Day 73: A song from a band that you wish you could hang out with.

“Shopping” – Barenaked Ladies

Today’s post didn’t take much thought. Although I would love to hang out with Genesis, they seem like they’d be on the serious side outside their inner circle. I love Tony Banks, but I think that he’d be pretty stoic until he got to know you, and that could take years.

In some cases, there are people who would be very interesting to watch doing their work in the studio, but that’s not the same as hanging out. For example, I think it would be a great learning experience to be in the studio with Jeff Lynne (from ELO) or Lindsey Buckingham (Fleetwood Mac), but I’m not sure it would be fun.

When it comes to fun, I think of bands like Rush and Fountains of Wayne. I certainly don’t know these guys, but based on what I’ve seen and read, they seem like they’d be fun to hang with. But who knows? Maybe they wouldn’t. It’s difficult to really know how people are outside of their public personas (personae?).

Having said that, I do think it would be a blast to hang out with the guys from BNL. They all seem to have great senses of humor and they all seem just goofy enough that I’d be able to fit in with them sorta-kinda (in a way I probably couldn’t with Genesis or Rush). They joke around on stage, they joke around in interviews, and they joke around in the studio (this video is really what convinced me to pick them; I think it’s freakin’ hilarious).

They take their work seriously, even when the subject matter is lighthearted, but they don’t seem to take themselves too seriously, and I think that’s the key. It’s a good combination. It would prevent the whole experience from being a drag.

“Shopping” is an example of a tune that seems to showcase this light-heartedness. It comes from their 2003 album Everything To Everyone. The germ of the idea for the song came when, immediately after 9/11, George W. Bush said that people should keep going with their lives, like going shopping and so on. Everything will be all right, when we go shopping.

The lyrics are a bit silly, and the music goes along with it; it’s happy and silly, too. And I like that. I’ve liked it since I first heard it. But for those who can only handle so much silly, fear not, the rest of the album isn’t really like that. Songs like “Aluminum” and “Take It Outside” (which are also favorites from this album) have more serious topics to discuss, even if their veneer has some humor.

So, that’s my pick for today. And on the off-chance that someone from BNL reads this and wants to take me up on it, just let me know. I’m available.

Ty preps for “Shopping” backing vocals…