Musicheads: What song to you go to when you need a little pick-me-up?

I lived in London in the late 70's and early 80's and couldn't get into their stuff. I like it more now. London Calling is a solid album. UB40 was my favorite British band back then.

For a "pick-me-up" I'll take a blast of Average White Band, or some Zappa...highly caffeinated!

Well, for just a pure adrenaline rush, I'd have to go with Oingo Boingo's cover of "You Really Got Me" or "Only A Lad". Those are worth about 10 cups of espresso and a Jolt Cola to me.

Other honorable to put me in a happy mood are:

Cheap Trick - The House Is Rockin' (With Domestic Problems) from "Dream Police". It's a fun song to play along with on gertar. I love all the key changes.

Fountains of Wayne - '92 Subaru. With its "China Grove" esque chord changes and awesome pop harmonies, I'm always in danger of breaking out into an impromtu dance at the bus stop.

War - Low Rider.... the most awesome song for putting your "Funk-Face™" on, driving around with the windows rolled down, and cranking it to the max.

Funk-Face: See illustration below:

^^^
\ /
C
( _ )

Geez, there's so much available. Recent pick-me-ups I've enjoyed:

Joe Tex
Jelly Roll Morton
Anita O'Day
(Gov) Jimmie Davis
Nora Bayes
Tommy McClennan
Louis Armstrong
Chippie Hill
Lucille Bogan
Elton Britt (Just heard "There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere." this morning. That's enough camp to last most people a week and a half.)

Lots more where those came from.

I was a late comer to The Clash... but they are a pivotal band in the history of Rock and Roll.. as for tunes that always seem to get me moving... there are a lot, however, I always find anything by The Groovie Ghoulies get me up and moving..

When in doubt I always go with Bach.

The first Clash Album I owned was Combat Rock in 82, Then I worked my way back to London Calling, The Clash, Give'em Enough Rope, and Sandanista . 82 was for me about the time there was a change in music. before that I listened to KQ and that was it. The Beatles, Stones, Who , Doors, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd. After 82 I listened to A lot of REM, Reggae, Replacements, Cure, New Order, Smiths, Echo and the Bunnymen, Suburbs, ABC, Japan, Heaven 17, Bauhaus, Ministry, English Beat, Bryan Ferry, Roxy Music, Specials, The Stranglers, Souxie and the Banshees, Depeche Mode, Billy Bragg, and More good music. There was a local radio show on KBEM 88.5 the mpls public school station allowed some students to have their own radio show fri and saturday nights, and that was what they played. Ready steady go, and Radio One. One or both KBEM DJs went on to DJ at Graffittis, and First Avenue. All this music seemed new and very cool in 82/83/84 and the Clash were the Kings of Credibility, probably the best of all those bands, and London Calling Was the best Album. They really did change the way some people looked at the world. I still think about "working for the clampdown" , and there has been a clampdown since Ronald Reagan got into office. The Clash made punk music popular, and there was a message mixed in with the songs that seemed important. I listened to Big Audio Dynamite some, and mostly heard Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros on Bill Devilles overnight show that I listened to all night every night for a few years at work. I am looking forward to watching the Clash Biopic, Westway to the World (2000). I am also looking forward to Seeing Carbon/Silicon, at the Varsity in a few weeks.

Jimmy Buffett's One Particular Harbor :-)

Blind Melon's 'No Rain' is a guaranteed pick me up. Those first few notes alone can immediately bring a smile to my face.

Wikipedia has a very informative Clash page, and Mescalero Page.

The Clash made me believe that I could make a difference and that I should get out of my chair and stand for something, whatever that something might be. They had me back then when they first arrived and they still have me today, whether it is the old stuff, The Mescaleros, and now Carbon/Silicon.

If it is not The Clash providing the giddy up, it is The Gang of Four, The Alarm, or Screaming Blue Messiahs, Replacements, Buzzcocks, etc. And there are so many new bands today that give me that kick, like The Arctic Monkeys, The Dirtbombs, the Hives, Art Brut, The Cribs. The list goes on and on, and you will get a different answer from me a month from now.

Love the stuff DeVille. Keep it up.

plenty...

Jellyfish
Transatlantic
Klimt 1918
Kaddisfly
Fair To Midland
House of Fools

One of my best friends in elementary school and Jr. High School was always way ahead of me in terms of music. We both started out as rabid Monkee's fans, then moved on to the Beatles, then to KISS, then he went off and discovered the Sex Pistols and The Clash and some of the New Wave. I still have a 120 minute mix tape that he made for me that contained The Sex Pistols on one side and The Clash on the other. Along with songs by XTC, Gary Numan, Talking Heads, B-52's. The old "Pistols or Clash" debate.

I've done some thinking about it, and this might be heresy, and maybe belongs in last week's discussion, but I never quite got The Clash. I own The Clash and London Calling, and enjoy them very much, but I guess I'm more of a Pistols fan, probably because I think Johnny Rotten/Lydon is hysterically funny. He takes no guff, makes no bones about how he feels, and is cheeky about it as well. I think The Clash took themselves a little too seriously, which is why I didn't quite get them. I think Mick and Joe wrote some fantastic songs, they did lay some impressive groundwork musically, but I guess I need a little camp/comedy mixed in with the message to make the medicine go down.

And so, "Bodies" makes my list of "Go To" songs as well.

I have a few artists that are pick-me-ups, or remind me to have a good perspective on things:

Mos Def
India Arie
Stevie Wonder

the fun ones are:
Sam Cooke
Paul Simon
Billy Joel
CSN
Beastie Boys

I know I'm a relic from another age, but I still tend to think in albums, not songs.
Lately when I am feeling orney I have been reaching for "Pressure Cheif" from Cake or "Bleed Like Me" from Garbage.

"Bleed like Me" is rather slick and commercial compared to the earilier work by this band. This may annoy the purists, but I like Shirley Manson's voice and the songs are catchy. Its like the musical equivialent of comfort food.

Cake's lyrics are irrreverent and often sarcastic. A few tracks is usually enough to remind me not to take myself too seriously.

I've been doing the bouncy hip hop of recent times, as my pick me up. From Fergie to Dirty Dancing Havana Nights. Pink to Robbie Williams. Once in a while, I like all my favorite oldies in one place. I can do that with the Forest Gump Soundtrack.

btw, I enjoyed looking at a Site called listsofbests.com, Music. They have collected bost of the year, Decade, 70,s, 90's, 100 best ever, Lists from Rolling Stone, NME, Pitchfork, Q, Melody Maker, etc... The Clash are on most Best lists. I liked seeing that there were a lot of other Clash fans out there, and Critics that respect the music.

I'm too old for this article.
I've never heard of 90% of these artists. (sigh) Just gimme that old time rock 'n' roll!
(And a lot of early Motown!)

On Rolling Stones 500 greatest albums of all time, London Calling is #8, and Nevermind the Bollocks Here's the Sex Pistols is #41. The Clash released The Clash in april 1977, 6 months or so Before Nevermind the Bollocks was released in October 1977. Maybe its splitting hairs to choose which band was more influential. I also liked Seeing The Replacements, Prince, Bob Dylan, and Husker Du on a lot of the Best lists.

Congratulations on your Gather homepage feature!

I was a big Clash fan growing up as a teen. I had just about all their early albums. Favorite song, "In a Car Jammin"...I think I got the title right.

I still love them because they're still raw, un-refined, and was cutting edge for their time. Hate cookie-cutter bands, and the Clash was anything but that.

Pick me songs: Chaka Khan "Ain't Nobody" and "I Feel For You"; Boston's "More Than A Feeling"

I could go on, but I'll stop right there.

I loved the Clash, and "should I stay or should I go" still gets me moving and singing, as well as "train in vain".
As for guilty pleasures, Hall and Oates and Wham are are on my Ipod Shuffle. I still love a lot of 80's music.

I'm still amazed at the Clash's impact! I too am looking forward to seeing Mick Jones and his outfit, Carbon/Silicon. They are more of a rock-n-roll band live than on the album!

Thanks for the props on my old show Tim M!

This is fun..."go-to-songs" from Average White Band, Cheap Trick, several from the Clash, Boston, Chaka Khan (I LOVE "Tell Me Something Good"), Cake, even Forrest Gump sdck!

The Right Side of the Road by Van Morrison

Spoon's "They Never Got You." It makes me feel good, and sort of recalibrated. It seems to be a song about the futility and ridiculousness of living life only half there ("don't let them in / don't go too far ... cover the path to the heart") and the stalemate it creates ("they never got you and you never got them.") Then again, Britt Daniels graduated with honors from the Robert Pollard College of Totally Vague Lyrics, so the song could mean anything. When I need something more straightforward, Superchunk's "1000 Pounds" always gets me going: "You came through ... when no one else expected you to ... with all those narrowed eyes upon you."

not just one song-- usually's a cd. Lately a lot of Special Company/Josh Kelley,
Rise & Fall/The KIN (fabulous!) , Back Flipping Forward/Will Dailey for that unusual thing that he does., Keaton Simons (the double CD & EP)-- his stuff is great. I have Nobody Knows as my ringtone. Lions/Alexa Wilkinson (NEW!! and so great), B Side/ Maroon 5 but it's still something missing. erik dinardo.. don't remember the name but he's on myspace and I have the cd.
I cover a lot of music. for those who really want something out there- antiquecool..... wow! AJ DeGrasse --phenomenal

Almost anything by Toots and the Maytals is my favorite mood lifter. Also like individual songs by various people but the list is too long to put all of it here.
"Pink Cadillac" - Springsteen,
"Montego Bay" by (God help me) Bobby Bloom,
"Blackwater" - Doobies,
"Green River" & "Run Through the Jungle" (or whatever it's called) - CCR,
many songs by Bob Marley,
"Melt With You" - Modern English,
that flirty Beyonce song that might be called "Check Up On It",
Nelly Furtado's "I'm Like a Bird" song,
"I Know What I Know" - Paul Simon (another flirty song that soars), ... You get the idea.

Oh yeah! And I totally agree: The Clash were awesome. I suspect I'll like Green Day the same sort of way if I give them a better listen.

off the top of my head "Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley and the Wailers

Fatboy Slim most anything

Grateful Dead most anything

anthemic: Cory Morrow I'm Gonna Live Forever; Kathy Mattea, I Am Ready for the Storm
thoughtful: Terri Allard, Hope; Cathie Ryan, The Farthest Wave, What's Closest to the Heart; Somewhere Along the Road; Carrie Newcomer, A Gathering of Spirits, There is a Tree, Holy as the Day is Spent; Kathy Mattea, Asking Us to Dance
light hearted: Tanya Tucker, Walking Shoes: Lee Ann Womack, I'll Think of a Reason Later: Eileen McGann,Too Stupid for Democracy

London calling to the far away towns
Now that war is declared and battle come
down
London calling to the underworld
Come outof the cupboard, allyou boys and
girls

London calling, now don't look at us
All that phoney beatlemania has bitten the dust
London calling, see we ain't got no swing
cept for the ring of that truncheon thing

Chorus
The Ice age is coming, the sun zooming in
Engines stop running and the wheat growing thin
A nuclear error, but I have no fear
London is drowning-and I live by the river


London calling to the imitation zone
forget it, brother, and go it alone
London calling upon the zombie of death
Quit holding out- and draw another breath
London calling- and I don't wanna shout
Butwhen we were talking I saw you nodding out
London calling, see we ain't got no highs
Except for the one with the yellowy eyes

chorus

now get this
London calling, yeah, I was there too
An you know what they said ? well some of it was true !
London calling at the top of the dial
After all this, won't you give me a smile?

I never felt so much I like



Mojo

Artists to pick me up:
Joy Division
Tim Buckley
Nick Drake
Nico
Leonard Cohen
Radiohead

Songs to pick me up:
Withered and Died - Richard Thompson
Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now - Smiths
Masters of War - Bob Dylan
The Kids - Lou Reed
Heroin - Velvet Underground
Holocaust - Big Star
Racing in the Streets - Bruce Springsteen

Blister in the Sun

Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey - Beatles

No question: Mr. E's Beautiful Blues by Eels.

The song that snaps me out of gloom is "I Ain't Down Yet", from the musical "The Unsinkable Molly Brown".

Whenever I'm suffering from the "poor Me's", that little tune gives me the spirit to conquer the world.

I just stumbled here, so problly no one's going to see my answer, but it's gotta get said. Pick me up? Play me Cajun and usually BeauSoleil is the only band that reliably takes me where I wanna go.

But if I'm feeling dark and thundery and I don't want to feel better, I'll take Foreigner and play it loud.

"One More Time" by Daft Punk does it every time.

"end of the line" by traveling wilburys
"you can call me al" by paul simon
"d'you wann dance" by the ramones

Definitely Blister in the Sun. The flamboyantly carefree lyrics and vocals make me feel just the same way.

#1 - Alex Chilton, The Replacements

Otherwise... Oooh, this could be a longer list... in a guilty pleasure sort of way... anything by Barenaked Ladies, All-American Rejects or Blink 182 will probably do the trick. Otherwise - The Klaxons will ALWAYS energize; Vampire Weekend will ALWAYS make me deliriously happy; Radiohead will calm any frenzied nerves; and Kate Nash will have me singing along in a split second.

Although yes, I do agree than London Calling would do the trick. Actually, if we're on the topic of the Clash, I always liked "Bank Robber."

@Barb D - Green Day is one of my all-time most favorite bands ever. And yes, if you like the Clash, listen to more Green Day. I have felt for years that Green Day should do a cover album of either The Clash, The Ramones, or both.

One more mention - "You Can Call Me Al" by Paul Simon. If Chevy Chase doing Paul Simon and playing the saxophone doesn't get you groovin', honey, I don't know what will :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOiVaE-pKqM

*edit: Paul Simon played the sax. Chevy Chase played what I think is a trumpet. At least in the video.

Honest With Me, Bob Dylan - "I'm huntin bare"
Gee Angel, Sugar
I Feel So Good, Richard Thompson
I'm Not Dead I'm in Pittsburgh, Frank Black
If I Had Known, Greg Brown
Somebody to Shove, Soul Asylum
Son's Gonna Rise, Citizen Cope
Afterglow 61, Son Volt
Master of Disaster, John Hiatt
Blues for You, Cross Canadian Ragweed
Carl Perkins Cadillac, Drive By Truckers

I have to agree with most of the blokes here The Clash and Carbon/Silicon always puts a smile on my face, but Earl King's Trick Bag, Wily Coyote by Thee Mighty Caesars, and most James Brown songs do the same. such hard questions.

Against Me! Thash Unreal ; Kings Of Leon Molly's Chambers, Duffy Rockferry, Anything by the National, Spoon - Take the 5th

Ahhh...The Clash!

'The Magnificent Seven' and 'Should I Stay or Should I Go?' are some of my favorite cuts from them - and some of my pick-me-up songs - as well as these, to name a few:

Love Shack - B-52's (Tin roof! Rusted!)
Funky Stuff - Kool & The Gang
Green Light - Jamie Lidell
Little L - Jamiroquai
I Wanna Take You Higher - Sly & The Family Stone
Galaxy - War
1 + 1 + 1 = 3 - Prince
I Just Want To Celebrate - Rare Earth
Work To Do - Isley Brothers
Gonna Have a Funky Good Time - James Brown
Dead Man's Party - Oingo Boingo
Go Deep - Janet Jackson
Don't You Evah - Spoon
Simply Being Loved - BT

.:::. PASS THE COMMENT .:::.

With all the holiday cheer, i wanted to spread a comment to you in hopes you send one back my way! Enjoy your holidays!

My pick- me-up tunes:

Chris Isaac, "Baby Did A Bad, Bad Thing"
Booker T & The MGs, "Green Onions"
Junior Walker & The All Stars, "Shotgun"

sooo many.... King of Carrot Flowers--Neutral Milk Hotel, Boxcar--Jawbreaker, Eight Days A Week--The Beatles, Brainy--The National, The Wind--Cat Stevens, Ooh La La--Faces, Fake Palindromes--Andrew Bird....

Thank you for sharing this fantastic article with us.


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John Kruth "Greasy Kid Stuff" / John Denver "Calypso" / Gwen Stefani "Hollaback Girl" / Dee-Lite "Groove Is in the Heart" / Adrian Belew "Peaceable Kingdom" / Elton John "Saturday Night's Alright (for Fighting)" / Paul McCartney and Wings "Band on the Run" / Heart "Crazy on You" / David Bowie "I'm Afraid of Americans" / Steve Wynn "Sustain" / Blue Oyster Cult "Don't Fear the Reaper" / Bob Welch "Sentimental Lady" / Dukes "Brainiac's Daughter" / Edwyn Collins "Low Expectations" / Dick Dale "Nitro"

Also, April Wine "I Like to Rock"!

Lots of stuff. I like Learn to Fly by the Foo Fighters and Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen. Either of those songs can instantly make me feel better. Also Rockin In The Free World, by Neil Young.