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

1632 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - K.331 - Piano Sonata No. 11 K.331, Year: 1781-3 Genre: Classical Period/classical For the third day of my mystery theme week I felt like picking this one. Most will instantly recognize most of the melodies throughout this famous piece; the melody of the third movement, Rondó Alla Turca: Allegretto, in particular should ring a bell to almost everyone alive or dead. While its an excellent piece of music in so many ways, as with most music from the Classical Period , it has a tendency to fade into the background and easily becomes 'wallpaper music.' Here is the first movement: Andante Grazioso on YouTube. Here is the second movement: Menuetto on YouTube. Here is the third movement: Rondó Alla Turca: Allegretto on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The Allman Brothers Band - Little Martha My song pick two years ago today: Steve Vai - #?@! Yourself My song pick three years ago today: The Who - I'm Free My song pick four years ago today:...

1631 Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin - Symphony No.2 in B-Minor Year: 1878 Genre: Romantic Period/classical This is my second pick of my mystery theme week: This is one of my personal favourite pieces from the pen of Alexander Borodin. Out of ' The Five ' he composed a lot of their pieces I like the most; personally Mussorgsky wrote a lot I like as well and at times it's a toss up between the two. Anyway, this in my opinion is a 'musician's piece' of music, however with its beauty and sheer presence it's definitely a listener's song as well; you can easily get engrossed in both the feeling and complexities throughout. I absolutely love to get lost in this amazing piece of music; truly beautiful. Here is the first movement: Allegro on YouTube. Here is the second movement: Scherzo. Prestissimo-Allegretto on YouTube. Here is the third movement: Andante on YouTube. Here is the fourth movement: Finale. Allegro on YouTube. My song pic...

1630 Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos - Media Vita in Morte Sumus From: Chant , Year: 1973 Genre: Gregorian Chant I'm embarking on a theme week, however I thought it would be fun to wait until Saturday's pick to reveal what my theme is; in the mean time anyone is welcome to make guesses as to what it is along the way. Okay, on to today's song pick: I remember back in the '90s this album became quite popular and could be heard all over the place. If memory serves me right, that new found popularity of Chant happened to spawn some parody albums; one in particular, I believe, was called: Grunt . As you can probably guess, it was composed of chants spoken in Pig-Latin . Since it became popular 20 years from the initial recording I wouldn't be too surprised if it makes another resurgence within a few years or so. Anyway, as with most of the tracks on the album, this one makes excellent 'wallpaper music' and is also nice to listen closely to as well....

1629 Blind Faith - Had to Cry Today From: Blind Faith , Year: 1969 Genre: Blues Rock I'm having one of those days and this song from the very bright and short-lived 'supergroup' Blind Faith felt good to listen to this morning. While I'm not really in the mood to go on much about things today, I will say that I do like this song a lot. Hear Had to Cry Today on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Jethro Tull - By Kind Permission Of My song pick two years ago today: Peter Gabriel - Down To Earth My song pick three years ago today: Edgar Winter Group - Free Ride My song pick four years ago today: Janis Joplin - Me and Bobby McGee +

1628 Miles Davis - Pharaoh's Dance From: Bitches Brew , Year: 1970 Genre: Jazz Fusion/Jazz I was thinking about some of the songs off of this album this morning and figured I would pick one of them. This is one of Miles' more experimental albums, which contained sounds you'd continue to hear in the coming decades in Jazz. On this song, which was written by master keyboardist Joe Zawinul, contains an amazing lineup of musicians and a real interesting arrangement as well: Miles Davis, of course, (trumpet), Joe Zawinul (left piano), Chick Corea (right piano), Larry Young (mid piano), Lenny White (left drums), Jack DeJohnette (Right Drums), John McLaughlin (guitar), Wayne Shorter (soprano saxophone), Bernie Maupin (bass clarinet), Dave Holland (double bass), Harvey Brooks (electric bass), Don Alias (congas), and Juma Santos (shaker). While Miles Davis' music and this album in particular isn't everyone's cup of tea, he and his music has influenced not only Jazz, but ...

1627 Queensrÿche - Eyes of a Stranger From: Operation: Mindcrime , Year: 1988 Genre: Progressive Metal For some reason I had the urge to listen to Operation: Mindcrime last night and this morning and I thought I'd pick a track off of the album today as well. Eyes of a Stranger is the last song on this epic concept album and really does an awesome job of wrapping up the story. This song deals with the main character, Nikki, remembering all that has happened and what he's done. I love how they make use of minor chords to set and compliment the mood in this one. As always, Geoff Tate's vocals are one of the main highlights; he adds a lot of emotion with his powerful vocals. Hear Eyes of a Stranger on YouTube. Here is the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Bad Company - Holy Water My song pick two years ago today: Azteca - Some Day We'll Get By My song pick three years ago today: Elmer Bernstein - The Magnificent Seven ( Theme ) My song pick four ye...

1626 John Dowland - In Darkness We Dwell Year: 1610 Genre: Late Renaissance Period/ Early Baroque Period/classical It appears that I've gotten to the point in my song picks where the pick number matches dates in musical history. As you might or might not know, master composer and lutenist John Dowland died in February of the year 1626, so I though I would pick another one of my favourite songs from his pen today. This very beautiful piece of music that is rather dark and melancholy, but pretty all the same. It was first published in 1610, which would put it right at the point where the Renaissance Period was giving way to the Baroque Period, so it contains some aspects of both. I've always found it odd how we look back hundreds of years on and make these divisions based on the popular 'musical ideas' that permeated compositions through those years when in reality there was a lot of overlap as music evolved from one form to another. Here is an excellent perform...

1625 Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing From: Dire Straits , Year: 1978 Genre: Rock I felt like listening to some Dire Straits this morning; I thought for sure that I'd picked this song in particular before, but apparently I didn't. I can't believe that I've only twice picked a song from Dire Straits; this was due to Warner Brothers getting pissy and taking down all of their songs off of YouTube a few years back. In fact any band that was on the Warner label was really difficult to find on there not too long ago; only now can you find some of it on YouTube. Because of this I wouldn't have been unable to post a YouTube link with the song, which is something I don't like doing. To say the least I'm glad that in the end Warner calmed back down and accepted YouTube's money. Anyway, without a doubt this is the Dire Straits song I've heard the most over the years. My dad absolutely loves it; he bought the record for this song alone and would play it over and ...

1624 The Moody Blues - Go Now From: The Magnificent Moodies , Year: 1965 Genre: Rock/R&B I was having trouble thinking of a song for my pick today. For no reason I started listening to The Moody Blues and realized that I hadn't picked this song yet, which was one of their first hits and predated Justin Heyward. It was actually a cover of a song written by Larry Banks and Milton Bennett; it was first recorded by Larry Banks' wife Bessie Banks a year before The Moody Blues picked it up. The band had more of a Pop/Beat feel to it at this time in contrast to their more popular Symphonic/Progressive material they're known for. It's a rather bluesy and soulful track that is most notably carried by a well-defined 3/4 waltz beat, which makes it very recognizable. Hear Go Now on YouTube. Watch a vintage television performance of the song on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Queen - 39 My song pick two years ago today: Hawkwind - Standing at the Edge My song pick thr...

1623 Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) - Julie Don't Live Here From: Time [Remastered], Year: 1981 Genre: Electronic Rock/Pop While out and about driving in the slop this evening this track from my favourite ELO record came on and I thought it would make a nice pick for this Sunday evening. This song was actually not originally included on the Time album and was rather a b-side to one of the singles off of the record: Twilight . However, on the remaster version it was included along with two other tracks. With it not originally being part of the album I am a bit uncertain as to if it was part of the time traveler story that is told throughout the songs on the album. With the subject matter of the song about a man looking up the residence of a what seems to be an old girlfriend only to find out that she no longer lives there, it definitely would fit the story, especially early on in the album. I believe it would fit best perhaps before or after Yours Truly, 2095 , being that the song ...

1622 The Beatles - Back in the U.S.S.R. From: The Beatles " White Album ," Year: 1968 Genre: Pop/Rock 'N Roll The other day I was forced to slog through nearly a foot of snow on unplowed roads, which was fun. This song just happened to be playing on the radio at the time and acted as an excellent fun soundtrack for all of the wheel-spinning and white-knuckle driving. I've never actually been a fan of this somewhat cliché-riddled song; there are many other songs from their catalogue that I like more, but it still is a rather nice up-tempo rocker. From what I've read Ringo Starr didn't appear on the recording of the song; it was a product of heavy studio overdub, which was a staple for the band at that time. Hear Back in the U.S.S.R. on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Tarot - Pilot of All Dreams My song pick two years ago today: Muse - Knights of Cydonia My song pick three years ago today: Nightwish - 10th Man Down My song pick four years ago today: Jac...

1621 The Ventures - Beethoven's Sonata in C#-Minor From: Joy: The Ventures Play the Classics , Year: 1972 Genre: Progressive Rock/Surf Rock You probably notice that my blog looks a lot different. It has been a while, about 10 months since the last time I redesigned it and have been meaning to update its look again for a couple of months now. I still haven't settled on a design yet and might change it again; we'll have to see if it still works for me in the coming weeks. Anyway, on to my song pick: I really have been meaning to choose a track from this album for a very long time. Like some other bands from around that time were doing, this was The Ventures foray into making rocked out arrangements of classical music. This track is their Rock adaptation of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata (Op. 27, No.2). I love how they used the horns and bass guitar for the big sounding punctual stabs that accompany the arpeggiated triplets played on the keyboards and other lead instruments...

1620 Pearl Jam - Light Years From: Binaural , Year: 2000 Genre: Rock/Alternative Rock For a while now I've been going back over the bands that I heard a lot during the late '80's into the '90's. Back then I really liked all of the new styles of music coming out and personally I viewed it as music evolving, which is always a wonderful thing. However, the one problem I had wasn't really with the music or the musicians at all, but rather the 'you're with us or against us' culture that permeated that musical scene. I remember that it seemed like one of the central ideas of the Alternative/Grunge scene was to destroy and sew salt on the ground so to speak of the previous types of music they replaced in the mainstream; I had a real difficult time fitting into that mindset. By no means am I defending the corporate Glam thing that it replaced; I totally agree that it was played out and the time to move on was long overdue. However, for me, whenever I feel li...

1619 Ludwig Van Beethoven - Op. 31 No. 2 - Piano Sonata No. 17 in D minor "Tempest" Opus 31 No. 2, Year: 1802-1803 Genre: Classical Period/classical Being that it's a crazy day out there on the interweb, I decided I would pick a nice piece of Classic music instead of the stuff from the last 80 or so years like I normally would. Just like his other piano music, this one is a truly beautiful piece of music. If no one noticed a great deal of popular websites have put up a self-imposed blackout here in the U.S. in protest of two bills that are currently going through the process in congress. You can find out the particulars of the SOPA and PIPA laws for yourself on Wikipedia . I almost joined them in their protest by blacking out my blog, but really, only a few regular readers would miss it, so I figured if I did it, it would just seem overtly pretentious. That being said, I do fully support the actions of those sites in their opposition of these two poorly written and pot...

1618 Black 47 - Different Drummer From: Home of the Brave , Year: 1994 Genre: Celtic Rock/Rock I was in the mood for some Black 47 this morning; this rather raucous yet upbeat track seem to fit my mood the best. As with all of their music this one contains many different musical styles and influences, but their Punk influence is very prominent in this one. I absolutely love the way they tell the story contained in the song in a humorous way and make the chorus a singalong for the audience as if you were in a pub listening to them live. Hear a live recording circa '99 on YouTube. Watch a live performance from a couple of years ago on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Band of Horses - The First Song My song pick two years ago today: Forest - A Glade Somewhere My song pick three years ago today: Weather Report - Teen Town My song pick four years ago today: Johann Sebastian Bach - BWV 1068 - Orchestral Suite No.3 in D-Major, " Air " +

1617 Dion - Abraham, Martin and John From: Abraham, Martin and John , Year: 2007 (1968) Genre: Pop/Folk Rock I noticed that today happened to be the government/banker holiday Martin Luther King Jr. day. It snuck up on me this year; I haven't purchased a 2012 calendar yet, yeah I'm procrastinating. When I happened to notice what day it was this track started playing in my mind and I thought it would be a good pick for the occasion. It seemed as if there was always music playing in our house when I was really young and I remember back when I was, oh about 4 years old, I heard this one was playing on the radio, a tape, or something. I remember asking my mom and dad what this song was about and got an impromptu lesson in recent history. Even though I was only around a decade removed from that time, it seemed like a complete other era for me; I guess that's really what holidays like this are for. Anyway, for those unaware of this song, it's about four of the great leaders of...

1616 Northern Kings - Wanted Dead or Alive From: Rethroned , Year: 2008 Genre: Metal For quite some time I was in a band that happened to cover a lot of Bon Jovi, which caused me to get a bit tired of hearing them and of course having a wife that loves the band only helped to exacerbate the problem. I still do like the band and their music and am finally getting past that lethargy. Anyway, when I heard this Power Metal cover of this Bon Jovi hit song by the Finnish super group Northern Kings it was like a breath of fresh air blew into it and made it fresh to me again. It has a nice 80's Iron Maiden brand of Metal feel to it; Marco Hietala does an awesome job on the vocals. Here the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Jethro Tull - Bungle in the Jungle My song pick two years ago today: Edvard Grieg - Op. 54, No.3 - The March of the Trolls ( Troldtog ) My song pick three years ago today: Rob Zombie - Dragula My song pick four years ago today: Tears for Fears -...

1615 The Scorpions - The Good Die Young From: Sting in the Tail , Year: 2010 Genre: Hard Rock/Metal On the radio last night they were playing some songs from the Scorpions newer albums; it got me into the mood to listen to them again, so I decided to choose one of my favourites off of their most recent release. It is a rather pretty anthem of a song that sounds similar to that of their material from the '80's-'90's. I recently discovered that they also recorded a version of the song that featured Tarja Turunen, who is the former lead singer of Nightwish, in a duet with Klaus Meine. Hear The Good Die Young on YouTube. Hear the version that features a duet between Klaus Meine and Tarja Turunen on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Megadeth - Elysian Fields My song pick two years ago today: Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli (Quintette du Hot Club de France) feat. Freddy Taylor - Nagasaki My song pick three years ago today: Miles Davis - Flamenco Sketches My...

1614 Jamiroquai - Cosmic Girl From: Traveling Without Moving , Year: 1997 Genre: Funk/Disco/Acid Jazz I've known of the existence of Jamiroquai for a long while, but until recently have never taken the time to look up any of their songs. It's another case where I believe I've actually heard the band's music, but didn't know who performed it. I mostly learned about the band from seeing their lead singer, Jay Kay, all over different programs on the BBC. For those unfamiliar with the band, they are what is known as an Acid Jazz/Funk/Dance Hall band. I haven't picked a song from a band that is considered part of the Acid Jazz genre yet, so I figured I would snag the opportunity. Anyhow, Acid Jazz is one of the Jazz genres where it, just like with Jazz Fusion, gets the snub from 'Jazz purists' who don't look on it as an actual form of Jazz. To best describe it, it takes a lot of the ides and concepts found in Jazz, like the loping eighth note and the swin...

1613 Metallica - The Day That Never Comes From: Death Magnetic , Year: 2008 Genre: Metal/Thrash Metal I've been really liking Metallica's newest album and have been listening to it a lot recently. Since it's been a while since I last picked a Metallica song I figured I would add one today. While I've never considered myself a die hard fan of the band, there's no denying their abilities as musicians or songwriters. To tell the truth I like their music, but ever since Metallica first came on the scene I was seriously turned off by the stuck-up/egotistical attitudes of the main two members of the group. Personally, that's one of the main turnoffs for me with any band, sometimes even to the point where I'll all but quit listening to a band's music if they start copping an attitude. That being said, like I stated before, Metallica's music is excellent and I like much of it. Anyway, while this song is not as heavy as a lot of their material I like, I absol...

1612 Savatage - Holocaust From: Sirens , Year: 1983 Genre: Heavy Metal I had Savatage on my mind this morning and, if I'm not mistaken, I haven't chosen a song off of their debut album Sirens . With this being from their early period, the music is decidedly heavier and bit more in your face than from their more popular Progressive/Symphonic Metal material that the Trans-Siberian Orchestra was born out of. Anyway, this is a song written about the world coming to an end in the year 2000. Yeah, that was 12 years ago and I believe that they weren't the only ones who got that one wrong, or maybe they got it right and the world did end in 2000 and no one noticed.... Hear Holocaust on YouTube. Watch a rare live performance of the song circa '81 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: The United States of America - The Garden of Earthly Delights My song pick two years ago today: Buddy Holley & the Crickets - Oh Boy! My song pick three years ago today: Oasis - Champagne...

1611 Carmen - High Time From: The Gypsies , Year: 1976 Genre: Progressive Rock I've been meaning to pick a song from this band for a long time now; I believe that they've been best described as an "avant-garde Flamenco-Rock band." They are a very interesting sounding band being with their fusion of Anglo-American Rock and Flamenco; the overall sound is quite melodic. This one hails from their 'swan song' album The Gypsies and is not really as much representative of their overall sound, but I like it a lot. Here is the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Stahlhammer - Strom Der Zeit My song pick two years ago today: Ally Kerr - The Sore Feet Song My song pick three years ago today: Johnny Cash - Solitary Man My song pick four years ago today: Two-Mix - White Reflection +

1610 Stormwarrior - Foreign Shores From: Northern Rage , Year: 2004 Genre: Metal/Viking Metal Having some difficulties getting motivated for the rest of my day, so I put some Metal on to get my blood moving. For no reason whatsoever I started listening to Stormwarrior's Northern Rage album and I figured I'd make one of the songs my pick for today. Stormwarrior is one of the newer bands that remind me a lot of late '70s British Heavy Metal, Iron Maiden in particular. Here is the studio version on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Larry Greene - Through the Fire My song pick two years ago today: Puhdys - Geh Dem Wind Nicht Aus Dem Wege My song pick three years ago today: Journey - Lights My song pick four years ago today: Rush - Anthem +

1609 Band of Horses - Compliments From: Infinite Arms , Year: 2010 Genre: Rock/Indie Thought I would try to get my pick in a bit earlier today; it's been a busy day. Anyhow, I felt like listening to some Band of Horses; I've listened to their first two albums a bit much and decided to give their newest album another listen. It's nice to be able to listen to new material even if, in my opinion, it's not as good as its predecessors. This is one of the songs that popped out to me upon hearing it the first time; I like the nice bluesy groove that carries it along. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance from Farm Aid on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Hawkwind - Lord of Light My song pick two years ago today: Karussell - Schattenkreuze My song pick three years ago today: The Proclaimers - I 'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) My song pick four years ago today: Arlo Guthrie - City of New Orleans +

1608 Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble - Superstition From: Live Alive , Year: 1986 Genre: Blues/Rock Ugh! I'm getting another late pick in; I guess it's better late than never. Anyway, for the last couple of days I've had the urge to listen to Stevie Ray Vaughan; I thought it would be nice to add another one of his songs to my list. This one is, of course, a cover, and an excellent one at that, of the masterpiece originally written by the incomparable Stevie Wonder, who was a big influence on his music. Stevie Wonder not only gave his blessing for him to do the cover, but also appeared in the music video as well. Here is a vinyl recording on YouTube. Here is the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Journey - To Play Some Music My song pick two years ago today: Apocalyptica featuring Till Lindemann - Helden My song pick three years ago today: James Gang - Funk 49 My song pick four years ago today: Midnight Oil - Blue Sky Mine +

1607 Return to Forever - Dayride From: No Mystery , Year: 1975 Genre: Jazz Fusion/Funk It's the first Friday of the year, so I thought I would make a 'Funky Friday' for the occasion with this rather funky piece of Jazz Fusion. This song comes from the pen of legendary bassist Stanley Clarke; it would also make an appearance on his '78 Modern Man solo album. It has a nice mixture of Jazz, Funk, and Rock with just a wee bit of a Latin flavor. As always, all of the band members do a superb job, but I especially love Chick Corea's synth keyboard playing throughout on this one. Hear Dayride on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Blue Öyster Cult - Hot Rails to Hell My song pick two years ago today: Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show - Cover of the Rolling Stone My song pick three years ago today: Seals & Crofts - Summer Breeze My song pick four years ago today: Jethro Tull - Crazed Institution +

1606 Boston - Foreplay/Long Time From: Boston , Year: 1976 Genre: Hard Rock/Progressive Rock This is one of the songs that initially made me a fan of Boston; it's the longest track off of their debut album clocking in at just under 8 minutes total. The instrumental Foreplay opening 'overture' section, which reminds me a lot of a Toccata, immediately grabs you by the ears and won't let go. The track then goes into the main Long Time section that is more of a straight-up Hard Rock, but still just as musical as the opening. Hear Foreplay/Long Time on YouTube. Watch a live performance circa '88 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Gerry Rafferty - Home and Dry My song pick two years ago today: Johnny Cash - One Piece at a Time My song pick three years ago today: Traffic - John Barleycorn My song pick four years ago today: The Moody Blues - Forever Afternoon ( Tuesday? ), Time to Get Away. +

1605 Jethro Tull - Crew Nights From: Nightcap , Year: 1993 (1981) Genre: Hard Rock/Progressive Rock After I saw that Frankie Big Face picked Jackson Browne's Load Out yesterday as one of his TWOsday picks this 'Tull song with a similar subject matter/theme started playing in my mind and wouldn't leave. Although, because I picked one of their songs a couple of days ago, let alone the amount of times the band has been featured on my blog I was a bit hesitant to pick it, but when a song I like is on my mind I always take it as a sign that I should pick it, so here it is. I was first drawn to this track mostly for the usual excellent musicianship from the band and the way it was arranged. The song is definitely carried by its straight up and down, hard, driving drum beat, however, when they come to the instrumental section, like any good Prog/Rock band, they effortlessly speed up the tempo and switch it up to an odd 7 beat meter; they just as effortlessly go back to the origin...

1604 Mr. Big - Take Cover From: Hey Man , Year: 1996 Genre: Hard Rock I had absolutely no song in mind for my pick today, so I decided to spin my the wheel so to speak and came up with this excellent track off of Mr. Big's '96 Hey Man album. This one is an excellent example of that classic sound and amazing musicianship that Mr. Big is known for. This is one of those songs where you get the best of both worlds in that while it's technical enough for the discerning musical ear, at the same time it's not lost to the ear of the casual listener either. Here is the music video on YouTube. Here is an excellent live performance circa '09 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Triumph - Magic Power My song pick two years ago today: Nightwish - While Your Lips Are Still Red My song pick three years ago today: The Rolling Stones - Mother's Little Helper My song pick four years ago today: Billy Joel - Two Thousand Years +

1603 Van der Graaf Generator - Whatever Would Robert Have Said? From: The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other , Year: 1970 Genre: Progressive Rock I've been really digging this album for the last little bit ever since I first got a chance to hear it; this is one of my favourite tracks off of the album. This song really fits the definition of Progressive Rock to a tee; it actually reminds me a lot of earlier David Bowie, especially the vocals. From what I understand the Robert they are referring to is supposedly Robert J. Van de Graaff, who was the inventor of the Van De Graaff Generator from which the band got its name. Hear Whatever Would Robert Have Said on YouTube. Here is a live performance/video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Steve Vai - Kill the Guy with the Ball/The God Eaters My song pick two years ago today: Banchee - John Doe My song pick three years ago today: Bob Dylan - Like A Rolling Stone My song pick four years ago today: Queen - Don't Stop Me No...

1602 Jethro Tull - Last Man at the Party From: The Jethro Tull Christmas Album , Year: 2003 Genre: Progressive Rock/Folk Rock Happy New Year! I thought I would start this year of picks off with this rather fitting tune from Jethro Tull's Christmas Album. I've heard this song a few times over the last month while I played the album. It's about the only time of year I get to listen to it being that the majority of the songs are themed for Christmas and the other Holidays that take place around this time of year. Anyway, this one has a very similar sound and feel to their Progressive Folk Rock style from the late '70s, which is one of the reasons I like this song in particular. On this track Ian Anderson describes a Holiday party and the drunken states of its attendees in a comedic way. However, the chorus is what made this song fitting for my pick on this first day of the New Year: "So make yourselves jolly under mistletoe, holly and ivy. Get to it – and be in good ...