10 SONGS: 2/7/2026

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 # 1322

SLYBOOTS: If We Could Let Go

Much of this week's show was programmed in anger, and in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Minneapolis. We opened with Slyboots' "If We Could Let Go," a gorgeous, life-affirming declaration of gaze fixed forward in the face of life's casual (and institutionalized) cruelty. It's become one of my favorite songs, and it was the only song I considered for this week's first spin. In September, I posted a Greatest Record Ever Made! appreciation of the track. As we kick off our own statement of dissent and resolution, I'm going to quote that piece in its entirety:

"If We Could Let Go." I'm trying. Honest, I'm trying.

Slyboots are a great, great group from New York, and they're deserving of much wider notoriety. Their 2024 single "If We Could Let Go" is heartbreaking in all the best ways, a song full of hope and ache, empowered with an awareness of how far we fall short in pursuit of peace, love, and understanding, and driven by determination to overcome that gap and collectively become the better people a burning world needs us to be. Not merely my favorite track from last year; it's a legit contender for my all-time Hot 100. 

The song's title offers a path forward in troubled times, even if it's a path I'm not sure I'm ready to take. Yet. As close to throwing a gauntlet as an earnest plea for peace can be, the songwriting for "If We Could Let Go" is credited to the group. Lead singer Tiffany Lyons imbues the lyrics with an implied weariness bolstered by strength of passion and clarity of purpose. Guitarist KG Noble, bassist Margaret LaBombard, drummer Ted Marcus, and keyboardist Gregorio Lozano surround Lyons with bounce and determination, a steel-willed grace battalion buoyed by angelic backing vocals courtesy of Noble and Lozano.

As we sing along, and as we ponder the salvation in letting go of prejudice and distrust, there are things we should not relinquish. Hold fast to belief in something better. Hold each other up. Hold on. Stand and hold on. Draw strength from our passions, our delights, our embrace of art and family and community. Take comfort in what we love, and commit to fight on behalf of what we love. Pray and work for a future better than today. One foot in front of the other.

How can one hold on to hope in hopeless times? I guess the best we can do is keep pushing forward. Music turned up louder than our doubts. Hands held or raised as we see fit. Eyes on...well, if not on the prize, at least on our next step in the direction of the prize. We may feel like we'll never arrive, and that fear may prove correct. 

But let go of that fear. There are so many reasons to lose heart, to lose focus, to lose our way in the darkness all around us. There are so many reasons to just give up. With "If We Could Let Go," Slyboots gently--firmly--urge us to let go of the darkness that surrounds us.

Let go of the hate. Let go of the hurt. If we could let go. Let go of the if. We can. We will. Slyboots make their case. Let's go, Slyboots.

THE RAMONES: I Believe In Miracles

It would be impossible to overstate the importance of music in my life. From listening to my Aunt Anna's Chubby Checker 45 in the early '60s through co-hosting a little mutant radio show six decades later, music has moved me, inspired me, and built me. With the possible (probable) exception of the Beatles, no musical act has had more pervasive and prevailing impact upon me than the American Beatles, the greatest American rock 'n' roll band of all time, the Ramones. And not even the Beatles can annex and fortify my sovereign POV to the sublime extent that the Ramones can. It's true in good times. It's equally true in times like these. Gabba Gabba, man. Gabba Gabba.

From a previous post:

In times of trouble, when we find ourselves caught at the crossroads of moral quandary and indecision, we must always ask ourselves one question:

What would the Ramones do?

I doubt many people think of the Ramones as avatars of hope. Maybe they shouldn't...but maybe they should? If ever there was a band that persevered, endured, and just kept on doing, popular resistance be damned, it was the Ramones. They were a cult act. They became legitimate pop culture icons, through sheer force of will. A miracle, indeed.

The song "I Believe In Miracles" came late in the Ramones' career. 1989. It was a mere seven years before their final concert, a good fifteen years after the Bowery birthed them; thirteen years after their debut album, eleven years after their final Hot 100 single, nine years since the last Ramones album to (barely) breach the upper 50 in Billboard's LP chart. They had continued to make records. Sales--modest to begin with--diminished further. There were no miracles in their foreseeable future.

The determinedly uplifting lyrics of "I Believe In Miracles" were written by Dee Dee Ramone, and they offer a stunning affirmation of faith in the face of dismally long odds. The song was on Brain Drain, an album which also contained "Pet Sematary," the title tune from a then-new film based on Stephen King's novel of the same name. I even heard "Pet Sematary" on commercial radio once or twice--there's your miracle!--so maybe a belief in better fortune wasn't entirely groundless.

Just, y'know, mostly groundless. "Pet Sematary" did well (# 4) on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, but never troubled the Hot 100. Brain Drain peaked at # 122. It was the Ramones' final studio album for Sire Records. And it was Dee Dee's last record as a Ramone.

Dee Dee's abrupt departure from the brudderhood was startling, and his decision to jump ship seemed to stand in contrast to the resolute dedication implied by what he wrote in "I Believe In Miracles." Perhaps sometimes a song is just a song.

And perhaps sometimes--most times?--a song can be more than just...well, just anything. I used to be on an endless run, believed in miracles 'cause I'm one. Our art is a lifeline to our aspirations, a potential guidebook to what we want to be, what we could be. If reality falls short of our intentions, that failing doesn't negate the audacity to hope, nor indicate that we should deny ourselves the opportunity to rise: we have been blessed with the power to survive, after all these years of being alive.

One could have expected Dee Dee's exit, his act of packing up and taking his miracles home, to signal the Ramones' death knell. One woulda been wrong. A young bassist dubbed C. J. Ramone joined Joey, Johnny, and Marky in the final leather-clad incarnation of this Gabba-Gabba heyday. C. J. is in the video for "I Believe In Miracles." The Ramones kept on going. That's what the Ramones did, always. Their three post-Dee Dee studio albums in the '90s carried flashes of brilliance. And Dee Dee, bless 'im, continued to write songs for his former group. 

That wasn't a miracle. That was family. The few, the proud. Semper Fi.

Should we believe in miracles? Well, what would the Ramones do? It's a simple answer: 1-2-3-4. Get on with it. Hey-ho, let's GO! It doesn't always work out. But sometimes, every now and again, miracles are there for those who believe.

THE LEGAL MATTERS: The Message

It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under. Although the Legal Matters' new single "The Message" shares its title with a hip-hop classic by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, it is most assuredly its own message. As the group's Andy Reed explains, "In today’s political landscape, I’ve grown frustrated with the hypocritical, religious types. It’s not aimed at religion specifically, just those who weaponize it.” 

We get the message, and we approve. The single's out now; the new album Lost At Sea is due February 27th. Message received.

THE CLASH: Clampdown

The popular meme is correct: These are the times Joe Strummer trained us for. Let fury have the hour. Anger can be power.

ELVIS COSTELLO AND THE ATTRACTIONS: (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

MELANIE WITH THE EDWIN HAWKINS SINGERS: Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)

All around us, the world gives us an eternal supply of reasons to give in and give up. We counter the thud and drone with...well, with whatever we can, with any means or method capable of marshalling our spirits. Music is one of many such methods, a favored go-to when we need nurturing or inspiration, consolation or spark. In 1970, Melanie with the Edwin Hawkins Singers provided a song that still serves that purpose for me. From my book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1):

...What a terrific, uplifting song, with the sanctified might of the Edwin Hawkins Singers lifting Melanie up to soar as high as the angels above. I'd had no real use for the straight black Gospel sound of the Edwin Hawkins Singers' huge 1969 hit "Oh Happy Day" when I was nine, but "Lay Down" effortlessly mingled their celestial sound with Melanie's folk-singer vibe, and it all wound up as pop music. Irresistible pop music. Forget the damned roller skates. "Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)" is the key, right here.

"We were so close/There was no room/We bled inside each other's wounds." Well, the lyrics pin this one to the Viet Nam War era. "Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)" was inspired by Melanie's performance at Woodstock, a song written to express how it felt for her to see this massive crowd--perhaps not really a half a million strong, but giving the impression of a large, large number--as she sang and played her own songs of peace. The rain came down. You can hear her on the Woodstock Two album, performing "My Beautiful People" and "Birthday Of The Sun," dedicating her music with a giggle to the beautiful, wet people. You can hear her smile. You can hear her belief. 

After Woodstock, Melanie took all of what she'd seen, all of what she felt, and turned it into "Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)." Raise the candles high. If you don't we could stay black against the night. The Edwin Hawkins Singers provide amazing grace, immortal soul, an oh-happy-day's journey into night. Raise them higher again. We could stay dry against the rain...."

THE JAM: In The City

In the city there's a thousand men in uniform/And I've heard they now have the right to kill a man

Those lines cut deep in 1977. They cut even deeper now.

APOLLO 100: Joy

Classic Top 40 is fine, but let's raise a glass to classical Top 40. In 1971, Apollo 100 took an electric pop-rock arrangement of Johann Sebastian Bach's "Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring" into the Top Ten and onto AM radios everywhere. "Joy." The song's title describes its effect. As we said on the radio Sunday night:

"We acknowledge that when things go wrong, playing pop music on the radio doesn't do much of anything to correct what's wrong. But we channel our outrage, our dedication, our belief that we CAN change, for the better. 

"Belief is hope. Hope is joy.

"On this show, and in this life, we embrace the audacity of joy."

THE BEATLES: Revolution

We do not know that it's gonna be all right. And it won't be all right any time soon enough. We ain't givin' up just yet. 1-2-3-4!

MICHAEL SIMMONS: America

From his exquisite covers album Fun Where You Can Find It, Michael Simmons covers Simon and Garfunkel. All come to look for America. I swear it's out there. Keep the faith, baby. Keep the faith.

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.

10 SONGS: 3/1/2025

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 # 1274

ELENA ROGERS: A Little Bit Of Lovely

Exquisite. Elena Rogers has such an impressive command of vocal prowess, always inventive yet also always serving the song. With every note, you can sense that she knows exactly what she's doing, and somehow she still makes it all feel casual. Like Superman leaping over tall buildings in a single bound, Elena Rogers uses her powers and abilities because it's the right thing to do, and because she can.

Elena's new EP Always Trying offers further evidence of her pop magic, and "A Little Bit Of Lovely" is one of her strongest individual tracks to date. That's more than just a little bit of lovely.

THE JAM: Bricks And Mortar

When I was in college in the late '70s, the Jam were among a handful of the most important then-current bands for me. Only the Ramones and the Flashcubes loomed larger in my legend at the time, and I preferred the Jam to even the Clash, the Buzzcocks, the Undertones, Elvis Costello, the Sex Pistols, and...well, just about anybody else.

With the passing of the Jam's drummer Rick Buckler, we wanted to mix a few Jam tracks into this week's playlist. Our first set included a spin of the Jam's ace single "The Modern World," a track which once prompted Tom Kenny to shout out, "CARL! I just figured it out! The Jam is Michael Caine fronting a punk band! [Tom in thick Cockney accent:] Thissus th' moduhn wulhld!"

We opened our second set with "Bricks And Mortar," a Jam selection we'd never before gotten around to playing on TIRnRR. My first Jam purchase was in 1978, the American single release of "I Need You (For Someone)"/"In The City," followed in short order by the import 45s "The Modern World" and "All Over The World." The B-side of "The Modern World" was occupied by live performances of the Jam ragin' through covers of soul classics "Sweet Soul Music" and "Back In My Arms Again," followed by a quick live snippet of the band's own "Bricks And Mortar." This week, we play the studio version as part of our tribute to the Jam, as This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio remembers Rick Buckler.

THE FLASHCUBES: Reminisce

I'm not sure when I'm ready to reveal more details about the forthcoming tribute album Make Something Happen! A Tribute To A DIY Power Pop Band Called THE FLASHCUBES. We've already said the album will contain twenty-one tracks by various artists covering songs written by members of the Flashcubes, plus three new tracks by the 'Cubes themselves. The album is scheduled for September release by our friends at Big Stir Records, and we've played Make Something Happen! contributions from sparkle*jets u.k., the SpongeTones, Pop Co-Op, and the Kennedys. We've acknowledged that Chris von Sneidern is covering "No Promise," and I will tell you now that I have received Hamell On Trial's version of "Got No Mind."

For now, I'm holding off on public announcement of who else is on the album, even though all but a handful of the tracks have been assigned and confirmed. But rest assured: We're making something happen, and we won't be shy about  it.

The most recent (heavily redacted) public update of the album's track listing tacked all three of the new Flashcubes tracks at the end of the album. I've now returned to my earlier intent to instead space out these tracks at the beginning, approximate middle (give or take), and end of the album. 

Make Something Happen! will open with "Reminisce." It's such a great track, and it provides an irresistible introduction to what I hope will be one of this year's very best rockin' pop compilation albums.

THE JAM: In The City

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE CYNZ: Woman Child

The Cynz' 2024 single "Woman Child" scored significant airplay on our little mutant radio show, securing a berth (# 3!!) on the year-end countdown of our most-played fave raves. A new Cynz single "Heartbreak Time" has just been released, and we will have it on the radio Sunday night.

CHUBBY CHECKER: The Twist

I am very pleased that Mr. Chubby Checker has at long last finally--FINALLY!!--been nominated for The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. It's about friggin' time. Aside from the Monkees, Chubby Checker is my pick for the Hall's second most egregious omission to date. It's not an exaggeration to say that Chubby Checker's 1960 hit "The Twist" is one of the most impactful singles of the rock 'n' roll era--definitely one of the top five, possibly one of the top three. Come on, baby--let's get Chubby Checker in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

THE MONKEES: Listen To The Band

And jeez, induct the Monkees already. I plead that case here.

SORROWS: Never Mind

"Never Mind" is the leadoff blast from Sorrows' essential album Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow, and if it's not already planned as a single release we hereby recommend that it oughta be planned as a single release. Whatta track! It spins here again this Sunday night.

THE BEATLES: Paperback Writer

I happened to be working on something for my own next paperback book as this Beatles classic played on TIRnRR this past Sunday night. Dear Sir or Madam, will you ready my book? WAIT...! I need to finish writing it first. Hey, BeATle! Keep singing. I'll keep writing.

THE JAM: That's Entertainment

ALSO The Greatest Record Ever Made! Godspeed, Rick Buckler.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

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. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE! The Jam, "In The City"

This is not part of my current book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) It's offered today in memory of the Jam's drummer Rick Buckler.

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!

THE JAM: In The City

Written by Paul Weller

Produced by Vic Smith and Chris Parry
Single, Polydor, 1977

There is something to be said for pastoral life. There is even something to be said for suburban life. But we all know where the real action is. The action is in the city.

For me, the city was Syracuse, where I saw bands play and action commence. And the city was also New York, so far away from me, but the capital of the world, the center of the universe. If the space ship that brought me to this planet had crashed elsewhere, my city could have been Boston, Philadelphia, DC, Toronto, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, St. Louis, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle. With a wider drop zone, it could have been Tokyo, Tel Aviv, Rome, Madrid, Brussels.

And London. For kids growing up in, say, Woking, the city was London.

I don't know much at all about the British town of Woking. I can tell you it's in Surrey, because Wikipedia just told me that Woking is in Surrey. I've never been to Woking, but I did see its sign from a window--life through a window--when I was in England, riding a train to London. And I can tell you what I said to myself when I saw that sign for Woking:

"Woking. That's where the Jam came from!"

It was a moment of reverence, a ride-by that probably should have made time for a pilgrimage. But the moment persists in memory. Woking. The Jam. And as the train kept a-rollin’, soon I would be in the city where it really happened. The Jam formed in Woking. They became stars in London.

Punk could be pop. In America, the Ramones already knew that, even if the charts didn't reflect the verity of that aesthetic. Across the pond, a British youth explosion was looking for new. An embrace of direction, reaction, and creation brought punk to the UK pop charts. The Jam--guitarist Paul Weller, bassist Bruce Foxton, and drummer Rick Buckler--were an energetic, Mod-influenced power pop trio, with the energy of the Sex Pistols and an avowed appreciation of the popcraft of the ‘60s, particularly the hooks and urgency of the Kinks and—especially!—the early Who.

Some dismissed it as mere revival, nostalgia-mongering. OLD wave, if you will. But these kids were indeed all right. The Jam’s singles were vital, irresistible. Their albums progressed from very good to flat-out amazing, shedding both imitation and punk’s perceived limitations with Woking class pride.

The Jam’s first single was “In The City,” a combusting powder keg of Who-Pistols aggro pounded and shouted and declared like a scar-spangled banner. They waived the Union Jack, and played like a British Invasion retaking the isle of its genesis. In the city, there were a thousand things they wanted to say to you.

The Jam’s clarion call rang across the modern world, all over the world. They never made it big in America, and that was America’s loss. But the clarion call reached my ears. And I stood at attention, ready to march.

In the city. There’s a thousand things I wanna do, a thousand songs I wanna hear, a thousand lights I wanna see, a thousand sensations I wanna feel. A thousand treats I want to taste. A thousand chances I want to take to fall in love with a thousand faces all shining bright.

A thousand things I wanna say to you. Some kids from Woking already said it best. Here’s to the city. And here’s to the Jam.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

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. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE! Works In Progress

 

Although I've long since completed (and submitted) a draft of my proposed book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1), the subject itself remains open for me. I continue to work on more GREM! entries, for use here on the blog and for potential engagement in an even-more-theoretical The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 2). An infinite number of tracks can each be THE greatest record ever made as long as they take turns. Maybe I take the infinite part of the book's tagline too literally.

Nonetheless! Here's a look at bits of some of my many GREM! works in progress. 

THE PRETENDERS: Back On The Chain Gang

It was just like starting over.

The Pretenders emerged in England in 1978, led by Chrissie Hynde, an American playing guitar and singing lead. Hynde, guitarist James Honeywell-Scott, bassist Pete Farndon, and drummer Martin Chambers turned out to be great Pretenders, debuting on record with a 1979 single covering the Kinks' "Stop Your Sobbing." More records followed: singles, two albums (1980's Pretenders and 1981's Pretenders II), with the 1981 EP Extended Play in between albums. 

And then half the band died. 

WAR: Low Rider

Has anyone ever used the word "imperious" to describe the rhythm of War's 1975 hit "Low Rider?" I'd presume it hasn't been done, and it may be a stretch to use it now. But GodDAYum, that regal riddum rules by divine and absolute right. Imperious War!

When discussing the records that make us wanna dance, prance, and make romance, we often talk about the beat. But more than the beat, "Low Rider" has a visceral, almost physical rhythm that dictates a mandatory moving of your body. Typical of me being me, I didn't come to appreciate that rhythm until way, way after the fact.

BONEY M: My Friend Jack

My relationship with disco is complicated. I hated it during its heyday, but began to re-think my position as it became clear that some (not all) of the Disco Sucks movement was built upon a foundation of tacit racism and homophobia. I further realized that a lot of the disco LP-burnin' Fascists hated my preferred punk and power pop almost as much as they hated dat ole debbil disco, so...enemy of my enemy is my friend.

But never mind the shifting parameters of my mixed-signal interactions with disco. Eurodisco group Boney M was a breed apart anyway, willfully weird but extremely pop.

PEGGY LEE: Fever

There is cool, and then there is cool. Cool-as-a-fever cool. No other approximation of cool has ever been anywhere near the sizzling cool of Peggy Lee's 1958 absolute annexation of Little Willie John's R & B (and crossover pop) hit "Fever." 

THE MAYTALS: Pressure Drop

Listening to Johnny Nash didn't prepare me for this.

I first saw Toots and the Maytals name-checked in some magazine (either Rolling Stone or Playboy, possibly both) in the late '70s, though I wasn't conscious of the music until many years thereafter. I recall that Linda Ronstadt was among those praising the essential nature of Maytals LPs Funky Kingston and Reggae Got Soul, and if I couldn't quite fit reggae into my new wave rock 'n' roll world view at the time (the Clash notwithstanding), I did get there eventually. 

THE POLICE: Roxanne

When I worked at a record store in the '80s, one of my co-workers was horrified when I mentioned that I didn't really care about the music of the Police. "Horrified" may not be much of an exaggeration; he gasped, put his hands to the sides of his face in a manner that would have made Macaulay Culkin proud, and backed away from me slowly. I think I saw him mouth the world Unclean! 

I had liked the band initially, around the time of their first two albums in the late '70s, but found myself losing interest in them as they became (to my taste) increasingly...mainstream? I guess. I wasn't trying to be hipper than the crowd, honest; it was just that I preferred their earlier records. I appreciate some of their bigger hits a bit more now than I did then, though I'm pretty sure I'll always detest that damned stalker song, "Every Breath You Take."

And "Roxanne?" My God, "Roxanne" was far and away the best thing on AM Top 40 in 1979. Nothing else even came close to it. 

ABBA: Dancing Queen

There is a false conviction among some rock 'n' roll fans that ABBA's music is inherently schlocky. This conviction is a big ol' pile of piggy poop.

AM radio surrendered to ABBA's "Waterloo" in 1973. I may have struggled with some indecision over whether or not I liked the song at the time, and I can't explain why. It was a pop song. I like pop songs. And I sorta liked ABBA. Ultimately, I decided that I liked "Waterloo," too. 

"SOS" was my favorite among ABBA's initial run of hits, though the only ABBA singles I bought were "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and "Take A Chance On Me." I also loved "Dancing Queen." I had no use for "Fernando." I was indifferent to "Mamma Mia" and "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do." Reading in Bomp! magazine's 1978 power pop issue about "So Long," a purportedly great ABBA power pop song I'd not yet heard, was reason enough for me to buy my friend Jay's copy of ABBA's Greatest Hits. I was perfectly okay with ABBA's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Hell, a lot of ABBA's hits are closer to original-formula '50s/early '60s rockin' pop than anything that a band like, say, Genesis ever did.

"Dancing Queen" is ABBA's signature tune. It's often lumped in with disco, but its gloss is more girl-group than Studio 54. It shimmers in its own deliciously pure pop way, not beholden to trends, timeless yet still so '70s it could have been sporting a WIN button.

THE AVENGERS: We Are The One

The Clash sang that anger could be power. Even before that line appeared in The Clash's London Calling album track "Clampdown" in 1979, a San Francisco group called the Avengers was on stage at Winterland, opening for the Sex Pistols in that group's final appearance meltdown, and embodying the concept of cathartic fury. Anger. Power. Rock 'n' roll.

BLONDIE: (I'm Always Touched By Your) Presence, Dear

A love letter from Lois Lane, sung by Marilyn Monroe, backed by the Dave Clark Five.

Blondie's lead singer Debbie Harry was sexy without any appearance of trying to be sexy. She didn't even seem to be conscious of her everyday allure, her natural beauty and glamour, her God-given possession of It. She just was. 

My first awareness of Blondie came via Phonograph Record Magazine in 1977. I've never forgotten writer Mark Shipper's description of the band's look as "like Marilyn Monroe backed by the Dave Clark Five," a blurb which (even more than Debbie Harry's attractive image) sold me on Blondie well before I ever heard a note of their music. When I got to college that fall, I immediately started carpet-bombing the school radio station with requests for all of the acts I'd read about in PRM, from Television to the Dictators, and certainly including constant (and urgent) petitions to hear Blondie's "X Offender." I loved the track on first spin, and I have never stopped loving it since. And they called it puppy love!

THE JAM: In The City

Punk could be pop. In America, the Ramones already knew that, even if the charts didn't reflect the verity of that aesthetic.

THE YOUNG RASCALS: Good Lovin'

Little Steven says garage rock is "white kids trying to play black rhythm and blues and failing--gloriously." Fair enough. So what do we call it when a white group tries to play soul music, and succeeds? We could call that the Young Rascals.

THE RECORDS: Starry Eyes

Dreams of fame and fortune are not held solely by the performers.

THE VOGUES: Five O'Clock World

It should only be a footnote in the story of "Five O'Clock World," but the result is so engaging, so perfect, that I can't help elevating it to a prime moment in the history of rockin' pop on TV. 

THE DICKIES: Banana Splits

TRA-LA-LAAAA! TRA-LA-LA-LAAAAAA! TRA-LA-LAAAA! TRA-LA-LA-LAAAAAAAAAA!

No. You get a hold of yourself. Don't be messin' with the manifest majesty of the Banana Splits.

And don't be messin' with the manifest DESTINY of The Greatest Record Ever Made!, whether it's Volume 1, Volume 2, or an undrafted free agent. The infinite does what the infinite does.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

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!! https://rarebirdlit.com/gabba-gabba-hey-a-conversation-with-the-ramones-by-carl-cafarelli/

If it's true that one book leads to another, my next book will be The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1). Stay tuned. Your turn is coming.

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. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

I'm on Twitter @CafarelliCarl