Sloan – If It Feels Good, Do It

Every time I hear Sloan, I think of deKe…he is the one who turned me on to them, and since then they have been on my playlists.

I’ve never understood why Sloan didn’t become a major band in the United States. They had great songs, fantastic harmonies, and could play just about any style of rock they wanted. Maybe they were too melodic for modern rock radio and a little too loud for pop radio. Whatever the reason, America missed out on one of Canada’s finest bands. This song is the perfect introduction if you’ve never heard Sloan before. It’s power pop with some muscle behind it.

There are power pop songs that make you smile, and then there are power pop songs that kick the door open. Sloan’s falls into that second category. It has all the hooks you’d expect, but it’s wrapped in crunchy guitars and attitude. Power pop with a great riff and a chorus you can’t get out of your head.

By the time Pretty Together was released in 2001, Sloan had already become one of Canada’s most respected rock bands. Formed in Halifax before relocating to Toronto, the group was unusual because all four members, Chris Murphy, Patrick Pentland, Jay Ferguson, and Andrew Scott, wrote songs and sang lead vocals. That gave every album a different personality. One song might sound like The Beatles, the next Cheap Trick, then Big Star, followed by something with a little more crunch. Somehow it all fit together. They never seemed interested in chasing trends. They simply wrote the kind of records they wanted to hear.

Patrick Pentland wrote this song, and it became the lead single from Pretty Together. The song opens with Chris Murphy asking, “What rock and roll should really be?” before the band answers with four minutes of pure energy. It’s catchy without sounding too sweet. The guitars have enough bite to satisfy rock fans, while the melody stays in classic power pop territory. It was nominated for Best Single at the 2002 Juno Awards and was on the Triple Play 2002 video game and the film The Girl Next Door.

If It Feels Good, Do It

Your sight-specific knack
I fall under attack
The only time you cross the line
Is when you’re crossing back

Have you changed the song we were singing
Or have I just lost the air
If I said your behavior suffocates
Would you care?

Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t…

You found the perfect spot
For Jimmy’s wicked thoughts
It’s in my permanent collection
Now like it or not
Wishing away that the legacy left
Came in a frame and was the victim of theft
It adds more worth to work I’ve done
But as long as you’ve had fun

Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t…

I didn’t get your revisions
But sometimes life’s not fair
To think you almost apologized

Put her there, there, there
Don’t be sad at all
I’m about to get killed off
The writing’s on the wall
If you believe everything that you read
Turn to the only thing that you ever need
It says to do unto other
But the thing is you do

Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t…

Don’t stop
Don’t stop
Don’t stop, if it feels good do it
Don’t…