Autumn Soundtrack

By Jack Stephen

“Experiences are just time passing in different ways. Time passes and continues on. It has nowhere to go”—Ottessa Moshfegh, Homesick for Another World.

Fall. The sun starts heading south. It’s a pretty nice time of year, especially with the summer being so hot. It’s pleasant with the leaves and all the other things changing. I have been going for early morning walks, as required by my dog Siobhan. Mornings are the best, as it is dark at this latitude and the stars and the moon are in full effect. This is the time of year for reminiscing, well, for me anyway. 

A vignette: I am swimming in a saltwater pool. Air is still and the water is calm. I lightly tread water with my head just above the water line. I drop under the water and hear the muffled sounds of the radio. It is strange how quiet and insular the experience of being under water is. Time seems to stop. I feel small and isolated, all alone. I feel the need for a breath; I rise to the surface smoothly.  

What song is on the radio? “Good Vibrations” by the Beach Boys.

What song should they be playing: “Pet Sounds” by the Beach Boys.

While I really like the Beach Boys, the whiney voice can grate on me after a bit. The title track on Pet Sounds is really cool, as it is all instrumental. It has all the great layers that Brian Wilson added to songs. Allegedly, he liked to have eight layers in his songs. Was he inspired by a visit to a petting zoo or did he go after penning the song?

Cactus Jack’s Bar & Grill, Palm Desert, California.

Sitting at the bar with all the other old codgers, I receive a stiff pour. I guess that’s a good thing? Some of the guys are with their long-time loves, others seem to be trying some things with a younger set. The menu looks good with old-style favorites done right. Some of the guys have their meds laid out beside their drinks. Is this what the last stage of life looks like? I guess what’s important is we are still out talking to each other. I sip on a rum and coke. Someone stumbles to the front door, “see you again tomorrow!”

What song is in my head? “Jack-Ass” by Beck.

Beck has so many great tunes and albums. I really like the track “Hollywood Freaks” and the album Mutations, which won a Grammy. Safe to say he’s my favorite Scientologist.

I go to Home Depot to hunt for some home improvement stuff. What songs are they playing? “How Much I Feel” by Ambrosia. This is a pretty good selection—nice and melodramatic. Ambrosia had a couple of great hits and were fairly prolific in the 1970s. I really enjoy their songs “Biggest Part of Me” and “Holdin’ On to Yesterday,” produced by Alan Parsons. “How Much I Feel” is a great song. I am left thinking about my baby while trying to find some goddam pipe insulation.

“Lonesome Loser” by the Little River Band.

This is another great song. The Little River Band is one of those bands that is akin to the Steve Miller Band. It seems like they wrote about twelve songs—all of them outstanding and played endlessly. I caught Steve Miller at Red Rocks in the early 1990s, and it was an enjoyable show.  The Little River Band had some fine songs, such as “Cool Change,” “Help Is On Its Way,” and “Reminiscing.” “Lonesome Loser” really hit me when I heard it on some retro-rock station back in the 1990s. This is me! I really didn’t have anything going on and was just sort of aimlessly drifting between jobs and bars. This song gave me some inspiration, “Hey, these Aussies wrote a song about me, how’s about that?” Now, if I could just find some eight-foot pressure treated 2x8s. 

“Garden Party” by Rick Nelson.

I’m not certain, but I think they were playing the Johnny Lee rendition in the store. What a perfect track! This “party” sounded like quite the scene for sure. But what about those lyrics? “You can’t please everyone, so you have to please yourself.” That’s for sure! Home Depot, between the crazy prices, the endless inventory, and the random sales pitches, appears to be doing fine. Even in my frustration and the knowing that I will have to come back a few more times today, it’s nice to have a couple of solid tracks rolling through my head.

A vignette: I am in my backyard in Loveland. The apple tree is full of green honey crisps. I grab the ten-foot apple picker and start going to work. The wasps and the squirrels have done some damage. It feels like I am making some progress, but every time I move slightly around the tree, I spy another bunch of apples waiting for me. It’s a perfect fall day, warm with a cool breeze. The best apples are hidden, all by themselves, sure to be perfect as they are untouched by the pests. I strain to try and grab one. Unfortunately, I dislodge another unseen apple and it smacks me in the face.

What song is in my head? “Smooth Sailing” by Queens of the Stone Age. 

My wife and I caught them play in the early 2000s at the House of Blues in Dallas. I wasn’t very familiar with their catalog but was blown away. They absolutely crushed every song.

I’m heading back to Denver to hit some open mics. I tune into my top station, the Jazz stalwart in the greater Denver area, 89.3, the oasis in the city. Great mixes and great DJs. The set list includes Pete Fountain, Bobby Hutcherson (shout out to the vibraphone), and Eric Alexander. This music is perfect for driving. I just ease in and enjoy the greatness. During a break, I flip around the dial and stumble on the perfect song for this venture.  

“Drivin’ My Life Away” by Eddie Rabbitt.

This song went to number one on the Billboard 100—not bad for a country crossover artist. Eddie Rabbitt also had the massive hit “I Love a Rainy Night,” a solid jam as well. I think “Drivin’ My Life Away” is about being a “trucker.” I sure can relate. In the car culture of our generation, it seems that we’re always in a car heading somewhere almost every day. Thanks to oil and automotive industries! Really, to some extent, everyone is “driving their life away.” Here’s hoping you are going somewhere nice or at the minimum listening to good music.

A vignette: We’re standing outside a derelict building on South Broadway. There’s a for lease sign in a window. My buddy and I are talking about our sets and the comedy scene in general.  We trade notes and talk about the shows we were on last week. I did a guest spot at a show in Greeley and did 8 minutes. The crowd consisted of five people. He did 12 minutes to 12 people in Golden. You can’t blame the audience. You come correct each time—and feel lucky. A lady hops out of her car and asks us, “Are you guys laughing at my parking job?” My buddy says “No Ma’am we’re comics, just cracking each other up.”

Heading out of Denver, I inadvertently stumble onto 95.3 FM Denver/Brighton—Legends Radio.  They have a pretty solid playlist:

Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio, “Jack and Jill.”

Shocking Blue, “Venus.”

The Hues Corporation, “Rock the Boat.”

Leif Garrett, “I Was Made for Dancing.”

Patsy Cline, “Back in Baby’s Arms.”

The Box Tops, “The Letter.”

The 5th Dimension, “Puppet Man.”

The Four Tops, “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch).”

What a fun ride! About 20 minutes up I-25, I hear the DJ say, “Now for a legendary hit throwback….” Truth! The station then faded out. It is sad to hear the DJ playing the soundtrack, from back in the day, disappear.

I switch over to the standby, #1 on my FM1 radio presets, 89.3. 

What is on their airwaves? “In a Silent Way” by Miles Davis.

I cannot get enough of Miles. I’m mystified as to what in the world is going on in this guy’s head. Granted there’s a lot of drugs sloshing around, but the music he put out is incredible. This song flies just below the radar, being overshadowed by so many others. Nevertheless, it is a real gem. It is about 20 minutes long—what a journey. He has Joe Zawninul (of Weather Report) on keyboards and Tony Williams on drums. Miles, per usual, surrounded himself with and inspired the best musicians in the business. This is the perfect song as I drive through the northern Denver suburbs on my way home.

Traveling west on Larimer County Road 402, heading back into Loveland, there’s a DJ switch, and the new guy starts his show with “Fantastic Man” by William Onyeabor.

This Nigerian musician is known as a pioneer in the psychedelic funk genre. I don’t know what the hell that means, but it sure sounds cool. A buddy of mine had this on vinyl. When I first saw the cover, I thought it was Gary Coleman (of Different Strokes) in a white cowboy hat. This song sounds like something you might hear if Tom Robbins needed a title track to one of his novels, such as Another Roadside Attraction. A fun lyric on this one is: “You look so good, fantastic man.” Thank goodness, it’s good to be lucky.