Everything But The Girl - Missing (Todd Terry Remix)

DJ/house producer Todd Terry's remix of the Everything But The Girl track "Missing" off 1994's Amplified Heart album totally reinvented the duo's sound as we knew it, throwing them head first into the house scene of the mid-90's that Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt had more than a little interest in as it were. Turning their melancholic songs away from the quiet musings of their take on jazz, bossa nova, soul, pop or country even, and over in the direction of modern dance music was a stroke of genius that nobody really could have imagined, with the possible exception of from Todd Terry. It even turned the duo into some sort of semi-superstars for a while, and they recorded two brilliant albums, Walking Wounded (1996) and Temperamental (1999) expanding on Terry's ideas, before they called it quits. Today they've both revived themselves as solo artists and authors (I'm currently reading Tracey's brilliant book about singing, Naked At The Albert Hall), are still married, but with no plans to reform as a duo as far as I know. Still, their solo careers are worth following, with Tracey having just released an EP's worth of film music, Songs From The Falling, and Ben released his second solo album Hendra last year, 31 years after the first.

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Hellbillies - Som ein båt på land

Hellbillies fra Ål i Hallingdal er et favorittband. Fra den gang vokalist Aslag Haugen sto bak disken hos Imerslund, den velfylte platesjappa i Arkaden i Oslo og sjefen hans fortalte meg at han hadde et kult band som hadde spilt inn plate, og frem til i dag, har Hellbillies vært en del av livet mitt. At jeg selv er vokst opp med hytte i de samme traktene bandet kommer fra, mer presist på høyfjellet over Vats, skader vel heller ikke. "Som ein båt på land" er blant bandets ALLER fineste sanger, hentet fra deres tredje og muligens beste plate, Lakafant, utgitt i 1995. Den hørte jeg første gang på hytta i Ål da jeg og et par venner, en av dem Else fra plateselskapet BMG som ga ut Hellbillies på den tiden, hadde med albumet noen uker før utgivelse. Vi spilte den ihjæl den helgen, og jeg er like glad i låta fremdeles. Her er den i en liveversjon fra nyere tid - like fin!

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Mark Knopfler - Are We In Trouble Now

Mark Knopfler has just released his eighth proper solo album, Tracker, which is brilliant, but let's head back to 1996 and his first solo album Golden Heart. After extensive soundtrack work, projects with The Notting Hillbillies band and Chet Atkins, a last stab at Dire Straits and more, this signalled a more focused direction for the singer/songwriter/guitarist Knopfler. The album was a hit in several countries, featuring songs like "Darling Pretty" and "Rüdiger", and he saved one of the best for last. "Are We In Trouble Now" is the perfect album closer, a beautiful country ballad with loads of feeling, especially as evidenced by Knopfler's trademark guitar work towards the very end. A stunning song that shouldn't be overlooked.

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Toad The Wet Sprocket - All I Want

There are very few musicians I've swapped lightbulb jokes with, but singer Glen Phillips of Toad The Wet Sprocket is one of them. Come to think of it, he's probably the only one. Anyway, during an interview before an early morning showcase, I guess we were both pretty tired, and the level of seriousness was way low. We had a good time though, and shortly afterwards Phillips and the other band members ran through a short, but very good set, highlighted by their best song ever, "All I Want". The song is lifted off their 1991 album Fear.

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The Blue Nile - Tinseltown Is In The Rain

"Tinseltown Is In The Rain" is probably the most famous song by Glasgow's wonderful group The Blue Nile, the ensemble that only comes together rarely to record beautiful, ethereal music unlike anything else but still remaining pop. It was featured on their celebrated 1984 debut album A Walk Across The Rooftops, but featured here is a live 1996 version as performed on the TV show Later With Jools Holland at the time of their third album, Peace At Last. Stunning, of course.

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U2 - Stay (Faraway, So Close!)

The U2 album Zooropa, released in 1993, was a kind of companion album to their masterful 1991 album Achtung Baby. Nowhere near as good, it did have a few good songs, chief amongst them was "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)". Originally it was written with Frank Sinatra in mind, but never got that far. The full story on the song can be read on Wikipedia, and it's pretty interesting, so I'll leave anyone interested to go there. Me, I'll stick with the actual song and the accompanying music video below which is fantastic, directed by none other than Wim Wenders, and featuring several of the actors from Wings Of Desire.

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Bob Woodruff - The Year We Tried To Kill The Pain

Happy birthday to Bob Woodruff who turns 53 today! Woodruff is blessed with an ability to write some truly extraordinary songs, but after two records things fell apart for him. His debut album Dreams & Saturday Nights (1994) and Desire Road (1997) are absolute favourites of mine, but a combination of bad luck, bad advice, a sick mother and a nasty heroin habit almost led to destruction and death. Well, he's back. After having released a "lost" record in 2011, he returned with a brand new one two years later, named after one of the best songs he's written, The Year We Tried To Kill The Pain. The album was a mix of old songs in newly recorded versions and newly written songs, and hopefully he's working his way towards another album as we speak. Featured here is the original version of the stunning "The Year We Tried To Kill The Pain" off his debut album. A true favourite of mine and quite the contender for best country rock song of the 1990's. Once more, happy birthday, Bob!

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Michael Jackson - Black Or White

After Off The Wall (1979), Thriller (1982) and Bad (1987), without producer Quincy Jones by his side, Michael Jackson had a hard time following this trio of pop masterpieces. Dangerous, released in 1991, still had a few gems, chief amongst them the first single "Black Or White". Bill Bottrell's awesome guitar riff (not played by Slash as many seem to think) is basically what gets the song going and it pumps through it as if there's no tomorrow, and the rhythm patterns further nails the track, making it one of the best songs among Jackson's later output. It also features a short rap segment performed by L.T.B. that was very much of its time. The video cost I don't know how many million dollars to produce and is amazingly directed by John Landis, who also made the famous "Thriller" video some years earlier.

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Sade - Cherish The Day

One of my all time favourite female singers, Helen Folasade Adu, more commonly known as Sade Adu, lead singer of the band Sade, sings more beautifully than most, and the band's songs are delicately structured compositions where pop and jazz meet and head for higher territory. There is an elegance to their songs rarely if ever found in popular music with Sade's silky smooth voice lying perfectly over subtle musicianship and ever so cool arrangements. I've never seen the band in the flesh, but I've seen a couple of their concert films, and they are remarkable. I'd really, really love to see them some day. For now though, we're headed for one of many classic videos, the beautifully shot "Cherish The Day", in black and white, with Sade on top of a New York City skyscraper, and as this song is off 1992's Love Deluxe album you can also see the Twin Towers in the background. An amazing song!

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The Mavericks - Dance The Night Away

Wehey! It's Fabulous Friday again and I so wanted to hear a Mavericks song. The reformed Florida country band has just released an awesome new album titled Mono which is SO much better than the 2013 comeback album In Time, but for the Fab Friday entry we really want to head for classic territory, going for the party classic "Dance The Night Away" from the 1998 album Trampolene. The video is of course great fun too. Have a look at this, then head over to my previous Fabulous Friday pickings.

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Bloodhound Gang - The Bad Touch

Stupid, but oh so catchy! Bloodhound Gang's 1999 single "The Bad Touch" is a party classic, mixing a great pop melody, 80's style synth riffs and uh... "racy" lyrics. All in good fun though, if not in the best of taste.

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The Offspring - Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)

It's Fabulous Friday and today we're going for the American punk rockers The Offspring and their awesome 1998 single "Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)" off their Americana album released the same year. It's juvenile and fun, in every way fitting for a Friday. Also, be sure to check out the previous Fab Friday posts here.

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Social Distortion - Don't Drag Me Down

American punk rock band Social Distortion still exists, after Dennis Danell and Mike Ness founded it as far back as 1979. When Danell died in 2000 the band were on hiatus and Ness were busy nursing a solo career, but Social Distortion has reformed since. Anyway, "Don't Drag Me Down" is a classic, very energetic song off the band's 1996 album White Llight, White Heat, White Trash. Now there's an awesome title if there ever were one. Play it loud, OK?

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Dave Alvin - From A Kitchen Table

This is the kind of song that perfectly explains why I love country music. Dave Alvin's 1998 composition "From A Kitchen Table" is like a short story set to song, an incredibly moving tale where the protagonist is a sorry and pathetic man who writes an imaginary letter to his one-time sweetheart from the kitchen table in his mom's old house where he still lives. This is classic, sad and very good country music, in every way an absolutely brilliant song, lifted from the album Blackjack David.

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The Cure - Friday I'm In Love

Inspired by my favourite radio show P3 Morgen at the Norwegian broadcaster NRK, I hereby launch a new feature - Fabulous Friday. That means that (hopefully) each Friday I will publish a song that specifically feels like something that signals the upcoming weekend. Silje Nordnes and Ronny Brede Aase in P3 Morgen play the Eurovision classic "Opa Opa" by Greek/Swedish act Antique each and every Friday, and also do a bingo where each of them has picked one song they feel like listening to, with one lucky winner of course. But here at Erik's Musical Diary, there will be one specific song each Friday and what better way to start than with The Cure's awesome 1992 single "Friday I'm In Love" off their less than great album Wish. So, from me to you, good Friday, everyone!

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The Waterboys - Glastonbury Song

A new Waterboys album generally fills me with joy, and Modern Blues, out on Monday, is no exception. You can listen to it here to see just how good it is. Essentially a rock album, it's Mike Scott and friends' heaviest album since 1993's Dream Harder, from which I felt like playing the astoundingly beautiful "Glastonbury Song".

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Slowdive - Ballad Of Sister Sue

Amazingly I had never heard the music of British shoegazing band Slowdive until this summer when I saw the reformed outfit perform a mesmerizing concert at Øyafestivalen here in Oslo. I totally fell in love with their atmospheric music, so here's a song off their 1991 debut Just For A Day, called "Ballad Of Sister Sue". It's so beautiful I almost feel like crying.

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Mary Chapin Carpenter feat. Joe Diffie - Not Too Much To Ask

Along with the awesome Nanci Griffth, Mary Chapin Carpenter was my favourite female country singer of the late 80's and early 90's. She released a string of absolutely beautiful albums filled to the brim with heartfelt, gorgeous songs about the human condition, literate in style, timeless in matter. "Not Too Much To Ask" is a duet recorded with Joe Diffie for her fourth album, 1992's Come On, Come On, the kind of love song that speaks of the unequivocal devotion that really matters.

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Henning Kvitnes - Alt jeg vil ha

Jeg skulle nok lagt ut Henning Kvitnes' nydelige og håpefulle "Alt jeg vil ha" på nyttårsaften eller deromkring, men den funker strengt tatt fint når som helst, til tross for at låtas "handling" utspiller seg på årets siste dag og det påfølgende års første natt. "Ingenting varer evig, men i natt så har jeg det bra", synger Kvitnes mens han klamrer seg til sin kjære med ønske om at det kan vare litt lenger. Sangen er hentet fra 1991-albumet Veien hjem og er en av mine absolutte Kvitnes-favoritter, og dette er en mann som altså har veldig mye fint på samvittigheten. Få norske låtskrivere er i stand til å skrive så klokt - og enkelt - om den ofte så kompliserte tilværelsen.

Hør

 

Erik's musical Advent calendar - December 12

Penthouse Playboys - A Kind Of Christmas Card

Today I'm attending a Christmas party with all my wonderful co-workers and we're going to the Rockefeller concert venue in Oslo to see Penthouse Playboys perform. Enigmatic singer Jens Pikenes would probably not like it if I called his band a novelty act, so I won't. After all this is a time for holiday cheer and good times. I'm sure they'll perform their latin version of a-ha singer Morten Harket's "A Kind Of Christmas Card", and I'm equally certain that they will raise the roof while doing so. The song appeared on Penthouse Playboys' 1996 debut album Sånn skal det gjøres (That's the way to do it), and it still sounds awesome.

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