Singles – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

Marah – Walt Whitman Bridge

My friend Ron (Hanspostcard) recommended this band to me not long ago. I had mentioned the V-Roys, and he asked if I had heard of these guys. This is another band that Steve Earle signed to his E-Squared Records in the 1990s. Like the V-Roys song from yesterday, this one took one listen, and I was sold. Ron had said that live, they were a lot like the Replacements but just more alt-country.

They came out of Philadelphia in the late 1990s. The band centered around brothers Dave Bielanko and Serge Bielanko. They mixed rock, folk, soul, and bar-band energy into something that sounded rough around the edges but real. Early records like Let’s Cut The Crap and Hook Up Later Tonight built a small following, but Kids in Philly in 2000 really put them on the map. That album captured city streets, broken people, late nights, and hope, all wrapped inside loud guitars and singalong choruses.

The band toured hard for years. They became known for long, wild live shows and a loyal fan base. Bruce Springsteen even praised them during that period. Marah never quite broke into the mainstream, but they built a reputation as one of those bands that people discovered and held onto like The Replacements, Big Star, and others. They kept pushing their mix of heartland rock and the personal Philadelphia stories.

This song came off the 2005 If You Didn’t Laugh, You’d Cry album. This was recorded after a difficult stretch for the band. They had dealt with industry pressure and changing lineups, and the record felt more stripped down and personal because of it. Dave Bielanko wrote songs about Philadelphia, working-class life, and trying to keep going when things were falling apart around you.

This song captured that feeling perfectly. The Philadelphia bridge itself became a symbol for movement and escape. You are tied to the city, no matter how far you drove. Acoustic guitars, rough vocals, and a live feel. The band never wanted things to be too clean. They liked records that sounded lived-in and not crystal clear. That approach gave the song its emotional weight.

The album did not sell in big numbers, but fans connected deeply with it. This song became their signature song.

Walt Whitman Bridge

Got seven dollars to my name
Got sixteen cigarettes somehow I just ain’t smoked yet
Got two shoelaces and two shoes
I should toss ‘em on the telephone wire as a monument to my blues

I’m goin’ down to get a coffee
Gonna mean one less buck
Maybe six will bring me luck
Got a little shake I kept in the fridge
Gonna drink my bean and walk out smoking on the Walt Whitman Bridge

Faraway from these winter streets
On a cloudless day
Your memory
Blows away

Got a leather wallet on a chain
Got a picture of my lover’s lips before they dried up under my kiss
A prayer in my heart I’m too scared to recite
Oughtta toss that stale loaf of words to the birds as a monument to my whole life

Faraway from these winter streets
On a cloudless day
Your memory, Your memory, Your memory
Blows away

Your memory, Your memory, Your memory
Blows away

Graham Parker – Discovering Japan

The first Graham Parker album I listened to was his debut, Howlin’ Wind. I went in order, and this one was his fourth studio album, and I have enjoyed his albums. I still need to listen to his 90s output. This is one of my favorite albums by him, no doubt. It’s full of great songs like Local Girls, Saturday Nite is Dead, and Protection is just a few of them.

This song was one of the many standout tracks from Squeezing Out Sparks, released in 1979 by Graham Parker and The Rumour. By that point, Parker had already built a reputation as one of the stronger British songwriters to come out of the pub rock era. The song was reportedly inspired by Parker’s fascination with Japanese women and culture during a period when Japan was becoming more visible. Parker later admitted the title and lyrics were partly tongue-in-cheek.

The Rumour was the perfect band for Parker’s vocal style. Guitarist Brinsley Schwarz helped drive the track with sharp rhythm. The producer Jack Nitzsche gave the album an edgy sound that kept the focus on the band. The sessions for Squeezing Out Sparks took place at a time when Parker was frustrated with the music business. He kept getting overlooked commercially compared to some of his contemporaries.

Over the years, this song became one of the songs most associated with Graham Parker. It was never a major hit single, but it became an FM radio favorite and a live staple. Many fans and critics still point to Squeezing Out Sparks as Parker’s strongest album. The album did well as it peaked at #40 on the Billboard Album Charts, #79 in Canada, and #18 in the UK. The album was helped out by the single Local Girls that got a lot of play on MTV but failed to chart.

This video is an entire concert, but I pasted it with Discovering Japan on the time stamp. It’s worth watching the entire concert, but when you click play, you will hear this song.

Discovering Japan

Her heart is nearly breaking
The earth is nearly quaking
The Tokyo taxi’s braking
It’s screaming to a halt
There’s nothing to hold on to
When gravity betrays you
And every kiss enslaves you
She knows how hard a heart grows
Under nuclear shadows

She can’t escape the feeling
Repeating in her head
When after all the urges
Some kind of truth emerges
He felt the deadly surges

Discovering Japan
Discovering Japan

The G.I.’s only used her
They always ran right through her
Giving an Eastern promise
That they could never keep
Seeing a million miles
Between their jokes and smiles
She heard their heart denials

As the tears run sideways down her face, face
Ah, with the time in the tune of a different race, race

And as the flight touches down
My watch says eight oh two
That’s midnight to you
Midnight to you
Midnight to you

I dreamed of long collisions
In Cadillac Panavisions
I shouted sayonara
It didn’t mean goodbye
But lovers turn to posers
Show up in film exposures
Just like in travel brochures

Discovering Japan
Discovering Japan
Discovering Japan
Discovering Japan
Discovering Japan
Discovering Japan

Led Zeppelin – When The Levee Breaks

Drums… one of the loudest, widest drum sounds I have ever heard. The song just rolls through you. The song was from the classic Led Zeppelin IV album. John Bonham’s drums were recorded in a stairwell at Headley Grange with the microphones planted 3 stories up. The drum sound echoed up and was captured on the mics, creating a very distinctive sound.

The song started as a 1929 blues recording by Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe McCoy, written after the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 devastated parts of the South. Jimmy Page and Robert Plant took that old blues foundation and turned it into something darker and heavier during the sessions in 1971. The band recorded much of it at Headley Grange, the old English house where Zeppelin liked to work away from the pressure of traditional studios. I will say that Zeppelin did credit these writers.

Jimmy Page slowed the tape slightly during mixing, which gave Bonham’s drums even more weight and made the whole track feel thick. John Paul Jones added bass, harmonica, and subtle touches underneath it while Plant delivered the vocal almost like a warning coming through a storm. Page also layered slide guitar and backward effects across the track, giving it that swampy and almost haunted feeling. Even after dozens of listens, the recording still sounds huge. I do think it’s interesting that Page used his Danelectro guitar for the slide guitar part. A Danelectro is a cheap guitar (I have two), but they give you a unique metallic sound. He also used one on Kashmir.

The band turned it into one of the heaviest tracks of the early 1970s without relying on speed and huge guitar. Hip-hop producers later sampled Bonham’s drum intro because nothing else sounded quite like it. Artists from the Beastie Boys to Dr. Dre borrowed pieces of it. That showed how far the song traveled past classic rock radio. The song still feels massive, like my walls are shaking every time Bonham hits the drums. Hmmm, maybe because I have the volume on 11…that helps.

Jason Bonham: “It’s the drum intro of the Gods. You could play it anywhere and people would know it’s John Bonham. I never had the chance to tell dad how amazing he was – he was just dad.”

When the Levee Breaks

If it keeps on rainin’ levee’s goin’ to break
If it keeps on rainin’ levee’s goin’ to break
When the levee breaks I’ll have no place to stay.
Mean old levee taught me to weep and moan
Lord mean old levee taught me to weep and moan
Got what it takes to make a mountain man leave his home
Oh well oh well oh well.
Don’t it make you feel bad
When you’re tryin’ to find your way home
You don’t know which way to go?
If you’re goin’ down South
They go no work to do,
If you don’t know about Chicago.
Cryin’ won’t help you, prayin’ won’t do you no good,
Now, cryin’ won’t help you, prayin’ won’t do you no good,
When the levee breaks, mama, you got to move.
All last night sat on the levee and moaned,
All last night sat on the levee and moaned,
Thinkin’ ’bout me baby and my happy home.
Going, go’n’ to Chicago,
Go’n’ to Chicago,
Sorry but I can’t take you.
Going down, going down now, going down
going down now, going down, going down, going down, going down
Going down, going down now, going down
going down now, going down
going down now, going down
Going d-d-d-d-down
Woo woo

V-Roys – How I Got To Memphis

Steve Earle signed this band to his E-Squared Records label in the 1990s. Once I heard the opening guitar, I knew this was for me. The voice followed, and it hit that alt-country sweet spot. The V-Roys came out of the mid-1990s roots-rock and alt-country scene, led by singer and songwriter Scott Miller. This is one of those bands that just are so easy to listen to. I love when they slot into that mid-90s alt-country sound.

The band formed in 1994 in Knoxville and quickly built a reputation for mixing country, rock, and Southern storytelling. They fit alongside bands like the Bottle Rockets and early Wilco. The V-Roys always seemed tied to the Tennessee backroads and small-town life. By the time they recorded All About Town in 1998, the group had tightened into a strong live band. They were originally the Viceroys, but they were forced to abandon their original name after being threatened with a lawsuit by a Jamaican reggae band that already owned the rights to it.

This song was written by Tom T. Hall. He originally released this song in 1969, and it became one of his signature songs. Instead of trying to modernize it, the V-Roys keep the original rhythm but add electric guitars and a fuller band arrangement that fits the late-1990s Americana sound without losing the song’s feel.

Steve Earle reportedly encouraged the group to trust the songs and not overplay, which worked perfectly on this one. They kept the song grounded, and it worked. That approach made the track fit naturally beside the band’s originals. The band made two studio albums in the 1990s and a compilation album in 2011. This song was an unreleased 90s track on this compilation album called Sooner or Later.

How I Got To Memphis

If you love somebody enough
You’ll follow wherever they go
That’s how I got to Memphis
That’s how I got to Memphis

If you love somebody enough
You’ll go where your heart wants to go
That’s how I got to Memphis
That’s how I got to Memphis
I know if you’d seen her you’d tell me ’cause you are my friend
I’ve got to find her and find out the trouble she’s in

If you tell me that she’s not here
I’ll follow the trail of her tears
That’s how I got to Memphis
That’s how I got to Memphis

She would get mad and she used to say
That she’d come back to Memphis someday
That’s how I got to Memphis
That’s how I got to Memphis

I haven’t eaten a bite
Or slept for three days and nights
That’s how I got to Memphis
That’s how I got to Memphis

I’ve got to find her and tell her that I love her so
I’ll never rest ’til I find out why she had to go

Thank you for your precious time
Forgive me if I start to cryin’
That’s how I got to Memphis

Bottle Rockets – Doomsday Letter

Back when I did the post about dogs, I said I would revisit this band soon, and I’m doing that today! I just discovered this band in the past few months with the song I Love My Dog, and I love what I’ve heard. This particular song is right up my alley. It’s about Facebook, and all its negativity.

They came out of Missouri in the early 1990s; they were built around songwriter Brian Henneman. Before forming the band, Henneman spent time around the St. Louis music scene and even played with Uncle Tupelo during their early years. The Bottle Rockets formed in Festus, Missouri, and quickly found a place in the alt-country movement alongside bands mixing rock, country, and blue-collar stories.

Their early records carried a bar-band feel, with songs about small towns, jobs, and people trying to get through everyday life. They were not trendy, and that helped them build a loyal following through constant touring and records that sounded real. This song was on the album Bit Logic, released in 2018 when the band was already more than 25 years old. By that point, Brian Henneman had settled into writing songs that looked at middle America without trying to romanticize it. This would be their last studio album.

I really loved the production on their albums. The band recorded the songs quickly and tried to capture the feel of a live group in a room. That approach helped this song come across as more believable. It’s the timeless approach, and it works every time, at least to me. They never had huge radio hits, but musicians and longtime fans stayed loyal because the records felt honest. Brian Henneman retired the band in March 2021 after a 28-year run, citing a desire to step away from touring and enjoy a normal life at home

Doomsday Letter

Hey Chicken Little, whatcha got cookin’?
The sky is fallin’, the sky is fallin’
You really wanna prove it but I ain’t lookin’
But you keep callin’, you keep callin’

I ain’t gonna read another doomsday letter
I’m leavin’ it to Jesus, man the odds seem better
Whatever I can do to keep my chin up is a damn good thing

Hey Nostradamus, I ain’t listenin’
To the bile you’re spewin’, the bile you’re spewin’
There’s way more left in the world that’s glistenin’
It’s not all ruin, it’s not all ruin

I ain’t gonna read another doomsday letter
I’m leavin’ it to Jesus, man the odds seem better
Whatever I can do to keep my chin up is a damn good thing

You can laugh and point and say my head’s in the sand
Well my toes are too, it’s a seaside view
Since I turned you off I found a wonderland
In the middle of your gloom
Right inside your gloom

Hey Grim Reaper, even if you’re right
I ain’t buyin’, I ain’t buyin’
Keeps me warm on a winter night
But just keep tryin’, just keep on tryin’

I ain’t gonna read another doomsday letter
I’m leavin’ it to Jesus, man the odds seem better
Whatever I can do to keep my chin up is a damn good thing
Whatever I can do to keep my chin up is a damn good thing
Whatever I can do to keep my chin up is a damn good thing

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

Dave Mason – Let It Go, Let It Flow

I had this song in my drafts for 6 months, but never completed it after I heard this song on a Traffic and Dave Mason binge I went on. A few weeks ago, Mason passed away, and I wanted to get this out now. I do want to thank halffastcyclingclub for bringing him up last week. He could play anything, it seems, and had a huge range in music.

Dave Mason was a founding member of Traffic in the late 1960s, and they had a cool mix of folk, rock, psychedelia, and blues. Mason wrote some of Traffic’s best-known songs, including Feelin’ Alright, which later became a major hit for Joe Cocker.

Mason had a reputation for leaving and then rejoining Traffic several times because of creative differences, but he was a key part of the band’s sound. During the late 1960s and 1970s, he became one of rock’s most respected session musicians, appearing on recordings by artists such as Jimi Hendrix, George Harrison, the Rolling Stones, Derek and the Dominos, Fleetwood Mac, and Paul McCartney.

His solo career took off with songs such as Only You Know and I Know and some strong songwriting. Mason’s guitar playing was off the charts as well. This song appeared on his 1977 album Let It Flow, a record that was more toward the smoother California rock sound that was popular on the radio at the time.

This album also produced We Just Disagree, which became Mason’s biggest solo hit and helped push the record into a wider audience. Because of the song’s popularity, this song sometimes gets overlooked, but it helped establish the album’s tone from the beginning. By this time, he had been living in the United States for several years, and the album had that West Coast influence more than the English psychedelia of his Traffic days.

The album Let It Flow peaked at #41 on the Billboard Album Charts and #36 in Canada in 1977. The song peaked at #45 on the Billboard 100.

Let It Go, Let It Flow

When I’m alone, I sometimes get to thinkin’How it’s gonna be when we’re gone?Are we moving closer togetherOr is it gonna take forever and ever?

Let it go, let it go, let it flow like a riverLet it go, let it go, let it flow through youLet it go, let it go, let it flow like a riverLet it go, let it go, let it flow through you

Searching everywhere just tryin’ to find a reasonA misunderstanding in doubtDon’t want to preach it, push it or teach itJust take a good look all around

Let it go, let it go, let it flow like a riverLet it go, let it go, let it flow through youLet it go, let it go, let it flow like a riverLet it go, let it go, let it flow through you

Was it gonna follow that angels gonna call on youTo help you on your wayTime spent together, like now, is foreverSo, don’t ever let this smile slip away

Let it go, let it go, let it flow like a riverLet it go, let it go, let it flow through youLet it go, let it go, let it flow like a riverLet it go, let it go, let it flow through you

Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings

I always liked Bill Wyman’s bass playing with the Rolling Stones. Wyman never got the credit he deserved. Really good bass player and a great taste in music. When I first heard this band, I was excited by how authentic they sounded. I knew that Wyman grew up with jump-blues, and he went back to the source.

Wyman built a band around his childhood records, which he grew up with before rock became so huge. They came together in the late 1990s as a loose group of players who loved jump blues, early R&B, boogie-woogie, and jazz. The lineup changed from tour to tour, with musicians like Mike Sanchez, Paul Carrack, Mick Taylor, Mary Wilson, Georgie Fame, Albert Lee, and Terry Taylor moving through the group. They resembled those early rock and blues package tours, with singers, horn players, and keyboard man Mike Sanchez sharing the spotlight.

This classic song was a natural fit for that kind of band. The song dates back to 1947 when Amos Milburn recorded it during the rise of jump blues, and it was written by Lola Cullen and Amos Milburn. It was released in 1948, and it became one of Milburn’s biggest hits. The title referred to late-night clubs and roadside spots where people gathered for music and dancing. It was built around a rolling piano riff, which caught my ear right off the bat.

They recorded and played it with respect for the original sound. Mike Sanchez usually handled the piano and vocal duties, giving the track the same driving feel that Milburn’s version had. This sound and song could have been recorded and played in 1950. Having Albert Lee in your band is like having an ace in the hole. One of the best guitar players there is. He can and has played about every type of music you can think of.

Chicken Shack Boogie

Hello everybody this cat is back,
Looking for a place called the Chicken Shack
They only serve warm beer rice and beans
But it feels just like it’s down in New Orleans
Brace yourself baby I’m here to attack
Down at the place called the Chicken Schack
The girls at that place are mighty fine
But stay off sadie green cause that girl is mine
The moonlight shines through the holes in the wall
Everybody there is having a ball
They don’t care that the place looks like a wreck
Down at the place called the Chicken Shack
I wanna rip it, rock it, really bop it
Flip it, flop it, David Crocket
Just like Roy Montrell every time he hears hat mellow saxophone
The good old rockin’ days will never come back
Except down at the place called the Chicken Shack
The good old rockin’ days will never come back
Except down at the place called the Chicken Shack

Joe Ely – Settle For Love

5-6 years ago, I had no clue who Joe Ely really was. I had heard his name but not much of his music. When I started to get into his music, I fell hard and am still falling. He opened up different artists and bands to me to enjoy. Guy Clark, Dave Alvin, and many more. Now that music is entrenched in my daily listens. I love the seesaw between the vocals and guitar in this song. It hits you with that, and that was enough to hook me.

Ely was born in Amarillo in 1947 and raised in Lubbock, Buddy Holly’s hometown. Ely came of age surrounded by dust storms, flat horizons, and rock ‘n’ roll. He has been in many bands. The Flatlanders, The Buzzin Cousins, Los Super Seven, and more. Plus, he was good friends with The Clash, with whom he toured at one time.

The song has the Texas storytelling with a harder rock edge that had grown through the 1980s with Ely. The song is from the 1992 album Love and Danger, and it feels like Ely standing between two worlds, part roots rock, part country song built for barrooms. I listened to the album this past week, and I would recommend it to everyone.

The album was recorded in Nashville and produced by Ely alongside producer Tony Brown. Brown had worked with artists across country and roots music, and his approach fit Ely’s writing style. The sessions focused on clean performances and strong players rather than heavy studio production.

During the making of the record, Ely had written dozens of songs over several months, pulling ideas from travel, Texas landscapes, and years of touring. The sessions had clean arrangements that gave space to the lyrics and Ely’s voice. Guitarist David Grissom added strong electric guitar throughout the album, helping fuse all the styles together.

Settle For Love

You say you want drama
I’ll give you drama
You say you want muscle
I’ll give you nerve
You want sugar
Would you settle for honey?
You want romance
Would you settle for love?

Would you settle for love?
Would you settle for love?
Would you settle for love or do you need
All that meaningless stuff
Would you settle for love?
Would it be enough?
Baby, would you settle for love?

You say you want fire
I’ll give you fever
You want kisses
I’ll give you all I got
You want diamonds
I’ll give you rhinestones
And you want romance
Would you settle for love?

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

International Submarine Band – Luxury Liner

It’s always great to hear Gram Parsons solo, with the Byrds, or with the Flying Burrito Brothers. I’ve heard of these guys but never listened to them. I’m happy I did now. It’s the so-called country rock, but with harmonizing that sounds great.

They were one of those bands that existed for only a short time but left a legacy. They formed in Los Angeles in 1966, and the band was built around singer, songwriter, and guitarist Gram Parsons. Parsons was interested in mixing traditional country music with rock, soul, and folk, long before the style had a name. At a time when psychedelic rock was dominating California, they were heading in the opposite direction. They were more toward pedal steel guitars and country storytelling.

The original lineup shifted a few times, but the best-known version included Parsons alongside bassist Chris Ethridge, guitarist John Nuese, and drummer Jon Corneal. The group played clubs around Los Angeles during a period when country music was still looked down on by much of the rock crowd. Parsons admired artists like George Jones and Merle Haggard, and he wanted to bring that sound into a younger rock audience. The band shared stages with folk-rock and psychedelic acts while carving out a different identity.

In 1968, the band released its only album, Safe at Home. Though it did not sell well at the time, the record later became recognized as an early blueprint for country rock. By the time the album arrived, Parsons had begun drifting toward The Byrds, where he would push country influences even further on Sweetheart of the Rodeo.

Years later, he revisited this song during his solo period, and it became one of the songs most tied to him. It also found new life when Emmylou Harris recorded it for her 1977 album Luxury Liner, helping introduce it to a wider audience.

Luxary Liner

Well a luxury liner, forty tons of steelIf I don’t find my baby now then I guess I never will

I’ve been a long lost soul for a long long timeI’ve been around, everybody ought to know what’s on my mindYou think I’m lonesome?So do I, so do I

Well I’m the kind of guy that likes to make a livin’ runnin’ ’roundAnd I don’t need a stranger to tell me that my baby’s let me downYou think I’m lonesome?So do I, so do I

Well a luxury liner, forty tons of steelNo one in this whole wide world can change the way I feel

I’ve been a long lost soul for a long long timeI’ve been around, everybody ought to know what’s on my mindYou think I’m lonesome?So do I, so do I

Patsy Cline – Crazy

I’ve heard and heard of Patsy Cline since I can remember. Where I live, she has never been forgotten. She was and still is a huge country star, but I never really considered a lot of her music pure country. I don’t mean that as a put-down, but it also had some jazz influence in there. One of the best voices in music, period.

She was born Virginia Patterson Hensley. Known in her youth as “Ginny,” she began to sing with local country bands while a teenager, sometimes accompanying herself on guitar. By the time she had reached her early 20s, Cline was promoting herself as “Patsy” and was on her way toward music stardom.

This song wasn’t a Patsy Cline-written song. It came from a young Willie Nelson, still trying to get a break in Nashville. He wrote it as a slow ballad, built around a melody that moved in ways most country songs at the time didn’t. Nelson pitched it around town, and it eventually reached producer Owen Bradley, who was creating what became known as the Nashville Sound: smoother arrangements, piano, light rhythm, and restrained backing vocals.

When Cline first heard it, she wasn’t much into it. The melody felt awkward, the phrasing didn’t land right, and it didn’t sit naturally in her voice on the first try. But Bradley heard something in it and pushed forward. The session took place at Bradley’s Quonset Hut studio in 1961. There was a problem from the start. Cline had recently been in a car accident and still had bruised ribs. That mattered because the song required long, controlled lines and soft phrasing, the kind that needs steady breath support.

The band included pianist Floyd Cramer, whose playing style gave the song its gentle feel. Cline struggled on the first attempts. The phrasing, especially the opening line, “Crazy, I’m crazy for feeling so lonely,” kept slipping out of place. They stopped the session and came back later. When she returned, she approached it differently by stretching the lines.

That second take is the one that stuck. The way she adapted it to her style because of the injuries ended up helping it. She doesn’t oversing it. She lets the pauses sit and it worked out beautifully. The song became one of Cline’s defining recordings and one of the most well-known songs in country and pop crossover history. It also helped establish Nelson as a songwriter to watch, even before his own recording career took off.

The song peaked at #9 on the Billboard 100, #2 on the Billboard Country Charts, and #8 in Canada in 1961.

Crazy

CrazyI’m crazy for feelin’ so lonely

I’m crazyCrazy for feelin’ so blue

I knewYou’d love me as long as you wantedAnd then somedayYou’d leave me for somebody new

WorryWhy do I let myself worry

Wonderin’What in the world did I do?

Oh… crazyFor thinking that my love could hold youI’m crazy for tryingAnd crazy for cryingAnd I’m crazy for loving youCrazyFor thinking that my love could hold youI’m crazy for tryingAnd crazy for cryingAnd I’m crazy for lovingYou