Back in the last century, a song arrived on the scene that captivated audiences for like, weeks. That song: Lou Bega’s Mambo No. 5. Here’s the backstory about how it entered my life…
I was backpacking through Europe with one of my sisters, and I met up with my other sister in Italy. She told me above this crazy song she kept hearing everywhere, and I didn’t encounter it until arriving in Amsterdam. As a joke, I bought the single to give to her upon returning home, but little did I know that while we were travelling, our place of employment (Circuit Shitty) started playing Mambo No. 5 on the in-house TV network. Joke ruined.
Exciting, I know. It’s taken me many, many years, but I might have found the predecessor to Bega’s catchy minor hit, but I’m not sure which one lives up to it more. The options:
Michael Franti and Spearhead may have saved the day by stopping by to Say Hey.
Or maybe Pitbull (seriously, that’s his name) got a bite on the competition, and pooped out the earwormI Know You Want Me.
As I learned somewhere a long time ago, if you can’t figure something out, just make a chart. Was it a friend? A parent? Or a math teacher? We’ll never know.
I’m looking at you Gwen Stefani, and you’ve been replaced by Hayley Williams. You had the bindi; she has the orange hair.
But that’s not what this post is all about. It’s about the cycles of the music industry. Somebody always replaces somebody else. I’m sure you get what I’m saying, but let me reiterate with examples from my own life.
1) Billy Joel & Rob Thomas
Both are talented musicians that crank out the hits. Although Thomas used to be with Matchbox Twenty, who else would I say? John Mayer? Not even close to the Piano Man.
2) Huey Lewis and The News & Weezer
Huey infiltrated the 80’s pop scene with a 50’s-inspired sound. Rinse and repeat in the 90’s.
3) Debbie Gibson & Regina Spektor
Both pianists. Both song writers. Both crushes of mine.
4) Green Day & Say Anything
Angsty punk rockers with catchy melodies.
5) The Offspring & Rise Against
Poignant punk rockers with hard-hitting melodies.
6) Rancid & Kings of Leon
Unintelligible punk rockers with unique melodies.
7) I’m still trying to figure out my replacement for this guy:
Rumored to be about singer/songwriter Johnny Rzeznik’s childhood. Both of his parents died when he was young, and he’s singing the song to his sisters that raised him. BONUS DOWNER: His father was an alcoholic. And just remember where you’re at when singing this.
Singer/songwriter Brian Vander Ark wrote this song that covers these incidents: a cancelled wedding, an abortion, and a suicide. Only one really happened (see the next song for a hint). BONUS RUMOR: My brother went to Western Michigan University, where this band also hailed. Story goes they were kicked out of WMU because one of the band members raped a girl. Party time.
Band front man (duh) Ben Folds’ girlfriend has an abortion, and this melodic mood killer (bad choice of words?) tries to express how he felt… and succeeds. BONUS SALT IN THE WOUND: The procedure takes place the day after Christmas. BONUS HOT PEPPER SAUCE IN THE WOUND: They were still in high school.
Lead singer Ed Kowalczyk dedicated this song to a friend that was killed by a drunk driver. The drunk driver was fleeing from police after committing a robbery. The friend – she was only 19. BONUS SILVER LINING: She donated her organs and saved the lives of others, including a 10-month-old baby. That’s what the song is really about. But still… bummer.
Anyone that doesn’t know the story behind this song is lucky. Well consider yourself lucky no more. It’s about how Eric Clapton felt after his 4-year-old son, Conor, fell out of a window — on the 53rd floor of an NYC apartment building. BONUS “REALLY?!” He hasn’t performed this song since 2004. His reason:
I didn’t feel the loss anymore, which is so much a part of performing those songs. I really have to connect with he feelings that were there when I wrote them. They’re kind of gone and I really don’t want them to come back, particularly. My life is different now. They probably just need a rest and maybe I’ll introduce them for a much more detached point of view.
This final bit contains the Unholy Trilogy which have actually caused me to leave a bar. If you have to click any because either A) you don’t know it or B) you actually like it… I hate you.
SIDENOTE: If you feel the need to reignite any karaoke night obliterated by any of the above performances, feel free to press the button below to save the night, despite what this list might claim:
Perviously used in this post, it goes along purrfectly with this edition of Musical Musings. If you dove into this post willy-nilly without reading the above title, or if you have an aversion to reading large letters in bold typeface, allow me to introduce you to two of the most fascinating felines ever to grace the music scene (not counting Keyboard Cat or Josie and the Pussycats*, ‘natch).
The Classical Approach:
The Modern Take (wait for the breakdown at the end):
The Interpretive (Canine) Dance:
*It’s a shame, but I forgot how cute Tara Reid actually was, and I really do miss Rachael Leigh Cook. Wha’ happen to her? And look how young Rosario Dawson, um, looks. Eight years really makes a difference, I guess. And that’s my deep thought for the day.
As a self-proclaimed prankster, I have to admit I love it when musicians release their crossover tunes onto easy-listening stations, knowing full well that their CD is nothing like that one song. Unwitting grandmothers and soccer moms hear it and think, “What a pleasant melody,” so they head to Target to pick it up, and image their shock at the remainder of the album. (I wanted to go into a whole thing about grandmothers looking for LP’s and cassette tapes, but I thought it was mean and stopped myself.)
So what better way to express the level of shock value than by rating them with surprised grandmothers?
The latest culprit: Shinedown, with their album The Sound of Madness
Oh, and what can I say about Extra co-host, Mark McGrath’s, “humble” beginnings in Sugar Ray. For the record (clever pun!), their first CD, Lemonade and Brownies (juvenile pun!) looked like this:
Nicole Eggert of "Charles In Charge" and something called... "Baywatch"?
It was their second album, Floored, that pulled the bait-and-switch.
(SIDENOTE: Both of the above videos were integral to launching McG’s future career as a feature film director. So every time you see Mark McGrath mugging on Extra, you can thank him for making Lemonade=Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle and Brownies=Terminator Salavation possible. And McGrath <> McG? Do I smell a conspiracy? Nope. Just turds.)
This edition of Musical Musings is the beginning of something beautiful. No, they’re not going to all be about The (phenomenal) Monkees (you/I wish). Moving forward, I’m hoping and planning that they will be more coherent and thought-provoking than they’ve been, and much less pot-headed sounding (not that I was ever high when I wrote them… it’s simply reminiscent of my babble state, possibly brought on by my love of music and vast amounts of sugar-laced products).
AnyTheWho, here are some factoids (robotic-sounding facts that are in no way robotic) I just learned about The Monkees:
Glam rocker David Bowie was born David Robert Hayward-Jones and originally performed under the name Davy Jones. Due to the rising popularity of the lead singer of this post’s headliner, he took the same last name as the Alamo hero, Jim Bowie, and his knife, which ironically shared the same name.
Michael Nesmith’s mother, Bette Nesmith Graham, invented Liquid Paper. She originally called it Mistake Out; we mistakenly call it, White Out (which by the way looks like a horrible movie).
JazzSinger/songwriter Neil Diamond wrote four songs for them: “I’m a Believer,” “A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You,” “Lookout, Here Comes Tomorrow,” and “Love to Love,” and not “Last Train to Clarksville” or “Daydream Believer” as previously thought (by me).
None of these factoids have anything to do with The Monkees specifically…
I might be setting myself up for ridicule here, but I sure do enjoy the lilting voice of Taylor Swift. (I’ve talked about her before, and thus handed in my man card.)
I enjoy women singers in general, but the ones that write their own material… they really get through to me. My stonewalled heart crumbles for these ladies, so go ahead and pick away while my guards are down.
On that note (pun!), allow me to get to my latest musing…
While watching the music video for Taylor’s new song, You Belong With Me, I was reminded of another (though not-quite-as-lilting) songstress… Avril Lavigne. Namely, her tune Sk8r Boi kickflipped into my brain.
Both songs deal with the same idea of a guy with the wrong girl and the right girl is right in front of you, but at second glance (the visual as opposed to the aural), I was reminded moreso of a different diddy: Girlfriend (which in turn ripped off the Rubinoos’I Want To Be Your Boyfriend, but I digress).
Both videos feature multiple performances by the singer with different colored hairstyles, and in each video, their alter egos fight over a boy. (Christina Aguilera did the same thing in her Candyman video, as did Britney Spears in Toxic, although they weren’t competing with themselves. I think Mariah Carey did it once, too, but that’s where I’m drawing my line of research.)
I guess what I’m trying to say is two things:
I like Taylor Swift’s version of the age old, um, video (because she’s cute).
I’m changing my desktop background to this (because she’s cute):
Didn't intend for this image to be so creepy...
"I said C U L8R, Avril..." - sk8rmunki (my old desktop background)
An 80’s staple and a 90’s thumbtack (and a 2000’s bottle of correction fluid), filmmaker John Hughes wasinfluential (Kevin Smith and Judd Apatow site him as such), omnipresent (he released at least two pictures a year for awhile there), and iconic (see below).
For those that grew up with his films, the majority of his earlier works stand out in our memories mostly because of the songs associated with them. With his passing at the age of 59, let’s synch up his celluloid hits and misses with their synonymous Billboard hits and misses.
I know there’s plenty of other tunes in his movies to choose from (such as Danke Schoen and Twist and Shout for example), but these are the most direct songs associated with these films.
Thank you, Mr. Hughes, for the fond memories. Not so much so for the Flubbers.
(P.S. You were thisclose to being featured in one of my The Sh– To Just Sh–ty posts. Bullet dodged, my friend. Farewell, and well done…)
called Deadsy when I heard this song by Hedley (seriously fuck Universal Music Group and their disabled embedding!) and confused it with the stylings of this song by Deadsy:
At least I didn’t confuse either band with this group
or these odd orange guys (if you only watch one video on this page, make it this one):
INTERESTING FACTS
Deadsy’s lead singer, P. Exeter Blue I, is Cher’s son, Elijah Blue Allman.
Hedley’s lead singer, Jacob Hoggard, placed third on Canadian Idol.
Faith+1’sdebut album sold one million copies and “went myrrh.”
Deadsy’s album Commencement is still the only CD that I bought and gave away. Prong’s Cleansingis the only cassette tape to share that honor.
Hedley, British Columbia was once for sale at a price tag of $346,000. Not sure if that’s in US or Canadian dollars, but the band was named for the city.
b4-4 is also from Canada, and they have to be like totally gay, eh? When the trio broke up, two stayed together and formed the band, RyanDan. It’s named after themselves, for Faith+1’s sake! (Okay, I guess they’re twins, but still…)
I didn’t and still don’t agree with his number one selection, and although two of his choices made my top ten list, he’s little bit out of touch with the alternative music scene of late. I’m not claiming to be any wunderkind either, but here are ten of my favorite reinventions/redos/remakes/reboots… whatever it is that Hollywood calls them.
Let me know in the comments if I missed any.
10) No Doubt – It’s My Life (original by Talk Talk)
Probably the last good song No Doubt made, and will ever make, and it’s not even their own.
9) Seether – Careless Whisper (original by Wham!)
Cool video. Not sure if it’s official.
8) Alien Ant Farm – Smooth Criminal (original by Michael Jackson, duh)
Paul put this at #5 of 5. See where I rank it. I think the leader singer’s weirdness in the video puts me off, but the homages to MJ’s life bring me back.
6) The Ataris – Boys of Summer (original by Don Henley)
The Ataris once said in an interview I don’t feel like relocating that they wanted to remake this song to point out the creepiness inherent in it. I never noticed it was creepy until they mentioned it, and that made me love both versions more.
3) Orgy – Blue Monday (original by New Order)
This isn’t really my kind of music (neither version). And the fact that I dig it despite that speaks volumes.
2) Marilyn Manson – Tainted Love (original by Soft Cell)
Who am I kidding? The video sold me. Chyler Leigh, Mia Kirshner, and Jaime Pressly will cancel out Manson every time.
1) Limp Bizkit – Faith (original by George Michael)
I make no apologies for this. I had a weird story happen over the course of listening to this song, and for that, it gets number one. And now for the comments on the pic at the top of the post:
* COMMENTS
“I don’t know who pulls off the leather better. I’d bet it’s a tie.”
“Is George Michael smelling his armpit?”
“Why does Fred Durst look like one of my uncles now? They even wear the same jacket!”
“Why do I get the feeling these two have awkwardly bumped into each other using the restroom.”
“something-something… at least he’s wearing a glove!”
monkeyBLOG monkeyDO 