More proof, if any was needed, that the best rock-and-roll is made at two in the morning by people playing at a dive bar -- in this case, the old Other End on Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village -- in front of a bunch of drunken louts.
More specifically -- The Floor Models covering "19th Nervous Breakdown." Shall we say enthusiastically.
Recorded with a boom box in front of the stage; the singer's girlfriend can be heard arguing about the check.
As you can see (and hear, at the end, if you click the link) I was doing my Bill Wyman impression at the time.
We had a more or less two year weekend residency at the aforementioned Other End, and if memory serves I believe I have mentioned on previous occasions that I look back now on the experience as the most fun I've ever had with my clothes on.
I had forgotten how funny Ocasek was in this. Strange what pops into your head when you least expect it.
I heard the news of his passing last night and was genuinely saddened. Obviously, like any right-thinking rock fan, I thought The Cars were totally awesome, but as a New Yorker -- well, let's just say that when I lived in the Village, Ocasek was about as approachable a star as you could imagine; you were constantly bumping into him (sometimes with his charming wife) while grocery shopping or at the video store. He was just a neighborhood guy, albeit one who kind of looked like some kind of weird stick insect.
I should add that I have long insisted that someday some very hep country band is gonna cover "My Best Friend's Girl" and have a huge hit with it.
I should also add that "You Might Think" is one of my Top Ten favorite records of all time.
And that this bluegrass cover of "Just What I Needed" is one of the greatest things in the history of things.
Have I mentioned that this death shit is really starting to piss me off?
From 2019, please enjoy The New Pornographers and their utterly delightful "Falling Down the Stairs of Your Smile."
Yeah, it starts -- both musically and visually -- too close to "Billie Jean" for comfort, but it almost immediately develops into its own thing, and I gotta say -- this is now my favorite song of the year that I wasn't personally involved in.
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