The Pop Eye: September 2005

What's in BeckEye's Ear...

and the New Musical Discoveries Just Keep Comin'

The whole what's-in-my-ear thing was supposed to be a recurring post too, much like "Eye Boogers". However, it seems that I've dropped the ball on this one because I haven't done it in a few months. I shall now pick that ball up and lob it over to you, my lovely readers.

I love listing the songs that I'm digging, because I always hope that someone, somewhere will trust my taste enough to go look up something that they may have never heard and end up loving it. There's nothing better than discovering a band or artist whose existence had previously been a mystery. And before I get into what my favorite songs are this month, I have to comment on a new musical discovery I made just last night.

I heard that was coming to town, and being a fan of Toad the Wet Sprocket, decided he might be worth checking out. I had been hearing some of his new tunes on THE radio station, , and thought they were pretty good. Therefore, I happily plunked down the $20 to see him.

First off, was very cool. It threw me for a bit of a loop that I have lived in Pittsburgh all my life and didn't even know this place existed. They've created a little section of downtown called "the cultural district", filled with smaller music venues and performing arts theaters.

Since I no longer work downtown, I really don't keep abreast of happenings there. I guess I should!

I had expected Glen and his band to be the headliners, and since I heard that he was touring with Kim Richey assumed that she would be the opening act.

Instead, the small stage was just set up with three chairs. It was an all acoustic show performed by Phillips, Richey and the aforementioned discovery - Griffin House. Each took turns singing songs and for one of the encores performed a cover of The Band's "The Weight" together.

Before I get into "the discovery", let me just say that this was one of the better shows I've seen in recent memory. It was very relaxed and sort of off-the-cuff. I felt like I was watching a concert in my own living room.

They explained that it was only their 2nd show of this particular tour and hadn't really gotten it together yet. They were all quite entertaining, cracking wise and playing to the rather vocal crowd, when not stunning us into silence with their undeniable talents. They all seemed to really enjoy being there, with each other and with us, as evidenced by their nearly 3-hour long set.

Yes, it was a show length of Springsteenian proportions.

Being that I went to see Glen Phillips, I never expected to come out of there such a fan of a guy I had never heard of. However, won me over from the minute he opened his mouth.

His very thoughtful, colorful, sometimes amusing lyrics are brought to life by a smooth, yet slightly rough-hewn voice. He clearly loves music and seemed to be having a great time onstage, no doubt aware that he was winning over many others in the crowd. I suggest everyone go check this guy out.

I should've bought his CD, Lost and Found, at the merchandise table, but it was a bit crowded. However, I'm definitely getting my hands on a copy, as well as the new CD when it's released.

Oh, did I mention he was kind of cute?

Hey, I'm a red-blooded American woman. I can be a real music lover and still notice these things. That's not why I'm now a fan, but it certainly doesn't hurt.

He's cute in an unconventional kind of way though. Imagine a cross between Breckin Meyer and Bono. I know it may be difficult to picture, but I found him attractive.

And he had messy hair. I love guys with messy hair. It's just a weird thing with me.

I think he became more good looking to me as the night went on. No, it had nothing to do with beer. I only had one.

It's just that the more I enjoyed his music the more intriguing he became. Ok, so I'm a sucker for a man with a guitar. I've always been.

And now without further ado, here are the songs that are presently stuck in my head:

1. Waterfall, Griffin House - Well, of course! Did you think I would yammer on about the guy and then not put him on the list?

His sound is a mix of rock and folk with sprinkles of alt-country thrown in. I liked every song he played, but this one really stood out for some reason. His voice sounds particularly sexy and soulful on this one, a song that seems to be based on that old adage, "If you love something, set it free, blah blah blah".

Griffin puts it much more succinctly in the chorus with "If you hold on to your love, it might not be coming back". But then he gets rid of the "if", which changes the whole meaning. So I'm confused.

Ah, who cares, it's a great song either way. You can check it out .

2.

Thankful, Glen Phillips - This song has been getting a lot of play on WYEP, and rightfully so. It's a rather bouncy but still rockin' track. Glen's voice is still as sweet and crisp as it was back in the Toad days.

And I have to say, he's a pretty funny guy in a live setting. You can hear this song and others .

3.

Hello Old Friend, Kim Richey - I have never really heard any of Kim's songs. I just knew of her because she sang harmony on local favorite, Bill Deasy's, "So It Goes". She has a voice similar to that of Patty Griffin's, but with more of a country flavor.

This was my favorite of the tunes she performed last night. She explained that it was about a guy she used to know who made the drunken 2 am call to her one night when she was feeling particularly low. Ah, drinking and dialing.

I'm sure everyone has experienced that at some point. What fun.

4.

So It Goes, Bill Deasy - Since seeing Kim Richey made me think of this song again, it's been in my head all day. This was from Deasy's first solo record after The Gathering Field split up. If you're not from Pittsburgh you probably have no idea what I'm talking about right now.

Well, you're missing out. I've heard some folks say that Bill doesn't have much of a vocal range, and while that may seem to be true, he's got such a sultry, rich voice that it really makes no difference how many octaves he can go. Look at Mariah Carey.

She has a range that goes from "Barry White" to "dog whistle", but she still has no soul. I like singers who really believe in what they're singing. And Deasy fits the "bill".

(Sorry for the lame joke.) You can hear a sample of this song at ,and for more of Bill's music check him out on .

5.

Dancing With Joey Ramone, Amy Rigby - This is one of the coolest, cutest, catchiest songs I've heard in a while. It's got a great '50s rock beat, highlighted by hand claps. There are certain elements that, I feel, will make any song immediately better and hand-clapping is one of them.

The song is very bouncy, and really does sound like something The Ramones would've come up with. Fitting, as the song is about going to a party and dancing with Joey. I had never heard of this singer before now, but she's apparently been around for a while.

Thanks again, WYEP.

6. Soul Meets Body, Death Cab For Cutie - I was never a huge fan of this band, but this song really caught my ear.

It's very reminiscent of '70s-era Fleetwood Mac with all the jingling and jangling and great harmonies.

7. Let Her Dance, Los Super Seven - Like Bill Deasy, this band made one of my previous lists.

The other was a song with Lyle Lovett on vocals, while this one features Joe Ely. There aren't really a lot of lyrics to this song, basically they keep repeating the same ones which usually bothers me, but it seems to work here. It's just a rollicking mix of mariachi and rockabilly.

Kind of makes me want to make a run for the border. The real one, not Taco Bell.

8.

Shootout At The Candy Shop, Jess Klein - I've actually been a fan of this song for several months now, but never mentioned it before. is another singer I was introduced to through my dear radio station. I have no idea what the title of this song means, even after listening to it countless times.

I imagine it's an analogy of some sort but I don't get it. If anyone has any ideas, I'd love to hear them! I understand the rest of the song though, and it rocks.

..in a folky sort of way.

9. Fine Line, Paul McCartney - Wow, when I first heard this song I really thought it might be a lost Beatles track! But no, it's just Sir Paul in all his glory.

I've always thought his solo career was a bit uneven, but his new record is getting a lot of critical acclaim. Critical acclaim often adds up to a big pile of nothing, but Paul's new stuff is also generating a lot of buzz among music fans.

10.

They Can't Buy The Sunshine, Turin Brakes - have such a dreamy sound, like some type of new-age, psychedelic rock. I first heard of them a while back when I accidentally discovered their song, "Pain Killer", which remains a favorite of mine. This tune's happy, carefree melody matches the lyrics.

I've interpreted them as being about an increasingly greedy society or quite possibly how the music industry favors cash cows over quality artists. Yet no matter how much money the richies have, "they can't buy the sunshine". Sweet.

Now this song will always remind me of that episode of The Simpsons, where Mr. Burns tried to block out the sun because it gave people "free light" and he wanted to jack up their electric bills. Wouldn't it be funny if that episode was also the inspiration for this song?

I may have to write a letter to Turin Brakes to find out for sure.

Where are the Dove girls now?

I saw something really funny while I was out driving earlier. I passed a billboard for McDonald's, advertising its 99-cent menu. On the billboard is a very pretty, very skinny (I would guess she's a size 4 at most) girl holding a McDonald's bag in each hand and smiling from ear to ear.

The tag line? "This is my kinda shopping spree". Upon seeing this, I laughed heartily and said aloud to no one in particular, "my ass".

I love when I get reassurance from the media that I'm, once again, right about them. Going back to my earlier post about the Dove ads, remember when I said that some people were upset over a billboard picture of fleshier women because it supposedly advocated being overweight? I don't hear these same people griping that there is a billboard practically every 100 feet for some fast food joint, usually McDonald's.

And I don't hear anyone complaining that depicting a thin girl going on a greasy food binge is irresponsible or misleading. But you can bet if one of those Dove girls was standing there with those bags in her hand, there would be an uproar of epic proportions.

Everyone knows what's going on in New Orleans and the Gulf coast. Everyone knows the destruction that this latest hurricane has caused. I leave the real news to the real news people.

But I feel like if I don't at least mention this event, it will seem like I'm ignorant to the turmoil going on around us. I'm not. Quite simply, this is a pop culture blog.

I don't mind mixing social issues with entertainment, but I don't want to rehash the same old depressing news. So, I'm going to look at this ordeal with my good eye closed and my pop eye open.

First off, let's just address the whole "Katrina and the Waves" thing.

Ok, it was funny the first 5 times I heard it. It was funny before people started dying and a whole city was engulfed. Some hundred-something puns later, it's more than lost its appeal.

No one is walking on sunshine. It's old, it's tired, it's disrespectful at this point. Move on.

Secondly, aggravates me. I was checking out Yahoo! for the latest news and this is one of the first stories I came across.

It seems that Fats Domino, who was reported missing during the storm, has been picked up recently by a rescue boat. Now, I'm not aggravated because he was rescued, don't get me wrong. I like Fats.

I dig his tunes. It would have been a shame if he had been a casualty of this disaster. I'm glad that he's alive and well.

But, is his life any more important than anyone else's? I wish I heard more rescue stories in the wake of this catastrophe..

.about anyone. But this always happens when any type of tragedy strikes.

If there is a celebrity involved, their loss or misfortune always overshadows everyone else's. Not saying that it's not newsworthy, because everyone knows who he is, but it just irks me. And I'm sure it irks the families of those who are still missing and/or presumed dead.

I'm sure they feel that their loved ones deserve a full-page story as well.

Also in the very same story, it's noted that singer-songwriter Allen Toussaint (if he's jazz, I don't know him) was also reported as missing. The writer goes on to say that, "Fox News reported that Toussaint may be among the 20,000-plus refugees seeking shelter in the Super Dome".

And there it is. There are over 20,000 folks out there, missing, lost, homeless, desperate and destitute, and two guys get the spotlight shone on them simply because they're in show biz? Again, I realize that the media focuses on celebrities because of the name recognition.

Obviously they're not going to pick a random person to write about. But in an event of this magnitude, why single anyone out? They're all people, struggling to keep their homes, their families and their lives.

Am I overreacting? Does this bother anyone else?

Celebrities do, however, have the power to help greatly with relief efforts.

(Not all of them choose to help though, which is sickening considering how much money they make. Even the C list celebs.) Several benefits have been set up already to aid victims of Katrina.

We can all make a difference as well, by donating funds to the , , or other charitable organizations.

Courtesy of , the following are the televised events that will be airing in the coming week:

Friday, 9/2/05 - A Concert for Hurricane Relief, airing on NBC, MSNBC and CNBC at 8 p.m.

The hour-long special, hosted by Today show co-host Matt Lauer in New York, is scheduled to include performances by Wynton Marsalis, Harry Connick Jr. and Tim McGraw. Leonardo DiCaprio and other celebrities are expected to participate.

Sunday, 9/4/05 - Jerry Lewis' Telethon for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. The first four hours and concluding four hours will feature celebrity appeals for donations for hurricane victims. The annual Labor Day weekend broadcast begins at 9 p.

m. Sunday and ends at 5:30 p.m.

Monday (check local listings for stations).

Friday, 9/9/05 - BET's telethon will air as a two-part, four-hour broadcast. From 6 - 7:30 pm, the network will present a special edition of 106 Park: BET's Top 10 Live, followed by the telethon, which continues until 10 pm.

Russell Simmons, Chris Rock, Wynton Marsalis and rappers Master P, Juvenile and David Banner are among those scheduled to appear. Announced Thursday, the initiative is in partnership with the National Urban League and the American Red Cross.

Saturday, 9/10/05 - An aid effort by MTV Networks, starting with Saturday's music special airing on MTV, VH1 and CMT.

Scheduled performers include Green Day, Ludacris, Gretchen Wilson, Usher, Alicia Keys, John Mellencamp, The Dave Matthews Band, Rob Thomas and Linkin Park's Chester Bennington. The special also will be available on MTV2, mtvU and VH1 Classic, as well as broadband video networks MTV Overdrive and VSpot.

Keeping an eye on all things pop culture, past and present.
Just a Steel Town girl obsessed with music and all pop culture topics who finally made it to the big show..

.New York City.