Dear Friends,
I am blessed to have guys in my life who are more than friends. I have a gaggle of awesome, big-hearted, funny as fuck, totally have my back, brothers. Sometimes I wish I could be the type of brother that my brothers from other mothers are to me to my own flesh and blood brother. That was a confusing sentence, but maybe someday, I can be that type of brother to Matt.
Either way, today is Mark’s birthday. Markus. Felix. My main man. I love him so much. We’ve been through tons of things in our lives both together and just having each other’s backs from afar that I don’t know what I would do without him.
One of the coolest things, though, is yet to come. We are working on a big to-do in San Pedro, California in November and it’s going to be amazing. I will share more as things come into shape.
Thank you, Markus, for everything. I love you and happy birthday.
Ps..if you want to read about our youth, look up the post from last year on this date.
*****
Last night, I ran through the NSK songs for a bit and then hung out with James on the porch for a while. It was good to catch up with him. Our conversations are always great. He’s going to be part of the San Pedro event, too.
*****
James and I were talking about some of the bad TV we love. He shared that he was hooked on a soap opera, and I remembered that I was hooked on Days of Our Lives for a while in the 90s. Those things are truly TV crack, but super funny.
Lately I’ve been watching Suits a lot. It’s so stupid but kinda cool, too. A few of the characters are really great. I’m only three seasons in and I like how they have morphed the show a bit into a longer story telling form, but sometimes it is just so stupid that I have to laugh.
Television, the Drug of the Nation.
*****
Now, yes, I do know that you can go to your local record shop or shop online and find the LP version of Superfuzz Bigmuff that also contains all the songs from Mudhoney’s 1989 EP, Boiled Beef & Rotting Teeth, but I’m also going to tell you right now that you would be much cooler if you had the EP. Some things should just be the way God and Bruce Pavitt intended them. This is one of those things.
If you have been following along, I have professed my Mudhoney love many times, so I will not bore you with that again, but I was certainly stoked in 1989 to score this CD. It was actually a joint effort between Sub Pop (that’s the Bruce Pavitt connection) and Tupelo Recording Company out of Bristol in the UK. With a little digging, I found that Tupelo Recording Company was based out of San Francisco, but the CD I’m holding front of me has a UK address on the back, so who knows. I know I don’t care.
I just care about the fact that I have had this thing for 35 years now.
“You Got It (Keep It Outta My Face)” is the standout track on this one. By far. That beginning gets me every time. It appears on Mudhoney, too, but again, who cares? “You’re giving away, like, free samples, but I don’t want what anyone can have” is such a great line. Mark Arm delivers it perfectly and then you have Steve Turner’s bitchin’ (and yes, I really do mean ‘bitchin’) guitar. The solo in the middle of the song is fucking top goddamn notch.
Where the cussing is coming from here is a mystery to me. This particular Mudhoney CD gives me sailor mouth, I guess. I’ll just go with it.
You may be thinking, “But Tom, this EP also contains ‘Touch Me I’m Sick,’” and to that I would say, “Yes, indeed it does…but it is not as good of a song as ‘You Got It (Keep It Outta My Face.’ Not by a long shot.”
“Touch Me I’m Sick” is the best known Mudhoney song and a fine song at that, but it’s not my favorite. It’s just one of my favorites and one that got me to love them early one. I might even argue that “Touch Me I’m Sick” is not even quite as good as “Sweet Young Thing Ain’t Sweet No More.”
The latter of those songs is also a grunge anthem. It’s a little slower and more dirge-y than the other songs on the disc, but it also totally slays. Mudhoney could do no wrong at the end of the 1980s and if you disagree, you’re wrong.
“Hate The Police” by the Dicks is covered here and actually kicks off the disc. It’s a fine cover, too. Mudhoney puts their own spin on the Dicks’ classic and I’m sure the late, great Gary Floyd probably approved wholeheartedly. I like the song a lot. In fact, I heard this version before I heard the original, so to me, this is the version I think of when I hear anyone play the song.
The other track here, the bookend, is “Burn It Clean.” It’s also a fine song and I have zero issues with it. I always thought this was kind of Mudhoney’s little homage to the Stooges. I bet Iggy Pop would sing the fuck out this song.
Mudhoney is one of my favorite bands. I forget about them sometimes, true, but they will never not be a band that I can pop just about any of their records on and love it. I highly recommend starting with the early stuff if you haven’t taken the plunge.
*****
I'm trying to remember now if Mark and I have ever seen Mudhoney together. I don't think so. That's not good.
Again, happy birthday!
*****
See you tomorrow.
AI is into stereotypes. All I wrote was that Mark was a skateboarding sushi chef.
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