Songs I Didn't Skip (Part 44)

 I'm definitely encountering more repeats as I randomly work my way through my library, as expected, but here are more tracks that made me linger.  Spotify playlist

"Sky Blue" by Peter Gabriel (2002)

One of the stronger tracks from this mid-late LP. The vocals from The Blind Boys of Alabama put this over the top.

"Ticket to Ride" by The Beatles (1965)

I love the drum figure that Ringo does on this song.

"I Walk Away" by Crowded House (1986)

Unlike a good chunk of 1980s pop music, this band's material doesn't need a haze of nostalgia to still work. How do I know this? Crowded House wasn't something I was listening to very often during the 1980s, so I don't associate the band with my Glory Years (LOL), such as they were.

"Standing on Higher Ground " by The Alan Parsons Project (1987)

"...I'm Alan Parsons and this is my Project!"  A deeply inside joke. If you don't get it, don't worry, just imagine Mike Myer's saying the band's name as an alternative joke.

"Venus" by The Shocking Blue (1970)

It's funny, but like most people, I have long been aware of this track along with the 1980s Bananarama cover and assumed the original was sung by a guy and the cover sung by a gal(s). It turns out, that the singer on the original was *also* a gal. "Fun" fact. And yeah, the original is still better.

"Ramblin' Man by The Allman Brothers Band (1973)

There's some great guitar work going on here and I didn't realize that this is not in fact a cover of the Hank Williams song.

"This Ole House" by Rosemary Clooney with Buddy Cole and His Orchestra (1954)

Hey, there's Thurl Ravenscroft in a song again! And, another Clooney song slathered with Mitch Miller's production sound. 

"Monty Got a Raw Deal" by R.E.M. (1992)

Uh yeah, I don't know what this song is about. Typical.

"Familiar Love" by William Shatner and Ben Folds (2004)

I still appreciate how the album this came from so deftly balanced the self-deprecating and earnest qualities that Shatner exhibits. I can get behind that!

"Excitable Boy" by Warren Zevon (1978)

Another WZ song that has aged so well. Plus, backing vocals by Linda Ronstadt and Jennifer Warnes.

"Perspective" by Peter Gabriel (1978)

A very different song from 1978, back when PG would feature a sax solo. It was a different time.

"Don't Pay the Ferryman" by Chris de Burgh (1982)

There's this soft voice over in the middle of this song that's delivered by Anthony Head (RIP) from Buffy and most recently, Ted Lasso.

"Fragments of Time" by Daft Punk (2013) 

A decent cut from this monster album from (gulp) 13 years ago, even if it's overshadowed by some of the other material. 

"Don't Worry Baby" by The Beach Boys (1964)

A decent song that was the "B" side of the hit, "I Get Around". The stereo mix is super wide, as was the way in those days. Like some of the Beatles stuff of the era, this one might be better in mono.

"Midnight Cowboy" by Henry Mancini (1969)

A kind-of cool lounge/easy listening tune from the famous movie. It seems really ironic. This was one of several instrumental versions of this song that popped up in the wake of the movie. Unlike most of Mancini's hits, ht didn't write this one (John Barry).

"Tomorrow's Gonna Be a Brighter Day" by Jim Croce (1972)

 A classic apology song.

"The Chamber of 32 Doors" by Genesis (1974)

The strong closing song of the first half of this prog-rock epic that doesn't quite add up to the sum of its parts.

"The Sound of Silence" by Simon & Garfunkel (1982)

From the "Central Park" live album, this version, while nice, lacks the drive of the studio recording. 

"You Don't Miss Your Water" by William Bell (1961)

A lesser-known but still solid classic Stax record.

"Those Were the Days" by Cream (1968)

Damn, this short and over-the-top track really cooks! This was Cream at its peak. 

Dad's Movies: "Stanley and Livingstone"

 Today we have the 1939 safari/adventure movie, Stanley and Livingstone.

These kinds of classic Hollywood history movies often don't age well and while there are aspects here and there that are above average, this movie as a whole is pretty rough sledding here in the 21st Century. 

The show does look more impressive and authentic as it did send a second unit to African locations, but the principal cast was not there and as well done as the process photography is, you still see where the location footage and the studio-bound actors meet.  Fox really wanted to make use of the likely-expensive location shoots, so there are lots scenes where we see the line of guys walking through scenery with Spencer Tracy's narration droning on. It's a bit slow. 

Tracy does well carrying the movie and the supporting cast is fine, though Hardwicke isn't super inspiring as Livingstone. He's.....fine. Walter Brennan is there for some fairly weak coming relief and is underused. 

Considering how many classic movies were released in 1939, this one falls a bit short, though I can't imagine how well this kind of story would have been told at the time. I really wonder what Dad would have thought of this one when/if he watched it in his later years. 

Dad's Movies: "Twelve O'Clock High"

 This is a pretty obvious one, 1949's Twelve O'Clock High.

This movie sits at an interesting crossroads in movie history. The film gets into serious detail about a bomber squadron doing daytime raids against Germany, which was a new thing for the Allies at the time. It was also very dangerous with high casualty rates. Gregory Peck's character comes in to relieve the squadron leader who is having difficulty maintaining the bombing campaigns while his men suffer losses and high levels of stress. 

There is a level of realism and honesty about war that was almost unheard of for WW2 movies at that time. On the other hand, the dialogue and some stylistic touches are more similar to movies made during the war. Overall, the show really strives for a realistic and sympathetic approach and was rated very highly by WW2 vets as one of the only movies that came close to depicting what is was like for these flight crews. 

The movie is very talky with many scenes taking place in offices and personal quarters, which makes things seem slow. If I had a criticism, it would be that there were a few too many early in the film speeches and exchanges, especially given how well done and tense the one late-film air battle is. Also great is the realistic look of the sets and exteriors; those are real B-17s being used in the takeoff and landing sequences. The stock combat footage is well integrated into the movie.

The cast is overall very good. I don't always love Peck's acting style, but he's great here, though he seems a little young to be a general. Nitpicks.

I'm sure Dad found this movie to be hard hitting, given his time building combat aircraft during the war.

Dad's Movies: "Dead Reckoning"

 No, not the Mission: Impossible sequel, but Dead Reckoning (1947), the Bogart film. This movie slots in during the peak time of Film Noir, but doesn't quite fit the Noir mold. This one feels like a mashup of a number of other Bogart detective movies, but adds the angle of a guy returning from WW2; makes sense. 

The story has some silly dialogue (well-delivered by Bogart) and too much flashback/VoiceOver narration for my taste, but gets the job done with a number of plot twists that aren't super obvious. 

Bogart is great, as usual, even when delivering his little monologue about how women should act (yikes). Lisabeth Scott does well, though she doesn't always convince as a conniving femme fatale.

Dad was a big Bogart fan, so I suspect he grabbed this one, while agreeing that this is no Maltese Falcon.

Dad's Movies: "The Moon is Down"

The Moon is Down (1943) is remembered, if at all, for the fact that it's based on a Steinbeck novel and maybe for it having Henry Travers (Clarence in, It's a Wonderful Life) in it. Like a lot of others made that year, this is most certainly a product of its time, but it rises above other similar propaganda movies made during the war in how it humanizes individuals, even some of the Nazis. 

The cast does reasonably well, even if they tend to underplay some of the scenes, with Travers and Peter van Eyck, making the strongest impressions. Oh, and Natalie Wood appears in her first movie as a child. 

The movie spends a little too much time having the characters stand around monologuing, but makes its point. This is another movie that I'm pretty sure Dad saw during the war, perhaps between shifts at the P-51 factory. Another point he probably found amusing was the way that the Germans brought a brass band with them to the occupied village. 

Songs I Didn't Skip (Part 43)

WTF, 43?  At some point I will have to do a follow up installment where I go through this as one playlist and see which ones I linger on. Yes, "Songs I (still) Didn't Skip".  Don't get too excited.

"Pull Up the Roots" by Talking Heads (1983) 

The album this is from, "Speaking in Tongues" is such a classic that it's hard to find anything new or interesting to say about stuff from it. This song is such a fun 'Heads take on Funk, and yet retains the essential oddness of the band. 

"Back in the USSR" by The Beatles (1968)

I'm sure I've talked about The White Album before here, but it's the first Beatles LP I became familiar with as a youth and so it occupies a larger than normal place in my brain, even though it really isn't, in my view, the strongest Beatles album. It is, however, the one I am most fond of. I think I barely knew what "Back in the USSR" was parodying when I first heard it, but it rocks out, no matter what.

"245 Days" by Peter Himmelman (1989)

I think I first heard this song on one of those music-only cable/satellite TV channels in the late-1990s. This channel really had some great 1990s+ alternative pop that wasn't at all on my radar. The channel was so good that I recorded hours of it for later review on my Minidisc recorder. Wow. This song is still really good with some great, super-TWANGY, fretless electric bass playing. Oh, and Himmelman is from Minnesota, so that's a bonus. 

"Get Up Offa That Thing" by James Brown (1976)

Speaking of bass players, the guy on this track, Will Lee, was the longtime bassist for David Letterman's house band. Cool. 

"On Interstate 15" by Wall of Voodoo (1982)

I'm pretty sure I was driving somewhere when this song came up. Perfect. 

"Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic" by Isaac Hayes (1969)

Ever the intellectual, Mr. Hayes uses a lot of ten dollar words in this song. But, the groove is the thing.

"Welcome Back" by John Sebastian (1976)

Yes, back when TV shows had hit songs for their theme songs. This one is really good, and lyrically has a lot going on! Of course, the song, even in its broadcast TV length, must seem intolerably long for an opening credits sequence. "They tease him a lot, 'cause they've got him on the spot. Welcome back."

"Cuts You Up" by Peter Murphy (1989)

Apparently, this guy is known as the "Godfather of Goth". Fun fact!

"Broken Jaw" by Foster the People (2011)

The instrumental break in the middle of this song sounds like it could be the music for the latest Mega Man game.

"Tell the Truth" by Ray Charles (1960)

Hmm, did James Brown borrow the horn lick from this tune for "I Feel Good"?

"We Never Change" by Coldplay (2000)

Despite its age and lots of use in movies/TV, the tunes from this band's debut album still sound pretty fresh.

"Proud Mary" by Ike and Tina Turner (1971)

Damn, this really cooks! I think this outdoes the original.

"Lodi" by Creedence Clearwater Revival (1969)

A natural choice to linger on after the last tune. It's hard to believe this was the "B" side to "Bad Moon Rising". It's not the usual filler they usually used for that.

"You Happy Puppet" by 10,000 Maniacs (1989)

There's that droning organ again.

"Wake Up Little Susie" by Simon and Garfunkel (1982)

Such a natural song for these two to cover.

"Gone Hollywood" by Supertramp (1979)

One of the few full LPs I bought with my own money in 1979. I pretty much played it to death. The album itself doesn't aspire to prog rock but settles into what the band was meant to be, '70s pop with just a bit of an edge.

"Sweet Dreams" by Patsy Cline (1963)

A heartbreaking classic, of course, but they should have ditched the strings. Cline herself, apparently agreed.

"I Can Help" by Billy Swan (1974)

This must have sounded old, even in 1974. 

"Love Rollercoaster" by Ohio Players (1975)

Aside from the silly story that surrounded the recording of the song, it's just FUN.

"Hole in the River" by Crowded House (1986)

I think Mr. Finn needs to explain how exactly a hole can get into a river.

Dad's Movies: "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo"

 It's more WW2 fun with Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944). 

This movie slots in nicely with over propagandistic shows of the time that really wanted to not only play up the Doolittle Raid, but paint those serving overseas in a heroic light at a time when the war had been going on for a while.

Spencer Tracy really only has a few scenes where he gives speeches (he always asks if anyone wants to drop out!) so the real featured performer here is Van Johnson. Johnson does relatively well not overplaying his role and the rest of the cast is mostly okay with a small early role for Robert Mitchum, who stands out.

The film plays it pretty straight on the facts of the Doolittle mission and isn't nearly as cringy with the anti-Asian stuff as other similar films, but the real issue is that the show is just too long. The first half feels like a slog and doesn't really pick up until the story shifts to the mission itself. 

The score is pretty weak with a lot of stock cues and patriotic musical wallpaper. Fine. 

And, one of the best things about the movie is all the authentic shots of WW2 aircraft. There's a lot less stock footage than you'd expect. 

I don't know how much Dad loved this movie, but I'm sure he remembered it from the time since he was likely spending his days building airplanes (P-51s), so this would have meant something.