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Song of the Day #5,575: ‘Laugh, I Nearly Died’ – The Rolling Stones

After 1997’s Bridges to Babylon, The Rolling Stones waited a full eight years to release another studio album, by far the biggest stretch in their career (to that point). They stayed busy, though, touring the world and releasing live and compilation albums.

In 2005, the band dropped A Bigger Bang, a sprawling back-to-basics rock album. While their previous release saw Mick Jagger bringing more “modern” producers into the mix, this one found the whole band on the same page. Working once again with producer Don Was, The Stones wanted to sound like The Stones again.

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Song of the Day #5,574: ‘Anybody Seen My Baby?’ – The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones released only two studio albums in the 90s: 1994’s Voodoo Lounge and 1997’s Bridges to Babylon. While the former hearkened back to the band’s R&B roots, Mick Jagger wanted to take a new direction for its follow-up.

While Bridges to Babylon kept producer Don Was onboard, Jagger brought in a slew of new faces to supplement the recording process, including The Dust Brothers, whose work with Beck and the Beastie Boys he admired.

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Song of the Day #5,573: ‘Half-Breed’ – Cher

In the #1 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 the week of October 6, 1973, is a throwback weekend selection that has not aged well. The song is ‘Half-Breed,’ Cher’s second of four career #1 hits, and it’s about as cringeworthy as its title suggests.

To be fair, the lyrics paint a sympathetic portrait of a woman with a white father and Cherokee mother, decrying the racism that mixed-race children face from both sides. But should a pop song about this topic have been written and performed by people without a drop of Native American blood?

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Song of the Day #5,572: ‘Blue Velvet’ – Bobby Vinton

Throwing back to the week of October 7, 1963, we find Bobby Vinton in the top spot of the Billboard Hot 100 with his recording of ‘Blue Velvet.’

This classic song was written in 1950 by Bernie Wayne and was first recorded by Tony Bennett a year later. Bennett’s version reached #16 on the chart that pre-dated the Hot 100 (charmingly named “Records Most Played by Disc Jockeys”). The song was covered by The Clovers and The Statues, among others, in subsequent years.

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Song of the Day #5,571: ‘Out of Tears’ – The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones took a break for the first few years of the 90s. Both Mick Jagger and Keith Richards released solo albums, as did Ron Wood and Charlie Watts, and the band’s original bassist, Bill Wyman, left the band. The Stones also switched record labels from Columbia to Virgin.

When they regrouped, they released their 20th studio album, one that built on the success of “comeback” record Steel Wheels — 1994’s Voodoo Lounge.

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