Early in the Morning, I'm Callin' YouTube, Vol. VIII

I've proclaimed my liking of the Jackson 5 on Five Best before, and I'm backing it up with evidence: "Lookin' Through the Window." It's one of their most mature songs, and sounds like it belongs on the Superfly soundtrack. This version is from the Sonny & Cher Show, and has some terribly awkward dialogue between Sonnny and Michael Jackson, but once the song begins, it sounds really good--even if they're clearly lip syncing.

Sometime next week, I'll post my Rock 'N' Roll Revisited about Sam Cooke's Live at the Harlem Square Club, which appears in the New School Free Press next Tuesday. There's a sad lack of Cooke videos on the Internet, but here's one of him singing "Everybody Loves to Cha Cha" to a bunch of white kids.

Want to see fantastically corny? Look no further than David Bowie dropping by his friend's house, only to find Bing Crosby is there! But, of course, Bowie doesn't know it's Bing, and for one reason or another, they're soon singing a duet to "Little Drummer Boy." 'Tis the season, indeed.

In my last "Early in the Morning," I posted a video of Billy Bragg singing "Superstar" by the Carpenters. This week, I'm posting one of Sonic Youth doing the same song--but, because it's Sonic Youth, it sounds like nothing else.

This is still one of the funniest videos I've ever seen on YouTube: it begins with Lawrence Welk talking about a song being "high on the popularity charts," and you expect to hear some schmaltzy piece of junk; instead, we hear "Sister Ray" by the Velvet Underground (maybe the least popular song ever) being "performed" by the band. It's hilarious and genius.

Five Best...Goodbye Songs

(As appears in today's issue of the New School Free Press)

#5. “Never Say Goodbye” by Bob Dylan and The Band

This is not a perfect Dylan love song like “Love Minus Zero/No Limit” because the lyrics are a tad corny (“Time is all I have to give/You can have it if you choose”), but the way he sings makes it sound like he really means it. And with Bobby, that can be a rare quality to come by.

#4. “Say Goodbye” by Dave Matthews Band

One of the best songs on one of DMB’s best album, Crash, “Say Goodbye” shows why they’re so popular amongst the 18-25 crowd: “So, here we are tonight, you and me together/The storm outside, the fire is bright/And in your eyes, I see what’s on my mind.”

#3. “Goodbye to You” by Michelle Branch

If you watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you’ll know why this is here. If you don’t, watch Buffy.

#2. “Never Can Say Goodbye” by The Jackson Five

Everyone knows “I Want You Back” and “ABC,” but it’s the lesser hits like “Goodbye” that make the best band from Gary, Indiana still worth a listen to over 30 years later

#1. “Hello, Goodbye” by The Beatles

You say goodbye, I say hello...to a new column! It’ll appear in the next issue of the New School Free Press

(Don't worry, this only affects people who read Five Best in the newspaper. They'll be getting a new column, which I'll post here once it comes out.)