The New York Mix

When we were getting ready to move here I made a New York mix CD. I didn't listen to it for most of our time here but it's been my theme music for the last month (again, love the ipod.) There are almost as many songs about New York as there are movies set here (another cool thing about watching movies now is recognizing stuff, especially Ed's building.) The mix represents well the crazy mixed feelings this place evokes. It's such an amazing place with energy, sites, and experiences to offer, but it can also be tough. It's nice to know I'm not the only one with such bipolarity.

Unfortunately playlist.com only offers a sampling of the songs for you to hear, and some of the more catchy ones are missing, but here's the list, plus a few of the more relevant lyrics:

#1 New York City - They Might Be Giants

Statue of liberty, staten island ferry, co-op city, katz’s and tiffany’s
Central park, brooklyn bridge, the empire state where dylan lived
Coney island and times square, rockefeller center
Wish I was there

'cause everyone’s your friend in new york city
And everything looks beautiful when you’re young and pretty
The streets are paved with diamonds and there’s just so much to see
But the best thing about new york city is you and me

#2 New York's Not My Home - Jim Croce

Things were spinning round me
And all my thoughts were cloudy
And I had begun to doubt all the things that were me
Been in so many places
You know I've run so many races

I know that I gotta get outta here
I'm so alone
Don't you know that I gotta get outta here '
Cause New York's not my home
Though all the streets are crowded
There's something strange about it
lived there about a year and I never once felt at home
I thought I'd made the big time
You know I learned a lot of lessons awful quick and
Now I'm telling you that they were not the nice kind
And it's been so long since I have felt fine

#3 Streets of NYC - American Ambulance

Folks down in Virginia
They could never see
Why the streets of New York City
Look so good to me
Lord, they look so good to me

(What are the odds of finding those lyrics?)

#4 Leaving New York - R.E.M.

It's easier to leave than to be left behind
Leaving was never my proud
Leaving New York, never easy
I saw the light fading out

#5 An Englishman in New York - Sting

#6 New York State of Mind - Billy Joel

#7 New York Groove - Kiss & Ace Frehley

Many years since I was here, on the street I was passin’ my time away
To the left and to the right, buildings towering to the sky
It’s outta sight in the dead of night
Here I am, and in this city, with a fistful of dollars
And baby, you’d better believe
I’m back, back in the new york groove
I’m back, back in the new york groove
I’m back, back in the new york groove
Back in the new york groove, in the new york groove

#8 A Heart in New York - Art Garfunkel

#9 New York City Rhythm - Barry Manilow

The poundin' beat of the city's streets
That keep my dreams alive
I'm lost, I'm found
I'm up, I'm down
But somehow I survive
It's got to be the New York City Rhythm in my life
It's got to be the New York City Rhtym in my life

#10 New York, New York - Ryan Adams

Hell, I still love you New York

#11 Fairytale of New York - The Pogues

#12 New York Boy - Neil Diamond

#13 New York - U2

In New York summers get hot, well into the hundreds
You can't walk around the block without a change of clothing
Hot as a hairdryer in your face Hot as a handbag and a can of mace
In New York, I just got a place in New York
New York, New York Irish, Italians, Jews and Hispanics
Religious nuts, political fanatics in the stew,
Living happily not like me and you
That's where I lost you... New York

#14 I Love NYC - Andrew W.K.

I love New York City
Oh yeah, New York City
love New York City
Oh yeah, New York City

#15 New York City - Norah Jones

I rode the train for hours on end
And watched the people pass me by
It could be that it has no end
Just an action junkie's lullaby
New York City
Such a beautiful disease
New York City
Such a beautiful, Such a beautiful disease

#16 New York Girls - Gaelic Storm

#17 New York, New York - Tony Bennett & Frank Sinatra

If I can make it there,
I’ll make it anywhere!

Sing Along with Disco Mom: 80's Lyrics to the Death

It's been awhile so it's time for another Sing Along. Inspired by my brother's recent "Christian Metal Band or Star Trek Episode" quiz (take it, it's hilarious), I thought there must be some good lyrics quizzes out there, so here's one on 80's lyrics. I'm sad to report my score was 52.5 out of 103, just barely over 50%. I found it hard to get so many songs in my head one right after another, and didn't take the time to sit and think too hard - I can only ignore my kids for so long at a stretch.

Please take it yourself and report your score here - you're bound to do better than me!

Sing Along with Disco Mom: A Name Game

Now with answers! Thanks everyone for playing!

Let's cut to the chase. Below you will find song lyrics, with missing lines as indicated. What they have in common is that the missing line contains one (or more) proper names.

Fill in the line, and name the song and artist if you can. Cheating is ok, I really don't care.

1. "Come on without, come on within,
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn."
Mighty Quinn by Manfred Mann (and others)

2. "Eight-fifty i.s. if you need a lift
Who's the kid in the drop
Who else, Will Smith
Livin' that life some consider a myth"
Gettin' Jiggy Wit It by Will Smith

3. "They had style, they had grace
Rita Hayworth gave good face."
Vogue by Madonna

4. "He wakes to find the fires dead
And arrows in his hats
And Davey Crockett rides around
And says its cool for cats."
Cool for Cats by Squeeze

5. "Have you talked to Mark lately?
Uh..haven't really talked to him but..he looks pretty uh..down.
He looks pretty uh..down? (while laughing)
Yeah well maybe we should cheer him up then"
Steal my Sunshine by Len

6. " Where have all the good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where's the street-wise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?"
I Need a Hero by Bonnie Tyler

7. "My name is Luca
I live on the second floor
Yes, I think you've seen me before."
Luca by Suzanne Vega

8. "Goodnight you moonlight ladies,
Rockabye sweet baby James."
Sweet Baby James by James Taylor

9. "Brend(er) and Eddie were the popular steadies
And the king and the queen of the prom,
Riding around with the car top down
and the radio on."
Scenes from an Italian Restaurant by Billy Joel

10. "Saw the ghost of Elvis on Union Avenue
Followed him up to the gates of Graceland
Then I watched him walk right through"
Walking in Memphis by Marc Cohn

11. "Billie Jean is not my lover
She's just a girl who claims that I am the one
But the kid is not my son."
Billie Jean by Michael Jackson

12. "God bless you, please, Mrs. Robinson
Heaven holds a place for those who pray,
Hey, hey, hey"
Mrs. Robinson by Simon & Garfunkel

Bonus:
"Guess it's tea and toast for breakfast again
Maybe I'll add a little TV too
No milk, oh God how I hate that
Guess I'll go to the corner, get breakfast from Jenny
She's got a black eye this morning
'Jenny, how'd you get it'
She said, 'Last night Bobby got a little bit out of hand'..."
Sun Comes Up, It's Tuesday Morning by Cowboy Junkies

Say Along with Disco Mom - Movie Quotes!

Updated with answers!

Tonight I've put my to-do list on the shelf and settled down in front of the AFI 100 Years 100 Movies special on CBS. During the commercial I went to the AFI website and found all their other "100 Movies" lists and thought it'd be fun to do some stuff with those lists on here once in awhile. So as an extension to the Singalong series, let's do some quotes, shall we? And for this one I do have to insist you do it from your head and don't cheat with the internet. Where's the fun in that?

Name the movies these quotes come from:

1. Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn. Gone with the Wind
2. Life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving to death. Auntie Mame
3. Snap out of it! Moonstruck
4. Hasta la vista, baby. Terminator 2
5. You've got to ask yourself one question: do you feel lucky? Well do ya punk? Dirty Harry
6. Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine. Casablanca
7. I'm walking here! I'm walking here! Midnight Cowboy
8. I am big! It's the picture that got small. Sunset Boulevard
9. Go ahead, make my day. Sudden Impact (Dirty Harry)
10. Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night. All About Eve
11. You don't understand! I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender, instead of a bum, which is what I am. On the Waterfront
12. You talking to me? Taxi Driver
13. I love the smell of napalm in the morning. Apocalypse Now
14. I have always depended on the kindness of strangers. Streetcar Named Desire
15. What we have here is a failure to communicate. Sweetie Pie Cool Hand Luke

Some great ones here...has anyone seen all of them? (FYI, Casablanca was the most represented on the AFI list, with seven quotes.)

Sing Along with Disco Mom: Alternative Scrambles

I recently watched the movie Music and Lyrics - not too bad as far as romantic comedies go. It was no French Kiss or Say Anything but they can't all be. Hugh Grant plays an "80's Has-Been", a former pop star who now does gigs at amusement parks and 80's high school reunions. It got me thinking about some of my high school favorites, though it was really the early 90's for me. Through the influence of friends I fell in love with alternative music and so tonight we are paying homage to my four foundational cornerstones of alternative:

Depeche Mode (DM)

The Smiths (TS)

Erasure (ER)

The Cure (CU)

Below are scrambled song titles from these guys, from the late 80's to early 90's era. Only my favorites, only the best. These guys are the very best! It's hard to imagine David Gahan, Robert Smith or Morrissey doing the Class of '93 Robinson reunion - they've all had a little more musical staying power than that. Though that is one way to get me to go to a reunion.

It would be fun to do another singalong where we look at secondary and tertiary alternative bands, the weight-bearing beams and flying buttresses. Most of them can probably trace their influences back to these four. But that is for another day.

Can you unscramble:

1. ptso (ER)
2. hctca (CU)
3. eeloppraeppolee (3 words - DM)
4. fidigrrlne ni a maoc (TS)
5. rlatepclria rigl (CU)
6. stju atcn etg nhuoge (DM)
7. emrceyet gstea(TS)
8. het ectrpfe lrig (CU)
9. htiyergvne osnctu (DM)
10. elvo ot eath uyo (ER)
11. who noso si won (TS)
12. noplignsa (CU)
13. pish fo slofo (ER)

OK, I can take a hint! They were too hard so here's the easier version, broken up into separate words, except for #3 which any DM fan should get.

Sing Along with Disco Mom: Monday Greens!

Today we are correcting mondegreens. They're common enough but still good for a chuckle. I got some of these from TV shows, commercials, websites and a day calendar I saw at Barnes and Noble once. These are seriously too fun.

Your task is to:

• Identify the incorrect lyrics
• Provide the correct ones
• Name the song and artist if you can

1. "'Scuse me while I kiss this guy..."
2. "Hold me closer, Tony Danza..."
3. "Rock the cat spa, rock the cat spa..."
4. "Outhouse, in the middle of the street..."
5. "The heart of rock n' roll is Topeka..."
6. "The girl with colitis goes by..."
7. "The ants are my friend, they're blowin' in the wind ..."
8. "Don't go around tonight; well, its bound to take your life; there's a bathroom on the right."
9. "I see a Renoir and I want to paint it black..."
10. "Edith was troubled by a horrible ass, yeah yeah yeah yeah..."
11. "I shop and share it (but I did not kill the deputy)..."
12. "Gloooooooooooooria, undigested bagels..."

BONUS: "She's got - thirty days to die..."

Sing Along with Disco Mom: for the Simon-istas!

Inspired by Maren's claim to know lyrics to Paul Simon songs, I pulled out Negotiations & Love Songs - aah, what a nice collection. Please, sing along, if you can!

1. What are some of the ways to leave your lover?

2. After how long are "we" still crazy?

3. What is Rosie the Queen of? (Me and Julio...)

4. What did Paul Simon learn in high school? (Kodachrome)

5. What can I call you? (You Can Call Me Al)

6. What kind of bar was he underage in? And what did he step outside to smoke? (Late in the Evening)

7. Why should he be depressed? Where does paranoia strike? What is he blind to? (Have a Good Time)

8. "The nearer your ________, the more you're ____ _____ _____."

9. What happens when something goes wrong? When something goes right? (Something So Right)

* Of course it's cooler if you can do these out of your head, or at least from listening to the songs, but I can't stop you from looking up the lyrics on the internet. At least give it a try!

Sing Along with Disco Mom: Fun with Colors

So how about if I make Sing Along a little more fun for everyone this time? I guess I'm still on an 80's kick because we're doing Pretty in Pink. Love the movie, love the song - the Psychedelic Furs got the whole tone of the movie and the era just right with their title tune. But when I think of the song, I can kind of get the melody going but for the life of me, the only actual words I can conjure up are:

"Isn't she...pretty in pink?"

Don't know what comes before, after, beginning, end. All I can do is la-la-la the rest of it.

1) So, without looking it up anywhere even if it's killing you, can anyone come up with some other real lines from the song? Can anyone actually put several lines in order? Your reward is a virtual Hershey's kiss tossed to you and my deepest respect.

2) Also without cheating (by looking them up), what other color song titles can we come up with? I'll get us started with:
Purple Rain by Prince
Black Balloon by Goo-goo Dolls

(Extra points if you can get titles with colors beyond the 8 basics..like fushia or cerulean.)

Difficulty level: Easy-ish

FOLLOW-UP

Obviously no one knows the lyrics to "Pretty in Pink" so I looked them up and here they are. They make no sense and don't really go with the movie, either, so it's no wonder no one knows them.

Caroline laughs and
It's raining all day
She loves to be one of the girls
She lives in the place
In the side of our lives
Where nothing is
Ever put straight
She turns herself round
And she smiles and she says
'This is it'

'That's the end of the joke'
And loses herself
In her dreaming and sleep
And her lovers walk
Through in their coats

Pretty in pink
Isn't she?
Pretty in pink
Isn't she?

All of her lovers
All talk of her notes
And the flowers
That they never sent
And wasn't she easy
And isn't she
Pretty in pink
The one who insists
He was first in the line
Is the last to
Remember her name
He's walking around
In this dress
That she wore
She is gone
But the joke's the same

Pretty in pink
Isn't she?
Pretty in pink
Isn't she?

Caroline talks to you
Softly sometimes
She says
'I love you' and
'Too much'
She doesn't have anything
You want to steal
Well
Nothing you can touch
She waves
She buttons your shirt
The traffic
Is waiting outside
She hands you this coat
She gives you her clothes
These cars collide

Pretty in pink
Isn't she?
Pretty in pink
Isn't she?

Sing Along with Disco Mom: Lullaby of Death

Hope the drama of the title drew you in...

It sounds like a lullaby, and I have been caught using it as one, but it's really about death, which I didn't realize for years. Kind of in a sweet way, though.

• Fill in the blanks
• Name the song title, band & album

Sing to me sweetly as I turn (1)____
(2)__ (3)__ (4)__, remembering
That the (5)____ and the rain
Played a part in that (6)_____ hour

And so as I (7)____ I too feel the power
Laying here under the (8)_____
Where (9)____ days before
I (10)____ in a summer shower

Diffulty level: Medium Hard

New Feature: Singalong with Disco Mom

New feature here - I'm hoping it will be kind of fun and possibly draw some comments from less-frequent commentators as well as the treasured regulars.

Here's how it works:
I will provide a line or stanza from a song. Your mission, since I've chosen you to accept it, is to guess the artist, song title, missing word(s), next line, movie it comes from, or whatever else I may ask of you. I will do my best to draw from all decades and genres. My music knowledge may not be the most eclectic, but it's not bad.

We'll start with a possibly unexpected one:

I wake up in the morning
And I raise my weary head
I've got an old coat for a pillow
And the earth was last night's bed
I don't know where I'm going
Only God knows where I've been
I'm a devil on the run
A six gun lover
A candle in the wind

Name the artist or group, the song title, and if you can the album and year.

Difficulty level: medium.