Thursday, March 25, 2010

Catharsis

An absolutely crushing blow has devastated me tonight. I won't get into the details here, where just anyone could stumble across it. Suffice it to say I got my hopes up about something yet again, only to have them come crashing to the ground.

My most recent post here, about the random music I listen to, mentioned a song that feels all too relevant right now: I Just Wasn't Made for These Times, by the Beach Boys. I said: If any song is a personal anthem for me, this is surely it.

The song, by Brian Wilson and Tony Asher, goes like this - the passage in bold seems especially relevant.

I keep looking for a place to fit
Where I can speak my mind
I've been trying hard to find the people
That I won't leave behind

They say I got brains
But they ain't doing me no good
I wish they could

Each time things start to happen again
I think I got something good goin' for myself
But what goes wrong

Sometimes I feel very sad
Sometimes I feel very sad
(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)
Sometimes I feel very sad
(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)

I guess I just wasn't made for these times

Every time I get the inspiration
To go change things around
No one wants to help me look for places
Where new things might be found

Where can I turn when my fair weather friends cop out

What's it all about

Each time things start to happen again

I think I got something good goin' for myself
But what goes wrong

Sometimes I feel very sad

Sometimes I feel very sad
(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)
Sometimes I feel very sad
(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)

I guess I just wasn't made for these times




As another favorite songwriter of mine once said, "I just had to let it go."
  

Saturday, March 13, 2010

WSIR



Hello faithful few readers. Sorry I haven't posted anything in this space in quite some time, but outside of my movie-going, not a lot has happened in my life - at least not that I'm prepared to write about yet.

But Friday evening, while listening to Internet radio, I hit upon  (or heard upon) a fun topic - my strange musical taste.

I am quite famous for my Beatlemania, of course, but believe it or not, it's not the only music I listen to - although it is fair to say my taste is pretty retro, as this post will show.

I decided to do this post two ways. First I would turn on my custom-tailored Internet radio channel and list the first 10 songs I heard. These were not chosen by me, but were selected randomly by the computer. They were:

1. Are You Happy Now, Michelle Branch - One of my favorite singer-songwriters. I tend to gravitate toward young female chanteuses. I wish she'd put out the new material she's working on.

2. You Tell Me Why, The Beau Brummels -  I suppose the radio picked this for me because of it's Beatle-y sound. Didn't make much impression on me either way.

3. Chimes of Freedom, The Byrds - Again, the Beatle connection rears its mop-topped head. Lots of that jangly guitar.

4. Wouldn't It Be Nice, The Beach Boys  - Uuuum, YEAH!

5. Sleepyhouse, Blind Melon - Pleasant listen. I was never into Blind Melon, but I recall them because a couple of the guys in that band produced Anna Nalick.  Speaking of whom:

6. Citadel, Anna Nalick - What a coincidence! This was a live acoustic version of one of my favorite songs from her first and so far only album. I really would love to see her drop back on the face of the earth. Met her once at one of her shows. Great singer, fun girl.

7. Tired of Waiting for You, The Kinks - A groovy little tune from a truly underappreciated band.

8. Hey Bulldog, The Beatles - Yup, this computer knows me.

9. Save the Last Dance for Me, Ike and Tina Turner - From the Phil Spector box set. Funny, the backing to this sounds eerily like "Heroes and Villains" by the Beach Boys. Speaking of whom:

10. I Just Wasn't Made for These Times, Brian Wilson - If any song is a personal anthem for me, this is surely it. Interestingly, the computer picked the live version from Brian's Pet Sounds tour, which I had the honor of seeing twice. I was most definitely made for THOSE times.

For the second part of this experiment, I decided to pull out my Gigabeat (my MP3 player) and put it on random and see if I could get some truly weird segues.

1. Alone, Wilson Phillips - Ah, the one WP song solely written by Wendy, my favorite member of the group. She struck me as the smart, low-key one.

2. She's a Woman, Paul McCartney - Acoustic version from his Unplugged album. Has a cool swing.

3. A Hard Day's Night, The Beatles - If you threw me against the wall, held a gun to my head and asked me to name ONE favorite Beatles song (and believe me, that's the only way you could get me to name ONE) - it would be this one. This was a slightly remixed stereo version from a Making of Hard Day's Night video. Has a longer fade than any other version. Yes, I'm a complete geek.

4. Little Bird, The Beach Boys - Dennis Wilson's writing debut, from the 1968 album Friends. Pretty impressive for a start. One of the few songs I can think of that sports both a cello and banjo.

5. Everything I Need, The Wilsons - My, we're on a Wilsons kick. Not that I mind. This is a song written by Brian Wilson and Tony Asher (Pet Sounds) from a solo album by Carnie and Wendy. Brian sings too.

6. On and On and On, The Internationals - Now HERE'S a weird segue. Rockin' track from my friend Todd Pack's former band. Has some of his tastiest guitar playing.

7. (Just Like) Starting Over, John Lennon  - And we segue into a track by Todd's favorite Beatle, which, despite its jaunty sound,  will always have a wistful air of melancholy about it because this was the song that was out when he died.

8. When Your Mind's Made Up, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova  - My second favorite song from the Once soundtrack, after the Oscar-winning "Falling Slowly," of course.

9. Got My Mind Set on You, George Harrison - George's last big solo hit - which is actually one of my least favorite songs from his Cloud 9 album. I prefer the ones he wrote. This was an oldie by one Rudy Clark.

10. Ezekiel 25:17 - The "great vengeance and furious anger speech" from Pulp Fiction, from the opening scenes of the film. What a track to end on. I think I'd best be going now.

Cue "Surf Rider" by The Lively Ones ...