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Dan Hicks — I Scare Myself
Album: Strikin' It Rich
Avg rating:
6.3

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1034









Released: 1972
Length: 5:33
Plays (last 30 days): 2
I scare myself
Just thinking about you
I scare myself
When I'm without you
I scare myself
The moments that you're gone
I scare myself
When I let my thoughts run

And when they're runnin'
I keep thinking of you
And when they're runnin'
What can I do?

I scare myself
And I don't mean lightly
I scare myself
It can get frightenin'
I scare myself
To think what I could do
I scare myself
It's some kinda voodoo

And with that voodoo
I keep thinking of you
And with that voodoo
What can I do?

But it's oh so, so, so different
When we're together
And I'm oh so so much calmer, I feel better
For the stars have crossed our paths forever
And the sooner that you realize it, the better

Then I'll be with you
And I won't scare myself
And I'll know what to do
And I won't scare myself
And then I'll think of you
And I won't scare myself
And then my thoughts'll run
And I won't scare myself

Then I'll be with you
And I won't scare myself
And I'll know what to do
And I won't scare myself
And I'll think of you
And I won't scare myself
And my thoughts will run
And I won't scare myself...
Comments (105)add comment
 ScottishWillie wrote:

I think the Thomas Dolby cover of this is excellent and I can't help being impressed that Thomas could listen to this and recognise a song for himself in it. I wouldn’t have said it was the most obvious Thomas Dolby song.



Yes, the Thomas Dolby version is surprisingly good!
Not good. Glad we have a skip forward button. 
Hendrix' "All Along the Watchtower"
Santana's "Black Magic Woman"
The Damned's "Alone Again Or"
Dolby's "I Scare Myself"
et al.

Sometimes the cover equals or transcends the original. 
Don't forget the Lickettes!
Psycho fiddle! I was 20! A 10, of course!
 LuvsMusic wrote:


It seems you are not alone in your opinion.  I find it dark and delicious.  It's my first time hearing it.  I hope it grows on you bc it is a very interesting song.


Great Album. 
 acolt wrote:

This is . . . I don't know, bad?



It seems you are not alone in your opinion.  I find it dark and delicious.  It's my first time hearing it.  I hope it grows on you bc it is a very interesting song.
This is . . . I don't know, bad?
Dan Hicks! Nice, RP. More, please.
Amazing violin solos
If this is a repeat, I'll delete it, but the stage name of his female backup singers was "The Lickettes" (sophmoric smiles all around).  
Just looked up sophmoric on Google to be sure I had it right and there was a picture of ex-President Trump, yielding yet another sophmoric smile.
Scary good.
 eyke wrote:

Found this LP in a retro shop in Harrisburg, PA. The cool thing is the album is a matchbook style gate fold. Never seen one before or since, unless you count Alice Cooper's school desk for School's Out. 
Know this song from KPIG. Need to drag this out and drop the needle again for the first time.


This was on my Sunday rotation of black plastic. A very fine album indeed.
Such a super kick ass song!  
 kcar wrote:

So...not It's a Beautiful Day?

OK, I was pretty close. David LaFlamme the violinist and Hicks performed together before LaFlamme formed IaBD. Is David playing on this track? 




The violin is by Symphony Sid Page.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
Man, I haven't heard this in a long time! Love this song... thanks Bill and Rebecca  
With all the Thomas Dolby comments, I think you gotta follow this song with Dolby's "I Love You, Goodbye"
I always thought this was Thomas Dolby's best song. Loving the strings on this original. 
Saw him in a little bar on the Russian River in the late 60's.  Rode a bike from Vacaville. Slept in a bag by the river. Giggled all night.  The Licks were really hot.
RIP
 khardog145 wrote:
Absolutely love Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks.   Had Strikin it Rich and Where's the Money albums and 8 Tracks.  My best friend and I took off from Chicago in our 1961 Ford Econoline Van with flames on the side made from color tape and a 3 on the tree manual transmission - for the promise land of California.  Many a happy hour on the road playing Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks.  "The Buzzard was their Friend" ...."I feel like singing".   Sad to see the low rating, but I guess you had to be there.
 
The older I grow, the more I discover "you had to be there" moments.
I've just heard it for the first time. I thought someone has covered Thomas. No idea it was a cover. That's one of the reasons for listening to RP
 ScottishWillie wrote:
I think the Thomas Dolby cover of this is excellent and I can't help being impressed that Thomas could listen to this and recognise a song for himself in it. I wouldn’t have said it was the most obvious Thomas Dolby song.
 

Absolutely love Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks.   Had Strikin it Rich and Where's the Money albums and 8 Tracks.  My best friend and I took off from Chicago in our 1961 Ford Econoline Van with flames on the side made from color tape and a 3 on the tree manual transmission - for the promise land of California.  Many a happy hour on the road playing Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks.  "The Buzzard was their Friend" ...."I feel like singing".   Sad to see the low rating, but I guess you had to be there.
Found this LP in a retro shop in Harrisburg, PA. The cool thing is the album is a matchbook style gate fold. Never seen one before or since, unless you count Alice Cooper's school desk for School's Out. 
Know this song from KPIG. Need to drag this out and drop the needle again for the first time.
I graduated high school the year this album came out.  This song has been one of my 3 all time favorites ever since.  After this song, I need a break cuz nothing else will sound good for a whle.  Miss you, Dan.
Always loved the Thomas Dolby version.  Had no clue it was a cover.

It's me I'm scaring!
Oh MAN ! Back in the day...we used to come home from our fav. bar, Duddley's Draw in College Station, TX.  My buddy would put Dan Hicks on. When I 1st listened...I wasn't sure but this grew and grew on me!  Then we wold usually play Charades.  A very good lady friend... always gave me Stray Cat Strut... Really!? How do ya do that and still maintain some masculinity?  Was a Hoot! My favorite Dan Hicks next to "The Piano's Been Drinking" LMAO
Heck, I thought that song belonged to Mr. Dolby. I remember that being released in the 80s.
When I was around 9, following my mom around a thrift store somewhere, I saw her flip through a pile of LP's and say "huh, I went to school with this guy."  She bought the album - Where's The Money - and I've been a Dan Hicks fan ever since.  A unique personality and artist for sure; his autobiography is a good read for anyone interested in SF history and the music industry at the time.
 Shipp wrote:
Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks.
 
My friend 'Ironfeather' did at least one poster for him. Not sure if it was ever released, it was pretty suggestive. I have a couple copies, but below is the only one I've seen in the wild. He did some for Mother Earth too, for shows in Houston. He passed away some years ago, but I have lots of his stuff.

I had no idea TD's version was a cover! The things you learn on RP...
c.

https://images.app.goo.gl/CuCo...
how about Barry Reynolds too?
RIP Dan
Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks.
I think the Thomas Dolby cover of this is excellent and I can't help being impressed that Thomas could listen to this and recognise a song for himself in it. I wouldn’t have said it was the most obvious Thomas Dolby song.
Strange song...
Missed this but Thomas Dolby's cover was really good (mid-80s?).
Song is great... not necessarily the best on this album (album, IMHOP the best of Dan & his HLs)

Band was poorly recognized at the peak of their fame... and that oversight has only become more grotesque as time passes.  This album is not perfect... but in a nearly identical reality, 60 or 70 percent of it could have been top forty.

What I am trying to say is go listen... there will be a few songs that you don't much favor.  But if you are a fan of the era... there may be 7 or 8 that will enter your high rotation playlist.

Some really really good material on this LP
 lathyris wrote:
....
In case you're interested in experiencing the euphoria: https://www.facebook.com/philip.lewis4/videos/10154653063172460/?pnref=story
 
Thanks, friend.  I'm sure she needs a good laugh these days.
WICKED   (in a good way : )
Damn, forgot about this.  Played the hell out of it back when.
LOVE Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks.  Sweetheart, (Waitress in a donut shop) is another absolute favorite!  Great stuff.


COOL! I adore Thomas Dolby's version of this for its spastic B-52s-style exuberance and wizardry, but, hey, quite a trippy original here!
I was about to momentarily pause RP to watch a silly dancing Hillary video, but then this came on and I was strangely compelled to keep listening. Also, Hillary seemed to be dancing to the song.

In case you're interested in experiencing the euphoria: https://www.facebook.com/philip.lewis4/videos/10154653063172460/?pnref=story

I always thought Thomas Dolby was the original version, thank you RP I'm always learning.  Now I'll listen to more Dan Kicks. {#Dance}
So...not It's a Beautiful Day?

OK, I was pretty close. David LaFlamme the violinist and Hicks performed together before LaFlamme formed IaBD. Is David playing on this track? 
late dan hicks - snif I didn't know
This song was used in a great Australian TV show Sea Change, can't find a you tube link to the song, but very different from this.

 I Scare MyselfArtist: Renee Geyer and Uncle BillAlbum: The Very Best of Seachange (Soundtrack from the TV Series)
Wonderful! I'd only heard this by Thomas Dolby. How charming. 
I've tried uploading "Innocent Bystander" and "Canned Music" in the past but they both got "Insta-sorried".
He did a version of this with Ricky Lee Jones that is pretty decent but that also got rejected when I uploaded it.

 
Most excellent ~ RIP
Well, I had forgotten all about him. On the station I keep 
rummagMing through my old hippie days. They were great!
 ScottishWillie wrote:

Wow. I also hadn’t realised the Thomas Dolbys version was a cover. In fact while Thomas version is closer to a copy than a cover it still manages to sound totally different.



 
indeed! {#Think}
 Krispian wrote:
First time hearing this. I didn't know Thomas Dolby's version was a cover. {#Stupid}
 

Wow. I also hadn’t realised the Thomas Dolbys version was a cover. In fact while Thomas version is closer to a copy than a cover it still manages to sound totally different.


scared me alright :)
Saw Dan and the Lickettes perform this in 1972. The violin solo was mesmerizing.  Thanks for all the great music Dan!
Would love to hear "Where's the Money" added to the RP playlist.
{#Dancingbanana_2}
 
Dan Hicks is very under-rated. It'd be great to hear more from him. 'Hell I'd Go' would be a nice song to play.
 Krispian wrote:

First time hearing this. I didn't know Thomas Dolby's version was a cover. {#Stupid}

 
Same here. 
 Bridieboo wrote:
I'd rather hear Thomas Dolby's version {#Snooty}

 
First time hearing this. I didn't know Thomas Dolby's version was a cover. {#Stupid}
A rockin 2 from me
RIP DAN , SEEN EM SEVERAL TIMES WITH THE LICKETTES AS HE CLLD EM / GROOVE ON
this was such a great album, loved so much about it
in the early 1970's I saw Dan Hicks and The Hot Licks open for Bob Segar in Detroit
it wasn't a good mix for the Dee-troit rock city crowd who were screaming for "rock-n-roll" thru their set
by the end of their set Hicks told the crowd in the finest Hicks sarcasim that the next act has a wall of sound that will blow them away
I saw him with this band in the 70's and then with the "Acoustic Warriors" in the late 80's. Great music each time.
RIP Dan Hicks.
A true American original. 
 dc_zee wrote:
It's easily 23 years ago that I saw him in Houston after a departure with the Hot Licks.  When asked about what happened to the HLs, Dan replied something akin to 'They're in the back of a trunk somewhere.'   Halloween appropriate comment...though I like the song in a different way.
 

...i had a hot lick as a client about ten years ago; she didn't look like she'd been kept in a trunk...
I'm loving this Halloween special this year. I see that you have your pumpkin hoodie on Bill. So do I! Is that gay or what?
Yes yes yes YES!!!! Such an amazing performance. That violin solo tears my face off
Not sure why anyone would prefer the Thomas Dolby version but what do I know - I have always LOVED this song - from the first time I heard it. I rated it '9' but it's really a 9.5.
It's easily 23 years ago that I saw him in Houston after a departure with the Hot Licks.  When asked about what happened to the HLs, Dan replied something akin to 'They're in the back of a trunk somewhere.'   Halloween appropriate comment...though I like the song in a different way.
 kobkob wrote:
same here
 
{#No}

 Bridieboo wrote:
I'd rather hear Thomas Dolby's version {#Snooty}
 

same here
I just saw him with his current band and they are still a ton of fun.

He's been at this for 40 years now.
My favorite of all his albums with IMHO his best band: Sid Page, John Girton, Jaime Leopold, Maryanne Price, and Naomi Ruth Eisenberg. Extra credit...long after Girton retired from touring with one band or another, he retired to Chico and taught guitar in and around Chico State. My brother, no mean guitarist himself, either took one of Girton's classes or played with him in Chico. He told me, "Man, you have no idea what this guy knows. He can play anything..." High praise indeed from a guy who won't play with me anymore because I fumble too much with esoteric bass turn-arounds, "Uh, what chord was that?"
Still a FABULOUS tune...

A couple of summers ago the Music In the Mountains series booked Dan as one of their "pops" acts at the Nevada County (CA) Fairgrounds (in the aptly-named town of Grass Valley, to which all offspring from the early days of Virginia City—well,not THAT early!—eventually resettled). It was really amusing to watch the expressions on the (mostly) octogenarians in attendance as Dan went on and on about UFOs, hash brownies, and Lord knows what else. It was QUITE an evening....
Saw Dan at Duke University many moons ago, and fell in love with his quirky style.  I wonder where his sidekicks the "Lickettes" have gone?  They were delicious!
{#Boohoo} 

I saw the HotLicks play with Asleep at the Wheel in Aspen about 10 years ago.  Wonder mix of voices.. 


Omigosh this is so perfect for Halloween. I did a Halloween music mix years ago to greet the kids at the door and it never occurred to me to include this song. Take two! (Happy to share my list ...)

I'm Scared...!!!
Dan and the hot licks played in our high school gym in 1973

One of my all time favorite songs.  I scare myself all the time.   BOO!.
I'd rather hear Thomas Dolby's version {#Snooty}
Rotterdam wrote:
Dan Hicks has a terrific and fun talent. He is also still going strong - or last time I heard... Some of his newer stuff is amazing.
Saw him live last Thanksgiving at The Old Town School of Folk Music up on Lincoln Avenue in Chicago. My take: "Better than ever"!
daveesh wrote:
like this but dolby's is awesome
now that i REALLY had a chance (two years later) to digest that violin solo, i like this version a lot.
Saw these guys at the Armadillo, quite a long time ago in a previous life.
Dan Hicks has a terrific and fun talent. He is also still going strong - or last time I heard... Some of his newer stuff is amazing.
daveesh wrote:
like this but dolby's is awesome
Yes, I prefer Thomas Dolby's version too.
Now I'M scared.
kcar wrote:
Doin' a helluva job boring me, Dan. Not my cuppa, although the violin work is interesting. Sounds a little bit like "White Dove" from the band It's a Beautiful Day.
You refer to the violin work - there's a live version of this song and they substitute a guitar solo for the violin, and it works quite well. This band had a great cult following back in the late '60's / early '70's.
DAMN! I missed a little Hicks in the morning. Is it me or is Bill getting more creative with his eclectizm? I love hearing the lost gems he's been pulling out his hat lately.
Well, if that is the tone for the rest of the day I'm going back to bed.
Doin' a helluva job boring me, Dan. Not my cuppa, although the violin work is interesting. Sounds a little bit like "White Dove" from the band It's a Beautiful Day.
jadewahoo wrote:
Damn! This is fine, so fine!
soooo soooo fine! ... ...
I saw these guys in a small venue about 2 years ago, they were fantastic. This particular version of this tune may not be the best introduction to Dann Hicks (although I like it a lot). Most of his songs are a lot of fun and are hard to pin down as a "genre". Certainly the word "electic" applys to them. I got my first Dann Hicks album in the early 70s so they've been around a while. Great stuff though worth checking out!
These guys played in our high school gym in 1972 with Loggins and Messina.
What a great (original) song!
Damn! This is fine, so fine!
This version cracks me up. It's the female background vocals
Dan Hicks - thanks!
Bill must be airing out all the songs he never plays today...
Don't know what it is that makes me "hear" this while so many others can't. I saw the band in Vancouver the same year I saw the Stones "Exile on Mainstreet" show. Cool band. Intimate sound. Like a Dylan backup thing. As if they could be playing in your basement. Whatever. It's nice to hear.
This song should be played more than once a year IMO.
bluematrix wrote:
wow, this is lame. thomas dolby's is exponentially better.
That's all well and good, y'know, but someone had to write the song, and it was Dan-o who did it. Looks as if those who appreciate the slow'n'easy swing that the Hot Licks specialized in are in short supply here. More's the pity.
like this but dolby's is awesome
bluematrix wrote:
wow, this is lame. thomas dolby's is exponentially better.
Great sweet FSM YES.
wow, this is lame. thomas dolby's is exponentially better.
good song for this halloween day! will have to check out the other version one day.
Nice to hear another version of a great song!
I always liked Thomas Dolby's version of this.