First Impressions & Opinions on Priests
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, love is in the air. And what's more romantic than that cute moment of love at first sight? Jim and Greg share some of their favorite tracks about first impressions. Plus, they review the new album from DC punk band Priests and pay tribute to the influential composer David Axelrod.
Songs About First Impressions
Whether or not you believe in love at first sight, there's something exciting about laying eyes on someone special for the first time. Jim and Greg share their favorite songs about first impressions.
Jim:
- The Doors, "Hello, I Love You"
- Alkaline Trio, "Clavicle"
- The Cowsills, "The Rain, The Park and Other Things"
- Mary J. Blige, "Love at First Sight"
Greg:
- The Exciters, "Do-Wah-Diddy"
- Pulp, "Disco 2000"
- Etta James, "A Sunday Kind of Love"
- Chet Faker, "Melt"
Listener Picks:
- Kevin from Indiana: XTC, "Then She Appeared"
- Max from Brooklyn: Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit, "We’ve Met"
- Nick from England: The Shangri-Las, "The Leader of the Pack"
- Daniel from CT: Billy Bragg, "The Fourteenth of February"
Nothing Feels Natural Priests
Washington, DC quartet Priests prove that punk is alive and well in the Nation's Capital. The band has been on a healthy clip since 2011 releasing music and touring but Nothing Feels Natural is the band's debut full-length album release. Greg says it is an ambitious "critique of nothing less than America" full of sarcastic views on politics and capitalism. Those heavy ideas are bouyed by a "fantastic rhytm section" that keeps Greg "spinning around an imaginary dance floor". Jim hears a strong post-punk influence hailing to the early 1980s but thinks this is an album that can "only be made by someone of the current generation" tackling technology and feelings of isolation. It is an enthusiastic doube Buy It!
David Axelrod
Jim and Greg pay tribute this week to the great composer, producer, arranger, and songwriter David Axelrod, who died February 5 at age 83. Though never a household name, he pioneered a dense, sophisticated merger of soul, jazz, R&B, and orchestral pop that was embraced decades later by the hip-hop world. After early successes producing for Lou Rawls and Cannonball Adderley, Axelrod sought to expand upon Brian Wilson and George Martin's use of the studio as an instrument. That became clear on his writing and arrangement of The Electric Prunes' Mass in F Minor – a full liturgical mass, sung in Latin and Greek, with psychedelic orchestra. Greg cites Axelrod's 1968 solo debut, Song of Innocence, as his masterpiece. An orchestral concept album based on William Blake's poetry, the record has since been sampled by dozens of hip-hop artists, from Dr. Dre to DJ Shadow to Lil Wayne.
Featured Songs
- The Kinks, "All Day and All of the Night," Kinks-Size, Reprise, 1964
- The Doors, "Hello, I Love You," Waiting for the Sun, Elektra, 1968
- The Exciters, "Do-Wah-Diddy," Do-Wah-Diddy (Single), United Artists, 1964
- Alkaline Trio, "Clavicle ," Goddamnit, Asian Man, 1998
- Pulp, "Disco 2000," Different Class, Island, 1995
- XTC, "Then She Appeared," Nonsuch, Virgin, 1992
- Darlene Love, "(Today I Met) The Boy I'm Gonna Marry," (Today I Met) The Boy I'm Gonna Marry (Single), Phillies, 1963
- Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, "We've Met," Here We Rest, Lightning Rod, 2011
- The Shangri-Las, "Leader of the Pack," Leader of the Pack, Red Bird, 1965
- The Cowsills, "The Rain, the Park, and Other Things," The Cowsills, MGM, 1967
- Etta James, "Sunday Kind of Love," At Last!, Argo, 1960
- Billy Bragg, "The Fourteenth of February," William Bloke, Cooking Vinyl, 1996
- Chet Faker feat. Kilo Kish, "Melt," Built on Glass, Future Classic, 2014
- Mary J. Blige feat. Method Man, "Love @ 1st Sight," Love & Life, Geffen, 2003
- Priests, "Appropriate," Nothing Feels Natural, Sister Polygon, 2017
- Priests, "Pink White House," Nothing Feels Natural, Sister Polygon, 2017
- Priests, "Puff," Nothing Feels Natural, Sister Polygon, 2017
- Priests, "Nicki," Nothing Feels Natural, Sister Polygon, 2017
- The Electric Prunes, "Kyrie Eleison," Mass in F Minor, Reprise, 1968
- Lou Rawls, "You've Made Me So Very Happy," You've Made Me So Very Happy, Capitol, 1970
- The Electric Prunes, "Benedictus," Mass in F Minor, Reprise, 1968
- David Axelrod, "Holy Thursday," Song of Innocence, Capitol, 1968
- Kraftwerk, "The Telephone Call," Electric Cafe, Warner Bros, 1986
- Midnight Star, "Freak-A-Zoid," No Parking On The Dance Floor, Solar, 1983
- The Gap Band, "You Dropped A Bomb On Me," Gap Band IV, Total Experience, 1982
- Shirley Collins And The Albion Country Band, "Murder of Maria Marten," No Roses, Antilles , 1976
- Ty Segall, "Break A Guitar," Ty Segall, Drag City, 2017
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