Seven Song Perfect Playlist: The Ramones

1. "Blitzkrieg Bop"



2. "Sheena is a Punk Rocker"



3. "Rockaway Beach"



4. "We're a Happy Family"



5. "I Wanna Be Sedated"



6. "Teenage Lobotomy"



7. "Cretin Hop"

THE Seven Song Perfect Playlist

In case you missed it, these are the songs I chose for my seven-song perfect playlist, which played tonight on Radio 94.7 in Sacramento:

1. "Rockaway Beach," The Ramones (1977).  From my favorite Ramones album, "Rocket to Russia."  This song is pure adrenaline, and sounds great on the radio.

2. "Clampdown,"  The Clash (1980).  From the album "London Calling."  As I said in the snippet I recorded for the radio, "the first album I bought in the 1980s, and the best album I bought in the 1980s."

3. "It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)," R.E.M. (1987).  It took me a while to warm up to the band, but once I did, they were always a favorite.  Saw them live once, at Arco Arena in 1988.  A classic song, one that ensures Lester Bangs will remain immortal.

4. "6'1"," Liz Phair (1995).  From the epic "Exile in Guyville," a song-by-song response to "Exile on Main Street" that isn't quite as good as that landmark, but is sure in the ballpark.

 

5. "Last Nite," The Strokes (2001).  The first time I heard this band, I told a friend that I thought someone had created the perfect melding of the Ramones and Talking Heads.

6. "Ready to Start," Arcade Fire (2011).  From "The Suburbs," my favorite album of 2010 and probably still the best album of the young decade.

 

 

7. "Gold on the Ceiling," The Black Keys (2011).  We may all be sick of this one once the Olympics are over, but it still sounds pretty damn good, especially when turned up loud.

And there you have it.   If you heard it live, I hope you enjoyed it!

JV the DJ

I think I've mentioned before that a local radio station, FM 94.7, plays a listener-submitted "Seven Song Perfect Playlist" every evening at 6 p.m.  In mid-May, I decided to take a crack at submitting my own, and a couple of weeks ago got the call that they were going to use it.  Last Friday, I trekked down to the station to record an introduction and some brief commentary, and found out yesterday that it will play on Monday, July 2.

For anyone not in the Sacramento area who is so inclined, you'll be able to follow along and hear my list on the station's web site.  And I'll post the playlist here on Monday evening.

Upward and onward!

7-Song Perfect Playlist for "the Day"

There hasn’t been a lot of posting here lately, for a number of reasons including sickness, being busy at work, and sometimes being just plain tired.

But today we have a special 7-Song Perfect Playlist – seven great songs that were #1 on my birthday, in various years. And you probably don’t have to be a genius to figure out why I’m posting it today.

1961 – “Blue Moon,” The Marcels



1964 – “Can’t Buy Me Love,” The Beatles



1968 – “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay,” Otis Redding



1971 – “Just My Imagination,” The Temptations



1978 – “Night Fever,” The Bee Gees



1983 – “Billie Jean,” Michael Jackson



And, 2009 – “Poker Face,” Lady Gaga



Precious few great (or even good songs for long stretches at a time, but I suppose you could do worse than these seven.

On the Occasion of Elton John's 65th Birthday

Before the Stones, before Springsteen, before Dylan, before R.E.M., before Los Lobos, before Madonna, before Neil Young, before Drive-By Truckers, before Prince, and before all the other artists I’ve become obsessed with over the years, there was Elton John. I’m not sure I’d call him my first musical hero, because even before Elton there were The Beatles and Creedence, but what I do know is that the first album (the first of several thousands, in various formats) I ever bought with my own money was Elton’s “Honky Chateau,” and the first that I just about wore out through repeated listens was “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.”

There’s no doubt that Elton is one of the most popular musical artists of my lifetime, but the part of his career that I’ll always remember most fondly is that incredible span from 1972 through the end of 1975 – which I’ll go to my grave defending as one of the most artistically successful eras that any artist has had. In that time, Elton released “Honky Chateau,” “Don’t Shoot Me, I’m Only the Piano Player,” “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” “Caribou,” “Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy,” and “Rock of the Westies.” Six albums of at least A- quality, and some much, much better than that. So if you’re gonna make fun of Elton John, you’ve come to the wrong place.

In honor of Sir Elton on his 65th birthday, it is my pleasure to present this special seven-song perfect playlist.



“Rocket Man”



“Bennie and the Jets” – on “Soul Train!”



“Your Song”



“Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” – with The Muppets!



“Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding”



“Someone Saved My Life Tonight”



“Daniel”

Seven Song Perfect Playlist - Second Annual Jack Gallagher Edition

We had the great pleasure last night of attending "The Joke's On Me 3.0," Jack Gallagher's third annual show of stories and music.

Anyone who has flown into Sacramento's Terminal A is familiar with Gallagher, whether they realize it or not - his is the wry voice that you hear warning you not to leave your car out on the curb, or leave your luggage unattended. If you're a devotee of "Curb Your Enthusiasm," you've also seen him in a recurring role as Larry's doctor. I met him via his wife Jean, with whom I worked during my seven years at CSBA (I'll be eternally grateful to Jean for introducing me to the Drive-By Truckers, and a wealth of other great music). I'm pretty sure (actually I'm quite certain) that Jack is the only person I've ever known who's appeared on Carson, Leno and Conan.

Last night's show was great, just like the year before. And so in honor of a great show, here's a special seven song perfect playlist consisting of songs that Jack and the band tackled last night.













And a special request from the audience, in honor of Davy Jones:



If 4.0 comes around this time next year, be sure to see it - you won't be disappointed!

Seven Song Perfect Playlist: More R.E.M.

Who knows, this could go on for days...



I love that in this clip, Peter Buck and Mike Mills do all the talking, and Michael Stipe never even gets up to talk to Dave. Obviously, over time things would change.

Seven Song Perfect Playlist: R.E.M.

"To our Fans and Friends: As R.E.M., and as lifelong friends and co-conspirators, we have decided to call it a day as a band. We walk away with a great sense of gratitude, of finality, and of astonishment at all we have accomplished. To anyone who ever felt touched by our music, our deepest thanks for listening."

No. Thank you.

Goodbye, farewell and amen. I feel fine.

R.I.P. Lieber and Ashford

Each of them was half of a great, great songwriting team - Jerry Lieber with Mike Stoller, and Nickolas Ashford with Valerie Simpson. They both died today, so it seems only fitting to pay tribute with a 7-song perfect playlist of some of their greatest hits.



"Hound Dog," Lieber and Stoller



"Ain't No Mountain High Enough," Ashford and Simpson



"Kansas City," Lieber and Stoller



"California Soul," Ashford and Simpson



"Love Potion No. 9," Lieber and Stoller



"Let's Go Get Stoned," Ashford and Simpson



"Stand By Me," Lieber and Stoller

Seven Song Perfect Playlist #5

Haven't done one of these for a while...but it's finally getting hot outside, so it seems that the time is right!



"Work To Do," Average White Band



"Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out," Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band



"Don't Do It," The Band



"Shining Star," Earth, Wind and Fire



"Fire," The Ohio Players



"Back Stabbers," The O'Jays



"I Wish," Stevie Wonder

The First 7-Song Perfect Playlist Contest!

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the very first “7-Song Perfect Playlist” contest!

The question of the day, hour, and minute is: how are the following seven songs connected?

Good luck, and good fun.



“Gimme Shelter,” The Rolling Stones



“Be My Baby,” The Ronettes



“Daniel,” Elton John



“Werewolves of London,” Warren Zevon



“Ain’t Got No Home,” Clarence “Frogman” Henry



“Comfortably Numb,” Pink Floyd



“Nightmare,” Artie Shaw

7-Song Perfect Playlist - Special Jack Gallagher Edition

Last night, we went to see a show by Jack Gallagher called “The Joke’s On Me…Again.” Gallagher, a Sacramento-based comedian, playwright, and author, should be familiar to anyone who has ever flown in and out of Sacramento International Airport, because that’s his voice you hear on the PA system warning you - in amusing and clever ways – to do things like watch your luggage at all times and be careful about where you park. He’s done stand-up on both the Johnny Carson and Jay Leno versions of “The Tonight Show,” and the Conan O’Brien version of “Late Night.” He may not be a household word across the country, but he’s probably one of the most recognizable faces in Sacramento.

I can’t say that I know him well, but I do know him. I work with his wife Jean, and during the nearly six years that we’ve been colleagues, we’ve discovered that our tastes in music are remarkably similar. We also share that trait among music aficionados of wanting to own every great song that’s ever been recorded. She looks out for me (introducing me, for example, to Drive-By Truckers, The Avett Brothers, and The Low Anthem), and I try to look out for her (I’m way behind on this score, but I did tell her about the newest Bryan Ferry album, so that counts for something).

The show he did last night can best be described as a man telling the story of his life through the music that he’s listened to over the years. For someone who doesn’t make his living as a singer, Gallagher has a strong voice, and the musicians in his backing band – including Dick Bright, and members of the Rubinoos – were just great.

But for a show like this, it all comes down to song selection, and on that score Gallagher gets an A+. Now, some will be tempted to say that I’m saying that just because we appear to have almost identical tastes in music. To that I say: well, yeah. We both have great taste in music – anyone whose list of favorites includes Warren Zevon and Elvis Costello is a winner in my book. But there was more, much more – Jackson Browne, The Standells, The Turtles, Mott the Hoople, and many others, including one classic example of the kind of glorious AM trash that has always held a soft spot in my heart.

So in honor of a great show, a special edition of the 7-Song Perfect Playlist – all songs performed last night by Jack and the band.



“Dirty Water,” The Standells



“Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes),” Edison Lighthouse



“White Rabbit,” Jefferson Airplane



“Mother’s Little Helper,” Rolling Stones



“All The Young Dudes,” Mott the Hoople



“Poor Poor Pitiful Me,” Warren Zevon



“What’s So Funny About Peace, Love and Understanding?”, Elvis Costello

And Jack…if you’d asked who wrote that last one? I’ll bet not too many people would have gotten that one.

7-Song Perfect Playlist #3: Valentine's Day

A special edition, in honor of the occasion.



“Everybody Needs Somebody to Love”



“You Send Me”



“Valentine’s Day”



“Baby Love”



“Romeo and Juliet”



“Swept Away”



“Love’s Holiday”

7-Song Perfect Playlist #2: The Vagaries of Love

With just a few days to go before Valentine’s Day, I think it might be time for another 7-Song Perfect Playlist. One demonstrating, perhaps, the vagaries of love.



“You Better Come Home,” Petula Clark



“Mighty Love,” The Spinners



“You Are Everything,” The Stylistics



“Are You There With Another Girl?,” Dionne Warwick



“Rent,” Pet Shop Boys



“I Died So I Could Haunt You,” Stars



“1952 Vincent Black Lightning,” Richard Thompson