10 SONGS: 11/8/2025

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 # 1309

THE GOLD NEEDLES: Ghost In The Airwaves

Awright! Even as we barrel past October 31st with manic intent, we're still playing goodies from Big Stir Records' fabulous Halloween compilation Chilling, Thrilling Hooks And Haunted Harmonies. Yeah, we pride ourselves on being jack o'lanterns for ALL seasons. This week, that deliberate pursuit of tricky treats brings us to the Gold Needles' Chilling-Thrilling-HAUNTED! hit "Ghost In The Airwaves," which seems a natural choice to put the ol' poltergeist into our little mutant radio signal. We'll hear Strawberry Alarm Clock's contribution to this album on our next show. And for further gilded 'n' pointed deviltry, stay tuned for more from the Gold Needles in two weeks, as we dive into their brand-new album Mood Elevator. Stick with us, you silver threads! We all shine on.

THE PRETENDERS: What You Gonna Do About It?

Both Dana and I love the music of the Small Faces, and I'm gonna guess that Chrissie Hynde and her great Pretenders are Small Faces fans as well. Their take on the Small Faces' "What You Gonna Do About It?" is outstanding, and might even surpass the original. 

THE HALF/CUBES: When I Look In Your Eyes

"When I Look In Your Eyes" was the first track by the Romantics that I ever heard on the radio. It wasn't my first exposure to the Romantics; it was Romantics # 6 for me, as I already owned copies of their two indie singles ("Little White Lies"/"I Can't Tell You Anything" and "Tell It To Carrie"/"First In Line"), plus the compilation LP cut "Let's Swing." But in 1979, the only DJ I'd heard spinning any of those Romantics classics was future DJ me, either at home in the Syracuse suburbs or in my Brockport college dorm room.

In (I think) late '79, Syracuse's 95X started playing "When I Look In Your Eyes" as an advance track from the Romantics' forthcoming eponymous debut album. That album wasn't released until January 1980, but I clearly remember hearing the track on 95X prior to the LP's street date. My memory insists I heard it in the summer, but I suspect my memory mighta been drinking. Whenever it was, I was thrilled to hear power pop on commercial radio.

My hometown heroes the Flashcubes were contemporaries of the Romantics, and the two bands shared bills at shows in Syracuse and Detroit. Alas, the Romantics' appearances in the 315 always occurred when I was out of town, matriculatin' elsewhere. The Flashcubes also had a track ("Christi Girl") on the same compilation (Waves Vol. 1) that sported the Romantics' "Let's Swing."  

Now, the Half/Cubes (featuring Flashcubes bassist Gary Frenay and drummer/producer Tommy Allen, plus Randy Klawon and Fernando Perdomo) have recorded an absolutely exquisite cover of "When I Look In Your Eyes" as a track on the uber-fab new Half/Cubes album Found Pearls. It still sounds great in its natural habitat: On the radio, playing loud.

THE SPONGETONES: It Seemed So Easy

Power Pop Hall of Famers the Spongetones are a regular and welcome presence on TIRnRR, and 2025 has provided us with a treasure trove of new Spongetones tracks to program with our usual delirious dedication. They released three swell new singles this year, and then packaged those studio winners as the "and beyond" portion of  their new live album The 40th Anniversary Concert...And Beyond. They have a track on the above-hyped Chilling, Thrilling Hooks And Haunted Harmonies. Of course they have a track on my labor-o'-love compilation Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes. Duh.

And the Spongetones pay proper tribute to power pop's ur-band Raspberries with a kickin' cover of "It Seemed So Easy," as heard on our pal Ken Sharp's flat-out fantastic compilation Play On: A Raspberries Tribute. We're gonna play this again on our next show, too. All hail this Year of the Spongetones.

THE CHELSEA CURVE: Rally Round

Wait, how has this not already appeared in a previous 10 Songs...?! I swear to Joey Ramone. I'd fire me if I could find someone cheaper. The Chelsea Curve's "Rally Round" is wall-to-wall invigmoration, it's one of this year's best singles, and we're gonna keep on playing it for the specific purpose of invigmoratin' in earnest. Invigmoration is its own reward. Rally round!

SLADE: Gudbuy T' Jane

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE RAMONES: Do You Wanna Dance?

From a previous 10 Songs:

As much as we associate the film Rock 'n' Roll High School with the Ramones, actress P. J. Soles was the film's actual star, playing Riff Randell, teen rock 'n' roller. But the Ramones are at the heart of it all, and I can't imagine how the movie would have played with its previous intended band Cheap Trick (or director Allan Arkush's teen fantasy of a making a movie with the Yardbirds), nor how producer Roger Corman's original concept of Disco High could have succeeded on any aesthetic level. The essential nature of the Ramones' involvement here reminds me of what Roger Ebert said about the Beatles' first movie: If A Hard Day's Night had been shot in color, but was otherwise identical, frame by frame, it would not have been the same classic (and classic feeling) film as it is in black and white. The iconic black and white images of the Beatles are an essential part of A Hard Day's Night, just as the Ramones are central to Rock 'n' Roll High School.

Ramones music plays throughout the film, mixed with treats by Chuck Berry, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Devo, MC5, Alice Cooper, Brownsville Station, the Velvet Underground, and more. Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee, and Marky have brief "acting" bits, and five on-screen musical appearances. When we first see them, they lip-sync "I Just Want To Have Something To Do," and they show up in a dream sequence in Riff's bedroom--nice work if you can get it--serenading her with "I Want You Around." 

The Ramones return for two more songs at the film's climax. The film ends with title tune "Rock 'n' Roll High School," but the first of the two is "Do You Wanna Dance?," a cover of the familiar rock 'n' roll classic. For a very, very long time I regarded this as my all-time favorite cover of anything by anybody. And while I've kinda shifted my allegiance to the Ramones' cover of Tom Waits's "I Don't Want To Grow Up," I still wanna dance.

Don't you?

KATRINA LESKANICH: Honey Lamb

Katrina and the Waves' sublime signature hit "Walking On Sunshine" was my own Song of the Summer in 1985, and it's not even the group's very best track (an honor I'd bestow upon "Red Wine And Whiskey"). I get a warm 'n' sunshiny feeling just knowing that Katrina Leskanich is still walking that walk, and her glorious new single "Honey Lamb" remakes a lesser-known Katrina and the Waves to spectacular result. 

ACAPULCO LIPS: Fuzzy Sunshine

Gotta admit that I wasn't familiar with Acapulco Lips prior to hearing them as guests on a recent episode of the always-vital Only Three Lads podcast. The group's bassist/vocalist Maria-Elena Herrell immediately earned my respect by naming the Barracudas's Drop Out With The Barracudas (one of my all-time Love At First Spin perfect albums) among her Top 5 beach albums. PREACH!! And if mere great taste on the part of Herrell and her bandmates weren't enough to automatically make you a fan, a listen to their music will win you over to the righteous cause of all things Acapulco Lips. And while I'm cursing the fact that I didn't know about the group during [ahem] THE TWELVE YEARS THAT HAVE PASSED SINCE THEIR FIRST RELEASE, I thank O3L in there here and now, and we play this gorgeous track "Fuzzy Sunshine" from 2025's Now. Better late than not at all, and any record you ain't heard is a new record. If the sunshine's fuzzy, man, it feels fresh to me.

THE MONKEES: Daily Nightly

Psychedelic!

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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.

10 SONGS: 4/14/2022

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 # 1124.

TAMAR BERK: Real Bad Day

Hey, remember last week, when I said Tamar Berk's new single "Tragic Endings" was my favorite among the tracks I've heard from her so far? Ah, those were the days. Since then, I've heard more of Tamar's forthcoming new album Start At The End, and the surly swagger of its track "Real Bad Day" propels it to the tippytop of my Tamar Berk's Greatest Hits chart. I'm not fickle; I'm open-minded. Great li'l number, and I expect we'll be playing it again on TIRnRR. And again. And again. I betcha we'll also give a repeat spin to "Tragic Endings." Dear, dear "Tragic Endings." I hope we can still be friends, 

GARY FRENAY: Just Like Me

Gary Frenay's "Just Like Me" was among my many favorite Screen Test songs. It only existed as a demo in the '80s, and I always wished they would revisit it. And now, they have! The new recording is by Screen Test--Gary with Arty Lenin and Tommy Allen, their efforts supplemented by Gary's talented son Nick Frenay--but it will be billed as a Gary Frenay solo track when it appears on his next album (presumably in 2023). Wonderful, wistful song under any name.

THE IDES OF MARCH: Girls Don't Grow On Trees

The Ides of March are considered one hit wonders for their 1970 smash "Vehicle." I hate that song. BUT! Before warbling about the friendly, creepy stranger in the black sedan, the Ides of March were a better'n decent '60s garage pop combo. I absolutely adore the group's undeservedly obscure 1966 single "Roller Coaster," and I intended to play that on this week's show. Instead, I figured we ought to spin an Ides of March track we ain't ever played before, and plucked this ace number "Girls Don't Grow On Trees" from my handy-dandy copy of Sundazed Records' pre-"Vehicle" Ides compilation Ideology. Listening again to their '60s beat output reinforces my regret that the world at large only remembers them for "Vehicle."

THE CHELSEA CURVE: Jamie C'mon

The Chelsea Curve's freshly-released debut album All The Things performs the public service of collecting the group's assorted singles (including past TIRnRR Fave Raves like "Top It Up" and "Better Way"). But WAIT! There's MORE! I mean, it wouldn't be ALL the things if there weren't more, right? The album kicks off with the blood-pumpin' rush of the Chelsea Curve's brand-new single "Jamie C'mon," then drags (in-joke) you along for an album's worth of rock 'n' roll kicks run on guitars, drums, amplifiers, lipstick, hormones, and two-for-one well drinks. C'mon! All the things can't just dance with themselves, ya know.

THE JIVE FIVE: My True Story

Although "My True Story" was the Jive Five's only big pop hit (Billboard Hot 100 # 3 in 1961), we've been far more likely to play "What Time Is It?," their # 67 single from '62. This is further illustration of my conviction that the phrase "one hit wonder" doesn't have to be a pejorative. Like the Easybeats, the Bobby Fuller Four, the Knickerbockers, Fontella Bass, and so many other fine acts, the Jive Five created a number of interesting tracks, and it's the pop world's loss that these records didn't receive more recognition and acclaim in their day.

But sometimes (and unlike the case of the above-mentioned Ides of March), there is something to be said for the big hit. "What Time Is It?" is probably on my own all-time Hot 100, but "My True Story" is my # 1 in the broad category of doo-wop records. Now we must cry CRY cryyyyyyyyy oh whoa our blues away. And its Dragnet-inspired conceit--The names have been changed, dear, to protect you and I--make this Joe Friday's greatest hit by default.

THE FLASHCUBES: Gone Too Far

I make no apologies for my ongoing devotion to the music of the Flashcubes. Paul Armstrong, Tommy Allen, Gary Frenay, and Arty Lenin. My hometown heroes, Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse, one third of my all-time rockin' pop Trinity (with the Beatles and the Ramones). Mere hyperbole? Nope. I wouldn't be who I am without the Flashcubes.

As a club-goin' teen at Flashcubes shows in the late '70s, I believed there were a ton of hit-worthy original 'Cubes songs. Arty Lenin's "Gone Too Far" was for damned sure one of those, a pure pop confection that Gary once said reminded him of the Monkees. The group demoed the song at the time (as heard in remixed form on the Bright Lights anthology), but neither that version nor the live 1978 version I had on a bootleg cassette quite captured its effervescent vitality.

Finally, "Gone Too Far" achieves its full potential on Flashcubes On Fire, the recently-released archival live CD of the Flashcubes in their 1979 rock 'n' roll prime. This is the song I fell in love with when I was 18 and 19, reeling under the brightly dim lights at Central New York nightclubs. 

Gary said this reminded him of the Monkees? That's high praise in my book. Micky Dolenz coulda sung it, and he still could. I don't think even the mighty Mick could outdo Arty and his fellow 'Cubes on "Gone Too Far."

THE RUNAWAYS: Heartbeat

"Heartbeat" is a power ballad, which makes it something of an anomaly among the Runaways' recordings. The Runaways weren't a punk group, but they were on punk's periphery, and most of their material favored the I-love-rock'n' roll approach that would subsequently propel founding member Joan Jett to solo stardom (and The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame). 

"Heartbeat" isn't the only slower number in the Runaways' catalog, but it was the one I noticed. It was among my favorite tracks on the 1977 Queens Of Noise album, the second (and last) LP to include original lead singer Cherie Currie. Currie was underage at the time, and "Heartbeat" is about a tryst with an unidentified singer. Backstage, lied about my age/Didn't care that you were older. The story may be fiction, but it has an aura of truth, and probably is true. Stop. Look. Listen.

SUZI QUATRO: Paralysed

Suzi Quatro was my # 1 teen crush; that story was told here, and has since been revamped for my long-threatened book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1). But even then, I didn't like Suzi Q's 1975 album Your Mama Won't Like Me. Renowned Radio Deer Camp DJ Rich Firestone joked that she should reissue the album under the new title Carl Won't Like This. I ought to go back and listen to the album again, just to see if my opinion revises itself.

"Paralyzed" (or "Paralysed" in the UK, and as it's listed on my CD of The Essential Suzi Quatro) was the one Your Mama Won't Like Me track I did like. I'm gonna spin my web all over this town/If I catch you with your trousers down. I played it often, and now we play it again. The stories you've heard are gonna be confirmed/You won't believe your eyes....

THE JAYHAWKS: I'm Gonna Make You Love Me

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

IRENE PEÑA: In This Room

It's not easy to pick one single favorite Irene Peña track. I'm doing it anyway. Eternal thanks to the mighty Big Stir Records label for making the eleven tracks from Irene's 2011 debut album Nothing To Do With You available as individual digital singles, and thereby introducing grateful me to the sublime "In This Room." The track has never been on a CD release. One hopes that will change very soon.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider supporting this blog by becoming a patron on Patreon, or by visiting CC's Tip Jar. Additional products and projects are listed here.

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, and on the web at http://sparksyracuse.org/ You can read about our history here.

I'm on Twitter @CafarelliCarl

10 SONGS: 11/9/2021

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 # 1102.

THE CHAMBERS BROTHERS: Time Has Come Today

My soul has been psychedelicized. I guess the Ramones' monolithic 1983 cover of "Time Has Come Today" was the first version to really make my brain buzz--I was a huge, huge fan of the Ramones' Subterranean Jungle album--but the Chambers Brothers' incredible 1967 original has become my go-to. TIME! Earlier this year, I picked up both a Chambers Brothers best-of CD and a reissue of their first album The Time Has Come, the latter to get the full-length version of its de facto title track. I doubt we're likely to play that eleven-minute-plus cut much (if ever) on TIRnRR, but the familiar 4:55 single was sufficient to psychedelicize souls on this week's playlist.

THE CHELSEA CURVE: Top It Up

I hate the Chelsea Curve. And by that I mean I love the Chelsea Curve, even as I remain intimidated by their ability to release a compelling new single every freakin' month. Let's face it: they're good, and all radio shows should program the Chelsea Curve. Yeah, even the talk radio shows, ideally in place of the talk. "Top It Up" is yet another rockin' pop triumph in the continuing saga of the Chelsea Curve, and we're gonna keep playing each new Chelsea Curve single for as long as they keep making them. So that "hate" thing is purely rhetorical. How could anyone hate--or even fail to flat-out adore--an act as rock-steadily compelling as the Chelsea Curve? Feel the love, and top it up.

JANILEIGH COHEN: The Blues Run The Game

As I mentioned last week, my wife and I have been watching the TV series This Is Us for the first time, obsessively catching up from the beginning. We're fascinated by the show's storytelling, but a side bonus of watching it has been our belated discovery of the song "The Blues Run The Game." I own the Simon and Garfunkel boxed set Old Friends, so I should have known the song from that resource, but we have no time for should-haves in this fast-paced world of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio. Brenda and I heard Jackson C. Frank's original 1965 version of "The Blues Run The Game" on one of the early episodes of This Is Us, and found it intriguing. And then we were fully captivated by the aching beauty of Janileigh Cohen's 2017 cover.

CIRCE LINK AND CHRISTIAN NESMITH: Satellite

The intrepid and irresistible duo of Circe Link and Christian Nesmith allowed us the use of their effervescent track "I'm On Your Side" for our compilation This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4, and the song was our # 1 most-played cut in 2017. I told the story of how we first encountered Circe 'n' Christian back here, and Circe was a Featured Artist on the November 19th 2017 edition of TIRnRR as part of The Magnificent Six alongside the Jam, the Cocktail Slippers, the Easybeats, the Spinners, and the Clash. Guess it's safe to say we're on their side.

That devoted advocacy continues with their brand-new album Cosmologica. Now, a record that bills itself as progressive rock might not seem the ideal match for the bubblepunk rockin' pop likes of TIRnRR, but prog can also be pop if it wants to be pop. "Satellite" provides irrefutable evidence of that.

RADIO BIRDMAN: Aloha Steve And Danno

I purchased Radio Birdman's Radios Appear LP in '78 or maybe '79, when I was in college. The album included the great "Murder City Nights" and the group's cover of the 13th Floor Elevators' psych-punk classic "You're Gonna Miss Me," but I was most drawn to "Aloha Steve And Danno." I mean, I simply had to blast a loud 'n' fast song about TV's Hawaii Five-0, especially when the song incorporated breakneck bits of the original TV show's theme song. And I was particularly taken with the idea of yelling BOOK 'IM DANNO! MURDER ONE! along with my Birdman boys as their record played on the turntable in my dorm room.

Like (I think) most Americans of my era, I had been a fan of Hawaii Five-0 throughout the early and mid '70s, though my interest had dimmed by the time I bought Radios Appear. My lawyer says I don't have to accept blame for the show's cancellation in 1980. When CBS rebooted the series in 2010, my interest was rekindled, and I watched its first few seasons (before that interest dimmed again). As a side note, I thought it was interesting that the reboot did a gender recast of the role of Kono, originally played the late actor Zulu, and then played in this shiny 21st century by actress Grace Park.

No offense to Zulu, but yeah: upgrade. BOOK 'IM DANNO! MURDER ONE...!

THE SHANG HI LOS: Plymouth Rock

Face front, pilgrim. Boston's phenomenal pop combo (and TIRnRR Fave Raves) the Shang Hi Los return to stuff your bird with an invigmoratin' new single. You'd better be thankful!

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN: Radio Nowhere

My favorite Bruce Springsteen album is his 2007 work Magic. This choice may seem deliberately iconoclastic, or even mere clickbait, but I come in peace. I respect Springsteen and his accomplishments, and I certainly don't dislike (most of) his records. But nor do I share the passion for the Boss that many of my peers feel. Dig what you dig.

On the other hand, much of Magic has a shimmery and confident pop essence I don't hear in other Springsteen albums. I think I read somewhere that Springsteen had been listening to the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds when he was making Magic, and if that's not true, it should be. Magic includes "Girls In Their Summer Clothes," which is not only far and away my all-time top Springsteen track, it's also The Greatest Record Ever Made! 

Credit longtime TIRnRR pal Dave Murray for introducing me to this album (even though he thinks I'm nuts for preferring Magic to, say, Born To Run or The Wild, The Innocent And The E Street Shuffle). And that introduction began with the album's first single, "Radio Nowhere." Is there anybody alive out there? Ethereal and, yes, magic. Your magic may vary. Me? I just wanna hear some rhythm. Radio can be magic that way.

SPYGENIUS: Queen Of Eyes

I'm not sure how or why, but I think I completely missed the music of the Soft Boys when the late '70s and early '80s were still, y'know, actually happening all around me. The group's 1980 album Underwater Moonlight woulda been a prime candidate for one of my favorite records of that whole decade, if only I'd heard it at the time. Oh, woe is me!

But I caught up with Underwater Moonlight in my own time, first with the astounding "I Wanna Destroy You" and then with the album itself, particularly the title track and "Queen Of Eyes."

Now, UK believers Spygenius pay tribute with an ace rendition of "Queen Of Eyes" as the first single from their new Big Stir Records covers album Spygenius Blow Their Covers. The album deserves special recognition for a visionary medley combining Traffic's "Paper Sun" with the Monkees' "Love Is Only Sleeping," and deep dives into the Squeeze, Gene Clark, Buffalo Springfield, and Cilla Black catalogs (among others) demonstrate that Spygenius do not blow their covers. Nope, not at all. 

THE WELL WISHERS: Let's Drive

We opened this week's radio extravaganza with "Let's Drive" by the Well Wishers, a track from the WWs' new digital collection Spare Parts. The Well Wishers are, were, was, and am Jeff Shelton, whose reliable pop sounds have been heard here under his various noms du bop (from Spinning Jennies through Hot Nun and Deadlights, and all points sideways) since we started this TIRnRR thing more'n twenty years ago. My all-time favorite Shelton work is the Well Wishers' "See For The First Time," and there've been a ton of other superb Shelton sides over the decades. "Let's Drive" is among his best.

And its title suggests a link with my favorite place to hear music. Here's a section about that from a book I've been writing:

"I listen to music while I'm driving. The car is my favorite place to listen to music; it's also frequently almost my only place to listen to music, but it's not merely my favorite by default. As a former pop journalist, I should try to propagate an image of sophistication and deliberation, retiring to my study, brandy in hand, intent on contemplating the splendor of a virgin vinyl Pet Sounds played through a 5.1 surround stereo system that cost more than I made in twenty years of freelancing for Goldmine. And...no. To be fair, there are decent meals that cost more than I made freelancing for Goldmine, but that's irrelevant. Pop music was meant to be listened to on cheap speakers, loud and distorted, as you're movin' down the highway at 500 miles an hour. 

"(This example is intended as hyperbole. Always obey posted speed limits, even when the Ramones are on.)...

"...Still: music in the car. Irreplaceable. Windows down (or air conditioner up) in the summer, snow tires barreling forward in the winter, the music turned up LOUD. It's a solitary experience, a communion; it's not quite the same when there's a passenger. When the Monkees released the digital single "She Makes Me Laugh," the first tease from the 2016 album Good Times!, I was disappointed with it...until I listened to it in the car. Then I got it, and I loved it. Pop music is made for the car. Driving in nearly any weather, give me my tunes, and I'll get there. The wind, the rain, the sun, and the snow are no match for the power of my music. Sunglasses on. Car stereo on. Let's go."

Yeah, let's go. The Well Wishers have a soundtrack for us to begin the trek.

THE RAMONES: Do You Wanna Dance

Well...do you? If so, you've come to the right place.

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10 SONGS: 9/9/2021

10 Songs is a weekly list of ten songs that happen to be on my mind at the moment. Given my intention to usually write these on Mondays, the lists are often dominated by songs played on the previous 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 # 1093.

THE BROTHERS STEVE: We Got The Hits

The Brothers Steve say, "We got the hits!" Yes we do, friends. Yes we do. Lemme tell ya 'bout a few of them....

THE CHELSEA CURVE: Inconceivable

Are the gal and guys of the Chelsea Curve really releasing a new single every month? Man, I hate overachievers, mainly because I'm jealous of, y'know, ambition. I forgive 'em quickly because each of these singles has been pretty damned swell, which is why we play them all on the radio. "A Better Way" has been my fave of the lot to date, but "Inconceivable" may give "A Better Way" a run for its overachieving money. Awright. Keep 'em coming, you lot.

GREAT BUILDINGS: Hold On To Something

They'll be there for you. Long before Danny Wilde and Phil Solem found fame as the Rembrandts, they were (wait for it!) friends in an ace early '80s combo called Great Buildings. Their lone major-label LP Apart From The Crowd was released by Columbia in 1981, and it did not ship 'n' sell the units it deserved. I bought the album (prompted by a rave mention in either CREEM or Trouser Press), but didn't really appreciate it until a year or two later. "Hold On To Something" is the album's lead-off track, and it remains a peer to any and all of the greatest rockin' pop tracks from that decade.

KISS: Detroit Rock City

My first KISS record was the Rock And Roll Over album, a high school graduation gift from my sister in 1977. I'm not exactly sure of the subsequent chronology of my KISS acquisitions. Both Love Gun and Destroyer likely came to me via record club purchases, Alive II was a Christmas present from Mom and Dad in December '77, and a beat-up copy of Alive! came from The Record Exchange in Cleveland Heights. I also picked up a very used copy of Hotter Than Hell somewhere in this '77-'78 time frame, establishing my KISS collection through my first year at college. Dressed To Kill came later, a free-with-purchase, get-this-OUTTA-here! used copy scarfed up at Brockport's Main Street Records. Other than Ace Frehley's "New York Groove" 45 and (maybe) a used copy of Dynasty, this was the totality of my personal KISS library until I decided to go back and get 'em all circa 1989.

I'm pretty sure Destroyer was my second KISS album, my first after Rock And Roll Over. I confess that there was never really a KISS album that I loved; with KISS (as with many other acts), I was an individual song guy rather than a whole LP guy. Side Two of Destroyer had "Shout It Out Loud," a track I loved and have proclaimed The Greatest Record Ever Made! But in the '70s, my primary Destroyer go-tos were the first two tracks on Side One, "Detroit Rock City" and "King Of The Night Time World," and then "Shout It Out Loud" on Side Two. I tried to get into the rest of the album, and I would have probably liked "God Of Thunder" without its special effects, but I likely would have been just as good with a four-song Destroyer EP of "Detroit Rock City," "King Of The Night Time World," "Shout It Out Loud," and the hit AM ballad "Beth." I am as a god of thunder made me.

"Detroit Rock City" remains a favorite. Get up, everybody's gonna move their feet, get down, everybody's gonna leave their seat. I avoid getting sucked into arguments about whether or not KISS is power pop; they're not, but honestly, I think some of their songs come closer to my idea of power pop than, say, 20/20 does. 

Your mileage may vary. But look out for that truck ahead.

THE MIRACLES: Going To A Go-Go

I wish. I miss live music, but I'm generally not in any big hurry to mix with crowds nowadays, since crowds almost always include at least some people who are--what's the word?--stupid. I've only attended two live music events since the shutdowns, with a third coming up soon; I'm masked and fully Moderna'd, but...people. I look forward to seeing more shows when it feels appropriate to see more shows. In the mean time, the Miracles have a song to rev us up for our eventual return to that exciting, vibrant environment. Live music! Oh, I wanna go. 

NICK PIUNTI: Heart Inside Your Head

So much fantastic new pop music being released, and so little time to squeeze it into a mere three-hour weekly showcase. Dana and I would start our own radio station, but we've already established that we hate overachievers. Wouldn't wanna contradict ourselves. Nonetheless, Nick Piunti and the Complicated Men are no strangers to TIRnRR airplay--their track "Upper Hand" scored significant spins in 2020--and new single "Heart Inside Your Head" merits attention from all ears, minds, and attention spans. This is a hit record.

OTIS REDDING: You Left The Water Running

I had no idea that Otis Redding's 1967 gem "You Left The Water Running" was originally unreleased, appearing only on an unauthorized 45 in the '70s and finally seeing legit issue in the late '80s. Well, some things are worth waiting for. I knew the song from Rhino Records' Redding box Otis!, which my lovely wife Brenda gave me as a Christmas gift a couple of decades ago. Thanks again, darlin'!

THE ROLLING STONES: Get Off Of My Cloud

"Get Off Of My Cloud" is the first Rolling Stones song I remember hearing, a hit on the radio in 1965, when I was five years old. In memory of the late Charlie Watts (whose distinctive drum intro to this song means Charlie was the first individual Rolling Stone I ever heard), this is The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE BOB SEGER SYSTEM: 2 + 2 = ?

An infinite number of songs can each be THE greatest record ever made, as long as they take turns. Even with an infinite number, though, some turns are perhaps less likely than others.

Some may be surprised that Bob Seger gets two chapters in my long-threatened book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1). I have given frequent public testimonial regarding how much I despise much of Seger's most popular work, and indeed a GREM! chapter about "Old Time Rock & Roll" is mostly about how much I hate that goddamned song. 

But for all that, a lot of Seger's earlier work is fantastic. Let's have a peek at a little bit of the book's chapter about "2 + 2 = ?"

"Maybe you never knew that Bob Seger made a punk record. If you didn't know, it's not your fault; neither music history nor Seger himself has seemed interested in the secret revelation of a dynamic, furious 1968 record called '2 + 2 = ?'

"It's a difficult dichotomy to reconcile. Seger's mass-market reputation is built largely upon a series of popular mid-tempo heartland ballads and MOR rockers, beloved by many, despised by others. They are soundtracks for truck commercials, banal and inoffensive radio fare with the bland personality of margarine. Even as I type that, I really don't mean any disrespect to those who love 'Like A Rock' or 'Against The Wind' or even--shudder--'We've Got Tonight' and 'Old Time Rock & Roll.' There are no guilty pleasures in pop music. If you like something, a guy writing dismissively about your familiar favorites is unlikely to alter your tastes, nor should it. Dig what you wanna dig. Just, y'know, forgive me for cringing when I hear any of that stuff. I have to dig what I wanna dig, too...

"...It can be galling to admit when you've been wrong. In this case, I comfort myself with a reminder that I still loathe the songs that made me critical of Seger's work to begin with, and (more importantly) that it's good to discover a redemptive portion of an artist's body of work. Seger's supposed to be a good guy; I'm happy to find concrete evidence that he made some records that I can love without reservation. Some of this has since been reissued on a 2018 collection called Heavy Music: The Complete Cameo Recordings 1966-1967. All of it remains relatively obscure.

"...'Get Out Of Denver' had been far and away my favorite among Seger's records. I also kinda liked 'Hollywood Nights' among the more famous choices. But this fresh treasure trove of archival nuggets introduced me to new favorites, recorded and originally released under the names Bob Seger & the Last Heard, the Bob Seger System, and Bob Seger solo. 'Noah.' 'Rosalie.' 'Lucifer.' Renewed spins of the still-great 'Get Out Of Denver' and the now-welcome 'Heavy Music (Part 1).' Rockin', man. And there was the immense, irresistible 'East Side Story,' a triumphant appropriation of Van Morrison's 'Gloria' riff in service of a tenement tragedy that was absolutely The Greatest Record Ever Made for the approximately two and a half minutes of my first spin of its cantankerous glory.

"'2 + 2 = ?' is even greater...

"...How did this happen? How could the Bob Seger of the wretched peacenik-baiting diatribe 'Ballad Of The Yellow Beret' also be responsible for the gooseflesh-raising intensity of the antiwar '2 + 2 = ?' And how did that guy go on to produce such mundane background noise to such numbingly popular effect? Seger's large. He contains multitudes. 

"But the multitudes need to hear '2 + 2 = ?' It's at least as savage as the Sex Pistols, as angry as the Clash, as explosive as the Stooges or the MC5. Never mind the bollocks, here's Bob Seger. Seger is a punk rocker."

THE SPEED OF SOUND: Tomorrow's World

Museum Of Tomorrow, the new album from Manchester's phenomenal pop combo the Speed of Sound, will be released by Big Stir Records on September 17th. It's very, very good. Very good. Find out more here, and get your wallet out. They got the hits. Tomorrow is coming atcha at the speed of sound.

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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, and on the web at http://sparksyracuse.org/ You can read about our history here.

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