J Geils Band – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

J Geils Band – Love Stinks

When I’m reading a music bio, everyone knows what I’m reading by reading my blog. I just finished the Peter Wolf book, and I cannot recommend it enough. I have never posted this song before, and I’m shocked that I haven’t. I’ve always liked this song and was reminded of it when I watched the movie The Wedding Singer. I remember in the 70s listening to J Geils with Must Have Got Lost and Give It To Me on AM radio, and they sounded great.

Of all the songs that I did vocals onstage with…this one has to be the most fun I had with a song. The crowd always roared back in the chorus…you could count on it. I was going to post this on Valentine’s Day, but forgot about it.

The J Geils Band started in 1967. They were originally called The J Geils Blues Band, and Peter Wolf saw them perform and joined with his band’s (The Hallucinations) drummer, Stephen Jo Bladd. A fan named Seth Justman soon joined on keyboards. Wolf and Justman soon became the two prominent songwriters of the band. The members were John Geils guitarist, Peter Wolf lead singer, Seth Justman keyboards, Danny Klein bass player, Richard Salwitz harp, trumpet, and saxophone.

They signed a contract with Atlantic Records that was VERY friendly to Atlantic Records. They started to open up for The Allman Brothers, BB King, The Who, The Stones, The Byrds, and just about everyone on the music scene at the time. They built their live reputation up and had a loyal fanbase. They were constantly touring and were known for high-energy shows and music. Peter Wolf was one of the best, if not the best, frontmen in rock. You also had Richard Salwitz (Magic Dick) playing blues harp, trumpet, and saxophone and gave the band a sound.

By their third album, Bloodshot, released in 1973, scored a hit with Give It To Me and the album peaked at #10 on the Billboard 100 and #17 in Canada. The album that set that album up was Live Full House. That album is one of the best live albums I’ve ever listened to. It was released in 1972 and established their live reputation for the rest of their career. As the decade went on, they did have some hits like my favorite Must Of Got Lost. Their Atlantic record contract was up in 1977.

They signed with EMI, and their commercial fortunes turned around with the new label. Their first album with EMI was Sanctuary, and it had a hit called One Last Kiss. Then came the Love Stinks album, and although there were no top 10 hits, this album had two songs that hit and are still played today: Love Stinks and Come Back hit the top 40, and their audience started to grow.

It was their 10th studio album, Freeze Frame, that blew the lid off. Some songs were the #1 Centerfold, #4 Freeze Frame, top 40 Angel in Blue, and a popular dance track called Flamethrower. Their popularity was at an all-time high. They opened for the Stones’ massive tour that year. They had been headlining since Love Stinks…but then…it was all over.

Peter Wolf didn’t like the way they were going into synth pop and wanted to get back to their roots. They pretty much told him to go his way, and they would go their way. They kept rejecting songs he brought, and many of the songs they rejected ended up on his album Lights Out. Listening to Freeze Frame now…you can hear the R&B in the song Freeze Frame and some of the others.

They decided to make an album called Even While I’m Gettin’ Odd, without Peter, and when I listen to it, I can see why Wolf didn’t want to go that way. They wanted to go much further into the 80s pop production than Freeze-Frame. The punch and live feeling of Freeze-Frame and Love Stinks was gone. The album failed and it would be their last. They have regrouped off and on through the years for live shows but never made another album.

The Love Stinks album was released in 1980 and peaked at #18 on the Billboard Album Charts and #4 in Canada. The title track peaked at #15 in Canada and #38 on the Billboard 100.

Peter Wolf on the breakup: Frank Barsalona, our agent, took me out for dinner after his final meeting with the other band members. In disbelief, he said, “After all these years, the band finally made it. It’s really quite unbelievable. I’ve dealt with the craziest of the crazies; the drugs, the girlfriends, the managers—nothing even comes close to this. Nothing as stupid, as senseless, and as wasteful in what these guys are insisting on doing. So, Peter, let’s start thinking about your solo career.”

Here is a version that I love…a bluegrass rendition of the song by Peter Wolf, and I like it.

Here they are in the Netherlands in 1980, live. Peter Wolf has a black eye and broken ribs after being ambushed in a pub. They headlined the Pinkpop Festival.

Love Stinks

You love herBut she loves himAnd he loves somebody elseYou just can’t winAnd so it goes‘Til the day you dieThis thing they call loveIt’s gonna make you cry

I’ve had the bluesThe reds and the pinksOne thing for sure(Love stinks)

Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah

Two by two, and side by sideLove’s gonna find you, yes, it isYou just can’t hideYou’ll hear it callYour heart will fallThen love will flyIt’s gonna soar

I don’t care for any casanova thingAll I can say is(Love stinks)

Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah

I’ve been through diamondsI’ve been through minksI’ve been through it all(Love stinks)

Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah

Love stinksLove stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks (love stinks), yeah, yeah(Love stinks)

Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks, yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks (love stinks), yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks (love stinks), yeah, yeah(Love stinks)Love stinks (love stinks)

Peter Wolf – Come As You Are

Every single time I wrote about J Geils and now Peter Wolf, I always gush about how great of a frontman the man is. I would put him against anyone in rock. With the film clips I’ve seen, he is electric on stage. Wolf was the lead singer and songwriter of The J. Geils Band from 1967 to 1983. In 1983, Wolf and the J. Geils Band parted ways after the singer expressed his interest in returning to the band’s rock ‘n’ roll roots.

When the band was splitting up, he stepped out on his own. I asked CB if he had any artists in mind, and he thankfully sent me a few, and Wolf was one of them. I remember this song from the 1980s. He always brings energy and a fun atmosphere to work with. I also remember Lights Out that I have at the bottom.

I also found some more songs of Wolf that I really like. He did some music with Merle Haggard and others that I will be posting soon. Wolf and Tim Mayer wrote this song, as well as many of the songs on the album. I listened to this album this week, and it’s what Peter Wolf is: fun and energetic.

This song was on the album Come As You Are released in 1987. The song peaked at #15 on the Billboard 100, #29 in Canada, and #1 on the Mainstream Rock Charts. The album peaked at #53 on the Billboard Album Charts.

He released his autobiography, called Waiting On The Moon, on the 11th of this month. It’s one that I just ordered from Amazon. Wolf has lived a full life, to say the least. A teaser for the book said this: He roomed with David Lynch in college and married Faye Dunaway. Drank his first real Irish Guinness with Mick Jagger. Smoked hash with Peter Sellers. Ate lamb chops with poet Robert Lowell. Marilyn Monroe once handed him M&Ms.

Here is another song that came back to me .

Come As You Are

They hung a sign outSign out at the sevenDown at the hive of such a busy beeSo sorry honey sign up for heavenThe guilt tonight is you and meCome as you are, now come onCome as you are and we’ll have a ballAin’t gonna be no masqueradeCome as you are, or don’t come at allHe’ll be a hot time, hot time at the lake sideBarry and the boys are filling in for freeWe’ll jump and move and take it for a joyrideI still get up there for you and meCome as you are, now come onCome as you are and we’ll have a ballAin’t gonna be no masqueradeCome as you are, or don’t come at all

I’m just a bluebird, bluebird at your windowAnd it’s for sure you’re a pretty sight to seeBut lives are short; I know what you’re intoCome on, it’s you and meCome as you are, now come onCome as you are, and we’ll have a ballAin’t gonna be no masqueradeCome as you are, or don’t come at allWhoa, whoa, whoaCome as you are now, come onCome as you are, and we’ll have a ballAin’t gonna be no masqueradeCome as you are, or don’t come at allCome as you are

…

J Geils Band – Looking For A Love

Peter Wolf was doing his thing in this song. Wolf is the complete package as a lead singer. He can give you a great voice to drive the songs and move around the stage like he is on fire. I would put him up as one of the best in rock. In the era of Roger Daltrey, Robert Plant, Rod Stewart, and Mick Jagger. Peter Wolf could keep up with the best…and still can.

The song Looking for a Love was originally recorded by The Valentinos, a soul group featuring Bobby Womack, in 1962. It became an R&B hit (#8) at the time and was written by J. W. Alexander and Zelda Samuels. The J Geils Band took the song and lit it up with energy. It’s some fantastic fun R&B that the band covered great. That was their strong suit…infectious driving live band who had soul and some funk to boot.

The J. Geils version peaked at #25 in Canada and #39 on the Billboard 100 in 1971. It was on the band’s second album called The Morning After. It peaked at #63 on the Billboard Album Charts and #73 in Canada.

Bobby Womack re-recorded it in 1974 and had a massive hit with it that peaked at #1 on the R&B Charts and #10 on the Billboard 100.

The J. Geils Band was formed in 1967 in Worcester, Massachusetts. The band came out of the Boston club scene in the late sixties. I always thought they should have been bigger than they were in the 1970s. They didn’t hit their commercial peak until the early 80s with Love Stinks, Come Back, and then the hugely popular Freeze-Frame album in 1983 but their 70s output gets lost at times and that is a big shame.

Also, there are a couple of you who recommended their live album Full House…that would be CB and John Holton…I appreciate it because it’s one of the best live albums I’ve heard.

Looking For a Love

Somebody help meSomebody help me nowSomebody help me now

Somebody help meFind my babySomebody help meFind my baby right now

I`m looking for a loveI`m looking for a loveI`m looking here and thereI`m searching everywhereI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

Gonna get up in the morningAnd rub my headI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

Fix my breakfastAnd bring it to my bedI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

Do my loveDo it all the timeI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

With lots of love and kissesBut people until thenI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

I`m looking for a loveI`m looking for a loveI`m looking here and thereI`m searching everywhereI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

Stay in my cornerAll the way, yeahI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

Stick by me, babyNo matter what they sayI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

I`ll give my loveTo her all the timeI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

Loving, kissingPeople on the wayI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

I`m looking for a loveI`m looking for a loveI`m looking here and thereI`m searching everywhereI`m looking for a loveTo call my own

Somebody help meTo find my babyI said I`ve got to findMy baby right now

I`m looking in the morningI`m looking at nightGot to find my babyBut she`s nowhere in sight

Somebody help meTo find my babyI said I`ve got to findMy baby right now

I`m looking in the morningI`m looking at nightGot to find my babyShe`s nowhere in sight

I`m looking, I`m lookingI`m looking, I`m looking……

…

J Geils Band – Must of Got Lost

This just may be my favorite J Geils Band song. It is probably the first song I heard by them. Their live music from this period is just off the charts. Peter Wolf is in the top tier of lead singers. I always held him in high regard…he was like a composite of the best lead singers all in one.

Must Have Got Lost was released in 1974 and it peaked at #12 on the Billboard 100 Charts and #27 in Canada in 1974. The song was on their 5th album called Nightmares…and Other Tales from the Vinyl Jungle. The album peaked at #26 on the Billboard Album Chart and #32 in Canada.

The band came out of the Boston club scene in the late sixties. I always thought they should have been bigger than they were in the 1970s. They didn’t hit their commercial peak until the early 80s with Love Stinks, Come Back, and then the hugely popular Freeze-Frame album in 1983.

While the band was experiencing the greatest commercial success of its career and preparing a follow-up to Freeze Frame…the two main songwriters Wolf and Justman were not getting along. The band refused to record material Wolf had written with other writing partners…so Wolf left in 1983.

The band wanted to go in a more pop direction while Wolf wanted to continue the blues/rock path they were going before that album. They continued without their charismatic lead singer but were not commercially successful. It would be almost impossible to replace Wolf.

“Must Have Got Lost” was never a huge hit but it was always a favorite of mine.

Peter Wolf: “I did not leave the band, but the majority of the band wanted to move in another direction. They wanted to continue in a pop-techno way, [and] it wasn’t my thing.”

Magic Dick (Richard Salwitz) Harmonica, Saxophone, and Trumpet: “This is very important to me. A lot of people, all they knew us for was ‘Freeze-Frame,’ ‘Centerfold’ and stuff like that, I don’t think they were aware of how blues and R&B; oriented the earlier stuff was. I really feel great about (the reunited band) because this is the music that inspired J. and myself when we first discovered our mutual interest in Chicago-style blues and classic jazz.

Must Have Got Lost

Never thought about tomorrow
Seemed like a long time to come
How could I be so blind, baby
Not to see you were the one

I let ya slip on from me baby
I let you walk on by,
Shoulda loved, you had told me
I refused to love, I let it die

I musta got lost, musta got lost, I musta got lost
Somewhere down the line
Musta got lost, musta got lost
Give away the days you were mine

Don’t know why I let you leave me
Honey, I don’t know
Say its hard to see lovers comin’ babe
Honey I’ve a way to see them go

Musta got lost, musta got lost, musta got lost
Somewhere down the line
Musta got lost, I got lost
Give away the days you were mine

Love can be a sweet thing
Girl I just don’t understand
Made a game outta lovin’ you
Now I hold the losin’ hand

Oh, I musta got lost, musta got lost, musta got lost
Somewhere down the line
Musta got lost, I got lost, girl
Give away the days you were mine

I just don’t understand it
I just don’t understand it
I just don’t understand it

And I musta got lost, musta got lost, musta got lost
Somewhere down the line, hey
Musta got lost, baby, I got lost girl
Give away them days you were mine

Musta got lost, I got lost, musta got lost
Somewhere down the line
Musta got lost, oh I got lost girl
Give away them days you were mine

C’mon
Oh, I got lost, babe, double-crossed
Your lovin’, give it to me all night long

I said your love got me higher,
than I ever been lifted before

I said your love has got me higher,
than I ever been lifted before

Somewhere down the line… yeah

J Geils Band – One Last Kiss

What a rocking band they were in the 70s. They had one of the best frontmen in the era of Roger Daltrey, Robert Plant, Rod Stewart, and Mick Jagger. Peter Wolf could keep up with the best.

This song is different from their previous releases to this point in 1978. Their earlier music was more frantic and upbeat. I was listening to some of their seventies music and I had forgotten about this one. I love the guitar work in this song as subtle as it is. It doesn’t have a magical hook that gets you but it’s the feel of the song that I like. The song was written by Peter Wolf and Seth Justman.

The song peaked at #35 on the Billboard 100, 58 in Canada, and #74 in the UK in 1978. The song was off the album Sanctuary and it peaked at #49 in the Billboard 100 and #53 in Canada.

After the huge success of Freeze-Frame, Peter Wolf left. The band wanted to go in a techno/pop direction and Peter Wolf disagreed. They continued without their lead singer but weren’t too commercially successful.

One Last Kiss

Just one last kissBefore I walk out the doorI’m gonna hold you tighterThan I ever did before

And I, I never promised youThe things you promised meAnd I, I can’t justifyThe way it’s gotta be

And the good times are the best timesThe bad times fade awayThe good times are foreverBut now, baby, the last time is today

Just one more nightThere’s no time for anymoreI’m gonna tell you somethingThat you’ve never heard before

But I, I can’t find the wordsTo ease your lovers painAnd I, I know the feeling’s goneI can feel it in my veins

And the good times are the best timesThe bad times fade awayThe good times are foreverBut now, baby, the last time is today

One last kiss

And the good times are the best timesThe bad times fade awayThe good times are foreverBut now, baby, the last time is today

One last kiss

J Geils Band – Centerfold

If high school would have been more like the video to this song…Max would not have skipped school or been late.

Personally, I like their 70s blues/rock music more but I can’t say I don’t like the Freeze-Frame album. When it came out it was all over the place and I loved it…and still do. One of my memories of that time is pep rallies in high school and the cheerleaders (the reason we went) did a routine around ‘Freeze Frame’at the time…hmmm… too bad it wasn’t this song.

This song is commercial but still retains the essence of the band. Peter Wolf blows through this song and he makes you believe it. He was/is one of the best frontmen in rock and roll. I like the story the song presents. After having a crush on a sweet, innocent girl in his homeroom in high school…he sees her in a “girly” magazine later on but instead of being excited he is disappointed because his memory has been sold.

This was the third album for EMI and the record company made a great choice of picking this song as the lead single. It was #1 for six weeks and carried the album with it. The title cut peaked at #4. The video was directed by Paul Justman, brother of the song’s writer Seth. Paul also directed the band’s videos for “Land of 1,000 Dances” and “Freeze-Frame.”

The video…there was a rumor going around at the time that Martha Quinn, VJ for MTV, was in the video. It was not her of course but she had a hairstyle like Quinn plus it was a slight resemblance. You can see her around:56 in the video… Martha Quinn: “That’s not me. When I had my other haircut, I looked just like her. Except she’s enormous.”

The song peaked at #1 in the Billboard 100, #1 in Canada, #3 in the UK, and #5 in New Zealand in 1981. The album Freeze Frame peaked at #1 on the Billboard Album Charts, #1 in Canada, #12 in the UK, and #14 in New Zealand.

It was great to see this hard-working band finally get some massive success but it didn’t last long. Peter Wolf would leave the band in 1983 or the band left without him.

Peter Wolf: “I did not leave the band, but the majority of the band wanted to move in another direction. They wanted to continue in a pop-techno way, [and] it wasn’t my thing.”

Centerfold

Does she walk? Does she talk?
Does she come complete?
My homeroom homeroom angel
Always pulled me from my seat

She was pure like snowflakes
No one could ever stain
The memory of my angel
Could never cause me pain

Years go by I’m lookin’ through a girly magazine
And there’s my homeroom angel on the pages in-between

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
My angel is the centerfold
Angel is the centerfold

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
Angel is the centerfold

Slipped me notes under the desk
While I was thinkin’ about her dress
I was shy I turned away
Before she caught my eye

I was shakin’ in my shoes
Whenever she flashed those baby-blues
Something had a hold on me
When angel passed close by

Those soft and fuzzy sweaters
Too magical to touch
To see her in that negligee
Is really just too much

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
My angel is the centerfold
Angel is the centerfold

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
Angel is the centerfold

It’s okay I understand
This ain’t no never-never land
I hope that when this issue’s gone
I’ll see you when your clothes are on

Take you car, yes we will
We’ll take your car and drive it
We’ll take it to a motel room
And take ’em off in private

A part of me has just been ripped
The pages from my mind are stripped
Oh no, I can’t deny it
Oh yeah, I guess I gotta buy it

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
My angel is the centerfold
Angel is the centerfold

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
My Angel in the centerfold

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
My angel is the centerfold
Angel is the centerfold

My blood runs cold
My memory has just been sold
Angel is the centerfold

J Geils Band – Give It To Me

I would put Peter Wolf up with the best live front men in rock.

The J Geils Band sounded a bit different in the seventies. They had their biggest hits in the ’80s with “Freeze-Frame” and “Centerfold,” but that was the culmination of a long career that included lots of blues-based boogie music like this track.

This song peaked at #30 in the Billboard 100 and #39 in Canada in 1973. The song was on the album Bloodshot and peaked at #10 in the Billboard Album Charts and #17 in Canada.

Peter Wolf wrote the song with the group’s keyboard player Seth Justman.

The band wanted to go in a more pop direction while Wolf wanted to continue the more blues/rock path they were going .

From Songfacts

One of the most popular J. Geils Band songs from the group’s early years, this one is unusually carnal, with Peter Wolf making it very clear in his vocal delivery what he’s asking for in “Give It To Me.”

“Give It To Me” was cut down to 3:07 for radio play, but the full version runs a healthy 6:32, with showcase spots for many of the band members. Seth Justman gets a long solo on organ, which is followed by a guitar spot by J. Geils (the group’s guitarist was the band’s namesake) and an extended harmonica solo by Magic Dick. The song became a concert favorite, and one that established the J. Geils Band as a great live act. The live version from their album Blow Your Face Out is the one many radio stations play, as it captures the energy of their shows.

Heineken beer used this in commercials in 2002.

Bill Szymczyk produced the Bloodshot album, which was recorded at the Hit Factory in New York City. Szymczyk would later produce the Eagles, including their albums On the Border and Hotel California.

Give It To Me

You’ve got to give it to me
You’ve got to give it to me
You’ve got to give it to me
You’ve got to give it to me

You’re so slick now, know every trick now
You know I want it, I want it so bad
You know I need it, I can’t believe it
So come on baby, Please relieve it

Now you’ve been bugging me, Every night now
You say you want it, You want it right now
I can’t get to it, I can’t get through it
So come on baby, Please

You’ve got to get it up (give it up)
You’ve got to get it up (give it up)
You’ve got to get it up (give it up)
You’ve got to get it up (give it up)

Why keep me cold
When it’s so warm inside
Come on baby
Your love is too good to hide