1980s – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

Randy Newman – I Love L.A.

I cannot believe I’ve never posted a Randy Newman song. I first heard of him through Short People, and that is not counting the countless covers I’ve heard of his songs covered by other people.

Being a Dodgers fan, I get a little extra kick out of hearing this song. The Dodgers play I Love L.A. after they win at Dodger Stadium, so when I hear those opening notes, I automatically associate it with something good happening. It’s hard for me to separate the song from baseball now. A Dodgers win followed by Randy Newman is a pretty good combination.

Randy Newman released this song in 1983 on his album Trouble in Paradise. Newman grew up in Los Angeles, but this being Randy Newman, the song isn’t quite the straightforward love letter that the title suggests. He genuinely loved the city, but he was also poking fun at it. The beautiful weather, convertibles, and palm trees are all there, but so are the less glamorous parts of Los Angeles. Newman was always good at writing from the viewpoint of a character who might not completely understand what he was revealing about himself.

The song reportedly grew partly from a conversation Newman had with Don Henley. Henley suggested that Newman should write a song about the city. Newman also had an earlier unreleased song called Something to Sing About that dealt with some of the same ideas about wealth and the Southern California lifestyle. Those ideas eventually helped develop into I Love L.A.

There is some serious talent playing on the recording. Steve Lukather plays lead guitar, Jeff Porcaro is on drums, David Paich plays organ, Nathan East is on bass, and Waddy Wachtel plays rhythm guitar. Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie are among the backing singers. That’s quite a collection of musicians for a song that sounds so loose and simple when you first hear it. Lenny Waronker and Russ Titelman produced it.

I Love L.A. wasn’t a big hit when it was originally released. It didn’t even make the Billboard 100, although the video received plenty of airplay on MTV. The song gradually became much bigger than its original chart position. It was used in connection with the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and eventually became something close to an unofficial anthem for the city.

The video helped sell the song. Newman cruises around Los Angeles in a red convertible while the scenery mentioned in the song passes by. Like the song itself, it’s difficult to tell exactly where the celebration ends and the joke begins. I think that’s part of the reason it has lasted. You can hear Newman having some fun with the place he loves. And…

I love L.A.

Especially after the Dodgers win.

I Love L.A.

Hate New York City
It’s cold and it’s damp
And all the people dressed like monkeys
Let’s leave Chicago to the Eskimos
That town’s a little bit too rugged
For you and me you bad girl

Rollin’ down the Imperial Highway
With a big nasty redhead at my side
Santa Ana winds blowing hot from the north
And we as born to ride

Roll down the window, put down the top
Crank up the Beach Boys, baby
Don’t let the music stop
We’re gonna ride it till
We just can’t ride it no more

From the South Bay to the Valley
From the West Side to the East Side
Everybody’s very happy
‘Cause the sun is shining all the time
Looks like another perfect day

I love L.A. (we love it)
I love L.A. (we love it)
We love it

Look at that mountain
Look at those trees
Look at that bum over there, man
He’s down on his knees
Look at these women
There ain’t nothing like ’em nowhere

Century Boulevard (we love it)
Victory Boulevard (we love it)
Santa Monica Boulevard (we love it)
Sixth Street (we love it, we love it)
We love L.A.

I love L.A. (we love it)
I love L.A. (we love it)
I love L.A. (we love it)

Silos – Tennessee Fire

I love songs that make me want to roll the windows down and keep driving, and this one does exactly that. The guitar intro hooks me every time, and once it starts, I’m in. The Silos never became a household name, but songs like this remind me why digging is worth it. Sometimes the best roads are the ones that don’t show up on everyone’s map. This one reminds me a little of Mellencamp.

Critics loved them, musicians admired them, and years later people realized they were helping build what would become alt-country. Formed in New York in 1985 by Walter Salas-Humara and Bob Rupe, they mixed rock, country, folk, and punk into something that felt original. Their 1987 album Cuba earned them Rolling Stone’s Best New American Band in the critics’ poll and influenced countless roots-rock bands that followed.

For me, this grabs you before Walter Salas-Humara even opens his mouth. That guitar intro has a purpose. It sounds like the beginning of a long drive with no real destination. Then the rhythm section kicks in, and the song settles into that steady beat. It isn’t clever songwriting. It’s just simple and honest, and that makes it even stronger.

What I like most is how naturally everything fits together. The guitars have just enough edge without overpowering the melody. Their influences were Tom Petty, John Mellencamp, the Velvet Underground, and Gram Parsons. That combination you would hear more in alt-country.

Tennessee Fire

See you soon, but not like this
Afraid I am to think
I haven’t heard
I haven’t heard from you in weeks

All your letters, photographs
So far out of reach

Driving by the moonlight
Haven’t seen a service station in thirty miles or so
I’m running out of gasoline

All your letters, photographs
So far out of reach

High road, low road
Rolling on and on
Tennessee fire
Is it so far

Driving by the moonlight
Haven’t seen a service station in fifty miles or so
I sing along
I sing along to
I sing along to the radio

High road, low road
Rolling on and on
Tennessee fire
Is it so far

Ohio
Leaving you behind

Carmel – Bad Day

I just found this band recently, and this song caught my attention. It’s part jazz, soul, blues, and pop, and Carmel McCourt has a voice that makes you stop and listen. I can hear a few decades in the music, and I like that.

Carmel formed in Manchester in 1981 with McCourt on vocals, Jim Parris on bass, and Gerry Darby on drums and percussion. They were basically a trio, but they could sound much larger. Their music wasn’t easy to fit into a single category. They could move from jazz to gospel and blues with ease. They appeared at the ICA Rock Week in 1983, which helped lead to a deal with London Records. The band also sold out Ronnie Scott’s famous jazz club.

Bad Day was released in 1983 and became their breakthrough. One name in the credits jumped out at me immediately. Steve Nieve of Elvis Costello and the Attractions played keyboards on the song. Helen Watson and Rush Winters added backing vocals, which help give the record its gospel feel. The song later appeared on Carmel’s album The Drum Is Everything.

What caught me was how little this sounds like a typical record from 1983. There aren’t many production tricks getting in the way. The rhythm section is strong, along with McCourt’s powerful vocal. I can hear jazz in it, but I hear just as much soul and blues. The song peaked at #15 in the UK in 1983.

Bad Day

A hoo, hoo, a hoo, hoo, a hoo, hoo, a hoo, hoo

Ba ba ber dun ba ba, ber dun ba ba, ber dun ba ba

Bad day, bad day
Bad day when you wake up and you find out your dreams flown away
Don’t run away now, don’t be afraid be strong yeah, be strong now (?) Oh no

You better trust your faith, you better hide your tears (don’t, don’t cry, don’t, don’t cry)
Now everything you had has gone
This world keeps rolling on! Bad days come and bad days go away (?) oh no, oh no yeah!

Ah ah ah ah, ah ah ah ah, ah ah ah ah, ah ah ah ah

I heard, I heard about this (?) (What you say? What you say? What you say?)
I heard, i heard about this (?) (What you say? What you say? What you say?)

I say bad day, (bad day) bad day (bad day) now bad day (bad day)
Bad day you better go away now!
Now you better run away yeah!
I’m giving hope!
I’m giving hope!
I’m giving hope!
I’m giving hope yeah!

So bad day, bad day, bad day, ah you better run away now!
Ah you better go away

Neil Young – Mystery Train

I think this album has gotten a bad rap over the years. If you forget about record company politics and just listen to the music, it’s a fun tribute to the early days of rock and roll. Neil wasn’t trying to reinvent Mystery Train or the other covers. He was tipping his hat to the music that helped shape rock in the first place. Sometimes it’s nice to hear an artist simply enjoying himself, and that’s exactly what I hear every time this song comes on.

I’ve always liked it when artists take a chance, even if the fans don’t quite know what to make of it. That’s exactly what Neil Young did with “Mystery Train” from Everybody’s Rockin’. If you were expecting another Harvest or Rust Never Sleeps, you were probably surprised. Instead, Neil stepped back almost thirty years and made a record that sounded like it came straight out of a 1950s jukebox. I have to admit, I’ve always had a soft spot for this album.

I heard this album in the 80s and really liked the song Wonderin’and the video. When I first saw the 80s time-lapse video…I thought Young looked a little like Stephen King around this time…looking at it again…I still do. In the early eighties, David Geffen signed Neil Young to a huge contract with Geffen Records. Neil Young, who will do his own thing no matter what or when, released an album called “Trans” which was his foray into pure electronic music. Geffen wanted another Harvest with another Heart of Gold or Old Man…instead, he got songs like Computer Age and We R in Control with Neil singing through a Vocoder.

After the electronic Trans, Neil turned in a country album called Old Ways (which wouldn’t be released until 2 years later), but Geffen Records rejected it and told him they wanted a rock and roll record instead. Neil’s response was to give them exactly that, just not the kind they expected. He made a genuine 1950s-style rockabilly album. The sessions were cut quickly with musicians having fun in the studio, but before Neil could finish his original concept, Geffen shut the sessions down and released the short album anyway. Before long, the label actually sued Neil Young for making records they claimed didn’t sound enough like Neil Young. This album is full of early fifties Doo-wop and rockabilly-sounding songs in the middle of the 80s (thank you, Neil! We needed it). The record company was not amused…he then released an album full of country music… In his contract, Neil had full artistic freedom.

Geffen had claimed the new albums were unrepresentative of Neil’s music. He sued Neil for 3.3 million dollars, but the case was settled, and Geffen lost and had to apologize to Neil. That shows you…sometimes life is fair. If you look at Neil’s career…it was all about change and evolving, so I don’t know what Geffen expected. Neil rarely repeats himself. Geffen was expecting early seventies Neil, and that wasn’t happening. Young is not an artist that you mess with.

This song was written by blues singer Junior Parker and producer Sam Phillips before Elvis Presley turned it into one of the defining records of early rock and roll at Sun Records in 1955. Rather than trying to improve on the original, Neil simply had fun with it. Backed by the Shocking Pinks, he captured that rockabilly sound with upright bass, slapback vocals, saxophone, and simple guitar work. The recording wasn’t meant to be polished. It was meant to sound like the records that inspired an entire generation of musicians.

The album peaked at #22 in Canada, #46 on the Billboard Album Charts, and #50 in the UK in 1983.

I’m also going to include the song that connected me with the album….Wonderin’

Mystery Train

Train I ride, sixteen coaches long
Train I ride, sixteen coaches long
Well that long black train took my baby and gone

Train, train, comin’ down, down the line
(Mystery train, mystery train)
Train, train, comin’ down, down the line
(Mystery train, mystery train)
Well it took my baby
But it never will again, no, not again

Train, train, comin’ down, down the line
(Mystery train, mystery train)
Train, train, comin’ down, down the line
(Mystery train, mystery train)
Well it’s bringin’ back my baby
Because she’s mine, all mine

You might also like
Everybody’s Rockin’
Neil Young & The Shocking Pinks
Cry, Cry, Cry
Neil Young & The Shocking Pinks
Old Man
Neil Young

(Wooh, wooh)
(Wooh, wooh)
Train, train, train (Mystery train, mystery train)
Train, train, coming ’round, ’round the bend (Wooh, wooh)
(Mystery train, mystery train)

Steve Earle – Guitar Town

It’s been too long since I posted a Steve Earle song, and it was time. I remember this one, along with I Ain’t Ever Satisfied got me into Earle in the 1980s. I first saw him in the late eighties open up for Bob Dylan. He played a longer set than Bob that night. Bob had to leave after 45 minutes because he got sick. The guy behind me yelled, “I know you are an old SOB but come on…” Bob was at the ripe old age of 48 when this happened.

By 1986, Steve Earle had been around Nashville for years. He had written songs for other artists, worked with legendary songwriters like Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt. He spent a lot of time trying to get his own career off the ground. When Guitar Town was released as the title track of his debut album, it sounded different from much of what was coming out of Nashville at the time. It had country roots, but there was also a rock and roll energy running through it. The song helped launch Earle from respected songwriter to recording star.

Earle has said the meaning behind Guitar Town came from the struggles of a musician trying to make it. The lyrics tell the story of a young man leaving home with a guitar and dreams of success. Earle knew that world firsthand. He had spent years playing clubs, writing songs, and trying to find his place in the music business. The song captured both the excitement and gamble of trying a musical career. Even people who never picked up a guitar could relate to the idea of leaving home and taking a chance on a dream.

Earle was also very smart and talented. He would regularly hang out with some great songwriters and musicians. Townes Van Zandt, Rodney Crowell, and more. He learned from them, and you can hear it in his songs. When I hear his songs, they are so accessible. They are almost inviting you to listen.

The recording sessions for the album were produced by Tony Brown and Emory Gordy Jr. They gave the songs a tougher edge. Guitar Town featured ringing guitars and enough country flavor to fit the format while still sounding fresh. The combination worked. The single helped make the album one of the most acclaimed country releases of the year.

Looking back, Guitar Town helped open the door for a generation of artists who mixed traditional country music and folk with rock influences. Earle would go on to have a long and diverse career, but this song remains one of his signature recordings. Nearly forty years later, it still sounds like a young man with a guitar, a full tank of gas, and no intention of turning around.

Guitar Town

Hey pretty baby, are you ready for me
It’s your good rockin’ daddy down from Tennessee
I’m just out of Austin bound for San Antone
With the radio blastin’ and the bird dog on

There’s a speed trap up ahead in Selma Town
But no local yokel gonna shut me down
‘Cause me and my boys got this rig unwound
And we’ve come a thousand miles from a Guitar Town

Nothin’ ever happened ’round my hometown
And I ain’t the kind to just hang around
But I heard someone callin’ my name one day
And I followed that voice down the lost highway
Everybody told me you can’t get far
On 37 dollars and a jap guitar
Now I’m smokin’ into Texas with the hammer down
And a rockin’ little combo from the Guitar Town

Hey pretty baby don’t you know it ain’t my fault
I love to hear the steel belts hummin’ on the asphalt
Wake up in the middle of the night in a truck stop
Stumble in the restaurant wonderin’ why I don’t stop

Well, I gotta keep rockin’ why I still can
Got a two pack habit and a motel tan
When my boots hit the boards I’m a brand new man
With my back to the riser, I make my stand

Hey pretty baby, won’t you hold me tight
I’m loadin’ up and rollin’ out of here tonight
One of these days, I’m gonna settle down
And take you back with me to the Guitar Town

Ricky Nelson

On Turn Table Talk, the topic was “It’s No Act!” . We all can think of musicians who’ve tried to make the leap to acting – David Bowie, Cher, Sting, among many others – but this month we’re looking at actors/actresses or other celebrities who’ve decided to try to launch a music career after being noted in other entertainment fields. I picked Ricky Nelson. Thanks Dave!

I think Ricky Nelson is one of the few examples of actors who went into music and were remembered as musicians. He was a good actor, but he will be remembered more as a musician.

I went through a Ricky Nelson phase when I graduated in 1985. I purchased a greatest-hits package and was learning more of his songs. I wanted to go see him perform that year, and I kept waiting for him to appear somewhere because I heard he was touring. This was before the internet, and you had to read the newspapers for announcements and listen to the radio. Musicians would play at places, and you would never know sometimes.

I never got a chance to see him because on December 31, 1985, his chartered jet crashed, killing him and six other passengers. Ricky was a rockabilly guy and a great one. He gets lost in the shuffle because he was a huge teenage actor at the time on his family’s show…The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. In the rock world, being a teen idol knocks you down the respect ladder.

Before Ricky Nelson became one of the biggest teen idols of the 1950s, he was already a television star. He was born in 1940 into a show business family. His parents, Ozzie Nelson and Harriet Nelson, starred in the popular radio and television series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. Ricky appeared on the show as himself beginning in the early 1950s. Millions of viewers watched him grow up on screen each week. By the time he reached his teenage years, he was already one of the most recognizable young faces in America.

Music came almost by accident. Ricky wanted to impress a girl (she was a massive Elvis fan) and claimed he was a recording artist. To make the story true, he recorded Fats Domino’s I’m Walkin’ in 1957. The song became a hit. Soon he was recording regularly and turning out hits such as Poor Little Fool, Travelin’ Man, and Hello Mary Lou. Unlike many teen stars of the era, Nelson worked with strong musicians and was full tilt in rockabilly and early rock and roll.

As the 1960s arrived, Nelson continued acting while building a successful music career. He later dropped the “Ricky” and became known as Rick Nelson. His sound matured and moved toward country rock before the style became popular. While television gave him his start, music became his legacy. He is remembered as one of the few entertainers who successfully made the jump from television star to respected recording artist.

The sad part is that his music wasn’t taken as seriously later on because he was a teen idol. That started to change over time, and he was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1987. I always considered Rick Nelson a musician and a great rockabilly artist, along with country rock. I always considered him the real deal.

I’ve heard the phrase “The universal language is not music, nor love; it is loneliness,” and this song fits it perfectly.

Gary U.S. Bonds – This Little Girl

That opening G#m chord is simple but so effective. That strum on that chord alone drew me into this song and still does. When I was 14, I bought this single and wore it out. Finding the single sleeve that went with it for this post brought back so many memories. At that time I knew Gary US Bonds vaguely for Quarter to Three. Now this one is the first song I think of when his name comes up. This guitar sound is perfect, and I love the bounce of the song.

Springsteen wrote the song, and it sounds like it could have fit on one of his own records. The recording sessions took place at the Power Station in New York. Members of the E Street Band played on the track. Bonds brought his voice, while Springsteen supplied the song and the energy behind it. Springsteen and Van Zandt ended up producing the album.

The song accomplished something that is not easy to do. It sounded modern for the early 1980s but still carried some early 60s rock and roll sound. Older listeners would like it, and so would the teens of the day. This teen certainly did. This song was one of my favorite early 80s hits. It has a timeless sound that is hard to pin down in a time period.

This was released as a single in 1981; it became Bonds’ biggest hit in nearly twenty years. It reached the Top 20 in the United States and helped introduce him to a new generation of listeners. More importantly, it proved that Bonds was far more than an oldies act. The success of the song led to more recordings and appearances for him. It was cool to see Bruce work with an older influence, and their sound went together well.

It peaked at #11 on the Billboard 100, #15 in Canada, #43 in the UK, and #11 in New Zealand.

This Little Girl (Is Mine)

Here she comes walkin’ down the street
You know she’s walkin’ just like
She’s walkin’ to come and see me
Oh she’s so young and she’s so fine

I know what’s on your mind
Know what you want to do
But if you mess with her
I’m gonna mess with you
You better watch your step
You better stay in line

This little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine
Oh this little girl
This little girl
This little girl is mine

Well if the world was mine to do with
What I want to do sir
Well I’d wrap it up in a bow
And give it all to her yeah
And all my love
All of the time

You know I’d hold her tight
I’d never let her go
And late at night
You know I’d love her so
Yeah I’d treat her right
So she’d never mind

This little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine
Oh this little girl
This little girl
This little girl is mine
Mine, mine, mine

Hey you better watch out
I’m telling you the score
Are you going to be sweeping your
Broken heart up off the floor
Oh and that ain’t all
I’m telling you my friend

I know what’s on your mind
I know what you want to do
But if you mess with her
I’m gonna mess with you

You like the way she moves
You like to watch her walk
You better listen up
‘Cause man this just ain’t talk
You better watch yourself
You better stay in line

Now mister I said
This little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine
This little girl
This little girl
This little girl is mine

Oh this little girl is mine
This little girl
This little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine
This little girl
This little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine

Yeah, yeah
This little girl
This little girl
Oh this little girl is mine
Yeah yeah yeah yeah

This little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine
This little girl is mine
This little girl she’s mine all mine

Now this little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine
Oh I said this little girl
This little girl
This little girl is mine, mine, mine
This little girl is mine
Oh this little girl is mine

…

Steve Van Zandt – Until The Good Is Gone

I listened to some tracks of Van Zandt, Miami Steve, or Little Steven… any of his monickers gives you heartfelt Americana soul music. One band he always pushes is The Rascals, and I can see why. You hear that influence in his music, along with the Jersey Shore sound he helped create. This song is so tuneful, and some tasty guitar licks are going on, especially in the intro. Listening to this album was a pleasure, song after song. His passion really comes through his voice in this one.

This song came from Little Steven’s 1982 album Men Without Women. At that point, Steven Van Zandt was still a major part of the E Street Band, but he wanted something of his own. He grew up loving soul records, girl groups, and the Phil Spector sound. Those influences were all over this album. The sessions took place at the Power Station in New York. Van Zandt wanted the record to sound alive. Not polished to death. He wanted horns, echoes, and emotion.

The recording is hard into soul music. The horns punch through the mix while the guitars and rhythm section keep it grounded in rock and roll. Van Zandt and horns have a great history, like Sixteenth Avenue Freeze Out. There are stories that Springsteen added backing vocals during parts of the sessions, which gave the album even more of that Asbury Park spirit without turning it into an E Street record.

A lot of the material on Men Without Women had been around since the Southside Johnny days. Van Zandt was writing constantly then. Songs moved around between projects depending on where they fit best. This song ended up fitting perfectly on this album because it captured that mix of street soul and rock-and-roll. The record did not become a massive commercial hit, but over the years fans have come back to it. The song still sounds real today. It feels like musicians in a room, playing for the song rather than for the charts.

Until The Good Is Gone

Hmm-hmm hmm-hmm hmm-hmm hmm

Yeah, we always stood on the same block way back then
Waiting to find out where in the world we fit in
Then something on the radio changed everything we’d been
Ever since, I need it, over and over again

Where it comes from baby, I don’t know
That same old something just won’t let me go
It’s too late baby, it’s been too long
Don’t try to stop me ’till the good is gone

Now listen, it seems like only yesterday I could hear big mama call, (yes)
Get the boys and meet me down at the union hall, (yes)
And always in the background even after everybody’s gone
It was something on the radio saying, “Come on, come on”

Where it comes from baby, I don’t know, no no
That same old something ain’t gonna let me go
Oh it’s too late baby, it’s been too long
Don’t try to stop me ’till the good is gone

Let me hear you now
Say yeah, yeah, alright
Come on

Oh, yeah yeah yeah
Now baby
Oh
Woah

So many others never beat the city line
They weren’t so different, they just ran out of time
You need something in your soul baby that’s gonna keep you strong
Oh that kind of good never ever ever never gonna go wrong

Where it comes from baby I don’t know, don’t know
That same old something just won’t let me go
Oh it’s too late baby, it’s been too long
Don’t try to stop me ’till the good is gone
Say one more time
Don’t try to stop me ’till the good is gone
One more time
Don’t try to stop me ’till the good is gone
Oh let me hear you say it
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Let me hear you say it
Say yeah, yeah, yeah
One more time
Yeah, yeah, yeah, oh yeah honey
Oh yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah yeah), sing
Say yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), say everybody say
Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)
Say one more time
Yeah (yeah)…

New Site: oldsteamships.com

I have been writing about the RMS Titanic on my blog, and I think it fits the pop culture theme I have, but I would like to write about the Olympic, Britannic, and other ships like the SS Edmund Fitzgerald and the RMS Empress of Ireland. But I thought it would work better in a separate blog. I won’t be posting a ton to it, but it will give me a place to write about them without disrupting the flow at powerpop.blog. If you are interested, come along, but I get it if you are not. That is why I’m making this blog. A release valve for me to explore this subject when I find something interesting. Thank you all for reading as always.

https://oldsteamships.blog

The Three Sisters

Green On Red – Keith Can’t Read and Gravity Talks

I usually just pick one song out, but I couldn’t decide which one. So I thought, hmmm, my blog, my rules today, so we are going to have a two-for-one Saturday! I’ve read where someone said about this band…it’s alt country meets the Replacements. In some songs, that is true. Some of their songs sound epic, and they were reaching for something big…and many times pulled it off.

I have to give WordPress credit for knowing about this band. I missed them in real time, or I would have been buying their records. I found out about them through a fellow blogger and have been listening to them ever since. This is what I wanted the mainstream to be in the 80s and why I listened to more alternative and heartland rockers. Green On Red had a quality that I talked about in earlier posts. You can hear a car wreck coming, but they pull it between the lines just in time!

They had everything I like in a band. A raw sound that was in no way polished. They were always one of those bands that critics loved but radio mostly ignored. They came out of the Paisley Underground scene in the early 1980s, but unlike some of their peers, they were harder into country-rock and the Stones-style rock. They were made up of Dan Stuart (vocals/guitar), Jack Waterson (bass), Van Christian (drums, later of Naked Prey), and Chris Cacavas (organ). It’s basically a marriage of classic rock, punk, psychedelia, country, and garage rock.

Keith Can’t Read never became a hit, but that was the story of Green on Red. They influenced a lot of bands that came later in alt-country and Americana, yet they stayed underground. Dan Stuart had a way of writing about losers, addicts, drifters, and broken friendships without turning it into self-pity. He is a very underrated songwriter. The song was on the album Here Comes The Snakes released in 1989.

Gravity Talks was the title track of the 1983 debut album by Green on Red, and it captured the band right at the point where garage rock, psychedelia, country, and desert atmosphere all collided together. The song never became widely known, but it became one of those tracks roots-rock fans have praised for years. That whole album had a reputation as a lost classic. Critics later described it as reckless, ragged, and impossible to neatly categorize. I love the organ in this one and Dan’s voice. His voice is instantly recognizable.

Keith Can’t Read

Get outta the street right now
Your in the way
The red light has turned to green
I ain’t got all day

There ain’t no pictures in this book
Just dirty pages take a look

If you think your woman is good to you
Think about when you’re away from her
What you put her through

There ain’t no pictures in this book
Just dirty pages take a look

Get off of your knees right now
Your looking up my nose
Girl that ain’t gonna cut no ice
Heaven knows

Gravity Talks

Suppose you really knew
What’s it all about
And someone you thought you knew
He asked you out

I’m not easy I know
Gravity talks

Suppose you really thought
You had it in the bag
And an old man he walked up
And he took it all

I’m not easy I know
Gravity gravity talks

Suppose you really knew
What’s it all about
And someone you thought you knew
He asked you out

I’m not easy I know
Gravity gravity talks

Robert Plant – Tall Cool One

When Robert Plant made his first solo album, I didn’t know what to think. I was expecting Zeppelin, but he threw a curve. Something that grew on me, and later I realized if Plant went back to Zeppelin style music, he wouldn’t have lasted long. I got my first car in 1983, and I was riding in style in my 1966 Mustang. Big Log is one of the first songs I remembered playing in that car. I have followed Plant ever since the Pictures at Eleven album.

This song came out in 1988 on the album Now and Zen, a record that gave Plant a major commercial comeback in America after a few years of uneven sales. The song was built around a rocking riff and a big arena-rock sound, but Plant and producer Tim Palmer also loaded it with Zeppelin history. He was trying to combine modern production with older rock influences.

I thought at the time, he was finally embracing his history and adding it to his approach. The music video made that clear by mixing old clips of Led Zeppelin with new footage of Plant performing. It shocked some fans because he had spent years distancing himself from Zeppelin. Sampling music was huge at this time, and the lawsuits were flying from older bands that were sampled. Plant didn’t have to worry about that in this one. He sampled his own Led Zeppelin catalog, including Black Dog, Whole Lotta Love, Dazed and Confused, Custard Pie, and The Ocean.

MTV played the clip constantly, and the song became one of Plant’s biggest solo hits, helping Now and Zen climb up the charts. The album peaked at #6 on the Billboard Album Charts, #4 in Canada, #7 in New Zealand, and #10 in the UK in 1988. The song peaked at #1 on Billboard Mainstream Rock Charts, #25 on the Billboard 100 Charts, and #87 in the UK, and #22 in New Zealand.

Long Cool One

Like a cat running in the heat of the night
Got a fire in my eyes, got a date with delight
Some kinda moaning in the heart of the storm
I’m gonna love you so hard, if you want your loving done
Lighten up baby I’m in love with you
With my one hand loose I am to satisfy
You like my loving machine, I like your bloodshot eyes
Real gone girl jumping back with the beat
I’ll be your tall cool one with those crazy feet
Lighten up baby I’m in love with you
I’m so tall and you’re so cute, let’s play wild like wildcats do
You’re gonna rock your tall cool one
I’m gonna say that – you’re gonna say – aaah
You stroll, you jump, you’re hot and you tease
‘Cause I’m your tall cool one, and I’m built to please
M-m-move over mister step on back in the crowd
‘Cause she’s a whole lotta sister ’bout to drive me wild
Lotta place I’ve seen, lotta names lotta words
No one compares to my real gone girl
Lighten up baby I’m in love with you

Firm – Radioactive

I was graduating from high school when I heard this band. There was a buildup about them because of the members. You had guitarist Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), singer Paul Rodgers (Free, Bad Company), drummer Chris Slade (Manfred Mann’s Earth Band), and the great bassist Tony Franklin (who worked with many). I went out and bought the single for this one.

They managed to create a band that avoided nostalgia and sounded like a working group rather than a reunion act. The goal was to write fresh material rather than new Zeppelin or Bad Company songs. They did that because they didn’t really sound like either. The song was written by Paul Rodgers and became the band’s biggest single in the U.S., helped by heavy rotation on MTV during their peak.

The band itself released only two studio albums: the self-titled album in 1985 and Mean Business in 1986. Even with the short lifespan, The Firm gave Page a way back into recording and touring after a difficult stretch in the early 1980s. Page admitted it was never meant to last past two albums. Page was coming out of a difficult time after Zeppelin ended.

Ok, yes, I love bass, and that stands out in this one. Tony Franklin used a fretless bass to get that smooth sound. I remember some older Zeppelin fans were unsure about the keyboards and production style, but the song found a younger audience that was already listening to harder-edged 1980s rock. Over time, this song became the signature track for The Firm and one of the better-known post-Zeppelin recordings connected to Jimmy Page.

The song peaked at #28 on the Billboard 100, #75 in Canada, and #76 in the UK in 1985. The song was written by Paul Rodgers.

Radioactive

Well I’m not uptightNot unattractedTurn me on tonight‘Cause I’m radioactiveRadioactive

There’s not a fightAnd I’m not your captiveTurn me loose tonight‘Cause I’m radioactiveRadioactive

I want to stay with youI want to play with you babyI want to lay with youAnd I want you to know

Got to concentrateDon’t be distractiveTurn me on tonight‘Cause I’m radioactiveRadioactiveRadioactiveRadioactive

I want to stay with youI don’t want to play with youI want just to lay with youAnd I want you to know

Got to concentrateDon’t be distractiveTurn me on tonight‘Cause I’m radioactive oh yeahOh yeah radioactiveDon’t you stand, stand too closeYou might catch it

Smithereens – Blood And Roses

I always liked this band and the sound they had in the 80s. I look at them the way I do at Big Star and The Replacements. Why didn’t they take off commercially? It makes no sense to me at all, but the charts and mainstream radio got this wrong. Now, let’s bring some power pop back to this power pop site!

This was the song that first gave The Smithereens national attention. It was released in 1986 on their debut album, Especially for You. It was based around a heavy bass line, which makes me happy, sharp guitar parts, and the voice of songwriter Pat DiNizio. The song had been around in some form before the band signed a record deal. It was part of the material they developed while playing clubs across New Jersey and New York. When it appeared as a single, college radio picked it up, and most importantly, MTV did as well.

DiNizio wrote this song after reading the 1946 novel “Blood and Roses” by British writer Helen MacInnes, though the lyrics were not a direct adaptation. Instead, he used the title to frame a story about a difficult relationship. Like many Smithereens songs, it drew from pop culture and personal memories.

It was produced by Don Dixon, who kept the arrangement sharp and tight, letting the rhythm section carry much of the song. It became the band’s signature song, still tied closely to the sound of American college radio in the mid-1980s, when guitar bands were finding an audience outside of mainstream radio. And that is where I was at the time!

The song peaked at #14 on the Billboard US Mainstream Rock Charts in 1986. The album peaked at #51 on the Billboard Album Charts.

Blood and Roses

It was long ago, it seems like yesterday
Saw you standing in the rain
Then I heard you say

I want to love, but it comes out wrong
I want to live, but I don’t belong
I close my eyes and I see blood and roses

Wild flowers in the springtime
October we were wed
In winter time the roses died
Her blood ran cold and then she said

I want to love, but it comes out wrong
I want to live, but I don’t belong
I close my eyes and I see blood and roses

It was long ago, it seems like yesterday
I saw you standing in the rain
Then I heard you say

I need your love, but it comes out wrong
I tried to live, but I don’t belong
I close my eyes and I see blood and roses
Blood and roses (roses)
Blood and roses (roses)
Blood and roses (roses)

Marriott and Lane – Lonely No More

I ain’t lonely no more
Got a woman, got a kid
Got a whole lot more
Got my own backyard
With a fence and a big front door

As big a fan of Ronnie Lane and Steve Marriott as I am, I never heard their 1981 album Majik Mijits. Sometimes when I run across something, I get really excited. This is one of those times. Marriott is probably my favorite vocalist of that genre.

It was recorded in 1981 but not released until 2000, after both had passed. The opening song, Lonely No More, has a nice choppy rhythm and a fantastic groove. The lyrics are simple and repetitive, but they are so grounded in everyday life that I love them. I was 14 in 1981, and I would have bought this if it were released.

This album came from a reunion that probably surprised a lot of people. By the early 1980s, Ronnie Lane and Steve Marriott had been apart for years. Their time in Small Faces was long behind them, and both had gone through hard stretches. Lane was dealing with multiple sclerosis, and Marriott had come through the rise and collapse of Humble Pie. When they crossed paths again around 1981, the old connection returned quickly. They had argued in 1969 when Marriott left the Small Faces, but their friendship was still there, and so was the music.

They recorded under the name The Legendary Majik Mijits, bringing in musicians from the British pub-rock world. The songs sounded natural, closer to musicians sitting together in a room than looking for radio play. Recording together again gave them a chance to step away from pressures and expectations. There was no pressure to recreate Small Faces. They were older, and the music reflected that.

The album sat in limbo for 19 years after it was recorded. Part of that came down to Lane’s health. Touring and promotion would have been difficult, and there was little interest in pushing the record without him being fully involved. Marriott said he did not want the album turned into something that forced Lane into a situation he could not handle physically. So the tapes stayed unreleased, almost becoming forgotten sessions. Majik Mijits finally appeared in 2000 and was remastered in 2014.

They did one show together. This next is from Lane’s website:

Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane got back together in 1981. Steve flew back from Atlanta, Georgia, to play a one-off gig with Ronnie at the Bridge House pub in East London. The gig on 1st September included the band Blind Drunk with old mates Jim Leverton on bass, Mick Green of the Pirates on guitar, Mick “Wynder K Frog” Weaver on keyboards, and Dave Hynes on drums. Sam Brown, daughter of Joe joined on backing vocals.

Lonely No More

I ain’t lonely no more
Got a woman, got a kid, lord, got a whole lot more
Can’t be lonely no more
Got my own back yard, I got my own front door

(lonely no more)
Can’t be lonely no more
(lonely no more)
How can I paint what I was now I ain’t gonna be lonely no more
(lonely no more)
(lonely no more)

I ain’t lonely no more
Sat here by the fire with my dog on the floor
Can’t be lonely no more
That’s one thing I know, lord, I’m certain, I’m so sure

(lonely no more)
can’t be lonely no more
(lonely no more)
How can I be what I was, don’t you see I can’t be lonely?
(lonely no more)
(lonely no more)

lonely no more
(lonely no more)
I ain’t lonely no more
got a woman, got a kid, I got a whole lot more
can’t be lonely no more
I got my own backyard with a fence and a big front door
look out

(lonely no more)
woo
(lonely no more)
(lonely no more)
lonely no more
(lonely no more)
can’t be lonely
(lonely no more)
can’t be lonely
(lonely no more)
can’t be…

Honeydrippers – Rockin’ At Midnight

Back in the ’80s, I remember seeing this band on SNL. Of course, the big thing at the time was that Page and Plant were working together again, although not with Zeppelin. I loved their sound, and I went out and bought the single Sea Of Love.

You know what I liked most about these recordings by the Honeydrippers? Rather than modernizing the song, they kept the arrangement close to the spirit of the original. The horns, piano, and guitar all feel like a small-club sound. It doesn’t have a huge, polished studio production.

This song was first written and recorded by Roy Brown in 1949. Brown’s version had that jump-blues energy that helped bridge swing music into early rock and roll. Roy’s original version peaked at #13 on the US R&B charts. Little Richard has mentioned Roy Brown as a huge influence.

I first really found out about Plant and his love of rockabilly through The Concert of Kampuchea. He sang the Elvis song Little Sister with Rockpile. Great performance of that song. So, when I heard the Honeydrippers, it sounded totally in place. Robert Plant had been talking for years about his love of early R&B and jump blues, the records he grew up with before Led Zeppelin. The Honeydrippers project gave him a way to step outside Zeppelin’s shadow and record the kind of songs that first got him interested in music.

The band’s floating members were incredible. Robbie Blunt was one, and he did a lot of great work on Plant’s solo music. To me, his guitar playing was just as identifiable as Plant’s voice; it was that important in Plant’s music. I would say the same thing about James Wisely, whose guitar playing was just as important to Chris Isaak. Other members included Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Nile Rodgers, Brian Setzer, Paul Shaffer, and many more. Talent was not an issue for this band.

Their album The Honeydrippers: Volume One peaked at #4 on the Billboard Album Charts, #40 in Canada, and #56 in the UK in 1984. The song peaked at #25 on the Billboard 100 and #18 in Canada.

A concert by The Honeydrippers

Rockin’ At Midnight

Have you heard the news?
There’s good rockin’ at midnight
Oh, I’m gonna hold my baby
With all my might
What a wonderful time we had that night
Hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Have you heard the news?
There’s good rockin’ at midnight
Oh, I’m gonna hold my baby
With all my might
What a wonderful time we had that night
Hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Now, sweet Charlie Brown and sweet Lorraine
They got caught on Caledonia’s land
Sioux City Sue, she told it all
Those fellas got drunk and they had a ball
Crying hey, hey
Good rockin’ at midnight

Well, two times

Well, I tell y’all about now Deacon John
He got so high they had to take him home
Hear the news about Ella Brown
He stole a chicken and he ran out of town
Hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Caledonia got drunk and grinning like a pig
She fell down and she lost her wig
Charlie Brown she laughed and she got sick
Caledonia got mad and grabbed a brick
Crying hey, hey, there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Oh now let’s go two times

Oh yeah

Oh yeah, wanna tell you all about now Deacon John
He got so high they had to take him home
Here’s the news about Ella Brown
He stole a lot of chickens and he ran out of town
Crying hey, hey there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Now, now, now Caledonia got drunk and grinning like a pig
She fell down and lost her wig
Charlie Brown she laughed and she got sick
Caledonia got mad and grabbed a brick
Crying hey, hey there’s good rockin’ at midnight

Uh, mm, rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock
Gonna rock

Well yeah I’m gonna rock
Gonna rock
We gonna rock
Ooh-hoo yeah we’re gonna rock
We’re gonna rock
There’s still rockin’ at midnight, midnight, midnight, midnight, yeah oh

Let’s go out ah

Now sweet Charlie Brown and sweet Lorraine
They got caught on Caledonia’s land
Soon pretty soon they told it all
Those girls got drunk and they had a ball
Crying hey, hey there’s good rockin’ at midnight

We gonna rock
We gonna rock
Yeah-es we gonna rock
Now, now, now we gonna rock
We gonna rock
Ooh-ah-yeah
Ooh yeah
Ooh yeah