Friday, November 02, 2007

Catching Up Friday Random Ten

One of my co-worker's at Jury's has been sick, so I've been covering his shifts the last week and a half-- it's gone a long way toward helping me catch up financially from my stint of working only part-time.

Got my mid-term grade in my Biology class-- I've got a B+ right now.

I got a call from my best friend Jim yesterday with good news: his mother had come through triple bypass surgery successfully. Kim and I are waiting to hear some good news on her niece's husband, who is in a coma since falling off a roof on Sunday. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers.


1. Grace- Jeff Buckley
2. Rose Darling- Steely Dan
3. Power In The Darkness- Tom Robinson Band
4. Complete Control- The Clash
5. L'America- The Doors
6. Viva Las Vegas- Elvis Presley
7. Whenever You're On My Mind- Marshall Crenshaw
8. Slip Kid- The Who
9. Yalla, Yalla- Joe Strummer and the Mesaleroes
10. Electric Guitar- Talking Heads


Notes:
1. From the wonderful post-humous album of the same name.
2. From the Countdown To Ecstasy album.
3. Tom Robinson mixed music and politics as well as anybody.
4. The Clash's account of dealing with record companies.
5. From L.A. Woman, the last Doors album that Jim Morrison sang on.
6. Elvis obviously celebrating his return to "Top-Earning Dead Celebrity" status.
7. Marshall Crenshaw should have been way bigger than he was. You might remember him as the guy playing Buddy Holly in the movie "La Bamba."
8. From one of the Who's lesser-known, but great albums, The Who By Numbers. Also one of my favorite album covers.
9. Joe Strummer twice in my Friday Random Ten? All right!
10. From Fear Of Music, one of my favorite albums of the seventies.

12 comments:

Traveling Matt said...

You know what's funny? "Grace" just went off before I opened your blog. Do they still do that tribute to him at Uncommon Ground every year?

Cup said...

I completely agree with you about Marshall Crenshaw. Saddens me every time I hear someone claims to be unfamiliar with his work.

Congrats on the B+!

BeckEye said...

You had me at "Grace." Sometimes I like to listen to Jeff's "Grace," followed by Supergrass's "Grace," or vice-versa. Very different songs, but both are fantastic.

My favorite Marshall Crenshaw song is "Television Light." I might even put it on my Top 100 of all-time. What a beautiful song.

lulu said...

I saw Marshall Crenshaw at the Abby Pub maybe 6-7 years ago and I have to say it wasn't a great live show. I'm hoping he was just having an off night, but it kind of explained why he never got huge.

(He was opening for Dave Edmunds who put on a hell of a show, even when the power went out)

Distributorcap said...

lotsa good thoughts for your firends and glad Jim's mom is OK....

The Who By Numbers is a great great album

JR's Thumbprints said...

I saw Marshall Crenshaw playing in a bar in Detroit. Very talented. However, at the time, he seemed fixated on Jodi Foster. He dedicated every song to her, one after the other. Strange.

Hope your friend recovers.

SkylersDad said...

Best wishes to Kim's niece, and I hope you get some time off!

Erik Donald France said...

I gotta go with Viva Las Vegas ;)

Yes, best wishes and speedy recoveries.

Barbara Bruederlin said...

I know this will get me banished in some circles, but I've never really been much of a Jeff Buckley fan.

My thoughts are with your relative. I wish him wellness.

Tenacious S said...

How do I love Marshall Crenshaw? Let me count the ways. I have seen him twice. Once at the show Lulu mentioned and once down in South Carolina. The South Carolina show was absolutely perfect. He had a band behind him and it was delightful. My favorite is "Cynical Girl."

Johnny Yen said...

Monica-
I did not know they did that!

I used to go to Uncommon Ground once in a while back in the day, when friends played there. I haven't been there since they added the bar. I'll have to go soon.

Beth-
Thanks! I thought it was much worse.

Yes, he's put out such great music, but somehow never made it. That first album is like the Velvet Underground's first album or REM's Murmur-- everyone I know owns it.

Beckeye-
Grace grabbed me with Last Goodbye, which got a lot of airplay here in Chicago, and I thereafter worked my way through the rest of the album. It's a beautiful album. His death deprived us of a lot more good stuff.

Lulu-
I remember that show-- I think I had to work that night. The Abbey's only a few blocks from my home.

I saw Dave Edmunds at the Park West in 1982-- a great, great show-- one of my top ten.

Distributorcap-
Thanks!

The Who have had so many great albums, The Who By Numbers gets lost in the shuffle sometimes.

JR-
Could he have been making a joke about John Hinckley Jr?

Thank you!

Skyler's Dad-
Thank you!

Actually, I'm fine with working for the time being. It's a huge relief to catch up financially. And Christmas is coming up. My class ends on December 10, so I'll get a break from then until the first week of January or so.

Erik-
Thanks!

It's funny-- the first time I ever heard the song, it was the Dead Kennedy cover; I didn't even know that it was an Elvis song!

Barbara-
That surprises me a lot, given what I know about the other music you like. Perhaps one day he will grow on you.

Thank you for the well wishes. My gut feeling has been that as Jim's mother goes, so shall he. She's recovering nicely, so let's hope he follows.

TenS-
He's amazing-- every few years, he comes up with a song or album that I just love. My friend Annie cites "Cynical Girl" as the best pop song ever written.

bubbles said...

JY and Kim, I hope your niece's husband is doing much better now.