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 # 1212. This show is available as a podcast.
THE ARMOIRES: Music & Animals
This week's show cast a mini-spotlight on Embers Of Aloha: A Maui Wildfire Benefit Project, a fantastic compilation with the worthy goal of helping the people of Lahaina and West Maui recover from the devastation wrought by the wildfires in August. Buying this album is a gift that gives back, and we recommend you take full advantage of that opportunity. Help others while helping yourself to some great music? Even saints need tunes to accompany their saintly deeds, man.
I'm tempted to note a weird dichotomy here: As I write this post, recalling the hardships of our brothers and sisters in Maui, today is also the day I recorded my parts for our next show, The 25th Annual THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO Christmas Show, which airs on Christmas Eve. But the temptation disappears as I appreciate the symmetry of events, the common ground that outflanks and outranks difference. A holiday, no matter how festive, often contains a sense of loss, a pang, an ache that reminds us of parts of our lives that have gone missing. A tragedy like the Maui wildfires demands that we figure out a way to hope, a way to help, a way to somehow restore dreams and make them real. Visions of sugarplums. Shelter from harm.
A light to shine the way.
Last week, both our show and our pal Rich Firestone's SPARK! program Radio Deer Camp played "Music & Animals," the Armoires' exquisite contribution to Embers Of Aloha. When Rich told us he was going to spotlight the album on RDC this week, we followed suit, and we opened with an encore spin of "Music & Animals." Mahalo. Adeste Fideles. God rest ye, weary and merry alike.
STONEY AND MEATLOAF: The Way You Do The Things You Do
Yeah. That Meatloaf (later Meat Loaf), who would do anything for love, while still remaining in awe of the way you do the things you do. Renaissance guy. I had no idea that either a one-word or two-word Meatloaf had recorded for the Motown-affiliated Rare Earth in 1971. Stoney and Meatloaf--Stoney being chick singer Shaun Murphy--did one album and released a pair of singles, but wound up a footnote to Mr. Loaf's subsequent success. I'd never even heard of them before Dana played their ace cover of the Temptations' "The Way You Do The Things You Do" on the show this week. Stop right there? Nope. I wanna hear more.
BLONDIE: Kung Fu Girls
Enter the Dragon! Y'know, if I ever had a chance to write The Green Hornet, I'd want to give his enforcer Kato a code name. I mean, c'mon, how can you have a secret identity if your mysterious and feared masked persona is publicly referred to BY YOUR REAL NAME...?! Criminals may be a superstitious and cowardly lot, but they can't all be that stupid. The Dragon. Given my druthers, when Kato's masked, he'd be the Dragon.
Members of Blondie loved B-movies, and I read somewhere that a number of their early song titles were taken from movies. I've never seen a flick called Kung Fu Girls, but I bet it kicks ass.
How could it not? The Dragon would approve.
GEORGE & LISA: Mornin' World
I'm not necessarily a ukulele guy. I'm not opposed to them, even if I do prefer guitars. Heck, most of us who loved Herman's Hermits' "Mrs. Brown, You've Got A Lovely Daughter" probably believed guitarist Derek Leckenby was pluckin' a uke on that track, rather than stuffing tissue under his guitar strings to sorta-kinda simulate a ukulele sound. And a ukulele was recently a big part of the happiest night of my life, when Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's beautiful rendition of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" accompanied my daughter and I as we walked down the aisle at her wedding in October.
Sniff. Give me a second here.
From Embers Of Aloha, George and Lisa's "Mornin' World" uses the ukulele to support Lisa's voice in a lovely and moving evocation of Maui rising to meet a new day. We know George and Lisa--George Baby Woods and Lisa Jenio--from Candypants, and if they've done more music in the twenty years since Candypants' one album and one single, I'm damning myself for not being aware of it. "Mornin' World" is a wonderful world. Ukuleles and all.
GRAHAM PARKER AND THE GOLDTOPS: That's Life
This year, UK rock legend Graham Parker released a solid new album, Last Chance To Learn The Twist, on the ever-cool Big Stir Records label. As our last chances to do the Twist in 2023 grow fewer in number, Parker has just released "Sun Valley," another digital single from the album. And the single supports its virtual A-side with two non-album live tracks, including Graham and his Goldtops swingin' their way through Frank Sinatra's "That's Life." Ring-a-ding-ding, baby.
TAMMY FERRANTE: Worker Bee
Speaking of TIRnRR favorites like Candypants and the Armoires on Embers Of Aloha, Tammy Ferrante accrued some significant spins at this radio frequency when she was fronting the incomparable Tammy and the Lords of Misrule, as well as some airplay with Dreamworld and the Boat Missers. "Worker Bee" is a delight, makin' just the right dose of honey to buzz these airwaves. Sweet.
THE BYRDS: I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better
DANNY WILKERSON: Bye Bye
Rich also played Danny Wilkerson's rockin' Embers Of Aloha track "Bye Bye" as part of Radio Deer Camp's Maui tribute this week, and we were perfectly fine with repeating it on TIRnRR. Ya can't have a hit record if you only play it once.
And "Bye Bye" is a hit record. We aim to get back to it again in 2024.
THE FLASHCUBES FEATURING RANDY KLAWON: Get The Message
This was our last regular show of 2023, with special programming planned to take us into the new year. And we couldn't let this last regular show of the year slip by without one more spin of something from my top album of 2023: Pop Masters by Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse the Flashcubes.
As we move into that special programming, the Flashcubes will have next week off. They'll likely return the following week. And they will definitely be part of our big countdown show on January 7th.
THE RAMONES: Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)
The Ramones help us get ready for next week's program, The 25th Annual This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio Christmas Show.
Peace on Earth. Good will toward all. It's an elusive goal.
But it's our only hope.
If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar.
Carl's new book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones is now available, courtesy of the good folks at Rare Bird Books. Gabba Gabba YAY!! https://rarebirdlit.com/gabba-gabba-hey-a-conversation-with-the-ramones-by-carl-cafarelli/
If it's true that one book leads to another, my next book will be The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1). Stay tuned. Your turn is coming.
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.
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