Tag Archives: going

#903: Fleetwood Mac – Never Going Back Again

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I’ve had Rumours in my library since about 2013. Until about last year, maybe even earlier this year, I always thought of ‘Never Going Back Again’ as that nice little acoustic ditty near the start of the album that didn’t amount to much. Just kept the flow of the album moving, you know? But that all changed when I came across a video of Lindsey Buckingham performing the track live at the University of Southern California. I’ll embed the video below, it’s a stunning take. Honestly, I probably prefer that version of the song over what appears on the album. It’s the same song all in all. But through it, I gained a new appreciation.

Like the other Buckingham-penned numbers on Rumours, it’s most likely about Stevie Nicks in some way. But really, the main message Buckingham’s putting out there is he’s been put into these uncomfortable situations in relationships. Been messed around, tossed aside, all those cliché things. He’s been let down and dumped two times (probably more, but that’s how the song goes), and he’s determined not to be put into that position again. Not for a while at least. All this is sung to some very delicate and intricate finger-picking from Buckingham. It’s a style of playing that, judging from the video below, looks very difficult to master. There are plenty of comments online that state the pain and cramps they’ve suffered just trying to get the guitar work right.

In the video below, Buckingham plays the track at a slower tempo and a lower key. Looking at other live takes, that seems to be the way he does it when he’s on the road. Like I said earlier, I may even prefer it that way. It lets the notes ring out for a little longer. But even in the video below, he’s hunched over the guitar fretboard and I want to say is probably concentrating on not trying to mess it up. So I think it’s a testament to his playing that he just does goes through it like it’s nothing on the album. Although I would take a guess that it took a ton of practice.

My iPod #450: The Jam – Going Underground

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*Phew*. Had to take a bit of a break over these past few days. University work suddenly caught up with me, had to get it all done over this weekend. Now that’s all finished, let’s continue. How many have I got to do….. Four?! Okay. Well, here’s the first.

“Going Underground” was a standalone single released by punk rock/mod band The Jam in 1980. Funnily enough it was actually meant to be the B-Side to another song by the band named “Dreams of Children“, but a labelling error led to a reversal of roles and “Going Underground” ended up getting more airplay. The track went straight to number one in the UK upon its release and spent three weeks there.

The track written by Paul Weller expresses concern with our society in which we all seem to get what we are asked for but ultimately none of it does the world any good in the long run. We vote for place our trust in war-happy leaders who will and carry on with our lives as if everything’s okay. Weller’s is not about that life, and decides that the only way to escape it all is by going underground while life goes on above.

It is a classic, yes. Goes without saying. Delivered with a sharp vocal take, a busy bassline and biting guitars, “Going Underground”is a quintessential British punk song with sarcasm and cynicism being the main ways in which its serious subject matter is put across.

My iPod #449: Eels – Going to Your Funeral Part I

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“Going to Your Funeral Part I” is the second track on Electro-Shock Blues, the second album by the alternative band Eels. Recorded during a period in which several friends and members of frontman E’s family passed away, the album is regarded to be the band’s best work because of the brutal honesty and sincerity within each of the sixteen tracks on it.

Preceding this song is “Elizabeth on the Bathroom Floor“, a lullaby-like track with lyrics taken from E’s sister’s personal journal before she unfortunately ended her own life some time after. “Going to Your Funeral Part I” depicts the scene bluntly stated in the title after the tragic event. You’d think that coming right after it, it would only concern the funeral of his sister and that’s what we’re made to believe for the first and second verses, but it is only until the final verse which has E almost screaming into a megaphone about remembering an old friend he used to hang out with behind their old school.

Beginning with an ominous drone that pans from left to right and quickly fades out, the track then gets to a crawling start carried by an unsettling groove led by an intense but very slack bass line that oozes from one note to the other. E comes in with a light falsetto vocal after, but over the dark bass line and overall atmosphere still isn’t able to to make the track less dissonant than it already is. The style changes during the choruses where cute xylophones and backwards slide guitars enter the mix; those only appear for a short time before returning to the grungy sound again.

Only five minutes into the album, the listener is already provided with two tracks that sound the complete opposite to one another. Though the first hints at the unsettling feel with light music and heavy lyrics, “Going to Your Funeral Part I” really hits it home.

If you want to know why it’s specifically labelled as “Part I”, here is “Part II”.

My iPod #448: Supergrass – Going Out

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“Going Out” was the one of the first songs recorded for Supergrass’ second album In It for the Money. It was released as the album’s first single, more than a year before, in 1996.

The track, sung in unison by Gaz Coombes and Mick Quinn who also switch between lower and higher harmonies at various points, is about the press and how, when we want to go out or find out the latest gossip, the newspapers are the first things we go to. The song also makes it clear that the papers aren’t so great, and that staying home is much better. Starting off with guitars at full volume during the verses, the song takes a pleasant turn for the instrumental break when those disappear and Rob Coombes’ piano and the casual horns begin to dominate the mix before returning to the guitars for the sweet last verse. With the concluding line of “Not me” (which is a clever tie in with the next song on the album) Coombes confirms that the news isn’t his thing, and the track fades out with rising horns and jubilant guitar playing.

The track showed a sense of growth from the material that displayed on their amazing debut; whilst the songs on that had a sense of urgency, grit and roughness to them in some parts, “Going Out” was the first sign of Supergrass’ growth as a group. The harsh guitars of “Lose It” and “Caught by the Fuzz” were now replaced by strolling pianos, inviting organs and triumphant horns, teasing a new expansive sound-scape that was to be used to its full capacity on the forthcoming album.

My iPod #447: The Who – Going Mobile

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“Going Mobile” is the seventh track from The Who’s classic album Who’s Next from 1971. The track features only Pete Townshend, John Entwistle, and Keith Moon on their respective instruments. But don’t come to the conclusion that this track can’t be compared to the other eight just because it misses the presence of Roger Daltrey’s monstrous voice. In fact, the song rocks just as hard as them. Even if Pete does play the acoustic guitar for the majority of it, it is again the wonders of Moon and Entwistle that give the track its emphatic edge.

The track concerns the wonders of being on the road, on the move with no sign of stopping, just generally feeling free with the cool air blowing in the wind and not having a care in the world. And as much as the track is about continuously moving lyrically, it also gives this idea in it’s actual execution. Keith Moon particularly pulls off an incredibly energetic performance (as ever) on the drums, ending every single measure with thundering drum fills and generally playing them as if he has more than two arms. At one particular point, he turns the track into some sort of barn-dance before seamlessly transitioning back to the regular pattern. It’s crazy. John effortlessly keeps it all together with his fluid bass playing, and Pete can’t contain his excitement on the vocals, ad-libbing at any given opportunity.

Being on the same album as tracks such as “Baba O’Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again“, “Going Mobile” tends not to get so much attention. But it should. It is honestly just as brilliant.