bus vibes #22 - talking heads, ocean colour scene

hello there

is it not, you might well ask, being a trifle dishonest of me to call this "bus vibes" if my most recent mode of transport was, as point of fact, a train? well, look you see, not it is not. although i did listen to some of the first band listed on the train, mostly it was upon the bus.

and, for a change, not on my ipod classic. no, instead, in the interests of space and modest packing, i took my Bush mp3 stick player thing with me to london and back. boss it is, here have a look at the smart light show you get when you switch it on.

well, smart-ish, i suppose. it depends on what exactly impresses or interests you. i like it, and can only hope that you are at the very least not offended by it. but on to the vibes.

the album Speaking In Tongues finds itself in something of a peculiar position in the Talking Heads library. it came between the critically acclaimed, or if you like landmark, Remain In Light album and a couple of years before their absolutely massive commercial success that was Little Creatures. it sort of gets overshadowed, then.

and yet the majority of the songs here dominate the Stop Making Sense concert album and film, widely regarded as the single most essential work to own by the band and, along with The Who's Live At Leeds, is considered to be the benchmark by which all live albums and concert films are judged. in regards of the latter point, it helps that the film was directed by Jonathan Demme, an incredible talent who was to later give us the silence of the lambs.

but hey, the music. is it any good? why yes, yes it is. very good. in drawing comparisons to the above, i prefer it over Little Creatures and it is easily the equal of Remain In Light, albeit with a more accessible, pop tone to it all.

tracks from this album are ones you have heard before, i would wager, even if you have not once in your life owned a Talking Heads album. Burning Down The House featured on the soundtrack for Revenge Of The Nerds and, perhaps more widely seen and heard, the magnificence of Swamp was Tom Cruise's "pimp" song in Risky Business. my all time favourite Talking Heads song, This Must Be The Place, was used very wisely indeed as the end credits song for Wall Street.

a rather popular parlour game is to name and discuss what song you would like to have played at your funeral, as and when that event happens. my view has more or less always been one of it really doesn't matter as i shall not be there to hear it. if, however, for some reason in the future (as opposed to the past) someone is scouring my blog with a mindset of "the twat is no more, what do we play as we burn him", well then this song would be just fine, thanks.

Speaking In Tongues is a great album, and one full worthy of your time. the link i gave is to a fancy, la-de-dah CD & DVD version. the three bonus tracks are not really worth it if you can find a standard edition at a lower price.

a quick break, and i have, dear reader, now sampled one of the milk chocolate dipped digestives which Fortnum & Mason agreed to sell to me at a most agreeable price. it was unmistakably one of the most exquisite and higher class items that i have ever consumed, and i am deeply honoured and privileged to have been in a position to have one of them.

oh yes indeed, the elegance of the letters F & M have been, carefully and with distinguished class, baked or cooked into the side of the digestive not dipped into milk chocolate. i could indeed sense myself trembling with formidable awe as i held it in my hand.

singles do not really exist any more, which is a great shame when you listen to the likes of Travellers Tune by Ocean Colour Scene and hear all that a single can be. it, with 4 tracks, is more of an ep i suppose, but i think they declared it a single in order to qualify for the charts.

from what i remember Ocean Colour Scene were something of a side project for members of the band that toured with Paul Weller from time to time, with them opting to get together and do something instead of simply waiting for Paul Weller to do Paul Weller things and hit the road or record an album. this should not be taken to imply that they are some sort of "this will do" or lesser band, as the truth is far from this. Ocean Colour scene are superb musicians and feature one very formidable, distinct singer.

Travellers Tune, the actual "a side" of the single, is one of their greatest moments. the three tracks included as "b sides" are stunning - if not quite single material themselves, then they would certainly grace any album. here's a snippet of my favourite of the three, On The Way Home. which, indeed, i did listen to on the way home from my travels

the incredible quality and effort put into a single on display here must, i suppose, confuse and bewilder today's generation. it seems that the art of the single, and pretty much the album, has gone forever in favour of dull, disposable tunes destined to be forgotten quickly or licensed to the point of irritation in games and on commercials. hey ho, i suppose i am just lucky that i was born at a time when music still mattered, and was made by people who truly loved music rather than just by people who were quite good at sampling the works of others on one of them computer things.

next up on bus vibes, as and when i get around to writing them, will be what i played yesterday on my travels to and from verk. that would be The Doors, as i fancied the single most LA sound you can get.




be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!