Once again, time to post my two cents on the first ten songs that pop up on the ol’ iPod (28484 songs strong!)

“Porch”, Pearl Jam Ten

I’ll be honest, I’m not the biggest PJ fan in the world but Ten is a good album.  “Porch” is one of those rare ravers on the disc, definitely yards away from the hits as far as punch, power, and funky punkiness is concerned plus Eddie Vedder gets in a WTF moment early.  Leans classic rock come the chorus and guitar solo time as the Gossard/McCready team lay down a double tracked bit o’ goodness.  Some good tones on display here.

“Pictures Of Home”, Deep Purple Machine Head

First time I heard this song I said to myself, “so this must be where Yngwie Malmsteen stole his licks!”  Yeah, everyone knows the Purple hits but frankly, this is an underrated cut where everyone in the band shines-  great riff, fantastic organ accompaniment, killer Ian Paice drum intro, and subtly smooth Ian Gillan vocal.  But of course, Ritchie Blackmore is the big star here as he lays down one hot lead break followed closely by some cool Jon Lord Hammond runs and a brief bass swoop by Roger Glover.  Highly recommended!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4UjWtLyYBY

“Fly On The Wall”, Thunder Behind Closed Doors

Talk about a really cool band and one fantastic singer, Thunder plays that funky music here with the occasional horn stabs mixed in with some heavy rockin’ guitar.  These guys are generally a little more bluesier in their work, but this one is like amping up some Bad Company and mixing it with KC and the Sunshine Band.  A band that should be bigger than they actually are, even though they’ve carved a nice niche in their home country Britain.

“My Baby’s Gone”, Los Lobos By The Light Of The Moon

Another time for honesty, I’ve always wanted to play in a roots rock type band that leaned towards the blues and stuff like “My Baby’s Gone” is what we’d cover.  Just a really good and straight ahead blues rock cut, a little funky courtesy of the groove and percussion but definitely blues territory come the guitar work.  Shades of the Kings (Albert, BB, and Freddie) and Jimmie Vaughan with the guitar tones and stinging leads.

“Bladecatcher”, Mastodon Blood Mountain

Whoa…  if you like oddball stuff mixed in with your heavy riffage this may be for you (although if you need some singin’ this ain’t got it).  This instrumental has what sounds like a catchy tapped intro before breaking into freakout zone with a crazy distorted vocal, then swinging into a Maidenesque riff a la “Genghis Khan” before changing gears AGAIN with another cool bit that changes one more time before closeout.  Great interplay among the two guitars and bass here.

“Seven Little Indians”, John Hiatt Stolen Moments

Ahh, a feedback intro on a John Hiatt album 🙂 A bit of an oddity, but I really liked this period from Hiatt as he pushed the elements and introduced different instrumentation to his material.  “Seven Little Indians” mixes Hendrixy electric with Dylanesque rhythms and also includes some sweet mandolin interplay, making for a rewarding listen.  As always, Hiatt’s growl is a treat and his lyrics are always enjoyable and here in fine storytelling mode.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97phQX8HVeQ

“Bedrock Twitch”, Rock Roll Bubblegum Classics

Ha ha, yeah!!!  I’ve got no idea where I got this from but this is the original from the TV show and not the B-52s remake from The Flintstones movie.  I loved this when I was a kid and love it just as much now.  If you’ve not heard it, click below.  What I gotta know though is who is the guitar player?  Man, that’s one nasty lick!  Sure, this is a song from a cartoon TV show but it’s a great sendup of the surf rock and twist music popular at the time.  Killer horns and vocal too.

“Your World Will Hate This”, Orange Goblin Coup De Grace

Kinda funny, two songs this post with the f word proudly displayed early in the vocal.  Just two minutes of no nonsense, full on blast riffage from these stoner rock cats from bloody England, all fuzzy distortion and in your face vocal.  Not much more to say really other than a great way to get your attention at the start of this disc.  BAM!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyj92khQ9QA

“Big Teaser”, Saxon Coming To The Rescue

Saxon’s always been a big fave of mine, some cuts moreso than others although I must say that “Big Teaser” falls way down the list of go-to Saxon cuts.  It’s not bad but it leans more to the glammy side, feeling a bit like a heavy Sweet ripoff mixed with some Motorhead riffage.  This is the original version and not the version that was released on their debut album so it’s a little more raw and undercooked.  Still pretty cool stuff even if it’s lower level Saxon.

“One Of These Days”, Pink Floyd Meddle

And we end this week with an unheralded gem and one of my favorite cuts from Pink Floyd-  “One Of These Days” is just an epic builder headlined by some rushing wind effects before that throbbing double tracked bass kicks in as the centerpiece of the whole song.  Rick Wright has some fabulous keyboard stabs here, but it’s David Gilmour’s grandiose guitar work that just steals the show.  Angry, distorted, and growly slide work that’s incredibly tasty in context but when he gets into those higher note bends this song reaches another level.  Awesome.

 

Song of the week goes to “One Of These Days” followed by “Pictures Of Home”