Friday, May 02, 2008

Weekend Listomania (Special Gray's Anatomy Video Edition)

Well, it's Friday and you know what that means. Yes, my Oriental bete noire (bete jaune?) Hop-Sing and I are heading off for a clandestine weekend at oof...aargh...feh...ack....!!!!!!!!! nowhere we can talk about.

Seriously. Don't even ask. Uh....we'd be killed if we told you. All I can say is it's a lead-in to the new X-Files movie.

Uh, maybe.

In any case, as a result, posting by moi will necessarily be somewhat fitful for a few days.

But until then, as always, here's a fun project for you all to contemplate:

BEST POP/ROCK SONG OR RECORD WITH A BODY PART OTHER THAN THE HEART IN ITS TITLE!!!!!!

No arbitrary rules for this one, except if anybody tries to use the word "knows" as a pun on "nose" I will come to your house and slap you silly.

Okay, that said, here's my totally arbitrary Top Six:

6. Foot of Pride (Bob Dylan)



God, it must have galled Lou Reed to sing this at the Dylan 30th anniversary show. Come to think of it, he used a teleprompter, if memory serves. Bitch.

5. Fingertips, Pt. II (Little Stevie Wonder)



Portrait of the Artist as a Young Prepubescent. And "What key? What key?" is the coolest ad-lib on a live record ever.

4. Bette Davis Eyes (Kim Carnes)



Written by Jackie DeShannon, who also wrote the power pop classic "When You Walk in the Room." She also married Randy Edelman, who I went to high school with. How's that for bogus name dropping?

3. Back in My Arms Again (The Supremes)



Pretty much my favorite Motown song ever, and "Flo, she don't know, that the boy she loves is a romeo" remains one of the cleverest self-referential lines in pop music history.

2. Hand in Glove (The Smiths)



Morrissey doing an impression of Michael J. Nelson doing his Morrissey impression. Seriously, I like the Smiths, and I think Johnny Marr is one of the two or three most interesting rock guitarists of the 80s, but there are times when you listen to these guys and frankly you would need a heart of stone not to laugh.

And the number one niftiest -- please, it's not even a contest -- song with a body part in its title is.....

1. Creature With the Atom Brain (Roky Erickson)



For the longest time, I had a fantasy of producing a supergroup featuring nutso rock stars. I figured it could star Syd Barrett, Brian Wilson, Skip Spence, Jim Gordon (the Derek and the Dominos drummer who heard voices telling him to kill his mother, so he did) the guy from Fleetwood Mac who gave away all his money, and Roky. I was going to call it the Unravelling Wilburys.

Heh.

In any case, it's nice to know that Roky is these days not only alive and well but busy playing before hordes of fans who genuinely appreciate his work.

Awrighty then -- what would your choices be?

40 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm getting my vote in early for ZZ Top's "Legs."

I'll probably come back with a few more, but I wanted to get that one in before the weekend crush.

TMink said...

Weren't there TWO guys from Fleetwood Mac that left and joined the Children of God? One of the guys I am thinking of, Peter Green, wrote Black Magic Woman, and played a mean guitar (to punish his ma.)

Trey

TMink said...

Hold your Head up - Argent
Wrap Your Arms Around Me - BNL
Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder) - a reach, but it is Brian!
I've Just Seen a Face
I Want To Hold Your Hand
Get On The Good Foot - James Brown
Harmony In My Head - The Buzzcocks
Losing Hand - Ray Charles
Right Hand Man - that Osborne lady
Police On My Back - The Clash
Knee Deep - Pfunk
Loose Booty - that one makes me laugh out loud, Pfunk
If I Only Had A Brain - Harry Connick owns this one
Swellin Itching Brain - Devo owns this one
Human Hands - Elvis
Must You Throw Dirt in My Face - Elvis
Almost Ideal Eyes - Elvis
Different Finger
White Knuckles
Hand in Hand
Put You Big Toe in the Milk of Human Kindness
Lip Service - Is Elvis the King of body part songs?
Baby Got Back of course
and of course, I Don't Want To Be A Pinhead - The Ramones

There are others, but I am sleepy!

Trey

Anonymous said...

Man with the Four Way Hips

TJWood said...

tmink:

Jeremy Spencer was the Fleetwood Mac guitarist who left and joined the Children of God. Peter Green drifted out of the Mac after a three day LSD-fuelled binge in Germany. (See Peter Green Wikipedia entry for details). One of my choices will be "Brown Eyes" from the Tusk, which, also according to Wikipedia, features an uncredited...Peter Green

Other random ones that come to mind at this hour:

"Hand Of Fate"--Rolling Stones: good mid-tempo rocker from the Black and Blue album

"Chest Fever"--The Band, co-top choice of Steve's for best organ licks song in last week's Listomania

"I Want To Hold Your Hand"--The Beatles. One of only two Beatles songs I know of with a body part in the title. tmink included the other in his or her list

Finally, to get a fifth one in, there's "Take Me In Your Arms", the Holland-Dozier-Holland song that was a hit for Kim Weston, and later, of course, the Doobie Brothers.

Anonymous said...

TMink took all my good ones! So I'm left with:

Heart - Rockpile

These Arms Of Mine - Otis Redding

Fall At Your Feet - Crowded House

Almost Cut My Hair - CSNY

Rockin’ Bones - Ronnie Dawson

Lips Like Sugar - Echo & The Bunnymen

Ragin’ Eyes - Nick Lowe

Anonymous said...

Yes, Lou Reed sang "Foot of Pride" from a teleprompter on that TV show, and a more stiff, clueless, and completely unconvincing performance of a genius song has never (in my experience) been recorded.

How about:

Feet Don't Fail Me Now, Little Feat

Shake Your Moneymaker, Elmore James

Your Gold Teeth, Steely Dan

Who Am Us Anyway? said...

Speaking of Mr. Green: Shake Your Money Maker

And can’t forget Steve Earle’s Devil’s Right Hand
Or The Kinks’ Skin and Bone
And Jagger used to claim she was under his pinky or something

But hey that was a fiendishly clever early clue to the new direction Steve

Who Am Us Anyway? said...

Oops, sorry about that Peter; Shake Your Money Maker is yours. I missed it by THAT much.

danny1959 said...

Steve, Was that an Oscar Wilde quote you slipped in there? You know that it was turned around on him. I can't remember who it was who said that it would take a heart of stone not to laugh at "The Ballad of Reading Gaol."

steve simels said...

Danny --

I think the Oscar Wilde quote was about "Uncle Tom's Cabin" -- the death of little Nell, if memory serves.

But I didn't know somebody had turned it around -- I'm gonna look that up.

Feral said...

I seem to recall some sort of stage production, about Hair...

Wendy said...

God, I hate Kim Carnes' voice.

Anyway, so of course somebody beat me to "Under My Thumb" ...

But I don't think anyone mentioned "Brown Eyed Girl".

Or "Suite Judy Blue Eyes".

Wendy said...

And I promise not to mention that Rod Stewart song about hot legs ... really, I promise.

Anonymous said...

I like "Back of My Hand" a nice blues tune on the last Stones album A Bigger Bang.

Anonymous said...

You got no heart to say no heart 'cause all i got is heart!

This is the song that Thers liked at Eschacon and he generously compared me to Janis Joplin (which I ate with a big spoon and will now repeat at any opportunity!):

dandelion heart

Anonymous said...

Well, I just went searching for the Townes song that fits this bill, and found these folks' version. I have no idea who they are and they may not be a band I'd like, BUT THE FACT THAT THEY LEARNED A TOWNES SONG and you can tell the singer is trying to get it right, so that makes me love them (I'm easy):

Lungs

TMink said...

Rosie by Jackson Brown!

Put Your Hand in the Hand, a pretty bad song, but there it is.

I really appreciate some of the posts, good job. Isn't it interesting how fun these things are? Just reading the posts make me smile.

Make Me Smile - Chicago!

Trey

Cleveland Bob said...

Elvis is the king of body parts indeed.

Some repeats her, ut some others that may have been overlooked...

Almost Cut My Hair - CSNY
Head Over Heels - Tears For Fears
Sugar On My Tongue - Talking Heads
In Your Eyes - Peter Gabriel
Browned Eyed Girl – Van Morrison
Grazed Knees - Snow Patrol
Cap in Hand - The Proclaimers -
She's Got Balls - The Cramps
Can Your Pussy Do The Dog - The Cramps

Anonymous said...

Oh man, I love this kind of shit:


Going out of My Head-Little Anthony Tush-ZZ Topp
Our Lips are Sealed-Go Gos
Blue Eyes Cryin in the Rain-Willie
Skinny Legs and All- Joe Tex
These Arms of Mine-Otis Redding
These Eyes -The Guess Who
Head Full of Steam-the Go Betweens
On a Neck, On a Spit-Grizzly Bear
Stepping on My Heels-Mendoza Line
Got you under my skin-Frank Sinatra

Noam Sane said...

"Since His Penis Came Between Us"

-John Hiatt

David said...

A double shot of Replacements: "Gary's Got a Boner" (that counts, right?) and "Tommy Gets His Tonsils Out"

B Northcut said...

Hooker with a Penis- Tool

Anonymous said...

A few more...

"I Only Have Eyes for You" (my pick would be Sinatra, but if we need to keep it in the pop genre, you can go with Art Garfunkel).

"With My Face on the Floor" -- Emitt Rhodes

"Back in My Arms Again" -- The Supremes

"Green Eyes" -- Nick Cave

"Out of My Head" -- Fastball

"Got My Mind Set on You" -- George Harrison

Anonymous said...

I'll go back to last week's Weekend Listomania for
Baby Let Me Bang Your Box - Daddy Cool
and moving up the famale anatomy for
Boobs A Lot - The Fugs

Anonymous said...

OK I'm pretty sure it's actually the female anatomy that I moved up.
Since I'm here I'd also like to add a song I saw performed as a sing-a-long in Omaha during what was unquestionably the funnest show I ever attended
Tit Photographer's Blues - The Fabulous Poodles

cuddlefish said...

Ear, Nose, and Throat - Troubled Hubble

MBowen said...

Back Of My Hand - The Jags

Only Tongue Can Tell - Trashcan Sinatras

Last Honest Face - The Loud Family

dave™© said...

"Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)" comes to mind... speaking of nutso rock stars!

steve simels said...

Anonymous said...
I'll go back to last week's Weekend Listomania for
Baby Let Me Bang Your Box - Daddy Cool
and moving up the famale anatomy for
Boobs A Lot - The Fugs

5/02/2008 2:35 PM



Thank god somebody nominated Boobs a Lot.

Now I can die happy...
:-)

Wendy said...

"Boobs A Lot" was my favorite Fugs song ...well, that and "Slum Goddess from the Lower East Side" ...

"Do you wear your jock a lot?"

Okay, a couple more: The Who's "Behind Blue Eyes" and The Mothers of Invention's "Who are the Brain Police" ...

The Kenosha Kid said...

Waving My Arms in the Air - Syd Barrett

Can't Get it Out of My Head - ELO

Evil Hearted You - Yardbirds

Heart Full of Soul - Yardbirds

Another Nail for My Heart - Squeeze

TuneLovinJacket said...

Take The Skinheads Bowling - Camper Van Beethoven
From Head To Toe - Elvis Costello & the Attractions
Nosebleed - Maximo Park
Raised Eyebrows - The Feelies
Kick In The Teeth - Supergrass
Only Tounge Can Tell - Trash Can Sinatras
Go For The Throat (Use Your Own Imagination) - Cheap Trick
My Baby Does Her Hairdo Long (with the dB's) - Kimberley Rew
Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants - Bill Lloyd
Andy's Chest - Lou Reed
White Belly - Belly
I Was Born Without A Spine - Supersuckers
Turn My Back On The Sun - Big Star
Glass Jaw - Graham Parker
Bad Liver And A Broken Heart (In Lowell) - Tom Waits
Death On Two Legs (Dedicated To...) - Queen
Sexy Ankles - Superchunk
Dancing Barefoot - Patti Smith
Summer toes - The Spectacular Fantastic
Hot Feet for Monkey God - The Sun Sawed In 1/2
Daddy Buy Baby a Boobjob - Andy Prieboy
Tit Photographer's - Fabulous Poodles

Wendy said...

And, for the oldest song on the list ... "Going Out of My Head" by Little Anthony and the Imperials.

steve simels said...

TuneLovinJacket said...
Nosebleed - Maximo Park
My Baby Does Her Hairdo Long (with the dB's) - Kimberley Rew


Hmm...I'm a big Kimberley Rew fan but I don't recall that one. Thanks for the tip.

And I don't know Maximo Park, but that reminds me I should have nominated "Nose Job", from the great old "MAD Twists Rock n Roll: album....

"She gotta nose job, she gotta nose job
Now it's hanging up instead of hanging down
She gotta nose job, she gotta nose job
And now she's the prettiest girl in town"....

TMink said...

TuneLovinJacket, dude, you sure nailed some great power pop!

Rew and the dB's must be killer.

Trey

Anonymous said...

Starry Eyes-The Records
Eyes Without a Face-Billy Idol

steve simels said...

anonymous said...

Eyes Without a Face-Billy Idol


Which I used to mishear as "how's about a date?"

I also prefer it in French -- Yeux Sans Visage!!!
:-)

Anonymous said...

Well, you said "no arbitrary rules," so I'm going to take that to mean titles that are metaphors for naughty bits are OK-

Prince - Little Red Corvette
Bruce - Pink Cadillac

PS How on earth did we get through 30+ comments without someone mentioning "Starry Eyes"? We're gettin' old.

Unknown said...

so I guess Adam & the Ants "Stand and DeLiver" is right out? ;}


Sprites "Bionic Hands" & "Joel has a hole in his eardrum"
Go-Go's "Our Lips Are Sealed"
They Might Be Giants "Stick Your Hand Inside the Puppet Head"
Heavenly "Sperm Meets Egg, So What" & "Itchy Chin"
Los Campesinos "...And We Exhale and Roll Our Eyes in Unison"
Twig "Bashful Knees"
Tribeca "And her breasts were still small"
Besties "Bone Valley"
My Teenage Stride "Skin Lieutenant"
Lucksmiths "Broken Bones" & "Music to hold hands to"
Wire "Kidney Bingos"
Pipas "Fingerprints"