Tag Archives: my ipod

#848: Led Zeppelin – Misty Mountain Hop

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While you Led Zeppelin fans are out their raving about ‘Black Dog’ or ‘When the Levee Breaks’, or ‘Stairway to Heaven’ if you really don’t care what anyone thinks, I’ll be in the corner listening to ‘Misty Mountain Hop’ and ‘Four Sticks’. That’s right. Those are my two favourite songs from Led Zeppelin IV. Not because I’m trying to be contrarian or anything. They just have some great grooves to them. Grooves that get me boppin’ my head to their rhythm every time their momentum gets going. Unfortunately for ‘Sticks’, I didn’t know the track when I was doing the F’s, so it doesn’t have its own post. Not to worry though, as between it and ‘Mountain Hop’, I most definitely prefer the latter.

So, what’s the song about? Seems to be one of those ‘day in the life’ songs. Robert Plant guides the listener through some freaky things he sees when walking through the park. People in their masses are getting high, he decides to join them, he doesn’t notice that he’s out there for ages because his head’s in the clouds and a police officer comes and weirdly invites the people round to his house. Plant has no idea what’s going on, but is lucid enough to warn listeners to be aware of what’s going on in the world because the ignorance has become too much for him that he’s decided to take a trip to the Misty Mountains and stay there for a while. It’s all a bit of a trip. But it’s a trip that’s set to a fine boogie.

Usual bassist John Paul Jones gets behind the keys on here, laying down the track’s whole foundation with that downward riff that opens the proceedings, continues throughout most of the song, and is simultaneously followed by Jimmy Page on the guitar. The vocal melody also follows whatever Jones plays on those keys. What I’m saying to you is, just listen to those smooth keyboards. John Bonham adds power to the rhythm, business as usual for him with his performance on the drums, keeping a solid beat in the verses and mixing it up with some crazy drum fills in some spaces. This is a song to just walk down the street to and feel on the top of your game, you know? Many good feelings to have from hearing this one.

#847: George Harrison – Miss O’Dell

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Here’s a nice little ditty by George Harrison. ‘Miss O’Dell’ was originally a B-side to ‘Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)’ when that song was released as the first single from Harrison’s well-anticipated album Living in the Material World in 1973. Years and years later, ‘O’Dell’ was added as a bonus track to the album has part of a whole Harrison catalogue re-release. As a result, hopefully, a few more people know about the existence of this track as opposed to it fading into obscurity as a song that could only be found on vinyl from the ’70s.

I think the notable thing about this track is that in the middle of the second verse, Harrison messes up the lyric and from then on can barely contain his laughter as the song goes on. It’s hard not to smile when you hear his happiness, but sometimes you want to hear what the lines are meant to be. Luckily, there’s an alternative version (below) where Harrison re-recorded the vocal and the laughs are gone. That version doesn’t hit as much, funnily enough.

The track is a dedication to real person Chris O’Dell, a friend of Harrison who worked with pretty much everyone from the Beatles to the Rolling Stones to Bob Dylan during their heydays. Harrison is bored and lonely according to the lyrics and just wants O’Dell to give him a ring and have a chat. That is the core of the track. Quite innocent and warm in its intentions, and the upbeat tone provides the track with a very friendly and welcoming feel. Harrison does give away Paul McCartney’s old childhood phone number in the very last seconds of it though, which adds a cheeky twist to the whole thing. They weren’t on the best of terms at this point in time.

#846: Blur – Miss America

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Like a lot of other songs in this very long series thing, it took a while for me to get into this track. When I first listened through Modern Life Is Rubbish, years ago now, I think I was 18, ‘Miss America’ stood out as the really slow and much longer track in an album where the pace was quite rapid and frantic. I thought it was boring. But a few years later, you can guess where this is going, I listened to the album yet again, and it all made sense. Coming after the heavy, two minute, shoegaze-ish ending of ‘Oily Water’, ‘Miss America’ brings a needed calmness to the proceedings.

A horrible touring experience in the US where the band were broke and the members basically starting hating each other spurred the whole music-for-the-British-people thing that Damon Albarn was all for during the 90s, and I think that ‘Miss America’ is pretty much about missing the UK while he was having the worst time across the pond. He sings about how he doesn’t understand ‘Miss America’ and loves only ‘you’, ‘you’ in this case being the United Kingdom. There are some other lyrics about jellybeans and ‘Jemima ho hos’ that don’t make much sense, but I think those are just in there to fit the music. Could also be a part of the huuuge Syd Barrett influence on this track too.

What I think really drew me in though, is the whole dreamlike atmosphere of the song. These reverb-drenched acoustic guitars take up the frame with these twinkling wind chimes (I think) throughout. There’s a proper haze about it. I’ve been in bed while listening to this and never wanted to get up, I feel so comfortable when this comes on. The track’s very loose, and I think it’s a live take too. There’s a short moment at the beginning where a drunk Graham Coxon yells out ‘Michael’, and Alex James and Albarn share a laugh about it before beginning the track. The only thing that I would point out about it is that Albarn’s vocal is very upfront in the mix… Kinda wish the instruments were louder so the vocals were more subtle. But, hey, the producers know what they’re doing.

#845: Green Day – Minority

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‘Minority’ by Green Day. This is a track I’ve known and really liked for a long time now. Was one of the videos I watched on repeat on the band’s website when I was really into them in ’05. So much so that I remember my aunt making fun of the way Billie Joe Armstrong sang the track’s first line. But I liked it then, and still do today. It’s the penultimate track on Warning, but was released as the first single from it, and is one of those “fuck the Man, I’m doing me” type of songs.

I’m in that group who say Warning is an underrated album. It might not have the grandiosity of an American Idiot or a 21st Century Breakdown, but the simplicity of all its songs really highlight the band’s chemistry and Billie Joe’s melodic talents. And ‘Minority’ has one of the most memorable singalong moments on there. The whole track is like one long chorus, and I appreciate this. The one part of the track that I really like is the “Stepped out of the line” section, and that only appears once before changing back to the pre-chorus again. Kinda leaves me wanting more. But as it stands, the track’s still one of the best from the album.

I think it’s fair to say the band like it too. It’s a staple in their live performances. Sometimes the band stretch the track out for about eight to ten minutes to allow a lot of instrumental breaks, crowd banter and “hey-heys” and “hey-ohs” and “ay ay ays”. While those are all probably very nice when in the moment, I’ll take the studio recording any day.

#844: Talking Heads – Mind

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The album sleeve will tell you that ‘I Zimbra’ is the first song on Talking Heads’ Fear of Music. But for me, the record doesn’t truly start until the following number. With ‘Mind’, the whole ‘concept’ of being frightened/obsessed with the thing listed in the song titles properly begins. Here, David Byrne wants to know what’s going on in the listener’s head. Or at least to whoever/whatever he was thinking about at the time of writing the lyric.

After the party-conga-like tone of ‘I Zimbra’, ‘Mind’ brings things back down to earth with a hefty crash of a cymbal and a great reduction in tempo. There are these pleasant keyboards that fade in and out of the mix, but the guitars and bass play these odd notes that keep things sounding unusual. Then Byrne comes in. If you weren’t intrigued by the band elements, then it’s Byrne’s voice that will gain your attention. He sounds resigned at the beginning. Like he’s been examining us for a while and has started singing the song to pass the time. With every iteration of the “I need something…” chorus, Byrne seems to become progressively unhinged in his delivery, culminated in a huge scream on the very last word of the song.

I think ‘Mind’ gives a great taste of things to come throughout the album. Moreso than ‘I Zimbra’ which amps you up more than anything. Crazy vocals, far out synthesizer work and production, awkward sounding notes here and there. Classic Talking Heads stuff.