Here's a joke that was all the rage with 10-, 11-, and 12-year-olds back in the late '70s:
What do you call the sweat between DOLLY PARTON's breasts?
(beat)
Mountain Dew.
I'm telling you, back in the day, that killed. (Also: the one that starts, "So Jesus was being crucified at the top of this big hill" and ends, "Peter, I can see your house from here!" Classic.) (And: a racist joke involving the shoplifting of "nacho cheese." In retrospect: not-so-classic.)
Anyway... Dolly Parton -- like KENNY ROGERS -- took a pretty fruitful detour into the pop mainstream around the same time that those jokes were making the rounds on elementary-school playgrounds from Nashville to New Hampshire; Memphis to Montana. (I must say, though, that it was the incantatory ode "Jolene" that had me spellbound this time through.)
[MP3] "Islands in the Stream" [w/KENNY ROGERS] [1983]
[MP3] "9 to 5" [1980]
[MP3] "Here You Come Again" [1977]
[MP3] "I Will Always Love You" [1974]
[MP3] "Jolene" [1971]
[Today's Sunday mix is a two-parter. Look for the latter half later today -- after I've dug myself out from an imminent blizzard.]
For his finely-feathered, thrillingly-symmetrical hair and beard alone, KENNY ROGERS deserves some of our Sunday lovin'....
As I'm not the world's biggest country fan (Understatement Alert!), it should come as no surprise that the bulk of the selections here are pulled from a more adult-contemporary/pop-rock period in Mr. Rogers' career. Thus: songs by LIONEL RICHIE, BOB SEGER, and the BEE GEES.
[MP3] "We've Got Tonight" [w/SHEENA EASTON] [BOB SEGER cover] [1983]
[MP3] "Love Will Turn You Around" [1982]
[MP3] "Lady" [1981]
[MP3] "Don't Fall in Love With a Dreamer" [w/KIM CARNES] [1980]
[MP3] "The Gambler" [1978]
[MP3] "Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town" [w/THE FIRST EDITION] [1969]
Uh-oh. I think I'm about to "jump the shark" with this one....
THE VERONICAS are "JESS and LISA ORIGLIASSO, twin sisters from Brisbane, Australia, who Sing, Write & Play Guitar!" They make glossy, glossy pop that's produced within an inch of its life. I can't say for sure, but I think this may be what AVRIL LAVIGNE would sound like if she was Australian and had a twin.So, why the hell am I posting this pouffy ephemera? I haven't the foggiest. Other than: It's Friday. So why the hell not?
THE VERONICAS on MySPACE.
From the LP HOOK ME UP, 2007 >>>
[MP3] "Take Me on the Floor"
[MP3] [VID] "Untouched"
From the LP THE SECRET LIFE OF THE VERONICAS, 2006 >>>
[MP3] [VID] "Revolution"
[MP3] [VID] "4Ever"
By their very nature, tribute albums tend to be hit-or-miss affairs. DIG FOR FIRE: A TRIBUTE TO PIXIES is no exception (though, unfortunately, it leans more to the latter than the former). I'd rate the following as at least marginally worthwhile....[MP3] THE COMMONS [w/ELIZABETH HARPER]/"Here Comes Your Man"[MP3] CARL DOUGLAS/"Bone Machine"
For the first eight years of their existence, UK trip-hop/electronica outfit MORCHEEBA could be counted on to produce smooth, slinky grooves that perfectly suited singer SKYE EDWARDS' smooth, slinky vocal stylings. Then, Skye went bye-bye.Enter DAISY MARTEY for 2005's THE ANTIDOTE, a change-of-pace journey into '60s- and '70s-styled, psychedelic pop-rock that alienated a goodly number of the faithful. Exit Daisy Martey.Now, brothers PAUL and ROSS GODFREY are back with Reinvention #2. Who's singing the songs this time around? Why, all sorts of people, that's who. That's right -- guest vocalists! And some of them aren't even women! Why the hell didn't MASSIVE ATTACK ever think of this? (Oh, wait... they did.)The album DIVE DEEP will be released in January of '08.
MORCHEEBA on MySPACE.
[MP3] "Enjoy the Ride" [w/JUDIE TZUKE]
[MP3] "Flowers" [w/MANDA]
And R.E.M. thought we were "Bushwacked" back in '92.... If only they'd known....[VID] GEORGE W./"It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)"
You may have heard of a little band called RADIOHEAD. You may have heard that they recently released an album on the Internet. There's a discbox, too -- extra tracks and such. Cost me $85. Arrived yesterday. The first song below is one of the extra tracks and such. It'll cost you nary a nickel. Dig that dark vibe. Dig the synths.Track #2 is a cover of a BJORK song; live/in-studio; remixed in an unofficial sort of way by RICHARD JANKOVICH aka POCKET.Tracks #3 and #4 are logical enough addendi. What goes around comes around. Pop will eat itself. Pop is dead. Hop on pop.
[MP3] "Up on the Ladder"
[MP3] "Unravel" [Pocket Mix]
BONUS TRACKS >>>
[MP3] BJORK & THOM YORKE/"I've Seen It All"
[MP3] BJORK/"Unravel"
Here's a joke that was all the rage with 10-, 11-, and 12-year-olds back in the late '70s:
