Wednesday, December 31, 2014

PARTY WITH WORDSMITHS

Here's two sides to an always spinning coin, two takes on a hot rod Ford and a two dollar bill, both catchy mood enhancers. Hank William's "Hey Good Lookin'" is a masterwork of poetic simplicity. One of those songs that you can't imagine being improved upon. If you're ignorant of Hank Williams, go do some digging, for crying out loud. Or just check his song below. It may fit your mood at your pre-party soirée tonight. Just keep those cloth napkins the hell away from me.



Let's fast forward to midnight, because that's when things go up a notch, and where the second song comes in. The intent is clear in the title of the Cramp's "Let's Get Fucked Up", but rarely does one song cover all the bases as on topic as this one.  But then, who better then the Cramps to articulate what it's like to go absolutely nuts? They know of what they speak.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
Listen:
Hank Williams - Hey Good Lookin' mp3 at ATumblr (?)
The Cramps - Let's Get Fucked Up (streaming) at YouTube NOTE: Wasn't able to find an mp3, but Surfadelic has the whole LP. If you like it, go buy it.
Full LP:
The Cramps - Flame Job at Surfadelic Entire album in a zip. Click on "Burn!" at the end of the text.

3 comments:

espen e. said...

Hank and Lux; Wordsmiths with a capital w, indeed, and I love them both for it! Sadly, my gal Annette lacks understanding when it comes to Mr. Williams' efforts (this apparently traces back to an unhappy childhood; her no-good dad also being a country music fan. Guilt by association of some sort, but totally irrational, nonetheless - at least as far as I'm concerned). So, what happens is she usually turns foulmouthed every time I venture into cowpoke territory (although Johnny Cash is tolerated, for some reason... I guess the absence of lap-steel and/or fiddle helps, and probably trading that nasal drawl stuff off for a burly baritone too). Anyway, the heckling gets to me. Really puts me off. It's been years since "Luke the Drifter" has had any playtime 'round here. Shame.

BUT; First day of the new year, after the kids had been adequately deloused and were done putting themselves to bed, we trawled NetFlix for a film, and finally agreed on a Wes Anderson movie we hadn't seen before; "Moonrise Kingdom". Set in '65, and featuring a geeky pre-teen Scout as one of the main characters (Davy Crocket hat? Horn-rimmed glasses? Check - check.); it's no wonder the person responsible for the eclectic soundtrack decided that "Kaw-Liga" would fit the bill. It does.

So, I turn my head slowly to my left; "You know who this is, don't you?" I say with a sly grin.

"Yeah, yeah." she sighs, smiling affectionately (!?).

Me, in a low voice, rubbing her face in it; "Haink Will-Jumz!"

"I know." she answers, still smiling; "The Residents covered this song, didn't they?"

"Yup!" I confirm, adding a drawn-out "Koh-Lai-Juuuuh!", before wisely shutting up.

Later, snippets of both "Ramblin' Man" and "Long Gone Lonesome Blues" made their presence known, but not a nasty word was spoken.

Well, I guess the spell of that quirky/sweet movie, it being my 47th birthday (standard 24-hour birthday-boy rules apply), and our preceding, annual, romp on the sofa (again; related to birthday-boy 24-hour rule application!), all magically came together, to break down her C&W immune system. Temporary slip, I'm sure, but whatever happened on that parole board last night, we definitely caught a short glimpse of freedom, Hank and me. I suppose that's all we can ask for.

Tom G. said...

Shit, Espen, you should just become a writer. That comment was the best thing about an event that I've read in a while. I wish I could be a fly on the wall at your house. Between her and the kids I'm sure it's non-stop entertainment.

Hope you and yours had a good holiday, and birthday! All the best to you and yours buddy.

espen e. said...

Dead Man Walking, Tom!.. I let her read the comment after posting, and "Poison" Annette did NOT appreciate being exposed as a sometime "romper" AT ALL! Echoes of Hank's "Move It On Over" are ringin' through the cellblock halls, and right now that doghouse he's yodelin' about seems closer to a Hilton Hotel of choice than where I'm lookin' to spend the night… Oh well; me and my big mouth've had last meals before. Death Row ain't so bad once you get used to it.



Happy New Year Tom, and thanks for an impressive amount of posts through 2014! Old shit, new shit, but all GOOD SHIT! Quantity AND quality! What's not to like? Goes down real well with my fancy coffee, right after I've kicked the kids out the door every morning.

Thanks for casting me as a writer, but knowing my own nitpicky (write, read, rewrite, reread, rewrite… and repeat) self too well, I'm probably hitting my limit as it is. I'd need at least another lifetime to manage any substantial output. Or maybe the ability to freeze time.

As for the "fly on the wall" part: We do our best to keep inherent misanthropy at bay, Tom. I figure there's only one prescription for life, and that's laughter (well, there's DEATH of course, but I'm thinkin' Death's not going anywhere – it's always gonna be there). Yep; in-between yelling at and annoying each other we actually have a lot of fun.

And usually we'd chase flies out the window (or swat 'em if they insist on being hard-asses), but like I've said before, we'll gladly make an exception in your case, so there's a safe-spot on the wall for you, if you ever fly by.

:) espen