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Rick James – “Below The Fun (Pass The J)”

February 25, 2015

Not to belabor the point, but yes it has been cold in Buffalo this year, for weeks on end with little or no let up for the last month (months?) or so. And yes, it’s been grating on people, gradually rending our social fabric in direct proportion to the narrowing of our snowbank lined streets. But people are persevering and dealing with the most Buffalo winter we’ve had in a while like we do, and frankly, you deserve a break to kick back, warm up, and get funky, and thanks to our patron saint, Rick James, here is the perfect anthem for Buffalo winters: “Below The Fun (Pass The J).” This deep cut from Rick’s 1981 album, Street Songs, isn’t strictly speaking a love letter to his hometown; in fact, it’s an unvarnished vision of life on the East Side that’s still applicable 34 years after it’s release. But it also offers[...]

Radiohead’s “Lift”

October 21, 2014

Lost Gems is a new feature where I will explore some of the B-Sides, Covers, and Unreleased songs from some of pop music’s greatest artists. Some of the weird, cool, or brilliant songs that for whatever reason might never have gotten the notice they deserve. Today we begin this feature with Radiohead, and the story of “Lift.” “It probably would have been the best song on the record” – Ed O’ Brien In 1996, Radiohead had just released The Bends and was currently on a US tour supporting Alanis Morissette. While the band had just become huge stars in its own country off the popularity of “Street Spirit (Fade Out),“ the five piece was a band still struggling to fight off the one-hit wonder perception over here in the States. Night after night, Radiohead played to largely indifferent crowds who couldn’t be bothered with anything that wasn’t “Creep,“ and new songs like “Paranoid Android” and “Climbing[...]