William's Song a Day Blog - est. September 2007

1015 The Grateful Dead - Ripple Continuing my yearly tradition, if you will, of picking a Grateful Dead song on Memorial Day. I had another 'Dead song in mind for this pick, however, when I sat down to make the post this rather simple and beautiful song came to mind. It's actually a perfect song for my mood this morning. Here is the studio version on YouTube . Here is a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Eddie Rabbitt - Step By Step My song pick two years ago today: Rush - Between the Wheels +

1014 Louis Armstrong - Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen For the last few days I have been listening to a lot of Louis Armstrong's music; this is one that I have replayed quite a bit. This song has such a powerful and deep narrative, combine that with the musical legend that is Louis Armstrong and you have one of the most beautiful and amazing songs in existence. Here is a studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance circa '62 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: R.E.O. Speedwagon - Take It On The Run My song pick two years ago today: The Grass Roots - Temptation Eyes +

1013 David Bowie - All The Madmen Been meaning to pick this track for quite some time now; an excellent pick for a very busy Saturday. The album which this song comes from, The Man Who Sold the World , has steadily become one of my favourite Bowie albums. This one is a beautifully written and arranged song; I love the way it builds from an acoustic track into a full-blown rocker. I really like the swells and retreats; it helps to build the song's atmosphere. Supposedly the song was written for David Bowie's brother who was institutionalized with schizophrenia. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance circa '87 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Rush - Finding My Way My song pick two years ago today: Creedence Clearwater Revival - Long As I Can See The Light +

1012 Return To Forever - The Magician I am sort of making a "Funky Friday" pick with this Stanley Clarke composition that comes from their '76 album: Romantic Warrior . The song has a funk base to it with layered lines over the top. At times it will have a Funk/Jazz Fusion meets Renaissance fair sound/feel; at other times the song will feature all four members soloing at once playing MNPM (Maximum Notes Per Measure), but still listenable and exquisite all the same. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is an excellent live performance circa '76 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The Gipsy Kings - Hotel California My song pick two years ago today: The Fifth Dimension - Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In +

1011 Savatage - 24 Hours Ago I like to play this song along with The Dungeons Are Calling back to back when I normally listen to them, so with picking it yesterday I figured that I should put them back to back here as well. This one is amazing all the way around, there is so much I love about this song; the whole band is just mindblowing. Here is the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The (Detroit) Spinners - The Rubberband Man My song pick two years ago today: Boston - Something About You +

1010 Savatage - The Dungeons Are Calling I'm in a mood for some of Savatage's early work this morning. The sound of most of their earlier work, (prior to the Gutter Ballet album), differs quite a bit from their later Trans-Siberian Orchestra esque Symphonic Metal sound most would associate them with; some even refer to The Dungeons Are Calling as one of the first Death Metal albums. This song is, of course, the title track and takes its subject matter from drug addiction and the horrors associated. The song actually starts out rather calm with Jon Oliva's singing with a guitar playing, but it builds rather fast. I love their use and placement of minor and major chords in this one keep an awesome atmosphere throughout. As always, Jon Oliva's "Shrieks of Terror" are mindblowing as well as Criss Oliva's "Metalaxe" work. For me this is one of their best songs to hear Steve "Doc Killdrum" Wacholz's drumming on the "Barbaric...

1009 Nightwish - Amaranth Amaranth is probably my favourite song off of Nightwish's Dark Passion Play album; it was actually their first album I purchased other than a Greatest Hits compilation prior. The song and album did take a little bit to grow on me; after putting it on shuffle a few times I came to like it. The music video to the song is one of their better ones in my opinion; from what I understand it was inspired by a painting called The Wounded Angel by artist Hugo Simberg. Here is the music video on YouTube. Here is a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The Grateful Dead - Alabama Getway My song pick two years ago today: Bob Seger - Night Moves +

1008 Jethro Tull - 10.08 to Paddington What a huge surprise: yet another Jethro Tull song on my blog. I noticed the number of the song pick today and just had to choose this one. For those who are not acquainted with A Passion Play , it's a concept album and Rock Opera about life after death in which Ian Anderson wrote about the concept of what if you still had choices to make even after death in the Christian concept of the afterlife. The story follows the death, afterlife, and rebirth of one Ronnie Pilgrim. For obvious reasons the album stirred up some controversy; while it did reach number 1 on the charts, it was scathed by critics and caused an apparent rift between the band and the media. What is truly awesome about this album is that, with how technically complex it is, was conceived, written, and recorded in 17 days out of the ashes of the Château d'Hérouville recording sessions. In reality, I would not be as big of a 'Tull fan if it was not for this album....

1007 John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band - On The Dark Side I have had this classic '80s track running through my mind today, so I am adding it. Immediately when you hear the first few notes of the keyboard intro you should immediately recognize it; it is part of the soundtrack to the early '80s cult film: Eddie and the Cruisers . I have to admit that I have never seen the film in its entirety; I should probably remedy that eventually. Here is the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Collective Soul - Pretty Donna My song pick two years ago today: Nightwish - 7 Days to the Wolves +

1006 Boston - Higher Power There are a select few songs that I came to like before it finished playing the first time I heard it; this is one of those songs. I can clearly remember when it was released in late '97, it got the living hell played out of it on the radio that autumn; it was one of three unreleased tracks on their Greatest Hits album. Oddly enough most that I have mentioned the song to actually don't like it, even amongst Boston fans; go figure. It has the usual Boston sound with the overdubbed guitars, but there are a few caveats that makes this one especially stand out for me; one being the neat synthed bass vocal during the chorus. Here is a video with the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Fire Bomber (Hummingbird) - Seventh Moon My song pick two years ago today: Crabby Appleton - Go Back +

1005 The Jimmy Castor Bunch - The Bertha Butt Boogie Doing a Funky Friday pick today. This rather funky novelty tune is kind of a continuation of The Jimmy Castor Bunch's Troglodyte (Cave Man) track, which can be found here on YouTube ; although this song has more of a traditional song structure to it. If you have heard Troglodyte before you should know what to expect from this one. Here is the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Steely Dan - Hey Nineteen My song pick two year ago today: Rahsaan Roland Kirk - Serenade To A Cuckoo +

1004 Foreigner - Starrider I had not heard this song in well over 10 years, last night whilst playing some video games for no reason it started playing in my mind; after that I knew I had my pick for the day. This one could be considered a Space Rock track of sorts due to the subject matter/lyrical content. However, the way it was arranged makes it a very accessible track to most anyone; there is a definite Pink Floyd sound to this track mixed in. I love songs like this where you can get lost in thought listening to them. Anyway, I used to listen to Foreigner a lot, but for some reason their music has ebbed in the rotation. However, my affinity for their music has not waned at all; I love hearing them when they come of the radio. For me their debut album, which this song comes off of, has always been my favourite out of their catalogue; I can usually play the record without skipping any songs. For me it seems as if their is a correlation with each consecutive release and how ...

It feels like a day for some Rammstein. This is a lesser-known track off of their '97 album Sehnsucht ; it has a bit more of an electronic sound and thus is very danceable as well. I find it to be an excellent driving song; it gets the blood moving especially if you sing along. Although you get a lot of strange looks from other people when stopped at a red light singing Neue Deutsche Härte music. Here is the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Duran Duran - Lay Lady Lay My song pick two years ago today: Genesis - Mama +

1002 The Delegates - Convention '72 A couple of weeks ago Max chose The Jimmy Castor Bunch's Troglodyte (Cave Man) for his Funky Friday. I immediately was thinking about this sketch piece, which sampled that song as well as many other popular artists from the time, however Troglodyte (Cave Man) was sampled the most by far. This is the work of a Pittsburgh disc jockey named Bob DeCarlo. It took the shape of a fake political convention in where he imitated radio and television news casters asking questions to politicians; they would answer with sampled pieces from popular music at the time. Here is a recording on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Ozzy Osbourne - Goodbye to Romance My song pick two years ago today: Slade - Run Runaway +

1001 Dio - Killing the Dragon Yesterday I learned that Ronnie James Dio passed away at the age of 67; apparently he lost his battle with stomach cancer; my thoughts and prayers go out to him and his loved ones. I figured that I should pick one of his songs today; this one is the title track off of his '02 release Killing the Dragon, which is one of my favourites from his discography. Some amazing straight-ahead Metal with awesome lyrics filled with symbolism. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: ABBA - Me and I My song pick two years ago today: Stone Temple Pilots - Interstate Love Song +

1000 Clifford Brown & Max Roach - Daahoud Made it to my 1000th song pick! I was thinking about a good song for this post, I couldn't think of a better tune than this piece of Hard Bop Jazz from the incomparable Clifford Brown and Max Roach. For those trying to pronounce the song's title, I believe that Daahoud is pronounced Da-How-D. As I have said before, Hard Bop Jazz is one of my favourite forms of Jazz; this is a fine example of the sub-genre. It still amazes me just how much Clifford Brown accomplished in just the few years before his tragic death at the age of 25. Here is a recording of the song on YouTube. Here is a live recording on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Rammstein - Engel My song pick two years ago today: Frank Sinatra - Fly Me to the Moon +

999 Nena - 99 Luftballons I figured with it being my 999th song pick, this aptly named hit from the German Pop/Rock group Nena would be perfect for the occasion. Many over here on this side of "the pond" actually refer to Nena as a "one hit wonder" with this song said to be their only hit. For being a one hit band, it is odd that I can name 5 other songs off of the top of my head that were hits: Irgendwie Irgendwo Irgendwann, Feuer und Flamme, Leuchtturm, Rette Mich , and Nur Geträumt ; if I thought about it I could probably name more. Anyway, this one was originally released on their '83 self-titled debut album as well as the ' 84 album of the song's namesake, which also had on it an English version of the song titled 99 Red Balloons . From what I understand them using the title 99 Red Balloons worked better with the lyrical scheme in English. Oddly enough because of the English version's title I have noticed many people who don't know ...

998 Gerry Rafferty - Baker Street At almost 1000 song in it seems as if I am regularly looking at what songs I have already picked every time I think of a song to choose; I truly cannot believe that I have not chosen this track yet. My dad has a penchant for buying "super hit" records with various artists on them. Oddly enough, one of his favourites contained the two hits off of Gerry Rafferty's City to City album: Right Down The Line and Baker Street ; he played them both a lot. After I left home I ended up buying the City to City album at a thrift store for about .50¢. The song is probably best known for Raphael Ravenscroft's saxophone solos. It was supposedly written about what Gerry Rafferty experienced around the famous Baker Street area in London; the street is the same one made famous in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes Mysteries . Also a few years prior Jethro Tull released the song Baker St. Muse , in which Ian Anderson wrote about what...

997 Cream - White Room This morning I got my inspiration for today's pick from one of my usual sources: I heard it on the radio. I thought for sure that I had chosen this one; I guess I had not. A classic track from a legendary group; can't go wrong with that. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance of the song on YouTube. Here is another live performance of the song on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Steely Dan - Deacon Blues My song pick two years ago today: The Guess Who - Laughing +

996 The Allman Brothers Band - Midnight Rider The other day I heard this one playing on the radio and I knew I had a song pick; an amazing song from a legendary band. Anyway, this Gregg Allman and Robert Payne composition is definitely a classic, it has been covered many times over the years; Gregg Allman also re-recorded and re-arranged it for his '73 solo album Laid Back . Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is Gregg Allman's solo version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Ian Anderson - Made In England My song pick two years ago today: Mel McDaniel - Louisiana Saturday Night +

995 Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli (Quintette du Hot Club de France) feat. Freddy Taylor - Shine One of my main focuses musically on over the last two or so years has been trying to find some of the earlier recordings of music from when the concept of music was a purely as a live medium. I have come to enjoy the music from the interwar period in particular quite a bit. I actually found this version of the song while I was researching the songs which Freddy Taylor performed on during his musical career. He lent his vocal talent on some of the songs recorded by Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli and the Quintette du Hot Club de France; this is one of those songs. Anyway, this is the Quintette du Hot Club de France's version of the song That's Why They Call Me Shine , also known by the abbreviated title: Shine, which was originally written a hundred years ago in 1910 by Lew Brown, Ford Dabney & R.C. McPherson; from what I understand this song was actu...

994 Queen - These Are The Days Of Our Lives This morning this track started running through my mind and is very fitting with my mood. Ever since I got Queen's Innuendo album it has been in my rotation quite a bit; this is one of favourite tracks. The song is rather powerful with a touch of melancholy; in my opinion it contains one of Brian May's best guitar solos. Here is the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Megadeth - À Tout le Monde My song pick two years ago today: Booker T & The MGs - Green Onions +

993 ( Steve Vai - Celluloid Heroes ) I only found out about this cover of the classic Kinks track about a year ago. This one was apparently used as a overture to his Elusive Light and Sound, Vol.1 CD, which consists of tracks that he wrote for various films. I absolutely love what he did with this track; he made it his own song whilst keeping the spirit of the original. I guess when you are one of the world's greatest musicians covering a song written by one of the best songwriters, (Ray Davies), you can't go wrong. Here is a studio recording on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Toto - Africa My song pick two years ago today: Santana - Stone Flower +

992 ( Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls ) This classic '80s synth-pop tune has been running through my mind most of the day so far; I took it as a sign it needed to be added. From what I understand the lyrics of the song were inspired by T.S. Eliot's poem The Waste Land . While the overall synth sound of the track dates it a bit, I still like it quite a lot. Here is a little piece of trivia for you: British actor David Tennant of Doctor Who fame (the 10th Doctor), whose real name is David MacDonald took his stage name of "Tennant" from Pet Shop Boy Neil Tennant; apparently he's a big fan of the group. Here is the music video on YouTube. Here is their Top of the Pops performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Band of Horses - Our Swords My song pick two years ago today: Murray Head - One Night In Bangkok +

990-1 ( Judas Priest - The Hellion/Electric Eye ) I felt like some classic British Metal this morning; for some reason I immediately thought of this Judas Priest track about an all-seeing satellite. The Hellion is basically a short piece usually used as an intro to Electric Eye , so I figured I should add it as well. From what I understand this song was supposedly inspired by the story of the dystopia laid out in George Orwell's 1984 . Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Learning To Fly My song pick two years ago today: The Four Top - It's the Same Old Song +

989 ( Nightwish - She Is My Sin ) This is another one that I have been meaning to pick for about the last few months and finally got around to it. This track hails from their Wishmaster album released in 2000, which was their third release. It's straight-forward Metal that heavily features "Emppu" Vuorinen's guitar work. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Pearl Jam - Black My song pick two years ago today: Kansas - Point of Know Return +

988 ( Blink-182 - Adam's Song ) Almost 1000 in and I'm posting a song from another band that I like that has not graced my list yet; this is one of their more famous tracks that I like. Blink-182 was a band that my wife liked a lot before we were married; I really didn't follow the band that much before that. Back then I did know of them and heard their music, but was mostly indifferent to it. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is the music video on YouTube. Here is a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Pink Floyd - Us And Them My song pick two years ago today: Edgar Winter Group - Frankenstein +

987 ( The Delgados - Come Undone ) For about the last six months in particular this song has kept popping up on my iPod's playlist every time I use it. I find it odd that out of 5000+ songs this one keeps getting chosen; not that I mind because I really do like it. It also feels like an excellent song for today, so I am adding it to my list. Anyway, this very beautiful track has a haunting feeling about it; the lyrics and vocal work are quite nice. It really annoys me that I did not discover this group until after they broke up, but that seems to be somewhat of a reoccurring theme at times. Here is the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The Doobie Brothers - China Grove My song pick two years ago today: .38 Special - Fantasy Girl +

986 ( Rush - Losing It ) The other day whilst waiting to start playing a show I had Rush's Signals album playing on my iPod while reading one of my Philip K. Dick Sci-Fi novels to pass the time. I normally do not listen to this song as much compared to the other tracks on the album. When you compare this one to the other material on this hit-packed album it is easy to overlook; at one time or another I have heard most every other song played on the radio. What is odd about this one for me is that it reminds me more than a bit of their newer material from the recent CDs. Anyway, this one is what you would expect from a Rush track: deep lyrics, engaging rhythms, and excellent musicianship; every bit the equal of its counterparts on the album in my opinion. Here is the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The Beatles - Yesterday My song pick two years ago today: Def Leppard - Animal +

985 ( Tanya Tucker - What's Your Mama's Name? ) I cannot even count the times I have heard this song; my mom played this song and album a lot whilst I was growing up. This is a rather sad song telling a tale about a man who is looking up a lost love with whom he discovered he fathered a child. After asking a child who he suspects is his what her mother's name is and offering candy if she told, he gets in trouble and unable to ever find out. Here is a studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Bad Company - Bad Company My song pick two years ago today: The Highwaymen - The Highwayman +

984 ( Steeleye Span - All Around My Hat ) A new month starts today; it only seems like a month ago I was doing the same. Anyway, I felt like picking something from Steeleye Span on this morning; I decided on one of their more famous tracks, which they took to no.5 on the U.K. charts. As always, in this one they are adding strong back-beats and bass lines to traditional folk songs from the British Isles. The musical arrangements along with Maddy Prior's vocals and, of course, the vocals harmonies are incredible. This one originates from the early 1800s and was originally about a man who morns his fiancee being sent to Australia as punishment for the crime of theft. He wears sprigs of willow in his hat for a "Twelfth Month and a Day" as a sign he is in mourning. In other versions the man is mourning after returning from sea only to find his fiancee, who he thought was faithful, married to another. Whatever the case the song always is about lovers being separated and...