Three for the Ride: The Pursuit of Happiness, Badfinger, KXM

Some days, I take the train to work. Other days, I drive. Either way, I listen to music on the way. I put the iPhone music player on shuffle, and off I go. Calling my collection eclectic would be an understatement. It's often an interesting mix. There are songs though, that I really wish the world could appreciate as much as I do. Songs that make me say, "Ooh, listen to THIS! Isn't it great?!"

Here's what I heard this morning:

The Pursuit of Happiness: "I"m an Adult Now"
Todd Rundgren is a prolific producer, having produced some of the biggest selling records of all time, including Meatloaf's Bat out of Hell. He's produced Cheap Trick, The Tubes, Patti Smith, XTC, New York Dolls, Badfinger, Grand Funk Railroad, Hall & Oates, the Psychedelic Furs, Bourgeois Tagg and the Canadian band, The Pursuit of Happiness - just to name a few. The album, Love Junk, was released in 1988. This was the first of three singles from the record. At the time, it was a pretty heavy tune. You can definitely hear Todd's influence on it.



Badfinger: "No Matter What"
1970's No Dice was Badfinger's second album and this was the band's first top-ten single. Written by the late Pete Hamm and the late Mal Evans. It has a distinct Beatle flavor to it. The band was on Apple records and the song was recorded at Abbey Road Studios so there was definitely a Beatle influence there.. I recently got to see Joey Molland play this song. Joey is the surviving guitarist who played on the original track. He's the McCartney look-alike strumming happily away on the Gibson Firebird in the video.



KXM: "Rescue Me"
What do you get when you put together drummer Ray Luzier (Korn), bassist, vocalist Dug Pinnick (King's X), and guitarist George Lynch (Dokken, Lynch Mob)? KXM. It's soulful, heavy, kick-ass, melodic metal with amazing drums and a killer hook. This track, "Rescue Me", is from 2013's self-titled debut.



Until next time...