Listen here to this week’s show:
cruising with the commissioner #47 (23.02.12)
Well, folks, no one can say it hasn’t been an eventful week here in the Grand Duchy, filled with social, business and family encounters. Indeed, Thursday night came sneaking up on us when we were distracted by the myriad activities of the week. But, we spotted it in time to be on hand to extend a warm and hearty welcome to one and all who joined us at the festival of rock soul and real rhythm and blues that we call . . . . Cruising with The Commissioner.
Despite all the distractions, we just managed to squeeze in a little time to attend to the ever-important task of sampling the new sounds that arrived in Cruise Control and the often surprisingly fruitful task of rummaging in the archives for lost (or just mislaid) musical treasures.
Well, we started as we meant to go on, with some superb sounds, kicking off with Joe Turner and ‘Love Roller Coaster’ and using some well practiced slight of hand and a flick of a switch, along came Joe Boots and his band with ‘Well Alright’!
Once we were up to speed and cruising smoothly, we directed our thoughts to the music that might have featured in this week’s Mardi Gras celebrations. At Cruising with The Commissioner we suspected there were still some folks celebrating Mardi Gras down in New Orleans and so, not to be outdone, we indulged in some celebrating of our own . . . . well, we had good company and the Cruisettes are always up for some partying!
The playlist got pretty crammed with goodies and there was no time to sample the myriad delights that could be offered by Joe Loss & his orchestra . . . . but you just never know what DJ Wheeliebag might bring along for another ‘Three From Me’! So, here’s this week’s playlist:
Cruising for the city limits . . . .
Love Roller Coaster – Big Joe Turner
Well Alright – Joe Boots & His Band
Hey Hey Baby – Otis Redding
I Thought I Told You Not To Tell Them – Marie Knight
One Day Love – Tommy Dodson
Seven Day Weekend – Dee Dee Sharp
Turn Around Baby – Lena & The Deltanettes
The Big Guys – Hang My Head And Cry
Come Back Home – Ann Sexton
Cerveza – Cherry Wainer
Cherry Baby – The Millionaires
Three From Me . . . . DJ Wheeliebag – Cumbia Forever!
Che Che Cole – Willie Colon
Encontra La Cadenita – La Sonora Dinamita
Que Siga La Cumbia – Sonoro Lucho Macedo
Cruising into New Orleans . . . .
Mardi Gras Mambo – The Meters
Tootles – Ernie K Doe
Single Life – Billy Tate
You Can Fly High – Earl King
Down In New Orleans – Dr. John
Great Googa Mooga – Lee Dorsey
Hey! La Bas Boogie – Fats Domino
Don’t You Just Know It – Huey Piano Smith and the Clowns
I’m Slippin’ In – The Spiders
Memory Lane . . . . with The Commissioner
Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On – Little Richard
Cruising around London . . . .
The Wind Cries Mary – Jimi Hendrix
See Emily Play – Pink Floyd
Walk In My Shadow – Free
Jennifer Juniper – Donovan
Time Of The Season – The Zombies
She Came In Through The Bathroom Window – Joe Cocker
I Just Want To Make Love To You – The Rolling Stones
Easier Said Than Done – Jean Campbell & The Blenders
Get Back – The Beatles
Cruising for home. . . . .
I’m So Glad – Robert Neal
You’re Not My Kind – Paula Durante
Do It With All Your Heart – Dee Dee Warwick
Justine – The Righteous Brothers
One of the long awaited dates in the Cruising diary was a rock tour of London. Eventually, it arrived and we set off in some very good company on our musical adventure with inquisitive enthusiasm. It started on a low note with a couple of sites of famous artists’ deaths, but soon got into its stride with great anecdotes and a continuing parade of notable rock venues and memorable moments. So, in this week’s show, we took a little sample of the tour and added some of the related rock music to share with you . . . . and if like it, we could always return sometime.
Amidst the hectic events of the week, we were very pleased to welcome back the irrepressible DJ Wheeliebag with another of his eclectic mixes of the rare and obscure . . . . and it was well worth waiting for! His previous choices have ranged across many boundaries, genres and time zones . . . . and this selection was another delight and a taster of exotic Cumbian rhythms that certainly got the attention of the Cruisettes.
Well, we’d been rolling down the road awhile when we turned into that dark and dusty detour that is Memory Lane. This took us back to 1963 and a package tour featuring The Everly Brothers, Bo Diddley, the Rolling Stones and headliner, the explosive Little Richard. He proved to be every inch an outstanding showman and we tried to recapture some of that real excitement with his powerhouse recording of ‘Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On’, which is alleged to include Jimi Hendrix on guitar.
The chatroom chatter suggested that others were enjoying the music as much as me and even pointing to some likely follow up tracks for next week’s show. So, even more rummaging in the Cruising library is called for in the meantime.
Well, all too soon the time ran out on Cruising with The Commissioner and we had to start heading for home, but we managed to finish with a flourish and some fine examples of rock, soul and real rhythm and blues. Sad as we were to hear the tin cans rattling at the beginning of ‘Grazing in the Grass’, we were already looking forward to doing it all again next week. Of course, you can be sure that in the meantime we’ll be searching out some more juicy gems for our next adventure.
So, until the next time we go Cruising with The Commissioner . . . . have fun!
Just Cruising 