The Beastie Boys - Ricky's Theme

ORIGINATION Ill Communication
LAST LISTENED TO two weeks ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT not high
RATING

In '94 the Beasties where playing their own instruments on many of their tracks. On Ill Communication, like the predecessing album Check Your Head, they used those skills to lay down some funky grooves and Ricky's Theme is one such track.

It is a mellow affair that features mainly a delightfully light electric piano by Money Mark, one of the Beastie's long time collaborators. MCA's bass playing is also particularly good here, pulling the groove along in a perfect early hours vibe. They are supported by some appropriate drumming and percussion and just a tiny touch of guitar here and there.

The mood is of the last song of the night, where the band are almost asleep on their feet, yet still in the groove. Yet this semi-somnambulance also makes it a perfect morning song. In fact, i really can't imagine a nicer song to start the day with. It has eased me gently into today in quite a lovely fashion. You should try it too.

Johnny Pate - You Can't Even Walk In The Park

ORIGINATION Shaft In Africa
LAST LISTENED TO far too long ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT sadly small
RATING

For me this has got to be one of the funkier bits of movie music ever. In fact, i actually prefer much of the music Pate composed for Shaft In Arica more than Isaac Hayes' score for the original Shaft.

You Can't Even Walk In The Park has everything you want in a great bit of funk: wah-wah, groovy organ, drum breaks and big, big brass.

(radio interference)

After a rather long lie in this morning, i was woken by Nicholas Parsons. Quite scary, actually. He was soon joined by four wonderful players of the game and the chance of there being a morning song rapidly vanished to nothing. Oh well. Had to laugh, though.

Ganger - Smorgasbord

ORIGINATION Fore
LAST LISTENED TO part of it last night
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT fairly good
RATING

Ganger where some buch of people from Glasgow in the mid '90s. I think there was a good chance that they had either two bass players ot two drummers or possibly both. I'd go for just the bass players personally.

Their music was instrumental and a touch avant garde. Some of it was long and some of it was a bit drony in parts (a good thing, i assure you). In some ways they had similarities to Mogwai, although whether there was any actual connection there i couldn't say.

This track is from their debut album of '96. It's medium lenght track, containing many parts. The twin basses are prominant, as are some funky little runs from the sax. It doesn't really go anywhere as such, however it fits into the album as a whole well, with some of the sax parts being quite memorable after running through seventy-odd minutes.

The Soul Destroyers - Blow Your Top Pt. 2

ORIGINATION 7"
LAST LISTENED TO last week sometime
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT not very high
RATING

New funk. Well, newish, from 2000. On Stark Reality, one of Jazzman's offshoots. Nice rolling drum. Chicken scratch guitar. Bits of brass. A touch of organ. Funky, funky bass and a bit of organ. It's got everything a nice slab of funk needs, even something that may of may not be a dance. It probably isn't, but to "blow your top" does sound like some sort of funky move.

This is actually the b-side of the single. Part 1 on the a-side is not in fact the beginning of this track, rather it is a completely different version of it that is far faster. However, it's really much too frantic. Pt. 2 has a much slower groove that makes it just much more funky and it's better for dancing too as well.

The Rolling Stones - Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker) [3rd time]

ORIGINATION Goat's Head Soup
LAST LISTENED TO probably yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT improbable
RATING

It's back again! Granted it's a good song, but why it should appear three times in just over two weeks is something of a mystery, not to mention a surprise.

So, the last two times it's been: Funky. A killer chorus. Keith and a wah wah. Big brass. Love it. And you know, i don't really have much to add to that, as much as i feel that by doing so i maybe will exorcise the whole thing. Ok, i can add that the 'doo doo doo doo's are particularly enjoyable and can make a backing singer of anyone. That had better do it. Tomorrow had better be something unusual and not this for a fourth time.

Stevie Wonder - I Wish

ORIGINATION Songs In The Key Of Life
LAST LISTENED TO yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT high
RATING

I do hope that you all know this song, because i don't really have time to write about it today. If you don't, then you should. No excuses.

Commodores - Machine Gun

ORIGINATION 7"
LAST LISTENED TO about 8 hours ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT stratospheric
RATING

Welcome to synth heaven. It's the Commodores and it's 1974.

What is not all that well known is that the Commodores started out playing instrumentals and that they were, in fact, very funky indeed. This song was released as their fifth single and it was their first hit, one so big that the album following it was given the same title to cash in on it's popularity.

Essentially, Machine Gun is the sound of the Commodores gathering all the funkiest sounds ever made by a synth and squashing them all into one floor-filling single. It's more or less as simple as that. Admittedly, that may not have been how they made the tune (ok, there's no way that's how they made the tune) but that's exactly the way it sounds.

One more thing about Machine Gun is that it's tempo of near 120bpm means that it is the perfect speed for walking too. What makes it especially good is that it's damn funky too and the resulting walk almost always ends up something more of a strut.

The Vaselines - Son Of A Gun

ORIGINATION All The Stuff And More…
LAST LISTENED TO maybe during the summer
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT subterranean
RATING

Back in '87, this was the first release by these naive-sounding Scottish indie poppers. It's a very basic song, containing simple drums, dry guitar strumming, vocals and the odd bit of piano (and at that mostly just the one key). However, it is this simplicity that makes for both it's charm and catchiness.

The clean guitar is quite lovely, but not a patch on the boy-girl vocals which where the essence at the heart of the group and, although they did not last for long (around two years), their music became something of a cult following. To such an extent that at the peak of their fame, Nirvana covered three of their songs, including this one. Indeed, Nirvana probably helped a great deal in helping their cult to grow.

However, these days it is primarily their music that keep drawing new interest and causing influence (Sons & Daughters being the most obvious example).

Big John Patton - The Turnaround

ORIGINATION Let 'Em Roll
LAST LISTENED TO October
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT low
RATING

A more groovy piece of happening '60s mod jazz you'll be hard pushed to find. It was recorded in '65 by Patton, a jazz organist in the Jimmy Smith mould, with guitarist Grant Green and Bobby Hutcherson on vibes. The track bubbles along at a fast tempo, starting with a few runs around the melody before the soloing gets under way. Patton, who takes the main melody, solos a few times and also provides the bass. Green plays some particularly fast solos and Hutcherson's vibes are light and airy as only vibes can be.

Surprisingly, given how well the combination works, The Turnaround was not originally composed for organ but was in fact a piece that saxophonist Hank Mobley wrote and played a few years earlier. However, in one of those rare occurances of an original verion being bested, Patton turns it into his own tune here, putting the Mobley's into the shade.

It's also worth noting that the rest of the album, whilst not quite reaching this height, is none the less a damn fine investment.

The Rolling Stones - Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker) [again]

ORIGINATION Goats Head Soup
LAST LISTENED TO a few days ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT probably quite good
RATING

A welcome return to this funky Stones track. As before: Funky. A killer chorus. Keith and a wah wah. Big brass. Love it.

Violent Femmes - Never Tell

ORIGINATION Hallowed Ground
LAST LISTENED TO yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT fairly good
RATING

The Violent Femmes are one of those '80s cult bands that you kinda, sorta, might have heard of but you're not sure why. Yes? The reason for this was because their first (self titled) LP was something of an underground hit. Formed of a post-punk sound that owed almost as much to folk, the album captured perfectly the band's teenage angst. Consequently, a few of the singles from this album went on to become staple sounds for alternate teenagers all across the globe. Indeed, i can't recall going to an 'alternative disco' and not hearing one of their songs during my teen years.

Never Tell is from their second album. It's an album that shows the band having grown considerably in not just confidence but sound. It's a far more adult album, even through the group had barely left their teens. That said it's still a passionate album, especially this track and not only the vocals but in the fiery guitar playing which is reminiscent of parts of the Velvet Underground's debut. It's a masterful song, one of many from this album.

Sons & Daughters - Monsters

ORIGINATION The Repulsion Box
LAST LISTENED TO sometime last month
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT dunno, probly wee
RATING

More top boy-girl Scottish indie pop. As ever there are some great joint vocals, parts of which are spat out with entertaining scorn. A very nice scratchy rhythm guitar as well over an almost countryish shuffle beat. Catchy goodness. It's probably about something rude, but it's well coached in vague terms.

Earl Van Dyke & The Soul Brothers - The Flick Part I

ORIGINATION 7"
LAST LISTENED TO mid december
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT low
RATING

During the '60s, Earl Van Dyke was the organ man at Motown and he was bandleader of The Soul Borthers (usually known as The Funk Brothers) who were the house band. During their tenancy they played on 22 number one pop hits, 48 number one R&B hits and generated sales of over 300 million records. Through all of that they never received any credits as either composers/arrangers or musicians. However, they were given two album releases under their own name on Motown subsidiary, 'Soul'. (For more information about the Funk Brothers, allmusic.com have a brief history of them here and one of Van Dyke here. The documentary film Standing In The Shadows Of Motown, which was released in 2002, gave the remaining members a final shot at fame.)

The Flick was initially released about the time of their first LP in '65, but was to be included on their second LP in '70. It is one of the rarest moments in their career: a recording that bears their names as composers. It's a groovy soul number, featuring Van Dyke's organ as the lead instrument and showcases well the Funk Brothers tightness, with a number of climaxes and tempo variations throughout the track. Also of note is the prominent, funky bass of James Jamerson, who along with guitarist Robert White and Van Dyke were listed as composers.

Erobique Meets Jonny Teupen - Hold On, I've Got To Leave You

ORIGINATION Mojo Club: The Remix Album
LAST LISTENED TO a few days ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT small
RATING

There are many remix albums about these days but this was the first one i saw, back in 1999. For those not in the know, a remix album is one where current artists take various tracks from the past and, well, remix them. Mojo Club brought out theirs to celebrate the tenth birthday of their Hamburg club, a club in which they played soul, funk, dancefloor jazz and the like.

About the participants in this particular track, i can write next to nothing. All i am (fairly) certain of is that they are both German. However, Jonny Teupen's original track appears to have been recorded around the start of the '70s and has a funky, cop-show style vibe. How much Erobique has (or have) altered it i also don't know. The only thing i can be sure of is that the pounding, four-to-the-floor beat was almost certainly was not part of the track. It works surprisingly well, with the even these obviously newly-added touches not clashing too much with what i imagine to be the original feel of the tune.

Franz Ferdinand - This Fire

ORIGINATION Franz Ferdinand
LAST LISTENED TO last night
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT high
RATING

I missed the Franz Ferdinand boat when it first sailed. I guess it's got something to do with my aversion to new music. I seem to prefer to let music settle for a few years before i bother my arse with it. It separates the wheat from the chaff. The cream rises to the top and the rest sinks. I was going add something about vintage wine next but i much too tired this morning to work it out and i've mixed enough metaphor as it is.

So anyway, Franz Ferdinand at some point went beyond new over-hyped band to band i decided to finally check out. I have no idea when that was, but i surely have Dr. Craig to thank for that as i seem to recall him playing me Take Me Out. For once the hype actually seemed not to be worthless. It happens sometimes.

This weekend i was in a mood for their brand of spiky new wave pop and, lo, i did listen unto them. No surprise then that i woke this morning with these words in my head:
This fire is out of control
We're gonna burn this city
Actually the only thing that was a vague surprise was which song it was.

Ray Barretto - Mister Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

ORIGINATION Señor 007
LAST LISTENED TO last night
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT high
RATING

In 1966 Ray Barretto, the respected Latin percussionist and band leader, recorded a whole album of James Bond music. As the liner notes say "Ray has somehow blended Latin-American rhythms with a pop feel and the results are highly gratifying." There's no denying that.

Mister Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is one of the best tunes on the lp. The original was, of course, one of the catchiest Bond tracks to feature vocals. Although here there are none, the exciting rhythms and several solos more than make up for the loss. Although most of the brass players get to solo, what is most notable is that there is also a violin solo, which is very unusual for Latin jazz.

I'm going to have this in my head all day for sure.

Mudhoney - Shoot The Moon

ORIGINATION Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge
LAST LISTENED TO yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT good
RATING

Mudhoney again! Not really a surprise however, as Mudhoney fever continues exert its to grip.

This one's off their second full length album from '91. It's a standard full speed ahead Mudhoney track: two buzzing guitars, drums, bass, Arm's yelling. It stands out from the norm with what sounds like a backwards-played guitar solo and some unintelligible, filtered vocal parts that may or may not be having a laugh at the expense of their mate Mr Cobain. The twin guitars also play a few call and response style parts that are particularly fine examples of the Mudhoney sound.

Mudhoney - Inside Job

ORIGINATION Since We've Become Translucent
LAST LISTENED TO last night
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT high
RATING

Yesterday i pulled out all of my Mudhoney records and turned them into mp3s. It turns out that i can listen to non-stop Mudhoney for six hours without repeating a song, which i never knew.

Mudhoney formed in '88 and their first single Touch Me I'm Sick, together with the following mini album, Superfuzz Bigmuff, were key elements in kicking off the '90s grunge wave (most of which sucked). They were said by many to be the 'Godfathers Of Grunge', more so even than Nirvana who actually supported Mudhoney on tour. They released records throughout the first half of that decade, but only one in the second half. So it was quite a surprise to find a new album out in 2003 and that it was back on legendary grunge label Sub Pop, where they began. By all accounts, this album was not only the best in a while, but quite probably their best ever, which was no mean feat for a band 15 years into their career.

Inside Job is one of the faster tracks on this LP and features former MC5 front man Wayne Kramer playing bass. It's a regulation Mudhoney tune featuring, as ever, twin guitars. One chugs along nicely and the other solos and riffs along with it. There are also a couple of nice breaks towards the end. The first four feature just the drums, the second four adding a couple of funky bass runs. It's an up tempo end to the first side of the LP but other than that is one of the less interesting songs on this album, which is the first of theirs to feature brass.

Mudhoney have a new album out on March 7th this year. I can't wait.

Spiritualized - Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space

ORIGINATION Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space
LAST LISTENED TO eons ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT damned small
RATING

Spiritualized were formed in the early ninties from the ashes of Spacemen 3 by Jason Pierce and whoever he deigned to work with on any given day. Their brand of drug-fuelled fuzzy gospel rock reached it's zenith on their fourth album from 1997 which contained this title track.

The song begins with a repeating vocal, that will be sustained through most of the track:

"All i want in life's a little bit of love to take the pain away, getting strong today, a giant step each day"

It is a hopeful statement but one that comes from a place of heartbreak and darkness, a place that Pierce found himself in during this period. The album was recorded following his split with girlfriend Kate Radley, who remained a member of the band during recording. Hence the heart-broken sounds that permeate not only this track but others on the release. However, the influence of Pierce's love of gospel music stopped him from making things too depressing and leant an uplifting air in part.

The above vocal refrain is soon overlapped with many others, following variations on the heart-broken theme. These further vocals build in layers throughout the song, creating a complex tapestry at the song's close. This structure is reflected in the music.

The many lush layers of sound of music, mostly played by guitar/bass/drums are given an extra layer of heartbreak with some violin. Again, as with the vocals, these layers build and create an increasingly dense sound, before cutting back somewhat towards the end to give space for the vocals.

It all ends with a NASA beep, a slight jokey end to a very serious song.

Rob Dougan - Clubbed To Death Kurayamino Variation

ORIGINATION cd single
LAST LISTENED TO no idea
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT low
RATING

Clubbed To Death is a dark and moody piece of electronica that suceeds in its goal of being cross genre. It does this through a deft combination of orchestral and dancefloor music.

The orchestral pieces, all performed by Dougan (because he couldn't afford an orchestra at the time) are dark and brooding and mostly feature string sounds. This is overlaid with some driving beat loops and a synth string bass that help develop and move forward the mood of suspense. Sprinkled throughout this are a number of breaks, where the beats drop out to leave a haunting piece of piano that works as an effective release from the built-up tension of the track.

Of the six 'variations' of this track that were released in '95, this one became the most popular before going on to be used in the film The Matrix in '99.

Elvis - Let Yourself Go

ORIGINATION 1968 NBC TV Comeback Special
LAST LISTENED TO last week
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT getting high
RATING

This is a bit of an odd one, in that it's part of the extended fifteen minute Road Medley from this legendary tv show and even in that it only features for 45 seconds. None the less, it's about as rough, dirty and funky as Elvis gets. As well as his vocals which are rougher than you'd expect, there's big brass (of course), supported by plenty of organ and some southern-soul style guitar picking. It's a neat and memorable little moment from one of the high points a show which had more than it's fair share if them.

Push - Northside Shuffle

ORIGINATION 7"
LAST LISTENED TO in the past month
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT vague
RATING

In the last part of last year, i unearthed my 7" singles mountain, after if had lain undisturbed for nearly six months. In particular, i went through my funk 45s, of which there are far more than a hundred. This one is a fine example of modern funk, having been recorded in 2001 and is more of a cop show funk than a hard soul funk. As you'd expect it features plenty brass, percussion and wah wah and it runs along at a medium-fast pace. In some ways, it has a vague similarity in sound to The James Taylor Quartet's cover of the Theme From Starsky And Hutch, which featured a few ex members of both James Brown's band The JBs and Funkadelic. Which puts this track in good company. However, with it's driving pace and repeating melodies, it's more of a chase scene tune than a main title. Of course, that's not exactly a bad thing.

Jimmy Smith - The Cat

ORIGINATION The Cat
LAST LISTENED TO about three weeks ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT there's always a good chance of some Jimmy
RATING

The Cat LP was arranged and orchestrated by Lalo Schifrin and consequently has a really big brass sound. This, the title track was from a film a few years previous to this LP's 1964 recording and is a Schifrin original.

The track starts with a big brass stab. Straight after is the main melody, played at a merry pace by the basic trio of Jimmy with drums and a guitar. This swings along in a groovy '60s way that could only be Jimmy Smith. After some brass stabs, he's off a'soloing. It's a short, to the point solo, but is highly energetic and definitely brings out a groovy hammond face in anyone who has one. The air hammond too.

Near the mid point, the brass kicks back in in a big way. Jimmy continues to weave his solo through it all, until he returns to the melody. The only down side is the track fades out.

La Vida whatever

ORIGINATION Shrek 2
LAST LISTENED TO never
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT mummy i'm scared
RATING

I feel sick. A version of this terrible song closed the film Shrek 2, which i saw just last week. It was an unfortunate end to the film, which had been quite fun up till that point. Imagine my disgust to awaken with it in my head. On the plus side, i think it may have been Weird Al Yankovic's version La Vida Yoda. If that's a plus. I don't know. Next…

The Rolling Stones - Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)

ORIGINATION Goats Head Soup
LAST LISTENED TO a few hours ago
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT bloody high
RATING

The Stones. Funky. A killer chorus. Keith and a wah wah. Big brass. Love it.

Quiller - General Direction

ORIGINATION b side of 7"
LAST LISTENED TO sometime in the past month
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT not all that high, really
RATING

This is the b side to a song called Quiller, which was the theme tune used for a short-lived '70s UK tv cop show. I suspect the reason that the group was given the same name was because the theme (and by default this track as well) must surely have started life as a library tune and therefore there was never really a group behind it, just composers and session musicians.

General Direction is funky in precisely the '70s cop show way you'd want. From a fairly innocuous acoustic guitar start, it quickly builds (by way of bass and percussion) up to a fine moog melody (think Rockford Files). After that things just get better: percussion breaks, bass run downs, more funky moog and wah wah. A brass section as well, of course. It moves along, it breaks down, it builds up further, it breaks down. Repeat a few times and then top off with the opening moog melody. Job done.

Red Hot Chili Peppers - If You Have To Ask

ORIGINATION Blood Sugar Sex Magik CD
LAST LISTENED TO day before yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT pretty good
RATING

If You Have To Ask is pretty funky. It's from Blood Sugar Sex Magik which is for me the high point in the Chili Peppers career, probably because it's their funkiest point. This track is not be my favourite song on the album, however, for some reason it has lyrics that seem to glue themselves to my head particularly well. It's probably due to the chorus:

If you have to ask
you'll never know
funky motherf•••••s
will not be told to go

No need to guess which part of that sticks. I don't really know what they're on about here and i don't really care. After all, when was funk music for thinking?

The verses are pretty good too and probably more funky than the chorus, mostly due to the choppy rhythm guitar. There are a few of them spread about, with a guitar solo to end things off. I should probably also mention that there is some fine drumming and bassing, but given the group and the many mentions of the funk, you'll have figured that out for yourself i'm sure.

Iggy & The Stooges - Search And Destroy

ORIGINATION Raw Power
LAST LISTENED TO not sure
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT still good
RATING

Yes! Now here's a way to start the year. Happy b*st*rding New Year!

I like The Stooges. If you've ever enjoyed a distorted guitar you do too. Or you'd better. They came out of '60s garage rock, but managed to push it further and harder than almost anyone else.

Search And Destroy is the opening track from their final fling in 1973. Bearing in mind that The Stooges where harder and meaner than almost any other band of the time (and today), this track is probably their fastest, rawest, most high-octane moment. There are no words to express how utterly marvellous this is. It's a desert islander. I'd jump around to it until my brain numbed and my ears bled and i wouldn't care.

When this LP was initially released, it was produced by David Bowie and it was pretty weak. Bowie did his thing, but it wasn't right for the music. It wasn't until a couple of years back when it was reissued that it was finally given some balls and by no less than Iggy himself.

Go and get this CD. For that matter, get all of The Stooges CDs. You're wrong if you don't. Go away now.