“All right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right…all right, all right, all right, all right.” – That pretty much sums up the lyrical content of this scorcher from Cream’s 1966 debut album, “Fresh Cream.” And for my money, the band’s studio recordings are far more preferable than their live workouts featuring […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Theme From An Imaginary Western” by Mountain
Every so often, you hear a song that you haven’t heard in a long time, and it blows you away as if you were hearing it for the very first time. I had this experience last night at our weekly “Vinyl Night” gathering at the Firkin bar Libertyville, IL where one of the gang brought […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Thing Called Love” by John Hiatt and the Goners
I received an unplanned invite to see a double bill of Steve Earle and John Hiatt at the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, Illinois the other night. I have seen both artists quite a few times before, but it had been at least 6 years since I last saw Earle and probably 15 years since […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Ode To Charlie Parker” by Eric Dolphy
Leave it to Eric Dolphy to record this Jaki Bayard tribute to Bird and not play a lick of saxophone on it. I believe that’s Dolphy soaring effortlessly on the flute here, although the “Iron Man” record credits Prince Lasha on flute. I say that because the soloing here sounds unmistakably like Dolphy and there […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Me And The Wind” by XTC
They were a band with two very distinct songwriters…Colin Moulding wrote some of their biggest early hits (“Making Plans For Nigel,” “Life Begins At The Hop”) that were typified by stop-start rhythms, big drums and infectious melodies, while Andy Partridge was the guy who was responsible for some of their prettiest, most pastoral recordings (“Summer’s […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Montauk” by Rufus Wainwright
The self-described “Gay Messiah” got back into the game this year with his most seventies-esque album called “Out Of The Game.” Under the tutelage of producer Mark Ronson (Amy Winehouse), Wainwright delivered a record sonically more in line with classic Steely Dan than the baroque, rococo sound of his last few releases. Wainwright has said […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Sailor” by Rod Stewart
Rod Stewart’s 1974 album,“Smiler,” was unfairly panned and ridiculed by rock fans and critics alike upon its release. While it’s true that “Smiler” was Stewart’s last album for Mercury Records before jumping ship to Warner Bros., I just don’t buy the criticism that he had run out of gas and was basically treading water by […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “2012 (You Must Be Upgraded)” by Flaming Lips with Ke$ha and Biz Markie
This one comes from a Record Store Day release “Flaming Lips And Heady Fwends.” The limited edition double album was released on two “hand-thrown” colored discs, and each one is uniquely colored. The album was also released in two versions defined by a version of this song. The more desirable version features a “Cybermen” sample […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “The Trouble With Candyhands” by Deerhoof
Emanating from San Francisco (Greg Saunier & John Dieterich) by way of Japan (Satomi Matsuzaki), Deerhoof have released 12 albums of unpredictable music with a sound that would have made Yoko Ono proud and John Lennon jump for joy. It has finally come to pass that the ingredients of Yoko Ono’s recordings circa “Double Fantasy” […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Duquesne Whistle” by Bob Dylan
In a little over a week, the world will be graced with Bob Dylan’s 35th studio album. While his croak is (and always was) an acquired taste, I love the old-timey feel of the records he’s released in the last decade, and judging by this track the new record should musically be in the same […]
