Best Ever Non-Album B-Sides

With Records Store Day just passed, I thought we could celebrate what makes vinyl special - an A- and B-side. Some b-sides are fantastic songs that, for some reason or another, never made it onto an album. This is their list.

Let's have some qualifiers before we start:
No live tracks, no remixes, or alternate versions of songs that appear on other original pressings of studio albums by the artists. No tracks from EPs, singles only. Tracks added to later or deluxe versions of albums as well as tracks on singles or b-sides compilations by the artist are eligible.
OK, now that that's out of the way:

1. "Silver Springs," Fleetwood Mac (b-side of "Go Your Own Way," 1977)
2. "You Looking At Me Looking At You," Ozzy Osbourne (b-side of "Crazy Train," 1980)
3. "Hey, Hey What Can I Do," Led Zeppelin (b-side of "Immigrant Song," 1970)
4. "Am I Evil?" Metallica (b-side of "Creeping Death," 1984)
5. "An Ugly Death," Jay Reatard (b-side of "Painted Shut," 2008)
6. "Burning Ambition," Iron Maiden (b-side of "Running Free," 1980)
7. "I Want You Around," Ramones (b-side of "Rock 'N Roll Radio," 1979)
8. "Children In Heat," The Misfits (b-side of "Horror Business," 1979)
9. "Did You No Wrong," Sex Pistols (b-side of "God Save The Queen," 1977)
10. "Devil Bunnies," My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult (b-side of "Kooler Than Jesus," 1989)
11. "Ages Of You," R.E.M. (b-side of "Wendell Gee," 1985)
12. "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore," Prince (b-side of "1999," 1982)
13. "Dive," Nirvana (b-side of "Sliver," 1990)
14. "Neat Parts," Fucked Up (b-side of "Triumph Of Life," 2006)
15. "Footsteps," Pearl Jam (b-side of "Jeremy," 1991)
16. "Flying Dutchman," Tori Amos (b-side of "China," 1992)
17. "Into The White," Pixies (b-side of "Here Comes Your Man," 1989)
18. "When Death Had No Name," Danzig (b-side of "Dirty Black Summer," 1992)
19. "I Don't Think I'm Ever Gonna Figure It Out," Elliott Smith (b-side of "Speed Trials," 1996)
20. "Novelty," Joy Division (b-side of "Transmission," 1979)

I'm sure there are some real gems that I'm missing here, so let me know.

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - I Learned The Hard Way

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings
I Learned The Hard Way
Daptone Recording Co.
LP/CD

The R&B soul revival began in earnest over a decade ago with The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill but as quickly as the former Fugee made this musical genre relevant again, she vanished from public consciousness. Thank goodness for Sharon Jones. Admittedly, I watched at least 40 minutes of a "Best Of Soul Train" infomercial last night but my interest in this music has been re-ignited. And I have Ms. Jones & The Dap-Kings to thank for that.

This music is so authentic that it's hard to believe that it is new. The rest of the Dap-Kings are very able musicians and, with Jones's voice and the production of Bosco Mann, they form a perfect union. I Learned The Hard Way is, in short, an album that is very easy to enjoy. There are fantastic grooves galore and no wasted time (unlike the Lauryn Hill album that suffered from the need to have skits, a hip-hop staple). The arrangements are rich without being cluttered. And the horns, oh how I usually loathe horns, mesh wonderfully. There is plenty of great R&B, soul, and Motown flavor to silence even the staunchest critics. It may not be the best but this is my most enjoyed album of the year so far.

Track Grades:

1. The Game Gets Old - 8.5
2. I Learned The Hard Way - 8.8
3. Better Things - 8.2
4. Give It Back - 7.8
5. Money - 8.5
6. The Reason - 7.5
7. Window Shopping - 9.1
8. She Ain't A Child No More - 7.7
9. I'll Still Be True - 8.1
10. Without A Heart - 8.4
11. If You Call - 8.7
12. Mama Don't Like My Man - 8.5

Overall Grade = 8.32

Dead Kings Rise Again

Jimi Hendrix
Valleys Of Neptune
Legacy
LP/CD

Posthumous albums usually make me cringe. Not just because of the creep factor of mining the vaults of a dead musician for some last way to squeeze some proverbial blood from the stone. Like previous Hendrix collections, Valleys Of Neptune contains different versions of previously released material. The record kicks off with a more up-tempo version of "Stone Free," than was originally on Are You Experienced. It sounds far less menacing than the original and less of a threat from a man exercising his right to freedom.

Then comes the long sought after "Valleys Of Neptune", a decent enough song but hardly the long lost Hendrix classic. The covers of "Bleeding Heart", which is also a competent track with blistering Jimi guitar mastery, and the instrumental Cream "classic" "Sunshine Of Your Love," improve on their originals. I know it sounds as though I don't like this record, but I do. I do think it is the voyeuristing feeling of listening to this that maybe taints my feeling. The tracks are still strong. It's Jimi Fuckin' Hendrix! "Hear My Train A Comin'," and "Mr. Bad Luck," are fantastic and fresh. I could have done without the re-working of classics. But the lesser known or previously unknown traacks do not sully Jimi's legacy.

Track Grades:

1. Stone Free - 8.8
2. Valleys Of Neptune - 8.6
3. Bleeding Heart - 8.4
4. Hear My Train A Comin' - 9.3
5. Mr. Bad Luck - 9.5
6. Sunshine Of Your Love - 7.8
7. Lover Man - 8.2
8. Ships Passing Through The Night - 7.5
9. Fire - 8.5
10. Red House - 8.0
11. Lullaby For The Summer - 8.7
12. Crying Blue Rain - 8.5

Overall Grade=8.48

Johnny Cash
American VI: Ain't No Grave
Lost Highway
LP/CD

With all of the output that Rick Rubin managed to record from Johnny over the last few years of his life, it's easy to imagine Rubin locking Cash in a cabin yelling, "Sing, monkey, sing!". Even so, it is difficult to deny the effectiveness of Cash's voice, weakened by age, singing the remainder of his dwindling lifeforce over this simple arrangements. Ain't No Grave, like its posthumous predecessor A Hundred Highways, is little more than a collection of outtakes.

The first two tracks are lovely, poignant gems. Never has a Sheryl Crow song sounded so meaningful. And the title track is the prerequesite ominous tune about death or the endtimes in the vein of previous American album tracks like "The Man Comes Around", "God's Gonna Cut You Down",  or "The Mercy Seat,". Some albums are jam packed with them. After those first two songs, however, the record just gets bogged down and makes me sad, honestly.

Track Grades:

1. Ain't No Grave - 9.3
2. Redemption Day - 9.0
3. For The Good Times - 7.4
4. I Corinthians 15:55 - 7.8
5. Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound - 7.4
6. A Satisfied Mind - 7.6
7. I Don't Hurt Anymore - 7.7
8. Cool Water - 7.1
9. Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream - 7.1
10. Aloha Oe - 6.6

Overall Grade=7.7

Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me

Joanna Newsom
Have One On Me
Drag City
3xLP/3xCD

On previous albums, I have found Joanna Newsom to be incredibly talented but annoying. On this ambitious triple album, however, her talent just shines through and her voice only occasionally pierces my brain with hot pokers of shrillness. This is an album whose kind of beauty only Tori Amos has ever managed to show.

The album is remarkably consistent. There aren't any tracks that make you want to puncture your eardrums. That is a rather interesting feats considering that there are 18 real tracks, no interludes or weird intros (unless you count "On A Bad Day,"). There are some real standouts like the title track, "In California," and "Soft As Chalk,". Being a mellow affair, it surprises me that the highlights are the longer songs. Normally, that much somberness is too much to take. Perhaps it allows the multi-intrumentalist to really spread her creative wings. The arrangements on those tracks are, expectedly, more interesting as well. This is the album PJ Harvey wishes she sould have delivered with White Chalk.

There are recurring themes of companionship, drunkedness, regret, loss, and death sprinkled throughout the stories within Have One On Me. There are many characters Newsom sings through as to lead the listener away from thinking her transparent. The depths of feeling are hard to ignore but there's very little you should want to ignore on this album.

Track Grades:

1. Easy - 7.9
2. Have One On Me - 8.8
3. '81 - 7.6
4. Good Intentions Paving Co. - 8.0
5. No Provenance - 7.3
6. Baby Birch - 8.5
7. On A Good Day - 7.7
8. You And Me, Bess - 7.1
9. In California - 9.3
10. Jackrabbits - 7.9
11. Go Long - 8.2
12. Occident - 7.8
13. Soft As Chalk - 9.2
14. Esme - 7.7
15. Autumn - 8.4
16. Ribbon Bows - 7.4
17. Kingfisher - 8.7
18. Does Not Suffice - 8.1

Overall Grade = 8.09

Titus Andronicus & A SXSW Wishlist

Titus Andronicus is a great young band gaining confidence. While I could not see the performance (best shot of my vantage point below), they were properly raucous and energetic for a free show. It is not difficult to imagine them blowing Ted Leo + The Pharmacists off the stage later that night.

Now, onto my own horrible mis-step. I did not, originally, think it was going to be feasible to get the time off of my day job to get down to South By Southwest. Imagine my surprise when I found that my workload had dwindled to nothing. So, if you could, let me live through you and tell me about these performances. Here is what I would have attended if I would have been in Austin for all the festivities:

Friday, March 12:

  2:00 PM Game On: Funding Gaming Start-Ups In A Recession

  3:30 PM How to Rawk SXSW Film

  4:30 PM The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo Screening

  7:00 PM Kick-Ass Screening

10:00 PM Predators First Look w/Robert Rodriguez

11:59 PM Tucker And Dale vs. Evil

Saturday, March 13:

11:00 AM How To Make A Living As A Blogger (needed big time)

12:30 PM Directing the Dead: Genre Directors Spill Their Guts

  2:00 PM Blow Something Up!: Live Action Special Effects

  4:10 PM Zombies, Vampires & Monsters: Fostering Loyal Genre Communities

  6:00 PM The People vs. George Lucas

  7:00 PM The Thorn In The Heart: Michel Gondry

  9:00 PM American Grindhouse

Sunday, March 14:

  1:30 PM The Cow Who Wanted To Be a Burger: George Plimpton

  3:30 PM Jeffrey Tambor's Acting Workshop

  9:30 PM Elektra Luxx Screening

Monday, March 15:

12:30 PM Visual FX for Indies: Big Impact, Small Budgets

  3:30 PM Creating a Graphic Novel Hollywood Will Buy

  4:00 PM American: The Bill Hicks Story

  6:45 PM Lemmy

  9:00 PM The Annual Austin Chronicle Film Bash

Tuesday, March 16:

  9:30 AM 14,000 Songs in 28 Days: A Case Study

11:00 AM Music Licensing for Emerging Media: Apps, Widgets, Viral Videos

  3:30 PM Devo, the Internet and You

  5:00 PM The State of Music Blogs In 2010

  8:00 PM SXSW Film Awards

  9:00 PM SXSW Film Closing/Music Opening Party hosted by VH1 and YouTube

Wednesday, March 17:

12:00 PM Indie Record Labels At The Indie Village

  2:30 PM Martin Atkins & Whitney Francis

  3:00 PM Canadian Blast BBQ

  5:00 PM SXSW Interview: Lemmy

  6:00 PM One Night Only

  8:00 PM Melissa Auf der Maur

  8:45 PM The Walkmen

  9:45 PM Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

10:30 PM Motörhead

12:05 AM Andrew W.K.

wouldn't be going quietly into that good night

Thursday, March 18:

12:30 PM How to Make Money with Vinyl

  2:00 PM Merge Makes Noise

  2:30 PM Mac McCaughan & Laura Ballance

  5:00 PM Why Hasn't the Record Industry Sued Girl Talk?

  7:00 PM Gordon Gano and The Ryan Brothers

  8:30 PM The Besnard Lakes

  9:30 PM The Soft Pack

10:30 PM Drive-By Truckers

11:30 Band Of Horses

12:45 Broken Social Scene

Friday, March 19th:

11:00 AM Chicago Beats by Chicago.com /Music

12:00 PM SXSW Music Stimulus Party

  5:10 PM Jakob Dylan and Three Legs (Featuring Neko Case and Kelly Hogan)

  8:00 PM Thurston Moore

11:00 PM Cymbals Eat Guitars

  1:00 AM The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart

Saturday, March 20th:

  1:00 PM Stereogum Range Life

  2:00 PM SXSW Interview: Death

  3:00 PM Death

  8:00 PM This Will Destroy You

10:15 PM Titus Andronicus

  1:15 AM Fucked Up

Bands like Surfer Blood and Les Savy Fav were victims of inconvenient timing. Luckily, I don't have to worry about missing them for something else because I will be missing all of it. [sigh]