Tag Archives: Orbital

The Belldog

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Well it’s been a lazy, good for nothing Friday. No, not really. Been busy. Did some laundry, went to the library, smoked a cigar on the stoop. That’s basically it. So that means, since I have nothing to write about, it’s time for the iTunes shuffle.

The Belldog- Brian Eno & Cluster from the album After the Heat. A good song by one of my favorite people teaming up with 2 German guys named Moebius & Roedelius. The UK Music press labeled the genre, Krautrock. A nice meditative and mechanical song. Hard to find. I had a cheap vinyl copy and sometime ago I found a download which I promptly downloaded.

Sad But True- Orbital My favorite Orbital track. Probably a great club track but how would I know? I dislike clubbing. I got this disc (Snivelisation) from Rand & Lisa and played a few tracks for Bill last night. He loved it but couldn’t find it on iTunes. Since I had the disc available, he uploaded that and saved some dough.

My Mummy’s Dead- John Lennon from Lennon Legend. No editing the list here. This is the last track from John Lennon- Plastic Ono Band. Of course the title betrays what a downer it is. Only 1:16 long which is more than enough time to move onto the next track.

Oddly enough, following the Walrus comes,

Egg Man- The Beastie Boys, from Paul’s Boutique. Paul’s Boutique is the Beastie Boys 2nd album and a step forward from Licensed to Ill, produced by the Dust Brothers. Great use of Bernard Hermann’s Psycho strings at the end. The actual boutique, once located on the Lower East Side has been gone for years and the cover is now unrecognizable. Hope Adam Yauch recovers soon enough.

The Part You Throw Away- Tom Waits, from Blood Money. Got this and the companion CD, Alice, from the Arcata contingent a few years ago. It’s a great pair of records, but not something I play too often. Very downbeat, Germanic cabaret feel.

I Got You (I Feel Good)- James Brown, from Live at the Apollo Volume 2. 29 seconds long, a very fast version used as a bridge between songs. I would have loved to have seen this show in 1967, but I doubt if my parents would have been so keen on going to Harlem to satisfy the whims of a 5 year old. It’s definitely a phenomenal record.

Dreaming- Blondie, from Blondie’s Greatest Hits. Another great song. Clem Burke is a fantastic drummer on this, but then again he’s always a fantastic drummer. He used to pop up at McSwells from time to time, just to have a drink. He’s an acquaintance of Chaz’ I believe. One of my favorite Blondie songs.

Come Together/Dear Prudence/Cry Baby Cry [Transition]- The Beatles, from the Love album. A good mash up courtesy of Giles Martin, George Martin’s son. Seems like it’s been more than a week since I saw Paul McCartney last Friday with Bill, Anne & Earl, Julio & Stine, but it’s true. And this is another disc that Anne got me a few years ago.

Simmer Down- The Wailers from the Bob Marley- Songs of Freedom boxed set. I love the early songs of the Wailers. So young and fresh with the ska. Easy to see where the 2 Tone bands got some inspiration. Fun to sing along and dance to, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Pretzel Logic- Steely Dan, from the album of the same name. Another great song and one of my favorite Steely Dan songs. Where did you get those shoes? Now Becker & Fagen are on tour, playing all their hits. No money in record sales these days, so they’re on the road, one night devoted to the Royal Scam, another night for Aja etc. I’m not going, too much money.

Hey Hey- Neil Young, from his Greatest Hits. Neil’s response to Punk Rock which was basically over by the time this came out. And Johnny Rotten didn’t die. It was Sid. This is the heavy version, not the acoustic. It did get airplay on the late lamented WPIX-FM back in the day.

That’s about it. I know how much you all like the shuffle reports.

Don’t know if I’ll post tomorrow, I may be in Otisville, if Pedro ever calls back.

Fanny (Be Tender With My Love)

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Ok, it’s Thursday. Not much to report. Maybe I could make something up. No, not tonight. I’ll give you some mundane details. I promise, I’ll write some fiction soon enough. Until then some non fiction, some of my life. A pound of flesh for you dear reader.

Last night, I found the couch. It was buried under clothes and mail and Mojo and Uncut magazines as well as a songbook or two. Bill did a decent job in cleaning the apartment. It still has a way to go, but it’s a step in the right direction.

You’d think, two gay men living together, the place must be immaculate. Well that goes to show, you can’t trust stereotypes. I’ve always had a problem keeping things neat and orderly, and with Bill around I’ve surrendered to the chaos that surrounds us.

Normally if Annemarie, Rex and Earl were coming this summer we’d make an effort, perhaps even hire a cleaning lady to come in and do the things that we can’t seem to figure out to do ourselves.

We did that last year and talked about having her come every now and then, but we had more money last year and the Arcata contingent were headed east. Not so this year. It’s ok. Juan doesn’t mind.

He’s a college student so it all seems somewhat homey to him. He just sits in the couch and we watch the tv and get jazzy. Last night was the same only no Juan and I was doing a jazz solo.

Bill came back from the laundry and we watched Keith Olbermann then after that watched Dave Chappelle who was very funny, funnier than Keith Olbermann. After that, sleep. Bill was out at 6:00 and I stirred soon after getting out of bed myself.

Lot’s more people on the bus lately. Too many, and they all take my favorite seats. They always give the Hoboken run the worst buses, and this morning was no different.

I got off the bus, listening to Orbital as I picked up my free newspapers and walked to Smilers for my breakfast sandwich from West Indian Tony. Tony of course, asked all about Bill. He never asks about me, I guess that because I’m in front of him and by being there I must be alright. West Indian Tony can also predict the weather by how much his knees ache.

As I walked up Fifth Avenue I ran into a former co-worker. Daniel Begin, who set up a successful hedge fund which was also legal, and that’s rare these days. Nice guy, a fellow atheist and quite an intellectual from Israel.

I saw him last summer in Central Park with his wife and kids. It was awkward since I was beat from riding from Hoboken to the George Washington Bridge over and down to Central Park. Plus my eyes were a little bloodshot from a quick jazz improvisation off the bike path.

Not this morning though. We exchanged pleasantries and business cards and we were both on our separate ways. He asked me to tell my boss, Greg Stevens that he had said hello. Greg remarked that I always seem to be bumping into former co-workers and it’s true I do.

I saw the former head of Wanker Banker this morning too. His new company is across the street from my building so I see him fairly often.

Work was slow today. I had to see a vendor, someone who is trying to get my company signed up with her mobile phone service. They never take no for an answer and I was pigeonholed. She was nice and most guys that aren’t gay would love to spend time with her. Me? I just told her some horror stories about cellphone service, she works for T-Mobile which is my carrier.

She listened politely while telling me more and more about how the Blackberries she is promoting are the very best and give good value. I think deep down she knew she wasn’t going to get anything from me, everyone already has a Blackberry with their own service and they aren’t about to switch.

I told her I would bring it up at the next budget meeting next week, which isn’t going to happen. I did get her name which is the title of this post. After that was my special Thursday lunch, penne, pesto and chicken. I was quite a gavone while I ate.

Walked to the bus terminal after work listening to Public Enemy, then I saw a t-shirt that said ‘Never Stop’ so I switched over to Echo and the Bunnymen. Sat in a crappy seat and read ‘Tweak’ by Nic Sheff, the son of David Sheff who wrote the last book I read, ‘Beautiful Boy’ about his son’s addiction to methamphetamine. This is even more harrowing since it’s written by the junkie son. It’s a sad story.