0:00:01-0:00:30) Carol of the Bells (A Cappella) by Carol Of the Bells off of Carol Of the Bells

0:00:31-0:03:20) Mele Kalikimaka by Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters off of A Merry Christmas With Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters

0:03:21-0:04:54 (Rev. Interruption background music 1: Prison Prism by Ani DiFranco off of Revelling: Reckoning)

  Happy holidays and welcome to Aurally Fixated. That right there was Mele Kalikimaka, by Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters. And we kicked the show open with an cappella version of my favorite Christmas hymn. The tune was originally a Ukrainian folk chant dating back to pre-christian times – associated with celebrating the coming of the new spring. Then, about 100 years ago, it was stolen, melted down, and sold back to the world as the Carol of the Bells.

Today is the 25th day – of July. So why are we celebrating Christmas in July? Because it’s an excuse to celebrate. To feel the holiday spirit on warm summer nights. Hear Christmas carols without already being sick of them. Image gifting without having to pass guilt-inducing bellringers, or children screeching whilst their parents brawl over presents – and whether it should be “happy Christmas” or “merry holidays.” 

I may be getting ahead of myself. You have been good, right? You don’t wan’t to be skipped by Summer-Santa, do you?

0:04:54-0:07:34) ‘Zat You, Santa Claus? By Louis Armstrong off of Christmas Blues

0:07:35-0:10:32) Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto by James Brown off of James Brown’s Funky Christmas

0:10:33-0:13:57) Santa Claus Is a Black Man by Akim & Teddy Vann off of Santa Claus Is a Black Man – Single

0:13:58-0:19:44) Santa Claus Goes To the Ghetto by Nate Dogg & Snoop Dogg off of Christmas On Death Row

0:19:44 (Rev. Interruption background music 2: Interlude Two by Cunninlynguists off of Southernunderground) 

Welcome back; boy and girls – worses, and betters, to our Christmas in July. Did you now that Christmas used to be such an insane party so bad-ass it was outlawed a few time. Now-a-days its much more gentile. Telling us to be nice and not naughty, so we can get plastic and electronics from Santa Claus… Speaking of which, we heard Louie Armstrong asking ‘Zat You, Santa Claus? Then we heard from James Brown’s Funky Christmas telling Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto. After that came little Akim & Teddy Vann telling us how they know Santa Claus Is a Black Man. And finally, the more aurally fixated might’ve noticed that last song, by Nate & Snoop Dogg, sampled the horns from Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto. They obviously didn’t try to hide their inspiration because they named their song Santa Claus Goes To the Ghetto.

Because Santa is an amalgam of different characters from all sorts of cultures there are countless versions. More than enough to go around. So not everyone sees him the same – and not everyone wants the same things from him.

0:21:14-0:23:35) Santa Claus Is A Monster by Jeff Hershey and The Heartbeats off of Santa Claus Is A Monster b/w Santa Claus and Don’t Believe In Christmas

0:23:36-0:27:33) Don’t Shoot Me Santa by The Killers off of Don’t Shoot Me Santa – Single

0:27:34-0:29:34) Back Door Santa by Clarence Carter off of Christmas A Go-Go

0:29:35-0:33:09) Santa Claus Is Cummin’ (To Town) by GASH off of Punk Rock Christmas

0:33:09-0:34:37 (Rev. Interruption background music 3: Star Seed by Kristoff Krane off of Kairos – Part Two)

Obviously I don’t mind you listening to these shows on days other than the ones they’re named after. After all, when exposed to new music it may take a couple listenings to truly appreciate. Or maybe some tidbit or factoid I mention after a song might help you see it, or its artist, or album, in a new light next time you hear it. Great! Listen more then once, whenever you like. But for this show in particular please don’t play it during the winter holiday season… (I can hear you laughing at my words now, though space-n-time, as you listen to this – in December.)

Anyway, the tune I just interrupted was called Santa Claus Is Cummin’ (To Town) by GASH. And continuing the sexy Santa thing, before that we had the Clarence Carter classic Back Door Santa. Just before we had the Killers track Don’t Shoot Me Santa. And we began it all with a bit of gospel-truth entitled Santa Claus Is A Monster by Jeff Hershey and The Heartbeats. 

That’s more than enough of the old fat man. I hear he’s anti-semetic. According to most of my Jewish friends, he’s never brought them a goddamned thing!

0:34:38-0:37:50) Lonely Jew on Christmas by FrightWig off of Riot Grrrl Christmas

0:37:51-0:41:25) 8 Days (Of Hannukah) by Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings off of It’s A Holiday Soul Party

0:41:25-0:43:34) ChristmasTime for the Jews by Darlene Love for Saturday Night Live 

0:43:35-0:46:04) Hanukkah by Angry Snowmans off of Angry Snowmans

0:46:05-0:48:30 (Rev. Interruption background music 4: Nothing To Fear About by Sixo off of The Odds Of Free Will)

We began with a song I’m sure many of you recognized, a cover of Kyle Broflovski’s song from South Park, Lonely Jew on Christmas. He was channeled there by FrightWig from a Riot Grrrl Christmas. Then came Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings (Rest in Power) with 8 Days (Of Hannukah) from their 2015 Holiday Soul Party record. I almost put Ain’t No Chimneys In The Projects earlier, but decided to save them for this.  

After that came Darlene Love with a tune she did for Saturday Night Live entitled ChristmasTime for the Jews.  

From there we slammed into a Hanukkah by a bunch of Angry Snowmans. A bunch of disgruntled elves who left the sweatshops at the North Pole to start a punk band. That song drove me crazy trying to figure out what it was “inspired” by, finally I gave up and looked it up on WhoSampled.com. As it turns out those Angry Snowmans also give their spot-on holiday treatment to; The Clash, The Damned, The Rezillos, GG Allin, Buzzcocks, Stiff Little Fingers, Ramones, Social Distortion, Black Flag, Minor Threat, Dead Kennedys, Fear, Misfits, Circle Jerks, Bad Religion, and many more. 

I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least mention the true reason for the season – presents.   

0:48:31-0:51:05) I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas by Gayla Peevey off of I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas

0:51:06-0:52:49) Don’t Believe In Christmas by Junior Varsity off of Kindercore Records Christmas Two

0:52:50-0:55:27) Dick In A Box by The Lonely Island off of Incredibad

0:55:28-0:57:56) Homo Christmas by Pansy Division off of Pileup

0:57:57-0:59:20 (Rev. Interruption background music 5: Goldberg Variation #5 by Glenn Gould off of Bach: The Goldberg Variations)

First we heard I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas from little Gayla Peevey, just 10 when she recorded that (in 1953) The song what such a hit back then, that a fundraiser was held, and yes, she was actually given a hippo – which of course she wisely and generously donated to her local city zoo. Then we had I Don’t Believe In Christmas by Junior Varsity. After which we heard The Lonely Island featuring Justin Timberlake with their Emmy award winning song – for outstanding music and lyrics (sigh) Dick In A Box. And we rounded it all off with the giants of QueerCore – Pansy Division with Homo Christmas from a compilation of their early work, from before they signed on to Alternative Tentacles, called Pileup.   

This Christmas in July thing has got me feeling pretty good. It’s nice when you don’t have to worry about the stress and madness that accompanies the end of the year. I can be a bit of a Grinch. 

0:59:21-1:01:49) You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch by The Ford Theatre Reunion 

1:01:50-1:06:45) The Grinch by Tech N9ne off of Absolute Power

1:06:46-1:09:05 ) C.H.R.I.S.T.M.A.S / Gloria by The Yobs off of The Worst of the Yobs 

1:09:06-0:11:34) Carol of the Bells by Procrastination Station off of Carol of the Bells

0:11:35-1:12:37 (Rev. Interruption background music 6: Outskirts Of Beatrice by Lenny Kaye off of State Of The Union)

Thank you so much for sharing your time with me, I truly hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I have. If you did I hope you can go out and spread some holiday cheer! Before I leave you I’ve got to tell you that The Ford Theatre Reunion just gave us You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch. Go find their Patrion and donate. That I order – and beg! Then was Tech N9ne with The Grinch. The Yobs with C.H.R.I.S.T.M.A.S / Gloria and then another rendition of Carol of the Bells by Procrastination Station. 

Now a melancholy melody that feels like midwinter. From Sixo’s amazing album The Odds Of Free Will. And you should recognize one of my very favorite musicians, Ceschi’s singing Christmas Past. (He rhapsodized to us back on April Fools Day.) Then we sleigh off into the sunset with Astronautalis, with Xmas In July.   

1:12:38-1:15:43) Christmas Past (Featuring Ceschi) by Sixo off of The Odds Of Free Will

1:15:44-1:19:39) xmas in july by Astronautalis off of The Mighty Ocean & Nine Dark Theaters

(And if you wanna read my whole take on StoneWall – Click here)

0:00:01-0:01:10) Love Your Enemies by William S. Burroughs off of Dead City Radio

0:01:11-0:03:50) Homo Rainbow by Ween off of South Park: Chef Aid

0:03:51-0:05:30) (Rev.’s Story-time background music 1: To The Workers Of The Rock River Valley Region, I Have An Idea Concerning Your Predicament by Sufjan Stevens off of Come On Feel The Illinoise!) 

Welcome dear listener to this exceptionally special episode of Aurally Fixated. I’m Rev. the guy the guy with too much free time and music on his hands (as if there’s any such thing) What makes this episode so notable, you wonder. Well, as I’m recording this, just before 1:30 in the morning, on the 28th day of June, it was at this time, in the wee small hours of the morning, on this date, the dog days of summer, and right here in Greenwich Village, in the city that never sleeps, 50 years ago, that a spark was struck, that turned to proverbial powder-keg of the time into countless flames, towering and dazzling, that burn brighter still to this day. I am of course talking about the Uprising at the Stonewall inn. And that is precisely why we started this episode off with Love Your Enemies by an indomitable writer with an unforgettable voice, William S. Burroughs, a man who spent much of his life conflicted by his own sexuality. And after that we heard Ween doing Rainbow off the South Park: Chef Aid album.

So consider this your warning, if you have a problem with “the gays” this isn’t the show for you. And I don’t mean that this isn’t the episode for you. I mean Aurally Fixated is never the show for you. Now with that out of the way…

If you don’t know much about Stonewall you’re missing out, and if you do I’m sure you won’t mind hearing it again. But before we get into the whole “anarchy in the streets thing” – Speaking of the many colors of the homo rainbow up next we have the band Placebo with Nancy Boy.    

0:05:31-0:09:09) Nancy Boy by Placebo off of Placebo 

0:09:10-0:12:45) Best Cock On The Block by Bitch And Animal off of Eternally Hard

0:12:46-0:14:19) (Rev.’s Story-time background music 2: The Magic Flute: Theme & Variations Op.9: II. Var.2 by Georgi Moravsky off of 66 Must-Have Spanish Guitar Masterpieces)

That insanely fun tune right there was Bitch And Animal bragging about how they’ve got the Best Cock On The Block off their aptly named album, Eternally Hard. Now, old man Rev. is going to tell you about the olden days, the late 1960s, and the night – the queers fought back. Ya see, the pressure that exploded that night at StoneWall was a generation in the making. Believe it or not, the homophobia that was all the rage back when I was growing up, didn’t really come into vogue until the late 1940s when McCarthyism somehow linked Communism and homosexuality kicking off both the Red and the Lavender scares. From then on it became illegal to be gay. Laws were passed, you could be fired and perhaps never work again, harassed and assaulted by the police, arrested and publicized in the newspapers, and institutionalized, all for who you found attractive.  It was 20 years of bleak humiliation and oppression that bread the Stonewall Riots. For many of it’s participants it’s all they’d ever known, being driven underground and into places like the Stonewall Inn.

Ok, that’s the prologue, but before we continue, how about a little music. We’ll start off with an old one from the 1920s. The Savoy Havana Band throwing up their hands, like every generations does, about “The kids today and their Masculine Women, Feminine Men.       

0:14:20-0:16:59) Masculine Women, Feminine Men by The Savoy Havana Band off of The Naughty 1920s: Red Hot & Risque Songs Of The Jazz Age Volume 1

0:17:00-0:22:10) Same Love (featuring Mary Lambert) by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis off of Heist 

0:22:11-0:23:39) (Rev.’s Story-time background music 3: Magic Blood by Man Man off of The Man in a Blue Turban with Face)

Welcome back dear listener to this very special, story time addition of Aurally Fixated. That was just Macklemore & Ryan Lewis with the song Same Love featuring Mary Lambert. A song from a retro man calling out the homophobia that is still engrained in our culture. Speaking of which, where was I? Ah yes! Gay bars!

Because at the time any bar that served gay people ran the risk of being shut down it was only the seediest places that allowed them in. Places that knew how to work around, or pay off, the cops – Mafia run places. Now before you start to think “Oh that nice of those gangsters to give the disenfranchised a place to congregate” you should know that they just saw an untapped market to exploit. A place they didn’t have to keep clean, or even up to code. Where they could sell their stolen or substandard liquor, run drugs and prostitution, and blackmail the clientele. What were they going to do, call the cops? And because the Stonewall was such a dive, it became the hangout for the most outcast. Drag-queens “flamers” “Dykes” homeless kids and junkies, and this who couldn’t afford anyplace else. But, it might’ve been a shit-hole, but at least inside those walls they didn’t have to pretend, and could meet others just being themselves. That is, until the Department of Public Morals tried to raid the place. 

0:23:40-0:26:19) Chicks With Dicks by Impotent Sea Snakes off of God Save The Queens

0:26:20-0:28:59) Faggot by Mindless Self Indulgence off of Frankenstein Girls Will Seem Strangeley Sexy

0:29:00-0:31:24) Gay Rude Boys by Leftover Crack off of Mediocre Gererica

0:31:25-0:33:59)  (Rev.’s Story-time background music 4: Odessa Freylekhs by Steven Greenman off of The Rough Guide To Klezmer Revival)

Well now, those were some fun and riots songs, weren’t they? First we heard the Impotent Sea Snakes with a ridiculous song bout hey became Chicks With Dicks, off their God Save The Queens album. Then we heard Mindless Self Indulgence with a pretty little ditty called Faggot. And finally what you just heard was Leftover Crack doing Gay Rude Boys. Now, naturally I’d like to spend more time talking about the bands, and music, and whatnot, but tonight is about Stonewall. So back to it. 

The Department of Public Morals tried to raid the StoneWall Inn. (Yeah, the Department of Public Morals was really a thing, and yeah, I’m glad it’s not anymore.) Anyway, depending on the type of person you are, it was either late Friday night or early Saturday morning. The busiest time for a bar. The Stonewall had about 200 patrons inside when a handful of the officers busted in. Now, you might already see the flaw in their logic here. But remember, in the cops minds they were just a bunch of docile queers. They’d never fought back, and besides, any red-blooded American man could take 50 of them one handed. That night though the people began to resist. Refusing to show IDs. Refusing to prove they were wearing the clothes of their birth gender. Refusing to go quietly. Even those that were cut loose didn’t automatically just run home, they loitered out front. And since nothing draws a crowd like a crowd, the people outside grew into an audience. Sn naturally some of the more ostentatious started posing and preforming for the masses. Making fun of the police – marching and saluting flamboyantly, and the laughter and cheers drew still more people. The hoard cheered as member of the Mafia were put into the backs of parole-cars. Still half-joking they started shouting “Gay Power!” And singing protest songs like “We Shall Overcome.” But when the cops started to get rough with some of the Stonewall’s regulars, things got tense. As shitty a home as it was, the Stonewall was still la home. And so they fought for it. And to give you a clue as to what happened next here are The Magnetic Field with their song ’69: Judy Garland. And just to be clear, 69 refers to the year 1969. The year of the Stonewall insurrection, and also the year of Judy Garland’s death which only happened days apart. And with his usual dry voice and sense of humor Stephin Marrit suggests that perhaps the two are intwined.    

0:34:00-0:37:05) ’69: Judy Garland by The Magnetic Fields off of 50 Song Memoir

0:37:06-0:41:40) Squealer by Genitorturers off of Sin City

0:41:41-0:43:39 (Rev.’s Story-time background music 5: Tatarisher Longa by Veretski Pass off of The Rough Guide To Klezmer Revival)

Perhapse you recognized that as a cover off the old Ac/Dc song Squealer, but did you know that was the Genitorturers take on it? Off their Sin City record? If you didn’t, well, you do now. And I know I’m giving the music the short-shrift today, so I’ll just say that it’s all great, and go check out the artists that spoke to you. After I’m done story-ing, of course. 

Now, the officers were struggling to stuff the rowdy people into the backs of their cruisers when someone shouted that the raid was payback because the Mafia wouldn’t cut them into their blackmail money. So people started throwing Pennys and loose change at them. And sense people only have so much of that, then came the beer cans and bottles. Then of course the cops tried taking-out the mail rabble-rousers, but this didn’t have the desired effect on the rest of the rabble. When those detained in the backs of the cars broke free the crowed surged and swallowed them – then tried to overturn the vehicles. Then, some of the Moral Police, ran, and the rest, ironically enough, found refuge inside the walls of the Stonewall Inn. Bottles, trash, rocks, and bricks from a nearby construction site rained down on the Stonewall. The front window was smashed, and a parking-meeter was uprooted to use as a batterin-ram to split the doors. Garbage was lit on fire and thrown in through the new openings. Finally, the makeshift barrier collapsed. The officers drew their weapons. And in – danced – a chorus-line of can-can kicking queers – all dressed to the nines for a Friday night out on the town. Now that’s not some flowery description of mine, the rioters literally advanced on the police by kick-like. The cops had no idea how to deal with something like this, but fortunately for them, it wasn’t long after that, their backup finally arrived. 

But, before that, Music!    

0:43:40-0:37:10) Doreen by Devil Doll off of The Return of Eve

0:37:11-0:49:48) CowBoy Love by Reverend Horton Heat off of It’s Martini Time

0:49:49-0:52:06 (Rev.’s Story-time background music 6: pool next door (instrumental) by cars & trains off of we are all storms)

Welcome back ladies and gentlemen, and all points in-between. You are you, I am Rev., this is Aurally Fixated, and that was two twangy tunes that started with Devil Doll and a departure from their usual smoky sound and a song to Doreen. And what you just got done listing to was CowBoy Love by the very good-Reverend, Horton Heat. And speaking of homo-love.

The crowd of protesters outside the Stonewall because may of them had been calling their friends and inviting them to the party. So you may wonder why the Moral Police didn’t try that sooner. Well, they had been trying the nearest precinct, but coincidently enough, the local boys, who didn’t appreciate the outsiders coming in and messing up their kickback deal with the Mafia, where having problems with their radio that night. Just that night – and with them. Eventually though they must’ve got enough random calls about a disturbance in the West-Village that they thought they should go check it out. But by the time they arrived the collection of mis-fits out front of the Stonewall had grown to somewhere between 600 and 1000. The Calvary that was there to save the day, then also had to call in reinforcements. The Tactical Police Force. New York’s proto-SWAT team. And they weren’t there to fuck around – but fuckery happened none-the-less. As they tried to clear the streets the protesters just mocked and laughed at them, and cheered as new, bigger chorus-lines formed singing silly songs. Well, you can guess how that went down, a wall of men in tactical gear wit shields and clubs against kick-lines spoofing their machismo. You can guess, but you’d only be partially right. In addition to the occasional blunt-force-drauma the Tactical Police would divide the masses and chase them down the crooked streets of the Village, only to have the protesters come back around from side-streets and wind up behind their pursuers – chasing them. Which only make sense to all those who’ve ever been lost that far below Uptown’s grid. 

The shenanigans persisted like that until the sky started to turn blue, at which point the streets were cleared – though many still congregated on stoops, and roofs, and in the park. Still too excited to be exhausted. And that was just the first night.     

0:52:07-0:54:24) Gay Bar by Electric Six off of Fire

0:54:25-0:58:52) Homosapien by Pete Shelley off of Homosapien

0:58:53-1:01:15  (Rev.’s Story-time background music 7: Rumble by Link Wray off of Rockin’ Bones: 1950s Punk & Rockabilly)

  That, believe it or not, right there, was Pete Shelley, the lead singer of the punk band Buzzcocks venturing out on his own with Homosapien, a song that was banned from the UK airwaves in the early 1980s for being too gay. And of course we kicked that block off with Electric Six and their hit Gay Bar that went all the way to number 5 on the UK charts just about 20 years later. My how times have changed. Because of things Stonewall set in motion. Where were we? Ah!

Naturally the police were mortified. They’d never been chased off before. Especially not the Tactical Police Force. And by a bunch of homos barring their nails, hitting them with their purses, and slapping them with limp wrists! And again, I’m not making that up. So the next night they were determined not to let that happen again. The sent out more than 100 men to nip any disturbances in the bud. But what they hadn’t counted on however, was that due to all the media coverage the rebellion got, the next evening the Village was flooded with newcomers. Hippies and not-so-innocent-bystanders. Black Panthers and tourists. And anyone else who wanted to support gay rights, or counterculture, or just had a bone to pick with the authorities. They all wanted to see the broken burned-out shell of the Stonewall Inn. When they got there they were greeted with a new ply-wood window already covered in graffiti. With phrases like, “Support Gay Power,” “They Invaded Our Rights,” “Legalize Gay Bars,” “Drag Power.” And the strangest of all, “We Are Open.” And sure enough, it really was open for business. Busted window, charred bar, smashed jukebox, looted cigarette-machine, “confiscated” liquor and all. And again that night Christopher Street became the nucleus of chaotic-energy and exuberant-confusion. Cop cruisers were smashed, fires were lit in garbage cans, chorus-lines went up against stormtroopers, police chases ebbed and flowed throughout the Village. And whenever the post caught someone the swarm surged and reclaimed them. It was de-ja-vous all over again. 

By the third night though, the police began to outnumber the protesters. But still the next few nights were echos of the first. And it went like that, each night growing a little softer, until Wednesday, 6 days later, when the excitement just kinda died out. Sort of.                

1:01:16-1:05:44) Olga’s Birthday by Rose Polenzani off of Anybody

1:05:45-1:08:47) I Wanna Be a Homosexual by Screeching Weasel off of Kill the Musicians

1:08:48-1:11:05  (Rev.’s Story-time background music 8: Með Blóðnasir by Sigur Rós off of Takk…)

Rev. Here to finish up my telling of the great Stonewall Uprising. And of course to tell you that was I Wanna Be a Homosexual by Screeching Weasel and that they toughing and heartbreaking number before that was called Olga’s Birthday by one heartbreaking and touching Rose Polenzani. But not it is time for me to wrap up the never-ending tale.

The Stonewall Riots awoke something inside the LGBTQ community. The demonstrators reported feeling for the first time that they weren’t alone, and actually part of a community. A big part of the protests were just people committing public displays of affection, somehitng unfathomable just days before when they were forced to hide in the backs of dark speakeasys. It was an empowerment that too many had never known, and didn’t want to let go. Almost immediately inspiring flyers and pamphlets telling of the rebellion we churned out wit titles like, “The hair pin drop heard round the world” and “Do you think homosexuals are revolting? You bet your sweet ass we are!”

StoneWall was the end of June 1969. By July 4th people were bussing to picket Independence Hall in Phillidelphia. Within 6 months activists started printing their own newspapers. And places around the city started hosting same-sex dances. Exactly 1 year later, on June 28th 1970, starting at Christopher Street and going all the way to the heart of Manhattan was the first Pride March. That day there were also marches in L.A. and Chicago. The year after that there were also marches in Boston, Dallas, and London, and Paris, and West Berlin, and Stockholm. The year after that, 1972, Atlanta, Buffalo, Detroit, DC, Miami, Minneapolis, San Fransisco, and Philly were added. By ’73 homosexuality was no longer considered a mental illness by the APA. And now, because of those 6 nights 50 years ago we can have songs like this, Mark Growden covering Dolly Parton’s Jolene.       

1:11:06-1:17:22) Jolene  by Mark Growden off of Live at the Odeon

0:00:01-0:03:07) Wimoweh (The Lion Sleeps Tonight) by Ladysmith Black Mambazo off of Brown Girl in the Ring – A World Music Collection

0:03:08-0:04:53 (Rev. interruption 1. Background music: Miles Davis Funeral by Morphine off of Cure For Pain) 

Happy half way done with the calendar. It’s the first Sunday in June, can you guess excuse we’re using to celebrate the magical effects of music? Well, Wimoweh (The Lion Sleeps Tonight) rendered by Ladysmith Black Mambazo was a clue. Give up? The first Sunday in June is National Animal Rights Day – NARD. (Monster Squad clip)

Since before our history began animals have been sacred to us. So important they were the first things we ever scratched on walls of our caves. They came along with us on the hunt. Gave us warmth and companionship. We used the nutrients from their milk and eggs. We bred them to help in the fields. And of course hunted, trapped, killed, and skinned them, because they are our best and cheapest source of Fur, Leather, Wool, Meat.

0:04:54-0:07:55) Fur, Leather, Wool, Meat by Impotent Sea Snakes off of God Save The Queens 

0:07:56-0:12:15) The Trapper And The Furrier by Regina Spektor off of Remember Us To Life

0:12:11-0:15:19) The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill by The Beatles off of “The White Album“ 

0:15:20-0:19:12) The Ballad of Buffalo Jones by The Ford Theatre Reunion off of Famous Monsters

0:19:13-0:20:22) (Rev. interruption 2. Background music: Lipan Conjuring by Tool off of 10,000 Days)  

Hello, my name’s Rev. – and I’m a naked ape –  so are you. And so were all those beasties we were just listening to. First came the Impotent Sea Snakes yowling about Fur, Leather, Wool, Meat. Which was followed by Ms. Regina Spektor baying, quite powerfully at The Trapper And The Furrier. Then came the sweet warble of The Beatles with The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill. And lastly we finished off that pack of songs with one of my favorite bands, The Ford Theatre Reunion roaring The Ballad of Buffalo Jones, a track off their magnificent Famous Monsters album.

I’ve no doubt that you know that we, homo-sapiens, are just animals, but it’s just nice to have the reminder every now and again. To help us remember our wilder ancestors and our current cousins. That we don’t just have some of their qualities, or relate to them sometimes, but we in fact, are them too.      

0:20:23-0:23:25) Kitty Kitty by Ashley Jo Farmer off of Rescue Me!: A Cause for Paws

0:23:26-0:26:35) Three Legged Dog by FireWater off of The Golden Hour

0:26:36-0:30:40) Barn Cat by Mary Ann Kennedy off of Rescue Me!: A Cause for Paws 

0:30:41-0:35:19) Atomic Dog by George Clinton off of Greatest Hits: Straight Up

0:35:20-0:37:40) (Rev. interruption 3. Background music: I Am Locust by The Mag Seven off of End Sounds Ten Year Anniversary Sampler)   

Even if you’ve never heard the original version of that song, I have zero doubts you know one that’s sampled it. But friends, what you just heard was the original. Atomic Dog. By the legendary George Clinton with… some variation of the Parliament-Funkadelic collective. Before the great and powerful funk we heard a sweet little song about what it’s like to be a Barn Cat by Mary Ann Kennedy. Prior to that we heard Mr. Todd A. from Firewater telling us some of the way in which he’s like a Three Legged Dog from his second-to-none record, The Golden Hour. And we started that collection of melodies off with Ashley Jo Farmer and a tune called Kitty Kitty. Both that and Barn Cat are off a fun compilation called Rescue Me!: A Cause for Paws. 12 songs, 6 about dogs, 6 about cats, laced together to benefit animal rescue and awareness. But be you a cat or dog person the only thing that matters is you love your animals. 

0:37:41-0:40:10) I Hope That Something Better Comes Along by Matt Nathanson off of Muppets: The Green Album 

0:40:11-0:44:25) You Say (Puppy Love) by Brother Ali off of US

0:44:26-0:46:59) Let Me Play With Your Poodle by Tampa Red off of Those Dirty Blues Volume 3  

0:47:00-0:48:24) Fuck A Dog by Blink 182 off of Take Off Your Pants and Jacket

0:48:25-0:51:26)  Fuckin’ an Animal by Gwar off of We Kill Everything

0:51:27-0:52:57) (Rev. interruption 4. Background music: Arco Arena by Cake off of Comfort Eagle)

Sisters, brothers, and those who shouldn’t be defined so simply, it’s clear that perhaps one can love animals a bit too much. It started off so sweetly with the Muppets: The Green Album. A compilation of a bunch of rock bands cover old Muppets songs. That’s why Matt Nathanson was singing Kermit and Rowlf the Dog’s song I Hope That Something Better Comes Along. After that we slipped into You Say (Puppy Love) by Brother Ali off his pretty great US album. That led us into an old Tampa Red tune from 1942 called Let Me Play With Your Poodle. And naturally we followed that with Blink 182 – Fuck A Dog. (I do also have a GG Allin song called Fuckin’ the Dog but chose that instead. I defiantly earned my place in Punk-Rock Hell for that decision. And then of course we banged that last nail in the coffin with the classic love-song, Fuckin’ an Animal by Gwar. So I guess some people shouldn’t love the little critters. Some should just be friend, or just have a professional relationship, and just talk with them maybe. Like in the old Dr. Dolittle books. 

0:52:58-0:54:00) The Cat And Rat by Shel Silverstein off of Songs And Stories

0:54:01-0:58:23) Naked In The Rain by Red Hot Chili Peppers off of Blood Sugar Sex Magik

0:58:24-1:01:39) Talk to the Animals by Bobby Darin off of Bobby Darin Sings Doctor Dolittle

1:01:40-1:02:59) (Rev. interruption 5. Background music: Sweet Ticket by Kanon Wakeshima off of Shinshoku Dolce) 

Imagine if we could actually Talk to the Animals like Bobby Darin dreams. That’s from a record where he sings the songs from the old 60s film Dr. Dolittle. And before that, to prove that the dream is still alive, the Red Hot Chili Peppers were Naked In The Rain from Blood Sugar Sex Magik.

Yes, I’m sure we could learn a lot from the other fauna we share this globe with. Different perspective are invaluable for a well-rounded brain. But I guess we’ve been trying to learn from them for thousands of years. Like Taoism observing nature and taking from it advice for how we might better exist with the world. We’ve learned ways to move and’ve named different styles of martial arts after them. We’e taken spirit animals, and got them tattooed on us to try and gain some of their qualities, or try and bring them out of ourselves. Without any words we’ve absorbed some of there sage intelligence, and learned such beautiful wisdoms – not unlike these.

1:03:00-1:05:03) Animal Crackers by Wee Hairy Beasties off of Bloodshot Records: Fun For All Ages Sampler 

1:05:04-1:08:49) Father Time by Blind Melon off of For My Friends

1:08:50-1:12:19) The Story of My Life (Ft. P.O.S) by Astronautalis off of Pomegranate

1:12:20-1:15:29) Swinging On A Star by Frank Sinatra off of Sinatra Sings Days of Wine and Roses, Moon River, and Other Academy Award Winners

1:15:10-1:16:29) (Rev. interruption 6. Background music: Don’t Nobody Know by Ani DiFranco off of Reveling: Reckoning)

Well that about does it. Wraps up the first half of the year. Nothing left to do but put the bow it and tie up loose ends. Thank you for sharing our lives, 80 minutes at a time. It means the world to me. So, until next time or never, whichever comes first. I’ve been Rev. This had been Aurally Fixated. And you’ve been perfect. So, I’m going to leave you with with one of my favorite Nat King Cole songs. But before I forget. I’m sure you probably recognized Ol’ Blue eyes, Frank Sinatra just now, Swinging On A Star with us. Before that we had the most excellent team-up of P.O.S visiting Astronautalis on his practically perfect Pomegranate album. Continuing all the animal metaphors with The Story of My Life. Then came, back in time, the dearly departed, Shannon Hoon and Blind Melon telling us about Father Time. And we started it all off with Animal Crackers by a band called the Wee Hairy Beasties. (Jim Henson’s StoryTeller clip)

1:15:30-1:18:55) Straighten Up And Fly Right by Nat King Cole off of The Greatest Hits.

Next episode will be Posted on the Twenty-Fourth Day of July

0:00:01-0:02:50) Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette) by Tex Williams off of Smoke That Cigarette

0:02:51-0:08:15) Smoking by Bill Hicks off of Dangerous

0:08:16-0:10:19 (Rev. Interruption Background song 1: Leave-Taking by Rocket Juice & The Moon off of Rocket Juice & The Moon)

Greetings sisters and brothers, and all shades on the spectrum between, and welcome to the last day of the merry merry month of May. Unless you’ve somehow accidentally stumbled across our little shrine of strange sounds you already know that this is Aurally Fixated, And I’m Rev. The voice you’re just using for my sundry selection of songs. (Thank you for that by the way. What would I do without you?) But what you might not know is that since 1987, today May 31st, has also been World No Tobacco Day. Hence opening the show with Tex Williams song Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette). And that was followed up by the late, great (of pancreatic, not lung cancer – No relation) Bill Hicks. From his 1990 Dangerous album talking about Smoking. 

It’s supposed to be 24 hours without smoking, so naturally, just to be the tall, graying child I am, I’m smoking whilst I record this. And I don’t usually smoke, just when I’m drunk. So buckle up, this might be a sloppier show than usual. Yes, It should tell me something, that I need to retard my mental processes before intentionally inhaling smoke seems like a good idea – but what can I say, Some things just go too well together.

0:10:20-0:12:49) One Cup Of Coffee And A Cigarette by Glen Glenn & Lonesome Spur off of Psychobilly Box

0:12:50-0:16:39) Cigarettes And Coffee by Otis Redding off of Otis! The Definitive Otis Redding [Box Set]

0:16:40-0:20:39) Drinkin’ and Smokin’ Cigarettes by Reverend Horton Heat off of Laughin’ And Cryin’ With The Reverend Horton Heat

0:20:40-0:22:50) Booze, Tobacco, Dope, Pussy, Cars by Butthole Surfers off of Piouhgd / Widowermaker! 

0:22:51-0:23:54 (Rev. Interruption Background song 2:  As Long As You’re Inside by Tom Schmidt off of State Of The Union)

You can always count on Butthole Surfers to be – interesting. From Widowermaker! that was Booze, Tobacco, Dope, Pussy, Cars. 

Before Surfing the Butthole we were Drinkin’ and Smokin’ Cigarettes with my fellow Reverend, Horton Heat. And just prior we were graced with one of the best, most soulful, voices ever recorded, Mr. Otis Redding giving us Cigarettes And Coffee. And we began with One Cup Of Coffee And A Cigarette brought to us by Glen Glenn & Lonesome Spur. I wonder what makes lyricists so often tie smoking to relationships. The Enjoyable self-destruction? The Stockholm syndrome of addiction? Or maybe its just the oral fixation?

0:23:55-0:28:45) Pink Cigarette by Mr. Bungle off of California

0:28:46-0:31:31) Let Me Be Your Cigarette by Dax Riggs off of Say Goodnight To The World

0:31:32-0:35:00) AshTray Heart by Placebo off of Battle for the Sun

0:35:01-0:37:20) Smoke Rings (Up Your Ass Tray) by The Shocker off of Up Your Ass Tray

0:37:21-0:39:15 (Rev. Interruption Background song 3: Miso by Sadistik & Kristoff Krane off of Prey for Paralysis)

Welcome back to A-u-r-a-l-l-y Fixated, where this episode’s theme is about that more common type of o-r-a-l fixation, because today is World No tobacco day. Speaking of which, we started this set off with Mr. Mike “Bungle” Patton singing a tale of dark obsession, with the person who left a lipstick-kiss on their cigarette filter. There’s an amazing video for that song, and I believe it’s fan-made. It’s probably the first thing that comes up on YouTube when you type in Mr. Bungle Pink Cigarette. After that we heard from Dax Riggs begging Let Me Be Your Cigarette From Say Goodnight To The World. Then came Placebo with AshTray Heart. And we ended with a band called The Shocker. And the song, Smoke Rings (Up Your Ass Tray)

A friend once told me my ability to blow perfect smoke-rings was “the sign of a waisted youth.” I don’t think “waisted” – misspent definitely. And now I’m working on my misspent middle-age, still smoking cloves and blowing Smoke Rings. 

0:39:16-0:42:07) Smoke Rings by The Mills Brothers off of Paper Doll

0:42:08-0:45:14) Don’t Smoke In Bed by Nina Simone off of Nina Simone Her Greatest Hits

0:45:15-0:47:54) Lazy Mary (Lune Mezza Mare) by Lou Monte off of The Very Best of Lou Monte

0:47:55-0:50:29) Smokers’ Song by Imelda May off of Love Tattoo

0:50:30-0:52:36 (Rev. Interruption Background song 4: Etudes No.1 in E Minor – Allegro non troppo by Simeon Simov off of 66 Must-Have Spanish Guitar Masterpieces)

One time I was standing outside a venue, smoking one of my “goth-fag cigarettes,” when a guy came out, sniffed the air, and said “It smells like bad poetry out here.” I exploded with laughter and offered him one. He was a funny, nice guy… No point to this story – just one of those random encounters with strangers that brightens my moments whenever I remember it. We all have those, or at least, we can all be those.  

Anyway, back at the beginning of that block of sound were The Mills Brothers with Smoke Rings off their thoroughly enjoyable record Paper Doll. Then came that great advice Don’t Smoke In Bed from Ms. Nina Simone. In a kinda sweet song – even though she’s leaving, she doesn’t want us to immolate ourselves to the gods of tobacco and affordable-bedding. Then a melody I’m sure you recognized if you’ve ever been to an Italian restaurant. Lazy Mary (Lune Mezza Mare) my Luigi Monte. A fun, coming-of-age tale about a young lady trying to find the right suitor. An old and oft covered song, going back to the 1830s. It’s a bawdy tune, laced with innuendos. And we rapped it all up with a song about a young lady trying to find the right suitor by Imelda May simply called Smokers’ Song, from Love Tattoo. And now, on with the love songs to Nikateen by another Twiztid Monoxide-Child.

0:52:37-0:53:40) Nikateen by Twiztid out of The Green Book

0:53:41-0:55:37) Smoking by Bill Hicks off of Flying Saucer Tour, Vol. 1

0:55:38-0:57:59 One More Smoke by Reverend Glasseye off of Black River Falls

0:58:00-1:00:35) Get Smokes (Ft. Jessy Greene) by P.O.S off of Never Better

1:00:36-1:02:59 (Rev. Interruption Background song 5: Shotgun (Re-Recorded) by Billy Preston off of Cool Men Of R&B, Vol. 3)

I hope you appreciate me tarring my airways for you! And since I only smoke when I drink, I’m also infusing my organs with alcohol… (But I am sure that you do not) This is of course my way of thanking you for listening and keeping an opened mind (if you are still here) and apologizing for the slurry-sloppiness of this episode. Now, back to business.

The punk-friendly rap, or rap-friendly punk that just got done reverberating your brain-meats was, of course P.O.S with a Get Smokes off Never Better. Right before that we heard another from the one and only good Reverend, no great Reverend GlassEye from one of the few absolutely perfects albums I’ve owned, Black River Falls. That was One More Smoke. And before then we heard about Smoking again from the Sainted Bill Hicks. But this time it was off his Flying Saucer Tour, Vol. 1. Recorded 6/20/91, Pittsburgh, PA. The tour, so Called, because much like Flying Saucers he only appeared in small southern towns – in front of small hand-fulls of hillbillies – so much so he began doubting his own existence.

Now that we’re all feeling good and up, maybe it’s time to continue that trend of twangy tunes, and play a Patsy Cline number. Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray. But don’t worry, we’ll follow it up with a little more upbeat Masseduction called Smoking Section by, the absolutely astounding, St. Vincent.

1:03:00-1:05:09) Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray by Patsy Cline off of Greatest Hits – Crazy

1:05:10-1:08:37) Smoking Section by St. Vincent off of Masseduction

1:08:38-1:09:24 (Rev. Interruption Background song 6: My Buddy @julps by Mexican Institute Of Sound off of Politico)

Well, my lovely, smoldering souls, according to my handy dandy pocket watch we’ve been at this for over an hour now, which means it’s time we start preparing to go our separate ways. Hopefully I didn’t alienate too many non-smokers out there. But don’t worry, next month is a whole new collections of songs, with not single twang or hint of cigarette smoke. But, before we drift apart, I leave you in the very capable (nicotine stained) hands of the Chain Smoker, Chance The Rapper.

1:09:25-1:12:52) Chain Smoker by Chance The Rapper off of Acid Rap

1:12:53-1:15:14) Drive Thru by Monoxide Child off of ChainSmoker

1:15:15-1:17:50) Che La Luna by Louis Prima off of Angelina

Next Episode Will Be Up On The First Sunday In June

 

 

0:00;01-0:05:01) Make Me Laugh by DJ JS-1 featuring Rahzel off of Audio Technician

0:05:01-0:06:17 (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 1: Le Fakir de La Chapelle (El Cabaret Galactic – 1995) by Pascal Comelade off of Anemic Cinema (1995/1997)

Happy April and welcome to our little church of mirth and melody, Aurally Fixated. I am, of course, the same always, and I hope you are too. You can call me Rev. And what we just heard was a tune by beatboxer supreme Rahzel, from the Roots, with DJ JS-1 called, Make Me Laugh. 

“Why start the show with that?” you ask, well, as I’m sure you know, today is our day of national douche-baggery. April Fools Day. The day we’re expected to embarrass and laugh at the trusting, and those who give us the benefit of the doubt – with Hoaxes and Practical jokeses. I’m so glad those I surround myself with all seem have trust-issues, we don’t do that shit because we know how difficult trust is to earn. So remember, seeing is not believing today, neither is reading, hearing, or believing.  

Before I get too comfortable up here on my high-horse, maybe we should just start this party.  

0:06:18-0:09:25) Chain Of Fools by Aretha Franklin & Mariah Carey off of Jewels In The Crown: All-Star Duets With The Queen

0:09:26-0:12:11) A Fool In Love by Ike & Tina Turner off of A Fool In Love

0:12:12-0:14:19) I’m An Emotional Idiot by Maggie Estep off of Love Is A Dog From Hell

0:14:20-0:16:29) Stupid Cupid by Connie Francis off of 50s Jukebox Hits

0:16:30-0:19:54) Lovefool (Bluegrass Rendition of the Cardigans) by Pickin’ On Series off of Pickin’ on the 90s

0:19:55-0:21:43 (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 2: Ode To Favouritism & Corruption by Merlin Shepherd Kapelye off of The Rough Guide To Klezmer Revival)

That’s enough “I’m just a fool for love” shit. I prefer something more like the amazing Greg Brown’s, “Love never made a fool of me, I always was one…” Or hell, even Billy Joel’s, “I don’t care what consequence it brings, I’ve been a fool for lesser things.” But to each their own I suppose.

What we just got done listening to was a Bluegrass Rendition of the Cardigans’ Lovefool from the Pickin’ On Serie of banjo covers. That one was off Pickin’ on the 90s. Before that we had Connie Francis with Stupid Cupid. Immediately preceding that was something we can all probably relate to at times, From Love Is A Dog From Hell that was the late, superb, Ms. Maggie Estep telling us how she can be An Emotional Idiot. 

Right before, we heard from Ike & Tina Turner with A Fool In Love… I don’t really know what to say about that… So I’m just going to tell you we kicked it off with Aretha Franklin & Mariah Carey doing a live duet of Chain Of Fools. Now, lets lighten the mood a bit shall we? Kinda.

0:21:44-0:26:44) When the Trickster Starts A-Poking (Bordello Kind of Guy) by Gogol Bordello off of Multi Kontra Culti vs. Irony

0:26:45-0:28:54) Hillbilly Joker by Hank Williams III off of Hillbilly Joker

0:28:55-0:32:12) Bad Jokes by Ceschi off of The One Man Band Broke Up

0:32:13-0:35:10) I Started a Joke (Bee Gees Cover) by Faith No More off of King for a Day… Fool for a Lifetime

0:35:11-0:37:02) (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 3: Sunray by MUTEMATH off of Odd Soul)

Rev. here to interrupt all the good musics to try and tell you what’s what. First we had, Gogol Bordello with When the Trickster Starts A-Poking (Bordello Kind of Guy) from their 2002 record Multi Kontra Culti vs. Irony. Then we followed that up with Hank Williams III with the title track off Hillbilly Joker. A hodgepodge of an album the record company screwed him out of and released without his consent. He recommends if you really want to hear it, you steal whichever way you prefer.

Then came a track from one of the best albums ever, The One Man Band Broke Up. By Ceschi. You owe it to yourself to listen to that album  – No, you owe it to yourself to buy and listen to it on repeat. And his album before that, They Hate Francisco False. And the one after Broken Bone Ballads. He also puts on an amazing show, and is also the head of Fake Four records, a great label. I try to get just about everything they put out.

Ok, enough of that. Before Bad Jokes by Ceschi we had the man of 1,000 voices, guess who. Mr. Mike Patton and Faith No More covering the Bee Gees’s I Started a Joke.

Now, one of my favorite songs. It’s not a joke, but it follows the structure off all good ones. It leads you down a path, only to jerk you away at the last moment with surprise – over and over again. Atmosphere with Always Coming Back Home To You.

0:37:03-0:40:39) Always Coming Back Home To You by Atmosphere off of Seven’s Travels

0:40:40-0:44:07) Life’s A Tragic Comedy by Osho off of In Wonder: The Narrow Road To The Deep North

0:44:08-0:50:09) Joke Ya Mind by Insane Clown Posse off of Beverly Kills 50187

0:50:10-0:51:54) (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 4: Chippin At My Jones by Trampled by Turtles off of Blue Sky and the Devil)

All the way from 1993 that was a bitter/sweet song, that kinda reminds me of Big Rock Candy Mountain. A hobo taking refuge from the world within his imagination, fantasizing an easier life after the one he’s in. That was Joke Ya Mind. By a very young Insane Clown Posse. I can practically hear your eyes, through space-n-time, rolling  judgmentally in my direction. But it’s April Fools Day, of course I’m going to play the iconoclastic court jesters of music: They poke fun at; religion, love, sex, death and whatever else people think is important. Sacred cows make the best… sex-toys. Mmmm, Blasphemous Pyro-necro-beastiality.

Anyway, before ICP, naturally, came the controversial guru Osho explaining to us how Life’s A Tragic Comedy. I read somewhere he said (and I’m paraphrasing here, with faulty memory) the only part of his sermons he was sure were true, were his jokes. Everything else was just his spiritual hearsay and guesses. Say what you will about him, he understood the power of laughter. Even before studies suggested it; lowers blood pressure, eases pain, Boosts the immune system, prevents heart disease, and helps with cancer. And so, to quote those other great spiritual teachers, The Coup, we should all Laugh, Love, n Fuck more.

0:51:55-0:55:39) Laugh/Love/Fuck by The Coup off of Pick A Bigger Weapon

0:55:40-0:58:03) BBC: Spaghetti Harvest in Ticino

0:58:04-1:00:57) The Laughing Gnome by David Bowie off of The Darem Anthology 

1:00:58-1:01:52) (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 5: Apocrypha (Interlude) by Immortal Technique off of The 3rd World)

Somewhere in that tangled jumble of strange sounds, was an April fools day prank the BBC played on the world back in 1957. The spaghetti Incident flooded them with calls of people asking where they could buy their own pasta trees. Then was David Bowie cracking wise about The Laughing Gnome. I like that one because it reminds me that it’s Ok to be dumb sometimes, to play the fool. And so here is my fellow Reverend Adam Glasseye with God Help You Dumb Boy.

1:01:53-1:06:39) God Help You Dumb Boy by Reverend Glass Eye off of Our Lady of The Broken Spine

1:06:40-1:06:59) Boy, That Was Dumb! By Garrison Keillor off of Plenty of Pretty Good Jokes

1:07:00-1:10:27) Magical Band of Fools by Dog Fashion Disco off of Committed to a Bright Future 

1:10:28-1:12:06) (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 6: Luv Dirge #2 by Viva Le Vox off of Luv Hungry Part 1)

To my; jesters, suckers, fools, and asses, fear not, I believe it’s far better to be gullible than cynical. You may be taken for a ride, or be the butt of a joke every now and again, but at least you don’t have to see the world at large as an enemy. And life’s just better if you can convince yourself that it’s not out to get you. I mean, even if the pessimists are right, and it can all only end in tears – at least the optimists have more fun until it does!    

I could pontificate ad-infinitum, but it’s that time yet again. However, before we part, just a few loose ends to tie up. What you just heard was Dog Fashion Disco with Magical Band of Fools from Committed to a Bright Future. Before that was a track called Boy, That Was Dumb! From the Prairie Home Companion folks.

Thank you so much for your open minds and ear-holes. And now I leave you with a little reminder that laughter is holy. It shifts your perspective and promotes creativity. It strengthens our bonds when we do it together. It relaxes us  – so always try and laugh at your fears, it’ll make you bold. Laughter improves your mood so remember to laugh in the face of sorrows. Laugh away the pointing fingers, shame, and the negative-self-talk, Laugh at all the obstacles. And so I leave you with a Laughter Crescendo by Bassnectar. Their 2012 version.

1:12:07-1:18:00) Laughter Crescendo [2012 Version] by Bassnectar off of Vava Voom

 

 0:00:01-0:03:47) Yodelling Overtures by Mary Schneider off of Yodelling the Classics, Vol. 1

0:03:48-0:05:18 (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music1: Arco Arena by Cake off of Comfort Eagle)

Fuck yes! Australia’s Queen of Yodeling, Ms. Mary Schneider. I’ll never forget the first time I heard that. At a burn, the wee-small hours of the morning. Messed-up, and outside-in, hung-over and strung-out. Suffering from a terminal case of excess and sleep-deprivation. Through some innate survival, homing instinct I’d found my tent and landed gracefully face-down, just outside it. Close enough. Then, just as dawn was breaking apart the night, I heard that and thought. “Oh my Jesus-titty-fucking-Christ! Fuck yes!” And was left with no choice but to dig myself out of my grave, and go start a mosh-pit. 

Well, that’s all you really need to know about me. So Me welcomes you to the eighth day of March edition of Aurally Fixated. Speaking of mosh-pits, from 8 Convulsions here is Crisis with More than Down.

0:05:19-0:08:39) More than Down by Crisis off of 8 Convulsions

0:08:40-0:11:18) Born to Fight by Tracy Chapman off of CrossRoads

0:11:19-0:13:32) Growl by Tanya Tagaq off of Auk / Blood

0:13:33-0:18:32) Fight Like a Girl by Emilie Autumn off of Fight Like a Girl

0:18:33-0:19:18) (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 2: My Buddy @julps by Mexican Institute Of Sound off of Politico)

The exasperated anthem that just got done with us was the title-track from Emilie Autumn’s Fight Like a Girl album. I hear she puts on an astounding show, but I’ve still yet to have the pleasure. Someday.

The beautiful strangeness immediately preceding it was a some Inuit throat singing by the amazing Tanya Tagaq. From her Auk / Blood album that was Growl. 

And right before that we were graces by Tracy Chapman explaining how she was Born to Fight. 

Now, here is Uncle Bonsai’s fun little confession about their Penis Envy.

0:19:19-0:23:26) Penis Envy by Uncle Bonsai off of The Inessential Uncle Bonsai

0:23:27-0:26:39) Man-Size by PJ Harvey off of Rid of Me 

0:26:40-0:29:05) Wamba by Joules Graves off of Plunge!

0:29:06-0:31:55) Thunder Thighs by Miss Evens off of Feminasty

0:31:56-0:33:14) (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 3: 4 O’clock Reprise by Emilie Autumn off of Fight Like a Girl)

Rev. Butting in again just to make it easier for you to find these albums and artiste should you decide to support them in any way. 

We started off with Penis Envy from The Inessential Uncle Bonsai. Then came PJ Harvey telling us about her Man-Size from her Rid of Me record. Then followed Jules Graves spreading the Good Word of Wamba. And finally, we heard about Miss Evens’ Thunder Thighs.

In honor of National Woman’s Day, This 80 minutes is nothing but the Matrons of Music. So to get to as much of it was we can, let’s get back to all the pretty noise. 

0:33:15-0:36:33) Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do by Billie Holiday off of From The Original Decca Masters  

0:36:34-0:40:14) Gramma (Blue Ribbon Sparkler Trailer Heaven) by Lana del Rey off of Kill Kill

0:40:15-0:45:55) Papa Don’t Preach by Madonna off of True Blue (Reissue)

0:45:56-0:48:40) Oh Bondage Up Yours! By X-Ray Spex off of Germ Free Adolescents

0:48:41-0:49:41 (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 4: Midtown by Tom Waits off of Rain Dogs)

That was the savage power of Ms. Poly Styrene’s vocals! Over some dirty punk sax with Oh Bondage Up Yours! by the one-of-kind X-Ray Spex.

And, I’m sure I don’t have to tell you, but before that we heard from mid-80s Madonna, with her catchy little melody about confessing teenage pregnancy to her father with, Papa Don’t Preach. Just before that was Gramma off Lana del Rey’s 2008 EP Kill Kill. Then, we started it off with another singular voice, the one-and-only Billie Holiday with her version of Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do. And speaking of things that Tain’t Nobody’s Biz-ness 

0:49:42-0:53:47) Hungry Woman’s Blues by Saffire – The Uppity Blues Women off of Cleaning House

0:53:48-0:56:55) Get It While You Can by Janis Joplin off of Pearl

0:56:56-1:00:24) Get Up In It by Solé off of Skin Deep

1:00:25-1:04:23) Don’t Call Her No Tramp by Betty Davis off of They Say I’m Different

1:04:24-1:06:14) (Rev. Interruption BackGround Music 5: Brilliant Adventure by David Bowie off of Hours)

Yes, I do know there are other grand lady’s of funk besides Betty Davis, and perhaps I should give them some air-time, but there is just something about this woman! From They Say I’m Different that was Don’t Call Her No Tramp. And before that was Solé from her Skin Deep album, a tune called Get up in It. Then there was Janis Joplin with Get It While You Can. And we started it all off with The Uppity Blues Women, Saffire rhapsodizing about their Hungry Woman’s Blues. From their Cleaning House record.

That’s it for me for this episode. Part of me feels I’ve given a lot of the songs and artists the short shrift, but in the end I decided to just stay out of the way of the music and let it do it’s magic. So, without much trivia of testifying I’ll just thank you for listening, and keeping this pirate-radio show in my head from being just in my head. And ‘ll leave with Polly Jean Harvey and a different take on Man-Size, with a Sextet. Then Ani DiFranco with the title track off Not A Pretty Girl. Which will be followed by I’m Not A Normal Girl by Maggie Estep. And lastly, we’ll hear JoyDrop. Until next time – or never – whichever comes first. This has been Aurally Fixated, I’ve been Rev. And You’ve been Beautiful. 

1:06:15-1:08:27) Man-Size (Sextet) by PJ Harvey off of Rid Of Me

1:08:27-1:12:24) Not A Pretty Girl by Ani DiFranco off of Not A Pretty Girl

1:12:25-1:14:54) I’m Not A Normal Girl by Maggie Estep off of No More Mister Nice Girl

1:14:55-1:18:55) Beautiful by JoyDrop off of Metasexual

0:00:01-0:03:35 ) Let’s Get It Started (Spike Mix) by The Black Eyed Peas off of Elephunk.

0:03:36-0:04:47 (Rev. interruption 1. Background music: Il Tramonto by Ennio Morricone off of Kill Bill, Vol. 2 soundtrack)  

Yes, Let’s Get It Started. What you just got done listening to was, of course, The Black Eyed Peas, with the more P.C. version of that song. If you’ve had Elephunk you know what I mean. But enough stirring the pot, lets dive right back into the sound waves. I’ve had a crush on this next artist since the first time I heard her. And this that very song. One of the most influential folks of funk  you’ve probably never hear of, from They Say I’m Different, this is Betty Davis with Git In There.

0:04:47-0:09:16) Git In There (Record Plant Rough Mixes) by Betty Davis off of They Say I’m Different

0:09:17-0:13:30) Budo by John Coltrane & Miles Davis off of The Complete Columbia Recordings: Miles Davis & John Coltrane.

0:13:31-0:17:12) Mata Hari by The Atomic Fireballs off of Torch This Place. 

0:17:13-0:18:10 (Rev. interruption 2. Background music: Apocrypha by Immortal Technique off of The 3rd World)   

I’ll keep it brief because I want to fit all the music I can in this episode. First we had the always, in all-ways, alluring Ms. Davis, then we had her ex-husband Mr. Miles Davis playing with John Coltrane on a track called Budo. Then came The Atomic Fireballs with a song about Mata Hari off their album Torch This place.

Well, I think I’m in the mood for a bit of reggae. So I’ll meet you right back here, in about… 14 minuets or so. 

0:18:11-0:22:20) Buffalo Soldier by Bob Marley & The Wailers off of Legend.

0:22:21-0:25:45) All Night by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley & Stephen Marley off of Welcome To Jamrock.

0:25:45-0:29:12) Babylon by Skindred off of Babylon.

0:29:13-0:32:00) I Against I by Bad Brains off of I Against I 

0:32:01-0:32:48 (Rev. interruption 3. Background music: Dee by Ozzy Osbourne off of Blizzard Of Ozz)   

Ahh, the evolution for reggae. That was Bad Brains with their song I against I off their record of the same name. Before that was Skindred with a song off their first, and pretty amazing album, Babylon. (I usually love it when to distinct genres breed a new.)  

Before that we heard, Damian & Stephen Marley with All Night. And, of course, we started it all off with the Buffalo Soldier, Bob Marley. 

Well; Brothers, sisters, this’, thats, and th others, as I said, the less time I dilly with my dally the more songs we get, so without any further ado the Carolina Chocolate Drops.

0:32:49-0:36:05) Po’ Black Sheep by Carolina Chocolate Drops off of Leaving Eden

0:36:06-0:37:38) Down On The Farm by Big Al Downing off of Rockin’ Bones: 1950s Punk & Rockabilly.

0:37:39-0:40:53) I Play Chicken With The Train by Cowboy Troy Feat. Big & Rich off of Loco Motive

0:40:54-0:42:36 (Rev. interruption 4. Background music: Crow Waltz by The Be Good Tanyas off of Hello Love)  

I warned you. I love the ugly mutt offspring from the mating of two different genres. That was Cowboy Troy with I Play Chicken With The Train. Just before that we had, Big Al Downing telling us about what it’s like Down On The Farm. And we started this set off with with Carolina Chocolate Drops doing Po’ Black Sheep off Leaving Eden. In an interview Rhiannon, said, one thing that always gets left out of the history of traditional county-folk music, is the huge part black folk played in it. That stretch of songs was with her in mind. 

I’ve never know much of anything about my family lineage. But still I’d be remiss If my February episode wasn’t one in honor of Black history Month. But lets listen to the amazing poet, Saul Williams.

0:42:37-0:48:00) Black Stacey by Saul Williams off Saul Williams

0:48:001-0:50:11) Brown-Eyed Handsome Man by Chuck Berry off of The Great Twenty-Eight

0:50:12-0:53:53) 100 Days, 100 Nights by Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings off of 100 Days, 100 Nights.

0:53:54-0:59:16) Wicked Games by The Weeknd off of House Of Balloons

0:59:17-0:00:03 (Rev. interruption 5. Background music: A Short Reprise For Mary Todd, Who Went Insane, But For Very Good Reasons by Sufjan Stevens off of Come On Feel The Illinoise!)   

First we had Saul Williams sharing with us about his adolescent insecurities in Black Stacey off, what I believe is, his first album Saul Williams. Then came Chuck Berry to try and tell him lots of people are looking for a Brown-Eyed Handsome Man. After that we heard from the late, great, Sharon Jones and her Dap-Kings telling us how long it took her love fall apart, from her 2007 release 100 Days, 100 Nights. And then came The Weeknd to give us another point of view with Wicked Games from the House Of Balloons.

0:00:04-0:04:02) Good Ass Intro by Chance the Rapper off of Acid Rap

0:04:03-1:08:13) Feel Good by (hed) p.e. off of Broke

1:08:13-1:08:52 (Rev. interruption 6. Background music: Oni Swan by Man Man off of On Oni Pond)

First, that was Chance the Rapper from his Acid Rap record, which he gives free to all who want it, all you have to do is go download it. Then we heard from (hed) p.e. off their amazing album Broke. 

That’s all we have the time for this month. You’ll be hearing from me again around the 8th of March. But, since I like to leave you on a high note, here is Chris Rock to explain to us all about Drugs, Donuts, and Wealth.

1:08:52-1:18:54) Drugs, Donuts, and Wealth by Chris Rock off of Never Scared 

 0:00:01 – 0:01:24 (Rev. talking 1 background music: The Magic Flute: Theme & Variations Op.9: II. Var.5 and Coda by Georgi Moravsky off of 66 Must-Have Spanish Guitar Masterpieces)

Sisters, brothers, those both or neither – It’s midnight :01. Today had become yesterday, and tomorrow today. I’m sure I won’t be your first welcome you to the new year, but that’s hardly a reason not to do it. I just want to quickly say that I truly hope; you, your year, and life, out there in the Land of Ears, just keeps improving over the next 365. Things back here in the Land of the Mouths have been kinda bleak the past few years. The light at the end of the tunnel is so far away it looks like a cold and distant (Reality-TV) star. Thank goodness for the; therapeutic, restorative, and inspirational, effects of music. That’s the whole purpose of our little Sanctuary of Song here. You can call me Rev. and this is Aurally Fixated.

In the spirit of celebrating the healing effects of sounds on the soul, this is Mr. Foxy Shazam, with all his flamboyant majesty turned up to 11, here to say, Welcome To The Church Of Rock And Roll.

0:01:25-0:03:27) Welcome To The Church Of Rock And Roll by Foxy Shazam off of The Church Of Rock And Roll. 

0:03:28-0:06:24) Welcome Home by Twiztid off of Independents Day

0:06:25-0:07:01 (Rev. talking 2. Background music: The Eye of the Storm by Mikelangelo And The Black Sea Gentlemen off of Journey Through the Land of Shadows)

As the Twiztid gentlemen said, Welcome Home. No matter how complicate the rest of existence gets never forget we can always take shelter in the magic of music. Some tunes bring us up. Others slow us down. It’s Emotion at our fingertips. We can use different melodies to enhance or counterbalance our moods. Like medicine, or drugs. Or like tools we can use to help us create our new year. The new chapter in our lives, Our new Anthem.

0:07:02-0:09:27)My Current Anthem by Iyeoka off of Say Yes

0:09:28-0:13:15) This Year by The Mountain Goats off of The Sunset Tree

0:13:16-0:17:18) This Year by The Coup off of Sorry To Bother You

0:17:19-0:18:04) I Want Something More by Bad Religion off of No Control

0:18:05-0:20:28 (Rev. talking 3. Background music: Minuets Op.11: No.7 in A Minor – Andante by Simeon Simov off of 66 Must-Have Spanish Guitar Masterpieces)

Rev.  again here to interrupt the music like a needle sliding across a record. It’s a dirty job but somebody’s got to let you know how to find and support these artists, so they can continue making reverberations that resound through the world. And since it’s my silly little brain this pirate-radio show exists in, I guess that somebody’s gotta be me. I honestly hope we’re helped to make your international hangover day a little more bearable.

We started that cluster of anthemic songs off with the amazing; artist, singer, poet, educator, activist Iyeoka – with a breathtaking piece called My Current Anthem off her Say Yes record. Then we heard the bitter-sweet baying of The Mountain Goats with their determined predictions about This Year. Which was followed by a song of the same name by The Coup from their 2012 album (Both related and unrelated to Boots’s film) Sorry To Bother You. And what just got done trembling your ear-balls was the barber-shop-quartet of the punk world, Bad Religion, who, like everyone else in this block of music, was just saying, “I Want Something More.”

 

Like everyone – I guess. Always wanting something more, but not exactly know what, or how to get it. Just a hazy notion that one day – in the future – we’ll be better. That tomorrow-us is a totally different person than today-us, and they’ll have it all figured out, and they’ll want to do all the things we don’t care enough to today. But then five years passes and we realize that we’re still the same person, with the same goals, just 1,825 days older. And if today-us isn’t really working towards those wants, tomorrow-us probably won’t be either. Which raises the question, are we going to start working towards them today – or admit we don’t really want it enough? And now to say something similar much lovelier, from the album Amanda Palmer Goes Down Under is guess who, with the song In My Mind.  

 0:20:29-0:24:39) In My Mind (feat. Brian Viglione) by Amanda Palmer off of Amanda Palmer Goes Down Under

0:24:40-0:28:17) The Perfect Plan by The Bombay Royale off of You Me Bullets Love

0:28:18-0:28:30) Life Sentence by Michael Franti & Spearhead off of Chocolate Supa Highway

0:28:31-0:31:09) Life Sentence by Dead Kennedys off of Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death 

0:31:10-0:34:25) Ghost Of Corporate Future by Regina Spektor off of Soviet Kitsch

0:34:26-0:36:07 (Rev. talking 4. Background music: We Are All Fire (Intro) by cars & trains off of We Are All Fire)

I promise I’m not always this preachy, this time of year just wrings it out of me. Since I rambled so long last break, I’ll try to keep things concise this time. (But I’m not making any promises.) 

We started off with Ms. Amanda Palmer singing In My Mind. Then came The Bombay Royale to tell us about The Perfect Plan from their absolutely flawless record You Me Bullets Love. Then we an itty-bitty snippet from Michael Franti & Spearhead’s album Chocolate Supa Highway called Life Sentence. We followed that with a Dead Kennedys tune about loosing a friend to the dreary existence of lifelong-servitude to bosses and business, also called Life Sentence. And in a similar vein we then heard about a gentleman who had a run-in with the  Ghost Of Corporate Future and decided to make some changes in his life before it’s too late by Regina Spektor. 

Yes we bounce around through many genres of emotion. It’s helps with the whole tones, and tools, and tunes thing. So I hope you have eclectic tastes, or at least an opened mind. And hopefully, during our 80 minutes or so together maybe you’ll have your musical tastes expanded a bit. Thank you for even making it this far.

Now, continuing with the whole new-year, new-you theme I think it might be time for something more… rousing. Something about Becoming. Something like Pantera.

0:36:08-0:39:11) Becoming by Pantera off of Far Beyond Driven

0:39:12-0:42:59) New Skin by Incubus off of S.C.I.E.N.C.E

0:43:00-0:45:07) Transformer by Marnie Stern off of This Is It and I Am It and You Are It and So Is That and He Is It and She Is It and It Is It and That Is That  

0:45:08-0:47:33) She Ain’t a Child No More by Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings off of I Learned the Hard Way

0:47:34-0:49:37 (Rev. talking 5. Background music: Riot In Thunder Alley by Eddie Beram off of Death Proof (soundtrack)

That  was the tragically late, amazingly great, Sharon Jones & her Dap-Kings with She Ain’t a Child No More off her 2010 record I Learned the Hard Way. 

Immediately previous to Ms. Jones was Marnie Stern from her album This Is It, and I Am It, and You Are It, and So Is That, and He Is It, and She Is It, and It Is It, and That Is That. Got it? Good. And before that we heard from Incubus with a pretty little ditty about how even after we are wounded we rebuild ourselves, sometimes stronger called, New Skin. I just really love the Richard Buckminster Fuller sample in it about how people thought the world was all they could experience with their naked senses – until we discovered the electromagnetic spectrum and realized that what we experience through our senses is less than one-millionth of our thus far discovered reality.

0:49:38-0:54:43) Brand New Day by Van Morrison off of MoonDance

0:54:44-0:56:29) Brand New Day by Neil Patrick Harris off of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.

0:56:30-0:59:59) A Glorious Dawn by Symphony of Science off of Symphony of Science

1:00:00-1:04:36) Beginning To See The Light by The Velvet Underground off of The Velvet Underground

1:04:37-1:07:05 (Rev. talking 6. Background music: A Pistol For Paddy Garcia by The Pogues off of Rum, Sodomy And The Lash)

Yes, I know, another staggeringly strange shuffled stack of songs. I ain’t mad at it though, hope you ain’t either. But, as you probably know we set it all off with Van Morrison from his MoonDance record. 

And if your an odd-duck like me, I’m sure you recognized Neil Patrick Harris singing another melody called Brand New Day from Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. If you haven’t seen it, it’s on YouTube and worth your time. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, your soul will grow cold, and you’ll want to take over, or destroy the world… It wasn’t just me, right?

Then came another weird one called Symphony of Science. A project by John Boswell, like a 21st century SchoolHouse Rock! Trying to spread knowledge through music. But unlike SchoolHouse Rock! he “pitch-corrected” and remixed actual scientists into his music. He made a video for A Glorious Dawn. Using the actual video he took the audio from Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking, which is pretty funny to watch these geniuses visually remixed to match the sound. 

And of course we wrapped it all up Beginning To See The Light with The Velvet Underground.  

Now, I’m sorry to say, this about brings an end to this edition of Aurally Fixated. But before I go, I guess I should mention that it’s “aural” the a-u-r-a-l kind. Which according to my big dictionary means “relating to the ear, or the sense of hearing.” And if you’ll let me, over the next year or so, I’d love to stretch the Aural regions of your brain a bit. Speaking of which, I guess I will leave you with a couple of songs about The Future from a couple more artist I love. Ms. Imani Coppola, from her album The Glass Wall. And of course, Mr. Leonard Cohen. 

1:07:06-1:11:24) The Future by Imani Coppola off of The Glass Wall

1:11:26-1:18:17) The Future by Leonard Cohen off of Live In London.