Monthly Archives: May 2010

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Song of the Day #654: ‘If I Were a Boy’ – Beyoncé

Once in awhile (for purely artistic reasons) I’ll watch a Beyoncé video or two on YouTube. ‘Single Ladies‘ is definitely a favorite, and ‘Crazy in Love‘ has yet to disappoint.

I’ve made the distinction before between live artists and album artists, citing Rihanna as a fine example of the latter. She isn’t a thrilling live performer but her albums are excellent. The combination of controlled performance, fine songwriting and expert production makes for a great listening experience. I wouldn’t go to a Rihanna concert, but I have her last two albums in my car stereo rotation full-time.

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Song of the Day #653: ‘So Cruel’ – U2

One of these days I might get around to a theme week on U2. I feel about U2 the way I feel about Bruce Springsteen… appreciative of their status as legends, and a big fan of much of their work, but not a big enough fan to number them among my favorites.

It seems to me that U2 fans (and Bruce Springsteen fans) are generally crazy about them the way I’m crazy about Elvis Costello. I find it hard to believe there are many casual Elvis Costello fans, but I’m sure they exist. And I’m living proof that casual U2 fans exist.

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Song of the Day #652: ‘Landed (a cappella version)’ – The Yale Spizzwinks(?)

One of the things I love about Ben Folds is how fully he embraces new ideas in his music. While Ben Folds Five was still together, he put out his first solo album under the moniker Fear of Pop. The album, Volume One, relied heavily on samples, electronica, spoken word pieces and ambient noise. The first single featured a deadpan William Shatner opining on the battle of the sexes.

He’s also taken in stride the Internet’s encroachment on the recording industry, releasing a series of EPs through his Web site between albums and adopting Twitter when it was first catching on. Recently he worked a Chat Roulette feature into his concert, improvising songs for a random string of chatters.

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Song of the Day #651: ‘You’re a Big Girl Now’ – Bob Dylan

Blood on the Tracks is, obviously, the fifth member of my Dylan Six — the six Dylan albums I consider his true untouchable masterpieces.

(On a side note, every time I write Dylan Six I’m reminded of the Dylan Four in Battlestar Galactica… the four crew members who discovered they were actually Cylons after being triggered by the words and music of ‘All Along the Watchtower.’ Geek detour concluded. We now return to your regularly scheduled programming.)

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Song of the Day #650: ‘Tangled Up in Blue’ – Bob Dylan

In 1975, nine years had passed since the release of Bob Dylan’s last undisputed masterpiece, Blonde on Blonde. During those nine years he had released seven studio albums, two greatest hits collections and a live album.

He had matched his pre-1966 output but it would be hard to argue that any of those seven albums were equal to his first seven. Could it be his best days were behind him?

The answer, which came in the form of Blood on the Tracks, was a resounding no.

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