Master Index of Archived Threads


Desert Island Crow's Nest

If It Makes You Happy

1 votes

My Favorite Mistake

1 votes

Soak Up the Sun

1 votes

Everyday is a Winding Road

2 votes

A Change Will Do You Good

1 votes

All I Wanna Do

5 votes

Steve McQueen

0 votes

Leaving Las Vegas

0 votes

Strong Enough

2 votes

Home

0 votes

OTHER (write in)

1 votes

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 02 2015 08:25 AM

Are you strong enough to be the man who gets one Sheryl Crow cut on your walkman for the rest of eternity? There's something offputting about Sheryl Crow but I think I might be holding her to a tougher standard for being a hot babe. She's certainly done more than her share of questionable things. Her smash Tuesday Night Music Club LP allegedly is loaded with songs she didn't write or provide proper credit for although at least some of that story is perpetuated by a former paramour. She was once married to uber-douche Lance Armstrong. She's either every versatile or a betrayer of rock. Her work includes some Stones-y rockers, a little bit of folk, some country, some AC pop. She made a lot of money doing commercial jingles and singing behind Michael Jackson and doing soundtrack music for bad Bond films and whatnot. Her singles got overplayed. I don't trust her. Yet, I could put on either of her first 2 records especially, turn the volume up, and find it a very enjoyable Mom Rock experience. What's your take on Cheryl Crow? And if you're stranded on a desert island with a walkman and a tape which must include 1 Sheryl Crow song, which is it? --Reminder: If you don't vote, you have to make out with Lance Armstrong If It Makes You Happy [youtube:31kh0d8j]dyihQtBes1I[/youtube:31kh0d8j] My Favorite Mistake [youtube:31kh0d8j]AmIlUKo4dQc[/youtube:31kh0d8j] Soak Up the Sun [youtube:31kh0d8j]KIYiGA_rIls[/youtube:31kh0d8j] Everyday is a Winding Road [youtube:31kh0d8j]khrx-zrG460[/youtube:31kh0d8j] A Change Will Do You Good [youtube:31kh0d8j]Ikjmz_SlGhg[/youtube:31kh0d8j] All I Wanna Do [youtube:31kh0d8j]yAEpLMTjCC8[/youtube:31kh0d8j] Steve McQueen [youtube:31kh0d8j]qlywcuw-1TU[/youtube:31kh0d8j] Leaving Las Vegas [youtube:31kh0d8j]Xkc-en0_LGY[/youtube:31kh0d8j] Can't Cry Anymore [youtube:31kh0d8j]kW3Hzedn7D4[/youtube:31kh0d8j] Strong Enough [youtube:31kh0d8j]3s1bZLh4mJA[/youtube:31kh0d8j]Home Home [youtube:31kh0d8j]j1Ij3rV_ZS4[/youtube:31kh0d8j]

Edgy MD Mar 02 2015 08:43 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

I like this poll. (I thought it was gonna be Black Crows.) I like Crow as a songwriter, but a lot of her tracks sound like they were released before laying down lead guitars. Very spare arrangements, especially for an LA scenester who you know is cutting those records in Studio B with Toto in Studio A and Guns and Roses in the Studio C. I went for "Every Day Is a Winding Road," because I like her voice in that range, but I'm going to listen to these tracks and leave open the possibility of re-voting. (Every poll is an open road.) I'm a fan of "Mississippi" — a Dylan song that she did before Dylan.

TransMonk Mar 02 2015 08:55 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

I went with "My Favorite Mistake". I'm not a Crow fan. At all. But, "The Globe Sessions" is a guilty pleasure album of mine. The late-90s Rick Rubin influence is all over this record which produces some of my favorite sounds.

Mets – Willets Point Mar 02 2015 09:04 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

There's something about Sheryl Crow songs that I like when I first hear them, but I grow to hate on repeated listens. And since Sheryl Crow songs tend to get flogged to death on radio stations, retail playlists, tv, et al, I've grown to hate them all. I went with "All I Wanna Do" since it reminds me of when Sheryl Crow was new and I was not so jaded.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 02 2015 09:28 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

I went with Winding Road but would also be satisfied with 'Leaving Las Vegas' I liked the sorta ramshackle quality of it. This poll inspired by an assignment to listen to the second 'self-titled' Sheryl Crow album for a project I'm doing and being surprised at how little hated it. I actually very much liked it but it could just be because it vanished from my view for 20 years

TransMonk Mar 02 2015 09:30 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

After journeying through the selections above (it's a slow morning), I'm doubling down on "My Favorite Mistake". To me, it would be an almost perfect song if it weren't Sheryl Crow. Her vocals don't mar the song, just her...due to the negative aspects already mentioned above (the commercialization and overuse of her music, the love of Lancy-pants and Clapton, etc.).

Frayed Knot Mar 02 2015 09:57 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: She was once married to uber-douche Lance Armstrong. Was briefly engaged to, but never actually married.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Mar 02 2015 11:42 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

There's something about that voice at the top of its range, though... a brand of vocal fray that's unpleasantly shrill and nauseatingly oversmooth, all at once. I'd argue that she's been poorly served by whomever does her vocal mixing, but she's had so many different producers-- with similar results--that it can't just be a function of studio misdoings, y'know? I think that's what gets me the most about her music, beyond garden-variety overplayed-annoyance (and even accounting for the "off-the-field" swarm/tackiness). That said, the songs wouldn't be nearly so irritating if they weren't so goddamn catchy, and they wouldn't be so goddamn catchy if she didn't know how to write/co-write/"co-write" such goddamn huge hooks. I find her voice least unappealing on "Strong Enough." I actually kind of Mom-like "My Brilliant Mistake," but it's a desert island, not a JC Penney. The one I hate-love the most-- big fuckin' hook, big fuckin' vocal fray-- is "If It Makes You Happy," and that's probably the most pure distillation of Crowness, for me.

Zvon Mar 02 2015 02:13 PM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

I always thought the guitar work was excellent on Strong Enough.

Edgy MD Mar 02 2015 02:23 PM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

I thought was just strong enough. Just. Really, am I the only one who hears "Leaving LV," "All I Wanna Do" or "Soak Up the Sun" and wonders where Steve Lukather or Marc Ford or Waddy Watchel or some other studio shredder is? I'm not hearing that lead, Baby. That counter melody. Or even a good electric arpeggio most of the time. And then what have we got? We've got plugged in folk. And yeah, I know Clapton played on some of her cuts. But what did she glean from it?

Ashie62 Mar 02 2015 05:40 PM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

Other, "The Ballad of Lance Armstrong."

metirish Mar 02 2015 06:58 PM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

Purely sentimental here but her debut album Tuesday Night Music Club coincided with me coming to NYC, well, it came out in 93 but she was all over the place in late 94, All I Wanna Do brings back great memories of hanging out in Burke's Bar in Maspeth all those years ago

Frayed Knot Mar 02 2015 07:04 PM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

Write-in [youtube:qp630bc7]4YCMyJAX6t0[/youtube:qp630bc7]

MFS62 Mar 02 2015 09:25 PM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

When I saw the video for "Soak Up the Sun", I wanted to be on that beach with her. Many of her songs are/were enjoyable. But that one will always stick in my mind. "Its not having what you want. Its wanting what you got." More people should follow that philosophy - there'd be less conflict in the world. Later

cooby Mar 03 2015 09:11 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

I can't stand her

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 03 2015 09:48 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

Yes but would you rather snog Lance Armstrong? You must hold your nose and choose!

cooby Mar 03 2015 10:46 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

Ew you're right. I missed that part. So I voted for all I wanna do. She sounds least constipated in that one. Maybe she should use two pieces of TP

G-Fafif Mar 03 2015 11:19 AM Re: Desert Island Crow's Nest

Thought we were getting Counting Crows, but this works, too. Went with "A Change Would Do You Good," based on its high Top 1,000 (a.k.a. the updated Top 500) ranking. Prince, btw, really funked up "Everyday Is A Winding Road".