Warren Zevon - "Hit Somebody! (The Hockey Song)"

Lots of reasons this song has been on my mind lately. The hockey playoffs are going on right now. David Letterman, who will be ending his show May 20, guest stars on the track. (And Paul Shaffer plays organ.) And the album that houses this song, My Ride's Here, dropped this month 13 years ago. Letterman and Warren Zevon were old pals, and as Late Show winds to a close, there have been reminders of their friendship on the show. (Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires played Zevon's "Mutineer" the other night.)

"Hit Somebody! (The Hockey Song)" was co-written by Zevon and longtime sportswriter (and Tuesdays With Morrie author) Mitch Albom, and it tells the story of a hockey goon with aspirations to be a scorer. It's a silly, endearing little tale, mostly for Letterman's yelled chorus hook. I hope it never gets made into a Kevin Smith movie.

Warren Zevon- "Accidentally Like a Martyr"

Around the time that Warren Zevon was diagnosed with cancer in 2002, Bob Dylan took to covering a couple Zevon songs at his concerts. His version of "Accidentally Like a Martyr" was particularly strong, and while I'd always liked the song, it really struck me at the moment how affecting it was.

Enjoy every sandwich.

warren zevon - keep me in your heart

Funny People opens today. I'll have my review up in a little while -- sorry, I've been busy with other work -- but since the movie includes this song, I had to throw it up on the site in the meantime. Just a beautiful tune.

(I will say that I think Funny People is better than most people do, and it's certainly Judd Apatow's best film.)