Sunday, August 06, 2006

Number 942 - Mental As Anything


Number 942

Mental As Anything

"Too Many Times"

(1981)
.
.
.
Genre:Pop
Australia have been known to put out a couple of decent songs every now and then. Here is one of them. (I am so glad Oz dont have Nuclear Capabilities)
"Too many times I've seen the sun come up through bloodshot eyes this week
No matter what I do since we broke up I find it hard to sleep
The room is spinning from too many drinks I've drunken by myself
I know that staying here and drinking beer is no good for my health
What is there left to do
But to drink and watch the view
I think that it might rain this afternoon"
Mental As Anything is an Australian New Wave/rock music band who, since the late 70s have released numerous albums & singles and have produced many innovative music videos. Although they have worked in a much broader musical idiom, Mental As Anything are in many respects comparable to British band Madness, in that their music is typically delivered with a quirky, ironic sense of humour and a strong visual identity. Founding members Martin Plaza and Reg Mombassa met at art school and formed the band in 1976; all of the early members became accomplished painters, with Mombassa's work in particular becoming very well known through his designs for the Mambo clothing company.
The Mentals' music is characterised by poppy, accessible and well-crafted melodies and lyrics, and almost all their work showcases their ironic, satirical and self-deprecating sense of humour. They are arguably one of the most typically 'Australian' of rock groups, with their music and their satirical, good-time image deeply rooted in the milieu of Australian suburbia, despite the fact that two key members (the O'Doherty brothers) were in fact immigrants from New Zealand. The group's art school background and visual design skills also made them pioneers of the music video form in Australia in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and their videos rank as some of the funniest and most imaginative produced in Australia at that time.
I just knew it, Kiwis! Ugh, what will Australia steal next? rugby players? (Why do i get the feeling i shouldn't have suggested that idea?)
For Madness see Number 794
Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs ranked this song at Number (Nope, They hated it) and the Album ranked at Number (Nope, didn't know it was out yet)
This song has a crowbarred rating of 53.8 out of 108
Cos... you wanted it
Search Artist here:1-2-3-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z

underlay trademe

Labels:

posted by crowbarred at 12:10 pm 0 comments

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Number 485 - Cold Chisel


Number 485

Cold Chisel

"Cheap Wine"

(1980)
.
.
Genre:Rock
art by mrmateus
One of the greatest [if not the one] rock bands ever to come out of Australia and ... I stand by that statement. Even New Zealanders loved Cold Chisel, in fact, Kiwi's love Jimmy Barnes so much, that there was a movement to make him an honourary New Zealander. Trust me people of the world, this is a RARE event for any New Zealander to honour any Australian! New Zealand almost declared war against Australia in 1981 over a cricket match where Australia bowled underarm. [see video below] New Zealand quickly realised that any retaliation was futile as we didn't have an Air force [we still don't] and our Army consisted of 14 part time soldiers, often stoned and our Navy ships were designed pre WW I. [an exaggeration yes, but probably not lost with most NZ'ers] So what did New Zealand do? We did what any patriotic God fearing Kiwi would do ... we yelled obscenities at all Australians. [sigh] As for Cold Chisel, they were respected highly on both sides of the Tasman, it was a shame then that the American record labels rejected them becuase if they had been accepted Cold Chisel would have been bigger than INXS. >click here for the video of the Underarm Incident<
I see a Ninja!
Cold Chisel's following had been steadily building for a number of years when their third -- and slickest to date -- album, East, broke them through to a wider audience in 1980. More commercial without compromising on the rawness of their roots, the band hit pay dirt with a clutch of songs it seemed everybody could get into. The virtuosity of the Chisel's musical abilities still comes through on songs that were, nevertheless, compact enough to be radio-ready. The up-tempo loner anthem "Standing on the Outside," the enchanting ballad and breakthrough single "Choirgirl," and the tongue-in-cheek "Ita" all had the hooks to land a singalong audience. On "Star Hotel," the sonic fury of the chorus captures the essence of the subject matter: a wild street battle between angry pub patrons and police that took place in the city of Newcastle, Australia, in September 1979.
Jimmy Barnes
And the customary, all-out rockers are here, as well: "Rising Sun" (singer Jimmy Barnes' love-lost song about his Asian girlfriend) and the rousing closer "My Turn to Cry." As always, the rhythm section gymnastics of drummer Steven Prestwich and bassist Phil Small provide an alternately swift and delicate undercurrent for Ian Moss' guitar heroics, Don Walker's exuberant piano playing, and Barnes' banshee wails. Walker still holds down the job of head songwriter, but the duties are more shared on this album: five of the 12 tracks were written by the other members of the band with Barnes penning two and Prestwich, Small, and Moss one each. The album peaked at number two on the Australian national charts and even broke into the Billboard 200. With East, Cold Chisel signaled that they had moved on up without selling out. The glory days had come at last. [Note: The 1999 re-release contains three bonus tracks and multimedia features.] ~ [Adrian Zupp, All Music Guide]
Ozzie Roll Call
For INXS see Number 551 & #719
For AC/DC see Number 552
For Men At Work see Number 498
For Tina Arena see Number 510
For Little River Band see Number 550
For The Angels see Number 562
For Mondo Rock see Number 693 & #993
For Nick Cave see Number 701
For Hunters & Collectors see Number 720
For Mental As Anything see Number 942
For Air Supply see Number 645
For Australian Crawl see Number 968
For Choirboys see Number 833
For Daryl Braithwaite see Number 731
For The Divinyls see Number 869
For Helen Reddy see Number 1000
For Joe Dolce see Number 801
For Kylie Minogue see Number 886
For Olivia Newton John see Number 985
For Rick Springfeild see Number 724
For Savage Garden see Number 807 & #936
[That is one impressive list! Who says I don't love Australia? And thats not even including what OZ artists I have in the Mellow Mix Volumes]
Rolling Stone have no view on Cold Chisel [gasp]
Rolling Stone magazine deemed their '485th Song of all Time' was "Graceland" by Paul Simon. Paul Simon has appeared in The Definitive 1000 @ Number 742 & #468
Other songs with reference to Cold Chisel #785, #833
Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs ranked this song at Number (We don't even know the group) the Album ranked at (Are they from Iceland?)
This song has a crowbarred rating of 76 out of 108
Search Artist here:1-2-3-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z
underlay trademe

Labels:

posted by crowbarred at 12:18 pm 0 comments

Sunday, August 06, 2006

Number 941 - Fun Lovin Criminals


Number 941

Fun Lovin' Criminals

"Scooby Snacks"

(1996)
.
.
.
Genre:Alternative
Much like G. Love & Special Sauce, the New York trio known as Fun Lovin' Criminals hit the alternative airwaves with a blend of hip-hop beats, alternative style, and bluesy rhythms. The group was formed in 1993 by bassist Fast and drummer Steve, who had met in Syracuse while going to school; the pair formed a techno group but later moved back to New York City, where they hooked up with vocalist/guitarist Huey. FLC played around the area, and released their self-titled debut album in 1995 on the Silver Spotlight label. Signed to Capitol the following year, the group gained an alternative radio hit with their single "Scooby Snacks," from Come Find Yourself. In 1997, the band played stateside dates as U2's opening act on their Popmart tour.
For U2 see Number 661
For more U2 visit Mellow Mix Vol 1 Number 038 & #129
What does Rolling Stone think about the criminals?
Tarantino's mojo seethes through the album. The director shares songwriting credit for lending movie sound bites to "Scooby Snacks," a speed-induced ride in a getaway car as it peels away from a bank heist. Lead singer Huey goes on to spy on the free-loading drug losers in "Methadonia," mythologize Gotti the mobster as "King of New York" (a nod to Martin Scorsese) and even grasp moments of twisted grace in "We Have All the Time in the World," a trip-hoppy cover of the John Barry/Hal David love theme. ~ [Source: RS 731]

Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs ranked this song at Number (Nope, They hated it) and the Album ranked at Number (Nope, didn't know it was out yet)
This song has a crowbarred rating of 53.8 out of 108
Search Artist here:1-2-3-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z

underlay trademe

Labels:

posted by crowbarred at 12:33 pm 0 comments