My Tribute to the Aughts - Second in a Trilogy

The above video by Alice in Chains features Layne Staley singing lead. He passed away on April 5, 2002.

Here's the second installment, taking us from October of '03 through the end of '07. There are some heavy hitters on this comp, and it may be my favorite of the three. I'd love to give you a little blurb on each and every track, but in the interest of time I'll just pick three.

"Teenage Kicks" by the Undertones is on this to honor the late John Peel, who often said it was the greatest single ever recorded.

If you're my age (forty-something), then there is no way you escaped Boston's first, self-titled album-- one of the biggest selling debuts in history. I remember having a gestalt experience when I was in sixth grade, and my brother was playing it on our crappy record player. "There's not a bad song on this album!" I thought. True enough, but 30 years of Classic Rock radio have certainly caused me to feel as if many of those songs had worn out their welcome. Listening to it again recently in preparation for this tribute, I was able to forget how many times I'd heard "More than a Feeling" and I enjoyed the album all over again. Especially, "Hitch a Ride" which is really just a fantastic Power Pop tune-- think about it, harmonies, handclaps, guitar solo, all the elements are in place.

Finally, I know that what Ike Turner did as an abusive husband should never be forgiven. I hope, though, that we can also appreciate him as a very talented songwriter and an important figure in the History of Rock & Roll. I still have no idea how "Crazy in Love" wasn't a massive hit. I wish the Detroit Cobras would cover it.

Happy listening!

R.I.P. 2000’s – Disc 2

26. “Speed Trials” by Elliott Smith (10/21/03)
27. “Like a Summer Rain” by Jan & Dean (Jan Berry, 03/26/04)
28. “That’ll Be the Day” by the Crickets (Nikki Sullivan, 04/06/04)
29. “I Got a Woman” by Ray Charles (06/10/04)
30. “Personality Crisis” by the New York Dolls (Arthur Kane, 07/14/04)
31. “Flying on the Ground is Wrong” by Buffalo Springfield (Bruce Palmer, 10/01/04; & Dewey Martin, 01/31/09)
32. “Teenage Kicks” by the Undertones (John Peel, DJ 10/25/04)
33. “Just Like Yesterday” by Bread (Jimmy Griffin, 01/11/05; Mike Botts, 12/09/05; & Larry Knechtel, 08/20/09)
34. “Means to an End” by Traffic (Jim Capaldi, 01/28/05)
35. “Sister Madly” Crowded House (Paul Hester, 03/26/05)
36. “Reach Out I’ll Be There” by the Four Tops (Renaldo “Obie” Benson, 07/01/05; & Levi Stubbs, 10/17/08)
37. “Back Again” by Badfinger (Mike Gibbins, 10/04/05)
38. “Raw Hide” by Link Wray (11/05/05)
39. “Big Houses” by House of Freaks (Bryan Harvey, 01/01/06)
40. “634-5789” by Wilson Pickett (01/19/06)
41. “(I Wanna) Love My Life Away” by Gene Pitney (04/05/06)
42. “One Thing Can Hold Us” by the Go-Betweens (Grant McLennan, 05/06/06)
43. “You Can Get It If You Really Want” by Desmond Dekker (05/25/06)
44. “Do What You Want” by Billy Preston (06/06/06)
45. “Octopus” by Syd Barrett (07/07/06)
46. “Can't Explain” by Love (Arthur Lee, 08/03/06)
47. “Whenever You’re Around” by the Dave Clark Five (Dennis Payton, 12/17/06; & Mike Smith, 02/28/08)
48. “Out of Sight” by James Brown (12/25/06)
49. “Hitch a Ride” by Boston (Brad Delp, 03/09/07)
50. “Crazy in Love” by the Ike-Ettes (Ike Turner, 12/12/07)

Total Time: 1:12:03

Download it here: R.I.P. 2000's - Disc 2