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.
