His looks don't bother him, now in the least...

Look, I appreciate there are lots of things about this blog that have been neglected recently. It's been a bit of a journey from blogging 4 or 5 days a week, through not blogging at all, to coming back out the other side with a bit of occasional blogging. What can I tell you?  Life happened.

I miss the good old days when we all used to actively participate and comment on each others blogs, but I guess we should all just look back fondly on the time we had some analysis done on handwritten song lyrics (quiz - results), or tried to guess which bookcase and which fridge belonged to which blogger, or when we posted mix tape CDs to each other. (2006 2007 2008) [some of those links to the old blog are really slow, and where I've used a link to the archived content on the new URL, the comments won't be there, which is a shame... but you get the general idea]

One feature that has been here since the very beginning -- way back in 2004! - is Earworms. I don't know if I'm more prone to them than other people, but the idea of a song popping up randomly in your head and then playing on repeat has always struck a chime with me. Cataloguing them and then listing them every week as a blogpost has been oddly therapeutic. Looking back the other day, I was tickled to see an appearance by "Chim-Chimney", together with an explanation of how you can recreate the sound of the song using only your finger on a piece of paper.

Anyway. I digress.

The point is that I'm going to try and be a bit more disciplined about cataloguing my earworms and putting them up here. You may not be entirely thrilled to hear that news, but I've never really written anything on here for an audience... so....  tough.

I'm also delighted to say that I've managed to get another Guest Editor to share the contents of their head. Long time readers may remember that I used to try and get someone else to do this on a fairly regular basis. We slowed down a bit by the end, but there's still an archive of over 100 different guest slots, Apart from anything else, having a cut and paste made for an easy post for me on a Friday anyway.

Steve and I go back a fair way now. As he mentions below, our paths actually crossed long before they actually crossed. These days, we're fairly regular correspondents, still comment on each other's blogs and have even made the effort to overcome the massive distance between us (i.e. the length of Brian Clough Way) to meet up in real life. Steve is a veritable musical guru; he's one of those guys who has actually listened to all those bands that lots of people pretend to like because they're cool and obscure and difficult to like when you actually put their records on. As someone who enjoys music in a far lazier way than that, I love to listen to him talking on this subject and on his own career as a musician/songwriter. Who doesn't love listening to someone talking with passion on a subject they love?  He's also taken a really rigorous approach to the challenge of earworms by forensically cataloguing what's gone through his head on a day-by-day basis over the course of the week. Now that's commitment.

So, without further ado, I'm delighted to present for your listening pleasure.....

Earworms of the week - guest editor #102 - Steve from It's a Shit Business


D'Angelo - "Devil's Pie"
I listened to the album this is from - Voodoo - for the first time in a while last weekend, prompted by the fact that apparently it’s 20 years old. Which is mental because it was only recorded next week.
Anyway, it's still a cracking psychedelic soul album. Some of the tracks feature drums which are simultaneously playing before and after the beat.
Having said that, this song was always one of the ones which sounded pretty normal to me and I'd never have this pegged as one of my favourites. But it sounded great. And the following day I realised that I was walking around singing "Fuck the slice, we want the pie" all day (whenever my daughter wasn't around anyway).

Harry Nilsson - “Gotta Get Up”
A bit of a literal earworm this one, being prompted on Monday morning when we were trying to get our daughter to school on time.
I love Harry Nilsson. Some people unfairly tag him as a professional hanger-on. He was along for the ride for John Lennon's infamous "lost weekend", which was also when Harry introduced Lennon to the Brandy Alexander cocktail - cognac, crème de cacao and cream. Ouch.
Famously self-destructive to a fault, Harry drank so much that by the end of his life he’d completely f**ked his voice. On this track - and also on his brilliant album of Randy Newman songs - it's a pure and nimble thing of creamy beauty.
Very much like a Brandy Alexander, which apparently taste like milkshake.

Super Furry Animals - "Demons"
Stereolab - "We're Not Adult Orientated"
SFA are one of those bands who I seem to have a lot of albums by, even though I've never really loved them. There is no reason at all why this song popped into my head on Tuesday morning.
Stereolab are similar in that I have a lot of their albums. The only difference is as the years go by, I seem to love them even more. One of my old bands supported them in London in the early 90s. We did not go down well.
This song takes the end section of the Velvet Underground's "What Goes On" and runs with it for a good six minutes. Totally relentless. Great drumming, rattling guitar, overdriven organ.
According to “the Googs”, the lyrics translate to:
I do not
I do not write
No I don't write
To waste my time
We don't write
I'm wasting time
"Ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum", indeed.

Bonny Light Horseman - “Bonny Light Horseman”
We've all been there. Your boyfriend / lover / husband has gone off to fight in the Napoleonic Wars and you don't know if he'll come back alive. So you end up writing a song about your hatred of Bonaparte.
Apparently Bonny Light Horseman (the band) is a US folk supergroup, formed with the encouragement of Bon Iver / Justin Vernon. And Bonny Light Horseman (the song) is "...a lament of English origin from the Napoleonic Wars. Though written in England, it became popular in Ireland as a broadsheet ballad."
Fair enough.
Despite the fact that folk music remains one of the few musical genres which I can't seem to get completely behind, this recording (from their 2020 album and the last one I bought) seems to make whatever room I'm in at the time incredibly dusty, every time every time I play it.
My wife's take on it? "It's a 'no' from me...", the moment the vocals started.

The Pointer Sisters - “I’m So Excited”
Yes this is a stone-cold 80s banger. But there is no earthly reason why this was in my head on Thursday morning. The mind is a mysterious and terrifying thing.
But a good pop song is still a good pop song. Recently our daughter has discovered the NOW That's What I Call Music albums. And it has been good to know that there are still some really great pop songs being written - Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, even (gasps) The 1975. It's just the fact they're just not as all-pervasive as they were in my day.
BRING BACK TOP OF THE POPS!

Killdozer - “Ballad Of My Old Man”
No word of a lie, when I woke up this morning the song was playing in my head.
I bloody love Killdozer. Turgid (in a good way) grinding riffs and weird / funny lyrics. Along with Butthole Surfers, they provide the soundtrack whenever I need to put together flat-pack furniture. This song tells the story of the narrator's father who worked in a grain elevator. After it blew up, he was the only survivor but was "left with a face that looked like chewed bubble gum". Nice.

FUN FACT: Butch Vig's production work on Killdozer's albums was one of the main reasons why Nirvana used him to record Nevermind.

In 2012 I responded to a tweet from the blog Sweeping The Nation, looking for classic TV music performances which weren't often seen. I mentioned Killdozer's performance of "American Pie" on Channel 4's Club X (a late night music and art show which predated The Word - I think it only lasted one series).
Seven years later I received the following tweet:

I love the internet.

Case in point: years ago, me and Swisslet were contributors to The Art of Noise blog's "A-Z Of Music" series - start here, obviously.
Following that we were united by our similarly wonky immune systems.
Now we've even met IRL on a loosely semi-annual basis. Crazy times!

--

Nice one, Steve! Thanks for that, and you have a platform here to talk about music any time you like. That's an earworm post two weeks running! Nothing inbetween, for sure... but it's a start. Have a good weekend, y'all.

[Previous Guest Editors: Flash, The Urban Fox, Lord Bargain, Retro-Boy, Statue John, Ben, OLS, Ka, Jenni, Aravis, Yoko, Bee, Charlie, Tom, Di, Spin, The Ultimate Olympian, Damo, Mike, RedOne, The NumNum, Leah, Le Moine Perdu, clm, Michael, Hyde, Adem, Alecya, bytheseashore, adamant, Earworms of the Year 2005, Delrico Bandito, Graham, Lithaborn, Phil, Mark II, Stef, Kaptain Kobold, bedshaped, I have ordinary addictions, TheCatGirlSpeaks, Lord B rides again, Tina, Charlie II, Cody Bones, Poll Star, Jenni II, Martin, Del II, The Eye in the Sky, RussL, Lizzy's Hoax, Ben II, Earworms of the Year 2006, Sarah, Flash II, Erika, Hen, Pynchon, Troubled Diva, Graham II, Cat II, Statue John II, Sweeping the Nation, Aravis II, Olympian II, C, Planet-Me, Mike, Michael II, Eye in the Sky II, Charlie III, The Great Grape Ape, asta, Ben III, Earworms of the Year 2007, Cat III, JamieS & Wombat, Pynchon II, Briskate, Craig Cliff, Fiery Little Sod, Cody II, J, Yoko II, Rol, Lisa, Pollstar II, Joe the Troll, Eye in the Sky III, Jerry Cornelius, Stevious, Luke, FLS II, Earworms of the Year 2008, FLS III, Mik, Mark Again, Ben IV, Lisa, FLS V, FLS VI, FLS VII]

sweet little lies....

If you'll indulge me again, I think I'll do just one more nostalgia post to celebrate the 10th anniversary of this blog before putting it all behind me and moving on to the next decade (!).

I've been writing about earworms here almost since the very beginning (well, March 25th 2005, so almost the very beginning, anyway...)  Maybe I'm more susceptible than most to songs worming their way inside my head, or perhaps I just like cataloguing stuff.  Maybe both.

Over the years, I've listed all kinds of shit.  For a while, I had lots of other people guesting in the regular Friday earworm slot, sharing the things that were stuck in their heads.  Sharing is caring, after all.  I like hearing what's playing on other people's internal jukebox.  Besides, as a cut and paste job, it usually made for an easy post.

I think my absolute favourite guest in that slot was Lizzy, and her earworms guest slot produced what I think is probably the single most brilliant piece of writing that this blog has yet seen or is likely to see.  Reading the post again now, I just have to marvel at her creativity.  Read it and weep.

The clue is in the title....

-----
Falsehood Merchant, Nobody Believes You
Friday, December 15, 2005

Evening all. Earworm time again. My internal jukebox is still alternating between Nelly Furtado, Panic! At The Disco and vintage Iron Maiden, so it's probably just as well that I'm handing the keys over to a Guest Editor with a much more varied and interesting musical palate than my own rather blunt instrument.

If bloggers were musicians, then I rather think that she's probably the virtuoso lead guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and song writer to my rather lumpen bass player.

Ladies and Gentleworms, without further ado, it is my great pleasure to present for your earworming pleasure, TAFKATUF....

Earworms of the Week - Guest Editor #51 - Lizzy from Literary Hoax

MY WEEK IN MUSIC – Lizzy Hoax

1. Mouldy Persephone – Umbilical Glow

I heard this lo-fi garage rock song in a dream in the small hours of Monday morning. When I awoke, it was still playing. As you can imagine, this confused me for anything up to a minute. Looking out of the bedroom window, I saw the fit man from two doors down slumped and snoring in the front garden, while his phone rang loudly from his lap. Perhaps it was his worried boyfriend? Perhaps it was a wrong number? I don’t know. Anyway, this song was his ringtone. It annoyed me, because I hate waking up suddenly to songs. They stalk you all day.

2. Egg Might Wake – I Fashioned A Simple Tool

When Tanya Donnelly left Throwing Muses, rumours circulated that she would soon join Egg Might Wake. They were entirely without foundation. This song sounds like Billy Idol being dropped down a lift shaft.

3. The Dullards - Epic Transport Stench Syndrome

Yes, a song that is over 14 minutes long if you include the cymbals solo at the end. Inconveniently, I have a rare form of musical OCD which requires me to sing the entirety of any song which I find myself humming. I didn’t get much done this Tuesday as a result.

4. Samantha Happen – Coruscate

This is the club anthem that samples the Bernard Matthews Turkey Drummers advert from 1988. (Sorry, non-Brits: I doubt you know of these high quality meat products at all, let alone the attendant promotional campaign from nearly 20 years ago.) It includes the classic mother-son exchange: “Did it rain?” “Not all the time!”, mashed up and looped with a Timbaland-style Indian drum track. I feel obliged to say “Bootiful!” now, as a weakly amusing verbal tie-in. But the track’s useless, so I won’t.

5. Mine All Mine – Double Poinsettia On Ice (bonus track on ‘Christ & Co’ EP)

The first and last festive entry. This song is quite rare even among hardcore M.A.M. fans, so how it kept waltzing into my shower all week, I have no idea. It’s on Mine All Mine’s 1992 Christmas EP which is unfeasibly hard to find. The “John Major’s got no baubles” chorus dates it terribly, but it holds up rather well apart from that. Sort of like Tina Turner gargling paint stripper over a Polyphonic Spree B-side. That good.

6. Leatherette – Parachute Offences

Probably the only song in my collection that rhymes “faecal contamination” with “Ascot train station”. For that, I can almost forgive its relentless hounding of my synapses last Wednesday. The saxophone intro can go to hell though.

7. White Crime – If Dick Thought It Would Help (He Would)

How this electronica bleepfest managed to hijack my internal jukebox this week, I really couldn’t say. I only heard it once and that was while walking past someone’s car. It must have hooks like a scorpion. Why do some songs do that? Why do some people drive a convertible with the top down in winter? Why do attention-seeking maniacs install enormous bass bins in their cars so that one’s teeth rattle at 140 bpm when they drive by? Or is the clue in the question? Hey, if I had all the answers, I wouldn’t be talking to you now. I’d be on a beach with Joaquin Phoenix. But would I really be happy?

8. Riga – Fuerteventura Kidnap 1982

The original singer from Riga once threatened to punch me. This exchange took place outside the Spread Eagle pub in Camden in the summer of 1996. Admittedly, I had just written a a review saying his band made Menswear look like Motorhead. I stand by that statement, and the rest of the band dismissed it good-naturedly as fair comment. Which meant his suicide attempt in the Dingwalls gents’ later that night came as quite a surprise. He moved to Bournemouth 3 months after that strange night, without telling anyone but his sister. I hear he still makes music, after a fashion. ‘Fuerteventura Kidnap 1982’ was recorded shortly after Riga got their current singer, Jo Pinto, but it’s still the same old fey jangly shite.

9. Dominik Pringle – Not Even With Yours

Dominik Pringle is the pseudonym of someone very famous indeed. I won’t spoil it for you, but you’d almost certainly recognise him if you saw him. Here’s a clue: he’s married to someone really thin. Go on. I bet you can guess. This is standard R&B, incorporating a cameo-by-numbers from a middle level American rapper, and boasting a video full of gyrating nubiles. Our host would love it.

10. Manifest Deceit Corporation - Tricks Of The Trade (Queen Liar Liar dub)

I was hoping for some peace and quiet today, but I’ve been mumbling this shouty electropop to myself all day. Inexplicably, it performed really badly on release in the UK but was huge in South America. The woman behind it made enough money to retire, just from the Peruvian market alone, or so the music industry gossips claim. Good on her, I say. It’s a great song and you really ought to buy it, or your record collection will have a yawning chasm where it ought to be. In fact, the void will be so big, you might fall into it. Years would pass before you were found. Your friends would shake their heads sadly and resolve never to let their own music collections fall into such disarray. Small children would devise innovative new insults derived from your name. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

----

Thanks Lizzy. I have to confess that I'm a touch disappointed that Cliff Richard hasn't made it onto your list this week... but apart from that it all sounds aces! (erm, not that I've actually knowingly heard any of it, that is... stuck in the pale, indie guitar ghetto as I am).

----

Dear, oh dear.  Lizzy.... that was frankly brilliant.  You cheeky scamp.  Now that I put YouTube links on every song in an earworm post, I don't think this would work today, but it sure as hell worked back then.  Or maybe I was just really lazy and gullible back then.  Yeah, it's probably that.

Incidentally, it's also Lizzy that I have to thank for my current non de plume... She's quite the talent.  I salute you, wherever you are!

sup up your beer and collect your fags, There's a row going on down near Slough....

Earworms of the Week

Guest edited by..... Ali a.k.a. Fiery Little Sod

It's been a while since we had any guest curators in this slot, hasn't it?  I don't know: what's the world coming to when a personal weblog is all me, me, me?  Tsk. Well, variety is the spice of life and earworms are, after all, something that everyone can share... even if only via some hideous cross-infection of some noxious weapons grade tune from off of the telly.

None of that noxious stuff here tonight.... even that last one sparks some very fond memories.... It's pretty much quality all the way.  I've come to expect nothing less from this particular gentleman.

Anyway, without further ado, it's over to Ali.....

---

So here we are again. My good friend has graciously allowed me to have another crack at this earworms trick, presuambly on the premise that if I keep getting a chance I might get it right eventually. Probably not this week though...

Video Games - Lana del Rey
So she's ovehyped, overlipped and over here. She's not using her real name and comes from moneyed upstate New York, so not exactly fought her way from the streets. Right, now that's all out the way. This is a belter of tune, well-written, clever lyrics and is a welcome earworm anytime. She is actually pretty damn good. End of story.

Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
Memories of San Francisco and (more disturbingly) Top Gun. Epitome of smooth. Tells a story. Gives all you could ask for of a song and it is a reminder that running away to somewhere better is a two-edged sword.

Hammer to Fall / Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy - Queen
Love 'em or hate 'em, they are quite hard to ignore. 70s long hair melodies to 80s stadium rock they crossed a lot of boundaries. Can't believe it's 20 years since Freddie Mercury's death (which means I am getting properly old) and having passed them over for very different music the occasional blast of something like this does me a lot of good. Have to say the love song is good but not one of their best, however Hammer to Fall, although dated is still a fine tune and one to make me play a bit of air guitar if given the opportunity (and no-one is looking)

Eton Rifles - The Jam
Proper band, with some proper tunes. Class war, old-school tie, railing against the establishment, all that good stuff . It took me some time to grasp the message behind this and just thought it was a great song, but surely with the return of cuts, recession and even Thatcher (on screen at least), it is about time for this kind of music to make a comeback. It does have some fairly hard-hitting lyrics - "I'd prefer the plague - to the Eton Rifles" - and was a marker to Mr Welller's social commentary and ongoing references to little bits of Englishness that has sustained his remarkable career.

LA Woman - The Doors
Mr Mojo Risin' got me to work one particularly tough day this week. Good throaty, shouty, long tune to lift me away from the drudgery of a cold commute at stupid o'clock in the morning. Definitely more accessible than An American Prayer anyway, and still somehow almost sounds fresh now. Fantastic bassline, and as you might expect some killer keyboards which may (or not) have inspired some others to use them too

which brings me to...

No More Heroes - The Stranglers
More political grown-up punk, namechecks for Russian revolutionaries and fictional Spanish squires, a general 'up yours' to the state of the system and wishing upon us the heroes (or lack of) that we deserve. Also one of the best middle eights of any tune I know,

Your Time Will Come - Amy MacDonald
For the number of times I play this album when I am driving round the country it may as well be stuck in the CD player. She has a lovely voice, and obviously thinks a great deal about the songs she writes. Saw her by chance at Glasto just when she getting famous and having seen her since I am pleased to say she got better and more confident. Very much the antidote to cheap plastic pop and it is quite helpful to have someone lilting this in your ear whilst heading home in the sheeting rain

So soon your time will come
Get out while you're still young
May all your dreams come true
So happy for you

The Blower's Daughter - Damien Rice
Well conceived, well constructed and well performed. Failed to see him ten years ago when I had tickets and was required elsewhere at short notice. Still my biggest live miss I reckon. This song hurts just enough to make you not listen to it too often, which therefore provides greater pleasure when you do.

Rock Me Amadeus - Falco
I'll get me coat

[ST's note: the link above is to the version we all remember, but check out the original single version too: very Paul Hardcastle.... we danced to this at our wedding in Vienna, and I can confirm that all Austrians of a certain age know every single word]

Enjoy your weekends people and I'll no doubt be back (though after that last effort, who knows)
Hasta luego

---

Nice work Ali: a good thoughtful selection.  Welcome around here anytime.  For that matter, if anyone else fancies a(nother) crack at this slot, then drop me a line and we'll see what we can do.

Have a good weekend, y'all.

They put a parking lot on a piece of land......

It's been a while since we had a Guest Editor around these parts, isn't it? Well, as chance would have it, I had a volunteer to have a crack, and I was only to happy to oblige. I think it's fair to say that he's had one or two goes at this in the past, but he's always welcome. Besides, if you don't ask, you don't get, do you?

Without further ado then, it is my great pleasure to introduce (again) for your earworming pleasure.......

Earworms of the week - guest editor #100 - Fiery Little Sod.

this feels like being greedy, however the kind bloghost has allowed me another go at his pages, so here's a mixed bag of tunes that will hopefully provide some light relief prior to your weekend

> Take it to the Limit - The Eagles

This song was a part of my childhood and though it contains all the California-rock components one might expect, the limit 25 years down the line is a very different place, and the lyrics mean a little more. I apologise for the cheesy AOR, but I am a child of someone else's times

> Die Young, Stay Pretty - Blondie

It is a small step forward from the live fast, die young adage as it assumes the protagonist is pretty in the first place. Anyway, Ms Harry is dishing out some of her finest and the support lacks little. Seems caught on the kinfe-edge of punk and 80's keyboard madness. Not their best known I expect, however provides a pointer to where musical taste may be headed

> Walking Down Your Street - The Bangles

No excuses, no blaming someone else. Chicks with guitars and harmonies. Survived in my head after I had heard it in the car and was walking down your aisle doing my . Very glad the girl bands could play instruments and write songs when I grew up.

> Cash Machine - Hard-Fi

Realised now I am a commuter again it appears that some folk believe I look like the eponymous article. I on the other hand spend an unnecessary part of my life avoiding the things that charge me for acquiring my own hard-earned wedge. Anyway, this cash machine (sorry, tune) is a modern classic and the keyboard harmonica intro is one of the most evocative (and crowd-erupting) I have heard.

> Come Dancing - The Kinks

Was on the way into work and trying to piece together the first verse and realised it is still true today. Unless one has built a "Selection of Executive apartments with underground parking and 35% affordable housing" then the cinema or palais will be left to crumble where it sits. Ahead of its time like most of their later songs and still contained the vital lyrical element I have yet heard matched

> I Love to Boogie - T-Rex

This is very simple. Twice or more a day I stand on (or stomp up and down) London Underground escalators and when I am not the man knocking you out of the way I gaze vacantly at the small adverts for West End shows. I am glad I know no tunes from the many others, but when I see a 'Billy Elliot' billboard I enjoy a touch of Marc Bolan and struggle not to jitterbug across the station concourse.

> The River - Bruce Springsteen

This chap's songs are still hanging around from seeing him live earlier this year and this song stuck. Why an earworm of the week though I pretend to hear you ask? No doubt about it when my neighbour who can play the guitar but needs to work on the voice chose this as his practice song after lights out on a school night. Not the cheeriest of his output but lacks nothing in quality.

> God Save the Queen - The Sex Pistols

Sadly for the monarchy, the only tune I really hear as I walk past Liz and Phil's house each day is this one. I no longer fear a fascist regime, but the one we have just now ain't too clever. Anyway, hardly melodic this, but gets the message across - even if it is a rather bleak one

> Left of Center - Suzanne Vega

This is where you will find me, I am in the outskirts and I have no idea for what I may be looking. But whilst out there I am totally listening to this kind of stuff. More importantly this tune does have some fine drums - oh, and she can properly sing. [ST's note: she can indeed - I like Luka]

> Klunk - Green Nuns of the Revolution

Courtesy of an unlikely source at work I was reminded of a quality tune that not only makes my brain operate differently but contains some of the most inspired samples I have ever had the privilege to hear. The lesson is that music works. Unlike some of the inventions....

that's it......Hasta luego

----

Thanks my friend - another quality selection. Always welcome around these parts... not least because it allows me (and everyone else who's sick of hearing that I'm earworming Flight of the Conchords again) to have a Friday off!

If anyone else wants to elbow FLS off his monopoly as Guest Editor-in-Chief around here, then just drop me a line in the comments below or via the email address in my profile above.

All welcome.

...And that's your lot. Have a good weekend, y'all. Stay classy.

I'm doing a stint on the Children in Need call centre tonight, so if you call 0345 7 33 22 33 between 9pm and 2am tonight, you might just speak to me (especially if you're from Wales. I always seem to get the Welsh callers for some reason). Be sure to say your name and address nice and clearly for me..... especially if it involves a ridiculous number of letters. My hearing isn't once what it was, and I still find it hard to tell my Caernarfons from my Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwll-llantysiliogogogochs....

Give generously now.

[Previous Guest Editors: Flash, The Urban Fox, Lord Bargain, Retro-Boy, Statue John, Ben, OLS, Ka, Jenni, Aravis, Yoko, Bee, Charlie, Tom, Di, Spin, The Ultimate Olympian, Damo, Mike, RedOne, The NumNum, Leah, Le Moine Perdu, clm, Michael, Hyde, Adem, Alecya, bytheseashore, adamant, Earworms of the Year 2005, Delrico Bandito, Graham, Lithaborn, Phil, Mark II, Stef, Kaptain Kobold, bedshaped, I have ordinary addictions, TheCatGirlSpeaks, Lord B rides again, Tina, Charlie II, Cody Bones, Poll Star, Jenni II, Martin, Del II, The Eye in the Sky, RussL, Lizzy's Hoax, Ben II, Earworms of the Year 2006, Sarah, Flash II, Erika, Hen, Pynchon, Troubled Diva, Graham II, Cat II, Statue John II, Sweeping the Nation, Aravis II, Olympian II, C, Planet-Me, Mike, Michael II, Eye in the Sky II, Charlie III, The Great Grape Ape, asta, Ben III, Earworms of the Year 2007, Cat III, JamieS & Wombat, Pynchon II, Briskate, Craig Cliff, Fiery Little Sod, Cody II, J, Yoko II, Rol, Lisa, Pollstar II, Joe the Troll, Eye in the Sky III, Jerry Cornelius, Stevious, Luke, FLS II, Earworms of the Year 2008, FLS III, Mik, Mark Again, Ben IV, Lisa, FLS V]

....... my ever worried mind

Hello. The sun is shining, I'm on holiday (albeit at home) and the weekend is stretching out before me. Does it get any better than this? Well, as it happens, it does: one of my best friends has spontaneously volunteered to share his earworms with us. Excellent.

Well, let's get straight into it then. Without futher ado, it is my great pleasure to present for your earworming pleasure....

Earworms of the week - guest editor #99 - Fiery Little Sod.

G'day blog readers both casual and hardcore - having tapped up Senor Toni for another crack at this I have been indulged with an opportunity when my heart is light and the sun is shining, therefore I make no apologies for the slightly mainstream selection that may follow - I hope it makes you lot smile as much as I did...

> Rhianna - Umbrella

Sorry folks, squirmed under the radar courtesy of rubbish TV music channels and having somehow managed to avoid it for two years has now biologically infested my hearing [ella, ella, oh, oh] - oh for s**t's sake - I don't even like this RnB tut!! having said that if it has sneaked in to my head the tune must have a redeeming feature even if I have no idea what it's about...

> A-ha - Sun Always Shines on TV

No sooner had my learned friend postulated that 'Take on Me' was the only visible sign on TV of these chaps existing when they show up on the Jonathan Ross show and belt out another of their 80s classics. Kind of want to ignore the lyrics as they are remarkably downbeat for a catchy tune and focus on smoothly melded guitar/synth work with a fairly stretching vocal range too. So... what are the chances of a Norwegian hat-trick next week then ?

> The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby

- I take you from the ridiculous to the sublime and the most intense collection of fine lyrics ever assembled: "... wiping the dirt from his hands as he walks from the grave...." - get that in a song for the modern age - go on, I dare ya. Yes it is one of their finest and therefore I feel fortunate to have it in my head, but that does not detract from the fact that I still hear it anew every time it shuffles past.

> The Proclaimers - 500 Miles

I went to a piss-up in a brewery (honestly) and they had a live band. Various covers of indie bands and tunes had slipped past when the (Scottish) lead singer stood up and said "Now I know I have the accent for this but it doesn't mean I like it.... Who knows 500 f***in' Miles then?". Anyway general raucousness and dodgy singing ensued of which I took a full part - and damn it was a lot of fun! No havering - this is get off your bum music at its finest. As proved when it showed up on a mix by the mighty Statue John on a CD I played in my car whilst trolling through the countryside (yep, one of them disc thingys, I know, shoot me now)

> Kings of Leon - The Bucket

forever informed by various friends that this has been their finest hour I finally managed to sit and listen to it this week. Indescribably excellent. If you happen not to know it, please get to.

> Beth Orton - Wish I never saw the sunshine

Yes, I know it's not hers, but I saw her perform it live some years ago and no matter who wrote it or sang it before this is the version I know. She paces it well,uses her vocal talents well (if you like that kind of thing - which I tend to) and I just have to remind myself that there is some other, sunnier side to the music to which I listen and and this stuff slides in only once in a while.

> The Beatles -Yellow Submarine

Two in a week!! (guilty as charged, Revolver came up on the playlist). But in the case for the defence I would wish to point out I have recently acquired a car of a similar hue to the eponymous submersible and if one required sunnier music then this provides it in spades. In addition, I realised some time ago (maybe 15 years) that if there was an unshiftable tune in one's head then Yellow Submarine, always memorable, easy to recall and frankly could be a lot worse would pretty much fix anything. So you end up with this instead.... so what's to complain about? I commend it to you as the anti-earworm earworm.

> Michael Jackson - Thriller

sorry for predicability, but missed all the hullabaloo as was at Glasto with the blogmeister for the crucial weekend and came back to relative calmness. This invaded my head whilst strolling through St. James' Park in London as it was being played by a band of the Guards complete with loads of brass and dramatic pauses. I nearly bent double laughing and sure I looked odd to the tourists hurrying to Buck House for the changing of the guard.. anyway.... Jacko.. what about it? I say remember this kinda stuff and balls to all the post '90 freakery (the tune by the way is a corker, teasing verses, easy chorus, generally top)

> Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode

Seeking an uplifting tune my internal jukebox settled on this with loads of potential air guitar based hopping about and was reminded I saw a live concert of his on some digital channel a while back and he teased the audience with two or three chords of this tune before riffing off into something else--did it at least twice before he really played it but I still think this was what they came to hear. And why wouldn't you? this contains most of the essence of early rock'n'roll that led to kids in the US picking up guitars and playing the s**t out of them. Yeah, it's off the blues and maybe there were others but this was c.1958 and it cannot have had no effect .

> The Silhouettes - Get a Job

touch of self-indulgence as I have spent the last 3 months sans employment until this week, therefore I can hum this happily rather than in desperation. I am sure it provided inspiration and was suffused with potential on release but will, for me (and many others) forever be associated with the closing titles of Trading Places and an uplifting feeling of having got one over on the merchant bankers of this crummy world.. join in now --sha na na na sha na na na na

.........

so there it goes, another window on to the world of this mildly musically challenged but nonetheless enthusiastic supporter of this fine enterprise, many thanks to Swiss and sure normal service will be resumed shortly....

--

Thanks mate. Always a pleasure to have you round these parts, you know that. Congratulations on the job too. Excellent news. "Get a Job". Now that's some earworm to leave us with......

Incidentally, Guest Editors are always welcome around here. You only have to ask.

Right. That's your lot for the week. I've got a house full of Austrians and I'm off to Birmingham to watch the rain falling throughout Saturday and Sunday (where the Australians appear to have a wicketkeeper that shares a name with my cat, at least the way they pronounce it...). Have a good weekend, y'all and STAY CLASSY. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm trying to explain cricket to a 10 year old boy from Vienna..... 2 wickets in the first 2 balls and he thinks it's the easiest game in the world.

[Previous Guest Editors: Flash, The Urban Fox, Lord Bargain, Retro-Boy, Statue John, Ben, OLS, Ka, Jenni, Aravis, Yoko, Bee, Charlie, Tom, Di, Spin, The Ultimate Olympian, Damo, Mike, RedOne, The NumNum, Leah, Le Moine Perdu, clm, Michael, Hyde, Adem, Alecya, bytheseashore, adamant, Earworms of the Year 2005, Delrico Bandito, Graham, Lithaborn, Phil, Mark II, Stef, Kaptain Kobold, bedshaped, I have ordinary addictions, TheCatGirlSpeaks, Lord B rides again, Tina, Charlie II, Cody Bones, Poll Star, Jenni II, Martin, Del II, The Eye in the Sky, RussL, Lizzy's Hoax, Ben II, Earworms of the Year 2006, Sarah, Flash II, Erika, Hen, Pynchon, Troubled Diva, Graham II, Cat II, Statue John II, Sweeping the Nation, Aravis II, Olympian II, C, Planet-Me, Mike, Michael II, Eye in the Sky II, Charlie III, The Great Grape Ape, asta, Ben III, Earworms of the Year 2007, Cat III, JamieS & Wombat, Pynchon II, Briskate, Craig Cliff, Fiery Little Sod, Cody II, J, Yoko II, Rol, Lisa, Pollstar II, Joe the Troll, Eye in the Sky III, Jerry Cornelius, Stevious, Luke, FLS II, Earworms of the Year 2008, FLS III, Mik, Mark Again, Ben IV, Lisa]

is the world finally growing wise?

Well, we've had a couple of weeks without any, so I don't know about you, but I'm pretty keen to get back on the earworm wagon and see what's happening.... amazingly enough, in spite of my best efforts, I seem to have landed myself a quality Guest Editor too. So at least that means you won't have to put up with any of the old shit floating around my head (for the record? Mostly "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns n'Roses and "Not Fair" by Lily Allen). So, without further ado, it is my great pleasure to present for your earworming pleasure......

Earworms of the week - guest editor #98 - Lisa from Rullsenberg Rules

Thanks be to ST for letting me impose my offer on the Earworms slot. I've had some of these knocking around for ages, leaning me to sing around the office. However, see if you can spot that one that I didn't want in there...

> Bach, played by Yo-Yo Ma - Prelude Cello Suite in G

Perhaps one of my most favourite pieces of music ever, it has recently re-entered my psyche thanks to, of all things, a celebrity show trailer on Channel 5. Go figure. But it has re-awakened my adoration of the piece and its now zooming in and out of my brain, bringing with it a wealth of imagery -- not least of course its use in one of my favourite ever episodes of The West Wing 'Noel'. Shiver.

> Festival - Fair and True

Another Rough Trade special. With minimal percussion of tamborines etc - its mostly an acapella track with harmonies and 'ooooooh's - its a delicate track. Oh this earth has dirtied this lonesome heart / and the wind has bought it to you / oh the days are long and the days are hard / but the light proves fair and true. Dreamy. I defy you not hear and be seduced.

> Grandaddy - A.M. 180

I can only apologise in advance for this because this is truly one of those tracks that when you hear it again you remember why it gets stuck in your head. 'Da da da da da da da da da da da da da da.... Gah. I love this track but it one of the most insistent hook lines with that toy-like organ riff. I was passed this track by the brother of an old school friend (Hi Brian!) but had never really registered the track title or band. Now of course it haunts me quite often (in a good way I hasten to add!)

> Headless Heroes - To You

I've been raving about this track on the blog since last year and it still has the power to drill a space in my head. Yes, its a cover of I am Kloot, but in the hands of Alela Diane there's a new found ethereal quality to the track. 'The Gods and the saints preserve you' indeed.

> The Heart Strings - Jose Fernandez

I have a serious love of the Rough Trade compilations, especially their end of year goodie bags which usually ably cover me for pursuing what I haven't already acquired from the years best CDs. Its refrain, with the delicious shout of 'Jose Fernandez!' is gloriously uplifting and I've been wandering the corridors of work for some weeks now randomly yelling 'Jose Fernandez!' to the bemusement of colleagues.

> Whitney Houston - I wanna dance with somebody

All I can do is apologise. This is what comes from having to get a taxi home from work when you're ill and the driver inevitably has Heart FM on. Someone chose this as their happy song. I can say for sure I'm not bloody happy having this in my noggin.

> The Leisure Society - The Last of the melting snow

Novello nominated I'll have you recall, though I feel very chuffed at having purchased the album in our pre-Novello announcement trip to the smoke - with the purchase made on the back of finally remembering to write down who the band were when listening to Mark Riley on 6Music. Its lilting melody often catches me unawares to make me go all tingly.

> Underworld - Pearl's Girl

Ah YouTube. Remembrances of a TV series much loved and never repeated or released (though it can be hunted out), I was thinking back on this fact as it is a frightening 10 years since it aired. And in doing so, bang, in came Underworld. Used as the theme tune for Psychos, this was already a band that we liked in our house but this track has a special place as it so perfectly takes me back to watching that series.

> Dr Horrible Soundtrack - On the Rise

As a Whedon fan I've often been seduced to get tracks stuck in my head from its soundtracks - and this is no exception. However, I've also had this on the brain thanks to the lovely Maggi again. Brilliant. Now I have even more things to visualise when I have the tune in my head.

Hope that isn't too long a selection - but they're bouncing in my head. May all your Whitney saints preserve you.

Rullsenberg

---

Thanks Lisa. Nice work. Whitney Houston notwithstanding, it's always a pleasure to welcome you around these parts. Nice to see that you've managed to squeeze the Doctor in there somewhere too..... naturally. An eclectic list, for sure, but then I'd expect nothing less from someone with as rarefied a taste as yours. I've no idea if I've got anything particular lined up for next week, but rest assured that somebody's earworms will be up here this time next week.... even if you have to put up with mine. Stay tuned.

What?

No! Come back!

[Previous Guest Editors: Flash, The Urban Fox, Lord Bargain, Retro-Boy, Statue John, Ben, OLS, Ka, Jenni, Aravis, Yoko, Bee, Charlie, Tom, Di, Spin, The Ultimate Olympian, Damo, Mike, RedOne, The NumNum, Leah, Le Moine Perdu, clm, Michael, Hyde, Adem, Alecya, bytheseashore, adamant, Earworms of the Year 2005, Delrico Bandito, Graham, Lithaborn, Phil, Mark II, Stef, Kaptain Kobold, bedshaped, I have ordinary addictions, TheCatGirlSpeaks, Lord B rides again, Tina, Charlie II, Cody Bones, Poll Star, Jenni II, Martin, Del II, The Eye in the Sky, RussL, Lizzy's Hoax, Ben II, Earworms of the Year 2006, Sarah, Flash II, Erika, Hen, Pynchon, Troubled Diva, Graham II, Cat II, Statue John II, Sweeping the Nation, Aravis II, Olympian II, C, Planet-Me, Mike, Michael II, Eye in the Sky II, Charlie III, The Great Grape Ape, asta, Ben III, Earworms of the Year 2007, Cat III, JamieS & Wombat, Pynchon II, Briskate, Craig Cliff, Fiery Little Sod, Cody II, J, Yoko II, Rol, Lisa, Pollstar II, Joe the Troll, Eye in the Sky III, Jerry Cornelius, Stevious, Luke, FLS II, Earworms of the Year 2008, FLS III, Mik, Mark Again, Ben IV]

you've got to roll with the punches to get to what's real...

It's been a long time since his last go at this, way back in November 2007, but sometimes you just can't keep a good man down, can you? (and actually, it was that very post that inspired me to have a decent look at Flight of the Conchords, for which I am forever in his debt and his credit will thus always be pretty good around these parts....)

Yes, ladies and gentleworms, back again to entertain us for the fourth time in five years, it is my great pleasure to present for your earworming pleasure..... some no-doubt largely feedback based choices from.....

Earworms of the week - guest editor #96 - Ben

Yes, it’s me again – back for a fourth time. Can’t keep me away. Perhaps you should just get me a key cut, ST?

1. ‘Matador’ – Sky Larkin

Leeds trio Sky Larkin’s debut album The Golden Spike is currently on high rotation at SWSL Towers – unfussy indie rock in the vein of The Breeders, early Rilo Kiley and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Show Your Bones, the only surprise being that they’re from t’Yorkshire rather than across the pond. ‘Matador’ is probably the stand-out, perhaps a tribute to the delicious Pieminister pie of the same name – steak, chorizo, olives, tomato, sherry and butter beans. Sorry, were you hungry?

2. ‘Zero’ – Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Speaking of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs… If pulsing, shimmering lead single ‘Zero’ is any indication of what’s to come from imminent third album It’s Blitz, they’ve made another going-out album – but, unlike Fever To Tell, the destination dancefloor isn’t at the indie disco but the discotheque proper.

3. ‘Lawncare’ – Women

The fact that Women don’t actually have any female members isn’t the only confusing thing about them. The Calgary foursome’s album flits butterfly-like from musical flower to musical flower – from ambient to 60s beatpop to druggy psych to math rock to no wave punk – without ever alighting anywhere for long. ‘Lawncare’ starts off taut and focused, but, with the circular guitar motif repeating, drifts off into a hazy fug.

4. ‘Blessed Night’ – Howling Bells

My review of Howling Bells’ Oxford gig earlier this month is yet to come, but suffice to say ‘Blessed Night’ it was not. The song itself was a potent reminder of why I took their 2006 debut to my heart, at least – but also a glaring indicator of how badly they seem to have lost their way since.

5. ‘April Skies’ – The Jesus & Mary Chain

Darklands came off the shelf as part of my research for the latest Memories Can’t Wait piece on The Art Of Noise. Incredibly, once upon a time I thought ‘April Skies’ would be appropriate for a mixtape compiled as a romantic gesture – and, even more incredibly, she loved it.

6. ‘The SinKing’ – Crystal Stilts

If it’s the spirit of pre-Darklands J&MC you’re after, you could probably do worse than Crystal Stilts. The latest musical progeny of ever-fertile Brooklyn have got the Velvet-Underground-meets-Phil Spector vibe, the deep vocals, the stand-up drummer whose time-keeping is endearingly erratic and a shroud of reverb and feedback nearly as thick as the music press buzz surrounding them. Personally speaking, the jury’s still out on Alight Of Night (bought at the same time as a Crystal Antlers EP – I just needed Crystal Castles’ album to complete the set…), but ‘The SinKing’ – see what they done there? – kicks the arse of anything Glasvegas have ever done.

7. ‘The Twelve Steps’ – Spiritualized

“The only time I’m drink and drug free / Is when I get my drugs and drink for free”. OK, so rollicking garage rock ode to intoxication ‘The Twelve Steps’ is to some extent Jason Pierce playing up to a public caricature that is at least partially self-created. But he did also live it. Listen to last year’s post-near-death-experience album Songs In A&E and then Let It Come Down, the 2001 follow-up to the Mercury-winning Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space and the album on which ‘The Twelve Steps’ appears, and try telling me that, when it comes to Pierce’s music, the drugs don’t work…

8. ‘The Fear’ – Lily Allen

Not listening to radio or watching music TV means that most of the time I float merrily along in a bubble, blissfully unaware of goings-on in Chartland. But every now and again – usually when out shopping – the bubble is pricked. And so it is that, on Saturday, I heard ‘The Fear’ for the first time. (Or so I thought, until discovering it’s the between-the-highlights incidental music on ‘Match Of The Day 2’.) A largely agreeable slice of sleek and paranoid electro-pop it is, too.

9. ‘Frolic’ – Luciano Michelini

Rather better known as the theme music to ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’. Apparently Larry David first came across it in a bank advert, but it’s hard to imagine it in any other context – except perhaps soundtracking a lost Laurel and Hardy film in which the duo play hapless Mafiosi. Since we’ve been living together again, we’ve been watching from the beginning of the first series on DVD, and as a result the eminently whistleable tune is never far from my lips.

10. ‘Jump’ – Van Halen

For absolutely no reason other than that I wrapped up a recent review of a Simon Munnery stand-up set with a reference to him knowing “how to roll with the punches”… Plus it allows me to direct you to this a cappella version by Justin Sousa and the MIT Logarhythms. Enjoy!

---

Yay! There's surely no better way to round off a countdown like that than with a little bit of poodle rock, eh? You sure know your market. Well, your host, anyway. As I'm off to Calgary on Wednesday, perhaps I should be sure to namecheck Women as often as possible in an attempt to impress the locals with my know-how? Or would I be better off sticking to Van Halen in backsticks Alberta? Yeah, perhaps you're right.

Thanks for playing Ben. I'm looking forward to the fifth installment already.....

Right. Weekend. I've got a goulash on, and a bottle of red wine on the go after fourteen hours or so that have seen me spend about 12 hours in the office, an hour or so in an MRI scanner and half an hour in the pool. I also got home to an appointment to "discuss possible treatments for your multiple sclerosis"..... I definitely need a drink.

Have a good weekend, y'all, and stay classy.

[Previous Guest Editors: Flash, The Urban Fox, Lord Bargain, Retro-Boy, Statue John, Ben, OLS, Ka, Jenni, Aravis, Yoko, Bee, Charlie, Tom, Di, Spin, The Ultimate Olympian, Damo, Mike, RedOne, The NumNum, Leah, Le Moine Perdu, clm, Michael, Hyde, Adem, Alecya, bytheseashore, adamant, Earworms of the Year 2005, Delrico Bandito, Graham, Lithaborn, Phil, Mark II, Stef, Kaptain Kobold, bedshaped, I have ordinary addictions, TheCatGirlSpeaks, Lord B rides again, Tina, Charlie II, Cody Bones, Poll Star, Jenni II, Martin, Del II, The Eye in the Sky, RussL, Lizzy's Hoax, Ben II, Earworms of the Year 2006, Sarah, Flash II, Erika, Hen, Pynchon, Troubled Diva, Graham II, Cat II, Statue John II, Sweeping the Nation, Aravis II, Olympian II, C, Planet-Me, Mike, Michael II, Eye in the Sky II, Charlie III, The Great Grape Ape, asta, Ben III, Earworms of the Year 2007, Cat III, JamieS & Wombat, Pynchon II, Briskate, Craig Cliff, Fiery Little Sod, Cody II, J, Yoko II, Rol, Lisa, Pollstar II, Joe the Troll, Eye in the Sky III, Jerry Cornelius, Stevious, Luke, FLS II, Earworms of the Year 2008, FLS III, Mik, Mark Again]