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The Current Music Blog: October 31, 2007 Archive

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The Stream 10/31/07

Posted at 8:53 AM on October 31, 2007 by Barb Abney

Stars have announced tour dates for 2008.

Chris Martin blogs about the progress of the new Colplay album.

Today In Music History:
1952 - Bernard Edwards (Chic) was born.
1963 - Johnny Marr (Smiths, Modest Mouse) was born.
1966 - Ad-Rock (Beastie Boys) was born.
1970 - Michelle Phillips married actor Dennis Hopper.
1998 - Kiss kicked off its Psycho-Circus tour.

The River - Side 2

Posted at 2:47 PM on October 31, 2007 by Mac Wilson (2 Comments)

"Hungry Heart" -- Arguably the album's most recognizable song, and its biggest chart hit, too (reaching #5 on the singles chart). I group "Hungry Heart" in the same category as Dire Straits' "Walk of Life" and Talking Heads' "And She Was" -- songs I've known from the radio since a very early age, only to find out, "Ohhh, that's a ______ song" later on (I can still remember the a-ha moment for all of those tracks). The beginning of Side 2 is as good a place as any for the big radio hit: not too early, not buried later on, but leading off the most upbeat side of the album. I have sentimental attachments to the song, namely a strong urge to begin jumping on the bed. But let's not go there.
"Out in the Street" -- Of the upbeat songs on the record, "Out in the Street" seems to be singled out as the perfect example of what Bruce was trying to do, in the form of a celebratory depiction of a Friday night party that balances out all the roughness of the rest of the week. I've always thought it a little unfair that "Hungry Heart" got all the recognition: "Out in the Street" is superior in every way, and one of the true jewels of the album. Listen carefully to the verse melody: there's a hint of "Oliver's Army" in there, isn't there?
"Crush on You" -- It's tough for me to say much about "Crush on You"; on its face, in fact, it's probably the weakest song on the entire album. The word that keeps popping to mind for songs like this and the song that follows is frivolous: airy, seeming-throwaways on their surface, yet nevertheless playing a part in the album's grand narrative. I won't say any more, as the title of the song tells you everything you need to know.
"You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)" -- Another cheesy rockabilly number that sounds like it was written in about 10 minutes. However, whereas "Crush on You" only functions as a general tonal cog in the album's machinery, "You Can Look..." and its message (again, the title pretty much says it all) actually turn out to be pretty vital advice, but that's later on. For now, we have to let Bruce string us along with an extended stretch of block parties and courting rituals, easing our guard so that when he eventually lands his killer punch, it stings all the harder.
"I Wanna Marry You" -- The song's narrator spots a young mother with her baby carriage and two children. He immediately pleads with the woman to let him into her heart, so that he can take care of the family, exercise his familial responsibilities, and let true love take its course. He even name-drops his father, who apparently doubted true love and died with "a broken heart". In short, he's earnest, sentimental...and utterly naive. Changing gears for a moment, I've noticed that I've become so engrossed in the lyrics that I haven't said much about the music. "I Wanna Marry You" has a nice choir-like backing vocal arrangement, extensive sax work from Clemons, and an appropriately church-like organ air.
"The River" -- Narrator and his girlfriend, Mary, go swimming in a river on a regular basis. An unexpected pregnancy occurs, and narrator and Mary wind up married and unhappy. Anyone who has heard the song, however, knows it's about so much more than that, so I'll leave the ultimate message of the song up to the listener. I've probably heard "The River" more than 100 times, and I'm no closer to deciphering it than I was before. A few quick notes: in regard to the unplanned pregnancy that is the catalyst for the story, suddenly the advice from two songs ago doesn't seem so foolish, does it? You'll also note that aside from the initial pregnancy reference, the baby is never mentioned again. In an interesting mondegreen, I thought for years the line "is a dream a lie if it don't come true" was actually "is a dream a lie that don't come true": think about how the message of the song is fundamentally altered by that single distinction. Lastly, for a not-so-enthusiastic viewpoint on the song, I'd recommend Tom Reynolds' I Hate Myself and Want to Die, an invaluable evisceration of what he deems "the 52 most depressing songs of all time". One of the funniest books of music criticism I've ever read.

I'm a little impressed right now: I managed to get through writing about one of my favorite songs of all time ("The River") without totally slobbering all over it. Be sure to check out Side 1 if you missed it, and feel free to chime in on the comments. I need to get up and change the record, so I'll be back tomorrow with Side 3.

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"My 3 Songs" for Wednesday

Posted at 3:08 PM on October 31, 2007 by Steve Seel

Today's topic is as timely as the headlines: Brent Stickels from Los Angeles writes, "Right now, Southern California smells like a giant campfire and looks like the Four Horsemen are around the corner. All we need is a little rain to set things right again. Can we get a little help from our friends at The Current?" Happy to oblige, Brent.

1) Tom Waits, "Make It Rain"
2) The Beatles, "Rain"
3) Led Zeppelin, "The Rain Song"

Man, that's an awesome set, Brent. Hope it worked some magic down there ...

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