Farraginous Friday #13 – Fellas flying solo

Good day my farraginous fanciers and welcome to the 13th edition of Farraginous Fridays! This week’s playlist will be investigating people who having been in a band and have gone on to persue solo ventures.  Oh and the band that the artist is from does not have to have disbanded!

Farraginous Friday #13 – Fellas flying solo (SPOTIFY)

Farraginous Friday #13 – Fellas flying solo (YOUTUBE)

Starting us off this week is the Pixies‘ Frank Black with a thumping track from his second solo album Teenager Of The Year from 1994. Having earned cult status with the Pixies, Black Francis (his previous nickname) has had an impressive rate of creative output releasing 18 albums since 1993. I can assure you this song will most certainly NOT give you a Headache.

Pete Townshend is next on the list. The Who guitarist who when not releasing albums devoted to the teachings of indian mystic Meher Baba actually knocked out some great pop songs. One of these great pop songs is Let My Love Open The Door from his 1980 album Empty Glasses.

Bryan Ferry

I remember seeing The New Pornographers live some years back and being astounded as to how many rousing pop songs they had in their back catalogue. All of these songs came from the wonderfully talented songwriting talent that is A.C. Newman, who’s solo efforts (including Secretarial) are of equal brilliance.

Let’s Stick Together is from Bryan Ferry‘s first solo album, of the same name, following the the disbandment of Roxy Music. Although not actually penned by Ferry, this reworked Wilbert Harrison cover is the definitive Bryan Ferry tune!

Pavement broke up in 1999 and broke many an indie kid’s heart (don’t worry, they reformed earlier this year). Stephen Malkmus‘ solo output has achieved very modest success on a commercial level and has never been as well received as Pavement. I am a huge fan of Jo Jo’s Jacket from Malkmus’ self-titled debut album from 2001.

Neil Young needs absolutely no introduction whatsoever. So I won’t bother. Oh, but I will mention that he was in Buffalo Springfield before going solo. He has also released 33 albums to date. And this track is taken from my favourite album of his, After The Gold Rush. But I still won’t bother introducing him…

Gram Parsons died of a morphine and alcohol overdose at the tender age of 26. He used to take LSD whilst UFO spotting at the Joshua Tree National Monument. When he died, his body was stolen by friends and taken to Joshua Tree where they used 5 gallons of gasolene to burn the body resulting in a huge fireball! It’s got to be the way to go.

Jarvis Cocker

Poor old Jarvis Cocker waited a long time to find fame with Pulp (or Arabacus Pulp as they were first known) but in 1992 they began the ascent to the giddy heights of indie royalty. Cocker’s solo material is very much hit and miss but Don’t Let Him Waste Your Time from his first solo effort, Jarvis, is a cracker! With a great music video too.

David Byrne of Talking Heads fame is a fucking legend and I’ll not hear a bad word about the man. His solo work, as with Talking Heads, has always been experimental, pioneering and often deftly catchy and infectiously fun! Miss America is from his 1997 album Feelings.

Finishing up this week is Julian Casablancas with Out Of The Blue. The Strokes smashed an almighty boulder through the indie scene in 2001 with their debut release, Is This It. I actually found this debut album from The Strokes front man decidedly disappointing but this track pulls the energy of the influential band and some fantastic pop production together to form this delectable ditty!

So that’s all folks. Thank you for reading & listening and I hope you’ve enjoyed Farraginous Friday #13′s little mix of solo efforts.

As always, please do leave your comments below and continue to invite new listeners to the blog! Most of you are aware of the Facebook group dedicated to Farraginous Fridays. You can find it here – http://groups.to/farraginousfridays. DON’T MISS OUT!!!

Peace
Farraginous Francis x

Farraginous Friday #13 – Fellas flying solo (SPOTIFY)

Farraginous Friday #13 – Fellas flying solo (YOUTUBE)

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Farraginous Friday #08 – A river runs through it

Hello my farraginous friends and welcome to the 8th edition of Farraginous Fridays!

This week our songs have a river theme flowing through them. So expect a more soothing and relaxed selection than that of the rigid numbers theme of last week.

Farraginous Friday #08 – A river runs through it (SPOTIFY)

Farraginous Friday #08 – A river runs through it (YOUTUBE)

Pushing us away from the bank this week is The Byrds and their Ballad of Easy Rider, which was written for the 1969 Dennis Hopper road movie, Easy Rider. Let the adventure begin…

The folk-infused experimentalists Akron/Family are next, with their Vampire Weekend-cum-They Might Be Giants track, River. This comes from their 5th studio album Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free. The lazy bass line of the verse moves to military stomp to a delicious poppy bounce in the chorus. This is probably the most genre-crossing song on this week’s list.

Bruce Springsteen

There isn’t a great deal that needs saying about “The Boss”, Bruce Springsteen. With so many songs that are still so popular and significant today, this man is a true music legend. The song tells the tale of a man who has to deal with life as it really is and to re-adjust the dreams he’d originally set out for himself. “For my nineteenth birthday I got a union card and a wedding comb” is just a sign things to come as the country slips deeper into economic decline. The River was taken from the 1980 album of the same name.

The endlessly creative and experimental Sparks are at the next stop. Seemingly about capitalism, the narrator humorously talks of taking the river on his travels or perhaps buying another one to keep his present river company. With no less than 22 studio albums to their name, there’s no doubting the tireless work ethic of LA’s most inventive export. I Bought The Mississippi River is from their 1976 album Big Beat.

Stadium rockers Styx greet us next with Boat On The River; a haunting little shanty from their 1980 album Cornerstone.

Strawberry Switchblade were a pop punk rock duo from Glasgow. Their eponymous album (also their only album) from 1985 was, rather interestingly, produced by Queen’s John Deacon.

The wonderous Wilmslow’s Doves deliver us the closing track from their 2002 The Last Broadcast. A popular single, this track has featured on many a TV series soundtrack.

David Byrne is next.  One of the most acclaimed and diverse bands of the 80s, Talking Heads here perform an interesting cover of the Al Green song Take Me To The River. Although Psycho Killer was a minor hit at the time, it was this track that really made them a household name.

These days the name Albert Hammond will be more associated with The Strokes yet it’s the indie kid’s father, Hammond Snr, who delivers us this insanely upbeat track about pollution. Down By The River‘s insatiable bass line and repetitive lyrics make this catchy track a perfect choice for the Farraginous Friday mix!

R.E.M.

Our boat completes it’s journey this week with a song that is of huge importance to me. R.E.M.‘s massive album of 1992, Automatic For The People, was the album that actually got me in to music. After the big success of 1991′s Out Of Time, it was wondered how the pop rockers would be able to top it. This album is one of the biggest selling in history and is a must-have album for any pop rock fan. Find The River is the beautiful closing track on the album and possibly my favourite song by the Athens band. A sombre, reflective track, it still delivers a ray of hope (“All of this is coming your way“) and seems the perfect way to close this week’s Farraginous Friday.

Thank you for listening and I hope you’ve enjoyed this week’s mix. Do leave comments below if you have ANYTHING to say about the selection or perhaps how individual tracks have affected you.

Please do continue to tell your friend’s about Farraginous Fridays. Send them along to the Facebook group here – http://groups.to/farraginousfridays or just invite them straight to the blog at http://farraginousfridays.com.

Until next time…

Love
Farraginous Francis x

Farraginous Friday #08 – A river runs through it (SPOTIFY)

Farraginous Friday #08 – A river runs through it (YOUTUBE)

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