Three for the Ride: Sia, Soundgarden, Jane's Addiction

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:

Sia: "Breathe Me"
Colour the Small One (2004) is Australian singer-songwriter Sia's third album. Apparently this song was featured on HBO's Six Feet Under television series and has appeared on numerous other shows and movies. Well, that's great. That's not how I heard it, though. I just thought her voice was unique and it was a powerful song. Perhaps that's why it was chosen for all those uses. Hmmm.



Soundgarden: "Black Hole Sun"
The third single from Superunknown (1994) is hands down my favorite Soundgarden song. It's a real departure from their normal fare, being very accessible. It had more radio play than any other Soundgarden song and is probably how I came to hear it to begin with. I love Chris Cornell's voice and Kim Thayil's guitar through the Leslie speaker on this tune. I couldn't begin to tell you what it's about, but the chord progression and melody are great. I also love the super-heavy bridge and ending. The video is super creepy, too.



Jane's Addiction: "Up the Beach"
"Up the Beach is a powerful opening track on Jane's Addiction's 1988 studio debut, Nothing's Shocking. There are no meaningful lyrics, making the song more of a mood piece - a sonic painting. It opens with Eric Avery's bass line and then Dave Navarro layers on huge guitar parts that are the meat of the song. Perry Farrell adds a layer of ooh's and aah's that complete the picture. I like this album, but to me, the opening track is the strongest part.



Until next time...

Three for the Ride: Moby, D.C. Talk, Nazareth

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:

Moby: "Memory Gospel"
I mentioned in a previous column that this track appears on the Get Carter Soundtrack (2000). It's from Moby's Play: B-sides (200) and also appears on the "Honey" CD single release which includes several other tracks. That's all I got. I don't know the female artist who sings on it and would love to know who it is if you're in the know. Great track, regardless.



DC Talk: "Jesus Freak"
Christian music was way behind the times in the 70's through the 90's. It's gotten much better with bands like Switchfoot, Skillet, and others. But in 1995, Jesus Freak, the third album by the Washington D.C.-based rap act (hence the name D.C. Talk), was a break-through that literally changed the Christian music scene. It reached 16 on the Billboard 200 had six singles reach number-one across various Christian radio formats and it won the 1997 Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album. It is an outrageously well written and produced rock album that is one of my favorite records, period. The album was co-produced by the lead rapper and founder, TobyMac (Toby McKeehan whose musical sensibilities are fantastic.



Nazareth: "Miss Misery"
Nazareth was a Scottish rock-metal band that finally gained international acclaim with their sixth record, 1975's Hair of the Dog. The title track and "Love Hurts" were the two singles released from the album. This track, the second on the record, reminds me a lot of early Black Sabbath. It's a pretty dark, straight-ahead metal tune with a very interesting ending.



Until next time...

Three for the Ride: KISS, The Church, Cream

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:

KISS: "Do You Love Me?"
KISS released Destroyer in 1976. Produced by the genius Bob Ezrin (Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Lou Reed, Peter Gabriel, Pink Floyd, and oh-so-many more), Destroyer was their fourth studio album and is, by far, my favorite KISS album. The album features 10 tracks, including "Detroit Rock City", "God of Thunder", "Shout It Out Loud", "Beth", and the rock-love anthem "Do You Love Me?" I love the huge over-produced refrain at the end. Orchestral bells will get me just about every time.



The Church: "Destination"
The Church's sixth album, Starfish. was released in 1988. It was the first mainstream success the band experienced and they had a major hit with "Under the Milky Way." I was suckered in and bought the record. It's a great record. The songwriting is strong and the style unique. There are great guitar textures, varying moods, and an almost ethereal quality to some of the record. It also definitely has moments where the band's "Aussie" peeks through.



Cream: "Badge"
I watched the Concert for George for the first time the other night. Eric Clapton sort of hosted the event. And whenever I think of Eric and George Harrison together, in addition to "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", I also think of "Badge." They wrote it together and I think it's the best thing Cream ever did. (Well, O.K., it's tied with "White Room.") I got to see Eric play this live the first time I saw him, too, which is a whole other great story. From 1969's Goodbye...



Until next time...

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...

Three for the Ride: Alanis Morrissette, Pat Metheny Group, Stylistics

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:

Alanis Morissette: "Dear Prudence"
In October, 2001, TNT aired Come Together: A Night for John Lennon's Words and Music. It featured some great performances, like STP doing "Revolution", Cyndi Lauper's version of "Strawberry Fields Forever", Shelby Lynne's tear-jerking rendition of "Mother", Lou Reed performing "Jealous Guy", Rufus Wainwright and Sean Lennon doing "This Boy" and "Across the Universe" (Moby is also on the latter), and this track, "Dear Prudence" performed by Alanis Morissette. Her band is killing it, especially her drummer, Gary Novak. The performances are floating around out there on YouTube, etc. Check 'em out.



Pat Metheny Group: "American Garage"
This is the title track from American Garage, released in 1979. Going to number one on the US Jazz charts, it has Metheny's signature guitar sound, but this song, in particular, is a bit more "rock" than his usual fare. The album features Pat Metheny on electric and acoustic guitars, Lyle Mays on keys, bassist Mark Egan, and Dan Gottlieb on Drums. I love the cover of this album with the Airstream trailers on it. Such great Americana.



Stylistics: "You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)"
The Stylistics were an early-70's soul group out of Philadelphia. The band's signature sound was that of Russell Thompkins, Jr.'s falsetto vocal stylings. Burt Bacharach and Hal David wrote this song that appeared on 1972's Round 2, their second album. The song was also sung quite famously by Dionne Warwick, but this version actually charted a little higher.



Until next time...

Three for the Ride: Aimee Mann, Led Zeppelin, The Eric Gales Band

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:

Aimee Mann: "I Should've Known"
Formerly of 'Til Tuesday fame ("Voices Carry"), lead singer Aimee Mann has gone on to a solo singer/songwriter career that has led to her songs appearing in movies like Magnolia, Jerry Maguire and on the cult t.v. hit Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In a word, she's fabulous. I love her music. Great songs, great lyrics, great hooks, and a great voice. This song is the opening track from her first solo record, 1993's Whatever. The production on it is killer. If you listen to this and don't fall in love with her stuff... I've added a link to the original video, which I can't embed here ;(

Here's a link to a video of the song as it should be heard!

The only version I could find on YouTube that wasn't corrupted was a live version from the Jules Holland show- the band's a little flat on this one, so listen to the other version, if you can.



Led Zeppelin: "Bring it on Home"
Yeah, I've done Zeppelin recently. But this is such a great song. and can you ever really do too much Zeppelin? I didn't think so. The intro and outro is based on the 1964 Sonny Boy Williamson version of the song Wille Dixon wrote, but the rest is all Page and Plant. When the band comes in at 1:43, it just doesn't get any better and John Bonham's drums on this song are crazy. Tied for my favorite track on 1969's Led Zeppelin II, I give you...



The Eric Gales Band: "I Want You (She's So Heavy)"
I was standing around waiting for King's X to take the stage in Tempe, AZ, listening to what their sound man was playing on the sound system, when I heard Eric for the first time. It is rare that I will go out of my way to find out who an artist is. His guitar playing is incredible. I have since seen him live and can tell you, the dude is the real deal. He does a Hendrix tribute that will leave you amazed. He's also teamed up with King's X's Dug Pinnick recently in Pinnick, Gales, Pridgen. This cover of the Beatle's song is from 1993's Picture of a Thousand Faces. Just listen to the guitar work.



Until next time...

Three for the Ride: Dire Straits. Black Sabbath, Supershine

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:

Dire Straits: "Telegraph Road"
Most albums I buy, I recall the circumstances. 1982's Love Over Gold is one of those records that I just don't know how I came across it. But I'm glad that I did. "Telegraph Road" is a 14-minute long masterpiece that is, IMHO, Dire Straits's best work. It never gets radio play, so if you've never had the record, you've probably never heard the song. The kinda hokey "Industrial Disease is the only single from the album to chart in the U.S. "Telegraph Road" is an epic, moody piece, best listened to in solitude with headphones. I liken it to being Dire Straits's "Stairway to Heaven", "Freebird", or "Jungleland".



Black Sabbath: "Neon Knights"
Ozzie Osbourne left Black Sabbath in 1979 and was replaced by the now-late Ronnie James Dio. That following year, 1980, the band recorded and released their first-ever album without Ozzie, Heaven and Hell. This song, cowritten by Dio, was the opening track and the first time anyone had heard the new Sabbath sound. I bought the album immediately after hearing the song on the radio.



Supershine: "Take Me Away"
Guitarist Bruce Franklin teamed up with bassist and vocalist Dug Pinnick of King's X in 2000 to release the self-titled Supershine. It's heavy riff-driven rock reminiscent of Black Sabbath and Grand Funk Railroad. As one reviewer on Amazon put it, "it generally makes you want to get into powerful American cars and drive fast with the radio blaring." Which, oddly enough, is exactly how I initially listened to this record, driving my Mustang GT convertible across the Arizona desert. This link is to the entire album, but the first track is "Take Me Away." So, listen to as much as you like, but at least listen to the first track.



Until next time...