Music Monday 31 :: "Animal House" Soundtrack

"Animal House Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" (1978)

This is absolutely THEE best soundtrack ever!

It's hard for me to single out one track that is the standout on this soundtrack. I've been known to start this one out and let it play all the way through. I must admit though that I have this one on cassette. That sort of limits its playback these days since the cassette player in my car is on the blink.

That's where Imeem comes in handy. I was able to track down most of the tracks on Imeem. There are several Sam Cooke: "What a Wonderful World" and "Twistin the Night Away". Good stuff.

I love the interludes that include clips from the movie too. I am a big John Belushi fan. Love him from his Saturday Night Live (SNL) days. That's how I got into "Animal House" in the first place. I even had a toga party for my 17th birthday. It was soooo much fun.

Anyway, another fond memory from the movie was the group Otis Day and the Knights. Hilarious. That's especially why I like "Shout" and "Shama Lama Ding Dong". Classic.

Here's "Shama Lama Ding Dong":

Shama Lama Ding Dong - Otis Redding


Here's the track listing:

1. Faber College Theme

2. Louie, Louie - John Belushi

3. Twistin' the Night Away - Sam Cooke

4. Tossin' and Turnin' - Bobby Lewis, Bobby Lewis

5. Shama Lama Ding Dong - Lloyd Williams

6. Hey Paula - Paul & Paula

7. Animal House - Stephen Bishop

8. Intro

9. Money (That's What I Want) - John Belushi

10. Let's Dance - Chris Montez

11. Dream Girl - Stephen Bishop

12. Wonderful World - Sam Cooke

13. Shout - Lloyd Williams

14. Faber College Theme

So much fun ... what do you think of this soundtrack? Memories for you too...?

Music Monday 27 :: Oleta Adams

Oleta Adams ... that's a blast from the past, right? But I'm sure that when you think of her, you also think of her outstanding cover of the ballad "Get Here (If You Can)". I only vaguely remember that the song was originally done by Brenda Russell. But Oleta put her spin on it, for sure.

"Get Here" is from 1990's "Circle of One" though "Get Here" wasn't released until 1991.

What do I like about the track? The piano! The piano at the beginning sets the tone ... nice and smooth and soothing. I like the lyrics too ... so many ways to "Get Here" ... "I don't care how you get here, just get here if you can." So simple. The song also does that start out slow and mellow and then crescendo's near the end, then mellows out again. Not unique, but effective.

I saw her perform it live once at the Finger Lakes outdoor venue in New York. She's got some pipes.

Get Here - Oleta Adams

Music Monday 23 :: Yoko Ono & Peaches

"Kiss Kiss Kiss" is a very cool song. I absolutely love the tempo - upbeat. But that's electronica for ya. The song is rather simple. With the chorus mostly being repeated for the duration of the song. And the song isn't that long, 3:14.

It's written by Yoko Ono and performed by Peaches. But there's more history to it than that. Apparently "Kiss Kiss Kiss" was a track on a project by Ono and her 'mildly' famous hubby, John Lennon. This newer version appears on Ono's 2002 "Yes, I'm a Witch".

I got hip to the track when I was running a college radio station a few years back. I remember hearing it on a student dj's show and I remember liking it as much then as I do now.

This could be a good song to workout to ... it will definitely get the heart rate up. There is, however, a bit disturbing part of the song when a female is screaming 'murder' several times, but if you can get by that ... yeah, you can get by that ... Give it a listen.

Kiss Kiss Kiss - Yoko Ono & Peaches

Music Monday 10 :: Robert Randolph and the Family Band

I don't know much about Robert Randolph and the Family Band, but what I do know is that they make incredible music. It's funky. It's fun. It has character and layers.

I'm trying to determine if I first noticed them on one of the late night talk shows ... probably. I remember the song was "Ain't Nothing Wrong With That". That song will get you going. It has a rock influence, but it does not come off as a hard-edged rock song. I love that the video matches the energy in the song.



Their most recent project was 2006's "Color Blind". Which includes the above mentioned track as well as Robert Randolph and the Family Band's cover of "Jesus is Just Alright" featuring Eric Clapton.

Other Robert Randolph and the Family Band Resources:

• Robert Randolph and the Family Band music on Imeen
• Robert Randolph and the Family Band Collection on the Internet Archives

I am certain that they will be performing at at least one of the popular outdoor festivals this year. I can only hope that they are working on a new project.

Have you seen them perform live? Do share your experience.

Christmas Music on Imeem

To get you in the holiday spirit, I've identified this Christmas music playlist on Imeem. Good stuff too: Donny Hathaway, The Whispers, Luther Vandross, Otis Redding, The Jackson 5, The Temptations and more.

I'm going to add a link. It seems when I embed a playlist, it takes forever for the home page to load.

• Soul Filling Christmas Music from Imeem

Happy Holidays.

UPDATE: Since Imeem is no longer available, I've created another Christmas music playlist on MySpace.