Often when the Random iTunes Fairy unearths a track from a decades-old album, I hit Wikipedia and discover the band responsible has released a dozen more albums in the time since.
That is not the case with today’s SOTD.
Save Ferris, a ska punk/pop band that built a decent following in the late 90s, released its sophomore album, Modified, in 1999. That’s the album featuring today’s song, and the only album of theirs I own.
Today we have a Random Weekend selection that coincides with a family birthday, always a fun turn of events. The birthday in question is that of my older sister, Amy, who turns a very young 55 today.
Let’s spin the wheel and see what the Random iTunes Fairy has in store to commemorate the occasion…
It’s ‘The Last Laugh of the Laughter,’ from Scottish band Travis’ 1999 album The Man Who.
Here’s a song from the debut album of The Negro Problem, a four-piece band that was the brainchild of singer-songwriter Marc Stewart (who goes by the stage name Stew).
Stew released two albums with The Negro Problem before recording under his own name, in a very different (less overtly pop) sound. His last solo album was 2003’s Something Deeper Than These Changes, a record I have featured on the blog a few times.
Talking is Hard, the third album by Ohio-based alternative rock band Walk the Moon, is one of the great pop albums of the last decade or more. I spent a lot of time listening to this album in the years after its release, and I’m always thrilled to come across it in a playlist or on a Random iTunes Weekend.
Every track on this album is a winner. ‘Shut Up and Dance’ was a top five single that pushed the album into the top 20, but the band has managed to land only one song in the Hot 100 since.
‘Somebody Up There Likes Me’ is a deep cut on David Bowie’s ninth studio album, 1975’s Young Americans. This song, which took its title from the 1956 Paul Newman movie, takes aim at a villainous television celebrity.
Young Americans found Bowie in his “plastic soul” period, moving away from glam rock and toward R&B and soul. This detour would last about an album and a half.
Meet Me In Montauk 