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Song of the Day #455: ‘…Baby One More Time’ – Fountains of Wayne

outofstateTwo years after Welcome Interstate Managers, Fountains of Wayne released a double-CD compilation of B-sides and unreleased tracks titled Out-of-State Plates. The collection was a bit of a disappointment, as those things go, stuffed with novelty tracks that probably would have better off hidden.

This album backs up my observation that Welcome Interstate Managers is about four songs too long. It seems Fountains of Wayne is a band that hits big when they hit but otherwise has a little trouble connecting with the ball. To use a football analogy, they’re like a wide receiver who makes a lot of big plays but also drops a lot of easy passes. (That reminds me of Buddy Ryan’s famous comment about Cris Carter — meant as a criticism: “All he does is catch touchdowns.”)

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Song of the Day #454: ‘Valley Winter Song’ – Fountains of Wayne

welcomeinterstateIf I had to name Fountains of Wayne’s best album, I’d be torn between Utopia Parkway and 2003’s Welcome Interstate Managers. Utopia Parkway is a more focused and consistent album, but many of the songs on Welcome Interstate Managers are the band’s best yet.

Managers is one of those cases, more prevalent these days it seems, of an album where less is more. It is a really good album at 16 songs. At 12 it would be amazing. The first six songs fly by in a burst of creativity and craftsmanship but things start to fall apart a few songs after that. Everything here is good but they needed an editor. Of course, in the MP3 era we can all be editors, and it’s easy enough to re-sequence the album as an iTunes playlist.

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Song of the Day #453: ‘Troubled Times’ – Fountains of Wayne

utopiaFountains of Wayne’s second album, 1999’s Utopia Parkway, was my first introduction to the band. I heard the fabulous song ‘Denise’ on a compilation album that came with a music magazine and I was instantly hooked.

For some reason I thought they were a Christian rock band. I think I was confusing them with Jars of Clay. But when I picked up the album I realized that I was completely off base (not that there’s anything wrong with Christian rock bands… it’s just not the sort of thing I want to listen to). Thirty seconds into ‘Red Dragon Tattoo’ I knew I’d found a new band to add to my list of favorites.

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Song of the Day #452: ‘Leave the Biker’ – Fountains of Wayne

fowThe first time I heard the music of Fountains of Wayne, or at least one half of Fountains of Wayne, I had no idea who they were. It was the title song of Tom Hanks’ directorial debut, That Thing You Do!, a burst of bubble gum pop that perfectly created the sound of the Beatles-wannabes chronicled in the film. That was in 1996, and it wouldn’t be until three years later that I caught on to the band and discovered they were behind that tune.

1996 also marked the release of Fountains of Wayne’s self-titled debut album, a tight bright collection that perfectly introduced their sound and sensibility. I’ll spend this week featuring songs from that album and the four that followed.

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Song of the Day #451: ‘Ticket to Ride’ – The Beatles

tickettoride‘Ticket to Ride,’ another John Lennon triumph from the Help! album, is by all objective measures a wonderful song. But I’m still struck by the uncanny appeal it seems to have for children.

OK, I’m generalizing… my sample size is admittedly small — my own two children and my nephew. But of all the great Beatles songs, including such blatantly kid-friendly fare as ‘Yellow Submarine’ and ‘Octopus’s Garden,’ why would this tune strike such a nerve with my little ones?

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