The Samples "Feel Us Shaking"

This week's posts are written by Scott Lajoie, editor of Cape Cod Magazine. In creating a publication that reflects the look and feel of the region, Scott is particularly attuned to the stories, sights and general nostalgia of summer. So I asked him to write about some of the songs that have touched him personally over the years, particularly the ones that connect to iconic memories or feelings of Cape Cod.

I was in college in the early nineties. While so-called grunge and a particular type of alternative rock were hitting their nadir, my friends and I were also listening to group from Colorado that mixed my love of the Police (reggae meets punk meets heavenly melodies) with jam-band sensibilities. The Samples were all over the university scene in upstate New York at that time, and we all thought they were extremely talented-—particularly lead singer/guitarist Sean Kelly and percussionist Jeep MacNichol.

My favorite was called “Feel Us Shaking.” There were a few versions kicking around. The studio version was on their first album, but I was particularly fond of the remix on what was probably their bestselling album, “No Room.” It included some really cheesy seagull sounds to open up the recording. But to a guy who grew up vacationing on Cape Cod, I kinda liked it.

For a band that took pride in thoughtful reflection and environmental concern, the lyrics to “Feel Us Shaking” were pretty basic. “Gentle thoughts meander through the sand/As a ship made currents reach the land/An omniscient sun paving through the sky/When it’s done all the sea birds fly.” They even had a line about “out where the dolphins play.” (At least they didn’t make The Samples cry, right?!).

In a era when your other favorite bands were singing “Hello, hello, hello, how low” sung over oppressively depressive minor power chords, you embraced the casual sound of Kelly’s acoustic guitar and Al Laughlin’s bouncy islands-inspired keyboard riffs. The totality of lyrics were irrelevant. You could just imagine yourself sitting on the beach, around a campfire, under the stars, your thoughts “meandering through the sand.”

I recently looked up the video to this song. They played a lot of home videos during their concerts and sure enough, this video was a montage of beach scenes, shore birds, and breaching whales. Because they were from Colorado, I had assumed it was from the West Coast somewhere. About three-quarters through the video, I recognized a familiar lighthouse: Brant Point, which is located on the Cape’s “other” island, Nantucket. The band’s tune in a way cut closer to home than I had ever imagined.


See the video on Youtube.