Okay, so I overslept yesterday and didn’t make it to yoga. I’m definitely going to try to make the effort to wake up and get there today. This song by Suicidal Tendencies is one of their more popular ones, and I understand why. It’s definitely one of my top “get pumped up, fuck the world, I’m the best” tracks.
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You Can’t Bring Me Down by Suicidal Tendencies at Grooveshark.
Here another song in keeping with the working in entertainment theme. Though it’s about the music industry specifically, there’s some wisdom in this Cypress Hill track that applies to working in all aspects of entertainment. There’s literally a lecture stuck in the middle of it.
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Rock Superstar by Cypress Hill at Grooveshark.
I suppose if this song came out today, it would have to be called East Harlem, but that doesn’t really have the same ring to it. One of the most influential pop songs of all time, Spanish Harlem is written & produced by Lieber & Stoller (with Phil Spector somehow wrangling a credit in their somewhere) and originally performed by Ben E. King in 1960 after going solo, it has since been covered by artists ranging from Aretha Franklin to Tom Jones, and referenced in other songs by the likes of Elton John and Rob Thomas.
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Spanish Harlem by Ben E. King at Grooveshark.
A change of pace since I’ve posted mostly rock oriented stuff for the last few days. The South Bronx Subway Rap is from the film Wild Style, which is the original hip-hop movie. A lot of the movie was shot on the Lower East Side, including the climactic concert sequence at the East River Amphitheater, which was torn down several years ago as part of so-called “urban renewal.” The mural that Lee painted was still on the fucking building when they tore it down; I still feel some effort should have been made to preserve it. At least we’ll always have the music.
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South Bronx Subway Rap by Grandmaster Caz at YouTube.
The last of this Independence Day series is Don McLean‘s signature song. The lyrics are open to interpretation, but there’s no arguing that it’s a great song, a true classic.
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American Pie by Don McLean at Grooveshark.
A lot of people are under the mistaken impression that professional wrestler Hulk Hogan performed this song, but it’s actually by Rick Derringer. The Hulkster used it as his entrance music throughout the 1980s, and it remains a staple of pop culture showing up in everything from the HBO series Eastbound & Down, to the 2011 White House Correspondent’s Dinner. You know you love it, you just won’t admit it publicly.
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Real American by Rick Derringer at Grooveshark.
Originally recorded for the 1980 remake of The Jazz Singer, this became one of Neil Diamond‘s signature tunes. Oddly enough, it was pulled from many radio stations lineups in the United States following the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, presumably because it presents a positive view of immigration.
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America by Neil Diamond at Grooveshark.
Today is Independence Day in the United States, so for the next few days I’ll be posting some American themed songs.
This is one of the more popular songs from the film Team America: World Police, which is ostensibly a spoof of jingoistic action movies, but is so well made that it actually serves as better cinematic adaptation of G.I. Joe cartoons than G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. Since its release, the film plays annually on television around now; I can guarantee that some network somewhere in America will be showing it today. The song is also intended as a parody of various patriotic tracks that flooded the airwaves in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, but for those of us who can look at America honestly and truly love it for what it is, it does stir a sort of perverse feeling of pride. The fact that it’s a kick ass track helps a lot, and even somehow makes American icons way cooler than they probably should be. The lyrics are written by Trey Parker, the music by Marc Shaiman. By the way, if you haven’t figured it out yet, it has explicit lyrics.
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America Fuck Yeah! by Team America at Grooveshark.
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