Elvis Costello - My Aim Is True

Friday, May 16th 2014 - was interesting because I worked 26 straight hours...  went home for a 3.5 hour nap, returned at 2:00pm and worked until 8:00pm.

Let me be the first person to say that while it may sound insanely crazy to do - it's not exactly unheard of.  I mean, I'm certain that there were enlisted people on the globe who pulled an identical amount of consecutive hours and unlike me, the were in harms way.

I'm pretty sure there was a doctor/nurse in the United States pulled a marathon shift and helped numerous people on a typical shift.

I read somewhere once that Sing has had tantric sex to someone for the same amount of time and I as the reader have never been the same since...

What I'm trying to get at is...  the experience was an eye-opening one.   I kinda tapped into something within me that I didn't know I had.   An inexplicable reserve of "something" that allowed me to propel forward so that we could meet a deadline set for Friday afternoon.

We made our deadline and I couldn't have done it without the help of 3 co-workers, whom I'm incredibly fortunate to also call friends.  We're exactly 29 days away from launching the most time consuming project of my lifetime and I've extinguished any fears of making this leap forward.   I'm actually pretty excited to do it.  The Go Live will require an identical marathon of uninterrupted alertness - but I now know how to channel that indescribable thing out.

During said 26 hours of "awake" - I listened to a shit load of albums.  I technically could have selected 10 to 15 things that listened to from beginning to end but I settled on Elvis Costello's debut album My Aim Is True.

Main for the intro track "Welcome to the Working Week". 

If you're unfamiliar with Elvis Costello and his work - I beg that you stop whatever you're doing and buy this album.  It's easily on my list of Top 5 debut albums of all time...  It's one incredible track after another and it's also a great record to read about.

Other stand out tracks:

Artists: Elvis Costello
Album: My Aim Is True
Producer: Nick Lowe
Label: Columbia, Rhino
Recorded: Pathway Studios

the Pogues - Rum, Sodomy & the Lash

While driving back home from Houston this morning, I got around to thinking about St. Patricks Day, what album I should listen to and thought a lot about how I used to look incredibly forward to St. Patricks day every year...   

My appreciation for St. Patricks Day really took off in college when I got to take part in a number of St. Paddy day celebrations and parades.   One of my favorite things to do on the 17th was head down to the Gaelic League in downtown Detroit and have many brew-ha-ha's with complete strangers.

St. Patricks Day in San Antonio/Texas really is pretty tame when compared to ones I had in Chicago and Detroit.   Come to think of it... I haven't been too impressed by Cinco De Mayo ones either.  Anyhoo... I started to think about what albums I could listen to this morning and the Pogues were on my shortlist. 

Please don't message me with reminders that the band is British...  I simply selected this album because of its Irish folk song sound.

Much to my surprise, I didn't have Rum, Sodomy & the Lash in my personal collection.  I could have sworn to have owned the CD at some point...  but the more and more I thought about it - I'm pretty sure I never got around to buying it in my 20's.   

I came around to them a lot later than I should have...   what amazed me about the Pogues (especially this album) was how fucking anthemic the songs were amongst my friends or strangers when it got played at bars.   If there's a feeling I don't wish on anyone...  its the one of being surrounded by Pogues fans singing along as one while you sit around obviously not knowing the lyrics.

Remedy that shit quickly please.

Stand out tracks:

Artists: The Pogues
Album: Rum, Sodomy & the Lash 
Producer: Elvis Costello, Phillip Cheveron (Dirty Old Town)
Label: MCA
Recorded: Elephant Studios