April Fools 4

Happy April Fools! Some birthdays you just never forget. My cousin's falls on April 1st, which means every year her birthday message doubles as a prank threat. She's a good sport about it. That's also why the April Fools series exists — a once-a-year excuse to dig deep into jokers, jokes, and jokey energy across genres, eras, and languages. Volume whatever-this-is keeps that tradition going with 24 tracks spanning reggae dub, hip-hop, psych rock, new wave, French ye-ye, German schlager, and a few left turns even I didn't see coming. The Pick this round is Faith No More's reading of "I Started A Joke" — a cover that somehow out-saddens the Bee Gees original, which is saying something. As always, the joke's on you if you sleep on this one.

April Fools 4

64 Scientist - Joker Dub
65 Billy Myles - The Joker (That's What They Call Me)
66 Duran Duran - 911 Is A Joke
67 MCM And The Monster - Serious Joke
68 Eric B & Rakim - I Ain't No Joke
69 Sharon Van Etten - Joke Or A Lie
70 Garden Odyssey - The Joker
71 The Laurie Johnson Orchestra - Joker
72 Brian Jonestown Massacre - When Jokers Attack
73 Nina Hagen - Life Is A Joke
74 Conny Froboess - Jolly Joker  (Holl)
75 Robbie Williams & The Orb - I Started a Joke (I Started An Orb Mix)
76 The Ventures - Joker's Wild
77 Cherrie Vangelder-Smith - Jokers
78 Henriette Coulouvrat - Can't You Take A Joke Ha Ha Hi Hi!
79 Druids - Girl Can't Take a Joke
80 The Milestones - The Joker
81 kd Lang - The Joker
82 Faith No More - I Started A Joke
83 Lee Scratch Perry - The Joker
84 REM - The Worst Joke Ever
85 Wolfmother - Joker & The Thief
86 Queens Of The Stone Age - Running Joke
87 Pet Shop Boys - I Started A Joke

Deadbolt Picked

Since I have been looking at and listening to a variety of rockabilly, it only makes sense that I make this pick. Deadbolt says they are the scariest band ever. I don't know about that but they are fun. Horror pop, surf or surfabillypsychobilly and their own brand of voodoobilly, I think they are cool. These are my favorites and even include a couple of tracks from one of their side projects I also like. It does not contain every fan favorite, but it does have many of them. It's my pick, so I included all my favorites. Ilike that the name plays off the lock illusion I attribute to their band name. That's why there are bones in the locking mechanism. Even though you technically can't pick a bolt.

Deadbolt Picked

01 Deadbolt - Blacktop Fever
02 Deadbolt - Voodoo Moonshine
03 Deadbolt - Hang Em High
04 Deadbolt - Hillbilly War
05 Deadbolt - Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head
06 Deadbolt - Orange Blossom Special
07 Deadbolt - One Day I Will Kill You
08 Deadbolt - Tiki Man
09 Deadbolt - Telephone The Dead
10 Deadbolt - Zulu Death Mask
11 Deadbolt - Down In The Lab
12 Deadbolt - James Bond Theme-You Only Live Twice
13 Deadbolt - Voodoobilly Man
14 Deadbolt - Scare Me
15 Deadbolt - El Paso
16 Deadbolt - Cockeye
17 Deadbolt - Truck Driving S.O.B.
18 Deadbolt - Billy's Dead
19 Deadbolt - Last Time I Saw Cole
20 Deadbolt - El Perversio
21 Strangers 1800 - Rawhide
22 Strangers 1800 - Hang 'Em High

Shuckin' And Jivin' 2

I still have no idea what "genre" of music this pick is. There are hints of country and hints of hillbilly hick and some that doesn't at all. I asked AI to look at it and it said: Eclectic. I guess so. A couple of these artists appeared on volume 1 of Shuckin' & Jivin' but most are new to this series. I only think of hunting Brer Rabbit in the middle of the country about to meet up with the boys of Deliverance and driving a Harley. The cover is part of the ride that used to be at Disneyland from Bear Country Jamboree. None of the songs have anything to do with that. A few about drinkin' and eatin', a couple of covers and a few what I believe they call novelty records. It just all sounds good together. To me.

Shuckin' And Jivin' 2

23 Delta Spirit - Trashcan
24 Kaleo - Way Down We Go
25 Chickasaw Mudd Puppies - Chickenbone
26 Slim Cessna's Auto Club - This Is How We Do Things In The Country
27 The Record Company - Off The Ground
28 JJ Grey & Mofro - Country Ghetto
29 Highly Suspect - My Name Is Human
30 Pokey LaFarge - Something In The Water
31 Slobberbone - Gimme Back My Dog
32 Mumford & Sons - Little Lion Man
33 The Felice Brothers - Frankie's Gun!
34 Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Beat The Devil's Tattoo
35 Elle King - Ex's & Oh's
36 Shakey Graves - Dearly Departed
37 Gear Daddies - (I Wanna Drive The) Zamboni
38 Hayseed Dixie - Highway To Hell
39 Asylum Street Spankers - Beer
40 Caamp - By And By
41 The Gourds - Gin And Juice
42 Old Crow Medicine Show - Wagon Wheel
43 Reverend Horton Heat - Eat Steak

Auto-Mo-Billy

This one started on the stupid idea of the name. I wanted to get Rockabilly songs on this pick that all had something to do with cars. Automobiles. I am not really a car guy. My wife. She knows cars. People all around me know cars. My next door neighbor was a champion racer. Friends that love cars. I've actually had some cool cars in my life, but mostly it wasn't on purpose. I always wanted a VW Bus, so I had one of those. I've had English sport cars. An MG-B GT (which was fun just because of all the letters), a Spitfire (wouldn't mind getting another one of those.) I once had a car that had parts of five different model names on it (and five different shades of red paint - I called it my Hot Tamale). My fastest car ever was not my 1964 Mustang which I ruined by making it fast and loud and modern, but an old VW Bug that was also converted to be fast. Porsche engine. It was fun, but I got too many tickets in it. This comp is missing some big name car songs, but I don't care.

Auto-Mo-Billy

01 Psycho Devilles - Psycho Cadillac
02 Bob Cass - Corvette Baby
03 The Crew - Red Chevrolet
04 Wally Hughes - Convertible Car
05 Jack Kitchen - Hot Rod Boogie
06 Harry Hutchins - Rockin' Rollin' Cadilac
07 Rocky Davis - Hot Rod Baby
08 Flyin' Cats - Hot Rod Gang
09 Billy Burnette - Hot Rod Hillbilly
10 Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps - Race With the Devil
11 Sonny Wallace - Black Cadillac
12 Bobby Brown & The Backup Boosters - She Knows Cars
13 Brian Setzer Orchestra - Drive Like Lightning (Crash Like Thunder)
14 Tom Tall - Hot Rod Is Her Name
15 Arkie Shibley & His Mountain Dew Boys - Hot Rod Race
16 Gene Simmons - Peroxide Blond And A Hopped Up Model Ford
17 Jimmy Carroll - Big Green Car
18 The Camtwisters - Hotrod Twist
19 Pat Davis - Spinner Hub Caps
20 Session '57 - Cool Cruisin' Car
21 Richie Deran - Girl And A Hot Rod
22 Bill Sherill - Cadillac Baby
23 Bobby Verne - Red Hot Car
24 Tommy Lam - Speed Limit
25 Joyce Green - Black Cadillac
26 Larry Dowd - Pink Cadillac
27 Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen - Hot Rod Lincoln
28 Bill Parsons - Hot Rod Volkswagen
29 Eddie Ringo - Full Racing Cam
30 Stray Cats - Look At That Cadillac

Bobby Orlando Big O

I'm very torn about this pick. I would never have said that I am a big fan Hi-NRG and yet without knowing the term, I am and always was a big fan. Everyone visiting this blog knows that I put on a lot of disco and frankly that's kind of what it is. I think of Giogio Morodor and Donna Summer I Feel Love. And one of the prolific purveyors of Hi-NRG productions was Bobby Orlando especially in the 80's. This pick is just a sampling of stuff he did. From writing to producing and everything in between Bobby O  had control of the dance floor for years. And a lot of it I had no idea he was a part of until later. Divine and the Flirts are a good example of my ignorance. I knew the tracks and played the songs, but I wouldn't have classified it as that genre and I had no idea that the Big O had anything to do with them. Enjoy revisiting this selection or hearing it with new ears.

Bobby Orlando Big O

01 Roni Griffith - Desire
02 The Flirts - Passion (Extended Mix)
03 Free Enterprise - Make It On My Own
04 Bobby O - She Has A Way
05 Girly - Working Girl (One Way Love Affair)
06 Divine - Native Love (12'' Version)
07 Oh Romeo - One More Shot
08 Hippies With Haircuts - Eye On You
09 Waterfront Home - Take A Chance On (On Me)
10 Bobby O & Claudja Barry - Whisper To A Scream
11 Beachfront - Once In A Lifetime
12 Gina Desire - Breathless
13 Banana Republic - Lonely Too Long
14 Wow - Bring On The Men

Swing Swing Swing 4

Four volumes in and I am clearly not over this. More is coming! The pick runs from the golden era heavyweights who invented the whole thing through the neo-swing revival acts that proved it never actually died. I think it just went underground for a while. As an amateur ballroom dancer for years, emphasis on amateur, there is nothing quite like a good swing tune for reminding your feet what they're supposed to be doing even when your brain has other ideas. This volume has a little more muscle and defiance to it than the previous three. Either way it swings. From sex to war to just drinking, it's all here this time. And every time. All through the ages.

Swing Swing Swing 4

65 Benny Goodman - Don't Be That Way
66 Duke Ellington - C Jam Blues
67 Gavin Povey & The Fabulous Oke She Moke She Pops - Hook Line & Sinker
68 The Indigo Kings - How Can It Be True
69 Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - What's The Matter With You
70 Harry James & His Music Makers - Two O'Clock Jump
71 The Lazy Jumpers - Salt And Pepper Boogie
72 Robyn Adele Anderson - Immigrant Song
73 Count Basie - Shorty George
74 Keely Smith - Swing, Swing, Swing (Sing, Sing, Sing)
75 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra - Wrappin' It Up
76 The Atomic Fireballs - Man With The Hex
77 Erskine Hawkins - Tippin' In
78 Woody Herman - Four Brothers
79 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - You & Me & Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby)
80 Charlie Barnet - Skyliner
81 Jennifer Rocket - Stand Up Baby
82 Phantom Alley Swing - Pocket Full of Stars
83 Artie Shaw - Begin The Beguine
84 Maria Muldaur - It Ain't The Meat (It's The Motion)
85 Glenn Miller - Pennsylvania 6-5000
86 Jimmie Lunceford And His Orchestra - For Dancers Only
87 Louis Jordan And His Tympany Five - Choo Choo Ch'Boogie
88 The Mighty Blue Kings - Baby Drives Me Wild
89 Rob Heron & The Tea Pad Orchestra - Pull The Other One, Rob!

Salsoul Selection

This selection/pick sits right in the middle of a very specific corner of disco — the Salsoul Records world, which was its own thing even within the broader New York scene. Salsoul had its own DNA: Latin percussion, gospel-inflected vocals, lush orchestration, and a particular sense of drama that set it apart from the more stripped-down funk happening elsewhere. It's not the same universe as Patrick Adams, but there's definite overlap in spirit if not in sound — both were chasing something bigger and more emotional than the average dancefloor demanded. The label gave us some of the most beloved twelve-inch singles ever cut, and the remix culture around it — Gibbons, Pettibone — was as important as the records themselves. Thirteen tracks, no filler.

Salsoul Selection

01 Touch Of Class - I'm In Heaven
02 Loleatta Holloway - Hit And Run
03 Instant Funk - I Got My Mind Made Up
04 Bebu Silvetti - Spring Rain
05 The Salsoul Orchestra - Ooh I Love It (Love Break) (Moplen Radio Edit)
06 Charo & the Salsoul Orchestra - Dance A Little Bit Closer (Extended Version)
07 First Choice - Let No Man Put Asunder
08 Skyy - Call Me
09 Candido - Jingo (Original Shep Pettibone 12 inch Remix)
10 Carol Williams - More
11 Double Exposure - Ten Percent (Walter Gibbons 12 inch Mix)
12 Inner Life featuring Jocelyn Brown - Ain't No Mountain High Enough
13 Joe Bataan - Latin Strut