Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening.: #7 Brute -- Nine High a Pallet

 I had intended to feature the song combo Protein Drink/ Sewing Machine in this post but found this short film about Brute which will serve nicely.

Some of you will say, "That's just Widespread Panic with some other guy." But Brute, at least Protein Drink/ Sewing Machine, had a harder tone than Panic at that time.  I'm sure to come back later with some Vic Chesnutt solo material.

Will stay in the States with more familiar territory tomorrow. 

The list so far:

1. The Damned -- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
1.5. The Damned -- White Rabbit
2. Junior Kimbrough -- Gotta Try You Girl
3. Paul Simon -- Stranded in a Limousine
4. Booker T & the M.G.s -- Green Onions
5. Lee Scratch Perry -- I am Happiness
6. The Jam -- In the City
7. Brute  -- Nine High a Pallet

Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening.: #6 The Jam -- In the City

So, some of this list is a nostalgia trip for me. I knew about these guys when I was in high school but didn't listen to them nearly enough. There is so much to love here. They are wearing suits and playing Rickenbackers and totally tearing it up. The Jam, to my thinking, is not even considered Punk Rock. Although, they are very aggressive Power Pop. There is a three disc compilation of their work titled Snap, look it up.

 I wonder if Phish has ever covered the Jam?

The list so far:

1. The Damned -- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
1.5. The Damned -- White Rabbit
2. Junior Kimbrough -- Gotta Try You Girl
3. Paul Simon -- Stranded in a Limousine
4. Booker T & the M.G.s -- Green Onions
5. Lee Scratch Perry -- I am Happiness
6. The Jam -- In the City

Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening.: #5 Lee Scratch Perry -- I am Happiness

Alright, I had never heard this tune until I started searching YouTube for Lee Perry. It's hard to go wrong with anything that Lee Scratch Perry has been involved with. My favorite Lee Perry recording is Live at the Maritime Hall but very few of those tracks are on YouTube. Perry is like an perpetual motion machine of Reggae music and major influence on the Dub style. If you don't know Lee Scratch Perry, you don't know diddly.

Here's our countdown so far:

1. The Damned -- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
1.5. The Damned -- White Rabbit
2. Junior Kimbrough -- Gotta Try You Girl
3. Paul Simon -- Stranded in a Limousine
4. Booker T & the M.G.s -- Green Onions
5. Lee Scratch Perry -- I am Happiness

Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening: #4 Booker T & the M.G.s -- Green Onions

Have you heard this tune, were you listening? Odds are that we have all heard this one, but after the funky Americana of Junior Kimbrough and Paul Simon I felt it appropriate to go back to some original funk / R&B. This  recording is older than I am, 'nuff said.

I'll get back to some international musicians in the next post, or two.

Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening: #3 Paul Simon -- Stranded in a Limousine

Yeah, yeah, I hope we have all heard of Paul Simon. This tune is an old personal favorite. It is from the soundtrack of the forgotten 1980 film One Trick Pony in which Paul Simon plays a musician. As I recall, it's a pretty good flick, probably pretty truthful about what the record industry was like in the 1970s.

For those of us born in the late 60s and early 70s, Paul Simon was a big part of the soundtrack of our childhood. Simon's, now out of print, Greatest Hits Etc was the soundtrack for some of my most sober moments in college. If you need more Simon, hunt down There Goes Rhymin' Simon and Live Rhymin'. These two recording cover a range from folk music to Rhythm and Blues. I'm partial but some of you may need to knock the dust off of it.

Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening: #2 Junior Kimbrough

Junior Kimbrough is my favorite Blues musician. As is apparent, he doesn't stick to the Twelve Bar Blues. I would describe his style as much more Folk Music than traditional or Chicago Blues. To barrow a phrase, I'd call Junior the Twenty-fist Century King of the Delta Blues. He once said something along these lines, "My songs have one chord. If I find another chord, I write a new song." It doesn't get much more Folk Music, American than this.

I would also add, Junior knew about more than just playing the guitar with titles like "Most things have not worked out," but "Gotta Try You Girl" really has the rawness that I feel best represents Juniors style.Turns out, there is also this which I had never heard. Perhaps we are getting somewhere here?

Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening: #1.5

Two days into this Top Twenty-five Countdown and you already get a bonus track. This little number was just too good not to pass along to all my happy readers. I hope you enjoy this truly original version of a old Bay Area Classic. "Take it away boys!"

I'm not sure what happened, Blogger didn't post this as scheduled. We'll be back in the U.S. for our next musical adventure. See ya soon!

Twenty-five tunes you've never heard because you were not listening: no. 1.

Yeah, I got this idea too revive the ol' blog. I'll have to clarify that some readers (?) will be familiar with many of these songs. So, if it's not a list of songs you've never heard, it's a list of some obscure lyrics.

I'll start with Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by the Damned who, to say the least, never achieved the success that their song writing and rockin' deserved. I love this video too with all the images from the old Black and White Film. "I'm noble outside, he's evil inside . . . I'll hold ya gently but he'll smother you," great stuff, I love it.