Monday's Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Sorry, I just couldn't help myself.

Okay, that last one is kinda pushing it...😎

Weekend Listomania: Special Your Favorite Band Sucks!!! Edition

[I originally posted this one back in 2012, when this blog and the world had not yet endured the reign of the Manchurian Cantaloupe and the attendant destruction of American democracy. In any case, given all the Beach Boys stuff I posted the other week (occasioned by the death of Brian Wilson) I thought it might be fun to revisit it. As per usual on these occasions, I've done some re-writing and swapped out a couple of songs, although the list itself remains from the original version. Enjoy, if possible. - S.S.]

Okay -- here's a fun and hopefully relevant little project with an amusing subtext that we can all get behind while I take a long and well deserved nap:

TOP TEN MOST IMPORTANT AMERICAN ROCK BANDS OF THE SIXTIES!!!

No arbitrary rules, except that I said "bands" -- no solo artists or folk duos need apply (sorry Bob, sorry Paul, sorry Artie etc.)

And no singing/vocal groups either. Which means that if you nominate The Mamas and the Papas or any of the Motown acts other than Jr. Walker and the All-Stars I am going to taunt you mercilessly. We're talking bands here -- with people who, like, play guitars and drums and stuff. Okay? Okay.

And so, my totally top of my head Top Ten, in no particular order except for Number One, is/are:

10: The Rascals

Blue-eyed soul. Nobody did it better and with more rock attitude.

9: The MC5

"The American Ruse" indeed, and it's really quite horrific that this song hasn't dated a whit. I should add that the above live version was totally unknown to me until yesterday.

8: The Velvet Underground

Nelson Algren meets the Rolling Stones. If you think that anybody at the moment is doing something as innovative, gutsy and avant-garde, please e-mail me at Just Blow Me.Com. Thank you.

7: The Blues Project

Maybe you had to be there, but these guys were among the most exciting live acts I've ever seen. And they sounded EXACTLY like this in person.

6: Jefferson Airplane

America's loudest band. I was actually at this show, so I know what I'm talking about.

5: Moby Grape

The greatest debut album in all of American rock. And the two that followed were pretty damned good, too.

4: Buffalo Springfield

There's very little to be said about this bunch that hasn't already been declaimed by wiser folks than moi, but may I simply add -- I will never forgive Neil Young for bailing on the group's 2012 reunion tour before it got to NYC, i.e. before I finally got to see them live. Miserable bastard.

3: Paul Revere and the Raiders

FANG!!!

Seriously, that's it. 😎

And the Number 1 best/most significant/whatever American band of the Sixties is -- A FREAKING TIE!!

2/1: The Beach Boys...

...and The Byrds!!!

The short version? Apart from everything else, both the Beach Boys and Byrds invented a sound. Hell, a genre. Very few people in music history can make that claim.

And before somebody goes "What -- Paul Revere and not The Band?", let me just say the The Band would have been my number 11, and that -- heretical as the judgement may be -- they have never really rocked hard enough for me. Sorry.

And also, before somebody brings up The Grateful Dead, let me just say that while it's hardly a secret that I am not now and have never been a fan, I would nonetheless submit that the albums on which their reputation mostly rests -- American Beauty and Workingman's Dead -- were both released in the 70s. And that their work prior to that was mostly along the lines of a fairly meh white blues band with a mildly irritating experimental bent.

Alrighty, then -- what would YOUR choices be?

And have a great weekend, everybody!!!

John Michael Osbourne 1948 -- 2025

The Prince of Darkness has left the building, and the world is now a significantly duller place.

Talent is an Asset

The Lemon Twigs, from the other night, in Lyon France(!), with a casually brilliant live version of The Beach Boys' classic "In My Room."

You know, it occurs to me these kids are roughly the same age that Brian Wilson was when he wrote that. I mean, I suspect they relate to the song for more than just musical reasons.

In any case, the idea that the sons of a former bandmate of mine are now the best fucking rock group in the world kinda blows my mind. 😎

Songs I'd Forgotten Existed, Let Alone Loved (An Occasional Series): Special "Don't Tell Donald or Jeffrey" Edition

From their 1970 debut album, please enjoy Argent and their melodically masterful (Russ Ballard-penned) ode to the charms of a "Schoolgirl."

I mean -- like wow.

I haven't heard the album in a million years, so I have no idea if the rest of the stuff on the record is similarly great, but I should add that not only is the song, objectively speaking, about as hauntingly gorgeous as pop rock gets, but unless I am very much mistaken, it's the only song Argent ever did that really betrays the provenance of its leaders previous band, i.e. The Zombies.

I mean, c'mon --can't you hear Colin Blunstone singing that?

In any case, may I just say again -- like wow. 😎

Your Monday Moment of Words Fail Me

From 1998, prepare to have your minds blown by Aussie power pop gods You Am I and a live version of their classic "Mr. Milk."

Be advised -- among other things, what you're about to watch is essentially a master class in how you do this stuff, from the incredible Rickenbacker opening riff to the background vocal "oohs!" to the ultra-cool stage outfits.

A little backstory: As attentive readers know, I've been a fan of that song since forever, or more accurately since 2003, when I first heard the studio version over the sound system at NYCD (a/k/a the greatest record store ever) courtesy of proprietor and Friend of PowerPop© Sal Nunziato. I basically lost my shit the minute I heard the aforementioned opening riff, and all the more so when Sal informed me that these guys were pretty much the greatest Aussie band since The Easybeats; I mean how the hell had I missed THAT?😎

In any event, I got turned on to the above live version over last weekend, and I freaked out all over again; the performance here is a little faster and a little more aggressive than the studio take, but it has every bit of the world-class polish of the original, and the only other phrase I can come up with to describe it is "fucking amazing."

Seriously -- it's enough to restore an old guy's faith in the magic of rock-and-roll.

You're welcome very much. 😎😎

[h/t Peter Scott]

Every Power Pop Record Ever Recorded!

Wait a minute...didn't Robert Klein do a bit along those lines? 😎

K-tel Presents -- Every Power Pop Record Ever Recorded! Exactly that! We drive a truck to your house!!!

But seriously folks: Attentive readers will recall my posting a few months ago about I Wanna Be a Teen Again: North American Power Pop of the '80s, the 3CD box set coming out on Cherry Red Records and featuring the likes of (among others) Cheap Trick, The Bangles, The Go-Gos, Rick Springfield, The Shivvers, The Smithereens, Phil Seymour, Dwight Twilley and...wait for it...The Floor Models (a band featuring some guy whose name rhymes with Sleeve Nimels on bass).

Well, the thing got released today, so what are you waiting for?

You can buy the package (which I'm told includes amazing photos and terrific liner notes) over at Amazon HERE or -- if you're as pissed off at Jeff Bezos as I am -- directly from Cherry Red over HERE.

As you can imagine, I'm kinda around the moon over this; I only wish my two departed bandmates Andy Pasternack (our 12-string ace) and Glen "Bob" Allen (our beloved drummer) had lived to see it.

In any event, I want to thank everybody over at Cherry Red, and especially fab gear Aussie publicist Dave Laing, who got us the gig.

But more to the point -- I'm dying to know what any of you guys think about the set. So get the hell over to one of those links and snag a copy!

Now, people!!! 😎😎

And have a great weekend everybody!!!

PS: And in other amazing news, if you're in the Los Angeles area in August, there's a preview screening of the forthcoming documentary The Power Pop Movie -- as a benefit for The Wild Honey Foundation -- at the Foundation's backyard amphitheater (heh). The festivities happen at 7 PM Pacific time on August 17th; complete details -- including directions on how to get there -- can be found over HERE.

Aforementioned attentive readers will recall that said film includes lotsa yakking about the music -- its history and meaning -- by the past and present proprietors of this here blog, i.e. NYMary and that Sleeve Nimels guy...

...as well as interviews with various notables including the late Eric Carmen and the guys in Shoes, plus assorted journos, critics and fans like Friend of PowerPop© Brett Milano and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon. I've seen an essentially finished cut; let's just say that director Justin Fielding has done an absolutely brilliant job of capturing the essence of the genre.

So, Angelenos -- be there or be square!!!

P.P.S.: Now that I think of it, I've got an album AND a movie coming out.

Have I mentioned I'm having a pretty good year? 😎😎😎

Thursday's Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Okay, I couldn't resist these two. For obvious reasons.

Big -- and I mean BIG -- news coming tomorrow.

Repeat When Necessary. Seriously -- Like Repeat When Necessary.

Oh. My. God. 😎

From his just released new album Face of 68, please enjoy ex-dB/Continental Drifiter/power pop deity Peter Holsapple and "That Kind of Guy," aka the funniest song I've heard since I don't know when.

A word of advice: There's no lyric sheet that I can find, so it's probably best to play this one really loud or under the headphones or both, so you don't miss a word.

And at the risk of giving anything away, let's just say that if you can listen to the verse comparing the merits of Dick Taylor and Mick Taylor in the Rolling Stones without getting convulsed, you need to have your meds adjusted.

BTW -- have I mentioned repeat when necessary? 😎😎

Okay, How Come I Never Got the Memo on This One?

From 2003, please enjoy "Otto Bob" Palindrome "Weird Al" Yankovic and the funniest and/or most brilliant Dylan parody ever seen/heard by sentient mammalian eyes/ears.

Seriously -- I find it incomprehensible that I had not encountered that previously until sometime last week.

Also, may I repeat -- "Otto Bob" Palindrome. Just in case you didn't get the song/video's central joke. 😎

And oh yeah -- that hilarious and brand new power pop song I teased you guys about yesterday will go up tomorrow. Scout's honor. 😎😎

Monday Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Heh. Also hah.

Actual music stuff -- including the funniest piece of brand new power pop I've heard in ages -- resumes on the morrow.

Annals of Record Company Shit-Weasels (An Occasional Series): Special "When Philistines Walked the Earth" Edition

And speaking of The Kinks, as we were Wednesday, here's some Kinks music (and the story behind it) you may not know, but should.

Let's start with the music. From their 1991 EP Did Ya on Sony, please enjoy the winsome title track....

...and a killer live version of the band's 60s classic "Gotta Move."

And now for the story. As I said, you probably don't know either of those tracks (and the EP they derive from). For this dubious distinction, we have one person to thank -- then head of Sony Records Tommy Mottola, aka Mr. Mariah Carey.

What happened was The Kinks got signed to Sony prior to Mottola assuming the reins of the company; all of a sudden Grunge happened, and the totally-respectful-of-artists Mottola basically told his subordinates -- who the fuck is responsible for these over the hill/past their sell date/dinosaurs being on my label? Oh, and by the way, we'll promote this Kinks EP and anything else these fossils give us on the same day that frozen yogurt goes on sale in hell.

Consequently, nobody except the tiny group of rock critics who'd already received Did Ya in the mail ever heard it, and the Kinks were dropped by Sony soon after delivering a complete new album that Sony was obliged to release for legal/contractual reasons.

But don't worry, the story has a happy ending. Head Kink Ray Davies eventually got knighted, and his band are not only still with us, but back in the studio recording new music.

As for Mottola, he died soon after shafting the group, friendless and alone, of a terrible and painful lingering disease.

Actually, no -- the motherfucker is still alive, well, and obscenely wealthy. But a boy can dream, can't he? 😎

PS: Mottola did exactly the same thing to the great Willie Nile and his 1991 masterpiece Places I Have Never Been...

...but I'll tell you that story on Monday, along with some happier Willie news. 😎😎

In the meantime -- have a great weekend, everybody!!!

Thursday Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Yeah, yeah, I know that one has nothing to do with music, but it cracked me up, so gimme a break. 😎

Regular -- and really really snarky -- posting resumes tomorrow.

Seriously -- tomorrow may get me sued. 😎😎

Songs I'd Forgotten Existed, Let Alone Loved (An Occasional Series): Special "How Do You Say 'Up, Up and Away!' in Yiddish?" Edition

From 1979, please enjoy The Kinks and their infectious ode to superhero jealousy "(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman."

I bring this up because a) I hadn't heard the song in years, and was delighted to find that it holds up nicely.

More importantly, however, it's because b) I'm really looking forward to seeing the Superman movie reboot this weekend.

I mean, not only is David Corenswet, the actor playing Supes, the first Jewish guy in the role ever (somewhere in heaven, the character's Jewish creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster are smiling) but James Gunn, the film's director, conceived it specifically as an immigrant assimilation story.

Which it fucking is and always was.

Plus -- they finally gave Kal-El a furry friend, i.e. Krypto the Superdog. 😎

Seriously -- I am not even remotely a fan of most contemporary comic book flicks, but this one?

Well, it's gonna piss off all the right people and in the immortal words of Paul Westerberg -- can't hardly wait. 😎😎

You'll Never Believe Why AOC is Evil Now

Okay, I realize I've been getting a little too political with my postings around here of late, and I promise to give it a rest for the immediate forseeable future, but this item is so wonderfully absurd that I simply couldn't resist. 😎

From the estimable NO MORE MISTER NICE BLOG:

Republicans in Congress are working on a massive transfer of wealth from the non-rich to the rich, so the Murdoch media empire has a mission: persuade Americans that Democratic critics of this redistribution are the real elitists. So here's a new Fox story about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez:

AOC's childhood nickname revealed amid 'Bronx girl' claims

Ocasio-Cortez's suburban-toned nickname appears to be at odds with her tough 'Bronx girl' persona

Yes, Fox is serious about this.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s tough Bronx persona is under fresh scrutiny with a resurfaced childhood nickname from her suburban upstate New York upbringing casting doubt on that publicly portrayed image....

The 35-year-old "Squad" member wrote in part on X last week: "I’m a Bronx girl. You should know that we can eat Queens boys for breakfast. Respectfully," she said, referring to the president’s upbringing in Queens as she called for his impeachment over his decision to bypass Congress in authorizing U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

Ocasio-Cortez was born in the Bronx but moved to Yorktown – which is nearly an hour outside New York City -- when she was 5 years old and went on to attend Yorktown High School, from where she graduated in 2007.

"There, known by students and staff as ‘Sandy,’ she was a member of the Science Research Program taught by Michael Blueglass," the report states....

After high school, Ocasio-Cortez attended Boston University, where she majored in economics and international relations, per the report.

Ocasio-Cortez’s "Sandy" nickname — which carries a more suburban and preppy tone — appears to undercut her politically crafted image as a tough, inner-city fighter....

(Emphasis added.)

Really? The nickname Sandy is preppy? So back in 1973, when Bruce Springsteen was a penniless jamoke on the verge of losing his record deal, he wrote a song about a preppy? 😎😎

Words fail me. 😎😎😎

Songs I'd Forgotten Existed, Let Alone Loved (An Occasional Series)

From 1966, please enjoy The Buffalo Springfield and their semi-obscure mini-masterpiece "Baby Don't Scold Me."

The short version: That was on the original pressing of the band's debut album, but after "For What It's Worth" became a hit, it was removed in favor of the million-seller.

It's a little sloppy, to be sure, but I love it for a) the quote from "Day Tripper" at the end, and b) its ahead of its time sort of punkish folk-rock insouciance. Man, what I wouldn't have given to see those guys live.

And and oh my god -- that bridge is a work of freaking genius!!!

Great Moments in Hypola: An Occasional Series

So speaking as we were the other day of hero of my youth Eddie Lawrence, here are the radio spots the Great Man cut in 1974 for the John Lennon-produced Harry Nilsson LP Pussy Cats.

I had no idea that existed until alert reader Bob in IL hipped me to it the other day, and thank you Bob -- it made me laugh out loud. Especially "You got a part time job in a leather shop called Whips of All Nations..."

I should add that whole thing kind of took me back because at the time it was recorded, I was actually in the midst of a several year stint doing radio spots for Polygram Records (long story -- don't ask how). I don't remember much about the period, but I do remember I wrote and produced an ad for The Osmonds Christmas Album, featuring frequent Woody Allen-collaborator Len Maxwell doing the voice of Humphrey Bogart.

"The Osmonds Christmas album...it's good, schweetheart. REAL good." 😎

It's Independence Day. Enjoy It While You Can!!!

And in its honor -- a PowerPop tradition since 2018 -- please marvel at Bill Pullman, the greatest president of the United States who was never president of the United States...

...no, wait, now that we're living in Nazi Germany 2.0, that's not a particularly good joke anymore.

Sorry.

What I meant to say was please enjoy the late great Ben E. King and his gorgeous cover of Bruce Springsteen's "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)."

Or perhaps The Hollies' superb 1975 version.

BTW, I saw the Hollies do that live at the old Bottom Line that year, and Bruce (who was not yet the household word he became shortly thereafter when Born to Run was released) was sitting at the table directly in front of me.

Get me drunk sometimes and I'll tell you the simultaenously hilarious and tragic story that accompanied the evening. 😎

Meanwhile, have a great Fourth, everybody!!! Assuming you don't find what's happening in our Noble Democracy at the moment a little too depressing to be festive. 😎 😎

Great Moments in Metaphysics

[It being the dawning of a long Holiday Weekend -- at an especially depressing time in our current American history -- I've decided to have a little fun for the next couple of days. Weightier, more serious postings, will resume next Monday, i.e. when the party's over, as it were. Thanks!!! -- S.S.]

In case you're wondering, Eddie Lawrence -- aka The Old Philosopher -- was one of my heroes as a kid. Not to mention a major fashion influence. 😎

And if memory serves, another one of my childhood heroes -- Soupy Sales -- used to play the above on his afternoon show all the time.

I should add that "musical accompaniment by the Sentimental Four" is now my all time favorite credit on a recorded product ever. 😎

It's Called Music, Chuckles -- Look Into It!!!

[It being the dawning of a long Holiday Weekend -- at an especially depressing time in our current American history -- I've decided to have a little fun for the next couple of days. Weightier, more serious postings, resume on Monday, when the party's over, as it were. Thanks!!! -- S.S.]

From Stereogum:

Charli XCX Responds To Boomers Criticizing Her Use Of AutoTune At Glastonbury

With Glastonbury in the books, Charli XCX has completed yet another massive Brat festival set. You’d think audiences in her home country would be most receptive to her over-the-top presentation, but apparently, some UK boomers were not pleased with Charli’s exaggerated use of AutoTune and her lack of a backing band. She shared some thoughts on the matter in a short series of tweets today following her Saturday night headlining set. She wrote:

[I'm]really enjoying these Boomer vibe comments on my glastonbury performance. it’s super fascinating to me.

Like the idea that singing with deliberate autotune makes you a fraud or that not having a traditional band suddenly means you must not be a “real artist” is like, the most boring take ever. yawn sorry just fell asleep xx

Oh puhleese. There's a phrase for doing a set with totally auto-tuned vocals and without live backup. The phrase is "Lip-synching."

Which means what she was offering the audience differed from Milli Vanilli exactly how? 😎

Also, somebody really needs to tell this pretentious low-talent bint that the words "brat" and "twat" actually rhyme. 😎 😎

Okay, I Definitely Want the Motion Picture Soundtracks for THESE Two Sci-Fi Classics!!!

[It being the dawning of a long Holiday Weekend -- at an especially depressing time in our current American history -- I've decided to have a little fun for the next couple of days. Weightier, more serious postings, resume on Monday, when the party's over, as it were. Thanks!!! -- S.S.]

For Those About to Spock!©

And I would have paid good money to see both of the above in a theater. 😎

Monday's Cartoon Chuckle

Okay, the above is a real generation gap divide thing. I mean, what Gen Z'er remembers Redd Foxx, let alone the entire genre of party LPs? 😎

Coming tomorrow -- a tribute to the great Rusty Warren (I keed, I keed!!!) 😎😎

It's Beach Boys Week: Part the Infinity

So one of our attentive readers recently reminded me about the existence of this Beach Boys think piece I did in the Magazine Formerly Known as Stereo Review back in May 1977(!). I had completely forgotten about it, but upon re-reading, I've decided a) it's one of the goddamn best things I ever wrote; b) it's gotta go into that long-threatened greatest hits book I've been bending your ear about for the last few years and c) I'm too lazy to transcribe it myself this right this minute, so I'm just gonna post the pdf version and if you click on it to enlarge you'll be able to read it with ease.

See, I told you guys I'd get something up this weekend.

Anyways, enjoy.

Oh, and like I said -- if you click on the images you should be able to read the thing.

Closed for (Weekend) Monkey Business

Kids, I am most sincerely sorry but -- forgetting the crazy shit that's been going on in the regular world (the NYC mayoral primary alone exhausted me) but it's been a very stressful week for me medically (I came out fine, I'm happy to say, but let's just say it was problematic for a while).

Anyway, I just didn't have the energy to come up with the traditional Weekend Listomania or Essay Question, and I hope you'll forgive me.

Tell you what, though -- if an idea for some kind of posting hits me overnight, I'll do the unusual and put up something Saturday or Sunday. No promises, but I'll try. 😎

How Come These People Never Got the Memo?

I mean it -- how come?

In all seriousness, the video above is part of what is now a mini-genre of sorts, one in which supposedly sophisticated Gen Z musical types on YouTube get exposed to classic rock for the first time and they dig it.

In this case, the guy in question (who apparently is a producer of some repute) is given a very intelligently chosen playlist of the Top 5 songs by The Who -- none of which he claims to have ever heard before (yeah, I know, I know) -- and he has his tiny mind appropriately blown.

For us adults watching it, the most fun is when he gets to the iconic scream in "Won't Get Fooled Again" and completely and wonderfully loses it.

That said, and all Boomer snark aside, I still find it difficult to believe these influencers and music professionals have never previously been exposed to the songs in question. I mean, it's not like the Who haven't been played endlessly in movies and TV cop shows and in commercials and on oldies radio. Is it really because kids(?) today get all their music from streaming services or some such shit?

Honestly -- I don't get it.

Wednesday's Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Hey -- like I promised, at least it's got nothing to do with the Beach Boys. Also, I'm particularly fond of the Nancy cartoon; I mean, who amongst us hasn't danced to a steam drill on at least one occasion? 😎

Regular music posting, more relevant to the theme of this here blog, resumes on the morrow.

It's Beach Boys Week: Part V -- Okay, Okay, I Promise to Lay Off the Beach Boys Shit For the Forseeable Future, But You Gotta Hear This One So Indulge Me!

Alrighty then -- please behold in breathless wonder as some kid named Kent Nishimura does a solo acoustic version of The Beach Boys' "God Only Knows."

My god, that's gorgeous. And unlike classical guy Göran Söllscher, whose cover of The Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" I posted yesterday, the kid's doing it all on a conventional six-string guitar.

Damn, but I hate talented people. That said, you can find out more about the kid at his website over here.

And okay -- I promise we return to music NOT written by people from Hawthorne, California on the morrow, and for at least the next week and a half after that. 😎

[h/t Jai Guru Dave]

Like, Long Hair*

Okay, in case you hadn't heard, The Beatles are now officially classical music.

The guy playing that utterly amazing version of "Eleanor Rigby" on the 11-string(!) acoustic guitar is a Swedish virtuoso named Göran Söllscher; I had never heard of him (or heard him either) until last Saturday, when the above got played on the morning show on New York's classical station WQXR, and it blew my tiny mind. He's apparently something of a Bach specialist, and a very big deal in classical circles; he records for Deutsche Grammaphon and Wiki informs me that he's sold over a million records to date. Which kinda rocks.

In any event, the above is just spectacularly beautiful, and wait till you hear the Youtube version of him doing the Beatles' "In My Life." (Go find it yourself -- what, I have to do everything for you guys?) 😎

In all seriousness, though, I gotta say -- never in my most drug addled '60s moments under the headphones listening to the likes of Revolver on my dorm room stereo did I forsee that the pop music I loved would someday go totally highbrow.

____________________________________

*Today's title is a reference to the debut single by Paul Revere and the Raiders, who, of course, were often noted for their classical influences and refined demeanor. 😎😎

La Fin de La Semaine Essay Question: Special "Pardon Me, But Have We Been Introduced?" Edition

Well, it's been an, er, interesting couple of days, both in geo-political and musical news -- this just in: Lou Christie has passed at the age of 82 (and no, he was NOT struck by lightning) -- and I'm frankly exhausted. I mean, Trump's bullshit performance/rant at the White House flagpole installation alone would have worn me out.

That being the case, and given that you're probably burnt out as well, I thought I would post the most non-threatening question I could come up with.

Which leads us, inexorably, to today's business. To wit:

...and the post-Elvis solo pop star or band member (in any genre) you would most like to meet or have met one-on-one is...???

No arbitrary rules whatsoever, thank me very much. Just somebody, past or present, you think you would have enjoyed hanging out with for a little while.

My nominee? I think you'll be surprised to learn it's Dusty. Or Miss Springfield if I'm nasty.

Why? For two reasons. 1) I would have loved to hear that sexy/velvety singing voice just talking to me. And 2) By all accounts, she was what we used to call "a great broad." 😎

Alrighty then -- who would YOUR choices be?

And have a great weekend, everybody!!!

[h/t ChrisE]

It's Beach Boys Week: Part IV -- Doug Kolk Explains It All to You

That's Doug Kolk, as in the KTLA (a CW network station) entertainment correspondent, from last weekend.

On why Brian Wilson was not just the usual pop music bozo poseur, i.e., of the kind that dominates today's Hit Parade of Hell.😎

Seriously -- you don't normally expect (or get) that level of intelligent music criticism from a local TV news guy. Kudos and bravo, my friend.

It's Beach Boys Week: Part III -- Apparently the Surfing is Very Good in Finland

Okay, I know I said I wouldn't, but please enjoy my latest obsession, aka Finnish weirdo rock revivalist Ilkka Heikki, and his sepulchural take on the Beach Boys classic "Dance Dance Dance."

Hey -- at least he gets the guitar and bass parts right, which is more than I've ever been able to do. The guitar solo sucks, however. 😎

Oh WTF, Let's Just Make it Beach Boys Week: Special "Why Didn't I Get the Memo?" Edition

From 1996, and unknown to me prior to last Sunday, please enjoy this absolutely astoundingly wonderful clip of veteran British rockers Status Quo doing a ripping good version of the Beach Boys classic "Fun, Fun, Fun."

With five of the actual Beach Boys -- including Brian and Carl -- contributing harmonies behind them.

And may I add that a) it's wonderful to see the Boys -- and in particular Brian(!) -- having such an obvious good time.

And b) if watching that clip doesn't make you smile from auditory canal to auditory canal, there's no hope for you. 😎

My Last Brian Wilson-Related Post For the Time Being: Special More "Fun, Fun, Fun" from Finland Edition

Attentive readers will recall my recent posting of a bizarre (for want of a better word) cover of The McCoy's "Beat the Clock" by Finnish rock "revivalist"(?) Ilkka Heikki.

And, more to the point, my utter confusion over whether it was a moderately amusing parody or -- and I found this a terrifying prospect -- actually meant straight.

In any case, while researching some Beach Boys stuff last week (for obvious reasons) I stumbled across another clip by the guy that has left me similarly and absolutely flummoxed.

To wit: a performance of "God Only Knows," and I can only say "God Forgive Me" for posting it. 😎

Or maybe I should say "Brian Forgive Me." I haven't got it sorted out.

But seriously -- is there some kind of celebrated Finnish sense of irony I'm not familiar with? Are the Finns noted for being a largely joyful people up there in the darkening shadow of the Arctic Circle? Or what?

Help me out here, friends -- or else I'll post the clips of Ilkka covering "Itchykoo Park," "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and "It's All Over Now."

And you really don't want me to do that. 😎😎

Brian Wilson: My Long Goodbye

[I originally posted this defense of the Beach Boys in the comments section back here in 2006(!). It was occasioned by NYMary's surprise that I rated them as high as I did in the American 60s pantheon; she didn't agree, although I think she's come around since. Anyway, it's going to figure in my Greatest Hits book, if I ever get around to getting it published, but it seemed appropriate to re-up it here given the sad news we all got on Wednesday. Frankly, I've been pretty much exhausted tryng to wrap my tiny mind around Brian's passing, so I hope you'll indulge me; I promise, there'll be new and hopefully less existentially dark stuff up next time we meet.

In the meantime, have a great weekend, everybody, and stay well. -- S.S.]

NYMary:

I must confess I find it a little odd to be writing this -- the Beach Boys music is pretty much my lingua franca, and the idea that they need defending feels weird to me given how much I love them (although I understand your skepticism, at least in the abstract. After all, Mike Love sucks).

In any event, here's why I think they deserve respect from mere mortals like you and me.

TEN REASONS THE BEACH BOYS ARE SELF-EVIDENTLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT AMERICAN BANDS OF THE SIXTIES.

IF NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT.

1. They invented an instantly recognizable sound of their own, one that practically defines a genre. Very few rock artists can make that claim. (Chuck Berry with "Johnny B Goode", The Byrds with "Tambourine Man," the Ramones, and maybe U2). That alone should guarantee the Beach Boys immortality.

2. What Raymond Chandler did for California in prose the Beach Boys did in music. They reflected a place and a time and made a kind of poetry out of it. They were not fake.

3. Five part harmonies, astoundingly gorgeous. And Brian's conception -- mating progressive jazz voicings a la the Four Freshman with classic doo-wop -- was totally unique. Here's a 1965 live clip that proves the point -- and if this a capella version of the Freshman's "Their Hearts Were Full of Spring" doesn't put a lump in your throat, you need to check your meds.

4. From their inception in the early 60s, they were pretty much the only self-contained rock band in America. Wrote all their own songs, produced their own records. Who else was doing that?

5. Kick-ass live act. If you doubt it, listen to Beach Boys Concert, get a video of their closed-circuit show from '64, or find The T.A.M.I Show video, in which -- performing on the same bill with the Stones, James Brown and most of the Motown acts, they tear the audience to shreds. Carl Wilson was a killer surf guitarist, and the rhythm section was as good as anybody in rock at the time.

Here they are in 1965 (from the the aforementioned T.A.M.I Show -- with a to-die-for version of "I Get Around."

6. Contrary to myth, they were not white bread at all. Carl and Dennis Wilson were as soulful singers in the r&b sense as anybody else working in the mid-Sixties. And that includes Stevie Winwood or Felix Cavliere.

7. The car and surf songs are actually quite brilliant. Who else ever conceived of writing love songs to a carburetor? And has any rock song ever conveyed as much sheer teenage elan as "Fun Fun Fun" or "I Get Around"?

8. Brian's best songs from the early period anticipate the confessional singer/songwriter LA genre. "Don't Worry Baby" may be as nakedly emotional and self-revealing as anything Joni Mitchell ever wrote. Ditto "Warmth of the Sun" or "In My Room" or "When I Grow Up."

9. The albums that preceed the sainted Pet Sounds and Smile are masterpeices. The Beach Boys Today, Brian's first real studio concept album, is masterly; "When I Grow Up" isn't even the best song on it (try "Don't Hurt My Little Sister" or the astounding Sinatra goes r&b of "The Back of My Mind" sung by Dennis). It's every bit as good as Rubber Soul in terms of consistency and melodic invention. The follow-up --Summer Days and Summer Nights, of which "California Girls" is simply the icing on the cake, is even better -- it's every bit Brian's Revolver. He never used the studio more impressively than "Let Him Run Wild" or emulated the Beatles with the riffy brilliance of "Girl Don't Tell Me."

10. The album that follows Pet Sounds and Smile is another masterpiece. Wild Honey is one of the handful of great white r&b albums of the period, and if you doubt it check out the title song or Carl's gorgeous reading of Stevie Wonder's "I Was Made to Love Her." And in it's back to basics way, it's very much of a piece with the Beatles White Album.

I could go on about the Beach Boys early 70s output -- you could make a fabulous comp album with songs like "Marcella" (one of their best ever rockers), "This Whole World" (Brian's canniest pocket symphony), "All I Wanna Do"(the most glorious use of reverb in history), "Bluebirds Over the Mountain" (progressive rockabilly, if you can believe it), "Do It Again" and any number of others up through "Trader" on Holland.

The decline after that was appalling, to be sure, but you get my point....the Beach Boys have a huge body of really transcendent work, and Brian wasn't the only big talent in the band.

Have I mentioned that Mike Love sucks?

Goodbye Brian

I'm still having trouble processing the head Beach Boys' passing; all I can really say is that it hit me much harder than I expected, and I suspect I'm not the only one who feels that way.

In any case, the above 2021 cover of one of his greatest songs, by fellow Angelenos Los Lobos, seems like an appropriate tribute.

Brian Wilson 1942 - 2025

This is a true story, swear to god.

This afternoon, while walking home from lunch at my Forest Hills watering hole, an attractive woman (of, as they say, a certain age) who I've never seen before in my life, stopped me on the street and said, out of the blue -- "Brian Wilson just died."

I really don't know where to begin. We looked at each other and just...ah hell.

Anyway, here's a glorious song you might not know from a solo album he did in 1998.

Other than that, I kinda lack the appropriate words at the moment. Maybe tomorrow.

And Speaking as We Were of the Late Great Bob Andrews...

Okay, this is going to be a little convoluted, so please indulge me; it'll be worth it, I promise.

So I was a huge fan of the first two albums by Brit-rockers Brinsley Schwarz, both of which came out in 1970 and were stylistically a sort of expensively produced-sounding mashup of commercial prog and CSN-ish Laurel Canyon hippie shit. I got them for free when I was a baby rock critic at my old college paper, and Nick Lowe's vocals and songwriting did it to me instantly. But above and beyond, the band's secret weapon was the gorgeously lyrical organ playing of Bob Andrews; here, from the debut set, is a song that sort of sums up the band's approach at the time, and as you'll hear, Andrews basically steals it.

I was still at school when the band's third LP, Silver Pistol, arrived. I knew nothing of the backstory -- short version: the Brinsley's management had flown over 100 journalists from the UK to NYC to review the band in performance at the Fillmore East, and hopefully launch the group to stardom; the junket, however was a complete fiasco and widely assumed to be a career ender. So I was also unaware that the new album's stylistic reinvention as what would later be called pub rock was not by itself down to it being recorded under primitive conditions on a mobile eight-track in the basement of the band's communal London home. In any case, the song below -- written by Lowe, but powered by a sublimely Buddy Holly-ish piano part by Andrews -- nailed me immediately, and it's been one of my all-time favorites ever since.

Anyway, as attentive readers are aware, Andrews departed this sad vale of tears last Thursday, at the way too young age of 75. After I posted about him on Sunday, Friend of PowerPop© ChrisE sent me the following video, which was previously unknown to me. Basically, it's Andrews doing a tutorial on how to play his part on the above (and on "Juju Man," another song from Silver Pistol). As you can doubtless imagine, I nearly swooned off my chair when I watched it, and unless you're seriously perverse of ears (and lacking in a soul) I think you will too.

I should add that, as you probably know, I'm a keyboard player (albeit a limited one) myself, with an electric piano device similar to the one Andrews is playing in the clip, and you better believe I'm gonna try to learn that part. I'll keep you posted on how that's working out. 😎

Tuesday's Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Okay, I know the Davis one isn't a cartoon but it cracked me up anyway so cut me some slack.😎

Regular music posting resumes on the morrow, weather permitting.

Capt. Al's 21st Century: Part VIII -- The Shape of Things to Come? Possibly!!!

[As attentive readers will recall, our old friend (and more important, Friend of PowerPop©) Allan Rosenberg, aka Capt. Al, has been toiling on a series about his fave recent artists for a while now. The first installment of these musical musings, about Feist, appeared here back in July. Now, as promised, here's the grand finale! Take it away, you old sea doggie!!! -- S.S.]

Welcome to the “Best Rock&Roll Music of the 21st Century, Part VIII”, by Captain Al!!!

So let me tell you my favorite musical artist of this century! Maybe some of you may have heard of her! I’d hadn’t been aware of her until 18 months ago but well known or not she’s a force of musical nature.

So señoras y señores -- I give you Juana Molina!!!.

She’s Argentinian. Sings in Spanish. She walked away from her very successful career as a comedian whose TV shows were a huge hit all through South & Central America. Think a sort of Saturday Night Live en espanol vibe.

Juana and her family left Argentina in the 1980's because of the oppressive political situation. She fled to the USA, learned to speak English, and upon later returning to Argentina embarked on a musical career that somehow turned into the hugely successful comedic career! How the heck did she become my favorite musician (and hopefully soon yours) of this century? As Steve says: “Let’s discuss!”

As I said, her music is new and forward looking, but most of all fearless in its explorations and methods. Think Sam Phillips (the Sun Records visionary producer, not the singer/songwriter who used to boink T-Bone Burnett) or Jefferson Airplane. Doesn't sound like them, but her music has their same exploratory spirit.

Here's our first example, and let us stipulate that while Juana walked away from her career in comedy she sure learned a lot about how to create compelling videos. This one, in particular, is a real hoot -- funny, spacey and political; for me it’s up there with The Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields." Enjoy!

Now let’s look at how she puts her music together while performing live. Using modern equipment, and a fresh viewpoint at each show, she never performs a song in quite the same way twice. Watch and listen when she constructs her song “Paraguaya“. I think you'll find it pretty amazing.

And let us now stipulate that Juana, as with all of my favorite musical artists, is still capable of surprising me.

So now I’m about to twist your R&R ears around one more time, because Juana is also a prankster. Stay with this video of Juana & her band playing “Paraguaya” quite differently from what we just heard above. Make sure you stay to the end, because she will twist your head around 180 degrees with this performance.

Since she sings all her music in Spanish I don’t have a clue what any of the songs are about, and I slso don’t care! She always looks to creating her music in slightly new ways I’ve never seen/heard before.

Is she the future of rock? I don’t have a clue, but I feel she's the future of quality modern 21st century popular music.

At least I hope so -- for our (and my granddaughter’s) musical sake! And if rock is dead (?) then at least I want to live in Juana Molina’s musical universe for the next several years.

-- Capt. Al

And with that, we bid a fond (hopefully temporary) farewell to our aquatic friend.

So thanks, pal...I enjoyed the above immensely, as I (and doubtless our readers) have enjoyed the entire series.

I gotta admit, Captain -- I'm not sure I particularly get Molina. I found your exegesis intriguing, nonetheless, and I'll be sure to keep an eye on her.

But in the meantime, thanks again Al -- see ya soon, and keep on rockin' in the free world!!!😎😎😎

Bob Andrews 1949 - 2025

Oh hell. My all-time favorite rock keyboardist (alright, tied with Nicky Hopkins) passed last Thursday.

He was my favorite member of Brinsley Schwarz, and my favourite member of The Rumour.

Here he is with the former, performing perhaps the most gorgeously lyrical Hammond organ part in the history of music.

And here he is with Nick Lowe, performing perhaps the greatest insane piano part freaking ever.

I should also add that he produced this.

Okay, I have to add this wonderful story about the guy.

The short version: So Andrews was, not surprisingly, a huge fan of The Band's keyboard genius Garth Hudson, and was constantly updating his gear in emulation of the Great Man Himself; if there was an effects pedal or amp Hudson used, Andrews would immediately add it to his arsenal, trying to get that elusive Hudson sound. Only problem was, no matter what he did, he couldn't quite achieve total Garth-ness and it drove him nuts.

Anyway, sometime in the 70s, The Band toured the UK and at one point wound up rehearsing at the Brinsley's studio and using their equipment. Garth walked in, said nothing to anybody, turned all of Andrews' keyboards and other equipment on, put his fingers to the keys, and immediately sounded just like himself.

And Andrews, who had been lurking in a corner too awed to even say hello to his idol, literally wept.

Goddamn -- as I am wont to say of late, this death shit is really starting to piss me off.

La Fin de La Semaine Essay Question: Special "Don't Let the Door Hit You on the Way Out" Edition

So I chanced across this quite fabulously evocative photo the other day.

That is, of course, the pre-Grace Slick edition of Jefferson Airplane, with (now mostly forgotten by history) original gal singer Signe Toly Anderson up front in Grace's slot; it is, apparently, the last official portrait of that lineup, taken around the time of the splendid farewell concert immortalized in the album pictured below.

In any case, I had never seen it before, and it got me to thinking (yeah, yeah, I can hear the jokes...). 😎

And that lead me (and us) inexorably to the subject of today's business.

To wit:

...and the best example of a band that was either significantly better OR markedly inferior after a personnel change is...????

Discuss.

I'm gonna nominate these guys in the former category, and I say that knowing full well that the Peter Green or Danny Kirwan editions of the band were pretty swell in their own rights.

But I mean, sweet jeebus, was that lot to die for or what? (I should add that it is one of the great regrets of my life that the Floor Models never got around to covering "Go Your Own Way.")

But enough of my yakkin' -- what would YOUR choices be?

And have a great weekend, everybody!!!

P.S.: A special coveted PowerPop No-Prize© will be awarded to any reader who can tell me definitively whether the partially obscured band member behind Marty Balin in the top right of the picture is either Skip Spence or later drummer Spencer Dreyden. From a chronological standpoint, it should be Dreyden, but I'm just not sure I see it.

Thursday's Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Sorry -- I'm having (non-life threatening) medical problems, and I forgot to post the serious thing I was supposed to put up today.

Enjoy these in the meantime, won't you? 😎

Real stuff goes up on Friday -- promise.

Wednesday's Cartoon Chuckle(s)

Heh. 😎

Actual music posting resumes on the morrow, weather permitting.

Cinematic Notes From All Over: The Best Kept Secret in the West

As you may have noticed, we seem to be living in a Golden Age of rock documentaries. For example, I saw Becoming Led Zeppelin the other day, and trust me -- it was more fun than actually enduring the Zep live in concert. And then yesterday I saw another one, by an artist I actually like, that -- fortuitously -- I can recommend without reservations.

I'm speaking, of course about...

Aptly titled The King of In Between, the film chronicles the remarkable half century-long musical odyssey of Garland Jeffreys, a dreadlocked Brooklyn born and NYC-based singer/songerwriter who never quite broke through to a mass audience despite several major label albums and at least one song -- "Wild in the Streets" -- that was a massive hit outside of the USA. Why isn't he a household name? Well, basically nobody ever quite figured out how to market him, as Jeffries' music and persona straddled genres -- r&b, reggae, Dylan-esque narratives, street punk a la Lou Reed (with whom Jeffreys went to college) -- and influences in a way that inevitably caused the kind of confusion that doesn't easily make for chart success, especially for a mixed-race guy.

The film, deftly helmed by first-time director Claire Jeffreys (yes, the missus) has all sorts of great performance footage, from the downtown late-'70s to some intimate house concerts done before Jeffrey's retirement a few years ago, and celebrity fans like Laurie Anderson, Harvey Keitel, Vernon Reid (who has, as you might expect, some interesting things to say about Jeffreys and race in America) and Bruce Springsteen show up with fond reminiscences of working with the guy. Jeffreys himself comes off as funny, likeable and (surprisingly) without a trace of the bitterness I would have exhibited if I'd had his career (heh).

Bottom line: A must-see; it's playing in theaters now, so if it's near you, make tracks. In the meantime, you can find out more -- including alerts for when it will be available on home video or streaming -- over at the film's official website HERE.

I Don't Think Sibelius Done It This Way

And speaking as we were over the weekend of The McCoys' transplendent recording of "Beat the Clock," I stumbled across this one-man remake of it -- by a Finnish(!) musician named (near as I can tell) Ilkka Heikki -- and I gotta say, it's the most wonderful unintentionally funny thing ever.

Of course, that's assuming it's meant straight, which I'll grant you is indeterminate. I mean the accent alone...he sounds like Madeline Kahn doing Marlene Dietrich, so who knows?

I should add that a) I can find no information about who or what this guy is, so if anybody has an idea...and also b) that if you look on YouTube you'll discover some equally surreal/hilarious Beatles covers by him.

But don't worry -- I'm not gonna inflict THOSE on you. 😎

La Fin de La Semaine Essay Question: Special "Is That a Derringer in Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Glad to See Me?" Edition

Okay, apologies for the lame title joke.

But in my defense, I got a little freaked out when I heard the recent news of Rick Derringer's passing.

The short version is that back in my teenage years I was a huge fan of The McCoys. And one of the reasons was that front-guy/fab guitarist Derringer was pretty much exactly my age, which I thought was incredibly cool and inspirational.

Needless to say, having him now die at my age is, shall we say, somewhat less thrilling. 😎

Oh well, in any case, I've posted this song before (in 2021), but I absolutely adore it, so cut me some slack. It's from 1967, and it was basically only a minor hit at the time, but it remains one of my favorite things Derringer ever did. I mean seriously -- between the brilliant lead vocal and that fabulous Wes Montgomery-inspired guitar solo (which was major league hip at the time, and still is) Rick would deserve to be immortal if he had never achieved anything else.

And yes, I owned the 45 version.

All of which, to nobody's surprise, leads us inexorably to today's business.

To wit:

...and your favorite (or least favorite) guitar solo on a pop/rock/country/soul single of the Sixties is...???

No arbitrary rules whatsoever. Oh wait, there is one -- nothing by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band need apply in either category. Sorry, I love Mike Bloomfield and Elvin Bishop, but they do tend to go on longer than the rest of the stuff that I hope is gonna get nominated. In other words, I'm prejudiced in favor of more concise stuff, and since it's my blog...😎😎

Alrighty then..."Beat the Clock" is obviously my pick for fave. So what would YOUR choices be?

And have a great weekend, everybody!!!

The Masses Are Clamoring For More Weasels Music, Comrades!!!

So speaking as we were the other day of my old garage band chums The Weasels, please enjoy their sublimely Fountains-of-Wayne-before-their-time-ish "Silent Treatment."

Cool song, no?

And therein lies a tale and an opportunity.

The short version: "Silent Treatment" was recorded in the Weasels 4-track basement studio in sylvan Teaneck, NJ, and originally saw the light of day on their extremely limited edition (three copies?) album Pop Go the Weasels in 1984. The song was written by my colleague Glenn Leeds (who contributes keyboards), and the remaining credits are Dave (Jai Guru Dave) Hawxwell on vocals and rhythm guitar, Allan Weissman on bass, and Mike "The Drummer" Sorrentino on drums (heh).

As you may have noticed, I did not contribute to the production (I was on hiatus from the band, for reasons too complicated and silly to get into here); nevertheless, the guys left a hole in the track -- an instrumental interlude beginning around the 2:16 minute mark and ending, before the return of the last verse/chorus, at approximately 2:40 -- for me to add one of my characteristically mediocre guitar solos. Which I never did.

That being the case, we have decided to do something about it after all these years.

To wit: THE WEASELS ADD A SOLO CONTEST!!!!!

That's right, kids -- you too can be a Weasel, at least if you have access (as I suspect many of you do) to a home recording facility. All you've got to do is take the track and dub a guitar solo of your own in the hole discussed above. It can be any style whatsoever -- imitate George Harrison, Tom Verlaine, that guy from Boston (the band), Chet Atkins, Nigel Tufnel, anybody; just mix it in with the track and send it (preferably in flac or wav. format) to my e-mail -- ssimels@gmail.com.

And then we'll all have a good laugh at your expense.😎

No, actually you'll be proclaimed an honorary Weasel, and we'll post your efforts here for the adoration of a waiting world.

We will also gift you with a copy of the Weasels fabulous 2016 greatest hits CD, the aptly titled Crimes Against Humanity.

And what could be more of a motivator than that? 😎😎

In all seriousness, I think this could be a lot of fun, and I'm willing to bet somebody out there has a really great solo in them.

I'll keep you posted on how this thing develops, for good or evil.

[h/t Steve Schwartz]