Pardon the tardiness in my posting this set of selections. A small foray into France got in the way, as did this little election we had here in the U.S. and A.

So I’ll dispense of the pleasantries and get on with the songs. This was originally going to be two posts - one of story songs that are the pure fantasy of the songwriter, others telling true stories - but given the lateness of the month, I’ve decided to combine the two. So this playlist runs long - c’est la vie, y’know?

1. “The Boxer” - Simon & Garfunkel (from Live 1969)
   It’s a bit of an obtuse story: an “indirect autobiography” of Paul Simon, written by Paul Simon, recorded and performed by Simon & Garfunkel around the time of their breakup. But it tells a story of an everyman fighter, who is knocked down and picks himself up again and again to face the next battle.
2. “Big Joe & Phantom 309″ - Tom Waits (from Nighthawks At The Diner)
   Early Waits, at his most drunken and long-winded, this song is a cover - and one hell of a cover it is. Waits’ gravely voice and loping pace really give this song about a truck driver a sad gravitas.
3. “Scenes From An Italian Restaurant” - Billy Joel (from The Stranger)
   Joel’s tribute to all of the neighborhood Italian food joints in greater NYC (he claims that two different Italian restaurants were the subject of the lyrics), it’s an exploration of the social circles that tend to form around a good neighborhood eatery. You can smell the garlic and see the red wine stains on the linens as Joel takes the song up and down with every swig from the bottles of red and white.
4. “Watching TV” - Roger Waters (from Amused To Death)
   One thing that is chilling about modern warfare is that it often takes place far away from U.S. shores, and plays out like a video game on TV. It’s a very insular view that tends to blunt the human impact of war: it costs lives, tears families apart and causes a lot of pain for all involved, and this is seldom played out in TV (at least in the pre-internet days). Roger Waters, who gloms onto these situations like a magnet, put his poet pen to work to write this song about the Tienanmen Square uprising, which he saw as one bit of TV “war” reporting that actually did convey the emotions - both good and bad - in the now-all-too-quickly-forgotten uprising (NBC, I’m calling you out on this one: where was the well-rounded reporting during the Olympics?).
5. “Hurricane” - Bob Dylan (from Desire)
   Great story, very matter-of-factly set to music by Bob Dylan. The Denzel Washington movie set this story to images, but it seems as if the screenwriter used Dylan’s song as a blueprint.
6. “I’m The Greatest” - Ringo Starr (from Ringo)
   Sure, Ringo released “In Liverpool” in 2008 as his autobiographical statement. Fair enough. But to my ears, John Lennon did a better job of it in 1970, when he wrote this ballsy, swaggering song that ended up reuniting three of the Fab Four: George also got in on the action, and the result is a lot of fun - much more fun than Ringo’s newer tune, and a much more well-crafted song in all aspects.
7. “At Seventeen” - Janis Ian (from Best of Janis Ian - The Autobiography Collection)
   I was recently reminded of the poignancy of this song when George Carlin died and NBC rebroadcast the premiere episode of Saturday Night Live. Janis Ian was one of the two musical guests, and this was her hot single at the time. The song is autobiographical, telling of Ian’s painful teenage years, where it was tough to be meek (and lesbian) in the cruel world of adolescent taunts and putdowns. The song is painful, and though she wrote and recorded it at age 25, it’s still full of pain and emotion.

Download: “The Boxer” - Simon & Garfunkel (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Big Joe And Phantom 309″ - Tom Waits (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Scenes From An Italian Restaurant” - Billy Joel (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Watching TV” - Roger Waters (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Hurricane” - Bob Dylan (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “I’m The Greatest” - Ringo Starr (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “At Seventeen (Single Version)” - Janis Ian (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

The Beatles are one of my all-time faves, and it’s well-known that they cut their teeth on the club circuit. In the UK and in Germany, the Fab Four were known as a potent (and often volatile) live act before they were signed to Parlophone Records. However, this energy carried on and evolved over the years, as the Fabs got older and their creative visions changed.

So roll up, roll up for the Fab-ulous Live Evolution of Mssrs. Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starkey.

1. “Can’t Buy Me Love” - The Beatles (live at the Hollywood Bowl, 30 August 1965)
   Beatlemania in the U.S. started with concerts in New York and Washington, DC, but it came to a head with concerts at Shea Stadium and Hollywood Bowl. And this performance from 1965 captures some of that energy: the loud crowds, the Beatles in hyper mode, and the powerful punch of their early hits. The crowd noise on the recording would prove exceedingly difficult for George Martin to work with in assembling a live Beatles album - so much so that it took until 1977 for this recording to officially surface. And given that the raw, three-track recordings have surfaced on unofficial channels, it’s easy to see why no live recording of the Beatles was issued during their prime years. It’s a pity, because they knew how to rock, as well as how to work a crowd. While the songs popped on the studio recordings, they exploded on the stage.
2. “Get Back” - The Beatles (live on the roof of Apple Studios, 30 January 1969)
   This is the opening salvo of the infamous “Rooftop Show,” where The Beatles, along with Billy Preston on keyboards, decided to crawl out of the studio and “audition” some of their new material in front of a live audience - one that stood 40 feet below on the street, or in neighboring office buildings or cars on the roads. While this isn’t their strongest live performance (those days having been left behind over three years prior, if not longer), it shows that, as a band, they still had their potency, even if internal strife was tearing the band apart at the time.
3. “Imagine” - John Lennon (live at the Apollo Theater, New York City, 17 December 1971)
   John Lennon’s live performances were few and far between. His “Live Peace In Toronto” shows in 1969 occurred during the recording sessions for Abbey Road and Let It Be, and were thrown-together affairs. After the breakup of the Fabs, Lennon only performed in charity concerts. The concert where this acoustic guitar version of “Imagine” was performed was to raise awareness of the plight of John Sinclair, an anti-war activist who was serving a 10-year jail term for possession of marijuana. I love this version of “Imagine” because you can hear the audience’s response to the then-current hit song, as well as Lennon’s emotion behind the lyrics.
4. “Maybe I’m Amazed” - Paul McCartney & Wings (live as The Apollo, Glasgow, Scotland, 17 December 1979)
   This song first appeared on McCartney’s first solo album, the aptly-named McCartney. The studio version featured Paul on all of the instruments, and came across as a sincere, if workmanlike performance. When he played it on the Wings tours, however, the song became a majestic ballad, full of pomp, energy and life. This is from the same concert as “Coming Up,” which Mandel highlighted in his “One Night Only… Times Seven” posting earlier this month, and features the final lineup of Wings in one of its final live shows (they would play one more time on December 31st, as part of the “Rock For Kampuchea” shows in London).
5. “Photograph” - Ringo Starr & The All-Starr Band (live at the Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 3 September 1989)
   It’s hard to pick a Ringo Starr track that’s better live than it was in the studio. Not to slight Ringo, but he’s more of a showman in the “compère” sense: he knows how to work the crowd and give credit to the others in the band, but isn’t known for knockout live performances of his own work. But on his 1989 tour, he had something to prove. He was fresh out of rehab, having finally kicked a decades-long alcohol addiction, and had a band with a lot of talent (Billy Preston, Garth Hudson, Levon Helm, and Joe Walsh, to name a few). So this performance of “Photograph,” which was co-written with George Harrison, is a step above Ringo’s usual live offerings.
6. “All Those Years Ago” - George Harrison with Eric Clapton & Band (live in Japan, December 1991)
   As is the case with Ringo, it’s tough to find a great live cut from George Harrison. Like Lennon, his live shows are few and far between: other than a tour in 1974 (”Hari’s On Tour”) that blew out his voice by the fourth show, he mostly played one-off and charity gigs. One of these - the Concert for Bangla Desh - stands as a landmark of charity concerts: the first of its kind, and one of the most successful. But he mostly stuck to his gardening, until a lost bet with Eric Clapton had him on a short tour of Japan. And George did his best to keep his fans satisfied, as this live version of “All Those Years Ago” shows: while not the most peppy performance, George, Eric and band put a lot of work into the song, and it benefits from this effort.
7. “Get Back” - The Beatles (live on the roof of Apple Studios, 30 January 1969)
   To close things up, I include this, the third run-through of “Get Back” from the Apple Studios rooftop concert. This take is interrupted by the London Police, who are responding to a noise complaint by the studio’s neighbours (many think that this police action was actually brought on by The Beatles’ PR people as a way to “add a little edge” to what was turning into a very sad recording and filming process). So you hear the band get startled by the constables, your hear instruments drop out as the officers unplug the amps, and you hear Paul improvise new lyrics during the run-out (”You’ve been singing on the roofs again/And that’s no good/’Cos you know your mommy doesn’t like that/She gets angry/She gonna have you arrested!/Get back…”). And when all was said and done, John Lennon lets loose one of the classic lines of the Fab canon.

And I also offer this BONUS track:

• “Live And Let Die” - Paul McCartney & Wings (live in Seattle, WA, June 1976)
  I couldn’t leave this song out of a live Fabs retrospective, as it’s often one of the highlights of a live McCartney show. He tends to pull out all the stops on this: energetic performance from Paul and the band, lots of lights and lasers, and firworks that heat up whatever venue he plays. When I saw him perform this song at the Sam Boyd Silver Bowl in Las Vegas back in 1993, it was one of those “woah - wow!” moments. I decided on this performance from Wings Over America because it includes a live brass section, something that Macca should use again (not to dis on Wix, but synthesizers can’t beat real brass).

Download: “Can’t Buy Me Love” - The Beatles (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Get Back” - The Beatles (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Imagine” - John Lennon (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Maybe I’m Amazed” - Paul McCartney & Wings (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Photograph” - Ringo Starr & The All-Starr Band (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “All Those Years Ago” - George Harrison with Eric Clapton & Band (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Get Back” - The Beatles (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Live And Let Die” - Paul McCartney (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Thus far, summer in the Mid-Atlantic has been a weird affair.

Summer arrived with a start: there was little-to-no transition from a very pleasant and long spring to the dreaded “triple-H” weather (hazy, hot and humid). Since then, it’s settled into a bit of a pattern: warm and humid, with afternoon and evening showers. This has been the case more often than not, and our drought has lifted thanks to the steady influx of precipitation.

As such, this list follows, more or less, the progression of a day here in my neck of the woods - with a little poetic license thrown in for good measure.

1. “Summer In The City” - The Lovin’ Spoonful
   “Duh-dum - bang!” So opens this classic from John Sebastian’s 60s wonder group. The Lovin’ Spoonful sum up the classic image of a sticky summer day in the city - something with which I’ve become very familiar.
2. “Weekends & Bleak Days (Hot Summer)” - The Young Knives
   One thing I failed to mention in my intro is that a lot of the rain this summer has fallen over the weekend. It’s been over a month since the greater DC area has seen a completely dry weekend. And it’s still amazingly hot, even with the rain.
3. “Girls In Their Summer Clothes” - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
   In this area, summer clothes are broken out by Easter, and stay in the fashion lexicon until October - it’s a warm place. And Bruce paints the image of all the girls and young women in their summer best - alas, passing him by.
4. “The Heat Is On” - Glen Frey
   While this is a song that’s forever tied to Miami Vice and summer images, it’s a song I most closely identify with watching World Cup ski races in Park City, Utah. I vividly recall watching slalom races in the 1980s as this song wafted up the hill from the PA system in the finish area. So this is the cooling elixir before….
5. “Like A Summer Rain” - Jan & Dean
   ….the rains move in. Jan & Dean do a lovely cover of a tune written by their old friend, Brian Wilson. And summer rain can be some of the best rain: cooling, yet not cold - perfect for a carefree dance in the grass!
6. “Rainy Day Sun” - Spinal Tap
   And the sun peeks through between storms, bringing out the rainbows (Mandel has that subject covered in his entry, though). And sometimes the sun can seem entirely absurd in the midst of waves of rain - much like the psychedelic lyrics to this song make the listener question his sanity. Such was the case with many late-60s songs - and the loving nod to that style by Spinal Tap is no exception.
7. “Stormy Weather” - Ringo Starr
   The Beatles’ eldest member was also the one most fond of jazz crooners, and soon after the breakup of the Fab Four, he recorded an entire album of old jazz standards - some better than others. And this ode to stormy weather - both real and emotional - somehow fits the voice of Mr. Starkey to a T.
8. “Emotional Weather Report” - Tom Waits
   I close this set with the blues stylings of Tom Waits, who sums up his psyche in this lovely, offbeat romp through his apartment and his emotions. And he also name checks a few Los Angeles landmarks along the way - how many of ‘em still exist, Mandel?

Enjoy the weather!

Download: “Summer In The City” - The Lovin’ Spoonful (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Weekends & Bleak Days” - The Young Knives (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Girls In Their Summer Clothes” - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “The Heat Is On” - Glen Frey (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Like A Summer Rain” - Jan & Dean (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Rainy Day Sun” - Spinal Tap (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Stormy Weather” - Ringo Starr (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)

Download: “Emotional Weather Report” - Tom Waits (mp3)
(Right-click/control-click link to download)