Friday Five : |ˈfrÄ«dÄ – fÄ«v| : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button in iTunes and share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up the media player of your choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
“Good Love” by Anita Baker (from The Best of Anita Baker, 2002)
‘Scuse me ladies and gents, let me just slip on this here smoking jacket. Yeah, that’s better. Now let’s not mince words, Ms. Baker is not talking just about wanting good love in the emotional way; no friends, she wants to know what “it” feels like morning, noon, and night. She needs a man that can stand the test of time. I assure you, my faithfull Fivers, if you want your lady (or fella, we don’t play favorite here at The Friday Five) to engage in a little ‘afternoon delight,’ you’d be well suited to pop on some “Good Love,” pour her a bit of champagne, and do your thing.
“Magnificent (feat. Kardinal Offishall)” by Estelle (from Shine, 2008)
Sample one of my favorite Golden Age of Hip-Hop tunes (Special Ed’s “I’m the Magnificent”) and you’ve got my attention, splice it with a bouncy dancehall-influenced riff and a nice feature by Kardinal Offishall and I’m sold. Estelle’s debut record is one of the late ’00s records that I find myself coming back to listen to repeatedly.
“Remember” by Bryan Adams (from Anthology (disc 1), 2005)
Wait, Cuts Like a Knife wasn’t Bryan Adam’s frist record? I kid, really. His self-titled debut is actually as solid a record as the aforementioned U.S. breakthrough, featuring a handful of well oiled, radio ready hits. Were radio listening at this point, that is. I guess they just weren’t ready, yet.
“I’m Ready” by Bryan Adams (from Bare Bones, 2010)
Whoa.
I’m not going to lie, I’m a little weirded out. I had just typed that last sentence when the next song started. I guess I’m not done writing about Mr. Adams this week. Originally from Cuts Like a Knife, the tune was performed prior by Ian Lloyd (of The Stories) in 1979. Oh, because what most non-music geeks don’t know is the fact that Adams has songwriting credits all over the place. Look it up sometime, you’d be surprised. Yes, Bryan, we know you’re ready.
“Soul Survivor (alternate take)” by The Rolling Stones (from Exile on Main St. (bonus disc), 2010)
I can’t tell if Mick is taking the piss out of Dylan, or if he’s just super stoned. Maybe it’s both, given the conditions under which Exile was written and recorded, it’s certainly a possibility. Musically, you can’t touch this track. It reeks of proper rhythm and blues, with enough soul to spare (no pun intended.)
“My Guy” by Mary Wells (from Motown 50 (disc 1), 2008)
Talk about going out on a high note. Smokey Robinson; The Funk Brothers; The Andantes; I mean, come on … it just doesn’t get any better. I often reference the monster Motown collection that looms in the corner of my library, occasionally beckoning me to spend a while in its comfy embrace; it’s tunes like this that draw me in and keep me listening to Motown goodness for hours on end. As a matter of fact, I think I’m going to go and do that now. You all keep the Five going, I’ll be over here recharging my soul.
What’s on your shuffle today?
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