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 # 1353
PERILOUS: Overwhelmed By Reality
We jump-start this week's demostration of better radio through better radio with the debut spin of "Overwhelmed By Reality," the great new single from Perilous. In our ongoing effort to be an eensy bit less, y'know, whelmed, we will hear this fine track again on our next show. In the mean time, rock und rollers in the 315 have a chance to witness Perilous perform the song live on Friday, September 18th--TOMORROW!--at Funk 'n Waffles in Syracuse. It's a SPARK RADIO FUNDRAISER, and Perilous will be on a bill with the Flashing Astonishers and Know Nothing. YOU should be there! It is, after all, an overwhelmingly worthy cause.
THE KENNEDYS: Girl On A Motorcycle
The release of a new album by esteemed coffeehouse pop masters the Kennedys always scores an automatic and irrefutable claim to a piece of TIRnRR airspace, and their latest effort Smoketree continues that well-earned tradition. My immediate Smoketree favorite is "Girl On A Motorcycle," partially for its immediate titular connection to the enduring mystique of Marianne Faithfull...but mostly 'cuz it sounds so good. See, we're proud to be suckers for stuff that sounds good.
THE COCKTAIL SLIPPERS: Back Where You Belong
Ooo--more stuff that sounds good! We've been meaning to play the Cocktail Slippers' exuberant "Back Where You Belong" for quite some time, starting from way back when it was an ace advance single from the group's then-forthcoming album Joyride. Yeah, we're late to the party, but the album's out now, and trust me: This party is where we all belong. Welcome back, Cocktail Slippers!
SPECTRAFLAME: The Look In Your Eyes
Continuing the saga of TIRnRR's dedication to being suckers for stuff that sounds good, from a previous edition of 10 Songs:
Awright, we've been playing St. Petersburg, Florida's phenomenal pop combo Spectraflame a lot this year, a situation cued up by our pal Robbie Rist's involvement with (and recommendation of) the group, but maintained in dedicated earnest by the quality of Steve Burgess's original pop songcraft. We have three hours of airtime to occupy each week, and it's more efficient to occupy that airtime with good stuff. Spectraflame has proven to be a reliable resource for the good stuff, and "The Look In Your Eyes" is Spectraflame's best one yet. Resistance is futile. Occupation continues. I know that look.
DAVID RUFFIN: I Want You Back
The Greatest Record Ever Made!
RADIO DAYS: Keep Me Straight
Aw, this is just so unerringly radio-ready, and I say that without intending a reference to the band's name. They're called Radio Days, but this is meant for radio days and nights and maybe even early mornings, too. It's from their new album Off The Record, but I'll go on the record with a straight-up vow to play this again on our next show.
THE MONKEES: Love To Love
September 12th marked the 60th anniversary of the debut broadcast of The Monkees TV series. I didn't see that first episode, but my sister got me watching not long thereafter, and I've been a fan ever since. We completely forgot about the anniversary when programming this week's show, but we did wind up including the Monkees anyway, with this spin of the 2016 remix of "Love To Love." As I wrote in a round up of my 25 favorite Monkees tracks:
Neil Diamond wrote four songs for the Monkees. We've discussed "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You," "Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)," and (in passing) "I'm A Believer," but my pick of the bunch is "Love To Love," recorded right before Don Kirshner's expulsion in '67 and officially unreleased until the '80s (on Rhino Records' 1982 picture disc Monkee Business, though a lo-fi, bootleg-quality recording of the track appeared on a 1979 Australian compilation called Monkeemania, released by Arista). This is my favorite Davy Jones song, an absolutely winning confection of pure, sweet pop music. The version released on the 1996 vault dive Missing Links Volume Three is sublime, but I've come to prefer the 2016 remix used for the Good Times! album, with its added backing vocals by Peter Tork and Micky Dolenz.
[REDACTED] FEATURING [REDACTED]: [REDACTED]
Due out in November from the visionary Big Stir Records label. The 45 RPM single will be available for sale at Syracuse's legendary home for rock 'n' roll The Lost Horizon on the evening of November 7th, which just happens to be the night of a really loud memorial show honoring Syracuse punk/new wave patron saint Paul Armstrong. A coincidence, I'm sure.
We've been playing it here for weeks, while coyly refusing to name it. We are such mother[redacted]ing teases. We will name it at the top of our very next show. And before that--hey, TOMORROW!--I'll talk about it when I guest on The Spoon podcast with Robbie Rist, Chris Jackson, and Thom Bowers.
And if you already know what it is, that's fine, too. I don't mind.
THE BEATLES: Dizzy Miss Lizzy
Hey, speakin' of Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse [redacted], their '70s live sets used to include a cover of "Dizzy Miss Lizzy," a Larry Williams R 'n' B gem they (like most of us) learned from the Beatles. When [redacted] opened for the Runaways and the Ramones in 1978, I recall [redacted] guitarist Arty [Redacted] telling me that he'd always thought it was a Beatles original, and had then just recently discovered the Fabs didn't create it. Yeah, I replied helpfully, It was like Little Richard, I think. This serves as a reminder that, at the age of 18, I was already a dumbass.
I did learn better. No, honest! And recently, when I was interviewing Arty [Redacted] for a book I'm writing, he told me:
"Well, you know, the Beatles, you learn more and more when you listen to the songs that they were doing, all those beautiful gems of American black music. I mean, it's an incredible thing. I finally heard the original version of "Devil In Her Heart" [by the Donays] fairly recently. And it's just one of the greatest records you've ever heard. You know, the Beatles just had such unbelievable taste. Because those records, when you listen to Larry Williams and stuff, his versions really hold up in a big way. I mean, [the Beatles] were copying some of the greatest music...."
Agreed. Even the best of the best had to learn somewhere.
PERILOUS: Rock & Roll Runaway
Run away? From this reality? Oh, I am IN...!
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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 about our history here
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