The Indifference of Heaven - Warren Zevon (killer song)

There's a refrain: "Billy and Christie don't, Bruce and Patty don't -- they don't live around here"

"When the sky is gray, The way it is today, I remember the times when I was happy
Same old sun, same old moon. It's the same old story, Same old tune
They all say,  Someday soon,   My sins will all be forgiven..."

 

If you know the song , it fits quite well into the "past / future" thread, too, as it's about how short life is, and despite what happens to you, the world keeps turning, and life carries on.   Amazing song.   

You all might enjoy this. It is one of the songs on my list:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21V3LrMfmGc

 

The Road by The Kinks

A couple of instances:

 

I saw a band called the Rolling Stones
I thought, "that's it, I'll get a band,
I'm leaving home, I'm out on the road.

and:

Jimi Hendrix, The Who, the Led Zeppelin and Free
They took the road so it's alright by me

Maybe the cutest of all mentions...

Eddie Money's song 'Take Me Home Tonight' 

'Just like Ronnie song, be my little baby...'  referring to Ronnie Spector, lead singer of the Ronettes, and their hit song 'Be My Baby'.  Ronnie Spector shares the vocals on this song with Money and also appears in the video.

Ronnie Spector was married to Phil Spector and allegedly he kept her a near-prisoner and threatened to kill her if she ever left him.  Yikes.

'Turn up the Eagles the neighbors are listening'  "Everything You Did" Steely Dan

Later that year the Eagles returned the favor with 'They stabbed with their Steely knives'

Wilco has an entire song dedicated to a band that doesn't even exist, "the Late Greats."

In response to ZILLAGOD's comment:

Until I think of one...I will add.....just about every hip-hop song in existence.

Tears for Fears  - Sowing the Seeds of Love

"Kick out the Style bring back the Jam"

Hootie & The Blowfish

Put on a little Dylan
Sittin' on a fence

Polar , I've heard the song, but I was unaware of that lyric...excellent!

I totally forgt about the Steely Dan song mentioning the Eagles!....thanks and the Eddie Money song and the Hootie and Blowfish ( what ever became of them?) I hadn't thought about either.

 

In response to ZILLAGOD's comment:

Hootie went Country...He's actually pretty good...if you like Country.
.

Stevie Wonder - Sir Duke - There's Basie,Miller,Satchmo and the king of all Sir Duke,and with a voice like Ella's ringing out,there's no way the band can lose

Queen - The Miracle - Captian Cook and Cain and Abel,Jimi Hendrix and the tower of Babel

Steely Dan - Hey Nineteen - Hey Nineteen that's Aretha Franklin,she don't remember the queen of soul

Beatles - Yer Blues - The eagle picks my eye,the worm he licks my bones,I feel so suicidal,just like Dylan's Mr. Jones

 

Richard Thompson - "Don't Sit On My Jimmy Shands" and "Al Bowlly's in Heaven"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FH7Kj_V6-c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Dr8Z2SPWm8

The Clash - "White Man in Hammersmith Palais" mentions Leroy Smart and Delroy Wilson

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTnijX0TH-w

Dyke and the Blazers - "We Got More Soul" mentions Ray Charles, James Brown, Johnnie Taylor Aretha Franklin, Nancy Wilson, Pearl Bailey

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMCB6FFFTgY

John Hiatt - "Memphis In The Meantime" "Until hell freezes over, Maybe you can wait that long, But I don't think Ronnie Milsap's gonna ever record this song."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaaGkuGsGTM&feature=fvwrel

Arthur Conley - "Sweet Soul Music" mentions Lou Rawls, Sam and Dave, Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, James Brown.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHdzrMqhKls

Spandau Ballet - "True" "Listening to Marvin (all night long)"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR8D2yqgQ1U

The Commodores - "Night Shift" mentions Marvin (Gaye), Jackie (Wilson).

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrkEDe6Ljqs

Graham Parker - "Obsessed With Aretha"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myLrFPOTapk

And for all you country fans out there:

Eric Lee Beddingfield - "The Gospel According To Jones" George, that is. Also mentions "Saint Hank (Williams), Saint Lefty (Frizzel), Brother Waylon (Jennings)"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ONH6-9K4ho

In response to mrmojo1120's comment:
Beatles - Yer Blues - The eagle picks my eye,the worm he licks my bones,I feel so suicidal,just like Dylan's Mr. Jones

 

Doesn't John say "feel so suicidal even hate my rock and roll?"

 

In response to LloydDobler's comment:

Yes,he does say  "feel so suicidal even hate my rock and roll" ,but that's in the last verse.He says "I feel so suicidal,just like Dylan's Mr. Jones" in the next to last verse'

http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Yer-Blues-lyrics-The-Beatles/8F5624D2D937374948256BC200210201

The eagle picks my eye
The worm he licks my bones
I feel so suicidal
Just like Dylan's Mr. Jones
Lonely wanna die
If I ain't dead already
Ooh girl you know the reason why.

Black cloud crossed my mind
Blue mist round my soul
Feel so suicidal
Even hate my rock and roll
Wanna die yeah wanna die
If I ain't dead already
Ooh girl you know the reason why.

 

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9wi6_dirty-mac-yer-blues_music

Cake has a song called "Frank Sinatra" that mentions his name

and also Cake sings "Meanwhile Rick James"

I have the "Life is a Rock" on 45 still

In response to lefig's comment:

That's a cool 45 to have.I used to have it,but it's long gone now.The singer of "Life is a rock",Joey Levine,was also the vocalist for Ohio Express who had such time tested hits as "Yummy,yummy,yummy" and "Chewy,chewy". 

In response to mrmojo1120's comment:

I have lots of 45's in a box from the mid 70's, use to wlak to the Music Shoppe in Burlington and pick them up, maybe even Almy's as I recall them having a record store before we got hip and went to the Music Shoppe

[Edit] Someone already pointed out what I was going to say. Neeeevermind.

Bob Dylan - "Blind Willie McTell"

http://video.filestube.com/watch,0b1e3b17daac322803ea/Bob-Dylan-Blind-Willie-McTell.html

"American Beat" by the Fleshtones covers pretty much all of the above, and more.  ;-)

Fleshtones are one of the truly underappreciated bands, I have about half a dozen of their CDs.

I just remembered a good one by one of my favorite artists, Nick Lowe. "All Men Are Liars":

"Well, do you remember Rick Astley?, He had a big fat hit, it was ghastly"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6hzkBihaew

 

 

And since we've been talking about Neil Young lately, I just listened to Tonight's the Night today, and the song "Borrowed Tune" has the line, "I'm singing this borrowed tune, I took from the Rolling Stones, Alone in this empty room, Too wasted to write my own".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5-Uqj8TwZk