Easy Like Sunday Morning Track - Beth by Kiss

Beth what can I do?

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is Beth by Kiss. This is off of their 1976 album Destroyer. This is their highest charting single which is funny considering they are known for their rock songs. Drummer Peter Criss is the only member of the band to perform on this song.

You have probably heard this song used recently in Volkswagen commercial. "Beth what can I do? Oh right, milk." lol



Here is the commercial

Weekend Wildcard - N.Y. State of Mind by Nas

This Weekend's Wildcard is N.Y. State of Mind by Nas. This is off of his landmark 1994 debut album Illmatic. What a sweet name! The album is one of the most influential albums in hip hop history. It has always been praised for Nas' lyricism, specifically his use of internal rhymes.

The album is a first person narrative of the struggles of growing up in the inner city as a teenager. The first verse of this track is particularly impressive. He just goes on for about 2 minutes straight without stopping.

I just bought this album on vinyl on Amazon for $13 earlier this week. Should be coming in next week.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Wasp by Black Sabbath

Today's Metal Track is Wasp by Black Sabbath. This is off of their 1970 self titled debut album which was one of the most influential albums in Metal history. This song was not included on the initial UK release but was included on the North American release as a 4 song medley with Behind the Wall of Sleep, Basically, and N.I.B.

I recently bout this album on vinyl. I love the album cover.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Gutter Ballet by Savatage

Today's Metal Track is Gutter Ballet by Savatage. This is the title track off of the band's 1989 album by the same name. This album was a change in musical style for the band that came as a result of vocalist Jon Oliva attending the play Phantom of the Opera.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day (Hosted by Adam) - The Audience by Coheed and Cambria

Posting the Metal track of the Day for Scott, who is at the NC State game this evening. This track is called "The Audience" from Coheed and Cambria. This is off their latest release The Color Before the Sun. It's not exactly a metal or even hard rock release, but there are still a collection of great songs here. Also different with this release versus their previous albums is that this album doesn't have anything to do with the overall Amory Wars story line that Claudio created. Enjoy!

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Am I Demon by Danzig

Today's Metal Track is Am I Demon by Danzig. This is off of their 1988 self-titled debut album. This video has some great comments but my favorite and everyone else's favorite is "Am I Matt Damon." I guess no one will answer him which is why he is pissed off.

Scott's Instrumental Track of the Day - Cinema by Yes

Today's Instrumental Track is Cinema by Yes. This is off of their 1983 album 90125 which is named after the album's Atco Records catalog number. It won the 1985 Grammy for Best Instrumental Rock Performance and remains the band's only Grammy to this day.

When the band broke up in 1981, some members formed a new band called Cinema. After they shared the material with former singer Jon Anderson, he decided he wanted in on the project. This meant that 4 out of the 5 were former Yes members so they decide to just reform. This song is titled after that period because it was written only by those members.

Easy Like Sunday Morning Track - When I Look into Your Eyes by FireHouse

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is When I Look into Your Eyes by FireHouse. This is off of their 1992 album Hold Your Fire. I didn't know this but the band was actually formed in Charlotte, NC. Jessica and I heard this on the Hair Nation station on satellite radio today which prompted this selection.

Weekend Wildcard - Take It Easy by the Eagles

"Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy"

In honor of the passing of Glenn Frey, this Weekend's Wildcard is Take it Easy by the Eagles. This is the opening track and lead single off of their 1972 self-titled debut album. It was co-written by Glenn Frey and Jackson Browne. Browne started writing the song in 1971 but had trouble finishing it. Glenn, who was Browne's neighbor at the time, liked the song so much that Browne gave it to him to finish.

There is a statue and mural located in Winslow, Arizona honor the song. It is a statue of a man standing on the corner with a guitar with a sign above his head with the phrase "Standin' on the corner".

RIP and Take it Easy Glenn!

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Circle of the Tyrants by Celtic Frost

In honor of the the frosty weather, today's Metal Track is Circle of the Tyrants by the Swiss heavy metal band Celtic Frost. This is off of their 1985 album To Mega Therion which is Greek for "the great beast". These guys were very influential in the extreme metal genres. Opeth covered this track on the 1996 tribute album "In Memory of Celtic Frost" and later included it on a reissue of their album My Arms, Your Hearse.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Honey Bucket by Melvins

Today's Metal Track is Honey Bucket by Melvins. This is off of their 1993 major label debut Houdini which was produced by Kurt Cobain. Buzz Osbourne and Dave Crover were the only members to play on the album. They listed Lori Black (Lorax) in the liner notes but she didn't play. She was forced to quit the band prior to production due to her struggles with heroin addiction. Buzz and Dave split duties on bass.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Archangel by Soulfly

Today's Metal Track is Archangel by Soulfly. This is the title track off of their newest album which was released last year.

How cool is it that Max's son, Zyon, is now the drummer for the band. Before Soulfly, Max and his brother Igor formed the band Sepultura. The song Refuse/Resist (previously posted) off of their 1993 album Chaos A.D. features Zyon's in utero heartbeat at the beginning of the song. Now he's playing drums in his father's new band. Reminds me of the macaroni necklace bit on Chappelle's standup.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Reckoning by Killswitch Engage

Today's Metal Track is Reckoning by Killswitch Engage. This is off of their second self-titled album which was released in 2009. I think Howard kills it on this song.

Was the penance not enough?
Was faith not enough?
No man can be your deity
You are no god to me
This is a reckoning!

Scott's Track of the Day - You Belong to the City by Glenn Frey

Foregoing metal again this Monday in honor of yet another legend who is no longer with us. Glenn Frey, founding member of the Eagles, passed away today at the age of 67. It's been a rough go for musicians as of late.

There are plenty of Eagles songs I could go with since he wrote or co-wrote lyrics for many of their biggest hits. However, I'm going with one of his famous solo songs.

Today's track is You Belong to the City off of the first Miami Vice soundtrack released in 1985. This song was written by Frey and Jack Tempchin specifically for the T.V. show.

RIP Glenn Frey

Easy Like Sunday Morning Track - In This River by Black Label Society

Today's Easy Like Metal Track is In This River by Black Label Society. This is off of their 2005 album Mafia. This song was dedicated to Zakk's close friend Dimebag Darrell who was killed the previous year. However, the song wasn't originally written for him. He had actually written the song months before he died. The video, made after his death, was definitely made specifically as a tribute to Dimebag. It portrays Zakk and Dime playing together as kids.

Weekend Wildcard - Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie

This Weekend's Wildcard is in honor of two legends who are no longer with us. This is Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie. They released it as a single in 1981 and was later included on Queen's 1982 album Hot Space. Sadly, Freedie Mercury died of AIDS in 1991 at the young age of 45. And as everyone knows, Bowie passed away this past Sunday from Cancer.

This is not the official video for the song. Someone mashed up the song with clips from live performances at Wembley Stadium.

The famous baseline was sampled by Vanilla Ice who used it in his hit single Ice Ice Baby. He initially did not give writing credits to Queen and Bowie. What's funny is Bowie and the members of  Queen have different accounts on who came up with the bass line. I think bassist John Deacon came up with it but then he forgot it. Then later the guys helped him remember it and Brian May said that Bowie changed it a little bit during this time.

Why can't we give love that one more chance?
Why can't we give love, give love, give love...

'Cause love's such an old-fashioned word
And love dares you to care for
The people on the edge of the night
And love dares you to change our way of
Caring about ourselves
This is our last dance
This is our last dance
This is ourselves
Under pressure
Under pressure
Pressure 

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Let Darkness Fall by Metal Allegiance

Today's Metal Track is Let Darkness Fall by the Supergroup Metal Allegiance. This is off the bands debut self-titled album released last year. The core group consists of Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater), David Ellefson (Megadeth), Alex Skolnick (Testament), and founder Mike Menghi. This song features Troy Sanders (Mastodon) on vocals.

This is a pretty sweet drum cam video of Mike Portnoy doing his thing. He gets bonus points for the Opeth shirt.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Heretics and Killers by Protest the Hero

Ever wonder what happened to the flying monkeys in the Wizard of Oz after the Wicked Witch of the West melted (Spoiler Alert!)? Evidently they fell on hard times and had to get small time jobs. The good news is in their free time they like to get together and rock out!

Today's Metal Track is Heretics and Killers by Protest the Hero. This is off of their 2005 debut album Kezia. While it came out in 2005 in their home country of Canada, it was not released in the U.S. until the following year. Those costumes are pretty impressive.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Desperation Burns by Baroness

"Raaaaiiissseee the alarm!"

Today's Metal Track is Desperation Burns by Baroness. This is off of their fantastic album Purple which was released last month. At the moment this is my favorite off of the album but the entire album is full of win.

"Just sit back and enjoy the ride"

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Carpal Tunnel by Shadows Fall

Today's Metal Track is Carpal Tunnel by Shadows Fall. This is off of their 2006 compilation album Fallout from the War. This album contains a mix of original songs written during the sessions of their previous two album and covers from bands that influenced them. I think they threw this together to fulfill their requirements Century Media before moving on to Atlantic Records. It's definitely got some bright spots and this is one of them.

Scott's Track of the Day - Ziggy Stardust by David Bowie RIP :(

Foregoing metal today in honor of one the greatest artists of all time. David Bowie was a transcendent singer, songwriter and actor. His impact on music, culture, and fashion is vast and lasting.

He constantly reinvented himself taking on various personas. Probably his most famous was the flamboyant alter-ego Ziggy Stardust from his concept album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Today's track is the title track from that 1972 album.

I can't write enough here to do him justice so please go out and read about his legacy and impact from professional writers.

Fun side note: I just found out I have something in common with Bowie. He got in a fight in his teenage years and suffered a blow that caused his eye to stay permanently dilated. When I was in high school I got hit in the eye with a baseball which caused my eye stay more dilated than the other.

RIP Ziggy! You beautiful, strange, cosmic legend!

Easy LikeSunday Morning Track - Love Song by Tesla

"So you think that it's over"

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is Love Song by Tesla. This is off of their 1989 album The Great Radio Controversy. This is one of my favorite ballads of all time. This video actually cuts out the awesome intro. The highlight of the song to me starts at the 1:50 mark with the solo followed by the outro ending with "IIIIIII Know"



Here is the full song with the intro:

Weekend Wildcard - Blackstar by David Bowie

This Weekend's Wildcard is Blackstar by David Bowie. This is the opening and title track off of his album by the same name which was just released yesterday. Bowie released it yesterday because it was his 69th birthday. This song clocks in at just under 10 minutes making it Bowie's second longest song. He cut it under 10 minutes because iTunes doesn't release singles that are longer than 10 minutes.

I haven't had a lot of time to digest this song and video since I just heard it for the first time today. The song was written for the show The Last Panthers and the director of the show directed this video. Throughout the video, Bowie takes three different forms; the introverted, tormented, blind "Button Eyes", the "flamboyant trickster" in the song's middle section, and the "priest guy" holding the book embossed with the blackstar (From wikipedia).

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - The Leper Affinity by Opeth

"We Entered Winter Once Again!"

Today's Metal Track is The Leper Affinity by Opeth. This is the opening track off of their 2001 album Blackwater Park. This is just classic Opeth. In your face metal, beautiful melodies, growls, clean vocals, and soft piano. The usual.

The solo on this track really stands out to me (Starts at the 2:40 mark).

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - The Gift of Guilt by Gojira

Today's Metal Track is The Gift of Guilt by Gojira. This is off of their 2012 album L'Enfant Sauvage. The band released a teaser video on their YouTube page 3 days ago announcing their new album coming out this Spring. So Excite!

These vultures from the past, coming
In all the hells and worlds, the time has come
Delivered from their eyes
Embrace.. suffer.. destroy
The gift of guilt



Here is the teaser:

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Burning Heart by Eshtadur (Survivor Cover)

Any Rocky fans out there? Today's Metal Track is a cover of Survivor's Burning Heart by Eshtadur. I don't know much about these guys other than they are from Colombia (Yes, I spelled that right Steve Harvey).

The original version was used in Rock IV in one of his famous workout montages.If you don't know what I am talking about I feel sorry for you. These guys did an amazing job. The original might make an appearance on the blog in the future.

Also I'm pretty sure someone showed this to me recently or posted it on Facebook. If that was you please comment and take credit.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Assassin by Muse

Jack and I stumbled upon a Muse concert on the AUDIENCE channel on TV the other day and he really liked it. I recorded it and he's been asking me to play it almost every day. The entire show is pretty awesome but this song stuck out to me as Muse is not traditionally a metal band. The outro is pretty sweet.

Today's Metal Track is Assassin off of their 2006 album Black Holes and Revelations. This video is from that concert we watched on TV. It was recorded last May in Mayan Theater in LA.

Scott's Instrumental Metal Track of the Day - The Woven Web by Animals as Leaders

Today's Instrumental Metal Track is The Woven Web by Animals as Leaders. This is off of their 2014 album The Joy of Motion. Some sweet grooves and bass work on this song. I say bass but it's actually Tosin playing his ridiculous 8 string guitar. He makes it look easy in this video.

Easy Like Sunday Morning - Holding Back the Years by Simply Red

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is Holding Back the Years by Simply Red. This is off of their 1985 debut album Picture Book. Mike Hucknall recorded a chorus-less version of this song with his previous band, Frantic Elevators, in 1982 but this version was much more popular.

Weekend Wildcard - I Got 5 On It by Luniz

This Weekend's Wildcard is I Got 5 On It by Luniz. This hip hop classic is off of the duos' 1995 debut album Operation Stackola. The most recognizable part of the song, the chorus, is actually sung by guest vocalist Michael Marshall.

The song also samples  Club Nouveau's "Why You Treat Me So Bad", Kool and the Gang's "Jungle Boogie" and Audio Two's "Top Billin'". The most obvious sample is the sampling of "Why You Treat Me so Bad."

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Auld Lang Syne by Girlschool

Happy New Year Everyone!

Today's Metal Track is a cover of Auld Lang Syne by Girlschool. This is another one from the 2008 compilation album We Wish You a Metal Xmas and a Headbanging New Year. This was actually a bonus track that was only released on the deluxe edition.

Girlschool is the longest running all female rock group. They have been going now 35 years! The are from Britain and formed during the New Wave of British Heavy Metal Scene (NWOBHM) in the late 70s.