This week, She'sAJukeboxHerocelebrated its first birthday! What better way to celebrate than by playing my first playlist, TunesThatMixWellWithTonic, and having a few cocktails. Yes, it was a fine celebration... But something always seems to happen when we drink with friends. Somehow, at some point in the evening, the playlist gets... Weird.
It's a phenomenon known to some (specifically my cousin, Brandie) as "drunkloading", the act of downloading songs while drinking, and it always leads to an overly shameful iTunes history the next morning. This list usually consists of songs you wouldn't dare admitting to enjoying when you're sober, but somehow know all the words to when you're drunk. You probably have dance moves for these songs as well. The practice isn't absent in those who don't partake in the occasional cocktail, either. My sober friends can chalk it up to mob mentality or guilty pleasures, but I know we've all been there.
Boney M
I decided to dig a little deeper, and after some surveying of my friends and family, this is what I've come up with. Dear readers, I bring to you perhaps the most shameful playlist to date. Spoiler alert, Bony M makes more than one appearance on this list. That being said, here it is!
I've always had a love/hate relationship with cover songs. When I was a kid, I loved being more aware of the original versions of the songs being covered. Like when Lauryn Hill and the Fugees covered Killing Me Softlyby Roberta Flack. WE LIVED FOR THIS SONG. But knowing the original song suddenly became this source of credibility for me among my friends - I knew the lyrics to the song, I knew who wrote it, and I could sing along almost right away. I felt like I was on the inside, that I knew something that most of the audience didn't. It was empowering.
In high school, I flip flopped. On one hand, I got upset when people covered Beatles songs, because no matter how good they were (think I'm Only Sleepingby the Vines) they weren't as good as the originals. To everyone's surprise, at first, I HATED the I Am Sam soundtrack (I have since changed my ways). On the other hand, I loved Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies, especially their version of Nothing Compares 2 U. And Mandy. Mandy was pretty great. Those covers were fun, and served their purpose well as fuel for my teen angst.
There was also a very dark time in my listening life. A time where the Punk Goes series of compilation albums were in heavy rotation. I'm not lying when I tell you this was mostly what I listened to when I was out running... but I definitely also listened avidly in my car. In all honesty, however, the only reason I know the lyrics to Rhianna's Umbrella is because of All Time Low's version of it. We don't usually speak of this time.
Thankfully, my tastes have grown and improved. More songs have been written and subsequently covered. I don't have to fill this list with punk versions of oldies or pop songs (even though that's a pretty fun idea... and may be something I do in the not-so-distant future). But I will give you a taste of some of my favourite covers to date. I've even included links to the original! Get into it!
There's a great version out there somewhere with Connor Oberst and Ben Gibbard as the rest of the Wilburys, but I couldn't find it on youtube.
Florence and Kid Harpoon - Going Down (Bruce Springsteen cover) Such a refreshing take on an old standby. Florence can honestly do no wrong. Her version of Robert Palmer's Addicted to Lovegets an honourable mention.
Rock Plaza Central - Sexyback (Justin Timberlake cover) Another one of those songs that helped familiarize me with something I wouldn't have listened to otherwise. It's a wonderful, folksy version of a song that used to make me want to drink bleach.
Hole - Gold Dust Woman (Fleetwood Mack) This song has always been somewhat of an anthem for me, and I've always held the lyrics pretty closely. Courtney Love definitely does it justice, and while Stevie Knicks is the queen, Hole's version is still pretty kick-ass.
J Mascis - Fade Into You (Mazzy Star cover) The original version of this one is so incredibly dreamy and romantic, and Mascis' attempt is no different. He makes this song his own, without compromising that distinct 90's aesthetic. Front runner for my wedding song, FYI.
Jack White - Jolene (Dolly Parton cover) If you were to tell me that this was the original version of this song, (in this instance, pretend I'm a little dumber than I really am. Maybe a little cuter too.) I'd completely believe it. Jack White channels his inner Dolly Parton, and sells it straight through till the end. I almost wish he'd wrote it himself.
SIDEBAR: This is a really rad contest the Arkells ran, encouraging fans and other artists to cover their single Leather Jacket. Check it out here! Happy listening!!!
I kind of had a hard time in high school. Don't get me wrong - I wasn't bullied or anything, but I did feel a tad detached from the rest of my peers. There's no denying that I was sort of different. Maybe not obviously different, but perhaps more obviously than I originally thought. I'm not sure. What I do know, however, was how hard pressed I was to find those with similar musical interests as me. In a time where pop music was king, it was tough to find someone else who had "Veni Vidi Vicious" on heavy rotation. Oh sure, I had friends. Lots of whom I'm still close with today. But my real companions were Jack White, Chris Carrabba, Jim Adkins, and Julian Casablancas. So for this post, I'm going to step back in time a little bit and invite you to slip on my headphones. Here's what a day in the listening life of 17 year old Heather sounds like...
Jimmy Eat World - Your House
My sad, angsty, teenage self would ride the bus downtown to my co-op placement every day. I would listen to this on my diskman, pine over my ex boyfriend (who had a new girlfriend), and sigh while looking longingly out the bus window. This was the fuel for my sad, romantic daydreams. This is what unrequited love sounds like.
The White Stripes - Hotel Yorba
I thought the White Stripes were SO COOL (let's be real, I still do), and I thought I was so cool for being into them (I don't think that anymore). Fell In Love With A Girl was so different than what I was used to hearing at the time. It was so edgy and raw. My favourite track on White Blood Cells however, was Hotel Yorba (still is).
The Used - The Taste of Ink
Another band I felt was edgy and angsty and loud. I would listen to The Taste of Ink every morning while flipping my hair out in the mirror. "Is it worth it? Can you even hear me?" seemed like a question worth asking every morning before school, and for me at the time, the answer was always a resounding "NO!" This song was also the song that was playing the first time I ever crowd surfed.
The Vines - Get Free
One of the bands to gain popularity during the "THE" band revolution, they were one of the bands tasked with "saving rock and roll". The Vines were another band that served it up loud and fast, and that energy and adrenaline reminded me of the punk bands I so loved. If I had to get up and face another day of hell (read: high school), this was certainly going to be my motivation to do so.
Dashboard Confessional - Saints and Sailors
I had two moods in high school - sad and angry. When I wasn't listening to the rock albums I adored, I chose to celebrate my sadness by listening to the love of my life - Chris Carrabba (He's a beautiful man.). With his pompadour hairdo, puppy dog eyes, and acoustic guitar, he had me wanting desperately to be the girl he was singing about. And when I didn't want that, it was because I was too busy trying to feel that exact same way about a certain someone else in my life. Either way, we used to listen to this song while driving around town, singing loudly and talking about our ex's.
The Strokes - Last Night
This list would not be complete without my favourite song (at that time) from my favourite album (at that time). This song was always on repeat, was always turned up way too loud, and always got me dancing and bopping around my room. I couldn't believe that more of my friends weren't as in love with this album as I was. As I got a little older, I did meet a lot of friends who had similar tastes as I did, and you know what? They all loved this album too. Who knew?
So there you have it. The songs that 17 year old me was most guilty of overplaying. It will take all of my strength not to fall into that trap again now. I wish you luck!
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