Okemah and the Melody of Riot by Son Volt

Listening to Ross’s CDs has been like opening a gift every week. Sometimes I open the gift and think “really, he shouldn’t have,” "it just doesn't fit," or “what was he thinking?” Then there are other times when I open the gift and I let out a small sigh of contentment and happiness because it was something unexpected yet truly wonderful. I know that seems a little over the top but I felt like this when I listened to this CD. I started listening to it when spring had really started to explode. I would play the CD in my car stereo really loud, roll all of the windows down, feel the breeze ruffle my hair, and think "this is perfect." It was cool to listen to as the landscape of pink, white, purple, and green trees and blue skies with small puffy clouds rolled past my window. Count yourself lucky to not be on the road when I was listening to this. I was probably paying more attention to the spring scenes than the road.

Son Volt, for those of you who don't know the band, are best described as an alternative-country band. The band was formed from former members of Uncle Tupelo, another alt-country band. The lead singer's voice has a slight twang to it, harmonicas can be heard in a few songs, the guitars are rocking pretty hard though so it isn't always sounding like country music. This CD reminds me of Jayhawks' CDs, lots of guitar and melodies, but without the harmonies.

My favorite songs are "Ipecac" and "Gramophone." Both songs are really mellow but I like the melodies. "Ipecac" is intriguing to me because the lyrics make absolutely no sense. Even the chorus doesn't shed much light on the meaning of the song.
"Watch out for love like Ipecac
A strange brew we're looking at"
Does that mean watch out for love that makes you vomit? That could be a good vomit (you're so excited you vomit) or a bad vomit (the love is making you sick vomit). Or is it a love that takes all of the poison out of your system from bad loves? The link below is from the second song. The second song is about how people used to listen to music. I tried looking up gramophone in the dictionary so I could make sure I knew what I was talking about. It's not even in the dictionary anymore! I love this line in the song, "Colors in sound jump out sitting by the gramophone." I think they are trying to say that music used to sound better when we listened to it from vinyl. It doesn't help their cause if they want to sell CDs but they do sound better. I always did love to hear the scratch of the needle on the record.

Ross really liked Uncle Tupelo and tried its spinoffs, Son Volt and Wilco. Although truly his favorite was Uncle Tupelo. I think he was always a little mad that they had broken up and formed these two other bands but he did start to enjoy the other bands. That's probably why he has this CD.

As I was thinking about this CD and why I liked it so much, I realized that it is the music I like to listen to. This CD has the music I turn to when I want some downtime from listening to Ross's CDs. I think that is why I felt so relieved when I started listening to it. It wasn't as though I would need to take a break from it to listen to my music. In the end, I'd liken it to opening a gift and finding that ratty old blanket you have been holding onto for years but you absolutely love and would never get rid of. I'm keeping this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZxW7U48CQY

I'll Play the Blues for You by Albert King and John Lee Hooker

This CD is a keeper. The first time I put it in the CD player, I knew. I had to keep this CD. It is just really good. Who would've thought I would be saying this 3 months into this project? I have never listened to the blues as much as I have since I started this. I can't say I will always like the blues that I listen to but I like this one. It is an interesting CD. It is a live recording done in Chicago. The first four songs are by Albert King and the last five songs are John Lee Hooker. It's a cool arrangement. I don't know much about either men but according to Mark B. (one of my followers who knows a lot more about the blues than I ever will) they are both great guitarists and blues singers. I have heard of John Lee Hooker before but never Albert King. Albert King, according to some of the stuff I have read, had influenced a lot of blues guitarists but also people like Eric Clapton and Stevie Ray Vaughn.

My favorite song by Albert King is "The Very Thought of You." I couldn't find a version on YouTube of him singing it, there are a lot of versions out there though by people like Nat King Cole and Billie Holiday. I did include a link to him singing "Born Under a Bad Sign," which he is famous for and is also on the CD. I like "The Very Thought of You" because it is just a sweet song and from this song you can tell it is a live recording. He starts to sing and you can barely hear him, it does start pretty low. Then you can hear him clear his throat and he is much stronger. It just really makes it plain that this is a live recording, nothing is taped over or redone here. My favorite song by John Lee Hooker has got to be "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer." One of my younger coworkers saw this CD and that song and said "That's George Thoroughgood's song." I can say to him though, John Lee Hooker recorded it first. That song is the other link below. I just think, how can you hear that song and not smile, just a little.

"I ain't seen my baby since night before last
I wanna get drunk till I'm off of my mind
One bourbon, one scotch, and one beer"

Gotta love the sentiment.

Ross loved the blues and jazz a lot. I am sure that is why he bought this CD. It's a CD that is cool in the way it is recorded with the two guys on it. In addition, it is another CD where it says in the liner notes, if you can't see the blues live then this CD is the next best thing. Sounds like seeing blues live with guys like these is darn near impossible since most of them are dead or close to it! Might as well get all the live CDs you can of them. If only I had some bbq ribs, a dark smoky room, and one bourbon, one scotch, one beer to go with these CDs. Then it would be perfect.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIvka3SSv9Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKJ-lBOFYrQ

Tied & True by The Detroit Cobras

The Detroit Cobras are called "garage rock" when you google them. I am not sure what the definition of garage rock is. Is it rock you listen to in a garage or is it rock that sounds like it was recorded in a garage? Neither of those really defines the band for me. I think a better way to describe them is that they are a grrl band. The lead singer has a great gravelly voice that sounds like she has smoked one too many cigarettes. Her voice could rival Suzanne Pleshette for smoky. Then there are of course the prerequisite hard-driving guitars and hard-hitting drums. Their music reminded me of modern versions of songs from the 1960s, stuff like "My Boyfriend's Back." I think I even heard a motorcycle engine revving in the background of one of the songs. Then I looked up the band, which I usually don't do, and found out that they only do covers. That's why all those songs sounded so familiar. They pick songs that are from their own record collections, usually pretty obscure songs, and then redo them in their rockin' style. The song below is "As Long As I Have You." It is a good example of what the Cobras sound like and it is from this CD.

My favorite songs are "Nothing But a Heart Ache" and "Leave My Kitten Alone." I just like the beats in the first song. In "Leave My Kitten Alone" I love that the background singers just keep saying "Meow." It's kind of hilarious but the way they do it, it sounds like one tough kitty. The Beatles do a version of it but an even better version is the original by Little Willie John. I put that as the second YouTube clip. LISTEN to that. It is a great version.

Ross had a thing a couple of years ago for girl bands. He bought some Detroit Cobras, Shonen Knife, and the Soviettes. He bought a different Detroit Cobras CD but he liked them so much he bought this one too. I think he liked the tough girl thing. I like this CD and I am keeping it. (I know I am not really getting the CD collection culled like I should.) This CD doesn't have any real meaning or sentiment but it is a great CD to just listen to when you want to feel like you are sitting on a motorcycle, with a leather jacket, daring anyone to start a fight with you. C'mon, knock that battery off my shoulder, I dare you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8vSaT_4U20&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1y_FKlwdjk

Queen of the Blues by Koko Taylor

When Ross and I were combining our CD collections, actually it was more like my collection was swallowed up by Ross's, I was struck by the number of CDs by women singers that we both had. Ross's collection was much more eclectic and extensive than mine however, big surprise. This is one of the CDs of a woman singer that I had never heard before Ross. Koko Taylor is most definitely "queen of the blues." She is one tough cookie. She would kick the butt of all the women singers that I own CDs of, especially Tori Amos. Maybe Liz Phair would make it more of a fight but she would still definitely get beat down. Koko Taylor can sing too. She sounds like she is roaring when she sings and none of her songs are gentle ballads. They are all funky, lots of rollicking guitar, drums, and keyboards. But don't forget she is singing the blues. Her songs have titles like "Beer Bottle Boogie" and "I Can Love You Like a Woman (or I can fight you like a man)" and "I Cried Like a Baby." The last one is on the clip below. Don't those titles give you some idea of the type of songs she is singing? These are not "I am sitting at home feeling sorry for myself" songs. They are sung from the heart and with feeling.

My favorite song on the CD is "Flamin' Mamie." In that song she just rips and roars through it. Here are some of the lyrics, they're kind of hysterical.

They call me Flamin' Mamie
I'm the hottest thing in town
When it comes to loving
I'm a human oven
I can really mow 'um down

Oh to be that hot! I also like "Evil." It's her warning us women to keep an eye on our men because there may be someone loving our man when we aren't watching. Remember that girls!

In the liner notes for this CD it says "Blues fans everywhere know-for a good dose of the best blues on earth: go see Koko Taylor. But if you need some right away: buy this record." I like that quote. How could you give up a CD that is going to give you a good dose of the best blues on earth? I know I can't. I am keeping this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IWL13X7N2c

The Undisputed Truth by Brother Ali

This will sound very familiar but I'll say it anyway. When I first heard this CD, I hated it. Every other word was a swear word and it seemed to me so loud and angry. After I listened to about 3 songs, I couldn't continue listening. A coworker of mine convinced me to keep listening, that I might find something I liked or at least could tolerate. It took me a couple of weeks before I could pick it up again and I thought I will just listen to it all the way through then make my judgments. I listened to it and found that I really liked the melodies he had underneath (behind? I am not sure of how to describe it) his raps. I still haven't really listed to the words that he is saying but every once in awhile I will catch something that intrigues me.

He has had quite a life. Just a little background, Brother Ali is a rapper from Minneapolis. He is Caucasian, an albino, legally blind, and a Muslim. This CD is about the breakup of his marriage. He had custody of his son but had some really rough times where he and his son were homeless. That is all on the CD but sometimes it was lost on me because of all of the swearing. Maybe I am just a prude. I think it's possible to get a message like that across without the swearing, but, to each his own.

My favorite songs are "Truth is," "Take Me Home," and "Walking Away." "Truth is" was played a lot on the Current a couple of years ago. The song "Take Me Home" is the link down below. I think this song illustrates my point about the melody behind the rap. I love this melody, it's infectious, and I find myself humming it all the time. He has a couple of other songs that have infectious hooks like this. "Walking Away" I like because it is so poignant. It is the song about him leaving his wife. That did not sound like a healthy relationship as he repeats so often in the song "If you hadn't tried to kill me, I'd a stayed for the kid." Yikes. She must have been an angry m***** f*****. See the swearing thing is catching! It's what I was afraid of.

I am pretty sure the song "Truth is" is why Ross bought the CD. He really liked that song. Then he read one of those articles about it being one of the best albums of the year that they write in the paper, every 6 months. That convinced him to buy this, not that he really needed convincing. He was always willing to try different music, even rap. I however feel no need to keep this CD. If anyone wants it, just let me know. I did download it to my iTunes though so it wasn't as horrible as I first felt it was (see my theory is still valid). It's similar to the BlackFrancis CD, this CD grew on me but I don't need to have it in my collection. I'm not very sentimental like that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxUQ07NXB4c&feature=related

Let's Get Lost: The Best of Chet Baker Sings by Chet Baker

I remember the first time I heard Chet Baker. Ross was playing it and I asked him, "Who is the woman singing?" He wasn't very happy with me and I think that might have started the musical education of Margarita. Now I listen a lot closer to music before I ask a question like that. Chet Baker was a jazz trumpeter who sang as well. The songs on this CD could best be described as "cool jazz." Chet sings on it, obviously, and also plays the trumpet. It's pretty mellow stuff. If I wasn't a happy person in general, this CD would really bum me out. The songs on it are all old standards, things that most people should have heard at some point in their lives, songs like "My Funny Valentine," "Let's Get Lost," and "The Thrill is Gone."

My favorite songs on the CD are "Time After Time" and "I Get Along without You Very Well." The latter song is the link below. I highly recommend listening to that version as I think it came straight from the CD. Both songs really spoke to me. They kind of say how I am feeling.

Here are my favorite lyrics in "Time After Time:"
Time after time
I tell myself that I’m
So lucky to be loving you

This is my favorite part of "I Get Along...:"
I get along without you very well
Of course, I do
Except perhaps in spring
But I should never think of spring
For that would surely break my heart in two

So now that I have bummed everyone else out too. I liked this CD even though it is sad as hell. It's a great CD to listen to on a rainy, cold day when you just stay in bed under the covers instead of going out. It probably wasn't one of the reasons why Ross bought it but it will be the reason I am keeping it. Ross liked jazz from all eras and he really liked Chet Baker. I think someday it won't be so sad to listen to and I'll remember that it's one of those great jazz recordings everyone should have in their collections.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgbPHTBiAVQ&feature=related

Bluefinger By Black Francis

My theory seems to be holding for now. When I first read the names of the songs on this CD I wanted to stop right there. The names that really stood out were "Captain Pasty" and "Tight Black Rubber." Great, I thought, just what I wanted to listen to, some guy singing about sex or, in this case, shouting about sex. The first time I listened to this CD I wanted to stop listening. Then as I listened more times I got to the point where the songs were tolerable and perhaps could even be listened to for pleasure. It is really weird that it's getting like this. Maybe I have no discernment in music whatsoever so everything just becomes palatable.

For those who don't know Black Francis, he is from the band The Pixies and is more well known as Frank Black. I have to admit I like the Pixies and I also like other stuff that Frank Black has done so maybe it isn't that much of a stretch that this CD grew on me. It is a CD that is best listened to loud as everything on it sounds better loud. This CD really is a good thrashing one which is what I would recommend it for. When you want to just jump around in a mosh pit, this is the CD to have in there. I liken it to some Gang of Four songs but Gang of Four seemed to have a message where this CD's message seemed to be about sex and drugs from what I could understand. Most of the lyrics made no sense and were scribbled in the liner notes so they were illegible for the most part.

My favorite songs are "Threshold Apprehension" and "You can't break a heart and have it." The link below is to the first song. I love that first song because it is the epitome of the song you need to turn up really loud and then jump around and bump into people while listening to it. He screams through a lot of the song, especially the line "I got threshold apprehension." Don't listen to this if you need a mellow music break. The second song I like because it actually has a beat to it and I like the words from the title that are also in the song. It's true. You can either break a heart or you can have it, you don't get both.

Ross probably bought this because of the Pixies. We went to see their show a couple of years ago when they did a reunion tour and I think that got him thinking about them. He started listening to them a lot and most likely thought he needed to have some Black Francis because he didn't have any. I liked this CD but I don't need to keep it. It holds no special place in my heart. It's a great CD for a house party (the kind where you totally trash the house), I don't think I will be having one anytime soon so if anyone wants it, they are welcome to it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muFE3BgSPWU