10 SONGS: 12/20/2025

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 # 1315

SAM AND DAVE: Soul Man

The passing of Stax Records legend Steve Cropper compelled us to attempt a modest tribute to Cropper's legacy, and the show itself opened with Cropper's immortal guitar work on Sam and Dave's classic "Soul Man." Play it, Steve.

From the "Soul Man" chapter in my book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1):

"It ain't braggin' if you can do it.

"Like many others among my generation of pop fans, my introduction to the music of Sam and Dave was ass-backwards. I have no recollection whatsoever of Sam and Dave's music from when I was a kid in the '60s, nor did I develop any awareness of them as an oldies-obsessed adolescent and teen in the '70s. I'm embarrassed to admit that I first heard the song 'Soul Man' via Saturday Night Live, when John Belushi and Dan Akroyd performed it on the show in their incarnation as Jake and Elwood, the Blues Brothers.

"I didn't care much about the Blues Brothers on SNL, but the Blues Brothers' subsequent recorded version sizzled, thanks largely to the irresistible guitar work of Stax Records legend Steve Cropper. Cropper and bassist Duck Dunn had also played on the original Sam and Dave recording of 'Soul Man,' and Jake and Elwood's faux soul revival eventually led me to the real deal. Gotta give Belushi and Akroyd some respect for knowing who to hang with. But once I did hear Sam and Dave's 'Soul Man' and 'Hold On, I'm Coming,' I would have neither time nor inclination to ever listen to the Blues Brothers again.

"The song itself is an extended boast. But it's a boast backed up by its collective prowess. Responding to Sam and Dave's command Play it, Steve!, Cropper's guitar work cuts and advances like an agile offensive line, its easygoing sway belying the force and efficiency of its piledriving advance. The Memphis Horns add bounce to spare. Resistance is futile...."

THE LITTLE GIRLS: How To Pick Up Girls

It has been a very, very long time since we've played anything by the Little Girls, a fab 1980s SoCal pop combo fronted by sisters Caron Maso and Michele Maso. Their track "Earthquake Song" scored at least one TIRnRR spin some time back in the way back; a recent message from Caron prompted me to snap up a digital copy of their Thank Heaven For Valley Pop compilation, with an eye and ear toward renewed Little Girls airplay. I was immediately struck by the snarky pop perfection of "How To Pick Up Girls," and PRESTO! The Little Girls have at long last returned to This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio. Betcha we'll be hearing 'em again as we pick up 2026. Thank heaven!

JIM BASNIGHT: Get It Out

This week's TIRnRR was our last regular show of 2025, as the rest of December is taken up by The 27th Annual THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO Christmas Show this coming Sunday and then the year-end Countdown show on December 28th. The Christmas show has already been recorded, and we submitted an advance copy of that playlist to our stats man Fritz Van Leaven. He, in turn, has provided us with the rankings of our 50 most-played tracks this year.

This week's show included 13 of the tracks that will be in our Top 50 Countdown. Jim Basnight's "Get It Out" happens to be one of 'em. I have seen the Countdown and it is good!

OTIS REDDING: (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay

Also in tribute to the song's producer and co-author Steve Cropper, and also from The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1):

 "Far from home, with nothing to do. Nothing worth doing, anyway.

"But who can say what might have been?

"Soul singer Otis Redding's only crossover pop hit was '(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay,' an incredible mix of pride and resignation, a swagger reduced to a shrug. It was a posthumous # 1, ascending the charts after Redding perished in a plane crash in 1967. 

"But there was more to the story. There was much, much more to that story.

"Redding was a huge, huge star on the R & B charts. Rock promoter Bill Graham referred to Redding as "the black Elvis," an electrifying showman with a nigh-unique potential to unite black and white audiences under one big soulful pop rock 'n' roll tent. He wasn't a crossover artist, not in the same sense as the Motown acts selling 45s by the truckload to young America. Redding was the single greatest voice of Stax/Volt Records, a Memphis label that was pure soul. Crossover? Let the white kids cross over to us, man. If anyone could achieve that specific level of destiny in the '60s, it was gonna be Otis Redding.

"Except that it wasn't...."

WILSON PICKETT: In The Midnight Hour

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

PERILOUS: Can't Stand The Holidaze

JAMIE HOOVER: Surfin' With Santa

THE KRAYOLAS: Maria Believes In Christmas Again

OTIS REDDING: Merry Christmas Baby

As each December comes rollin' around, we're reluctant to start programming much (if any) Christmas music, generally preferring to save the Yuletunes for the Christmas show itself. We did include "Carol Of The Guitars" by the Spongetones in the post-tag spot at the very end of last week's show. Otherwise? Deck your own halls if you wish. We weren't ready yet.

Knowing how difficult it is to squeeze all the seasonal sides we wanna play into the always-crowded playlist for the actual Christmas show, I wanted to mix some of our new 2025 holiday-centric acquisitions into this week's pre-Christmas show extravaganza. Our pals Perilous bring us the gift of cantankerousness with their new single "Can't Stand The Holidaze," Spongetones guitarist Jamie Hoover (working with TIRnRR stalwart Rich Rossi) bails entirely on the silly concept of winter wonderland with his new single "Surfin' With Santa," and the Krayolas fire up replenished faith in something brighter with "Maria Believes In Chjristmas Again." All great, all well worthy of airplay, and the Krayolas' track has the potential to be an evergreen on future This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio Christmas shows. (We weren't able to find room this week for a track from Blaine Campbell and the California Sound's Holidays EP, but one will appear in the Christmas show.)

Dovetailing our Steve Cropper feature with our late-December concession that Christmas is indeed coming, we also played Otis Redding's version of "Merry Christmas Baby." The song was first recorded in 1947 by Johnny Moore's Three Blazers--someone send a thank-you eggnog to Wikipedia!--and my first recollection of the tune was when the 1987 various-artists Special Olympics benefit album A Very Special Christmas included a live rendition performed by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. The Boss provided me with a fine introduction to the song; it's also been recorded by Ike and Tina Turner, King Elvis I, Chuck Berry, the Monkees, and a sleigh-full of other artists.

Otis Redding's version is definitive.

BOOKER T AND THE MG'S: Jingle Bells

As we get ready for The 27th Annual THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO Christmas Show, our celebrative dash through the snow is once again accompanied by the guitar sound of Steve Cropper. Godspeed to the axe of Stax.  

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: 12/13/2025

10 Songs is a weekly list of ten songs that happen to be on my mind at the moment. The lists are usually dominated by songs played on the previous Sunday night's edition of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl. The idea was inspired by Don Valentine of the essential blog I Don't Hear A Single.

This week's edition of 10 Songs draws exclusively from the playlist for This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1314

MICHAEL SIMMONS: Switchboard Susan

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

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

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

"We sure do...."

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

THE FLASHCUBES: Reminisce

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

...and music to reminisce.

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

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

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

Hey-ho. Let's go.

SWEET: The Ballroom Blitz

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

PERILOUS: Glass Of Something

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

GAME THEORY: Linus And Lucy

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

...damn.

THE JAC: Summer Forever

THE HALF/CUBES: Feels Like Summer

SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE: Hot Fun In The Summertime

THE RAMONES: Rockaway Beach

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

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

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

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

THE SPONGETONES: Carol Of The Guitars

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

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

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

I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. My new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get my previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. You can read about our history here.

10 SONGS: 9/20/2025

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 # 1302.

THE HALF/CUBES FEATURING PETER NOONE: I'll Be Taking Her Out Tonight

This new single by the Half/Cubes featuring Peter Noone finds the Herman's Hermits singer revisiting his early '80s work fronting the ace new wave rockin' pop combo the Tremblers. This is not something Noone revisits very often, and the fact that he's participated in a new and effervescent remake of my favorite Tremblers tune is righteous cause for joy 'n' merriment in these quarters. 

The single serves as herald to the new Half/Cubes album Found Pearls, due in October from Jem Records. I would tell you more about it. except that it's too early for me to tell you more about it. But I've heard it and it's fabulous. I was among several friends of the band and the label that were asked for an opinion of what oughta be the first focus track. I replied:

"To me, the obvious commercial choice is 'I'll Be Taking Her Out Tonight.' It almost doesn't matter whether or not it's one of the album's best tracks (though it does happen to be among them); Peter Noone's involvement is noteworthy to begin with, but the idea of him returning to a track he did with the Tremblers is--what's the phrase?--a big fucking deal. Man, Robbie Rist just mentioned the Tremblers on his podcast a couple of weeks ago, lamenting the fact that Peter never, ever re-visits that album or era. This is a friggin' home run, and it feels like a natural pick for a focus track."

More hype to come. Enjoy this friggin' home run in the meantime. 

THE TURTLES: Elenore

With the passing of Mark Volman of the Turtles, our next show will pay tribute to Flo & Eddie (Volman with long-time collaborator and fellow Turtle Howard Kaylon) as our Featured Performers. We still wanted to squeeze a Turtles spin into this week's program as well, and we opted for one of the hits: "Elenore," written by the Turtles themselves as their snarky response to White Whale Records label suits demanding the group do another frothy 'n' frolicsome pop ditty like "Happy Together." The Turtles (really Kaylon) wrote "Elenore" as a satire of "Happy Together."

The Turtles did not intend anyone to take the deliberately goopy, over-the-top lyrics of "Elenore" seriously, nor as anything other than a grumpy middle digit flashed at their label. But White Whale loved it, released it at 45 RPM, and it became one of the group's biggest smashes. That's show biz.

THE FLASHCUBES: Reminisce

With the release of the new Half/Cubes single (and the promise of more), plus the release of the various-artists blockbuster Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, right now is a really, really good time for fans of all Cubic pop. The Flashcubes' rhythm section of bassist Gary Frenay and drummer/producer Tommy Allen are the central figures in the Half/Cubes, and they established their once and future power pop legend alongside guitarists Paul Armstrong and Arty Lenin. The Flashcubes. Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse, and an incredibly important act in my life.

That's why I wanted to organize a Flashcubes tribute album: 21 great acts covering 21 great original Flashcubes songs, bolstered by three brand-new tracks from the Flashcubes themselves. Paul Armstrong's "Reminisce" was the first single, and it's the leadoff track on Make Something Happen!

It's also my favorite song of 2025. All I want to do is reminisce with you. Hey-ho, let's go. Reminiscing isn't all I wanna do, but the foundation built by our past gives us a platform to race into whatever comes next.

THE JOHNNY POPSTAR LUV EXPLOSION: Guess I'm Just A Friendly Guy [alternate mix--Flo & Eddie's Zappa characters]

The Flo & Eddie tribute on our next show will skip the Turtles' biggest hits, delving a tiny bit deeper into a quartet of lower-charting singles and LP tracks from a great group that was so much more than just their best-known singles. Alas, that means "Elenore" will have the weekend off, showing how to be exactly what she'd be with whomever she'd rather be, happy together.

One track will will play again in our Flo & Eddie feature is this alternate mix of "Guess I'm Just A Friendly Guy" by the Johnny Popstar Luv Explosion. The track (from the EP Lizzy The Supermarket Drag Queen) was a frequent fixture on our playlists back 'round the turn of the century, and although Flo & Eddie did also sing back-up on the non-alternate mix, we favored this mix, with Flo & Eddie reprising the willfully whiny voices they used as member of the Mothers with Frank Zappa. And we're gonna play it again on Sunday night.

THE TREMBLERS: You Can't Do That

Oh yes you CAN! At the dawn of the 1980s, when Peter Noone wanted to try to establish a more (for lack of a better description) serious rock 'n' roll image separate from cute 'n' cuddly 'Erman of the 'Ermits, he formed his crack combo the Tremblers. Because he COULD do that! Great live band, great album called Twice Nightly, and ultimately a great lost opportunity, as the only thing it couldn't do was get the record-buying public on board. Stupid record-buying public.

Peter and the Tremblers deserved better. "You Can't Do That" is the first track on Twice Nightly, and it sets the album's tone with defiant, confident aplomb. It's my second-favorite Tremblers track, right after "I'll Be Taking Her Out Tonight," followed closely by "Maybe I'll Stay" and "I Screamed Anne" and "Wouldn't I" and "Steady Eddie" and the cover of Elvis Costello's "Green Shirt" and...the whole damned record. Twice Nightly is superb. With the Tremblers, Peter Noone could for damned sure do that. 

And he did.

EYTAN MIRSKY: Apologize In Advance

What do we do when we get brand-new music from Brother Eytan Mirsky? We PLAY that brand-new music from Brother Eytan Mirsky! Obviously. Dana notes that Eytan's new album All Over The Map seems to have something of a country feel to it, and Brother Eytan does indeed bring some winning twang to Forest Hills without ceding an acre or an inch of his Queens-bred Everyman snark. We'll hear more new Mirsky music this Sunday, as Eytan covers Rob Moss and Skin-Tight Skin and Rob Moss and Skin-Tight Skin cover Eytan Mirsky. We ARE the world!

PERILOUS: Glass Of Something

I propose a toast: Here's to another absolutely ace new single from the irresistible force known as Perilous. Glass of something? Set 'er up, and here's to ya.

HERMAN'S HERMITS: A Must To Avoid

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

BALLZY TOMORROW: Five Personalities

From Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes: Noted Tremblers fan Robbie Rist and his Ballzy Tomorrow dba take on one of my many favorite Flashcubes originals. From Half/Cubes featuring Peter Noone to the Tremblers to Robbie Rist to the Flashcubes and back to Robbie Rist; this week's edition of 10 Songs has just about completed the fullness of its circle.

HERMAN'S HERMITS: I'm Into Something Good

That's us. That's us all over. Getting into The Best Three Hours Of Radio On The Whole Friggin' Planet is, by definition, getting into something good.

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: 5/10/2025

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 # 1284

CHRIS VON SNEIDERN: No Promise

Peerless pop performer Chris von Sneidern is an expatriate Central New Yorker--315 represent!--and he's been on each of the five This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio compilation albums: "Lonely Tonight" and a TIRnRR show ID on Volume 1, another show ID on Volume 2, yet another show ID on Volume 3, "Insomniac Summer" on Volume 4, and "Goodnight Sailor" on Volume 5. CVS is nothing short of an international treasure, and we are honored that he's allowed us to share his wonderful, wonderful work. 

Given his firsthand local boy familiarity with Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse the Flashcubes, Chris was an obvious and prerequisite choice to include in the forthcoming album Make Something Happen! A Tribute To A DIY Power Pop Band Called THE FLASHCUBES. And man, our Chris does not disappoint. He took on the tribute's most daunting task: A cover of my favorite Flashcubes song, "No Promise."

"No Promise" was written by 'Cubes bassist Gary Frenay. We included the Flashcubes' demo version of "No Promise" on This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4 (as discussed here), and the official version from the group's Bright Lights anthology earned its own chapter in my book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1). One suspects that I kinda like the song.

Chris von Sneidern's cover nails it. Drop the freakin' mic awready. And it reinforces my belief that Make Something Happen! is destined to be one of this year's best collections.

That is a promise.

JOE GIDDINGS: Tonite Tonite

MADDY MACLAINE: So What?

Family night at TIRnRR! From Joe Giddings' ace current record Stories With Guitars, we've been playing this way fab track "Tonite Tonite" with the saturation bombardment approach you should expect from a proper rockin' pop radio show. The esteemed Mr. Giddings has also given us a superb cover of Flashcubes guitarist Arty Lenin's "You're Not Grounded" for the above-extolled Make Something Happen! project. You can safely consider us in favor of all things Giddings.

Joe recently posted that his daughter Maddy Maclaine has a new single out. Intriguing! The single is "So What?," we did our due diligence in tracking down a copy for airplay, and we hereby declare it go'geous. Go'geous! The Giddings blood line runs true.

PERILOUS: Dear Heart

A new single from Perilous...?! Oh YEAH! "Dear Heart" may be the group's most flat-out POP!! record yet, sacrificing none of their CBGB's-level passion and drive while committing to a head-over-heels swoon into the arms of, y'know, swooning. Production by TIRnRR Fave Rave Kurt Reil adds extra dollops of gravitas, and we're all eager to swoon right along. This "Dear Heart" beats again on our next show.

THE GRIP WEEDS: Gene Clark (Broken Wing)

Speaking of the mighty Kurt Reil, his own phenomenal pop combo the Grip Weeds also have a new single out, further teasing the presumed magnificence of their forthcoming album Soul Bender. Given how much airplay this little mutant radio show has allotted to the Grip Weeds' cover of the Byrds' "Lady Friend," it's a given that we'll likewise wanna spin an original Grip Weeds gem that name-checks the Byrds' Gene Clark. Byrdseriffic! We can not wait to go on a Soul Bender ourselves.

THE ROLLING STONES: Happy

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE SPONGETONES: Nothing Really Matters When You're Young

Although Make Something Happens!'s track sequence is still subject to much further tweaking, the Spongetones' cover of Arty Lenin's "Nothing Really Matters When You're Young" remains the likely closing track. How could it not be? As we exult in the legacy of the Flashcubes and how much their music has meant to me over a span of nearly five decades, I dig the flow and symmetry of opening the album with the new Flashcubes track "Reminisce" (written by 'Cubes guitarist Paul Armstrong) and barreling our way to "Nothing Really Matters When You're Young" at the end. Reminisce. Nothing Really Matters When You're Young. Look back. Reflect. And rock out with fist raised. 

A great album's final track has to be as irresistible as a great album's first track. Mission accomplished here.

THE NEW BRUTARIANS: Born Out Of Time

A recent episode of The Spoon podcast introduced us to St. Petersburg, Florida group the New Brutarians. We figured we can't go wrong copying The Spoon and grabbed latest New Brutarians single "Born Out Of Time" for our own selfish playlist-stuffin' purposes. Listen, these three-hour weekly radio shows don't just fill themselves, people. "Born Out Of Time" carries the added approved-by-TIRnRR patina of drummin' and productionin' by The Spoon's overhost Robbie Rist, though we credited those respective roles on air to Oliver Martin and David Baxter. Let's face it: We're too cute and clever for all but a select few words. Sadly, we can't say most of those words on the radio. 

Brutal.

MIKE GENT: Pathetic [work-in-progress mix]

Mike Gent of the Figgs is working on a very special contribution to Make Something Happen!, and he allowed us to play his work-in-progress cover of Flashcubes guitarist Paul Armstrong's song "Pathetic."

The finished version of Mike's track will sport a lead vocal by a noted rock 'n' roll artist whose work I've enjoyed since I was still in high school. I have also heard a subsequent work-in-progress mix with that lead vocal in place, and the result lives up to all of my giddy expectations. Or, as Paul Armstrong hisself noted, "It's unreal hearing [REDACTED] FUCKING [REDACTED] sing a song I wrote!"

We're not quite ready to address the Rumour of this secret guest singer's identity. Though sometimes I feel like pouring it all out. 

Passion is no ordinary word.

CALLAN FOSTER: It's You Tonight

It's tempting to say that Callan Foster's epic take on Gary Frenay's "It's You Tonight" was one of the precipitating events that made Make Something Happen! happen. That's not exactly true--the vague idea of maybe someday doing a Flashcubes tribute album predates Callan's one-man-'Cubes cover--but his version and its accompanying video blew me away. And it provided instant validation of my belief that a Flashcubes tribute album was viable and necessary. 

And now we are making it happen. Thanks, Callan! It's you tonight.

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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.