Chris & Max Pick …songs from 2004

Happy Friday and almost weekend! I’d like to welcome you to another installment of Chris & Max Pick…, a song series started by fellow blogger  Max from PowerPop in June 2023. He covered the years 1955 through 1995, and I’ve picked it up beginning with 1996, aiming to take it all the way to 2024. Max generously agreed to contribute. Today we look at 2004.

Norah Jones/Sunrise

Let’s kick it off with singer-songwriter and pianist Norah Jones who I dug from the get-go since she burst on the scene in 2002 with her chart-topping and award-winning debut album Come Away With Me. Initially focused on lounge jazz, Jones has since evolved and infused elements of blues, country, folk and pop in her music. Sunrise, co-written by Jones and Lee Alexander, is from her sophomore release Feels Like Home from February 2002. It also appeared as a single and became her first to top Billboard’s Adult Alternative Airplay chart.

Los Lonely Boys/Heaven

Los Lonely Boys from San Angelo, Texas blend elements of rock & roll, Texas blues, brown-eyed soul, country and Tejano music. In March 2003, Epic Records re-released their self-titled album. When the trio of brothers Henry Garza (guitar, vocals), Jojo Garza (bass, vocals) and Ringo Garza (drums, vocals) first self-released the album in 1997, it went unnoticed. With the backing of a label, it became their best-seller to date, reaching 2X Platinum status in the U.S. (2 million certified sold copies). Undoubtedly, their biggest hit Heaven that topped Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart, had something to do with it. The song is credited to all three brothers

The Hives/Walk Idiot Walk

This brings us to Swedish garage rock revival group The Hives who are making their second appearance in this series. Formed in Fagersta in 1994, they initially established themselves in Sweden during the 90s before gaining international prominence in the 2000s. Walk Idiot Walk is from their third and breakthrough album Tyrannosaurus Hives, which topped the Swedish charts, climbed to no. 7 in the UK and reached no. 33 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200. Like all of their original songs, Walk Idiot Walk was credited to Randy Fitzsimmons, a pseudonym for the group’s guitarist Niklas Almqvist.

Green Day/Wake Me Up When September Ends

American Idiot brought Green Day back on my radar screen in September 2004. My introduction to the group was their third studio album and breakthrough Dookie from February 1994. While it was hugely successful, American Idiot became even bigger. Among others, it was Green Day’s first to top the charts in the U.S. where it has sold more than 6 million copies alone. Wake Me Up When September Ends was one of five singles. I’ve always liked how Green Day combined grungy punk with catchy pop melodies.

U2/Vertigo

Uno, dos, tres, catorce, on to Max’s pick: Vertigo by U2. The lead single from the Irish rock band’s 11th studio album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, which dropped in November 2004, sounded quite different from U2’s ’80s songs like Pride (In the Name of Love), Where the Streets Have No Name or Desire. Reflecting their previous album from 2000 All That You Can’t Leave Behind, the band embraced more of a mainstream sound. While I don’t like it as much as the early U2, I definitely prefer it over March 1997’s dance-oriented Pop.

KT Tunstall/Black Horse and the Cherry Tree

Wrapping up this post is a song by Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall, which I always thought sounds cool: Black Horse and the Cherry Tree. The track first appeared on her debut album Eye to the Telescope, which appeared in December 2005. It also became the album’s first single in January 2005 and her highest charting to date in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 where it reached no. 20. The song was “inspired by old blues, Nashville psycho hillbillies & hazy memories,” Tunstall explained.

Sources: Wikipedia; Acclaimed Music; YouTube; Spotify

Chris & Max Pick …songs from 2002

Happy Friday and welcome to the latest post of Chris & Max Pick…, a song series started by fellow blogger Max from PowerPop in June 2023. He covered the years 1955 through 1995, and I’ve picked it up beginning with 1996, aiming to go all the way to 2024. Max generously agreed to contribute. Today’s picks are from 2002.

Ceasars/Jerk It Out

This time we’re kicking it off with a terrific pick by Max I hadn’t heard before: Jerk It Out by Ceasars. Originally known as Ceasar’s Palace, the Swedish garage rock band was formed in Stockholm in 1995. The song initially appeared on their third studio album Love for the Streets, which came out in April 2002 under their original name. The great retro rocker received lots of attention in the U.S. after it had been featured in iPod TV commercials in 2004 and 2005. Upon re-release in 2005, it became an international hit, reaching no. 8 on the UK Singles Chart and peaking at no. 70 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Bruce Springsteen/The Rising

In the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S., Bruce Springsteen reportedly was in his car when a stranger from a another car nearby rolled down the window and said, “We need you now.” This compelled The Boss to record what became his 12th studio album The Rising, which came out in July 2002. Springsteen already had written a few songs prior to 9/11. One he penned in the aftermath of the tragedy was the album’s title track. It tells the tale of a New York City firefighter ascending one of the World Trade Center towers after they had been hit by hijacked planes. The Rising won Grammys for Best Rock Song and Best Male Rock Vocal Performance.

Coldplay/Clocks

When I think of British alternative pop band Coldplay, the first song coming to mind is Clocks. The stunning piano-driven pop song is credited to all four members of the group: Chris Martin (lead vocals, piano, guitar), Jonny Buckland (guitar, backing vocals), Guy Berryman (bass) and Will Champion (drums, percussion, backing vocals), which is their line-up to this day. It first appeared on Coldplay’s sophomore album A Rush of Blood to the Head, which dropped in August 2002. Considered to be one of their signature songs, Clocks was also released as a single in March 2003 and won Record of the Year at the 2004 Grammy Awards.

The Libertines/Time For Heroes

The early 2000s were the period of garage rock revival, so it’s perhaps not a surprise we feature another great song from that genre here. In October 2002, The Libertines released their debut album Up the Bracket. The British group around Carl Barât (vocals, guitar) and Pete Doherty (vocals, guitar) had formed in London in 1997. By the time they recorded the album, John Hassall (bass) and Gary Powell (drums) completed their line-up. They’re still around. Here’s Time For Heroes, which like all other tracks on the album was co-written by Barât and Doherty.

Christina Aguilera/Beautiful

This pick may come as a surprise or even a shock to some. But if you really know my music taste it shouldn’t be. To begin with, I like the occasional ballad, even if it’s on the lush side. More importantly, I love great vocalists and would argue that Christina Aguilera is one of the best female contemporary singers. This is different from having great songs. In this case, both came together. Beautiful, which was written by Linda Perry (of 4 Non Blondes fame), is from Aguilera’s fourth studio album Stripped, released in October 2002. It also appeared separately as the album’s second single in November 2002 and became one of her biggest hits.

Johnny Cash/In My Life

If Christina Aguilera didn’t make you at least feel somewhat emotional, I think there’s no chance this next song won’t. Johnny Cash’s vulnerable rendition of In My Life has literally driven me to tears. It also happens to be one of my all-time favorite John Lennon songs. The Man in Black recorded this version for his 67th and final non-posthumous studio album American IV: The Man Comes Around, the fourth in a series produced by Rick Rubin and appearing on his label American Recordings. Rubin produced two additional albums in the series, which were released after Cash’s death.

Sources: Wikipedia; Acclaimed Music; YouTube; Spotify