Song of the Day #347: ‘Be My Yoko Ono’ – Barenaked Ladies
All the artists I’ve featured in theme weeks since I started them have achieved a level of critical respect worthy of their talents. But this week I’m focusing on a band that strikes me as woefully under appreciated — Barenaked Ladies.
Perhaps it’s the name. Is it difficult to take a group seriously with a name like that? Or perhaps it’s that they are not afraid to be funny and in the process are considered by some as a bit of a novelty act. Or perhaps this is all in my head and they receive critical acclaim commensurate with their talents but I’ve just missed it.
Regardless, I believe this band is extremely special and I’m happy to give them their due this week.
Song of the Day #346: ‘I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)’ – Four Tops
It’s a truly sad fact that when I get to the chorus of this wonderful song, the lyrics that run through my mind are these: “I can’t help myself…. it’s Duncan Hines and nobody else!”
I guess there aren’t enough talented jingle writers out there for companies to pay for original tunes to sell their products. So instead they pony up the cash for classic songs, and all the memories and associations they carry, and co-opt them to peddle underwear and cake mix. Capitalism at its worse… when everything is for sale, is nothing sacred?
Song of the Day #345: ‘Please Mr. Postman’ – The Marvelettes
Like a lot of people, I’m sure, my first exposure to ‘Please Mr. Postman’ was through The Beatles’ excellent cover version on their 1963 album With the Beatles. It’s one of John Lennon’s best early vocal performances (check it out here).
In fact, I couldn’t have told you that a group called The Marvelettes performed the original version of this song — not before I found it on a Web site just the other day. And I certainly didn’t know that The Marvelettes’ ‘Please Mr. Postman,’ released in 1961, was the very first #1 hit for Motown Records in the U.S.
Public Enemies
There’s something about a pedigreed failure. On the one hand, you find things to admire, maybe even love — in a strong performance by a fine actor, in the vision of a strong director — even as the movie leaves you cold. But on the other hand, the potential for greatness, given those ingredients, makes you even more upset when things don’t come together.
I go into The Proposal expecting something far from perfect and I’m able to walk out having enjoyed the parts that clicked. I go into Public Enemies expecting greatness. And it’s a lot of things, but it sure ain’t great.
Song of the Day #344: ‘Dancing Choose’ – TV On the Radio
Damn, does time fly.
It feels like I wrote my review of TV On the Radio’s Dear Science just a couple of months back but checking the timestamp I see it was published on New Year’s Eve, 2008. Are we really halfway through 2009 already?
My opinion of the album hasn’t diminished a bit since then. It continues to feel like something brand new, a fresh blend of sounds and ideas with the funkiness of Prince and the lyrical ingenuity of Elvis Costello.
