The Giant Panther

I had been in Boston maybe two years when I first heard Human Sexual Response on the radio in 1980. The song was Jackie Onassis and to this day I still like that single. I immediately had to investigate. Human Sexual Response was a Boston band that lasted, give or take, maybe five years from roughly 1977-1982. That isn't a long time for a band as good as HSR was, but they definitely made their mark here. I have always found their sound interesting for some reason. They had four hits, mostly on the local level; Jackie Onassis, Andy Fell, Land of The Glass Pinecones and the song I came to post today "What Does Sex Mean To Me?" They also did a cover of a 1966 song by The Capitols called "Cool Jerk" which got a little airplay early as well. Making a great song like Jackie Onassis about an American icon just about guaratees this band will never be forgotten. It's not a great Christmas song (meaning it'll get played at least once a year for decades), but it's the next best thing isn't it? They say even Jackie O liked it. Does it get any better than that?

The origins of HSR are fairly typical, but it's kind of surprising to note that they have a background that includes the kazoo and Country & Western music. These folks defy a musical category, but they got lumped into the New Wave category because nobody knew where to put them. Fig. 15, their debut record, was released in 1980 and it definitely made a splash on both local college radio and local rock stations. They had a titillating name, which always helps, but they had some shock value going for them as well. In addition to "What Does Sex Men To Me?" they included a song called "Butt Fuck" on this record. Today the Butthole Surfers are announced by DJs like it is nothing (they only play "Pepper," but that is another story), but in those days I'm kind of surprised it passed the smell test. Needless to say, it was not going to get any airplay. The thing is, this record is really very good. I like the way it was recorded and I love the way lead singer, Larry Bangor, kind of stuttered his vocals. He had a slight quake and quiver to his vocal delivery which adds to their sound. Some may not agree, but I think it has a touch of David Byrne to it. Very artsy. I'd have posted "Land of The Glass Pinecones," because I love that song too, but that doesn't quite illustrate what I'm having trouble describing here. You can find that one on their 1981 release In a Roman Mood. Do check it out if you've never heard it before. The CDs are fairly hard to find these days, but worth the hunt.

Human Sexual Response broke up in 1982. They turned into the The Zulus and what seems like half a dozen other bands over the years. It's kind of hard to explain how much impact HSR's two records had on my listening tastes over the years, but suffice to say they opened up my ears to new sounds. "What Does Sex Mean To Me?" was the first song in which I ever heard the word "vagina" used, much less rhyming it with "China." I thought that was pretty cool way back when and I haven't changed my mind since. This song is well written, it rocks and it's wonderfully irreverent. Hats off to Human Sexual Response, wherever they are. I remain a big fan almost three decades later.

The first time I heard the British band Sweet was when a song called "Little Willy" was played on the radio station I was listening to in 1972. It had a fun cadence and it was right on the Bubblegum fault line. Sweet had a lot of trouble extricating itself from the Bubblegum label and it's not hard to understand why with the name they chose. In fact, they tried very hard to distance themselves from their bubblegum tag by intentionally doing heavier music on the flip side of all their singles. It drove label executives a bit crazy, but it definitely opened some eyes on the other end of the equation. In the days when you only had an "A" and "B" side to make a decision about a band that second song always got played. Maybe not always on the air, but if the "A" side was listenable the "B" side got a couple of revolutions to make sure nobody was missing anything. When you make songs like "Ballroom Blitz," "Little Willy," and "Fox On The Run" you're gonna get pigeon-holed to a degree. The truth is Sweet had more in common with Glam rockers like Queen, Gary Glitter, T-Rex and Slade than U.S. Bubblegummers like The Ohio Express, 1910 Fruitgum Company or The Monkees.

Back to "Little Willy" for a moment; I still don't exactly know what the song was about, but I did know that I kind of liked it. Sweet had that way about them. Sometimes they sounded like a gang of people singing to you as opposed to just one voice. I never much cared for "Ballroom Blitz," but an awful lot of people did. Sweet had the party vibe about them. They sounded like they were having fun. Everybody wants a piece of the "Action" right? I did know that Willy wouldn't go home, but I never did figure out why. The lyrics are vague, but Willy seemed to like to dance and he had an attitude. I gathered at least that much, but the song was a blast and fun to listen to nonetheless.

Well, I didn't pay them all that much mind until the summer of 1978. It was my senior year of high school and we were all preparing for that trip off to college that would change our lives forever. We still had a couple of months to work a summer job and goof off and listen to the radio and that's just what we did. I was painting houses that summer and one of the songs in very heavy rotation was Sweet's masterpiece "Love is Like Oxygen" from their 1978 album Level Headed. It is often mistaken for belonging to the Electric Light Orchestra catalogue, but it represented a new direction for Sweet as they tried to distance themselves from their old sound. Plagued by lead singer Brian Connelly's alcoholism, several personnel changes and RCA's attempts to shape them, Sweet switched to Polydor Records and scored their final Top Ten Hit in "Love is Like Oxygen." Guilty Pleasure or not, I'll always love "Love is Like Oxygen." So consider me outed in a manner of speaking...

Then Sonic Youth came along, added about 20 seconds of classic SY feedback, and turned it into an ethereal hazy alternative remake. Clearly they liked the song, which is very important in doing a different sounding cover. Groupie songs are always kind of sad I figure. Even though "What's Your Name" by Lynyrd Skynyrd will never be my favorite Skynyrd song, at least it has something to say, good or bad. I didn't do any research on groupie songs, but I bet I could really come up with a healthy list with a little digging. Anyway, I present to you Sonic Youth's version of The Carpenters' 1971 hit "Superstar." Hope you like it even as you find it a little bit creepy (the way I do).

So You Wanna Be A Rock & Roll Star? Then listen now hear what I say. Knowing full well The Giant Panther is going to find this post cringe worthy, I wanted to tell you how much fun I had at the Kid Rock show last night. As most of you know, rock & roll is about attitude nine times out of ten. There is no shortage of attitude in Kid Rock's world. There are plenty of acts out there that are potentially better than Robert James Ritchie in all aspects of musicianship, but Kid Rock is an entertainer. He's An American Bad Ass. He is having fun up on that stage and the packed house at the Mansfield, MA venue formerly known as Great Woods was all over it. They can sense his humor and energy. They got what they came for and they loved it. It's hard not to get caught up in his schtick.

I would not have been there, having witnessed AC/DC and Steely Dan perform over the past four days, but my friends Mark & Melanie suggested I tag along with them and I'm glad I did. My back to back concert going skills have eroded over the past decade or so. There was a time when I could do four or five live shows in a week and be no worse for the wear. No more. After six hours of celebrating amongst the 46,000 who saw AC/DC perform at Gillette Stadium the day before, I didn't have much gas left in the tank. We showed up four hours before the concert for fun and games two days ago, but last night we did a mere 45 minutes of tailgating prior to the Black Stone Cherry, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kid Rock triple bill. I haven't seen three bands perform on the same day in years so Black Stone Cherry, hailing from Edmonton, KY, had no chance of being witnessed by us as the evening's first act. Don't take it personally men. Next time. It was pretty painful for me to watch what is left of Lynyrd Skynyrd run off their no surprises set list as Kid Rock's fluffers though. They only have one original member remaining plus Ronnie Van Zant's younger brother Johnny on the vocals. It's not the musicianship that makes it painful for me though; it's the overdone hamming it up for the crowd and the time honored mentioning of the local city and state to get a rise out the audience. It feels so staged to me. Lynyrd Skynyrd was one of the greatest and most important bands of the 70's. They are a top three all time southern rock act. You want An American Bad Ass? Try Ronnie Van Zant. There was a Whiskey Rock A Roller and a Street Fightin' Man...

The band we watched on stage last night felt like a souped up cover band. I don't mean to offend anyone here, but it's how I felt. My favorite Lynyrd Skynyrd songs are nowhere to be found when I see this version play. No Saturday Night Special, No On The Hunt, No I Ain't The One, No Ballad of Curtis Loew, No Poison Whiskey, No Searchin', No Cry For The Bad Man, No Every Mother's Son, No Things Goin' On and No I Never Dreamed. I understand they have to play the hits and they are now a warm up band at best with a finite hour long set list, but it seems a shame to carry on in a way. They did do a nice tribute to everyone who has ever played with them, both dead and alive, during their encore (please don't make me tell you what song) which was touching, but I'm kind of hoping I never have to see them play again and I mean that in the nicest possible way. The original lineup were true legends, but this lineup kind of reminds me of Willie Mays circa 1973 and I really hate myself for saying as much. I truly loved this band and I respect their right to make a living.

As for Kid Rock, I would identify myself as a casual fan. I did buy Devil Without a Cause back in 1998, but mostly it was because I was buying everything in sight and the buzz on Kid Rock was pretty strong in those days. Bawitdaba seemed like more of the same rap-rock-metal I wasn't very fond of in the early 90's so that was not the song that got me to buy the CD. That had to be Cowboy. My local bar played it every time I was there back then and after being literally bludgeoned over the head by it 300 times or more I finally decided I liked it. Again, the humor involved was the big draw for me. Kid Rock is the David Lee Roth of this generation. Both of these devil may care rockers represent excess in rock & women and they thrive on your characterization of them as such. They are both caricatures of an ideal and persona that may or may not even really exist. Both are maligned and derided for any number of things, but neither one of them ever cared. That stuff was our problem, not theirs. Kid Rock seems like a very nice man having a blast to me. He was seen at a local club called Wally's Cafe on Massachusetts Ave in Boston's South End the night before the show. Wally's is a no nonsense color blind jazz club that has been there for what seems like 100 years. There are absolutely no frills and it's a neighborhood bar to boot. As it happens, Monday night Peter Wolf was in the bar, ostensibly to meet up with Kid or vice versa, and they apparently hobnobbed with the locals. The club's capacity MIGHT be 100 if the Fire Marshall is appropriately greased so it's a tiny venue. I wasn't there, but a friend of mine was and got a picture of himself with Kid Rock as a keepsake. Pretty cool.

The Peter Wolf thing was curious to us (Mark, Melanie & I that is) because our friend said The J. Geils Band was rehearsing there. We figured it was Magic Dick or J. Geils minus Peter Wolf or something and kind of dismissed it. It stood to reason our friend was a bit confused not knowing the music of either act. He was more than likely stopping by to take in some jazz on a typical Monday night. Then, about halfway through the Kid Rock show last night, our skepticism was eradicated. Out strolled Peter Wolf to sing Centerfold with Kid Rock (I immediately thought it was a perfect opportunity for them to play Detroit Breakdown seeing as Kid is from there and The J. Geils Band's second home was absolutely Detroit, but sometimes I outsmart myself). Centerfold will never be my favorite J. Geils cut, but it was a cool thing to have witnessed and I'm glad I did.

Kid Rock's catalogue could be considered to be a bit thin to some, but I like an artist that isn't afraid to do covers. Last Night's show included The Rolling Stones' Tumbling Dice, Sly & The Family Stone's Everyday People and The Georgia Satellites' Keep Your Hands To Yourself. We got a couple of bars of another Detroit icon in Ted Nugent's Cat Scratch Fever as well. One of the highlights for me was Kid taking over the turntables from his DJ Uncle Kracker (I'm assuming that was him, but don't quote me) and doing some quality scratching while a full bottle of Jim Beam and a glass rotated on the second turntable. Naturally he poured himself a monster belt and the crowd roared. Tremendously charismatic, Kid Rock can't stop smiling as he soaks in the crowd's adulation. Everyone had a blast and I don't care who thinks this guy is White Trash (all due respect to Edgar Winter). There had to be close to 15,000 people there that were thinking the very same thing. Women love him and men want to be like him. The very definition of rock star no? Whine away if you don't like his music, his musical ability, his voice or Pamela Anderson, but give this guy his due; he has a huge following.

Dada was a three piece California band that surfaced in 1992. They hit the airwaves with a fun song called "Dizz Knee Land" that some of you may recall. It actually reached number 5 on the Billboard Modern Rock Charts if you can trust Wikipedia to deliver the facts. Their CD "Puzzle" actually moved half a million copies based on this song for the most part. Not bad. Unfortunately for these guys their label, IRS, was under financial duress and folded just after they released their third CD and they descended into relative one hit wonder status. They immediately signed with MCA, which was usually a mistake (see Skynyrd, Lynyrd for a little background on working with those guys...hey, that gives me an idea for a future blog...Mercury Poisoning by Graham Parker...EMI by The Sex Pistols...I could probably cobble together a list of pretty decent songs by artists disenchanted by their label...I'd probably run out of labels though...nobody was happy it seems), just before they were sold.

Dada went on to record for seven more years before calling it a day in 1999. Naturally they re-surfaced again in 2003 and seem to be still kicking around. The more I look into the history of bands I respect, the more I find they are still trying to make a go of it in a music industry absolutely crushed (kind of like a Wav file condensed into an MP3 file ironically huh?). I guess since I'm not out every night of the week anymore I am just not noticing just exactly who is playing The Paradise in between the quarterly shows I seem to find interesting enough to withstand the aforementioned bad sight lines over there. Who is sneaking into Harper's Ferry when I'm not looking I wonder. Where is Dada playing and who is playing them? Beats the heck out of me, but I did want to post a song from Puzzle that I really liked. I hear them at the gym and then I forget to post them, but not this time...

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow has a great old school story telling feel to it. It's part rockabilly, part surf and part rock. It doesn't rock as hard as Face The Day in the post directly below this one, but it winds its way through an interesting tale of picking up a hitchhiker named Tina and robbing a bank, but it's the music that I really like. I sometimes don't look at song lyrics because when I see them on paper I'm ultimately disappointed in the brevity or the seemingly nonsensical story line. I used to argue with myself when I was young about whether it was the lyrics or the music that moved me, but now I understand the music has always been the draw for me. I like a well written line on top of it, but without the melody forget it. Just my two cents. OK, without further ado, I present Dada's Greatest Hit as voted on by me. Take a listen and hopefully you'll have a new tune for your iPod.

This record, Darkroom, actually had a bigger hit than the song I came to blog about today way back in 1980. WCOZ and WBCN in Boston were both playing "No Secrets" around that time by a band (then) called Angel City. "No Secrets" had a great refrain and melody and it was ultra radio friendly. Today it has to be considered a true lost classic from the early eighties. As opposed to a "lost classic" you hear 95 times a year on your local classic rock station. Angel City was an Australian band that apparently was recommended to their local label by none other than Bon Scott and Malcolm Young of AC/DC in 1975. Nice endorsement. They were formed in 1970 and it took nearly a decade before they hit the big time and major label executives at Epic took a chance on them. I don't know about album sales, but this was a fun record and a rockin' good time...at least in my tiny slice of the world.

I think by now you all know I have a problem with bands that change their names, most of the time by legal force or record company pressure, after their initial surge into the marketplace, and then try to change it back after the conflicting band disappears. Today this band apparently goes by The Angels, but you'll never hear me refer to them as anything but Angel City. I made the transition from "California" to "Anaheim" regarding baseball's Angels, but I'll be damned if I'm going to call the current Angels the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim." Who are they kidding? Anaheim was so much cooler and the city that actually houses the ballpark deserves sole billing in my book. Geesh. Back to Rock & Roll; if I understand the situation this band only went by Angel City to avoid confusion with the Washington, DC area glam rock band Angel who were famous in the late 70's. You may remember Angel as the band that had that great holiday classic "The Winter Song" from their 1978 album White Hot. No offense to either band or their respective fan bases intended, but they both ended up being a footnote in rock history. Apparently they are still both recording in various personnel configurations to this day, but I don't think they are getting much in the way of terrestrial radio airplay.

Angel City's Darkroom had a cut called "Face The Day" that some of you might remember was eventually covered by the band Great White, who are famous for being the band that had the misfortune of performing the night of the deadly 2003 fire that killed 100 people at The Station nightclub in West Warwick, RI six years ago. That's kind of ironic because Angel City and Great White have both had a myriad of personnel changes that make you wonder why they still want to use their respective band names. I'll give Great White props for covering Ian Hunter's "Once Bitten Twice Shy" as well as "Face The Day" though. These are two great tunes. "Face The Day" is a blitzkrieg of awesome driving sound. I love the guitar work and it's on my own personal list of great forgotten one hit wonders (yes, I'm aware that "No Secrets," at the very least, disqualifies them from that distinction, but I'm going with it just the same). Every time I load someone's iPod or change the music on my gym device "Face The Day" seems to get the nod. It may sound dated to some of you, but I've always loved this track to death. It kicks some serious butt. In my own personal band rating criteria all you need is one great song to take your place in rock history. Since my vote is the only one that counts relative to this blog; welcome aboard Angel City. Job well done.

Angel City - Face The Day.mp3 YSI

As I get over the demise of WBCN, I'm going to feature bands that the radio station had a hand in breaking way back when. The Jim Carroll Band was something of a red hot meteor that bounced off my twenty year old noggin' back in 1980. Their debut album Catholic Boy was one of those records that came out of nowhere for me. I didn't know much of anything about who Jim Carroll was back then and what separated truth from fiction, but "People Who Died" was a tremendous track that instantly put this album on the map. People wanted to know who these guys were. Not exactly Punk Rock, but the urgency was incredible. It seemed so tongue in cheek that it had to be more funny than vicarious right? Apparently wrong. Legend has it that Carroll was a bonafide heroin addict at 13. 13! And here I was thinking I was a bad ass stealing a Budweiser from my father's beer only refrigerator located in our garage at 14. Guess again rookie. Can you imagine Waiting For The Man at 13?

Jim Carroll was also a basketball junkie and apparently played in the National High School All-Star Game in 1966. Twelve years later he wrote The Basketball Diaries which was made into a movie in 1995. Who played Jim Carroll you ask? Try Leonardo DiCaprio. Whoa. That young man has the world by the tail no? Oh and did I leave out that Jim Carroll was allegedly a male prostitute to support his habit? The Basketball Diaries was said to be excerpts from his own diary between the ages of 12 and 16 detailing his world of drugs, sex and basketball. They say he worked for Andy Warhol and received encouragement from Patti Smith regarding his band. I would imagine that connection comes from the fact that they were both poets, but I'm only guessing. The Band came and went inside of three years essentially (though there was a late 90's comeback of sorts), but they had a lot to say.

"People Who Died" has been on numerous lists of great 80's songs and still gets a little radio airplay every now and then, but "It's Too Late" is the song I came to talk about today. The first line is a killer, no pun intended...It's too late to fall in love with Sharon Tate. You'd instantly think this was going to be a song about the beautiful actress who appeared in 1967's Valley of The Dolls, but was later murdered by The Charles Manson "Family" in 1969. It wasn't, but the lyric is ingrained in my brain forevermore. "It's Too Late" is three minutes and four seconds of hard driving frustration. I've always been a big fan of this tune. The Jim Carroll Band never again reached the heights of their debut record, but I have a feeling the Catholic Boy is getting by just fine these days. If I had to hang my hat on two songs, these two would be just fine by me if I were him. Enjoy.

Wow. 41 years. March 15, 1968. That was my eighth birthday. I don't know where to actually start so I'll do my best to keep this as brief as possible. Short version? WBCN-FM is going off the terrestrial dial for good on August 13, 2009. It was born on March 15, 1968. The Boston Concert Network is taking a powder. Its valuable real estate right of the dial is going to be assumed by sister station WMBX, better known as Mix 98.5, and it's god awful "Hot Adult Contemporary" format (what is THAT exactly? Tried and true hits distilled down to the very bone over the past four decades and repackaged as new to the clueless casual music fan masses until they change the channel?) are Movin' On Up in classic George Jefferson style. Hoo-ray for them. My periodontist listens to Mix 98.5. I can't tell you how much I miss hearing The Spiral Starecase or The Sanford Townsend Band between cleanings. The mid dial 98.5 frequency will be handed off to talk radio. Psyched! Another talk show in Boston! This is a very sad day for those of us who worked at WBCN in one capacity or another. The station had vacated its long time 1265 Boylston Street address behind Fenway Park sometime ago, but what a history. I was only there four years, but I can tell you some wild stuff went down inside those walls. It was never boring. What it was could be described as exhilarating.

I was a 22 year old line cook at TGI Friday's on Newbury Street when I got the call up to the big leagues. I had filled out paperwork to answer the vaunted Listener Line early in 1982 after graduating from Emerson College. Having wondered what happened to the fastest four years I've ever experienced, I thought it might be a good idea to work at the local rock station since I had visions of being a DJ once upon a time. What a rocket scientist huh? The position was strictly volunteer, but I felt like I was on my way. Silly rabbit. As fate would have it I was assigned a four hour shift during the Mark Parenteau show. Mark was a tall, lanky, golden voiced fun loving guy that worked the afternoon drive show. Mark had jumped ship from rival WCOZ in the late seventies to join a stellar WBCN lineup that included Charles Laquidara, Ken Shelton and Carter Alan. I got to know these people pretty well during my time there. I lived and breathed the station nearly 24 x 7. Mark invited me, after a couple of weeks of working the Listener Line to join his intern staff.

Over the next four years I worked with about five or six other interns until I was the senior guy on his staff. Trust me, that wasn't anything to write home about. He had his share of turnover, but that wasn't the issue. I was too happy to come in and work for free and watch the stars come and go. I'd work two of the five shifts and maybe more depending on the schedules of others. I had a couple of crappy paying jobs, but generally I just loved being around The Rock of Boston. I was paid to work remotes and edit comedy tape for Stitches Comedy Club, but it was peanuts. Larry "Cha-Chi" Loprete, one of the nicest men you'll ever meet (he still does Breakfast With The Beatles every Sunday morning at 8 AM which you can listen to live or stream later on via the web at www.wzlx.com), used to throw me a bone every now and then with a free ticket or poster or whatever he could. There were plenty of personalities in that building who looked down on young "college" kids like me, but Larry wasn't one of them. I didn't dwell on the ones that did. I just loved the radio. I still do even though it doesn't resemble anything remotely to what I grew up with. Even so, the news that WBCN is leaving the airwaves hits the psyche hard.

Nothing ever came of my affiliation with the station, but I don't regret working there. I had a ball. The station held off WCOZ (Kick Ass Rock & Roll) and later Classic Rock Station WZLX to hold its own in a tough market, but the peak of the station was probably 1980-1986. Nobody could touch them and all the artists surfaced there at one time or another. On any given day I would see somebody famous. I'm not much of a stargazer though it might not sound like it. I refused to mug for photos (i.e. pop into the outskirts of a group photo at the last minute) or ask for autographs. I was just happy to be there. I figured something good would come of knowing these folks eventually. It never did. It's hard to describe without airing dirty laundry, but suffice to say they don't call it the go go 80's for nothing. It was a good time. The death knell, for me, for WBCN was when they farmed out The Big Mattress morning show in favor of The Howard Stern show. WBCN used to be about the underground and free expression. It was never about strict playlists either. It was all about personalities, current events, breaking new bands, promoting comedy, controlled mayhem, attitude and (mostly) new music.

I know I shouldn't be surprised when stuff like this happens. There have been so many changes in the world since I was a kid (including this here blog to name just one), but there are institutions and then there are institutions. Nobody that I know was left at the present day WBCN (which is scheduled to soldier on in digital format only on the web...thanks alot...can I please pay for that too?) and I couldn't name a single on air personality. I stopped listening in the late eighties, which I'm well aware is part of the problem, but a listing WFNX is lucky nobody has come along to knock them off their perch as well. They seem to have more freedom, but they are also victims of tired programming. It just seems like no station has its autonomy anymore and the FM dial has been rendered all but useless. Computerized playlists and repetitive programming is what really Killed The Radio Star. We survived MTV. The decision to allow companies to own more than one radio station in a single market was a crusher too. Mega conglomerate ownership ruined the individuality of programming. DJs loathe to be told what to play as a rule, but with no latitude whatsoever? Why be a DJ at all? Classic Rock stations are what's left behind after other stations like WBCN take all the risks. Now what? Who breaks future Classic Rock in Boston? It won't be WFNX, though I have noticed they've been sneaking Classic Rock into their format without so much as an announcement lately. Their alternative/Indie bread and butter is not going to change too much. This should be very distressing to rock artists as well. WBCN was a shell of its former self at the end, but it still had the most famous call letters in Boston's long and explosive rock history. Rest in Peace.

That was REAL short huh? Oh well. I'm leaving you with the very first rock song that was ever played on WBCN as it began its 41 year run. It's from a little known power trio called Cream.

Cream - I Feel Free.mp3

Cream - I Feel Free.mp3 YSI

www.wbcn.com

My third consecutive night of live music had me face to face, for the third time overall, with a Led Zeppelin cover band called Lez Zeppelin. Aside from having arguably the best cover band name in the history of the genre, this band is damn good. The first time I saw them was at The Middle East in Cambridge about two or three years ago. I want to say early March of 2007, but don't quote me. The place was stifling hot and I was at least twenty yards from the stage. I saw very little and didn't really make the connection of just how good this band actually was at the time. I recently saw them at The Paradise maybe three months back and came away very impressed. I made a mental note that if I wasn't doing anything the next time they showed up I'd go see them again. That day was last night. Lez Zeppelin performed on a boat cruise that toured Boston Harbor for roughly three hours. The fact that my friend Adam Klein was promoting the show (www.rockandbluescruise.com) didn't hurt, but I would have gone anyway. A lot of folks balk at being trapped on a boat for three hours at functions like this with the usual bad beer and bad food, but I didn't give it a second thought. Well, that's not entirely true; if it had been 80 degrees or hotter I probably would not have gone. The weather was very manageable last night for this Irish boy. There is always a wind chill factor on the harbor and a light jacket did the trick. It was hot right in front of the band, but if you needed to cool off you had an option. It did rain the final half hour of the cruise, but nobody really cared by then.

I have seen my share of cover bands over the years for sure. The late Brad Delp (Boston) led Beatlejuice was probably my favorite. I saw this AC/DC cover band called Black Angus at Fat Boy Bill's Blues Bar in Milford, MA that I was sure I would hate, but I ended up loving. I even got to sing Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap...actually just "Done Dirt Cheap" into the microphone as the band worked the tables in the joint. If you drink enough whiskey you figure you can do a passable Brian Johnson (in your mind anyway) right? That was a blast, but I tend to shy away from cover bands. It can get a bit embarrassing and too nostalgic at times, no offense to anyone who makes a living doing that type of thing. Lez Zeppelin is a whole different ball of wax. They take great pains to preserve the integrity of the original music and it shows up in spades. If they didn't I probably wouldn't have seen them a second time. They'd be just another cover band making a buck. They aren't.

First, the crowd is highly entertaining. Diplomatically speaking, there is definitely a cross section of lesbians at each show, but that is not the big draw (at least for me). Led Zeppelin had a predominantly male audience back in the day, but I like to see what straight women show up at these things. Any woman who likes Led Zeppelin is a friend of mine. There was a lot of dancing on the high seas last night and I love to see who is moved and at what age. Led Zeppelin is such a musical brand that generations of young folks catch up to their greatness via their parents and older siblings that you end up seeing a lot of people up to 25 years younger at these types of shows. I would be remiss if I didn't mention that one of the prettiest girls on the boat within shouting distance of my 49 years got so hammered that she wore a black thong OVER her jeans by the end of the cruise. I noticed her earlier because she was using one of the steel poles holding up the second deck as a mock stripper pole. Her friends thought it was hilarious and frankly so did I. She looked like a lot of fun and was having a blast. I lost sight of her and when I caught up to her later in the cruise she was clearly One Toke Over The Line. They sell underwear at the Lez Zeppelin concession stand so I even though I was kind of hoping she had made a conscious decision to out her own thong, that thing could have come from anywhere. I'm sure she regrets, or maybe doesn't remember it all, walking around like that for over an hour, but rest assured some of us got a kick out it. She was a chocolate mess by the end of the cruise (swearing like the drunken sailor she was), but the entertainment value was very high. I hope she feels OK today, but she looked like she skipped dinner for sure. She wasn't the only one having a good time either. The whole cruise was a digital photography smorgasbord.

Back to the music; Lez Zeppelin rocks. Plain and simple. If you love Led Zeppelin you should make it a point to go see these women perform. They did a great cross section of songs last night, but my favorite was Custard Pie from Physical Graffiti. They are very tight and well rehearsed and they don't just play Black Dog and Rock & Roll (mercifully). If you are familiar with Led Zeppelin chances are you have heard the Wilson sisters (Ann & Nancy of Heart fame) cover Zeppelin as The Lovemongers. This is right in league with that....oooh, it's Sunday Morning as I type and I'm listening to Carter Alan's Sunday Morning Blues (www.wzlx.com) as I do every week. Tea For One by Led Zeppelin just came up as if on cue (thanks Carter!). The thing is, Lez Zeppelin doesn't take the easy route; they tackle No Quarter and Since I've Been Loving You as well. I was just on their web site and it looks as if the band is in a bit of transition. The last time I saw them they had a different lead singer and only lead guitarist and founder Stephanie Paynes has a bio presently. I'm pretty sure Leesa Squyres (excellent) was drumming the last time I saw them, but after that I can't be sure. The bass player, MeGan X, was also exceptional. This isn't some muddy mix (and a boat has got to be the worst place to engineer decent sound) with a passable Robert Plant imitation here at all; these are tremendous musicians and they have Led Zeppelin down pat. I highly recommend going to see them.

OK, back to back to back nights means this old codger is going to have to take a break for a few days. I'm leaving you with Lez Zeppelin's cover of The Ocean from Houses of The Holy. By the way, these studio recordings don't do any justice to their live performances. You'll have to trust this concert going veteran on this. If you like Zeppelin, you'll love these gals. They're impressive.

Well, Jet's new CD isn't due for six weeks or so, but some friends of mine left me some freebies for tonight's show at The Paradise here in Boston. My benefactor's, Mark & Melanie, are the Jet fans in my circle, but they chose the fair weather of Cape Cod versus the Friday night concert. I don't really blame them. Not because of the fair weather or because of Jet playing in town, but because The Paradise is probably my least favorite venue to see a concert. It's general admission and holds maybe 1500 (guessing) people, but the sight lines are awful and the air conditioning is non existent. The Paradise is legendary in Boston's long history of hosting concerts, but there are three massive load bearing posts in the middle of the audience that totally wipes out any hope of a view behind them. I'm talking two to three feet wide pillars that eclipse the sun. I hate them and have always hated them, but they are a fixture in this structure. To the credit of whoever owns The Paradise these days, whether it's John Lyons or somebody else (I lost track), they have done a lot of thing to make the venue palatable since I saw Robin Trower and NRBQ way back in the early 80's, but the place still bites. Either you are in one of the decent 60 side and overhead view spots or the front row of standing room (in which case you are done drinking or going to the facilites) or you are basically listening to King Biscuit Flower Hour on the radio as far as I'm concerned. Unless the place is half empty, I have never cared much for the experience that is The Paradise. It's a glorified TT The Bears in Cambridge for my money and TT's is at least a bar first and foremost. Like Johnny D's in Somerville, I kind of wish they'd burn 'em down and begin again, but I'm not holding my breath.

My affinity for all things Australia is relatively well documented by now. AC/DC, Midnight Oil, INXS, Airbourne and Jet are just scratching the surface regarding The Land Down Under. I have posted about most of them by now, but I've still got more work to do. The truth is I didn't really want to go to Jet tonight. I had attended Peter Murphy last night and I am scheduled to see Lez Zeppelin on a boat (Blues) cruise around Boston Harbor tomorrow night. I played some basketball this afternoon and I feel like I've gone 15 rounds with Smokin' Joe Frazier about now. But my friend's Mark & Melanie raved about these guys the last time they were in town so I felt obligated to check them out. I'm glad I did. They definitely operate out of the Oasis and Beatles playbook (Look What You've Done is exactly what I'm talking about), but I don't really hold that against them since I am fans of both bands. They also were a bit reminiscent of The Hives if you can believe that. I just love Walk Idiot Walk by The Hives and I swear Jet has that same choppy urgency at times. They only have two records and one to be released next month, but their new material (That Girl's a Genius to name just one) hold up exceptionally well. In fact I'm looking forward to Shaka Rock when it gets released as a result of seeing them live. I wasn't expecting much when I showed up, but color me impressed.

Jet are closer to classic rock than Indie Rock, which is The Giant Panther's favorite genre, but they had a rabid following and I enjoyed the heck out of their performance tonight. They definitely rock. I'm already on The Giant Panther's bleep list for missing his BBQ tonight, but I had a rock & roll commitment so hopefully he'll cut me some slack. I don't have any of the new material to feature here so I have to leave you with their show closing rocker Cold Hard Bitch instead. The audience was predominantly male, not surprisingly, but there were plenty of pretty young things to go around. I have always loved the young girls holding hands to knife through a particularly thick crowd ostensibly in search of the ladies room. I know my dirty old man mind works overtime when confronted with such sights, but don't hold it against me. By the way, Jet look cumulatively 25 years of age max. They remind me of another young band from Australia that I couldn't get enough of once upon a time in Silverchair. I wonder if those kids are 30 yet. I don't care how old you are if you can rock like Jet and Silverchair. If you get a chance to see these guys is a real venue take a chance. It's a ballad free zone for sure...and that's always a good thing in my book...

Just Push Eject and Give Me The Tape. Tonight I saw Peter Murphy Live. There are some serious rock baritones out there in the land of Rock & Roll; Iggy Pop, Brad Roberts (Crash Test Dummies) and the Godfather of Goth Peter Murphy are three that come to mind off the top of my head. I don't know which one is deeper, but I love them all (yes, even CTD). There is a pretty good reason why they resonate (to coin a phrase) so well. They're unique sounding. I love their sound. I hadn't seen Peter Murphy since April 10, 1990 at Citi Club here in Boston. I'm pretty sure I saw him earlier at The Orpheum Theatre in a triple bill around 1988, possibly involving The Church, but I can't find the proof to be sure for the moment. It's in here somewhere though. I know that for sure.

You know how you call radio stations seconds after an announcement promising free tickets and you get a busy signal for days? Well, today I was just fooling around dialing WFNX trying to win tickets to see the legendary Peter Murphy (Bauhaus) last night at Showcase Live on the grounds of Foxborough, MA's Gillette Stadium (home of the New England Patriots) and guess what? I won! Showcase Live is a smallish venue reminiscent of many hotel venues in Las Vegas, NV. There are several tables with multiple parties, meaning you sit with strangers, and the place is spacious, airy and a little sterile. Know what? I liked it. The service was great, the place was nicely air conditioned and during the show there were times when I was literally within ten feet of Peter Murphy. Pretty cool. The venue is maybe two years old and I had never been due to the one hour commute and the nasty Cross - Town - Traffic (I love the way Jimi Hendrix spit that out...You're Just Like...). I missed The Church last Thursday and I was determined to show up down there and check this place out. The place holds 750 when they sell standing room and a mere 500 when they just seat folks. That's my kind of place!

I've been a Peter Murphy fan since I first heard "Indigo Eyes" in the late 80's. I didn't know much about Bauhaus, but I knew "Bela Lugosi's Dead" was a hit for them. I knew they covered David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust and T-Rex's Telegram Sam, but I wasn't altogether sure what made them great until years later. The tour Murphy is doing now is called "The Secret Covers Tour." I assumed he would be covering songs, but I didn't know which ones or how many. What I got was John Lennon's "Instant Karma," David Bowie's "Space Oddity" and a wonderful version of Joy Division's "Transmission" complete with Ian Curtis' signature hand gestures. The funny thing is I didn't hear any of his hits and I still had an awesome time. No "Indigo Eyes," No "Cuts You Up," No You're So Close," No "Final Solution," No "All Night Long," No nothing. I did hear great versions of "Deep Ocean, Vast Sea" and "Time Has Got Nothing To Do With It," but I clearly have work to do with his catalogue. He had several rockers I didn't recognize and that tells me I'm slipping. I did zero prep work for this show, but I had a whale of a time. The sound was great too.

I had just watched, finally, the movie "Control" which is the story of Joy Division and the death of Ian Curtis. I have seen "Sid & Nancy" and many films of this rock star death genre, but I never fail to be fascinated by the stories. Anyway, Peter Murphy, all 51 years of him (I think he turns 52 on July 11th), rocked the house. The Goth crowd was mostly in disguise at this show, but there were a few poorly aged veterans of the scene complete with the additional pounds we all seem to lug around, but this wasn't a show for the scenesters. It was a show for the diehards. Murphy put on a great show so go see it if you see an opportunity. It was cheap and he's playing smaller venues so you can literally stand right next to him while he performs. There was a strict no pictures policy in place, but I figured vanity was an issue. That or he didn't feel like wearing makeup...

One of my favorite Peter Murphy tracks is from his first CD called Love Hysteria. It's called His Circle and Hers Meet and I'm leaving you with it now. Naturally this wasn't played either, but I didn't mind. I hope you like it. Live music is the very best and every time I see a show I remember why I love it so much. Long Live Rock as my friends in The Who might say...I need it every night...

Today I am knifing through my collection to find one of the best obscure tracks I can think of. Oh, I've got about twenty written down somewhere to bring you as the days roll on, but this one is one of my favorites. I used to work at a hardware company called Cambridge Digital which had an affiliation with a software company called Unisource back around 1984. The hardware company had the geeks and the software company had the chicks. If memory serves a friend of mine named Marty got me a job in the mail room because we were both working the door at the now world famous Bull & Finch Pub, which you may know as Cheers. I was working three jobs; one at WBCN as an intern, one at the bar and the other one to make whatever pennies I needed to get by on. It was my first non restaurant job post college. I didn't take it very seriously (after all, anyone could stamp the mail and take it to the mailbox) and there were some like minded characters working there that egged me on. The reason I tell this story is because one of the guys that was working there at the same time was a bass player named Ira Nulton. I figure everyone has worked with a future rock star at some point no?

Ira was an unassuming nice guy who did whatever they did at Cambridge Digital and we used to run into each other often though he'd probably never remember me today. It was only 25 years ago, but it seems a lot less than that to me some how. Ira was in a band and, as such, was dating an extremely attractive blonde, though I could never remember her name even if tonight's Mega Millions winning numbers depended on it. I worked in the mail room so I ran into just about everyone myself. I was miraculously dating an out of my league girl from the software company myself so, aside from the fact that my career was headed nowhere at the time, life was good. Ira's band used to play around town from time to time, but it just seemed like it was never convenient for me. I didn't even own a car back then because I was living downtown. I can't say for sure if they were even called Cliffs of Dooneen when I knew Ira, but that is what they eventually became. I was out of that company by 1986 or so, but the last thing I remember about Ira is that he was in some kind of motorcycle accident so I didn't see him very much after we stopped working together. I always followed the music scene though and The Cliffs of Dooneen released a CD called The Dog Went East, and God Went West in 1991 on Critique Records out of Woburn, MA.

The band consisted of Eric Sean Murphy on lead vocals, Martin Crotty on lead guitar, Ira Nulton on bass and Lex Lianos on drums. I'm sure all of you have records or CDs that you just know are out of print and that nobody else you know has and this is one of mine. I can't say for sure, but I think I finally saw Cliffs of Dooneen at a now defunct club called The Irish Embassy in Boston's North Station area. I don't have my usual ticket stub to document this fact, but I'm pretty sure this concert would have taken place in the 1991-1992 area. This is why you save your ticket stubs kids! You just can't say you were there. I was watching a fantastic VH1 Classic Rocumentary about the James Brown concert in 1968 at Boston Garden that apparently saved the city from major damage in the wake of the murder of Dr Martin Luther King just a day or two earlier. The Mayor of Boston at the time, Kevin White, arranged to have PBS broadcast the concert in the event that it might convince some folks to stay home that night. He forgot to tell James Brown until after the fact, but as a result many of the would be patrons simply returned their tickets for a refund and watched it on TV. Brown demanded the $60K in lost revenue and threatened not to perform. In the end he went on, the mayor went back on his word and stiffed him (according to his manager) and Brown ended up doing the concert for a mere $10K. I wonder how many people will tell you today that they were there? It was voted the top concert of all time in Boston in a Boston Phoenix poll a few years ago. Anyway, save your ticket stubs...just shove 'em in the back of your jewel boxes for safe keeping...I guess now you have to tape 'em to your computer since we are going digital huh?

Anyway, all tangents aside, The Cliffs of Dooneen were a lot better than they were ever given credit for. I don't say this just because I happened to know, in passing, someone who was in the band. If you ever get a hold of The Dog Went East, and God Went West check it out. I'm posting Through An Open Window because it still sounds great to this day. Congratulations Ira and the gang, wherever you are, for a job well done. The music business swallows up many a great talent and spits it back out and just because this record didn't go platinum doesn't mean it wasn't any good. I loved it. And this single? Julie Kramer should be playing it on WFNX's Leftover Lunch once a month to this day. Too many of those so called leftovers are main courses. You have to dig deep to find chestnuts like Through An Open Window. It's a Hidden Gem at the very least Julie. This baby will probably get downloaded only 25 times out of curiosity, but I don't care...it's a great tune. Mix it up out there people! Seriously I hope you agree with me. Talk to you all soon.

Cliffs of Dooneen - Through An Open Window.mp3

Cliffs of Dooneen - Through An Open Window.mp3 YSI

X was a great act. I swear this band whistled right over the vast majority of rock fans on this continent outside of Los Angeles in the late 70's & early 80's. X was a Punk band that played a rockabilly style countrified brand of Punk Rock. Formed in Los Angeles in 1977, X only had a handful of radio friendly songs. At least, more than any radio station in the northeast chose to play. X seeped into my consciousness very late in their existence. I left the New Jersey area just as The Ramones were exploding and never really experienced the Punk scene. To this day I'm not much for body piercings (not that there's anything wrong with that as the saying goes) and it just seemed that crowd had an affinity for spitting in public and putting safety pins through their eyebrows. Slam dancing, ripped jeans and t-shirts and the general disheveled look of the allegedly disenfranchised just wasn't my style. Unfortunately, sometimes music gets pigeon-holed and aligned with a particular crowd and alienates the rest. Today I am a great fan of a lot of Punk music, but back then...

Where it all began changes as the years go on, but you can generally consider The Ramones as a top five Punk act. The Clash were punk rockers, maybe the greatest of all time, but their music really evolved as time went on. The Sex Pistols were punk personified around the globe and Never Mind The Bullocks still sounds wonderfully irreverent to this day. I guess you could say The Ramones represented New York, The Clash & Sex Pistols the UK and X Los Angeles...no offense to any giant Punk bands I foolishly left out intended...

This is kind of a tough one for me. I was never a big Michael Jackson fan, though I own The Best of The Jackson Five and a copy of Thriller. It's definitely not time to talk negatively of the deceased, but I can't think of anything past 1984, when he was absolutely the King of Pop, that I can point to that pumps me up about Michael Jackson. He was, however, right there with the titans of that mid 80's era alongside Prince, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen and U2. Those were the five biggest acts of the 80's as far as I can tell. It goes well beyond record sales and concert revenues...these five acts overshadowed all comers. Jackson's 1982 album Thriller catapulted him into the stratosphere, as if he wasn't already famous and successful enough. It remains one of the best selling records of all time to this day. By the time MTV began playing his Thriller video, complete with a reading from the venerable Vincent Price, Jackson had no place on this earth to hide from his fame. His legendary moon walk is probably one of the most mimicked dance steps of our generation. A TV performance of "Billie Jean" on the 25th Anniversary of Motown special was flat jaw dropping. Michael Jackson was an incredibly talented performer. One of the greatest the world has ever seen. He apparently died of cardiac arrest today at age 50. What a shame. Even though his music is not necessarily our charter I felt like it was important that The Giant Panther should acknowledge his passing.

There were rumblings that Jackson was thinking about making a comeback and that several shows had been scheduled for London in the fall, but I wasn't much interested in that potential spectacle. His eccentric behavior and insistence on maintaining a childlike persona seemed to eventually derail any scintilla of sanity in his world. Here was a striking young African American male with the world at his feet and somewhere along the way he just seemed to come unglued. They call Joan Rivers the Queen of Plastic Surgery or some such thing, but Michael Jackson had to lead the league in completely unnecessary surgeries. As far as I was concerned, Jackson was a good looking man, but he obviously didn't see it that way. I have to believe the stress of being Michael Jackson just overwhelmed him. He sold a lot of records after Thriller and was still in the news, mostly for all the wrong reasons unfortunately, but he never did attain those heights ever again. We can't imagine what it was like to be the son of an allegedly abusive father and a pop star by eight years old or whatever it was. The Danny Bonaduce story doesn't even scratch the surface here.

I was an AM Gold guy in the late 60's and early 70's. I got on quite nicely with The Love You Save, ABC, I Want You Back, Rockin' Robin, I'll Be There and Never Can Say Goodbye. I started to lose it when he had the hit "Ben" about the friendly rat and as popular as Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough or Rock With You were I couldn't stand them. I was never much for so called "Dance Music." My ears perked up when I heard Eddie Van Halen's solo on "Beat It," but I still wasn't completely sold. "Billie Jean" was a brilliant pop song though. I remember we played it on WBCN, a rock station, and that was amazing. Like Prince, Michael Jackson's music was color blind and crossover format friendly. I even liked "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'," but I was back on the outside looking in when P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) became a hit. WBCN played this record until nobody could stand it anymore. It had the same type of "Legs" as ZZ Top's Eliminator, Cyndi Lauper's She's So Unusual, Prince's Purple Rain and John Mellencamp's Scarecrow. Whether it was four, five or six singles radio just kept playing all of these records for over a year...almost until the artist's next record came out!

I guess what I came to say is that Michael Jackson was a true icon. Larger than life. A supreme talent. I didn't always like his music, but I was clearly in the minority. His legal troubles, the opulent Neverland Ranch, the multiple facial reconstructions, the rumors about his sexual preferences, the endless stories about his financials and mental status, the inexplicable marriages, and the bizarre footage of him hanging a child out of a hotel window? You can have all that stuff. At the end of the day the world lost a world class entertainer at a very young age and it is kind of a shame the way it all ended for him. He seemed to come in like a lion and go out like a lamb, but that doesn't change what he accomplished. I hope he can rest in peace now. He's earned that much. Best wishes to the surviving members of the Jackson family and all of his heartbroken fans.

Before I go I wanted to mention Farrah Fawcett's passing as well. She was 62 years old. The sex symbol of the 1970's, Farrah ended up overcoming her "handicap" of being gorgeous and went on to prove herself a serious actress when nobody thought she had it in her. Charlie's Angels and one fantastic poster might have put her on the map, but she took it from there. I'm glad she is no longer suffering and will remember her fondly until my turn comes.

Cake is an interesting act. An American "Indie" band from Sacramento, CA, Cake burst onto the national scene around 1996 with a cover of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive." Fashion Nugget was already their second record, but we didn't know that at the time. All we knew is that while Gloria Gaynor was famous for that song folks who listened to Cake and similar bands weren't typically fans of that type of music. It came across as more funny than anything else. The next thing I remember hearing is "The Distance," a song that thrust Cake into the spotlight. It had lyrics conducive to having the local professional sports franchises potentially adopting it as their marketing soundtrack. I know the Boston Bruins gave it a whirl at one point. As a result, Fashion Nugget is not the first record I reach for when considering a Cake CD. I can listen to "The Distance" if I have to, but it's gone the way of "Song 2" by Blur, "Tubthumping" by Chumbawumba, "Rock & Roll Part 2" by Gary Glitter, "Let's Get It Started" by The Black Eyed Peas, "We Will Rock You" by Queen, "Centerfield" by John Fogerty, "All-Star" by Smashmouth, "Welcome To The Jungle" by Guns 'N Roses, "Unbelievable" by EMF, "Ready To Go" by Repulica, "Jump Around" by House of Pain and that god awful "Who Let The Dogs Out" by The Baja Men. You no longer care if you ever hear these tracks again. Ever. They're a little too easy as halftime fodder while watching the cheerleaders. You know you haven't heard the last of them so no reason to play them at home or add them to your iPod. They are overexposed for good. The Distance might be better than all of these tracks, but it has been dragged down to that level by virtue of its association with sporting events and TV commercials.

Cake, though, is a great band. They only have five records, a B-side compilation and a live disc. I'm sure it is intentional, but all of their album covers look very similar with a yellowish or white background. Nothing is very eye catching. It adds to their mystery I suppose. I last saw them at the Hatch Shell in Boston last summer at the Earth Day Festival. The played their cover of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs." I had never heard it before. As a Black Sabbath fan, at least until 1978 or so, I loved it. I decided to post it for fun today. Make no mistake; Cake has a fine catalogue in their own right. I own all of their studio records, but Prolonging The Magic and Comfort Eagle are great records. I'm not sure which one I like the best, but you can trust me when I tell you that they are very much worth owning. Hardly a throwaway track across the board. Cake has always had a tongue in cheek sense of humor about them which I can really appreciate. I always like a little humor in my rock & roll. It makes it fun every now an then. "War Pigs" is one of the all time anti-war protest songs of our time. When Cake sings the lyrics you can actually understand what Ozzy was mumbling way back in 1971. They could never match the epic back beat of the Black Sabbath original, but I think you'll find this to be entertaining. I gave it the thumbs up both in concert and on record. Happy Father's Day to all the Fathers out there. Hopefully this one will be a sleeper cut on your iPod now...

Power Pop is a term you hear fairly often when talking about oldies that sort of split the atom between Bubblegum (think The Ohio Express or The 1910 Fruitgum Company), Pop (think Three Dog Night, The Grassroots or The Lovin' Spoonful) and Rock (think The Doors or Cream). I was reading that Pete Townshend of The Who is generally credited with coining the phrase in 1967 when asked what type of music his band played. Referring to "I Can't Explain", "Happy Jack" and "Pictures of Lily" he replied "Power Pop." I never knew this tidbit of information. I can't describe Power Pop when I try to explain it, but I know it when I hear it. It's always been a favorite genre of mine. It lends itself to one hit wonder bands, or at least to bands that don't have a lot of catalogue exposure. One of my all time favorite Power Pop songs is "Shake Some Action" by The Flamin' Groovies. That song rocks. How about "No Matter What" or "Baby Blue" by Badfinger? Yes please. Little Girl by Syndicate of Sound? Yep. What about "Starry Eyes" by The Records? Love it. I loved Pop Rock when I was a kid. Time of The Season by The Zombies. Spirit in The Sky by Norman Greenbaum. In The Summertime by Mungo Jerry. Go All The Way by The Raspberries. Surrender by Cheap Trick. Anything by Todd Rundgren. September Gurls by Big Star. Bus Stop by The Hollies. I'm On Fire by Dwight Twilley. She's So Selfish by The Knack. Teenage Kicks by The Undertones. Switchboard Susan by Nick Lowe. Anything by Joe Jackson. Driver's Seat by Sniff 'n The Tears. Melt With You by Modern English. The Buzzcocks. The Monkees. The Beach Boys. The Kinks. Electric Light Orchestra. The Easybeats. Love. Heck, you could even call Blue Oyster Cult Power Pop if pressed. The list is blissfully endless...

Later on we had The Replacements, XTC, Blondie, The Bangles, The La's, Fountains of Wayne, The Dandy Warhols, The New Radicals, Matthew Sweet, The Lemonheads, Teenage Fanclub, The Romantics, The Plimsouls, Marshall Crenshaw, R.E.M., Squeeze, The Jam, The New Pornographers, Jimmy Eat World, Weezer, The dB's, The Smithereens, The Pursuit of Happiness, Utopia, Nada Surf, The Hoo Doo Gurus, Rhett Miller and others carrying the flag. The actual time frame of the golden age of Power Pop is up for debate. By most accounts the sweet spot was 1975 or so until maybe 1983, but we all know that Power Pop was invented by The Beatles. The Kinks, The Who, Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders, The Troggs, The Rolling Stones, Sly & The Family Stone and scores of bands had also paved the way prior to 1975, if indeed that is the imaginary line in the sand. The thing about it is, I think you have to have had roots in the AM Gold Pop era to appreciate this music to the level that I do. It was right on the fault line when AOR FM radio started to take off. The music needed to be longer than 2 minutes and 15 seconds and it had to have something to say. The late 60's and early 70's had a backdrop of heavier music making it's own history in Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Aerosmith, but there was a bridge to this music that was a hybrid of pop and rock. It took nearly a decade to come and go, but fortunately there is still a market for this product even if it is dormant at times. It's kind of cyclical I think. Some might call it antiquated, but I like it.

I don't know what it is that attracts me to this genre so much, but it's like ear candy for me. It's easy to understand the lyrics and sing to and it just rips the nostalgia from my can't remember what I had for breakfast brain. I'm posting two Power Pop tracks today. The first is without a doubt one of my favorite local Boston band tracks by a band called Private Lightning. This band never really made it out of New England, but I don't care. "Physical Speed" is a masterpiece from my point of view. I was so happy to read on another blog that they were going to re-release their 1980 self titled CD this month I ordered it before it was available. They had a second song called "Song of The Kite" that I also loved, but these tracks were very hard to find for decades if you didn't own their original album. I never did own it, but I did record the single on a cassette tape for safe keeping and held onto it tightly until now. Whenever I hear it I am instantly taken back to hazy lazy summer days on Nahant Beach back in 1980 with a kite tied to my beach chair and the cheapest beer we could find. Most of the time we had two or three bikini clad waitresses with us from work with the boom box blasting. I'm sure there was no connection to the ideology behind "Girl of My Dreams" and my love for the second song below, but it sure was nice to get lost in the day dream with that kind of company just the same. Local New Englanders already know Nahant is not exactly a five star beach, but it was close to Boston and most of the time we needed to be at work by 4:30 PM so Nahant it was. I just loved Physical Speed. Private Lightning was a rousing success if for no other reason than this contribution to the world of music. Congrats guys (and girls) wherever you are today. You rocked my world nearly 30 years ago and still do to this day. That has gotta be such a feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction. I'd be so proud if somebody remembered my signature tune for a decade, let alone three...that was such a long time ago...still, I remember it like it was yesterday...

The other song I'm posting is Bram Tchaikovsky's "Girl of My Dreams." Bram released Strange Man, Changed Man in 1979. It had a mediocre cover of The Monkee's I'm a Believer (written by the legendary Neil Diamond), but nothing else that riled up the radio community. Luckily they latched onto this track and played it like there was no tomorrow. Everything about this track screams Power Pop and I could never ever get enough of it. It's a brilliant track. I hope you like it too. I don't know what it says about me that Bram's "girl" Judy was a blow up doll, but the song is so beautiful I can overlook that minor detail. At least I'm not one of those clowns who brings blow up dolls to sporting events to be passed around huh? Don't you judge me...

Ahoy Hoy my friends! Did you know that "Ahoy Hoy" was the standard greeting in the early days of the existence of the telephone? Me neither. Luckily it was replaced by "hello" before too long and only the venerable C. Montgomery Burns of Simpson's fame uses that greeting in the modern day. Sorry for the prolonged absence, but it seems like I've got a lot going on these days for a guy in between jobs. It's concert going season and though my budget isn't what it used to be, but I've got a couple of outings planned shortly. I remember seeing Devo for the first time last summer (pre-blogging for this rookie) in the second row and having a rip roaring blast singing "Mongoloid" at the top of my lungs with friends. Hopefully some such slice of life awaits me in the coming months so I can report back to the masses for fun. Is there anything better than an outdoor summer concert? I ask you...

I can remember when WFNX, my local alternative rock station here in the Boston area, began to morph it's playlist to include the mash-up between hip hop, rap rock and metal in the early 90's. Suddenly bands like Rage Against The Machine, Linkin Park, Cypress Hill, and Limp Bizkit starting taking over the airwaves. We already had Faith No More and The Red Hot Chili Peppers edging into that genre a bit, but now, coming off The Manchester Sound and a ton of singer songwriter types like Matthew Sweet the melody was gone. Shout singing, rap rock and noise became the order of the day. I actually stopped listening to WFNX for a while. Aside from the DJ turnover and god awful repetitiveness of the programming, I really didn't like the direction they were headed. Local dinosaur rock station WBCN was almost playing the identical artists at the time next to their standard fare of Aerosmith and U2. Maybe the change was too sudden for me at the time, but I really felt WFNX was losing its way. I was turned off. No more obscure tasty treats like Propaganda, The Lightning Seeds, It's Immaterial and scores of other bands I can't remember off the top of my head. Today order has been restored. The maddening tiny playlist still exists, but they are back on the beam of what made them great in the first place; new artists mixed in with at least some reverence for what came before. I'm a big history guy; I love to trace musical lineage. It's all borrowed one way or another...

I've begun backing off on my Rage Against Rage statements of the mid 90's. I was pointing at Rage as the reason alternative rock had gone to hell in a hand basket. I never really was keen on Bulls On Parade, but I've come to enjoy these guys more than I ever thought I would. Truthfully, if I wasn't filling an iPod for a friend who wanted all that stuff; Disturbed, Drowning Pool, System of a Down and the like I wouldn't have given Rage a second chance. I was more of a Soundgarden and Monster Magnet guy at the time. Those bands still had some discernable melody to offer to me. Now I find myself Raging from time to time. Guerilla Radio no longer goes right through me like it once did. Sleep Now in The Fire! Have you seen that TV commercial where the three rockers with long hair are swinging their manes around with headphones on? Not only is that flat hysterical it reminds me of watching concert footage of RATM and their fans just grooving to the music. I was listening to RATM's Renegades a while back and stumbled upon their cover of Bob Dylan's Maggie's Farm. I love Bob Dylan to pieces so I thought this would be fun to post. Even if Rage is not your cup of tea, and I totally get it if they are not, the re-worked Maggie's Farm is very cool for my money. Enjoy.

Rage Against The Machine - Maggie's Farm.mp3

Rage Against The Machine - Maggie's Farm.mp3 YSI

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