What makes these songs terrific? I discussed the Ganging Up on the Sun songs with Sir Saleski in our collaborated Fanboy piece. If you have already read that, you should already own Ganging Up on the Sun. If you have not done so, there will be a refresher course. For now, let's start with the pair from Keep it Together.
"Jesus on the Radio" - This one is easy is to love. It's only two minutes. The banjo and acoustic guitar rollick. The melody is wonderful, but is the brilliant harmonies that force you to put this song on repeat, repeat, repeat. It's the simplest recipe but it makes the finest damn song your ears will hear all day. You don't have to work at it. It's pleasing to the ears.
The lyrics, well, I admit there is nothing spectacular about them. The phrase "Jesus on the radio" is sung one time but not really connected to anything. They could have said "Martin on the radio" or "Junior on the radio" or any other two syllable name. The lyrics are not nonsense, they just don't matter. Why don't they matter? Did I mention the wonderful melody and the brilliant harmonies?
In the time it took you to read this you should have been able to listen to the full song. Do you feel that twitch in your finger? You know, the one that wants to press/click repeat? Get used to it. You might need to sue Guster for giving you carpal tunnel syndrome. This and many of their other songs will cause this same uncontrollable urge.
"Amsterdam" - Apparently this one was something of a hit on alternative/college radio. Huntsville does not have a decent alternative/college radio station. We used to get an okay one out of Birmingham and a pretty good one out of Nashville, but not anymore. So I had never heard this song until I bought the CD. Fuckin' Huntsville.
"Amsterdam" relies a little less on harmony than "Jesus on the Radio" but is no less catchy. There are little harmonic flourishes but this song is built more around music than voice. The chorus, though — what a wondrous thing it is and what a lost art it is becoming.
AC/DC is my favorite example of this (and credit must be given to my friend "M" for pointing this out). An example:
Article comments
1 - Mark Saleski
my god...what have i done?
2 - DJRadiohead
The fact you made it all the way through is thanks enough, Saleski.
3 - Mat Brewster
What happened to the DJ flipping the bird picture? That was right up there with Dawn as Jennifer Anniston, or was it Jennifer Anniston as Dawn, I forget. Either way, I need that picture. Of you and the bird, not of Dawn or Jennifer Anniston, not that Dawn and Jennifer Anniston are bad pictures to have. I have blown those pictures up and hung them above my....oh um, I've said too much.
Good review Sir DJ.
4 - DJRadiohead
Sir Brewster, thanks for checking out the screed. I had a brief bout of the paranoia and removed the snapshots from the interweb. I must have forgotten my meds that day--- SHUT UP, I'm typing---! Anyroad, I might bring the picture out now that I seem to have recovered from my odd behavior---I SAID I'M BUSY!!--- Thanks for reading.
5 - Khara
i toally agree, but while you are at it, check out their first 3 albums, Parachute, Goldfly, & Lost & Gone Forever. More acoustic, more bongos, even better than these 2!
6 - DJRadiohead
Khara, glad you found this. I do own all their albums, including the live CD/DVD. I actually prefer these later records to the early ones. I know a lot of fans like the acoustic/bongo stuff better. I like both, prefer the more recent stuff.
Thanks for commenting!