Dust | 3 to 5 BOPS

Dust: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 54 (2023), features musical BOPS courtesy of Kansas, Luke Bryan, Queen, and Tame Impala. 

Ah, you know what time it is! It’s 3 to 5 BOPS time – WOO! On 3 to 5 BOPS, it’s all about brevity and sweetness… for the most part! There’s a theme/topic, 3, 4, or 5 songs, and a blurb – two paragraphs or less.  3 to 5 BOPS, hence, is a mini playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  In the 54th edition of 3 to 5 BOPS (2023), we select songs that are associated with DUST in some form or fashion. The BOPS arrive courtesy of 🎙 Kansas, 🎙 Luke Bryan, 🎙 Queen, and 🎙 Tame Impala. Okay, let’s get into it!

1. Queen, “Another One Bites the Dust” 

💿 The Game • 🏷 Hollywood • 📅 1980 

“Are you ready? Hey, are you ready for this? / Are you hanging on the edge of your seat? / Out of the doorway, the bullets rip / To the sound of the beat, yeah.” YEAH!!! One of the best BITE songs of all time was a no. 1 hit.  That’s right! 🎙 Queen spent three weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 with 🎵 “Another One Bites the Dust”.  The beloved gem appears as the third track on the 1980 album, 💿 The Game.  The other big-time song from The Game is 🎵 “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” by the way, another no. 1 hit for the 🎙 Freddie Mercury-led collective.    

What makes “Another One Bites the Dust” the sugar honey iced tea? It’s the groove, first and foremost! Those drums (🎙 Roger Taylor)! The robust bass line (🎙 John Deacon)! The guitar (Deacon and of course, 🎙 Brian May)!  The music is as infectious as the lyrics.   Notably, John Deacon wrote this song. Freddie Mercury, among the most entertaining and skilled frontmen of all time, does a superb job of bringing Deacon’s lyrics to life.  The crowning achievement, of course, is the chorus, in all its infectiousness!  

“Another one bites the dust 

Another one bites the dust 

And another one gone, and another one gone 

Another one bites the dust 

Hey, I’m gonna get you, too 

Another one bites the dust.”  

Appears in 🔻:

• Bite: 5ive Songs No. 11 (2022)
• BEWARE, These Songs Totally BITE! (2023)

2. Tame Impala, “Tomorrow’s Dust”

💿 The Slow Rush • 🏷 Island / Modular Recordings Pty Ltd • 📅 2020

On 🎵 “Tomorrow’s Dust,” 🎙 Tame Impala incites foot tapping, body moving and grooving.  🎙 Kevin Parker came to dance, baby!  Despite an alluring backdrop, it’s the lyrics that yield the most distinct moments on this five-and-a-half-minute number. Parker is reflective, philosophical, and ‘forward thinking’ – no need to dwell in the past. “I was blinded by a memory / Like it’s someone else, like it wasn’t me,” he sings in the refrain, continuing, “And there’s every chance I’ll be learning fast / And the day will come and then it will pass.”  

3. Luke Bryan, “Kick the Dust Up” 

💿 Kill the Lights • 🏷 Capitol Nashville • 📅 2015  

“We go way out where / There ain’t nobody / We turn this cornfield / Into a party…” At one time, 🎙 Luke Bryan was firmly planted in the camp of artists unafraid to modernize country music.  And yes, Bryan also embraced the questionable bro country movement too.  While Bryan’s output yields some mixed results, 🎵 “Kick the Dust Up” from his 2015 album, 💿 Kill the Lights marks a bright spot in the Georgia artist’s catalog. “Kick the Dust Up” is firmly planted in country music, with the use of acoustic and electric guitar, as well as pummeling drums.  Set in a minor key, there’s a bite – a ferociousness – about the record that helps make it a surefire winner. That said, “Kick the Dust Up” also isn’t devoid of pop.  The use of drum programming, some synths, and certain sounds are simply NOT associated with traditional country.  Regardless, Bryan gets the blend right here, and “Kick the Dust Up” reaps the benefits. The chorus – excerpted above and continued as follows – is among the best moments.  

“Pedal to the floorboard 

Eight up in a four door 

Burnin’ up a back-road song 

Park it and we pile out 

Baby, watch your step now 

Better have your boots on 

Kick the dust up…” 

Appears in 🔻:

• 11 Songs That Either Kick or Push (2019)

4. Kansas, “Dust in the Wind” 

💿 Point of Know Return • 🏷 Sony • 📅 1977 

“I close my eyes / Only for a moment and the moment’s gone / All my dreams / Pass before my eyes, a curiosity.” When you think of 🎙 Kansas (the band), what’s the first song that comes to mind? Likely, it’s 🎵 “Dust in the Wind,” the band’s biggest hit.  “Dust in the Wind” marked the band’s sole top-10 hit, peaking at no. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.  Worth noting, the 🏆 Grammy-nominated band did not receive their sole nomination for “Dust in the Wind,” their ace-in-the-hole.  No, they received a Grammy nom for 🎵 “Crossfire” … I’ll leave it at that.   

“Now, don’t hang on 

Nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky 

It slips away 

And all your money won’t another minute buy.”  

“Dust in the Wind” arrives on the band’s 1977 album, 💿 Point of Know Return.  Acoustic driven, notably, the sound of the record is quite different than the rest of the catalog.  Compare it to their other popular songs, as well as “Crossfire” and it’s clearly ‘a change of pace.’ Way to go out of character, Kansas!  One of the biggest things that stands out about “Dust in the Wind” is that signature, picked acoustic guitar line.  Also selling points: warm lead vocals, vocal harmonies, the strings, and of course, the lyrics.  This reflective record packs a mean punch considering how gentle it is.   

Appears in 🔻:

• 15 Must-Hear, Throwback Vibez, Vol. 3 (2022)  
• 12 Powerful Songs About the Wind 💨 (2023)

Dust: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 54(2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Capitol Nashville, Hollywood, Island / Modular Recordings Pty Ltd, Sony; Marcos Kohler from Pexels]