INXS is best known for their smash 1987 album Kick. And that is indeed a fantastic album, one I’ve featured twice on the blog already (‘Never Tear Us Apart‘ and ‘Need You Tonight/Mediate‘).
But if I had to select one INXS album as their finest, I think I’d go with the lesser-known Welcome to Wherever You Are, released in 1992.
Packed with great songs and inventive production and somehow tightly focused despite meandering all over the place musically, this is one of the best albums of the 90s.
So what ever happened to ska? Or, more appropriately, to ska punk?
Remember the late 90s, when bands such as Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Sublime and No Doubt were all the rage? That explosion seemed to fizzle out faster than most of these things. Grunge had a longer heyday. So did the boy bands. But these guys, arguably the most musically interesting of the 90s genres, were gone in a blink.
Gwen Stefani looks like a freakin’ genius for jumping off the sinking ship of No Doubt and launching a successful solo career in the dance/pop genre.
I’ve never been big on local bands. I know that’s an awful thing to say, because supporting local music is important and “right” sort of like supporting mom and pop stories is better than going to chains.
But in my experience, local bands usually suck. I also buy most of my music at Best Buy or through Amazon, so sue me.
I guess the appeal of following the local music scene is that amid all the crap you’ll occasionally find a diamond, and you’ll be able to say that you were there when they were nobody. But who has the time? The very thought of it depresses me.
I originally planned to post today’s clip as part of my week on musicals, but it felt like too much of a cheat so I swapped it out for ‘Summer Nights.’
But I’d hate to see it go to waste so I’m resurrecting it today.
I love this animated title sequence. It gives you a great feel for the setting and characters of the film as well as the overall tone. It’s corny, fun and mischievous. And I must admit I’ve always been more than a little stirred by the cartoon body of Olivia Newton-John’s Sandy.
As for the song, it’s a true classic. Penned by Barry Gibb and performed by Frankie Valli (whose music I saw spotlighted this summer on a terrific cruise show modeled after The Jersey Boys), it’s a perfect bridge between the 70s and the 50s.
In all my years of listening to music, I don’t believe I’ve ever been presented with as tantalizing a collaboration as Lonely Avenue, the new album featuring lyrics by novelist Nick Hornby set to music by Ben Folds.
Collaborations within a single genre are common, but to have my favorite writer combine forces with one of my favorite musicians… talk about an unexpected delight.
Hornby has long been a fan of Folds’ work (I remember reading his essays about Ben Folds Five back in the Whatever and Ever Amen days) and that appreciation turned into a friendship, which led to an email correspondence that evolved into the partnership we now get to hear fully realized.
Meet Me In Montauk 