10 Intense Live Performances

Elvis Presley - Also Sprach Zarathustra/CC Rider
Dallas Memorial Auditorium 1976
"Dead Cat Bounce" is a financial term for a stock that sees a slight rise in price before its eventual fall into the gutter. I can think of no better way to describe Elvis' 1976 show in Dallas.
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Phish - Possum
Hampton Coliseum 1998
It's like a roller coaster that won't let you off for a full ten minutes.
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Allman Brothers - One Way Out
Cow Palace San Francisco - 1973
Part of an amazing New Years show. The Allman Brothers were one of the rock bands with two drummers. You can really hear it on this recording.
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Mighty Mighty Bosstones - Drugs and Kittens
Middle East Club, Boston - 1997
Now matter how big they got, the Bosstones always played a holiday show at the same small venue in their hometown. The crowd goes what could only be described as "completely apeshit."
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Sly and The Family Stone - Medley
Woodstock
I can't imagine what drugs were flowing through Sly Stone and his band during this song, but I would guess that they weren't benzopiapines.
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James Brown - Ain't It Funky Now
Olympia, Paris - 1971
The first time I heard this album I was standing in a store that allowed you to preview an album before buying it. I soon found myself dancing all by myself in the middle of a mall.
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The Kinks - Medley
Kelvin Hall, Glasgow - 1967
I'm not going to give away the secret of this medley, but let's just say that The Kinks sneak in a cover song that completely blew this Glasgow crowd out of their seats.
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AC/DC - Whole Lotta Rosie
Atlantic Recording Studios - 1979
A very loud tribute to a very large woman.
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Duke Ellington - Diminuendo In Blue And Crescendo In Blue
Newport Jazz Festival - 1956
This performance was greatly responsible for Duke Ellington's late career revival. Paul Gonsalves turns what was usually a brief solo into an amazing twenty-seven choruses, creating utter pandemonium on stage and off.
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Bruce Springsteen - Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco - 1978
If your frame of reference for Bruce Springsteen is only Born in the USA, you owe it to yourself to listen to this track from the "Darkness On The Edge of Town" tour. The best part comes at the end where Springsteen humbly says " I know a lot of you guys wait out in line to get tickets and then wait out in line to get for a long time and I just want to let you know I appreciate it."
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10 Great Soul Songs Covered By The Blues Brothers

Under the direction of the soulless Paul Schaffer and with the help of original Stax session men Donald "Duck" Dunn, Steve Cropper, and Willie Hall the Blues Brothers played a mixed bag of cover tunes, always acknowledging their sources when played live. At their best, the Blues Brothers made you feel like you had been invited to a Saturday Night Live after party, exposing you to some great soul music and encouraging you to seek out the original tunes. At their worst, the Blues Brothers played coked-up obliterations of some truly great music. So, here are some of the originals, featured in Briefcase Full of Blues, and the soundtrack to their first movie.

I Can't Turn You Loose - Otis Redding
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Messin' With the Kid - Junior Wells
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Rubber Biscuit - The Chips
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Groove Me - King Floyd
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Soul Man - Sam & Dave
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Flip, Flop & Fly - Downchild Blues Band
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Peter Gunn - Henry Mancini
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Shake Your Tailfeather - Bobby and James Purify
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Sweet Home Chicago - Robert Johnson
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Everybody Needs Somebody To Love - Solomon Burke
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10 More Great Cover Songs

The Mountain Goats - The Sign (Ace of Base)
This song began my recent love affair with the Mountain Goats

The Puppini Sisters - Walk Like an Egyptian (Bangles)
After hearing this you'll swear that the Bangles were actually covering an old Andrews Sister tune.

The Minutemen - Ain't Talking About Love (Van Halen)
Most of my favorite cover songs are complete re-interpretations of songs I know well. The Minutemen don't re-interpret this great song of Van Halen's first album, as much as they distill it from three minutes and forty seconds, to well, forty seconds. And that's all the Minutemen ever really needed. eh? Note: for an example of just how bad cover compilations can get, just listen to this version of the same song.

Rasputina - Rock and Roll (Led Zeppelin)
One word: cellos.

Unholy Trio - Bring the Noise (Public Enemy)
This just beats out the Gourds "Gin and Juice" for the title of "Best Redneck Cover of Iconic Hip Hop." I hate to ruin the surprise, but listen for "Dixie" in the middle of a Public Enemy song.

Occidental Brothers Dance Band International - Bizarre Love Triangle (New Order)
Almost as good as this steel drum version of Joy Division's Transmission.

Easy Star All Stars feat. Toots Hibbert - Let Down (Radiohead)
Most cover compilations don't work. They're often reggae or bluegrass versions stretched too thin to cover an entire band or genre. Somehow the Easy Star All Stars have gotten it right, covering three whole albums: Dark Side of the Moon, Sergeant Peppers, and OK Computer. "A Reggae version of OK Computer?", you ask. I have no idea how they did it, but it works. This is my favorite track, featuring my favorite reggae performer, Toots.

Nostalgia 77 - Seven Nation Army (White Stripes)
This song is all about the pauses

The Holmes Brothers - I Want You To Want Me (Cheap Trick)
The Holmes Brothers take this song so far away from the pop we're used to hearing from at Budokan and turn it into a beautiful love song.

Corinne Bailey Rae - Since I've Been Loving You (Led Zeppelin)
Makes Robert Plant sound like he's faking it, which he kinda was on this song off Zeppelin III

Huge kudos to http://coverfreak.com/ for providing a good number of the aforementioned songs.

10 Catchy Indie Pop Songs

Halfway Home - TV on the Radio
Listen with headphone on the treadmill and you will run forever.


A Punk - Vampire Weekend
hey hey hey hey


Over And Over Again (Lost And Found) - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
If the Velvet Underground got their start in 2005 they would likely release this song.


Fake Palindromes - Andrew Bird
"My dewy-eyed disney bride, what has tried swapping your blood with formaldehyde?"


Hometown Fantasy - The Wooden Birds
Song for a roadtrip up to Ukiah


The Monster Song - PSAPP
A little ditty from one of the leading toytronica bands, yes, toytronica. So cute, you could bash them over the head with a Metallica album.


I Gotta Get Drunk - Phosphorescent
From Matthew Houck's album of Willie Nelson covers. He can hardly keep up with the lyrics, but it somehow works.


Song of Our So Called Friend - Okkervil River
A bit sad for this mix, but catchy indie nevertheless.


Tommy Bones - Darla Farmer
Reminds me of old Lawsuit song. Lawsuit, being the great SF family bar band from the early 90's.