Tribal Blues

"All the braves and squaws and the maids and the whores, did everybody pay their dues?" It's only an early version of Street Fighting Man, but I like it.

The Rolling Stones - Pay Your Dues

Memory Motel

"I told my baby she was not careful enough, she said 'if I wanted a daddy I'd dig one up'..." Just a couple of lines jumping out at me while listening to Wooden Wand's fine Briarwood album last night. So I'd thought I'd share. And if you'd like to read an interesting conversation between mr. Wand and Hiss Golden Messenger's MC Taylor, just go here and tell 'em I sent ya.

Wooden Wand - Motel Stationary

First Time

Mixtape time again, folks. Presenting a get-go six pack for your listening pleasure. Be kind, please.

The Boys - First Time

Mike Coykendall - First Shot, Best Shot

NoahJohn - First Communion

Urusei Yatsura - First Day On A New Planet

The Commandos - You're Not The First One
Television Personalities - My Very First Nervous Breakdown

Moonlight Screams

That highly combustible combination of Alan Vega and Martin Rev still stands for guaranteed uneasy listening. Here's the duo live in CBGB's, back in the days.

Suicide - I Remember (live '77)
Suicide - Harlem (live '77)

TCB

In 1999, Mark Lanegan released a collection of cover songs called I'll Take Care Of You, and I was mighty impressed. In fact, I still am. So in 2013, I finally took care of business and compiled a companion piece in honour of that marvellous album. Yes, it's here at last: For The Sake Of The Song presents The Original I'll Take Care Of You. All the songs that inspired mr. Lanegan, in one nifty zipfile. Tracklist and two tasters below. Take care!

1. The Gun Club - Carry Home
2. Bobby "Blue" Bland - I'll Take Care Of You
3. Tim Hardin - Shiloh Town
4. The Leaving Trains - Creeping Coastline Of Lights
5. Fred Neil - Badi-Da
6. Eddie Floyd - Consider Me
7. O.V. Wright & The Sunset Travellers - On Jesus' Program
8. Clarence Ashley - Little Sadie
9. Buck Owens - Together Again
10. Dave Van Ronk - Shanty Man's Life
11. Tim Rose - Boogie Boogie

Download: FTSOTS presents The Original I'll Take Care Of You (zipfile, 48.6 mb).

It's The Place

Presenting an in your face ten pack in orbit for your listening pleasure. "Gonna ride gonna ride gonna ride with you..."

Luna - Lost In Space
Sun City Girls - Space Prophet Dogon
Robert Pollard - Subspace Biographies
3Ds - Outer Space
The Langley Schools Music Project - Space Oddity
Jah Wobble - Tales From Outer Space
The Mekons - Space In Your Face
Soul Hooligan - Space Travel
The Byrds - Mr. Spaceman
Julian Cope - Spacehopper

Cymru Am Byth

How's your Welsh then? Meic Stevens preferred it to English most of the time, and that's probably why the man they often called the Welsh Dylan isn't exactly a household name outside the borders of his native country. Well, I was told that Dim Ond Heddiw Ddoe Ae Fory stands for Only Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow and that's good enough for me.

Meic Stevens - Dim Ond Heddiw Ddoe Ae Fory

Keep From Going Under

Would you have guessed that Elvis Costello's 1983 single Pills And Soap was inspired by hiphop? Says the man also known as the Imposter in his liner notes to the cd reissue of Punch The Clock: "The sound of the record was indebted to The Message by Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel. (...) It was the first rap record I had encountered that was anymore than an invitation to dance. It spoke about ugly life. It was the best and only record of its kind that I had heard since the Last Poets' Wake Up, Niggers..." Check!

Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Pills And Soap
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five - The Message
The Last Poets - Wake Up, Niggers

Fancy That

Just in case you didn't know, there's much more to Bobbie Gentry than that immortal song about the guy jumping off the Tallahatchie bridge. Exhibit A: the wonderful Fancy. "Here's your one chance..."

Bobbie Gentry - Fancy

Why Cry?

Presenting a tearful six pack. Better have them hankies ready, my amigos da musica. Cry that river why don't you.

Unrelated Segments - Cry Cry Cry
Ronnie Lane & Slim Chance - Don't You Cry For Me

O.V. Wright - You're Gonna Make Me Cry

Johnny Thunders & Patti Palladin - I Was Born To Cry
Margo Guryan - Why Do I Cry

Zoot Sims - Why Cry?

Cares For Me

From Heroin to Sister Morphine and from The Needle And The Damage Done to Chinese Rocks, there's loads of great junkie laments out there. My fave has always been Love's Signed D.C. Not the fine but just a tiny bit too sweet first incarnation on their 1966 debut mind, but rather the hard rockin', desperate-sounding remake from their '69 Out Here album. D.C. is said to refer to one-time Love drummer and dopefiend Don Conka by the way. "My soul belongs to the dealer, he keeps my mind as well..." Pick your poison below. Bonus: two blistering cover versions.

Love - Signed D.C. ('66 version)
Love - Signed D.C. ('69 version)
Grant Hart - Signed D.C.
Dead Moon - Signed D.C.

Story So Far

Remember these Aussies? Forgot I even owned this compilation of theirs to be honest, but came across it all of a sudden in a box up in the attic. Bit dusty, but it stood the test of time rather well.

The Celibate Rifles - Wild Desire