10 SONGS (plus a three-song bonus): 6/27/2026--GUITARS VS. RAYGUNS!!

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 # 1341: GUITARS VS. RAYGUNS!!

CHUCK BERRY: Promised Land

This week's show ties into the publication of my new book Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! Short Stories And Other White Lies. The book is a work of fiction, but we're celebrating its intrinsic mojo by stringing together an irresistible array of rockin' pop music by a few of the many real-life musicmakers mentioned alongside imaginary characters I created for the book's stories. And we'll get to the music in just a sec, right after these important words from our sponsor:

Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! Short Stories And Other White Lies gathers tales of a foul-mouthed rock 'n' roll guitarist hijacked into space, an Old West gunslinger, a film noir gun moll who longs to be in a musical, a humorous fill-in superhero suddenly called to greatness, a former boy band star turned record company fix-it man, a would-be painter, an obsessed collector, a fated swordswoman, a fallen giant, a frustrated time traveler, a condemned sinner guiding tourists in Hell, a departed soul interviewing for a spot in Heaven, a 1976 Beatles reunion concert, and other untruths detailing love, loss, disappointment, miscellaneous hijinks, a fascination with shiny objects, and—occasionally--a juvenile sense of humor. 

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Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! Short Stories And Other White Lies (2026): $15
The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) (2024): $30
Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones (2023): $25

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The first story in the book is the first short story I ever sold, 2019's "Guitars Vs. Rayguns," a foul-mouthed farce about a rock band from Earth playing gigs on other planets. Chuck Berry was the first among many actual musicians name-checked in this and subsequent stories. After all, NASA's inclusion of "Johnny B. Goode" on the gold record sent into space with Voyager 1 and 2 is what built the extraterrestrial market for rock 'n' roll in the first place. As Rocky, the leader of the book's titular planet-hopping combo Guitars Vs. Rayguns relates:

"Tonight's gig's been going well. Just one fight so far, and the drummer was only wounded; he's out for the night, but we'll get by with just two guitars and a bass if we gotta. Some Big Star, some Everly Brothers, Prince, Grip Weeds, Supremes, Pop Co-Op, Small Faces, and always, always some Chuck Berry. We're about midway through 'Promised Land' when an asshole in the audience tries to interrupt us...."

And that leads into more of the miscellaneous hijinks the book's back cover blurb promises. Take us to the Promised Land. Chuck.

THE CYNZ: Love's So Lovely

The Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! book presents a total of 27 short stories, including five stories starring the irrepressible space-traveling bar band from whom the book takes its title. There is also a sixth story centered around one of the band's members. The other 21 tales are unrelated to the adventures of this band called Guitars Vs. Rayguns. 

A few of the book's non-GvsR! stories are centered around music. "Home Of The Hits" sticks strictly to characters of my creation, with no references to real-life musicians. "Open Letter To An Imaginary Rock Band" finds its narrator listing a bunch of acts (KISS, the Stylistics, the Sex Pistols, Motörhead, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Talking Heads, the Isley Brothers) he prefers to his younger brother's favorite band (the fictional Pants-On Flyers). "I'm At Bat!" name-checks OIivia Newton-John, the Kinks, Nelson Riddle, the Jam, the Marketts, and Neil Hefti. Both "Time, And The Junk Food Of Your Life" and "Pop Friction" mention the Beatles, and the Fab Four also star in their own story about a 1976 reunion concert. The volume of real-life music-makin' names cited within that Beatles short story may rival the cumulative number of bands referenced in all five (or six) of the GvsR! chapters.

But yeah, the dedicated GvsR! band stories provide a pervasive supply of pop music name-dropping threaded throughout the book. The vast majority of them are passing references, and that status includes this line invoking the name of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio fave raves the Cynz:

"...The setlist was still peppered with covers, everything from the Buzzcocks and the Selecter to the Cynz and Etta James. But we were doing more and more originals, and our drunken and violently irascible audiences were responding. Favorably. Fuck, we had a gig last week out near Sirius, and only one raygun fight broke out. One! Unheard of in our experience. Suddenly, the ETs far and wide were dancing and listening. We were heading to the toppermost of the motherfucking poppermost...."

As a writer and a music fan (and, y'know, a DJ), my mind is always occupied with dozens of random notions and dozens of irresistible song choices. Always. I wanted Guitars Vs. Rayguns' repertoire to reflect that. And I specifically wanted to mention the Cynz because lead singer Cyndi Dawson has been so supportive of all of my books. Cyndi: THANK YOU!

(And in the real world, "Love's So Lovely" [from the current Cynz album Confess] has already secured a berth on TIRnRR's year-end countdown show. And I wouldn't be surprised if it makes our Top Ten. Hey, Cynz! The guitars and the rayguns salute you.)

THE MONKEES: (I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone

One of the (theoretical) growing-up experiences that impacted my development as a pop pundit, music journalist, and writer of stuff was the act of standing my ground whenever anyone told me I shouldn't like something. Over time, I learned to shrug off naysayers, and to keep right on digging what I dig. Comic book superheroes. Punk rock. Pulp fiction.

The Monkees.

The more some folks tried to convinced me that the Monkees were worthless, the more they deepened my conviction that they didn't know what they were talking about. I'd seen the TV show, I'd heard the records. I know what I like. I loved the Monkees, and I still do.

The Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! book includes three separate references to the Monkees. In my Beatles reunion story, when John, Paul, George, and Ringo have an informal get-together to reacclimate to playing as a band, they perform a presumably-jokey (but not disrespectful) jam of the familiar "(Theme From) The Monkees." Later in the book, when Guitars Vs. Rayguns are auditioning a new member, the Monkees' "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone" is one of a slew of covers the potential group is unable to nail.

My favorite Monkees moment in Guitars Vs. Rayguns! occurs still later in the book, when the members of my raygun-target rock group find themselves in danger, and they steal a plot element directly from The Monkees TV series to escape their predicament. The idea's inspiration is given full and proper in-story credit. Saved by the Monkees! I believe the fans will be pleased.

But I would have that faith, wouldn't I? After all, I'm a believer.

THE FLASHCUBES: No Promise

Big Stir Records recording artists the Flashcubes loom large in my legend. You can be assured that in the GvsR! chronicles, the Flashcubes are represented and appreciated by rock 'n' roll fans across the planets and across the galaxies.

Guitars Vs. Rayguns drummer Leiko is certainly a Flashcubes fan, especially of 'Cubes drummer Tommy Allen (alongside Keith Moon, Marky Ramone, Clem Burke, Dennis Diiken, and Ringo Starr. Here's evidence of that:

"...Leiko leaned in for emphasis. 'I'm Keith fucking Moon. I'm Marky fucking Ramone. I'm Clem fucking Burke. I'm Dennis fucking Diken from the Smithereens, Tommy fucking Allen from the Flashcubes, Ringo fucking Starr if I wanna be Ringo fucking Starr.

" 'I'm fucking LEIKO, bitches!...' "

So noted. In the universe of GvsR!, the Flashcubes are stars, as big as any other stars in any galaxy. 

I like that universe.

WONDERBOY: Girl Songs

Robbie Rist is a long-time friend of this show, and Dana and I have twice been guests on The Spoon, the essential podcast our Robbie co-hosts with Chris Jackson and Thom Bowers. As a tip of the hat, I wanted to add Robbie's old SoCal pop band Wonderboy to the long list of acts that Guitars Vs. Rayguns covers in their phaser-blasted live sets. And given clear evidence within the narrative that Guitars Vs. Rayguns guitarist Rocky really likes the ladies--really, really likes the ladies--Wonderboy's pop gem "Girl Songs" is a perfect match. 

P. P. ARNOLD: The First Cut Is The Deepest

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE RAMONES: Blitzkrieg Bop

C'mon--it wouldn't be one of my books if it didn't reference the Ramones. In one of the book's non-GvsR! stories, a character mentions driving through a blizzard as his iPod treats him to neck-snappin' segues from the Ramones to Dizzy Gillespie to the Girls From Petticoat Junction. In "Jack Mystery (some truths and some white lies)," the actor auditioning for the lead role in a comic book movie wears a Ramones t-shirt. Within the five (or six) GvsR! stories, a character uses the expression "I swear to Joey Ramone," the bassist expresses a desire to channel Brian Wilson, James Jamerson, and Dee Dee Ramone, and we've already seen that drummer Leiko intends to be Marky fucking Ramone (among others). The Ramones. The American Beatles. The greatest American rock 'n' roll band of all time. Hey-ho. Let's go!

JOAN JETT: Bad Reputation

From my short story "Lone Star Falling," which I think is among the best things I've ever written:

"...But Marie looked up at Faye. The eyes could not see. Nonetheless, Marie said out loud, 'LaFayette?'

"Faye had not heard anyone call her by her full first name in...well, she couldn't remember how long it had been. 'Yes, Mom! It's LaFayette.' Usually unflappable, Faye's nerves were on Def Con 1. 'How are you, Mom?'

" 'George!,' Marie called out. 'LaFayette's here for a visit. Come see your daughter.'

" 'No, Mom. Let's not bother Daddy right now.' Faye's father George had died in a car accident decades ago, when Faye was in seventh grade. Faye saw no reason to correct her mother's illusion. 'Let's just have a chat for a second, just you and me, Mom.'

" 'Fifi...?'

Faye froze. Her mother hadn't called her by that name since she was a little girl. 'Fifi? Is that you?' Before Faye could muster a reply, Marie's mind switched again. 'LaFayette! Turn off that noise and set the table for dinner!'

" 'It's not noise, Mom,' said Faye, recalling the exact conversation she had with Marie all those years ago. 'It's Joan Jett. Come on, Mom. Dance with me!'

"Marie smiled as Faye began to dance by the creeping phlox. Marie also started to dance, or rather to mimic the act of dancing while still confined to her wheelchair. 'Such language,' Marie said. 'Couldn't this Joan Jett say she doesn't give a darn about her reputation?'

" 'Works better this way, Mom. It's kickass!'

" 'LaFayette!'

" 'It's okay, Mom. Doesn't this music make you feel alive?'

"Marie was silent, but the glow of her smile continued...."

YOKO ONO: Move On Fast

I have a lot of respect for Yoko Ono, but most of her music falls outside of my chosen pop parameters. Dana's a fan. That said, there are three Yoko tracks I like very much: Her 1980 B-side "Kiss Kiss Kiss" earned a chapter in my previous book The Greatest Record Ever Made! [Volume 1]), her 1971 seasonal treat "Listen, The Snow Is Falling" is luscious and sublime, and "Move On Fast," a pumpin' track from her 1973 album Approximately Infinite Universe, rocks. Yoko haters need not apply.

My first awareness and appreciation of "Move On Fast" was provided courtesy of the weekly classic alternative podcast Only Three Lads. Like Dana, O3L co-host Brett Vargo is big on Yoko, and while he hasn't yet managed to convert his partner Uncle Gregg to the cause, Brett insists Gregg will come around eventually. Me? I'm grateful to Brett for hooking me on this track.

Yoko Ono appears as a supporting character in my 1976 Beatles reunion fantasy piece. I think she comes off quite well, and I hope Brett will approve of her depiction. Dear Yoko: The world of Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! holds nothing but love for you.

THE BEATLES: Paperback Writer

Why, yes--I am a paperback writer. Dear sir or madam, will you read my book?

ENCORE! THREE MORE SONGS!!

MOTÖRHEAD: Ace Of Spades

SLADE: Gudbuy T' Jane

LL COOL J: Mama Said Knock You Out 

These songs are mentioned together in sequence late in the book, when Guitars Vs. Rayguns are jamming with a famous real-life rock 'n' roll superstar, and he sings these three song choices with them. And the band is beyond thrilled when HE expresses gratitude to THEM...!

Thenkyew. Thenkyewverymuch.

Unlikely song choices in this context? Man, I can hear them, in my crowded head. And besides: The King can do what the King can do. That's why he's the King.

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.

My new book of short stories Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! Short Stories And Other White Lies is out now, and you can get autographed copies of the new book and my previous book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) directly from me. You can still get my previous 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.

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. 

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: 5/1/2026

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

THE FLASHCUBES: Arty, Paul, Tommy, and Gary

This week's edition of 10 Songs draws exclusively from the playlist for This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1334, an Irish wake for Syracuse punk Paul Armstrong

THE FLASHCUBES WITH MIKE GENT: Reminisce

The gut punch of hearing that guitarist (and friend of this show) Paul Armstrong had succumbed to his battle with cancer was cushioned an eensy bit by knowing the bad news was coming soon, and more importantly by the fact that PA's mortal suffering had finally ended. It was still a gut punch. Paul battled his illness bravely and privately; I was made aware of it solely because of my work on a book detailing an oral history of the Flashcubes--PA, Tommy Allen, Gary Frenay, and Arty Lenin--and the pressing need for me to prioritize completing my interviews with Paul. We were able to accomplish that, though I would have liked the opportunity to do one more follow-up. But man, we'd all like the opportunity to have many more years with Paul Armstrong in our lives, singing, playing, writing, and kibbitzing. That wish will not be granted in the limits of this physical world. As always: Fuck cancer.

It felt imperative to dedicate this week's show to Paul Armstrong, to offer an Irish wake for a Syracuse punk. 14 tracks on the show include PA as a performer, and a total of 20 tracks were written or co-written by Paul (plus we played two versions of two of these 20 PA compositions/co-compositions, "Reminisce" and "Five Personalities"). The importance of Paul Armstrong's influence on shaping TIRnRR's DNA cannot be overstated.

In this moment, it felt important to reminisce.

Excerpted and adapted from a previous 10 Songs:

"Reminisce" was written by Flashcubes guitarist Paul Armstrong, with lyrics that look back in wonder at the heady days of the Flashcubes' brilliance under the bright lights in the late '70s. The music struts and commands like a Flashcubes song oughta, and the chorus is just magnificent, jaw-dropping, a compelling incitement to raise the ol' fist and be there like you wuz there.

Man, I was there. "Reminisce" captures what it was like.

My 2025 Flashcubes tribute album Make Something Happen! opened with "Reminisce." It was by far my favorite individual track of 2025, and it woulda been a tough one to challenge. The song was first written in the '90s and (I think) only performed once before being filed away and mostly forgotten. (I remember it, of course, but I'm, y'know...me.)

If I understand the subsequent story correctly, in 2024 PA reconstructed the song from memory, moving what had been a somewhat perfunctory number into the magic realm of rock 'n' roll transcendence, toasting the past but raising the roof in the here and now, even adding a Ramones quote that nails a demonstration of the essential truth that what's cool once is cool forever. The present is built upon the past. We can still jump up, down, and all around to its sound. 

And we will! The Flashcubes have meant an awful lot to me, and to this show. "Reminisce" is the perfect song to kick off a celebration, looking back while facing front at the same damned time.

BALLZY TOMORROW: Five Personalities

Also from that same previous 10 Songs:

From the tribute album's acknowledgements:

"Special thanks to Robbie Rist; two years ago, when I said that someone should put together a Flashcubes tribute album, he immediately replied (and I'm paraphrasing): "YOU do it. You know bands! And I'll be on it!" When Robbie speaks, power pop fans listen."

This power pop fan listened anyway. And as the Flashcubes tribute album moved from Wouldn't it be cool? to GO TIME!!, it was clear to me that our Robbie should use the great power and responsibility of his nom de bop Ballzy Tomorrow to do a cover of the Flashcubes' "Five Personalities."

"Five Personalities" was originally recorded by Paul Armstrong's group the Richards (as heard on This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 3), co-written by PA with Richards lead singer Norm Mattice and CNY guitar legend Mark Doyle. With some additional songcraft from Flashcubes bassist Gary Frenay, "Five Personalities" was subsequently recorded by the Flashcubes themselves for their 2003 album Brilliant, and that arrangement provides the basic template for Ballzy Tomorrow's Make Something Happen! entry.

And Mr. Rist runs with it. Hell, Gary Frenay recently declared Ballzy Tomorrow's (and I quote) "phenomenal" rendition of "Five Personalities to be "Best version of the song yet. So inspired!" PA chimed in with "Stellar!," and 'Cubes drummer Tommy Allen added a reverent "AWESOME!!!"

They are correct. But I expected nothing less. When Robbie Rist speaks, power pop fans listen. And when Robbie plays and sings? They listen even harder. Robbie Rist gives us an interpretation of "Five Personalities" that our friends at Big Stir Records describe as "majestically Queen-like whimsy." We concur!

SORROWS: Radio

Op. cit.:

"Radio" was the B-side of the Flashcubes' second single "Wait Til Next Week." The song was co-written by Paul Armstrong and Gary Frenay, and although it was a live favorite at the time, it fell into disfavor within the band and was dropped from the set.

Coincidentally, within days of snaggin' my copy of "Wait Til Next Week"/"Radio" from Gary at Gildersleeves on Bowery in '79, I also picked up "Jealousy"/"She's Got It" by the Poppees. Sorrows formed out of the aftermath of the Poppees, and Sorrows' recent album Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow earned guaranteed representation on TIRnRR's 2025 year-end countdown show

And for Make Something Happen!, Sorrows have given us a cover of "Radio" that is nothing short of full-on freakin' phenomenal. 

Listen: You can search the four corners of the globe, and by the time you realize globes don't have corners, you'll already know what a fiercely loyal Flashcubes fan I am. Given that, consider the sheer gravity of me saying that Sorrows have accomplished the definitive version of the Flashcubes' "Radio." Pop music is my religion. Radio is one of my pulpits. With "Radio," Sorrows deliver the sermon we need.

Testify. And put your antenna to the sky.

GRAHAM PARKER AND MIKE GENT: Pathetic

My Flashcubes book Make Something Happen! The DIY Story Of A Power Pop Group Called THE FLASHCUBES originally had a targeted publication date of Fall 2025. I was not able to make that something happen, particularly given the demands of organizing and overseeing the Flashcubes tribute album. As much as I regret that I couldn't complete work on this book before PA's passing, I don't regret making that choice. Over the years, Paul was able to read tons of stuff I wrote about the Flashcubes, and stuff I wrote specifically about him. By choosing to concentrate on getting the Flashcubes tribute album done, I enabled a situation where Paul Armstrong was able to hear the great Graham Parker cover one of PA's songs. As Paul told me, "It's unreal hearing GRAHAM FUCKING PARKER sing a song I wrote!"

Yeah, I would make that same choice again in a heartbeat. 

Op. cit.:

Ahem.

Yeah, we got Graham Parker--GRAHAM MOTHERLOVIN' PARKER!!--to cover the Flashcubes for Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes. We feel taller! Credit Mike Gent of the Figgs for making this particular something happen, revamping and adapting 'Cubes guitarist Paul Armstrong's "Pathetic" into a worthy vehicle for the well-respected GP, and seeing it through to perfection.

Although it would be inaccurate to call the great Graham Parker a punk rocker, the irascible 'n' irrepressible vibe of some of his 1970s material places him (at the very least) on punk's periphery. Parker wasn't a punk...but a lot of punks loved him. This punk sure did.

As such, GP was among the first artists I ever heard within this broad not-really-a-category category of the punk-adjacent. In my senior year of high school, 1976-77, WOUR-FM in Utica, NY was playing Parker's "Hotel Chambermaid," and they were also playing Nick Lowe's "So It Goes." In the summer of '77, WOUR added the Sex Pistols' "God Save The Queen" to its parade of Hey, Carl! Dig THIS!! revelations. None of these three sounded at all like the other two. The common ground was attitude. 

The shared trait was transcendence.

Graham Parker is, of course, still at it, gloriously still at it, and still a reliable resource for Hey, Carl! Dig THIS! Consider his cover of "Pathetic" as case-closed evidence of that.

THE RICHARDS: Over There

Do you know the story of PA's inspiration for writing "Pathetic?" No, it's not about me. but it is about another music journalist. By the early '90s, Paul and singer-guitarist-born rock star Norm Mattice had already relocated from Syracuse to Boston, and changed the name of their 'Cuse-born combo 1.4.5. to the Richards. The Richards released only one album under that name, and that was a dynamic rockin' bopper called Over The Top.

I loved it. The person who reviewed it for The Syracuse New Times did not love it, and publicly trashed it accordingly. Paul Armstrong, being the easy-going take-all-things-in-stride guy he was, accepted the constructive criticism and tried to apply this new-found wisdom to his future works.

NO! I KID! I'm a kidder. PA saw red, and wrote "Pathetic" as his vitriolic response. You haven't got a penny to your name/A victim of self-inflicted fame/Spewing venom on a one-horse town/ You're no Kewpie Doll, you're just a clown! Lyrics woulda been worthy of Never Mind The Bollocks. When the Flashcubes recorded "Pathetic" for their album Brilliant, they changed Kewpie Doll to New York Doll for a more universal reference. "Pathetic" basically became Paul Armstrong's signature tune. And some people say rock critics aren't relevant!

Over The Top gave us this sturdy rocker "Over There." Love it. What do critics know anyway?

MEEGAN VOSS AND STEVE JORDAN/THE VERBS: I Need Glue

PA's transcendent giddiness over hearing Graham Parker sing "Pathetic" was matched by the joy he experienced in adding renowned musician Steve Jordan to his list of personal contacts, all as a result of work on the Flashcubes tribute album. Op cit.:

Meegan Voss was a veteran participant in that same vibrant late '70s Syracuse music scene sparked by the Flashcubes, and her 1978-1980 group the Poptarts shoulda been stars. Now, she and her husband Steve Jordan perform together as the Verbs. I remember Meegan from the Poptarts days, and I remember watching Steve on TV in the '80s, when he was the drummer for the house band on Late Night With David Letterman. Steve has worked with just about everybody, though one suspects his current gig as the Rolling Stones' drummer kinda pops out on the ol' résumé with extra added satisfaction.

We are so fortunate to have Meegan and Steve involved in this Flashcubes tribute project, and it's such a unique kick to hear how the Verbs have taken "I Need Glue," a very early Flashcubes punk number, and made it their freakin' own. 

I continue to be knocked out by how radically the Verbs were able to revamp, restructure, and reimagine this punk stomper while still retaining a comfy tether to the original's intent. One of my (many!) favorite tracks on Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes.

1.4.5: Your Own World

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE MOST: Do The Jumping Jack

When Paul Armstrong got divorced from the Flashcubes in 1979, he immediately joined his girlfriend Dian Zain's new group the Most. Dian already had a solo single just about ready for release, and a new picture sleeve was quickly fabricated, changing the record's billing to the Most. I absolutely loved the Most, and I wrote about them when Dian passed in 2021.

The Most recorded some very cool tracks, but only three ever saw release. "Rockerfeller" found its way to a various-artist collection called From The City That Brought You...Absolutely Nothing, while fab material like "Girls Don't Pay," "I'm Not The Liar," "Habits," "Let's Go Out Tonight," and more remain unissued and unheard. Aside from "Rockerfeller," the only Most tracks ever to make their way to retail were the two sides of that Dian Zain 45: "Take A Chance"/"Do The Jumping Jack."

"Take A Chance" was a Dian Zain composition. "Do The Jumping Jack" was Paul, and it had been a staple of early Flashcubes live shows. At one point, it was mentioned as a possible B-side for the first 'Cubes single "Christi Girl," but that notion got jettisoned PDQ. 

To be fair, "Do The Jumping Jack" isn't a great song...but I'm attached to it. I loved doing the Jumping Jack when the Flashcubes played it, and I loved doing that when the Most played it. I recall one Most gig upstairs at the Firebarn, and nobody was dancing. Nobody. I was dressed in Beatle boots and a suit and tie adorned with miscellaneous rock 'n' roll buttons. As the Most began playing "Do The Jumping Jack," I planted myself front and center before the stage, and I did the Jumping Jack like no one was watching. I felt awkward. I did it anyway. 

And others joined in. In memory of that spirit, our tribute to PA demanded a spin of the Jumping Jack. 

THE FLASHCUBES: Got No Mind

The Flashcubes were an incredible, exciting live rock 'n' roll band. The best document of that empirical fact is Flashcubes On Fire, a 2022 CD preserving an incendiary May 1979 'Cubes set at the Firebarn. In my liner notes to that album, I wrote:

"At its best, live music is alchemy in action, capable of transforming the air around us into pure gold. This mystic process is fueled by so many ingredients, both physical and phantasmic. Sweat. Love. Lust. Hate. Alcohol. Hunger. Ambition. Greed. Generosity. Divine inspiration. Betrayal. Heartbreak. Laughter. Tears. One pill that makes you larger, one pill that makes you small. Amplifiers, power chords, the beat of the bass and drums. Voices rising in anger or exultation. Taking a sad song and making it better. One for the money, two for the show. NOISE. Beautiful, transcendent noise. The sound of gold.

"In 1979, I was 19 years old. I reveled in this golden sound. My preferred alchemists were a fantastic rock 'n' roll group called the Flashcubes. My go-to goldmine was the Firebarn...."

The definitive rendition of PA's Ramones-inspired rant "Got No Mind" comes from this set. The 1978 basement demo of "Got No Mind" (paired with a basement demo of Gary Frenay's "Guernica" as the collective B-side of "Christi Girl") doesn't carry any of the punch a proper rant requires. The live "Got No Mind" has punch to spare, and the same Firebarn recording also served as the closing number on the original Flashcubes anthology Bright Lights.

On Bright Lights, the "Got No Mind" track fades out as the 'Cubes launch into a furious performance of the Larry Williams (via the Beatles) nugget "Dizzy Miss Lizzy." Flashcubes On Fire includes "Got No Mind" and "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" as separate tracks. On this week's radio tribute to Paul Armstrong, we segued the Flashcubes On Fire "Got No Mind" into the Beatles' screamin' promo video version of "Revolution"

Because that's what the Flashcubes were to me when I was 18: Revolution. Fuckin' A, man. 

That A stands for Armstrong.

THE FLASHCUBES WITH TONY CARBONE: Reminisce

All I wanna do is reminisce with you. On November 25th, 1994, the Flashcubes played a gig at Syracuse's Lost Horizon, with deputy drummer Tony Carbone sitting in for Tommy Allen. It is, I believe, the only time the Flashcubes ever performed "Reminisce." I have a lo-fi recording of it, and this early version is barely a blueprint for the transcendent wonder of what PA, Gary, Arty, and Tommy did with the song upon returning to it circa 2024.

But it stands as history, a cornerstone, an early clue to the new direction. Wanna reminisce? I'm right there with you: Awkward and starry-eyed, a teen that never grew up because I can't figure out how to do that, and still hell-bent on the message: Pop music is my religion. Reminiscing keeps it in the present day. 

And knowing and remembering all of that helps us in our ongoing endeavors to make something happen. Godspeed, PA.

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: 3/27/2026

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 # 1329

THE ANDERSONS!: From The Get-Go

SPECTRAFLAME: I Always Wanted You To Stay

We play the hits. Our little mutant radio show first invaded the airwaves at the very end of 1998, a few months after power pop force of nature the Andersons! released their debut album Separated At Birth. From that album, an insanely infectious track called "From The Get-Go" was a huge, huge favorite during TIRnRR Year One, and it still occasionally makes its winning way to our playlists even now. Our old pal Robbie Rist was a proud member of the Andersons!; the first time Dana and I appeared as guests on The Spoon (Robbie's podcast with co-hosts Chris Jackson and Thom Bowers), Robbie figured that your Dana and your Carl had probably played the Andersons! on the radio, but he wasn't for-sure certain. "Robbie," I assured him, "We were playing the Andersons! from the get-go."

HA! I slay me.

Robbie's worked with tons of artists. One of his current collaborations is with Florida's phenomenal pop combo Spectraflame, whose recent single "I Always Wanted You To Stay" has already just about locked up a berth on our year-end countdown show. Central 'Flame Steve Burgess knows how to craft and execute a pop tune, and our Robbie knows how to help him deliver it. A hit record. It stays on the playlist for our next show.

ANY TROUBLE: Playing Bogart

THE HOLLIES: Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress

Listen: If you're gonna try your hand at playing Bogart, you're gonna wind up sitting in a nest of bad men, whiskey bottles piling high. Any Trouble's "Playing Bogart" into the Hollies' "Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress" may be the most impeccable segue in TIRnRR's long history of impeccable segues. Pop noir!

DEVIL LOVE: Tell Me You Love Me

Devil Love's wonderful current single "Tell Me You Love Me" has become a welcome earworm, playing inside my delighted li'l cranium with remarkable frequency. TIRnRR airplay has not yet mirrored my love for this track, though that's just a byproduct of programming logistics; for example, I planned to play "Tell Me You Love Me" again on our next show, but it was among several selections bumped aside when the passing of Chip Taylor prompted me to wedge in five songs from the Chip Taylor songbook. Devil Love's fantastic single will be back. I tell you: I love it.

(Incidentally: The Chip Taylor tribute will include two obvious hits, one [in some circles] lesser-known album track, and two covers, one of which I mistakenly refer to on-air as the original version. Oops.)

THE SMITHEREENS: House We Used To Live In

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

THE SHIRTS: Starts With A Handshake

In 2025, the visionary Think Like A Key Music label released Live Featuring Annie Golden, a previously-unissued 1981 live-in-the-studio exhibition by CBGB vet'rans the Shirts. It's invigmoratin', like getting a brand-new classic Shirts record, and its track "Tears Comin' Down" made our year-end countdown show of TIRnRR's most-played tracks in 2025.

Now, Think Like A Key once again emerges from the archives with more new old Shirts. Live At Paradise 1979 preserves a Boston gig broadcast on WBCN, and it friggin' kicks, man. The album includes bravura performances of long-time TIRnRR Shirts favorites like "Tell Me Your Plans" and "Reduced To A Whisper," plus a lotta fab shots we ain't played yet. If there are still more vintage Shirts hangin' in the closet, here's hoping Think Like A Key Music can dig them out as well. And if the label could clear rights to reissue the group's two long-outta-print Capitol Records long-players (and the rest of the group's albums to boot), well, those Shirts would provide the best fit ever.

THE HALF/CUBES: Something's Gonna Happen

We have--of course!--been playing selections from the Half/Cubes' superb current album Found Pearls, as any decent rockin' pop radio outlet should. BUT! We now have a brand-new non-album Half/Cubes single, with Special Guest Bat Villain Glen Burtnik of the Weeklings taking on lead vocals for a cover of the American Breed's "Bend Me, Shape Me." That will open our next show this Sunday night.

SERGIO CECCANTI: Leave The Past, Don't Look Behind

From a previous 10 Songs:

"Our little mutant radio show has a long and rewarding history with the mighty Kool Kat Muzik label. Even before Ray Gianchetti (Mr. Kool Kat hisself) made his superfine rockin' pop imprint the home of our TIRnRR compilation albums, we've been programming Kool Kat cuts since the dawn of ever. Every new Kool Kat release is automatically under consideration for TIRnRR airplay, and almost all of them result in at least one track getting a spin on one (or more!) of our playlists. We're FANS!

"And right now, I'm a big fan of Leave The Past, Don't Look Behind, the new Kool Kat Musik release by Sergio Ceccanti. The title track is just perfect--perfect!--for the radio-ready vibe we crave, channeling a '60s garage-pop atmosphere in service of a steely-eyed determination to seek a sure-footed next step forward...."

Like Devil Love's "Tell Me You Love Me," Mr. Ceccanti's "Leave The Past, Don't Look Behind" hasn't yet received the TIRnRR exposure it deserves. But it will spin again this Sunday, and on some future Sundays thereafter. Leave the past. We'll barrel ahead from here.

THE CYNZ: Love's So Lovely

Awright, this one we HAVE been playing, and we're not stopping now. So lovely. So right. From their current album Confess, the Cynz supply the love we all need.

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.