No, not US3

Herbie Hancock's "Cantaloupe Island." Classic Jazz composition done to Funk.


Apologies for missing Yesterday's post... there was drinking to be done.
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So what if he's a Tool?

His music ain't that bad. Kanye West, self-proclaimed "Pied Piper of his Generation," does put out some good tracks. Well, he can sample like a fiend, anyway. This is "Stronger," off his Graduation effort. The sample comes from the musically superior Daft Punk.


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A P-Funk Flashlight remix

Parliament... one of the great Funk bands. The song "Flashlight" is one of the better known songs, and here it is fittingly given a funky remix. Give it a listen.


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Taking a trip down funk lane...

Why not? I think I did Punk all last week... let's look at a week of Soul, R&B and Funk.

Lakeside's "Fantastic Voyage." Coolio sampled this in the late 90s, but nothing was as good as the original.


Gotta love the slap-bass guitar.
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Too Hot

... taking us back in time to the 70s. Kool and the Gang's "Too Hot." Killer song.


Some Disco ain't so bad.
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Double Friday Chaos!

NoFX! Monosyllabic Girl!



And "Theme from a NoFX Album."


And one more, "Liza and Louise."

Have fun kids. Love the 101.
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100 posts!

Wow, I never thought I would get here.

"Feeling This," by Blink-182. The video is a testament to the wanton, lustful, energetic nature of pent-up adolescence. That, and its a sunny day. I may have to take the convertible out --


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Pantera?

Of course not, I'd never do that to you. For complete fun on a Wednesday, I present to you Nerf Herder's "Pantera Fans in Love."

Just when is Earth Day, exactly?

Ok, this one took a long time to find... but totally worth it.


"What are we Gonna Do?" by Dramarama, off the 1991 album Vinyl. I heard this when hitting my "hippie-caring-about-the-world-cuz-granola-girls-are-cute" phase. Kept it up for a good few weeks... until the summer swell hit and I could really smell the wrongness of my decision.

If I wnated that, I would have went to France and dated a Parisian. Or Montreal, for that matter.

enjoy!
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Four Twenty!

And who better for this auspicious date? Tom Petty. The classic tune "Learning to Fly," from the album Into the Great Wide Open. Awesome album.


Smoke 'em if you've got 'em!
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End Credits? Who watches End Credits?

When you have something this majestic, some of us stay for the complete end.

John Williams' masterful work on Star Wars (way back before anyone remembered that it was "A New Hope"), the ending was incredible. I remember that I actually sat, rapt, through the entire proceeding, awash in the brass, percussion and moving strings.



Enjoy. Go to sleep.
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In Me You See, a Man, Alone...

Gotta get me some blues today. Muddy Waters', "Mannish Boy"


'Hoo chile.
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The late Friday Post

A little New Swing for you...

Brian Setzer Orchestra, "Rock this Town, Live"


Only one this Friday kids... kinda feeling down.
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Boy am I Tired...

...So I give you the inimitable Lily von Schtupp. Madeline Kahn from Mel Brook's Blazing Saddles. Probably the best song from a person with a speech impediment.


I'm gonna catch some sleep. Cya.
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A Time to Chill...

1988. A sample from George Benson. The Fresh Prince and probably the best DJ ever to scratch, DJ Jazzy Jeff. A nice, slow rap song. The duo killed in the Party Rap scene (along with Kid n Play), and are form contenders when one considers the "Golden Age of Hip-Hop."

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince's "Time To Chill," off the album "He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper."


And as a bonus for the mid-week, from the same album, "Rhythm Trax - House Party Style." While a fun track, it also goes into a bit of analytics on the DJ mixing for the masses, totally highlighting Jazz's skill. Prince speaks to much on the tune, though.

Later!
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Love Bizarre?

Continuing the 80s theme, but not the poppiness of it all, comes a pop-funk tune from drummer/guitarist and Prince sometime bedmate Sheila E. The song "The Love Bizarre" comes off her 1985 album Romance 1600. A lot of the success of the song has been attributed to Prince, due to this being the only collaborative track on the album. The beat syncopation, the use of the horns and bassline are markedly different than her other efforts on the album, making for a bit of an off-tone to the rest of the tracks.

Anyway, it's a fun song. Enjoy.

Wow... I haven't posted any Prince yet. Interesting.
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Ok I gotta get this one out...

Over the weekend, there was way too much 80s being played. While I don't condemn that, they never played this one: Jane Wiedlin's "Rush Hour."

Ok yeah, totally poppy. However, this blog is to expose you to interesting tidbits that you may not have known: Jane was the only Go-Go that was able to play her own instrument from the beginning.

That being said, it doesn't excuse the fact that this is a horrible vid. I'm sorry. At least enjoy the song.


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All kinds of Awesome

This is a bit of a treat for you all, and you may not know it. The video below is the performance of Herbert Clarke's "Carnival of Venice," with Wynton Marsalis and the Boston Pops. Conducting is the incredible John Williams. A triptych of totally awesome.



And as a special Easter Treat, the complete version can be found here:

Happy Easter!
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Ok, No More Soundtracks!

At least for a while. Sorry, got into a rhythm.

So, it's Saturday. It's been an interesting week. I kinda wish I were 15 again, kicking around on my skater. I miss my skateboard. I have one here in the office, but I ride rarely. I may need to take my daughter out and teach her to ollie.

Wow, the day is starting to look up.

Enjoy SuperDeluxe's "Sweater (All I wanted was a Skateboard)." Have a fun weekend. I may be out for Easter Sunday.

I think I have that sweater.
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Electric Dreams is coming out on DVD....

Sadly, a child of the 80s. Synth-Pop, big hair and bad movies were the key of the day. Of course, if not for tunes like this, America would have devolved into a corporate, retarded black and white culture run by idiots.

That took Britney Spears.

In any case, if you have not checked out the film Electric Dreams, you are totally missing out on a great Romantic movie with a serious Geek/Musician element.

Phil Oakley, Georgio Moroder's "Together in Electric Dreams."


And a special treat, Jeff Lynne's "Video."

Enjoy your Friday!
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A Place Where Nobody Dared to Go...

... and they called it "Xanadu." But not the version you may remember.

In 1980, the movie of the same name had Olivia Newton-John singing the titular song. ELO re-recorded it in 2000 with Jeff Lynne on the vocals. Of the two, I think this is a little more palatable. And singable in a normal vocal range. Watch out Karaoke artists!


Dream a little, why don't you.
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A Little English

...Johnny English, please!

From the Johnny English Soundtrack, Robbie Williams' "A Man for all Seasons." Yes, I know, horrible movie. However, out from the ashes rises the Phoenix.

Robbie Williams is what some would say is the "UKs Harry Connick Jr." Well, quite the compliment, but he stands up as a vocalist on his own right. Whether belting out popular standards ("My Way" and "Sunshine" are a few notables), or belting out tunes of his own, RW deserves a listen-to.

But I'd like to see him go up against Buble. That may be interesting, as a comparative study.

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I need that Meal...

Ron Burgundy and friends doing Starland Vocal Band's "Afternoon Delight." I need a chance to laugh. And Christina Applegate looks better here than she did on Married with Children.


Stay Classy, San Diego.
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Ghost Town, and the Idiots

This place is like a Ghost Town.

I'm of course, talking about work. There cannot be a place more hated than one's workplace. The worlds most inane software developer is not immune to this.

After the layoffs, people ran scared. There was a small drain of talent. People became un-motivated. In times like this, as a "leader" of a team, it falls to me to deal with the fallout in my own inimitable fashion. Of course, when people above me fuck up, and ask for me to deal with the situation, I have to shield my personnel as best I can.

Of course, there are other fucking idiots that I must contend with. People that, in all respects, could not be trusted to hold the urinal cake I am utilizing at the time. Because they could even fuck that up. Those people can keep their jobs (and their respective, minuscule teams), without missing a beat.

But you know what? I have had it. Letting loose the dogs of war. Fuck this place, and the shitty, bureaucratic self-masturbatory company it has come to represent.

The Specials -- "Ghost Town"


And a special, vitriolic hymn from NoFX... "The Idiots are Taking Over."


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Heading Back Home

The best thing about going to California is leaving it. I will miss the sunshine, driving fast, and the pretention, but I like that. I guess I'm an Emo kid at heart, I'm really happy when it rains.

And without further ado, Jesus and Mary Chain's, "Happy When it Rains." Damn, I wish my hair did that.

Glad to be heading back.
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Flying

Whenever I am in CA, I have a piece of serenity. Like things somehow fit within my life. Like no other place in the world, I am truly content. Hence, Odi et Amo. Always a love/hate relationship with this darned state.

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes', "I Believe I Can Fly."

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Double song Automated Friday!

Yeah, I'm still on Vacation...

Mamas and the Papas', "California Dreamin." Have to love the flute, and the counter melody. That, and I want one of those hats.


...And no Cali series can be complete without The Beach Boys. Here is "True to your School." There is a version of this song with cheerleaders dubbed on the track, which kills the song. This is the original.

Have a great Friday!
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... Huh, I don't think so.

Holy crap, I forgot how cool this song was. LL Cool J's "Going Back to Cali." This was back when MTV used to only play white Rock tunes (except for MJ, Prince and Lionel Ritchie), so I never got to see this vid.

Anyway, the bring in with the muted trumpet was just phenomenal, and created a great counterpoint to the DJ scratch. Additionally, the horn section that is featured prominently through the song is utilized really well.


My favorite memory of a road trip happened with this song. 1/2way through a trip in a truck with my two best friends, the radio broke, but the cassette player still functioned. Well, the driver only had the cassingle (remember those) of "Going Back to Cali." Which we heard 23 times before the guy in the middle seat of the truck snapped and threw it out of the window.

No one said a thing.
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Vacation!

I couldn't find the Go-Go's tune(outside of the live versions, and they don't sound that great live), so I opted for SP.


Yeah, I'm going on vacation, so I am running this on AP.
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