(remember, any Amazon purchases you make through my site cost you nothing extra, but make me money).

My last lists had to do with funky music you might not have heard.  Now, I’m going to suggest some tunes that may or may not be funky, but are great tunes that never got the exposure they deserved…usually because they were on soundtracks for movies that didn’t do that well.

Peter Gabriel

Peter Gabriel is one of my favorite recording artists.  He consistently does interesting things, often on movie soundtracks or compilation albums.  For instance, he collaborated on a song for the Pixar movie, ‘Wall-E’.  Though the song isn’t one of my favorite by him, he does do a lot of good songs and scores for movies: "Rabbit-proof Fence", "Virtuosity", "Strange Days" and "The Last Temptation of Christ" are some of the films that have benefited from Gabriel’s touch.

Here are a couple of soundtrack or compilation album contributions that are great tracks by him that you may not have heard:

1. "While The Earth Sleeps (Extended Mix)": Peter Gabriel & Deep Forest, from the film "Strange Days". 

Try and figure out what language is being spoken in the song without Googling it…

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2. "Party man":

Peter Gabriel & the World-Beaters, from the film "Virtuosity" (not a bad film, by the way, starring a young Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington).

3. "No More Apartheid":

A b-side to "Biko" single and also on a compilation album made during the anti-apartheid movement. The track includes Little Steven (from the E-Street Band, as well as Ravi Shankar).

Other tunes you may not have heard:

Also from the "Virtuosity" Soundtrack:  "Fallen Angel" and "Samurai"

A great tune by Juno Reactor and Traci Lords–yes, the former porn star.  Your first reaction is probably ‘of all the songs you could pick, why would you pick one that Traci Lords sings?’  Because it’s a good tune.  The Youtube video below is for a different version of the song–you need to hear the mix that’s on the "Virtuosity" soundtrack.  By the way, Juno Reactor has a number of good songs, including another one from this soundtrack, "Samurai".  Try to find the ‘Golden Remix’ version–it’s the best by far.

"Fallen Angel"

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"Samurai"

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Here are some other cool tunes that you may not have heard:

Daniel Lanois, "The Maker". 

This is a great gentle song by someone who is far more known for his production prowess than his performance skills.  In all fairness, though, he’s a very good performer and musician.  The song was later covered by Dave Matthews, but I think Lanois did a much better job.

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Death in Vegas + Iggy Pop, "Aisha" (from the Continuo sessions). 

Death In Vegas is known for "Days Go By", but I think this is a better tune.  Iggy Pop adds a lot to the song and the song takes on a character very different from what it would have been if some Euro-ponce with a feathered haircut sang the vocals.

I don’t want to link to the video of this song (it’s kind of disturbing), but you can find the album at Amazon, via my shopping link at the top of the blog.

The Cure, "To the Sky". 

This song never appeared on a Cure album, but I think it’s one of the group’s best songs if not THE best song.  You be the judge.

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Banda Sonora, "Guitarra G". 

I don’t remember how I found this song, I know nothing about the group who performs it, and I don’t know if the people who did this ever did anything else. What I can say is that this is a very pleasant instrumental.  If you know anything about it, please enlighten me.

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Oran Juice Jones, "The Rain".  This is an oldie but a goodie.  I bet if you listen to this song, it will stay in your head for a couple of days.

[7] Link to Oran Juice Jones "the Rain"

Syntax, "Bliss".  This is one of my favorite songs. 

I can’t tell you how I came across it, but it may be one of the best songs by a group that I’d never heard of.  I include a link to the video so you can hear the song, but the video itself is risque and, frankly, not really expressive of the song itself IMO.  So, play the video to hear the song, but keep in mind that I am only endorsing the music.

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Neon Judgment, "Chinese Black". 

I don’t know much about this group, and don’t care for most of the group’s other songs, but I like this song.  It’s got something going on that keeps me interested over the years of listening to it every couple of weeks.

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Talking Heads, "Houses In Motion" (Live)

While I’m sure you have at least heard of Talking Heads, you may not know about some of the group’s less well-known songs like this one.  It’s a great cut in the studio, but, like many Talking Heads songs, takes on a different (and in this case, I think even better) character on stage.  The version I recommend is from the "Name of this Band is…" live album.  This album wasn’t issued on CD until a few years ago.  The video below is probably not the same as the track on the album but is close enough to give you the idea.

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