Five For Friday

Perhaps I’ve taken a page from Greil Marcus’ “Real Life Rock Top 10” columns from The Believer (and now Pitchfork), but life is more interesting when there’s a soundtrack set to it. This soundtrack comes from all sorts of places, from songs heard overhead at stores, wedged in the middle of movie soundtracks or found through a favorite Twitter or Instagram account. The ways we consume music in the 21st century are vast, and new and previously unknown (to us) songs and artists are at our fingertips at all times, thanks to the internet and apps like Shazam.

To aid in this discovery, here are five albums and songs I’ve kept in my rotation lately. There’s no rhyme or reason to why I like them, other than that their melodies and lyrics appeal to my ear. Maybe they’ll appeal to yours, too.

“Tappan Zee” - Bob James: Bob James was too smooth to be cool, but the best of his 1970s fusion tunes were red hot. Maybe not back then, but they’ve become the holy grail of crate diggers and beatmakers across the world. Though there’s no room for spontaneity in James’ music - his solos are concise and linear, and his band rigidly adheres to form and avoids chaos unlike his jazz contemporaries of the era - he knows how to play in the pocket. Named after a bridge in suburban New York, “Tappan Zee” is at times a full-force big band endeavor, like at the bridge where an in-your-face horn shout chorus shakes up the listener. At other spots, it lays down the blueprint for the next generation of fusion artists, thanks to its lyrical flute melody which I find myself whistling and mimicking ten times a day.

“I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide” - ZZ Top: I have a soft spot for ZZ Top. The songs by the rollicking rockers out of Houston, Texas, are good timin' affairs and “I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide” - off of 1979’s Dëguello - is among their best. Lead singer Billy Gibbons rhapsodizes about his penchant for hedonistic pleasures like fast women and fast cars, over staggered, delayed steel guitar licks that embody his hard rockin’, hell raisin’ personality. Take one listen to the intro and hook, however, and they sound almost exactly like The Cars’ 1978 hit “Good Times Roll,” a tune no less rocking - but definitely more nuanced - than “I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide.” If long-bearded Gibbons listened to Ric Ocasek and crew for inspiration, then totally subverted their sound and structure to suit his South Texas twang, then more power to him.

The Complete ‘68 Comeback Special - Elvis Presley: In the first edition of my obituary for Chuck Berry earlier this week, I made several digs at Elvis Presley, incorrectly stating he was a thief of Black music and was only famous because his whiteness made his image more palatable to the American public, a deeply racist public at the time. A friend corrected me and reminded me that Elvis was hip to Black culture; he appropriated and modified it because he paid attention and was deeply inspired by Great Black Music. After redacting my errors and revising my obituary, I put on Elvis’ ‘68 Comeback Special album and was blown away by his full force of soul. The studio tracks on the four part album are above average, but the live selections are where the King reigns. If tracks two and three of the first segment - medleys first of Elvis’ greatest hits from the ‘50s (like swaggering renditions of “Heartbreak Hotel” and “Hound Dog”) followed up immediately, secondly, by a left turn into gospel with renditions of “Up Above My Head” and “Where Could I Go But to the Lord,” among other tracks - don’t turn you into an Elvis fan or appreciator, then nothing will.

“Sweet Dreamer” - Lenny White: There are two types of music made for bedtime: One is space music, where groups like Stars of the Lid unleash a series of ambient drones, long tones that are deep and quiet like a good night’s sleep. The second is classic R&B, which has reached lullaby status thanks to its soothing smoothness, cemented by tunes like Lenny White’s 1977 song “Sweet Dreamer.” White was the drummer for Chick Corea’s early ‘70s fusion outfit Return to Forever, and has a deep list of credentials that include an appearance on Miles Davis’ legendary Bitches Brew. White laid down the beat for the likes of Freddie Hubbard and Gato Barbieri, and has won Grammys for his output with Corea. Though “Sweet Dreamer,” off White’s Big City, is straight-ahead soul, the minor-key melody and sweet electric guitar licks point to his jazz background. I discovered “Sweet Dreamer” through rapper Freddie Gibbs’ 2014 song “Robes,” part of his collaboration with Madlib on the album Piñata. Madlib’s beatwork on Piñata is his best of this decade, and he contorts White’s “Sweet Dreamer” by chopping and screwing it while staying true to the original sound, avoiding register and key changes. This is the staying power of soul, a sweetness that resonates 40 years later no matter how popular or obscure songs like “Sweet Dreamer” were upon their release.

“Maracatu Atomico” - Gilberto Gil: Brazilian songwriter Gilberto Gil has recorded several different versions of “Maracatu Atomico” throughout his career. His version off of 1979’s Nightingale, however, combines slinky Brazilian flair with a subtle disco backbeat. The result is slightly smooth yet super fly, a song that conjures up images of city streets in dense metropolises on hot Summer days. I revisited this song yesterday afternoon, a gray Thursday that was dull and cold, neither Winter nor Spring but a strange in-between place. I needed to travel to summer in my mind, if only for the song’s 4:21 length and as I, overcaffeinated, waited for my chicken to finish roasting in the oven, I felt the warmth of Gil’s phrases and easy-going guitar for a few minutes and prepared for the sunny days ahead.

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