Jane's Sovereign Dogtown Tribe (January 21st - 25th)

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

It's been a bit of a mixed bag for me this week. Work has been great with a bunch of quick and easy new projects that went down well, but at home my phone and Internet have been more off than on. Much more off. Living in a renovated house more than 50 years old has it's charms, but tell that to the phone cables. Now though, everything is sweet again - for now. Let's have a look at the music, shall we?

To start with, I have two soundtracks, which I wouldn't normally do but these are so different and I only just bought both - The Hottest State (from Ethan Hawke's novel) and Dogtown and Z-Boys. I haven't listened to a whole ATCQ album in a while, so I'm remedying that, plus adding Lady Sovereign for some more rap. To dish up some classics, I have Bowie and The Jam; while some real soul comes from Solomon Burke and S.O.U.L. Lastly, two very different but equally important bands, Wilco and Jane's Addiction. 

Check it out:

• VA - The Hottest State OST
• A Tribe Called Quest - People's Instinctive Travels And The Paths Of Rhythm
• David Bowie - The Man Who Sold The World
• Lady Sovereign - Public Warning
• Jane's Addiction - Ritual De Lo Habitual
• Wilco - Wilco (The Album)
• S.O.U.L. - What Is It
• VA - Dogtown and Z-Boys OST
• The Jam - Sound Affects
• Solomon Burke - Don't Give Up On Me

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Hilltop Hoods
2. Bruce Hornsby
3. The Autumn Defense
4. The Bamboos
5. JEFF the Brotherhood

Song of the Week : She's Spanish, I'm American - The Ocean Always Wins

I can’t believe I haven’t already pulled this one out. It’s from a collaboration that Josh Rouse did with his girlfriend Paz Suay (now defacto and reason for moving to Spain) called She’s Spanish, I’m American. Rouse is a bit of a folky as you all probably know, but the collaboration throws a bit of electronic elements in. This one has a real hip hop beat about it and Paz sings, so it’s a little more dreamy than forlorn.

I chose this song because it forms one part of my children’s safety lessons re: the beach. They know this song and they have been told what the title means – The Ocean Always Wins. I pulled it out today because on the weekend we spent a bit of time down at Port Beach, walking and combing (the weather was a bit bleh and we had to go into town straight after). While there I saw a number of people on the sand, heads buried in their iPhones while their small children swam in front of them, unsupervised. Occasionally one would stand in the water and take photos with said phone. Now, I might be overly cautious, but I never turn my back on my small kids while they are in the sea (and never take my phone into the water!). The ocean always, always wins. There were huge waves that day (the sea was angry that day my friends) and rips everywhere.

Of course, that is not what this song is about. It seems to be about going on a sea cruise early in a relationship and not knowing if it’s the right time to do it, or even how to swim. But I have told my kids that the chorus means you must respect the ocean; that if you don’t it will swallow you up. So the rules are have fun, but be careful. And my rule is never, ever take your eyes off them. Great song though.

Bon Voyage

Thanks for stopping by. If you're in Perth, the heat is ramping up again this weekend, so remember to slip, slop, slap. If you're somewhere that is cold and breezy, or snowing, or raining, or basically just not stinking hot - I hate you (okay, not really). 

Hasala malakim.