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Buffalo Tom

Certain Songs #149: Buffalo Tom – “Mountains of Your Head”

April 1, 2015 by Jim Connelly

image

Album: Let Me Come Over.

Year: 1992.

Especially in the late 80s and early 90s, I was always a sucker for folks mining the musical vein pioneered by Hüsker Dü

– fast, catchy punk-pop played by a power trio. Obviously, as the years progressed and we went from Moving Targets to Dinosaur Jr. to Buffalo Tom to Goo Goo Dolls to Green Day to Blink-182, the law of diminishing returns kicked in even as sales got bigger, but every single one of the aforementioned bands stuck at least one song into my love zone.

(And by the way, while I came up with that particular progression of bands off of the top of my head, subsequent research revealed that the AllMusic biography of Moving Targets – who were pretty damn close to the first picking up what the Hüskers were laying down – was written by Buffalo Tom’s guitarist/singer Bill Janovitz, who also wrote the 33 1/3 book for Exile on Main St.)

In the case of Buffalo Tom – who where a pretty good singles band throughout their initial run  – I have an unexplained love for their 1992 album, Let Me Come Over, which tossed more than a few slower ones and acoustic guitars into the mix, and was incredibly tuneful throughout. Energetic numbers like like “Saving Grace” and “Darl” wouldn’t have felt out of place on Candy Apple Grey, and they sounded even better in early 1992.

Best of all was “Mountains of Your Head,” which dug its way into my heart with a guitar hook that I’ll be able to sing for you for the rest of my life, even if I’m still not sure what the song’s about. And actually, as far as I’m concerned, “Mountains of Your Head” is about the reappearance of that hook after Bill Janovitz sings:

What’s on your mind?
If it’s on your tongue, you should speak
Speeeeeeeeeeeak!

And I’m guessing that Janovitz got that as well: the last minute of the song is basically the guitar hook repeated over and over again, overlaid with piano, what sounds like mandolin, and what I think are steel drums or marimbas or some other musical percussion.  It’s rough and gorgeous all at the same time.

Video for “Mountains of Your Head”

My Certain Songs Spotify Playlist:

Every “Certain Song” Ever

Filed Under: Certain Songs, Hot Topics, Music Tagged With: Buffalo Tom, Let Me Come Over, Mountains of Your Head

21 Musical Moments To Die For

December 19, 2008 by Jim Connelly

This seems to be way more fun than Linus' big speech. You can talk about genres, artists, albums, or even songs, but sometimes what keeps us coming back to music is the discovery of the transcendent musical moment. For me, “the moment” is the part of the song that fully and utterly engages me; the reason that I keep coming back to it.

I’m not necessarily talking about hooks here, because the purpose of a hook is the draw you into a song. I’m really talking more about traps: the part of a song that that keeps you there.

The is the fifth in a series. The first one had 25, the second one had 24, the third one had 23, the fourth one had 22.

Also: there is a slight — but not total – Christmas theme going on with this one. More of an arc, really. And a couple of mini-arcs, too!

Every single moment I’ve listed below kills me single every time I hear it.

Oh, and this isn’t in any kind of order, despite the numbering.

[Read more…] about 21 Musical Moments To Die For

Filed Under: Music, Musical Moments To Die For, That's What I Like Tagged With: Adam Duritz, Alex Chilton, Big Star, Billy Bragg, blink-182, Buffalo Tom, Charlie Brown, Counting Crows, Dream Syndicate, Drive-by Truckers, Dwight Yoakam, Echo & The Bunnymen, Elvis Costello, Jim Morrison, Michael Jackson, Pogues, Soft Boys, The Concretes, The Doors, The Hold Steady, U2, Vince Guaraldi

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Previously on Medialoper

  • Certain Songs #2579: Supertramp – “Bloody Well Right”
  • Certain Songs #2578: Supergrass – “Sun Hits The Sky”
  • Certain Songs #2577: Supergrass – “Alright”
  • Certain Songs #2576: Superchunk – “If You’re Not Dark”
  • Certain Songs #2575: Superchunk – “Endless Summer”

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