365 Day Song Challenge: Day 130 – “Storms In Africa”

Posted on by Joe Parker

Day 130: Your favorite song by a band/artist whose name begins with “E”.

“Storms In Africa” – Enya

Storms In AfricaMy first exposure to Enya was in the Power Wagon on the way home from our post-Senior Prom “beach day” at Misquamicut Beach in Rhode Island.

There were three of us in the car: me, my girlfriend at the time, and my friend Pete.

On the way home we stopped at a record store. I don’t remember why. (It probably had something to do with stopping at a mall for a bio break.)

At any rate, when we got back in the car, an Enya cassette single was in the possession of my girlfriend. I don’t even remember what song it was, but if I had to guess, it was “Orinoco Flow.” Read More

365 Day Song Challenge: Day 129 – “To All The Girls I’ve Loved Before”

Posted on by Joe Parker

Day 129: Your least favorite duet.

“To All The Girls I’ve Loved Before” – Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson

To All The Girls I've Loved BeforeThis song has all the earmarks of a lost bet.

Or a drunken “brainstorm”:

“I know! Let’s have that tan, Spanish dude and the guy that sings like a screeching cat do a duet!”
“Um… what?”

There is nothing about this recording that is redeeming. So many thoughts stampeding my brain:

The pairing is a complete mismatch.

Willie Nelson is horrible on his own, much less paired with anyone. He couldn’t sing his way out of a paper bag (or a tax bill, apparently).


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I’m not sure why Julio Iglesias was ever even famous.

The whole thing is just a nightmare.

The people who sprung this on an unsuspecting world really ought to be shot.

Awful. Awful. Awful. Awful. (And no, this has nothing to do with two milkshakes from Newport Creamery.)

And that’s all I have to say about that.

(I guess it’s good that I don’t have a strong opinion about it.)

365 Day Song Challenge: Day 128 – “The Sheik Of Araby”

Posted on by Joe Parker

Day 128: The most obscure song by The Beatles that you can think of.

“The Sheik Of Araby” – The Beatles (Duh)

Sheik Of ArabyIt’s pretty tough for a Beatles song to be obscure these days. I was going to say “Her Majesty” since that 23-second song from Abbey Road was originally considered a “hidden track” (and possibly the first hidden track ever). It got tacked on to the end of the album when it was decided to pull it out from in between “Mean Mr. Mustard” and “Polythene Pam.”

So, since it was on an album that sold a bajillion copies, it can hardly be considered “obscure,” despite the fact that for years people didn’t really know what it was.

Thus, I decided to go with something even more obscure: “The Sheik Of Araby.” This song was actually recorded in 1962 by The Beatles for their Decca audition (you know, Decca, the brain trust of a label that passed on The Beatles). Read More

365 Day Song Challenge: Day 127 – “Everybody Wants You”

Posted on by Joe Parker

Day 127: Your favorite song beginning with “E”.

“Everybody Wants You” – Billy Squier

Everybody Wants YouBilly Squier was one of those guys whose career was white hot in the early 80s and then flashed out very quickly. Between 1981 and 1984 he had three multi-platinum albums, a bunch of popular singles, and was an MTV staple.

And then he was gone. *Poof* Like a wisp of smoke on a breezy day… Like a sand castle against the tide… Like a Buffalo Wing in my hand…

Well, not truly gone, of course. Not dead. But after those three records, you didn’t hear much about him. He actually released a number of albums after that, but no one seemed to care; he was never quite as popular again. Read More

365 Day Song Challenge: Day 126 – “Learn To Fly”

Posted on by Joe Parker

Day 126: The song that was sung in your favorite music video.

“Learn To Fly” – Foo Fighters

LearnToFlyI was never a fan of Nirvana. The state perhaps, but not the band. I think Kurt Cobain was a greasy, overrated junkie. Tortured does not (necessarily) equal genius. There. I said it. (Let the hate begin.)

Were they influential? Yes. They influenced a whole decade of crappy grunge bands and the run on flannel. Were they good? Yes, they were okay. But not great to the level that they’ve been raised to.

So when Dave Grohl started the Foo Fighters, I was fighting my Nirvana prejudice. I remember thinking, “what, this drummer now thinks he’s a guitarist?”

Such was my post-Nirvana state of mind. Read More