Tune Tag #101 with Garry Drake of Breaking Ranks: Tears For Fears, The Floaters, PM Dawn, Oasis, Corb Lund, Animal Collective, The Rutles
Lists & rankings are the main attractions for Tune Tag first-timer, Garry, who hails from the central Canadian province of Saskatchewan, setting up this Edition, then, as a true Saskatoon-Tag!😱
Our Furless Leader Welcomes You to SkeleTune Tag!
As we also welcome of Breaking Ranks to Tune Tag #101!
Garry: “A lifelong music fan, I’ve always been interested in lists and rankings, especially in music. In 2020, in the depth of the pandemic, I took on a project of reviewing all 500 of Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” (2020 Edition).
“It was an excellent distraction from the state of the world at the time, and two friends were the recipients of my efforts. In 2025, I decided to share my short reviews of each album and revisit the list all over again, along with Rolling Stone’s newest list, ‘The 250 Greatest Albums of the 21st Century (So Far)’.”
I live in Saskatchewan, Canada, and fortunately my office is music-friendly, so I can listen to the latest album on the list for hours at a time!
Last week, we were washing confetti out of our hair for hours after our landmark Tune Tag #100 with of Painted Dayglo Smiles:
Next week, another Canadian, of Musings of a Broken Record, will join us!
Garry’s song #1 sent to Brad: Modest Mouse, “Float On,” 2004
Garry’s rationale: Modest Mouse has always been a favourite of mine. Their ‘90s indie gems were perfect in every way, but when they went mainstream in the early 21st century, this was one of the first songs my wife shared with me when we first started dating, and it’s always been special to me.
Brad’s response: Rumored a distant relative to Mickey, Modest Mouse hails from the King County town of 40,000….Washington state’s Issaquah.
In January 2023, the flannel/plaid-clad Grunge.com had this to say about young Master Mouse, and Garry’s initial Tune Tag entry: “With its criminally catchy melody and upbeat tempo, ‘Float On’ became an instant hit in 2004, launching Modest Mouse from relative indie obscurity to mainstream stardom.
“According to [lead singer/songwriter/guitarist], Isaac Brock’s record label, Glacial Pace, the song sold over 1.5 million copies and was nominated for two Grammys. Lyrically and musically, it was a poppy departure from the band’s earlier work -– and apparently, that was precisely the point.
“In a 2004 interview with The A.V. Club, Brock explained that he had enough sorrow. ‘I was just kind of fed up with how bad s*** had been going, and how dark everything was, with bad news coming from everywhere,’ he said, adding, ‘I’d had some friends die, and with Jeremy [Jeremiah Green] kind of losing it ... After we got out of that dark spot with everything melting down with the band, I just wanted to make a positive record.’
“When VH1 asked him in a 2004 interview if making ‘Float On’ such a happy song was intentional, Brock explained that he was inspired by an uplifting White Hassle song he’d heard and wanted to create a similar sentiment. ‘Fun songs are goofy, they’re ridiculous,’ he said, adding, ‘They almost sound like they’re for children, but ‘Hey, things are rough, but life’s good’ is a good reminder.’”
“The Greatest Perseverance Anthem of All Time: Modest Mouse and the Story of ‘Float On’”: Click here to view on YouTube if video not showing up here:
Brad’s song #1 sent to Garry: The Floaters, “Float On,” 1977
Garry’s response: Clear connection with Modest Mouse. What a soul gem!
Brad’s rationale: With 27 years between Modest Mouse and The Floaters’ lone chart-topper, I’m afraid Garry and I are just gonna have to insist, and there are no two ways about it: “Float On,” already!
The Floaters, from the Sojourner Truth housing projects in Detroit, formed in 1976. They are best known for “Float On,” which reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, #1 on the UK Singles Chart, and #5 on the Irish Singles Chart.
“Float On” was written by group members, James Mitchell, with Arnold Ingram and Marvin Willis, and produced by Mitchell and Willis, for ABC Records.
The mighty Wiki asserts that “the spoken verses combine two popular trends from the time, star signs and video and phone dating, in lines such as Aquarius and my name is Ralph / Now I like a woman who loves her freedom and Cancer and my name is Larry / And I like a woman that loves everything and everybody.”
As such, those two pop cultural elements (astrology and video dating) were, indeed, quite prevalent (and rife for parody, as we’ll discover!). I was 22 in ‘77, and working at the large Cactus Records store in Houston, TX, and I can confirm!
One of the more memorable parody attempts happened a dozen years after “Float On” dominated the charts: A Cadbury’s Creme Egg commercial, produced in 1989, for airing on American TV for the ‘89-’90 prime time sitcom and drama season:
But, the musical comedy crowd came out immediately with their own takes on the song, many of them in 1977!
On the kids’ educational show, Sesame Street, an original song was created (“Gimme Five”), but it was arranged and staged quite obviously with a decidedly Floater feel! Singers David (Northern Calloway), Bob (Bob McGrath), Gordon (Roscoe Orman), and Luis (Emilio Delgado) all unite to sing the praises of a fistful of fingers:
Same year, 1977: Enter the clown princes of counter-culture comedy, Cheech & Chong: They actually beat Weird Al to the food-related parody punch (Al’s 1984 “Eat It” and 1988’s “Fat,” for two good examples), with this tasteless take by “The Bloaters”:
Garry’s song #2: PM Dawn, “Set Adrift on Memory Bliss,” 1991
Discogs: “Set Adrift On Memory Bliss” contains samples from “True” (Music) performed by Spandau Ballet (1983), “Ashley’s Roachclip” (Rhythm), instrumental performed by The Soul Searchers (1974), and Paul Simon’s “Take Me To Mardi Gras” performed by Bob James in 1975 on his Two album (Percussions - layered on the main rhythm sample).
Brad’s response: Two hit songs from two distinctly unique R&B eras: 1977 and 1991: Both songs are gently and easily listenable, and I remember each very well in their own times! For The Floaters in ‘77, I was 22, and working at Houston’s largest vinyl retailer, Cactus Records. The single and The Floaters LP were both flying out the door!
In ‘91, I was still in L.A. (having moved there in 1980), and moved to Austin, TX two years later. Somewhere, somehow, I heard the PM Dawn song, and really enjoyed their unique (and what I perceived to be a bit of a retro) approach and arrangement, song and video…and, that’s exactly what prompted and inspired my next song choice.
A 1991 Top of the Pops/UK performance, synching to track:
Garry’s rationale: “Float On” by The Floaters was a direct connection to Modest Mouse, but PM Dawn was a little more ethereal, as “set adrift” and “float on” are near synonymous, as well as the R&B connection, along with the spoken word parts of “Float On.” All instantly brought PM Dawn to mind, a song I spent hours listening to in the months before I knew what a “Nirvana” was!
Brad’s song #2: Tears for Fears, “Sowing the Seeds of Love,” 1989
Garry’s response: The connection here, I think, is that PM Dawn samples “True” by Spandau Ballet, and it’s a short hop from there to Tears for Fears, though (IMO), Tears for Fears is vastly superior.
Brad’s rationale: Both PM Dawn and Tears, two years apart as they book-end 1990, both create a record and a video that strikingly recall (recreate?) the sensibilities and feel of the late-’60s Woodstock/Summer of Love/Peacenik/hippie ethos in hauntingly unselfconscious originals (Tears in a song, PM Dawn with a sample-fueled arrangement, as well as not-exactly-1991-Sears-off-the-rack duds).
To be fair, PM Dawn allowed themselves a little more pretentiousness with the over-the-top and obvious outfits, but let’s just say they’re more emphatic driving their point home…easily forgiven!
Garry’s song #3: Oasis, “I Am the Walrus” (Live at Knebworth, August 11, 1996)
Brad’s response: Psychedelia continues, and I’m entranced! It was fascinating to watch psych music and periphery proliferate in the late-’60s; it’s fun, now, to see how acts lift and incorporate that incense-infused ethos into their original music (and creative covers)! “Patchouli pop”?
Garry’s rationale: I was struck by how much the opening verse of “Sowing the Seeds of Love” reminded me of “I Am the Walrus,” but The Beatles were too direct, so I picked the band du jour, back on tour, Oasis.
Brad’s song #3: The Rutles, “Piggy in the Middle,” 1978
Garry’s response: The Rutles, of course, is the brilliant satire of The Beatles by Eric Idle and Neil Innes, and included George Harrison in the production. The connection to “I Am The Walrus” not only connects to The Beatles, but also continues the animal theme.
Brad’s rationale: Monty Python’s SNL-attached 1978 mockumentary, All You Need is Cash, that was a lovingly-executed Beatles parody. “Piggy in the Middle” is specifically lampooning “I Am the Walrus”!
“Funny (Be Tender with My Love)”
Nearly-4-minute feature, “The Beatles Talk About The Rutles”:
Garry’s song #4: Animal Collective, “Brother Sport,” 2009
Animal Collective, live in Lyon, in October 2007, with “Brother Sport”:
Brad’s response: If you could see the confused look I have on my face! Not sure I’ve ever heard of Animal Collective, and I know I’ve never heard this “song” before! This just in: Not a fan…..and, I’m not hearing a single! As a link, a guess would be a play off one of the many genres Wikipedia mentions the group apparently dabbles in, namely psychedelia.
Garry’s rationale: Continuing the animal theme with one of my favourites off 2009’s Merriweather Post Pavilion.
Brad’s song #4: Corb Lund, “Grizzly Bear Blues,” 2020
Garry’s response: Not only continuing the animal theme, but connecting ever so slightly with Animal Collective’s Noah Lennox, otherwise known as Panda Bear.
Brad’s rationale: Taking a radical right turn (without signaling) from the exceedingly experimental to the decidedly trad pickings of Corb Lund, an artist first introduced to us (me, anyway) by
of Earnestness is Underrated in Tune Tag #12, way back in October 2023!Here, though, Mr. Lund’s “Grizzly Bear Blues” is linking to Animal Collective’s Noah Benjamin Lennox, proudly (and, apparently experimentally) known as “Panda Bear.” “Animal Collective,” indeed, as we move from pen to pen in our musical zoo, and finally alight in the bear habitat.
FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE Special Contributor, Stephen Michael Schwartz, has a show coming up! Check out the 20 exclusive articles he’s written for us, and if you’re in, or planning to be in, the Southern California area, July 19, get your tickets now!👇
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Thanks Brad! This was a lot of fun, and it’s interesting how music will take you some fascinating places. I hope you give Animal Collective another try!!
What a fun Tune Tag! One of the most entertaining ones, in my opinion, and trust me, I've read and enjoyed them all!
I LOOOOOOOOVED the R&B vibes, to the surprise of absolutely no one who knows me... ain't gonna lie! (At least I am consistent 🤣) I also enjoyed the song title tags and word play, so to speak, in the beginning of the game.
And then, Tears for Fears, a band I also love but, importantly in this context, what a great way to bridge the gap between the soul/R&B vibes of the beginning to the heavier rock sounds that ensued! Brilliant! Guys, if this was an album, you got the tracklist sequencing to the T!
Amazing work!!