Back in February, my wife and I took a little break down to Tasmania, a beautiful part of the world. We did a whole heap of different activities whilst down there, but one of the more different things (for us anyway) was that we took a ride on the Devil Jet, a jet boat that goes through the white water rapids of the Derwent River. It was great one, and has inspired this week’s list, which is all about the devil.
15 - The Devil’s Workday - Modest Mouse
I remember hearing the Modest Mouse song “Float On” on the radio, and being quite impressed, it was nothing like anything I had heard before. In recent times, I borrowed from a friend the album that “Float On” is from, and that was how I heard of this track, “The Devil’s Workday”, which allmusic.com describe as having a theatrical jolt.
14 - That Old Devil Called Love – Billie Holiday
Time for a change of pace, so I thought it would be nice to throw in a nice track from the jazz singing pioneer herself, Billie Holiday.
13 - Better the Devil You Know – Kylie Minogue
Ok, so to some of you I would have just killed every ounce of musical credibility that I might have, but for some reason, I don’t mind a bit of Kylie’s music every now and then. A nice little dance pop track coming from the early 90’s.
12 - Whiskey, You’re the Devil – The Pogues
I included this track on my booze-o list, and this is what I wrote back then: “When it comes to songs about alcohol, there are some artists that you would expect to feature prominently, and the Pogues are certainly one of them. If you are not familiar with them, they were an Irish rock group that sort of combined traditional Irish folk with the punk movement, the end result being a unique sound that is brilliant. In this track, they even take some lyrics from the traditional folk song “Whiskey in the Jar” and blend it into this song. Great, great stuff.”
11 - Devils and Dust – Bruce Springsteen
The title track from Springsteen’s 2005 folk album. Its one of the better songs on the album, but I find that I have to be in the right frame of mind to enjoy this album. When I am in the mood for it, I think its brilliant, when I am not in the right frame of mind, I find it sounds like an annoying mumble of an album.
10 - Devil in her Heart – The Beatles
A doo-wop cover version with George on lead vocals, from their second album “With the Beatles”, I quite like this track. Its simple, and its got a nice feel to it.
9 - Who Put the Devil in You? – You Am I
A blistering rock track from You Am I’s “Deliverance” album. Their last good album, in my humble opinion.
8 - The Devil You Know – Split Enz
A great track from the “Conflicting Emotions” album, this showcases Neil Finn’s talents, although is overshadowed by “Message to My Girl” as the great track from this album.
7 - Speak of the Devil – Chris Isaak
Some more of that moody music that Chris is famous for. Great stuff.
6 - The Devil’s Inside Your Head – Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson
Another track from the excellent “Rattlin Bones” album. This one is stripped down, mostly acoustic, and could almost be some long lost mountain song.
At this point, I am going to leave you hanging, and say come back next week when the top five is revealed, although its probably not a difficult one to guess this time around. Take care everyone, and keep those comments coming…hehehe…
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
top ten "miles" songs
Hi All
Sorry I missed last week, but these things happen, and as I predicted, I would probably struggle to keep the weekly posts up, but not to worry.
Anyway, these weeks theme is the top songs with "miles" in the title. Normally I have a good little anecdote to tell you why I have chosen the theme, but this week, I don't have any such story. I think one of the songs came up on my ipod when I had it on shuffle mode, and then that got me thinking.
So here they are, the top 10 songs. As per usual, any comments, suggestions, alternative lists etc are most welcome:
10 - 100 Miles from Memphis – Sheryl Crow
Those of you that know me will know that I am a big Sheryl Crow fan, and I have all of her albums. However, I will be honest, this song is really just making up the numbers on this list. The title track from Sheryl’s most recent album, I found this album to be a little disappointing. The album sees Sheryl moving into a Motown inspired sound. There is nothing wrong with that per se, it sounds good, but to me, it sounds a bit like it could be anyone singing.
9 - Extra Mile – Paul Kelly
From Kelly’s album “Deeper Water”, this is a good song that rolls along in a laid back yet still catchy kind of way.
8 - 40 Miles – Troy Cassar-Daley
From Troy’s “Long Way Home” album, this Australian country music artist gives us a beautiful little country ballad. Troy has an underappreciated voice in my opinion.
7 - Five Miles Closer to the Sun – James Reyne
From Reyne’s second solo album “Hard Reyne”, this is a nice little song, and one of the better tracks of this, Reyne’s weakest album in my opinion.
6 - Forty Miles to Saturday Night – Paul Kelly
Another appearance by the brilliant Paul Kelly. This song is great, a rocker, inspired by a painting, that tells the story of having to travel forty miles to the pub, to start a big night out. Great stuff.
5 - Miles to Go – Nick Barker
Nick Barker is an Aussie singer songwriter, and in “Miles to Go”, which he co-wrote with Paul Kelly (who is doing quite well on this list!) he gives us a simple yet great track. The version I have is from his excellent album “C-Sides”, which was recorded as part of the Liberation Blue acoustic series, where artists are asked to rework some of their work, and then throw in some covers for good measure.
4 - I Can See for Miles – The Who
Its hard to provide a description of a song like this one, as it virtually has an epic feel to it. The tempo changes throughout the track, building up the tension, and in parts it almost has a psychedelic feel to it. A great rock song.
3 - Miles from Nowhere – Cat Stevens
I only recently picked up Cat Steven’s album “Tea for the Tillerman”, and I can honestly say that in my opinion this is one of the greatest albums of all time. I already knew songs like “Wild World” and the brilliant “Father and Son”, but I was unfamiliar with “Miles From Nowhere”, although I loved it right from the first listen. It starts off with a slow acoustic feel before getting more intense, and then it flicks back to the slow feel again. Lovely stuff.
2 - I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) – The Proclaimers
Not out of place on a list of the nerdiest looking pop stars, the Proclaimers made some great late eighties pop, and this song would still be a favourite of cover bands around the world. Its catchy, you can dance to it, and yeah, maybe it is a bit daggy, but what a great song.
1- 1000 Miles Away – Hoodoo Gurus
The top position goes to the great Aussie rock group Hoodoo Gurus, with their, to quote allmusic.com “..surprisingly effective life on the road ballad”. I remember seeing them life, and when Dave starts off singing the first bit of this song, it really sends shivers down your spine. Then that killer guitar riff and the full band come on in, and the song starts to rock. The lyrics are powerful, as they sing about the loneliness of business travel.
Sorry I missed last week, but these things happen, and as I predicted, I would probably struggle to keep the weekly posts up, but not to worry.
Anyway, these weeks theme is the top songs with "miles" in the title. Normally I have a good little anecdote to tell you why I have chosen the theme, but this week, I don't have any such story. I think one of the songs came up on my ipod when I had it on shuffle mode, and then that got me thinking.
So here they are, the top 10 songs. As per usual, any comments, suggestions, alternative lists etc are most welcome:
10 - 100 Miles from Memphis – Sheryl Crow
Those of you that know me will know that I am a big Sheryl Crow fan, and I have all of her albums. However, I will be honest, this song is really just making up the numbers on this list. The title track from Sheryl’s most recent album, I found this album to be a little disappointing. The album sees Sheryl moving into a Motown inspired sound. There is nothing wrong with that per se, it sounds good, but to me, it sounds a bit like it could be anyone singing.
9 - Extra Mile – Paul Kelly
From Kelly’s album “Deeper Water”, this is a good song that rolls along in a laid back yet still catchy kind of way.
8 - 40 Miles – Troy Cassar-Daley
From Troy’s “Long Way Home” album, this Australian country music artist gives us a beautiful little country ballad. Troy has an underappreciated voice in my opinion.
7 - Five Miles Closer to the Sun – James Reyne
From Reyne’s second solo album “Hard Reyne”, this is a nice little song, and one of the better tracks of this, Reyne’s weakest album in my opinion.
6 - Forty Miles to Saturday Night – Paul Kelly
Another appearance by the brilliant Paul Kelly. This song is great, a rocker, inspired by a painting, that tells the story of having to travel forty miles to the pub, to start a big night out. Great stuff.
5 - Miles to Go – Nick Barker
Nick Barker is an Aussie singer songwriter, and in “Miles to Go”, which he co-wrote with Paul Kelly (who is doing quite well on this list!) he gives us a simple yet great track. The version I have is from his excellent album “C-Sides”, which was recorded as part of the Liberation Blue acoustic series, where artists are asked to rework some of their work, and then throw in some covers for good measure.
4 - I Can See for Miles – The Who
Its hard to provide a description of a song like this one, as it virtually has an epic feel to it. The tempo changes throughout the track, building up the tension, and in parts it almost has a psychedelic feel to it. A great rock song.
3 - Miles from Nowhere – Cat Stevens
I only recently picked up Cat Steven’s album “Tea for the Tillerman”, and I can honestly say that in my opinion this is one of the greatest albums of all time. I already knew songs like “Wild World” and the brilliant “Father and Son”, but I was unfamiliar with “Miles From Nowhere”, although I loved it right from the first listen. It starts off with a slow acoustic feel before getting more intense, and then it flicks back to the slow feel again. Lovely stuff.
2 - I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) – The Proclaimers
Not out of place on a list of the nerdiest looking pop stars, the Proclaimers made some great late eighties pop, and this song would still be a favourite of cover bands around the world. Its catchy, you can dance to it, and yeah, maybe it is a bit daggy, but what a great song.
1- 1000 Miles Away – Hoodoo Gurus
The top position goes to the great Aussie rock group Hoodoo Gurus, with their, to quote allmusic.com “..surprisingly effective life on the road ballad”. I remember seeing them life, and when Dave starts off singing the first bit of this song, it really sends shivers down your spine. Then that killer guitar riff and the full band come on in, and the song starts to rock. The lyrics are powerful, as they sing about the loneliness of business travel.
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