The Never Ending Jukebox, track two.

RobTrent said:
Less of that!

To commemorate a friend getting me the 12" vinyl of Hemispheres by Rush on Record Store Day, here's a little ditty:


Are they talking about Canada @Toronto John ?
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I never ever thought of it that way, more about the stupidity of polarization of ideas, which, in today's world, is quite timely. However, you made me curious, so I checked Wikipedia and here's what I found:
"Rush drummer and lyricist Neil Peart was asked if there was a message in the lyrics, to which he replied, "No. It was just a flash. I was working on an entirely different thing when I saw a cartoon picture of these trees carrying on like fools. I thought, 'What if trees acted like people?' So I saw it as a cartoon really, and wrote it that way. I think that's the image that it conjures up to a listener or a reader. A very simple statement."
 
Apart from the fact that the first word is 'adrift' this strays from the nautical theme, but strays into the Talksport mental health territory on the other thread.

Here's just coupleof tracks that mean a fair bit to myself and some people I know.

The Grandaddy track is penned by Jason Lytle who, at the time was falling apart in spectacular fashion due to the pressure of 'success' on his mental health.
The follow up album to this, Sumday, is almost entirely a huge cry for help and the band fell apart soon after.

 
Ben Folds, boy could this bloke write lyrics.
A bit of a spent force these days, but the first half a dozen albums consistently hit the spot when it comes to pain and angst mixed with a bit of humour.

 
Ken Baileys Ghost said:
Doesn't have to be a reason.
Doesn't have to be hip cool and trendy.
Just some music you really rate/love and would like to share.
Comments would be nice, but not essential.
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Comments huh? Well, let me preface this Pulp text by saying Jarvis Cocker spoke to me through his music in a way nobody else has ever managed. His tales of being an outsider looking in, watching the world pass him by, wanting to be a part of it but actually not really as he knew he wasn’t really one of them, cutting and scathing in both his choice of words and tone of voice were so important for me when I was blindly groping my way through my late teens and early 20s.

Although, I have to say, when he got sordid that was more wishful thinking on my part than a commentary on my life!

I know there’s a certain sniffiness about the scene to which the music press attached them in the 90s. Whatever you think of that, there were some good tunes in amongst the indie landfill that invaded the charts. However, I think head and shoulders above them all is the work of Pulp. They’d bumped around without success for over a decade and been championed by John Peel and NME before finally making a commercial breakthrough at the start of the 90s.

I love all their stuff from around then but there’s no doubt the absolute highpoint is Lee Bradbury’s all time favourite album Different Class. It careers around life through a series of catchy vignettes.

‘Mis-Shapes’ tells the exact story of outsiders looking in that I was previously describing.

‘Sorted For E's and Wizz’ is possibly the best and most accurate song about drugs out there and one to which I can relate. The tabloid moral panic about it at the time missed the point of ‘and then you come down...’.

Disco 2000 a straight down the line pop tale of unrequited love.

The most famous track on the album, Common People, is what it is; a chart friendly, foot stomping story of when rich meets poor and the inability of one to truly understand the life of the other. I always preferred the other track they produced at the same time, Underwear, which was released with it as a double A side but seems mostly forgotten in the glare of the more well know song. A scabrous story of taking someone home and then regretting it before things have taken their course and wondering if you now have to see it through.

I could go on about the rest of the album but I’m going to cut to the track I’ve got for you today: ‘Something Changed’. After all I’ve said this is the least 'Pulp' song of all those on the album in that there’s nothing biting in the lyrics and no sharpness from Jarvis in his tone. It’s a simple love song. Only it’s a love song about how love can be a real case of Sliding Doors (released quite a few years before Sliding Doors became a reference!). I guess it speaks to me because I know how many coincidences had to fall into place for me to end up with my partner.

Enjoy! Although afterwards go to your streaming platform of choice and give the whole of Different Class a listen. Genuinely worth your time if you dismissed that scene at the time.


One final thing to say on the subject of Pulp. I saw them play numerous times live but the greatest gig of my life by far was performed by them when I was living in Nantes, France. At the time the country and city were in the midst of weeks of riots. Then the biggest since the 60s but I guess current events have now overtaken that instance. Riot police were everywhere whilst rioters were tearing down buildings and had massive bonfires at the end of main roads. As I lived right in the centre, every time I went outside there was a waft of tear gas drifting pass. I can give personal testament that tear gas is really nasty! In the midst of that Pulp came to the city to play a gig.

The whole of Nantes was on edge and the atmosphere inside the tight densely packed venue was febrile and sweaty. The way people were glancing around it just felt like a powder keg that might explode at any moment and you couldn’t be sure if that was going to be a good explosion or a really, really bad thing. I've never felt an atmosphere like it, either before or since.

When Pulp finally came on stage, Jarvis walked up to the mic and the first thing he said was “Vive la deuxieme revolution” and the crowd exploded. In a good way. Then he launched into his twitchy awkward dancing and the first track. It was utter pandemonium in there all night after that but one I’ll never forget. A killer first line that totally took the whole audience with him.
 
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kirsikka said:
Comments huh? Well, let me preface this Pulp text by saying Jarvis Cocker spoke to me through his music in a way nobody else has ever managed. His tales of being an outsider looking in, watching the world pass him by, wanting to be a part of it but actually not really as he knew he wasn’t really one of them, cutting and scathing in both his choice of words and tone of voice were so important for me when I was blindly groping my way through my late teens and early 20s.

Although, I have to say, when he got sordid that was more wishful thinking on my part than a commentary on my life!

I know there’s a certain sniffiness about the scene to which the music press attached them in the 90s. Whatever you think of that, there were some good tunes in amongst the indie landfill that invaded the charts. However, I think head and shoulders above them all is the work of Pulp. They’d bumped around without success for over a decade and been championed by John Peel and NME before finally making a commercial breakthrough at the start of the 90s.

I love all their stuff from around then but there’s no doubt the absolute highpoint is Lee Bradbury’s all time favourite album Different Class. It careers around life through a series of catchy vignettes.

‘Mis-Shapes’ tells the exact story of outsiders looking in that I was previously describing.

‘Sorted For E's and Wizz’ is possibly the best and most accurate song about drugs out there and one to which I can relate. The tabloid moral panic about it at the time missed the point of ‘and then you come down...’.

Disco 2000 a straight down the line pop tale of unrequited love.

The most famous track on the album, Common People, is what it is; a chart friendly, foot stomping story of when rich meets poor and the inability of one to truly understand the life of the other. I always preferred the other track they produced at the same time, Underwear, which was released with it as a double A side but seems mostly forgotten in the glare of the more well know song. A scabrous story of taking someone home and then regretting it before things have taken their course and wondering if you now have to see it through.

I could go on about the rest of the album but I’m going to cut to the track I’ve got for you today: ‘Something Changed’. After all I’ve said this is the least 'Pulp' song of all those on the album in that there’s nothing biting in the lyrics and no sharpness from Jarvis in his tone. It’s a simple love song. Only it’s a love song about how love can be a real case of Sliding Doors (released quite a few years before Sliding Doors became a reference!). I guess it speaks to me because I know how many coincidences had to fall into place for me to end up with my partner.

Enjoy! Although afterwards go to your streaming platform of choice and give the whole of Different Class a listen. Genuinely worth your time if you dismissed that scene at the time.


One final thing to say on the subject of Pulp. I saw them play numerous times live but the greatest gig of my life by far was performed by them when I was living in Nantes, France. At the time the country and city were in the midst of weeks of riots. Then the biggest since the 60s but I guess current events have now overtaken that instance. Riot police were everywhere whilst rioters were tearing down buildings and had massive bonfires at the end of main roads. As I lived right in the centre, every time I went outside there was a waft of tear gas drifting pass. I can give personal testament that tear gas is really nasty! In the midst of that Pulp came to the city to play a gig.

The whole of Nantes was on edge and the atmosphere inside the tight densely packed venue was febrile and sweaty. The way people were glancing around it just felt like a powder keg that might explode at any moment and you couldn’t be sure if that was going to be a good explosion or a really, really bad thing. I've never felt an atmosphere like it, either before or since.

When Pulp finally came on stage, Jarvis walked up to the mic and the first thing he said was “Vive la deuxieme revolution” and the crowd exploded. In a good way. Then he launched into his twitchy awkward dancing and the first track. It was utter pandemonium in there all night after that but one I’ll never forget. A killer first line that totally took the whole audience with him.
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:wahey:

:clap:

Thank you.
 
Heard a bit of 'Big Yellow Taxi' on TV, in connection with climate change protest.

It may well be her 'greatest hit' but there's far more to her than just that.

And timeless.


 
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