The way your mind works

Her voice is magical. I love the Be-Good Tanyas.

The Be-Good Tanyas -- 'It's Not Happening'

Guilty of no crime

These guys used to kick so much ass back in the day. Then there was a bus accident, all sorts of rumors some of which may have been true and then years of inactivity. They're back and though they kinda sound the same somehow it doesn't feel the same. Oh, to be young and death-angelic.

Death Angel -- 'I'm Bored'

Chocolate and Butter

Years ago I saw the pre-eminent film critic David Thomson give a lecture at the beautiful Castro Theater in San Francisco about musical scenes in films that weren't otherwise musicals. As I left the theater it occurred to me that he left the best two examples.

Eddie Murphy -- 'Greatest Love of All' (from Coming to America)
Chase, Martin & Short -- 'My Little Buttercup' (from Three Amigos)

I can't take this any more

The kooky thing about Codeine back in the day was how slow they played. In a time when everything was getting louder and faster, these guys were going in the opposite direction. Affecting music.

Codeine -- 'Loss Leader'

I always eat too much and throw up

A little old time home video to remind just how long 'Weird Al' has been kicking it. He's outlasted just about everyone he's ever parodied--suck on that, Eminem.

Weird Al Yankovic -- 'My Bologna'

You'll see a man get mean

For a guy that had only one acoustic song that I can think of, he sure knows his was around the 12-string model. SRV was a true badass, too bad he's not around these days.

Stevie Ray Vaughan -- 'Pride and Joy' (acoustic)

Bach made fun

Is Stern getting pissed over there or is he just playing? Hard to tell. Strange to see this duo playing live.

Jack Benny and Isaac Stern at Carnegie Hall

Function is the key

Classic punk rock. Right in the sweet spot when everybody stopped being stupid but right before everybody became stupid all over again. Am I the only one that sees my restless youth that way?

Fugazi -- 'Waiting Room'

Hole in my shoe

Gather round, kids, this is what 1967 looked like. So is this pro-drugs or anti-drug? Could go either way, huh?

Traffic -- 'Hole in My Shoe'

'That's elf blood, that ain't cheap!'

Glenn Danzig's cameo on Aqua Teen Hunger Force

To have a girl like her would be a dream come true

Visually this is strangely stiff, I've never seen a Motown group so un-lively. I know it's a ballad but damn they don't have to just sit there. Still I always dug this song.

The Temptations -- 'Just My Imagination'

Guitar hurricane

In the early days of television optimists predicted that opera and theater would rule the airwaves thanks to this new invention. Well, somewhere along the way we've devolved from the works of Shakespeare to MTV Cribs, but that happens. People are interested in the lives of near and dear celebrities, like Wilmer Valderrama, as opposed to the gunky inner workings of historical figures like Richard III--and who wouldn't? Here's a relic from a time when TV lovingly captured works of enduring badassness.

Julian Bream & John Williams -- Lawes' Suite for 2 guitars

Now I smell like vaseline

So does Whitney Houston smell like vaseline too?

Frank Zappa -- 'Bobby Brown'

Specially chosen for you and I

A good song by a strangely lovable band. Not sure if this is the real video or just a homemade job. Good photography even if the imagery seems random.

Midlake -- 'Roscoe'

I'll choke you with the cord

A lost classic! An underappreciated gem from the days when video makers thought just throwing random pictures of anything on a screen would suffice for a rap video. (That's right, this is pre-hip-hop) Bomb Squad in the back and Flava Flav up front.

Son of Bazerk -- 'Change the Style'

Jump into a new skin

Ah, Stewart Copeland and Francis Ford Coppola: both too good for their own good.

Stan Ridgeway and Stewart Copeland -- 'Don't Box Me In'

They go together like Pastry and Formula One

I'm a fan of both, works for me.

Notorious BIG over some Samurai Jack clips

Interesting vision of 'Trane

John Coltrane -- 'Giant Steps'

You been messing where you shouldn't be messing

Nancy Sinatra -- 'These Boots Are Made for Walking'

You don't really care for music, do you?

He's live and ranting at France.

Jeff Buckley -- 'Hallelujah'

2300 Pictures

Interesting video: This dude Noah takes a picture of himself every day for six years. Amazing how he manages to always have the same look on his face.

Get me a peanut butter & nanner pudding sandwich

A collection of clips from Elvis's 1968 Comeback Special. I dug the clip called 'Huh-huh Promo'.

Elvis Presley -- 'The 1968 Comeback Special'

She's got a TV eye on me

Ever wanted to see classic footage of Iggy Pop flinging peanut butter at a raucus Cincinnati crowd? Here it is. Right around the time you start thinking to yourself, Iggy looks a little bored, that's when the action starts.

Iggy and the Stooges -- 'TV Eye'

Kissin the Rach

Some dudes just dominate the keyboard and this guy is all over it. Notice the smoothness as he rises for the applause, my man's practiced at adulation. One of the true badasses of the day.

Evgeny Kissin -- Rachmaninoff's Prelude Op. 23 #2

Smells Like Seven Layers

My favorite song off my least favorite Primus record. I love this video.

Primus -- 'Wynona's Big Brown Beaver'

DJs

C'mon & Kypski -- 'Shitty Bum' Live in Amsterdam

At least it's a tasty bird

When did Black Sabbath join the Super Friends League? Throw in Scooby Doo, Clutch Cargo and the old Jacksons cartoons with booze and oral sex references. How progressive?

Black Sabbath cartoon

They take coffee with mescal

Lila Downs is one those women that has a voice that makes your spine shimmy, a staggering compositional range and backs herself up with players that rock. Her latest album, La Cantina, features a number of different styles and tones and she sounds killer from beginning to end. This song is just a beginning of a taste. There's some other live videos available on You Tube but beware, the quality isn't so good on most.

Lila Downs -- 'El Feo'

Ali Farka Toure solo

Ali Farka Toure just died last year at the age of 67 but look how youthful he looks in this video. My man is throwing down. Totally unique style and tone, totally engrossing.

The Late Great Ali Farka Toure

Ever seen a reverend wear leather shorts?

When it's the Reverend Al Green somehow it doesn't seem so strange. (What kind of weather could you wear leather shorts in?) Classic Soul Train footage.

Al Green -- 'So Tired of Being Alone'

Get out and start what needs to be done

Check these guys out, they look like they're about 14.

Uncle Tupelo -- 'Graveyard Shift'

Rakim in his prime

Eric B and Rakim -- 'Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em'

I've got something to put in you

I've wondered why Electric Six aren't more popular. They rock, they're funny and they rock--what's not to like? Well, the sense of humor is a little over the top perhaps. How over? If you can get down with homoerotic overtures from the 16th president of the USA then you can hang with the Electric Six.

Electric Six -- 'Gay Bar'

This is why I walk and talk this way

What a great song.

DJ Shadow -- 'Walkie Talkie'

Ataturk's got a new one, you heard it?

This is the music link from a Roots World Review of an album that begins by explaining the early years of Ataturk's Turkish Republic.

By 1935 his main goals were accomplished: the Republic had clearly defined borders, a Latin alphabet was adopted in place of an arcane Ottoman script unfit to Turkish and read by a fraction of the population, women had lost their scarves and gained the right to vote. The Republic gave him his own rail car with an up-to-date German-made music system integrated into the furniture, and a collection of 78 rpm records.

Its strangely reassuring to know that the George Washington of Turkey had a pimped out ride. I'm not sure what this record is or what this piece of music has to do with it but I'm hooked.

Testing, testing

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