Friday, March 10, 2023

La Fin de la Semaine Essay Question: Special "Tales From the Great White North" Edition

From 1972, please enjoy Canadian power pop greats The Wackers and their scintillatingly Beatle-esque shoulda-been-a-hit "I Hardly Know Her Name."

That's from the band's second album, which is one of the great lost exemplars of its genre; certainly, it's as good as anything, say, The Raspberries did around the same time. I should add that another track from Hot Wacks, a gorgeous cover of John Lennon's "Oh My Love" (that is one of to my knowledge only two rock songs ever featuring a lead guitar part played on a Japanese koto) is one of my all time fave things ever. Oh hell, hear it for yourself.

I should also add that Wackers founding member Bob Seagarini went on to a long and successful career as a deejay on Canadian radio; he also had a show on Sirius XM for a while, and apparently is still active in the field.

But now to business. To wit...

...and the most interesting rock band to hail from a non-English speaking country is...?

Discuss. (Okay, I'm having a little joke at the expense of our northern neighbors. So sue me.)

Meanwhile, have a great weekend, everybody!

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Shocking Blue.

Captain Al

Anonymous said...

Easy.

Golden Earring.

mistah charley, sb, ma, phd, jsps said...

How about the Scorpions? See

https://tinyurl.com/chekashow

I suggest that their song "Wind of Change" might be referred to at the end of James Tate's surrealistic poem "The Shroud of the Gnome" when the shroud flies upward

whistling a little-known ballad
about the pitiful, raw etiquette of the underworld.


https://tinyurl.com/shroudballad

Alzo said...

Golden Earring (Netherlands)
The Hives (Sweden)
Blue Hearts (Japan)
Les Calamites (France)
Os Mutantes (Brazil)
The Sugarcubes (Iceland)
Laibach (Slovenia)

and one for Steve: Mona Lisa Twins (Austria)

Anonymous said...

Los Fabulosos Cadillacs (Argentina)
Sigur Ros (Iceland)
The Raveonettes or Dizzy Mizz Lizzy (Denmark)
The Cardigans (Sweden)
Cocteau Twins (Scotland :-> , at least not singing English)
Plastic Bertrand (France)
Kraftwerk (Germany)

- Paul in DK

JB said...

Los Bravos

Anonymous said...

Laika and the Cosmonauts
Phil

FD13NYC said...

Los Shakers

The Kenosha Kid said...

Can (Germany)
Polysics (Japan)

edward said...

Gotta say it even if I don't mean it:
ABBA

Alzo said...

I heart Kraftwerk and Can, but I would really hesitate to call them rock bands. Same goes for the Euro Pop of Abba.
But I urge everyone to check out The Limiñanas.

SteveS said...

Leonid & Friends.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_8aZZ9d_EA