Every now and then I get some nostalgia for old bands I listened to in high school. Being from the Sacramento area, a lot of these were local bands up there. Maybe one of the biggest is Lawsuit, a band that hailed from Davis. Despite gaining a big following in the Sacramento area, the band never made it bigger than that and eventually broke up in 1996 and then lead singer, ringleader, Paul Sykes died in 1999.
Their sound is reminiscent of They Might Be Giants or some of the goofier sides of Talking Heads (they even have a song titled "Byrne David Byrne"), but with big horn arrangements and a jam band feel. In fact, they may be the only ‘jam band’ that I still enjoy. There’s something to be said for nostalgia.
The one song that really takes me back and still makes me smile to this day is "Thank God You’re Doing Fine" off of their release Emergency Third Rail Power Trip (not to be confused with the 1983 Rain Parade album of the same name). A high energy track that makes you want to do a silly hippie dance.
Lawsuit – "Thank God You’re Doing Fine"
The band has Emergency Third Rail Power Trip and all their other albums available for free download.
