Workin' On A World

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Here's a song I really needed to hear. Sometimes I try to calm myself down about the mess surrounding us by reminding myself I am old and won't see the worst of the potential suffering. That doesn't work because I care about my children, grandchildren, and everyone else's children. So what better legacy can we leave than to put our efforts into improving life for those who come after? Iris DeMent has the right attitude. (via Metafilter) 

A Disco/Prog Rock Mashup

If you had asked me yesterday what "Stayin' Alive" by The Bee Gees and Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt.2” had in common, I would have to think a while and came up with the fact that they were both written from movies. "Stayin' Alive" was featured in the 1978 movie Saturday Night Fever, and "Another Brick in the Wall" was in the 1982 film The Wall. 

But here comes Joshua Woo, who has convinced me that they are the same song. In this performance, he sings "Stayin' Alive" over the tune of “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt.2.” He's spot on with the guitar solo, too. maybe we can convince him to song Pink Floyd's lyrics over the disco song next. (via the Awesomer) 

Elenore

After the success of their song "Happy Together," The Turtles were under pressure to deliver another song like it. But the band wanted to diversify. To make the label happy, Howard Kaylan wrote "Elenore" as a parody. It had goofy juvenile lyrics and the love interest had an old-fashioned name that was out of style. But it didn't matter because the tune was catchy and many other hit songs had juvenile lyrics. "Elenore" went to #6 on the Billboard pop chart. I didn't think it was unusual at all, because the song was released just in time for my tenth birthday. Well, years later I finally noticed "you're my pride and joy et cetera" and thought it was odd, but chalked it up to stretching for a rhyme, which is not uncommon. (Thanks, gwdMaine!)     

Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing

Stevie Wonder from 1974. This is from the album Innervisions. 

Just Do It!

DEVO co-founder Gerald Casale brings us the new single "Just Do It!" The animation is dense with references, so you may have to watch more than once to catch them all. It's from his upcoming solo album Wetiko, but still quite DEVO, as Josh Hager and Jeff Friedl play on the song. (via Boing Boing) 

The Temptations and the Supremes

This is a real treat! The Temptations and Diana Ross & The Supremes together on stage! But this isn't just a singalong. They sing each other's hits, in a back and forth medley. This is from The Ed Sullivan Show, recorded on November 19, 1967.  

Get Ready for a Lack of Communication

Bill McClintock is at it again, with another unlikely rock/soul mashup. Eddie Kendricks never rocked so hard! This one features vocals from The Temptations's 1966 hit "Get Ready" and the music from "Lack of Communication" by Ratt from 1984. Despite being written and produced by Smokey Robinson, the Temptations' song did not do as well as was expected, and the remake by Rare Earth in 1970 was a bigger hit. Still, the Temptations version of "Get Ready" proved to be long lasting, and familiar even 60 years later. The Ratt song? Maybe you had to be a metalhead at the time to really know it. 

And if you are such a metalhead, you might recognize Dimebag Darrell's guitar work from the 1994 Pantera song "I'm Broken" in this mix as well. Enjoy songs song three different decades in this masterful mashup.   

Never My Love

The Association was a pop band who sang sweet love songs with many vocal harmonies. They were the first to record "Never My Love" in 1967, and made it a hit. It has been recorded many times since, most notably by The 5th Dimension in 1971 and by Blue Swede in 1974. This performance by The Association on The Ed Sullivan Show is from December of 1968.  

Mr. Jambo

 In this music video, musician Barry Bergen travels to Africa in the 1980s to glean the ancient wisdom of this magical land. Mr Jambo is an older man who must contain the wisdom Bergen is looking for, but he doesn't speak English. Indeed, the closed captions tell us that he is saying, "I don't speak English. Do you have a translator?" Meanwhile, Bergan mentions jambalaya and bears, as if they have anything to do with Africa. As silly as the premise is, the song is quite catchy. 

There is no Barry Bergen; he's a creation of comedian Kyle Gordon who has has made a career of parodying songs from genres you may not be consciously aware of, but you'll recognize when you hear them. The song "Mr. Jambo" is a parody of the "white guy goes to Africa" genre that you know mostly from Paul Simon's album Graceland, although it's been done by others. It's from his third album Kyle Gordon Is Everywhere, to be released in October. (via Boing Boing) 

It's A Man's Man's Man's World

Did you know that James Brown performed this as a duet with Luciano Pavarotti? Yes they did, but not in the same language. (via Nag on the Lake) 

Bumper Sticker

My apologies for putting that into your head for the next few hours. (via reddit) 

Dance of the Line Riders

We have a new animated music video from DoodleChaos, who brought us a Line Rider version of the classic Hall of the Mountain King and a Rube Goldberg version of Waltz of the Flowers. This time, he's got two (and sometimes three) riders on sleds illustrating Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite. Not only is it clever, it might cool you off a bit to hear a song that's traditionally associated with Christmastime. (via Metafilter)

ǝsᴉʅƎ ɹn̤ᖵ

YouTuber SP's score videos made this as an April Fool's joke a few years ago. He simply turned the sheeet music for Beethoven's "Für Elise" upside down and played it. You won't recognize the song, but it sounds hauntingly beautiful.  

Covering Bohemian Rhapsody in 1976

Only a couple of months after Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" hit the airwaves, a band named Sixpence performed it live in their gigs. This was back when the only way to learn someone else's song was to listen to the album and figure it out on your own. And these guys didn't even have a guitarist- just drums, bass, keyboard, and several gutsy and talented singers. Queen doesn't perform this song fully live; they always use supplemental  recorded vocals. We are lucky to even have this 50-year-old footage.  

Bock Bock Bock Bock Chicken

This is nothing groundbreaking or hilarious, but it is cute, and it will be stuck in your head for a while. (via reddit) 

Let's Be Ominous!

The best use ever for John Williams' Jaws theme. From the BBC series Walk on the Wild Side. (via Everlasting Blort) 

Long Legged Larry

Long Legged Larry is a bullfrog with a talent for jumping high. Follow along with this song from Aesop Rock as Larry saves the day over and over. (via Laughing Squid) 

What Makes "Roundabout" Great?

Rick Beato deconstructs your favorite songs. In episode 36, he tackles Yes's big anthem "Roundabout" from 1971. I adore this song. It was one of the many from that year that led me into teenagerhood. (via Metafilter)

All the Way from Memphis

This clip is from The Midnight Special. The comments are full of people who went to see Mott the Hoople on their '73-'74 tour and were impressed with the opening act, which was Queen. 

Impromptu Fusion

A Croatian man married a Kenyan woman, and the wedding guests had a bit of fun as they were waiting for the bride to emerge from the house. The fusion music sounds like cumbia to those who are familiar with it. Here's a peek at the bride and groom. (via reddit)