Sonic Youth - "I Love Her All the Time"

 

Happy Birthday Danette!

This year, I'm back to doing a song that makes me think of her, and not necessarily a song that she necessarily likes. "I Love Her All the Time" is an excellent song from Sonic Youth's often overlooked 1985 sophomore LP, "Bad Moon Rising".  It's a tour-de-force of the loud-soft-loud formula, with long periods of discordant chaos, followed by slow progression into tender movements, and then back again.  And although "manic pixie dream girl" has slightly negative connotations, the song captures the essence of Danette's (partial & positive) MPDG role, as in "wonder" and "awe", relative to me. 

As much as Kim Gordon is the epitome of cool, I actually enjoy Thurston Moore on lead vocals slightly more.   His conventional, almost soothing but still detached, vocal approach is a pleasing contrast to the guitar cacophony that he accompanies. 

She comes into my mind

Twisting through my nerves

I don't understand

A word she says

She's on my side

I love her all the time

I love her all the time

I love her all the time

I love her all the time

"I Love Her All the Time": studio version, from "Live in Brooklyn 2011" 

Previous birthday songs:

2024: Devo - "Uncontrollable Urge"

2023: Brandi Carlile - "The Story" 
2022: Plastic Bertrand - "Ça plane pour moi" 
2021: Adam and the Ants - "Christian D'or" 
2020: Walk Off The Earth - "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall"
2019: Nicki Minaj - "Monster"
2018: Bear Hands - "Giants" 
2017: Alvvays - "Archie, Marry Me" 
2016: Molly Hatchet - "Flirtin' With Disaster" 
2015: Avett Brothers - "Kick Drum Heart"
2014: Ani DiFranco - "32 Flavors" 
2013: The Green Pajamas - "Kim the Waitress"
2012: The Cure - "High"
2011: Blink 182 - "Josie"
2010:  Dead Milkmen - "Punk Rock Girl"  

Neil Young - "Too Far Gone"

Neil Young and The Chrome Hearts, Richmond VA, 2025-08-10

Just over a month ago, Terry, Drew, Bill, Bill's son, and I went to see Neil Young & The Chrome Hearts at the new Allianz Amphitheater in Richmond. As much as I'm a big fan of his, this was the first time I had seen Neil Young.  I would have preferred to have seen him with Crazy Horse, but with Frank Sampedro now retired and Nils Lofgren currently out, I'm not sure it would have really been the same.  The Chrome Hearts played well enough, so I can't really complain. 

With someone like Neil Young, whose discography spans almost 60 years, choosing which songs to play, and not play, is always an issue.  His setlist in Richmond was good, and contained many of my favorites ("Cowgirl in the Sand", "Fuckin' Up", "Southern Man", "Like a Hurricane") and none of my least favorite  songs (e.g., "When You Dance I Can Really Love").  When I returned home, Danette asked an interesting question: "What song do you wish he had played?"  I've thought about it, and there were several candidates: "Over and Over", "Words", "Barstool Blues", "Down by the River", etc.  All great songs, to be sure, but I've finally decided that I would have liked to have heard "Too Far Gone".  

Apparently performed frequently in concert starting in 1976, a studio version did not appear until 1989's excellent "Freedom".  It's a song that I played often in college, since bittersweet, poignant, and captures the essence of a situationship that I first hinted at in my review of "American Weekend".  

"Too Far Gone": studio version, MTV Unplugged 1989* 

We had to sit in the mulch & bushes since the lawn was completely filled.

Terry can fall asleep anywhere, anytime. 

* I remember seeing this on TV in either 1990 or 1991. I thought it was on SNL, but I've just been able to verify that it was on MTV Unplugged.