The Answers

Hey, I'm back! Here are the answers to the music quiz I left you with, and thanks to all who contributed (a bit more on that afterwards).

1. Didn't I see you down in San Antone, on a hot and dusty night? Memo From Turner, Mick Jagger.
2. Listen to me, lady, so it's understood, this runnin' 'round life ain't doin' me no good... Runnin' Blue, Boz Scaggs.
3. We met when we were at school; never took no shit from no one, we weren't fools... Stay Free, The Clash.
4. There's a smart young woman on a light blue screen who comes into my house every night... Green Shirt, Elvis Costello.
5. All I can say is that my life is pretty plain. No Rain, Blind Melon.
6. What's the matter with me? I don't have much to say. Watching The River Flow, Bob Dylan.
7. People I know, places I go, make me feel tongue-tied. Here's Where The Story Ends, The Sundays.
8. Rockets, moon shots, spend it on the have nots... Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler), Marvin Gaye.
9. Crazy Janey and her mission man were back in the alley, trading hands... Spirit In The Night, Bruce Springsteen.
10. Janey said when she was just five years old, you know, there's nothing happening at all. Rock And Roll, Velvet Underground.
11. Well, there are sixteen people in daddy's apartment, sixteen people are living there... Dirty Old Town, David Byrne.
12. I found America hiding in a corner of my wallet. B-Movie, Elvis Costello.
13. I got a pair of shoes, I swear, that somebody gave me. Funky But Chic, David Johansen.
14. Here we stand, like an Adam and an Eve, waterfalls, Garden of Eden... Nothing But Flowers, Talking Heads.
15. Here comes Johnny Yen again, with the liquor and drugs, and the sex machine, he's gonna do another strip tease. Lust For Life, Iggy Pop.
16. Mama said yes but papa said no, make up your minds, 'cause I gotta go. Rip This Joint, Rolling Stones.
17. I was born in Little Rock, had a childhood sweetheart, we were always hand in hand. I Was Made To Love Her, Stevie Wonder.
18. Today is gonna be the day that they're gonna throw it back to you... Wonderwall, Oasis.
19. Waiting, watching the clock, it's four o'clock, it's got to stop... Better Man, Pearl Jam.
20. I know you've deceived me, now here's a surprise. I Can See For Miles, The Who.
21. Can't help it 'bout the shape I'm in, I can't sing, I ain't pretty and my legs are thin. Oh Well, Fleetwood Mac.
22. Betcha didn't think I knew how to rock and roll... Blues Power, Eric Clapton.
23. Oh, she may be weary; young girls, they do get weary... Try A Little Tenderness, Otis Redding.
24. I found a picture of you, oh oh oh oh, what hijacked my world that night? Back On The Chain Gang, The Pretenders.
25. Shyness is nice, and shyness can stop you from doing all the things in life you'd like to. Ask, The Smiths.

So, not bad, you folks guessed 20 out of 25, that's a pretty good percentage -- especially considering that a few of them were fairly obscure. I'm a little surprised that no one got the Clash song (from Give 'Em Enough Rope) or the Dylan song (which is found -- as far as I know -- only on Greatest Hits, Vol. II -- but, I mean, come on, it's on a freakin' greatest hits album! That, I thought, should have been easy). I thought someone would recognize The Sundays song for sure, but maybe I was expecting too much there.

The David songs -- Byrne and Johansen -- are probably only known to the very staunch fans. Dirty Old Town is on the album Rei Momo, one of my all-time favorites, and David Johansen's self-titled solo effort came out in the late '70s-early '80s, between his stints as front man for the New York Dolls and his Buster Poindexter incarnation. In addition... I have to admit to kinda sorta cheating on that one, because in truth, the opening line to the song is also the title: "Funky, funky, but chic; funky, funky but chic; funky, funky but chic; you funky but, funky but, all right all right all right..." and that's the chorus. The line I gave was the first line of the first verse, and didn't give away the title. Still, no points taken away from anyone for not getting it.

Also, no points taken away from Eric the DB and nashtbrutusandshort (who both had very good showings) for pluralizing Spirit In The Night, as Bruce does sing "spirits in the night" in some of the choruses.

In a bit of full disclosure, I admit to including Elvis Costello's B-Movie largely because I knew nash would get it, having written about it on his old blog once before. I should even have included the second line: "It's a well-kept secret, thought that I had better swallow it..."

Kudos to Tom Hilton for being so quick on the draw, to Eric and nash for recognizing Fleetwood Mac's Oh Well, which I thought might be a stumper, and to Steve H., not so much for recognizing Memo From Turner (which I thought would be a fairly easy one), but more for owning it on both 45 and 8-track. I'm so jealous! And I have to agree with Melville's surprise at the lack of classic Motown fans here -- I thought Stevie and Marvin would be easy spots. Final kudos to mrgumby2u for catching Boz Scaggs' Runnin' Blue; I thought that could very well be one that no one would guess, but I also figured that if anyone did, it would be him.

Okay, that's all. Thanks for playing, and I'll try to have more content up soon. Seems like an awful lot happened while I was away...