Certain Songs

Certain Songs #2455: Stealers Wheel – “Star”

October 5, 2022 by Jim Connelly Leave a Comment

Album: Ferguslie Park
Year: 1973

. . .

Apparently, Gerry Rafferty — who’d already released a solo album — had quit Stealers Wheel before their 1972 debut album had even come out. But then “Stuck in the Middle With You” became a massive hit, and given how well Rafferty and Joe Egan sang together, Stealers Wheel reformed as essentially a duo for the follow-up, 1973’s Ferguslie Park.

And so, the decision was made to mine Ferguslie Park for the follow-up singles to “Stuck in the Middle With You,” hoping that lightning would strike again. But, of course, it didn’t.

Certain Songs #2454: Stealers Wheel – “Stuck in the Middle With You”

October 4, 2022 by Jim Connelly Leave a Comment

Album: Stealers Wheel
Year: 1972

. . .

“Stuck in the Middle With You” came out at almost the exact moment I fell in love with KYNO-AM and spent all my time listening to it, and even though I don’t think I ever bought the single, it was definitely one of my favorite songs of 1973, and looking back, it’s pretty easy to see why.

Opening with an acoustic guitar, rumbling bass and handclap(!)-dominated rhythms, “Stuck in the Middle With You” wastes no time digging right into singer Gerry Rafferty’s dilemma: he wants to be Bob Dylan.

Certain Songs #2453: The Staple Singers – “(If You’re Ready) Come Go With Me”

September 20, 2022 by Jim Connelly

Album: Be What You Are
Year: 1973

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The Staple Singers had so much success with “I’ll Take You There,” they decided let’s do it again, especially after the follow-up singles totally stiffed. And so, their next big single, “(If You’re Ready) Come Go With Me” was a virtual clone of “I’ll Take You There,” right down to the reggae-ish lilt and call-and-response chorus, led by Mavis, of course.

Certain Songs #2452: The Staple Singers – “I’ll Take You There”

September 19, 2022 by Jim Connelly

Album: Be Altitude: Respect Yourself
Year: 1972

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Here’s a thing I don’t understand: why is that this lovely gospel-soul-reggae combination never listed along with the songs that helped reggae crossover to a mainstream U.S. audience? I mean, sure you’ve got your Desmond Dekker “Israelites” and your Johnny Nash “I Can See Clearly Now” and even your godsdamned Eric Clapton “I Shot The Sheriff,” but none of those songs are as great as this one, not even close.

Certain Songs #2451: The Staple Singers – “Respect Yourself”

September 18, 2022 by Jim Connelly

Album: Be Altitude: Respect Yourself
Year: 1972

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I’m not really sure why The Staple Singers don’t seem to have garnered the same lasting buzz that some of their soul compatriots from the same era have. But I’m guessing that it came down to presentation: they didn’t have the same flamboyance that peers like Sly & The Family Stone, Aretha Franklin or James Brown had. They were always low-key.

Part of it might have been that they were a family act, but that didn’t seem to stop The Jackson 5, though that’s hardly fair, given that Michael Jackson was clearly a major talent from the start.

Certain Songs #2450: The Staple Singers – “Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom-Boom)”

September 17, 2022 by Jim Connelly

Album: The Staple Swingers
Year: 1970

. . .

While The Staple Singers didn’t cross over into the pop market until 1970, for the previous decade or so they’d been perfecting their incredibly simple formula: Roebuck “Pops” Staples’ slinky lead guitar and understated lead vocals plus Mavis Staples rough-and-ready lead vocals co-existed on top of some combination of Cleotha, Purvis & Yvonne Staples singing backing vocals.

With Pops doing most of the arranging, they explored a whole plethora of styles in the 1960s: gospel, of course, but also soul, blues, country, folk, and rock — often leaning to the political. And so they covered old classics like “John Henry,” beat Led Zeppelin to “Nobody’s Fault But Mine,” and even covered songs like “A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall” and “For What It’s Worth.”

Certain Songs #2449: St. Vincent – “… At The Holiday Party”

September 16, 2022 by Jim Connelly

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Album: Daddy’s Home
Year: 2021

. . .

Gotta say, it’s pretty funny/ballsy to release a song called “At The Holiday Party” smack dab in the middle of a global pandemic that basically wiped that concept from the face of the earth.

But other than that, “At The Holiday Party” is a deeply empathetic look at someone who is — as R.E.M. once sang — “alone in a crowd.”

Certain Songs #2448: St. Vincent – “Severed Crossed Fingers”

September 15, 2022 by Jim Connelly

Album: St. Vincent
Year: 2014

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Guitarist and singer Annie Clark had been making records under the nom de song St. Vincent since 2007 when 2014’s self-titled record came out. While I think she had previously crossed my radar — and I’d checked out the album she made with David Byrne, Love This Giant, a couple of years prior — St. Vincent was the first time I listened to a whole St. Vincent album.

And the song that jumped out at me was the final track on the album, “Severed Crossed Fingers,” a achingly gorgeous synth-led torch song about hanging with someone who was having some issues.

Certain Songs #2447: Squirrel Bait – “Sun God”

September 14, 2022 by Jim Connelly

Album: Squirrel Bait EP
Year: 1985

. . .

I’ve often wondered what that kid was doing to that Walkman on the cover of Squirrel Bait’s 1985 debut EP. Was he eating it? Was he kissing it? Was he trying to play it like a harmonica? Apparently, that cover was designed by gadfly and future poker champ, Steve Albini, and I guess I could get on twitter and ask him, but, honestly, that would take all of the mystery away.

That mystery kind of extended itself to the music within. What was it, exactly? It was too melodic to be straight-up hardcore, but it was too heavy to be pop-punk, as there was definitely a metalish element in there, as well. That said, to my ears, Squirrel Bait was one of the earliest bands to pick up on what Hüsker Dü was putting down. I realize that’s not exactly the most original observation, but that doesn’t make it any less true, as kids across the country were doing their own variation on that sound.

Certain Songs #2446: Squeeze – “Annie Get Your Gun”

September 13, 2022 by Jim Connelly

Album: Singles 45’s And Under
Year: 1982

. . .

One of the greatest things about English punk and post-punk was not just it was singles-oriented, but also that the bands were so freakin’ prolific. Which is why so many of those bands put out such great singles compilations. Obviously, the greatest will forever be the Buzzcocks Singles Going Steady, but I’ll also put in a word for The Jam’s Snap, or XTC’s Waxworks: Some Singles 1977–1982, even if they were all solid albums artists as well.

Anyways, right up there with all of those is Squeeze’s Singles 45’s and Under, which came out in 1982, and made such a mark on me that the only Squeeze song I’ve written about that wasn’t on it were “There at The Top” and “Labelled With Love” (which was on the U.K. version instead of “If I Didn’t Love You.”)