Dance Week / Black Keys “Lonely Boy” (2011)
Dance Week wraps up with "a complete accident" that became one of rock's most memorable videos. Because "anybody can dance"... Read More
The Godfathers “Birth, School, Work, Death” (1988)
..The Godfathers, an ‘80’s English new wave band, seemed to have it boiled down to a pretty tight outline. There it is, on their biggest U.S. hit, a philosophy in four words..... Read More
Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers “Roadrunner” (1976)
..it’s 4 beats to a measure, and the count goes to 4. Except for one: ‘Roadrunner’ by Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers, which starts with a count-off…to 6. As best as I know, it’s the only song ever to do this, though surely this can’t be verified... Read More
Little Steven & The Disciples Of Soul “Superfly Terraplane” (2019)
Little Steven, very much contrary to his most identifiable nickname, has always done everything big. Music, activism, television, radio, education…Never mind that old gray beard in the famous Dos Equis beer campaign, I’d be willing to say that Steven Van Zandt is, in fact, “The Most Interesting Man In The World.”... Read More
Supagroup “What’s Your Problem” (2003)
As America’s most historic and important music city, New Orleans instantly conjures a lot of musical identifiers: the birthplace of jazz, brass band culture, originators of funk and R&B, boogie-woogie pianists, zydeco stompers, Indian tribe chanters, and second line parades. What it does not... Read More
The Knickerbockers “Lies” (1965)
I guess the biggest of the “lies” here was that this delightful, melodic and catchy little song was not actually recorded by 4 mop-topped Beatles in Liverpool, England – as one might quite naturally assume – but by a garage band named The Knickerbockers led by a couple of brothers from Bergenfield, New Jersey. Apocryphal...... Read More
Link Wray “Rumble” (1958) [performed 1974]
Lots of great guitarists have lots of different influences, but they all love Link Wray. I can’t prove it as a scientific fact, but just believe me on this. I first heard Wray’s trailblazing sound tearing up the two albums on which he partnered with Rockabilly legend Robert Gordon for his first two releases, Robert...... Read More
Los Straitjackets “Fury” (1995); “Here Comes Santa Claus” (2002)
It’s hard not to love surf rock instrumentals, harder still when the band playing them exclusively performs wearing Lucha Libre Mexican pro-wrestler masks. It’s an outstanding gimmick, especially for a bunch of guys originating out of Nashville. But Los Straitjackets are a great band first, a great gimmick second.... Read More
The Human Beinz “Nobody But Me” (1968)
Ever wonder what the most negative song in rock history is? No? NO? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. That’s the opening, ah, verse (?) of ‘Nobody But Me’ – just...... Read More