It’s been a long, busy weekend filled with travel, family and eating. Now you need to go back to work. That’s bound to give a body the blues.

Booker T. “Get Behind The Mule” (Tom Waits)
This comes to us from Potato Hole, the first solo album from Booker T. in decades. It’s an instrumental so even the people who hate Tom Waits’ voice can enjoy it.

Devil In A Woodpile “Bron-Y-Aur Stomp” (Led Zeppelin)
I was driving with noted guitarist and man-about-town Mister Mitch and this song popped up on my iPod. He immediately asked who it was and where he could get himself a copy. I liked the song anyway, but the way it snapped a guitarist’s head around made it seem just a little cooler.

Kenny Brown “Laughing To Keep From Cryin'” (R.L. Burnside)
I was introduced to the music of Mr. Burnside when Alejandro Escovedo played this song one night. Then I discovered his album Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down and I was hooked.

Martin Philadelphy “Abracadabra” (Steve Miller Band)
Who knew that a blues tune lurked inside the disposable pop tune of my youth? This song is from the very excellent compilation from Ink Records Death To The 80s.

Hobo Blues Band “Tobacco Road” (J.D. Loudermilk)
And let’s finish things up with a Hungarian blues band. I don’t know much about these guys but a quick run through some of their videos on YouTube reveals a musical direction that ranges from raw blues to flaccid arena rock.

Teenage Fanclub
I’ve added a button at the top of the right column so it’s easy to become a fan of Cover Freak on Facebook, if you’re so inclined. Amassing an army of Facebook fans will be the first step in my plan to take over the world and smite my enemies. I haven’t worked out the details yet, but I’m convinced that having lots of fans will be vital.

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I used to date a woman who had family in Toronto. She insisted that we always spend the long Thanksgiving holiday visiting her family Up North. The only problem was that the Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving two weeks earlier than Americans do, so for several years I missed Thanksgiving in two countries. The Thanksgiving thing wasn’t a large factor in why we broke up, but ever since then I’ve savored Thanksgiving just a little bit more. My family will be hosting relatively modest feast for 11 various and sundry relatives and neighbors this year. Hopefully all my American readers will enjoy the yearly combination of family time and gluttony which is one of our defining national holidays.

The Persuasions “Lumpy Gravy” (Frank Zappa)
We run Thanksgiving as a potluck at the Casa de Freak. We provide the turkey, the guests bring the rest. Since I insist on having mashed potatoes and gravy with my Thanksgiving dinner I have to make those too. The potatoes aren’t a problem but my gravy still needs some work.

The Handsome Family “Sunday Morning Coming Down” (Kris Kristofferson)
Thanksgiving is a very family-oriented holiday. Hopefully yours is a handsome one, it makes it easier to look across the table at them.

Andrew Bird and Scott Ligon “Cadillacin’ In My Model A” (Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys)
Turkey is the traditional bird this time of year, but perhaps you might want to try some Andrew Bird. This was recorded at one of the Chris and Heather Country Calendar shows. For those readers not from Chicago, every year cartoonist and filmmaker Heather McAdams draws a calendar that celebrates country music and musicians. And every year Heather and her musician husband Chris Ligon get their musician friends do a show to promote the calendar. Everybody plays a song or two from the artists featured in the calendar. This year’s show will be Dec. 12 at FitzGerald’s.

Just Luis “American Pie” (Don McLean)
My mom’s pumpkin pie is way more American to me than any apple pie could ever hope to be.

Slim Whitman “Indian Love Call” (Nelson Eddy)
How better to honor the Native Americans who shared their bounty with the Pilgrims than by listening to their traditional music? I love how they used this recording in Mars Attacks! to make the aliens’ heads explode. Thanks to Mrs. Freak for the suggestion.

A few months ago the delightful Mrs. Freak won a vacation from a radio station. Last weekend we cashed it in. It was a nice deal, four days and three nights in Orlando. Free airfare, tickets to both Universal Studios theme parks for the duration and a free room in a four-star resort hotel. Since the trip was for four people we rounded up our daughter and our nephew and headed south. Here’s my report.

Hellsongs “We’re Not Gonna Take It” (Twisted Sister)
We stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel. It had way too much Twisted Sister memorabilia. It was everywhere you looked. In the hotel restaurant the walls were adorned with Twisted Sister platinum albums and pictures of Dee Snyder cooking. By the pay phones there were pictures of Dee Snyder using the telephone. There was a display case filled with Twisted Sister crap next to the elevator. If you didn’t know better you’d think that Twisted Sister is up there in the rock and roll pantheon next to the Stones and the Beatles. I figure that either Mr. Snyder or his publicist gave the hotel large sums of money.

Pearl Jam “Crazy Mary” (Victoria Williams)
The hotel was a vast and sprawling place. To get from the elevator to our room we needed to take a right at the display case with Eddie Vedder’s jacket in it and another right at the picture of Bob Marley’s face. The case with the jacket had a caption painted on the glass. It mentioned that Pearl Jam was famous for their refusal to work with Ticketmaster. The display case didn’t go on to mention how doomstruck Pearl Jam’s little protest was. They effectively prevented themselves from playing in the U.S. for three years and got no cooperation from any other band. Now they’ve learned their lesson and play nice with the ticket brokers and sell their new CD at Target. Ah well, at least they tried.

Less Than Jake “I Think I Love You” (The Partridge Family)
Not all of the rock-n-roll crap stacked up in every corner of the Hard Rock Hotel was authentic. The most curious example of this was a replica of one of the seats from the Partridge Family bus. The plaque on the wall proudly mentioned that Danny Bonaduce had once visited the hotel and that the seat “commemorated” his visit. A visit from Danny Bonaduce is something that I would rather forget or at least ignore, but that’s just me.

Xavier Rudd “No Woman No Cry” (Bob Marley)
Bob Marley wasn’t just a navigational aid, he also figured into a more disturbing aspect of my vacation. We were able to walk from the hotel to the amusement parks and to something called the City Walk. It was a collection of stores, blaring music, neon signs, restaurants and bars. One of the bars was called Bob Marley, A Celebration Of Freedom. Outside was a bronze statue of the man, inside were tourists quaffing overpriced rum drinks. Bob Marley has been reduced to a brand, presumably with the blessing of his estate. I know that Rita and the kids have to eat, but I found the whole concept depressing.

Offspring “You’re A Mean One, Mister Grinch” (Thurl Ravenscroft)
Universal runs two theme parks side by side in Orlando. The movie-themed Universal Studios park was geared toward older kids, there weren’t too many rides that a family with a seven-year-old and an eleven-year-old could enjoy together. The Islands Of Adventure park was a much better place for my family, particularly the Dr. Seuss part of the park. They had a kick-ass carousel and nice rides based on The Cat In The Hat and One Fish, Two Fish. Some guy in a Grinch costume was wandering around posing for photos even though there were no Grinch-themed rides.

When people find out that I love murder ballads they inevitably comment on how nervous that must make my wife. She doesn’t seem too concerned, mostly she just rolls her eyes at me. What most folks don’t know is that one of Mrs. Freak’s favorite songs is that classic ode to unhealthy obsession, “Creep.” And I’m a little worried about that.

As you’re reading this my family is enjoying a short vacation in Florida that Mrs. Freak won from a radio station. Since she was nice enough to invite me along instead of some random cabana boy, I figured the least I could do would be to feature one of her favorite songs on this week’s post.

The Recliners “Creep” (Radiohead)
These guys specialize in lounge covers of rock songs. They’re every bit as funny as Richard Cheese without having to try quite as hard. The vibes are understated and tasteful.

The Senti-Mentals “Creep” (Radiohead)
This big sweeping version sounds like something from the TV show Glee.

Celtika “Creep” (Radiohead)
If I didn’t know better I’d think that this was Iron Maiden. But it’s just a Venezuelan metal band.

Echostream “Creep” (Radiohead)
There’s something about this song that I find unsettling. The singer really brings out the self-loathing that the song is built upon.

Pearl Jam “Creep” (Radiohead)
I understand that sometimes bands play songs live that they like but might not know all the words to. It’s one of the great things about going to hear live music. But nobody on this recording seems to have any clue about the lyrics and they don’t seem to care either. Still it’s interesting to listen to.

This song is tagged as being by Pearl Jam but I wonder if it was recorded at an Eddie Vedder solo show. I don’t know Pearl Jam well enough to know for sure.

Thanks For Your Support
Thanks to everybody who made a donation in the past week. Many people went above and beyond and contributed more than the minimum I had asked for. I got contributions from readers in the U.S. as well as such far-flung points as the Netherlands and Bahrain. I really appreciate your kind generosity. And if you haven’t donated yet I’d like you to consider doing so with the button at the top of the right column.

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All summer long the Casa de Freak has been dealing with an ant infestation. We put out poison bait, they go away and then they come back. Now it’s fall and they want to move someplace warm. Their most recent swarm reminded me of the classic short story Leiningen Versus The Ants. I’m thinking that a ditch filled with gasoline is in my future. I’ll need some insect-related music to listen to as I make my brave stand against the relentless hordes.

OK Go “Antmusic” (Adam and the Ants)
I palled around with a drummer when I was in high school. He was the only person I’ve ever met who liked Adam and the Ants. He dug that whole polyrhythmic thing they had going on. They were obviously commercially successful, I never knew there were so many drummers out there.

OK Go ditches the treadmills for this nice non-polyrhythmic indie-rock version.

Collective Soul “The Bugaloos” (from the television show The Bugaloos)
The Bugaloos was a live-action kids puppet show from Sid and Marty Krofft, the guys who brought you H.R. Pufnstuf. In an attempt to create a British version of The Monkees, they hired four British teenagers (Phil Collins auditioned but didn’t get the part), stuck antennae on their heads, and made them sing. Their nemesis was played by Martha Rae.

Goldbug “Whole Lotta Love” (Led Zeppelin)
Having misspent some of my youth at midnight movies, this song always conjures up memories of The Song Remains The Same. Jimmy Page with his theremin. The endless shots of Robert Plant’s crotch. Good times.

This version features a hysterical vamp on the riff from “MacArthur Park.” It’s so very appropriate.

The Zoot “I’m Only Sleeping” (The Beatles)
These guys obviously practiced this song, but it’s got a great casual tossed-off feel.

Archie Roach “Play That Funky Music” (Wild Cherry)
There’s a TV show that’s been airing recently, I think it’s on the Discovery Channel. It assumes that humans just vanished from the planet and looks at what would happen to all we’ve built over time. Each episode deals with a different city. I keep stumbling across it when I’m channel surfing.

It’s a nice enough program but I haven’t seen an episode yet that shows giant nuclear-mutant cockroaches driving around in the cars that we left behind. And if they’re not going to show that they sure as hell won’t be showing us a roach named Archie who gets funky. I just can’t get past that lack of realism.

The Volebeats “Maggot Brain” (Funkadelic)
For some reason the Volebeats don’t include the lyrics in this version. I don’t understand why, it’s poetry that Shakespeare would be jealous of. I too have tasted the maggots in the mind of the universe. I was not offended, but I did think that the cream sauce was a bit much.