Jack: you should put Blue Oyster Cult's "Veteran of the Psychic Wars" on the first one. Oh, yes.
Riz: Oooo! You're cute! "She's neat. Petite. Adds up to... swinging gear." You should put Cowboy Junkies' "Me and the Devil" on the religious one. And Kendra Smith's "Wheel of the Law" would be fun. "Rose Garden Funeral of Sores" (either Bauhaus or John Cale) would also be fun. Virgin Mary was tired - soo tired.
Throwing Muses did an OK "Amazing Grace," and John Lee Hooker's "Will This Circle Be Unbroken" is great.
Tom Waits - "Jesus Gonna Be Here."
Talking Heads - "Heaven."
I wonder if Diamanda Galas could get squeezed on there. The only thing by her that fits onto tapes, usually, doesn't have words. The name is in Greek, so I can't type it, but I think it translates to "Deliver me, O God." Off the Divine Punishment album.
Might be fun putting religious songs on side one and space songs on side two and sending it to me. Oh yes, that'd be much fun! Call it "Heavens" or something.
On the space one, Brian Eno's "An Ending (Ascent)" is one of the most beautiful things ever, and was written for the soundtrack for "For All Mankind." (It was also used in "Traffic" - that pretty music as Del Toro's watching the ballgame.)
Heheh. There's always Pink Floyd - "Cirrus Minor," "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun," "Astronomy Domine," and, most of all, "Interstellar Overdrive."
If you can't abide the Floyd, Camper Van Beethoven did an OK cover of Interstellar Overdrive. Which is pretty amazing in and of itself.
They also did the absolutely genius "The Day That Lassie Went to the Moon," which periodically pops up on their website as a free mp3.
The Cramps - "Rock on the Moon" (I bet there are dozens of old space-race pop-rock tunes out there.)
The Ventures did a whole album or two of space-themed surf music. Their "Star Trek" theme has a disco backbeat. Very cheesy. But "Out Of Limits" has a great space sound and "Telstar" is about a satellite, and both are just straight up great surf songs.
"Satellite of Love" by Lou Reed. (could go on the PKDick on just as well.)
"Planet Claire" by the B52s. Maybe not, since it's about aliens coming to us. The Byrds' "Mr. Spaceman" might not fit for the same reason.
Actually, from the space-race years, I met the guy who wrote "The Martian Bop" (The Randells, 1962). A Google search on which brings up this charmingly dry page.
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In 1977 the Carpenters had a hit single with the song "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft".
In 1978 the German band Kraftwerk released their album Die Mensch Maschine which carried the track "Spacelab".
In 1979 the British band Police released the hit "Walking on the Moon" which does not concern space activities, but gained very wide publicity for the concept.
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They also mention David Bowie's "Space Oddity" (I know there have been covers done) and "Ashes to Ashes," which is a sort of sequel song.
Blue Oyster Cult is also rich in space songs. "Sole Survivor" being one of my favorites - about a guy stranded on a distant planet, wigging out by himself, thus getting freaked out and hiding once the rescue mission arrives. Tragedy. Classic rock. Dude.
Wanton, reckless self-promotion: Later this month, I'm supposedly having an album coming out that has songs that would fit in both of those two categories: "Atheists in foxholes" up top and "Gravity" down bottom. |
