Show #24 YEAR-END DEDICATION SPECIAL December 26, 2009

Happy New Year to All Kindsa Girls!

All Kindsa Girls- The Real Kids Real Kids
Lori- Travoltas Endless Summer
Maureen- Fountains Of Wayne Out-Of-State Plates

M.A.U.R.E.E.N.- Dogs Legendary Lovers
Rosemary- The Dickies Stukas Over Disneyland
Rosemary- The Smirks Most Fun You Can Have with Your Clothes On: Beserkley Story
Elizabeth Smiles- The Dreamdayers All Things Come
Elizabeth Einstein- Adam Schmitt World So Bright
Barbra- Modernettes Teen City E.P. 12"
Barbara- Jim Freeman & the Golden Gate Jumpers Romantic
Wendy- The Descendents Enjoy!
Beverly- The Flashcubes Bright Lights
Beverley- The Flys See For Miles (1978-1980)
*Veronica- Honeyrider All Systems Go
*Veronica- Wreckless Eric Big Smash
*Veronica- Sloppy Seconds Destroyed
*Veronica- Elvis Costello Spike
Stacey- The Lyres 12 Classic 45s
Stacy's Mom- Fountains Of Wayne Welcome Interstate Managers
Diana Diana- Hubble Bubble Faking
Valeri- The Monkees The Birds, the Bees & the Monkees
Louise- Satans Rats You Make Me Sick 7"
Jennifer- The Rubinoos Everything You Always Wanted To Know About
Loretta- Nervous Eaters DIY: Mass. Ave. - The Boston Scene (1975-83)
Monica- Richard X. Heyman Hey Man!
Monica- The Kinks The Village Green Preservation Society
Jamie- Weezer Weezer (Blue Album)
Gabrielle- The Boys Boys Only
Denise- Fountains Of Wayne Utopia Parkway
Cold Ethyl- Alice Cooper Welcome To My Nightmare
Kerri- Robert Johnson Close Personal Friend
Suzanne- Paul Warren & Explorer One Of The Kids
Mary Christmas- Redd Kross Santa Claus & The Power Pop Criminals
52 Girls- The B-52's The B-52's

*SacroSet: Veronica Songs

I can't say I'm sorry to see 2009 go. In fact I'm tempted to whip out my Comic Book Guy impression ("Worst.... Year..... Ever....."). Yet, why tempt fate, or as my friend Jeff Dreyer put it, "throw a glove down to the Gods." A year like 2009 does help keep things in perspective, though. Despite economic anxieties, my family is great; we are healthy and we live in a very cool town. Some day I hope to look back on 2009 and... I don't know what, really, but I hope it will be one of those bittersweet rememberences, like Middle School or the Reagan administration, that, though trying, was only a hitch on the way to a brighter future.

I saw/heard/read a lot of cool stuff this year (see the list at (http://ricktop5lists.blogspot.com/) but I think the thing I'll remember most about 2009 is All Kindsa Girls. I'd often thought about doing a radio show again, in those vague "someday" terms, but it wasn't until Joe Koch asked me to alternate Saturday nights with him on KSVY (http://thmm.com/ksvy/) that I got off my butt and did something about it. He had already submitted a proposal for his show, Contact Buzz (http://contactbuzz913.blogspot.com/), so coming up on the one year anniversary of All Kindsa Girls, I once again thank Joe for helping get me back on the air.

One of my favorite things about the show is finding a fresh dedication each week. While a theme set, now called the SacroSet, was an idea from the beginning, the dedication idea came to me when I was putting Show #2 together. I was previewing The Travolta's awesome Endless Summer album, which Cousin Rich had "lent" me the previous summer, and when I heard "Lori" it hit me- every show would be dedicated to women who share the same name. One of the rules I set for myself is to only use songs whose titles are limited to the woman's name. I did pretty well last year, only breaking the rule on a few shows, two of which were the Halloween ("Cold Ethyl") and Christmas ("Mary Christmas") Specials, so I'm feeling pretty good about that. Who knows how long it will last, but I'm going to try my best each week.

As seen on this playlist, a few times I've had my pick of dedication songs and none more so than Show #9 and "Veronica." I've always been partial to the name; it has such a musical resonance. I'm not alone in this opinion judging from numerous "Veronica" songs over the years (there are a lot more than the four I played tonight). There's even an Australian pop duo called The Veronicas. Truth be told I can trace some of the name's appeal to my sister Sarah's Archie Comics when I was six or seven years old. I was a fan of The Incredible Hulk and publicly denounced Archie as "girl comics." Yet, in private I read everything I could about Veronica Lodge. She seemed like the coolest girl- no superhero powers, but VERY compelling nonetheless. It wasn't anything overtly sexual, I just had a crush on this girl with black hair named Veronica.

Years later, when girlfriends, including my wife Jaime, would broach the "minefield" topic of baby names, rather than change the subject, I would always proffer "Veronica." I was as commitment averse as the next dude, but as far off in the future as it seemed then, I could always picture a baby girl named "Veronica." The wish came true one December afternoon in 1998 and, needless to say, when I hear the name today, it's no longer Veronica Lodge I think of.

You can download Hour 1 of the Year-End Dedication Special here:
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-12-26__20_59_57.mp3

And here's Hour 2: http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-12-26__21_59_57.mp3

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Show #23 Download Links

Looks like Joe passed on Contact Buzz last night so that means an encore of the AKG-CS!

Here's the link to download Hour 1 (Right click and "Save Target As"):
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-12-19__20_59_57.mp3

And here is Hour 2:
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-12-19__21_59_57.mp3

Show #23 CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR December 12, 2009

It could only be Mary this special night....

Mary Christmas- Redd Kross Santa Claus and The Power Pop Criminals
Christmas Is Coming- Payolas Christmas Is Coming 12"
Come On Christmas- Cheap Trick A Christmas Blog Gift For You
I Want An Alien For Christmas- Fountains Of Wayne Out-Of-State Plates
Christmas Time Again- Bad Manners Christmas Time Again 12"
(It's Gonna Be A) Punk Rock Christmas- The Ravers Punk Rock Christmas 7"
Christmas- Buzz Of Delight Sound Castles EP
Christmas Crush- Home Grown Santa's Got A GTO Rodney On The Roq's Fav X-Mas Songs
^Christmas Wrapping- The Waitresses A Christmas Record
Give Me A 2nd Chance For Christmas- Mike Viola and the Candy Butchers A Christmas Blog Gift For You
Santa's Beard- They Might Be Giants Holidayland
Jesus Christ- Big Star Big Star's 3rd/Sister Lovers
Just Like Christmas- Low Christmas
It's A Big Country- Davitt Sigerson A Christmas Record
*How Do You Spell Channukkah?- The LeeVees Hanukkah Rocks
*Hanukkah Girl- Metronome I Made It Out Of Clay - A Hanukkah Pop Compilation
*'Til Next Hanukkah- Velouria Santa's Got A GTO Rodney On The Roq's Fav X-Mas Songs
*Hanukkah Blessings- Barenaked Ladies Barenaked For The Holidays
Are You Ready For Christmas- Luther 'N The BBB's Are You Ready For Christmas 7"
Everyday Is Christmas- Swag A Christmas Blog Gift For You
Christmas Wish- NRBQ Christmas Wish
Christmas With The Snow- Marah A Christmas Kind of Town
Red Lights- Dreams So Real Red Lights 7"
Runaway Christmas- Pencil Test Santa's Got A GTO Rodney On The Roq's Fav X-Mas Songs
>Don't Believe In Christmas- The Sonics Don't Believe In Christmas 45
Christmas Is Cancelled (This Year)- Farrah A Christmas Blog Gift For You
Lonely Christmas- Sloppy Seconds Lonely Christmas
Jingle Bells- The Laugher A Light Christmas
Space Christmas- Shonen Knife Space Christmas 7"
It's Christmas Time Ebenezer- The Len Price 3 Santa Claus & The Power Pop Criminals
X-Mas- Epicycle Santa Claus and The Power Pop Criminals
Christmas Time- Chris Stamey Christmas Time
Merry Christmas Will Do- Material Issue A Christmas Blog Gift For You
The Christmas Wish- Kermit The Frog A Christmas Together

^Power Pop Peak: #41 UK Pop Chart December 1982

*SacroSet: Hanukkah Songs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

I don't remember exactly when I first starting making Christmas mix tapes for people, but it was probably close to 25 years ago. I've always loved Christmas and while I consider myself more of a "music fan" than "record collector," I have to cop to the latter when it comes to Christmas music. I like the old chestnuts like "I'll Be Home For Christmas" and "The Christmas Song," the only time I listen to KOIT, the Adult Contemporary station in San Francisco, is during the holidays when they are playing all Christmas music. Yet, as tonight's playlist shows, it's the original Christmas songs I like best. Summer is perhaps the only other season that inspires songwriters as much as Christmas. From "Christmas is coming, it's been a long year...." (Payola$) to "Santa get off of my girlfriend!" (Home Grown) to "That Christmas magic's brought this tale to a very happy ending" (The Waitresses), I love all the different perspectives on the holiday.

The Dickies version of "Silent Night" was an early find, but I trace my original Christmas music habit back to The Ravers' "(It's Gonna Be A) Punk Rock Christmas."  I remember Chuck Warner of Throbbing Lobster (now of http://www.hyped2death.com/) playing the song on an all Christmas music show on WMBR in Cambridge.  Cousin Rich tracked it down and ordered two copies of the original 1977 45.  In 1978 Rhino re-issued it as the 12" EP pictured above. You've gotta love these lyrics:

Let's 'avit! Oi! Yeh!
It's gonna be a punk rock christmas this year,
Even Santa's gonna be a Sex Pistol for a day
All those christmas trees swinging safety pins from their leaves
It's gonna be a punk rock Christmas this year

Farah Fawcett will change her hairstyle for a day,
The Queen will sing "Anarchy In The UK"
And old Mick Jagger will adopt The Strangler's swagger
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah baby

Rick Wakeman will take up the electric guitar, ha
And Johnny Ramone will get a sled for a car,
There's a group called The Damned they say
Who play the four wise men in a play, in a play, IN A PLAY!!

(SPOKEN: Santa) What do you want for Christmas, Little boy?
(Boy) I want a Damned LP with Eddie and The Hot Rods on the back,
I want a colour TV so I can kick it in I want an Ace guitar,
And a subscription to Punk Magazine!
(Santa) What else do you you want for Christmas, Little boy?
(Boy) I want ten copies of "God Save The Queen" with a picture sleeve!
(Santa) With a picture sleeve?
(Boy) YEAH, WITH A PICTURE SLEEVE!
(Santa) If you're a good little boy your wish will come true
(Boy) YEAH, WELL IT BLOODY WELL BETTER!

We're gonna give ya a punk rock Christmas this year
And I'm gonna give you a nice sweater all ripped to shreds,
Get mum and dad chic get them safety pins for their cheeks
It gonna be a punk rock Christmas this year

 

Who knows what happened to The Ravers, yet we'll always have "Punk Rock Christmas." That's one of the things I love about Christmas music- its history of slipping totally random songs past the staid record industry gauntlet, whether it's "Jingle Bells" by The Singing Dogs, "The Chipmunk Song" or "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" by Bay Area veterinarian Dr. Elmo.

There are a lot of movies and TV shows about how stressful Christmas is for families and, especially as I get older, I see how that can be. Thanks to my parents, however, I'm happy to say that when I was a kid, Christmas was the best. Jaime and I work hard to make Christmas something special for our kids too, though it can be challenging in a lean year like this one. Our daughter Veronica even suggested we skip putting Christmas lights up this year to save money on electricity. Yet there I was last week, hanging off a ladder and walking on the roof hanging lights- it seemed even more important this time specifically because 2009 was such a hard year. My Mum is here in Sonoma now and sister Sarah came out for a visit last week so I think it's going to be another great Christmas in the Love household. I wish all of you the same- Merry Christmas!!

Download or stream this show right here:
ALL KINDSA GIRLS #23 CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR

Show #22 November 28, 2009

Suzanne's are in the spotlight tonight


Suzanne- Paul Warren & Explorer One Of The Kids
Strangers When We Meet- The Smithereens Especially For You
Rock and Roll Love Letter- The Records Rock and Roll Love Letter 12"
Red Lights- Marbles Red Lights 7"
My Purgatory Years- The Quick Mondo Deco

In Our Lives- Tommy Keene Songs From The Film
Oh Babe- Van Duren Are You Serious?
Adventures In Solitude- The New Pornographers Challengers
^Here It Goes Again- OK Go Oh No
All The Kids On The Street- The Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars
The Man Who Has Everything- Ben Vaughn Mood Swings
Big City Rock- The Atlantics Big City Rock
Spring Collection- The Vapors Anthology
Hang On For Love- Off Broadway On
*The Origin Of Love- John Cameron Mitchell Hedwig And The Angry Inch: Original Cast Recording
*Keys- Stew Passing Strange (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
*Everyone's A Little Bit Racist- Avenue Q Original Broadway Cast
*The Bitch of Living- Spring Awakening Spring Awakening: A New Musical
Feel The Pain- The Bureaucrats Feel The Pain 7"
She Was Something Else- The Tremblers Twice Nightly
Someday- The Zippers A Six Song Mini Album
Ich Liebe Dich- Advertising Advertising Jingles
Please Don't Go- Madness The Business
Understanding- The Rockers The Rockers E.P. 7"
>Lies- The Knickerbockers Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era

^Power Pop Peak: #38 Billboard Hot 100 9/25/06

*SacroSet: Power Pop On Broadway

>Power Pop Prototype: 1965

In 1975 the Love family did their own version of the Jefferson's Theme, "Movin' On Up" from Brockton, MA to the affluent beach town of Duxbury. I was in the fifth grade at the time and the move was cultural whiplash. I'd had a lot of friends in Brockton and while there was always plenty of mockery to go around (about new haircuts, crying in a fight, wearing a raincoat when it was raining, etc.), I was ill prepared for what was coming. No one in Brockton seemed to care about clothes or shoes but these were top priorities in Duxbury. Anything other than Levi's corduroys and Addidas sneakers was social suicide. My mom refused to pay the $20 for pants and $30 for sneakers so in my Sears Tough Skins and PF Flyers I was a dead man walking. Despite this fact, Andrea McPherson still asked me to square dance in gym that fall, though much to her horror, I acted like I'd been doused with acid at her request. Ahhh the monstrous, unrepentant cruelty of children...

Anyway, perhaps because I was feeling like a pariah myself that year, I became more aware of social dynamics than ever before. So, when I first witnessed Kevin Ruderman's performance of "If I Were A Rich Man" from Fiddler On The Roof in our Chorus class I was flabbergasted. In front of all his classmates, and subsequently the entire school community at the spring evening assembly, Kevin stomped his feet and snapped his fingers channelling Tevya and belting out "ya da digga digga dada dada digga digga dum." It is still one of the bravest things I've ever seen anyone do. I was barely singing as member of the chorus and this dude was bringing it.

Duxbury was the first place I ever heard people called "gay" or "gaylords" and many used these terms to describe Kevin and his Tevya performance. I had no idea what they were talking about but I could tell I didn't want any part of it and thus began my distrust of musical theatre. Many men carry this prejudice with them their whole life but luckily for me two major events "cured" me. First, when I was 12 my father took my Cousin Rich and I to a midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. I have no idea how he found out about it, but one night we left the cozy confines of Duxbury, returning to our old stomping ground, Brockton's Westgate Mall Cinemas. It truly was a horror show- having no sense of the film's structured interaction with with toilet paper, toast, newspaper, etc. people in the theater went wild that night. My dad stood in the back and said he saw one dude launch about five large sodas over the crowd at one point. Rich and I loved it! The film blew our minds and the thrilling/scary crowd was the frosting on the cake. In one night the word "musical" had a new definition for me. I bought the soundtrack and my Dad asked me to tape it for him so he could listen in his Subaru. What's more, and I know this may sound freaky considering the story in the film, I'm convinced that seeing The Rocky Horror Picture Show at such an impressionable age helped me see gay people in a different light; as another "outsider" group worthy of inclusion and thus contributing to the worldview I hold to this day.

The second factor that brought me around on musicals is that I married a theater major. I still dislike a lot of "classic" musicals like Brigadoon or Oklahoma! but thanks to Jaime's influence I no longer wince when people break into song walking down the street. In fact, one of the greatest experiences in my life was starring as Seymour Krellborn opposite Jaime's Audrey in the Sonoma Community Center's production of Little Shop Of Horrors. I even stopped the show one night during "The Meek Shall Inherit," my own Kevin Ruderman moment.

Of all the musicals featured in tonight's SacroSet, Hedwig & The Angry Inch is closest to my heart. It's a great companion piece to Rocky Horror with an even better story about an "outsider" longing for acceptance- and you can't get any more "outside" than a gay East German man with mangled genitalia living as a woman in rural Kansas, USA who goes on a quest for rock & roll fame and fullfillment. Come to think of it, Hedwig shares themes with Passing Strange's alienated black "bohemian" from LA finding himself in Amsterdam, Spring Awakening's late 19th Century German teenagers who are, as Wikipedia says, "discovering the inner and outer tumult of sexuality," and the post-college angst of Avenue Q's overeducated/underemployed 20-somethings. I consider myself very lucky to have seen all of these musicals performed live: Hedwig in San Francisco, Passing Strange at its A.C.T. debut in Berkeley, Spring Awakening and Avenue Q Off-Broadway before their Tony winning runs uptown.

Turns out I liked musicals all the while, I just hadn't seen the right ones, or they just hadn't been written yet. Songs and stories put together- really what's not to like?

You can download Hour 1 of tonight's show here (right click and "Save Target As"):
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-11-28__20_59_57.mp3

and here is Hour 2:
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-11-28__21_59_57.mp3

Show #21 November 14, 2009

Tonight we rock for Kerri's!

Kerri- Robert Johnson Close Personal Friend
Message Of Love- The Pretenders Left Of The Dial: Dispatches From The '80s Underground
On The Beach- The Rattlers On The Beach 7"
Party Line- Abbreviated Cieling Abbreviated Cieling 12" EP
On The Move- Nickel Romeo On The Move 45
Lover Boy- The Jets Lover Boy 45
Tomorrow Belongs To Us- Gary Valentine The First One 45
Alcoholics Unanimous- Art Brut Art Brut Vs. Satan
^Too Late- Shoes Shoe's Best
Island- Panic Squad Panic Squad 12" EP
You Must Have Crossed My Mind- The Toms The Toms
Brighter Days- Hundred Million Martians Martian Arts
Hypnotized- Jim Freeman & the Golden Gate Jumpers Romantic
So American- The Mutants So American 45
*I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend- The Rubinoos Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About
*Important in Your Life- Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers 23 Great Recordings
*For You- Greg Kihn Most Fun You Can Have with Your Clothes On: Beserkley Story
*Lovin' Cup- Earth Quake Most Fun You Can Have with Your Clothes On: Beserkley Story
Sister Vikki- Kissinger Me & Otto
Breaking My Heart- The Pleasers Thamesbeat
AM- The Marshalls The Boston Incest Album
Day And Night- The Jim Carroll Band Catholic Boy
You Broke My Heart- The Vibrators Pure Mania
Walking Out On Love- The Beat DIY Shake It Up: American Power Pop II (1978-80)
>Who Loves The Sun- The Velvet Underground Loaded
That's What John Said- The Motors Airport - The Motor's Greatest Hits
Murder Mystery- The Tearjerkers Murder Mystery 7"
A Thousand Years Ago- The Infidels Mad About That Girl
All For The Love Of City Lights- Dog Rose Glitterbest
This Kind Of Feeling- The Last L.A. Explosion!

^Power Pop Peak: #75 Billboard Hot 100 11/3/79

*SacroSet: Beserkley Records

>Power Pop Prototype: 1970

One of the things I love about my radio show is that it has reconnected me with music in a way that I haven't felt in a long time. Record shopping has always been my thing- wherever I live or visit that's what I do. I love my record collection- I think of it as my autobiography, a map that starts in late October 1964 at the Boston Lying Inn and charts a course right up to what I'm typing this minute, hopefully leaving tons of blank pages to follow. Every place Jaime and I have lived together, from Hudson, MA to Rochester, NY to San Francisco and Sonoma, CA, we've had a "Rock Room" for my record collection, as if it were my child from a previous marriage. Unfortunately, due to the demands of work and family, I've been neglecting this third child for years and I have to say it makes me feel kind of guilty. It's more than what an obese person feels when confronted with their unused stairmaster- I put my heart and soul (not to mention Boston Globe paper route money, Angelo's Supermarket bundleboy wages, etc.) into this lifetime project that is now not only ignored but also assaulted nightly by the posturing gangsta rap Jack listens to on the computer while doing his homework.

I've gotten similiar guilty twinges while record shopping, though this is more rare because by "record" I mean vinyl and by "shopping" I mean going out to a store that sells vinyl, of which few remain. Still, while flipping through the stacks looking for that rare gem that I most likely didn't even know I had to have, I've thought to myself "how much will I actually listen to this?" Which then gets me thinking "but record shopping is what I do....if I don't do this then what? ....bowling?....fantasy baseball?....golf?.....OH GOD I DON'T KNOW WHO I AM ANYMORE!!!"

So you can see the radio show has helped avert a potentially nasty mid-life crisis by taking me back to my first love: the spawn of two guitars, bass, drums, voice and songs about All Kindsa Girls. Case in point- I finally put a dent in my growing pile of "burn for AKG" albums and singles last week. Robert Johnson's Close Personal Friend is a favorite. He's a session guy from Memphis (there must be something Power Pop enhancing in the water there) who pulls out all the stops on his debut record. Incredibly catchy songs with ripping guitar solos- the guy is amazing. It's a wonder to me though why he didn't call himself "Rob Johnson," "Bob Johnson" or even "Johnson Roberts." If you have the SAME NAME as a legendary musician (Mississippi blues guitarist Robert Johnson- the original "I went down to the crossroads" dude) why make it harder on yourself? Try entering "Robert Johnson" in a search engine and see how deep you have to go to find the white guy from Memphis.

Nickel Romeo's "On The Move" is the record I picked up at the Corner Record Shop in Kalamazoo, MI last summer (see the post for Show #13). On my first trip to Minnepolis in the late 90's I went to the now defunct Let It Rock Records on the Nicollet Mall and found "Lover Boy" by local band The Jets (another search engine nightmare name). Tonight's Beserkley Records SacroSet has been gestating for a while. In fact, one of the rare comments I've received on this blog (from Jerry who has a cool podcast you can check out at http://redredwineonasunday.blogspot.com/ ) was a request for a Beserkley feature. I found the Beserkley compilation pictured above about a week ago and it's definitely a cool record- thanks Jerry!

You can download Hour 1 of tonight's show here (right click and "Save Target As"):
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-11-14__20_59_57.mp3

and here's Hour 2:
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-11-14__21_59_57.mp3

Show #20 October 31, 2009 HALLOWEEN!

Tonight it's All Kindsa Ghouls and dedicated to Ethyls cold and otherwise....

Cold Ethyl- Alice Cooper Welcome To My Nightmare

Date With A Vampyre- Screaming Tribesman High Time
Godzilla- Blue Oyster Cult Spectres
Science Gone To Far!- The Dictators Manifest Destiny
Death Ship- Hoodoo Gurus Stoneage Romeos
The Brain That Refused To Die- The Slickee Boys The Brain That Refused To Die 7"
She's Fallen In Love With A Monster Man- The Revillos She's Fallen In Love With A Monster Man 7"
Lost In The Night- Secret Affair Business As Usual
^I Don't Like Mondays- The Boomtown Rats The Fine Art Of Surfacing
Goo Goo Muck- The Cramps Bad Music For Bad People
Invasion Of The Gamma Men- Shake Invasion Of The Gamma Men 7"
Screamin' Skull- The Fleshtones Hexbreaker
Halloween- Siouxsie & The Banshees Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Halloween
My Body's A Zombie For You- Dead Man's Bones Dead Man's Bones
*The Witch- Pointed Sticks Part Of The Noise
*Meet The Witch- Big Dipper Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology
*Hunting For Witches- Bloc Party A Weekend In The City
*You Must Be A Witch- The Lollipop Shoppe Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era
Grimly Fiendish- The Damned Grimly Fiendish 12"
Dead Rock'n Rollers- Detention Dead Rock ' N Rollers 7"
Ghost On The Highway- The Gun Club Fire Of Love
Creature With The Atom Brain- Roky Erickson & The Aliens Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Halloween
Robots- Flight Of The Conchords Flight Of The Conchords
Night Of The Living Dead- The Misfits Walk Among Us
>Timothy- The Bouys Timothy
Deviltown- Groovie Ghoulies Monster Club
The Creature From The Black Lagoon- Dave Edmunds Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Halloween
Devil In My Car- The B-52's Wild Planet
Bewarewolf- Rudi Big Time
Me & My Mummy- Bobby "Boris" Pickett & The Crypt Kickers The Original Monster Mash
Graveyard Rockin'- The 3-D Invisibles They Won't Stay Dead!
Night Creatures- The Flys See For Miles (1978-1980)
At The Frankenstein Place-Rocky Horror Picture Show Soundtrack

^Power Pop Peak: #73 Billboard Hot 100 2/2/80

*SacroSet: For All Da Wee-yotchs

>Power Pop Prototype: 1971

It's ALL KINDSA GHOULS with your host DICK HATE! A Halloween special has always been part of the plan, so it's very cool that my regularly scheduled show happened to fall on October 31st. I've been making Halloween mixes for people for years, so the challenge wasn't finding songs to play but rather limiting it to thirty or so choices. (In fact, next year's show is pretty much good to go.)

The album pictured above was one of the first I ever bought. I remember hearing "The Monster Mash" for the first time while driving at night with my dad in the early 70's. He turned up the radio, singing along in a passable Karloff imitation and my mind was blown. A song about vampires, the wolfman, Igor? This was right up my alley and my dad loved the song too. Turns out "The Monster Mash" had been a huge hit when it was first released in 1962, so he knew ALL the words. A day or two later I got him to drive me to the record store at the Westgate Mall in Brockton, Mass. I was intending to shell out 85 cents for the single, but the album caught my eye and I was hooked. The Original Monster Mash became a year-round favorite. In 1973 Cousin Rich had yet to teach me proper album care and storage so the record isn't as well preserved as others in my collection, but it is no less loved. What's more, I consider the scratchy "Me & My Mummy" on tonight's playlist to be a crucial part of the show.

One postscript to this Monster Mash story is that in the late 80's I got to meet singer Bobby 'Boris' Pickett. He was living in Scituate, Mass. (or maybe Cohasset, another one of those names we kept to rub it in after we stole the Indians' land) and came in to WMJX, where I was working at the time. Our sister station, WMEX, was hosting a charity fun run called "The Wimex Bash" and Bob Spicer, the production director, had written new verses for Bobby 'Boris' to sing to "The Monster Mash" tune. He was a great sport about the whole thing and what's even cooler is that my future wife Jaime got to sing the "Wimex Bash" background vocals.

Bobby 'Boris' Pickett died at the age of 69 on April 25, 2007 in Los Angeles. Aside from "Monster's Holiday," a Christmas knockoff from December of 1962, "The Monster Mash" was his only Top 40 hit. But what a hit it was; #1 in 1962, #91 in 1970 and #10 in 1973 (when I finally caught on). I thought a lot about Bobby 'Boris' when reading Nick Hornby's About A Boy. Will Freeman (who was played by Hugh Grant in the movie) feels the Christmas novelty hit "Santa's Super Sleigh" ruined his life because his father's inability to write any other hit songs destroyed the family. In the short time we were together, I didn't get any of that from Bobby 'Boris' Pickett. He seemed happy people still loved "The Monster Mash" and was very patient with a young assistant music director's many questions about The Original Monster Mash album.

Needless to say, it was fun putting this show together. I debated on "I Don't Like Mondays" but it's so creepy I couldn't pass it up. I did pass on songs about John Wayne Gacy, Son Of Sam and the Violent Femmes "Country Death Song" where a guy kills his daughter, so you see I do have standards. "Timothy" was a great find- a catchy, upbeat song that hit #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and happens to be about CANNIBALISM! Songwriter Rupert Holmes' other great contribution is "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)" so the guy clearly has some kind of oral fixation. Finally, big ups for Lux Interior of The Cramps who died on February 4th of this year. Halloween just doesn't seem as spooky without him...

You can download Hour 1 of the Halloween Show here (right click and "Save Target As"):
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-10-31__20_59_57.mp3

and here's Hour 2:
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-10-31__21_59_57.mp3

Show #19 October 17, 2009

"I know a girl named Denise, she makes me weak at the knees...."

Denise- Fountains Of Wayne Utopia Parkway
Rev Up- The Revillos Rev Up
Everything You've Done Wrong- Sloan A Sides Win Singles 1992-2005
Does It Show- The Proof It's Safe
All The Sounds Of Fear- Strangeways! Powerpop!
Jetfighter- The Three O'Clock Sixteen Tambourines
Wait For Me- The Runaways Waiting For The Best of the Runaways
Don't Dance- Ian North Neo
^867-5309/Jenny- Tommy Tutone Tommy Tutone-2
Performance- L.A. Burgers L.A. Burgers
Naive- Public Zone Naive 7"
She's Got the Look- Kevin K And The Hollywood Stars Cool Ways
Lonelyhearts- The Atlantics DIY: Mass. Ave. - The Boston Scene (1975-83)
Renee Remains The Same- Material Issue International Pop Overthrow
*Live In The Sun- The Moberlys Sexteen
*K Street- The Fastbacks ...And His Orchestra
*Rivals- The Heats Rivals 45
*TV Dream- The Young Fresh Fellows The Men Who Loved Music
I Don't Wanna Hear It- Shoes Shoe's Best
Look What You've Done- Hi-Fi's I Don't Know Why 7"
What For- Rooney Calling the World
Play the Breaks- The Plimsouls Everywhere At Once
Long Cigarette- Hubble Bubble Faking
C.I.A.- The A's The A's
>Little Girl- Syndicate Of Sound Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era
Don't Let Him Come Back- Jay Reatard Singles 06-07
So Juvenile- Flyboys Flyboys
Anchorless- The Weakerthans Fallow
I Just Can't Stand Cars- The Screen Gemz Teenage Teenage 7"
Mourning Star- Zones DIY Starry Eyes: UK Pop II (1978-79)
You're The One- Boyfriends I Don't Want Nobody(I Want You) 7"
Doncha Wanna- Tinted Windows Tinted Windows

^Power Pop Peak: #4 Billboard Hot 100 1/23/82

*SacroSet: Emerald City Power Pop

>Power Pop Prototype: 1966

Recorded this week in advance because on show night I was on a field trip to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland with Jack's 8th Grade class. We saw five plays in five days; The Music Man, Macbeth, Don Quixote, Much Ado About Nothing and The Servant of Two Masters. I helped the teacher, Mr. Harrington, put the schedule together and his only request was "NOT Macbeth on the first night." So, I figured I would play it safe and put The Music Man first. It poured rain that night and my heart went out to the huddled, shivering masses lined up for Much Ado at the outdoor Elizabethan Theater as we entered the warm confines of the adjacent Bowmer Theater for The Music Man. Unfortunately, the fact that it was indoors on a rainy night is one of the few good things I can say about the production. At some point in the development of the show, the director decided to forego entertainment in favor of a heavy handed lesson on political correctness that included:

• A white Henry Hill and black Marian that had zero chemistry (he was great but she had a high, warbly church lady voice that didn't help any);


• A deaf Marcellus who signed all his dialog, including the song "Shipoopi;"

and worst of all

• A teleprompter right in my line of sight translating all the dialog into Spanish.

It was painful to sit through. There were some fine performances and great ideas (like the costumes and sets transitioning from black & white to color as the town embraces music), but I felt like the production was trying to make a point rather than tell a story. In retrospect, I'm surprised they didn't have the mayor in a wheelchair and a blind school board. I kept thinking, "would I go to an Italian or German opera and demand subtitles?" The answer is, "I probably wouldn't go to an opera period," but if I did, I'd certainly read up on it ahead of time, meeting the show in the middle rather than making it kowtow to my ignorance.

I'm all for diversity in casting and new production ideas, but it means nothing if the show isn't compelling. The director of The Music Man seems to have forgotten this and gave us a watered down, mediocre show. In contrast, the director of Macbeth, which we saw the next night, also made changes to the show, but these worked. First, they started with a beheading that is only refered to in the text, grabbing the kids right away. There were also these "shadow witches" that appeared in some scenes helping boost the creepiness. What's more, unlike their Music Man counterparts, the black Macbeth and white Lady Macbeth were fantastic together, each feeding off the other's paranoia and growing insanity. All of the other shows we saw also featured choices that helped tell their stories; Don Quixote used puppets and Much Ado had a fountain gag that killed. The Servant of Two Masters is a Commedia play within a play about a struggling lesser troupe using cast-off costumes and props from Macbeth and Henry VIII while heartily mocking Ashland, OSF, other shows we had seen that week and our culture in general. Servant was the perfect ending to our week and the consensus favorite of Mr. Harrington's 8th Grade Class.

While I was in Ashland I got an e-mail from KSVY Program Director Bob Taylor saying Show #19 would be pre-empted for a Sonoma Dragons football game. So, the show ended up running on October 18th instead and I got to listen to it, which was cool. Finally got to Tommy Tutone's "867-5309/Jenny;" fantastic song and perfect for All Kindsa Girls. Maybe heading to Ashland, which is about halfway to Seattle, got me thinking of the Emerald City (or Queen City or Gateway to Alaska, Rain City, Jet City). In any case, this SacroSet highlights the Power Pop greats of this fine metropolis, former home to my sister Sarah and her husband Mike. I loved visiting them in Seattle, it is a VERY cool place.

Next show is on Halloween! Get ready for some Petrifying Power Pop!

You can download the first hour of tonight's show here (righ click and "Save Target As"): http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-10-17__20_59_57.mp3

And here is hour two:
http://thmm.com/ksvy/showarchive/public/2009-10-17__21_59_57.mp3