last man standing

Albums That You Are Convinced You Are the Only Person to Ever Have Spent Money On

Jun 092008

During a recent Last Man Standing thread Townsman cdm proposed a future topic, which we present today: Albums that you are convinced you are the only person to ever have spent money on. For those of you who were taking chances on albums in 1978, the above video may help jog your memory. Since the explosion of indie rock and DIY releases, the opportunities for spending money on an album that no one else has spent money on have expanded astronomically.

As is usually the case, we expect you to do more than simply list these albums. Tell us something about them. What attracted you to actually buying them? Should you worry that your secret will be out and other hipsters will seek out existing copies of this album?

Last Man Standing (with Potential Battle Royale Implications): Pairs of Songs That Share the Same Title (But Aren’t Covers of the Same Song)

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Jun 012008

Townsman Chickenfrank has thrown down the following Last Man Standing Challenge, with potential Battle Royale implications! This could be an historic occasion. Listen to what the man says:

I thought of this when The Spinners’ “Games People Play” video was posted.

When the song title popped up, I immediately thought of Joe South‘s song, “Games People Play”, and what a better song that is.

Can you name pairs of songs that share the same title (but aren’t covers of the same song)? Which of the pair is the better song?

I can also think of one title that’s actually a triplet, but I’m sitting on it as my coup de grace death blow.

Last Man Standing: Songs in Which a Deliberate “Party” Vibe Plays as Prominent a Role in the Song as Almost Anything Else

Posted by Mr. Moderator

May 202008

Surely you know of The Beach Boys‘ Party album, a studio release that was presented as an impromptu live performance during an intimate party. Fact of the matter is, it wasn’t a live recording in the middle of an intimate party, but it’s a pretty fun album and a great concept for sounding that way. “Barbara Ann” is the best-known track from this album. Those of you who know it well can probably anticipate certain “party” sounds as well as you can any vocal or instrumental lick in the song. Pretty cool – and not the only example of its kind. So as the title of this post suggests, we’re seeking songs in which a deliberate “party” vibe plays as prominent a role in the song as almost anything else. Go for it!

Last Man Standing: Song Titles That Play Off Preexisting Song Titles

Posted by Mr. Moderator

May 012008

In the ’80s, Shonen Knife released a song that held immediate appeal to me based solely on the song’s title, “Making Plans for Bison”. Would this somehow be a response to XTC’s “Making Plans for Nigel”? I bought the record, which was pretty cool on its own merits, and realized that not only the title played off the XTC song, but one of the lyrical hooks also was carried over. Satisfying.

Today’s Last Man Standing seeks Song Titles That Play Off Preexisting Song Titles. Richard Thompson‘s “Roll Over Vaughn Williams” is another example that comes to mind. Posting one title (and the original song title on which it’s based, if it’s not totally obvious) per Comment, show us what you’ve got!

Last Man Standing: Things That Do Not Go With Rock

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Apr 272008

Real simple, one at a time, name something based on empiric data that does not go with rock. It can be a thing, a topic, what have you. Whatever that something is, it must be proven not to go with rock based on real-life examples. For intstance:
Continue reading »

Last Man Standing: Artists Who Had to Go Get Married and Start Putting Out Duet Albums With Their Spouse!

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Apr 082008

In commenting on a comment in the recent Name That Tune! thread, Townsman Al said of Leon Russell:

I think his string of early ’70s albums were phenomenal. Then he had to go get married and start putting out duet albums with his wife. There’s a Last Man Standing thread there.

Indeed, there is. Thanks, Al! And let’s make sure we’re not being sexist about this. A great woman artist whose career was dragged down by making duet albums with her new husband is just as relevant.

Note: To avoid a likely week-long debate over which spouse dragged down the other’s career, we’ll rule out the Gregg Allman–Cher collaboration that was knocked out during their historic 9-day marriage, Two the Hard Way.

Last Man Standing: Rock Leeches!

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Mar 172008

The challenge is simple: Let’s expose rock’s leeches and hangers-on. Like those websites that allow you to check whether a child molester or contributor to a political candidate you find offensive lives in your neighborhood, this day’s Last Man Standing will call out those figures in rock that we know too much about through countless rock bios and documentaries on a particular artist or scene without knowing much about what said figure contributed to rock ‘n roll.

To qualify, the rock leech or hanger-on must have had a longer run in the spotlight than Beatles’ sham studio engineer Magic Alex while actually contributing a little less to rock ‘n roll than Rolling Stones’ manager Andrew Loog Oldham.

If I may, I’ll kick off this challenge with one of probably a dozen qualifying Bob Dylan leeches and hangers-on… Continue reading »

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