iPod song of the week – Semisonic
And now, a short visit back to my usual blogging in the midst of the vacation photo showcase. I didn’t bring this book with me on my vacay because it was short-ish and hardcover (I actually read The Devil Wears Prada, if you’d believe it) but I’ve been reading it since. It’s called So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star by Jacob Slichter who was the drummer in Semisonic. If you are older than ten, you will have their one monster hit, Closing Time, tattooed all over your brain. Actually, as an experiment, I listened to the 90’s Alternative station on AOL Radio this afternoon and I heard it within an hour.
The book is an interesting look at what it’s like to be in an unsuccessful, then really successful, then has-been band. I don’t love his writing, but the story is undeniably fascinating and talks about a lot of stuff I deal with every day but from the other side, that is, the band’s. It even mentions several people I know and/or currently work with. Fun! And if you’ve read this and are wondering how accurate his descriptions are, they’re spot on as far as I’ve experienced.
But this post isn’t actually about Closing Time, which you probably already have on your iPod or at least remember well enough to not need a reminder. No, it’s about the one song by Semisonic that I have on my iPod, a song of which I’ve always been enamored. It’s a love song but not a typical one and it’s got a lo-fi 70’s vibe that perfectly showcases the pop sensibility that made Semisonic so successful, albeit temporarily.
Napster:
Semisonic – Secret Smile
Streaming audio available on the iPod Song of the Week page.