Songs Of The Week, 2025: 11/8-11/14

 

Mama Told Papa- Steve Riley & The Mamou Playboys
So Good- P. Hux
She Knows Me Too Well- The Beach Boys
Rosewood Bitters- Michael Stanley
Can't Stand It- Wilco
Blue Sofa- The Plugz
The House Is Rockin' (With Domestic Problems)- Cheap Trick

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Mama Told Papa- Steve Riley & The Mamou Playboys
(If you dig this track, make listening to "Bayou Ruler" a priority, especially if you are yearning for a good mood.)

So Good- P. Hux
("Give me a rose, I'll kill it. Give me a glass, I'll spill it." So good.)

She Knows Me Too Well- The Beach Boys
(Something this gorgeous should have never been relegated to the b-side.)

Rosewood Bitters- Michael Stanley
(I knew this by Joe Walsh before I knew Stanley's original, which features Todd Rundgren on clavinet.)

Can't Stand It- Wilco
("No love as random, as God's love. I can't stand it. I can't stand it!"

Blue Sofa- The Plugz
(Have I mentioned that I think the two Plugz records are punk rock essentials? Yes, I have. Dozen of times. Don't let the word "punk" throw you. Listen and you'll see.)

The House Is Rockin' (With Domestic Problems)- Cheap Trick 
(This was never a fave on "Dream Police," then one day, years later, it hit me. From Zander's delivery of "all day, all night, every day, every night" to Nielsen quoting The Beatles and The Yardbirds in the fade, this is classic Trick!)

 

BW's Saturday #70: Restraint

 

News Of The Day

 

As Troy mentioned in the chatbox, there is a new Squeeze record coming next year, as well as a new Joe Jackson record. The first Squeeze single is solid, and a bit grungy for them, I think. It's also a strange choice for a first single. Still, I dig it.

Today, the new Cheap Trick record "All Washed Up"  is out. After one pass, I am not disappointed. I love their consistency and I'm thrilled they don't fix what ain't broke. Robin Zander sounds like it's 1979. 

 

There is also a big Black Crowes box out today. This features a new remaster of their 1994 hit "amorica." But it's the bonus stuff that makes this an exciting set for B.C. fans. The long lost "Marie Laveau" sessions finally gets an official release. I've been wanting this since the first time I heard them play "Exit" in concert in 1992. It also features "Tallest" which is material that was recorded either before "amorica." or immediately after, I forget.

 

 

 

And how about the new big "Black & Blue" box from the Stones? We've discussed this record numerous times on these pages. Some love it and some don't. So far, I've only heard the "Outtakes & Jams" disc and it was typically underwhelming when it comes to these things. But I did enjoy hearing "I Love Ladies" sound as good as it did. I am looking forward to hearing Steven Wilson's remix this afternoon.

That's all I've got for today. 

 

God Bless America...

 

...for giving us Joe Johnson and Lazy Lester, and this absolute gem of a recording.

I have no other info on who the rest of the players might be, but Mr. Johnson is singing and Lazy Lester is blowing that harmonica, son. 

Dig Daddy Twig

 

On this year's Black Friday Record Store Day, the senior Lemon Twig Ronnie D'Addario will get to shine with an album called "Written By," which will feature D'Addario singing his songs backed by his sons, Michael and Brian, and will include a few guest vocalists such as Todd Rundgren, Sean Lennon, Darian Sahanaja and Mac Demarco.

The first single is out and boy is it Beatle-y.

Dig it! 

I Can Only Binge Music. Is That So Bad?

 

I'm not a T.V. guy. I was, back when there were three major networks and three premium cable stations. But now I find it all so overwhelming to the point of simply not caring. To be clear, I am not a T.V. snob. I don't think it's "poison" like some cranky old professor, though much of it actually is. 

I watch movies, mostly those made before the year 1990, though I am not opposed to something new if the cards fall in the right place. I really enjoyed Del Toro's "Frankenstein." I watch the Yankees and the Knicks. I stream live broadcasts from the Maple Leaf Bar in New Orleans. I love a good documentary. I really loved "Only Murders In the Building" and 'Schitt's Creek," until it hit me. You have to commit and keep watching. It was easier when you had to wait a week for the next episode of a show. Knowing everything is there at your fingertips is too intimidating for a lunatic like me.

I can't do it. I can't binge.

This is what I hear when I am out with friends or family.

"Are you guys watching Phlegm? It's from the same people that produced Chicago Gout. It's on Ploob. Yes, Ploob is free if you have the ESPN Female Full Contact Karate Plus package. Phlegm is so good. It's got that guy from Chicago Chiropodist, Pascual Pasqualli. You haven't seen Chicago Chiropodist? Awesome show. I binged all 12 episodes. It's on Shemp, which is free, but only if your TV has an RCA plug input. Shemp also has that amazing doc on the boiling point of tin. It's called The Boiling Point Of Tin."

I sit quietly, sip my cocktail and wait for the conversation to change.

That said, a friend asked if I heard Aimee Mann's cover of "Rainy Days & Mondays." I hadn't. He said it's from the soundtrack of "The Chair Company." I thought, "La-Z-Boy" has a soundtrack? As it turns out, "The Chair Company" is another new HBO series. I've lost track since "Six Feet Under" was canceled. 

 

 

 

 

 

1993

Written by J.D. Souther, Mike Campbell & Robin Zander

Robin Zander- Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards
Mike Campbell- Guitars, Keyboards, Bass
Drums- Carlos Vega