Slow News Week: Brian Liveblogs his iTunes Library on Shuffle

Update #15 2:09 PM

There’s no getting around it. This has been an extremely slow news week and bloggers are getting desperate for content. So desperate that many of us are resorting to some non-traditional posts to keep our front pages alive*.

*Someone that’s actually doing something cool is Dunc over at ClubJade who is currently running an Ask Dunc Anything open thread.

So yes. Desperation. I threatened this on Twitter but alas, no one listened. Strap in, I’m about to blog about music. Tune in for a continually updating thread on my bad taste in music. Make fun of me in the comments, or suggest good things for me to listen to.

To the jump!

7:50AM PDT – “Africa” by Toto

Yes. I like Toto. Shut up.

Come on, they’re an awesome band. A bunch of rag-tag session musicians for the likes of Boz Scaggs and Michael Jackson team up to tackle the charts and they succeed! That’s got feel-good Hollywood story written all over it.

“Africa” happens to be my go-to karaoke choice. Number two on that list … Well, we’ll get back to that.

7:56AM – “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel live at WOMAD

Sure, we all know Peter Gabriel as that guy who was in that band before Phil Collins. And the guy who wrote that cheesy song for that John Cusack movie, but the dude’s a pretty talented musician. I dig world music, and Peter Gabriel does too.

Well look at that, it’s that cheesy song he wrote for that cheesy John Cusack movie. But it’s somehow awesome? That’s because the original cut had a ton of African influence in it, as the above video shows.

And yes. This is number two on my go-to karaoke list.

***

8:06 AM – “Take Five” by the Dave Brubeck Quartet

I was a saxophone player from middle school through my first few years of college. Still play a little bit on the side with some various community groups. Now, what got me to pick up the saxophone? Well I accidentally enrolled in band instead of whatever the rotating electives were in middle school and had to pick an instrument. Only one I could think of was the sax and the only reason I could think of that was I had watched Happy Days before coming to school and Richie Cunningham was playing it. I wish I could tell you I made that story up.

But I took to the instrument and loved playing it. As a musician, especially in the realm of jazz, you’re encouraged to find an artist that resonates with you. For me, it was Paul Desmond, the saxophone player of the Dave Brubeck Quartet. I loved his sound. He was really the anti-Charlie Parker.

And there’s your dose of jazz nerdery for the day.

***

8:14AM – “Poker Face” by Lada GaGa

I have no frakking excuse for having this. None at all.

***

8:20AM – “Back in Time” by Huey Lewis and the News

If Back to the Future is on, I will drop whatever it is I’m doing to watch it.

I’m actually rather fond of Huey Lewis and the News. I wound up listening to a lot of it growing up because they were my dad’s favorite band and the ONLY group he’s actually paid money to see in concert. Whenever he was working on a project in the house or out in the garage, he’d have a cassette or CD of the Sports album playing on the stereo.

What can I say? I love the instrumentation this band uses. Horn section, rhythm. Old time rock and roll feel. Heck yeah.

***

8:27AM – “The Ducktales Theme”

WHY DO I KEEP THIS IN MY LIBRARY IT JUST GETS STUCK IN MY HEAD FOR MONTHS EVERY TIME I PLAY IT AND I WIND UP HUMMING IT IN THE MIDDLE OF EXAMS OR IN MEETINGS WHERE IT’S HORRIBLY AWKWARD AND IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT IS HAPPENING I’LL NEVER BE ABLE TO RECALL THE RIGHT ANSWER OR THING TO SAY BECAUSE THE ONLY THING I CAN THINK OF IS “LIFE IS LIKE A HURRICANE HERE IN DUCKBERG”

***

8:35AM – “I’ve Had the Time of my Life” by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes

Cheesy 80s power ballads? Oh yeah. I’ve got more than my fair share of them. Good heavens I’m really putting my horrid music taste on display today.

I always get weirded out when I watch Dirty Dancing. I mean, not for the whole Kurt Russel is dancing thing, but for the fact that Detective Lenny Briscoe is in it and being a royal jerk.

And with that I’m taking a break to get the podcast shownotes prepped. Back in 30.

***

9:16AM – “Land Down Under” by Men at Work

I have far more 80s music in my library than is healthy. I’m pretty sure there are Surgeon’s General warnings about safe amounts of bad 80s pop one should be in possession of, but alas.

Land Down Under is one of those ear worms that get stuck in your head for months at a time. It’s a catchy and fun tune. The music video is your typical 80s surrealist fare. All I know is I’ve had Vegemite once and I will never have it again.

***

9:25AM – “Binary Sunset” by John Williams

And finally, my iTunes playlist comes up with something I’m not horribly embarrassed by.

What can be said about Binary Sunset that hasn’t been said yet? It’s my all-time favorite piece of film scoring and is John Williams at his absolute finest.

***

9:35AM – “Lose this Child” by Eatliz

My music library, for the most part, ends at about the year 1998. This is one modern song that caught my attention so much I had to go find a copy of it.

I like to use the term “spacey” when talking about music I like. By that I mean it’s a song that isn’t jam-packed full of sound. You can hear the interplay between the instruments and the vocals. You can hear the bass doing interesting things and adding texture.

***

9:57 – “Wheel in the Sky” by Journey

What, did you think we were going to get through a liveblog of my iTunes library without getting some Journey in? Time to rock out.

It’s a real shame that Journey today is nothing more than a cheap Journey cover band, though.

***

10:11AM – “Tryouts” by Jerry Goldsmith

Rudy. Great sports movie. Greater soundtrack.

We need to get back to something I’m ashamed of having so I can actually snark about it.

***

10:17AM – “Dance Hall Days” by Wang Chung

Why were so much of the 80s absolutely unintelligible?

Take your baby by the hand, and make her do a high hands dance? What the flying frak is that supposed to mean? And what is up with that sweater? What kind of a name is Wang Chung?

Also, it’s probably a sign of the two years I worked at a band/orchestra retailer, but ye gads those two guys in the background have no idea how to hold a violin correctly.

***

11:00AM – “Feels so Good” by Chuck Mangione