10 SONGS: 12/13/2025

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 # 1314

MICHAEL SIMMONS: Switchboard Susan

The rant accompanying this week's posted playlist waxed rhapsodically anna half about Fun Where You Can Find It, the splendid new covers album by rockin' pop whirlwind Michael Simmons. To wit:

"...On Fun Where You Can Find It, the original source material saluted by Simmons is varied and delightful, as our Michael meets 'n' greets the diverse likes of the Grass Roots, the Beach Boys, Squeeze. Steely Dan, World Party, Simon and Garfunkel, Nick Lowe, Fountains of Wayne, Genesis, Phil Collins and Phillip Bailey, and Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint, looks 'em each in the eye without flinching, smiles, and buys 'em all the drinks of their choice. Whether we're imbibing bourbon or Yoo-hoo, we're havin' a party.

"And here's the party's soundtrack: A Top Ten plus one, going up to eleven with taste, accomplishment, and an overriding belief that the song's the thing, the music matters, and love of music can help turn doldrums into gold. Like Midas. Like Brian Wilson. Like this. True treasure. Anyone who loves pop music should treasure Michael Simmons. 

"We sure do...."

We opened this week's irresistible extravaganza with Michael's ace take on "Switchboard Susan," a Mickey Jupp tune made essential by Nick Lowe. The Searchers also cut of very nice version, and Michael does not disappoint in his own effort to bring a smile to your dial. We'll hear Michael's take on a Steely Dan in our next show.

THE FLASHCUBES: Reminisce

Accept no substitutes: The Flashcubes' "Reminisce" is my favorite new track of 2025. And (with apologies to the Velvelettes), that is really sayin' somethin'. Amidst this year's considerable real-world faults, we have seen a veritable treasure trove of utterly fantastic new music. There has been music to inspire us, music to comfort us, music to challenge us, music to nurture us, music to cheer us, music to marshal the power of righteous anger, music to transcend, music to look ahead...

...and music to reminisce.

I'm biased--proudly so--but I do believe that a project I curated--the various-artists blockbuster Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes--can stand among the year's best. Each of the album's 24 tracks is compelling in its own right, and damned near nonpareil in context, gathering 21 great acts executing great covers of great songs written by members of the Flashcubes, and we set the ol' needle firmly into ragin', ravin' red by inviting the Flashcubes to contribute three new original recordings as well. 

The Flashcubes rise to the occasion of enhancing their own tribute album, and all three of the new 'Cubes classics--"Reminisce," "In These Hands," and "The Sweet Spot"--are bright-lights brilliant, all worthy contenders for anyone's Tops of '25 list. 

"Reminisce" was Make Something Happen!'s first advance single. It's the album's lead-off track. Rumor suggests it may soon be getting another renewed push as a single. And each and every spin of "Reminisce" compels me to raise my friggin' fist in accord and sheer exultation. The buzz is eternal, self-renewing, and endlessly invigorating. The path forward is built from the experiences that brought us this far. The mantra supplied by the Ramones and reaffirmed by the Flashcubes remains steadfast and true:

Hey-ho. Let's go.

SWEET: The Ballroom Blitz

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

PERILOUS: Glass Of Something

The mighty Perilous have a new EP called SOS, which collects all of their previous 2025 digital singles plus a remix of their remake of "Band Aid," a song originally done by drummer Paul Doherty's former group the Trend. Perilous have been TIRnRR Fave Raves from the get-go, they allowed us to use their incredible "Rock 'n' Roll Kiss" on our 2022 compilation This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5, AND they played at the release party for my 2023 book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones. Say it with me: WE'RE FANS!! And that's worth a toast with a glass of something. We'll have a brand-new Perilous holiday track on our next program.

GAME THEORY: Linus And Lucy

Sure, it's Game Theory covering a much-loved perennial first heard 60 years on the inaugural broadcast of the 1965 TV special A Charlie Brown Christmas. But it's NOT a Christmas tune! Not really! It's too soon for Christmas music! It's not time yet! It's...we...but...

...damn.

THE JAC: Summer Forever

THE HALF/CUBES: Feels Like Summer

SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE: Hot Fun In The Summertime

THE RAMONES: Rockaway Beach

Willful denial. Technically, we're not even up to winter yet, but who are we kidding? This is Syracuse! OF COURSE it's been snowing! I say thee Duh! The release of the superswell new single "Summer Forever" by the JAC provided sufficient excuse for me to slip a frolicsome foursome of fun-in-the-sun frivolity into this week's closing set (mingling with abandon alongside Dana's spins of Amy Rigby, XTC, the Pretenders, and Her Majesty's Ramones the Beatles).

I was not at all familiar with Tim Wheeler's "Feels Like Summer"--I'm listening to it for the very first time as I write this--but I was immediately in favor of programming  the Half/Cubes' exuberant cover, as heard on their current album Found Pearls. Wheeler's original is likewise pretty cool (even in summer), and it feels like ya can't go wrong either way.

I have previously written that Sly and the Family Stone's "Hot Fun In The Summertime" is "as inviting and idyllic as any June-July-August embrace ever committed to wax, a comforting groove that shines in the daytime and sways with the shadows of twilight." I later added, "If memory serves, a poll of Trouser Press magazine readers in the early '80s named 'Hot Fun In The Summertime' as the # 1 choice for the title of all-time top summer song. Surpassing the Beach Boys in that category would seem a daunting task. But if anyone could do it, it would have to be Sly."

And the Ramones' "Rockaway Beach" speaks for itself. Even though the Beatles will always be my all-time favorite group, the Ramones inspire a specific resonance and reverence within me. No other band's music can match the Ramones' ability to improve my moods at their darkest moments. Church of Ramones. Testify, brudders. The summer promised in "Rockaway Beach" currently is far and hard to reach...but we'll hitch a ride and get there when we get there.

THE SPONGETONES: Carol Of The Guitars

And so the calendar grows thin. The Spongetones herald (as in "Hark...!") the tentative beginning of TIRnRR's short Christmas season. We rarely play Yuletunes before mid-December, but we've gotta admit it's about that time. We'll dip a stocking into that pool on our next show, with new seasonal sides from Perilous, Jamie Hoover, and the Krayolas, plus two Christmas Stax classics in memory of our Featured Performer Steve Cropper. We'll follow up the following week, December 21st, with The 27th Annual THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO Christmas Show.

Eggnog all around!! I'll join you as soon as I've cleared my driveway.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. You can also become a Boppin' booster on my Patreon page.

I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. 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. You can read about our history here.

IN-PERSON AUTHOR EVENT on Monday December 15th at the North Syracuse Library: Three writers for the price of none!

On Monday December 15th, I'll be joining my fellow book-writers DAVE MURRAY and PAUL CANAVAN for an in-person author event at Northern Onondaga Public Library's North Syracuse branch. The event sprawls from 6:30 to 7:30 pm, and advance registration is required. Paul will talk about his book My Story So Far, Dave will speak on behalf of his novel A Breath Of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale), and I'll close the show with my rendition of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"...wait, that ain't right. I'll probably mention my books Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones and The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1), and we'll all be available to answer questions and, y'know, kibbitz.

This particular gig means a lot to me, because I grew up in North Syracuse...HOMECOMING! You can register here, and I hope to see you there.

Author Event - Carl Cafarelli, Dave Murray, and Paul Canavan In-Person

North Syracuse is proud to welcome local authors Carl Cafarelli, Dave Murray, and Paul Canavan to speak about their written works, answer questions from the audience, and sign books!

Dave Murray, who was born and bred here in the snow capital of the Northeast, had a double-lung transplant 20 years ago which motivated him to write A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale). He hopes this book will appeal to past and future transplant patients, people with cystic fibrosis, or anyone who appreciates a story about facing and overcoming obstacles.

 

Carl Cafarelli is the co-host of the weekly radio show This is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, and is the author of Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation with the Ramones (2023) and The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) (2024). His 1994 interviews with the Ramones were cited as essential reading by The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

 

In his memoir reflecting on his life's "story so far," Paul Canavan has compiled stories about his family, including about his relationship with his 8 brothers and sisters and their parents. He hopes this memoir serves as a testament of his family's bond and an inspiring reminder to others that we all matter to someone, and we need to be heard. It's all about a story worth telling.

Date:

Monday, December 15, 2025

Time:

6:30 PM - 7:30 PM

Time Zone:

Eastern Time - US & Canada (change)

Location:

Community Room

Location:

NOPL North Syracuse

Audience:

  Adults  

Categories:

  Author Event  

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. You can also become a Boppin' booster on my Patreon page.

I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. 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. You can read about our history here

This week's Wednesday

Wednesday is my day off from retail work, which makes it my designated day to try to get around to doing whatever needs doing. I always run out of Wednesday before I run out of Wednesday things to do.

At long last: A Wednesday with no scheduled appointments of any kind. In fact, at this writing, I don't have any more Wednesday appointments scheduled until early February. Those dates will fill in, but for now--like the Rolling Stones--I'm free to do what I want, any old time.

This being Syracuse, of course, one's understanding of the concept of doing what one wants must expand to include bundling up and clearing snow from the driveway. I woke up with a headache, which my morning mug of coffee did its caffeinated best to address. I caught up on banking and bill-paying, purchased a digital album (the superb Breaking Up With Trevor Blendour, recommended to me by Robbie Rist), did some invoicing, showered, enjoyed a pistachio muffin for breakfast, and put off firing up the ol' Cub Cadet for at least a little bit. There wasn't any need to hurry.

Even the Ramones-like 1-2-3-4! of coffee, shower, muffin, and supplemental mug of Café Bustelo Instant Espresso didn't quite outmuscle my headache, but some Ibuprofen did the trick. I got around to commencing mechanical snow removal before noon, and spent less than an hour completing that task. The Cub Cadet is now 18 years old, and a trusted winter companion since the aftermath of my back surgery in 2007 made it an essential purchase. 

The lack of scheduled appointments didn't mean a lack of errands to run. The roads in our suburban development hadn't yet been plowed, but they presented a manageable level of slushiness as I piloted my intrepid Ford Escape into the wild gray yonder. I needed to pick up a mailer to ship out a book sold on eBay, Brenda asked me to pick up a book she had on reserve at the library, and I had to stop at the post office to do the aforementioned eBay shipping. I discovered I'd bought the wrong size mailer, so I paid for a larger one while at the post office and figured I'd exchange the incorrect purchase on the way home. I did that right after snagging my new comics at Comix Zone and boppin' into The Utica Pizza Company for a to-go order of Utica greens to add to dinner. 

When I got home, I handed the Utica greens to Brenda. She started warming up some leftover turkey casserole while I went back outside to shovel the end of the driveway, as the snowplows had been through the neighborhood while I was out. It had long since stopped snowing, so that little clean-up task was my final act of winter season maintenance for the day.

After our early dinner, Brenda and I went to our home office room to review the basics of listing items for sale on eBay. I've been downsizing parts of my vast accumulation of stuff, and Brenda wants to help by putting up the listings on days when she's home and I'm at my retail job. Teamwork! She successfully put a couple more of my DC Archives hardcover comics collections up for sale, and I left her with a stack of additional books to list as she gets to them. We watched a little TV before she went to bed.

Wednesdays have been freed up a smidge by the decision to record the weekly This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio in the first part of the week: Playlist-plotting phone call with Dana on Monday night, tracks pulled and finalized later that same night, individual track credits assembled during the day on Tuesday, my back announcements and chatter recorded during a break at work early Tuesday afternoon, minor corrections executed after Tuesday night supper, and the whole mess forwarded to Dana before it was time for Tuesday's Jeopardy! Sounds clinical, I guess, but the result remains The Best Three Hours Of Radio On The Whole Friggin' Planet.

Didn't get any writing done on Wednesday, but also knew ahead of time I wasn't going to get any writing done. I've been feeling a little...overworked? No, that ain't it. As 2025 gets set to careen into oblivion, I feel a need to pause and recharge. I probably won't resume interviews for my 2026 book Make Something Happen! The DIY Story Of A Power Pop Band Called THE FLASHCUBES until after we've given this calendar's last page the burning it deserves. The book will get done--I am far too stubborn to concede any other possibility--and my short story collection Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! Short Stories And Other White Lies will also get done; both will be published in 2026, and I'll continue work on two other books as soon as I'm finished with Make Something Happen! and Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! 

But that's work for Wednesdays from January onward. The remainder of December's Wednesdays are meant for gathering strength. Resting. Refueling. 

And then returning with a vengeance. 

Meanwhile, this week's Thursday promises more snow. A lot more snow. The ol' Cub Cadet stands ready. We'll plow our way through to next week's Wednesday in our own due time. Can't stop it. Might as well embrace it. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. You can also become a Boppin' booster on my Patreon page.

I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. 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. You can read about our history here

THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE! Sweet, "The Ballroom Blitz"

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

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

SWEET: The Ballroom Blitz

Written by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman

Produced by Phil Wainman

Single, RCA Records [UK], 1973

The music of Sweet was huge for me in the '70s. I was happily addicted to AM radio, and Sweet's records were an integral part of that pop-music mainline directly into my eager veins. I don't know if I made note of the group itself when I was diggin' "Little Willy" and "Blockbuster" on Syracuse's Big 15 WOLF in 1973, but I knew the songs. "Little Willy" was a Top Ten hit across the country, and although "Blockbuster" struggled to breach the charts nationally (Billboard peak at # 73), it was in regular rotation on the 'Cuse airwaves.

I didn't know anything about Sweet. I don't think I even knew they were British, nor that they were considered part of an amorphous U.K. glam/glitter scene, alongside the disparate likes of Slade (whom I also loved), Suzi Quatro (with whom I was teen-crush besotted), and Gary Glitter, even the Bay City Rollers. I eventually saw all of those acts lip-syncin' on Supersonic, a weekly British jukebox TV show available via cable from New York's WPIX, and I presume I musta seen Sweet there, too. 

Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do) will never skip any excuse to post a picture of Suzi Quatro

But it was another TV show--the venerable American Bandstand--that hooked me on "Ballroom Blitz." The group itself didn't appear on this particular Bandstand; it was just Dick Clark playing the record as his assembled AB dancers did their thing. It was 1975, two years after the song had been a hit in its native UK; it was called "The Ballroom Blitz" in England, and its definite article either fell overboard during the transatlantic journey or the name was changed at Ellis Island. 

I was 15, watching American Bandstand as I sometimes did on a Saturday. I'm sure I ogled the girls, envied the guys, but most importantly, I listened to the damned song. I'd probably already heard it on the radio by then. But something about this televised rockin' pop moment just...clicked. It wasn't the sight of the girls bouncin' about, honest. It was the song. It's always the song.

Well all right, fellas

Let's GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!

"Ballroom Blitz" bopped. The phrasing is not accidental. About a year later, the Ramones would basically revamp "Ballroom Blitz" with some added chanting inspired by the Bay City Rollers' "Saturday Night" into their own masterful call to arms "Blitzkrieg Bop." Sweet provided the blueprint. It's quite possible that I would never have fallen so hard for the Ramones if Sweet hadn't prepared me for such rapture.

It took me and my minuscule record-buyin' budget a while, but I eventually acquired a copy of Sweet's Desolation Boulevard LP, most likely via the RCA Record Club. The album included "Ballroom Blitz" and its follow-up hit "Fox On The Run." "Fox On The Run" was my highlight on Side Two, but I mainly obsessed over Side One: "Ballroom Blitz," "The 6-Teens," "No You Don't," "A.C.D.C.," and "I Wanna Be Committed," the latter song almost certainly another inspiration for the Ramones. I played that side relentlessly, joyously. During my senior year, 1976-77, I often brought Desolation Boulevard to school for spins when I was hanging out at the newspaper office, as much a go-to album as my Beatles and British Invasion, my Raspberries' Best, my decidedly odd 2-LP compilation Heavy Metal, and the Monkees albums introduced to me by a girl I knew somewhere. As I learned about the Kinks, as I learned about punk, as I prepared to trade one set of experiences for the next in that overrated growin'-up sequence, Sweet was as important a part of my soundtrack as everything else. 

Oh yeah!
It was electric
So perfectly hectic
Then the band started leaving
'Cause they all stopped breathing

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. As the man in the back said, "Everyone attack!," I retain my ongoing allegiance to a still-vivid recollection of listening to Desolation Boulevard during the musical crucible of my teens; I hear the song, and I remember. I remember what it meant to me, how great it was, how great it still is, how great it will always be. Are you ready, Steve? Uh-huh. Andy? Yeah. Mick? Okay. And alright, fellas. Thank you for being there when I needed you. Thank you for being Sweet.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. You can also become a Boppin' booster on my Patreon page.

I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. 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. You can read about our history here.

COMIC BOOK COVER GALLERY: Comics (other than superhero books) acquired in the '60s, '70s, and '80s

It's no revelation to admit that I'm a superhero fan, nor that most of my interest in comics comes out of my prevailing passion for that never-ending battle for truth, justice, and possession of the Cosmic Cube. Up, up, and away? I'll add an enthusiastic Excelsior!, 'Nuff said!, and To the Batcave!

But even as a kid in the '60s, my love of comics went beyond just the adventures of costumed super-doers, and into the realms of humor, funny animals, war stories, Westerns, horror, science-fiction, detective sagas, and more. Today's gallery attempts to gather some representation of comics I had that fell outside of the superhero genre.

Some of the picks here are arguable at best. Is Vampirella really not considered at least a tangent to superheroes? Are plain-clothes adventures set in (or at least adjacent to) the DC or Marvel universes fair game? My cover girl Dolphin (pictured above) eventually became a DC superhero...but in her sole appearance in the '60s, she was the star of a science-fantasy romance story, not a potential member of the Justice League of America.

My only regret in compiling this gallery is that I couldn't remember more specific issues that I read in this time frame, particularly more funny animal books. Nonetheless, I think I've cobbled together a decent set of images in tribute to comics titles that occupied a space at least a little bit outside of the biff, the bang, and the pow.

We'll be sticking exclusively to the '60s-'80s era of acquisition I've established for these galleries. Today's selection includes books I bought new, back issues I acquired after the fact (but within the timeline), and B-stock contraband originally purchased without their covers. As always: These aren't actual photos of comics in my collection. But I did have each and every one of 'em at some point in time.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. You can also become a Boppin' booster on my Patreon page.

I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. 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. You can read about our history here.