The Uncle Devil Show - Leonardo's Bicycle

Artist: The Uncle Devil Show

Song: Leonardo’s Bicycle

Album: A Terrible Beauty (2004)

The Uncle Devil Show are a pop-rock guitar band formed as a side-project for three Scottish musicians, who use pseudonyms as their aliases.

The album

Leonardo's bicycle and me
Away from all the trains and cars, alone with gears and handlebars, I'm free
Leonardo's bicycle and me

Why bother paint a picture that isn't sunny?
Wine gums and Irn-Bru
With milk and honey

When I feel low I just get out my bike
Or rainbow-coloured trike
And ride away

Leonardo's bicycle and me
Away from all the trains and cars, alone with gears and handlebars, I'm free
Leonardo's bicycle and me

My map of many colours
A bird in every tree
I'm riding high on rubbers
The road belongs to me

When I feel sad I just get out my bike
Or rainbow-coloured trike
And ride away

Leonardo's bicycle and me
Away from all the trains and cars, alone with gears and handlebars, I'm free
Leonardo's bicycle and me

Leonardo's bicycle and me
Leonardo's bicycle and me
(He left it standing by the tree)
Leonardo's bicycle and me
(Now his two wheels belong to me)
Leonardo's bicycle and me
(His bell and chain have set me free)
Leonardo's bicycle and me
(He takes the bus and curses me)
Leonardo's bicycle and me

The Bouncing Souls - Streetlight Serenade

Artist: The Bouncing Souls

Song: Streetlight Serenade (To No One)

Album: How I Spent My Summer Vacation (2000)

The Bouncing Souls are a punk rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 1987. By the time of their acknowledgment by the national punk rock scene, they had reignited a "pogo" element to New Jersey punk rock by playing fast light-hearted songs, a model followed by various other local bands.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation is the fifth studio album by New Jersey punk band The Bouncing Souls. It was released on May 22, 2001. This was the first album to feature new drummer Michael McDermott, formerly of Murphy's Law and Skinnerbox.

review

I'll sing this song to my bike and everything else that I like
this goes out to my handlbars
As I'm weaving through the cars.
This is for my squirrels in the park and every dog that doesn't bark.
This is a song about a ride and listening to whats inside,
I look at all the cars I pass
I cruise myself in the glass

Video live

Paul Sachs - Stolen Bicycles

Artist: Paul Sachs

Song: Stolen Bicycles

Album: The Refuge (2009)

Paul Sachs

Stolen Bicycles
In the summertime it’s 1983
There’s a heat wave in the city
And it’s barrelin’ down upon you and me
Banana seats and handle bars
Riding in between the cars
With you
Sidewalk flying ‘neath our feet
Burning down the NY street
We flew
on our
Stolen Bicycles

Stolen Bicycles
In the rhythm of the public city schools
Where we cut the classes in our jeans
We broke the rules
Yellow sneakers purple hair
It was fun to ride nowhere with you
We didn’t care the damage done it was still a lot of fun
It’s true on our
Stolen Bicycles

Stolen Bicycle in my living room
But I bought it used and cheap
Off some kid on a corner and it’s missing a few spokes
And a seat
I remember I recall
It seemed like we stole them all
We flew
And from my youth of minor crimes
I Still get the urge sometimes
Its true
To ride a Stolen Bicycle
Gonna ride a Stolen Bicycle

Desperate Bicycles - Handlebars

Artist: Desperate Bicycles
Song: Handlebars (7”) (1977)

Desperate bicycles

In March 1977 the Desperate Bicycles booked a studio at Dalston in East London to record their first single. The band possessed only an amp and a bass-guitar and the studio supplied the other instruments and equipment; "with a lot of courage and a little rehearsal" they recorded two songs, “Smokescreen” and “Handlebars”. The first record was released in August 1977 as an edition of 500 pressings on the band’s own Refill Records label. The records cost £153 to produce, which comprised the three hours studio time, the price of pressing and the sleeves. The record was unusual in that it featured the same tracks on both sides and was a mono recording. The song "Handlebars" ends with the Desperate Bicycles' strident DIY rallying cry "it was easy, it was cheap - go and do it!". Roger Stephens and Danny Wrigley hawked the “Smokescreen” single around the small independent record shops, and distributors such as Virgin and Rough Trade. The first pressing sold out within four months resulting in a profit to the band of £210. Using this money a second pressing of 1,000 was made, which sold out in a fortnight.

Eric Herman - The World's Fastest Bicycle

Artist: Eric Herman & The Invisible Man
Song: The World’s Fastest Bicycle
Album: Kid In The Mirror (2003)

Eric Herman (real name Eric Herman Endres) is a children's music performer based in the Pacific Northwest. His music combines various styles of rock music with often wryly humorous kid-related lyrics to create what he refers to as "cool tunes for kids".

This is a great cd from Eric Herman. It is filled with fun catchy songs that our kids sing around the house. Our 2 year-old loves to say "No!" with the kids on the cd during the Elephant Song. The Dinosaur song is one of my favorites. His humor shines through in songs such as There's a Monster in My House. It is a fun cd to listen to.

mp3

My bicycles the fastest that the world has ever seen.

It has supersonic engines and a flame-retardant sheen.

My bicycle will travel a gazillion miles an hour.

It has rockets on the handlebars for supersonic power

Every time I take a ride everybodys eyes get wide-

Wow! Cool!Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!

Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!

Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!Here I come now on my bike!

The pedals both are jet-propelled to help you pedal faster.

The shifter is equipped with an electric turbo blaster.

The fender has a parachute in case you need to brake.

My bike is undeniably the fastest one they make.

Every time I take it out everybody starts to shout-

Wow! Cool!Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!

Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

Here I come now on my bike!

I could ride it day and night.Its faster than the speed of light.

My bicycles incredible. I love the way it feels.

And Ill like it even more when Dad removes the training wheels

Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!

Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!

This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb - Better Off Dead

Artist: This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb

Song: Better Off Dead

Album: Three Way Tie For A Fifth (2004)

This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb is a folk-punk alternative, unsophisticated group whose lyrics are characterized by teen angst and anarchic views. Much of their music is politically oriented. This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb is staunchly opposed to war and is concerned with the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s and racial equality in general.

Interesting asides: Band members met while one was on bike tour of Florida Keys; other bought a bike, joined ride, and, later, band; peace marchers and student fans were at various times arrested after putting band stickers on their bicycles.

An explosive dance party good time rocker from Pensacola basement levelers TBIAPB. A hybrid jamboree of country-folk and indie rock, performed with guitars, harmonica, drums, bass, lotsa vocals, and a liberating spirit of abandon. Sweet, soulful and fun!

not supposed to live past 13, I know you thought I forgot
getting older condition worsening
not born dead, but born to die
fuck their system spitshine yer eye
I watched you learn to fly that night in gainesville
flew to the rooftops on our handlebars
will couldnt see past the top of yer head
gonna gonna fly forever on our handlebars
if we don't live like this then were better off dead
no way to hold on no place to sit
the furthest thing from a perfect fit
well take our chances well wear our scars
carrie nations first tour and we were there 13 days without a care
we can never go back there again

MewithoutYou - Four World Letter (Pt. Two)

Artist: MewithoutYou

Song: Four Word Letter (Pt. Two)

Album: Catch For Us The Foxes (2004)

A blend of experimental rock structures, punky energy, spoken-word melodies, and Judeo-Christian content characterizes the output of mewithoutYou, a Philadelphia-based band that formed in 2001. Having grown up listening to Jawbox and Burning Airlines, brothers Aaron and Michael Weiss initially cut their hard rock teeth as frontmen of the Operation. After releasing an album with the help of Takehold Records, the Operation's members decided to launch a side project in order to experiment with new sounds. The Weiss brothers subsequently formed mewithoutYou with help from bassist Ray Tadeo, guitarist Christopher Kleinberg, and drummer Richard Mazzotta. Tooth & Nail was taken by the fiery five-piece's raw appeal and inked them a deal, with bassist Daniel Pishock replacing the departing Tadeo. The Operation disbanded shortly thereafter, allowing the musicians to focus their efforts on the new band. more

I wrote a four word letter,
With post-script in crooked lines,
"Tho I'd lived I'd never been alive."
You know who I am - you held my hem
As I traveled blind
Listening to a whispering in my ear,
Soft but getting stronger,
Telling me the only purpose of my being here
Is to stay a bit longer.

Stealing a bicycle chain,
As the handlebars crashed to the ground,
The back wheel detached from the frame,
It kept rolling, yeah, but aimlessly drifting around.

Oh, doubters, let's go down,
Lets go down - won't you come on down?
Oh doubters, lets go down-
Down, to the river to pray?

"But I'm so small I can barely be seen - how can this great love be inside of me?"
Look at your eyes - they're small in size, but they see enormous things.

Wearing black canvas slippers
In our frog-on-a-lily-pad pose
We sewed buttons and zippers
To chinese pink silk
And olive night clothes
If you can someday stop by
Somehow we'll show you the pictures and fix you some tea
(see, my dad's getting a bit older now and just unimaginably lonely).

Oh, pretenders, let's go down
Lets go down- won't you come on down?
Oh, pretenders
Lets go down-
Down to the river and pray?

"Oh but I'm so afraid, and I'm set in my ways"
But he'll make the rabbits and rocks sing his praise.
"But I'm too tired, I won't last long."
No, he'll use the weak to overcome the strong!

Oh, Amanda, let's go down
Lets go down- won't you come on down?
Mama, Nana, lets go down, down in the dirt by the river to pray?

You struke the match - why not be utterly changed by fire?
To sacrifice the shadow and the mist
Of a brief life you never much liked - So if you'd care to come along we're gonna curb all our never-ending,
clever complaining (as who's ever heard of a singer criticized by his song?)
We hunger, but though all that we eat brings us little relief we don't know quite what else to do,
We have all our beliefs but we don't want our beliefs,
God of peace, we want you.

MewithoutYou performs their song "Four Word Letter (Pt. Two)" live for your listening pleasure from the "Come and Live Tour". A tour for charity, proceeds going to Samaritan's Purse. If you want to hear the studio version of the song you should pick up their CD "Catch For Us The Foxes" on Tooth & Nail Records.

Eric Herman and The Invisible Man - The World's Fastest Bicycle

Artist: Eric Herman and the Invisible Man

Song: The World’s Fastest Bicycle

Album: The Kid in the Mirror

The Kid in the Mirror is the debut CD by Eric Herman and the Invisible Band. Highly acclaimed by kids and adults alike, The Kid in the Mirror features ten songs, including "There's a Monster in My House", "The World's Fastest Bicycle" and the much beloved "The Elephant Song".

"Engagingly sublime, with sophisticated artistry and magnificent wit." - Mindy, age 3

"Way cool!" - Sir Lord Alastair Huffington III, age 84

The Kid In The Mirror rocks with 10 tracks of cool tunes for kids, including such instant classics as "The Dinosaur, the Dodo and the Unicorn", "Video Game", "There's a Monster in My House" and "The Tiger and the Zebra". Five of the songs feature words written by renowned funny poetry author Kenn Nesbitt. Inventive arrangements, snazzy sound effects, imaginative lyrics, the engaging voice of Eric Herman and the punchy tightness and visual appeal of the Invisible Band all put The Kid In The Mirror at the forefront of contemporary children's music.

The real story about what happened to the dinosaurs, dodo birds and unicorns... An all-consuming video game... An extremely fast bicycle... A noisy, sleep-depriving monster... Ethereal dreams of flying... A hungry tiger and tasty zebra... A dangerously crazy mountain road...

Clapping, dancing and jumping along with the kid in the mirror... Elephants that swing through trees... The sun in a bathing suit and the moon in pajamas...

Yes, this album has it all! :o)

And here's the blah blah blah part...

Eric Herman has been a regular music and theater performer/writer in the Western New York area for over 15 years (by the name 'Eric Endres'). He has released several recordings of original music, spanning a wide variety of styles, and has regularly been nominated for area music awards. In addition to performing theater roles including Harold Hill and Alfie Dolittle, Eric has also written the book, lyrics and music for two full-length musical comedies, the first of which, A Week In The Life, was produced at the Alleyway Theatre in Buffalo, NY 2003 to much success and acclaim.

As a performer, Eric is known for being an accomplished and versatile guitarist and vocalist who performs poignant and memorable songs with a humorous and engaging stage manner that entertains audiences of all ages. Early in 2003, Eric began performing music for children at schools, day cares and other events, and quickly gained a reputation for involving kids in the performances and eliciting enthusiastic responses. Eric often performs with his backup group, The Invisible Band, which includes some of the finest invisible musicians in the world, adding a creative and fun element to the convention of backing tracks.

Eric's first album of music for children, The Kid In The Mirror, features ten memorable songs of tremendous wit, depth and musical craft, including five songs with words by popular funny poetry writer Kenn Nesbitt. Above all catchy, humorous, fun and imaginative in its variety of songs, The Kid In The Mirror also touches appropriately and creatively on important subjects like personal safety, self-esteem and bravery in the face of life's challenges.

review

My bicycle's the fastest that the world has ever seen.
It has supersonic engines and a flame-retardant sheen.
My bicycle will travel a gazillion miles an hour.
It has rockets on the handlebars for supersonic power.

Every time I take a ride everybody's eyes get wide-
"Wow! Cool!"

Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!
Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!
Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Here I come now on my bike!

The pedals both are jet-propelled to help you pedal faster.
The shifter is equipped with an electric turbo blaster.
The fender has a parachute in case you need to brake.
My bike is undeniably the fastest one they make.

Every time I take it out everybody starts to shout-
"Wow! Cool!"

Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!
Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!
Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Here I come now on my bike!

Yeah yeah, I could ride it day and night.
Yeah yeah, it's faster than the speed of light.

My bicycle's incredible. I love the way it feels.
And I'll like it even more when Dad removes the training wheels…

Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!
Go! Go! Go! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!

Mega Banton, Tanto Metro - Bicycle Bar

Artist: Mega Banton, Tanto Metro

Song: Bicycle Bar

Album: VV. AA. - Rodent Reggae (2000)

Rodent Reggae is a rather standard reggae dancehall compilation; it's not exceptional but contains a fair share of good moments, full of hedonistic abandon in its subject matter. There are tracks from Beenie Man (who seemingly appears on every various-artists dancehall comp of the 1990s), Goofy, Mona, Italee, Spragga Benz, Madd Anju, and many more. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide

The song “Bicycle Bar” was written by G. Williams and M. Wolfe.

Mega Banton

Tanto Metro

The Flobots - Hanlebars

Artist: The Flobots

Song: Handlebars

Album: Fight With Tools (2008)

Featuring dual MCs as well as a full band, the Flobots are a progressive rap group from Denver, CO, with a political conscious, musical chops, and a powerful live show.

more

Formed as a cohesive alternative organism in 2005, the FLOBOTS `good-fight' mythology can be traced via Denver's underground vines and creative community of the late `90s when various members enlivened each others' gigs and creative events, setting the charge that would eventually power up the band's contagious and rollicking rock/rap pedigree. Their rousing live show, seasoned by classically trained viola player Mackenzie Robert's innovative playing, sparked an impressive undertow of across-the-board support (including both coasts and off-the-grid territories such as Nebraska and Utah) as the group honed its glowing activist edge with a refreshingly positive message and bristling musicianship.

The prescient "Handlebars," currently holding down a coveted `Top request' slot at several key radio stations as well as being the Most Added at Alternative Radio, has placed FLOBOTS among the most buzzed-about newcomers in rock and rap circles. "'Handlebars' was written in the same way the group kind of blossomed," says Jonny 5. "I had a friend a few years ago who asked me if I ever tried to ride my bike with no handlebars. I hadn't, so I tried it. Got to thinking about all the other things I could do - we could do. The song came so fast to me I actually called my mom's answering machine to record the lyrics and make sure I got it all down. Of course it's also about how even our best intentions are laden with some sort of opposite. We like to think that FLOBOTS are about directing that positive energy into real change."

The song "is about the idea that we have so much incredible potential as human beings to be destructive or to be creative," Flobots' MC Jonny 5 (a.k.a. Jamie Laurie) told MTV. "And it's tragic to me that the appetite for military innovation is endless, but when it comes to taking on a project like ending world hunger, it's seen as outlandish. It's not treated with the same seriousness."

"...at the same time, I knew there were people at that moment who were being bombed by our own country. And I thought that was incredibly powerful." It is the contrast between these "little moments of creativity, these bursts of innovation," and the way these ideas are put to use "to oppress and destroy people" that the singer feels is both "beautiful and tragic at the same time."

music & video

The video for the song is partly rotoscoped and partly animated. It starts out lighthearted, showing two young friends riding their bikes without their hands on the handlebars. They arrive at a sign that points in two directions, one labeled with a corporate-like symbol, and the other labeled by a dove. They hug and head their separate ways.

The video's events escalate in tension and culminate in the corporate friend holding a dictator-like position of power, while the other friend has become a radical against him. The rebellious friend is shot and killed, along with all of the other followers, in front of the shocked corporate friend.

The video ends with a flashback of the two friends pedaling off riding with no handlebars crisscrossing into a bright light.

Several times in the video, the dove as a symbol is destroyed. Once an actual dove is killed by a hawk (Hawk being a common term for someone who favors a warlike stance, the same bird is seen flying over the corporate friend earlier in the video), simultaneously as a jetfighter flies overhead. The second time a wall with a dove painted on it, located next to a billboard displaying the corporate symbol, is destroyed by awrecking ball.

Another reference made within the video is to Che Guevara, an iconic revolutionist. This can be seen when the "good" friend is rallying a crowd, an image of Guevara's face appears on the yellow t-shirt on an overweight man.

I can ride my bike with no handlebars
No handlebars
No handlebars

I can ride my bike with no handlebars
No handlebars
No handlebars

Look at me, look at me
hands in the air like it's good to be
ALIVE
and I'm a famous rapper
even when the paths're all crookedy
I can show you how to do-si-do
I can show you how to scratch a record
I can take apart the remote control
And I can almost put it back together
I can tie a knot in a cherry stem
I can tell you about Leif Ericson
I know all the words to "De Colores"
And "I'm Proud to be an American"
Me and my friend saw a platypus
Me and my friend made a comic book
And guess how long it took
I can do anything that I want cuz, look:

I can keep rhythm with no metronome
No metronome
No metronome

I can see your face on the telephone
On the telephone
On the telephone

Look at me
Look at me
Just called to say that it's good to be
ALIVE
In such a small world
All curled up with a book to read
I can make money open up a thrift store
I can make a living off a magazine
I can design an engine sixty four
Miles to a gallon of gasoline
I can make new antibiotics
I can make computers survive aquatic conditions
I know how to run a business
And I can make you wanna buy a product
Movers shakers and producers
Me and my friends understand the future
I see the strings that control the systems
I can do anything with no assistance
I can lead a nation with a microphone
With a microphone
With a microphone
I can split the atoms of a molecule
Of a molecule
Of a molecule

Look at me
Look at me
Driving and I won't stop
And it feels so good to be
Alive and on top
My reach is global
My tower secure
My cause is noble
My power is pure
I can hand out a million vaccinations
Or let'em all die in exasperation
Have'em all grilled leavin lacerations
Have'em all killed by assassination
I can make anybody go to prison
Just because I don't like'em and
I can do anything with no permission
I have it all under my command
I can guide a missile by satellite
By satellite
By satellite
and I can hit a target through a telescope
Through a telescope
Through a telescope
and I can end the planet in a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust

I can ride my bike with no handlebars
No handle bars
No handlebars

I can ride my bike with no handlebars
No handlebars
No handlebars

Tom Waits - Broken Bicycles

Artist: Tom Waits

Song: Broken Bicycles

Album: One From The Heart (1982)

Tom Waits, according to the esteemed American critic Robert Hilburn, is "clearly one of the most important figures of the modern pop era". Such sentiments are not mere hyperbole; in a career that now spans four decades and over 20 albums, Tom Waits has long since emerged as an extraordinary innovative force, a singular voice whose music remains determinedly-and even gloriously - well beyond the trivial fads and fashions of popular culture. Waits' latest release, the 3CD set Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards adds further weight to that stellar reputation. more

Broken Bicycles was included in “One From The Heart”, the original soundtrack of the F. F. Coppola movie.

Bicycle becomes a metaphor for regrets by this master storyteller. (Bike&Chain)

There are numerous covers of this classic track. One, by Maura O’Connell, is here.

See also cover by Veronica Mortensen, Elvis Costello, and many others.

review

music

Broken bicycles, old busted chains
With rusted handle bars, out in the rain
Somebody must have an orphanage for
All these things that nobody wants any more
September's reminding July
It's time to be saying goodbye
Summer is gone, but our love will remain
Like old broken bicycles out in the rain

Broken bicycles, don't tell my folks
There’s all those playing cards pinned to the spokes
Laid down like skeletons out on the lawn
The wheels won't turn when the other has gone
The seasons can turn on a dime
Somehow I forget every time
For all the things that you've given me will always stay
Broken, but I'll never throw them away

Video live

Try My Bicycle - Lessons on Love and Junk

Artist: Try My Bicycle

Song: Lessons on Love and Junk

Album: Voicings (2007)

Folk with a solid jazz sensiblity.beautifully organic production with an emphasis on rich vocals/harmonies, musicianship, and recording live heartfelt studio performances.

Try Me Bicycle consists of four major players: Andy Naylor (Voice and Guitars), Jay Novak (Harmonies and Bass), Jacob Koller (Piano), Laraine Kaizer (Violin).

The history of Try Me Bicycle dates back to the fall of 2005, when we first met up to play through some material Andy had been working on. It was nothing serious, but the connection felt great from end to end, so we just kept working on material as Andy made it available. Eventually, we had mustered a live set’s worth of songs and began scheduling shows locally in our hometown of Phoenix, Arizona. Following one of those performances, we came in contact with songwriter/producer Michael Krassner (Patrick Park, Califone, Boxhead Ensemble, Simon Joyner). Michael wanted to record and produce the quartet and, given Michael’s reputation, we were ecstatic with such an offer. In November of 2006 we started recording and have since finished our first record together entitled “Voicings.”

biography

review

music

A light post off the desert plain down a road I’ve worn old
Lead me to a junkyard mirage of bicycle bones
There was a man with a heart
For his field of mechanical parts
He said take all the parts you like.
I found a bike with one tire
Found the handle bars, two pedals, and a chain entwined in the brior
With the rusted iron rot
Built this beautiful bike that I bought
Across the valleys, the moon lit the road that I’m ever to ride
Of but a prayer to see me thru
Take the old and make it brand new
And alright
I’ll ride that all night

Offer me something warm. Well I’d rather get high
To wine and dine with cultured crimes and eek my way by.
To be a moron with brains and whatever it takes to get laid
Turns out life just swept a broom over me
Sometimes I maybe right, sometimes I maybe wrong
In the end, love built a life out of me