06 Jan Matador Playlist 1/2/25
Happy New Year, Gentle Reader(s), and welcome to the first Matador Playlist of 2025. Rather extraordinary to consider that I have now been manning the DJ booth at Ye Olde Matador Bar & Lounge off and on for 18—count ‘em, EIGHTEEN—years! Boggles the old brainpan a bit, does it not? Of course that hasn’t been 18 continuous years as there has been a couple of flies in the ointment along the way (that global pandemic thing, which you might recall, and a significant health glitch or two), but Cesar and Francisco and myself have never strayed far from one another and we remain committed as amigos, compatriots in business, music and even in film. Amazing.
When the Matador first opened its door(s), the second George Dubya Bush administration was in effect and lawd knows we’ve been through a helluva lot since then. Things have changed down at the Mat’, as things inevitably do, but for the most part the bar remains remarkably the same. I’d estimate that we’re now into our fourth or fifth generation of Matador regulars—bar time operating on a continuum distinctly different from that of the ‘real’ world up above. I was in my 40s when I started doing this and now I’m packing a Medicare card. Like I sez, amazing.
Okay, so here’s one thing that’s different. The other night I’m down there in the booth, tucked away in my little corner, and at one point in the early portion of the evening I was hearing this weird sort of whining, trebly noise above the sound of the Matador PA. ‘Self, what the ‘eff is that?’ I pondered unto myself. Whatever it was, I could hear it even with the headphones on. I pulled my Sonys off and scanned around for the source of the noise, which was not a pleasant one I can assure you. I quickly discerned that the auditory interference was emanating from a couple sitting near the end of the bar: A husky, bearded chap in a trucker hat and a black t-shirt and a comely young blonde lady in his company. The music was pounding away (I think it was during ‘Abbatoir Blues’ and ‘Subway Train’) and these two had their snoots deep into their smart phones. From my vantage point I was able to ascertain that both of them were looking at videos and photos on some social platform or another and had the volume on their devices pumped up to full max. The young lady was transfixed by what appeared to be a continuous scroll of short clips and photos of herself in a variety of social media-friendly poses and trucker hat dude was watching videos of jacked up pickup trucks maneuvering about in a parking lot. Okay. Weird. Interesting. But hardly remarkable in this day and age.
Back in late summer a young couple came up to me and requested a certain reggaeton song. I obliged and duly acquired the song for them but it soon became apparent that the purpose of said toon was not to dance or even listen, really—it was to provide a soundtrack to this twosome moving around the bar with a smart phone, mugging and gesticulating for the ostensible amusement of a selfie-cam audience somewhere out there in social media tierra incognita. To be honest, I found this offensive. The Matador does not exist to provide ambience for your live Facebook feed or to generate Insta likes. It’s a place to be and to hang out with other folks, to listen to music and enjoy a boozy beverage, watch C-grade Japanese monster movies on the video screen, and perhaps even shake a leg. That is what the Matador is for. Context-wise, consider that when the Matador debuted on May 5, 2007, the iPhone hadn’t even been introduced yet—that came a bit over a month and a half later on June 29th. A different world, to be sure.
See? This is what being an Old Coot has done to me! You goddam kids GET OUT OF MY YARD!!
Oh well. I’ll get over it.
Or not.
So here’s the song list and the link to the YouTube entity. So go ahead and click on the damn thing, but I FORBID YOU to live stream yourself on social media as you dance around your house! Unless it’s for your mom or something.
Grammar of Life – Charles Bukowski
Paralyzed – Gang of Four
Freddie’s Dead – Curtis Mayfield
Disorder – Joy Division
Baby Blue – Badfinger
Black Mold – Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
Five Guys Named Moe – Louis Jordan and his Tympani Five
We’er Gone – Thee Headcoats (request)
Necromancer – Judas Priest
Something in the Air – Thunderclap Newman
Minor Threat – Minor Threat
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) – AC/DC
Abattoir Blues – Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
Subway Train – New York Dolls
Motel Room in My Bed – X
Wild Wild Party – Charlie Feathers
Everlasting Light – the Black Keys
Jailbreak – Thin Lizzy
Am Rhein – Trans Am
Tragedias – Fea
Waitin’ for the Bus /Jesus Just Left Chicago – ZZ Top
From A Motel 6 – Yo La Tengo
Control Mexica – 2Mex
Tell Her No – the Zombies
Guitars, Cadillacs – Dwight Yoakam
I Felt Like A Gringo – the Minutemen
Just Because – the Collins Kids
Fascination – David Bowie
Homicide – 999
Downtown Train – Tom Waits
Corvette Bummer – Beck
I Don’t Care – the Ramones
A Certain Girl – the Yardbirds
Heavy Metal Drummer – Wilco
8-Ball Deluxe – 7 Year Bitch
Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now) – Cracker
Hello Operator – White Stripes
Disconnected – Rancid
Sunglasses After Dark – the Cramps
Kick Out the Jams – MC5
I Wanna Be Where the Boys Are – Fea
War Pigs/Luke’s Wall – Black Sabbath
What’s Going On – Marvin Gaye
Confusion – New Order
No Thugs in Our House – XTC
Blitzkrieg Bop – the Ramones (request)
Walkin’ After Midnight – Patsy Cline
Latest Heartbreak – 22-20’s
5:15 – the Who
Doo Wop (That Thang) – Lauryn Hill
I’m So Bored With the USA – the Clash
If You’ve Got the Money I’ve Got the Time – Lefty Frizzell
Dusted – Leftfield, feat. Roots Manuva
Give It Away – Red Hot Chili Peppers (request)
True Love – Zounds
Baila Morena – Hector & Tito (request)
Buried Alive (feat. Dr. Octagon) – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
What Is and What Should Never Be – Led Zeppelin
Shining Star – Earth Wind and Fire
The Day the World Turned Day-Glo – X-Ray Spex
Punto 40 – Rauw Alejandro & Baby Rasta
I Don’t Want to Follow You – the Wailers
Pa’ Que Retozen – Tego Calderon (request)
I Can’t Stand It – the Velvet Underground
Break A Guitar – Ty Segall
1999 – Prince
Titi Me Pregunto – Bad Bunny
Victoria – the Kinks
Pennies From Heaven – Louis Prima
Close to Me – the Cure
Monkey Wrench – Foo Fighters
One Step Beyond – Madness
Hips Don’t Lie – Shakira feat. Wyclef Jean (request)
Making Time – Creation
Que Pasaria – Rauw Alejandro & Bad Bunny (request)
New Rose – the Damned
Harley Quinn – Fuerza Regida & Marshmello (request)
All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down – the Mavericks
Ella y Yo – Aventura & Don Omar (request)
Ojitos Lindos – Bad Bunny & Bomba Estereo (request)
The Punks are Writing Love Songs – Tullycraft
La Jumpa – Arcangel & Bad Bunny (request)
Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido – Karol G (request)
World Without Tears – Lucinda Williams
Buona Sera – Louis Prima
Happy Trails – Roy Rogers & Dale Evans
Taxi – Bryan Ferry
