Well that time has come… I’ve bought too much stuff over the years to fit onto one iPod so now I have two! The second was purchased for me by one of my sons for Christmas in 2019 and at some point in 2020 I ran out of space on the 160GB iPod classic, so I shifted most of the metal/stoner rock/progressive metal to the new iPod and left the rock/country/jazz/blues on the other. To make it simple for blog posts, I’ll switch it up between The Rock iPod and The Metal iPod!
“The Drugs Don’t Work” The Verve, Urban Hymns
First off, I’m a big fan of The Verve. Urban Hymns and it’s absolutely sublime “Bittersweet Symphony” was the single that caught my ear and I gradually matriculated back to their first two albums and discovered a really good band; lots of atmospheric material with some wicked cool sonics. But back to this song- “Drugs” is essentially a Richard Ashcroft solo cut and a beaut it is, featuring a sweet melancholic melody, somber tone, and gentle strum from the singer that is pretty much far removed from the band’s earlier material, but that dichotomy between Ashcroft’s melodic tendencies and guitarist Nick McCabe’s swirling psychedelia has always been the draw for me. This version here is the original demo found on the Super Deluxe package.
“Man In The Moon” John Corabi, Unplugged
Ahhh, two acoustic ditties in a row with this one featuring one of my all time favorite gravel throats in Mr. John Corabi. Believe me, the Crab hasn’t gotten his just dues as an artist except for those of us well aware of his work with The Scream, Dead Daisies, and that one Motley Crue album without Vince Neil on it (check out that self titled disc from ’94… GREAT STUFF). At any rate, “Man In The Moon” first debuted a few years earlier on The Scream’s debut disc and is a decent representation of Crab’s whiskey ‘n smokes vocal, kind of a rougher and (if you can believe it) cooler Steven Tyler. The song has hints of Zeppelin in the acoustics but is more sing songy overall. The original was a bit heavier and swampier but this campfire singalong is damn good in its own right.
“Scratch N Sniff” Rhino Bucket, Get Used To It
So yeah, the metal is on the other iPod but good ol’ hard rock in some fashions remains on this one and “Get Used To It” is a great example. Those of us a certain age may remember these guys popping up occasionally on Headbanger’s Ball and thinking… “HEY! It sounds like old AC/DC with Bon Scott singing!” So yeah, you get yer heads down rock it like there’s no tomorrow relentless boogie riffing like Angus and the boys but probably a bit less in the pocket and more balls out metal although I get a certain “Let There Be Rock” vibe to this one. A lot of fun and happy to see a band like Airbourne carrying the flame for this type of no frills rock and roll. And I’m surprised good ol’ Bon hadn’t written a song with that title… I could only imagine…
“Set Me Free” The Kinks, To The Bone
Cheating on the above video because I can’t find this great version that I’m reviewing in this post but hey, you get the idea. “Set Me Free” is one of those underrated Kinks songs; a bit of a flip from the raunch of “You Really Got Me” or “All Day And All Of The Night” in all its introspective and melancholy glory but still with that young man’s pining for the love of a young woman that Ray Davies could write so well. What’s awesome about this version is how skronking little bro Dave Davies’ guitar tone sounds balanced against Ray’s lazy cool vocal. Big props to the band for some fab background vocals and to Ian Gibbons for his subtle keyboard work underneath all that goodness. I’ll be singing this for days now!
“Dandy Lion” Screamin’ Cheetah Wheelies, Big Wheel
One of the cool things about the 90s was not only grunge but the influx of some pretty cool southern jam bands. The awesomely named Screamin’ Cheetah Wheelies were one of a few, never really breaking out like fellow jammers Blues Traveler or the more radio friendly grooves of Collective Soul but nonetheless have a more guitar centric and heavier approach with hints of Skynyrd and Molly Hatchet mixed with a good dollop of Allman Brothers. “Dandy Lion” is pretty representative of the band’s sound and features some great playing from the entire band (check out those guitars!) but hot damn the vocal stylings of one Mike Farris are very impressive. If you like your blues rock with a bit of soulful swagger and southern jams you can’t beat this. Good stuff.
“Always Lift Him Up/Kanaka Wai Wai” Ry Cooder, Chicken Skin Music
Mercy… I could listen to Ry Cooder play guitar all day. “Always Lift Him Up” is just sooooo soo good and totally representative of what the man can do with a six string in his hands- his awesomely cool mellow picking style and slide work (slide not featured here though) is downright beautiful and while not possessing the prettiest of singing styles, those gospel tinged background vocalists do the heavy lifting here and raise this to an even higher level. Oh, and leave it to the musicologist in Ry to throw in an instrumental version of “Kanaka Wai Wai” and not missing a beat at all. Cooder’s always been good at picking classic blues songs and putting his twist on them to great, great effect.
“Joan Crawford” Blue Oyster Cult, Fire Of Unknown Origin
Yeah, yeah, yeah… “more cowbell” and “I’ve got a feavuh!” and all that stuff.. that SNL skit was the shizznit and all and most everyone knows THE BIG THREE BOC SONGS from classic rock radio, but COME ON! BOC has ALWAYS had some great material on every single album and “Joan Crawford” is about as cool as you’re going to get. I’d first heard the live version of this cut but the studio one is equally rippin’. Introing with some dramatic piano work from Allen Lanier, the riffing comes quickly and dramatically as Eric Bloom tells a horror story of Brooklyn junkies, shivering angels, and eyes turning the color of frozen meat all because that “NO MORE WIRE HANGERS” lady has risen from the grave. “Christina… mother’s home” NOOOOO!!! The stuff of cartoony nightmares here.
“New Coat Of Paint” Tom Waits, The Heart Of Saturday Night
Yeah I do like tunes like this along with my metal. “New Coat Of Paint” feels like one of those boozy old classics your dad would throw on the turntable after a long week of work or maybe something you’d hear hanging out in Vegas in some seedy bar in the old part of town but hey… there ain’t nothing wrong with that. Waits wrote the original and it feels like a jazzy cocktail mixed with a bit o’ Nawlin’s voodoo- hints of Dr John in his hazy vocal delivery with a groove sooo laid back that digs deep into your soul. And that lyric is just the coolest too, lots of visual lines like “we’ll laugh at that old bloodshot moon in that burgundy sky” and “our love needs a transfusion, so let’s shoot it full of wine” that put you right there with Waits. Hey Tom, save a spot at the bar for me will ya?
“Hat Too Flat” Walter Becker, Eleven Tracks Of Whack
The yin to Donald Fagen’s yang of the mighty Steely Dan, “Hat Too Flat” almost feels like an odd electronic experiment for the first couple minutes, like Devo and Gary Numan kidnapped him and programmed the keyboards while reversing Becker’s guitar track. But after a minute or so he squeezes in a vocal that builds into a melodic chorus around the two minute mark before getting hijacked this time by Thomas Dolby (“SCIENCE!”) and continues that “out there” journey in electronic loop world. And that lyric? HUH? Whassup with that Walter? But you know what? This actually kind of works in an oddball and quirky way, not really much Steely Dan in here but we get to hear some of Walter’s guitar noodles as part of his intergalactic journey.
“Back On The Street” Gary Moore, Back On The Street
Gather round kids and let me tell you about the Gary Moore that I used to know… yeah, before he became a bluesman for most of the remainder of his career, Moore was a hard rocker with a shit hot overdriven guitar style in the 70s and 80s featured in a few different bands (including Thin Lizzy) before eventually going solo, Back On The Streets being his official debut. The title song of that record is a storming rocker with some white hot and face melting licks and some really strong singing from Moore and backing vocals from Lizzy’s Phil Lynott. While I liked and respected Moore’s blues years, I really missed how he was able to step on the gas in the rock world and could knock you out with his intensity, this cut being a great example. RIP Gary.
And that’s it for this week! Some tough, tough choices for the top three as I REALLY like seven of the ten here (although the other three are very good in their own right), but here you go. AND THERE’S A TIE!
In third place, tied for the bronze: “New Coat Of Paint” Tom Waits/”Always Lift Him Up/Kanaka Wai Wai” Ry Cooder
In second place with the silver: “Joan Crawford” Blue Oyster Cult
And our gold medal winner: “Set Me Free” The Kinks
ironriot.blog 