All Kindsa Girls

Show #72 January 21, 2012

2012-01-21T10:17:00.000-08:00

Rock On Donna!

Donna- 10cc Donna 7"
Are You Ready- Mike Read Shake Some Action Vol 8 (UK & Ireland)
Love Song To Myself- Walter Clevenger & The Dairy Kings Love Songs To Myself
Heart Attack- The Pets Misdirection
Laugh- Rubber City Rebels Rubber City Rebels
Just Fine- The Windbreakers Time Machine (1982-2002)
I'm Numb- Pointed Sticks Part Of The Noise
Be What You Gotta Be- Motors 1
^Hold On Loosely- .38 Special The Very Best Of The A&M Years
Merry-Go-Round- The Producers The Producers/You Make The Heat
Do You Wanna Love Me?- Paul Collins King Of Power Pop
Ex Lion Tamer- Wire I Am The Fly Single
Big Cities- Pushtwangers Here We Go Again
Pity- Rooney Eureka
*All Wound Up- 4/4 Systematic 7"
*Don't Think Twice (If You Can't Think At All)- 5-15 Shake Some Action Vol 6 (All Around The World)
*Me And My Desire- 999 999
*Giving It All- 20/20 Giving It All 7"
No You Don't- The Sweet The Collection
I Know What You Did Last Night- Helmet Boy Helmet Boy
Flaming Torch- The Only Ones Special View
For a While- Van Duren Are You Serious?
Ret Liv Dead- Teenage Fanclub Thirteen
You Will Pay- Yeh-Yeh Shake Some Action Vol 1 (UK)
>5 Star Rock 'N' Roll Petrol- The 101'ers Elgin Avenue Breakdown Revisited
Wide Awake (And Fading Out)- Pills Wide Awake With The Pills
Highly Inflammable- X-Ray Spex Germfree Adolescents
Shy Girl- The Innocents No Hit Wonders From Down-Under
Fat Chance- Tommy Tutone Tommy Tutone
It's Getting Better- Squire Big Smashes
Way Out- The La's The La's
Private Heaven- Utopia Utopia
Respectable Street- XTC Rag & Bone Buffet: Rare Cuts & Leftovers
Lonesome Lane- The 45's Couldn't Believe A Word 7"

^Power Pop Prototype: #27 Billboard Hot 100 2/28/81

*SacroSet: Bands By The Numbers

>Power Pop Prototype: 1976

Steven Tyler's new pop-culture celebrity status just doesn't sit right with me. Don't get me wrong, I love the guy and I always have, even after learning he stole his signature scarves on the microphone stand thing from David Johansen of the New York Dolls (which somehow seems worse than his subsequent theft of Johansen's wife, Cyrinda Fox). In the past week I've defended Tyler's much maligned performance of the National Anthem at the Patriots/Ravens game last weekend (Go Pats!). What's more, I even like the Diane Warren-penned "Aerosmith does Celine Dion" song "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" from that crappy asteroid movie.

Aerosmith are Boston boys and we love them for it. Everyone in the Boston area has an Aerosmith sighting to share. In the 80's I once saw Joe Perry shopping for housewares with his wife at the Ann & Hope store at the Arsenal Mall in Watertown, Mass. In the early 90's, drummer Joey Kramer moved to Duxbury, Mass where my mom lives and within a few years he was followed by guitarists Joe Perry and Brad Whitford. The first time my sister Sarah saw Joe Perry in town he was with his wife Billie pushing a shopping cart down an aisle of the A&P in Hall's Corner. The best part is that they were both in total rock & roll gear, he in leather pants and she in a huge white fur coat. That is just awesome! People in Duxbury were proud of the Aerosmith guys and very protective of their privacy. While Kramer and Whitford have since moved away, Joe Perry is still in town and has done a lot for the community over the years, among other things, paying for a new town animal shelter.

In any case, I feel Aerosmith belong to the rock & rollers, which is why Steven Tyler on American Idol doesn't feel right. The band will always have a special place in my heart, because they were a pretty big "first" in my life. I enjoyed a short lived notoriety in Jr. High (what we called "Intermediate School") as "the kid who goes to rock concerts." A few weeks before my 13th birthday I heard a commercial on the radio for an Aerosmith concert at the Providence Civic Center on October 30, 1977. I asked my parents for tickets for my birthday with very little hope that I'd be going. My birthday came and after pizza and cake I opened presents that I can't remember, though I'd guess there was a record and a sweater in there somewhere. Opening my final present (a card, oh well) I was SHOCKED to find myself looking at two tickets to see Aerosmith on their "Express Tour." They were the Ticketron tickets with the blue and red design (at right is the closest thing I could find on the web). When I got to school the next day I told Mike Klein in home room that I was going to the concert and soon word spread. For the first time I had status and though it was short-lived, it was an experience I'll never forget.

The Aerosmith concert was amazing- I went with my neighbor Tommy Harrington and we had great seats on the floor about 25 rows back. In fact, we were only one person away from catching a Joey Kramer drumstick. My father drove us to Providence and waited outside during the show. I realize now what a sacrifice that was because with the pride of a true Bostonian he described Providence as "an armpit." (Interestingly, this is the same phrase Dad used to describe Worcester, Mass after waiting for my Cousin Rich and I outside a Worcester Centrum concert a few years later). I think he said he spent that night in Providence in a Burger King- all so I could go to my first rock concert. He was an amazing guy.

Aerosmith played all the hits from the first four albums that night and a few new songs that hadn't been released yet. I really liked one of the new songs so I thought I'd be cool and ask the clerk at the Hanover Mall Musicsmith about it, even though I knew it hadn't come out yet. Unfortunately I misheard the title at the concert so when I asked him about Aerosmith's "Charlie The Lion" he looked at me like I was a moron. When the album came out in December I was horrified to see that the song is called "Draw The Line" (the record's title track!!) not "Charlie The Lion-" a mom-like mistake I never made again.

You can download tonight's show below (Right click and "Save Target As"):
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #71 DEDICATION SPECIAL January 7, 2010

2012-01-10T19:57:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to Charlie and ALL KINDSA GIRLS!!!

All Kindsa Girls- The Real Kids Real Kids
Jody- Silver Sun Disappear Here
My Sharona- The Knack Get the Knack
Lorraine- Durango 95 Lose Control
Belinda- Ben Folds & Nick Hornby Lonely Avenue
Keep On Knocking- The Cars Move Like This
Enola Gay- Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark Urgh! A Music War
Diane- Material Issue International Pop Overthrow
She Walks The Night- Matthew Sweet Modern Art
Angela- New Math Die Trying 7"
Mother Mary- Foxboro Hot Tubs Stop Drop and Roll
Christabelle- Sorrows Love Too Late
Melody- Kevin K The Best Of Kevin K - New York, New York
Ronnie- The Rubinoos Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About
*Unkind- Sloan The Double Cross
*The Summer Place- Fountains Of Wayne Sky Full Of Holes
*Adamant- The Wellingtons In Transit
*Tribute to Charlie- Cute Lepers Adventure Time
*Sorry- The Smithereens 2011
Lolene- Mad Turks Cafe Istanbul
Red- Hoehn & Duren Blue Orange
Jesamine- Squire Big Smashes
Poison Flower- Urge Overkill Rock & Roll Submarine
Glendora- The Slickee Boys Gotta Tell Me Why 7"
Stella- Ida Maria Fortress Round My Heart
Mary Annette- Doug Powell Four Seasons
Paula- The Golden Horde The Golden Horde
Wicked Annabella- The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society
Dolly- The Lyres On Fyre
Dianalee- Nerf Herder IV
52 Girls- The B-52's The B-52's

*SacroSet: My Top 5 Albums of 2011

The first show of the new year is my DEDICATION SPECIAL where I play all the dedication songs from the previous twelve months. I also highlight what I think are the best releases from the prior year. All in all, 2011 was a pretty good year for Power Pop. New LP's by old friends from the 70's (The Cars), 80's (The Smithereens, Urge Overkill) and 90's (Sloan, Fountains Of Wayne, Matthew Sweet) joined upstarts from the 2000's (Cute Lepers, Wellingtons) on the ALL KINDSA GIRLS playlist. Since I initially envisioned the show would be centered in the late 70's/early 80's, all this new music is a huge bonus.

It's funny how getting older changes your perspective on things. When I was in college I remember railing against the Rolling Stones for refusing to get out of the way and make room for new rock & roll bands. Now, I'm heralding a 2011 release by The Cars, led by 62 year old Ric Ocasek. Furthermore, I share the sentiment the Cute Lepers' express in "Tribute To Charlie" from tonight's SacroSet. The song is an ode to the great Charlie Harper. Just to clarify, they are NOT talking about the character "Charlie Harper" played by Charlie Sheen on the TV show Two And A Half Men (who lived and died a douchebag). They are talking about Charlie Harper, lead singer of British punk band UK Subs, pictured above. He is 67 years old and has been singing with the group for 36 years!

Charlie Harper was the first person I ever interviewed for WERS, my college radio station. We met backstage at a club called Spit on Lansdowne Street in Boston. The person at the station who set up the interview told me to expect the drummer or, at best, UK Subs guitarist Nicky Garratt. Needless to say, I was very impressed to see lead singer Charlie Harper walk into the room. More than a little nervous, I stumbled through the first few questions while Charlie did his best to put me at ease. It ended up being a pretty good interview- he even turned me on to Hanoi Rocks, described as "a gay heavy metal group from Finland," a band I grew to love. (For the record, I don't think the guys in Hanoi Rocks are gay but I once personally witnessed lead singer Mike Monroe and guitarist Andy McCoy's sharing of a microphone devolve into a big sloppy tongue kiss. The look of shock and disgust on my girlfriend Sue's face was just priceless...) Anyway, my "over 40's get off the stage" tune has changed since college and I'm in full agreement with the Cute Lepers "Tribute To Charlie" when they sing:

Most of my heroes will die rockers
I know Charlie Harper will die a rocker!

This is not just talk on my part as I still strap on the guitar myself a few times a year as a member of The Dadz. In fact, my profile picture comes from the first Dadz show:
That show is a great story that I'll get to in a future post.

I've been putting together year end lists of my Top 5 movies, albums, TV shows, etc. since 1999. If you're interested in past selections you can check out the blog Rick's Top 5 Lists Along with the five albums in tonight's SacroSet, my 2011 Top 5's include:

TOP 5 MOVIES

Win Win (wrestling with your demons, literally)

Crazy Stupid Love (title says it all)

The Guard (Irish Independent)

Hugo (cinephilia)

Higher Ground (the miracle of faith)

TOP 5 DVD'S

Attack The Block (aliens vs. outsiders)

Beginners (we all get a do-over)

Together “Tilsammans” (Swedish fishbowl)

The Battle of Algiers (modern warfare in 1966)

Dogtooth “Kynodontas” (alternative child rearing techniques)

TOP 5 ALBUMS

Sloan- The Double Cross (XX marks the spot)

Fountains Of Wayne- Sky Full Of Holes (a return to form)

The Wellingtons- In Transit (Power Pop Lives…in Australia!)

Cute Lepers- Adventure Time (Mr. Nix’s opus)

The Smithereens- 2011 (New Jersey’s finest)

TOP 5 BOOKS

A Visit From The Goon Squad- Jennifer Egan (Nobody beats the goon)

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower- Stephen Chbosky (Charlie says…)

The Hunger Games Trilogy- Suzanne Collins (May the odds be ever in your favor)

The Lonely Polygamist- Brady Udall (Mo marriages, mo problems)

Pygmy- Chuck Palahniuk (nobody writes like Chuck)

TOP 5 TELEVISION/CABLE SHOWS

American Horror Story (the house always wins)

Treme: Season 1 (a dead city rises)

Happy Endings (Chicago’s finest)

Justified: Season 1 (Harlan County Confidential)

Louie (brutal/hilarious honesty)

Feel free to comment with Top 5's of your own- I'm always looking for material for next year's list! You could also post a comment over on my facebook page.

You can download tonight's show by clicking the links below (right click and "Save Target As"):
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #70 CHRISTMAS CRUSH December 17, 2011

2012-01-01T01:44:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas Carol!!!

Carol- Cleaners From Venus The Stopping Train
XmastimeAgain- The Pointed Sticks XmastimeAgain
Waiting For Christmas- Adventures Of Jet Electric Ornaments: An Idol Records Christmas Collection
Christmas, Bring Us -The Grip Weeds HiFi Christmas Pty 2
I Want A Guitar For Christmas- Kenny Howes Xmas With Coffee Robots
All I Ever Want (Under The Christmas Tree)- The Cute Lepers A Blackheart Christmas
Christmas Morning- Jim Babjak's Buzzed Meg Christmas Songs
It's Always Christmas At My House- Huntingtons Santa Claus & The Power Pop Criminals
^Father Christmas- The Kinks Father Christmas 7"
December 25th- Desmond Reed Xmas Redux Three
Xmas Song- Rash Of Stabbings Xmas Song
She Feels Like Christmas Day- The Critics Yuletunes
Merry Xmas Everybody- Slade Merry Christmas Everybody
Underneath The Christmas Tree- Bill Lloyd Yuletunes
*Xmas Time (It Sure Doesn't Feel Like It)- The Dogmatics A Midnight Christmas Mess
*Christmastime Here (Could Never Be Like That)- Wednesday Week A Midnight Christmas Mess
*Merry Christmas- Plan 9 A Midnight Christmas Mess
*Christmas Dance- Johnny Rabb A Midnight Christmas Mess
Christmas Vacation- Descendents I Don't Wanna Grow Up
All The Right Reasons- Dressy Bessy Little Music
Holiday Spirit- The dB's Christmas Time
Everything's Gonna Be Cool This Christmas- Eels Useless Trinkets...
Join Us For Christmas- AlternativA A Night In Starlight
Joseph, Who Understood- The New Pornographers The Spirit Of Giving
>She's Coming Home- The Wailers Merry Christmas
Christmas On The Beach- Irene Swedesplease Christmas Mix
The Elf Song- The Vacancies A Blackheart Christmas
Christmas With You- The Spring Collection Santa Claus & The Power Pop Criminals
The Christmas That Almost Wasn't- Osaka Popstar Osaka Popstar and The American Legends of Punk
Christmas In New York- Kyf Brewer It's About Christmas
Christmas Is My Favorite Time- The Malibus Keep An Eye On...
The Christmas Wish- Kermit The Frog A Christmas Together

^Power Pop Peak: 1977 (Didn't chart but I remember hearing it on rock radio)

*SacroSet: A Midnight Christmas Mess

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

Here's a cool thing- type "rock & roll santa" into Google images and you'll have a wide variety of pictures and clip art to choose from. It was a tough choice, but I went with the picture above because there's something about the way he's positioned his back leg that I find hilarious.

I'm lucky in that Christmas has always been a happy time in my life. When I was a kid my dad would drive the family to Boston to see Santa. We'd park in the garage under Boston Common and step out of the elevator into a Christmas wonderland- it seemed like every tree was festooned with a thousand lights. From the Common it was a short walk to the Jordan Marsh department store. My mother told me that the "real" Santa was at Jordan Marsh and all the others were "helpers." The line to see Santa seemed endless but we were patient because there was so much to see in his Enchanted Village.

You'd get your first taste of the Enchanted Village in the display windows outside. Each window featured a tableau of moving figures in some winter or Christmas activity. This was nothing compared to the larger Enchanted Village on the sixth floor of the store. It was a walk through this magical old-timey town all done up for Christmas.

Like a lot of kids, I was initially freaked out by the people in the Enchanted Village, especially the children. Yet, I think this initial fear only added to their allure later on because I still remember several scenes today. The ceiling lit like a starry night sky also made a lasting impression. (Interestingly, I have no memory of the "eight set Lionel electric train display" mentioned in Wikipedia.)

The Enchanted Village closed in 1972, when I was eight years old so it's amazing that I remember anything about it. Macy's, which bought Jordan Marsh, Filene's and seemingly every other department store in America, resurrected the Enchanted Village for a few years in the 90's before the city took it over. It now resides at the Jordan's Furniture store in Avon, which I find ironic because for years Barry & Elliott of Jordan's ended their radio commercials with "not to be confused with Jordan Marsh."

This is my third Christmas radio show, the second named "The All Kindsa Girls Christmas Crush." In the past I've tried to stick mostly to positive Christmas songs but this year I decided I would open it up to darker music. This decision lead to the selection of Midnight Records' A Midnight Christmas Mess for tonight's SacroSet. I used to love going to the Midnight Records store on West 23rd Street in New York City, right across the street from the Chelsea Hotel. The store opened in 1978 and was owned by this French guy named J.D. He sold all kinds of underground rock & roll, but specialized in psychedelic and garage rock, stocking a lot of European imports you couldn't get anywhere else. The store's success lead to a record label and the 1984 album A Midnight Christmas Mess.

Maybe it's a New York thing, but a lot of the songs on the record are pretty bleak, from LA group Wednesday Week's yearning for a New York City Christmas to Plan 9's lament about homeless old people and hungry children. My favorite song on the record is Boston band The Dogmatics' "Xmas Time (It Sure Doesn't Feel Like It):"

It's the 20th of December
The rain is coming down
Kenmore Square's deserted now
The college kids have left town
And it sure don't feel Christmas time
It sure doesn't feel like Christmas time

Down in Filene's Basement
I'm shopping for a friend
A holiday is nothing
If you have no money to spend
And it sure don't feel Christmas time
It sure doesn't feel like Christmas time

Standing in front of the Pine Street
You got nowhere to go
Your standing there on the sidewalk
Your feet are getting cold
And it sure don't feel Christmas time
It sure doesn't feel like Christmas time

The Christmas lights on The Common
They don't look so pretty to me
There's no such thing as peace on earth
Peace and harmony
And it sure don't feel Christmas time
It sure doesn't feel like Christmas time Oh no....

Growing older you realize that Christmas is a hard time for a lot of people and this song brings the point home. The line about "standing in front of the Pine Street" really gets me. The Pine Street Inn is the oldest homeless shelter in Boston. Since 1980 it has occupied the old central fire station, an iconic piece of Boston architecture thanks to a 156 foot tower that looks like a medieval castle and is clearly visible from Rt. 93, the main road to the south. Whenever I'm in town the Inn tower reminds me that while a lot of people are suffering, there are also people who've made it their life's work to help.

Here's wishing you an Enchanted Village Christmas along with hope for a better tomorrow to those having a Pine Street Inn Christmas.

Download links for this week's show are below (Right click and "Save Target As"
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #69 November 26, 2011

2011-12-22T23:26:00.000-08:00

For Dianalee... with a big thanks to friends past and present!

Dianalee- Nerf Herder IV
I Wanna Thank You- Sloan Navy Blues
Blame It On The Kids- The Pets Misdirection
Formal Letter- The Laughing Dogs Meet Their Makers
Second Hand Man- John Keaney Nashpop: A Nashville Pop Compilation
Ash & Earth- Velvet Crush In The Presence Of Greatness
New Promotion- Hubble Bubble Hubble Bubble
Everywhere- Translator The Best Of 415 Records
^Thank U Very Much- The Scaffold Thank U Very Much
Can't Hardly Wait (Tim Version)- The Replacements All For Nothing
Lipstick- Advertising Advertising Jingles
One Look At You -The Smithereens 2011
Rustle- The Tories Wonderful Life
If It's Not Too Much- The Keys The Keys Album
*Thank You- Alberto Y Lost Trios Paranoias Heads Down, No Nonsense, Mindless Boogie
*Thank You- Barry & The Remains The Remains
*Thank You- Lost In Kostko Extended Play
*Thank You- The Redwalls De Nova
*Thank You- Descendents Everything Sucks
Heaven- The Del-Lords Johnny Comes Marching Home
On Every Page- Jimmy Silva & The Goats Heidi
Niteliner- Urge Overkill Rock & Roll Submarine
Good As Gone- The Vacant Lot ...Because They Can
Out There In The Night- The Only Ones Special View
Runaway- The Adicts Smart Alex
>Thank You Friends- Big Star Big Star's 3rd: Sister Lovers
I Can't Do Anything- X-Ray Spex Germ Free Adolescents
Thanks- Arrows First Hit

^Power Pop Peak: #69 Billboard Hot 100 2/10/68

*SacroSet: Songs Called "Thank You"

>Power Pop Prototype: 1978

"Thank You For The Music," ABBA really hit the nail on the head with that one:

So I say
Thank you for the music,
the songs I'm singing
Thanks for all the joy they're bringing
Who can live without it,
I ask in all honesty
What would life be?
Without a song or a dance what are we?
So I say thank you for the music
For giving it to me

Not a day goes by that I don't listen to or think about music- it has been a constant presence in my life. My friend Ted Maguire called in tonight and when asked what he was thankful for, "music" was his immediate response. I've known Ted since high school and it was music that brought us together. Same story with my friends Frank and Jim. (In fact Ted, Frank and Jim were also the first people I was in a band with back in the Maguire's basement in Duxbury.) Cousin Rich is a blood relative but music has always been our common language as well.

The bands I loved were a huge part of my identity growing up. My music tastes painted a picture of how I wanted to see myself and be seen by other people. I was a shy kid so I let the music do the talking. Rather than join the ranks of Springsteen and J. Geils Band fans, however, my friends and I loved The Ramones, The Clash, Elvis Costello, Buzzcocks, etc. While our love of this music set us apart from 99.9% of our high school classmates, it also helped forge life long friendships. And really, how many friends do you really need?

Another important factor in my friendship with Ted, Frank and Jim was their rejection of drugs, alcohol and using the word "party" as a verb. This further distanced us from our high school peers. I had started drinking and smoking pot years earlier at age twelve but at sixteen I'd had enough. This lead to a falling out with my best friend Paul, which was hard because I didn't have many friends at school. I'd "quit" before (it was what you said for two weeks after getting busted by your parents), but this time it stuck, largely because I had started hanging out in Ted's basement. My new friends all had their own drunk stories but mocked Duxbury High School's drinking culture and our classmates who seemed to make obtaining/consuming alcohol their life's work (as I had six months earlier).

Interestingly, I've only known one woman who was as wholeheartedly devoted to music as Ted, Jim, Frank, Cousin Rich and I. One woman who could fiercely debate a band's worthiness or spend as much time in a record store. One woman who would fight her way up to the front row at a show no matter how gnarly the mosh pit. I met Michelle my first week at Emerson College in Boston. She made quite an impression: spiked hair, leather jacket, punk rock t-shirt, bondage pants, combat boots, and a f**k you attitude that could peel paint. Michelle loved hardcore (Discharge, Minor Threat, Battalion of Saints, etc.) which was new music to me at the time (I had Black Flag's Jealous Again, but that was about it). She was a sophomore and had been at all the 1981 hardcore shows at Gallery East and the Media Workshop. The local hardcore scene received national exposure the following year with the release of the album This Is Boston, Not LA on Newbury Comics' Modern Method label.

Michelle and I had a mutual friend named Howard, a ranting English contrarian sophomore. Just as he had turned his back on the music he brought from home freshman year (famously throwing a Spandau Ballet single out the 8th floor window of the Charlesgate dorm), Howard was done with hardcore a few months after I got to school. Luckily for me, I was there to stop further vinyl destruction and he gave me his singles by Minor Threat, SOA, Infa Riot, Anti-Pasti, Discharge, The Necros and a few other bands. I would see several of these groups play in the coming months, often buying more singles from members of the band out of their van after a show. It was very exciting taking the T out to some middle of nowhere teen center or VA hall (hardcore was first and foremost all ages music) with Michelle, Howard and a few other friends to see some band tear it up. Minor Threat were the best, The Meatmen were the funniest and Boston's Proletariat were the most intense.

I doubt I would have had the strength to keep my high school no drugs or alcohol pledge in college if Michelle and Howard hadn't been devoted adherents to the Straight Edge philosophy introduced by Washington D.C.'s Minor Threat in 1981. I was inspired by songs like "Straight Edge:"

I'm a person just like you
But I've got better things to do
Than sit around and smoke dope
'Cause I know I can cope
Laugh at the thought of eating ludes
Laugh at the thought of sniffing glue
Always gonna keep in touch
Never want to use a crutch
I've got the straight edge

and "Out of Step"

Don't smoke
Don't drink
Don't f**k
At least I can f**king think

I can't keep up
Can't keep up
Can't keep up
Out of step with the world

As the songs show, Straight Edge means no drinking, smoking, drugs or promiscuity. The funny thing was that by the time I got to Boston in 1982, a lot of the kids with Straight Edge X's on their hands on the cover of This Is Boston, Not L.A. had gone back to drinking and smoking pot. There were even rumors that Springa, lead singer of Boston Straight Edge stalwarts SS Decontrol, dropped acid. In any case, my new friends at Emerson remained loyal to the Straight Edge, helping me do the same. While I bet few use drugs, I may be the only one of my Duxbury or college friends that continues to avoid alcohol (admittedly I fudged it a little on the "no casual sex" tenet in my early 20's). I haven't thought of myself as "Straight Edge" in 25 years yet, while the superiority complex and preaching are long gone, the label pretty much still applies today.

Talking about my wife Jaime in the last post I referenced taking the "terrifying plunge into 'more than just friends.'" It's terrifying because the stakes are so high- if the newly defined relationship doesn't work out, you could lose a close friend. I learned this the hard way with Michelle at Emerson. My closest friend freshman year, by that Spring she wanted to take the relationship to the next level. I really cared for Michelle, just not in the same way but I went along with it anyway. Even writing this today, I have no idea why I did, because it was a colossal mistake. Over the summer I brought her home to Duxbury and got a stern talking to from my father about my "foul-mouthed girlfriend" (Dad was okay with her combat boots, but nobody drops the f-bomb in front of my mom). In August I broke up with Michelle, over the phone no less, and it was AWFUL. We tried to rekindle our friendship at school in September but it was awkward as hell, especially when I started seeing my next girlfriend Sue around Christmas.

The next year I heard Michelle's mom won the Massachusetts Megabucks lottery for $16 million or so. Despite my friend Carl's assertion that she was going to hire a hit man to kill me, I was happy for Michelle and her mother. About five years after this I was walking down Boylston Street with Jaime when she made a comment about "the homeless girl up ahead." Much to Jaime's dismay, I responded "oh, I used to go out with her." Sure enough, it was Michelle, though what Jaime had mistaken for "homeless" garb was actually high-end fashion. All kidding aside, I feel lucky that I don't have many regrets in life, but I'm ashamed of the way I treated Michelle. Who knows, had I been a better friend we still might be arguing about music today.

I've known many people who seemed to love music when they were younger (I've always thought of the musical "sweet spot" as age 16-24) but their interest in music has fallen off over the years. I know this is not the case with Ted, Frank, Jim and Cousin Rich and I bet the same goes for Michelle. Tastes may evolve but our overall passion and commitment to music remains consistent. So to all my Duxbury and Emerson friends I dedicate tonight's Power Pop Prototype, Big Star's "Thank You Friends:"

Thank you, friends
Wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you
I'm so grateful
For all the things you helped me do
All the ladies and gentlemen
Who made this all so probable

Thank you, friends
I rejoice to the skies
Dear ones like you, the best I do
As far as can see my eyes
All you ladies and gentlemen
Who made this all so probable

Without my friends I got chaos
I'm off in a bead of light
Without my friends I'd be swept up by the wind

Thank you, friends (thank you, again)
Dear dear friends (I wanna thank you again)

You can download tonight's show below (Right click and "Save Target As")
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #68 November 12, 2011

2011-11-20T09:47:00.000-08:00

For Dolly in Ye Olde Boston Towne....

Dolly- The Lyres On Fyre
Talking About The Weekend- Seventeen A Flashing Blur Of Stripped Down Excitement
Johanna Beach- Hawaii Mud Bombers Mondo Primo
She's Only Cool- Cotton Mather Kontiki
Words- The A's The A's
Late Nights with the Power Pop- Matthew Sweet Modern Art
Runaround- The Lambrettas Beat Boys In The Jet Age
Ain't No Use In Tryin'- The Finders Calling Dr. Powerpop
^Just What I Needed- The Cars Just What I Needed - Anthology
Losing Your Cool- Paul Collins King Of Power Pop
Still Around- Slaters The Big Black Bug Bled Black Blood
Noisy Song- Cute Lepers Adventure Time
The Devil Has Work For Idle Hands- Psycotic Pineapple Where's The Party
Every Time I Ask You Out- D-Day Too Young To Date 7"
*At The Rat- Willie Loco Alexander Boom Boom Band Live At The Rat
*I Don't Want To Know Your Name- Susan Live At The Rat
*Boy From Nowhere- DMZ Live At The Rat
*Better Be Good- The Real Kids Live At The Rat
Someone's Gonna Break Your Heart- Fountains Of Wayne Sky Full Of Holes
Nights With You- The Heats Have An Idea
Don't Tell Her- City Lights Blackout EP
How Much More- The Go-Go's Beauty And The Beat
Rebel Rousers- The Reactions Love You E.P. 7"
Rachel Rachel- Richard Taylor Rachael Rachael EP
^Rendezvous- The Sidewinders The Sidewinders
Just A Number- The Last Stand Shake Some Action Vol 1 (UK)
Bear With Me All The Way- Van Duren Idiot Optimism
The Seeker- Sunnyboys Love To Rule EP
Suburban Paradise- The Agents Need The Girl EP
Blame It On The Kids- The Pets Misdirection
The Fenway- Jonathan Richman Rockin' & Romance

^Power Pop Peak:

*SacroSet: Live At The Rat

^Power Pop Prototype: 1972

Nostalgia is funny. It's one thing to pine for an earlier time in your life but you know you're getting older when you yearn for a place that doesn't even exist anymore. I remember my dad reminiscing about Scollay Square in Boston: freak shows, boxing matches, vaudeville comedy acts and especially the burlesque houses he was always trying to sneak into as a kid. In the mid-70's a guy named Rik Tinory released a song called "Remember Ol' Scollay Square" that includes the verse:

Remember ol' Scollay Square
All the dancin' ladies were there
Doin' bumps and grinds, people in long lines
Remember ol' Scollay Square
Four ladies chain across the ring
Turn and chain them right back home again
Promenade go 2 by 2
I sure hope that you
Remember good ol' Scollay Square

Scollay Square was bulldozed in the 60's to make way for the godforsaken hellscape of Government Center, an excellent example of Soviet era architecture, only less warm. In fact, on wind chill days I believe it is among the coldest places on the planet. Jonathan Richman sums it up in his song "Government Center:"

Well we've got alot alot of hard work today
We gotta rock at the government center
To make the secretaries feel better
When they put those stamps on the letters
We won't stop until we see secretaries smile
And see some office boys jump up for joy
Tell old Mr. Ayhern, "Calm down a while, You know that's the only way the center is ever gonna get better"

Replacing Scollay Square with Government Center- now that's adding insult to injury. All these years later, I know what my father was feeling when he talked about Scollay Square because that is exactly how I feel about Kenmore Square today.

One of the things that helped me endure the suburban high school torment was thinking about moving to Boston for college. Cousin Rich and I had been making monthly record buying pilgrimages to Boston for years and I couldn't wait to live there. From Fensgate, my Emerson College dorm, it was a short walk to Kenmore Square, home at one time to record stores New England Music City (a chain, but one that sold singles by Boston rock bands), Planet Records (a cool indie store where Barrence Whitfield was often working behind the counter), Strawberries (a lame chain store), and Nuggets (a past its prime institution that remarkably is still there). Kenmore Square was also home to my favorite pizza place, Captain Nemo's. Of all these landmarks however, the one I was most excited about was Boston's infamous rock & roll club The Rathskellar a.k.a. The Rat.

After discovering The Real Kids first album (which included my radio show's namesake song "All Kindsa Girls"), Cousin Rich and I went looking for more and soon discovered Live At The Rat. The record had come out in 1976 and included all of the great Boston rock & roll bands of the time (the word "punk" hadn't caught on yet and in any case, never felt right with this music). Live At The Rat kicks off with an introduction from Boston college radio legend Oedipus (who went on to program powerhouse commercial rock station WBCN) and Godfather of Boston Rock Willie "Loco" Alexander (who replaced Lou Reed in a late era Velvet Underground incarnation). An amazing document of its era, Live At The Rat is in my opinion far superior to New York counterpart Live At CBGB's, which didn't include the leading lights of the its scene (Ramones, Blondie, Television, Dictators, etc.) as they had already been signed to major labels. In fact, Live At The Rat preceded debut releases of The Real Kids, Willie "Loco" & The Boom Boom Band, Thundertrain, and the amazing DMZ (pictured below on The Rat stage).

Reading in The Boston Globe about 2am street fights between patrons of The Rat and the disco across Comm Ave (called "Narcissus"- what a perfect name), in what the paper dubbed "The Battle For Kenmore Square," only added to its infamy. This was in the late 70's before my time, but The Rat was still standing when I got to town in 1982 and I'm proud to say my band No Idea played there several times:

No Idea was Pete Levine (bass, vocals), Frank Prosl (drums, vocals), Jim Harris (lead guitar) and me on rhythm guitar/lead vocals. (After seeing The Clash in hats in the London Calling photo sessions I started wearing them on on stage). It was incredible playing at The Rat- the sound and lights were fantastic for a club that size. If sound man Granny and the light guy were in the right mood, you could have an amazing show. Those light banks on the side you can see in the top pictures were brighter than the sun and you could actually feel the heat on your face- what an incredible feeling.

The last time I was on stage at The Rat was in 1989 or so. I was playing bass in a band that was listed as "Gravel Pit" though Carl the drummer and I had never agreed to the name (which another Boston band used later on). We were first up on the bill at a reunion show of Boston Rock heroes Unnatural Axe and it was an incredible show. My mom came, so did my girlfriend Lisa and "work friend" Jaime (who would soon replace Lisa) as well as this anal retentive friend Jaime dragged along. Seeing The Rat through the eyes of Jaime's friend really reminded me what an underground cavernous, urine-smelling, shit hole my beloved club really was- after a while I'd just forgotten. The best part was when this woman had to go to the bathroom, dragging Jaime with her of course, they found the toilet overflowing with the seat broken in half and sticking up out of the bowl! (I LOVE that story.)

Jaime and I went to The Rat many times. In fact our terrifying plunge into the abyss called "more than just friends" was after a Zulus show in December 1989 ("first kiss to first $%*$ in 45 seconds" she later joked). The Rat was even part of our wedding as my bachelor party started at the Hoodoo Barbecue, the restaurant upstairs.

The Rat closed in 1997, replaced by monstrosity The Hotel Commonwealth. While the hotel isn't as ugly as Government Center, it pretty much completed the gutting Kenmore Square started by the Barnes & Noble @ Boston University store (enveloping the space once occupied by the disco Narcissus). B.U. cops even "relocated" Mr. Butch, a homeless dude dubbed "The King Of Kenmore Square," to Allston. Unlike Scollay Square, Kenmore Square still technically exists, yet it is a mere shadow of its former self. Even so, I'm thankful for The Rat, Captain Nemo's, Planet Records, Mr. Butch and all the unforgettable times I had there.

Rather than end this post on a downer, I'll conclude with the lyrics to the first song in tonight's SacroSet: Willie "Loco" Alexander & The Boom Boom Band's "At The Rat."

spoken: "You know this song's about Boston. Boston Rock & Roll started right here with Barry & The Remains back in 1965. The stage used to be over there but it's here now and we're still here...so is rock & roll in Boston."

Down in Kenmore I saw her standing there at The Rat
She took off my hat sat down on my lap at The Rat
She was my B.U. baby and I don't mean maybe at The Rat

Under the Citgo sign she was looking so fine at The Rat
Everybody goes crazy baby save me save me at The Rat
Down in Kenmore Square, all the bands play there at The Rat

(spoken: "Don't they now, oh everybody sing!")

Let's go to The Rat (4x)
Down in Kenmore Square, all the bands play there at The Rat
Oh yeah, oh yeah

The download links have already been taken off the server. I'll be sure to re-post when they are available again.

Show #67 October 29, 2011 Halloween AFRADIO Show

2011-11-17T20:48:00.000-08:00

The Halloween AFRADIO Show is dedicated to Wicked Annabella and The Last Gladiator...Evel Knieval!

Wicked Annabella- The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society
Chain Saw- The Ramones The Ramones
Rendevous With The Devil- The Doits This Is Rocket Science
Skeleton- Elf Power The Winter Is Coming
Devil's Food- Alice Cooper Welcome To My Nightmare
^Eye Of The Zombie- John Fogerty Eye of the Zombie
Little Jack O'Lantern- The Dead Elvi Graveland
Skeletons- The Sound From The Lion's Mouth
Ghost Ride- Nebula Apollo
Black Night- Green on Red Gas, Food, Lodging
Halloween Parade- Lou Reed New York
Graveyard Groove- The Revillos Attack of the Giant Revillos
The Witch- The Sonics Here Are The Sonics
Arthur Is Dead (Let's Rot)- Radio Stars Songs For Swinging Lovers
*Zombie Dance- The Cramps Songs The Lord Taught Us
*Zombie Creeping Flesh- Peter & The Test Tube Babies Zombie Creeping Flesh 7"
*I Walked With A Zombie- Roky Erickson and the Aliens The Evil One
*I Was A Teenage Zombie- Fleshtones I Was A Teenage Zombie Soundtrack
*Zombies Ate Her Brain- The Creepshow Sell Your Soul
Chupacabras- Groovie Ghoulies Go! Stories
The Time Warp- The Rocky Horror Picture Show The Rocky Horror Picture Show Soundtrack
Victims of the Vampire- Slaughter and the Dogs Do it Dog Style
Where Evil Grows- Gore Gore Girls Get The Gore
Nightmares- Jay Reatard Blood Visions
Ghosts on the Road- Guadalcanal Diary Walking In The Shadow Of The Big Man
>Rockin' Zombie- Crewnecks Doo Wop Halloween is a Scream
Lucifer Sam- The Three O'Clock Baroque Hoedown
Party in the Woods Tonight- Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers 23 Great Recordings
God Of Thunder- Kiss Destroyer
Attack of the Ghost Riders- The Raveonettes Whip It On
Skulls- The Misfits Walk Among Us
Country Death Song- Violent Femmes Add It Up
Halloween- Dream Syndicate Days of Wine and Roses

^Power Pop Peak: #81 Billboard Hot 100 9/6/86

*SacroSet: Zombies!!!

>Power Pop Prototype: 1961

I put two shows together while I was in the hospital, but with Halloween fast approaching I realized I had to get going on a third. Since I was still rehabbing and had the time, I also thought it might be cool to find a few Night Of The Living Dead quotes to use in the SacroSet which shouldn't be hard since the film is in the public domain. In fact a few years back my friend Joe and I hosted the first "Sonoma Drive-In" show on the local cable station screening George Romero's classic:

Next time you've got a couple of hours on your hands, you should check it out. Bob Taylor did a great job putting the program together.

Anyway, a quick web search revealed not only Night Of The Living Dead audio but clips from hundreds of other films. So, along with great music, the Halloween AFRADIO Show includes audio from my favorite horror films, including the obscure (2000 Maniacs) popular (Nightmare On Elm Street) and just plain nasty (Candyman).

In my opinion, vampires (especially the modern broody, perfectly coiffed versions) have nothing on zombies. I've been a zombie fan from the first time I saw Night Of The Living Dead at a midnight show when I was in junior high school. On top of the success of the brilliant TV show The Walking Dead (which calls them "walkers"), zombies were the obvious choice for tonight's features. And I'm talking flesh eaters only- no metaphorical zombies allowed. I mean, c'mon its Halloween!

I had a pretty bad head cold when I recorded this show and was surfing a wave of Dayquil. My insane alter ego "Dick Hate" was supposed to sound menacing, but came off more like Droopy Dog. My friend Jim from Japan commented that "Dick Hate" sounded "very, very, very gay." In any case, I had fun doing the show as somebody else- especially telling the "poop hand" Halloween story in the second hour.

As for my Halloween, Jaime and I had rehearsal for Romeo & Juliet that night but I still got in 90 minutes of Trick or Treating with Nica and her friends. I think you'll agree- I looked awesome!! Jaime got me the Evel suit for Christmas last year and I have to say it is one of the best presents I've ever been given. I was still using a cane at the time, which made it even more authentically "Evel." (My goal for next year is to get the helmet.)

Along with the suit, Jaime gave me the Evel Knieval stunt cycle I had loved as a boy but lost somewhere along the way. If I may say so myself, the resemblance is uncanny:
I loved Evel Knieval when I was growing up. I wasn't a big sports fan, but I would sit through 90 minutes of ABC's Wide World of Sports to see Evel's jumps on TV (which always seemed to run in the last 15 minutes of the show). Leading up to the jump they would show his most heinous crashes, especially Caesar's Palace (12/31/67) and the Cow Palace, San Francisco (3/3/72) so by the time he was ready to go my head was about to explode in anticipation. I have to say I was rooting FOR Evel, not hoping he would crash- to me he was an American Hero. To this day it blows me away that he would go back to jumping after a crash- the guy had balls of steel, no doubt.

My father was beside me on the couch for most of those Wide World Of Sports broadcasts. Dad would poke fun at my love of Evel, but I could tell he had a grudging respect for the man. One of the things I love about my dad was that he would take the time to find out what I was into. So, without my even having to ask, he bought us tickets to see Evel jump at Fitton Field at Holy Cross University in Worcester, Mass on October 9th, 1976.

I just about had a heart attack when the jump was rained out, but thankfully it was re-scheduled for Monday the 11th, which was Columbus Day, so I was already out of school. The pre-show was great- a maniac in a monster truck crushed a bunch of cars demolition derby style and 14 year old Robbie Knieval jumped four U-Haul vans in what I just learned was the start of his illustrious career as a daredevil. Evel came out like a rock star with his cape and cane, did some amazing trick riding and told us some cool stories about his past. He started with a jump of four U-Haul vans, then seven and finished with a smooth as silk jump over ten of them. What an amazing day! Dad and I had a great time and I felt like I was seeing history being made. In a sense I was. Evel only jumped three more times after Worcester; two in Seattle and the infamous aborted "Shark Jump" in Chicago (1/31/77- he crashed on a practice jump over a tank filled with 13 sharks broke both arms again and retired for good).

Perhaps Evel Knieval's greatest success was that he beat death for 69 years, passing away on November 30, 2007 of pulmonary disease. There will never be another like him.

Click the links below to download this week's show (right click and "Save Target As"):
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #66 October 15, 2011

2011-11-10T08:03:00.000-08:00

Dedicated to Paula, Jaime and my wrecked left side...

Paula- The Golden Horde The Golden Horde
Sorry- The Smithereens 2011
Adventure Time- Cute Lepers Adventure Time
Can I Take You Home Tonight- The Lookalikes Can I Take You Home Tonight Single
Salad Days- The Grip Weeds Infinite Soul: The Best of the Grip Weeds
Got You Where He Wanted- David Myhr Got You Where He Wanted Single
Nightlife- Kevin K Band Nightlife
New Feeling- Future Dads 24 Winship
^My Girl- Donnie Iris 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Donnie Iris
Answers- The Questions Can't Get Over You Single
Dirty Back Road- The B-52's Wild Planet
You Belong To Me- Incredible Kidda Band Too Much, Too Little, Too Late
A Beautiful Lie- Bill Lloyd Set to Pop
(Can't Tell You) It's Over- The Jolt The Jolt
*My Girl- Face Dancer About Face
*My Girl- Hoodoo Gurus Stoneage Romeos
*My Girl- Madness The Business
*My Girl- Eric Carmen Eric Carmen
Can't Be Wrong- Travoltas Modern World
Drop By And Stay- Piper Piper/Can't Wait
Feel Like Myself- Brendan Benson The Alternative To Love
Thought Balloon- Urge Overkill Rock & Roll Submarine
The Girl is Alright- Big Kid You Must Be Kidding
Dame to Blame- Slaughter and the Dogs Do it Dog Style
>My Girl- Master's Apprentices Complete Recordings 1965 - 1968
Livin Alone- The Rattlers On The Beach Single
I Wanna Be Free- The Rings I Wanna Be Free
Catch Your Wave- The Click Five Greetings From Imrie House
Hit And Run- Battered Wives Cigarettes
Dance- The Fevers Love Always Wins

^Power Pop Peak: #25 Billboard Hot 100 3/27/82

*SacroSet: Songs For "My Girl"

>Power Pop Prototype: 1968

Do you know where your acetabulum is? Neither did I, but I sure as hell do now. On September 10th, 2011 I went on a bike ride with my friend Phil. The plan was to climb Cavedale Road- the highest elevation within riding distance of our houses:

CAVEDALE ROAD

7.61 miles, 2145 feet (200 feet per division)

We've done this climb dozens of times over the years, in fact I had done it on my own the preceding Saturday (9/3/11). In other words, no big deal. Phil and I hadn't ridden together in a while so it was good to reconnect. The trip up Cavedale was its usual bastardly self (I said I'd done it a lot- not that it was easy) with the descent down Trinity Road (3.01 miles, 1715 feet, pictured below). The top of Trinity is very steep with some tight switchbacks but down at the bottom, it evens out and you can build up some speed before you have to stop at Route 12. Well, I'm at the bottom winding part (formerly my favorite) when I come around a bend and my front wheel starts shaking violently, like it's going to potato chip and send me flying over the handle bars. I was going about 25 miles an hour, so there was no way I could slam on the breaks but I also couldn't control the bike enough to stay on the road. I took a bead on an open field on the left side of the road and hoped for the best. I don't remember the impact but I must have gone off the bike immediately because the next thing I remember I'm on my back with my knees up. Goddamn if it didn't hurt.

Phil was about a minute behind me so he didn't see anything. When the pain didn't let up, he called 911 and a Sonoma ambulance came. Paramedics nixed my request to go to Sonoma Valley Hospital and took me to Santa Rosa Memorial which has a trauma unit. My neck wasn't injured but they put me in a collar anyway. The worst thing though was the backboard. Sweet mother of mercy, that thing just about killed me. I was on it for the next three and a half hours, strapped in with my body weight pressing down on my wrecked ("involved" is what the Physical Therapists call it) left side. The dope they were giving me simply wasn't cutting it- just thinking about it now puts my teeth on edge. Anyway, my trauma wasn't as traumatic as other people's that day which is why I spent so much time on the board. I'm not complaining, "first come first serve" may work for the deli but not a trauma ward.

When Jaime got to the hospital I was surrounded by cops who were trying to get away from the raging douchebag on the other side of the curtain who got tazered in a domestic dispute in which he threatened his girlfriend with a gun. As you might imagine, the trauma ward is aptly named. They finally let me off the board when I went upstairs for a CT scan. Jaime got the news piecemeal: first they told her I had a cracked acetabulum. This is the part of your hip that your femur fits into, like a "hip socket." Of the injuries I sustained that day, this was the most serious. This image shows the acetabulum as if the femur isn't even there- the doctor kept going on about his new imaging machine and seemed bummed out that Jaime wasn't suitably impressed with the awesome special effects.

As I said, Jaime got the prognosis in stages, so about fifteen minutes after the acetabulum deal they told her I had a broken pelvis. This sounded much worse to Jaime (as it would have to me if I wasn't in a narcotic cloud) but when she asked about it they told her the words "broken" and "fractured" were interchangeable. Finally, they threw in three broken ribs. In summary, the left side of my body was blown up real good.

By this time the drugs had taken over- I don't even remember saying goodbye to the accursed backboard- and at some point I was admitted and got a room. Jaime brought the kids to see me and Reverend Nancy from my church came by that night but it is pretty blurry so I don't remember much else. The next day a bunch of friends visited: Chris, Todd, Joan, Beverly, Frank & Joanna- it was great to see all of them. Dr. Schaeffer, my GP from Sonoma also came by and got to talk with my orthopedist who was still hyping his fancy new machine.

The nurses were great- especially when I clarified that I was hurt on a bike and not a motorcycle. In my limited experience, it seems that nurses, especially female nurses, hate motorcycles with an all-encompassing passion. If I'd seen what they'd seen I might feel the same way. The drugs were free-flowing; a mix of Oxycontin, blood thinners, and at one point some Atavan that, in combination, had me insisting that I could hear Metallica music coming out of the air conditioning vent (I'm pretty sure it was Side 2 of Ride The Lightning). Jaime and the kids loved that one. Being in the hospital kicks your ass, if you don't believe me check out this sexy, sexy picture that my daughter Nica took.

The second night they moved a guy into the room with me who was a hardcore junkie. I've heard how boring and "one note" drug addicts can be and got to see for myself. The dude asked for drugs every five minutes, driving me and the nurses nuts. I'd have given him my hillbilly heroin if they'd let me. Luckily he was moved from the ward before lunch. I was in such a haze on Sunday and Monday that I forgot to re-schedule a conference call already set up for Tuesday. So, I took a mid-day drug holiday and re-presented a research study for some Wichita clients and their new consultant. It went pretty well and the clients seemed happy- I have to admit I was pretty proud of myself. Afterwards, I met with physical and occupational therapists who gave me the go-ahead to get out the next day.

Our friend Diana lent us her huge van for the ride home on Wednesday so it went off without a hitch. There was a point though where I said to Jaime: "you have a yellow mustache." I can still picture it clearly in my mind- bright yellow, like sunflower pollen, on her upper lip. She looked in the rear view mirror and tried to wipe it a way for a minute, with me saying "nope, still there," before it dawned on her and she said: "why am I listening to you, you're stoned." Apparently I was talking drugged out nonsense. Whatever I'd taken really kicked in when I got home. I don't drink so my son Jack had never seen me in giggling idiot mode- it really freaked him out.

Jaime had ordered a hospital bed for the living room and that's where I slept for the next three weeks or so. (In case you're wondering, there's no way to feng shui a hospital bed in the living room.) Jaime had a ton of work lined up, so my mom came out from Massachusetts for the next ten days, which was a blessing. After crutches, crutch and cane, I am now walking unassisted- two months after the accident. I dropped my bike off at the shop this week. I'm hoping they can do a CSI job on it and tell me what went wrong.

I put this show together while still in the hospital and despite the blistering drug cocktail, I think it is surprisingly coherent. Jaime has been amazing since day one of this ordeal, so that's where the idea for the "My Girl" features came from. Paula is this show's namesake but it is especially dedicated to "My Girl" Jaime to thank her for everything these past two months- and the 20 years or so leading up to them. I am a very lucky guy.

Click the links below to download this week's show (right click and "Save Target As"):
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #65 September 3, 2011

2011-09-04T00:44:00.001-07:00

Tonight we rock for Mary Annette... and Music City's "Other Music"

Mary Annette- Doug Powell Four Seasons
Absolutely Sweet Marie- Jason & The Scorchers Fervor
She Walks The Night- Matthew Sweet Modern Art
Back To Front- Stiff Little Fingers Go For It
Everything Is Getting Better- The Hitmakers It's Only Sad 7''
Third Generation- The Rings The Rings
We Can Make It Together- Arrows First Hit
A Dip In The Ocean- Fountains Of Wayne Sky Full Of Holes
^That's What You Get- Paramore Riot!
New Red Shoes- The Windbreakers Time Machine
Schoolgirl Love- Eddie And The Hot Rods The End Of The Beginning
All The Same- The Smithereens 2011
High Rise- The Trainspotters Shake Some Action Vol 8 (UK & Ireland)
Say Yeah- Utopia Utopia
*Johnny Come Lately- The Semantics Powerbill
*Sunshine Tonight- The Shazam Godspeed the Shazam
*Ride- Swag Catchall
*Back To The Middle- Pink Spiders Teenage Graffitti
Mystery Achievement- The Pretenders Pretenders
Rockets And Rose- Swingers Resort Rockets And Rose Single
The Plan- Richard Hell & The Voidoids Blank Generation
Other End Of Town- Code Blue Code Blue
Who Do You Love- Sneakers Ear Cartoons
The Hurt's Gone- The Nads The Nads Single
>I Wish I Could Sing- R. Stevie Moore Phonography
Boys Must Be Strong- Off Broadway Quick Turns
Funny Little Frog- Belle & Sebastian The Life Pursuit
Tommy's On His Own- The Bis-quits The Bis-quits

^Power Pop Peak: #66 Billboard Hot 100 12/12/08

*SacroSet: Nashville Power Pop

>Power Pop Prototype: 1976

My music tastes have expanded considerably as I've gotten older but I have yet to gain an appreciation of Nashville Country music. To me it sounds just as calculating and manipulative as most hip hop- a product specifically created to fill a market niche. So, needless to say I never thought I'd find much great Power Pop from Nashville, but as tonight's show proves, I was wrong. Interestingly, several of the Power Pop musicians I played tonight have day jobs as songwriters, producers or session players on Nashville Country records:

Will Owsley of The Semantics worked with Shania Twain and Faith Hill;
After the break up of his country band The Mavericks, Robert Reynolds went on to found Power Pop "Supergroup" Swag along with members of Cheap Trick (Tom Petersson) and Wilco (Ken Coomer);
Will Kimbrough of The Bis-Quits has produced records for several country artists including Rodney Crowell and Kim Richey.

I guess Nashville Power Pop musicians are like those in other company towns- working their day jobs to pay the bills while saving their passion for stages in sweaty bars on the weekend. Even so, I'd take working with Shania Twain in Nashville over the corresponding factory/lumber mill/chemical plant day job in another company town any day of the week.

Arguably the most fascinating Nashville artist I played tonight is R. Stevie Moore. Dubbed a "lo-fi legend" by The New York Times, Moore is a forbear of the DIY home recording aesthetic, having released over 400 cassette and CD-R albums since 1968. Moore's father was part of the Nashville A-Team session men, working with numerous country stars as well as Elvis Presley and Roy Orbison. Needless to say R. Stevie Moore did not follow in his fathers footsteps. Moore's home recording career began in 1966 with a reel to reel tape deck in his parent's basement. After dropping out of college, Moore dedicated himself to his debut album, 1976's Phonography. A combination of songs, spoken word pieces and weird sound collages, Phonography is a truly original record. That said, it leaves you with the impression that Moore isn't right in the head- no amount/combination of drugs could produce such a bizarre work. Yet while his music clearly sounds like "outsider art," Moore is no Daniel Johnston.

I first saw R. Stevie Moore performing on the Uncle Floyd TV Show in the early 80's. I watched Uncle Floyd in hopes of seeing punk and power pop bands so I must admit my first reaction to Moore was "who is this crazy hippie on my TV." A few years later we got one of his studio albums at my college station WERS and, as is the case with virtually all his records, amid all the whacko stuff there are one or two great pop songs. I hadn't thought of R. Stevie Moore for years when his name came up in my research for tonight's show. There is no better Power Pop Prototype for a Nashville show than R. Stevie Moore.

Sorry, links for this show have already been taken down. I'll re-post if they become available again.

Show #64 August 20, 2011

2011-08-21T15:30:00.000-07:00

STELLA... STELLAAAAAAA!!!!

Stella- Ida Maria Fortress Round My Heart
Star- The Genuine Fakes The Striped Album
Radio Bar- Fountains Of Wayne Sky Full Of Holes
Better- Blue Shoes Someone Like You E.P.
All I Want Is Everything- Jellyfish Bellybutton
Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway(again)- Wilco Summerteeth
Baby Don't Go- Pushtwangers Here We Go Again
'Til She Goes- The Hot Dates The Hot Dates
^I'll Be There for You- The Rembrandts L.P.
Next Time- Three Hour Tour Three Hour Tour - 1969
Not the Way I Loved You- The Marshalls Wicked Good Music!
Beverley Terrace- Sloan The Double Cross
Sad Girl- The Stems Violets Are Blue
One More Time- Joe Jackson Look Sharp!
*Boss Of Me- They Might Be Giants Boss Of Me
*California- Phantom Planet California
*Time For You- The Tories The Upside of Down
*C`Mon C`Mon- The Von Bondies C'mon C'mon
Looking For A Life- David Myhr Looking For A Life [Single}
Women In Love- Gobblinz London 7"
That's When You Come Back- Walter Clevenger & The Dairy Kings Love Songs To Myself
Believe You All- Dred Scott Believe You All E.P.
King Kapp- Jook Different Class
Ya Don't Do Ya- The Moondogs She's 19 7"
>That 70's Song- Cheap Trick That' 70's Show Presents That 70's Album: Rockin'
14th Floor- Television Personalities 14th Floor 7"
Love Will Stone You- Emitt Rhodes Mirror
Everyday- Dipsomaniacs The Life You're Faking
Capitol Idea- Enemies Capitol Idea 7"
21st Century Rip Off- The Soundtrack of Our Lives Behind The Music
See And Say- The Fastbacks ...And His Orchestra

^Power Pop Peak: #17 Billboard Hot 100 6/17/95

*SacroSet: Power Pop TV Show Themes

>Power Pop Prototype: 1972 (Big Star), 1999 (Cheap Trick)

Since its 1979 heyday, Power Pop has had limited exposure on commercial radio. Nowadays you you seem to find little guitar music of any kind on the radio. It's interesting then that as television shows have moved away from instrumental music for their opening credit sequences (suck it Mike Post), several have opted for Power Pop songs.

Perhaps the best example is tonight's Power Pop Peak, "I'll Be There For You," from the show Friends (NBC 1994-2004). When They Might Be Giants and REM passed on the song it was given to The Rembrandts, who included Danny Wilde of legendary LA Power Pop group The Quick. They cut a one minute version that became the Friends theme and that was supposed to be the end of it. After a Nashville DJ looped the song into a full length track and started playing it, other radio stations did the same and demand for a single grew. The Rembrandts played hardball- they wouldn't record an expanded version unless they got songwriting credit (for additional verses and bridge) and refused to release "I'll Be There For You" as a single, forcing people who wanted the song to buy their album L.P. It was a huge hit and cemented the band's place in history. Yet, as was the case with Power Pop predecessor "My Sharona," once the radio spins for "I'll Be There For You" climbed into the thousands it became cool to hate on the record. Even so, it remains a super-catchy song and I enjoyed hearing it again.

After missing the bus on "I'll Be There For You," They Might Be Giants got into the TV theme business with "Boss Of Me" from Malcom In The Middle (Fox 2000-2006). They won a grammy in 2002 (Best Song Written For A Motion Picture, Television, Or Other Visual Media) and had their greatest chart success, hitting the top 30 in the UK and Australia. Likewise, Phantom Planet's "California" is that band's biggest hit thanks to its use as the theme for The O.C. (Fox 2003-2007), charting in the UK, Ireland and Italy. I liked Malcom In The Middle but The O.C. always struck me as one long ad for Abercrombie & Fitch.

Of all the TV shows featured this week, the one I like the best is Rescue Me, which starts with The Von Bondies' "C'mon C'mon." I don't know how Boston born Dennis Leary can bear to wear the Yankees/Rangers gear, but I'm glad he does because Tommy Gavin is one of the most interesting characters I've ever seen on television.

The idea for a Power Pop TV Themes show started with "Time For You" by The Tories which was used in a short-lived show called Jesse (NBC 1998-2000). It came on after Friends and I had never heard anything like "Time For You" on TV before. I actually watched a few episodes on the strength of the song alone (it was a pretty mediocre sitcom, though star Christina Applegate is always fetching). Hearing the theme to That 70's Show (Fox 1998-2006) for the first time was an even greater shock- the producers used a re-recorded version of "In The Street" by the greatest Power Pop group of all time, Big Star. Later seasons used Cheap Trick's version of the song, re-titled "That 70's Song" with the added refrain "we're all alright" from their hit "Surrender." Subsequent episodes of That 70's Show featured Big Star's "I'm In Love With A Girl," "September Girls" and "Thirteen," along with several Cheap Trick songs. Big Star front man Alex Chilton once joke that he made $70 dollars in royalties every time That 70's Show aired, but I bet it added up to some serious cash the last few years of his life. What's more, I've heard "Thirteen" on Scrubs and How I Met Your Mother, so That 70's Show started a trend.

Hearing this music on TV over the years has made me realize that my dream job is to be Music Supervisor on a long running TV show. What could be better than watching a show, combing through your record collection and making musical suggestions to the writers and director. You could expose people to great older music they've never heard before and introduce cool new music to people. Maybe I'm being naive and it's all just corporate synergy- the show uses music from its sister record label- but if not, I think Music Supervisor sounds like a great job. So, if you know anybody...

Download this week's show below ("Right click and "Save Target As")
Hour 1
There was a problem with the second hour, I'll put it up when it's ready.

Show #63 August 6, 2011

2011-08-20T13:14:00.000-07:00

Here's to Glendora.... and ALL the boys!

Glendora- The Slickee Boys Gotta Tell Me Why 7"
Tonight The Sky Will Be Ours- The Vertex Tonight The Sky Will Be Ours EP
Bittersweet- Hoodoo Gurus Mars Needs Guitars!
I Don't Like It Like That- Sorrows Teenage Heartbreak
T.V. Woman- The Citizens Satisfy The Citizens 7"
Love Is A Dangerous Thing- Tommy Keene Driving Into The Sun
Wake Up- The Cold Mesmerized/Wake Up 7"
Tears Little Darlin'- Ray Paul & RPM Go Time
^I Wanna Be A Cowboy- Boys Don't Cry Boys Don't Cry
Call Me If There's Any Change- Pills Wide Awake With The Pills
All Of A Sudden- B.T.P. Folders All Of A Sudden 7"
Shakin' It- Face Dancer About Face
Imagine Me Without You- Screams Screams
Popgun- The Bats Popgun 7"
*Weoh, Weoh, Weoh- Boys Boys
*Let It Rain- The Boys Boys Only
*Shady Lady- The Boyzz Too Wild To Tame
*You Make Me Shake- The Boys You Make Me Shake 7"
*Easy To Fall In Love- The Boize Live At The Rat
Poison Flower- Urge Overkill Rock & Roll Submarine
Rock 'N Roller- Bay City Rollers The Definitive Collection
Everyday, Everyway- The Really 3rds The Really 3rds 7"
The Big Hook Up- The Modern Pioneers The Big Hookup EP
Reverberate- The Cassettes Reverberate 7"
Here Comes Another Lonely Night- The Sweat No More Running
>Laughs On Me- The Boyz Shake Some Action Vol 7 (USA)
Spinning My Mind Away- The Merrymakers No Sleep 'til Famous
Ever Any Reason- Manual Scan Manual Scan 1
No Russians In Russia- Radio Stars Songs For Swinging Lovers
Only In Dreams- The Nice Boys The Nice Boys
I Found Her- Boy's Life Two Doors Down 45

^Power Pop Peak: #12 Billboard Hot 100 4/5/86

*SacroSet: Boys/Boyzz/Boize Bands

>Power Pop Prototype: 1968

One of the countless ways the Internet has changed music is that bands now have to think about search engines when choosing a name. Case in point, a few months back I had the idea to do a show featuring all the bands I knew called "The Boys" or using some derivation this name. Easy right? Not so much. First off, while this is a VERY different than "boy bands" (shudder) I still had to wade through tons of sites about The Backstreet Boys, N' Sync, etc. (Interesting fact: the 90's boy band craze was a world wide phenomenon- every country seemed to have their version. I probably shouldn't be surprised since the US stole the idea from Puerto Rican group Menudo, who stole the idea from The Osmonds and Jackson 5.)

Anyway, after several attempts I think I ended up googling something like "bands with the word boys in their name-" the Interweb demands specificity. Here's what I found:

Australian band Boys are from Perth and put out two great records as well as several singles in the early 80's.
The Boys from London are probably the best known of this evening's "Boys bands;" formed in 1976, they are lumped in with the British punk scene but were MUCH more accomplished musicians, as their later records proved.
Fox Lake, Illinois' The Boyzz were a hard rocking bar band with a strong biker following- not your standard All Kindsa Girls fare but I think "Shady Lady" from their first and only LP Too Wild To Tame is a great song.
The Boys from Lincoln, NE built up a decent following in the midwest circa 1978, releasing a couple of great singles and compilation tracks on the legendary Kansas City label Titan! records.
Boston band The Boize didn't achieve the regional success of contemporaries The Real Kids, Willie "Loco" Alexander or DMZ but their place in Boston Rock history is cemented with their two tracks on Live At The Rat recorded at the legendary club The Rathskellar in Kenmore Square.
"Laughs On Me" by The Boyz is probably the most obscure "boys" record in tonight's show. I'd never heard of the group and only saw the record when I sorted iTunes on group names and they came up. The song was recorded in 1968 but due to its re-release in 1975 is associated with a lot of mid-70's Power Pop. It's a great song, but what makes it even cooler is that it features early guitar work of a certified Power Pop Genius...Rick Neilsen of Cheap Trick!

I realize "I Wanna Be A Cowboy" is not Power Pop, but it did Peak and since the group, Boys Don't Cry, fit tonight's theme I just went with it.

These days unfortunately even the coolest band name is a liability if it comes up on page three of a web search. Now when I see a group like Baltimore's Myracle Brah, Lake Charles, LA's Research Turtles or Boston's Oranjuly I no longer think "wow! what a stupid name." I have come to realize it's savvy marketing for bands to have incredibly random yet easily searchable names.

Download this week's show below (Right click and "Save Target As")
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #62 July 23, 2011

2011-07-31T18:37:00.000-07:00

For Jesamine and the people of Norway

Jesamine- Squire Big Smashes
Kings Cross Ladies- Loaded Dice No Sweat
Prisoners- The Vapors Anthology
Love Said to Me- The Rooks Encore Echoes
It's Safe- The Proof It's Safe
Mason Dixon- Urge Overkill Rock & Roll Submarine
She's Fetching- Big Dipper Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology
Extraordinary Sensations- Purple Hearts Frustration 7"
^Take On Me- A-Ha Hunting High And Low
Get Away- Numbers Add Up
I've Gotta Know- Sloan The Double Cross
Dot Dash- Wire Dot Dash Single
Shattered Flower- Eugene Edwards My Favorite Revolution
A Place In The Heart- Protex A Place In The Heart 7"
*Come On Come On- The Yum Yums Blame It On The Boogie
*Ooh, I Love You- The Kwyet Kings Been Where? Done What?
*I'm Coming Home- The Terrifieds Terrifieds EP
*Driving Song- The Jessica Fletchers Less Sophistication
Neverland- The dB's Repercussion
Sweet Sweet Heart- The Vibrators Pure Mania
Got To Get Control Of My Life- The Sighs The Sighs
I'm A Pretender- The Exploding Hearts Guitar Romantic
The Last Letter- Milk 'N' Cookies Milk 'N' Cookies
Commercial Alternative- Teenage Fanclub Thirteen
>Boom Boom- DumDum Boys Splitter Pine
Who's Got My Baby- The Shake Shakes You Can Run Single
You'd Rather See Me Lonely- Cherry Twister Cherry Twister
Massive Nights- The Hold Steady Boys and Girls in America
I Want You To Stay- Maximo Park A Certain Trigger
Animal Grey- Band 19 Dictate
Day Of The First Snow- Jr. Gone Wild Less Art, More Pop
Audio, Audio- Classics Shake Some Action Vol 5
Can't Get You Outta My Mind- Cosmic Dropouts Sonic Circus

^Power Pop Peak: #1 Billboard Hot 100 7/13/85

*SacroSet: Norwegian Power Pop

>Power Pop Prototype: 1989

For the second time this year, world events have placed a feature on a pre-recorded ALL KINDSA GIRLS show in a different context. Back in March I dedicated a show to "Enola Gay" (the movie/album Urgh! A Music War was being featured and it's the only song on the record that has a woman's name in the title) about three days before the Japanese earthquake/tsunami/nuclear meltdown. Needless to say, this tragedy turned the dedication to "Enola Gay" (the name of the plane that dropped the Hiroshima bomb in WWII) into a cruel, disrespectful joke requiring a hastily recorded disclaimer added a few hours before the show aired.

Outside of Nobel prize time, Norway isn't in the news much. So, it was a little surreal that while I was in South Lake Tahoe this week, having already recorded Show #62 featuring Norwegian Power Pop, I read about the bombing in Oslo and multiple murder in Utoya. What a shockingly senseless act- my thoughts and prayers go out to everyone in Norway. Another country gets its own "9/11-" it's a sad time for all of us.

Last year I was researching Scandinavian Power Pop but found so much outstanding music from Sweden (Merrymakers, Genuine Fakes, Beagle, ABBA, etc.) that I ended up going with that country alone, making a mental note to go back for Denmark, Norway and Finland (this was before I found out that there is considerable debate on the web over whether Finland is a Scandinavian country, which I find fascinating).

Growing up in New England we used to say that neighboring states New Hampshire (blue collar, conservative) and Vermont (white collar, liberal) were exact opposites of each other. It appears the same can be said of Sweden, whose biggest musical export is ABBA, and Norway, birthplace of satan worshiping black metal (though to be fair also A-Ha whose "Take On Me," is tonight's Power Pop Peak). I've loved Moss, Norway's non-satan worshiping group The Yum Yums for years, so they were my starting point for Norwegian Power Pop. Yum Yums leader and Power Pop genius Morten Henriksen had already been in Norwegian language punk (Stroyers) and hardcore bands (Siste Dagers Helvete) before switching to English in The Joyful Tears (a band he describes as "gloomy post punk") where he met Arne Thelin. In the late 80's Henriksen and Thelin's shared love of garage rock birthed The Cosmic Dropouts, whom Thelin left after one record to form Lust-O-Rama before moving in a Power Pop direction with his band The Kwyet Kings (also featured in tonight's SacroSet). Henriksen went on to form The Vikings with a member of American punk band The Devil Dogs before putting the The Yum Yums together in 1994.

I identify with Morten Henriksen's musical evolution, from punk youth to Power Pop middle age. Need further proof of our shared sensibilities? Check this out:

In fact I wasn't even that surprised to find this video of Morten leading the Yum Yums in a rousing version of "All Kindsa Girls" at a show in Tokyo last year. The club seems to have conserved space by putting the dancefloor on stage with the band; it's a very crowded city, I guess. (Actually the band brings all the girls in the audience up on stage for the song-I especially love how some in the crowd cheer the opening notes.)

Anyway, let's face it; getting older and having a family just doesn't jibe with the old punk rock anger. I've probably said this before, but as a suburban, 46 year old father of two, listening to a 16 year old scream about hating his parents and/or school and/or Reagan just doesn't do it for me anymore. On the other hand, I don't think I'll ever get tired of the catchy hooks, singalong choruses and girl-centric lyrics in Power Pop and thank God for that. I bet Morten Henriksen would agree and Norway needs him now more than ever.

An interesting postscript- as awesome as The Yum Yums are, they are nowhere nears as well known in Norway as DumDum Boys who perform tonight's Power Pop Prototype. Singing in their native language, DumDum Boys (who took their name from an Iggy Pop song) are rock royalty in Norway.

Click the links below to download tonight's show (Right click and "Save Target As")
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #61 July 9, 2011

2011-07-10T12:22:00.000-07:00

For Red... white and blue!!

Red- Hoehn & Duren Blue Orange

4th Of July- X See How We Are
Where The Sun Always Shines- Runarounds Waiting For The Hurricane
Summertime (Is Calling)- Motors 1
Rock And Roll Tonight- The Innocents No Hit Wonders From Down-Under
Little Razorblade- Pink Spiders Teenage Graffitti
Move It- Sacre Bleu Move It 7"
Drag On Forever- The Cars Move Like This
^R.O.C.K. In The U.S.A.- John Cougar Mellencamp Scarecrow
Saturday's Kids- The Jam Direction, Reaction, Creation
Breakaway- The Producers You Make The Heat
Dyna-Mite- The Blondes The Blondes
Bad Boy- Suzanne Fellini Love On The Phone 7"
I Want You To Dance With Me- Jeff Hill I Want You To Dance With Me 7"
*Rockin' In The USA- Sass Live At The Rat
*U.S.A.- The Beat The Beat
*WUSA- The Neighborhoods ...The High Hard One
*Rockin' In The USA- Kiss Alive II
Life of the Party- The Slickee Boys Cybernetic Dreams of Pi
I'm In Love With You (Again)- Slugs Problem Child 7"
All I Know Is Right Now- Marshall Crenshaw Field Day
Stranger On The Town- The Damned Strawberries
Freedom (Is A Heady Wine)- Yachts S.O.S Singles 1977-1981
Now That I've Lost My Baby- 2 Timers Shake Some Action Vol 7
>In The U.S.A.- The Flamin' Groovies Groovies Greatest Grooves
What Faces- Roky Erickson and the Aliens The Evil One
If Stuart Could Talk- The Dickies Stukas Over Disneyland
Glasshouse- Shake Culture Shock 10" EP
Nobody's Fool- Alex Chilton Top 30
Rock N Roll Toilet- The Soft Boys 1976-1981
Lady From the USA- Bram Tchaikovsky Strange Man/Changed Man

^Power Pop Peak: #2 Billboard Hot 100 2/1/86

*SacroSet: U.S.A.! U.S.A.!

>Power Pop Prototype: 1979

This week's show celebrates America's 235th birthday this past Monday. I love 4th of July in Sonoma. Our parade starts at 10am but by about 10pm the night before the sidewalk along the route is completely covered in chairs. The unspoken rule the morning of the parade is that chairs are allowed on the street only as far as the slanted white parking lines. My strategy has always been to go down about 8:30am and put our chairs down in the empty parking places on the shady side of 1st Street East but this year I almost didn't get a spot. Fortunately we have low chairs because I believe another element of proper parade chair placement etiquette is that the top of your chair cannot be higher than the armrest of any chair behind you. We're not savages.

I bought our backpack chairs specifically for 4th of July, but not just the parade. The slanting back and pillow makes it ideal for fireworks viewing as well. The parade is great and so is the festival in the plaza, but the best thing about 4th of July in Sonoma is the fireworks. For a town this size, the fireworks show our fire department puts on every year is truly amazing. They are launched right in the middle of our valley with great views from all sides. The program lasts about 40 minutes and the "Grand Finale" seems to go on for two full minutes- with everyone, myself included, screaming at the top of their lungs. When it's over you I bet you can hear the roar of applause from miles away. Some prefer to watch the fireworks from the comfort of their backyard but Jaime and I always ride our bikes down to the field so we can be as close as possible. When those low bombs of spectacular white light go off I can feel it in my chest. One year, because of the wind I guess, we were pelted with soot from the explosions- it was awesome! Immediately following the fireworks is the worst traffic jam of the year in Sonoma. The one time we drove it took us an hour to drive the mile and half back to our home. Never again.

One of the things that makes 4th of July great is that it transcends politics, cutting right to the core of what makes America great- the ideals upon which our nation is founded. I am still awed by the genius of our founding fathers and no amount of cynical partisan politics can take that away. As a lifelong Massachusetts liberal, and unlike many California liberals I know, I've never let anyone take patriotism or the flag away from me. I've always felt that if we cede these to the conservatives and religious right, what do we have left? Just a bunch of theories that can be endlessly debated because none have ever been put to the test. And the anger; that continuous seething rage many progressives I know seem to feel about our country.

Jaime and I took the kids to Washington, D.C. in 2008 and I could see they were as impressed as I was when visiting at their age. We got a tour of Capitol Hill from an aid to our Congressman Mike Thompson, visited the Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson and Roosevelt monuments as well as those for World War II, Korea and Vietnam veterans. If you've never been, I'd really recommend the trip- there's nothing like visiting the National Archives and standing in front of the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights. I'm not saying America is perfect, but I do believe that the ideals our nation is founded on are still the best that man on earth has yet produced.

Here are the download links for this week's show:
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #60 June 25, 2011

2011-06-26T13:09:00.000-07:00

This one's for Lolene and the cast of Rocky Horror Show!

Lolene- Mad Turks Cafe Istanbul
Gone Daddy Gone- Violent Femmes Add It Up
Ain't Got No Sense- Teenage Head Teenage Head
Baby Loves to Rock- Cheap Trick All Shook Up
You Rool Me- TPI TPI 7"
Moves- The New Pornographers Together
And Violets Are Blue- The Probers Mat At The World
Poor Girl- X More Fun in the New World
^Father Of Mine- Everclear So Much for the Afterglow
Anywhere Else But Here- The First Steps Anywhere Else But Here E.P.
Gimme Some Time- The Nerves One Way Ticket
Emergency- 999 Emergency 7"
Holiday Fire- Marc Thor Holiday Fire
Tigerland- Rudi Big Time
*Dad Said- The Tremblers Twice Nightly
*Daddy's Girl- The Secrets Titan: It's All Pop!
*Wait Til' Your Father Gets Home- Incredible Kidda Band Too Much, Too Little, Too Late!
*Your Daddy Will Do- Sloan The Double Cross
Opening Up- The Cute Lepers Can't Stand Modern Music
It's Only Love- The Lonely Boys The Lonely Boys
Tonight We Fly- 20/20 20/20
Sticks And Stones-- The Semantics Powerbill
Sticky Sweet Girls- The Zeros 4-3-2-1-The Zeros
Warrior In Woolworths- X-Ray Spex Germfree Adolescents
>Dear Dad- Chuck Berry The Anthology
Stepped On- Shane Champagne Band Stepped On 7"
The Backpack Song- Nerf Herder IV
Neck On Up- Utopia Utopia
(I'm Lookin' For A) Sputnik- Rick Rock Mondo Montage
Too Busy- Wreckless Eric Big Smash
Working Girls (Sunlight Shines)- Pernice Brothers The World Won't End
I Turned Her Away- Game Theory Tinkers To Evers To Chance
Outfit- Drive-By Truckers Decoration Day

^Power Pop Peak: #70 Billboard Hot 100 1998

*SacroSet: Father's Day

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

As I wrote in the post for Show #22 seeing a midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show at age 12 was a pivotal moment in my life. I still don't know how my father heard about the film, though I suspect the TV show Sneak Previews had a role. (He always loved watching Siskel & Ebert fight about films.)

Dad, Cousin Rich and I first saw the movie in Brockton, Mass with an audience that made up for its ignorance of the finer points of Rocky Horror participation by going completely mental throughout the film. After that I started going in to Boston to see the Friday midnight show at the amazing Exeter Street Theatre. The theater occupied the former First Spiritualist Temple built in 1885, which is appropriate because, according to Wikipedia, one of the tenets of Spiritualism is: spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world have both the ability and the inclination to communicate with the living. Anyone may receive spirit messages, but formal communication sessions (séances) are held by "mediums," who can then provide information about the afterlife.

The building was converted into a theater in 1914 but (thankfully) never shed its creepy origins as these pictures show. Anyway, by the late 70's The Exeter Street Theatre was struggling and the Friday midnight Rocky Horror Picture Show screenings were the only thing keeping it going. It was an amazing show- live people performing on stage in perfect sync with the film screening behind them. It was here that I learned "proper" Rocky Horror participation etiquette: squirt guns, news paper, toilet paper, toast, etc. Dad took my sister Sarah and I in one night and I remember another where Sarah and I were joined by friends Frank and Jim along with my cousins Adam and Mary Lee from D.C. For suburban high school kids, it didn't get any cooler than Rocky Horror Picture Show at The Exeter Street Theatre.

Needless to say, last January I was very excited to hear Sonoma's Caps Productions had Rocky Horror Show slated to kick off the Sonoma Theater Alliance's Summer Festival of Theater. Another company in town had tried to do the show last year but the school they rent from had issues with the content and put the kibosh on the production. I have always wanted to play "Riff Raff" so I put together a demented version of "The Time Warp" accompanying myself on distorted electric guitar at the audition. The director Cat Austin put me through the paces on audition day and I felt I did pretty well. Almost as an afterthought, she asked me to read a few sides as "Brad" before I left. As soon as we started I saw something click in Cat's mind and I knew "Riff Raff" was off the table. In retrospect, I think she made the right choice. I've really grown to appreciate "Brad" and I love singing "Dammit Janet," "Frankenstein's Place," "Once In A While" (which isn't in the film), and "Super Heroes." The harmony singing and choreography are a challenge but everyone's hard work has paid off- it is an amazing production.

(Interestingly, this audition/casting thing has happened once before, when I was going for Dentist "Orin Scrivello" in Little Shop of Horrors and was cast as "Seymour Krelborn." I guess I have a deep connection with dorky guys who wear glasses.)

Before I got the part, I watched Rocky Horror Picture Show with the kids and I think it freaked them out a little. (I must admit it was very bizarre for me too, watching the film outside the live theater experience- for one thing, it was the first time I was able to hear anything the narrator is saying.) When I told the kids I was cast, Nica yelled upstairs to her brother: "Jack, Dad gets to have sex with a MAN!" My son congratulated me then asked that we keep pictures of me in the corset/fishnet stockings out of the newspaper. (So far I've been able to keep up my side of the deal, although there is a picture in yesterday's Sonoma Index-Tribune of me in undershirt and tightie whities.)

Jack came opening night and seemed to like the show. Nica not so much, but more due to the heckler than anything on stage. She didn't get why this guy was calling her dad "asshole" and the lady beside him "slut." The whole heckling thing made Nica so anxious Jaime drove her home at intermission. The heckler has been to most shows, driving 60 miles from his home in Davis, and, credit where credit is due, he's got the audience participation script and timing down pat. He comes in costume as Joel from 90's cable show Mystery Science Theater 3000 and even brings a small Tom Servo doll with him. I find the heckler annoying; while there is a lot of camp in Rocky Horror I think there are some sincere moments ("I'm Going Home," "Super Heroes"). The heckling makes it all seem like one big ironic joke though, and I HATE irony in performance. Even so, audiences seem to like the heckler so I accept his handshake every night when he says "good job!"

My mother and sister are coming out from Massachusetts next weekend to see the show and Nica's going to join them for the final performance. She'll be ready for the heckler this time. Rocky Horror Show's grueling six day a week rehearsal schedule has been a major imposition on my family so I'll conclude this post by thanking Jaime, Jack and Nica for allowing me to have this experience I'll never forget.

Here are the links to download this week's show:
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #59 June 11, 2011

2011-06-13T21:32:00.000-07:00

This one's for Ronnie... and my friend Paul!

Ronnie- The Rubinoos Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About
Tell Her I'm Ill- The Freshies The Very Best Of
She's Leaving- The Flashcubes Bright Lights
Color Eyes- L.A. Burgers L.A. Burgers
Reduced- Tot Rocket & the Twins Reduced 45
Out Of Reach (Dreams)- The Know I Like Girls 7"
Frustrated- The Knack Get the Knack
The Law- Art Yard Boston Underground (1979-1982)
^Lies- The Thompson Twins Quick Step And Side Kick
Pain- Durango 95 Lose Control
First In Line- The Romantics Romantics And Friends-Midwest Pop Explosion
Sudden Fun- Sudden Fun Sudden Fun E.P. 7"
The Answer- Was You Sloan The Double Cross
Make You Love Me- The Sugar Stems Sweet Sounds of the.....
*Lies- Silver Sun Disappear Here
*Lies- Neats 1981-84 The Ace of Hearts Years
*Lies- Pointed Sticks Lies 7"
*Lies- Spys Midnight Riders 45
Fall To Sorrow- The Rifles Great Escape
Strange Man, Changed Man- Bram Tchaikovsky Strange Man/Changed Man
I'm The One- Tweezers Already!
Basket Case- The Windbreakers Time Machine (1982-2002)
Hurts Like Love- Helmet Boy Helmet Boy
Yes Or No- The Locals You Never Have Fun Single
>Lies- The Knickerbockers Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era
Moonlight- Cherry Vanilla Venus D' Vinyl

^Power Pop Peak: #30 Billboard Hot 100 1/22/83

*SacroSet: Songs Called "Lies"

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

I hadn't seen my friend Paul in about ten years so I was very happy to get a text from him a few weeks back asking if we were free for a visit in June. It worked out that I had already booked studio time during his stay so, for the first time, this week's show has a co-host. I met Paul in 1986 at WMJX in Boston. It was my first job out of college and Paul had spent the last few years paying his radio dues in Connecticut and New Jersey.

I've written before about WERS, the Emerson radio station I worked at all four years of college, but I don't think I've mentioned WECB, the closed circuit station only heard in the three dorms at the time: 100 Beacon, Fensgate and Charlesgate. I wasn't sure I'd get a spot on broadcast station WERS as a freshman, so I also applied at WECB. I was on the air the second week of school and did my last shift that December when I started hosting Niteklub on WERS. WECB was formatted like a commercial radio station with clocks, record rotations, jock liners, etc. There was only one spot each hour where the DJ could play a song of their own choosing. The funny thing is that many of the DJ's on closed circuit WECB sounded more professional than their counterparts on broadcast station WERS. The difference was that WECB was trying to train students for work in commercial radio while WERS' block programming schedule (folk in the morning, jazz and reggae in the afternoon, R&B and punk/new wave at night, with everything from showtunes to klezmer music on the weekend) required musicologists with presentation a secondary consideration.

The morning folk hosts on WERS aspired to the NPR delivery (think SNL's "Schweddy Balls" sketch) while the R&B DJ's at night strove for a smooth, commercial sound. Hosts in the other dayparts were a toss up. Dead air, stammering, low talking, mispronounced titles/artist names, records played at the wrong speed- every college radio cliche, you'd hear them all. I was not a very good announcer myself back then and tended to get a little monotone. I only remember receiving one compliment on my presentation: that I was the "Bob Newhart of college radio." (On the other hand, I knew the music backwards and forwards and it was great hearing from people who loved my musical choices. In fact, my friend Janet once said she would look for my initials on record cover play sheets when picking songs for her own show.)

Every semester there would be a few kids with natural announcing skills (which is a talent, like any other) who would fake their way through an audition to get on WERS. Then they'd find themselves saddled with a three hour weekly jazz show, playing music they knew nothing about for a finicky audience that wasn't shy about sharing their displeasure over the phone. I would often hear older students advise these kids to go upstairs and work at WECB, but few did and after a semester or so they would drift off, perhaps never returning to radio. (It's ironic that as WERS' programming has become more structured over the years, WECB is now Emerson's "underground" student run radio station, having survived several attempts by the administration to pull the plug. In its current incarnation, WECB is an internet only station, which according to Wikipedia is "in a modest studio within the WERS suite." I've listened to this WECB and unfortunately it sounds like a schizophrenic's iPod on "shuffle.")

Anyway, my friend Paul, like those WECB kids back in the day, is one of those people with the voice and skills who grew up wanting to be on the radio. While most children play with toys or sing in the shower, I imagine a young Paul doing weather and traffic breaks- perhaps with a"n Old Spice soap on a rope shaped like a microphone. Rather than waiting for college to get on the radio like I did, Paul got his first announcing job at age 15, working for WSUB in Groton, CT where they made submarines for the navy. Aside from taking up smoking to help lower his voice, he had the right idea about starting a career in broadcasting.

Paul and I came to the business from different directions, yet a few years into our careers we both realized what we really wanted was to be program directors. While we had to do on-air shifts as part of our early PD jobs (Paul because he sounded great, me purely for budgetary reasons) it was a huge relief when we finally got off the air and could focus exclusively on programming. Our paths have diverged over the years, but we both continue to work in the industry- Paul as a content/prep provider and myself in research. Like me, Paul is a true believer in the power of local radio.

Here are the links to download this week's show (Right click and "Save Target As:")
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #58 May 28, 2011

2011-05-30T15:13:00.000-07:00

For Melody...and the great Gerry Cheevers!

Melody- Kevin K The Best Of Kevin K - New York, New York
Too Scared To Be True- Denzil Pub
(I Feel Like) (Gerry) Cheevers (Stitch Marks On My Heart)- Chixdiggit Chixdiggit
Dancing Away- Little Murders Stop Plus Singles 1978-1986
The Blame- Tommy Tutone Tommy Tutone
How Come We- Popsicle Laquer
You Don't Know Me- The Nads The Nads 7"
Shadow Of Love- Sloan The Double Cross
^Hey Jealousy- Gin Blossoms New Miserable Experience
One More Chance- The V.I.P.'S I Need Somebody To Love/Beat Crazy EP
When Your Mind's Made Up- Glen Hansard & Markéta Irglová Once Soundtrack
Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again- The Angels The Angels
I'll Be Waiting- Robert Johnson Close Personal Friend
Book of Love- Will & The Bushmen Will & The Bushmen
*Cinderella- DMZ DMZ
*Gladys Kravitz- The Tories Wonderful Life
*Lois Lane- Farrah Moustache
*Daisy Duke- Rooney Rooney
City Of Fun- The Only Ones Special View
Fanclub Requiem- The Orange Humble Band Assorted Creams
Blue Tip- The Cars Move Like This
Tiger Beat Twist- Simpletones I Have A Date
Into the Valley- Skids DIY: UK Pop I (1976-79) Teenage Kicks
Why Don't I Miss You- Bowling For Soup The Great Burrito Extortion Case
>Backstreet Noise- Nick Gilder You Know Who You Are
Don't Take Her Away- The Go Shake Some Action Vol 7 (USA)
Nobody Hurts You- Graham Parker Squeezing Out Sparks + Live Sparks
Paper Dolls- Screams Screams
Safety In Numbers- The Adverts Crossing The Red Sea
I Thought of You- The Queen Annes I Thought Of You 7"

^Power Pop Peak: #25 Billboard Hot 100 5/15/93

*SacroSet: Female Fictional Character Songs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1977

Watching the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in 21 years got me thinking about the awesome Bruins teams of my youth. My dad grew up playing hockey and was on the BU team in college. Needless to say, he was a big Bruins fan and I remember watching the team win the Stanley Cup with him in 1970 when I was six years old and again two years later. Most kids I knew said Number 4 Bobby Orr was their favorite player on that championship team. Orr is a straight up legend that's for sure- if you don't believe me, check out this infamous 1970 photo of "The Goal," which brought the Stanley Cup back to Boston after a 29 year drought: I remember my mother telling me once when I was little that Bobby Orr had hundreds of unpaid parking tickets because he left his car wherever he felt like it. I still think of "parking like Bobby Orr" on those rare occasions I egregiously park myself. Anyway, I had a poster of "The Goal" up in my room, yet Orr wasn't my favorite Bruin. That honor went to goalie Gerry Cheevers. His undefeated streak (33 games in 1972) still stands today and he was one of the first goalies to come out of the crease and challenge shooters, beating the crap out of anyone who skated too near the crease (Cheevers holds the franchise record in penalty minutes for a goalie). To be honest though, it was his mask that first captured my attention. The story goes that Cheevers wasn't much for practicing and after taking a puck in the face one day headed off to the locker room. When the coach found him there, uninjured, having a beer and cigarette he was told to get back on the ice. Before heading out, the trainer drew stitchmarks over the part of the mask that was hit. After that, every puck in the face got a similar mark. Gerry Cheevers' mask became the most well known in all of hockey.

Around this time, my oldest Cousin Debbie Burgess (who was probably 17 or 18 at the time) started making goalie masks as a hobby. I visited her workshop once in the basement of her family's house in Hingham and it was very cool. She painted the masks in wild colors- I remember one with a stars & stripes design and another that was a menacing blood red. Even more impressive was a photo on the wall above the work bench- of her next to Gerry Cheevers! I don't know how she did it, but Cousin Debbie got to meet Cheevers, give him one of her masks and get her picture in the paper doing it. I was completely blown away.

As you can imagine I was very happy to find the song "(I Feel Like) (Gerry) Cheevers (Stitch Marks On My Heart)" by Calgary Alberta's Chixdiggit. Check out the lyrics:

Saw a picture yesterday of a guy who used to play
for the Boston Bruins and in school I always drew him
He had the longest undefeated streak
And every shot that hit his cheek he drew on a stitch mark
and I think he played with Brad Park
I feel like Gerry Cheevers (2x) I got stitch marks on my heart
Just like Gerry Cheevers- oh yeah!

Saw a picture yesterday of a guy who used to play
for the Boston Bruins and in school I always drew him
He wore a mask just like my heart
He had stitch marks on every part
And he wore number 30 that's how old you were when you met me
I feel like Gerry Cheevers (2x) I got stitch marks on my heart
Just like Gerry Cheevers

What's not to love- a punk rock love song about a childhood hero with an audacious use of parentheses!!! Gerry Cheevers Rocks!!! By the way, Cheevers played behind Brad Park (who during his career was second only to Bobby Orr among NHL defenseman) from 1975 to 1980. GO BRUINS!!

Download tonight's show below (Right click and "Save Target As"):
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #57 May 14, 2011

2011-05-14T22:33:00.000-07:00

Dedicated to Christabelle...

Christabelle- Sorrows Love Too Late
I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend- The Ramones Ramones
Effigy- Urge Overkill Rock & Roll Submarine
Nobody Told Me- The Sweat No More Running
Ward- Visqueen Message To Garcia
Unkind- Sloan The Double Cross
Devotion- Hilly Michaels Calling All Girls
Things You Do- Fast Cars Coming, Ready or Not!
^One Way Or Another- Blondie Parallel Lines
Buried Alive- The Lyres AHS 1005
My Before and After- Cotton Mather Kontiki
Sad Song- The Cars Move Like This
Mad About That Girl- The Infidels Mad About That Girl
It Was Alright- Pezband Pezband
*Personality Crisis- New York Dolls New York Dolls
*Ask The Angels- Patti Smith Radio Ethiopia
*Venus- Television Marquee Moon
*Max's Kansas City 1976- Wayne County & The Back Street Boys Max's Kansas City: New York New Wave
Claire's Ninth- Ben Folds & Nick Hornby Lonely Avenue
She Do Rock- The Wild Giraffes Right Now
New Mistake- Jellyfish Spilt Milk
Quit This Town- Eddie And The Hot Rods The End Of The Beginning
Like A Good Girl Should- Leeson & Vale Shake Some Action 8 (UK & Ireland)
House Of Girls- The Golden Horde The Golden Horde
>Sweet Jane- The Velvet Underground Loaded
I've Got You- The Vipers I've Got You 7"
Weekend- The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!

^Power Pop Peak: #24 Billboard Hot 100 6/2/79

*SacroSet: Mid 70's Downtown NYC Rock & Roll

>Power Pop Prototype: 1970

I suppose each generation of rock & roll fans has its own hallowed ground/era. For Glam Rockers you've got London 1974, for Deadheads it's Haight-Ashbury 1967, for Grunge fans it's Seattle 1991, for Thrash Metal Fans it's Southern California 1981, for nearly everyone else its Liverpool 1963... For me though, it is hard to top downtown New York City in 1976. Check out these lyrics to "Max's Kansas City 1976" and tell me if it doesn't sound like the coolest place on earth:

Take a tip from me and get ready for the big parade
It's the place to be every night's a happy hol-i-day
The kids are jumpin' everybody's doing loop de loop
Just a-makin' the rounds like a speed freak in a telephone booth
The downstairs is packed and the groupies are all dressed up
Upstairs the New York Dolls are kickin' it out, lookin' tough
-you got a personality crisis baby

Down at Max's (Max's Kansas City)
All the boys are (Max's Kansas City)
All the girls are (Max's Kansas City)
All the stars are (Max's Kansas City) Down at Max's

I see Patti Smith she's the Stag-o-lee of rock & roll
She threw a 7 and 11 and she always knows which cards to hold
And I see Lou Reed and Iggy Pop they're just gettin' higher and higher
Give those boys one more drink and they're gonna set the place on fire
-go get 'em boys
The downstairs is packed and the groupies are all dressed up
Upstairs the New York Dolls are kickin' it out, lookin' tough
-bad girl, I'm just looking for a kiss

Down at Max's....

Blondie's all in a buzz she's on the cover of the New York Rocker
Dee Dee Ramone strips his bass to the bone he's a Blitzkreig Bopper
The Heartbreakers are gonna give you a taste of going steady with Pirate Love
And you better watch it because my Backstreet Boys are gonna rip you apart- rip 'em up boys
The downstairs is packed and the groupies are all dressed up
Upstairs the New York Dolls are kickin' it out, lookin' tough
-trash, pick it up, you know where, that's right

Down at Max's....
Now I ain't talkin' about San Francisco
And I ain't talkin' about Los Angeles
And I ain't talkin' about Detroit city
I'm talkin' about New York City, down at Max's Kansas City, baby

(Spoken) Q: Hey man what's happening, uh, where you goin' tonight?
A: Well I think I'm gonna go down to Max's and check out a couple of those rock & roll bands.
Q: Oh yeah? Who's playing there these days?
A: Well, there's, uh, The Heartbreakers, Cherry Vanilla and Her Staten Island Band, Wayne County & The Backstreet Boys, The Fast, Pere Ubu, John Collins, Harry Toledo, Suicide, The Ramones, Blondie, The Dolls, Television, Talking Heads, August, Fuse, Mong, The Poppees, The Marbles, The Planets, The Miamis, Just Water, Tuff Darts, Day Old Bread, Richard Hell, Lance Loud & The Mumps, Another Pretty Face and Mink Deville and (whew!) and oh yeah, oh yeah they got this new group that everybody's talking about called the Psychotic Frogs. But w-w-w-w-w-wait just a minute- there's just one more thing I forgot to tell you. You better not forget to bring your masquerade mask and your ego trip because you're gonna need it when you go down to Max's Kansas City, baby- that's right!

Max's Kansas City at 217 Park Avenue South was already in its second incarnation when Wayne County wrote the song above. Opening in December of 1965, Max's quickly became a scene hotspot frequented by poets and artists, most notably Andy Warhol and his entourage from The Factory. This included The Velvet Underground who recorded a live album there in 1970 on which writer/singer Jim Carroll, who was holding the microphone for the recording, can be heard ordering drinks and trying to score drugs between songs. Despite becoming a respected live music venue, featuring shows by Aerosmith, Bob Marley & The Wailers and Bruce Springsteen, Max's fell out of favor with the hip crowd and closed in December of 1974.

When the club re-opened in 1975 the new owner planned to make it a disco but music booker Peter Crowley quickly established Max's Kansas City as the rock & roll mecca in New York. One notable exception to the list of bands at the end of Wayne County's "Max's Kansas City 1976" is an all-time favorite of mine- The Dictators. That's because of a legendary feud between Wayne County and Dictators lead singer Handsome Dick Manitoba. The story goes that in March of 1976 a drunken Manitoba was heckling County from the audience at a CBGB's show. According to the Dictators' camp, Manitoba then stepped up onto the corner of the stage on his way to the men's room (which I later verified is down a narrow, easily blocked corridor beside the stage). County, on the other hand, says he was defending himself from Manitoba's drunken bum rushing the stage. What isn't in dispute is that Manitoba called County a "homo" and County hit him with the business end of a microphone stand. Handsome Dick was rushed to the hospital, ending up with sixteen stitches and a broken collar bone. Assault charges were brought but later thrown out of court.

Peter Crowley, who was Wayne County's manager at the time, banned The Dictators from Max's Kansas City and supposedly tried to get other NYC club owners to do the same. The Dictators ended up having a very successful run at CBGB's later that year though, further dividing the scene into Max's and CBGB's factions. Music critic and Dictators fan Lester Bangs stirred the pot even more by ranting about the "faggot mafia" and its attempts to blacklist The Dictators in an article for Punk magazine that fortunately never went to print, but a lot of people seemed to hear about.

The good news is that if you manage to beat the rock & roll odds and stay alive, there is hope for reconciliation. Here's a picture of Handsome Dick Manitoba and Jayne County (with surgery, Wayne became Jayne in 1979 or so) who recorded a duet of The Rivieras "California Sun," which they performed on Jayne's birthday in 2002. Max's is long gone, and so is CBGB's for that matter, but Dick & Jayne are still going strong and for that I am very thankful.

Click the links below to download this week's show (Right click and "Save Target As")

Hour 1

Hour 2

Show #56 April 30, 2011

2011-04-30T00:08:00.000-07:00

For Mother Mary and all Mothers....especially Poly Styrene

Mother Mary- Foxboro Hot Tubs Stop Drop and Roll
My Momma Told Me -The Breakers Radio Love 7"
Germ Free Adolescents- X-Ray Spex Germ Free Adolescents
Do You Ever Think Of Me- Farrah Cut Out And Keep
Tell Me When My Light Turns Green- Dexys Midnight Runners Searching For The Young Soul Rebels
All For The Love Of Rock & Roll- Tuff Darts! Tuff Darts!
Truth Is (Hard To Take)- The Grip Weeds Strange Change Machine
When You Find Out- The Nerves The Nerves E.P. 7"
^Stacy's Mom- Fountains Of Wayne Welcome Interstate Managers
Easy Street- The Crack Making The Effort 7"
Go On- Manual Scan Manual Scan 1
Heart & Mind- The Clash London Calling: 25th Anniversary Legacy Edition
Modern Living- SVT Extended Play
Rosario's Ashes- Dirty Looks Dirty Looks
*What Will Mother Say- The Flys See For Miles (1978-1980)
*Somebody's Mom- Pointed Sticks Part Of The Noise
*My Mother Looked Like Marilyn Monroe- Tommy Keene Songs From The Film
*Your Mother- The Reducers Let's Go
Pulling Mussels (From The Shell)- Squeeze Singles: 45's and Under
Out Of Control- Piper Piper
If You Want Me To- The Sugar Stems Sweet Sounds of the.....
Land Of The Hunted- Fools Face Tell America
Kiss Her Goodbye- Research Turtles Research Turtles
Radar- Permanent Wave Radar EP &
>Mama's Boy -Suzi Quatro The Wild One - The Greatest Hits
Nothing Is True- The Jim Carroll Band Catholic Boy
Bring In The Morning Light- Motors 1
Looking At You- The Last L.A. Explosion!
The Man Who Dies Everyday- Ultravox Frozen Ones 7"
Lonely Crash- The Dazzlers Shake Some Action Vol. 3
Wives and Mothers of Tomorrow- The Records Rock and Roll Love Letter

^Power Pop Peak: #21 Billboard Hot 100 9/29/03

*SacroSet: Mother Songs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1980

I've been planning a show of all Mother's Day features for a while now, so I had a big folder of songs to choose from when it came time to record this week's program. My regularly scheduled show was April 30th so I figured I'd just run it again next week on May 7th, Mother's Day Eve. The day I went into the studio I heard the news of X-Ray Spex singer Poly Styrene's death from cancer at age 53 on April 25th, 2011. Poly Styrene was a true original- a smart 18 year old woman with an Afro and braces on her teeth fronting a punk rock band in 1977 howling anthems of anti-consumerism. There was no other band like them. Many X-Ray Spex songs start with a signature Poly Styrene shout of "I-DENT-I-TEE!!," or "ART-I-FICIAL!!" or her most famous "Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard but I say...OH BONDAGE UP YOURS!!" Check out the lyrics to "Germ Free Adolescents" the song I played tonight:

I know you're antiseptic
Your deodorant smells nice
I'd like to get to know you
But you're deep frozen like the ice

He's a germ free adolescent
Cleanliness is her obsession
Cleans her teeth ten times a day
Scrub away scrub away scrub away
The S.R. way....

You may get to touch her
If your gloves are sterilised
Rinse your mouth with listerine
Blow disinfectant in her eyes

Her phobia is infection
She needs one to survive
It's her built-in protection
Without fear she'd give up and die

Those words are deeper than about 99% of the punk rock lyrics of the era. I just checked and "the S.R. way" refers to a British TV ad from the 1950's for Gibbs S.R. Toothpaste- the S.R. stands for "sodium ricinoleate" whatever that is. After a 1978 show Poly Styrene complained of hallucinations was mis-diagnosed as schizophrenic and committed, forcing her to leave X-Ray Spex. After her release she put out an ill-received solo album of lite pop, spent several years in Hare Krishna and had a daughter who went on to front a band of her own in Madrid. While Poly Styrene recorded more over the years, none of her subsequent releases had the impact of X-Ray Spex.

X-Ray Spex never released any records in the U.S. and despite being on Virgin, their imports were hard to come by- which made them even more desirable. This leads me to the other reason X-Ray Spex are important in my life- and this one I'm not too proud of. While I had occasionally bought and returned records I already owned to keep their posters (Pink Floyd's Dark Side of The Moon) or stickers (Kiss' Rock & Roll Over) and sometimes used new receipts to return old records I didn't want, I had never outright stolen anything until my junior year in high school when I met a friend I'll call PF.

PF didn't drink or smoke- shoplifting was his vice. I never understood why someone would risk stealing something stupid (like deodorant from CVS) until I was with him once when he did it and even though I didn't take anything it was still pretty thrilling. After that I would on occasion shoplift records from chain stores. That was my rationalization- I'd only take from evil corporate stores like Strawberries or Record Town and I always had the same M.O. I'd go into the store on a busy Saturday afternoon with bags from a few other stores already under my left arm, slip an expensive record into that stack, then head to the check out to purchase a less expensive record. If the clerk looked at me funny I'd pull the expensive record out and pay for it, if not, I'd walk out the front door with it.

I'm sorry to say, this is how I got my copy of X-Ray Spex' Germ Free Adolescents LP. I was at the Strawberries in Harvard Square and I was so surprised to find the record amid all the usual Top 40 and AOR garbage, I had gotten it into my head that I must "liberate" it from the store. Like I said, not my finest moment and unfortunately to this day it makes listening to Germ Free Adolescents a little bittersweet. I may have redeemed myself somewhat on my first and only trip to London in 1988. Before I left I asked my Cousin Rich if he wanted me to pick anything up for him. He asked for Germ Free Adolescents, which I managed to find in a tiny record store on the Portobello road. I haggled with the clerk for a fair price and was able to grant Rich's request, hopefully offsetting my sordid history with this particular record.

It's funny, Germ Free Adolescents is the only record I specifically remember stealing. My life of crime ended a month or so before my 18th birthday. I was in a music store in Allston (not a corporate store either- isn't it funny how the slippery slope of rationalization works). I had decided that a store full of hacks selling Hondo II's and awful Fender knockoffs didn't deserve to have the two Clash guitar books I had in the stack of records under my left arm. As I approached the counter to buy two guitar picks, the clerks eyes flashed down to my left arm and then back up to meet mine and I instantly knew two things: 1) he knew I was trying to steal from him, 2) he was going to forego the judicial system and go straight to corporal punishment by kicking my ass in the back room. The mullet, the gold jewelry, the copious chest hair- this was not some bored student clerk making minimum wage at a chain store- this was a man's business and I was trying to take food off his table. I pulled those Clash books out of the stack and plunked them down on the counter as fast as I could. I also bought the picks and a couple sets of guitar strings I didn't need for good measure. That's as close as I came to getting caught and I'd like to thank that guy for scaring me straight.

Having kids is a great way to keep you on the straight and narrow. When Jack was a baby he and I were at Best Buy once and I put a Plimsouls CD (Everywhere At Once I think) down on top of his stroller and didn't see it again until we were in the parking lot. I half expected Social Services to come and take him from me right then. Needless to say, it went right back into the store. I would never steal anything and even when I see opportunities to scam something (another slippery slope) I always ask myself: do I want the kids see me be that guy? The guy who cuts in line or sneaks into the movie without paying? I'll buy my movie snacks at the Dollar Tree beside the theater, but that's as outlaw as I get these days.

My wife Jaime has zero tolerance for stealing/scamming which is one of the many reasons she is such a great Mom. So, I dedicate this show to Jaime and to my own Mum back in Duxbury, Mass- HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY LADIES!!!

Click on the links below to download this week's show (Right Click and "Save Target As")
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #55 April 16, 2011

2011-04-16T00:26:00.000-07:00

For Angela...

Angela- New Math Die Trying 7"
Good Day- The Click Five Greetings From Imrie House
The B-Side- The Innocents No Hit Wonders From Down-Under
Telegram- The Monitors Shake Some Action Vol. 3
I'll Cry Instead- The Monochrome Set Eligible Bachelors
King Of The Mountain- Three Hour Tour 1969
Dreamin' (Here He Comes)- City Thrills City Thrills EP
Love Me Or Leave Me- Rooney Calling the World
^Where Have You Been All My Life- Fotomaker Fotomaker
The Provider- The Outlets Whole New World
Bubblegum Factory- Redd Kross Third Eye
Automatic- Off Broadway Quick Turns
Changing With The Times- The Headboys The Headboys
Wanna Write a Letter- LMNOP Elemen Opee Elpee
*Rave On- The Real Kids Real Kids
*Red Rubber Ball- The Diodes Tired of Waking Up Tired
*Lipstick On Your Collar- The Saints 1-2-3-4 EP
*Mony Mony- The Wigs File Under: Pop Vocal
Tomorrow Night- Shoes Shoes Best
Need The Girl- The Agents Need The Girl EP
The Sky Is Falling- Owsley Owsley
My Problem (w/ Mark Mulcahy)- The Reducers Guitars, Bass & Drums
Merry-Go-Round (Love Is All)- The Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars
Too Dumb- Regular Guys Regular Guys E.P. 7"
>Cruisin' Music- Raspberries Starting Over
Oh No- The Shazam The Shazam
Someone Like You- Blue Shoes Someone Like You 7"
Thin Red Line- The Cretones Thin Red Line
Three Chord City- The Cold You 7"
Revenge- The Scruffs Wanna Meet The Scruffs
Rock N' Roll Song- Bobby Sky Titan: It's All Pop!
Charmless- The Popes Hi We're The Popes
New Strings- The Pods It's A Bummer About Bourbie EP
A Girl I Know (Precis of a Friend)- The Pleasers Thamesbeat

^Power Pop Peak: #81 Billboard Hot 100 4/22/78

*SacroSet: Power Pop Cover Songs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1974

I saw a very interesting documentary a few weeks back called The Five Obstructions. In the film, director Lars Von Trier (Breaking The Waves, Dogville) challenges his mentor Jorgen Leth to remake Leth's 1967 short film The Perfect Human five times, each with a different set of obstructions. Von Trier, who a lot of the time comes off like a bastard, has thought out some of the obstructions ahead of time (no cuts longer than 12 frames, shoot in "the worst place in the world" but don't show it on camera, remake it as an animated film) but some are just random bitch slaps (shoot in Cuba, no sets).

Leth is a pretty unflappable guy does his best to complete each task. The obstructions end up being a major factor shaping and even inspiring the work. In fact, as punishment for “failing” at one of the tasks Leth is told to remake the film any way he chooses, in other words with NO obstructions. Leth’s response to this particular obstruction is “that’s diabolical.” In the end, Von Trier admits that he failed in his attempt to ruffle his mentor's composure and that he, Von Trier, will likely never make a film as good as The Perfect Human.

In my experience playing guitar and writing songs for rock bands, I've never sought out obstructions. Let's face it, limited talent is obstruction enough- my guitar playing plateaued when I was about 19 and my songwriting never progressed much past verse-verse-chorus-bridge-solo-chorus-chorus-out. That's why I find a guy like Jack White so intriguing; he consistently puts artistic obstructions in his own path. Take The White Stripes: no bass player, a drummer with limited skills, a three color palette (white, red, black) for wardrobe and design, recording only on ancient analog equipment, etc. Yet, I would say Jack White is the only certifiable genius rock & roll has produced in the new millennium.

There's a great moment in the guitar documentary It Might Get Loud where they show Jack White on the porch of his farm house in Nashville making a "guitar" out of a coke bottle, a piece of wood and a guitar string. The film then cuts to U2 guitar player The Edge's roadie wheeling a refrigerator-sized rack of computer guitar effects into the band's rehearsal studio. It's a great juxtaposition- I'm not knocking The Edge, but in my opinion Jack White comes off way cooler, way more rock & roll.

Even though I've been appearing in plays and student films a relatively short time, I feel my acting abilities have already surpassed my musical talents. Experience has shown me that most major obstructions to a good acting performance are internal rather than external. I'll find myself getting locked into a certain way of doing something or, even worse, be thinking of what I need to do next and not listening to my fellow actors. Acting is a great metaphor for life- you have to be right there in the moment or the audience will sense you've drifted off, giving them permission to do the same. Anyway, I'm still learning. In fact, I've been cast in a new show that I'm pretty excited about. More on that in a future post.

Here are the links below to download this week's show (right click and "Save Target As"):
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #54 April 2, 2011

2011-04-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

Doing it all for Diane this week!

Diane- Material Issue International Pop Overthrow
When Lightning Starts- The Three O'Clock Sixteen Tambourines
Follow The Leader- Sloan The Double Cross
Electric Nights- Candy Whatever Happened To Fun
Strike Talks- The Donkeys Television Anarchy
Circuit Breaker- The Bees Mystery Date EP
February's Quiet- Big Star In Space
Blank Generation- Richard Hell And The Voidoids Blank Generation
^(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To- Weezer Raditude
I Can't Stand It- The Screaming Tribesmen High Time
The Promise- The Genuine Fakes The Striped Album
Hold My Life- The Replacements Tim
It Only Happened Twice- Steve Blimkie & The Reason Steve Blimkie & The Reason
Party Clothes- Subs Gimme Your Heart
*1963- Jonathan Richman Having A Party With
*1964- Critical Mass It's What's Inside That Counts
*1968- Hoodoo Gurus Purity Of Essence
*1969- The Stooges The Stooges
No More Heroes- Stranglers No More Heroes
Bluer Than Blue- Rubber City Rebels Rubber City Rebels
Thank You- Alberto Y Lost Trios Paranoias Heads Down, No Nonsense, Mindless Boogie
16 Down- The Flys See For Miles (1978-1980)
Look On Up At The Bottom- The Carrie Nations Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls
What's He Got- The Producers The Producers
>Time Won't Let Me- The Outsiders Nuggets Box Set
Sweet On -The Krinkles 3 The Mordorlorff Collection
C'mon Let's Go!- Paul Collins King Of Power Pop
Weekend- The Boys Boys Only
You're Telling Lies- Mandarines Trust You E.P.
Your Heart- Crackers Sir Crackers!
The Last Year- Stiv Bators Romantics And Friends-Midwest Pop Explosion
Model Worker- Magazine Urgh! A Music War
Fire Spirit- The Gun Club Fire Of Love
Where I Am- Code Blue Code Blue

^Power Pop Peak: #81 Billboard Hot 100 9/12/2009

*SacroSet: Songs About The 60's

>Power Pop Prototype: 1966

While the mid 70's saw the near simultaneous birth of Punk Rock in cities around the globe, many agree the lasting punk ethos and aesthetic can be traced to one man: Richard Hell. No doubt he had the musical bona fides, having been an original member of Television (the first punk band to play CBGB's), The Heartbreakers (with Johnny Thunders and Jerry Nolan of the New York Dolls) and his own band The Voidoids. Even so, from a broad cultural standpoint Richard Hell had much more of an impact in Punk "fashion," which sadly has always gotten more media attention than the music. His spiked hair and assortment of ripped, drawn-on and/or safety pinned shirts certainly had its followers in the US but started an all-out revolution in London after being appropriated by provocateur/haberdasher and future Sex Pistols Svengali Malcom McLaren who admits after a mid-70's stint in New York:

"I came back to England determined. I had these images I came back with, it was like Marco Polo or Walter Raleigh. I brought back the image of this distressed, strange thing called Richard Hell. And this phrase, 'the blank generation.' Richard Hell was a definite, 100 percent inspiration, and, in fact, I remember telling the Sex Pistols, ‘Write a song like 'Blank Generation,' but write your own bloody version,’ and their own version was 'Pretty Vacant.’"

The quote above is from a book by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain whose title is taken from Richard Hell's home made T-shirt adorned with the phrase "Please Kill Me." To me, this sentiment, rather than fashion, is Richard Hell's biggest contribution. Check out these lyrics to "Blank Generation," which I played on tonight's show:

I was sayin' let me out of here before I was even born
--it's such a gamble when you get a face
It's fascinatin' to observe what the mirror does
but when I dine it's for the wall that I set a place

I belong to the blank generation
and I can take it or leave it each time
I belong to the ______ generation
but I can take it or leave it each time

Triangles were fallin at the window as the doctor cursed
He was a cartoon long forsaken by the public eye
The nurse adjusted her garters as I breathed my first
The doctor grabbed my throat and yelled, "God's consolation prize!"

I belong to the blank generation
and I can take it or leave it each time
I belong to the ______ generation
but I can take it or leave it each time

To hold the t.v. to my lips, the air so packed with cash
then carry it up flights of stairs and drop it in the vacant lot
To lose my train of thought and fall into your arms' tracks
and watch beneath the eyelids every passing dot

I belong to the blank generation
and I can take it or leave it each time
I belong to the ______ generation
but I can take it or leave it each time

Richard Hell was first and foremost a poet in the spirit of the decadent movement like Rimbaud or Verlaine- they were mainly boozers, Hell was a heroin addict. He realized rock and roll had more currency so he put his poetic nihilism to music. Hell was so much smarter, cooler and better looking than just about everyone else in the downtown New York rock scene he was able to bend it to his will. The guy never enjoyed the success of many of his contemporaries but his influence is enormous and he is still alive, so he' s got that going for him. What teenage outcast can't identify with "The Blank Generation?" It both acknowledges that "life sucks" and offers the ultimate teenage response: "who cares?" To me this is Richard Hell's legacy- nihilism, angst and depression. Is it negative? You bet, yet there have been times in my life it has also been strangely empowering. For that I thank Richard Hell.

Here are the links to download this week's show (Right click and "Save Target As")

Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #53 March 19, 2011

2011-03-21T21:11:00.000-07:00

A dual dedication tonight: To Enola Gay and Jim in Japan

Enola Gay- Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark Urgh! A Music War
Illiterature- Adam Schmitt Illiterature
Sorry Girls- The Heats Have An Idea
Scorpion Bowl- The Shods Thanks For Nuthin'
The Girl Who Became a Machine- The Len Price Pictures
Epiphany- Bowling For Soup The Great Burrito Extortion Case
Teenage Teenage- The Screen Gemz Teenage Teenage 7"
Boys Don't Lie- Squire Big Smashes
^We Got The Beat- Go-Go's URGH! A Music War
Future For You- The Semantics Powerbill
Be My Lover- Dogs Legendary Lovers
The Great Escape- The Rifles Great Escape
Some Of The Things That You Do- Pink Steel Wont Come In Your Hand 7"
Border Radio- Blasters The Blasters
*Homicide- 999 URGH! A Music War
*Uncontrollable Urge- Devo URGH! A Music War
*Where's Captain Kirk- Athletico Spizz '80 URGH! A Music War
*Ain't This The Life- Oingo Boingo URGH! A Music War
Dirty Pictures- Radio Stars Dirty Pictures
Alone With You- Sunnyboys Love To Rule EP
Since You Gotta Cheat- The Reruns Since You Gotta Cheat 7"
Mutiny, I Promise You- The New Pornographers Challengers
R-Love(Is Approaching Critical Mass)- Transistors Telephone 7"
Something For The Weekend- Distractions Shake Some Action Vol. 3
>Bad Reputation- Joan Jett & The Blackhearts URGH! A Music War
When I Get Old- Descendents Everything Sucks
Part Time Punks- Television Personalities Where's Bill Grundy Now? EP
How 'Bout You- Brendan Benson One Mississippi
Go To The Police- The Toys Go To The Police 7"
I Can't Control Myself- Seventeen A Flashing Blur Of Stripped Down Excitement
West End- The Colors Rave It Up EP
Respectable Street- XTC URGH! A Music War

^Power Pop Peak: #2 Billboard Hot 100 1/30/82

*SacroSet: Songs from the film URGH! A Music War

>Power Pop Prototype: 1981

Ah, the best laid plans... Since I was going to be out of town on a business trip the week prior to this show, I went in to the studio to record it about ten days before the March 19th air date. Having come across URGH! A Music War! on the brilliant Power Pop Criminals blog a month or so ago, I decided it would be a great theme for the show. Since there is only one song in URGH! that features a woman's name, Orchestral Manoeuvers In The Dark's "Enola Gay" became tonight's dedication song. Well, a few days after I record the show the Japanese earthquake hits on March 11, 2011 killing thousands and crippling the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

So, while I'm in Little Rock and Knoxville this week I'm reading horror stories about Japanese bodies washing up on the shore and plant workers dying of radiation poisoning. All this knowing my radio show is dedicated to "Enola Gay," the plane (named in "honor" of the pilot's mother) that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 killing 100,000 Japanese people. It's an anti-war song but still UNBELIEVABLY inappropriate under the circumstances. As I am not a monster, I inserted a MAJOR disclaimer into the show as soon as I got back to Sonoma, making sure the Program Director and the show following mine knew the "Enola Gay" thing was a horrible coincidence. My friend Jim lives in Japan and we didn't hear from him for 48 hours but when he checked in all was okay, just some minor damage in his area. This was great to hear so tonight's show is also dedicated to Jim.

Anyway, back to URGH! A Music War which is what started this mess in the first place. Here's what Wikipedia says about it:

Urgh! A Music War is a British film released in 1982 featuring performances by punk rock, New Wave, and post-punk acts, filmed in 1980. Among the artists featured in the movie are Magazine, The Go-Go's, The Fleshtones, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, XTC, Devo, The Cramps, Oingo Boingo, Dead Kennedys, Gary Numan, Klaus Nomi, Wall of Voodoo, Pere Ubu, Steel Pulse, Surf Punks, 999, UB40, Echo & the Bunnymen and The Police. These were many of the most popular groups on the New Wave scene.

It's very hard to imagine in this information saturated Internet age what it was like back in the dark ages of the early 1980's. My Cousin Rich (who subscribed to BOTH New York Rocker and Boston Rock magazines) and college radio stations WMBR and WERS were my only sources of information about the music I loved. One more thing you need to know is that we did not have cable TV in my house, my father opting for an antenna strapped to our chimney and about ten TV channels from Boston and Providence. So, it was a big deal whenever I went to a house that had cable TV, especially if it was for a sleep over.

I had seen USA Network's Night Flight show once or twice before, mostly rock videos and weird sci-fi stuff, but nothing had prepared me for the truly mind-blowing experience of seeing URGH! A Music War for the first time. First off, there is no set up or voice over- it's just one band after the other, with only their name scrawled on the bottom of the screen for a few seconds. So it was "Oh my God- I'm watching Chelsea on TV!!...oh man it's The Dead Kennedys!!... The Go-Go's!!.... Devo!!... 999!!.... X!!" There were also these really bizarre artists like Klaus Nomi, Toyah Wilcox and Skafish that I'd never even heard of before. I wanted to wake up everybody in the neighborhood, it felt like world had done a 180 and I'd be hearing The Cramps and Gang of Four on the radio the next day in place of Fleetwood Mac and The Doobie Brothers. Even now I get a fluttery feeling in my stomach thinking back on it. So, a big thank you to USA Night Flight and URGH! A Music War for a night I'll never forget.

If you'd like to download tonight's show (right click and "save target as") here it is:
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #52 March 5, 2011

2011-03-05T18:53:00.000-08:00

For Belinda...
and all who love Rock & Roll Radio!

Belinda- Ben Folds & Nick Hornby Lonely Avenue
All The Time- Runarounds Waiting For The Hurricane
I Gotta Know- The Sugar Stems Sweet Sounds of the.....
She's So Fine- The Easybeats The Definitive Anthology
Behind Those Eyes- The Diodes Tired of Waking Up Tired
Letter Of Resignation- The Weakerthans Fallow
Anytime- Screen Test Shake Some Action Vol. 2
Shopping- Nine Lives Shopping 7"
^Radio Free Europe- R.E.M. Radio Free Europe 45
Ugly Talents- Ruth Ruth The Little Death
Hang On For Your Life- Psycotic Pineapple Where's The Party
No Substitute- The Speedies Speedy Delivery
Another Heartache- Any Trouble Wheels In Motion
Some- The Gems Titan: It's All Pop!
*Radio- Teenage Fanclub Thirteen
*Radio- Dirty Angels Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
*Radio- The Lookalikes Can I Take You Home Tonight 7"
*Radio- Stiffed Burned Again
Mystery- Wipers Is This Real?
You've Got What It Takes- The Slickee Boys Cybernetic Dreams of Pi
In My Time- The Jolt The Jolt
Agony- Newtown Neurotics Newtown Neurotics Punk Collection
You Can Run- The Shake Shakes You Can Run Single
The Boy Won't Listen- Blue Ash Front Page News
>Roadrunner- Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers 23 Great Recordings
Shadow Line- The Fleshtones It's Super Rock Time!
Make It The Same- The Mundanes Make It The Same 7"
Telephone- Loaded Dice No Sweat
Daredevil- Battered Wives Battered Wives
Midnight Radio-Hedwig And The Angry Inch Original Soundtrack

^Power Pop Peak: #78 Billboard Hot 100 7/23/83

*SacroSet: "Radio" Songs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1977

My sister Sarah gave me Lonely Avenue for my birthday in October and I have to say it left me cold on the first couple of listens. The record is subtitled "Ben Folds Adds Music And Melody To Nick Hornby's Words." As I've said before, I've got a problem with Ben Folds' music- no guitar, ever. The guy purposefully excludes the greatest instrument in the history of music. On the other hand, I'm a huge fan of Nick Hornby's novels, my favorites being High Fidelity and About A Boy.

The Lonely Avenue song "Levi Johnston's Blues" is a cheap shot. Even if Hornby is only using Johnston's words against him (allegedly from his MySpace page: I'm a fucking redneck, I like to hang out with the boys, play some hockey, do some fishing and kill some moose), making fun of the dude is just too easy. That said, I loved the song "From Above," which I played a few weeks back, right off the bat. "From Above" is a heartbreaking song about two people who should be together (heartbeats becoming synchronized and staying that way forever) but end up marrying other people and how tragically common that is. After a few listens, more songs from Lonely Avenue started growing on me, though I have to say it's usually Hornby's words that hook me first, then I start to appreciate Folds' contributions.

The Lonely Avenue liner notes include an e-mail from Folds to Hornby about tonight's dedication song "Belinda," now one of my favorites on the album, that I think is very interesting:

Dear Nick,
"Belinda" has been a mother***ker - but I think I cracked the code. You gave me a specific assignment if you think about it. The song had to sound like an old hit song. It wouldn't be believable to have the chorus be a bastardization of an old classic if the melody weren't classic so I wanted to make the chorus sound as if it was actually a huge hit that we all remember. And then you've quoted the chorus of this fabled hit song in the second line of the verse, so I had to figure out a way to quote the melody without doing the ultimate no no by giving away the chorus in the verse. Guys like Burt Bacharach don't even like to give away the highest note of the chorus anywhere earlier in the song. Anyway I worked it out by making the chord beneath the quote a weaker version in the verse and taking out one line pre-chorus so that the chorus hits at a surprise time, so even though you've heard the melody it was in such a different context that it still works. It was like a hell crossword puzzle but I think we made a good song. We did about 20 takes on Friday and I need to spend some time going through them to find the one that sounds classic for editing.

Perhaps because my own songwriting experiences have been limited to a rudimentary bashing out of a few chords and putting words over them, I'd never considered the technical aspects of songwriting Folds is talking about above (and that I also discuss in an earlier post about Robbie Fulks' brilliant "Fountains Of Wayne Hotline"). The way Ben Folds approaches Hornby's "Belinda" challenge, it's like a complex math or science problem that needs solving. And I guess, similar to a mathematician or scientist, Ben Folds has the skill set and training to solve it.

I remember hearing Elvis Costello interviewed on Fresh Air about his work with Burt Bacharach on Painted From Memory. Elvis had an acoustic guitar with him and Terry Gross was trying to get him to break down a song into the Bacharach vs. Costello contributions. He couldn't do it and had a very difficult time explaining why he couldn't or even what Bacharach brought to the process. I realized that they were working on a completely different level- one that lauded songwriters like Bob Dylan and Neil Young might not get anymore than I do but people like Richard Carpenter and Barry Manilow understand completely. In their heyday, Richard and Barry were trying to solve their own "musical problems," each with variables of melody, harmony and rhythm, within the parameters of current trends in pop music, production style, lyric content, etc. I find this interesting- it doesn't make me like The Carpenters' or Barry Manilow's music any more, but I appreciate the effort.

From the first time I heard The Ramones' Rocket To Russia, I've been a huge fan of underground music, which led to me to college/public radio, first as a listener, then as a DJ. That took me to college to study radio and earn a communications degree. My "money jobs" in the last 25 years have all been in commercial radio and given me a broad knowledge of pop music- which actually has its benefits. No one cares what I know about late 70's Boston Rock & Roll or Swedish Power Pop, but being the dorky guy who is usually the first to answer "who does that song that goes...." has some social relevance- plus I kill at pub trivia questions about music.

Anyway, I've grown to love both commercial and college/public/non-commercial music radio. My local station, San Jose alternative Channel 92.3, flipped format this week and I'm still adjusting to the loss. So, for tonight's features, I decided to focus on songs about radio- both pro and con:

I'm in love with modern moonlight
128 when it's dark outside
I'm in love with Massachusetts
I'm in love with the radio on
It helps me from being alone late at night
It helps me from being lonely late at night
I don't feel so bad now in the car
Don't feel so alone, got the radio on
Like the roadrunner
That's right- "Roadrunner" Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers

And always late at night I'm drivin' in my car I listen to my radio
The late night DJ says he'll play my favorite song
But I can't hear- the interference comes on way too strong
The radio is drivin' me mad- TURN IT OFF!
-"Radio" The Lookalikes

I think it's funny The Lookalikes complain about static when 99% of anti-Radio songs focus on programmers, like Elvis Costello's "Radio Radio" (and the radio is in the hands of such a lot of fools tryin' to anaesthetise the way that you feel), which I'll save for the next radio SacroSet. The thing is, when I listen to the radio I feel connected. Tapes, CD's, i-pods, Pandora and most satellite/internet radio channels seem like isolated "closed loops." On the other hand, when you're listening to a great local radio station, you've joined with other people like you and you're all part of something bigger than yourselves. I believe in local radio.

You can listen to or download (right click and "Save Target As") tonight's show below:
Hour 1
Hour 2

Link For Show #51

2011-03-04T13:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the delay...here's the link for Show #51 which includes the full two hour show. I hope you enjoy it- please leave a comment if you do. THANKS!

Show #51 February 19, 2011

2011-02-21T19:15:00.000-08:00

For Lorraine and the bonnie lassies of Scotland...

Lorraine- Durango 95 Lose Control
Another Sunny Day- Belle & Sebastian The Life Pursuit
Pure And Easy- The Neighborhoods The Last Rat
Ticket To Paradise- Pushtwangers Here We Go Again
Head Gone Astray- The Soup Dragons Hang Ten
Bad Times- Sorrows Teenage Heartbreak
Another Happy Ending- Someloves Something Or Other
I Could Break Your Heart- Oranjuly Oranjuly
^Always The Last To Know- Del Amitri Hatful Of Rain - The Best Of
My Baby Does Her Hairdo Long- Kimberley Rew The Bible Of Bop
What Keeps Your Heart Beatin'?- The Rattlers What Keeps Your Heart Beatin'? 7"
Love Lies Dying- The Del-Lords Johnny Comes Marching Home
Watching The Tears- The Pencils Watching The Tears 7"
In The Night- Contraband In The Night 45
*Top of the Pops- The Rezillos DIY Teenage Kicks: UK Pop I
*All The Boys Love- Carrie Another Pretty Face s/t 7"
*Can't Get Over You- The Questions Can't Get Over You Single
*On The Run- TV21 On The Run 7"
Troubadour- The Adicts Smart Alex
Pop Art- Screams Screams
Mannequin- Wire Mannequin Single
Pop Goes Mandy- Pills The Pills Kick In
You Never Have Fun- The Locals You Never Have Fun Single
Take Your Chances- The Neat Hormones In Action 7"
>Saturday Night- Bay City Rollers The Definitive Collection
Rollers Show- Nick Lowe Jesus Of Cool
Tennessee, I'm Trying- Van Duren Idiot Optimism
Fool Like You- Yachts S.O.S Singles 1977-1981
Waiting For You- The Last Ones Number One Again
Metal Baby- Teenage Fanclub Bandwagonesque

^Power Pop Peak: #13 Billboard Hot 100 10/17/92

*SacroSet: Edinburgh, Scotland 1978-81

>Power Pop Prototype: 1975

While the Boston Irish Catholicness of my father's family tends to hog the genealogical spotlight, I'm fully half Scottish on my mother's side. In other words: Ya dinnaeken I'm Scots onme maw's side? While I certainly fit the Scottish stereotype of tight-fistedness with money, I don't have much use for whiskey or golf. My family is part of the highland Clan MacFarlane and that's a particularly heavy metal version of our crest above. Here's what Wikipedia has to say about my ancestors:

Clan MacFarlane took part in several conflicts including brutal fighting for Scottish Independence alongside Robert The Bruce. The clan was also noted for its daring night time raiding on English army divisions, and as such, it is said that the full moon became known throughout the highlands as "MacFarlane's Lantern."

That sounds pretty noble, but here's the first, even cooler explanation I heard for the "Lantern" reference from the clan website:

For much of their history, the MacFarlanes were a very turbulent lot. Their rallying cry, "Loch Sloy", signalled many a night raid to "collect" cattle from their richer neighbors to the south and east. Their march- "piobaireachd Thogail nam Bo theid sinn" (To Lift the Cows We Shall Go) gives ample notice of intent. They were so competent that the full moon was known as "MacFarlane's Lantern."

So, Scottish freedom fighters or cattle rustlers, but most likely Scottish freedom fighters AND cattle rustlers. After I showed my son Jack Braveheart a few years back he wanted to know all about Clan MacFarlane. I showed him the crests I have, one from a cool stick pin my mom gave me and another that fell off a belt buckle when I was a kid, as well as a necktie in the Clan Tartan:

that I always wear at Christmas time. Like me, Jack thought it was pretty cool to be part of something that has been around for centuries.

While I have a clear picture of Irish Power Pop in my head, largely driven by The Boomtown Rats and all the great releases on Belfast's Good Vibrations label, Scottish Power Pop is a lot harder to pin down. When I decided to dedicate tonight's features to the music of Scotland the only thing I knew for sure was that I'd be playing The Rezillos and The Bay City Rollers. I wanted the SacroSet to focus on late 70's bands, but it was a coincidence that they all ended up being from Edinburgh. (The Headboys could have made it as well.) That said, Glasgow also produced some great bands in the era like Subs and The Jolt. The Glaswegians got their due tonight however as I played Del Amitri, Belle & Sebastian, Soup Dragons and Teenage Fanclub. Those last two bands were part of "The Bellshill Sound" (named for their suburb of Glasgow) that created quite a stir in UK and US indie circles in the mid-80's.

The Rezillos will always remind me of my friend Ted Maguire who introduced me to the group when we were both in high school. As a huge Ramones fan, I appreciate music with a sense of humor and The Rezillos have it in spades. Plus the playing on their first album, Can't Stand The Rezillos, is unbelievable, especially from bass master general William Mysterious (Alastair Donaldson). In fact, when Sire records was marketing the CD reissue in the 90's they put a blurb from Dinosaur Jr's Jay Mascis on the cover saying something like "the best bass playing I've ever heard."

I'm pretty sure Ted Maguire heard about The Rezillos from Phil Fontaine, an older guy he worked with at The Chart House restaurant in Duxbury. I don't know Phil at all, but he is now a local artisan creating nostalgic collectibles for people who grew up in the Boston/South Shore area. My sister Sarah gave me a cool magnet Phil made showing the roller coaster at Paragon Park in Nantasket with this cool car ride in the foreground that was long gone before I ever visited the park. For Christmas this year Sarah gave me another Phil Fontaine creation: two MBTA stop bookends, "Symphony" (near my first apartment) and "North Station" (near Boston Garden where the Celtics and Bruins used to play).

I love my sister Sarah dearly, but growing up we had our differences- especially when it came to music. My dad would occasionally by us records that highlighted our diverging tastes: one time Elton John's Greatest Hits for me and John Denver's Greatest Hits for her and later, Kiss Alive! for me and Fleetwood Mac Rumors for her. (I don't know how he knew, but Dad always got it right.) The two records I remember Sarah playing the most though are Shaun Cassidy (featuring his version of "Da Doo Run Run") and The Grease Soundtrack. Sweet God in heaven she played those records over and over (later on it was Joan Jett's "I Love Rock & Roll" so her tastes eventually improved).

Anyway, it was quite a surprise that Sarah and I both had such a strong reaction to seeing The Bay City Rollers' American television debut (by satellite link I later learned) on ABC's Saturday Night Live With Howard Cosell. First it was a surprise that we were allowed to watch the show at all- my dad HATED Howard Cosell. (How much you ask? If Cosell was calling a game on television, my dad would turn the TV sound down and watch while listening to the game on the radio- that's how much.) Anyway, somehow there we were on September 20, 1975 watching The Bay City Rollers perform "Saturday Night." Perhaps influenced by the MacFarlane blood in our veins, Sarah and I loved the song and pooled our money to go and buy the single at Woolworth's the next day:

I loved the song but the subsequent media coverage of the "tartan teen sensations from Edinburgh" made them seem like Shaun Cassidy x 5, so I had renounced the Bay City Rollers by Christmas. I still think it's a great record though which is why "Saturday Night" is this evening's Power Pop Prototype and kicks off the new All Kindsa Girls intro that my friend Joe Koch put together. It took some time, but The Bay City Rollers are now back in my good graces. Now, I wonder if Sarah remembers any of this...

Sorry, but due to some technical difficulties I don't have the links to download tonight's show. If anything changes, I'll post them later.

Show #50 February 5, 2011

2011-02-02T20:59:00.000-08:00

Our 50th Show is dedicated to (who else?) SHARONA!!

My Sharona- The Knack Get The Knack [#1 6/23/79]
867-5309/Jenny- Tommy Tutone Tommy Tutone-2 [#4 1/23/82]
Go All The Way- Raspberries Raspberries [#5 7/1/72]
Your Love- The Outfield Play Deep [#6 2/15/86]
No Matter What- Badfinger No Dice [#8 10/31/70]
Just The Girl- The Click Five Greetings From Imrie House [#11 8/16/05]
Brass In Pocket- The Pretenders Pretenders [#14 2/16/80]
The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em)- Greg Kihn Band Rockihnroll [#15 5/23/81]
I'm On Fire- Dwight Twilley Band Sincerely [#16 4/26/75]
Veronica- Elvis Costello Spike [#19 4/22/89]
Is She Really Going Out with Him?- Joe Jackson Look Sharp! [#21 6/9/79]
Our Lips Are Sealed- The Go-Go's Beauty and the Beat [#20 8/29/81]
And We Danced- The Hooters Nervous Night [#21 8/10/85]
Precious To Me- Phil Seymour Phil Seymour [#22 1/24/81]
Found Out About You- Gin Blossoms New Miserable Experience [#25 1/15/94]
Dreaming- Blondie The Complete Picture [#27 9/29/79]
Cherry Baby- Starz Violation [#33 3/19/77]
Turning Japanese- The Vapors Anthology [#36 9/27/80]
Someday, Someway- Marshall Crenshaw Marshall Crenshaw [#36 7/10/82]
Girl of My Dreams- Bram Tchaikovsky Strange Man/Changed Man [#37 7/7/79]
Sugar Baby Love- The Rubettes Very Best of The Rubettes #37 7/20/74]
Here It Goes Again- Ok Go Oh No [#38 9/25/06]
I Think We're Alone Now- The Rubinoos Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About [#45 3/5/77]
Who Listens To The Radio- The Sports Don't Throw Stones [#45 10/13/79]
What I Like About You- The Romantics The Romantics [#49 2/16/80]
Stay In Time- Off Broadway On [#51 3/22/80]
Starry Eyes- The Records The Records [#56 9/29/79]
Teacher Teacher- Rockpile Seconds Of Pleasure [#51 11/22/80]
Surrender- Cheap Trick Heaven Tonight [#62 7/22/78]

[Billboard Hot 100 peak position and peak date]

I've always loved radio show features, what the industry calls "benchmarks." Before he made it big on WBCN, Boston radio legend Oedipus had the "Suck Hit" on his WMBR show THE DEMIMONDE ("We love it, but it sucks"). Years later I paid homage with "The Screw Hit" on my WMBR show THAT WAS THEN, THIS IS NOW ("It's screwed up, but it's a hit"). After my first few weeks on ALL KINDSA GIRLS I decided I needed to try to get some known hit records on the show. In Show #4 (3/7/09) I did a "Theme Set" (I hadn't come up with the name "SacroSet" yet) celebrating 1979- Power Pop's banner year featuring "The Shape Of Things To Come," "Starry Eyes," "Girl Of My Dreams" and The Knack's "Good Girls Don't." I realized that I needed to ration the hits better or I'd run out. So, I came up with "The Power Pop Peak," with the hope that each show will feature at least one song my listeners will know.

Working in radio for 25 years, the last 17 on the research side, has shown me how important familiarity is to listeners. In most adult formats (AC, Classic Rock, etc.) familiarity is as important as appeal. In fact, if people don't know the song being tested, they usually aren't asked how much they like it. At WMJX in Boston, my first real job out of college, one of my duties was creating the music hooks for our twice yearly auditorium tests. Think of all those TV commercials for albums you've seen over the years- where the titles and artists scroll down, while snippets of every third or fourth song play in the background. That was my job- making 700 of those song snippets we call hooks to be played for 80-100 people in a ballroom at the Embassy Suites in Allston or Holiday Inn across the river in Cambridge.

Making the hooks was a fun job and I got very good at it- always trying to get them as short as possible. One year I got a little overzealous: rather than "Yesterday...all my troubles seemed so far away" and "Operator, well, could you help me place this call" I just went with "Yesterday" and "Operator." My friend Paul was the production guy and he would put numbers between each hook so people could follow along on their music test sheets without getting lost. I proudly told him that I had cut the full 700 hooks from 45 minutes down to 30. After spending some time with the tape, Paul called me back into the studio and politely pointed out that not only had I destroyed any melodic continuity but in many cases I'd reduced some of the most popular songs of all time to nearly subliminal echoes. Needless to say, I had to re-do the job and every time after that I was very careful to capture the entire musical phrase in each hook.

On music test night I would get to see the room full of people respond to the hooks I'd made. They would smile and tap their #2 pencil in time or grimace and look like they smelled something bad. Every now and then they'd laugh- it was great to see. Then afterwards my Program Director Phil would take me, Nancy (the Assistant Program Director/Music Director) and the research person out to dinner. If it was at the Holiday Inn we'd go to the Benihana in the hotel and that was always fun. I really loved working at that station and I got a wife out of the deal, so bonus.

It's funny but when I hear those WMJX songs I still mentally pick out the part I'd capture for the hook. A lot of the time it was the first chorus, but in others I had to take the second or third chorus, or perhaps the first line of the first verse. With Wham's "Careless Whisper" I didn't even take a vocal part, but hooked the saxophone break. And even today, when I hear the rare CD commercial with the hooks and scroll, I think of my days back in the music library at WMJX.

Anyway, with the 50th ALL KINDSA GIRLS I reward your patience with the obscure music I usually play and present a show of all hit music- all Power Pop Peaks- starting with My Sharona, the biggest Power Pop hit of all time. Thanks again for listening!

You can download Hour 1 of this week's show here.
And Hour 2 is here.

Show #49 January 22, 2011

2011-01-22T10:07:00.000-08:00

This one's for Jody!

Jody- Silver Sun Disappear Here
Got To Have Pop- Moderns Shake Some Action Vol. 6
Hello Hello- The Keys The Keys Album
Please Don't Say You Love Me- The Sweat No More Running
Shake Some Action- Jenny Dee & The Deelinquents Keeping Time
From Above- Ben Folds & Nick Hornby Lonely Avenue
Always Forgetting Something- Dipsomaniacs Freakin Eureka
Panic Button- The Blitz Panic Button 7"
^There She Goes- The La's The La's
Suit of Armour- Beagle Sound on Sound
We Love the Stage- Pernice Brothers Goodbye, Killer
Fountains of Wayne Hotline- Robbie Fulks Fountains Of Wayne Hotline
The Weekenders- The Hold Steady Heaven Is Whenever
I'm Gonna Join The Army- Incredible Kidda Band Too Much, Too Little, Too Late!
*Five Star Rock 'n' Roll Petrol- The 101'ers Keys To Your Heart
*Feel Like Loving You- Jeff Hill I Want You To Dance With Me
*Common Truth- Amazorblades Common Truth
*Klean Livin' Kids- The Stukas Klean Livin' Kids
Tayter Country- The Cavedogs Six Tender Moments
Stay The Night- The Fans Giving Me That Look In Your Eyes E.P. 7"
Rainin' Like Soft Fun- The Orange Humble Band Assorted Creams
Don't You Believe It- The Grip Weeds Strange Change Machine
The Beat Is Back- The First Steps The Beat Is Back E.P. 7"
This Is That- The Queen Annes I Thought Of You 7"
>Are You A Boy Or Are You A Girl- The Barbarians Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era Vol. 2-4
The Hunch- Rooney Eureka
Action- Knots Heartbreaker 7"
Don't Come Close- The Ramones Road To Ruin
(Dee Dee You're) Stuck On A Star- Milk 'N' Cookies Milk 'N' Cookies
Walking On The Roof- Sgt Arms Walking On The Roof 7"

^Power Pop Peak: #49 Billboard Hot 100 10/22/90

*SacroSet: Singles on Chiswick Records

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

Along with the regular features, this week's show features several 2010 releases that didn't make it onto my Top 5's list. It's a pretty good year for music when new records by The Hold Steady (Heaven Is Whenever) and The Pernice Brothers (Goodbye, Killer) don't make the cut. Both were good but not great and suffered in comparison with respective prior releases Stay Positive and Live A Little. Boston's Jenny Dee gives The Flamin' Groovies' "Shake Some Action" the Stax/Motown treatment and "From Above" from Lonely Avenue, subtitled "Ben Folds Adds Music And Melody To Nick Hornby's Words," is a real heart breaker. I'll be writing more about Lonely Avenue in a future post.

London's Chiswick Records didn't have any break out stars like competitor Stiff Records, which released the first Elvis Costello, Ian Dury and Nick Lowe singles, so it is often relegated to secondary status. Yet, as tonight's SacroSet proves, Chiswick put out some great singles including Joe Strummer's 1976 recording debut with his pre-Clash group The 101'ers. While I don't care for a lot of the pub rock on the label (Count Bishops, Gorillas, Little Bob Story) the four records I played tonight along with multiple releases by The Radio Stars and The Radiators From Space, featuring future members of The Pogues, confirm Chiswick Record's place in rock history. (Big props to Power Pop Criminals for it's fantastic Chiswick vs. Stiff series of posts last year.)

I have to say though, my favorite song from tonight's show is Robbie Fulks "Fountains of Wayne Hotline." Over the holidays I have a tradition of going back over the year's Entertainment Weekly magazines to see if there are any films/books/records I missed the first time around. I have to thank Stephen King for "Fountains of Wayne Hotline," it was one of several songs he recommended in a column last year. I was a huge King fan when I was in high school, from Carrie through Misery, its been quite a while since I read one of his novels. Even so, I've always enjoyed his columns in EW. This is the guy who said Slobberbone's "Gimme Back My Dog" is one of the greatest rock &roll songs of all time, so when he recommended "Fountains of Wayne Hotline" I had to check it out. I'm glad I did- the song is a hilarious send up of pop songwriting:

I hung a shingle, "Country Music for Hire,"
No fans, no singles, ten years later I'm tired.
Now I've wracked my brain and I've looked all around,
But I can't find a way to freshen my sound.
And now, who do you call when you're down to one musical dime? Fountains of Wayne Hotline

(spoken)
FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE HOTLINE: Fountains of Wayne Hotline, Gerald speaking, how can I help you?
ROBBIE FULKS: Oh, yeah, thanks, uh, Hello, um, yeah, I'm a country singer in a small midwestern town,and I'm here in the studio today. Let me explain - we're working on a track and we just did-did-id a verse, it was kind of broken down and at this point I'm not sure where to take it, where to go from here...
FOWH: Sir, sir, calm down we can help you, we can help you.
RF: OK
FOWH: What you need to do now is employ The Radical Dynamic Shift.
RF: The...the...Radical...Yes, what do you mean by that?
FOWH: You know...full band entry, fortissimo, while maintaining consistent apparent volume on the vocal track.
RF: Oh...Oh...Yeah, yeah that's a great idea! Hey, thanks a lot. Thanks for your time.
FOWH: My pleasure. We're always here.

(sung)
It's such a drag, to face another filthy stage
Beating these three chords into early middle age
I'd be better off with seven at hand
an analog synth and an angry young band.
Then I could turn my muddy water into sweet Mexican Wine.
Fountains of Wayne Hotline

(spoken)
Slightly distorted melodic solo.....CHECK!

FOWH: Hotline, Department of Bridges and Infrastructure, Grant speaking.
RF: Oh, yeah, Hi there, I called a little while ago, I talked to a gentleman, I believe his name was Gerald, and, um, he advised...
FOWH: Uh, sir, we got about seven Geralds here, you're talkin' to me now.
RF: Oh, yeah, of course, yeah...um, the point is, I'm in the middle of this song, we're about three minutes in, and I'm not sure where to take it from here. We've done a couple of verses and it's just kind of hit...hit a wall.
FOWH: Yeah, well tell me about your textural variation and harmonic palate that you have going so far.
RF: Oh, of course. Well, two sixteen-bar verses, the first one broken down, followed by a Radical Dynamic Shift...
FOWH: Oh, that Gerald.
RF: ...a slightly distorted melodic guitar solo, and chordally...let's see...a 1, a 5, a 4 with and without a subdominant 7, a 2, 2 minor, and briefly a 9th compound over the tonic.
FOWH: Uh, well, that 9th, is that telegraphed or is that just gratuitous coloration?
RF: Um, a bit of both, actually.
FOWH: Oh, OK, well, let's hit the bridge. I'll tell you what you do. No new chords introduced, put a split bar of 4 in there and push the 1, and then we'll slather the holy hell out of the thing with a semi-ironic Beach Boys vocal pad. And then an asymmetrical back end - there's your bridge.
RF: Uh huh...
FOWH: Yup
RF: Uh, isn't that kind of a lot of information to put in the...
FOWH: (sigh) Sir, I've been on this hotline for fifteen years, you're gonna have to trust me on this one.
RF: OK, OK, thank you very much. I'll give it a try. Thank you.
FOWH: You got it, Chief.

(sung) Oh, Yeah. Now we're gettin' big and full.
Oh, Yeah. Try a wider interval.
Just like this: Oh yeah!
More like: Oh, Yeah!
Check me out! Oooooh! Yeah!

I feel invincible and all dialed in,
Kinda Long Island with some West Coast sin.
So let's cut to the coda. Any old gimmick is fine.
Fountains of Wayne Hotline

Fulks is clearly taking the piss out of Fountains of Wayne here, but he does such a slavish recreation of the band's sound, including a spot on impression of FOW lead singer Chris Colingsworth, that I'm guessing he's a fan of the group. I think the song is hilarious and I'm a huge Fountains of Wayne fan. I don't care if they employ every songwriting "trick" in the book- as long its catchy, I'm on board.

Download Hour 1 of this week's show here.
And Hour 2 is here.

Show #48 January 8, 2011 DEDICATION SPECIAL

2011-01-16T11:27:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year from All Kindsa Girls!

All Kindsa Girls- The Real Kids Real Kids
Sabrina- Psycotic Pineapple Where's The Party
Cheri- 20/20 20/20
Lucinda- The Knack Get the Knack
Evangeline- Matthew Sweet Girlfriend
Alex Chilton- The Replacements Pleased To Meet Me
Hillary- The Quick Mondo Deco
Josephine- Abbreviated Ceiling Abbreviated Ceiling 12" EP
^Animal- Neon Trees Habits
Leslie- Robert Johnson Close Personal Friend
Alison- Elvis Costello My Aim Is True
Bonnie- Big Dipper Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology
Mary Anne- Marshall Crenshaw Marshall Crenshaw
Renee- Hoehn & Duren Blue Orange
*Kings Of Power Pop- Paul Collins King Of Power Pop
*Saltwater Drinks- The Merrymakers Bubblegun
*I Hope You're Happy- Hoodoo Gurus Purity Of Essence
*You Don't Have To Belong (To The Religious Right)- The Cute Lepers Smart Accessories
*Mindset- The Genuine Fakes The Striped Album
Lisa- The Golden Horde The Golden Horde
Janine- The V.I.P.'S I Need Somebody To Love/Beat Crazy EP
Carrie Anne- The Hollies 30th Anniversary Collection 1963-1993 [Disc 2]
Christine- Gruppo Sportivo Pop! Goes The Brain
Marilyn- The Popes Hi We're The Popes
Annalisa- Chris Von Sneidern Sight & Sound
>Sorry- The Plimsouls Live! Beg, Borrow & Steal
Melanie- Nervous Eaters Eat This!
Vampira- Commander Cody And His Lost Planet Airmen Flying Dreams
Andrea- Tommy Keene Driving Into The Sun
Vivian- Nerf Herder How To Meet Girls
Ode To Joy- The Adicts Smart Alex
52 Girls- The B-52's The B-52's

^Power Pop Peak: #13 Billboard Hot 100 10/2/2010

*SacroSet: 2010 Top 5

>Power Pop Prototype: 1981 (released 2010)

For over ten year's now I've compiled annual lists of my Top 5 movies, records, books, etc. You can check out past lists at the Rick's Top 5 Lists blog. This was an especially good year for music so it was hard narrowing it to five. Consider that Rooney, The Pernice Brothers and The Hold Steady released records in 2010 and none made the list- that's how tough the competition was last year. This has got to be a good sign. So, here are all of my 2010 Top 5's:

TOP 5 MOVIES

A Prophet (globalism conquers a French prison)

Winter’s Bone (this is the Ozarks on meth)

The Town (terrifying townies)

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (rock & roll comic book)

Fish Tank (Good Times these ain’t)

TOP 5 DVD'S

Bandslam (why wasn’t The Runaways this fun)

Big Fan (as in fanatic)

Terribly Happy (Danish noir)

Repo! The Genetic Opera (horr-opera? operagore?)

Passing Strange (bohemian rhapsody)

TOP 5 ALBUMS

The Genuine Fakes- “The Striped Album” (Power Pop Lives!-- in Sweden)

Hoodoo Gurus- Purity Of Essence (Rock Gods from Oz)

Paul Collins- King of Power Pop (Long live the King!)

Merrymakers- Bubblegun (100% guaranteed to live up to their name)

The Cute Lepers- Smart Accessories (Steve E. Nix rockin’ for the USA)

TOP 5 BOOKS

This Is Where I Leave You- Jonathan Tropper (shiva-larity!)

The Millennium Trilogy- Stieg Larsson (Lisbeth today’s Holden Caufield?)

Freedom- Jonathan Franzen (where we are- right here, right now)

American Rust- Philipp Meyer (industrial revulsion)

Bangkok 8- John Burdett (Det. Sonchai Jitpleecheep rules!)

TOP 5 TELEVISION/CABLE SHOWS

Buffy The Vampire Slayer Seasons 5-7 (a Love family fave!)

The Wire Seasons 4-5 (it’s all in the game)

Generation Kill (“we fought retarded”)

Skins Vol. 1 (suffer the children)

Lost Season 6 (it all ends in a blink)

In December 2009 I was too busy to put a new show together for a Boxing Day broadcast so I came up with the idea of a "Year End Dedication Special" going back to all show starting dedication songs of the previous twelve months. It was a fun show, so I decided to make it an annual affair. I was preempted on Christmas, so this first show of 2011 is the Dedication Special. It's also a great excuse for another airing of The Real Kids' "All Kindsa Girls," one of my all-time favorites. I've heard the song a thousand times, but I still can't help air drumming into the chorus- John Felice wrote the hell out of that song. Last year also started the tradition of ending the Dedication Special with The B-52's "52 Girls," which is a no-brainer.

One other Top 5 I want to call attention to is the movie Bandslam. Since it starred Disney Channel actresses, I was AWOL the day Jaime to Nica to see it. Both told me I'd blown it and once I saw the film I had to agree. Bandslam was made by people who LOVE rock & roll. Director Todd Graff (a character actor I recognized from The Abyss; when Ed Harris says "I hate that bitch," Graff was the guy who said "Maybe you shouldn'ta married her" or something like that) was in a punk band in the 80's and for Bandlam, he re-created the legendary NYC club CBGB's on a film set. The film does a great job showing how rock & roll brings people together, especially outsiders. Admittedly its hard to picture beautiful Vanessa Hudgens as an outsider but that's my only quibble. Like my comment above, if The Runaways had been one fifth as fun as Bandslam, it would have made the list as well.

So, another year has started. Thanks for listening and for checking out the blog. I'm going to work on posting in a more timely fashion- it bugs me that the links for Show #45 were off the server by the time I posted about the show. As always, you can leave a comment with your e-mail address if you'd like to receive my bi-monthly e-mails on show days.

One more time....Happy New Year from ALL KINDSA GIRLS!

The download links for this week's show are below:
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #47 December 11, 2010

2011-01-13T10:39:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas Joy!

Ode To Joy- The Adicts Smart Alex
I Guess It's Christmas- The Wellingtons Christmas Present
My Girlfriend (Forgot Me This Christmas)- The Click Five The Perfect Christmas: Holiday Music 2006
Merry Christmas I Love You- Mark Bacino Christmas Singles: A Parasol Christmas Collection
Don't Feel Much Like Christmas- The Montgomery Cliffs Christmas Stocking Stuffer
Christmas (I Remember)- The Smithereens Christmas With The Smithereens
Power Pop Santa- Pointed Sticks Power Pop Santa
Everyday Is Christmas- Swag Nashpop: A Nashville Pop Compilation
^Fairytale of New York- The Pogues & Kristy MacColl If I Should Fall From Grace With God
I Wish It Was Christmas Today- Julian Casablancas I Wish It Was Christmas Today
Santa Claus- Chris Von Sneidern Dreamland With The Pop Snowflakes
Christmas Celebration- Weezer Photograph Single
God Bless Us All- Doug Powell Four Seasons
I Can't Have a Merry Christmas- The Riptides Tales From Planet Earth
*We Three Kings- Blondie We Three Kings
*Little Drummer Boy- Lolas Hi-Fi Christmas Party
*God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen- The Jigsaw Seen Santa's Got A GTO: Rodney On The ROQ's Christmas
*Angels We Have Heard On High- Duvall Oh Holy Night
All I Want For Christmas- The Genuine Fakes All I Want For Christmas Merry Christmas- The Automatics Xmas Snertz : Have a Very Gulcher Christmas!
Christmas- The Rooks Encore Echoes
Snow Day- Bleu For The Kids
Please Leave Me Home For Xmas- Imperial Drag Please Leave Me Home For Xmas
Super Sunny Christmas- Redd Kross Super Sunny Christmas Single
>I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday- Wizzard I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday Single
I Won't Be Home For Christmas -Blink-182 I Won't Be Home For Christmas Single
My Christmas Wish- Frank Marzano But Enough About Me
Christmas Would Not Be Christmas- Carpet Frogs Everything Is Beautiful
I Love Xmas- Screaming Santas Trim The Tree!
Lonely Christmas- Sloppy Seconds Lonely Christmas
Tinsel And Marzipan- Pugwash Tinsel & Marzipan
Peace On You- Three Hour Tour 1969
Christmas Christmas- Cheap Trick Dreamland With The Pop Snowflakes
Thanks for Christmas- XTC Rag & Bone Buffet: Rare Cuts & Leftovers

^Power Pop Peak: #1 Irish Singles Chart December 1987

*SacroSet: Power Pop Christmas Carols

>Power Pop Prototype: 1973

First off, much thanks to the brilliant Power Pop Criminals blog for turning up so much amazing music over the last few years. I thought I was good at coming up with rare Christmas records, but those guys are amazing!

Every year I look for one "perfect" song to join my personal Christmas canon and this year it's The Smithereen's "Christmas (I Remember):"

I close my eyes and I recall
When my dreams were big and my world was small
I was a good kid and I really dug school
My folks gave me love and my friends were cool
I had it made and life was great
But all year long I could not wait
For tales untold and the joy I found
And all the fun I'd have when December came around

The winter skies were white with snow
We'd grab our sleds and away we'd go
The air was filled with mystery
And the promise of peace and harmony
My mind went wild what should I see
A real fine stash underneath the tree
And every gift was good as gold
Like Shutdown Volume 2 and Rubber Soul

Christmas, I remember now, Christmas
Christmas I remember how
everything was like it should be

I close my eyes and I still recall
The years gone by and through it all
The kid inside my heart won't die
And he found out the reason why
The bells peal out and choirs sing
And why his life's so happening
The greatest gifts will always be
The love I give to you and the love you give to me

Christmas, I still dig it now, Christmas
Christmas, I still dig it how
everything is like it should be

Christmas, I still dig it now, Christmas
Christmas, can you dig it now, Christmas
Christmas can you dig it how
everything is like it should be

This song just kills me, especially "everything is like it should be." I think this means Christmas is a time where everyone is trying to be their best self, a big part of which is being there for other people. Hopefully this makes our reality a little closer to what our dream of the world can be- for a time at least.

The Smithereens are big Beach Boys (Shutdown Volume 2) and Beatles (Rubber Soul) fans. While I don't share their love for those bands, I have a Christmas memory just like the one in the song. It was December 1980 and I was breathlessly awaiting the release of The Clash's Sandinista! I'd had the import of first single "The Call Up" since early December, but I needed more. Despite the moderate success of London Calling, Epic Records, The Clash's US label, had no confidence in a three album set that included an entire album side of dub. They decided to forego Christmas sales and put the record out in January of 1981. Even so, it was Christmas, the biggest record buying time of the year, so import copies of Sandinista! (released in the UK 12/12/80) were nearly impossible to come by, and believe me, I had tried. So, needless to say, my mind was completely blown when I woke up on Christmas morning and saw a strange album propped up on top of my turntable dustcover with Side 1 cued up and ready to go. It was surreal- I hadn't yet seen the artwork so I wasn't even sure what I was looking at. Then it dawned on me- THIS IS IT! THIS IS SANDINISTA! Turns out that for the last two weeks my dad had been hounding the import buyer at Musicsmith in the Hanover Mall on a daily basis (how cool is it that a chain store in a suburban mall had an "Import Buyer," who cares if he mostly opted for Gary Numan and Genesis records?) A day or two before Christmas the guy got two copies of Sandinista!, one for me and the other for himself- I don't even know if he cared about the band, but Dad had sold him on the record.

From the opening notes of "The Magnificent 7," I was hooked on Sandinista! Even if it took me years to fully appreciate the more adventurous aspects of the album, that morning it was hard to get me downstairs to open presents. It still amazes me that in just three years time, The Clash had gone from a three-chord punk band to a group experimenting with styles like rap, jazz, rockabilly, Motown, gospel, children's music and calypso, as well as tearing it up with songs like "Somebody Got Murdered." Who told them they could do that? No one- they just did it. It's one of the bravest things I've ever seen an artist do. Not to take anything away from Sandinista!, but I'm willing to concede a major link between my love of the record and love for the man who worked so hard to make sure I had it- all in time for Christmas.

I hope you and your family had a wonderful Christmas and thank you for another great year of ALL KINDSA GIRLS!!!

Download Hour 1 of tonight's show here
And Hour 2 is here

Show #46 November 27, 2010

2011-01-12T22:48:00.000-08:00

For Vivian and the Power Pop Fallen of 2010 ....and Chris Von Sneidern too!

Vivian- Nerf Herder How To Meet Girls
The Ballad- Chris Von Sneidern Sight & Sound
Saturday Nite Riot- Pink Spiders Teenage Graffitti
Walk Right Back- The Producers The Producers 7"
I Don't Want To Discuss That- The Showbiz Kids She Goes To Finos 7"
Password- Cotton Mather Kontiki
The Reunion- The Blades Hot For You Single
If You Then I- The Genuine Fakes The Striped Album
^The Walls Came Down- The Call The Best Of The Call
Stolen Love- Advertising Advertising Jingles
Better Start Right Now- The Rooks Encore Echoes
She Won't See Me- Big Kid All Kidding Aside
Thinking About The Sun- Spies Shake Some Action Vol. 3
Don't Let Go- Little Murders Stop Plus Singles 1978-1986
*No Time- Jay Reatard Matador Singles '08
*That's What the Little Girls Do (Demo/Album)- The Knack Get the Knack
*There Was A Light (Demo)- Big Star The Ardent Studio Sessions (1972-1973)
*I'm Alright- Owsley Owsley
*Dancin' Doctors- The Freshies The Very Best Of
*The Village Green Preservation Society- The Kinks The Village Green Preservation Society
*Blow Yourself Up- Tommy Hoehn DIY Come Out And Play: American Power Pop I (1975-78)
Thank You- Descendents Everything Sucks
When I Write The Book- Rockpile Seconds Of Pleasure
Until I Get You- Hanoi Rocks Back to the Mystery City
Dumb Dumb Ditty- Farrah Cut Out And Keep
Really Wanted You- Emitt Rhodes Mirror
Livin' Fast- The Toys Livin' Fast Single
>Supergirl- The Fugs The Fugs First Album
Rave It Up- The Colors Rave It Up EP
Shutdown- The Stompers The Stompers
Further Thoughts- The Chicaynes Further Thoughts Single
Nothing You Got- Princes Of Peace X-Ray Proved 7"
In A Lonely Place- The Smithereens Especially For You

^Power Pop Peak: #74 Billboard Hot 100 5/7/83

*SacroSet: Power Pop Legends Lost In 2010

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

As I'm learning, one of the things that sucks about growing older is watching people you love, respect and admire die. Like a lot of people I'm afraid, the deaths of Johnny Thunders (d. 4/23/1991) and Jerry Nolan (d. 1/14/1992) were not a surprise. Those guys were cautionary tales and I'm surprised they lasted as long as they did. On the other hand, I was shocked when Joey Ramone (d. 4/15/2001) died, who would have guessed he'd go before Dee Dee (d. 6/5/2002)? Even so, the loss of 50% of The Ramones in no way prepared me for the sucker punch of Joe Strummer (d. 12/22/2002) dying at the age of 50. Back in 1980 I had mocked the people who seemed so devastated by John Lennon's murder, but I know better now. I am so glad that Jaime and I went in to The Fillmore to see Joe's last San Francisco show with the Mescaleros- it was an amazing night.

You'd think I'd be getting used to my musical heroes dying by now, but it still throws me every time and 2010 was an especially hard year. Count among the fallen:

Jay Reatard (d. 1/13/10, age 29, cocaine/alcohol overdose)

Doug Fieger, leader of The Knack (d. 2/14/10, age 57, cancer)

Alex Chilton, lead singer of The Box Tops, Big Star and solo artist
(d. 3/17/10, age 59, heart attack)

Will Owsley (d. 4/30/10, age 44, suicide)

Chris Sievey, lead singer of The Freshies, TV personality Frank Sidebottom (d. 6/21/10, age 54, cancer)

Pete Quaife, bass player in The Kinks (d. 6/23/10, age 66, kidney failure)

Tommy Hoehn (d. 6/24/10, age 55, cancer)

Tuli Kupferberg, co-founder of The Fugs (d. 7/12/10, age 86, strokes/long illness)

Andy Hummel, bass player in Big Star (d. 7/19/10, age 59, cancer)

Michael Been, lead singer of The Call (d. 8/19/10, age 60, heart attack)

The thing that really sucks is that Tuli Kupferberg is the only one above who lived to a ripe old age. Yet, all have one thing in common- they have left a musical legacy that will be around forever. So, rather than a dour elegy the equivalent of some lame awards show in memoriam "death applause-0-meter," tonight's show is a celebration of that legacy. I can't think of a better Thanksgiving show than to give thanks for all the great music these guys gave us. The Descendents "Thank You," which I played after tonight's SacroSet, says it all:

I listen to you for hours, I'll listen all day
Just keep hitting me the right way
Sing your song in the shower
Cause you got a way
To say what I can never say, right - right on
When I feel weak you make me feel strong
Make me feel strong

I won't say your name
But you know who you are
I'll never be the same again, now - no way
I just want to say
Thank you for playing the way you play

You don't get played on the radio
That's not the game you play
Well I don't care anyway
I glued your tape in the stereo
So I know every word, every note
And every chord is right - right on
When I feel weak you make me feel strong
Make me feel strong feel like nothing's wrong

Did you know you're why I go
And waste my time
At a rock and roll show
You let me know I'm not alone
You make me feel strong, make me feel strong,
Feel like nothing's wrong

I won't say your name, you know who you are
I'll never be the same again, now - no way
I just want to say
Thank you for playing the way you play
Thank you for playing the way you play
Thank you for playing the way you play

Now, back to the living...

I have a bad habit of letting our local newspaper, The Sonoma- Index Tribune, pile up and usually about a month goes by before I get to it. Luckily Jaime keeps up to date and she happened to notice that San Francisco pop genius Chris Von Sneidern was playing at a small winery tasting room in Sonoma as part of the Bay Area House Concert Series. I've always loved CVS's voice and songwriting, but I had completely taken his guitar playing for granted- the guy is incredible on the 12 string. What was especially cool is that we got to talk with him between sets. Jaime told him that, inspired by his song of the same name, we almost named our daughter Veronica "Annalisa." He told us that Annalisa was a girl who worked at a health food market in the upper Haight. During the second set he did a beautiful version of Big Star's "Thirteen" that brought Jaime and I to tears. I mentioned it to him after the show and he said "it's too easy, like shooting fish in a barrel." They recently aired a documentary on the local PBS station called "Why Isn't Chris Von Sneidern Famous?" I couldn't agree more- the guy is a Bay Area treasure.

You can download Hour 1 of tonight's show here
And Hour 2 is here

Show #45 November 13, 2010

2010-11-28T21:21:00.001-08:00

Let's hear it for Andrea!

Andrea- Tommy Keene Driving Into The Sun
Take Me Back- Tinted Windows Tinted Windows
Something New- The Genuine Fakes The Striped Album
I'll Be Taking Her Out Tonight- The Tremblers Twice Nightly
Press Gang- The Radiators TV Tube Heart
Tell Me About It Slim- Robert Johnson Close Personal Friend
Turn Down- Three Hour Tour Three Hour Tour - 1969
Grudge F***- Pernice Brothers Live A Little
^What I Like About You- The Romantics DIY Shake It Up: American Power Pop II (1978-80)
Summer Snow- Visqueen Message To Garcia
It's A Secret- Regular Guys Regular Guys E.P. 7"
Young Hearts- The Cute Lepers Smart Accessories
She Kills Me- Ian North Neo
We Float About- Cherry Twister Cherry Twister
*6- Neats DIY: Mass. Ave. - The Boston Scene (1975-83)
*16- Green Day 1039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours
*24- Game Theory Tinkers To Evers To Chance
*29- Gin Blossoms New Miserable Experience
Teenage Foxes- The Blondes The Blondes
It's Better This Way- The Imposters Don't Get Mad 45
Jetleg- The Merrymakers No Sleep 'til Famous
Irreplaceable- The Genuine Fakes Irreplaceable
Big Tears- Elvis Costello & The Attractions This Year's Model
Fashion Of The Times- The Reducers Let's Go
>Don't Worry 'Bout Love- Arrows First Hit
Hang On- Runarounds Waiting For The Hurricane
Mean And Rotten- Just Water The Riff
Mission- Research Turtles Research Turtles
I Fell Dumb- Jr. Gone Wild Less Art, More Pop
Sex Fit- Meantime Two For One 45
The Genuine Fakes- The Genuine Fakes The Striped Album
Heart Burning Down- Hoehn & Duren Blue Orange

^Power Pop Peak: #49 Billboard Hot 100 2/16/80

*SacroSet: Numbersongs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1976

Each ALL KINDSA GIRLS show is put together on my laptop with iTunes software. The crossfading in the program is a little clunky, so I don't think iTunes is very good for playing songs on the radio, but it is a great music database. Past SacroSets featuring artists of the same name or songs with the same title are a direct result of iTunes ability to sort on multiple fields. While other programs I've used put numerical songs ("16") or artists ("10,000 Maniacs") first, before "A," iTunes puts them last. Past searches on title, turned up four songs called "On The Beach" and another four called "That Girl" (which have both been used as SacroSets) and a growing list of "Numbersongs" that meet these criteria:

Title must be limited to a number;
Title must be expressed numerically (for example "29" not "twenty-nine")

After I found Green Day's "16" I tried to find songs named "4," "8," "15," "23," and "42" as an homage to Lost, one of my favorite TV shows of the last few years, but I came up short. After the fact, I realized The Neats "6" is listed as "Six" on both the original Propeller EP vinyl release and the recent 1981-1984 The Ace of Hearts Years album. In my defense, the version I played was from Rhino's DIY: Mass. Ave. The Boston Scene (1975-83) and they list the song as "6." So that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Anyway, like I said the songs only had to meet the parameters above so from a content perspective, the selection was totally random. I find it very interesting then that three of the four are about age-driven angst.

from Green Day's "16:"
Every night I dream the same dream
Of getting older and older all the time
I ask you now, what does this mean?
Are all these problems just in my mind?

from Game Theory's "24:"
And everyone asks if I'm leaving, no sir
I get around but I don't get closer
Is it because I'm 23, not 24?

from Gin Blossoms' "29:"
Time won't stand by forever if I know it's true
And I've learned not to say never
Or else I'll seem the fool
Twenty-nine you'd think I'd know better
Living like a kid

I've never been obsessed with age, probably because whenever one of the big milestones comes up (21, 25, 30, 40, etc.) I've always been pretty happy with my life. Even when I was looking at 40 and 35 pounds overweight it was more of a call to action than anything else. (I had seen video of myself in a bathing suit on my sister in law's boat the previous summer and had one of those [insert Oprah voice] "OH HELL NO!" moments.) I know age is a major source of anxiety for a lot of people, so I count myself lucky in this regard.

Now, if you didn't already think I am a HUGE music geek....

Tonight's show marked what may be the American broadcast debut of The Genuine Fakes' "The Striped Album." Technically it doesn't have a name but similar to Weezer's "Blue" "Green" and "Red Albums" and, of course, The Beatles "The White Album" the cover design (pictured above) provides the record's de facto title. After writing about The Genuine Fakes' mustaches in an earlier post (Show #38 August 21, 2010) I thought I'd e-mail the band to see what they thought and also to thank them for the free download of "I Don't Want It." I didn't expect to hear anything back, but less than 24 hours later I heard back from lead singer Joey Fake himself- he thanked me for playing the song and said he liked the blog post too. Not only that, he sent me a download link for the new album! How cool is that- I tell you it took me back to my early days as a loyal member of the KISS ARMY! Check out the band's website for more information on a record that I'm already pretty sure will be one of my Top 5's of 2010.

Ton O' Links For You

2010-11-27T20:16:00.000-08:00

I'm working on getting up to date with the blog posts. The links for Shows 40-44 are still active. In the meantime, here are a bunch of links to past shows as well. Not sure how long they'll be up so download while you can. Enjoy!

If you'd like to be on my bi-monthly e-mail list (I send out a reminder for each new show), please leave a comment with your e-mail address.

Thanks!

#13(Originally aired 7/11/09) LOUISE
Power Pop Peak: Someday, Someway- Marshall Crenshaw
SacroSet: Illinoise
Power Pop Prototype: Open My Eyes- Nazz
Hour 1
Hour 2

#30(Originally aired 4/10/10) HILLARY
Power Pop Peak: Is She Really Going Out With Him?- Joe Jackson
SacroSet: Boston’s Ace of Hearts Records
Power Pop Prototype: The Shape Of Things To Come- Max Frost & The Troopers
Hour 1
Hour 2

#31(Originally aired 4/24/10) JOSEPHINE
Power Pop Peak: He Could Be The One- Josie Cotton
SacroSet: Power Pop Cover Songs
Power Pop Prototype: Wayside- Artful Dodger
Hour 1
Hour 2

#36(Originally aired 7/10/10) RENEE
Power Pop Peak: I Think We’re Alone Now- The Rubinoos
SacroSet: America Songs
Power Pop Prototype: All of My Friends Were There- The Kinks
Hour 1
Hour 2

#39(Originally aired 8/21/10) CARRIE ANN
Power Pop Peak: Teachers- .38 Special
SacroSet: Back To School
Power Pop Prototype: Schooldays- The Runaways
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #44 October 30, 2010 HALLOWEEN SPECTACULAR!

2010-11-24T23:47:00.000-08:00

Dead-icated to Vampira...

Vampira- Commander Cody And His Lost Planet Airmen Flying Dreams
Halloween (She's Coming)- The Dead Elvi Graveland
Flying Saucer Attack- The Rezillos Can't Stand The Rezillos
Dig It Up- Hoodoo Gurus Stoneage Romeos
The Ballad Of Dwight Fry- Alice Cooper Love It To Death
Skeleton Man- Frank Black & the Catholics Pistolero
When I Was Dead- Rudi Big Time
Jack The Ripper- John Cale Happy Halloween! All Haunted Hits!
^The Ghost In You- The Psychedelic Furs Mirror Moves
She's A Monster- The Stems Violets Are Blue
Halloween Girl- Blue Ash Around Again
Graveyard Rock- The Joneses Someone Got Their Head Kicked In
Where The Wolfbane Blooms- The Nomads Outburst
Haunted House- Sam The Sham & The Pharoahs Greatest Hits
*The Dog- The Damned Strawberries
*Do the Vampire- Superdrag Head Trip In Every Key
*Bloodletting (The Vampire Song)- Concrete Blonde Bloodletting
*Night Of The Vampire- Roky Erickson and the Aliens The Evil One
Dead Rock and Rollers- Detention Dead Rock and Rollers 7''
Sweet Death- The Monochrome Set The Independent Singles Collection
The Ripper- The Headboys The Headboys
An Ugly Death- Jay Reatard Matador Singles '08
She's Dead- Tuff Darts Tuff Darts
Monster Island- The 3-D Invisibles Love On Mars 7"
>Teenage Head- The Flamin' Groovies Groovies Greatest Grooves
Kill It (Before It Multiplies)- The Panics The Panics 7"
I Saw My Death In A Dream Last Night- The Barracudas Drop Out
Frankenstein- New York Dolls New York Dolls
Halloween- Dream Syndicate Days of Wine and Roses

^Power Pop Peak: #59 Billboard Hot 100 5/12/84

*SacroSet: Vampiresongs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1971

Halloween has always been a big night in the Love household, both the one I grew up in and the one I live in now. One of my earliest Halloween memories was an Indian costume my mother put together for me when I was five or six. My "war paint" consisted of magic marker my dad drew on my face. We later found out that magic marker on skin was toxic, but I thought it was really cool at the time. Even so, I was a shy kid and still very nervous about going to the party at Kennedy Elementary School that night. Then, when I was anxiously looking at myself in the mirror I started to think about my new hero, Chief Jay Strongbow. Cousin Rich introduced me to wrestling earlier that year and Chief Jay was my favorite. I was already glued to the TV screen for several hours of Saturday morning cartoons, so it wasn't a big deal to stay through the afternoon for wrestling. Andre the Giant and Haystack Calhoun were a little scary but something about Chief Jay spoke to me. Anyway, thinking of myself as Chief Jay Strongbow rather than a generic "Indian" gave me the confidence to go to the Halloween Party and even participate in the costume parade. I think that's when I first started to love Halloween.

Over the years, I had used Halloween as a "Girlfriend Litmus Test," much the way Steve Guttenberg's fiancee in Diner had to pass a Baltimore Colts trivia challenge for the marriage to proceed. If the girl didn't like Halloween or would only dress in some lame dignity-saving costume (like the perennially boring "Black Cat") she'd be gone by Thanksgiving. So, when I invited Jaime to a Halloween Party at my house in Brookline, MA shortly after we started dating, I doubt she had any idea how much was at stake. This was the second of third Halloween party my roomates and I had thrown and we were starting to get a reputation. One year I came as Jesus, complete with a six foot cross that I kept accidentally bumping into people saying "I forgive you" each time. Anyway, Jaime passed with flying colors- she came as Laura Palmer (sheer skin tone pajamas, soaked prom-style hairdo, deathly pallor make-up with blue lips, wrapped head to toe in a huge sheet of plastic) as in "Who Killed Laura Palmer?" from Twin Peaks which was my favorite TV show that fall. How awesome is that?!?

Fast forward several years to Sonoma where our annual Halloween Party for our friends and their kids is a must-attend event. This is mostly because we rock, but also because we've always lived in perfect Halloween neighborhoods- high density housing, away from busy through streets. My son Jack was the kind of kid that started planning his Halloween costume in January (one of my favorite pictures of him is in his high chair as "Count Jackula" in vampire makeup and cape). This year three-year old Jack was a Wild Thing from the Sendak book and he and his friend Mason were on a rampage through the neighborhood. After managing to wrangle all the kids together for the fourth of fifth time, we were heading for home and came to a house with the light on and the door open. Jack and Mason were in a hurry so they went right up the front steps and into the house before Jaime and I could stop them. Our neighbor had left her post for a minute to re-stock her candy bowl and these two little boys walk through her living room and right into the kitchen, followed by their horrified parents spouting apologies. She was a good sport about it though so the story has become Halloween folklore.

When the kids got older they didn't want to have the party anymore, so we started trick or treating like everybody else. This is the first year Jack didn't go with us, choosing instead to hang out a friend's house (closely supervised). My daughter Nica and her friend Anne even got to go out in the immediate neighborhood by themselves this year. This left Jaime and I at home handing out candy (our neighborhood still attracts hundreds of trick or treaters). I still try to keep it interesting though by showing a movie with my LCD projecter and putting speakers in the front windows. Since we have lots of young kids coming, I try to not get too intense and screen a black and white classic. Last year it was Carnival of Souls, this year Romero's classic Night of The Living Dead. So, never fear, or better yet, fear, because Halloween still lives at the Love's House!

Here are download links (Right click and "Save Target As") for the ALL KINDSA GIRLS HALLOWEEN SPECTACULAR!
Hour 1
Hour 2

Show #43 October 16, 2010

2010-10-29T23:53:00.000-07:00

For Melanie...

Melanie- Nervous Eaters Eat This!
Yesterdays Gone- Manual Scan Manual Scan 1
I Have a Date- Simpletones I Have A Date
Let's Be Friends Again- The Toms The Toms
The Wild One- Suzi Quatro The Wild One -The Greatest Hits
Holdin' On- Rooney Eureka
The Last Word- Svt Heart Of Stone 45
Come Out and Play- The Paley Brothers DIY Come Out And Play: American Power Pop I (1975-78)
^Surrender- Cheap Trick Heaven Tonight
Your Own Nightmare- Eugene Edwards My Favorite Revolution
Boys Will Be Boys- The Undertones Hypnotised
Friendship- Sloan A Sides Win Singles 1992-2005
Goin' Steady- The Producers On The Beach 45
Baby Let's Twist- The Dictators Blood Brothers
*That Girl- News That Girl 7"
*That Girl- The Scientists The Scientists
*That Girl- The Techtones Shake Some Action Vol. 6
*That Girl- The Windbreakers Meet The Windbreakers
Foolish- DM3 Dig it the Most
Your Little Hoodrat Friend- The Hold Steady Separation Sunday
(I Lost My Love On A)747- The Continentals Fizz Pop(Modern Rock) 7"
She's An Obsession- 20/20 20/20
I'm Not Down- The Clash London Calling
Overcome By Fumes- Rudi Big Time
>Just Like Me- Paul Revere & The Raiders Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era Box Set
Sensation- The Motors Airport - The Motor's Greatest Hits
Play On- Raspberries Starting Over
Johnny Guitar- The Nice Boys The Nice Boys
Somewhere Outside- The Barracudas Drop Out
Sooner Or Later- Flintlock Glitterbest
You Don't Know- The Pleasers Thamesbeat
Dressed In Black- Ben Vaughn Mood Swings
Gimme Back My Dog- Slobberbone Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today

^Power Pop Peak: #62 Billboard Hot 100 7/22/78

*SacroSet: Songs About That Girl (but not Marlo Thomas, not that she doesn't rock too)

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

Live rock & roll shows in Sonoma county are often feast or famine- and the last two weeks it's been feast city. Doobie Brothers manager/winery owner Bruce Cohn's annual Fall Music Festival finally had some Power Pop bands on the bill. Cheap Trick played in Sonoma Valley!! How cool is that? The $95 ticket for their Saturday show (which also included Grand Funk Railroad and the Doobies) was out of my price range but Sun FM morning man Ken Brown hooked me up with a pass for Sunday.

The first band I saw was The Turtles. The vocals were a little shaky but Flo & Eddie are great entertainers- Flo was especially funny. These guys produced a Boston rock & roll masterpiece (DMZ's first album) so they get props in my book. The next group was the Greg Kihn Band who impressed me by opening with The Only Ones' "Another Girl, Another Planet," a true Power Pop classic. Unfortunately Ryan (Son of Greg) Kihn's guitar was woefully out of tune so he blew the song's intro and solo, which was very frustrating. Who doesn't tune up before a show? The rest of the set was good, especially "The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em Like That)," but not great. I would have preferred to hear more originals- Greg Kihn has written a lot of great songs over the years- but they played it safe with several more covers.

I was never a fan of Night Ranger. Aside from the insane "Sister Christian" scene with Alfred Molina in Boogie Nights, I'd never given the band much thought. I have to say though, they really tore it up at BR Cohn on Sunday. Jack Blades is a great front man and the crowd of mostly 40 and 50-somethings that sat clapping politely for The Turtles and Greg Kihn was on its feet going nuts during Night Ranger's entire set. I've always believed in the power of live rock & roll- how it takes you out of yourself, making you part of something big and out of control. Been a long time since I've seen a band slaughter an audience like Night Ranger did that day. It got me thinking that loud, over the top, mind blowing rock shows, a staple of my youth, may be a thing of the past. I've never seen a hip hop performance with 1/20th the power of a rock show and the few live rap shows I've been to have sucked outright. (Seriously, how is a dude and a turntable going to stand in for screeching guitars alongside thundering bass and drums? With a dance crew? I think not.)

I want all young people to experience the transformative power of a great rock & roll show. I've taken my son Jack to see AC/DC and Green Day, so he's got the idea. In fact, I just asked him if he'd rather see a good band whose songs he didn't know play live or spend the day playing X-box Live with his friends. "Are their songs catchy?" he asked. "Yes," I replied, "Then the rock show- definitely." Now I just need to plan Nica's rock & roll indoctrination. I wonder if The Donnas are still playing out?

Speaking of great live bands, Australia's Hoodoo Gurus are the real deal. The week after the BR Cohn show the band played the Mystic Theater in Petaluma, about 25 minutes away. I was embarrassed that only 40 or so people came out (the theater probably holds 300) but the band rocked like it was a sold-out show. I've seen the Hoodoos about ten times over the last 20 years and they continue to be one of my favorite live bands. That's me with the group's lead singer and principle songwriter Dave Faulkner above. (My friend Frank took the picture- the three crystal-clear "practice shots" he took earlier didn't really help when it was go time.) I got to shake Dave's hand and tell him he is one of my favorite songwriters. He said "Thanks ...songwriting is what I take the most pride in." What a great guy. God bless The Hoodoo Gurus.

Here's Hour 1 of tonight's show (right click and "Save Target As")

and here's Hour 2

Show #42 October 2, 2010

2010-10-10T22:04:00.000-07:00

This one goes out to Annalisa as well as the cast and crew of Silver Moon Theater's production of Agatha Christie's Murder On The Nile

Annalisa- Chris Von Sneidern Sight & Sound
Leave Us Alone- The Rousers A Treat Of New Beat
Dozen Girls- The Damned Strawberries
Everyday- Rikk Agnew All by Myself
It's A Secret- Regular Guys Regular Guys E.P. 7"
Falling Away- Richard X. Heyman Hey Man!
Cast A Long Shadow- The Monochrome Set The Independent Singles Collection
Send A Letter- The Keepers By The Same Name
^Real Love- The Cretones Thin Red Line
After Last Night- The A's The A's
Don't Leave Me Tonight- The Rockers The Rockers E.P. 7"
Waiting For The Weekend- The Vapors Anthology
Jackie's Gone- The Vertebrats Jackie's Gone 7"
Your Number or Your Name- The Knack Get the Knack
*Come On, Come On- Cheap Trick In Color
*To Get Back In- Grand Funk Railroad The Anthology - Thirty Years of Funk 1969-1999
*Think I'm In Love- Eddie Money Greatest Hits: Sound of Money
*Sorry- Greg Kihn Most Fun You Can Have with Your Clothes On: Beserkley Story
Tunnel Of Love- The Sunnyboys The Sunnyboys
Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Shouldn't've?)- Buzzcocks DIY Starry Eyes: UK Pop II (1978-79)
Tear Me Down- Various Artists Hedwig And The Angry Inch
Best Friend- The Krinkles 3 - The Mordorlorff Collection
School- Mickey Jupp Juppanese
Six- Neats 1981-84 The Ace of Hearts Years
Cheer- The Descendents Enjoy!
Somewhere In The Night- The Monroes The Monroes
Forget That Guy- The Vores The Vores 7"
>Almost There- The Turtles Solid Zinc: The Turtles Anthology
Lost Time- The Plimsouls Live! Beg, Borrow & Steal
How About Me and You- The Carpettes How About Me And You 7" EP
Girl In Golden Disc- The Records Smashes, Crashes and Near Misses

^Power Pop Peak: #79 Billboard Hot 100 5/3/80

*SacroSet: BR Cohn Fall Music Festival 2010

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

While other kids dreamed of being Dwight Evans or John Havlicek when they grew up I wanted to be Gene Simmons. Rock & roll was my first love and as the ALL KINDSA GIRLS radio show and blog can attest, it still occupies a hallowed ground in my life. Hearing The Ramones in 1977 made playing in a band seem possible in a way it never had in the years I was listening to Kiss, Aerosmith and Rush. I started on the guitar that year and by 1980 was in a band (as lead singer as my guitar playing was still horrendous at the time). I've been in several groups over the years and currently play in an on-again/off-again party band called The Dadz (with an anarchy "A" of course).

I love playing music- figuring out songs, rehearsing and playing shows, but with work and family commitments it's hard to keep the music thing going. After my Sonoma band V.O.I.D. (Vain, Obnoxious, Ignorant, Degenerates) broke up in the late 90's I was looking for a creative outlet and my wife Jaime suggested I try theater. She's a graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in NYC and has been acting in theater productions for years. In a case of perfect timing, a Sonoma community theater production was casting a production of 12 Angry Men that spring and I won the part of "Juror 11" (the sniveling ad agency dork). Rehearsing a play is nowhere near as fun as playing in a band but when you get closer to opening night the rush of nervous anticipation is comparable. That first show was a HUGE success and people still talk about it today.

In the intervening years I've played many roles in shows including Glengarry Glenn Ross ("Williamson"), Plaza Suite ("Jesse") and my favorite, playing "Seymour" to Jaime's "Audrey" in Little Shop of Horrors. My approach to acting at this time consisted of memorizing all my lines and adding "character" afterward. Not too surprisingly, to an astute audience this yielded performances that looked like I learned all my lines and added "character" afterward.

At Christmas that year Jaime gave me a two day acting seminar by a guy named Kirk Baltz, who is best known for his role as the cop who gets tortured by Michael Madsen to the strains of "Stuck In The Middle With You" by Stealers Wheel in Reservoir Dogs. I still see him in occasional walk-on TV roles but I think he spends most of his time on the acting seminars which are pretty amazing. I came out of that weekend with a whole new approach. Now when I prepare for a role, everything starts on day one; lines, backstory, character- it all comes together at once. This process takes a lot longer but it has made me a much better actor. I put it to use as "Mark" in a play about the first hospice called The Shadow Box and it was invaluable in my most recent role as "Simon" in Agatha Christie's Murder On The Nile.

Agatha Christie is not my thing but since they don't seem to be launching any productions of Hedwig & The Angry Inch or Avenue Q in Sonoma I figured I'd take a shot. Being a dude is a definite plus in any community theater casting call so I felt good about getting a role but didn't expect to land a part as big as "Simon." The audition was in February and I got the script in March thinking I'd have a good part of my lines down before the first rehearsal in mid-June.

Of course I only managed to read the play once before we started but luckily didn't do any line work because at the first read through the director asked for British accents. This really freaked me out because I'd never done it before and it took me about ten more days to even open the script. I began by over-enunciating consonants and playing with vowels but it wasn't until I started thinking about the character that it came together. The play is set in 1937 so I had Simon as a low born enlisted man who had lied about his age to fight for England in World War I. He ran away often but fought well the times he couldn't avoid it, noticing that when the battle was in question the wealthy officers tended to disappear only to return when victory was imminent. Simon vowed that if he survived the war he would do everything he could to become one of those rich men that had others do their fighting for them. Once I put this backstory together the lines and accent fell into place. It was a very challenging role playing pleasant naivete, physical pain, rage, grief, duplicitousness as well as loss of consciousness (not once but twice).

We were the final production in the inaugural season of Sonoma Stage Works and the Sonoma Theater Alliance. For the first time in over 20 years, Sonoma had a summer theater season. This is dream come true for Jaime and she worked tirelessly for a year to make it happen. So along with the cast and crew of Murder On The Nile, I owe my wife a huge debt of gratitude for an experience I'll never forget.

You can download Hour 1 of tonight's show here:
http://sunfmtv.com/fm/showarchive/public/2010-10-02__20_59_57.mp3

And here is Hour 2:
http://sunfmtv.com/fm/showarchive/public/2010-10-02__21_59_57.mp3

Show #41 September 18, 2010

2010-10-09T17:37:00.000-07:00

Marilyn is the Belle of our Ball...

Marilyn- The Popes Hi We're The Popes
Atmosphere- Velvet Crush Teenage Symphonies To God
What's In It For Me- Hoodoo Gurus Purity Of Essence
Love In a Hurry- The Proof It's Safe
Beautiful Amnesia- Visqueen Message To Garcia
Spit It Out- Brendan Benson The Alternative To Love
I've Got Rock- The Tweeds Perfect Fit
Holding My Breath- Mad Turks Cafe Istanbul
^Army- Ben Folds Five The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner
Legal Tender Love- The Pop Go!
Baby Snatcher- The Moondogs Imposter Single
Lookout- Cheap Trick Cheap Trick
Best Chance- Big Star In Space
After Hours- The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground
*Living a Lie- The dB's Repercussion
*Perfect Light- Arrogance Mondo Montage
*Shock Therapy- The Spongetones Beat & Torn
*Co-star- Let's Active Cypress / Afoot
Little Boxes- Teenage Head Teenage Head
Baby You're A Fool- The Names Why Can't It Be 45
Long Goodbye- London Cowboys Animal Pleasure
Mass Romantic- The New Pornographers Mass Romantic
Step By Step- Poison Squirrel Step By Step 45
Modern Times- Code Blue Code Blue
>Ruby- Sneakers Sneakers
Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind- The Dickies Stukas Over Disneyland
Rock'n'Roll Millionaire- Blue Ash Front Page News
She- The Taxi Boys The Taxi Boys
You Can Borrow My Car- The Necessaries You Can Borrow My Car 7"
Love Affair- The Tearjerkers Love Affair 7''
Brighter Worlds- The Connells Welcome To Comboland

Power Pop Peak: #17 Billboard Modern Rock Chart 6/1/99

SacroSet: North Carolina Power Pop

Power Pop Prototype: 1976

As I've said many times before, the late 70's/early 80's was an amazing time for music- I don't think I'll ever see another like it. Past SacroSets have documented scenes from that era in places like Seattle WA, Kansas City MO, Boston MA, Milwaukee WI and Davis CA as well as in states like Illinois and Ohio. For this week's show I headed down south to North Carolina.

Thanks in large part to world class universities in Winston-Salem (Wake Forest), Chapel Hill (UNC), Durham (Duke) and numerous other schools like Raleigh's NC State, culturally North Carolina seems to have a lot more going for it than its neighbors Virginia or South Carolina. Witness all the great Tar Heel State Power Pop I played tonight:

The Popes, Arrogance and Sneakers from Chapel Hill;
The dB's, Let's Active and Ben Folds Five from Winston-Salem;
The Spongetones from Charlotte;
The Connells from Raleigh.

That is some serious Power Pop pedigree. While all the bands have a distinctly southern sound, my favorite The dB's, were also "flavored" by time spent in New York City. After Sneakers (tonight's Power Pop Prototype artist) broke up in 1977, Chris Stamey moved to NYC and started playing with Alex Chilton just as punk rock was breaking on the stages of CBGB's and Max's Kansas City. Having already started independent label Car Records for the Sneakers EP, Stamey went on to put out some legendary records by Chris Bell of Big Star, Peter Holsapple (his soon to be bandmate in The dB's), as well as The dB's debut 7" "I Thought You Wanted To Know."

I credit my best friend Frank for introducing me to The dB's with their second album, Repercussion, pictured above. Despite having helped craft the southern pop sound that REM subsequently used to make millions, The dB's couldn't get a record deal in the US. They signed with UK label Albion which did a cool thing by bundling Repercussion with a free cassette copy of the LP (you still see copies of the LP in record stores where the cassette creased the album cover). Frank heard or read something about The dB's and ponied up for Repercussion, one of the most perfect Power Pop records ever.

Frank played the record for me at his apartment in Allston, MA and I was as taken with The dB's as I was with his place. Frank was living with three other guys from Duxbury who were working or in college. I was still in high school and had never known anyone who had their own place- it offered a level of freedom that blew my mind. They had a stereo in the living room that everyone used to play their records. In what I think was supposed to be a formal dining area there was a recessed buffet that had three large drawers all filled to the top with porn! My friend Jim and I would take the Red Line all the way in to Park Street and the Green Line all the way out to Allston just to hang out there.

Even now, I think about how cool that place was. Yes it was filthy, roach ridden and robbed three times (once when Frank was sleeping in a bedroom) but I loved it. So much so that two and a half years later Frank and I got our own roachy railroad flat on Westland Ave in Boston, right around the corner from Symphony Hall. They tried to rob us three times too, but luckily never got in. Some of my fondest memories are of hanging around with friends listening to/arguing about music in those crappy apartments.

You can download Hour 1 of tonight's show here:
http://sunfmtv.com/fm/showarchive/public/2010-09-18__20_59_57.mp3

And here's Hour 2:
http://sunfmtv.com/fm/showarchive/public/2010-09-18__21_59_57.mp3

Show #40 September 4, 2010

2010-09-16T17:51:00.000-07:00

For Christine and the Mods of '79

Christine- Gruppo Sportivo Pop! Goes The Brain/Design Moderne
He's A Mover- Nikki & The Corvettes Nikki & The Corvettes
OK U.K.- The Smirks Most Fun You Can Have with Your Clothes On: Beserkley Story

Hey Princess- Popsicle Laquer

Rock 'N' Roll Heads- The Scruffs Teenage Gurls
Tournament Of Hearts- The Weakerthans Reunion Tour
Hear This- Slaters The Big Black Bug Bled Black Blood
Things Will Be Different- The Shods Thanks For Nuthin'
^Just The Girl- The Click Five Greetings From Imrie House
Down- The Rooks Encore Echoes
New Little Girl- Off Broadway On
Right Now- The Wild Giraffes Right Now
Prove It- Tweezers Already!
Coit Tower- Millionaire At Midnight Titan: It's All Pop!
*Away From The Numbers- The Jam Direction, Reaction, Creation
*Millions Like Us- Purple Hearts DIY Starry Eyes: UK Pop II
*One Way World- Secret Affair Glory Boys/Behind Closed Doors
*Cortina MK.2- The Lambrettas Beat Boys In The Jet Age
Can't Take It- Numbers Add Up
She's A Sleestak- Nerf Herder How To Meet Girls
Tell That Girl To Shut Up- Holly & The Italians DIY Shake It Up: American Power Pop II
Whole Wide World- Wreckless Eric Big Smash
Dying In Fiction- The Front Lines Where Do We Go From Here? EP
When Reality Hits You- The Genuine Fakes When Reality Hits You
>Substitute- The Who Meaty, Beaty, Big & Bouncy
Break My Heart Tomorrow- Steve Blimkie & The Reason Steve Blimkie & The Reason
I'm Shakin'- Blasters The Blasters
It's Too Hot- Billy Karloff And The Extremes Let Your Fingers Do The Talking
House of Mirrors- Will & The Bushmen Will & The Bushmen
I Can't Wait- The Jolt The Jolt

^Power Pop Peak: #11 Billboard Hot 100 8/16/05

*SacroSet: Britain's Late 70's Mod Revival

>Power Pop Prototype: 1966

Duxbury High School in the late 70's was home to several rigidly defined social groups. The Jocks (mostly football players, and some soccer players who could keep up beer for beer, in long sleeve oxford shirts, Levi's cords and expensive Addidas sneakers) were at the top of the social ladder followed by The Yachties (rich kids and soccer players, heavily layered in Izod shirt over a white turtleneck with optional crew neck sweater, khaki pants with whale belt, Top-siders shoes). Also at the top were some high functioning members of The Druggies (kids from families with less money, or upper middle class kids trying to pass in the DHS smoking area, most wearing white thermal under a flannel shirt and down vest, jeans and Timberlands). At the bottom of the pecking order were The Brains (in glasses, oxford shirt, v-neck sweater vest, Levis cords, and off-brand sneakers), most of The Druggies and the unnamed dorks, dweebs, nerds, etc. The majority of the school, myself included, was in-between these two poles, usually rising or falling with the vicious cycle of high school popularity.

Against such a mundane background, how could I not be completely enthralled with the multiple youth movements in Britain at the time:

The last of the Glam Rockers (make-up, spandex, sequins, top hats, etc.)
Punks (legitimately ripped up shirts, sweaters, leather jackets or those purchased, probably from Malcom McLaren)
Teddy Boy Revivalists (Drape jacket, brocade vest, bootlace tie, drainpipe trousers, creepers on their feet)
RudeBoys/Skinheads (Bomber jacket, jeans, Fred Perry shirt, suspenders, Doc Martens )

and the subject of tonight's SacroSet

Mod Revivalists (Italian three-button, narrow lapel suits, button-down collar shirts, skinny ties, military parka, pointy-toed "winklepickers" on their feet)

While my favorite music in high school was Punk Rock, I didn't have the guts to pull off any "punk" style beyond The Ramones' ripped t-shirt, jeans, Chuck Taylors look. Plus, I lacked the social "blind spot" shielding me from the ridiculousness of a middle class American suburbanite dressing like a working class British punk. The Mod Revival look was another thing altogether though. I might not be able to look like Johnny Rotten, but I could certainly pull off Paul Weller.

Right across the street from the original Newbury Comics in Boston was a store called High Society- the first vintage/mod/new wave clothing store I'd ever seen. With the little paper-route money I had left after buying records I'd buy a skinny tie or a badge from High Society. My first major clothing purchase with my own money was this incredibly cool blue plaid satin tuxedo jacket that I wore for years and my son Jack wore to a few ballroom dancing lessons when he was in the seventh grade.

Around this time my friend Ted Maguire, who had older sisters and was the most fashion forward guy in our group, discovered the glorious bounty of the Salvation Army. From that point on thrift stores became a regular part of our routine. A few towns north of us, there was an amazing store at the Cardinal Cushing School in Hanover. Once a month, on the 1st Tuesday I think, they would have a "Dollar a Bag" day. I still have suits, shirts, ties, tuxes and shoes I bought back then. Even to this day, I get a little thrill whenever I walk into a thrift store for which I thank the bands in the late 70's British Mod Revival.

Here is the link to download Hour 1 of this week's show:
http://sunfmtv.com/fm/showarchive/public/2010-09-04__20_59_57.mp3

And here is Hour 2:
http://sunfmtv.com/fm/showarchive/public/2010-09-04__21_59_57.mp3