Sunday, August 16, 2026

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1349


This week's playlist includes Muck and the Mires covering "It's Gonna Be Alright." This new version comes to us from the Muck-Mire collective's ace new release The Ghost Of Rocky Erickson, and it was originally done by British Invasion fabmeisters Gerry and the Pacemakers. A 1964 single for the Pacemakers, "It's Gonna Be Alright" also played over the opening credits of the 1965 film Ferry Cross The Mersey, a movie intended to be Gerry and his Liverpool lads' answer to the Beatles' cinematic success with A Hard Day's Night.

It was not.

Mind you, although four-year-old me did see A Hard Day's Night at the local drive-in upon its release in '64 (and many, many more times after that), I have never seen Ferry Cross The Mersey and cannot comment on its merits. I've always wanted to see it--it is, by definition, both the Citizen Kane of Gerry and the Pacemakers movies and the Plan 9 From Outer Space of Gerry and the Pacemakers movies, and all ticks in between--and in fact I own a copy of the film on DVD. I still want to see it. I haven't found the time.

Time is an elusive treasure, a gift that is precious and finite. I could do a much more efficient job of managing my time, and pursuit of that goal is part of the reason my once-daily blog now only appears two or three times a week. I have book projects that stubbornly refuse my plea for them to write themselves, a will to persevere that is constantly eroded by the sheer dumbassed toxicity of the world around us, and I'm still working a full-time retail job. For all that, I have time; I just don't use it very well.

I will. As I approach my 67th birthday in January, I'm set to cut back on my hours at work. I will do more writing, and also more traveling, more reading, more leisure. I'll finally get around to watching some of the B movies I've always wanted to see, like Ferry Cross The Mersey, and Micky Dolenz in Keep Off My Grass, and more respected films like North By Northwest. They're all waiting for me, and I'm just waiting to find the time I need.

That time will come. It's gonna be alright.

NEXT WEEK: THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO # 1350. IN THREE WEEKS: On September 6th, the long-awaited return of DANA'S FUNKY SOUL PIT. 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

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). You can follow Carl's daily blog at Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do).

TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS are always welcome.

Carl's new book Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! Short Stories And Other White Lies is available! Read about it here. Autographed copies of Carl's previous book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) are available here, and you can still get Carl's previous previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books. 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 # 1349: 8/16/2026
TIRnRR FRESH SPINS! Songs we think we ain’t played before are listed in bold

SPECTRAFLAME: The Look In Your Eyes (single)
THE PRIMITIVES: I'll Be Your Mirror (RCA, Pure)
VERDELLE SMITH: Life Goes On (Columbia, single)
THE BREAKAWAYS: Walking Out On Love (Alive, THE NERVES: One Way Ticket)
MUCK AND THE MIRES: It's Gonna Be Alright (Rum Bar, The Ghost Of Roky Erickson EP)
THE 13th FLOOR ELEVATORS: You're Gonna Miss Me (Rhino, VA: Nuggets)
--
THE SPONGETONES: The Music At The Close (Big Stir, single)
THE BLASTERS: She Ain't Got The Beat (Hightone, American Music)
VICKI PETERSON AND JOHN COWSILL: Sound On Sound (Label 51, Long After The Fire)
CONTINENTAL DRIFTERS: Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway (Omnivore, White Noise & Lightning: The Best Of Continental Drifters)
JUDAS PRIEST: Heading Out To The Highway (Columbia, Point Of Entry)
ERMA FRANKLIN: Baby, What You Want Me To Do (Shout!, Piece Of Her Heart: The Epic And Shout Years)
--
JOHN LARSON: I Can Take You Anywhere (Shiny Fly, single)
THE STAPLE SINGERS: I'll Take You There (Stax, VA: Stax 50th Anniversary Celebration)
SKOOSHNY: Crossing Double Lines (Think Like A Key Music, The Recordings 1971-1981)
PAUL McCARTNEY AND WINGS: Getting Closer (Capitol, Back To The Egg)
THE NEW BRUTARIANS: Delinquent Things (single)
T. REX: 20th Century Boy (Hip-O, MARC BOLAN & T. REX: 20th Century Boy: The Ultimate Collection)
--
CINDY LAWSON: The Reckoning (Rum Bar, ¡Long Live The Resistance!)
AMY RIGBY: Requiem (Tapete, Hang In There With Me)
THE HIGH FREQUENCIES: Cleanup Time (Jem, Get High)
PERILOUS: Dear Heart (n/a, SOS)
THE CYNZ: Neighborhood Bully (Jem, VA: Jem Records Celebrates Bob Dylan)
THE BANGLES: Anna Lee (Sweetheart Of The Sun) (Down Kiddie, Sweetheart Of The Sun)
--
THE HOVERING SPOOKS: Grey Summer Night (single)
DAVID BOWIE: Hang On To Yourself (Virgin, Bowie At The Beeb)
LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS: 1972 (Big Stir, single)
PATTI SMITH GROUP: Pumping (My Heart) (Arista, Radio Ethiopia)
THE AMPLIFIER HEADS: A Song Called Sha La La (Rum Bar, Super 8)
THE TROGGS: I Can't Control Myself (Fontana, Archeology 1966-1976)
--
ROB MOSS AND SKIN-TIGHT SKIN: Bettie Page Rides A Donkey (single)
THE SMALL FACES: Donkey Rides, A Penny A Glass (Weton, The Immediate Recordings)
THE JAMES CLARK INSTITUTE: A Donkey (single)
LITTLE EVA: Stand By Me (Real Gone Music, VA: Honeybeat: Groovy 60s Girl-Pop)
SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE: Stand! (Epic, Greatest Hits)
THE PRETENDERS: I'll Stand By You (Sire, Last Of The Independents)
--
The Greatest Record Ever Made!
THE MONKEES: Words (Rhino, Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones, Ltd.)
BLONDIE: One Way Or Another (Chrysalis, The Platinum Collection)
BETH PEABODY: Out And About (single)
GENE PITNEY: (I Wanna) Love My Life Away (One Way, Ultimate Anthology)
THE JAM: But I'm Different Now (Polydor, Direction Reaction Creation)
--
X-RAY SPEX: Germ Free Adolescents (Sanctuary, Germ Free Adolescents)
SERGIO CECCANTI: Leave The Past, Don't Look Behind (Kool Kat Musik, Leave The Past, Don't Look Behind)
RINGO STARR: Goodnight Vienna (It's All Down To) [single version] (Apple, Photograph: The Very Best Of Ringo Starr)
MAURICE WILLIAMS AND THE ZODIACS: Stay (Time-Life, VA: The Rock 'n' Roll Era: 1960)
THE MUFFS: Crush Me (Omnivore, Happy Birthday To Me)
PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN: Nuclear Boy (FullerTone, Dreamworld)
20/20: Yellow Pills (Oglio, 20/20--Lookout)
--
PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN: Tolerant World (FullerTone, Dreamworld)
JOHN LENNON: Power To The People (Capitol, The John Lennon Collection)
GARRET VANDERMOLEN: Take It Back (The Sound Cove, single)
THE RUTLES: Number One (Rhino, The Rutles)
THE HALF/CUBES: The Ghost At Number One (Jem, single)
THE MnM'S: I'm Tired (Burger, Melts In Your Ears 1980-81)
THE RAMONES: I Don't Wanna Walk Around With You (Rhino, Ramones)
THE BEATLES: Tomorrow Never Knows (Apple, Revolver)
--
THE KINKS: Dedicated Follower Of Fashion (Konk, To The Bone)

No comments:

Post a Comment