The Friday Five: May 17, 2013

Friday Five : |ˈfrÄ«dā – 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:

“70’s Love Groove” by Janet Jackson (from Janet.Remixed, 1995)

“70’s Love Groove” originally appeared as the b-side to “You Want This,” the seventh single from her massive eponymous 1993 release. The yang to the yin of the a-side’s driving tempo, the groove is as laid back as can be, with Miss. Jackson donning her “Any Time, Any Place” persona to drive home the message. So much for for “Let’s Wait Awhile,” eh?

“Jump in the Line (Shake Shake Senora)” by Cherry Poppin’ Daddies (from BASEketball, 1998)

I have this awful habit of appropriating songs and changing the lyrics for my own amusement; case in point, “Jump in the Line (Shake Shake Senora).” In what has become a morning tradition, I sing a rotation of songs containing the word “shake” to my son as I’m shaking his bottle, this tune is obviously a favorite. “Shake, shake, shake the bottle / shake it all night long!”

In case you are curious, other songs in this series are “Shake it Up,” by The Cars, “(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty” by KC and The Sunshine Band, “Shake, Rattle and Roll” by Big Joe Turner, “Shake” by The Time, and “You Shook Me All Night Long” by AC/DC.

“Reunited” by Wu-Tang Clan (from Wu-Tang Forever (disc 1), 1997)

In retrospect, Wu-Tang Forever feels just as essential Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) in that it was the last “complete” Wu record.

“Do Ya Like” by Childish Gambino (from Culdesac, 2010)

Seriously, go get this record. It’s free, and it blows away a dozen contemporary hip-hop records that people are dropping real dough on.

“Something’s Got to Change” by Ray Charles (from Singular Genius: The Complete ABC Singles (disc 4), 2011)

I’ll admit to having very little knowledge where Ray Charles is concerned. I picked up this box set on a lark, hoping to fix that hole in my musical vocabulary, and have never found the time to dive in. Now seems as good a time as any, see you all on the other side!

What’s on your shuffle today?