THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE! The Smithereens, "Face The World With Pride"

Drawn from previous posts, this is not part of my book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1).

An infinite number of records can each be THE greatest record ever made, as long as they take turns. Today, this is THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE!

THE SMITHEREENS: Face The World With Pride

Written by Pat DiNizio and Jim Babjak 

Produced by The Smithereens 

Recorded 1993, originally unreleased; subsequently released on The Lost Album, Sunset Blvd, 2022

Face the world with pride.

That's good advice at any time. It's certainly a sentiment to embrace as we enter another new year. I mean, we all have some miles on us. Our paths involve turns to navigate, debris to circumvent, ground to cover. It ain't easy. We move ahead with whatever level of determination and pride we can muster. That's our intent, anyway. 

"Face The World With Pride" is also the title of a song recorded by the Smithereens in 1993, a track which remained unreleased for decades. But our pal Rich Firestone heard it way back when, loved it, and wished others could also hear it and love it. Rich thought it sounded like a hit.

The song was finally released to the public in 2022, on an archival Smithereens set called The Lost Album. Rich directed everyone with ears to listen to the song, and play it often. Hey! WE have ears! So we played it, and we played it a lot. "Face The World With Pride" was This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio's # 1 most-played track in 2022.

And "Face The World With Pride" sure does sound like a hit, a beguiling cross between the Monkees' "Last Train To Clarksville" and Elvis Costello and the Attractions' "You Belong To Me," with maybe a hint of the Records' "I Don't Remember Your Name" and a bunch of others playing indistinctly at the edge of our mental radio's infinite signal. Every power pop or rock 'n' roll radio show should be playing this one, again and again. With pride. Rich is right. This is a freakin' hit.

The song also works as rock 'n' roll resistance. I often play it when I feel like I have to dig in my heels and hold on to what's right. There are dark forces everywhere, forces who insist that discrimination is okay, that diversity is wrong, that compassion and empathy are misguided, even stupid. We reject these notions. Love is love is love. We stand with our brothers and sisters. We stand tall. And together:

We face the world. If pride's a sin, we confess it. Hell, we proclaim it.

Years come and years go. Some years are better than others. The magic of music is its ability to help us get through. You can say the same of love, of friendship, of art, and of belief. It certainly applies to the songs that enrich our lives. Music. Radio is made for music. Music is made for radio.

Face the world with pride. Sing it, Smithereens. With pride and determination, we face forward, and we march on.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

My new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get my previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

10 SONGS: 1/15/2025

10 Songs is a weekly list of ten songs that happen to be on my mind at the moment. The lists are usually dominated by songs played on the previous Sunday night's edition of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl. The idea was inspired by Don Valentine of the essential blog I Don't Hear A Single.

This week's edition of 10 Songs draws exclusively from the playlist for This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1268

THE NON-PROPHETS: Alibi

We're as punched as pleased to welcome the Non-Prophets back to the TIRnRR playlist. The Non-Prophets are the dba of our bud Allan Kaplon, who scored some significant airplay here with his solo album Notes On A Napkin. Our Allan returns to the collective Non-Prophets billing for "Alibi." For this track, the Non-Prophets also include Stacy Carson and Bruce Gordon (half of TIRnRR Fave Raves Pop Co-Op), it's produced by Don Dixon, and it's a match made in Heaven's boppin' li'l nightspot. "Alibi" opens this week's show, and it will be back next week. We believe this particular "Alibi."

THE OSMONDS: Crazy Horses

WONDERBOY: Down By The Lazy River

The passing of Wayne Osmond prompted us to program a few tracks by the Osmonds. I wasn't much of an Osmonds fan during my prime AM Top 40 era in the early- to mid-'70s, but I later came to appreciate some of the group's harder rock efforts.

It's no joke to combine "the Osmonds" and "harder rock efforts" in the same sentence. The title tune from the group's 1972 Crazy Horses proved that Led Zeppelin had nothing on them Osmonds. We've played "Crazy Horses" before, and we've played similarly head-bangin' Osmonds nuggets like "Yo Yo" and "Hold Her Tight." This week, it felt imperative to bang the noggin once again to the sturm und drang of "Crazy Horses," as This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio remembers Wayne Osmond.

(The Osmonds also opened our second set this week, with a spin of "One Way Ticket To Anywhere" from their 1973--ahem--CONCEPT ALBUM The Plan. We circled back to the Osmonds in the show's last hour, when we finally got around to one of their biggest hits, the superswell bubblesoul classic "One Bad Apple [Don't Spoil The Whole Bunch]." Oddly enough, of our three Osmonds selections this week, "One Bad Apple"--the best-known of that whole bunch, girl--is the only one we had never played before.)

One Osmonds hit that I did enjoy contemporary to its chart life was 1971's "Down By The Lazy River." I was eleven years old, and it may have been the first instance of me realizing that I liked a song or group that wasn't considered cool, but I didn't care--I liked it anyway. There's your blueprint for my life, right there, the precursor of when I was in college a few years later, with a Bay City Rollers poster tacked on my dorm room wall as a conscious act of defiance (and of many decades proudly sneering in the face of any sucker who tried to tell me I couldn't love the Monkees). Get thee behind me, hipsters!

"Down By The Lazy River" is represented on the playlist by a faithful, rollickin' cover performed by TIRnRR superstars Wonderboy. Wonderboy's ace rendition appeared on the fantastic 2002 various-artists set Right To Chews: Bubblegum Classic Revisited, and it's also available as a digital single.

THE COOLIES: Pathetica

THE FLASHCUBES: Pathetic

As experienced rockin' pop radio programmers, Dana and I know better than to shy away from a good segue, no matter how obvious the segue is. Sometimes the obvious choice is the unerringly proper choice. We pursued that notion in this week's show with a four-play of tambourine-related ditties by the Tambourine People, Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon, the Lemon Pipers, and ABBA, and again a bit later in the playlist, as Dana's selection of Amy Rigby's coiffure-related cut "Bangs" compelled me to follow with the Cowsills' follicly-focused gem "Hair." We are SO damned clever.

By the same literal-minded token, it seemed imperative to tailgate the paradoxically righteous self-doubt of the Coolies' "Pathetica" with the Flashcubes' disdainful dismissal "Pathetic." The former was written by the late, great Kim Shattuck, and is native to the Coolies' certified great EP Uh-Oh! It's...The Coolies, the latter penned by 'Cubes guitarist Paul Armstrong and featured on the Flashcubes' 2003 album Brilliant. Opposing POVs, but they go great together.

(Speaking of the Flashcubes' "Pathetic:" A persistent rumor--if not quite the Rumour--suggests we can look forward to a newly-recorded cover of "Pathetic," courtesy of a British singer, songwriter, and performer of some note. We must note that rumour...er, rumor is not yet confirmed.) 

ELVIS PRESLEY: Heartbreak Hotel

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE SPONGETONES: Nothing Really Matters When You're Young

As debuted on last week's show: The SpongeTones cover the Flashcubes. This track is not yet available to the general public. The same can be said of as-yet-unreleased Flashcubes covers by sparkle*jets u.k., the Kennedys, and Pop Co-Op, each of which we've already played here, and forthcoming dives into the Cubic songbook courtesy of such fabulous acts as...well, that would be telling. For now: [REDACTED]. But perhaps not redacted for very much longer. At some point, you've just gotta make something happen.

THE ON AND ONS: Been There

The On and Ons' new album Come On In is officially released this Friday, January 17th. Hey, Happy Birthday to ME!! I celebrate with pop music. And pop music from the On and Ons is for damned sure worth celebrating. Nonetheless: Get off my lawn, you kids. 

20/20: King Of The Whole Wide World

20/20's new album Back To California is officially released this Friday, January 17th. Hey, another Happy Birthday to me! I am indeed worth it. The celebration continues. Hell, I guess the kids can stay on my lawn if they really want to.

THE RAMONES: I Don't Want To Grow Up

As I near the completion of my 65th solar orbit, my thoughts on the strange concept of Growing up...?! remain resolute and unchanged:

Don't want to. 

Won't need to. 

Ain't gonna.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

My new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get my previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1268

This world is only gonna break your heart.

That line from Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" has been in my head a lot. We feel like we're a million miles away from the devastation of the fires in California. There's almost an entire country in between here and there, but the plight of our brothers and sisters--our friends--resonates across the distance. The ache is unbearable.

We have a giddy little pop radio show. It does not aspire to greater meaning, and it serves no purpose beyond playful diversion. I hope we can offer a song and a smile for all who can use that diversion, whether here or there. I've made a small cash donation to help--to try to help--and I'm going to see if I can give a little bit more. 

Meanwhile, we have a few songs to play, for friends, for family, and for strangers alike. This world is only gonna break your heart. Our hearts. But some lucky hearts don't have to remain broken. Music can heal, friendship can heal. Here and there. Everywhere.

This is what rock 'n' roll radio sounded like on another Sunday night in Syracuse this week.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream, and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio

You can read all about this show's long and weird history here: Boppin' The Whole Friggin' Planet (The History Of THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO). 

TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS are always welcome.

Carl's new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get Carl's previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

The many fine This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio compilation albums are still available, each full of that rockin' pop sound you crave. A portion of all sales benefit our perpetually cash-strapped community radio project:

Volume 1: download
Volume 2: CD or download
Volume 3: download
Volume 4: CD or download
Waterloo Sunset--Benefit For This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio:  CD or download

Volume 5: CD or download

TIRnRR # 1268: 1/12/2025

TIRnRR FRESH SPINS! Tracks we think we ain't played before are listed in bold.

THE NON-PROPHETS: Alibi (single)

BOB DYLAN: Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine) (Columbia, Blonde And Blonde)

THE OSMONDS: Crazy Horses (Curb, 21 Hits)

THE ENGLISH BEAT: Best Friend (Shout Factory, Keep The Beat: The Very Best Of The English Beat)

WONDERBOY: Down By The Lazy River (single)

TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS: Red River (MCA, Hypnotic Eye)

--

THE OSMONDS: One Way Ticket To Anywhere (Curb, The Plan)

THE BEE GEES: Idea (Polydor, Idea)

DONNA SUMMER: Dim All The Lights (Casablanca, Summer: The Original Hits)

SCREAMING LORD SUTCH AND THE SAVAGES: Train Kept A-Rollin' (MOJO, VA: MOJO Working! THE UK R & B Explosion!)

THE SHANG HI LOS: Op-Operator (Rum Bar, single)

THE WHO: Run Run Run (MCA, A Quick One)

--

the black watch: much of a muchness (Dell'Orso, the morning papers have given us the vapours)

LES HANDCLAPS: Cacti Are Delicious Fruit (Handclaps, Ouh Ouh Ah!)

DAVID WOODARD: I Used To Be Cool (Kool Kat Musik, Get It Good)

THE STEMS: Love Will Grow (Rhino, VA: Children Of Nuggets)

THE ISLEY BROTHERS: Shout (Part One) (MOJO, VA: Songs The Beatles Taught Us)

THE FUZZTONES: Bad News Travels Fast (Rhino, VA: Children Of Nuggets)

--

PETER, PAUL AND MARY: Day Is Done (Warner Brothers, The Best Of Peter, Paul And Mary/Ten Years Together)

FAIRPORT CONVENTION: Time Will Show The Wiser (Polydor, Fairport Convention)

ALICE PEACOCK: Get Your Own (Peacock, Real Day)

THE DRONES: Can't See (Cherry Red, VA: Harmony In My Head: UK Power Pop & New Wave 1977-81)

LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS: Mirror (Big Stir, How To Make Friends By Telephone)

TV 21: Shattered By It All (Cherry Red, VA: Harmony In My Head: UK Power Pop & New. Wave 1977-81)

--

OLD TOWN CRIER: Real Good Friend (n/a, Motion Blur)

THE TAMBOURINE PEOPLE: Tambourine Love (Tambourine, Tambourine Love)

JOHNNY JOHNSON AND THE BANDWAGON: Mr. Tambourine (Kent Soul, Breakin' Down The Walls Of Heartbreak)

THE LEMON PIPERS: Green Tambourine (BMG, VA: The Complete Buddah Chart Singles Volume One)

ABBA: Dancing Queen (Polydor, ABBA Gold)

THE RAVE-UPS: So, You Wanna Know The Truth? (Omnivore, VA: International Pop Overthrow Volume 23)

--

THE ORION EXPERIENCE: Adrianne (Sweet!, Cosmicandy)

THE COOLIES: Pathetica (Wicked Cool, Uh Oh! It's...The Coolies)

THE FLASHCUBES: Pathetic (Northside, Brilliant)

HOLLY GOLIGHTLY: Box Elder (Damaged Goods, Singles Round-Up)

KISS: Strutter (Mercury, KISS)

THE DONNAS: Living After Midnight (Lookout!, Turn 21)

--

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

ELVIS PRESLEY: Heartbreak Hotel (RCA, The Top Ten Hits)

ELVIS COSTELLO AND THE ATTRACTIONS: Accidents Will Happen (Rykodisc, Armed Forces)

THE HANDCUFFS: I Cry For You (Pravda, Burn The Rails)

EVERY MOTHER'S SON: Come On Down To My Boat Baby (Hip-O, VA: '60s Gold)

THE O'JAYS: Love Train (Epic, Love Train: The Best Of The O'Jays)

LULU: The Boat That I Row (Rhino, From Crayons To Perfume: The Best Of Lulu)

--

VEGAS WITH RANDOLPH: Don't Stop Your Love (n/a, The Future Store)

THE MnM'S: I'm Tired (Burger, Melts In Your Ears 1980-1981)

THE SPONGETONES: Nothing Really Matters When You're Young [REDACTED]

THE APPLES IN STEREO: Stephen Stephen (Elephant 6, Electronic Projects For Musicians)

POPDUDES: Daytime Nighttime Suffering [a cappella] (Crab Apple, Number Two)

THE HYPSTRZ: Midnight Hour (Voxx, VA: Be A Caveman--The Best Of The Voxx Garage Revival

THE OSMONDS: One Bad Apple (Don't Spoil The Whole Bunch) (Curb, 21 Hits)

THE RAMONES: Go Mental (Rhino, Road To Ruin)

--

THE ON AND ONS: Been There (Jem, Come On In)

AMY RIGBY: Bangs (Tapete, Hang In There With Me)

THE COWSILLS: Hair (Rebound, The Best Of The Cowsills)

BLONDIE: Dreaming (Chrysalis, The Platinum Collection)

20/20: King Of The Whole Wide World (SpyderPop/Big Stir, Back To California)

CARLENE CARTER: I'm So Cool (Demon, Musical Shapes/Blue Nun)

EYTAN MIRSKY: This Year's Gonna Be Our Year (Kool Kat Musik, VA: This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5)

THE BEATLES: Revolution [promo video version]

--

THE RAMONES: I Don't Want To Grow Up (Radioactive, ¡Adios Amigos!)

Tonight on THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO

Is it a new song or an old song? WE DON'T CARE! We mix the recent and the classic with equal vigor, and this week's invigmoratin' mix includes THE NON-PROPHETS, BOB DYLAN, DONNA SUMMER, WONDERBOY, THE OSMONDS, PETER, PAUL AND MARY, THE SHANG HI LOS, THE FLASHCUBES, THE COOLIES, 20/20, THE SPONGETONES, THE BLACK WATCH, THE ISLEY BROTHERS, OLD TOWN CRIER, THE FUZZTONES, THE STEMS, FAIRPORT CONVENTION, LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS, THE TAMBOURINE PEOPLE, THE ORION EXPERIENCE, THE HANDCUFFS, VEGAS WITH RANDOLPH, THE ON AND ONS, AMY RIGBY, THE COWSILLS, THE APPLES IN STEREO, KISS, ELVIS COSTELLO AND THE ATTRACTIONS, THE O'JAYS, THE RAMONES, THE BEATLES, and more. Benevolent indifference has never sounded greater than this. Sunday night, 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, https://sparksyracuse.org/, streaming on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. The weekend stops HERE!

10 SONGS: 1/11/2025

10 Songs is a weekly list of ten songs that happen to be on my mind at the moment. The lists are usually dominated by songs played on the previous Sunday night's edition of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl. The idea was inspired by Don Valentine of the essential blog I Don't Hear A Single.

This week's edition of 10 Songs draws exclusively from the playlist for This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1267

EYTAN MIRSKY: This Year's Gonna Be Our Year

THE ZOMBIES: This Will Be Our Year

THE SMITHEREENS: Face The World With Pride

TIRnRR kicked off the new year with a hopeful spin of Brother Eytan Mirsky's "This Year's Gonna Be Our Year," followed by its benevolent forebear "This Will Be Our Year" by the Zombies. "Hopeful?" Maybe naive or even delusional would be closer to reality, but we're not quite ready to surrender just yet.

And so we followed that opening salvo with the Smithereens' "Face The World With Pride." I'll be returning to the subject of this fantastic track in the very near future. For now, we offer it alongside Eytan and Zombies alike: As manifesto, as line in the sand, as statement of stubborn, defiant intent. Hell, throw in a little Twisted Sister and O'Jays for good measure. Face front, true believers. With pride on our side, let's keep on kickin'.

SUGAR PIE DeSANTO: Soulful Dress

The ongoing reality of time elapsing and shadows growing longer brings a never-ending supply of goodbyes. Soul singer Sugar Pie DeSanto passed in December, and while she never became the household name she deserved to be, her music has been an occasional fixture of this little mutant radio show. I've gotta admit that, if not for Dana, I wouldn't be at all familiar with Sugar Pie DeSanto, but when he's played her, I've listened and enjoyed. I need to do a deep, deep dive into the DeSanto oeuvre, so I deferred to Dana as he made the essential Sugar Pie selections for our miniature tribute. 

"Soulful Dress" was the first track we played after the three-song opening HOPE?! barrage detailed above, and we circled back later in the show for DeSanto's "Witch For A Night" and "In The Basement (Part 1)," the latter side a collaboration with Etta James. Our encore spot presented two additional slices of Sugar Pie, "It Won't Be Long" and "Mr And Mrs." Sugar Pie DeSanto was a giant talent; more folks need to hear her stuff, just so they can fall in love with it like I fell in love with it.

THE SPONGETONES: Nothing Really Matters When You're Young

As we stumble forth into the potential morass of 2025, we do look forward to the September release of [REDACTED]. What, exactly, is [REDACTED]? If we could tell you, it wouldn't be [REDACTED]. It won't be [REDACTED] for much longer.

In the meantime....

"Nothing Really Matters When You're Young" is a song by Arty Lenin, guitarist and founding member of Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse the Flashcubes. It was first performed by the Flashcubes in 1979, demoed by the 'Cubes, subsequently recorded and released by Flashcubes offshoot Screen Test, and eventually redone in this brightly-lit new century for the Flashcubes' 2003 album Brilliant. The song's lyrics are among the most effective expressions of teen alienation I've ever heard, a clique-inflicted miasma buoyed and ameliorated by the transcendence of its pop. Even now, listening to it with senior-citizen ears more years removed from high school than Beatlemania was removed from America's entry into World War I, "Nothing Really Matters When You're Young" can still make me feel the snub and the sting of my time serving that sentence in teen purgatory. Yet I love the song. That's the power of art, the power of music.

Power Pop Hall of Famers the SpongeTones have recorded an as-yet-unreleased cover of "Nothing Really Matters When You're Young," and their new rendition lives up to its incredible Cubic legacy. I'm stunned, I'm grateful, and I'm thrilled that Dana and I have the opportunity to play this on the radio. We'll play it again this Sunday night, and we look forward to the day you'll be able to add this great track to your rockin' pop library.

When, where, and how will you be able to snag your own copy of the SpongeTones' "Nothing Really Matters When You're Young?"

Well. That's [REDACTED].

THE ISLEY BROTHERS: Shout (Part One)

Our passions help (or try to help) sustain us in troubled times. Our hobbies and interests can provide the distraction or involvement we need to function when we might feel tempted to just shut down. Music, movies, books, gaming, competitive napping, writin' a blog, et al. fall within the broad category of things that ease our efforts to get through the all-of-this of all of this. In the words of a former Beatle: Whatever gets you through the night. 

For me, my night- and day-clearing activities include listening to music, reading comic books and pulp fiction, watching TV, and following a few sports teams. One of those sports teams is the Buffalo Bills.

The Bills have had a pretty good season so far. As the playoffs commence, they have at least an outside shot at getting to the Super Bowl, which means they have a shot at winning the Super Bowl. 

That would be cool. It won't take away any of the tsuris and misery of the real world, it won't heal the sick, feed the hungry, or end the wars. A victory for Buffalo won't extinguish flames in California, nor prevent the national tragedy that will occur on January 20th. In schemes that are grand, the meaning of a sports competition will be small.

But it's something to cheer for. Those inconsequential somethings, however ephemeral, do have meaning in the moment. We take the win or endure the loss, and try to fight on through another day.

When the Buffalo Bills score a touchdown, fans sing along to a variation of the Isley Brothers' R & B touchstone "Shout," reworded The Bills make me wanna SHOUT! We can use some shoutin'. Primal scream! Big, BIG primal scream. Catharsis and comfort serve a purpose. Let's go, Buffalo. Survive and advance. Just like the rest of us.

(NOTE: If you're a Denver fan, it's okay; we can still be friends, win or lose. Cheers.)

20/20: Laurel Canyon

One guaranteed good thing about 2025 is the release of a new album by 20/20. 20/20 is one of power pop's defining acts, and their new stuff is just as compelling as the acknowledged classics they did so many decades ago. We've already played a couple of advance tracks from the group's forthcoming new album Back To California, and we'll have yet another one spinning on our very next show Sunday night. In between, we offer this debut TIRnRR airing of "Laurel Canyon," which is my early choice for the album's top track. 

AMERICA: Sister Golden Hair

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

WONDERBOY: Happy? That's Me!

The lads of Wonderboy react to the news that their splendid Hero Isle album cut "Girl Songs" was TIRnRR's # 1 most-played track in 2024: Happy? That's ME! We're ALL happy, lads. Or at least we're trying to be.

THE RAMONES: Blitzkrieg Bop

Happy or not: 1-2-3-4! This malevolent new year for damned sure won't cruise to higher ground if we don't provide a little course correction. Armed with pride, eyes on redemption, this year will be our year, or we will fall fighting back. Hey-ho. Let's go, goddammit. Let's go.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

My new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get my previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

Meet Your Blogger at BOOKS END in Syracuse

If you happen to be in the Syracuse area on Saturday, January 11th 2025, I invite you to stop in and say hello at BOOKS END, 2443 James Street in Syracuse. I'll be there for an informal meet-n-greet from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. You want details? You've GOT details! Here's the authorized blurb:

I will be at Syracuse's oldest bookstore BOOKS END, chatting with random customers and selling and signing copies of my books GABBA GABBA HEY! A CONVERSATION WITH THE RAMONES and THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE! (VOLUME 1). I will also have some of the THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO compilation CDs. Stop by and say HEY-HO, LET'S GO!

Syracuse's own Carl Cafarelli has been a freelance writer and music journalist for more than forty years. He is the author of the books GABBA GABBA HEY! A CONVERSATION WITH THE RAMONES (Rare Bird Books, 2023) and THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE! (VOLUME 1) (Syracuse Noise LLC, 2024). He has written for Goldmine, DISCoveries, The Syracuse New Times, Feral House, Routledge, Visible Ink Press, AHOY Comics, Fantagraphics, and Rhino Records. Since 1998, he has been the co-host (with Dana Bonn) of the internationally-renowned weekly broadcast and internet radio show THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO WITH DANA AND CARL. You can follow Carl at his blog Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), carlcafarelli.blogspot.com

Hope to see you there!

"Greatest Recod Ever Made?" See, that's why we need editors

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

My new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get my previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1267

Eytan Mirsky's "This Year's Gonna Be Our Year" is my # 1 ring-out-the-old/ring-in-the-new song, probably one of my all-time top ten tracks of any description. On TIRnRR, we usually open or close the calendar year with a spin of Eytan Mirsky vowing that this year will be THE year, the shining moment when we turn everything around in our favor.

And so we open our first show of 2025 with that song choice. I love the song, and I will always love the song. But right now, probably more than ever before, I have difficulty believing in its stated promise. I feel broken in ways I can't articulate, partially as a result of time and loss, largely because of the state of the union, the state of the world. This haunts me, and it threatens to rob me of hope.

Maybe the haunting will succeed in its attempted theft of all that is light. I acknowledge that possibility. We live in a material world where darkness can thrive in spite of our best actions, our best intentions. All we love can be broken.

But what's broken can heal, at least sometimes.

I have not given up, and I hope you haven't given up either. If it turns out to be impossible for this year to be our year, maybe we can still build...something. We can create. We can sing. We can dance. We can do all of that, but only if we remember the plight of those who can't dance in this moment. We dedicate ourselves to helping all of our friends get back to the dance floor. We can fight back. We can. We will. 

Maybe that’s delusional. Or maybe it’s all we have.

This year's gonna be our year? The odds are against that. But we'll stand our ground for as long as we're able to stand. This year. Next year. Every year. If it's a clarion call, we'll answer with what determination remains. Sing it, Brother Eytan. Sing it.

This is what rock 'n' roll radio sounded like on another Sunday night in Syracuse this week.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream, and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio

You can read all about this show's long and weird history here: Boppin' The Whole Friggin' Planet (The History Of THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO). 

TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS are always welcome.

Carl's new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get Carl's previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

The many fine This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio compilation albums are still available, each full of that rockin' pop sound you crave. A portion of all sales benefit our perpetually cash-strapped community radio project:

Volume 1: download
Volume 2: CD or download
Volume 3: download
Volume 4: CD or download
Waterloo Sunset--Benefit For This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio:  CD or download

Volume 5: CD or download

TIRnRR # 1267: 1/5/2025

TIRnRR FRESH SPINS! Tracks we think we ain't played before are listed in bold.

EYTAN MIRSKY: This Year's Gonna Be Our Year (M-Squared, Year Of The Mouse)

THE ZOMBIES: This Will Be Our Year (Big Beat, Zombie Heaven)

THE SMITHEREENS: Face The World With Pride (Sunset Blvd, The Lost Album)

SUGAR PIE DeSANTO: Soulful Dress (Kent Soul, Go Go Power [The Complete Chess Singles 1961-1966])

SUPER 8: Resolution (Happy New Year) (single)

THE RONETTES: Be My Baby (Abkco, The Best Of The Ronettes)

--

THE SPONGETONES: Nothing Really Matters When You're Young [REDACTED]

ALEX CHILTON: Free Again [original mono mix] (Big Beat, VA: Thank You Friends--The Ardent Records Story)

THE ISLEY BROTHERS: Shout (Part One) (MOJO, VA: Songs The Beatles Taught Us)

LUCINDA WILLIAMS: I've Got A Feeling (Highway 20, Sings The Beatles From Abbey Road)

TAMAR BERK: Artful Dodger (n/a, Good Times For A Change)

ROCKPILE: Heart (Columbia, Seconds Of Pleasure)

--

THE CAMPBELL APARTMENT: In My Dreams (n/a, [510])

AMY RIGBY: Heart Is A Muscle (Tapete, Hang In There With Me)

DUSTY SPRINGFIELD: I Only Want To Be With You (Mercury, The Very Best Of Dusty Springfield)

THE ROMANTICS: What I Like About You (Nemperor, The Romantics)

JENNY DEE AND THE DEELINQUENTS: Getaway (DeeVeeUs, Electric Candyland)

ROBERT GORDON: Someday, Someway (Razor & Tie, Red Hot 1977-1981)

--

20/20: Laurel Canyon (SpyderPop/Big Stir, Back To California)

GAME THEORY: Here It Is Tomorrow (Omnivore, The Big Shot Chronicles)

THE CYNZ: Room Without A View (Jem, Little Girl Lost)

DICK DALE AND HIS DEL-TONES: Miserlou (Ace, VA: The Birth Of Surf)

THE SAINTS: (I'm) Stranded (Amsterdamned, [I'm] Stranded)

FRANKIE FORD: Sea Cruise (Scotti Brothers, VA: The Best Of Ace Records: The Pop Hits)

--

THE ON AND ONS: Been There (Jem, Come On In)

MOON MARTIN: Dangerous (Capitol, Escape From Domination)

THE MARVELETTES: Danger Heartbreak Dead Ahead (Motown, The Definitive Collection)

SUGAR PIE DeSANTO: Witch For A Night (Kent Soul, Go Go Power [The Complete Chess Singles 1961-1966])

THE BIRDS: Say Those Magic Words (Rhino, VA: Nuggets II)

THE FOUR TOPS: I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch) (Motown, The Ultimate Collection)

--

THE JAC (INTERNATIONAL EDITION): Are You Ever Coming Back (single)

SUGAR: If I Can't Change Your Mind (Rykodisc. Copper Blue)

SLYBOOTS: If We Could Let Go (single)

SHADOWY MEN ON A SHADOWY PLANET: Having An Average Weekend (Glass, Savvy Show Stoppers)

THE BAY CITY ROLLERS: Saturday Night (Arista, The Definitive Collection)

SHONEN KNIFE: She's The One (Good Charamel, Osaka Ramones)

--

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

AMERICA: Sister Golden Hair (Rhino, The Complete Greatest Hits)

CONTINENTAL DRIFTERS: I Can't Let Go (eggBERT, VA: Sing Hollies In Reverse)

THE LOUD FAMILY: We're For The Dark (Copper, VA: Come And Get It: A Tribute To Badfinger)

MATERIAL ISSUE: Bus Stop (eggBERT, VA: Sing Hollies In Reverse)

JOHNNY JOHNSON AND THE BANDWAGON: Gasoline Alley Bred (Kent Soul, Breakin' Down The Walls Of Heartache)

THE HOLLIES: King Midas In Reverse (EMI, All The Hits And More: The Definitive Collection)

--

OLD TOWN CRIER: Real Good Friend (n/a, Motion Blur)

THE BEACH BOYS: Darlin' (Capitol, Smiley Smile/Wild Honey)

ABBA: On And On And On (Polydor, More ABBA Gold)

CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL: Hello Mary Lou (Fantasy, Chronicle, Vol. 2)

DAVID WOODARD: Coming To Life (Kool Kat Musik, Get It Good)

RONNIE SPECTOR: All I Want (Bad Girl Sounds, The Last Of The Rock Stars)

WONDERBOY: Happy? That's Me! (Racer, Napoleon Blown Apart)

THE MUFFS: That's For Me (Omnivore, No Holiday)

--

THE RAMONES: Blitzkrieg Bop (Rhino, Ramones)

SPARKS: Mickey Mouse (Repertoire, Angst In My Pants)

SMOKEY ROBINSON AND THE MIRACLES: The Tears Of A Clown (Motown, VA: Hitsville USA)

ETTA JAMES AND SUGAR PIE DeSANTO: In The Basement (Part 1) (Chess, ETTA JAMES: The Essential Etta James)

THE B-52'S: Legal Tender (Rhino, Nude On The Moon: The B-52's Anthology)

NEW ORDER: Dreams Never End (Factory, Movement)

PAUL COLLINS: I'm The Only One For You (Jem, Stand Back And Take A Good Look)

THE BEATLES: I Should Have Known Better (Apple, A Hard Day's Night)

--

SUGAR PIE DeSANTO: It Won't Be Long (Jasmine, Sugar Pie: A Little Bit Of Soul 1957-1962)

SUGAR PIE DeSANTO: Mr And Mrs (Kent Soul, Go Go Power [The Complete Chess Singles 1961-1966])