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Jim White — Static On the Radio
Album: Drill a Hole in That Substrate and Tell Me What You See
Avg rating:
6.9

Your rating:
Total ratings: 2373









Released: 2004
Length: 6:29
Plays (last 30 days): 1
Three A.M. I'm awakened
By a sweet summer rain
Distant howling of a passing Southbound coal train
Was I dreaming
Or was there someone just lying here Beside me in this bed?
Am I hearing things?
Or in the next room
Did a long forgotten music box just start playing?

And I know (it's a sin putting words in the mouths of the dead)
And I know (it's a crime to weave your wishes into what they said)
And I know (only fools venture where them spirits tread)
Cause I know (every word, every sound bouncing 'round my head)

Is just static on the radio
(Everything I think I know is just static on the radio)

Now there's a church house
About a stone's throw down
From this place where I been staying
It's Sunday morning
And I'm sittin' in my truck
Listening to my neighbor sing
Ten years ago I might have joined in
But don't time change those inclined
To think less of what is written
Than what's wrote between the lines?

Cause I know (dreams are for those who are asleep in bed)
And I know (it's a sin putting words in the mouths of the dead)
Cause I know (for all my ruminations I can't change a thing
Still I hope (there's others out there who are listening)

To the static on the radio
(Everything I think I know is just static on the radio
Static on the radio
(Ain't praying for miracles, I'm just down on my knees)
Static on the radio
(Listening for the song behind everything I think I know)
Static on the radio
(Everything I think I know is just static on the radio)
Comments (256)add comment
Never realized she was from the band Til Tuesday. No wonder I am so fond of her voice. Great song overall.
The poetry of this song is beautiful and haunting.
Nice song. Reminds me very much of the song Miracles by Jefferson Starship
Bumping it up one just for the album title alone...
Geology jokes are rare in Rock and Roll.
Also, having Aimee Mann on your album makes you better...
To me, it sounds like PJ Harvey singing backup. 

But I have an infatuation with PJ.   I hear her everywhere. 

But I may have infatuation with Aimee Mann, too. It goes back to the Big Lebowski movie.  Nihilist.  
 nancygoldstein11 wrote:

No mistaking Aimee Mann, who makes this track "Godlike".



Yep, definitely one of my favorite female voices... happy she found her way back to the  music, studio, mic'.


STATIC  indeed.


 idiot_wind wrote:

what a great title, been there...done that

is that aimee mann on vocals!



Yes
Pretty cool song. Anybody that gives a song a one is less then one
I have never heard of this artist before. The lyrics are excellent, this coming from a songwriter. Nice!
What a wonderful little nugget!!
 idiot_wind wrote:

what a great title, been there...done that

is that aimee mann on vocals!



Bill just said 'yes' 
Great transition from Joy Division's Transmission to Static on the Radio. I see what you did there Bill/Rebecca, well done!
what a great title, been there...done that

is that aimee mann on vocals!
Maybe it's just my blue disposition, or,the way it is put together, the interplay between their voices, the horns, the other fine musicians, but I just think this is a really fine song. I always turn it up.
Every artist would draw me in if they got Aimee Mann to sing backup.
8 -> 9.  Aimee Mann is so good on this, it could rise further. pxd
 discdrive wrote:
Love it. Feels like it could've come out of my parents jukebox in the 70s.
 


Kind of reminds me of Miracles by Jefferson Starship.
Best album title ever.
Aimee makes this a small treasure.
It's maybe like REM, but, I don't know, not as good?
Love the background singer’s voice
 coyote620 wrote:
A one.  That is what I think of this song.  
 

I'm so sorry. Please accept my condolences for whatever has died inside you.
a must for any record collection!
Jim has a very attractive voice!
 GolfRomeo wrote:
Repetition on the radio
 
Yeah, for some reason song choruses tend to have repetition; it's one of those confusing things about music.
Soundtrack Breaking Bad
 Bobert_ParkCity wrote:
Voices carry this one....
 
Not un Til Tuesday will some get that one.
A one.  That is what I think of this song.  
Repetition on the radio
No mistaking Aimee Mann, who makes this track "Godlike".
I don't actually know a lot of Jim White's music... but like what I know. His 2003 documentary 'Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus.' is totally worth tracking down for some serious "truth is stranger than fiction" weirdness.
One of my favorite oddball albums from the early 2000s - haven't heard it for a while, thanks for the reminder.
The horn part is channeling Burt Bacharach. Not necessarily a bad thing. I love his work with Elvis Costello.

This is really nice. Don't know why he's not better known.
c.
 discdrive wrote:
Love it. Feels like it could've come out of my parents jukebox in the 70s.
 
Your parents had a jukebox?  That's cool!  You probably had 2 TVs and a microwave too, right?  ;-) 

I've got this at an 8....might be the highest rating for something w/ Amiee Mann I've given on RP.  

Long Live RP!!
Love it. Feels like it could've come out of my parents jukebox in the 70s.
God I love this. I don't know why nobody knows Jim White. 
 Baketown wrote:
I just realized that was Aimee Mann on this song!   

 
Wait, you didn't realize there was a woman singing through her nose?
I just realized that was Aimee Mann on this song!   
I think this is pretty cool.  I generally like anything with a little Aimee Mann sprinkled on top.  Sounds like one of her arrangements as well.
It would be cool to pair this with "Static on the Radio" by Planet P Project.
Ho hum.  Don't like this dull stuff much, sorry.  Particularly the crappy Stylophone bit in the middle.
Makes me want to download some Aimee Mann.
Repetitive and flat. OK the first 2 - 3 times around, then, bleh. 
 Dazzerb wrote:
sounds like Aimee Mann.  Like this.

 
Aimee Mann in Sounds Like Aimee Mann Shocker
Crap on the radio.  Excruciating.
always excited to hear jim white here.
Beatifiul mood-scaping and a wonderful composition /production. Quite an interesting album too, but Bill plays the stand out tracks.
no static on my RP hookup
PSD luck.  Great song.
Aimee Mann is perfect here, too.
I really don't like this song.  Never have.  Mostly, its the lyric " static on the radio" I find irritating.  
sounds like Aimee Mann.  Like this.
 TerryS wrote:

Au contraire, she's the best part - worth waiting for, imho.

 
I agree she is the best part, like a gold earing on a rabid dog.


Would have preferred static. 
 Bobert_ParkCity wrote:
Voices carry this one....

 
Dreamy
9
Wow.  New one for me. Brilliant!
Voices carry this one....
Jim White one of the best current songwriters in America. Storytelling that depicts a heartfelt emotion from Jim for the human race.{#Yell}
Brilliant - kudo's to Bill
 rsiwica wrote:
Jim White is a underated genius!

 
 coolpeople_rule wrote:


I agree, he is an underated genius ;)

 
{#Whisper}  underrated

Anyhow, quite a likable tune.
Wonderfully inspired duet.
Neither here nor there - but loving that album title!
Nicely Done
 rsiwica wrote:
Jim White is a underated genius!

 

I agree, he is an underated genius ;)
Jim White is a underated genius!
Great track! One of my first Radio Paradise Favorites many years ago (May 2007) and I still enjoy as much as ever. Wish Jim & Aimee would do another together; they complement each other well, IMO.
 stunix wrote:
what a waste of an Aimee Mann vocal.

 
Au contraire, she's the best part - worth waiting for, imho.
perfect timing
booooooooooooring.
Sweet.
what a waste of an Aimee Mann vocal.
Sounding great at this moment....
Fine song!!!!!
 crockydile wrote:

I prefer Tony Carey's take on this topic. Love me some Sci Fi! {#Cheesygrin}
 
I uploaded that a couple of months ago.  It seems to be losing ground... {#Cry}
Planet P Project - Static reviewing 4/7 (36%)
I wish Jim would do another album.
Jack's distant cousin?
Ditto. The world needs this music right now. Meditate, perspective. Less static would be great, on so many levels.
I like this cool, slightly creepy tune. Always nice to hear Aimee Mann in the mix too.
EXCELLENT!
Yup.  Still like it.
 Droidac wrote:
Ok, we get it, there's static on the radio.
 
Shit...Static, again? 4.

God I've always hated this song...of course I always thought it was Cowboy Junkies for some reason....hmmmm

 jkhandy wrote:
is that Aimee Mann?
 
yes.
 Droidac wrote:
Ok, we get it, there's static on the radio.
 
I prefer Tony Carey's take on this topic. Love me some Sci Fi! {#Cheesygrin}
is that Aimee Mann?
excellent song
How about Still Waters or Perfect Day to Chase Tornadoes, Alabama Chrome, Buzzards of Love, If Jesus Drove a Motor Home? All great Jim White tunes and all better than this one.

So sweet, so mellow I could just sink my teeth in like....
more jim white! more!
Missed it  {#Frown}
It's just boredom on the radio...
And I know...Yes, I know

...I still like this song.


 inmanart wrote:
There's something nihilistic about using the term  "meh". At least static is an ethos!

 
Why do I think you are a Big Lebowski fan? You speak with the right nomenclature. {#Bounce}

There's something nihilistic about using the term  "meh". At least static is an ethos!

 jhorton wrote:
Asked Aimee out once, just before she got really famous. Didn't even know who she was. One of the great regrets of my life, that she said no. But at least I ASKED!

Would have regretted it a lot more if I hadn't asked her................ 
 
That reminds me of when I walked past Wally Lamb on the street and couldn't get a word out. I still regret it! I love him.

 nagsheadlocal wrote:
Any friend of Harry Crews is OK with me.
 

I so tried to like the collection of Crews' short stories I picked up after watching Searching for the Wrong Eyed Jesus, but I just couldn't. Shame.
 wenatchee wrote:
A rare 4 - most get the 3 HoHum - other that rise above hit the 7,8 mark usually - sleepy horns in this one
  you would make a good scientist.  We spend an awful lot of time staying focused on stuff that is pretty boring for 98% of the time 

is this a good Jim White album?
Any friend of Harry Crews is OK with me.
if you like this one, check out "perfect day to chase tornadoes"...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziZbNuZoX0Y
I continue to like this song.

It evokes a sublimely mellowing and surreal blend of feelings.
A rare 4 - most get the 3 HoHum - other that rise above hit the 7,8 mark usually - sleepy horns in this one
 jhorton wrote:
Asked Aimee out once, just before she got really famous. Didn't even know who she was. One of the great regrets of my life, that she said no. But at least I ASKED!

Would have regretted it a lot more if I hadn't asked her................ 
 
OOOoooooooooooo, tell us more! what's she like?

Why to blame the cuter rodents?
 
ploafmaster wrote:
Meh...A bit dull to me. And that tacky fake trumpet solo makes me want to put squirrels in a blender.
 


Ok, we get it, there's static on the radio.
Asked Aimee out once, just before she got really famous. Didn't even know who she was. One of the great regrets of my life, that she said no. But at least I ASKED!

Would have regretted it a lot more if I hadn't asked her................ 
I guess I'm the only one who thought that this was Linda Perry from 4 Non Blondes w/Aimee Mann's help all these years.
Didn't mind the song, but hadn't given the lyrics much of a listen.....

10 minutes ago I'm listening to the lyrics a bit more:
                  "Midnight rendezvous with a pretty girl.....She kissed me goodbye..."
Okay, now I'm confused. As confused as I was when I heard James Blunt (who I thought was a woman after the first few listens) singing "You're Beautiful":
                  "I saw an angel. Of that I'm sure. She smiled at me on the subway"
I just figured that lesbians were getting their stuff out there a bit more (not that there's anything wrong with that {#Whipit}).

Then I find out that it's male vocals...all fascination with the song is now gone and I like it less. In Blunt's case, his voice now gives me the willies.
Sounds nice!
Going to be seeing him at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival in 1.5 weeks — very excited!{#Dancingbanana}
 lattalo wrote:


Oh yeah in a convertible, with the warm wind blowing through my hair.

 
Or driving home from a third shift summer job in a textile mile at dawn in rural South Carolina.


Not the most exciting song in the world, I'll grant... but still quite pleasant, especially the vocals and the way they work together.
Never was a song more appropriately named. For some reason I find this song so bland it makes my skin crawl.
did they say "a southbound Coltrane"?
lattalo wrote:
I can just imagine playing this driving across Texas at night, in the summer when it's not so hot, and there is nothing for miles.
Oh yeah in a convertible, with the warm wind blowing through my hair.
Lame. ZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzz
NeilBlanchard wrote:
Hello, She very well might rock, but I think this is Aimee Mann singing backup? Neil
Yes, but that voice at the end -- the "huh huh-oh" part -- is that Beth? I thought the same thing. ETA: According to AMG, there are over 50 people participating on this record, but Beth is not among them.
I can just imagine playing this driving across Texas at night, in the summer when it's not so hot, and there is nothing for miles.