Mission Mission

Check out this total throwback recently unearthed by our ol’ pal Lizzy (former Mission Mission contributor) (who years ago relocated to another city altogether):

Wow don’t remember when or why I got these besides that it was probably right about this time 5 years ago. Actually, I was probably hanging onto them for @punkgirls one night or something. Viva Thursdays at Jacks. I’m even listening to Rilo Kiley 😶 [link]

RIP Jack’s!!! Also, what the F is happening with that space anyway??? (DJ Purple’s karaoke night ended, and then they closed up altogether, and then some refurbishment seemed to start, and then it stalled, and now it’s been sitting vacant for about a million years.)

Let’s rock:

And now please enjoy all these Jack’s-related posts from over the years…

Five nights in a row!! Whatdowedo??!??

Thursday: Halloween Costume Dance Karaoke (w/ DJ Purple) @ Slate!

Friday: Black Lips, Prince, Harold Ray Live, and Warren Zevon (kinda) @ some place in Oakland!

Saturday: Smithfits (w/ costume contest) @ The Knockout!

Sunday: Nobunny (special Halloween show) @ Hemlock!

Monday: American Tripps (w/ DJs Wam Bam Ashleyanne & Tristes Tropiques) @ Pop’s!

It started as an accident and then spiraled out of control:

1. Eloise – The Damned
2. Delilah – Tom Jones
3. Dawn – The Four Seasons
4. Julia – The Beatles
5. Veronica – Elvis Costello
6. Beth – KISS
7. Jolene – Dolly Parton
8. Valerie – Amy Winehouse

It was awesome.

Support your local karaoke night! (In the Mission we recommend DJ Purple on Thursdays at Slate and Roger Niner on third Fridays at Pop’s.)

With a little help from DJ Purple of course. Watch:

Seriously, how awesome is that, performing YOUR OWN SONG at karaoke? (Great backing vocalist back there too.)

Now please read my review of “Love Both Sides” (the song in question) from a few weeks back.

American Tripps (the “Berlin-style” ping pong party I helped start here in the Mission back in 2011) along with the legendary DJ Purple present the first-ever April Fools’ Day edition of Singin’ & Pingin’, this Friday night at Verdi Club. Here’s from the official invite:

This is our first ever APRIL FOOLS’ DAY date, so we knew it had to be a SINGIN’ & PINGIN’ party!!!

• DANCE KARAOKE w/ the world famous DJ Purple
• BERLIN-STYLE PING PONG all night long (2 tables!)
• DRINK SPECIALS by the Verdi Club crew

*****Special guest ~April fools~ will announce CRAZY NEW RULES at the ping pong tables throughout the night!!!!
**********And it’s up to YOU to bring some utter FOOLISHNESS to the karaoke stage!!!

RSVP and invite your friends here! (And be sure to get a head start browsing DJ Purple’s songbook.)

UPDATE: Btw my favorite *foolish* song DJ Purple has is probably “Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick” by Ian Dury. I’d do it myself tomorrow, but I have some other plans. Who’s up for it?

We haven’t had a Singin’ & Pingin’ since Halloween 2014 at Verdi Club, man. Time to make up for lost time! Here’s the invite:

Would you believe SINGIN’ & PINGIN’ has been on hiatus since 2014??? It’s true!!! Here’s what’s in store for *****the first can’t-miss party of 2016*****…

• Singin’ with DANCE KARAOKE
• Pingin’ with BERLIN-STYLE PING PONG
• Rockin’ out to DJ Purple’s SAXOPHONE SOLOS
• Dancin’ with YOUR FRIENDS
• Makin’ some NEW FRIENDS
• Drinkin’ BEER
• Drinkin’ WHISKEY GINGERS
• Drinkin’ CHAMPAGNE IN A CAN
• Drinkin’ WHATEVER YOU WANT
• Partyin’ ALL DAMN NIGHT

Check out DJ Purple’s songbook here.

Read about the history of Berlin-style ping pong in San Francisco here.

RSVP and invite your friends!

(And big thanks to Singin’ & Pingin’ for being our sponsor all month long!)

That sax! Be sure to party with DJ Purple every Thursday at Slate Bar, or also on January 23rd at Rickshaw Stop for the return of Singin’ & Pingin’!

And preorder the whole new Still Flyin’ album here.

From time to time I like to share lists of songs I’ve sung at karaoke over a given period, mostly to express to the uninitiated how possible it is to go to karaoke and sing lots of your favorite songs — weird stuff too, not just big hits.

Once you know that, you can start going to karaoke all the time and reveling in its transformative powers, come out of your shell, become a better person, etc.

Here’s everything I sang in a little bar in Tokyo’s Golden Gai district at my birthday party last week:

1. Rebel Yell – Billy Idol
2. Touch Me - The Doors
3. Sunday Morning - The Velvet Underground
4. Darlin’ - The Beach Boys
5. Maybelline - Chuck Berry
6. I’m Not Like Everybody Else - The Kinks
7. Out of Time - The Rolling Stones
8. Material Girl - Madonna
9. Every 1’s A Winner - Hot Chocolate
10. Young Americans - David Bowie
11. Reflektor - Arcade Fire
12. Don’t Think Twice - Bob Dylan
13. Working for the Weekend - Loverboy
14. The Boys Are Back in Town - Thin Lizzy
15. Pink Triangle - Weezer
16. Minority - Green Day
17. Red Hot Moon - Rancid
18. New York City Cops - The Strokes
19. Perfect Day - Lou Reed
20. Rocky Raccoon - The Beatles
21. Alison - Elvis Costello
22. Burning Love - Elvis Presley
23. Daria - Cake
24. Work to Do - The Isley Brothers
25. Debaser - Pixies
26. Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding

It was the first time I ever sang a Bowie song. I’d always been too hesitant because it seemed like messing up a Bowie song would be too much of a bummer, but when I saw “Young Americans” in the songbook and I was with a bunch of young Americans and had had a lot to drink, it seemed like a good idea.

If you want to sing some karaoke soon, I might recommend doing it at Pop’s this Friday with Roger Niner (who has an incredibly extensive songbook) or at Singin’ & Pingin’ at Rickshaw Stop on the 23rd with DJ Purple (who puts on a very special “Dance Karaoke” party).

Numbers-wise it’s only a handful more than the time I sang 45 songs in the month of May 2014 alone, but I sang a lot of good stuff in 2015.

It started with a pair of songs at the first Karaoke Underground party in San Francisco, and grew and grew from there. Highlights (besides the KU stuff) included “96 Tears” which was surprisingly awesomely fun to do even though it’s real simple, “Diane Young” because the baby-baby-babys are so fun, “Surf Wax” because the audience loooooved it so hard, “Honey Bunny” because I mean c’mon GIRLS, MAN, and “Police on My Back” because it was my final song of 2015, on New Year’s Eve in Shibuya and it was awesome.

The point of this list and this post is to encourage everyone to do more karaoke! I got into somewhat late in life, like when I was 28 or something, and I hope to help others avoid this pitfall. Karaoke is killer and it will improve your life, I promise. Here’s the full list:

1. Christina – Oblivians
2. I’m Not An Animal – The Blind Shake
3. Brandy You’re A Fine Girl - Looking Glass
4. Conquest - The White Stripes
5. I Don’t Wanna Dance - Eddy Grant
6. Go West - Pet Shop Boys
7. Victim of Love - Erasure
8. Motherless Children - Eric Clapton
9. Back to the Shack - Weezer
10. Seasons - Future Islands
11. Fall Back Down - Rancid
12. Girl U Want - Devo
13. Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again - Angels, The
14. 96 Tears - ? and the Mysterians
15. You Might Think - The Cars
16. What Do All the People Know - The Monroes
17. Diane Young - Vampire Weekend
18. Don’t You Want Me - The Human League
19. Virginia Plain - Roxy Music
20. Surf Wax America - Weezer
21. What Ever Happened? - The Strokes
22. Army - Ben Folds
23. Annie Waits - Ben Folds Five
24. Veronica - Elvis Costello
25. You’re My Best Friend - Queen
26. More Than A Woman - The Beegees
27. Rivers of Babylon - Boney M.
28. Next to Me - Emeli Sonde
29. Take Me to Church - Hozier
30. Dance the Night Away - The Mavericks
31. End of the Line - The Traveling Wilburys
32. Cruel to Be Kind - Nick Lowe
33. She’s Got You - Patsy Cline
34. Walk on the Wild Side - Lou Reed
35. Rasputin - Boney M.
36. Live and Let Die - Paul McCartney
37. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da - The Beatles
38. Don’t Go Breaking My Heart - Elton John and Kiki Dee
39. Someday - The Strokes
40. Oh Yoko - John Lennon
41. Getting By - The Rentals
42. Honey Bunny - Girls
43. Rich Girls - The Virgins
44. Myth Takes - !!!
45. Blank Generation - Richard Hell
46. Marquee Moon - Television
47. Someday - The Strokes
48. Undercover of the Night - The Rolling Stones
49. Living for the City - The Dirtbombs
50. Don’t Pass Me By - The Beatles
51. Shoop - Salt ‘n Pepa
52. Take Me Back to Your House - Basement Jaxx
53. Relax, Take It Easy - MIKA
54. Police on My Back - The Clash

I particularly recommend, if you’re looking to do karaoke in San Francisco, doing karaoke at DJ Purple’s world-famous “Dance Karaoke” party, every Thursday at Slate Bar in the Mission

[Photo by The Karaoke Underground]

Me and my pals at Jameson Irish Whiskey threw DJ Purple a 50th birthday bash-slash-holiday party (at J. Rusten Furniture Studios, which, incidentally, may not be located in the Mission for very much longer; throw yourself a party there asap while you still can) on Saturday night, and it was epic.

As a special treat for himself (and everyone in attendance) DJ Purple got KJ Paul to come in and assist on karaoke duties so that the birthday boy could step out and sing some stuff for once! It was historic.

Here’s some video:

DJ Purple does his patented “Dance Karaoke” party every Thursday in the Mission, at Slate Bar on 16th Street, don’t forget.

Here’s one more pic of the party:

[Photos and videos by Luke Spray]