The Mental Jukebox 12.10.7 Updatery!

Unless something completely unforeseen happens, expect a new list tomorrow. If something completely unforeseen happens, then please understand that I just didn't see that one coming.
-j.

The new guy.

You can call me George. I'll be filling space here while Jeff is off picking new vinyl siding colors.

Three things about me which are important to note:

1. My own mental musical library is not quite as frighteningly vast as Jeff's, although sometimes it is just frightening. But I'll try to entertain.
2. I am blessed with a job where I have music playing constantly - mostly even music of my own choosing - so my selections represent the few dead spaces in between, and before and after, my 9-6.
   
3. I am also not much of a note-taker on the weekends, so I'll begin with selections from last Friday:

My Baby's Gone - Two Gallants

Woke up with this one, which was the last thing I'd heard the night before. I'd also listened to this cd 3 times the previous day. It's the closer from TG's self-titled album from this year, which is one of my favorite things right now, and I highly recommend it.

Thriller - Michael Jackson

The mention of the 25th anniversary (!) of this album stuck the classic title track in my head all day. It popped up several times at random, from the shower (and I do NOT like to think about Michael Jackson in the shower) throughout the day. I even did a brief zombie dance during a discussion of the "occult influences" that got poor M.J. kicked out of the Watchtower.

Jump Jump - Kris Kross

Here's a strange one. Hadn't really thought of this song in years . Remember Kris Kross? The two kid rappers whose gimmick was (aside from being kid rappers) wearing their clothes backward? Of course you do. Anyway, whatever 7-9 a.m.-not-really-news show I had on in the background was doing a piece on double-dutch, and had a brief sample of this song as the music bed. This was running while I was getting dressed in the next room, and I don't know if my subconscious took over or what, but I put my t-shirt on backward. Luckily I caught it right away, but what I didn't catch for another two hours, is that I had also donned my boxers backward, something I don't recall ever having done before. I kept them that way for the rest of the day, despite the discomfort of an unfortunately-placed fly button, in honor of this truly terrible kid-rapper duo. Who knew what kind of power that song holds?

Everybody Knows - Leonard Cohen
Shock the Monkey - Peter Gabriel
Simple-X - Andrew Bird
Swing Town - Steve Miller

I blame Purdy for this one. It randomly popped into his head at work and, knowing my deep-seeded hatred for Steve Miller - particularly this song - he passed it along to me.

Even Flow - Pearl Jam
Scythian Empires - Andrew Bird


I wasn't allowed to own Thriller when it came out; my mom found Michael to be obscene and I think my dad thought listening to him would make me gay. I was five, and I probably had no business owning it anyway, but I was fascinated with this freaky-ass video when I saw it at cooler, MTV-having friends' houses.

The video is still a heck of a lot of fun.

A Mental Jukebox alert

Posting will be sporadic for a while. Our house caught on fire Tuesday. No worries. Everyone is fine. We even got the cat out. However, until power and order can be restored, I'm not going to be on a lot.

Just consider that for the next little bit, the only bands I will have in my head are Roger Daltrey, Bruce Springsteen and After the Fire.
Selah.

The Mental Jukebox-- Tuesday 11.27.7

This was the day that would not end. It just went on and on, my friends. And on a day when I really needed to hear Across the Universe, it didn't show up at all. Thanks, Mental Jukebox. Thanks a lot.

Here's what did play. It's a shorter list than yesterday's list, which is probably a good thing. Or bad. It depends on how much you enjoy the blog, I suppose.

It's A Sin-- Pet Shop Boys

Again, you can always count on the first song of the day to be totally out of left field... I think maybe the FSOTD is a remnant from the last dream you had before waking. Geez... enough kosmic debris for you? Next, I'll be asking koans. Sorry. On we go.

Little Boxes-- Pete Seeger

That one is your fault, Ebenezer. All you.

What's Left of Me-- Nick Lachey

WHY? WHY? WHY? Not the song I needed to hear when the phones are ringing off the hook at work, because when I hear it, I want to be underlit, cry just a little, make a fist and pull it slowly down in front of my face to show you my manly pain. And it needs to be raining. Inside. On my phone. "Sorry," I say to the guy on the phone as I make another fist, "I can't talk right now. It's raining inside and my heart is breaking. Let me connect you to Customer Service."

I Get Around-- The Beach Boys
Signals Over the Air-- Thursday

I know I'm headed towards 40 and I'm not supposed to like Thursday.
I like Thursday.

All The Kids Are Right-- Local H
You're Wrong-- NOFX
Lost Without Your Love-- Bread

If you're old enough to remember not only the band, but the people hosting the television show this clip is taken from, you shouldn't like Thursday. But I hope you do. And I hope you'll comment me. It makes me happy.

The Mental Jukebox-- Monday 11.26.7

Not only was it a Monday, but it was indeed a rainy day. Amazingly enough, I only just now made that connection. No Carpenters on the list today, but a bunch of other stuff. It's a new week! Let the weirdness begin.

Carolina In My Mind-- James Taylor

The first song of the day always confuses me. It's like whacking an old TV on the side until the picture comes in clearly. That first song is the mental jukebox equivalent of static.

Southern California-- Wax
San Ber'dino-- Frank Zappa
Like to Get to Know You-- Spanky and our Gang
Jerkin' Back and Forth-- Devo
Fairytale of New York-- STARS

Again with the STARS cover? This must be my head's way of coercing me into the holiday spirit. Come on. I put a few lights up out by the driveway. What else do you want from me? Ho, ho, ho.

Hold On-- Yes
Deeper and Deeper-- The Fixx
My Cheri Amour-- Stevie Wonder
Black Velvet-- Alannah Myles

As I said when I started this mess, you don't have to like a song for it to play in the mental jukebox.

No Time-- Guess Who
If Ever I See You Again-- Roberta Flack
Existential Blues Pt. 2-- Tom "T-Bone" Stankus
Disenchanted-- Gary Morris
Talk About the Passion-- R.E.M.
Bittersweet Me-- R.E.M.

Those two R.E.M. songs there? Same friggin' song. Guarantee it. You can combine them into one ten minute long song and never realize you've done it. I know this because I did. Today. Over and over for about an hour. Easy in, easy out. I'm tired and naked.

Bring The Boys Back Home-- Pink Floyd

I saw ten seconds of Fox News in the break room. That's what happens.

You Better Run-- Pat Benatar
Yeah, Right-- Dinosaur Jr.
Rehab-- Amy Winehouse

It was so hard to choose a video for today's post, but I used to have nightmares about Randy Bachman.

The Mental Jukebox-- Sunday 11.25.7

Hey, it's Sunday. I have to go back to work in the morning. Yuck.
Anyway, my songs... let me show you them.

Two Princes-- Spin Doctors
Not the sign of a good day headed your way. Imagine you wake up and the first thing you hear is the high pitched voice of a Neo-Hippie singing, "Ba-did-a-dip! Da-dip-dip-da-dip-do-bada-beeda-bada-bada-doda-mona-mona-mona-mona."
How to deal with that? Just remember, kids, that it is never too early in the day to start drinking.

I'll Provide the Love-- Toto
Across the Universe-- Beatles

Once again, my Moment of Zen...

Everything Will Be Alright-- Killers

Possibly a complementary tune to the previous one. Or sarcasm so arch even I didn't pick up on it.

To Live and Die in L.A.-- Wang Chung
Next Time That You Leave-- Bob Mould
Oh, Darling-- Beatles
Shake Your Groove Thing-- Peaches and Herb
nod + lean-- stolen sheep
Is She Weird?-- Pixies

We need to discuss Wang Chung for a moment. They put out three major albums here in the States. The first one, "Points on the Curve," yielded their first big hit, "Dance Hall Days." I still don't know all the words to that song, but I have loved it for years. (Well, that one line sounds like he's singing, "We were cool for fries." Or "We would pull whore's eyes." I kinda want it to be that last one.) The last album, "Mosaic," is the one with "Everybody Have Fun Tonight." It was the first single from the album... and ultimately the best cut. "Mosaic" is weak sauce. That song, with the unforgettable line, "Everybody Wang Chung tonight," was their biggest and most unfortunate hit. It's the one people still mock, using it to embody everything that was cheesy about the eighties. That's a shame. What people should really be using to embody that is Jon Cryer's hair in "No Small Affair."

In between those two albums, Wang Chung put out an album of remarkable strength and intensity. It is the soundtrack album to the William Friedkin film, "To Live and Die in L.A." The movie was harsh and brutal, with no happy endings and no pat resolutions. The soundtrack, which was half instrumental and half dark pop songs, matched the movie in tone and intent so perfectly that they are synonymous with each other. In that respect, the following song could be right up there with John Williams' "Imperial March" from the "Star Wars" saga or, at the very least, Tenacious D's "Kickapoo."

Show 'em some love. In my opinion, they certainly deserve it.

The Mental Jukebox-- Saturday 11.24.7

That's right, no Jukebox for Friday. There were songs playing in my head but I was too busy engaging in holidalarity to list them as I normally do.
Today, however, is back to business as usual.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas-- Perry Como, I think

No kidding. First song I heard this morning, as soon as I woke up. That filled me with a sense of foreboding. Impending doom. Sweater vests.

Go Now-- Moody Blues

Obviously a hold over from a couple of days ago. When my dad is here, I always think of the Moody Blues.

Gravity Kills-- ABC
Balls to the Wall-- Accept

Again with the Accept! Maybe in my head, something is gearing up for an Accept vs. Scorpions grudgematch.

Goodbye, Earl-- Dixie Chicks
In Bloom-- Nirvana
Horse With No Name-- America
Home Again-- Oingo Boingo

Ah... Home Again... that's a good childhood memory. The music has real tension and urgency, while lyrically there's a hopelessness and slavishness remeniscent of and arguably superior to Synchronicity II.
And check out the hot video! Something is going to happen!
Wait... no, it's not.
There's a possibility of a thing...
No.
Just listen to the song.