Your (Almost) Daily Playlist (2-13-20)

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Inspired by the February 13 birthdays of New Order’s Peter Hook, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Williams, Feist, Black Flag’s Henry Rollins, Freedom Williams, the Monkees’ Peter Tork, Tennessee Ernie Ford, and songwriter Boudleaux Bryant, who, sometimes with his wife Felice, composed many of the Everly Brothers hits, including “Bye Bye Love,” “All I Have to Do Is Dream,” “Wake Up Little Susie,” “Bird Dog,” “Devoted To You,” and “Love Hurts.”

Not In The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame: The Smiths

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“I don’t care to belong to any club that will have Bon Jovi as a member.”
– Groucho Marx

On April 14, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will induct several worthwhile acts and Bon Jovi. Over the next few weeks, Tunes du Jour will spotlight artists that are eligible for induction (i.e. they commercially released their debut recording at least 25 years ago), but have not been inducted as they are not as talented, innovative or influential as Bon Jovi.

Today we look at and listen to The Smiths. They sounded nothing like their mid-eighties contemporaries, creating songs that appealed to those who felt like outsiders, when in reality those people were humans with a need to be loved, just like everybody else. Lyrically the songs displayed wit and vulnerability and expressed feelings of loneliness and longing in ways never heard before in pop music. These lyrics were coupled with Johnny Marr’s fresh guitar riffs, hooks that worked their way into your head and never left, that often worked as the musical opposites of what was being sung.

The Smiths influenced and continue to influence countless indie rock artists. The way their songs played with traditional male roles opened the door to LGBTQ acts whose lyrics conveyed an openness toward sexuality, even though Morrissey, The Smiths’ singer and lyricist, has never publicly come out. Their songs are smart, with literary references one need not get to enjoy. However, they never sang anything like “I was running away from the only thing I’ve ever known / Like a blind dog without a bone / I was a gypsy lost in the twilight zone / I hijacked a rainbow and crashed into a pot of gold.” Do you know who did? Bon Jovi.

Here are twenty of The Smiths’ finest tunes.


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A Hint Of Mint – Volume 78: LGBTQ Music From 1984 To 1985

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In this installment, we finally wrap up 1984 and move into 1985, welcoming Bronski Beat into the fold. There are songs to dance to, songs to rock out to, and some to chill out to.

This playlist consists of twenty songs, most performed by artists who fall somewhere under the LGBTQ umbrella, a couple with queer lyrical content.

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A Hint Of Mint – Volume 75: LGBTQ Music From 1982 To 1983

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The British invasion of the early 80s continues! Welcome Boy George! Welcome George Michael! Welcome Morrissey (I’m claiming him as one of us; I don’t care what he has to say about it)!

This playlist consists of twenty songs, some performed by artists who fall somewhere under the LGBTQ umbrella, others with queer lyrical content. Some of the acts are American.

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Throwback Thursday – 1987 (Part II)

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One of 1987’s most popular and critically-acclaimed hits began its life as a demo recording named after the duo who sang “It’s Raining Men.”

It’s by the band U2, who referred to the track as “The Weather Girls” or “Under the Weather.” Their guitarist, The Edge, told Rolling Stone magazine that the song sounded like a reggae band’s version of Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger.” Over time they developed the song. Instruments were added to the initial drum pattern. When it came time to come up with lyrics, The Edge gave singer Bono a piece of paper on which he had written a phrase that came to him earlier that day – “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.”

That became the song’s title, with lyrics inspired by the gospel music Bono was listening to at the time. “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” was U2’s second consecutive #1 single, following “With or Without You,” which was included on part 1 of Tunes du Jour’s Throwback Thursday – 1987 playlist.

Here are twenty of 1987’s best, kicking off not with The Weather Girls, but with U2.


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Throwback Thursday – 1986

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By 1986, Aerosmith appeared to have had their best years behind them. Sales of their releases that decade lagged significantly behind their hits in the 1970s, and the group’s members were struggling with drug addictions.

They did have fans, though. One was music producer Rick Rubin. He was working with rap group Run-D.M.C., who were known in hip hop circles and with music critics for incorporating rock guitars and beats in their boastful raps, such as “Rock Box” and “King of Rock.”

Rubin suggested Run-D.M.C. do a remake of Aerosmith’s 1977 hit “Walk This Way,” but the rappers had no interest in doing a cover. However, the group’s DJ, Jam Master Jay, was open to the idea, and Rubin called Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry to come into the studio. Perry was familiar with the rappers, as his stepson was a fan. Jam Master Jay convinced Run and D.M.C. to give the remake a shot, seeing as Tyler and Perry were in the studio with Rubin.

The Run-D.M.C./Aerosmith version of “Walk This Way” was not only massively successful, but highly influential as well. It became Run-D.M.C.’s first crossover hit, and the first rap track to make the top ten of Billboard’s Hit 100, peaking at #4, six notches higher than Aerosmith’s original peaked. It opened the door to future song/rap collaborations, something that continues to dominate the charts to this day, not to mention bringing “rock rap” to a wide audience.

Steven Tyler went to rehab in 1986, and the other members of Aerosmith also sought treatment for their drug addictions. On the heels of the success of the “Walk This Way” remake, Aerosmith released the Permanent Vacation album in the late summer of 1987. Its first single, “Dude (Looks Like a Lady),” became the group’s first hit single outside the Run-D.M.C. collaboration since 1978’s “Come Together.” They followed that single with a string of big hits over the next few years, including “Love in an Elevator,” “Cryin’,” “Janie’s Got a Gun,” “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” “Livin’ on the Edge,” and “Jaded.”

This week’s Throwback Thursday playlist spotlights the best of 1986, kicking off with the groundbreaking “Walk This Way,” performed by Run-D.M.C. and featuring Aerosmith’s “Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.


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A Hint Of Mint – Volume 58: A Total Blam-Blam

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I’d love to tell you what’s on this playlist, but I’m late for an appointment and the words aren’t coming to me. I can tell you it includes The Smiths, Queen and Bronski Beat, that it’s a rocking affair, and that the oldest song on it is from 1966 and the most recent from 2002. Now if you’ll excuse me….

[8tracks width=”300″ height=”250″ playops=”” url=”http://8tracks.com/mixes/8081205″]
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