Happy National Coffee Day

Unless you live under a rock, you know today is National Coffee Day. Here at the Rock Turtleneck office, every day is coffee day – we drink the robust, savory beverage any way we can, with half and half if it's hot, and whole milk if it's iced. Skim literally doesn't cut it.

When they’re not singing about world peace, groupies or heroin, a lot of RT’s favorite musicians have recorded musical tributes to America's favorite eye-opener.

Back in his early days in the late sixties, Bob Marley and the Wailers had a hit in Jamaica with their song “One More Cup of Coffee.” You can find it on his must-own box set Songs of Freedom. While researching this piece, I learned that the Marley family sell a Bob Marley line of coffees with blends like "Stir it Up" and "Simmer Down" - amazingly, I see no evidence of one named after his one song that actually mentions coffee.


Another Bob, Bob Dylan, also has a song called “One More Cup of Coffee,” a highlight of his 1975 album Desire. Dylan's ode to joe has a subtitle (Valley Below) and a vibe that's much more Tehran than Trenchtown, but Marley’s influence is felt nonetheless. Here’s Zimmerman singing it on his '75 Rolling Thunder Tour, as captured in his 4-hour self-directed opus Renaldo and Clara.


Dylan is a big coffee enthusiast – you don't write a thousand or so songs, play 100+ nights a year, write books and make films without a little pick-me-up. A few years back, his justly celebrated XM Radio show Theme Time Radio Hourdedicated an hour to the beverage. You can download his Coffee episode, and many others, here.

The White Stripes, who I would imagine love to start their day with a nice strong cup of Chock Full O' Nuts, majestically covered Dylan’s tune on their first album.


The Stripes also appeared in a hipper-than-thou art-house film called “Coffee and Cigarettes.” Here they are sitting in a café discussing — what else? — the legacy of genius inventor Nikola Tesla.


The most famous java related song in semi-recent memory is surely Squeeze's “Black Coffee in Bed" from 1982. In the tradition of their heroes Lennon & McCartney, it's a closely observed, super-melodic tale of marital strife and sexual gamesmanship. While it is not my favorite of their many pop gems, it’s a catchy, literate little ditty and also features background vocals by Paul Young and Elvis Costello.


Remember, at Rock Turtleneck, WE ARE HAPPY TO SERVE YOU.