rock
14. War Machine
15. Highway to HellAnd here’s the first video for Shoot to Thrill from the movie:
Keep your eyes on Brian Johnson. There’s something about a 62 year old grinding his hips that isn’t disturbing at all.
NOT.
Tags: 00s music, 10s movies, 70s music, 80s music, 90s music, ac/dc, AC/DC: Iron Man 2, angus young, back in black, big gun, bill, black ice, black sabbath, bon scott, brian johnson, cold hearted man, emilio estevez, evil walks, greatest hits, guns for hire, have a drink on me, hell ain't a bad place to be, if you want blood (you've got it), iron man, iron man 2, jon favreau, last action hero, let there be rock, maximum overdrive, rock 'n' roll damnation, shoot to thrill, stephen king, t.n.t., that was awesome, the razor's edge, thunderstruck, trucks, who made who
2 comments
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songspeak
Sloppy Joe, Slop Sloppy Joe
On the nights my wife works, it’s up to me to make dinner for myself and Quinn. One of my go-to meals, mainly because it’s easy to prepare and doesn’t take much time, is Hamburger Helper. There are enough varieties that having it once a week doesn’t really get too old, and it’s just easier than cooking a big complicated meal for two after working all day (this sounds like a commercial). Anywho, a few weeks ago the one that I was making was a Sloppy Joe flavor. When I told Quinn that’s what we were having, I started singing all loud and crazy, “Sloppy Joe, slop Sloppy Joe!” from Adam Sandler’s Lunchlady Land. She looked at me like I was crazy, but I assured her it was a song. I’m not sure she quite believed me, so I put that very song on one of the CD mixes we made for the big Lancaster trip a couple weeks ago. When it got to that part, she said, “I didn’t think it was a real song, dad!”. She now requests the song on occasion and laughs at how silly it is (even though she’s only in preschool, doesn’t know what a lunchlady is, and has never been subject to public school lunches). When I hear the song, I think of the old Saturday Night Live when Adam Sandler performs it as Chris Farley dances around, playing the part of the lunchlady. And since there seems to be a trend of Chris Farley posts here lately, I figured why not post the video. It’s really poor quality, but I’m surprised I was able to find it at all. I had completely forgotten that Kevin Nealon played the part of Sloppy Joe. And how inappropriate it is that they have Ellen Cleghorne playing the chocolate pudding.
lunch lady land
TheGreatOne | MySpace VideoI’m making dinner tonight for Quinn and myself, and looking in the cupboard, noticed that we again have Sloppy Joe Hamburger Helper in stock. Maybe I’ll songspeak it again tonight if I make it, and perhaps Quinn will join me. Thanks to Sloppy Joe, slop Sloppy Joe.
Tags: 00s music, 90s music, 90s tv, adam sandler, chris farley, ellen cleghorne, hamburger helper, kevin nealon, lancaster, lunchlady land, mix CD, saturday night live, sloppy joe
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songspeak
I can smell your pee
Another song that Matt and I heard numerous times on the radio when we shared an office was Breathe by Faith Hill. I still hear it more often than anyone ever should, actually, thanks to mix 93.1. It truly is one of the queerest songs in existence, and the lyrics are awful, which is why we usually come up with our own. Whenever she gets to the part where she sings, “I can feel you breathe”, I’d sing, “I can smell your pee”. Is that kinda gross? Yeah. So what? Don’t judge me!I also clearly remember Matt, whenever she belted out, “Just breathe!”, would sing, “Jaspreet”. I guess he thought the song was about an Indian gentleman.
So there you have it. Thanks for nothing, Faith Hill!
Tags: 90s music, breathe, faith hill, i can feel you breathe, i can smell your pee, indian, jaspreet, just breathe, mix 93.1
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songspeak
That’s why I say Colin Hay, man, nice show. What a good show, man.
Last night, my wife and I went to see Colin Hay (former lead singer of Men at Work) perform at the Wolf Den at Mohegan Sun (or, as he called it, “the den of the wolf”). He’s touring in support of his new CD, American Sunshine. This is my fourth time seeing him perform (the first being at the Wolf Den a few years ago, and then twice at the Iron Horse in Northampton), and he put on a great show once again. One of the highlights was his wife, Cecilia Noel’s crazy interpretive dance to most of his songs (my wife referred to her as “whimsical”, but I’ll stick with “crazy”), and, of course, her air flute and redick flute-sounds when they played Down Under. Thankfully, they played Overkill (I remember when I emailed my friend Brian awhile back that I was going to see Colin Hay at Mohegan Sun, his email reply was simply “ghosts appear and faaaaaade awaaaaaaaay”), but missing from the set was one of my favorites to hear him play live, Be Good Johnny. Regardless, it was no mistake going to see him again. Below is a dramatization of the event:
Tags: 00s music, 80s music, 90s music, air flute, american sunshine, be good johnny, brian, cecilia noel, colin hay, crazy, den of the wolf, down under, iron horse, it's a mistake, men at work, mohegan sun, northampton, overkill, whimsical, wolf den
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misheard lyrics
They called me Butt Queen
Two misheard lyrics in one song! Last Sunday, we took Quinn to Southwick’s Zoo in Mendon, MA. On the way home, we were listening to the same mix CD that contains the iCarly and Drake & Josh theme songs that I made for our Lancaster, PA trip last October. Quinn is actually starting to enjoy some of the other songs on it now, and will request that we skip to a specific track. So part of the way home, we heard a request from the back seat, “Can you play the ‘great night’ song?” My wife and I looked at each other, confused. There were no songs we could think of with the lyrics “great night”, and Quinn couldn’t sing it for us. So we skipped through all the songs so she could tell us what she wanted, and just as we got to Grade 9 by the Barenaked Ladies, we realized what she meant. Apparently, she thought they were saying “great night baby”. We tried to explain that it was “grade 9″, but to no avail.
Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce to you...Butt Queen!
So for the last week, Quinn has been making us listen to that track incessantly. On Saturday, she kept giggling at the line where Ed Robertson sings, “they called me Eddie”. I asked her why she thought it was funny, and she said because his real name is Freddy. I asked her why she thought that, and she said because she looked it up on the internet. Four year olds say the darndest things. Then yesterday, all three of us were in the car, listening to it yet again, and I was telling my wife how she likes the “they called me Eddie” line, and then Quinn started saying something about how “they called him butt queen for some reason”. It took us awhile to realize what she was saying (“butt cream?” “butt freak?”), and couldn’t understand where “butt queen” came from. Until we were listening to the song again, and got to the line where Tyler Stewart sings “they called me Buckwheat!”. Apparently Quinn thought he was saying “butt queen”.
I fear now that Quinn is listening to more music, the misheard lyrics will increase at an exponential rate.
Tags: 90s music, barenaked ladies, butt cream, butt freak, butt queen, drake & josh, ed robertson, freddy, grade 9, great night baby, iCarly, kids say the darndest things, lancaster, mendon, queen, southwick's zoo, they called me buckwheat, they called me eddie, tyler stewart
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songspeak
Won’t you please take off your sweater?
"What? My mother knitted this sweater."
When I got home from work yesterday, my wife was doing the usual Wednesday housework while my mother had our daughter out to dinner. She usually puts the TV on one of those music on-demand channels while she does the cleaning or whatever, and yesterday she had it on the 90’s channel. For the brief time it was on while I was there, I heard some songs I haven’t heard in forever. Like Dreamlover by Mariah Carey and Walk on the Ocean by Toad the Wet Sprocket (which reminded me of how much Matt liked them back in high school). Then I Love You Always Forever by Donna Lewis came on. I had forgotten all about that song, and it made me remember the alternate lyrics I used to sing for it. In reality, she sings, “I love you, always forever, near and far, closer together”, but I used to like to sing, “I love you, always forever, won’t you please, take off your sweater”. Because the removal of clothes usually leads to relations. Relations of the intimate type. Giggedy giggedy.
Tags: 90s music, donna lewis, dreamlover, giggedy, giggity, I love you always forever, mariah carey, near and far closer together, toad the wet sprocket, walk on the ocean, won't you please take off your sweater
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misheard lyrics
It’s all your fault I scream my balls off
It's all Carrot Top's fault
While playing Guitar Hero on X-Box at a friend’s this weekend, Spiderwebs by No Doubt came up in the game. I remembered when this song came out over 10 years ago. Our friend Kevin used to think the lyrics in the chorus were “it’s all your fault I scream my balls off”, but they’re really “it’s all your fault I screen my phone calls”. But if you listen to it and listen for his misheard lyrics, it does sound like Gwen Stefani says that. Even though it makes no sense in the context of the song.
Tags: 90s music, carrot top, guitar hero, gwen stefani, it's all your fault I screen my phone calls, no doubt, spiderwebs, x-box
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