SONG OF THE DAY

“What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?” – R.E.M. (Monster, Warner Bros. Records, 1994). Written by Bill Berry; Peter Buck; Mike Mills; Michael Stipe.

INTERESTING FACTS (from wikipedia)

– It peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100

– Notable for being the first song in history to debut at number one on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.

– This song is one of the band’s most-played songs at live gigs.

– The title of the song refers to an incident in NYC in 1986, where news anchor Dan Rather was spontaneously attacked by assailants who, between beatings, would ask, “Kenneth, what is the frequency?”. On June 22, 1995, at Madison Square Garden, Dan Rather accompanied the band during a sound check performance of the song.

– Bassist Mike Mills’ is wearing Gram Parsons “Nudie Suit” during this music video, which became his signature look (see photo).

– The song slows down slightly towards the end (from an original tempo of 96 BPM down to 94 BPM). Bassist Mike Mills was suffering from what he later found out was appendicitis attack, but had instructed his band to play through the end and complete the studio recording. He was hospitalized right after the track was finished. R.E.M. never got around to re-recording the song

– Of the song, Michael Stipe has said:

MY TAKE

Incredibly catchy and upbeat with incredibly dark lyrics. I’ve been a fan of R.E.M. for years, but had never delved in too deep, and stuck to what I knew from the radio. Thankfully, I discovered 93.9, and my laziness for not going out and searching for R.E.M. knowledge did not hurt me in the end. The station introduced me to the song only this month, and I am hooked. I love the bass line, and I especially love the fun fact about its tempo (read above). I love Michael Stipe’s pure voice belting out the melody, and the sweet, high harmonies that match him at times. The lyrical melody is so unbelievably catchy, I can’t handle it. In a good way, of course.

OLD SURVEY, NEW SURVEY

I found the greatest word document today, circa summer 2003 It’s a music survey (here’s a question, answer it with a song title/ band name, etc.), but it’s also a time capsule. Of course, it is impossible for me to resist the challenge of taking the test 2009-style, and doing a hilarious comparison of how much I’ve changed or grown or not grown or changed at all. BRING IT ON, PAST SELF!

MY ANSWERS

September 2009 versus August, 2003

If I were a month I would be: “Gone Till November” – Wyclef Jean & The Carnival; “Pale September” – Fiona Apple

If I were a day of the week I would be: “Pleasant Valley Sunday” – The Monkees, or better yet The Sundays (especially their cover of “Wild Horses”); “Tuesday Afternoon” – Moody Blues

If I were a time of day I would be: “Midnight At The Oasis” – a la Waiting For Guffman auditions; “After Midnight” – Eric Clapton

If I were a planet I would be: “Hey Jupiter” – Tori Amos or “Walking In Space” from Hair; “Fly Me To The Moon” – Frank Sinatra

If I were a sea animal I would be: “I Am The Walrus” – Beatles; “Ziggy Star[fish]” – David Bowie

If I were a direction I would be: “What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life?”, the standard I love most when sung by Dusty Springfield (the first lyrics of the song are as follows: “What are you doing the rest of your life? North and south and east and west of your life?” See?); Go West, as in the band that sang “King of Wishful Thinking”

If I were a piece of furniture I would be: “Lay Lady Lay” – Bob Dylan (lyrics: “lay across my big brass bed”); “Rockin’ Chair” – Oasis

If I were a sin I would be: “No Envy No Fear” – Joshua Radin; “Pride (In The Name Of Love)” – U2 or “Obsession” – Animotion

If I were a historic figure I would be: “So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright” – Simon & Garfunkel; “Hey Jack Kerouac”- 10,000 Maniacs

If I were liquid I would be: “1,000 Oceans” – Tori Amos; “Grey Ice Water” – Modest Mouse

If I were a stone, I would be: “This Diamond Ring” – Gary Lewis & The Playboys and maybe “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” – Pink Floyd; “I Am A Rock” – Paul Simon

If I were a tree, I would be: “Grow Old With Me” – John Lennon (lyrics: “Grow old along with me, two branches of one tree”); “Falling (Death of a Tree)” – Over The Rhine

If I were a bird, I would be: “The Great Speckled Bird” – still can’t find the version I heard on the radio once that I love the best of this classic old gospel song; “Blackbird” – Beatles

If I were a tool, I would be: “Brick” – Ben Folds Five; “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” – Beatles (in which Joan is the first dead) or “Sledgehammer” – Peter Gabriel

If I were a flower/plant I would be: “She Don’t Like Roses” – Christine Kane (with lyrics “She lived in Detroit, she lived in Boston, she had a couple a years where she got lost in” and “it smells like lavender in her apartment”); “Cracklin’ Rose” – Neil Diamond, “The Yellow Rose of Texas” – Elvis Prestley, “Lavender Blue (Dilly Dilly)” – traditional, “Edelweiss” – from “The Sound of Music”, or “Lilac Wine” – Jeff Buckley

If I were a kind of weather, I would be: “You Brought The Sunshine” – The Clark Sisters; “Stormy Weather” – Lena Horne, and all the different types of rain: “Kentucky Rain” – Elvis Prestley, “November Rain” – Guns’N’Roses, “Fool In The Rain” – Led Zeppelin, “I’m Only Happy When It Rains” – Garbage, “Rain Dance” – Guess Who, “Early Morning Rain” – Ian and Sylvia, to mention a few

If I were a mythical creature I would be: “God” – Tori Amos; “A Sorta Fairytale” – Tori Amos

If I were a musical instrument, I would be: “Flute Loop” – Beastie Boys; “Synthesizer” – Electric Six

If I were an animal, I would be: “Big Pink Elephants On Parade” from Disney’s Dumbo; Barracuda- Heart

If I were a color, I would be: “Blue Skies” a la White Christmas – Bing Crosby & Danny Kaye; Black Is Black- Los Bravos

If I were an emotion, I would be: “Crying” – K.D. Lang; The Logical Song- Supertramp or the Brad Meldhau & wife Fleurine’s jazz cover

If I were a feeling, I would be: “Don’t Be Shy” – Cat Stevens; Joyful, Joyful- from Sister Act II, Lauryn Hill and Company

If I were a vegetable, I would be: “Oh What A Beautiful Morning” from Oklahoma, where “the corn is as high as an elephant’s eye, and it looks like it’s climbin’ straight up to the sky”; Beans, Beans, and Nothing But Beans- from “Into the Woods” (go to the woods!) and Beans and Cornbread- Louis Jordan (commonly known as the theme song to TBS’ Dinner and A Movie)

If I were a sound, I would be: “It’s Oh So Quiet” – Bjork or “The Speed and the Sound of Loneliness” – Nanci Griffith & John Prine or “The Sound of Silence” – Simon & Garfunkel; “The Speed of the Sound of Loneliness” – John Prine & Nanci Griffith

If I were a car, I would be: “Take It Easy” – The Eagles (“don’t let the sound of your own wheels make you crazy”); “Silver Thunderbird” – Marc Cohn

If I were a song, I would be: “Make Your Own Kind Of Music” – Mamas & Papas or “I’ve Got A Lot Of Livin’ To Do” from Bye Bye, Birdie; “Your Song” – Elton John

If I were a movie, I would be directed by: Wes Anderson, with soundtrack by Mark Mothersbaugh; One of Us- Joan Osborne, aka God would be my director

If I were a book, I would be written by: “I, Me, Mine” – The Beatles because it would be an autobiography since no one else would ever pick me to write about; a “Paperback Writer” – Beatles

If I were a food, I would be: “Strawberry Fields Forever” – Beatles; Peaches- Presidents of the United States of America

f I were a place, I would be: “Southern California Wants To Be Western New York” – Dar Williams; “California” – Joni Mitchell, “California” – Phantom Planet, “California Dreaming” – Mama’s and the Papa’s, etc. You know I could go on.

If I were a material, I would be: “Spanish Boots of Spanish Leather” – Nanci Griffith cover of Bob Dylan; “Blue Velvet” – Bobby Vinton

If I were a taste, I would be: “Kisses Sweeter Than Wine” – Jimmie Rogers; “MmmMMmmMmm” – Crash Test Dummies

If I were a scent, I would be: “That Smell” – Lynyrd Skynyrd; “Dirt” – Phish

If I were a religion, I would be: “Pack Up Your Sins And Go To The Devil” – Dorothy Loudon; “Losing My Religion” – R.E.M.

If I were a word, I would be: That would most definitely have to be “Hateration holleration” from “Family Affair” by Mary J. Blige; “Funktion” – Jamiroquai

If I were an object, I would be: “Big Wheel Turning” – Tori Amos; Red Rubber Ball- Cyrkle (or as we sang when we were little “Wed Wubba Baw”)

If I were a body part I would be: “I Got Lost In His Arms” from Annie, Get Your Gun; “Bette Davis Eyes” – Kim Carnes

If I were a facial expression I would be: “Johnny Get Angry” – Joanie Sommers; Kiss Is On My List- Hall and Oates or Where Thine That Special Face- from “Kiss Me, Kate”

If I were a subject in school I would be: “History Repeating” – Shirley Bassey; “Art School Girlfriend” – Stone Temple Pilots

If I were a cartoon character I would be: “Nowhere Man” – Beatles or “Starman” – David Bowie; “Flash” – Queen

If I were a shape I would be: “California Stars” – Wilco; “Circle Game” – Joni Mitchell, “Circle In the Sand”- Belinda Carlisle, or perhaps “Wheel in the Sky” – Journey

If I were a number I would be: “Zero” – Smashing Pumpkins; “One (The Loneliest Number)”- Three Dog Night

THE QUESTIONS, a.k.a. YOUR TURN!

VIDEOS OF THE DAY

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