10 SONGS: 8/11/2022

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 # 1141.

THE LEGAL MATTERS: What Is Life

1970 kinda sucked for me. As explained a little bit here, 1970 was the year that 10-year-old me was plucked from elementary school in North Syracuse at the end of fourth grade, separated from my peers as they prepared to enter fifth grade in the same old building that September, while I was catapulted to sixth grade at the middle school in Mattydale. Hijinks ensued. Happiness did not. Accepting the offer to skip fifth grade may have been the biggest mistake I ever made.

The transition occurred (not coincidentally) at a time when I began to listen to radio with greater focus, more specific intent. AM Top 40. My social and educational miasma notwithstanding, AM Top 40 had a lot to offer in 1970. Rock, pop, and soul music in general had a lot to offer in 1970. 

A new tribute album called We All Shine On: Celebrating The Music Of 1970 recognizes the brilliance of 1970's offerings. A joint project of SpyderPop Records and Big Stir Records, We All Shine On is curated by respected pop scholar John M. Borack, and John's know-how drives an impeccable set of familiar 1970 numbers performed by some of 2022's best. We played the Test Pressings' We All Shine On cover of Edison Lighthouse's "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" last week, and we opened this week's show with the Legal Matters' exuberant and accomplished version of George Harrison's existential power pop classic "What Is Life." 1970! The music was the best thing about that year. The music endures.

NOLAN PORTER: Work It Out In The Morning

Why wasn't underrated '70s soul singer Nolan Porter a friggin' superstar? Why didn't he at least have a hit record? Arghh. This mundane real world leaves much to be desired. "Work It Out In The Morning," like other Nolan Porter potables we've played on previous shows, deserved jackhammer rotation on AM Top 40 circa '72, leading to a permanent status as a cherished Golden Oldie. Didn't happen. Shoulda.

NICHELLE NICHOLS: Why Don't You Do Right?

The '70s was when I became a fan of Star Trek, well after the fact. I was aware of the show during its original 1966-68 network run, and saw at least parts of an episode or three at that time, though I doubt I saw any episodes in their entirety until a much later date. Regular weekday syndicated reruns Stardate: Me Decade were my vehicle to seek out new life, new civilizations, and to boldly go where more than a few had gone before. Phasers on STUN!

The passing this week of actress Nichelle Nichols--immortal for her role as Lt. Uhura aboard the starship Enterprise--represents yet another piece of our formative years slipping away. In her memory, Dana reprised Nichols' 1967 single "Why Don't You Do Right." Hailing frequencies open, Captain., Godspeed, Nichelle Nichols. Ahead warp factor 8.

STEVENSON AND COMPANY: Talking Down To Me

Our forthcoming compilation CD This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5 is steamin' along full-speed ahead. Among its many irresistible tracks is "Talking Down To Me,"  a song originally brought to our attention by every pop fan's best bud Steve Stoeckel. Steve's best known for his work as a member of the Spongetones and Pop Co-Op (the latter of whom are also represented on TIRnRR # 5), and "Talking Down To Me" is a li'l gem originally written by Steve's friend Danny Stevenson. Steve subsequently earned a co-write on the song, and added bass and vocals to what Danny and his drummin' brother Bruce Stevenson had already done. We loved it! And we played it on the radio, crediting it to the nom du bop King Mixer. 

When it came time to address the idea of slapping together a fifth TIRnRR compilation, "Talking Down To Me" was an automatic choice. At the artists' request, the billing has been changed to Stevenson and Company. Which is just as well; a King Mixer could have cost us a fortune in breach-of-promise cases. The track will see its first-ever release on This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5.

IRENE PEÑA: Come And Get It

We All Shine On: Celebrating The Music Of 1970 includes this ace performance by America's Sweetheart Irene Peña, as she takes on a classic Badfinger hit written by Paul McCartney. (Irene, incidentally, is also on This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5, which means she's on at least two of 2022's best compilation albums. Go, Irene!)

THE CLICK BEETLES: Modern Girl

The way-fab Dan Pavelich has been an ally of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio for years. We've played Dan's work with the Bradburys, and our annual This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio Christmas shows have often programmed selections from his seasonal various-artists benefit albums (Christmas Without Cancer and three volumes of Hi-Fi Christmas Party). As the rockin' auteur of the Click Beetles, Dan has been featured on both This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 3 and Waterloo Sunset--Benefit For This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, and the Click Beetles' Waterloo Sunset track "If Not Now Then When" (also on the CBs' album Pop Fossil) became a certified TIRnRR Fave Rave. Certified! Because we say so. 

And now, as the world awaits the release of the Click Beetles' new album Emerald Green, Dan has granted TIRnRR the exclusive radio debut of a superswell new track called "Modern Girl." We approve! We like modern girls!

But honestly? We hereby reject the exclusive. All radio shows should be playing this. 

NOW!!!

LULU: Love Loves To Love Love

Well. Who doesn't? And we certainly love Lulu. To her, with love!

THE STRAWBERRY ZOTS: And You Drive Your Pretty Car

It is very likely that this marks the TIRnRR debut of the Strawberry Zots. That delay may not be all that noteworthy at face value, given the fact that the esteemed Strawberry Zots never became a household name. But Dana and I saw the mighty Zots open for Dread Zeppelin in 1990, and I've owned a copy of the group's 1990 CD Cars, Flowers, Telephones for a very long time. Maybe we played them on our old show We're You're Friends For Now in '92, or one on of our other '90s projects prior to TIRnRR signing on at the end of 1998. But we ain't played 'em on This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio until now. 

Better late than never!

KISS: Shout It Out Loud

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

AMY RIGBY: Tom Petty Karaoke

I'm kind of empty tonight 

Nothing feels right, nothing feels right

I'm going out on my own

Can't stay home

No, I can't stay home

We are so honored to have the great Amy Rigby as a contributor to This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5. Her wonderful track "Tom Petty Karaoke" was the last song selected for TIRnRR # 5, and its quiet message of hope and resilience within the tempest of our lives feels like it was built for our album. Maybe it was. Divine intervention. 

When I'm holding the microphone

It's like I'm holding on to something that's gone

The power of music. The transformative nature of art, and of belief. We exult in these gifts in our times of trouble, and we hold on. We hold on.

My Mom would have been 97 years old this month. And right now, Amy is dealing with the complications and sadness of taking care of her Dad. Amy has been forthcoming about that struggle...but this isn't the place for me to reiterate it. The issues of aging and loss are universal. 

That doesn't make them hurt any less. 

When I sing "I Won’t Back Down"
I don’t feel down
Yeah I’m alright
And when I do "Don’t Do Me Like That"
Hey I’m back
Walking into the light
And when I’m bringing "she went down swingin'"
I ain’t just singing
I’m coming on
"American Girl," take me outta this world

Turn it up. Or grab the mic if you like. You're among friends. And we hear you.

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: 6/23/2022

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 # 1134.

THE HANDCUFFS: I Cry For You

I first heard the pulse-poundin' prowess of drummer Brad Elvis when he was in the group Screams in the '70s, and subsequently when he was with the Elvis Brothers in the '80s. Later, I became a big fan of Big Hello, an ace combo that included Brad and his wife, super-powerhouse singer-guitarist Chloe F. Orwell. Brad 'n' Chloe eventually bid farewell to Big Hello to form their current team, the Handcuffs.

On this little mutant radio program, we've played Screams, the Elvis Brothers, Big Hello, the New Monkees covering the Elvis Brothers, Brad's other group the Romantics, and we've played tracks from each 'n' every one of the Handcuffs' previous albums, Model For A Revolution, Electroluv, and Waiting For The Robot. Let's face it, we have a history with Handcuffs. That...doesn't sound right. But we dig the Handcuffs, and we play the Handcuffs.

Why stop now? The Handcuffs have a fab new album, Burn The Rails, and its radio-ready track "I Cry For You" opens this week's exciting edition of TIRnRR. As it should. With Brad and Chloe, we have a proud tradition to uphold.

NOLAN PORTER: If I Could Only Be Sure

As a pop fan with more than six decades' experience, I'm constantly thrilled by fresh reminders that there's still so much fantastic music I haven't yet discovered. That includes new releases, of course, but it also means old stuff that somehow escaped the spotlight of my short attention span. You know the mantra: Any record you ain't heard before is a new record.

Nolan Porter was a soul singer in the early '70s. The irrepressible interwebs suggest that Porter recorded two LPs, No Apologies and Nolan, and scraped the bottom of the Hot 100 with a few of his singles. About two weeks ago, intrepid TIRnRR listener Dave Murray brought one of Porter's singles to my attention, and now I'm an instant Nolan Porter fan. 

Just. Like. That. 

Seriously: what I've heard of Nolan Porter's stuff is flippin' fantastic, making its relative obscurity all the more mystifying. Porter passed away in 2021; his work is well, well worthy of wider acclaim...or at least some acclaim, fercryinoutloud. A CD two-fer reissue of No Apologies and Nolan is an elusive artifact--wish someone would reissue that reissue awready--but I've been buying the digital tracks. Nolan Porter makes his TIRnRR debut with this week's spin of "If I Could Only Be Sure." We'll hear another of Porter's shoulda-been-hits next week.

MAPLE MARS: Gliding

Like Big Hello and the Handcuffs, Maple Mars has likewise been a long-time fixture on TIRnRR playlists. So we jumped at the opportunity to play "Gliding," the advance single from Maple Mars' brand-new album, Someone's Got To Listen. "Gliding" is the second advance Someone's Got To Listen track for which we've done the jumping thing, following our console-thumping on behalf of "Goodbye California" last year.

Wait..."last year?" Man, that's a long time to pause in between teases. BUT! The pause expires at this point, as the album is available for preorder right now, a month ahead of its long-awaited release. We've heard it. It's good with a capital G and that rhymes with P and that stands for POP MUSIC!! Someone's got to listen. You'll be glad you did. More from Someone's Got To Listen coming your way. Immediately.

GARY FRENAY: Just Like Me

I may have mentioned that I'm a big, big fan of Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse the Flashcubes. I may have mentioned that a million times. Restraint is overrated. I may have also mentioned that Dana and I are putting together another irresistible compilation CD, This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5, due circa Septemberish from the rockin' pop juggernaut Kool Kat Musik. Start gathering your pennies, because you want this.

I may not have mentioned that This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5 will include "Just Like Me," a new solo recording from Flashcubes singer/songwriter/bassist/debonaire man-about-town Gary Frenay. Gary originally recorded the song as a demo with his post-'Cubes outfit Screen Test in the '80s, and this finished 21st-century recording also employs the talents of Gary's 'Cubes and Screen Test colleagues Arty Lenin and Tommy Allen. The track will appear on Gary's next solo album, due out in 2023, but it will make its first commercial appearance on TIRnRR 5. 

That's our goal with TIRnRR: to continue to bring you fine, fine pop music, both on the radio and at retail. Worth mentioning, right? You're welcome, my friends. You're welcome.

BALLZY TOMORROW: Out There

Speaking of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 5, we've also secured the services of our pal Robbie Rist, who offers us "Out There," a swell and sturdy bopper he recorded with his rockin' pop dba Ballzy Tomorrow. Its snark is its power, its power is POP, and we've got it all for you right here on This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio.

LAURIE BIAGINI: In The Here And Now

It's been waaaaay too long since the last Laurie Biagini album, 2013's Sanctuary Of Sound. We've been playing advance tracks from Laurie's new effort Stranger In The Mirror, and we're delighted to say that album has now been released. We celebrate by playing one of its tracks, the non-single "In The Here And Now," which sounds so catchy and compelling we think it oughtta be a single after all. We play the hits!

ROBIN LANE: All I'll Ever Need

We debuted Robin Lane's new single "All I'll Ever Need" on last week's show. Robin herself posted a note of gratitude for the airplay; whenever a veteran artist shares appreciation for whatever the hell it is we do here, I'm struck with a wish I could go back in time and tell my younger self about it. Hey, late '70s/early '80s incarnation of me!, I'd say. Someday, my friend, you're going to receive acknowledgement, even thanks, from a lot of the people making the records you're listening to right now. You'll hear from members of Robin Lane and the Chartbusters, the Beat, the Pandoras, the Records, Nikki and the Corvettes, the Cowsills, the Rubinoos, the Barracudas, the Knickerbockers, Screams, and more! You'll talk to the Ramones and Joan Jett on the phone. Hell, Micky Dolenz will share something you wrote about the Monkees. No, never mind what "sharing" means in this far future world. Trust me; it's a good thing.

My younger self, naive li'l git he/I was, will believe all of it. The fact that it's true is friggin' mind-blowing. And it remains a thrill, even as my teens and early twenties slip even further away in the rear view mirror. I'm still that giddy, star-struck kid. 

I always will be. It's still all I'll ever need.

THE KINKS: Waterloo Sunset

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY: Singing My Song

My 62nd birthday was in January. When I was younger, 62 seemed so old. Now, while it's true that my curated collection of aches and pains can sometimes make me feel as old as my teen self once deemed 62 to be, it's also true that I ain't dead yet. I still read my superhero comic books, I still listen to my rockin' pop music, and I still retain a spark that insists I'm not too old for fun. I've developed sufficient maturity to perform necessary tasks and meet expected obligations. If time has slowed me down an eensy little bit, I'm still only 62. 

We don't measure that in dog years. I aim to dance to punk rock at my daughter's wedding next year, and to keep dancing for a few decades thereafter. Don't tell me I can't. I didn't listen to naysayers when I was 17, and I'm not gonna start heeding the whining of crybabies now. I'm 62. And I'm singing my song.

We're all products of what made us. I was built by family and friends, art and pop culture, education and experience (to the extent either of them stuck with me). I was formed by Batman and the British Invasion, the Sex Pistols, Motown, rock magazines, paperback novels, AM radio, FM radio, science-fiction, cartoons, pretty pinups, bubblegum cards, home cooking, fast food, Watergate, crushes on Suzi Quatro and Yvonne Craig, resentments, love, telephone conversations, occasional excess, regrets, excuses, adjustments, wins, losses, stalemates, and TV shows. And pie. Your individual composition may vary. 

At 62, I'm not ashamed to listen to the Partridge Family. Strike that; I'm proud to proclaim that I listen to the Partridge Family. I'm less likely to listen to their biggest hit "I Think I Love You," but eager to stuff my iPod with PF tracks like "I Woke Up In Love This Morning," "Somebody Wants To Love You," and a peppy debut album track called "Singing My Song." I hear it, and I feel as young as ever. 

But that's not why I listen to it. I don't need outside stimuli to feel young, nor validation to know I'm right. I listen because I like it. I'm old enough to be comfortable with that. Don't bug me when I'm singing my song.

 TAJ MAHAL: Six Days On The Road

The legendary Taj Mahal is primarily regarded as a blues musician, though that oversimplifies his stature and footprint. He's certainly played some rock 'n' roll music in his day, and I say his 1969 take on "Six Days On The Road" is the signature version of this oft-covered country classic (originally a hit for Dave Dudley in 1963). Genre labels are useful. But labels don't define us. 

We define us.

Sing it and play it, Taj Mahal. Time for us to hit the road. And we're gonna make it home tonight.

Going my way, young man?

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