Show #10 May 30, 2009

My first TWO HOUR show is all for Staceys!

Stacey- The Lyres 12 Classic 45s
Little Mascara- The Replacements Tim
Don't Get Mad- The Imposters Don't Get Mad 45
Let's Go- The Reducers Let's Go
Tell It To Carrie- The Romantics Romantics And Friends-Midwest Pop Explosion
Feast On My Heart- Pylon Gyrate
Airplay- The First Steps Anywhere Else But Here E.P. 7"
It's All Fire- Poison Squirrel Step By Step 45
^Back of My Hand (I've Got Your Number)- The Jags Evening Standards
Everybody Knows- Tom Dickie & the Desires Competition
Stay Sixteen- The Proof It's Safe
Civil War Buff- Richard X. Heyman Hey Man!
Bad Reputation- The dB's Stands for deciBels
Lose Your Love- Mandarines Trust You E.P.
*The Kids Are Alright- The Who The Who Sings My Generation
*No Matter What- Badfinger No Dice
*Go All The Way- Raspberries Raspberries
*I'm On Fire- Dwight Twilley Band Sincerely
Amnesia- The Rubinoos Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About The Rubinoos
Go Cruisin- Shrapnel Go Cruisin' 7''
I'm Blessed- Brendan Benson One Mississippi
Up the Junction- Squeeze DIY Starry Eyes: UK Pop II (1978-79)
Midnight Riders- Spys Midnight Riders EP
Plea From A Cat Named Virtute- The Weakerthans Reconstruction Site
Messing With My Head- Tinted Windows Tinted Windows
Give Me Passion- Positive Noise Give Me Passion 45
I Don't Know About You- The Wild Giraffes I Don't Know About You 45
Where's the Boy for Me?- The Revillos DIY Starry Eyes: UK Pop II (1978-79)
Hello Goodbye- L.A. Burgers L.A. Burgers
Why Can't It Be- The Names Why Can't It Be 45
When the Night Comes- The Boomtown Rats The Fine Art Of Surfacing
Heartbreaker- Knots Heartbreaker 7"

^Power Pop Peak: #84 Billboard Hot 100 6/7/80

*SacroSet: Roots Of Power Pop 1965-1975

In 1967, when New Musical Express asked about The Who's music, guitarist Pete Townshend responded "Power Pop is what we play." Now, All Music Guide's John Dougan correctly points out that "the musical sourcepoint for nearly all power-pop is The Beatles." Yet, for reasons I won't go into now, I won't be playing The Beatles on ALL KINDSA GIRLS. So, The Who lead off tonight's Roots Of Power Pop SacroSet, which also includes fellow Brits Badfinger and, representing the USA, Cleveland's Raspberries along with Tulsa's Dwight Twilley Band.

Elvis Costello had yet to dent the Billboard 100 in 1980, and wouldn't until 1983's Everyday I Write The Book. So, my friend Franzi (now Frank), an avowed Elvis Fanatic, was outraged that The Jags, who clearly appropriated (paid homage to?) Costello's sound, had a hit with tonight's Power Pop Peak, Back Of My Hand (I've Got Your Number). I still remember Frank singing over the Back Of My Hand chorus:

The Jags.....sound just like Elvis Costello...
The Jags.....sound just like Elvis Costello...
Elvis Costello...

In fact, I can't really listen to the song without hearing his high pitched squeal over the chorus. So, you've effectively ruined the song for me- thanks Frank.

Back in 1994 I found myself in San Francisco programming a radio station called Star FM (the ORIGINAL "Star" at 98.9/99.1 FM). Jaime was back in Rochester, NY packing up for a cross country move, so I was looking at about six weeks of pure "me time." While many 29 year old men would have opted for bars and strip clubs, I spent this glorious time in record stores, movie theaters and rock and roll clubs. While the theaters (Roxie, Red Vic, Castro, Four Star) are still around, most of the rock clubs (I-Beam, Purple Onion, Thirsty Swede, Berkeley Square) and record stores (Stoopid Records, Epicenter Zone, Neurotic Records, Rockit Records, Rough Trade) are long gone. One record store from back then is still going strong though, in fact it has thrived, expanding to San Francisco and Hollywood from its original location in Berkeley. After a week or so of hearing about Amoeba

Records from people in the SF stores, I navigated the Bay Bridge for the first time to Hippie Medina Telegraph Avenue (second only to Hippie Mecca Haight-Ashbury). I may have seen Berkeley's infamous "Naked Guy" on that first trip or another, but what I remember most about that day was entering the biggest record store I'd ever seen. I know it's cool to hate on Amoeba, but I think it is one of the best record stores I've ever been to. Yes it's a for-profit business, but I think they clearly value and love what they sell, elevating recorded music to its rightful place in our culture. Ask a Best Buy clerk for musical advice some time and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Anyway, one of the things Amoeba provides is a guide called "Music We Like" in which employees in the three stores list their favorite releases of the season. A few years ago I noticed that "Stacey" from the San Francisco store and I have a lot in common when it comes to music. We both love Power Pop and she has recommended artists like Silver Sun that I have played on ALL KINDSA GIRLS. Driving home after a day in San Francisco last December, which included the obligatory stop at Amoeba, I confessed to my wife, kids and Mom that, despite having never seen or spoken to her, I have crush on Stacey. I went on to state that I was sure she was a super-hot 27 to 31 year old who has Bettie Page bangs, awesome fashion sense

and drives a vintage Vespa to work. I was mocked heartily for this, my wife Jaime pointing out that "Stacey" can also be a man's name, while Jack and Nica were painting a picture of the record store equivalent of The Simpson's "Comic Book Guy." It was brutal- even Mum was piling on. This ridicule continued through Christmas Day when Jack presented me with the picture you see at the top of this post- one of the funniest things I've seen in years. I'll probably never meet Stacey, but we'll always have "Music We Like."

Click this link to stream tonight's show or right click and "Save Link As") to download:
ALL KINDSA GIRLS #10