Posies – Golden Blunders…. Powerpop Friday

Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer started to write songs together while in High School in Bellingham, Washington in 1986. They were influenced by The Hollies, Hüsker Dü, XTC, Elvis Costello, Squeeze, and Big Star.

They released an album Failure on cassette and vinyl near the end of 1988 on local indie label PopLlama. Several major labels noticed the band early on and in late 1989 they signed to new Geffen Records imprint DGC Records. The released an album Dear 23 in 1990 and this was their first single. The song peaked at #17 in the US Modern Rock Tracks in 1990.

Ringo Starr would cover Golden Blunders on his 1992 solo album Time Takes Time.

There is no surprise after listening to the Posies that guitarists  Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer  would join Big Star’s Alex Chilton and drummer Jody Stephens to record and tour as Big Star in the 90s and up until Alex’s death in 2010.

Ken and Jon’s harmonies, writing, and playing are top notch. The 80’s and 90’s popular  radio left a lot to be desired, at least to me, they could have really used these guys…I may have liked that era much better hearing more of this.

Jon Auer on Golden Blunders: “It’s about two kids in high school who mess up the rest of their lives,” “There’s the implication of a teenage pregnancy but there’s not any amazing message here.”

Golden Blunders

Golden blunders come in pairs, they’re very unaware
What they know is what they’ve seen
Education wasn’t fun, but now that school is done
Higher learning’s just begun
(Chorus)
You’re gonna watch what you say for a long time
You’re gonna suffer the guilt forever
You’re gonna get in the way at the wrong time
You’re gonna mess up things you thought you would never
Disappointment breeds contempt, it make you feel inept
Never thought you’d feel alone (at home)
His and hers forever more, throw your freedom out of the door
Before you find out what it’s for
(Chorus)
Four weeks seemed like a long time then – but nine months is longer now
But even if you never speak again – you’ve already made the wedding vow
(Chorus)
Honeymoons will never start, bonds will blow apart
Just as fast as they were made
Men and women please beware : don’t pretend you care
Nothing lasts when nothing’s there
(Repeat Chorus)

…

Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player.

24 thoughts on “Posies – Golden Blunders…. Powerpop Friday”

      2. Just to tell you… I’m an idiot! I posted the wrong song by them. I changed my mind on the song and forgot to post the right song. Sorry again

        Like

  2. I’m mentioning Ken in one later today! The vid you have is for another song by them, Solar Sister (?) but it sounds quite good. Another band I hear more of than their music.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  3. Pingback: May 14 – R.E.M. ‘Reveal’ed Summery Side – A Sound Day

      1. I think Dear 23 might be my favourite actually, just haven’t spent as much time with it. I find Frosting a little overlong to sit through. Auer is an amazing harmony singer (I assume it’s him a lot of the time?). I have a big soft spot for Ken Stringfellow’s album Soft Commands – it’s kind of sedate adult contemporary pop but there are some great songs.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. If I would have listened to more college radio I would have liked it more…the 80s that is.

        Like

      3. I wasn’t so much into the pop as I was the rock. I was up to my eyeballs in AC/DC, Def Leppard, Journey, Guns -n- Roses, Scorpions, Foreigner, Van Halen, Asia, Styx (my ex-hubby Steve was a huge Styx fan), Heart, Queen, Pat Benatar, ZZ Top, The Stones, Quiet Riot (LOL!), The Heartbreakers, Lone Justice, Springsteen, Mellencamp…bleeding into REM, Duran Duran, Loverboy… I liked Prince, Rick James, Michael Jackson, Bowie… I was not a Madonna fan. I tolerated Culture Club, Cyndi Lauper but, never really got into them. I’ve never been able to stand Whitney Houston.

        When the 90s rolled around, I was a serious alt-rock geek. 90s pop was BORING. Alice in Chains, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, STP, The Cranberries, Garbage, Bush, The Breeders, Counting Crows, Incubus, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Offspring, Big Head Todd & the Monsters, local stuff like Far Too Jones, Cry of Love, Dillon Fence, Lustre, Edwin McCain…Smashing Pumpkins, Republica, Seven Mary Three, Silverchair, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Spin Doctors…god, I miss the good stuff.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. That is something we had in common…I was not and still am not a Madonna fan. I just don’t see how the woman sold as much as she did…except on shock alone.
        Now the Counting Crows bordered on pop….pop/rock…
        I liked the 90s much more than the 80s…I should have listened more to the Replacements than regular radio…I just had enough of the big popular bands at the time…Now I did like Cyndi Lauper…I had to respect her…my problem is I wanted raw rock and roll in the middle of the 80s…and the 80s were about big Van Halen productions instead of just bare bones tock…that is why all the good stuff to me was alternative…and I missed a lot of it.

        Like

Leave a reply to run-sew-read Cancel reply