Dusty Springfield, "Son Of A Preacher Man"

In case she wanted to take a son of a preacher man along with her, I think she could fit one in her hairdoo. Maybe a few more in her sleeves?

FUN TIMES TWO: Neil Diamond, "Solitary Man" & Will Ferrell

I don't think I need to spell out how awesome Neil Diamond--aka, The Jewish Elvis--is. I think he speaks for himself. And Will Ferrell has never been shy about imitating him.

So here's Neil performing one of my favorites, and Will performing one of my favorite Neils:

Joni Mitchell, "California"

This song goes out to Scotty, who first introduced this song to me so loudly that I wasn't sure I would be able to hear anything ever again. But it's a great song, and he was visiting me in California, so I can understand the motivation for wanting to jam out to it.

"California" is from the album Blue, which Rolling Stone ranks as one of the greatest albums of all time, and I think it's arguably the greatest solo female album of all time. And if for nothing else, it's because she knows how to rock an Appalachian dulcimer:

Power Station, "Some Like It Hot"

Wouldn't the world be a better place if we had hot pink silhouettes? No, probably not. But it's not a bad way to kick things off and then wrap them up. The neon orange cacti are also a nice touch:

TRIBUTE: Michael Jackson, "Beat It"

The first concert I ever went to was Michael Jackson's "Bad" Tour at Kemper Arena in Kansas City in 1988. Honestly, it was probably too late for a kid my age to have been out on a school night, but who really gave a frick... I was seeing The King of Pop! I went with my mom & some of her co-workers; my father didn't go, and to this day, he's still happy with that decision (what can I say: the man's not a fan of MJ).

I'd still like to think it's a pretty awesome first concert, though. Just like in this video, he was way up on a cherry-picker thing, so it made for a good show. And I think these were some of the best years for Michael. He's taken some weird twists & turns since that time, but hopefully people will remember him like this, or with his family in The Jackson Five.

So Michael, wherever you are: Jam On.

Jim Croce, "I Got A Name"

According to Wikipedia, Jim Croce recorded this song as a single then died in a plane crash shortly before it was released; he had only finished the entire album a few days before the crash. So he had probably recorded this performance around that time. Crazy...

It's kind of amazing that more people don't know how awesome Jim Croce and his mustache were. So here's a little sample of the good stuff:

MORE COWBELL: Nazareth, "Hair Of The Dog"

It's all fun and games until someone breaks out the bagpipes. But this video is good from the very beginning: The lead guitarist is clearly empowered with his wicked mustache. The bassist is keeping himself cooled down with a fan that looks like it barely has enough power to move air. Things are definitely happening.

But it all starts with the cowbell. And so begins a series of randomly-occurring shoutouts on Justin's List to our peeps who have mastered the 'bell through the years. Gene Frenkle & Bruce Dickinson would be proud of Nazareth for rocking it so tightly on this little tune (tighter than the lead singer's suspenders? I think not).

Velvet Underground, "Sunday Morning"

This song is from the Velvet Underground's first and self-titled album, when Andy Warhol was their manager. Besides it being the "most prophetic rock album ever made" (Rolling Stone), the LP cover was also famous for featuring a yellow banana sticker (when you peel the yellow banana sticker, there's a pink banana below it); naturally, the artwork was done by Warhol.

This is "Sunday Morning," the first song on the album. It's a great song, but you get the sense that their lovely morning is probably enhanced by Quaaludes, which they seemed to have shared with the woman introducing this video:

Peter Frampton & the TalkBox

The ShamWow aside, the TalkBox may be greatest invention in the history of mankind... ever. Every time I hear "Do You Feel Like We Do" from Frampton Comes Alive, I can't get over how amazed the crowd is with his weird guitar voice. It's like someone making music through one of those tracheotomy voice things. I had the fortune of seeing watching him play in Kansas City, and he had a full conversation about the Chiefs through that thing. It was devine.

Merle Haggard, "A Working Man Can't Get Nowhere Today"

Merle Haggard grew up in Oildale, on the northern edge of Bakersfield, California. And the legend is that he heard Johnny Cash play while he was serving time in San Quentin, and he decided then that he wanted to be a musician. And I was lucky enough to talk to him about this myself.

A few years ago, Bakersfield wanted to honor their hometown musician by naming a street after him, but the street they picked in Bakersfield was only a few blocks long; plus, he grew up in Oildale, not Bakersfield. So Oildale was honoring him by finding a road that was much longer and runs by the airport, and my news station wanted to do a phone interview with him about this.

So one morning I walk into work, and the phone rings. The person on the other end says, "Merle can talk now. But you need to call him right now!" I looked around, and there really wasn't anyone else who could do the interview since it was so early, so I figured, "What the hell." And it went well. He's a very nice man, and while I wasn't really nervous, I think he could tell I wasn't exactly from Rolling Stone magazine. But he was very gracious nonetheless. We talked about the road, Johnny Cash, San Quentin, Oildale... and I even managed to give a shoutout to my pal Pepper, who surprised the bejesus out of me one day by filling me in on her lifelong enjoyment of Merle Haggard songs. Anyway, it was just a great experience.

So this song goes out to Merle, who survived Oildale, San Quentin, and--the most arduous journey of all--my awkward interview:

Andy Kaufman on The Johnny Cash Show

At first I can't tell whether Johnny Cash finds Andy Kaufman funny, or if he wants to punch him in the face. Maybe both? Either way, he leaves him alone and Kaufman actually whips out a pretty good Elvis:

Linda Ronstadt, "You're No Good"

I don't know much about Linda Ronstadt, but I know when a backup singer is better dressed than the main star of the show.  The lady in gold is clearly showboating, and the bongo player has a 'stache tighter than the gold lady's outfit.  Linda, meanwhile, looks like she's dressed for Double Coupon Day at Safeway.  Not that she's not hot--I'm just saying the lady in gold wins the gold medal on this one:

FLAUSTACHE: Moody Blues, "Nights In White Satin"

This appears to be someone's home video of Paris 1967 spliced in with the Moody Blues singing on a flight of stairs.  But it's done so well that, unfortunately, I think it's the official music video.

But here's what's officially awesome: The flautist.  For about two minutes, he's just standing there solemnly-mustached and then--bam!--he nails it.  

I'm going to make up a new word right here and now: Flaustache--a flautist with a mustache.  Here's a good example: Ron Burgandy in "Anchorman" is a Flaustache when he does his flute solo at the club to impress Veronica Corningstone (and then yells, "Aqualung!"--a reference to Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson, another Floustache).  I'll have to start looking for more Flaustache clips...

So enjoy the Floustache, vintage home video of Paris, and all of these ruffled knights in white satin:

Simply Red, "Holding Back The Years"

Actually, this isn't a bad video.  Where is this?  Ireland?  It looks lovely.

Funny story, though: My wife told me that in the 80s, she wanted this guy's hair.  I think that speaks volumes on some of the hair "styles" that came out of that era.  But with all that hair in the front and with him putting on the Kangol cap, it's almost like the back of his head is on his face.  So much hair.

Heart, "Alone"

Loving Heart is nothing to be ashamed of.  This video almost pushes it, though, especially with that 80s hair.  But the guys in the 80s had that hair, too, so... no harm, no foul.

"Alone" is one of those classic 80s love rock ballads.  It got a resurgence when Carrie Underwood sang it on "American Idol" (which she did with the bad 80s hair),  and I can only imagine how many tweens went to YouTube, saw this video, and wondered what the hell was happening.  But it's just one of so many awesome songs from Heart--a group I just learned hails from Seattle.  So from one transplanted Northwesterner to the real deal, here's to you, Heart:

Men Without Hats, "Safety Dance"

I haven't seen this many little people in a video since Time Bandits!

And now, "Safety Dance":

Air Supply, "Even The Nights Are Better"

I get it: He's lonely, he meets the girls, he suddenly becomes happy; the amusement park is a metaphor for how he lights up with he's with his special lady friend.

But where are the meth-fueled carnie knife fights?  I feel like in the bridge of the song, maybe they could have at least one carnie fight.  Bummer.

Oh, well.  Here's Air Supply!

Kenny Rogers, "Ruby"

This is one of my wife's favorite karaoke songs, and it's a great pick.  Where she came up with this as a karaoke song, I'll never know.  But then again, we fell in love while doing karaoke, so I know she's got some mad skillz.

I'm not sure I've ever seen Kenny Rogers so young.  I'm not sure I ever want to again, at least not wearing those creepy glasses.  But now he's got the creepy plastic surgery thing going on.  Maybe in my mind I'll always envision him on the cover of the Christmas album with Dolly Parton; that's the Kenny I want in my memory.  Definitely not those glasses.

And--for God's sake, Ruby--turn around.

Wham!, "Careless Whisper"

I'm not sure if this song needs to be as long as it is, but I'm taking in every second of this video.  What's up with the chick sitting on the front of the boat?  She's wearing nearly nothing, and George Michael is steering the ship in a hooded sweatshirt.  There's barely enough time to mull that over before you realize they're just going to end up naked.  But wait--there are two women in this video, but only one George Michael.  Drama ensues!  And a pensive George thinks about what he's done, and who next he'll tell to wake him up before he goes goes.

 

Hall & Oates, "Maneater"

This song reminds me of  LA, I think because when I came out to LA for the first time, I drove around my friend's car and frequently listened to this song.  See, this song was on the only CD he had in the car that I could listen to without wanting to punch myself in the face (by the way, this is the same 80s CD that contained the previous blog post song, "Somebody's Watching Me").  Probably doing himself a favor, he gave me this CD, which I still have crammed in a box somewhere in the basement.  

It also reminds me of John Oates' badass mustache.  My lil' Justache can only dream of Oates-like greatness one day...

Rockwell, "Somebody's Watching Me"

I first heard this song on some Best of 80s CD, and I could have sworn Michael Jackson was singing in the background.  But I didn't think it could be true since it was just a random song, and who the hell was Rockwell anyway?  That was in 2002.  

I just found out a few weeks ago that, indeed, MJ is singing the background on this song.  Why it took me seven years to realize that, I have no idea.  But now I know, and knowing is half the battle.  The other half is zombies; zombies are the other half of the battle.

Now that Geico is using a version of this song for their new eyeball money pile commercials, everyone knows this song, but not everyone knows this enjoyable video.  I get the sense that he feels like somebody's watching him, but I don't think anyone has been watching him for the past 20 years or so.  But that's about to change now:

The Darkness, "I Believe In A Thing Called Love"

This isn't really vintage, unless you consider 2003 vintage, but I love how much these guys embrace the 70s indulgence.  This song was all over the place for a while--but especially, and unfortunately, in karaoke lounges.  I say unfortunately, because very few people can hit that falsetto correctly and unless they can, they sound like they're being choked to death (not out of the question in some of the karaoke places I've been to).

But The Darkness does it right, even including an evil crab along the way.  So enjoy!

Tay Zonday, "Chocolate Rain"

Last night I was pretty busy at work because of an unusual thunderstorm here in Portland.  Here's hoping next time that rain is made of chocolate:

The Beatles (Cartoon), "Eleanor Rigby"

"Eleanor Rigby" is one of my favorite Beatles songs because of how seemingly depressing it is.  Rubber Soul & Revolver to me are the beginning of Act Two in the Beatles catalog, when they started doing more meaningful songs; you can't miss a song that starts off with a string quartet and lyrics like "Ah, look at all the lonely people."  From the same people who brought you "I Want To Hold Your Hand" brings you the story of a lonely woman, a lonely man, and that same woman who dies and is laid to rest by the aforementioned lonely man.   Way to bring it down, guys.

So it's all the more interesting when this story is set to a cartoon.  Don't the kids just look horrified?  I suppose I would, too, if I knew of someone who actually kept their face in a jar by the door.  And then at the end, Eleanor's cookie party--and all the old people running to the cookies?  I've never seen old people run that fast for anything in my life:

MODERN MARVEL: Hard Place, "Get Your Hopes Up"

What in the name of Martin Van Buren is happening here?!  It's like a David Bowie song gone terribly right:

Kansas, "Carry On Wayward Son"

One of my first concerts was Kansas & Styx.  You'd think that with the concert being in the state of Kansas, the band Kansas would have been a bigger hit.  They were certainly a hit with the way-too-drunk guy who was next to us, who clearly had seen the band play in its heyday, and was celebrating accordingly; he was resting in a puddle of his own puke by the time Styx got on stage.

I saw Kansas again several years later in California at the Kern County Fair.  It was pretty entertaining, mostly because people kept shouting "Carry On!" and "Dust In The Wind!"  No one wanted to hear a 10 minute version of "Hold On."  Bakersfield can be finicky like that.

And so here I am watching them online in their facial-haired glory days.  What's up with the dude with all the red hair?  It's almost criminal how much hair that guy has.  But you have to love the smoke-filled entrance.  That's quality.