Scrobbling Last.fm

Pandora radio is this website / app that is, apparently, amazingly good at finding new music you will like, based on algorithmic analysis of music you already like. However, it’s never been legally available to Canadians.

Nevertheless, I have found my way through to it a few times. But I’ve never had the patience to stick with it long enough to see its amazing-ness in action. Because, of course, you have to “seed” it with information about your current tastes. This requires you rating songs it throws at you, or trying out shortcuts like naming a band you like.

I don’t have the patience to stick with the ratings thing for too long, and naming, for example, The Who, as band I like, results in a fairly unsophisticated playlist of bands like The Rolling Stones, Cream, and Jimi Hendrix, none of whom I’m that bowled over by. (So whatever it is I love about The Who, it’s not whatever musical commonality they have with those bands.)

But, then rediscovered Last.fm. Legally available to Canadians—albeit not on our smart phones!

I had actually signed up for a free trial with Last.fm a little over a year ago, but didn’t end up motivated enough at the time to switch to pay mode. However, I did allow them to continue to “scrobble” on my computer, even though I didn’t quite know what that meant. I just knew that after running iTunes to sync my iPod, it would ask if it could “scrobble” certain tracks, and I’d say sure, and it would apparently do that.

But I checked them out again recently and discovered that it has been essentially building up a profile of my musical tastes. It has lists of the artists and songs I’ve listened to most in the past year, 6 months, 3 months, or ever… Most of which are not a surprise, although the vagaries of the iPod shuffle do result in some weirdness, such as the fact I that I apparently listened to Abba’s “Thank You for the Music” more than any other song last year! (Geez, it’s not even my favorite Abba song…)

Abba, of whose music I am apparently very grateful

And then, if you pay Last.fm (a big $3 for a month), you get access to various “radio” stations based on your stats. You can use them to just listen to stuff you already own (to which I say, don’t I already have an iPod / iTunes for that?), or to a mix of your songs plus other songs they think you’ll like, or to entirely new music they suggest.

You can also build stations based on theme (like 80s music, classic rock, or dance), or other artists, which will also take into account your listening history.

I don’t believe Last.fm has the sophisticated algorithm that Pandora does. So, results are a bit uneven. For example sometimes my mix has just too frequent repetitions of weak-link offerings such Keith Moon solo songs or Queen without Freddie Mercury, or gets too heavily weighted toward female singers (maybe that’s the Abba effect?), leaving me with a testosterone craving.

Roger Daltrey — … before she needs a little Daltrey

Although The Who playlist (sigh) has too much Cream, Jimi Hendrix, and Rolling Stones.

Fortunately, though, you can always switch to another “station” if the current one is letting you down. I had great luck with “The Police” radio, for example, which seemed to result in playlist of all the 80s music that didn’t suck! And that magically seemed to improve my “Mix” when I went back to it after.

All in all, Last.fm is helping me find new (or old) music that I like, or had forgotten I like, even though I though I do have to skip forward through some tracks on the way. (I now know, for example, that Elvis Costello did a quite decent version of Christina Aguilera’s “Beautiful”) For the impatient Canadian, it’s not a bad option.

Strange little girls: Great covers of men’s songs, by women

I’m not going to call these “the best” (how would I know?), but here are ten songs originally written and recorded by men, later covered by a woman, where I think the cover surpasses the original. Not in any particular order (because I couldn’t make up my mind).

1. Working Class Hero by Marianne Faithfull

Originally written and recorded by: John Lennon

I love John Lennon’s original version, but Marianne Faithfull’s take, from her fantastic album Broken English (1979), featuring her upper-class accent and broken voice, is just darker and angrier and therefore, somehow, more awesome. Certainly better than Green Day’s fine but unexciting version on the Instant Karma John Lennon tribute CD (which is, unfortunately, full of fine but unexciting covers).

The video is a live version. I’m not sure it’s better than the studio version, but it’s good, and certainly more interesting to look at for six minutes than a static picture of the Broken English album cover.

2. Heartless by Dia Frampton

Originally written and recorded by: Kanye West

To be honest, I wasn’t sure I’d heard Kanye’s version of this until today. Having listened to it now, though, I can confirm that I like Dia’s version much more. To be fair, Kanye’s music isn’t the type I tend to listen to anyway. But when Ms Frampton did this version on The Voice, I thought it was one of the greatest things I’d ever heard. Lots of others did too, as it very nearly propelled her to victory on that show.

It’s a bit hard to find a good version of that Voice performance now. You will have to pop over to YouTube to actually see the below.

3. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door by Avril Lavigne

Originally written and recorded by Bob Dylan

This is a probably a controversial choice, but I’ve never been much of a Dylan fan. I don’t quite get him, and I can’t get past that voice. But no doubt this is a really good song. And say what you will about Avril, that girl has a good set of pipes. She covered this song for the War Child charity, which assists child soldiers. I find her singing on it very touching. She may be a bratty 18-year-old here who doesn’t really understand the issues, but that makes her the same age as the young men (usually men) caught up in war. You may disagree, but for me, this works.

I also find the official video pretty touching.

4. Hallelujah by k.d. lang

Originally written and recorded by Leonard Cohen

And here’s the obvious, uncontroversial choice! She kind of owns this song now, complete with dropping one of the original verses (“Remember when I moved in you…”). Hearing her do this one live last year was as stunning as you’d expect. (And I also like her cover of Talking Head’s “Heaven”.)

Going with the video of her Juno performance here, as they may be when most Canadians realized what a great marriage between song and singer this was…

5. Real Men by Tori Amos

Originally written and recorded by Joe Jackson

Tori did an entire album of covers of songs by men, from which I’ve borrowed for the title of this post: Strange Little Girls. It has a dark version of I Don’t Like Mondays, a terrifying take of Eminem’s ’97 Bonnie and Clyde, an unrecognizable Heart of Gold. But my favorite is Real Men. I like the Joe Jackson original too, but Tori’s version just sounds great, and you can’t help but see a song about men’s gender roles differently when it’s song by a woman. It seems less snide and more thoughtful.

Here’s a very good version Tori did on TV.

6. Enjoy the Silence by Lacuna Coil

Originally recorded by Depeche Mode

Someone I follow tweeted that this was the “best cover ever”. I don’t think that’s so—I believe some on this very list are better—but it is a good cover, of an 80s tune I hadn’t given much thought to in quite a well. It sounds more powerful, more dramatic. And it inspired this post, which was originally going to be just a list of covers in general, until I realized most of the ones I was picking out were of women covering men’s song.

(Know what would be tough list to put together? Great covers men have done of women’s songs…)

Here’s the official Lacuna Coil video for “Enjoy the Silence”.

7. The Man Who Sold the World by Jordis Unga

Originally written and recorded by David Bowie

Bowie’s version is somewhat cerebral; Jordis brings a lot of emotion to this song, which she performed on long-ago reality series Rock Star: INXS. She said it reminded her of a friend who had committed suicide. This performance was the show-stopper on this episode of that series.

8. Sweet Jane by Cowboy Junkies

Originally written and recorded by Lou Reed

Not that Cowboy Junkies are all women (neither are Lacuna Coil), but Margot Timmins’s mellow yet sexy vocals definitely contribute a lot to the popularity of this cover. I had a few year’s gap between hearing this and the very different original, which I’m still not that crazy about. But the Cowboy Junkies’ “Sweet Jane” still has that nice groove.

The official video.

9. Crabbuckit by The Good Lovelies

Nothing wrong with KOS’s original, but you got to love the gorgeous three-part harmonies The Good Lovelies bring to this, while still retaining the lively beat. Fun group to see in concert, by the way.

Apparently they never did a video for this, so this one of those static sound types. Barely over 2 minutes long, though.

10. Darling Nikki by Chairlift

Originally written and recorded by Prince

An unlikely song for a woman to sing, which is partly why I love it. They sort of play around and deconstruct the song while keeping it recognizably, absolutely, Prince’s Darling Nikki. From Purplish Rain, once offered free by Spin Magazine, a collection of rather good covers of Prince’s Purple Rain, in its entirety.

Hard to find any online version of this, but you can listen to the MP3 here: Chairlift – “Darling Nikki” (Prince cover)

Post-New Year dinner

The companion, I suppose, to our pre-Christmas celebration is our post-New Year dinner. New Year’s Eve we go out to a restaurant; early in the new year, we make ourselves a gourmet dinner. Normally this happens much closer to January 1, but with Jan 1 being a Tuesday this year with back to work occurring on Wednesday, we put it off until the following weekend.

I actually pondered inviting other people over for it this time. But what happened is what usually does when I think of having people over for dinner: I over-think myself out of the whole idea. How much will my gluten-free friend manage to eat? (I remain fuzzy on exactly what does and doesn’t contain gluten.) Do my friends who don’t eat red meat consider lamb red meat? Does my friend who only eats read meat consider lamb red meat? Does anyone have a shellfish allergy?

Perhaps I need less complicated friends. At any rate, it was just the two of us, again. And maybe it just as well, as it turned the menu would have left my imaginary guests entertaining themselves for semi-long stretches while we were in the kitchen cooking, because very little of the meal could be prepared in advance.

Partly because I had been thinking of having guests, and you’re not supposed to try new recipes on them (not that it’s stopped me before), all of this year’s items were ones we’d made previously, though never combined in this way. While in some ways it seemed unfortunate not to try new stuff, the fact is we rarely make these gourmet items any other time of year. So why not repeat some of the greatest hits of the past?

First up: Mussels and clams, steamed in white wine flavored with lemon grass and green curry paste, then finished with cream and coconut sauce. I don’t know what it was this time, as the recipe involved virtually no added salt, but the broth tasted almost too salty. Almost, but not. Maybe from the mussels and clams themselves? The mussels were just great, though. Lovely texture, almost as if we didn’t live very far from the ocean.

I was going to serve this with the Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc it cooked in, but we ran out (the bottle had been opened before), so we had Ice Cuvee with it, which I think was better. That’s a mix of sparkling wine with just a bit of ice wine, and that slight sweetness nicely offset the salt. The playlist accompanying this course was The Beautiful Ones (that is, lovely-sounding songs).

The main course featured lamb loin chops with sides of Brussels spouts and wasabi mashed potatoes. Everything was simple to do, but the two of us having to manage timing and coordinating the three items was moderately challenging. Mostly fun, though, actually.

The lamb just had to be seared on each side in olive oil, then baked at 400. Then in the same pan, I prepared a jus of red wine and beef broth (organic). The mashed potatoes were your basic red potatoes, diced (skin left on) and boiled, then when tender, mashed with light sour cream, low-sodium chicken broth, some butter, and yes, wasabi paste (as in, the green stuff they serve with sushi). The Brussels sprouts were steamed slightly, then cut in half (Jean did much exclaiming about burnt fingers), and pan-fried in olive oil. Those were then topped with more olive oil, fleur de sel, and fresh lemon juice.

Man, this all turned out really well. The lamb was maybe a bit overdone, but still had some pink, and tasted amazing. Ms Paltrow is right, and this is a good way to prepare Brussels sprouts. And fresh mashed potatoes are great with a little zing!

We served this with a very easy-drinking 2009 Chateauneuf-du-pape. And listened to the Thoughtful playlist—songs with smarts.

Dessert was the one item that I could prepare in advance: A chocolate souffle recipe from the Epicurious website. (We still don’t own ramekins, though, so they still ended up in an assortment of custard dishes, corningware, and whatnot.) It’s basically melting chocolate, mixing it with milk, then with egg yolks, then beating whites and folding those in. And, sugar is involved as well. Then everything is placed in the ramekin substitutes in the fridge, awaiting later baking. While preparing I listed to my “Long ago and far away” playlist of songs I hadn’t played in the past year—that is, songs I didn’t listen to in 2012. New year, new songs.

The later baking produced ooey-gooey good molten chocolate warm dessert, served with port. Playlist for the eating: Love, the sweetest thing: romantic songs.

Beethoven, Mahler, Penelope, and The Beatles

Playing a bit of catch-up here, on the eclectic mix of KW Symphony concerts we’ve seen this fall and winter…

It began in September with the season opener. The first half were two fairly fabulous modern classical pieces, both by local composers, Stewart Goodyear’s Count Up and John Estacio’s Brio: Toccata and Fantasy for Orchestra. The second half was somewhat more familiar: Beethoven’s Symphony in D minor: The Ode to Joy. It’s a bit funny in that it features a mass choir (four choirs, combined) and four soloists, but for most of the performance time, they are just sitting there. They only start singing in the later movements.

But what a gorgeous piece that is. I’m always worried I’ll get a bit bored during the slow bits of classical pieces, but that didn’t happen here. Too beautiful, too moving. Then afterward, we attended the opening gala, which offered a live band (not classical), dancing, hors d’oeuvres, drinks, and an auction. It was a fun evening.

In October, we saw Penelope, by Sarah Kirland Snider (who was in attendance), which was part of the Intersections series. It was a “song cycle”, in which a woman’s husband returns from the war after many years, not remembering his previous life. The performance is his wife’s reaction to this and attempts to restore his memory, partly through reading Homer’s Odyssey to him.

Haunting is probably the best descriptor of this one. It wasn’t quite like anything I’ve heard before. It was written for and performed by Shara Worden, who has a gorgeous but unusual, almost unearthly, quality to her voice. Think I’d like to get the recording, though it would be the kind of thing you’d want to just listen to and through on its own, and not on shuffle mode with other things.

(I found this video while researching this, and really got drawn into watching it all, though it’s seven minutes long…) After the song cycle, Shara Worden performed some of her own songs, which were quirky and somewhat lighter, even featuring audience participation.

Then earlier this month, Edwin Outwater presented the work he’d listened to a lot as a (clearly very unusual) teenager, Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No 5. The piece is over an hour long and requires more musicians than KW Symphony has, so they were joined by about 40 additional musicians. In the first half, after with Schubert’s brief Entr’acte No. 3 from Rosamunde, Outwater explained what was going on the various parts of the Mahler symphony, with excerpts, then in the second half, they played it all. Though I’d had kind of a day at work, I couldn’t help but be drawn in by the gorgeous music rather than brooding on that.

He’s right that it’s an amazing work. Still can’t imagine myself having listened to it as a teenager, though.

Revolver cover art Finally, the first Jeans’n’Classics concert led off this month with something I did listen to as a teenager: The Beatles: Rubber Soul and Revolver. Jean calls me a snob for this, but I still protest that following the old US releases of these albums rather than the more definitive UK / CD versions was a weird Boomer thing to do, particularly as it meant the omission of songs like “Love You to” (my favorite of the three Harrison songs on Revolver) and “And Your Bird Can Sing”. And the even more brilliant songs “Drive My Car” and “Nowhere Man” are only recent additions, tacked on at the end of Rubber Soul’s odd US play order.

But then again… Maybe has does have a point that it’s just a quibble, because it was a really good concert. The Beatles music is very suited to the symphonic treatment, and Peter Brennan clearly loves them and does cool, original things with the arrangements, such as intermixing “Within You Without You” (from Sgt. Pepper) into Octopus’s Garden.

The two lead singers, David Blamires and Neil Donnell, both have exquisite voices, and their weaker stage presence was made up for by having personable keyboardist John Regan lead us through the set. We also got Don Paulton on keyboards, in a rare double-shot on the ivories. And one has to mention that apart from singing well, as always, Kathryn Rose looked particularly fetching. She seems to be one of those women who just get more attractive as they get older.

The set list, of course, featured three of my all-time favorite Beatles songs, “Norwegian Wood” (which led to a night-long debate as to just what John Lennon was setting fire to there), “In My Life”, “Girl” (so sensual), and “For No One” (a most devastating breakup song). But those two albums are just strong in general, so there wasn’t much dross. The very odd “Tomorrow Never Knows” was suitably trippy ending to the evening.

Quadrophenia live on Grey Cup weekend

Going in, I had mixed feelings about this one.

Of course, there was no way I would miss seeing The Who performing one of my favorite albums in nearby Toronto. But despite the mostly positive reviews of the tour (the only exceptions being from those boomers who, far as I can tell, mainly resent The Who for no longer being 25), I wasn’t sure how much I would enjoy it. I thought that:

My seats at the opposite end of the stage (behind the floor seats) would not compare well with the “right in front of the stage” seats I’d had at the last two Roger Daltrey concerts.
The sound quality would be pretty crappy.
The singing quality might be kind of crappy, given how difficult Quadrophenia is to sing.

Our view of The Who stage — We weren’t exactly down front this time…

The date would also prove to throw up a few other challenges. When I bought the tickets back in July, I didn’t know that would be bringing me to downtown Toronto on Grey Cup weekend. That made for some incredibly inflated weekend hotel prices! And just a wee bit of extra traffic.

But it all turned out better than expected.

We were actually staying (without intending this at all) at the “official Grey Cup hotel.” Which, yes, it was pretty crazy with people there. But they were a bunch of really happy people! And it’s not every day you see the Winnipeg pipe band playing and marching in your hotel lobby while blue-haired Argos fans and cowboy-hatted Calgary fans look on. It was weird, and definitely seemed that my Who T-shirt was the wrong uniform to be in, but it was entertaining.

And all my concerns about the concert evaporated really quickly as well:

We weren’t close, it’s true, but we were as central as you can get, with perfect sightlines. At any time I could see all five big screens, all members of the band on stage, and if I really wanted a closer view, I had binoculars.
The sound quality wasn’t bad at all. The horns, keyboards, guitars, bass, and drums all seemed nicely mixed; it was loud enough without being too loud.
Of course some of the songs were wisely keyed lower than the original, but Roger Daltrey sang the best I’ve heard him in recent years, deftly handling the vocal jumps in “Dr. Jimmy”, singing the chorus of “Love Reign O’er Me” with impressive power and passion, and absolutely nailing the scream in “Won’t Get Fooled Again”.

The opening act

I do want to pause for a minute and acknowledge that opening act Vintage Trouble were fantastic. Led by Ty Taylor—most famous as a former contestant on Rock Star: INXS—they were energetic, engaging, and charismatic, and Ty’s signing voice remains a miraculous thing. Their half-hour set was tons of fun, and I’m going to pick up a few more of their songs. They earned a standing ovation.

Quadrophenia

As is typical, not everyone showed up for the opening act (their loss) but by the time 8:30 rolled around, that stadium looked really packed—more than I expected, really, as I didn’t think it was a sellout (and maybe it wasn’t, but it must have been close). And once again, I had that feeling that the people of Toronto really love The Who. They may have been average age 50 (I’d guess), but they were as enthusiastic as teenagers.

Another killer Who show. Toronto crowd are loud – like a home crowd. Where to next? Detroit, Minneapolis, Chicago…

— Simon Townshend (@simont40000) November 24, 2012

Apparently the original Quadrophenia tour was a bit of a mess, the band not having been given enough time to prepare for a live presentation of that complex music. The 1996/97 outing (which I have on DVD) featured a narrator telling the story of Jimmy the Mod. This one returned to another central idea of Quadrophenia: that it represented the band itself, aspects of the four very different personalities in The Who. So it was presented, sort of, as today’s Who paying tribute to their own past.

The Who before backdrop, Quadrophenia — Earlier in the show; Roger still in jacket

They played the album straight through, no narration, not even pausing to talk to the audience. But throughout, they used the five large screens behind them to either illustrate themes of the songs (a lot of water imagery—don’t see this show on a full bladder) or show scenes from that time. (Along with showing what was happening on stage, of course.) Often the scenes were of their younger selves. For example, during “The Real Me” and “Cut My Hair” were scenes of the very young mod Who at the tiny clubs they originally played at.

During “The Punk and the Godfather”, the song where Jimmy is angry that The Who have become so famous, abandoning their mod roots, the scenes were all of the band in their glory days: Pete leaping, Keith thrashing, John being cool, and Roger as the ultimate rock God. (Struck me that seeing the younger selves on the big screen while the current members sang live was the closest someone my age could possibly get to seeing The Who in their prime. And yes, I’m grateful for the experience.)

On “Helpless Dancer”, the tough guy theme, Pete and Roger traded off lines (Pete seemed to deliberately censor himself on the “lesbians and queers” line, which was interesting) while the screens showed The Who in their destructive phase, smashing their guitars, drum kits, and microphone stands, and setting off bombs.

Most notably, of course—it’s mentioned in every review—during 5:15, the live band stops at one point to allow the big projection of John Entwistle to play his famous bass solo from the Albert Hall concert in 1997. The band was really rocking at this point, and earned their first standing ovation of the night.

The Who 2012 doing 5:15 — Out of my brain on the train, on the train… 5:15

Then during “Bell Boy”, Roger handed off vocal duties to Keith Moon (video image of), just like in the old days. (Here’s video of that–not by us–also featuring the fabulous “Dr. Jimmy”, which followed.)

I have to say I found that part unexpectedly touching. I’m too young to remember when Keith Moon died; to me, in a sense, he’s always been gone, you know? So seeing this footage is the first time I can recall feeling sad about his passing.

During the instrumental “The Rock” (the only time Daltrey left the stage) the images ran through key points in history from mod days to now. The timing of the music to the 9/11 imagery was powerful and, again, very touching.

That led to the aforementioned “Love Reign O’er Me”, in which I was honestly astounded at how great Roger sounded on the chorus. I have to say that another thing about the hockey arena is that it really struck me how big and powerful his voice is, when contrasted with that of the Townshend brothers. Simon has a gorgeous, sweet-sounding voice; Pete’s has developed a bit of an odd growl in the lower ranges. But neither can fill the space in the same way.

“Love Reign O’er Me” produced the second standing ovation. (Video of that: Not from great seats, but does have great audio.) It was also the conclusion of the Quadrophenia portion of the evening.

… And more

The Quadrophenia portion was tailor-made for The Who geeks. It was not so good for more casual fans, such as my husband (who was very happy he at least had his camera with him, to keep him busy. He took 1500 photos!). So the “and more” part of the evening was especially for them. Pete Townshend finally addressed the audience, talking about how Toronto had always been a special place for the band. And then they launched into “Who Are You” over a fun backdrop, featuring, among other images, a Canadian flag (very astute of them) and the Argos logo!

Meanwhile, the smaller screens flitted between different band members. Who are you? Who, who?

“Behind Blue Eyes” followed (the crowd just stayed standing through this entire last part), and it was quite something to hear that many people singing along with every line. Then we got “Pinball Wizard“–and both Jean and I are quite surprised how well the video of that turned out, given the distance, apparent from the shaking:

What followed were the two remaining CSI themes, “Baba O’Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again”. Complete with epic scream.

The very end featured just Daltrey and Townshend, on the most perfect song to end it on, “Tea and Theatre”, from Endless Wire. According to the Toronto Sun, they’d played for 2 hours 20 minutes. And gotta say, both Daltrey (who looks younger than he is) and Townshend (who does not) make growing older look a lot less scary, they had so much energy throughout, jokes about foot rubs and bed times notwithstanding! We should all be in such good shape at their age.

Rockers past their prime? Sure. But #TheWho last night at #ACC was one of the best concerts I’ve seen in years. Simply outstanding.

— Richard Budman (@shot7news) November 24, 2012

On being a fan of Bob Geldof’s music

Apparently it’s quite weird that I want to go see Bob Geldof in concert. (For the third time, no less.) People seem to find it as strange as if I said–I don’t know–that I had tickets to see Bill Clinton. Play saxophone.

In that, it’s not as if Bob Geldof isn’t famous. He’s the Live Aid guy; the one who gets interviewed about African issues; who is an occasional guest editor of national newspapers; who won the knighthood decades before Paul McCartney, Elton John, Bono, and Mick Jagger did; and who is the father of all those girls with weird names (Pixie, Fifi, Tigerlilly, Peaches…).

It’s just that he’s no longer thought of as a musician.

A friend of mine kind of summed up what the world thinks: “Really interesting guy. But I don’t like his music.”

To which I say, Oh, really?

Because it appears to me that most North Americans know exactly two Bob Geldof songs:

I Don’t Like Mondays
Do They Know It’s Christmas?

And that they love both of them. One is the prototypical 1980s song; the other one the prototypical pop Christmas song. When Electric Thursdays does 80s music; “Mondays” is the big encore everybody is thrilled about. At their Christmas concert? Yes, the Band Aid song gains the standing ovation at the end.

I heard this song first via this video–on TV Ontario, of all things

But people have no idea what else Bob Geldof has done (musically).

So this is how I became a fan.

I stuck with The Boomtown Rats longer than most

This seems largely forgotten now, but everywhere except the US (where, thanks to “Mondays” getting banned, the Rats weren’t even a one-hit wonder), the Boomtown Rats were a very popular band in their time. They spent 123 weeks on the UK charts, including two songs at number one (the other being “Rat Trap”). In Canada, they played hockey arenas, and appeared on SCTV.

I became a fan of the Rats the same way everyone else did—after I heard “I Don’t Like Mondays”. It’s just that I stuck with them longer than most. I was not deterred by the “world music” sounds of Mondo Bongo (the album after the “Mondays” one), nor the dark themes permeating the amazing V Deep, VI Shallow. Judging by sales figures, others were a little put off by this. But I remained a fan to the end (that being the sixth and last album, In the Long Grass.)

One of my favorite songs from V Deep VI Shallow: Talking in Code, live

I saw Bob Geldof live

Bob’s first solo album, Deep in the Heart of Nowhere, in wake of Live Aid and all, was something of a success, with the hit single, “This Is the World Calling”. I got that at the time (my favorite song was “Pulled Apart by Horses”), but honestly, like most people, I then lost track of his musical career. “The Great Song of Indifference” was a big hit most places, but Canada followed the States in ignoring it.

A live version of The Great Song of Indifference

So when I went see him in concert in 2002, it was mostly due to Boomtown Rats nostalgia. And he did a reasonable sampling of those tunes, but also quite a few from the solos albums I had missed, and therefore didn’t know: the Irish jig-infused Vegetarians of Love and The Happy Club.

The fun My Hippie Angel, from The Happy Club

But no matter: I loved the show. As I wrote at the time, it was–and remains–one the best I’ve ever seen.

I bought all his solo albums

After that show, I picked up the two albums I’d missed, and I listened more to the one I’d picked up shortly before the show: Sex, Age, and Death. It would prove to become one of my favorite albums by anyone, ever.

One for Me by Bob Geldof, clearly inspired by now late but then merely former Mrs. Geldof, Paula Yates

And when his new one, the hilariously titled How to Compose Popular Songs That Will Sell came out last year, I bought that. It’s quite varied in style, but consistent in high quality.

Why I’m fan

It’s pretty simple, really. I’m a fan of music of Bob Geldof’s music because I listen to it.

You are not a fan only because you do not listen to it. It is not played on radio, it is no longer a big hit, you have seek it out.

If more people listened to it, more would like it. Not everyone, obviously, but more. His tunes are catchy. They have intelligent lyrics. His band is fantastic. There’s plenty to like. (And Ontarians, please note: You have an exceedingly rare opportunity this week and next week to see him play live, in Hamilton, St. Catharines, Oshawa, Ottawa, and Brockville. They’re small venues, not expensive, and if it’s anything like the two shows of his I’ve seen, you won’t regret it.)

Closing out with Bob’s life in song, in the amusing hidden track from his latest album, Young and Sober. “In the year of 75, that’s when I sang myself alive.”

White Wine in the Sun

Today was “our” Christmas celebration, in advance of events with the extended family on the actual days.

As a result, it seemed apropos to play the “Christmas” playlist. (Particularly as I received a new iPod dock I had to try out.) But though all 82 songs are self-selected and heavy on the non-traditional, I gotta say that it’s just not my favorite type of music.

However, there are a few stand-outs.

* Sting’s “Gabriel’s Message”, a simply gorgeous song proving that not all rock star Christmas songs for charity have to suck.
* The Kink’s ”Father Christmas”, a somewhat dark yet catchy tune, that unfortunately seems timely: A poor kid just wants cash for Christmas, or “give my Dad a job ’cause he needs one.” All those toys? Gives them to the little rich boys.
* Adam Sandler’s Hanukuah Song which, OK, isn’t about Christmas at all. But though I’ve heard all the jokes in it many times before, it still makes me laugh. “OJ Simpson… Not a Jew!”
* Do They Know it’s Christmas? Truly the weirdest set of lyrics ever penned by an atheist, and ones I’m sure Geldof, now an expert on Africa (as he wasn’t then), must wince over. Still, too many good memories around this song. And I love its jingly-jangly sound.
* Last year’s YouTube discovery, Spiraling’s mash-up of “Do You Hear What I Hear?” with The Who’s “Baba O’Riley”, producing the most awesome guitar riff in a Christmas song ever.

And this year’s YouTube discovery, courtesy of @eoutwater of the KW Symphony: Tim Michen’s “White Wine in the Sun”. Lovely, funny, and true, Minchen’s explains his fondness for Christmas despite his reservations about “the commercialization of an ancient religion, the Westernization of a dead Palestinian”. But you get to be with your family in a relaxed state, and that’s what it’s all about. 5 stars.

C’est la tou-re tou-re, la tourtière

When I make tourtière (“meat pie”), a French Canadian dish traditionally served at Christmas-time, I do not follow my mother’s, or Jean’s mother’s recipes.

First of all, the math is just too difficult. They, of course, cannot conceive of making any less than 12 pies at once. Whereas I, who do not have a steady stream of French Canadian visitors during the holiday season, only want one pie. You try dividing all the ingredients by 12.

Plus, I have the definite sense that even I went for the 12, mine wouldn’t be quite like theirs. I just don’t have that experience behind me.

So, I actually follow a recipe by someone who isn’t even French Canadian! You can tell because it’s for only one pie.

But even at just one pie, I fret over the unhealthiness. Two pounds of ground pork? The fattiest meat ever? Really?

So this year I experimented, making a tourtiere that featured:

1 lb organic ground chicken
1 lb free-range bison
No-trans fat, vegan shortening in the crust (which is, I must say, totally hilarious in a “meat” pie)
Oatmeal instead of potato as thickener
Organic “beef-like” broth for flavor
Plus a bunch of herbs and spices, including odd ones like nutmeg and all-spice.

And I served it with warm curried potato salad and roasted beets with balsamic vinegar and truffle oil. (I mean, why start being traditional at this point.)

OK, it’s probably still not “health food”. At the center is still a bunch of meat in pastry. But at least its fats are less cloggy.

And the really amazing thing? The darn thing was delicious!

Si la France a ses rillettes
Son foie gras, ses crêpes Suzette
La Belgique a ses gaufrettes
Et Milan son escalope
L’Portugal a ses sardines
Toronto sa margarine
L’Espagne a ses mandarines
Et l’Anglais son mutton chop
Mais nous on fait exception
Au diable l’importation.
À part la patate (bis)
La patate à part (bis)
Le ragoût de pattes (bis)
La soupe aux pois…
Qu’est-ce qu’on dévore? Ah!

Mais la toure, toure, toure
La tourtière
Qu’on savoure, voure, voure
Tout entière
Quand c’est fête, fête, fête
Ménagères
Faites, faites, faites, faites
Des tourtières!

Halloween playlist

Not sure why, as Halloween’s not a big thing for me, but got a yen to put this together. Not claiming these are the ultimate Halloween songs—just which of my songs are most “Halloween-y”. (And I wasn’t aiming for 50 songs. That’s just where it landed.)

Angel Main Theme (the Sanctuary Extended Remix) – Darling Violetta – Live Fast, Die Never (Music from the TV Series)
Another World – Joe Jackson – Night And Day
Ballad for Dead Friends – Dashboard Prophets – Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Radio Sunnydale (Music from the TV Series)
Bat Out Of Hell – Meat Loaf – Bat Out of Hell
Beware Of Darkness – George Harrison – All Things Must Pass
Boris The Spider – The Who – Meaty Beaty Big And Bouncy
Brain Damage – Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
Buffy Main Title Theme – The Breeders – Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Radio Sunnydale (Music from the TV Series)
Clap For The Wolfman – The Guess Who – The Greatest Of The Guess Who
Comfortably Numb – Pink Floyd – Pink Floyd The Wall
Cry, Little Sister (Theme From The Lost Boys) – Gerard McMann – The Lost Boys
Dangerous – The Who – It’s Hard
The Devil You Know (God Is A Man) – Face To Face – Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Album
Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me – Roger Daltrey – The Lost Boys
[A darker—and, I think, better—take on the Elton John song]
Down in the Park – Foo Fighters – Songs in the Key of X: Music from and Inspired by ‘the X-Files’
End Of The Night – The Doors – The Doors
Funhouse – P!nk – Greatest Hits…So Far!!!
Ghost Story – Sting – Brand New Day
Ghost Train – Elvis Costello & The Attractions – Get Happy!!
Ghostdancing – Simple Minds – Glittering Prize: Simple Minds 81/92
Gold Dust Woman – Fleetwood Mac – Rumours
Happy Phantom – Tori Amos – Little Earthquakes
Hell’s Half Acre – Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson
Keep Myself Awake – Black Lab – Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Album
Lost In The Shadows – Lou Gramm – The Lost Boys
Moonlight Drive – The Doors – Strange Days
On the Run – Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
People Are Strange – Echo & The Bunnymen – The Lost Boys
[The original Doors version would also do. This cover isn’t much different.]
Phobia – The Kinks – Phobia
Rest In Peace – James Marsters – Once More, With Feeling (Buffy The Vampire Slayer)
Rhiannon – Fleetwood Mac – Greatest Hits
[Though Rhiannon isn’t a very scary witch]
Science Fiction/Double Feature – Richard O’Brien – Rocky Horror Picture Show
Showdown At Big Sky – Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson
Something’s Gonna Die Tonight – The Doughboys – Tribute to Hard Core Logo
Spooky Girlfriend – Elvis Costello – When I Was Cruel
Sympathy for the Devil – The Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet
Tear Off Your Own Head (It’s A Doll Revolution) – Elvis Costello – When I Was Cruel
Thriller / Heads Will Roll – Glee Cast – Single
[I don’t have the Michael Jackson original, but I do like this mash-up]
The Time Warp – Rocky Horror cast – Rocky Horror Picture Show
Transylvania Concubine – Rasputina – Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Album
Under a Raging Moon – Roger Daltrey – Under a Raging Moon
Under Your Spell / Standing (Reprise) – Amber Benson and Anthony Stewart Head – Once More, With Feeling (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Unmarked Helicopters – Soul Coughing – The X-Files: Songs In The Key Of X
Werewolves of London – Warren Zevon – Excitable Boy
[A recent acquisition. Ah-oo! Werewolves of London]
Wicked Annabella – Dave Davies – Rock Bottom Live At The Bottom Line
[So good I’ve included it twice.]
Wicked Annabella – The Kinks – The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society
[One list I saw had Apeman by The Kinks as a Halloween song. What? Nothing Halloween-y about Apeman at all. This one, though, is about a scary witch who snatches away naughty children who refuse to go to sleep. Clearly composed by an exhausted parent.]
Witches’ Song – Marianne Faithfull – Broken English
X-Files Theme – Mark Snow – Songs in the Key of X: Music from and Inspired by ‘the X-Files’
X Files Theme (Remix) – P.M. Dawn – The X-Files: Songs In The Key Of X
You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night) – Meat Loaf – Bat Out of Hell
[“On a hot summer’s night, will you give your throat to the wolf with the red roses?”]

15 songs

Huh. Wrote this up ages ago and somehow never got around to clicking the Publish button. No longer actually reflects the last 15 songs played, but otherwise… Pretty much as randomly relevant now as it would have been then,

Random play 15 songs on your MP3 and say what they are. (Inflation, I guess, because last time I did this, it was only 5 songs.) Played them then, but only got around to listing them now.

1. The Golden Boy – Freddie Mercury & Montserrat Caballé – Instrumentals

I have this Freddie Mercury box set. It’s a gorgeous thing, really, that includes a large book on glossy paper with great photos. But they also stretched out his original three (3) solo albums onto ten (10) CDs. (There are also two DVDs.) This particular one, called Instrumentals, is actually Karaoke versions of his songs. The music and the backing vocals are there; just not the lead.

Want to feel particularly inferior about your singing voice? Attempt Freddie Mercury Karaoke.

2. Imagination (Is a Powerful Deceiver) – Elvis Costello – My Aim Is True (Bonus Disc)

3. Darling Nikki – Prince and the Revolution – Purple Rain

Ah, dear, dirty, darling Nikki, the song that inspired Tipper Gore to request parental warning labels on albums. At least it’s not particularly misogynistic. Nikki owns her own sexuality, and the singer seems to admire her for it. On the Purplish Rain tribute CD, it’s song by a woman, and it’s pretty awesome.

4. Never in a Million Years – The Boomtown Rats – V Deep

5. Eleanor Rigby/Julia [Transition] / I Am the Walrus / I Want to Hold Your Hand – The Beatles – Love

Until the recent reissues, Love was almost the only remastered Beatles CD available, and I still love the sound of the whole album. (It’s the soundtrack for the Beatles Cirque du Soleil show.) Lots of interesting mash-ups of the songs, like this one.

6. Bell Boy – The Who – Thirty Years of Maximum R&D Disc 3

From the compilation, but it’s the same version as on Quadrophenia. Nice duet between Daltrey and Moon. But as with many things Who, even better live. I love the ceremonial hand-off of the lead mike they’d do in concert.

7. It’s a Boy – The Who – Tanglewood

A live snippet (40 seconds) from an American stop on their long Tommy tour. Tanglewood is a classical music hall, so having a rock band perform there was highly unusual. You can hear the whole the concert at Wolfgang’s Vault.

8. Mandela Day – Simple Minds – Glittering Prize: Simple Minds 81/92

Still remember this song being played the day Nelson Mandela was released from, and it seeming so odd that this full song was all ready for the occasion, which came as something of a surprise at the time. (When Simple Minds wrote the song, they were just imagining how great would be the day that Mandela was released from prison…)

9. Slow Love – Prince – Sign ‘O’ the Times

10. Blue – Joni Mitchell – Blue

For some reason Joni has come up in conversation a few times this week. This is the only album of hers that I have.

11. Killer’s Eyes – The Kinks – Give the People What They Want (Remastered)

From my first-ever Kinks album, one I still really like. Inspired by John Hinkley, Jr., this tune is about a family’s confusion on finding our their son / brother is a murderer. (‘We’ve seen your picture in the paper. Your little sister pinned in on the wall. She thinks you’re some kind of movie…”) Cheery, huh?

12. Grand Illusion – Styx – Return to Paradise (Disc 2)

I think the hope of this exercise is that something really embarrassing will come up. I’m not completely mortified that I own a Styx CD (double CD at that), but I have to say, their music has not aged well. All the synths, the trite lyrics… Not stuff I’m too interested in listening to anymore.

13. Imagine – Jordis Unga – Rock Star: INXS

14. Dumb – Nirvana – MTV Unplugged in New York

Interesting sequence, as it’s largely through Rock Star: INXS that I got into Nirvana, actually…

15. Trouble In Mind – Janis Joplin – 18 Essential Songs

I’ve been adding some of Jean’s CDs to his iTunes, and bringing a few over to my iTunes as well. This would be one of those.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: