sweet city woman waiting to spar*

dear friends,

I wasn't playing when I said I was busy. went to belmar, nj last stormy weekend with the monkey. on our first night we wandered around in the dark (blackout on main street) until we found somewhere to eat & as we tucked into our salty fare, felt glad we'd gotten out of dodge, storm or no.

I was in charge of the music to & from new york which means the poor man had to listen to some things he wished never existed. he is a good sport, that's why we're a pair. here are three of those selections...

1. check on it/beyoncé



when I first saw this video, a whiles back, I was extremely disappointed that it did not feature beyoncé in a pink panther costume** (it was on the soundtrack to the pink panther remake) & I think that colored my judgement of the song somewhat. I finally purchased it off of itunes on friday & having heard its pitter patter sing song majesty blaring on the goethals bridge, I can say it is genius!

beyoncé is so skilled at putting together pop songs that you only have to hear once, in a passing car no less, to have their catchy melodies burrow deeply into your skull & set up house there. I'm intrigued by the song's message. namely, "I am very sexy, so sexy that 'you watch me in amazement,' but watching is all you should be doing if you want a piece of this later because I am a bodacious yet discreet, LADY. got that?" because I am a believer that every demographic deserves their very own pop anthem, I'm glad classy dancefloor exhibitionists & the voyeurs that love them finally got theirs. it's blazin'.

do me a favor, hit play, don't watch the video & observe how the chorus will slowly take over your day. there you'll be, at the water cooler, humming it under your breath.

2. rattled by the rush/pavement



worse video ever. best second song on an album ever. oh, screw the superlatives. I love wowee zowee, it's probably held onto favorite record status longer than anything I've ever listened to because it provides fresh moments of OH! everytime I return to it.

I selected this tune on a stormy white-out stretch of jersey turnpike because I was nervous & singing along to things calms me down. of course, this is the one song where I will screech/sing along to THE GUITAR SOLO (starts around 2:25) because it is such masterful malkmusian splendor. the build, the build & the blatant mistakes coming together to sound like it was MEANT, until it is.

it's true though, don't watch the video, just listen & wait for that solo.

3. whole lotta love/tina turner

I heard this a long time ago & dismissed it as one of those ill-conceived r&b goes rock covers. then dj danny (from fabulous local band, the big sleep) played this at beg yr pardon as the "floor killer"*** & I heard it with fresh ears. I duly went out & purchased it, & threw that in the on the road playlist.

the drums start it off, slinky & laid back. the famous riff, albeit simplified, is given over to the bass & that's followed by this acid keyboard entering on a muted WEEEEEEEEAAAAH. add strings & some wakka chikka wakka wah wah guitar for a little more groove building, then SHE comes in. aaaaw yeah. all hail tina turner. she is everything robert plant ever aspired to be as a vocalist & more. in this rendition, the lyrics become such a ragin' expression of sexuality that it makes plant sound like a heavy metal parking lot lothario named bobby. turner doesn't change a lyric, she just rides it. j looked perplexed at her choice of keeping in the line "I'm gonna give you EVERY INCH of my love" & I countered by saying she means every inch of TINA TURNER, & with that body & voice, that means way more than whatever tin foiled wrapped cucumber planty had in his trousers. listen when she whispers "give it to me" during the break it down section towards the end. she just schooled ya.

love, d

* see, I always thought malkmus was singing "SLEEK city woman waiting to spar" but apparently, this is wrong? humph.

** long story.

*** I am constantly amused by what our guest djs consider "floor killers" i.e. the song that clears the room. I don't know if it's the chosen selections, our crowd, or the fact that it comes so close to the free beer but THEY NEVER WORK. people keep on dancing. in this case, it actually brought people downstairs! sigh.

songs to seek: check on it/beyoncé, rattled by the rush/pavement, whole lotta love/tina turner