putting the j in jjosh

Next in the series from Lightning Striking by Lenny Kaye, where each chapter goes deep into a specific music scene of the past. When reading the 1967 Detroit chapter, I had spotify open and when songs and bands were mentioned I would add them to a playlist. Then I listened through a bunch of times and cut things, changed order, etc. This is that playlist. I’m going to do one for each chapter. Some caveats:

– The song had to be something I was interested in hearing repeatedly

– Some of these were mentioned as influences, and are from an earlier (or later) time period

– Sometimes Kaye will be giving the history of a specific indie label, and mentioning bands and songs that came out on that label as they built up.

– Sometimes only the band name was mentioned, with no song title

– In that case I would listen to various tracks, and pick what spoke to me

Lightning Striking – 1969 Detroit

I’ve been reading Lightning Striking by Lenny Kaye (hat tip Alirio!), where each chapter goes deep into a specific music scene of the past. I was excited to find a spotify playlist that someone had made to go along with it, but it didn’t go deep enough. So when I was reading the San Francisco chapter, I had spotify open and when songs and bands were mentioned I would add them to a playlist. Then I listened through a bunch of times and cut things, changed order, etc. This is that playlist. I’m going to do one for each chapter. Some caveats:

– The song had to be something I was interested in hearing repeatedly

– Some of these were mentioned as influences, and are from an earlier (or later) time period

– Sometimes Kaye will be giving the history of a specific indie label, and mentioning bands and songs that came out on that label as they built up.

– Sometimes only the band name was mentioned, with no song title

– In that case I would listen to various tracks, and pick what spoke to me

Lightning Striking – 1967 San Francisco

I just posted the following to my fb: “In 1984 my parents bought the 11 year-old me a “how to breakdance” cassette (with how-to poster!) that I loved, although it had this one weird song that I couldn’t wrap my head around: Kraftwerk’s Tour De France. Even so, I listened to the tape over and over and over, and that song made me look up more of their work, and…mind blown. RIP Florian.” And while this is all true, it’s also…kind of not.

This morning I wanted to post something about Florian, so I started thinking about when I might have first heard Kraftwerk. I was pretty sure it was Tour De France, and I was equally sure it was on the Footloose Soundtrack. And that seems crazy, right? Footloose?? But I remember wearing out the Footloose cassette on my walkman in England in the 80’s! Don’t I? I definitely remember seeing the film, because I was so into breakdancing, that the final dance scene made a huge impression on me because it had like 5 seconds of cool breakdancing in it. And then the soundtrack was killer, right? “Let’s Hear It For The Boy”??? That song is amazing! This morning I was daydreaming doing karaoke to that song! And then, I’m *sure* Tour De France came on right after it, right?

But when I went to look at the soundtrack listing this morning, not only did it *not* have Tour De France on it, but it was full of songs I can’t imagine I was into. “Almost Paradise”?? Ugh. Sammy Hagar’s “The Girl Gets Around”??? No. Never heard that. What’s going on?

Reading up more about Tour De France and Soundtrack, it looks like Kraftwerk licensed the song to be used in the Breakin’ movie (amazing), re-named to (the better) Breakdance for the UK. Maybe I had that soundtrack? But then wikipedia goes further to explain that the band wouldn’t license the song for the soundtrack album, so a *cover version* was used, by a group called 10-Speed. First off, I want to know more about who that group is! But secondly, when I bring that cover up, yes, there is it, *that* is the version I had on the cassette!

But the Breakin’ Soundtrack is full of more tracks I have never heard. Although I remember loving that movie too! So maybe…

Well, I remember having this “learn to breakdance” cassette and poster when I was a kid living in England in the 80’s. Breakdancing really captivated me and I got way into the music, the dancing, etc. To the point where I was getting cardboard out on the sidewalk of the cul-de-sac where we lived and practicing moves. To the point where a friend and I would take our cardboard down to the Valley Gardens in the middle of town, put out a hat and breakdance for tips. Ok, that happened once. But it’s a fundamental piece of my identity somehow.

The great thing is, I still have this cassette! I dug it out and looked and the track listing. Just reading through the tracks brought them all back into my mind (except for a few which I’m excited to revisit on youtube). But no 10-Speed Tour De France. Something did catch my eye though: the version of Rockit on this cassette isn’t credited to Herbie Hancock, but to B.T. & The City Slickers?? Who?

Rockit is another track that I somehow know backwards and forwards from listening to it as a kid. I remember staying up late while we lived in England to see Herbie Hancock perform on some music awards show, and they had the robotic legs from the video and everything. Or was that just seeing the video? Hard to say.

All of which is to say that it seems there was a K-Tel practice of making cheap covers of these breakdance tracks for their cassettes and those are the versions that I know really well. It’s odd to hear the “real” versions now, and I have a lot of respect for the knock-offs. But because this is about Florian, let’s jam the real Tour De France, while I breakdance to the 10-speed version in my head. RIP to a true original.

So my neighbor upstairs Alirio put together a playlist as soon as it began to seem like we were heading for lockdown due to CV-19 here in NYC. I’ve been listening to it a lot, and it’s been making me feel better. It might make you feel better too! Check it out:

And then — because this is what we do — I wrote a report card for it. Alirio also (ver generously) said I could feel free to cut songs from it, so I cut a handful. But I only cut them if I felt strongly that they didn’t fit with the playlist goal of being CV-19 based. I’ve noted what and where those songs were in the playlist, feel free to argue with me if you think they should be put back in. I also added a couple tracks to the end of the playlist. Dig!

1. R.E.M. – End of the World As We Know It – A+

Not sure how I’m not sick of the song, but I’m not. It’s a damn strong start.

2. The Police – Don’t Stand So Close To Me – A+

Another one I’ve heard a million times but still hear with fresh ears every time. How??? It’s so fun to hear how everything comes together in this song. I never really noticed the synths that much, or how the drums have that rimshot in there. So cool.

3. Joy Division – Isolation –  A+

Amazing. I know Joy Division but never really sat down with the albums and got into them track by track. I really should I know. Everything they do sounds so good.

4. Mudhoney – Touch Me I’m Sick – A+

Grunge fuzz perfection. I remember hearing about this band in the first blush of Nirvana / Pearl Jam etc and then checking out the album and saying meh. But this track! Perfect.

5. The Smiths – Panic – A+

Perfect again. The children’s choir! Oh Morrissey. And Marr is just insane. And then you listen to what he’s doing and try to imagine Moz coming up with those melodies over the top of it. HOW??? And the lyrics. I also like the way this is kind of a different thought than the first cuts (although it goes with the R.E.M. track). Love it.

6. MC Hammer – U Can’t Touch This  – B+

I mean, I’m still *sort of* sick of this song, but then again, it’s still fun to listen to. He has skills, and the lyrics are fun. The sample is 100% fresh, and the production is good, v 90’s which makes it fun to listen to as well. It’s a good change-up from all the rock that came before.

7. Bee Gees – Stayin’ Alive – B

One time in high school me and 3 friends wore matching white Bee Gees suits (made by a friend’s mom) and did a dance routine to this song for a school assembly. Looking back, I kind of can’t believe I did it, but I definitely did. Thank god there were no phone cameras or social media back then. This song is a stone groove.

8. John Lennon – Isolation – A+

Masterpiece.

9. Police – Every Breath You Take – CUT

Well, for 1, you already got Don’t Stand So which is PERFECT, and 2, while I get the idea of breath playing into CV-19, the fact that it’s actually about a stalker somehow isn’t fitting for me? 3, I’m still so sick of this song from when they overplayed back in 83 or whatever. Isn’t that staggering??? I lived in the UK at the time, so maybe it was even more overplayed? My sister and I used to watch Top of the Pops every week, and every time they would play this damn song with its black and white video I would be like UGH.

10. Alice Cooper – School’s Out For Summer – CUT

Well, I guess the fact that my teacher friends are still teaching, and that it’s not really out for *Summer*, puts the kibosh on this one for me?

11. La Cumbia Del Coronavirus – B+

Yes!

12. Elvis Costello – Waiting For The End of the World – A+

Another artist where I know a bunch of albums very well from when they were coming out (mid-period stuff from late 80’s/90’s) and then a bunch of classic ones from a friend who impressed them upon me in college (Trust, This Year’s Model, Armed Forces) but then there is so much more! I really do need to get into this first record though. THE NEWS.

13. Billie Eilish – no time To Die – C+

This song doesn’t really do it for me, but No Time To Die fits the mood, so I don’t feel like I can cut it in good conscience. Maybe it’ll grow on me?

14. The Specials – Ghost Town – A++

Perfection. We moved to England in ’81, and when we got there I somehow got my parents to buy a “Top Hits of 81” (or something like that) cassette that had this song on it. My sister and I LOVED it. It also had this weird novelty song, that now in retrospect is very Italian-cliche offensive, called “Shaddap You Face” on it, that we loved too.

15. Ramones – I wanna Be Sedated – A

YES. So many days I wake up wondering when it will be cocktail hour.

16. Billy Idol – Dancing With Myself – A

I love that this is credited to Generation X. Did Idol re-do it and re-release it? It’s such a damn good song. Still kicks. And fits perfectly, esp with all the millions of dance instagrams and so on that are going on now. That epic coda is such a good time, and the 50’s style slap-back on his vocal is killer. Plus the last pickup cuts are amazing.

17. Morrissey – Girlfriend in a Coma – CUT

Well, it’s pretty close, but since people aren’t really going into comas, and since Panic from earlier is PERFECT, this one gets the axe. It’s also the most hilarious mopey Moz, almost a cliche, right? Which wouldn’t make me cut it, except that it just doesn’t quite fit for me.

18. The Clash – Lost in the Supermarket – A

YES. This one is a stretch, but wow it weirdly really captures that feeling of being in the supermarket with only 20 only people and empty shelves. “I can no longer shop happily” indeed. Plus it’s a great great song, and for me, not one of the classic’s that I always go back to, so there’s still stuff in there for me to discover. That weird phaser guitar line on the verses? Never noticed that. The way the solo wanders through the stereo split?? Great shit.

19. Buzzcocks – Why Can’t I Touch It – A+

1000 TIMES YES. Weirdly I wasn’t that familiar with this song until a few years back when Spotify played it for me randomly and I was like WTF??? So amazing. And the sentiment is absolutely perfect. The stereo panning of the guitars. God I love that. Back in the days of mix *tapes*, the 6:36 run time would have given me pause, but in these days of the celestial jukebox (!!!!) it’s ideal! So why-y-y-y-y-y-y…

20. The Clash – Should I Stay or Should I Go – CUT

Well, I used to be pretty militant on mix tapes and CD’s that I would only put one song by any band on it. But a., I realize that not everyone follows this, and that’s cool, and b., I’m a big fan of playlists these days that have more than one track from a given band. And while I can see how this one fits because certainly tons of people are wondering whether to stay or go (esp in NYC), it’s so so played out, and, at its core, is kind of clearly about a relationship (whereas Dancing With Myself, for example, is a *little* more obscure about its subject? Maybe?). Overall though, I think I’m cutting b/c I just can’t deal with this song any more.

21. Beach Boys – In My Room – A+

Holy fuck, yes, exactly. And this one gets the weird bonus of the recontextualization adding a whole other layer to its meaning: he is so excited to retreat to his room, a place of safety (for dreaming and scheming), longing, wonder, etc — and this is the perfect thing to remember as we are stuck in our rooms. The melancholy also feels perfect. Plus TWO MINUTES FOURTEEN. Pop masterpiece.

22. Divynls – I Touch Myself – CUT

This song is still so hottt! So naked in its sex appeal for MTV, and yet…it totally works. But! I feel like there are lots of people locked down who are going at it like mad, and won’t be able to relate to the sentiment. I mean shit, most of us are stuck in here with our wives / fiancés, etc, so presumably (?????) we’re getting lucky every now and then.

23. Beatles – I Feel Fine – CUT

Interesting choice. Just last night I watched this pretty amazing video about getting Beatles tones from a studio that you would probably nerd out on as hard as I did (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dy0Rgz_Dt3o), so I’m super enjoying hearing it from that perspective. Oh, and also, it’s an amazing song. But I’m not sure how it fits? I like the positivity, and I love the idea of having positive feelings and thoughts in the playlist, but not sure how this one fits.

24. Warren Zevon – Splendid Isolation – B-

Don’t know this song, don’t know as much about Zevon as I should probably. Just the hits: Werewolves, Lawyers Guns and Money, and so on. This is fun. Fits perfectly. Live in the Upper East Side and never go down in the streets. The Michael Jackson line hits weirdly now in our modern times, but so what! Tinfoil on the windows! What a classic sort of rock song, that snare so prominent. The harmonica. I’m not in love with it, but I really like having a song that I don’t know, that I can get into.

25. Eric Carmen – All by Myself – CUT

‘Cause again, I feel like a lot of people are stuck with their kids and spouses and so on. Even though it’s really fun to hear this soft-rock classic and re-evaluate it. What an epic! As a kid I would always totally write it off as cheese-rock, but now I can really respect the structure and hooks. Great song. But just doesn’t fit.

26. The Jam – Going Underground – B+

It’s a stretch but I’ll buy it! Plus a friend on Monday was comparing this crisis to the Blitz in the UK in the 40’s, so this super fits that. Plus it’s so good. And 2:54 is ideal. The public wants what the public gets — ouch.

27. Stevie Nicks – Stand Back – B+

Don’t know this one either. Perfect title. Love that 80’s production sound. GATED DRUMS! The synth sequencers. Wait, I must have heard this before, right? It’s so crazy that Stevie was so rock in Fleetwood Mac and then went so synthed out in the 80’s (70’s?). I’ve def heard this. It’s great! And fits so so well. There are so many micro-stresses when going outside right now with people who aren’t doing the 6ft perimeter. C’mon people! Stand back, stand back.

28. Prince – Let’s Go Crazy – A

Yes, yes. A little more left-fiend in how it fits, but it fits. Even down to “when you call up that shrink in Beverly Hills”, because you have to CALL that shrink instead of stopping by. Plus, having a party vibe is very welcomed. And somehow this song is still fun to hear even after 1000 times. Probably because its Prince and he is the real deal. Those weird little instrumental breaks with the organ on top that do that syncopation are super fun. And the guitar shredding, forget it.

29. George Harrison – All Things Must Pass – A+

Perfection. Those horns! Would it be too corny to have this as the last song?????

30. Traveling Wilburys – End of the Line – CUT

I kinda get it, but it’s not working for me. Listening to the lyrics, they fit. Just my personal prejudice here, I can’t imagine listening to this song many times. The simplicity works for pop radio maybe, but something about it gets on my nerves.

31. Simon & Garfunkel – The Only Living Boy in New York – CUT

Yes, I get it, and it’s an amazing song. But that line about “fly down to Mexico” just feels so wrong in the current climate. “Got nothing to do but smile” is perfect though. Those backup vocals coming through with almost 100$ reverb (or however they’re doing it) are so so great. Ethereal but not spooky. And strong. “Half of the time we’re gone” doesn’t work, does it? Where are we going? And then back to the flying. Sorry S&G, it’s gotta go.

32. The Rubinoos – I Think We’re Alone Now – B

Is this the original? I don’t think I’ve ever heard it. It’s great. It kind of fits, weirdly! The strip-down bit for the heart beats is excellent. As well as being about a love thing, it sets a spooky, empty scene with “the beating of our hearts is the only sound”. Those Beach Boys harmonies at the end = yes. I’ll buy it!

33. Avril Lavigne – Contagious – B-

Not a song I would ever listen to, or consider. But hmm, its got something, doesn’t it. So contagious. Another one that I kind of like having here because it’s unfamiliar. And so unabashedly pop. the production is really of its time, isn’t it? What is that, 2006-ish? <looks it up> Ooh 2007! So close. I’m going to give myself that one as a win. Total Max Martin domination pop sound. Fun to listen to and doesn’t wear out its welcome.

34. Nick Cave – Cabin Fever! – A+++++

Don’t know this song either, but FUCK YES. Nick Cave is someone I need to go deeper on. I know those 90’s records, and I got into a “This is Nick Cave” playlist after I saw him at Barclays in 2018 (that show was KILLLLLLER). Also, the 6:13 length works *for* the song, as the claustrophobia just grows. Wow, so so good. It’s also capturing the *feeling* of Cabin Fever, even down to the “!” This is really really great.

35. Minutemen – Corona – A

And then following it up with a 2:26 slice of California strange off center punk is perfect as well. “The people will survive”! Are you serious!!! That lyric is amazing. I tried to get into the Minutemen and Black Flag in High School and just couldn’t do it for whatever reason. But I have since gotten well into Black Flag, and this makes me think I should revisit the Minutemen too. And there aren’t many records right? this is great.

36. Warren Zevon – Keep Me in Your Heart – CUT

A plaintive plea, and “running out of breath” is solid. Is this a Dylan cover? I don’t quite get the direct connection to our current CV lifestyle, but maybe there’s something I’m missing? Let me know. Otherwise, even though it’s pretty, it’s gotta go. “Doing simple things around the house” = yes.

37. Gloria Gaynor – I Will Survive – B

I mean, yes, it’s an unbelievable song. And it fits perfectly, esp at the end. And hey, at least it’s remastered so I can groove on the production details. But needless to say, I’m sick of this (amazing) track. But it’s PERFECT. Can’t cut it or disparage it, really. And it’s super fun to listen to the production. Those little echoes on her voice. The way the strings are a little out of sync. The sequenced synths. Whoa, that SAX. Ugh. At least it’s short. That is just something we don’t do on songs any more, isn’t it? Oh god, it comes back at the end. And the re-mastering has made it even shinier if that’s possible. So brittle. On the plus side, her voice is stellar. Makes the song transcend. Wow, it ends on a fade out? Like it could just keep going and going and going???

MY ADDITIONS

38. Peggy Lee – Fever

I mean, how can we not.

39. Lou Reed – Martial Law

It’s a stretch maybe? But it somehow feels right. And it hits the “lock” part of the lockdown, you know? Which we don’t have a lot of in there.

Just wanted to send out a big hello to Sue Hancock in Wales who might be checking in on the blog. In other news, I’ve been clicking on the antique blogroll on the side just to see which links are still working, and it’s somewhat interesting that a lot of them go to blogs that haven’t been updated since 2008, which is also right about when Facebook really took off. Was Twitter around then? Instagram? Let’s see…ok, looks like Twitter was 2006, so was still pretty early, and Instagram not until 2010.

I remember reading an article on Twitter relatively early on, in Wired I think, where the writer started off as very skeptical that he would connect with it. But by the end of the article, he’s waxing about how Twitter is a river and you basically just dip your toe in whenever you want. It never connected with me I gotta say, but I can see how people would be into it. Same with Insta — there was a long time where I was posting the pics from my phone to this blog (via the now-defunct pixelpipe) and feeling really good about it. But there’s something about that infinite scroll on Insta that does seem to mess with my head. I find myself looking through it without really meaning to, you know? Nothing new there, same thing we talk about with our friends, or read articles about.

Although, there’s been a slight difference recently as my 14 year-old daughter is now on Instagram, so it’s been fascinating to see her pictures (what is life like for a 14 year-old in Norway!!!) and her adopting the tropes of social media personas (“love my life”, etc). I wonder when the kids will discover this blog, if ever?

Playlist and info can be found here.

Dan Raphael has been killing it recently with his Spotify playlists, it’s like he’s found a new lease on mix life! After the death of the mixtape and mix CD, it really remained to be seen whether playlists would be able to function in the same way. The jury is definitely still out, but this is a huge step in the right direction. Pre-Spotify, I made a youtube playlist for a friend, and sent him a QR code in a CD case to be able to access it. While this felt “clever”, I don’t really think it was practical, at least not in the way that Spotify is. And yet, making a random playlist for people doesn’t seem a guarantee in terms of connecting. More study is needed, but in the meantime, giving each playlist a specific set of rules, or creating it to evoke a certain time is a great great idea. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed spinning through the Elementary School, Middle School and now two (!!) High School playlists. Bring on College!

At least some of the desire to make this report card was to participate in the back-and-forth like we used to, and finding myself with some spare time (rare commodity) as we left for 2 weeks in Brazil. Even so, these things always have a tendency to get put off, and so here we are, 3 weeks after that vacation is over, 3 years after my last blog post. Enough blather, let’s get to those letter grades.

1. Exhuming McCarthy – Remastered R.E.M.

I completely forgot about the typewriter at the start of this! It’s so good. I had dubbed this album from our local library (which must have had some cool cat ordering their CD’s and cassettes) and didn’t copy over the song titles. Because of Stipe’s famous mush-mouth (although much clearer on this album) I always assumed that this song was called “Too Many Car Thieves”.

Are those little horn stabs on there? I never really noticed them before. And that hammond organ! I definitely was listening to this before I had a sense of production, or how records were put together. It’s so good listening to it now. Oh, also “remastered”, maybe that’s why. Also surprising how “pop” it is, esp with regards to their previous stuff. But those drums also just keep driving, don’t they? Solid gold. A+

2. The One I Love – Remastered R.E.M.

This song was always pretty ho-hum to me. His vocal gymnastics on the chorus, and that low twangy guitar bit are still great, but it hasn’t aged well for me. There’s kind of not much to it, and while I can still put my mind back in the 80’s and feel how it was kind of amazing for this song to be a hit, it’s not something that I ever come back to. My brain is hitting “skip”, but it might be partly because I’ve just heard it so many times now. Ok, that chorus still has a lot of weird mystery to it (as always, Mills’ backup vox take it to the next level), it’s impressive. B+

3. A Rush and a Push and the Land Is Ours – The Smiths

This was also my first Smiths album, again dubbed from a CD at our local library. I always really loved “Death of a Disco Dancer”. Is that a xylophone? Amazing. And the backwards reverb on his vocals are great. Also that “urrrrrhhhh-rush and a push” vocal tic was something that was mirrored by the singer of my first post-college band (it’s similar to a Robert Smith-type thing too). It’s hard to pull off and make it sound cool.

But the only thing is, now with Morrissey in full-fledged “problematic fave” mode as re his more racist statements, it makes it harder to listen to. Plus, is “the land is ours” meant to be a reference to kicking out immigrants?? Moz famously said “England for the English,” so it’s possible. It seems crazy that he’s super right-wing! Then again, my buddy Jay Bois saw him with Interpol and was like “Don’t sweat it, Moz is always trying to be controversial and that’s all this is.” So maybe it’s all ok?

Song: A

Moz context: D?

4. I Can’t Put My Finger On It – The Housemartins

“Happy Hour Again” was huge in the UK when I lived there from 81 – 86, but it’s really the only Housemartins song I know well. Why haven’t I delved into their catalog??? This is great. Such cardigan rock! What does Fatboy Slim play on this, bass?

5. Need You Tonight – INXS

Oh hell yeah, I wore this cassette out in my Walkman. Again, the production is so so good, so stripped down, but every element is doing something. Those big cymbal crashes before the chorus are fantastic. His vocal delivery is so smoky and sexed up. I definitely remember hearing this and thinking damn this guy must get lots of girls how am I ever going to make out with a girl! This type of sensuality was super alien to the teenaged me. But it’s also so so cool. So cool. And it’s aged really well. That last line is perfect. A+

6. Why Can’t I Be You? – The Cure

Yes, another library dub for me. My musical taste was so determined by 99.1 WHFS and my local Annapolis library! I didn’t like the rest of this album as much as the “Just Like Heaven” single, but only because that song tripped my teenage wires in a major way, hitting all the moody love notes. Brooding, sad, but so in love. The rest of the album was still pretty good, and still full of those love/sex/weird vibes, but I just never quite clicked with it as much.

It’s fun to re-hear this song now, what a weird Cure song! All those synth horns and the pop chord progressions. I read this great diary piece about the recording of Disintegration where Robert Smith was quoted as basically saying “all our songs sound completely different and then I do my Robert Smith singing thing and they become Cure songs.” Isn’t that super true?

Also hats off to the progression from the vocal-only ending of the previous INXS song, into the boom-boom-boom of this track’s open. And the late-80’s production make these sound like two sides of the same coin. Mix tape GOLD.

Song: B+

Transition: A+

7. What’s My Scene – Hoodoo Gurus

What was that one Hoodoo Gurus song that was big on 120 Minutes at one point? I really liked it, pretty sure I put it on the tape I made by recording songs from my 120 Minutes VHS tapes, using the music lab at JMU. Miss Freelove ’69! Hell yeah. 1991 classic. That’s the only Hoodoo Gurus song I ever knew, but this is really good. Makes me want to check out their back catalogue as well. Funny that both this song and Miss Freelove have shout-outs to “making’ love”. I wanna write a song about making love. B

8. Flesh Number One – Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians

Hmm, this song sounds kind familiar, was this a hit? Maybe a WHFS hit? It’s fine I guess. It took me a long time to come around on RH. I mean, I liked Balloon Man fine enough, but not until getting Soft Boys songs on Dan R mixes, and hearing them on Jack Watson’s radio show did I really get with the RH program. But that stuff is so good! I’ve been digging into it recently on Spotify, and reading the all music reviews and stuff. Can’t believe those early Soft Boys albums were recorded back in the early 70’s! So ahead of their time.

This song sounds a bit like a jangly pop attempt at a hit? I dunno, it’s just a little boring I guess. Pretty short, which is great. B

9. Over and Done With – The Proclaimers

I never get tired of how they say “wi’!” This song is somehow familiar even though I never had that album. I think my sister must have had the cassette and played the hell out of it. It’s amazing. So folksy, so Scottish, so charismatic. A

10. Dating Days – Violent Femmes

Weirdly the first VF records I heard were from a friend leaving a tape at my house with the “Blind Leading the Naked” and “Hallowed Ground” albums dubbed on it. So I never had that deep affinity for the first record that most folks had. I always loved this song, that twangy fuzzed acoustic bass, and the brushes on the snare drum. And the religious imagery (Jonah and Legion (!!) showing up in this song), they really were working within their own weird mythology, weren’t they? His nasal voice, but that anxiety and confidence paradoxically working together. Pretty epic. Not to mention that whole thing that they were discovered playing for the line at a Pretenders show??? Bananas.

The “Did you hear me / Clearly” rave-up ending is so good. Their songs are well structured for sure. This feels like hanging out with an awesome friend from back in the day. A+

11. Punk Rock Girl – The Dead Milkmen

I was in this band called The Palpatines (yes!) and the singer knew one of the guys from The Dead Milkman and he gave him our tape and for a while I was super stoked and kind of couldn’t believe it. But nothing came from it. These guys are great, although it kind of wears out its welcome. This one less than others, that “California Dreamin’ / then we started screamin’” bit is amazing. Also the Mojo Nixon line. What was his song, nothing but Elvis? And Michael J. Fox as the anti-Elvis? I wanna hear that agin. Again, the 2.5 minutes length saves it. What can I say, it’s a killer song! A-

12. Crash – The Primitives

I have a hazy memory that the singer for this band was super hot. This was on some compilation tape I had as a kid and I always loved it. Pop, but with that kind of murky vocal, and the male backing vox on the na-na-na’s is a great addition. Lots of little fun touches, the reverb breakdown on “shut-t-t-t-t-t-t…”, the hand-claps that show up for the pre-chorus bridge, the way the sections extend with little extra bits. Another 2.5 minute song! That’s such a good pop length. A

13. Good Thing – Fine Young Cannibals

Ok yes, sure, it’s going to be this or “She Drives Me Crazy”, but I love that song so so much that it’s actually taking a lot for me to get over this choice. I always thought this one had a bit more of a cliché piano, rollicking rock n roll thing going, where “Drives Me Crazy” sounded like it was beamed in from another planet. The boogie piano breakdown is hard to deal with, but at least it strips it down for the following verse. His voice is like velvet though, that’s for sure. B

14. Desire – U2

Ok, sure, going for the left-field choice ‘cuz we’re not sick of it, right? But ugh, that Bo Diddley thing with the handclaps. His voice is so so sincere, probably at the most sincere it’ll ever get. ‘Cuz after this we get ironic Bono with Achtung Baby (my favorite) and then when he goes back to being sincere (Beautiful Girl or whatever) it always sounds like he kind of doesn’t believe it. That sort of spoken word middle part is weak you guys. And the harmonica? C

15. Elaine – The Smithereens

What were the big Smithereens tracks? Those are the only ones I know. Oh yeah, A Girl Like You! That song was awesome. I think I saw them at an HFStival or opening for someone or something, and they were good? This is a good heart-on-the-sleeve track, his vocals sound excellent, esp with that little slap-back echo on it. They can write a song, that’s for sure. 2.5 minutes! Seems like the perfect pop song length. B

16. Suedehead – Morrissey

That first Moz album really felt like a Smiths album to me at the time, but I think that was before I quite realized how much Johnny Marr was adding. Still, I loved this song, so much bite! I saw him on the Your Arsenal tour in ’92 and thought it was super epic. Still, googling “Is Morrissey racist” brings up a ton of stuff, ugh. But then again, maybe on purpose! So complicated. A

17. She’s Got a New Spell – Billy Bragg

Ok sure, Billy Bragg is great. There was a time when a friend made me a mix tape that had a handful of his songs on it, and I was like, these are great! But it never made me get an album or anything. Even now, hearing it, I’m not really like “ I gotta get into his back catalogue on Spotify!” or anything, so, you know, ok. Don’t get me wrong, he’s great! I’m just like, ok. B

18. Ana Ng – They Might Be Giants

Oh man, TMBG was one of those bands that hit the teenaged me so so perfectly. Nerdy but cool, so creative, so musical. And this song was one where I felt like they just smashed it out of the park. How did they make those guitars sound like that? What are these lyrics about? Who is that woman on the spoken word bit? Such a mystery. Have you seen the TMBG documentary from a ways back? I remember it being pretty killer. Their first 4 albums or so are kind of perfect. This song is iconic and still spectacular. A+

19. Pop Song 89 – R.E.M.

Yep, another great track. I remember buying this cassette and it really colored a specific time in my life when I was working as a cook at a retirement community that wasn’t too far from my high school. It was a great job because I had been working as a cook in other normal restaurants, and I wouldn’t get out of my shift until like midnight, especially after having to clean all the floors, etc. (which I always had to do as low man on the totem pole). Since this was dinner at a senior center, I used to be able to leave around 10 which was the best.

The jangly riff is killer, Stipe’s vox have great production and harmony. The lyrics are kind of what brings it down for me, even though it’s such a strong album starter. And I guess having bubble-gum lyrics is part of the meta-reference to the “Pop Song” of the title? Maybe. Great track though. A-

20. Achin’ to Be – The Replacements

By now it’s not news that I don’t like The Replacements, no matter how much I try. And I keep trying! I keep thinking there must be something I’m missing. I do like the sloppiness, the rough-hewn pop aspects of it. I just don’t like the song! Interesting take from The Guardian on this er ‘Mats, “It was an outfit who weren’t meant to be a big, commercial rock band trying far too hard to be a big, commercial rock band.” Maybe if they were a top 40 band that I had as a guilty pleasure? I dunno, I’m giving up, it just doesn’t move me. C

21. Mayor Of Simpleton – XTC

Well, I knew the later XTC singles (this, “Dear God” in the UK, “Peter Pumpkinhead”) and had a handful of tracks from Dan mixtapes (“Love on a Farmboy’s Wages”) but really didn’t get into XTC properly until a few years back. Not sure why I waited so long, but WOW is their catalogue amazing. It also made me re-evaluate the singles that I had kind of written off as mor pop, and then I saw that recent XTC doc on Showtime (it’s great!) and when they got to this song (and the glossy video) I was like “Wait a minute, this song is great!” And it is. B+

22. Vanishing Girl – The Dukes Of Stratosphear

I first got this album in 1999 or so (?) when I first started reading allmusic.com reviews tagged with “psychedelic”. I wasn’t quite ready for it back then I don’t think. But in the intervening years, whenever a Dukes track came up on shuffle I would be like “Wow!” Amazing songs for a side project. Really nailing what its trying to do. A

23. Dirty Blvd. – Lou Reed

I got into Lou in two ways: a friend made me a tape with the Velvets “…and Nico” album on it, and then while I was working as a dishwasher at The Rustic Inn (my first job) WHFS played “Last Great American Whale” and I was pretty captivated. In High School I was definitely a writing nerd, and that song plays out like a short story. So I got New York from the library (yes!) and was hooked. This song is so so strong. Listening to these songs now, I’m blown away by different things every time, these days the bass playing consistently takes my breath away. “New York” and “…and Nico” started a love affair with one of my most important artists and it’s always great to hear these songs again. A+

24. Runnin’ Down A Dream – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Riff rock classic. Petty really is that good, isn’t he? Must have heard this a zillion times and yet it doesn’t wear out its welcome. A

25. Fight The Power – Public Enemy

Yeah, I mean come the f*** on, this is an unbelievable track, with unbelievable production and unbelievable voice work. Second-wave hip hop at its break-through finest. Still sounds amazing. A+

26. Love Shack – The B-52’s

Edit? I wonder what was edited? I went through a love/hate with this song because it was stuffed down our throats so much when it came out and smashed the charts. Recently I’ve come around and gotten into it again. Rarely has a song so sounded like a literal party happening, I can really see why it was such a hit. The breakdowns are great, the “tin roof!” part, so much fun. To this day when I see a classic American car with fins on the back I think “it’s as big as a whale / and it’s about to set sail!” A

27. …This Town… – Elvis Costello

Like a lot of folks growing up in the 80’s / 90’s, this was my first Elvis Costello, although a High School friend had lent me King of America and I just didn’t get it. But after dubbing this from the library (!) I played it in my car driving around town, a lot. Dan’s right that this one has worn well, and I don’t know if I could listen to “Veronica” any more. Those drums and synths are kind of 80’s, and then they give way to such…Elvis-ish-ness? I’m only knocking it slightly because the later discovery that EC could be so vital and powerful on those early records makes this suffer a bit in comparison. A-

28. You Keep It All In – The Beautiful South

Can we sample those intro flutes for some hip hop track? I always found TBS sort of…ok, I guess? And this song is pretty great. Her voice is sort of generic to me. Is this proto-cardigan rock? Or straight-ahead cardigan rock? The horns are good. And the Housemartins guy always sounds unique and great. B

29. Joey – Concrete Blonde

Oh man I couldn’t stand this song when it came out, and really can’t stand it now. So sort of saccharine and over-blown, and just when you think it can’t get any more mope-y, the song builds to a brand new level of down-ness. Can’t deal with it now, couldn’t deal with it then. D

30. Way Down Now – World Party

I was all ready to write this song off, and then I played a little bit of it to remind myself of it: instantly stuck in my head. It’s a powerful hook! What was this guy called, Karl something? I feel like they had a handful of MTV’s 120 Minutes-style “hits”, is that right? It’s pretty good, but doesn’t make me wanna get into the rest of their catalog or anything. I wonder if it was frustrating to be in this kind of band, with this level of success? Or maybe it was super satisfying? B-

31. Ball and Chain – Social Distortion

Definitely the first Social D song I ever heard and I thought it was pretty good I guess. From watching that doc on them (what’s that called, it’s SO GOOD) I realized that they had a bunch of other great tracks, with much more edge than the sort of pop level they ended up adding to their sound. What was that other track, it was so bad? Who knows. Anyway, this is solid. B

32. Merry Go Round – The Replacements

See Achin’ To Be, above. I guess what people love is that melancholy? Maybe it just simply bums me out too much. C

33. The Last Day of Our Acquaintance – Sinead O’Connor

Yes yes 1000 times yes. This was the stand-out track to me fro this album as well. Pretty sure I borrowed this cassette from my HS girlfriend and really dug it. This song is so weird because that beginning plays at a really really low level so you crank it up, and then when she kicks it in, it’s blasting out of the speakers. All of which I remember from playing that cassette! Funny that this re-master does it as well, it must have been on purpose, right? Making people turn it up so they get blasted by the music when it kicks in. Love it. A+

34. Groove Is in the Heart – Deee-Lite

Another giant of a track. I have a very strong memory of going with my girlfriend, taking this tape and a boombox to go play tennis the Summer after graduating. We played it over and over and hit the ball around and I was super into her. She loved the line “my supper dish / my succotash wish” and that line always stands out to me as being particularly great.

Listening to it now, it’s amazing. Of all the tracks in this playlist, this may have aged the best. Bootsy! Q-tip! That hook! Every time you think you have this track’s number, it gives you something new. Somewhere online there’s an oral history of recording this song and I remember really digging it. This song is still kind of perfect. A+

35. I Touch Myself – Divinyls

I mean, I’m kind of coming around on this song I guess, another one that was a victim of being shoved down our throats from radio and MTV. I was into it the first time I heard it — so sexy, so provocative, so dirty, so GIRLS — and then it just kept getting played again and again and again and again, until, argh, no, stop playing it, I never want to hear it again. It’s kind of great that that particular thing rarely happens these days, isn’t it? I mean, sure I’ll hear Bruno Mars a lot at the deli, but it’s not like it was when this was being played. I don’t hate it any more, I guess. C+

36. Valerie Loves Me – Material Issue

This song makes me feel like I’m in The Breakfast Club. I don’t have any real memory of hearing it as a kid, but I guess I must have, because it instantly gives me the teenage chills. Weird! It’s good, those giant guitars coming in on the one line shouted chorus, and the sort of thin-ness before that. But again, I’m not gonna dive into the Material Issue back catalog, you know? B

37. The People’s Drug – John Wesley Harding

So People’s Drug was a local DC/MD thing? I think I just assumed it was everywhere. He’s so clever, and his voice is so distinctive. “The people’s guitar!” = awesome. I think if I had been listening to this guy in High School I would’ve fallen hard for him. He would fit right in with TMBG and other clever nerd rock I was listening to. B

38. Let Love Rule – Lenny Kravitz

I was such a sucker for this record, and even though I had listened to a lot of Hendrix (taped from the library, natch) I didn’t realize how much LK was ripping off until much much later. And even now that it’s obvious, I still kind of think his stuff is solid. Especially this record, before he blew up and became a bit of a legend in his own mind.

I saw him on this tour, playing Constitution Hall in DC, and he did this song last, letting the audience carry the “let…love…rule…” chorus over and over again as they finished the song. Everyone stopped playing and the audience kept singing it. And kept singing it. And then he appeared in the back of the venue! And came out walking among the crowd! We mobbed him. I touched his dreads. The energy was palpable, crackling. Hearing it now always sets me back to that moment. Wow, 5:42??? It’s too long, right? But still good. A-

39. Feelin’ – The La’s

Never heard this before. They had some hit right? What does google say? “There She Goes”! That’s right. I liked that one a lot. This one is so short and sweet. Strong. Melodic. Fun. B+

40. Long Haired Guys from England – Too Much Joy

So many of my friends in the mid to late 90’s loved this band, but I never really got into them that much. Never owned an album, never sought them out. But the tracks got played a lot at parties and stuff. I remember liking the “King of Beers” track, a friend might have put that on a mix tape for me. This song is fun, pretty good, but kind of wears out its welcome (unlike The Dead Milkmen track from earlier). Although rhyming “England” with “United Kingdom” is great. The song is fine. C+

41. So You Think You’re In Love – Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians

Why have I always disliked this song? Seems weirdly whiny maybe? Jangly, yes. Some minor chords that help I guess, but not much to it? Songs like this and some of his other “hits” definitely made me kind of write him off until Soft Boys songs started showing up on mix tapes. Good winding down to end the playlist though. C

42. Near Wild Heaven R.E.M.

Such an unusual choice from Out Of Time, but so welcome. This is a track I don’t remember that well, and I’m really enjoying getting into it now. Mike Mills lead? Gentle and lovely, really left field. A

Wow feels great to be posting here, how have you all been? That this blog still exists feels so opposite to Facebook where anything anyone says is simply washed into the giant tide of timelines past. On joshgranger.com, everything IS STILL HERE. Almost everything anyway.

I’ve been reading through the blog from beginning (2008!) just for fun, and there’s so much fun to be had in here! Lots of things are still relevant, and there is a ton I had forgotten about, especially from the time period when I was posting almost every day. Inspiring stuff, fun walks down memory lane, good music tracks, art projects and so on. I’m also coming across a lot of broken links or images that don’t work any more. Thankfully I was so paranoid in 2008 about linking to things that most of the videos have been downloaded and hosted locally on the site! At a certain point that began to seem crazy, but now it seems right. Things are scrubbed from the internet all the time!

Even so, there are still a bunch of images that went missing (something to do with the “postmaster” plugin, which I either did or didn’t update or something), and there are a bunch of images and phone videos that are missing from when I began using a service called pixel pipe (so easy! so out of business). Etc. I’m kind of fixing things as I go along, where I can, but there’s some things that can’t be fixed. But lots that’s still there, and great fun. If there’s something you’d like to see and it’s not showing up, add a comment and I’ll fix it.

Viva the blog!!!

just flipping through old dream journals…came across this one, it's a doozy:

8/13/01

Spring, a bunch of us out running. Running from Thor, who'd taken the form of a wolf — a giant wolf, white.

Somehow I realized that I was the one to be sacrificed.

Thor yelled out – "I'll take the new green!" which I knew to be me.

I ran up a tall tall tree and Thor started to come up after me.

I had no choice but to jump… …and I began to fly. Not all graceful, but hard n fast like a jet.

I realized that it had all been Thor's way of making me fly!

We flew to a boat and some other stuff happened.