Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Summertime is here. And in music land you know what that means...SUMMER JAMS, N***A WHAT!@#* Hmm, excuse me, but I get all excited around this time cause I get to download, buy and bump me some jams that just scream summer the minute you hear them. The kind of jam you can hear and wouldn't be out of place coming from a car at the Arco gas station on 76th and Western in South Los Angeles or spun by Lindsay Lohan at some cracked out up til dawn beach party bash that we all wish we were cool enough to crash or take part in.
Yes it is summertime, and that means we need another 'Crazy in Love' or 'Yeah'; a song that from the minute you press play, at that 0.01 mark, it grabs your ass; a song that will be perfect for a summer breeze or at the start of a new year when the clock strikes twelve; a song so well crafted, so attention grabbing, and just HOT that it is universal enough to make the hipsters, the mothers, and all other crazy motherfuckers get on the floor and shake that ass.
Recently the New York Post concoted a list of potential 'Summer Anthems of 2006' and came up with this [Read more about it here: http://stereogum.com/index.html?page=2]:
Nelly Furtado and Timbaland-Promiscuous
Gnarls Barkley-Crazy
Justin Timberlake-Sexy Back
Beyonce w/ Jay-Z-Deja Vu
Jessica Simpson-A Public Affair
Shakira and Wyclef Jean-Hips Don't Lie
Luther Vandross-Shine
Tony Matterhorn-Dutty Wine
Gnarls Barkley-Smiley Faces
Christina Aguilera-Ain't No Other Man
The Strokes-You Only Live Once
Now this is one hot ass list in my opinion. Kudos to the folks over at the Post. Now upon first viewing one thing you notice is that well Luther ain't gon make the cut. [I apologize, I know he is deceased and I love me some 'Never Too Much' but come on.] Look again and you realize that while Crazy and Hips Don't Lie are great songs that will continue to get people on the dancefloor for years to come [clearly Shakira and Gnarls had their eyes on that whole timeless title thing] they are getting a little old and were more like late winter, 'look here comes the sun it is Spring' jams. And our boys the Strokes are dogged by the fact that people just don't care anymore [you know all you 'cool' kids have moved on/ they have gotten too popular/ doing nothing new/ you liked them more before everyone else did/ oh shut the fuck up] despite the fact that said track is classic Strokes [if a thing can exist with a three album catalog] from an otherwise fine and sadly overlooked album.
Take one last look and you realize that many heavy hitters [and personal faves] in the pop music arena are bouncing back with hit [hopefully] singles and full length albums. Furtado, Timberlake, Knowles, Aguilera, and Simpson. Save up your pennies kids cause you may be in and out of the record store this summer.
Now I have heard all of the singles from our heavy hitters on the list and they are some superior tracks. Who knew a little trip to Miami would turn Nelly Furtado into a promiscuous, come hither sex fiend? And though we may have slept on Timberlake cause we can only play Justified so many times by now, the brother is back [teaming with Tim like Nelly] with another jam for the ladies. While both Beyonce and Christina class it up a little and kick it old school with lots and lots of success.
Now before you read any further, keep in mind that I am first and foremost a music fan, meaning I don't discriminate and point fingers or make wildly outrageous predictions or judgement calls, NO, that is not me. I, plain and simply enjoy music and when I annoint something as being the best or good or bad, I mean it and there is always non-questionable reasoning behind it. [or so I hope]
Okay now that that is out of the way, it is time for me to talk about a song from the Post's list that would not anger me if it somehow became the Summer Anthem of 2006. And that song is? Jessica Simpson's 'A Public Affiar.' Now I know plenty of you have something to say, or even gasped in your chair when you read those words, and well, you wouldn't be alone. Just take a look at this exceprt from an article in Sunday's Los Angeles Times titled 'Old, new, and um, borrowed?' :
"As the celebrity news website TMZ.com notes, 'From the synth-pop beat to the jangly guitars in the beginning to the eigthth- note motifs in the verses to the choruses that begin on A and the use of the same key (B-minor), the two songs [a Public Affair and Madonna's Holiday] are so similar that, in a highly unscientific poll, every person to whom TMZ played 'A Public Affair' identified it as 'Holiday'."
Damn. But who am I kidding? When I listen to it I hear the same similarities [even the calypso drumming effect near the end also present in 'Holiday'], I even hear bits of Lucky Star and Borderline. In fact I can't help but play one of those three tracks immediately following A Public Affair. But all denied similarities aside [apparently Jessica's publicist insists that she didn't technically borrow anything and that it is an honor to be compared to or mentioned in the same breath as good olde Madge] this is one fine piece of pop music. Like all good pop songs, it has a catchy chorus, a fine beat that's easy to ride, goes down easy [thanks to Jessica downplaying the pipes we all know she has and settling instead for some Janet Jackson/Britney Spears like cooing that never gets lost in the production], AND it's not too long, but not too short either. [Clocks in at nearly 3 and a half minutes]
And did I mention that it goes down easy. A summer song works morning, noon, or night. Waking up, driving alongside the coast, or dancing under the stars. Sure Jessica may be pandering to a wider audience [see previous mentioning of Brit and Janet] or copying Madonna's style, but it could also be a move away from non-stop balladry that actually may work and broaden her fan base and isn't imitation the biggest form of flattery? Not that that excuses plagarism and the like.
But I digress. Recently pictures have surfaced of Jessica on the set of the yet to be released Public Affair video complete with an entourage that consists of Eva Longorria, Christina Applegate, and Christina Milan. And when you hear this song that is what you see, this is what you want to experience, stepping out, having a good time with your people, and coasting to the groove while the getting is good. Perfect summertime activities to accompany a fine piece of pop heaven. And with all the divorce hoopla being tossed around it's nice to be reminded that Jessica Simpson is in fact a singer, not just a hot piece of tabloid fodder. Now if only someone would throw some hot producers and songwriters in Britney Spears direction...
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