Song of the Day - August 10, 2006

I must admit, initially I was intrigued when I read the web page about The Legendary Marvin Pontiac. It included glowing accolades by artists like Bowie, Iggy Pop, and Beck. The bio claimed: he died in 77, when hit by a bus, he was institutionalized for insanity, and that his music was the only music Jackson Pollack would listen to while painting. Well the joke was on me (and I am sure a few others), as Marvin Pontiac is actually the alter ego of John Lurie, of Lounge Lizard fame. A brilliant hoax, the album is a strange conglomeration of styles borrowing heavily from Zappa, Beefheart, Tom Waits, blues, funk, and world beat. The Captain Beefheart and Zappa influences standout on the track "Bring Me Rocks." Funky guitars combine with Lurie doing his best Zappa Over-Night Sensation spoken word imitation alla "Montana" along with a crazed chorus to create an unusual but great track. Click here to listen.