One of my favorite features on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do) has been the ongoing series The Greatest Record Ever Made. These are just terrific opportunities for me to riff on whatever song captures my fancy. Pop music's appeal is timeless, but it's also gloriously ephemeral, in the moment. The song you're listening to right now can truly be The Greatest Record Ever Made. The next song you hear could very well replace that one on its perch, or you may choose to keep listening to the first song, over and over, because no other song will do, in the moment. Hence my series' tagline: An infinite number of rockin' pop records can be the greatest record ever made, as long as they take turns.
That said, some entries in The Greatest Record Ever Made are more popular than other entries in The Greatest Record Ever Made. Here's a ranking of all 14 TGREs to date, from most-viewed to least:
1. THE FIRST CLASS: "Beach Baby"
Not only is this the most-viewed entry in The Greatest Record Ever Made, it's the single most-viewed post in the long and storied history of Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do). I have no idea why this particular piece took off the way it did, but fans of singer Tony Burrows latched on to it and propelled it to the tippy-top.
2. BARON DAEMON & THE VAMPIRES: "The Transylvania Twist"
Why do I write a blog? So that I can experience the personal satisfaction of crafting bits like this ode to Syracuse's TV vampire Baron Daemon. I had such fun writing this, and I think my enthusiasm shows.
3. THE DAVE CLARK FIVE: "Any Way You Want It"
By the time I became a college freshman in 1977-'78, I had developed a belligerent and tenacious affection for the music of The Dave Clark Five. And I would eagerly dig in my heels to extol the virtues of The Tottenham Sound versus whatever odious gumbo of Eagles/Grateful Dead/New Riders Of The Purple Sage yawn-a-thon served as the soundtrack of my peers. One would presume the accumulated maturity of passing decades mighta softened my stance a smidge. But screw that. I was right. They were wrong!
4. BIG STAR: "September Gurls"
I think this was the first track I ever proclaimed The Greatest Record Ever Made, even before it dawned on me that TGREs could take turns.
5. THE RAMONES: "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker"
Of all the songs I've adored over the years, "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker" is the only one I can point to and say, "That record changed my life."
6. THE BEATLES: "Hey Jude"
Perhaps the least likely for me among these choices for Greatest Record Ever Made, considering that I kinda got sick of the damned song. But looking forward to my first Paul McCartney concert in September of 2017 prompted a reassessment.
7. THE DRIFTERS: "On Broadway"
Always magic in the air! An unfortunate byproduct of my above-mentioned DC5 devotion in '77 was that I briefly considered The Dave Clark Five's cover of "On Broadway" to be the definitive version. That was crazy. I know better now.
8. THE BEATLES: "Rain"
Awright. We wanna forget about taking turns? We wanna pick ONE song that is THE Greatest Record Ever Made? Well. It's "Rain."
9. THE KINKS: "You Really Got Me"
Unless it's "You Really Got Me."
10. BADFINGER: "Baby Blue"
Badfinger's "Baby Blue" was the subject of this blog's first edition of The Greatest Record Ever Made, and the defining single from the days of my purest AM radio worship.
11. WILSON PICKETT: "In The Midnight Hour"
God, I love this record. I love the circumstances that led me to discover how much I loved it, and I love every precise but sweaty nuance of its execution.
12. CHUCK BERRY: "Promised Land"
When it comes to the subject of inductions into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, I'm a big-tent kind of guy. If an act is worthy of being nominated, I say they're worthy of being inducted. Rock 'n' roll should honor its own. But if we want to go the other way, and say that this RnRHOF can honor just one artist, and one artist only, then that artist has to be Chuck Berry. And I would be okay with that.
13. CRAZY ELEPHANT: "Gimme Gimme Good Lovin'"
It occurred to me there was nothing preventing a fake studio band from somehow producing The Greatest Record Ever Made. Given how few people read this, maybe I was mistaken....
14. GRAND FUNK: "We're An American Band"
A July 4th entry, and no one took it seriously, I guess. But I meant it. In the moment, I meant it.
So far, only The Beatles have rated two separate entries in The Greatest Record Ever Made, and they'll likely appear here again (as will The Kinks). I haven't yet gotten around to TGREs by The Monkees, The Flamin' Groovies, Dusty Springfield, Eytan Mirsky, P. P. Arnold, The Beach Boys, Lulu, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, or The MC5, but their times are coming, too. Someone's gotta give "Beach Baby" a run for its money. In the moment, at least. In the moment.
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Our new compilation CD This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4 is now available from Kool Kat Musik! 29 tracks of irresistible rockin' pop, starring Pop Co-Op, Ray Paul, Circe Link & Christian Nesmith, Vegas With Randolph Featuring Lannie Flowers, The Slapbacks, P. Hux, Irene Peña, Michael Oliver & the Sacred Band Featuring Dave Merritt, The Rubinoos, Stepford Knives, The Grip Weeds, Popdudes, Ronnie Dark, The Flashcubes,Chris von Sneidern, The Bottle Kids, 1.4.5., The Smithereens, Paul Collins' Beat, The Hit Squad, The Rulers, The Legal Matters, Maura & the Bright Lights, Lisa Mychols, and Mr. Encrypto & the Cyphers. You gotta have it, so order it here.
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