New Faves 08/07/2022

In a former life, I was a high school teacher and had my summers free to do whatever I pleased. For the past ten years, working summers has become a normal part of my life and it still stings my spirit when I look at the calendar and realize I am working when I should be playing. Lost summers in windowless offices cause me to think back to the summer jobs of my youth when I performed menial labor and the morning commute was a bit more pleasurable listening to music and drinking coffee in my car with the windows rolled down to let in the summer air. Back then my whole life was still ahead of me. 

New musical discoveries have been hard to come by this summer. I’ve been leaning mostly on old favorites and taking stock of what I’ve already got. I’ve also been experimenting with mood over genre and thinking about how the music that really excites me is when artists- whose job it is to relate some aspect of the human condition- take chances, commit to it 100 percent, and then just let it all hang out. Is that too much to ask? After all, this has been the deal society has made with artists for thousands of years. Artists get to the live the lives we dream of and in return they brighten and thrill our unglamorous commutes. Here are some of my most recent favorite musical discoveries. Enjoy!

01. Sting – “For Her Love (Live)” (2021)

02. Bubble Puppy – “Hot Smoke and Sasafrass” (1969)

03. Screeching Weasel – “Just Another Fool” (2022)

04. Mapache – “Light My Fire” (2022)

05. Sutherland Brothers – “Sailing” (1972)

06. The Springfields – “Island of Dreams” (1962)

07. The Easybeats – “Hello, How Are You” (1968)

08. Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger and the Trinity – “This Wheel’s on Fire” (1968)

09. Ella Fitzgerald – “Top Hat, White Tie and Tails (Live)“ (1958)

10. Dawes – “A Little Bit of Everything” (2011)

11. William Shatner feat. Steve Hillage – “Rocket Man (2022 Mix)” (2022)

12. Roger Nichols & the Small Circle of Friends – “I Can See Only You” (1968)

13. Ronny & the Daytonas – “Sandy” (1965)

14. Peter Sarstedt – “Frozen Orange Juice” (1969)

15. David Bowie – “Starman (2022 Mix)” (2022) 

16. The T-Bones – “No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach’s In)” (1967)

17. Loudon Wainwright III – “Town & Country” (2022)

18. The Walker Brothers – “In My Room” (1966)

19. Peter and Gordon – “Lady Godiva” (1966)

20. Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass – “A Taste of Honey” (1965)

Listen to the playlist on Spotify...

 

Recommended Links:

"Fan" Star Trek Original Series Clip to "Common People"