SONG OF THE DAY
“Satellite” – Guster (Ganging Up On The Sun, Reprise Records, 2006). Written by
INTERESTING FACTS (from wikipedia)
– The song received support from US alternative rock radio, including WFNX (Boston), but failed to chart on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.
– Ganging Up On The Sun is the fifth studio album by rock band Guster.
– The album became Guster’s most successful release to date, debuting on the Billboard Top 200 Albums at #25.
– It is Guster’s second studio album with Joe Pisapia, his first as a full member. Pisapia is from the band Joe, Marc’s Brother (whom I adored in college, especially the song “Spinning On An Axis”). [More hyperlinks, please.]
– The name of the album, Ganging up on the Sun, comes from a line in the song “Manifest Destiny” which says, “The moon and stars are ganging up on the sun… rebellion.”
– Guster is an American alternative rock band formed in 1991while attending Tufts University, and is known for its live performances, humor, and cult following.
– In the 2001 film Life as a House [one of my favorites—SEE IT], several allusions are made to the band and their music is used on the soundtrack.
– Alongside Ganging up on the Sun, the band released a documentary comedy series called Joe’s Place on its Web site.
– The group, along with the Barenaked Ladies, participated in the Ships and Dip cruise in 2008. In 2009, Guster will take part in a similar event with musician John Mayer called Mayercraft Carrier 2 aboard the Carnival Splendor. [Have you heard about these musical cruises…OI think this is a very weird trend in live music and performance.]
– Brian Rosenworcel, the band’s percussionist (affectionately dubbed the Thundergod by fans), adds to Guster’s unique sound with a combination of bongos, cymbals, and other drums, playing live shows using only his bare hands.
– Guster’s live shows have a style all their own. For encores, the band has sometimes featured drummer Brian Rosenworcel, who is not known for his vocals, moving to the front microphone and singing humorous covers. These have ranged from 4 Non Blondes’ “What’s Up?” to the theme song from the TV show “Cheers.”
– Guster has toured with many other artists, such as Ben Folds, Nickel Creek, Ben Kweller, Pete Yorn, Nada Surf, John Mayer, Rogue Wave, and Rufus Wainwright [All bands I love!!!]
– During a 2001 show in Rochester, NY (which was oddly enough opened by Joe Pisapia’s band Joe, Marc’s Brother), the band started their show with an empty stage. The music to The Price is Right played over the sound system, and a voice called each of the band members down from where they had hid themselves in the audience. Upon hearing their name, each member played the part of an enthusiastic game show contestant all the way to the stage.
– In 2004, Guster guitarist and vocalist Adam Gardner and his wife Lauren Sullivan co-founded Reverb, an organization dedicated to assisting touring artists by making activities more environmentally sound. It operates from within the music industry as well as the environmental world. Reverb greens artists’ tours and the music business at large while raising awareness and support for the environment through an interactive eco-village. Since its inception, Reverb has worked with artists such as Jack Johnson, Barenaked Ladies, Bonnie Raitt, John Mayer, and the Dave Matthews Band.
MY TAKE
I first heard this song on the soundtrack of the 2007 film Martian Child (with John Cusack). Though I loved the film and truly recommend it, I am ashamed to admit it as my path of discovery because I do truly consider myself a Guster fan. When I look back on 2006-2007 though, I understand why I may have missed the release of their album: I had exactly twelve months in Brooklyn to work and get 33 graduate credit hours (all but thesis). There wasn’t really time to mess around with anything outside of my tiny art history major world, and even things like eating and sleeping were often pushed to the side.
Anyhow, I missed this album’s release but I, of course, eventually found out about it and consequently became addicted to it. Guster has a spectacular sound—their tight harmonies, their falsetto vocals, their occasional string accompaniment, their sick percussion, their playful and surreal lyrics—I love this band. My cousin Matt introduced me to the song “Two Points For Honesty” while I was a mere child in high school, and I’ve been genuinely hooked ever since. Great, now I’m all excited about them and I have to do a Top 10 list. But once you go through the youtube.com playlist and here these songs, I think you’ll really get what I mean, and why I have loved this band since 1999.
TOP 10 GUSTER SONGS
- Two Points For Honesty
- All The Way Up To Heaven
- So Long
- Fa Fa
- Rocketship
- Barrel Of A Gun
- Either Way
- Amsterdam
- Satellite
- Happier
VIDEOS OF THE DAY
Click here for the Guster Top 10 youtube.com video playlist.