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

1230 Béla Fleck and the Flecktones - The Sinister Minister Last night I was up to 2:00 in the morning listening to some Béla Fleck and have had them on the brain most of the morning as well. This is actually one of their more popular tracks which hails from their self-titled debut album. What I've always loved about the band and their music in particular is that they're always pushing the boundaries of music itself and are not afraid of something different and outside their individual styles. Hear The Sinister Minister on YouTube. Watch part one of a live performance of the song on YouTube. Watch part two of a live performance of the song on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Rammstein - Reise, Reise My song pick two years ago today: Billy Joel - New York State Of Mind My song pick three years ago today: Manfred Mann - The Mighty Quinn (Quinn the Eskimo) +

1229 Megaherz - Schizophren I've had this song running through my mind most of the morning and it just feels like an excellent pick for today. This track hails from their '98 Kopfschuss (Headshot) album; even if you only speak English you should easily be able discern the title of the song. Hear Schizophren on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Genesis - Turn It On Again My song pick two years ago today: Miles Davis - Walkin' My song pick three years ago today: Jethro Tull - Cold Wind To Valhalla +

1228 Dizzy Gillespie - One Note Samba Felt like listening to some Dizzy Gillespie this morning and this often-covered piece of Bossa Nova Jazz, originally written by Antonio Carlos Jobim, interpreted by the great Jazz maestro seemed appropriate for my mood. Pure musical bliss. Hear One Note Samba by Dizzy Gillespie on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Steely Dan - Josie My song pick two years ago today: Joni Mitchell - Goodbye Pork Pie Hat My song pick three years ago today: Big Country - In A Big Country +

1227 Fear Factory - Fear Campaign Recently I've been getting back into Fear Factory's music and have been especially enjoying their newest album: Mechanize . This track is one of my personal favourites off the album; I absolutely love the heavier edge of their newer sound. Watch the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Gunnar Madsen - Surprise! My song pick two years ago today: Charles Mingus - Tonight At Noon My song pick three years ago today: Megadeth - Architecture of Aggression +

1226 Oasis - Cast No Shadow Christmas... over, house guests... gone home = time to finally recuperate from the Holiday! Anyway, Oasis' music seemed excellent for today and getting over all that goes along with this time of year. Hear Cast No Shadow on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Nightwish - Wanderlust My song pick two years ago today: Dizzy Gillespie - Salt Peanuts My song pick three years ago today: Bon Jovi - You Give Love A Bad Name +

1225 Jethro Tull - Stuck in the August Rain I've been recovering from the Christmas Holiday today and I feel like making a brief song pick today, so here is one that for some reason was running through my mind this afternoon. Whilst Roots to Branches is by no means my favourite 'Tull album there were a few tracks on it that liked the first time I heard it; this song one of them. This is quite a beautiful love song that contains a real nice balance of soft intricacy and the heavier rock feel. It is also one of the tracks on the album to feature Steve Bailey, (of Bass Extremes and countless other acts fame), on bass guitar. Hear Stuck in the August Rain on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Rammstein - Feuer Frei! My song pick two years ago today: Huey Lewis and the News - Back In Time My song pick three years ago today: Gilbert O'Sullivan - Alone Again (Naturally) +

1224 Steeleye Span - Gaudete Hope everyone out there is having a Merry Christmas. I had this song in mind for this pick for a bit now; it is actually one of Steeleye Span's bigger hits. This is a Sacred Christmas Carol originally written sometime in the 16th Century that they recorded for their 4th album. The entire piece is sung a cappella in Latin; the vocal harmonies are simply amazing. Hear a vinyl recording of Gaudete on YouTube. Watch a live performance circa '04 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Ian Anderson - A Birthday Card At Christmas My song pick two years ago today: Jethro Tull - Another Christmas Song My song pick three years ago today: Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Wish Liszt (Toy Shop Madness) +

1223 Greg Lake (Emerson, Lake & Palmer) - I Believe in Father Christmas Merry Christmas! I heard this one last night whilst out and about looking at the various Christmas light displays around town and it felt to me like a nice Christmas Eve pick. I really don't know why I haven't chosen this track in one of the previous Christmas seasons since I've been doing this blog; it's one of my favourite Holiday tracks from this last century. While the song's overall feel is more than a bit jaded concerning the Holiday, for me the song captures many of the emotions that are felt this time of year that are not normally thought of on this otherwise "joyous" occasion. Watch the music video on YouTube. Watch a live performance circa '94 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Louis Armstrong - 'Zat You Santa Clause? My song pick two years ago today: Jethro Tull - Christmas Song My song pick three years ago today: Trans-Siberian Orchestra - The Ghost o...

1222 Twisted Sister - Oh Come All Ye Faithful I'm picking another Christmas track for the week and this rocked out take on the traditional favourite by Twisted Sister seemed like an excellent choice today. I like how they arranged the piece whilst keeping it's original spirit intact. It's interesting that this would be the first Twisted Sister track to grace my list, but oh well, I'm pretty sure if I keep this blog going for another 5-10 years there will still be many other great bands that I have missed. Watch the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Joy/Angels We Have Heard on High My song pick two years ago today: The Kinks - Father Christmas My song pick three years ago today: Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick +

1221 Rush - Tears Was planning on picking another seasonal song today, however after I happened to notice the number of the song pick, (1221), Rush's music kept incessantly running through my mind and no other band's music would come to mind. So what the Hell, I'll just pick a song from the 2112 album; it's not like I really need a reason to choose a Rush song anyway, but the pick number gives me a good excuse nevertheless. Anyway, this was actually one of the first songs that I ever heard off of this album other than the main title track. It is mellower than most of their other material on the album with rather beautiful lyrics. Hear Tears on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Sylvia - Drifter My song pick two years ago today: Cheech & Chong - Santa Claus and His Old Lady My song pick three years ago today: Supertramp - The Logical Song +

1220 Mykola Leontovych - Shchedryk (The Carol of the Bells) With it being the week of Christmas and all, I figured I should pick a seasonal piece. In actuality The Carol of the Bells , which is considered a Christmas tune, was originally an ancient Ukrainian folk chant that was used to herald in the New Year; in the early 1900's Mykola Leontovych arranged Shchedryk around that chant as the song we know today. The title: Shchedryk supposedly means "Bountiful" in Ukrainian and is about a swallow flying into a family's house and singing a song of wealth to come with the Spring. Apparently the original chant was performed sometime around April; later the celebration was moved near the New Year and was used for The Feast of Epiphany. The song was later used with new lyrics penned by Peter Wilhousky as the piece: The Carol of the Bells . Hear Shchedryk conducted by Myron Maksymiw on YouTube. Watch the Claymation Christmas' Carol of the Bells on YouTube. T...

1219 Daft Punk - End of Line Over the weekend I saw the new film Tron: Legacy at the theatre. I will say in my opinion it was an excellent film, but I am a certified Sci-Fi nut, so maybe my opinion is a bit biased. I really liked how they kept the film in-line with the original, but you didn't have to see the original to get the story, however it would probably help. I love how they kept a lot of the '80s Sci-Fi atmosphere; Daft Punk's soundtrack helped facilitate this quite a bit; this track is one of my favourites from the film. *Possible Spoiler* When watching the scene which took place in Castor's night club I noticed the two DJs seemed very familiar and I immediately recognized that the two members of Daft Punk: Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter where themselves cast in the film. I absolutely loved the way they kept changing the music to match the fight that was going on in the club. Hear End of Line on YouTube. Hear an alternate, longer version o...

1218 Nightwish - Wishmaster Finally, I'm getting around to today's pick. I heard this track at some point during my day; I thought that I might have already chosen it at some point in the past, but it appears I didn't. This song is the title track to their Wishmaster album circa '00-'01; it is one of the songs where Tuomas Holopainen referenced material from the Dragonlance and The Lord of the Rings series for subject material. I have always loved the music and arrangements in this song, especially Jukka Nevalainen's drumming. Hear Wishmaster on YouTube. Watch a live performance circa '05 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The Violent Femmes - Color Me Once My song pick two years ago today: The Who - Eminence Front My song pick three years ago today: John Fogerty - Almost Saturday Night +

1217 Boston - A Man I'll Never Be I hadn't heard this song in years until yesterday when it started playing in my mind; it's certainly weird when that happens. I guess the label of "power ballad" fits this song quite well, but is still oozing with Tom Scholz's signature hard rock sound. Hear A Man I'll Never Be on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Bachman-Turner Overdrive (BTO) - Blue Collar My song pick two years ago today: John Denver - Season Suite - Winter My song pick three years ago today: Band of Horses - The Funeral +

1216 Henry Mancini - A Shot in the Dark Yesterday I learned that legendary film maker Blake Edwards had passed away, a write-up can be found here . One of the film series that he is probably best know for was The Pink Panther among others. I clearly remember the first time I watched one of the films when I was quite young, I was annoyed when I was told we were watching "The Pink Panther," believing it was the popular cartoon that bears the same name, when it was actually the comedic Peter Sellers detective movies about the bumbling Inspector Jacques Clouseau. Probably many children over the years had a similar experience. However, I did eventually come to enjoy the series of films as well. Anyway, Henry Mancini's music is connected with Blake Edward's movies as he was the composer of many of the soundtracks to the films. A Shot in the Dark was the second in The Pink Panther series and the song I am picking today is, of course, the theme song to that film. It'...

1215 Jack Black and Jason Segel - The Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth I heard this tune the other day and figured since we are about a week away from Christmas I should add something festive to the list. This is, of course, a cover/remake of the arrangement originally performed by Bing Crosby and David Bowie, which can be found here on YouTube . I like how their rendition, while doing it with more of a heavier Rock edge, they still kept the overall spirit of the original intact. Watch the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: John Denver - Poems, Prayers and Promises My song pick two years ago today: Crosby, Stills & Nash - Marrakesh - Express My song pick three years ago today: Jethro Tull - We Used To Know +

1214 Jethro Tull - My God I've had this song running through my mind most of last night and this morning, I figured I might as well pick it. This track is one of Ian Anderson's songs about organized religion and man's relationship with God. Actually the entire second side of the Aqualung album contained songs on this theme, which led to some to refer to it as a "concept album." I have always loved how dynamic this is with them going between Ian's intricate acoustic guitar playing and the raucous sound of the full band. Hear My God on YouTube. Watch a live performance circa '70 with the original lyrics on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Wolfsheim - Once in a Lifetime My song pick two years ago today: Grand Funk Railroad - I'm Your Captain (Closer to Home) My song pick three years ago today: Pet Shop Boys - So Hard +

1213 Top Gear Band - Red Light Spells Danger I am huge fan of the show Top Gear , not really the new U.S. version, but the original British one. Anyway, I found out about this performance a bit ago and figured it would be a neat addition to my list. From what I understand this performance came from a special episode, which aired in '07 where they kind of paid tribute to recently-canceled iconic Top of the Pops television show. In this part of the episode the three presenters of the show formed a band which included themselves along with Justin Hawkins as lead singer as well as a few others; they performed a cover of Billy Ocean's Red Light Spells Danger. While their performance was not perfect, it was very entertaining and neat to see them in a musical setting. Watch the live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Azteca - Love is a Stranger My song pick two years ago today: Danzig - Mother My song pick three years ago today: Savatage - Gutter Ballet +

1212 Fear Factory - Replica Recently I was playing one of the old video games I used to play a lot: Test Drive 5 , which is an arcade racer on the original PlayStation. Test Drive 5 had a very nice soundtrack that featured music mostly from Industrial Metal bands: Fear Factory, Pitchshifter, Junkie XL, and Gravity Kills to name a few off the top of my head. Anyway, one of the interesting things about some of the video games from the mid-late '90s was that they would put hidden music videos on the disc with the game. If I remember correctly after I unlocked all that could be unlocked in the game the music video to Fear Factory's song Replica came on and a secret hidden car called "The Fear Factory Wagon" was unlocked as well. Watch the music video on YouTube. Watch a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: David Bowie - Changes My song pick two years ago today: Heart - Black On Black II My song pick three years ago today: Fontella Bass - Re...

1211 David Bowie - Ashes to Ashes After pondering which song I should choose today for no apparent reason I started listening to some of David Bowie's music; after hearing it I realized that I've not chosen this song yet. I really like this track's odd imagery and neat narrative along with the mellow New Wave Synthpop feel; a truly awesome track. Hear Ashes to Ashes on YouTube. Watch the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Ian Anderson - In the Moneylender's Temple My song pick two years ago today: Dobie Grey - Drift Away My song pick three years ago today: Lobo - Gypsy and the Midnight Ghost +

1210 Ugly Kid Joe - Mr. Recordman I haven't had this band on my mind in a long, long time; I kind of lost track of them sometime back in the mid 1990s. I decided to look up what happened to them; I found out that they broke up in about '97 after releasing three albums. I knew about the first two albums, but missed out on the third. From what I understand they have supposedly gotten back together just recently, so mayhap we'll have some new material? Anyway, I've always liked how their music was edgy and at the same time light-hearted and just pure fun. This was one of the tracks off their debut album that I liked quite a bit, it is one of their softer pieces having to do with the relationship between band and a record executive. Musically this song is mostly driven by a catchy and well-defined chord progression/melody. Hear Mr. Recordman on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Chet Atkins & Jerry Reed - Something My song pick two years ago today: Buddy Holly ...

1209 Rahsaan Roland Kirk - Bright Moments Felt like listening to and picking a Roland Kirk track this morning; I had quite a few of his songs in mind, but in the end, for no apparent reason, I went for this track. I am unsure if this was ever recorded in the studio, but for me most any form of Jazz is best heard live anyway. This is one of the songs which showcases Rahsaan Roland Kirk's flute playing; in my opinion if he's not the best Jazz flautist ever he's right there with whoever is. The most popular piece you hear today featuring his flute playing would have to be Quincy Jones' Soul Bossa Nova , (the theme from the Austin Powers Movies). Actually he is probably best known for is his saxophone playing, which he would play up to three at the same time. He also played quite a few other instruments of which he was at the master level, usually when someone plays that many instruments they become a "jack-of-all-trades, but a master of none," but that wasn...

1208 Rush - Red Lenses After a wee bout with insomnia last night I decided to take advantage of it and get some work done, (about the only time I have to do work around the house anymore), and listen to some music with the headphones on. This song, off of their Grace Under Pressure album, was one of the first tracks that came up on my playlist. While not my favourite song off of p/g , I like to listen to it every now and then. Hear Red Lenses on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The Kinks - A Rock & Roll Fantasy My song pick two years ago today: Quincy Jones - Soul Bossa Nova My song pick three years ago today: Jethro Tull - My Sunday Feeling +

1207 Hawkwind - High Rise I have no idea why, but I'm still listening to a lot of Hawkwind lately; I really felt like picking this awesome track this morning. One of the main reasons I got into Hawkwind was because they wrote a lot of their songs about the stories in science fiction/fantasy novels I like, plus it didn't hurt that their sound at times makes some Progressive Rock seem like Mainstream Pop in comparison. High Rise comes off of their '79 PXR5 album and was based off the sci-fi novel of the same name written by J.G. Ballard; that same novel also inspired the Doctor Who episode: Paradise Towers . The story is about a futuristic super building that is a essentially a city unto itself that is supposed to be a self-sufficient utopia that, as with any good sci-fi story, goes awry and becomes a dystopian nightmare. Here is a neat fan video with the song on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Joachim Witt - Bataillon 'd Amour My song pick tw...

1206 Frank Zappa - Dumb All Over This track has been running through my mind ever since late yesterday when I experienced first-hand the utter lunacy of another person. This song, while more about the idiots blindly following those in authority, just fits my mood perfectly. What I have always loved about Frank Zappa's songs is that while they are comedic in nature, much of the time there is a sociological/political element and/or a deeper moral to the story. What is actually saddening and scary at the same time is how often he hit the nail right on the head. Hear Dumb All Over on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Django Reinhardt - I'll See You In My Dreams My song pick two years ago today: Queen - You're My Best Friend My song pick three years ago today: The Zombies - She's Not There +

1205 The Steve Miller Band - You Send Me I've been thinking about picking this song for a while now and am finally able to get around to picking it this morning. Some might call it blasphemy, but I have always preferred this cover to the original Sam Cooke version; nothing wrong with Sam Cooke's original, but I just like this one a little more. Most likely the main reason I like this cover so much is the nice vocal mix and harmonies. I recently discovered an interesting little tidbit about this track. In the first verse there are some spoken words saying: "Come on, baby, come on. No. Come on don't be nervous" that have always seemed a bit out of place in the song. From what I've read it is a sample from a Cheech & Chong skit called Championship Wrestling ; I have not heard that skit yet, but I certainly will have to look it up. Hear You Send Me on YouTube. Watch a live acoustic version of the song on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Frijid Pink - ...

1204 Hawkwind - Spirit of the Age I usually don't like picking two song from the same band so close to each other, but I have Hawkwind on the brain again today. This song comes off of their '77 Quark, Strangeness and Charm album and consists of two poems written by poet and frontman at the time Robert Calvert: The Starfarer's Despatch and The Clone's Poem . The lyrics are pure awesomeness for any Sci-Fi nut. The first half of the song having to do with a spaceman lamenting how his girlfriend's father refused to have her frozen for him and how she would be 60 years of age at that time and would be dead by the time he returned to Earth as well as her android replica starting to act up on him. The other half of the song is basically about a clone who is talking about what is like being a clone and the issues therein. Anyway, there is some fun Science Fiction craziness for the Sunday and start of another week. Hear Spirit of the Age on YouTube. Watch a performance/m...

1203 Jim Reeves - It's Nothin' to Me For the last few months or so I've been teaching my Grandmother how to play the bass guitar. She is probably one of the biggest Jim Reeves fans in existence, I was greatly exposed to his music through her whilst I was growing up and has continued throughout my life thus far. Anyway, this is one of Jim Reeves' songs that she had me learn so I could in turn teach it to her. I've noticed that there are quite a few mixes and versions of this song recorded by Jim Reeves out there, but the version that I'm talking about here in particular is the version off of his Tall Tales and Short Tempers album circa '61. I have noticed quite a few of his songs are sad ones mostly are about tragedies of varying kinds. The song in particular is quite catchy and is about lust, jealousy, anger, and the tragedies therefrom; you know, that same subject matter some of the best songs in existence came out of. My one sticking point with this song...

1202 The Coasters - Along Came Jones Was drawing a blank for my song pick this morning and then this rather cute track happened to start playing in my mind. I've never been heavily into silly songs. Don't get me wrong, I love the work of Weird Al, Cheech and Chong, and Dr. Demento, etc... but most of the time after the three or more times of playing it or so, like telling a joke too many times, it can start to become stale. For me, for some reason, The Coasters' silly songs don't seem to get as stale as fast as other comedic songs. I absolutely love how they arranged this song, especially the vocals; a true masterpiece of comedic music. Hear Along Came Jones on YouTube. Watch a television performance of the song on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Grand Funk Railroad - Footstompin' Music My song pick two years ago today: Petula Clark - Don't Sleep in the Subway My song pick three years ago today: Band of Horses - Wicked Gil +

1201 Hawkwind - Sleep of a Thousand Tears I felt like listening to some Hawkwind this morning, so I put on their The Chronicle of the Black Sword album. This album is, of course, based on the Michael Moorcock book series: Elric of Melniboné with black sword being a reference to Elric's sword: Stormbringer . Actually the band collaborated with Moorcock himself in the creation of the album, which wasn't their first time they worked with the author; I believe that he actually penned the lyrics for this track in particular. He also worked with them on their Sonic Attack and Warrior on the Edge of Time albums; there are probably other instances out there as well. Suffice it to say both Moorcock and Hawkwind were well acquainted. Anyway, I have always loved bands like Hawkwind that push the definition of music to its limits and how they sing about different subjects that no one else would even think of covering. A lot of the times Hawkwind's music can be somewhat inaccessible...

1200 Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper Having a few milestones today concerning my Song a Day Blog: 1. my 1200th pick, 2. my 600th overall pick on Blogger, 3. I'm starting a new month as well. For anyone who hasn't followed my blog for more than about a couple of years I used to post this blog on MySpace up until my 600th pick, then I moved it to Blogger; I have since imported all my previous posts from MySpace here. From the looks of it the move from MySpace was an excellent idea and timely seeing as the site has essentially given up to Facebook and its future being as uncertain as it is; I'm just glad I'm not having to deal with those irksome software errors wiping out entire posts anymore. Anyway, my last pick on MySpace was another Dream Theater track: 6:00 ; figured I should choose another track from that band to mark my 600th pick on Blogger. This is my favourite track from one of their best albums in my opinion. Hear Metropolis Pt. 1:...