07 May 2009

musical post #2 or life's not a bitch, life's a beautiful woman...

...you only call her a bitch because she wouldn't let you get that pussy...
- Aesop Rock

A couple of observers and/or followers have indicated i didn't do the musical post as much justice as i should have, and even friends have indicated i left off some genres of music that are integral to the person i happen to be musically...




the psychedelic furs are one of my favorite alternative, early 80's bands. it's one of the guilty pleasures i had in my youth, and still have today. when i moved to east bay, i was a young and impressionable kid, with almost no access to any other forms of music other than the motown influenced music my parents enjoyed, or the country music, in all it's variant forms produced from living in rural, rural America (we have both types of music out here, country and western). So when i hit the bay, one of the first bands i heard was the psychedelic furs, and the music seemed to just fit right, soulful voices, synthesized music...just seemed to work well...

...that being said, sometimes i really do enjoy some country music. i'm not talking that dixie chicks-kenny chesney-travis tritt bullshit. it's instead the old veterans- waylon, the original hank williams, and of course, the original man in black, mr. johnny cash. there are a variety of songs i could have chosen here, but sometimes life is best in its simplicity. no need to go out and show the dephts of my love for the man in black,




lets not get it twisted, i enjoy a variety of genres of music, but as a backbone to it all, seems to be the motown sound my parents enjoyed on our long, long, long cross-country road trip. the old school soul genre has soooo many songs i feel just hold a solid place in my spirit, and have such an important role in my musical blueprint, it seems i will always be doing it some sort of injustice, always feeling like i'm leaving off something...but the wonderful thing is i can always just write another post about music i like...but sometimes i just like to make sure my voice is heard, and today, that voice says chaka khan needs to be represented. mary j. blige does an incredible remake of this song, and now the remake is old enough that some of the youth aren't giving credit where it's due, as Chaka Khan was putting out hits like Ike and Tina were, except nobody was beating Chaka's ass to make sure she stayed in line, thus no "what's got love got to do with it?" for ms. khan, although she did come out with a great dance diddy in the mid 80's with "I feel for you





we'll close this second musical blog with some underground hip-hop i also discovered one of those sweltering summers in Austin, Texas. it's amazing to sit around a room with people, from all over the country, for weeks at a time with full access to someone's musical library. we all know people that, as you hear more of their music, you realize there is something in all of this destined to be part of your musical blueprint, and mine wouldn't be the same without a little aesop rock



the line from the top of the post is one of my favorite hip-hop lines ever, and the line, by itself, that got me into aesop rock....and the album Labor Days is a underground classic, well worth the $14 some store may charge you, but if you live in a place with a solid used music store, you can probably pick it up for a few bucks (I got mine at Rasputin Records in Berkeley, and it cost me all of $4, and i know because the sticker is still on it). Some of the smartest lyrics i've heard, but the beats aren't very complex- which is a good thing- as it allows you to focus on what's being said...



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