Archives for October 2016

Certain Songs #686: The Jackson 5 – “I Want You Back”

October 31, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5
Year: 1969

One of the greatest career openers ever starts with a piano glissando that explodes instantly into a guitar/bass/piano standoff that’s easily as dramatic as the climax of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

Then, as the percussion and the strings come in and establish what they’re going to do for the rest of the song, that voice — neither young nor old, neither male or female, but utterly bursting with enthusiasm and soul — kicks in, and a star is born.

Certain Songs #685: Izzy Stradlin & The Juju Hounds – “Shuffle It All”

October 30, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Izzy Stradlin & The Juju Hounds
Year: 1992

Leaving the band he co-founded just after the Illusion twins were were birthed couldn’t have been the easiest decision for Izzy Stradlin to make. But it was clearly the necessary decision, as even the most cursory perusal of a song like “Pretty Tied Up” would indicate.

And while it was a surprise that he put out a solo album so swiftly, it wasn’t really a surprise what Izzy Stradlin & The Juju Hounds sounded like: straight-ahead, Stonesy rock ‘n’ roll, loose by design but tight in execution.

Certain Songs #684: Isaac Hayes – “Theme From Shaft”

October 29, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Shaft
Year: 1971

What’s the #1 hit single that broke all the rules by taking nearly two minutes to get to the first vocal?

SHAFT!

Who’s the subject of the Oscar-winning jam with the most instantly recognizable wah-wah guitar & hi-hat pattern ever recorded?

JOHN SHAFT!

Certain Songs #683: Interpol – “PDA”

October 28, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Turn on the Bright Lights
Year: 2002

What if Ian Curtis had hooked up with Will Sergeant instead of Bernard Sumner?

That seems to be the question that Interpol was trying to answer with “PDA,” the one — to cynical old me, anyways — undeniable track from their much-acclaimed 2002 debut, Turn on the Bright Lights.

Certain Songs #682: The Individuals – “Walk By Your House”

October 27, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Fields
Year: 1982

Driven by Janet Wygal’s bass rumbling around her brother Doug’s insistent, tom-filled drum beat, and peppered throughout by backwards guitar, “Walk By Your House” is one of the most sympathetic songs ever written about stalking someone.

Which sounds horrific on paper, I know, and yet, maybe because of the male-female trading off of vocals, and the overall melancholy mood “Walk By Your House” sets, it doesn’t come across that way.

Certain Songs #681: The Individuals – “My Three Sons (Revolve Around The Earth)”

October 26, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Fields
Year: 1982

One of the questions we are constantly debating at the Certain Songs Home Office is this: what do we do when an album only has a couple of great songs? Do I do them both, or do I only do one, because I don’t want to mislead people on how great the album is?

I realize that it’s called “Certain Songs” and not “Certain Albums” for a reason, but it’s also reasonable to believe that if I do a bunch of songs from a specific album, I’m also tacitly endorsing the album. Especially since I’m usually overtly endorsing the album in the posts.

This is not the case with The Individuals album, Fields, which has two all-time classic songs surrounded by a bunch of not-quite-there material.

Certain Songs #680: The Impressions – “People Get Ready”

October 25, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: People Get Ready
Year: 1965

A top-twenty single for the Impressions and an almost instant standard, The Impressions “People Get Ready” is on the shortlist of Prettiest Songs Ever Recorded, Soul Division.

Written by Curtis Mayfield, “People Get Ready” is slow and stately, stopping and starting seemingly at will, powered mostly by Mayfield’s guitar, which spends much of the song walking down the street, looking for other believers.

Certain Songs #679: Imperial Teen – “Pig Latin”

October 24, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Seasick
Year: 1996

On the shortlist of Prettiest Song Ever Recorded, Indie Pop division, “Pig Latin” is one of a few excellent songs on Imperial Teen’s amazing 1996 debut, Seasick.

Founded by Faith No More’s keyboardist, Roddy Bottum, along with Will Schwartz, Jone Stebbens and Lynn Perko, Imperial Teen’s half-boy, half-girl, half-gay, half-straight multi-instrumentalist lineup resulted in music that was utterly unique.

Certain Songs #678: Immigrant Union – “Shameless”

October 23, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Anyway
Year: 2014

“Hey,” Kirk said to me earlier this year, “did you know that Courtney Barnett was in a band for awhile?”

“I did not.”

“Here, let me play them for you.

And that’s how I discovered the amazingly dreamy and utterly gorgeous songs of Immigrant Union.

Certain Songs #677: Iggy Pop – “Lust For Life”

October 22, 2016 by Jim Connelly

Album: Lust For Life
Year: 1977

Because “Amount of Music > Time in Life”, we all have our blind spots. Artists that have been around forever that are loved and respected and that we’ve never been able to get around to doing more than barely scratch the surface of their career.

And for me, one of those blind spots is the full catalog of the inimitable James Newell Osterberg, Jr, AKA Iggy Pop.