Yo La Tengo wants your money (for WFMU), tonight at 9PM EST
March 2nd, 2012 at 1:03 pm by Hector
It’s that time of year again: Yo La Tengo will be taking to the radio waves tonight, playing requests (including, perhaps, “Radio Waves”) in exchange for pledges of cash money to America’s premiere freeform radio station, WFMU. Join Ira, Georgia, James, Bruce Bennett and hosts Pseu Braun & Gaylord Fields tonight from 9PM to midnight EST at wfmu.org or on your radio dial at 91.1FM.
March 3rd, 2012 at 11:28 am
I kept score at home while Yo La Tengo performed another amazing all-request WFMU Marathon Set on March 2, 2012. Here’s what they played this year:
Bent Fabric – Alley Cat
Every Mother’s Son – Come On Down To My Boat
Flying Machine – Smile A Little Smile For Me
Spooner Oldham & Dan Penn ( & Yo La Tengo) – I’m Your Puppet
Tall Dwarfs – Crush
Bent Fabric – Alley Cat (reprise)
Bob Hilliard & Carl Sigman – Civilization (Bongo, Bongo, Bongo (I Don’t Want to Leave the Congo) (from the Broadway musical “Angel in the Wings,” originally sung by Elaine Stritch)
NRBQ – I Want You Bad
Bonzo Dog Band – I Want to Be With You
Monkees – I Wanna Be Free
Monkees – Daydream Believer
Lesley Gore – Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows
The Marvelettes – Please Mr. Postman
Shangri-Las – Leader of The Pack
Sam Cooke – Bring It On Home To Me
Misfits – Hybrid Moments
Kinks – King Kong
Kinks – Apeman
Byrds – Goin’ Back
Talking Heads – Pulled Up
Rutles – Cheese and Onions
Big Star – Blue Moon
Black Sabbath – Paranoid
The Clean – Tally Ho
Troggs (and Condo Fucks) – With A Girl Like You
Monkees (and Minor Threat) – (I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone
Devo – Uncontrollable Urge
Neil Young – Powderfinger
Richard and Linda Thompson – Wall of Death
Derek and the Dominoes – Layla (instrumental)
Neil Hefti – Batman TV Show Theme
A-Bones – A-Bomb Bomp
Soft Boys – I Wanna Destroy You
Sparks – Angst In My Pants
Searchers ( and Neil Young) – Farmer John (w/ Ramones – Gabba Gabba Hey intercut)
Children In Adult Jails – Crispin Glover (Pseu Braun on vocals)
Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band – Born To Run
Blues Magoos – (We Ain’t Got) Nothin’ Yet
Nick Lowe – Marie Provost (Gaylord Fields on vocals)
Velvet Underground – Sweet Jane
Replacements – Lovelines (medley) included: Dinosaur Jr – The Wagon; Townes Van Zandt – If I Needed You; Bruce Springsteen – Bobby Jean; Dillard & Clark – Why Not Your Baby; George Jones – The King Is Gone (So Are You); Moody Blues/Peter Gabriel/Pink Floyd; Tim Dog – Fuck Compton (Gerard C’s request); Neil Young – Flying On The Ground Is Wrong (Vicky W’s request); The Sweet – Little Willy; Mott The Hoople – All The Young Dudes; Michael Bolton; Fleshtones – Please Mr. Custer; Verlaines – Death and the Maiden (Steven B’s request); Tom Jones – It’s Not Unusual To Be Loved By Anyone; Taylor Swift – Safe and Sound; Unrest – I Do Believe You Are Blushing; Hee Haw Song; Monkees – Pleasant Valley Sunday; Haircut 100 – Love Plus One; Break Even – Falling To Pieces; Meatloaf – Paradise By The Dashboard Light; Big Star – Back Of A Car; Big Star – For You
Highlights IMHO: Tall Dwarfs – Crush; The Marvelettes – Please Mr. Postman; Misfits – Hybrid Moments; Derek and the Dominoes – Layla (instrumental); Nick Lowe – Marie Provost (Gaylord Fields on vocals); Velvet Underground – Sweet Jane.
My request that was not played: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7LS_x_px48
March 4th, 2012 at 1:44 pm
One correction: Although The Searchers did record a version of “Farmer John,” the seminal version (which appears on Lenny Kaye’s original Nuggets comp) was recorded by the Premiers. It was also recorded by Neil Young and by Don & Dewey. I am delighted and honored that Ira Kaplan gave a close enough reading to my transcription that he offered this gentle correction.
March 5th, 2012 at 6:14 pm
here’s hoping that next year your tim dog request gets filled, gerard.
ken: the seminal recording of “i’m your puppet” was done by james and bobby purify in 1966, and it was subsequently recorded by sam and dave the next eyar. the ylt version sounds pretty faithful to the purify version. there is a dan penn recording from 1994, but it was most closely associated with the purifys despite the fact that they didn’t write it.
and the layla “instrumental” is really just the coda, which was co-written by jim gordon.
March 7th, 2012 at 12:33 am
Thank you baconfat! In all honesty, I only knew the YLT recording (and the songwriting credit on its label). One more correction: Bruce Bennett told me that the track “A-Bomb Bomp” (in the seventh set) which I attributed to The A-Bones was actually a cover of a song originally recorded by Mike Fern.