Listomania! - 1993

I turned 33 in November of '93 and my big line was that I was now as old as Jesus. I grew a full goatee and moustache combo and my hair was quite long, so I even looked the part. I never quite mastered the healing of lepers and walking on water part though. I came home from work one day to find our apartment was flooded. It was not just regular water though. It was a burst sewage pipe that left me ankle deep in other people's crap - literally. Poor Arden was up on the couch looking very perturbed and scared. When I went to the superintendent to complain, they basically shrugged their shoulders and did nothing. We also lost a month's rental deposit because we didn't give 2 month's notice. They actually expected us to keep living in that shit-infested apartment! Martina and I decided it was time to move, so we went looking for a new place. We found the upper floor of an old house on Maitland St. in downtown London in record time and moved within about a week. It was fun living there, but the place was quite tiny and the biggest problem was the infestation of mice. We put traps under the kitchen sink and our TV watching would be frequently interrupted by the snap of the traps. But, we decided mice were better than poop all over everything. During this time, we added another dachshund to the gang, Arden's half-sister, Aspen. She was a very cute and happy pup, who tormented her sister constantly and bullied her with great relish. We made the acquaintance of our next-door neighbour, Sarah, who was a 19 year-old who would lie out in the back yard in her bikini. Gord was 15 at the time and he really liked having her as a neighbour. One of his favourite activities that summer was to sit by the window and ogle her as she tanned. Personally, I never once looked at her.....We would often barbecue with Sarah and her boyfriend Jeff and we would have the tunes cranked up while we ate and drank and made merry. Here are some of the songs we were listening to back then:

10. Locked In The Trunk Of A Car - The Tragically Hip

This song comes from their fourth album, Fully Completely, which most people would consider their best record. I like it a lot, but their next one, Day For Night, is my personal fave. This tune has a brilliant groove that the band kicks into and rides right through the song. They were one of the best at that as they had a way of settling in and rocking in such a cohesive way. The guitars ring out with such a great riff, laying a solid foundation for singer Gord Downie, who once again is the master here. He sings a creepy set of lyrics about a serial killer, building the tension and urgency like a true pro. When he goes up an octave and then starts screaming "Let me out", the mental picture is complete. This is an undeniable Canadian classic. "Then I found a place it's dark and it's rotted. It's a cool, sweet kinda place where the copters won't spot it. And I destroyed the map, I even thought I forgot it. However, everyday I'm dumping the body." Grab a Canadian and pump your fist.....

9. For Tomorrow - Blur

On their debut album, Blur were more aligned with The Stone Roses and that ilk as far as their sound was concerned. For the 2nd record, Modern Life Is Rubbish, they took a left turn into traditional British pop music. They had really disliked their first trip to America and singer/lyricist Damon Albarn retreated back 'ome and came up with a record that put their influences out there for all to see. This song is a Kinks-style romp with a singalong chorus that must have made Ray Davies proud. It is so whimsical in melody, but the lyrics comment on the difficulties of day-to-day life in London. The orchestration is great too, providing a lush background for all the "la-las." Albarn's rant at the end makes areas like Primrose Hill come alive for the listener. "She's a twentieth century girl, hanging on for dear life. So we hold each other tightly and hold on for tomorrow." Jolly good!

8. Sunflower - Paul Weller

Weller put away the Curtis Mayfield records and pulled out some old Traffic records, and the product of that is his 2nd solo record, Wild Wood. This is very guitar-oriented, still soulful, but much more folk and rock influenced than his 1st album. This is built around a stinging, groovy guitar part, which is augmented by long-time drummer Steve White's brilliant work on the ride cymbal and floor toms. Just to make sure the Traffic-ness is pounded home, Weller even employs a flute solo here, which was a favourite ploy of Traffic in their late 60's-early '70s heyday. This album helped influence the next wave of British bands during the Brit-Pop revolution of the next few years. "Along winding streets we walked hand in hand, and how I long for that sharp wind to take my breath away again." Nothing better than a sharp wind, right Mickey?

7. Cherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins

Siamese Dream is probably the album that I listened to the most in 1993. I was enamoured with the sound that they got from their guitars. They must have had a stack of pedals at their disposal, and they used every last one of them. On this song, the guitars buzz like a swarm of bees, they roar, they grind, and I still can't believe what a wonderful sound they make. Jimmy Chamberlain is his usual nimble self on the drums, and Billy Corgan's voice can be grating, but this is all about the guitars. The solo is so killer, twisting and screeching its way into your consciousness, making you useless to resist its power. This was the record that turned Gord from a backward-pant-wearing rapper wannabee into an alt-rocking, hair-dyeing maniac. "Freak out and give in, doesn't matter what you believe in." Sign me up!

6. Jimmy's Fantasy - Red Kross

I never really knew much about this band, other than they were from L.A. and they had a fetish for '70s TV shows and sounds. This is one of the catchiest songs you will ever hear. The riff is bludgeoning and heavy, yet the song is about as perfect a slice of Power Pop as you will ever find. One listen leads to another, until it is burned into your head. It is futile to deny the greatness of the melody, and you will be singing it for days on end. The album was called Phaseshifter, but, again, I know next to nothing about it. I recall hearing it once or twice, but this song is so brilliant that it renders anything else they ever did moot. I see platform shoes and long hair and Kiss t-shirts when I hear this. For some of you, that may not be a good thing, but for me, it feels like home. "Howlin' Wolf will never understand Doty Crips, the Bloods or Zeppelin." I get Zeppelin, but I'm with Mr. Wolf on the others....

5. Fade Into You - Mazzy Star

From their 2nd album, So Tonight That I Might See, this is another slow, psychedelic charmer from Hope Sandoval and company. The slide guitar is fantastic, colouring the song in shades of blue and adding to the feeling of sadness and resignation that comes across in the lyrics and delivery of Ms. Sandoval. She sings in an almost disengaged way, like she's throwing off the vocal in between filing her nails. It makes one think of a smoke-filled basement club, much in the same way that Billie Holiday's best ballads did. This is folk and country with a side of the blues and one of their finest tunes. Taylor and Martina will be very happy to see this song on the list. "Some kind of night into your darkness colours your eyes with what's not there." Black is the colour....

4. Jimmy Still Comes Around - The Loud Family

This is from the first album by former Game Theory frontman Scott Miller's next band. It is their best album, in my opinion, probably because it sounds the most like a Game Theory record. Produced again by longtime cohort Mitch Easter, it has all the usual touchstones of their albums - great melodies, jangly guitars, humour and tongue-in-cheek paranoia. This song about a wannabee mover and shaker is loaded with hooks and you will find yourself tapping a toe along to the beat. This was the last great song Miller ever wrote, but what a way to go out! "Jimmy makes a big deal of the deep things he feels. Imagine his shock when he learns it isn't real." We all know at least 1 Jimmy.....

3. Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town - Pearl Jam

For a song that clocks in at just over 3 minutes, it sure has an 8 minute title. This is my favourite Pearl Jam tune. It evokes a feeling of sentimentality in me like few songs can, not for the time it was out necessarily, but for the fact that it causes me to reflect on my life each time I hear it. Cope and I used to play this at our jam sessions back in the day. He didn't know all the words, so I was chosen to warble away while he played his guitar along. This was one of the tunes we used to sing during our lunch breaks at Loeb, making it even harder to be motivated to go back into the freezer and pick orders. Eddie Vedder really hits home here and his voice is so perfectly suited to this song, it may be his finest moment. "I changed by not changing at all, small town predicts my fate, perhaps that's what no one wants to see." I was born in a small town....

2. Sister Havana - Urge Overkill

From their breakthrough 4th record, Saturation, these guys may have put down on record one of the dirtiest and finest guitar riffs of all time. I love the way the song comes in with a ringing sound and then the guitars come roaring in, accented by the tom-toms, and then we're away to the races. This song is feverish and scorching, riding that guitar hard, kicking ass and taking names. It has a brilliant melody, a chunky, big sound, and such an amazing energy to it that I still tend to crash about the room when I hear it. Nash Kato belts out the vocal like a true blue stadium rocker and I'm inclined to join him and break eardrums for miles around. "Everyday just like a vacation with you, when I'm watchin' you and Fidel Castro in the sand, kissin'!" Viva la revolucion!

1. Mary Jane's Last Dance - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

I know I bang on endlessly about guitars on this blog, but this song might just take the cake. Producer Rick Rubin somehow got it so right! You must put on headphones and turn this up! The dual-channel guitars of Petty and the outstanding Mike Campbell are freaking amazing. forget the leads, which are cooking, but the rhythm lines are blinding! Then, add in Petty sounding so American, sounding so cool, and you've got the best song he ever recorded. There's harmonica, bass, drums - all so perfect! The sound is massive and I never tire of it. While I was writing about it, I played it 6 times in a row and it would have been 7 but for Howie whining and wanting to go for a walk. There are few songs that sound as great as this does! I must mention the ultra-creepy video that accompanied this as well, starring the luscious Kim Basinger as a good-looking corpse and Petty as the creepy dude. "Oh my my, oh hell yes, you got to put on that party dress. It was too cold to cry when I woke up alone, I hit my last number, I walked to the road." It's my party and I'll cry if it..... warms up?