When Itunes shuffle played Blonde Redhead's "Elephant Woman" the other day, I couldn't shut it off fast enough. They're one of my favorite bands but the second it gets back-sweat hot outside, my taste instantly changes. This is obviously a common phenomenon, hence the term 'summer jam' — no one asks you what your winter jam is, but everyone has their soundtrack for the school's out for summer, bbq-heavy/clothing-light vibe of this season. Do you have your own hot weather band/cold weather band dichotomy?
Every year my playlist tends to consist of easy-breezy Top 40 earworms (it was Sean Kingston's "Beautiful Girls" nonstop last year, these days I'm all about Drake's "Best I Ever Had"), then songs I always come back to when the temperature creeps up, and of course some Hits of the Day. This year, though, I just don't have that many new songs on heavy rotation. Dirty Projectors' performance at Pritzker Pavilion a couple weeks ago got me more into them than I had been before, The Phenomenal Handclap Band is pretty fun, and I'm really happy to say that Diplo and Switch's Major Lazer album lived up to my expectations for the most part; I'll definitely be at the Congress for their tour stop on August 7th. But other than that? I would love some recommendations because I'm a tad bored with what I've heard lately. People are going crazy for the Vampire Weekend/Ra Ra Riot collabo Discovery, but their Lite R&B leaves me dead from the waist down. It's okay, everyone burns out a bit when they have 11,274 unread emails in their blog's inbox (true story), right? So here's five tracks that make my list every year. Straight classics. Let's make this the "all ladies" version just for the hell of it since I'm sure there will be more of these posts in the near future.
Uh-duh.
Josie Cottton - Johnny Are You Queer?
Don't get me started on my obsession with the Valley Girl soundtrack. Another post for another day.
The best version by far. Would you believe I only thought to Wiki this song today?
Susan Cadogan - I Keep On Loving You
Hurt So Good was recorded in 1976 but I picked it up five years ago on recommendation. She's like reggae's answer to Supremes-era Diana Ross, she does great covers of "Fever" and "In the Ghetto," and for some reason there's a couple of other songs by the Upsetters and a few others piggybacked onto the release. Seriously, I wish I could go to grad school just to study the history and economics of reggae labels. It's a whole universe unto itself.
Salt N Pepa - None of your business
If I had a convertible and um, a driver's license, I'd blast this driving around town with my girls. Top down.
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