I took in a double feature of Walk the Line and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire this evening (reviews to come), but the evening really started afterwords when (names withheld to protect the guilty):
-Went to my viewing partner’s apartment, to discuss the films and
-The apartment suddenly became the halfway house for a bunch of drunk undergrads whose party had just been busted by some belligerent cops, so
-I left, and found myself
-Accosted by another friend, also drunk, who insisted I come to what was left of same party where
-I knew nobody, and the cops were still there, so I left
1. “Clampdown,” The Clash, 1979. From London Calling, an undeniably cool album; but I just don’t really dig this particular song. 7/10
2. “Mr. Moonlight,” The Beatles, 1964. As has been discussed elsewhere, they’re far too ubiquitous to be cool, and this is just not that good a song. 4/10
3. “Boy Wanted,” Ella Fitzgerald, 1959. From the Gershwin songbook. You all know my feelings on Ella by now. 9/10
4. “Hello Mary Lou,” Creedence Clearwater Revival, 1972. From the dismal Mardi Gras, the only Creedence that ever shows up in the FRT. But it’s kind of a fun song, helped by being a rockabilly-style cover. 6/10
5. “It’s Over,” Mason Williams, 1970. Clearly shouldn’t have put all of the Greatest Hits on iTunes. 4/10
6. “Dirty Little Girl,” Elton John, 1973. He’s just not cool. But it’s a snarky, fun song, and I’m drowning here, so it gets a little bump. 5/10
7. “Helpless Dancer,” The Who, 1973. Fine song, but from Quadrophenia, which automatically takes a bite out of anything that’s not “5.15.” 5/10
8. “Cannon,” The White Stripes, 1999. A variation on “John the Revelator” that is absolutely their very best song prior to White Blood Cells. 8/10
9. “Kodachrome,” Paul Simon, 1973. You can tell me, if you want, that he’s folk rock, and therefore the defintion of anti-cool. I counter with “When I think back on all the crap I learned in high school / It’s a wonder I can think at all.” 7/10
10. “Anyday,” Derek & The Dominoes, 1970. Clapton pretty much demands a 5/10. Too good to be uncool, too…Clapton…to be respectable.
Average: 6/10. Which seems way more than that mix deserves, so I must have fucked up somewhere. Tell me in comments.
Bonus Track: “Size Too Small,” Sufjan Stevens, 2004. Now that Illinois is overplayed to the point of nuclear burnout, he’s not that cool anymore, but this at least has the decency to be from a less-known album. Plus, he’s just really fucking good.