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

From: #1 Record ; Year: 1972; Genre: Rock/Pop Lately I've been finding myself watching re-runs of That '70s Show . I don't know why, nothing else on I guess; makes me wonder why I still have cable.... For those not aware, this is the original song that was covered by Todd Griffin and later Cheap Trick for the show's theme song. It was a good choice in my and probably many others' opinion as well; kind of exemplifies early '70s power pop. Hear In The Street on YouTube. My song pick one year ago today: Bowling for Soup - 1985 My song pick two years ago today: Neil Young - Computer Age My song pick three years ago today: Johnny Cash - Thirteen My song pick four years ago today: Jethro Tull - Valley My song pick five years ago today: Ian Anderson - Photo Shop My song pick six years ago today: Ozzy Osbourne - Over the Mountain My song pick seven years ago today: Ome Henk - Neem Een Ander In De Maling ( Barbie Girl ) My song pick eight yea...

1112 Big Star - Thirteen Again, because of the pick number I had to pick something to do with the number 13 today; I wanted to make another string of numbers: 11, 12, 13. Anyway, I immediately thought of this rather lovely acoustic ballad that was aptly named. I have noticed that this track has become more popular in recent years, probably mostly due to its recent use in film and television soundtracks. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a music video with an alternate mix on YouTube. Here is a pert of a live performance circa '07 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: David Bowie - Queen Bitch My song pick two years ago today: The Offspring - Self Esteem My song pick three years ago today: The Allman Brothers - Blue Sky +

940 ( The Box Tops - The Letter ) Last night I found out that sing/writer/musician Alex Chilton passed away at the age of 59. Apparently he died in a New Orleans hospital after experiencing heart problems; there is an excellent writeup found on BBC.com . Anyway, I figured that I should choose a song that is the most memorable for me that he performed on; Alex Chilton did the lead vocals on this song as a member of The Box Tops, although this song was actually written by Wayne Carson Thompson . I especially love the rhythm section and beat of this song along with the gravely vocals. I only wish the song was at least double the length; 2:00 is just too short. After his tenure with The Box Tops he went on to a solo career, forming the group Big Star, as well as a few other acts. I guess there is another "Big Star" in The Heavens. Okay that was just too cheeseball! Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance from 2001 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago tod...