Psalm a Day

"Story of My Life" by Social Distortion
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Lyrics Freak

I didn't like Social Distortion in the 80's and 90's. They seemed boring - all their songs sounded alike. But recently, I've taken a real shine to their stuff, especially the eponymous album and it's finest track, "Story of My Life". It's everything that used to bug me about Social Distortion, slow pace, straightforward rock'n'roll, predictable lyrics. But that doesn't matter. It's catchy as hell, the lyrics are strike a chord, and Mike Ness sings with feeling and power.

"So I sit at the edge of my bed, I strum my guitar and I sing an outlaw love song." Is it really necessary to point out the genius here?

"Texan Book of the Dead" by Clutch
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LyricsFreak

Weird song,unequivocally hard rock, Maryland band (Germantown), I like it.

"Shadrach" by The Beastie Boys
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Had to get this one out there, and it's damned late, since this is from Sunday for Pete's sake.

But since I was headed to the Atlantic Antic in Brooklyn for the first time on Sunday, it's no surprise that "Shadrach" was going through my head all day. Specifically:

"So I'm out pickin pockets at the atlantic antic
And nobody wants to hear you cause your rhymes are so frantic
I mix business with pleasure way too much
I mean wine and women and song and such"

And besides, really, how long could I go without posting a B-Boys song, y'all?

Bo's Veranda by Morphine
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This is just a wonderful instrumental number with a bit of melancholy. Looks like I took the weekend off for no reason in particular. Life's hard?

Please note that another member has been added to the team, and made his first post. Clarence, also known as John, was part of my first computer / music project back in the late '90s. Alas, that one produced no fruit, or music for that matter, but we exchanged some great emails and came up with some great stage names. Perhaps those names can be located and included in a future post.

Finally for today: Arnold, you are slacking and we are still waiting for your first post.

Thanks for letting me barge in, Stephen. Never thought I'd go this deep in the well for my first post here, but nothing like a mid-90s atmospheric to start a rainy day...

"500" by Lush
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This is actually from yesterday, when I was walking my dogs in Central Park at 7am in the rain. Usually, mid-90s shoe-gazing chanteuse artists don't spring into my consciousness these days (cf. Belly, Velocity Girl, The Breeders, Golden Palominos, Single Gun Theory, One Dove...sheesh, what a phase that was...).

But it was raining, the dogs were soaked, and I just wanted them to shake before going inside. "500" lyrics begin: "Shake, baby, shake, you know I can fit you in my arms". That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

"Fire on the Mountain" by The Grateful Dead
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LyricsFreak

Easily my favorite song by the Dead. It's one of those songs that gets under my skin and just won't get out unless I moooooooooooove a little bit. I also hope the Internet Archive link get's you to exploring. The website has a plethora of free live music, and a bunch of other stuff that I haven't been curious enough to explore.

What I Got (Reprise) by Sublime
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I prefer the reprise version because of the acoustic guitar jam that follows the line "I can play the guitar like a motherfucking riot". Which is, by the by, a hell of a line.

To tell the truth it was Santeria that was running through my head when I woke up Thursday, but I'd rather share the other.

"Jennifer's Body" by Hole
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I've been getting soft in my old age - not that the tracks listed so far have been watered down, but nothing particularly controversial. So, today, a little Hole, because Courtney Love is nothing if not controversial. It doesn't hurt that this is a great song on a great album. By the way, DON'T READ THE LYRICS. I wish I hadn't.

You might notice that there is a new contributor listed in the margin - Bayson22. That's the alias for my good friend from work Arnold Sanchez. He and I toss tracks back and forth and don't always agree, so it seemed like it would be fun to have him add an occasional contribution from his warped mind. I'll be sure to light up the comments with serious flames if he tries to push any hair metal here though!

"See See Rider" by Lightnin' Hopkins
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I was trying to learn to play this song last night, so it's natural enough that it was running through my head this morning. Tons of versions of this old classic exist, even different spellings of the title: C.C. Rider, CC Rider, and See See Rider. If you've got Rhapsody or Yahoo Music, listen to the versions by Lightnin, then Mississippi John Hurt, then Big Bill Broonzy. Pretty cool to hear three guys, with nothing more than their guitars and voices, give such different treatments to the same song. Brother Ray Charles has a real well known take, and there's a live Elvis recording that just cooks!

As for the lyrics, pretty straightforward blues - woman messing with a man's heart and head. John Hurt sums it up best with the line "The blues ain't nothin' but a good woman on your mind."

"Flying Saucer" by United Future Organization
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This morning was a long time ago, and I don't know if there was a song in my head then, so I'm picking one now. Repo Man, the movie, has been in my mind this week, but you can't find the soundtrack on the web and the only version in the house is on cassette tape. That leads us to "Flying Saucer", which popped up on my LaunchCast station this afternoon and is appropriate because Repo Man is about a Chevy Malibu that is actually a flying saucer/time machine.

"Flying Saucer" the song, though, doesn't bear any resemblence to the music in the movie. Here's the succinct review of the song from AllMusic: ""Flying Saucer" blends disco rhythm guitar with jazzy horns and a gorgeous vocal courtesy of Dee Dee Bridgewater;" Which actually makes the song sound horrible, but it's not - honest. "Good Luck Shore" is the best track on the album, if you're interested, but it doesn't tie into the Repo Man thing. The AllMusic review goes on to say about the band: "United Future Organization manages to... create something that is both elegant and rhythmically propulsive, not to mention structurally interesting." So enjoy. And enjoy this exchange between Otto and his girlfriend (from Repo Man):

Leila: Otto, don't go. What about our relationship?

Otto: What?

Leila: What about our relationship?

Otto: Fuck that.

Leila: You shithead! I'm glad I tortured you!

"Pressing My Way" by Robert Randolph & The Family Band
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Inspirational and catchy. And, if your name is Daniel (but pronounced Danielle) and you sing like that, you oughtta be a girl. The "Live at the Wetlands" album has been in heavy rotation for about a year for me. I even paid so I could burn the CD and listen in the car, which is an honor previously bestowed upon only The Clancy Brothers.

"Can't You Hear Me Knocking" by The Rolling Stones
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Lyrics Freak

This one start out slow, but by fourth minute or so you realize you're into something special. Billy Preston and Billy Keyes on the organ and sax add to a whole funky flair, and the long guitar solo by Mick Taylor (not Keith) really just rocks. Take a listen to the lyrics before the jam starts.

"Chant a Psalm" by Steel Pulse
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Obvious, sure, but a really neat song and one of Steel Pulse's most popular. They were the second reggae band everyone discovered, and did a good job being original. Saw them live once, at The Bayou in D.C. (before they tore it down) - which follows another theme from my week.

I started my last blog with an entry titled "Genesis" so... it's also in keeping with the religious tone. The idea is that a psalm is a "sacred song", but I'd say that most songs are sacred, so most are psalms. They aren't all sacred to me, but under the right circumstances any song could be sacred to any person - if it gets you closer to God.

Now, the disclaimer is that I'm not a Christian, but this is the religious language of my culture so it's the best way to communicate "those" feelings. It resonates. Rhythm is a hearbeat, and a heartbeat is life, and life is god. But that's not really it. More like music wakes up something, or creates a feeling, maybe it's just excitement, but it's real and that's where it comes from, and it's always been there for me.

This blog will record my song of the day. I wake up with a song in my head most days, and the only way to get it out is to listen to it. So let me share that with you. Not all of the songs will come from that place though, and an entry every day is an ambitious goal. But you've got to start somewhere.