10 SONGS: 4/22/2023

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 # 1177. This show is available as a podcast.

THE RAMONES: My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes To Bitburg)

Our April mission to play my # 1 favorite track from each of the Ramones' official studio albums has reached the next set of four: 1986's Animal Boy, 1987's Halfway To Sanity, 1989's Brain Drain, and 1992's Mondo Bizarro. Gotta confess that Animal Boy is my least favorite Ramones album, but it was still a dead heat for me between two fine Animal Boy numbers: "Something To Believe In" and "My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down," the latter previously released as a single under the title "Bonzo Goes To Bitburg."

Johnny Ramone didn't like either of 'em. In the 1994 interviews presented in my Ramones book, Johnny was aghast that I liked "Something To Believe In" (his specific reaction to my fondness of the track was "Oh, God!"), and he despised the political POV of "Bitburg:" 

"I think Dee Dee was just trying to jump on the bandwagon of, especially in Europe, people were singing political type songs, and the whole political issue. Because basically, any songs we had prior to that [with] even any mention of politics were usually sort of conservative, right? We would sing songs about Vietnam and things like that, and they were always sort of pro those movements...

"...I did not want to be doing any political songs. I didn’t want to be bad-mouthing the president. I was upset by the cover; the English record company did that. I think they were trying to jump on anything to knock America in any way. I didn’t wanna see Europeans doing it. It’s okay for Americans to criticize ourselves, but I don’t want the Europeans doing it...."

The interview transcripts suggest that in 1994 I liked Animal Boy more than I do now. Which means it's probably high time for a fresh listen.

THE ON AND ONS: Let Ya Hair Down

"Let Ya Hair Down" is the title tune from a brand-new album from Australia's phenomenal pop combo the On and Ons. Sidney's Finest have established themselves as TIRnRR Fave Raves, and from what I've heard so far, this new record reinforces their sterling rockin' pop rep. "Let Ya Hair Down" is a magnificent track to start with; the Let Ya Hair Down track we're playing on our next show is even better.

K.D. LANG AND THE RECLINES: Walkin' In And Out Of Your Arms

I really wanted to include this scorchin' k. d. lang gem in last week's Sire Records/Seymour Stein tribute, but I forgot all about it when Dana and I slapped the playlist together. I blame the destructive allure of absolute torch and twang. "Walkin' In And Out Of Your Arms" is such a great, radio-ready track, with a boppin' style equally suited to a number of formats, from country to alternative to whatever the hell it is we do on this show. Shame on us for not playing it sooner.

SERGE GAINSBOURG AND BRIGITTE BARDOT: Comic Strip

Ooh-la-la AND Zowie! Not as steamy as "Je t'aime...moi non Plus" (which was a European hit for Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin, written for [and originally recorded by] Brigitte Bardot), "Comic Strip" mixes Bardot's purring of Batman '66-style sound effects with Gainsbourg's superheroic sense of cool. Kitsch? Mais oui. 

THE HALF-CUBES FEATURING THE PERNICE BROTHERS: The Weakest Shade Of Blue

My favorite power pop group the Flashcubes are working on a new...hmmm? What...? I still can't talk about that...?! 

Fine. We did play the Flashcubes' most recent single "Get The Message" later in the show, and we for damned sure allotted time for a spin of this new single from the Half-Cubes. The Half-Cubes are 'Cubes rhythm section Gary Frenay and Tommy Allen, their forces combined with the guitar stylings of Cleveland rockin' pop stalwart Randy Klawon. The Half-Cubes' debut single enlists the aid of the Pernice Brothers for a splendid new version of the Pernice lads' classic "The Weakest Shade Of Blue." Not half-bad? ALL-good, in fact.

(And, because we have a long-standing predilection for ignoring NDAs, this is the second time we've played the Half-Cubes' "The Weakest Shade Of Blue." We gave it a (clandestine?) spin back in February, when the Half-Cubes themselves were still kinda hush-hush. Bad boys? That's us! And by the same token, our next show will feature an as-yet unreleased taste of the Flashcubes' [redacted], the very same [redacted] teased two paragraphs north of here. Should we fear repercussions? Nah. We have diplomatic impunity. We'll play the Half-Cubes again, too.)

THE RAMONES: I Wanna Live

I moved back to Syracuse from Buffalo in 1987. It was not a great time in my life, and it was still going to be a little while before things got better. 

In good times and less-good times, music has always been a highlight. I don't remember if I heard "I Wanna Live" before picking up my copy of Halfway To Sanity. I may have seen its video on MTV, but my memory insists I didn't even know the Ramones had a new album out when I spotted and immediately purchased Halfway To Sanity at The Record Theatre up on the SU hill. 

The album includes a fab guest appearance by Blondie's Debbie Harry on "Go Li'l Camaro Go," a meeting of CBGB's minds I'd been wishing for since the late '70s. Nonetheless, my favorite was (and is) "I Wanna Live." 

Is it a life-affirming track? By default, I guess, though it could also be read as a suicide note. But the guitar sounds like it wants to live. Joey likewise sounds like he's digging in for the long haul. It's what I want, and I'm going with that. 

LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS: Can't Wait 'Till Summer

I am steadfastly and delightedly obsessed with Librarians With Hickeys' "Can't Wait 'Till Summer." Listen, man: in pop music, obsession is its own reward. Why wait? And it's back again on our next show.

THE RAMONES: I Believe In Miracles

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

MICKEY AND SYLVIA: Dearest

Sometimes we have to confess that we just didn't know: to me, "Dearest" was a song by Buddy Holly, an informal acoustic performance he recorded solo in his NYC apartment, later gussied up a bit for release (as "Umm Oh Yeah") after his death. I had no idea that it was first recorded and released by Mickey and Sylvia. Hell, although I do know that Sylvia Robinson went on to have a hit (as Sylvia) with the breathy la-la-la-LA! bedroom naughtiness of 1973's "Pillow Talk," and that she was the founder of elite hip-hop label Sugarhill Records, my previous awareness of Mickey and Sylvia started and ended with their irresistible 1957 smash "Love Is Strange."

I've always loved "Love Is Strange," and I should have figured there was more Mickey and Sylvia greatness beyond that one immortal record. I guess it's time to learn more. Their original version of "Dearest" is sweet and inviting, and it's a fine place to start. Umm oh yeah....

THE RAMONES: Touring

The Ramones originally recorded "Touring" for their 1981 album Pleasant Dreams, but it was left unreleased at the time. Joey told me, "I had written it for Pleasant Dreams, and actually, we did a version of it [for] Pleasant Dreams. I had written it around the time of 'Sheena' and 'Rock ’n’ Roll High School,' and Seymour [Stein] felt it sounded too close to, I think, 'Rock ’n’ Roll High School,' which it might’ve [laughs].

"But it was a fun song. I mean, it really kind of conjures up all the great moments of why you’re doing what you’re doing. And from touring around the world and meeting all kinds of guys and girls [laughs], the whole bit. It was a fun song, a fun song to write."

Overcoming little technicalities like not being released in proper form at the time, the song managed to become one of my early '80s go-tos, thanks to a 1982 cover version by the Mystics. The reconstituted doo wop group, famed for their 1959 hit "Hushabye," changed Joey's lyrics and title to "Doreen Is Never Boring." I bought it and dug it, but wished I could hear the Ramones piledrive through it.

The wish came true when the Ramones recorded a new version for 1992's Mondo Bizarro. The Ramones' first studio album since Dee Dee left home and C. J. Ramone took over the four-string spot, Mondo Bizarro is a solid effort, blessed with kickass cuts like "Censorshit," "Poison Heart," "Strength To Endure" (sung by C. J.), and a seemingly incongruous (but fully righteous) cover of the Doors' "Take It As It Comes." For all that, my heart retains its devotion to "Touring."

Doreen could not be reached for comment.

For dramatic purposes, the part of Doreen shall be played by Brigitte Bardot. She...does not look boring at all.

TIRnRR's tour of the Ramones' studio albums concludes on our next show, featuring my # 1 top picks from Acid Eaters and ¡Adios Amigos!, supplemented by my favorite non-album Ramones track and my favorite Ramones soundtrack offering. SPOILER ALERT: the latter is not "Chop Suey." We'll follow with a salute to the Ramones' live albums on April 30.

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.

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!!

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: 2/17/2023

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 # 1168. This show is available as a podcast.

THE HALFCUBES: The Weakest Shade Of Blue

Well, this is how ya start a superior rockin' pop radio program. The Halfcubes, of course, are two members of the Flashcubes--drummer/producer Tommy Allen and bassist Gary Frenay--working with guitarist Randy Klawon and the occasional Special Guest Bat Villain. This is the third different Halfcubes track we've played, following their covers of the Guess Who's "Hand Me Down World" and Jason Falkner's "I Live." As Gary tells us, "Half a 'Cubes is better than none!"

And as today's Special Guest Bat Villain, the Halfcubes welcome Bob Pernice for a new (and wonderful) version of the Pernice Brothers' sublime gem "The Weakest Shade Of Blue." None of the Halfcubes' works have been released yet. We should all hope that changes very, very soon.

THE RAMONES: I Need Your Love

FIRST, THE PLUG! My new book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones is due out in early May, and I humbly invite you to preorder it here. Feel free to regard the "humbly" thing as a joke.

I like the Ramones' 1983 album Subterranean Jungle album more than some other folks seem to like it. To my ears, it was, if not quite a peer to the transcendent oomph of the first four Ramones albums, at least a return to form after the relatively less compelling End Of The Century and Pleasant Dreams.

Subterranean Jungle includes this cover of '80s NYC combo the Boyfriends' "I Need Your Love," a sprightly but mostly unknown pop ditty. When I interviewed Johnny Ramone in 1994, Johnny said "I heard the Boyfriends do the song. They did it great, and then we tried to do it and didn't do it very well."

Me? I love the Ramones' version of "I Need Your Love." We must agree to disagree on this one, Johnny.

THE SHIRTS: Tell Me Your Plans

My enthusiastic immersion in punk, new wave, and other assorted rock 'n' roll labels in the late '70s did not include the music of the Shirts. It wasn't a rejection of the Shirts; I just wasn't exposed to their recordings until many years later. Lack of opportunity? I guess. The only thing I remember hearing from them at the time was a track on the various-artists LP Live At CBGB's, wherein singer and actress Annie Golden's greeting to the Bowery audience was something like, We're the Shoits, from Brooklyn. She exaggerated the accent deliberately.

Nice Shoit, Annie

(I don't remember whether or not I've ever seen any of Golden's performances as an actress. I have never watched Orange Is The New Black. I do remember reading a letter she wrote to CREEM magazine in the late '80s, dismissing the artistic validity of the Monkees. Her opinion of the Monkees did not match mine. I'M a believer!)

Still, I didn't really hear the Shirts until a very long time after the fact. I snapped up a used CD reissue of their 1979 eponymous album in, I dunno, the early '00s?  I was immediately and overwhelmingly taken by that album's opening track "Reduced To A Whisper," hypnotized by a guitar sound that reminded me of the Shirts' CBGB's contemporaries Television. 

As a whole, the Shirts didn't really sound at all like Television; the comparison was based almost entirely on a similarly serpentine six-string thrum and the two groups' shared stomping grounds. The Shirts were...well, I don't wanna call them more mainstream than Television, 'cause that ain't exactly it either. But there were hints of connection to some things beyond the Bowery, to, say, the progressive-folk mix aura of Renaissance, or maybe even post-Woodstock FM radio, but at least a little more aggressive. It all still felt like part of Television's world, the Ramones' world, the world of Blondie, Talking Heads, Patti Smith, Max's Kansas City. CBGB's. New York City really has it all.

From that first album, the track "Tell Me Your Plans" just clicked with me recently. Its simmering blend of regret, resignation, yearning, and unmeasured dollops of uncertainty suggests a love affair approaching a crossroads without benefit of a map. Or a plan. There is, at best, a bumpy road ahead. There may not even be a road at all.

What's the plan, then? It's hard to tell.

THE CYNZ: Tell That Girl To Shut Up

We've been hittin' hard on "Tell That Girl To Shut Up," the current single by the Cynz. Holly and the Italians' original version of the song is nonpareil, and attempting to cover it is a daunting task indeed. The Cynz acquit themselves well, looking Holly square in the eye, not flinching, not ceding ground, and succeeding on their own confident 'n' groovin' merit. This track seems likely to score a berth on our 2023 year-end Countdown show.

But it's taking a break next week. Our February 19th playlist will give a different act a shot at channeling Holly and her Italians, but we're not forsaking our Cynz. We'll program an older Cynz track instead, one we've never played before. Tell that girl to STEP UP! Let's hear it for the Cynz.

THE EXCITERS: If You Want My Love

As Cheap Trick would later say (in a different song): If you want my love, you got it.

Man, the Exciters were such a great recording act. Until recently, I only knew them from their sole big pop hit ("Tell Him" in 1962), their 1964 Forgotten Original of "Do-Wah-Diddy" (a song that entered the public consciousness later the same year when covered [with an extraneous "Diddy" added to its title] by Manfred Mann), and 1963's "He's Got The Power" (from its inclusion on Rhino's girl group boxed set One Kiss Can Lead To Another). 

But Dana's been on an Exciters kick lately, and that's been good news for all of us. Such good material, and it's been a pleasure to hear Dana's Exciters pick each week. "If You Want My Love" is an A1 pop track.

Next week's Exciters track is even better.

RONNIE SPECTOR & THE E STREET BAND: Say Goodbye To Hollywood

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE BAY CITY ROLLERS: Honey Don't Leave L.A.

My CD reissue of the 1980 album Voxx credits the artist as the Bay City Rollers, but it's really just the Rollers, the post-Tartan, post-teenbeat incarnation of our erstwhile S! A! T-U-R! D-A-Y! chanters. Make no mistake: I loved a lot of the Bay City Rollers' stuff (particularly "Rock And Roll Love Letter"), but the latter-day Rollers were almost a different band. 

Er, not literally a different band. The Rollers did include 4/5 of the Bay City Rollers lineup that hit big in America as a one-band Scottish Invasion in '75. But it was a different vibe, as former lead singer Les McKeown split and the "Bay City" was dropped from the marquee; bassist Woody Wood, drummer Derek Longmuir, and guitarists Eric Faulkner and Alan Longmuir remained, and new recruit Duncan Faure brought his John Lennon-influenced vocals to this valiant effort to shuck the group's old image and continue as a more mature new wave pop band.

The Rollers' records didn't sell, but they should have. 1979's Elevator is quite good, and 1981's Richochet has its own irresistible moments. In between, Voxx was a contract-breaker, the kiss-off fulfillment of the group's commitment to Arista Records. It's the greatest contract-breaking kiss-off in pop history. If you dig great groups like the Records, then ya gotta hear what the Rollers did in their brief lifespan. The Voxx track "Honey Don't Leave L.A." is evidence of a worthy combo the world decided not to notice.

And it was the world's loss.

POPSICKO: Same Old Me

Our friends at Big Stir Records are going all-in on Popsicko. See, I like when Big Stir goes all-in on something. This '90s alt-rock combo appears to be a specific passion for Big Stir, and we'll be hearing the fruits of that passion in due time. For now, I direct you to S.W. Lauden's oral history of Popsicko for a little bit of background, and invite you to brace yourself for more from the legacy of Popsicko in 2023.

THE BEATLES: I Want To Hold Your Hand

THE BEATLES: She Loves You

The twist and shout heard 'round the world. 59 years after the Beatles assumed command, they're still my primary musical reference. They weren't the only great rock 'n' roll band, and I don't ever want to listen to only the Beatles and the Beatles only. There's still a lot of other old gold we need to crank up just as loud, and shiny-fresh new gold awaiting our delighted discovery each and every day.

Nonetheless: the TIRnRR POV starts with the Beatles. This week, we commemorated the anniversary of that POV's initial spark with two of the songs that annexed my ears and my pop ideals when I was four years old. Oh yeah, I'll tell you something. Nothing is Beatleproof. Keep those yeah-yeahs comin'.

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.

Carl's new book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones is now available for preorder, courtesy of the good folks at Rare Bird Books. Gabba Gabba YAY!!

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.

10 SONGS: 11/23/2022

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 # 1156. This week's show is available as a podcast.

LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS: I Better Get Home

This sublime song (and current single) from Librarians With Hickeys' recent album Handclaps & Tambourines has already established itself as a TIRnRR Fave Rave. There's a new video to go with it, and we endorse the video, the song, and the album with all the celebratory HEY!s we can muster.

We are broken. You can see that graffiti scrawled near a heart on a wall, as depicted in the video and in the cover graphic for the single. The group's Ray Carmen sits atop that crumbling wall, looking upon the words, perhaps contemplating the melancholy they express.

It suits the song. Sometimes it suits my mood, too. This Thanksgiving week, it seems a suitable choice to open our show.

HEY! Let's play it again next week! With our best thoughts of home in mind, the holidays won't even know what hit them.

THE TEMPTATIONS: Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)

While we don't necessarily believe that Little Steven Van Zandt stole TIRnRR's format to create Underground Garage--well, Dana believes it, but I'm not sure--the similarities are certainly there. Given the fact that TIRnRR does predate Underground Garage, I'm not ashamed to admit when we do the turnabout-is-fair-play bit and nick an idea from one of the many fine shows on the SiriusXM Underground Garage channel. I'm a subscriber. More great radio shows mean more great radio.

I wish I'd made specific note of which fab Underground Garage jock played the Temptations' "Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)" last week. I think it was either Michael Des Barres or Palmyra Delran, but I'm not testifying in either case. Whoever it was, thank you Mr./Ms. DJ! Your airplay of this wonderful Tempts tune prompted me to dig the track out of my own CD library for TIRnRR programming purposes. We are one!

But, uh...make no mistake: Little Steven still owes us a beer.

THE COCKTAIL SLIPPERS: St. Valentine's Day Massacre

Hey, speakin' of Little Steven, and speaking of melancholy, please welcome back to the TIRnRR stage: the Cocktail Slippers! Little Steven himself wrote this one, and it earns a defiantly tear-stained spot in my long-threatened book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1):

"Van Zandt's lyrics here imply a lovers' drama playing out in rapidly elapsing time. Was it adventure, was it fear, or sanctuary? Modesty Blaze's voice is tinged with both regret and resignation as she sings; behind her and with her, her band of sisters seems hellbent on holding an Irish wake for broken hearts. Across the calendar pages that fly by with cruel indifference--Thanksgiving night, Christmas morning, New Year's Eve--a love that can't even evolve from pencil to ink careens toward its inevitable erasure come the 14th of February. Now even your carrier pigeons have been picked off by the vultures/There's only one thing left for you to confess.... The song flies to its foregone conclusion on a conjugal bed of the most bittersweet la la la la lala las in rock 'n' roll history....

":...After those faux but convincing garage rockers the Twylight Zones performed 'The St. Valentine's Day Massacre' in Not Fade Away, Little Steven hisself recorded the little ditty for the 2017 Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul album Soulfire. Not to slight the song's author, nor to diss a made-for-the-movies band already dealing with the handicap of never actually existing in the first place, the song will always belong to five women from Norway who asked if they were still penciled in on your calendar. I know you're busy directing your life-long documentary/You never mentioned what part you wanted me to do...

"....Who'll be the last lover standing? Whether they liked it or not, the Cocktail Slippers knew the answer to that one. La, la, la, la, lala, la."

POPDUDES: Share The Land

The esteemed John M. Borack--writer, drummer, debonaire man about town--is the mastermind at the helm of We All Shine On: Celebrating The Music Of 1970, a superb various-artists tribute to the sounds of '70. A joint release from the combined forces of SpyderPop Records and Big Stir Records, We All Shine On came out this summer, and I think one or another of its tracks has seen TIRnRR airplay nearly every week since then.

John's group Popdudes contributes this cover of the Guess Who's 1970 smash "Share The Land," with (fittingly!) shared lead vocals from Michael Simmons and Robbie Rist, and it was the first of two covers of 1970 Guess Who hits we played this week (see below). It was also the first part of a Robbie Rist twin-spin, as we followed "Share The Land" with Robbie's own combo Ballzy Tomorrow, singin' a song from our current compilation This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5. Worth sharing!

THE CYNICS: Girl, You're On My Mind

Dana's been on a little bit of a Cynics kick lately, and we all benefit from that. "Girl, You're On My Mind" is my # 1 top Cynics track, written by Bernard Kugel of Buffalo's phenomenal fuzz combo the Mystic Eyes. I knew Bernie a little when I lived in Buffalo in the '80s, and I was just thrilled when the Cynics' circa 1990 video for "Girl, You're On My Mind" scored a spin on MTV 120 Minutes. The song still gets the ol' blood a-thumpin' and a-pumpin' like Rock 'N' Roll oughtta.

THE FLASHCUBES FEATURING RANDY KLAWON: Get The Message

THE HALFCUBES: Hand Me Down World

In my proud, long-standing (and self-appointed) role as the Flashcubes' most insistent fan, I love their original songs even more than I love their cover tunes. My possession of a pulse means I also love the covers they've recorded. The Flashcubes have always been armed with great taste and great ability to execute. The 'Cubes renditions of various ace gems previously done by the likes of the Move, Chris Spedding, Badfinger, the Bay City Rollers, and Paul Collins' Beat are wonderful, live covers of the Who, the Kinks, Arthur Alexander, Eddie Cochran, Link Wray, the Raspberries, Larry Williams (via the Beatles), and Big Star captured on Flashcubes On Fire are the sonic equivalent of amphetamines, and I think the Flashcubes' version of "Do Anything You Wanna Do" somehow edges beyond Eddie and the Hot Rods' seemingly nonpareil original. I'm biased--I'm a FAN!!--but the evidence is in the grooves. Cubic grooves.

All of the above serves as explanation for why the Flashcubes' current series of digital singles for Big Stir Records has been so compelling: enthusiastic and riveting new versions of rockin' pop classics, usually recorded in partnership with either the original artist or a like-minded performer. Each single has been the percolatin' embodiment of Oh HELL yeah!!

I believe the current single--a collaboration with Ohio '60s pop legend Randy Klawon, covering Cyrus Erie's 'Get The Message" (written in 1968 by Eric Carmen)--is the best one yet. That, my friends, is saying something.

Randy Klawon also joins Flashcubes bassist Gary Frenay and drummer Tommy Allen to form the Halfcubes, alongside Mike Kallet and Nick Frenay. The Halfcubes' cover of the Guess Who's "Hand Me Down World" is unreleased for now, but I betcha we'll be hearing more of it as part of a forthcoming various-artists project. Taste and execution. This part of the pop world is in good hands.

THE KINKS: You Really Got Me

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

TALL POPPY SYNDROME: Come Some Christmas Eve (Or Halloween)

From our absolutely irresistible compilation This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5, Tall Poppy Syndrome's ace invigmoration of the Bee Gees' "Come Some Christmas Eve (Or Halloween)" isn't really about either one of its titular holidays. So we felt secure in blasting it now, in this time frame smack dab in between visits from the Great Pumpkin and Santa Claus. A fantastic track in any season.

THE RAMONES: Sheena Is A Punk Rocker

The record that changed my life. Dana and I had already settled the playlist when I realized that this week also marked the 45th anniversary of the first time I heard "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker" by the Ramones. In November of 1977, less than two months shy of my 18th birthday, I was already an enthusiastic rockin' pop addict, a dyed-in-the-wool Beatles, Monkees, Kinks, and Dave Clark Five fanatic, and a burgeoning punk rocker. Listening to that "Sheena" 45 shifted everything--everything--into overdrive. It's not an exaggeration. The first spin of "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker" changed my life.

Looking at the calendar for November of 1977, I've gotta guess it was either Wednesday the 23rd or Thursday the 24th--Thanksgiving Day--when my ears opened, my eyes widened, and my mind kaleidoscoped as I listened to a 2:45 single over and over for twenty minutes or more. 

I couldn't let that anniversary slide by without commemoration. 45 years! A 45 that changed my life. I'll be speaking about the Ramones a lot in 2023. The manifestation of that ongoing obsession started here: Thanksgiving week, 1977. I remain grateful. Thanksgiving really has it all. Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh YEAH...!

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