The Beatles - sgt pepper's lonely hearts club band reprise, 1967

"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)" is a modified repeat of the opening song at a faster tempo and with heavier instrumentation. The track opens with McCartney's count-in; between 2 and 3, Lennon jokingly interjects "Bye!" Ringo Starr starts the song proper by playing the drum part unaccompanied for four bars, at the end of which a brief bass glissando from McCartney cues the full ensemble of two distorted electric guitars (played by George Harrison and Lennon), bass, drums and overdubbed percussion. In addition, McCartney overdubbed a Hammond organ part onto the track."

Damien Jurado - museum of flight, 2012

"I heard this song at a time when things in my life had already started changing without asking for my opinion. They either just up and walked away, or slowly started to float away. It was time for me to say goodbye to being in a band with two people I love dearly. I didn’t want to do it because I knew that meant losing them, even if only for a bit, but perhaps the worst part was, it also meant losing beloved parts of our friendship. It’s scary when you realize a relationship with a loved one is changing. Even if it’s for the better, change is hard."

Les Galapiats - ohé les gars, 1970

"Le générique a été composé par "ROGER MORES" et chanté par la Chorale du Collège St Pierre de Uccle (Belgique), sous la direction de l'Abbé Caron. Le titre du générique: "Ohé les gars"

http://mp3.centerblog.net/j/jmg/90n8ebz3.mp3

The Housemartins - five get over excited, 1987

"Music writer Rikki Rooksby notes that the track's "anti-hyperbolic title" is "positively revolutionary", as the use of hyperbole in pop lyrics is pervasive but never admitted. In 2007, the Manchester Evening News described the tune as "another corking chart hit that stands as a beacon amongst the dross of the 1980s."

Suzanne Vega - st clare, 2001

"It seems odd to talk about saints, and women too poor to afford shoes, being ones who hold "all man's desire." Whether "man" means male people or all people, surely many people desire more-- or at least other-- than what it is these women offer, which is enlightenment and piety. What about the things Clare herself is patron of? Don't people "desire" gold, and fine embroidery, and television? I'm sorry, but the statistics are pretty clear-- people want good reception as much as they want godly redemption. Perhaps we are reading too much into the song. Perhaps the imagery is merely impressionistic. It is very pretty, sparse in its arrangements as an Order of the Poor Ladies' cloister. Or perhaps one needs to know more about Suzanne Vega, or Saint Clare, to truly understand it."

Bee Gees - i can't see nobody, 1967

"I Can't See Nobody" is a song by the Bee Gees, released first as the B-side of "New York Mining Disaster 1941". With "New York Mining Disaster 1941", this song was issued as a double A in Germany and Japan, and included on the group's third LP, Bee Gees' 1st. "I Can't See Nobody" charted for one week at number 128 on the Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100 in July 1967."

The Thrills - no more empty words, 2007

"Teenager is the third album from Irish band The Thrills. It was released on 22 July 2007 in Ireland and three days later in Europe. The first single from the album was "Nothing Changes Around Here". The second release taken from the album was "The Midnight Choir" which was released as a download-only single. Teenager reached No. 48 on the UK Albums Chart."

The Beatles - hey jude, 1968

"In 1967, John Lennon had left his wife and son and was living with Yoko Ono. Paul McCartney didn’t want Cynthia Lennon to think he’d also abandoned her and Julian, just because John had left, so he drove to see them in Weybridge. Being a songwriter, he naturally began making up a tune as he drove. He hoped Julian wouldn’t start crying, that would just make a sad situation worse. So he sang: “Hey Jules, don’t make it bad. Take a sad song and make it better.” In the event, although he liked the song, he thought ‘Jules’ was a bit awkward to sing. So he changed the name to Jude, and the song became ‘Hey Jude’."

Mazarin - the new american apathy, 2005

"Mazarin doesn't live in Chapel Hill, but they might as well - they've played here three times in as many months, and despite how enamored I am of We're Already There, I've managed to miss them every time until this show. I did catch their final song when they opened for the Walkmen at the Cat's Cradle a few months earlier, and I retained exactly one impression - for a pop band, they were defiantly loud, aspiring to My Bloody Valentine decibel-levels. Opening for Rogue Wave, they were quieter and fit well with the headliner; each blending sunny pop-rock and fuzzy melancholy, with Mazarin tilting more toward the former and Rogue Wave, the latter. The bands were almost too well-matched: When I walked in to the opening verse of "For Energy Infinite", it took me a minute to figure out which band it was even though I'm intimately familiar with the song."

The Parting Gifts - walking through the sleepy city cover, 2010

"Still, there is no denying the chemistry between them, leading the pair to wonder, what if the love of your life is actually your best friend?"

The Rolling Stones - tell me, 1964

"When [Jagger and Richards] began to write songs, they were usually not derived from the blues, but were often surprisingly fey, slow, Mersey-type pop numbers ... 'Tell Me' was quite acoustic-based, with a sad, almost dispirited air. After quiet lines about the end of the love affair, the tempo and melody both brighten"

Fazerdaze - jennifer, 2017

"The music of Amelia Murray, who records as Fazerdaze, is on its surface bright and summery. Pick any track at random from Morningside, her excellent full-length debut for Flying Nun, and you’ll be greeted by foamy waves of guitar and Murray’s warm, sighing voice. But zero in on the lyrics, and the sun begins to fade. A portrait of romantic uncertainty, Morningside rests Murray’s emotionally-candid lyrics in silvery latticeworks of guitar, and the resulting tension is one of the things that makes the record so alluring."

The Style Council - come to milton keynes, 1985

"The song’s lyrics suggested a reality of drugs, violence, and ‘losing our way’ behind a façade of ‘luscious houses ‘ where the ‘curtains are drawn’, the idea being to create a musical pastiche which matched the supposed artificiality of Milton Keynes itself."

Future Islands - say goodbye, 2024

"From the start, Future Islands have been singular and instantly identifiable, with Herring’s life-worn croons and cries backlit by Gerrit Welmers’ melodies and charged by the rhythms of William Cashion and Michael Lowry. That premise hasn’t changed on People Who Aren’t There Anymore, but never before has the band sounded so empathetic and Herring so integrated, with what he is singing and how they sound blended like a dioramic mosaic."

Status Quo - pictures of matchstick men, 1968

"I wrote it on the bog. I'd gone there, not for the usual reasons...but to get away from the wife and mother-in-law. I used to go into this narrow frizzing toilet and sit there for hours, until they finally went out. I got three quarters of the song finished in that khazi. The rest I finished in the lounge."

My Sad Captains - great expectations, 2009

"On ‘Wide Open’, he has a single, simple insight, singing the song’s only line “I wonder why you feel the need to talk so loud like there isn’t anybody else around” over looped, pirouetting guitar, flares of tasteful feedback and a steady krautrock beat. A lyric less than a tweet in length turned into a stunning mantra, it’s the definition of less being more. And there’s no judgement, no scabrous sneer, just encouraging acceptance in its repeated delivery. It’s one of many highlights on an LP that speaks volumes for understatement and the beauty of quiet, wounded optimism."

The National - about today, 2004

"Wow, the things you can find online sometimes. “About Today” from The National first appeared on the Cherry Tree EP released in 2004. The studio version is very good. The live version on the 2008 Virginia EP will bring you to tears, it is that incredible.The fact the song is a part of the end scene for the movie “Warrior” simply takes things to an even more incredible level. What a clip, truly capable of bringing a man to tears."

Status Quo - technicolor dreams, 1968

"Even if this is not the most representative album from Status Quo, it is a good psychedelic pop exercise that sometimes includes very imaginative guitar phrases ("Ice in the Sun"), and some brilliantly unusual sounds (the epic "Paradise Flat")."

REM - fascinating, 2001

"Michael Stipe once said, “Sometimes before we make a record I go back and listen to a few. It’s equally humbling and uplifting.” But what happens to the songs that don’t make the album, did Michael feel regret for the songs they left behind. One R.E.M. outtake that I particular love is “Fascinating” from 2001’s Reveal Sessions."

Bill Ryder-Jones - i hold something in my hand, 2024

“Even by my standards the last few years have been rocky, but I’ve chosen to soundtrack it with more positive music, you know?”

Postiljonen - plastic panorama, 2013

"Postiljonen is a dream pop trio formed in Stockholm in 2011. The band composed of one Norwegian gal (Mia Bøe) and two Swedish dudes (Daniel Sjörs and Joel Nyström Holm). In this short period of time they have managed to create a characteristic sound, where ethereal and alluring vocals are interwoven in a mystical, ambient, dreamy and lovable expression. They have been compared to the likes of M83, Sigur Rós, jj and Cocteau Twins. They take inspiration from old black & white movies, the golden 80s, Balearic scenery, sleepless summer nights, and describe themselves as nostalgic daydreamers, which the music reflects perfectly."

Josh Rouse - feeling no pain, 2002

"Under Cold Blue Stars is the third album by indie folk musician Josh Rouse. It was released in 2002 and was his last album for Slow River Records."

Keane - leaving so soon, 2006

"In 2008, Under the Iron Sea was voted the 8th best British album of all time by a poll conducted by Q Magazine and HMV."

Status Quo - spicks and specks cover, 1968

"Picturesque Matchstickable Messages from the Status Quo is the debut studio album by the English rock band Status Quo, released in September 1968. It features several covers, including "Green Tambourine" by The Lemon Pipers."

REM - munich cover live, 2008

"26 March 2008 - 'Live Lounge', BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1 Studios, Yalding House, London, England - set: Supernatural Superserious / Interview with Jo Whiley / Munich - notes: Radio interview with Jo Whiley & live in-studio acoustic performance. 'Munich' is a cover of a song by Editors"

Hamish Hawk - angel numbers, 2022

"A musical Rubik's cube, just when you think you have him figured out, one twist of the bricks sends the colours scattering into a twisted collage. His 2021 breakthrough, Heavy Elevator, was a joyous indie-pop romp. But despite its flashes of familiarity, as a record it was very hard to pin down. Pulp, The Magnetic Fields and even Smog are apt reference points, but Hawk is not – nor does he try to be like – them. Angel Numbers is a continuation of his ability to confound. While its predecessor may have been years in the making, consisting of songs compiled and tailored over a lifetime, Angel Numbers was written entirely in its wake. The result is twelve songs with an even greater sense of cohesion, and displaying an exploratory nature resulting from having less time to second guess himself."

Bee Gees - give your best, 1969

"Everything got out of hand and we didn't know which way we were heading. We'd never really finished the album. It was our own production and we were very proud of it, but it all turned out different. It marked a period of breaking up and we weren't talking to each other, so we weren't in the studio together half the time and weren't as friendly toward each other. The recording took three or four months which was a long time in those days. Bee Gees 1st was done in a month. It would be nice to re-master the album once and as a bonus maybe do a live version of some of the songs."

The Thrills - say it ain't so, 2003

"I've grown up with so many bands I love that could never get arrested over here. I never expected too much. I kind of came here pessimistic, in a good way."

The Radio Dept - david the rice twins remix, 2009

"A new single, "David", was released on June 24th 2009. It included four songs; "David", "Messy Enough", "David (Rice Twins Remix)" and "The Idle Urban Contemporaries". The song "David" has been made available for download at no cost by Labrador Records."

The Flaming Lips - turn it on, 1993

"Transmissions from the Satellite Heart is the sixth studio album by American rock band the Flaming Lips, released in 1993 by Warner Bros. Records. The album marked the departure of Jonathan Donahue (to Mercury Rev) and Nathan Roberts, and the addition of guitarist Ronald Jones and drummer Steven Drozd."

Death Cab For Cutie - crooked teeth, 2005

"One of my favorite, favorite writers in the whole world is a man named Raymond Carver and he had this way of writing stories about people living small lives going through some very, uh... their very own trials and tribulations in ways that I've always really admired. I wanted to kind of create a story that involved two characters that were trapped by geography in Southern Florida and that they were kind of keeping themselves captive and the city that surrounded them was seemingly closing in on them and this was the outcome of that experiment. This is my attempt to be a junior Raymond Carver."

Franz Ferdinand - you're the reason i'm leaving, 2005

"I liked the reference to R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts", the song that has supposedly prevented hundreds of people from offing themselves in horrible ways. To juxtapose the image of him pleasantly driving in his car, hearing that song, then fighting the urge to cry and lashing out is brilliant. Also, the ambiguity of exactly who is leaving who here is great (I'm the reason you're leaving / no, you're the reason I'm leaving) Nothing like a nice song about a mutually-self-destructive relationship to get your blood pumping in the morning :)"

Echo And The Bunnymen - the game, 1987

"You’d have got long odds on Echo & The Bunnymen remaining an operational unit in 2024. First, there are the ongoing lifestyle challenges singer Ian McCulloch – at the should-know-better age of 64 – continues to set himself. Then there’s the somewhat distant relationship he maintains with the group’s other creative mainspring, lead guitarist Will Sergeant. Finally, here’s a group whose romantic/eccentric refusal to play whatever game was going has often ended in some kind of meltdown – multiple defeats wrenched from the jaws of victory."

Flowerovlove - out for the weekend, 2022

“‘Out For The Weekend’ is about me and my best friend specifically never dressing for the weather and being cold in London because we committed more to our outfit than to comfort.”

The Durutti Column - waiting, 2006

"The Durutti Column were among the first acts signed to Manchester's Factory Records label - which was also home to Joy Division, New Order and the Happy Mondays. His band were highly influential but never sought commercial success. Reilly also played guitar for Morrissey on his debut solo album, Viva Hate. He had his first stroke in 2010 and two more followed in 2011. "He has asked me to send his love to all of you," Matt Reilly wrote. "You've given him the best start to his new year that anyone could have asked for. "And he's determined to fight his way back to fitness and rebuild the power in his hands so he can play guitar again. "It's going to be a hard road ahead for him, but you've all made his life a lot brighter."

The Mary Onettes - pleasure songs, 2007

"It may sound a bit on the nostalgic side, though its influences merely melt into a greater whole, in which various sounds meld together in synth-pop ecstasy"

The Durutti Column - sara e tristana, 1983

"The Durutti Column — the band of brilliant guitarist Vini Reilly and drummer Bruce Mitchell — was one of the major stakes out of Manchester label Factory Records, created by the charismatic and legendary Tony Wilson. The time of their early records coincides with the stint of Portuguese writer and journalist Miguel Esteves Cardoso in that city in a post-industrial hangover. They first connected there and then. Eventually, Durutti Column played an acclaimed performance at Vilar de Mouros festival in 1982 and Lisbon’s Aula Magna in 1983. That same year, the friendship prompted the idea of a record under the newly founded label Fundação Atlântica of Miguel Esteves Cardoso, Pedro Ayres Magalhães (Corpo Diplomático, Heróis Do Mar, Madredeus) and the late Ricardo Camacho (Sétima Legião), whose purpose was to become the equivalent of Factory Records in Portugal. The album Amigos Em Portugal was recorded on a flying visit within a single day. It has the trademark melancholic and fairy-like guitar of Vini Reilly and contains tracks such as “Lisboa”, “Menina ao Pé Duma Piscina” (Girl By A Pool), “Estoril À Noite” (Estoril At Night), “Sara E Tristana” (Miguel Esteves Cardoso’s twin daughters), “Vestido Amarrotado” (Creased Dress), “Saudade,” and the title track, “Amigos Em Portugal”

The Radio Dept - tell you about my job, 2002

"In the 15 years The Radio Dept. has been around, the Swedish duo has tried valiantly to resist the required expectations of musicians: touring, promotion, interaction, even putting out albums has been a struggle. Despite this, The Radio Dept.‘s Johan Duncanson and Martin Carlberg (ne Larsson) have managed to maintain a strong international following, gaining cult-like status in the process."

The Thrills - one horse town, 2003

"One Horse Town" is the second single released by Irish band the Thrills from their debut album, So Much for the City (2003). It was released on 10 March 2003 and reached number seven on the Irish Singles Chart, becoming the band's highest-charting song in their home country. It also peaked at number 18 on the UK Singles Chart."

Damien Jurado - gork meets the desert monster, 2022

"The final song, Gork Meets The Desert Monster, is the rangiest and most complex. It divides itself in two, rather like the narrator, and glides towards a restless, pregnant silence."

Outros olhares: uma rosa em Bruxelas no dia 4 de Junho de 2024

Pet Shop Boys - it's not a crime, 2024

"The third single from Pet Shop Boys’ acclaimed new album “Nonetheless” includes new recordings of two of PSB’s earliest songs, “It’s not a crime” and “I’ve got plans (involving you)”, originally written in 1982, as well as the original demo of “A new bohemia” and a remix by Alex Metric."

Letting Up Despite Great Faults - in steps, 2011

"To say that it never rains in Southern California might be an overstatement, but it's still an unexpected pleasure to hear something so unmistakably autumnal from the season-challenged state. Letting Up Despite Great Faults, a Los Angeles-based band, effectively capture an overcast mood with "In Steps", the opening track from their forthcoming self-titled album. Layering lush synth and a shimmering New Order guitar tone, "Steps" prettily evokes the tipping point from full bloom to slow decay, as the warm summer days give way to a wet, windy fall."

Fleet Foxes - heard them stirring, 2008

"The album fuses folk music, gospel, psychedelic pop, and Sacred Harp styles. Rolling Stone columnist Austin Scaggs described the album's music as dense, singling out its usage of progressive countermelodies. The album's harmonious arrangements were interpreted as lush and textured. Though the music is audibly informed by gospel traditions, Pecknold was not brought up religious. Instead, he felt the devotional aspect proved more compelling from a songwriting standpoint. Its mood evokes bucolic images, yearning for easier times; Pecknold called it "uninformed nostalgia".

Damien Jurado - so on nevada, 2012

"The process of the deconstruction of the Musician’s influence and status is detailed over the next four movements of “Reel to Reel,” “Working Titles,” “Everyone’s A Star,” and “So On, Nevada.” These songs contain some of Jurado’s best lyrical puzzles"

Coldplay - clocks, 2002

"Clocks" is an alternative rock and psychedelic rock song. It features a repeating piano melody and a minimalist, atmospheric soundscape of synthesizer pads, drums, electric guitar, and bass guitar. Martin applied an ostinato, as well as a descending scale on the piano chord progression, which switches from major to minor chords. The themes of the lyrics include contrast, contradictions and urgency. According to Jon Wiederhon of MTV News, "Martin seems to address the helplessness of being in a dysfunctional relationship he doesn't necessarily want to escape." The lyrics are cryptic; the ending lines of the second verse emphasise contradicting emotion: "Come out upon my seas/Cursed missed opportunities/Am I a part of the cure/Or am I part of the disease?" The song's title also "metaphorically alludes" to its lyrics, "pushing one to wonder about the world's obsession with time while connecting it to the theory: make the best of it when we’re here, present and alive."

Allo Darlin - the letter, 2012

"A great weekend doing pre-production for our new album at @BigJellyStudios. Missing Bill but we had him on video call! Can’t wait to get these new songs down and share them with you."

Black Box Recorder - the english motorway system, 2000

"let's now travel down the darkly humorous musical highway of the English trio, first from their second album The Facts of Life (2000). Comprised of Luke Haines from The Auteurs, John Moore formerly of The Jesus and Mary Chain and Sarah Nixey, all of whom have produced many solo projects, the band specialises in ironic, often nostalgic electronic pop with wry, cutting lyrics sung or spoken by Nixey's breathy, sensual, but deadpan voice. Their first recorded song on the first album, England Made Me, was Girl Singing in The Wreckage, more of an acoustic guitar number, which ultimately perhaps led to this song. The English Motorway System, having an element of Kraftwerk's Autobahn, in fact somewhat parodies it, being all about losing your concentration on the road, has a bleak, strange beauty, and was originally conceived as a hymn."

Keane - nothing in my way, 2006

"Nothing in My Way" came out of listening to a lot of the poppier end of hiphop on the radio, just kinda driving around and I think particularly the groove of "Lose Yourself" by Eminem got stuck in my head (...) and I guess I liked the idea of trying to do something similar. I guess it was never gonna sound like Eminem, but the groove of it was basically lifted from that, and the song just came from jamming around on a piano. So I guess as a result of all that, I guess it's a much funkier and kinda 'blacker' song than most Keane songs, and that was something that we really wanted to get into the record generally. We were listening to a lot of classic motown as well, much more driving rhythms and you can hear that in a lot of the songs"

This Mortal Coil - the last ray, 1984

"In 1984, Raymonde joined Cocteau Twins, filling the void left by the departed bassist Will Heggie. He remained as a core writer in the band until its dissolution in 1997. As well as his work with Cocteau Twins, he also contributed to the first two albums by This Mortal Coil, another 4AD project."

Coldplay - cemeteries of london, 2008

"it's about someone searching for something, a truth or meaning, 'to see god in their own way' it describes their journey. Meaningful for someone who is searching for some truth or meaning in their life."

The House Of Love - i don't know why i love you, 1989

"I didn't think [it] was going to be a hit. Phonogram were disappointed but I wasn't. I did tell them! It was the first decent thing we'd done for a year but it didn't sound contemporary to me."

The Lightning Seeds - change, 1994

"I’ve never come across a song that summed up the high school experience in the 90s quite as well. It resonates with me in a way that makes me wish I had discovered The Lightning Seeds back catalog decades ago."

The Beatles - your mother should know, 1967

"Paul McCartney began writing "Your Mother Should Know" on a harmonium at his house in St John's Wood, London, in the company of his Aunty Jin and Uncle Harry, and drew on his father's love of music hall. The conversation he had with his family members that day inspired the subject matter of the song. Its lyrical premise centres on the history of hit songs across generations. McCartney took the title from a line in the 1961 film A Taste of Honey, which tells of a white teenage girl who falls pregnant with a black man's child and withholds news of the pregnancy from her domineering mother."

Del Amitri - not where it's at, 1997

"By 2002, they couldn't find a record company that were happy enough with their sales, and still can't find anyone to distribute the album that they've done. Not only that, but Currie's bass lines are among some of the best i've heard and really drive the songs from the rhythm section on up. "Not Where It's At", in particular, really knocked me out, it's just one hook after another, that should have been lighting up the charts, not a relative minor hit. The finer mechanics of all the counterpoint parts and smaller details of songs like that still retain this magical quality to me that reminds me of when I first heard music as a kid."