Jayhawks – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

Jayhawks – Blue

After I found out about this band in 2000, I had to know more. This song would rank high on the list of my favorite songs of all time. When Olson and Louris lock in on “Why don’t you stay behind? So blue.” they hit that sweet spot that gives me chills. This is the kind of sadness you can hum along to. To me, they are a modern version of Big Star in many ways. They never could buy a hit, but released some excellent music.

The Jayhawks are an American alternative country and country rock band that emerged from the Minneapolis–Saint Paul music scene in the mid-80s. Minneapolis had a strong scene for bands in the 1980s. Gary Louris and Mark Olson built the early band around harmony singing, country roots, and the spirit of the Flying Burrito Brothers, which was not exactly the fashionable choice in a town dominated by Hüsker Dü, the Replacements, and Prince. The Jayhawks went more for warmth and melody instead of loudness. They have a little of The Flying Burrito Brothers mixed with Big Star in them.

Olson eventually left the band to focus on family and a quieter life, leaving Louris to carry on with the Jayhawks. Still, whenever the two reunited, even briefly, the chemistry returned. Their 2008 duo album (Ready For The Flood) and subsequent tours proved the bond still worked.

The song was on the album Tomorrow the Green Grass, an album many fans still consider their masterpiece. They recorded the album between Los Angeles and Nashville, a setup that gave it an open feel. Producer George Drakoulias understood that the Jayhawks’ feel wasn’t in piling on big sounds, it was in letting the songs breathe…and breathe they did. This song was written by Mark Olson and Gary Louris.

The album peaked at #92 on the Billboard Album Charts in 1995. The song peaked at #33 in Canada. They recently backed Ray Davies on his albums Americana and Our Country – Americana Act II. Their 2016 album, Paging Mr. Proust, was produced by Peter Buck of REM.

They combine country, folk, rock, and pop with good harmonies.

Gary Lourist: Mark was tired of the grind of playing the game, going to the radio stations and being a low- to mid-level success. I think it just wore him out. He was always frustrated by all the waiting. The Jayhawks made just seven records in 20 years, so there was a lot of it. The Creekdippers did it very organically and made lots of records. But the main thing was that he wanted to be with his wife.

Gary Lourist: What brought Mark and me back together? It started way back with The Rookie, a mediocre Dennis Quaid movie about an older pitcher who makes the big leagues. The producer or the director was a Jayhawks fan, and they wanted a new Olson/Louris song. Olson’s manager called my manager, and the next thing you know, I’m driving out to Joshua Tree. We talked through our old issues. We wrote a couple of songs that day. They didn’t make it in the movie, but it got us thinking that we still really had something when we got together. So we started doing some tours, but we didn’t have any new material, so that lead us to Ready For The Flood, and that led us to the new Jayhawks record.

Blue

Where have all my friends gone?
They’ve all disappeared.
Turned around maybe one day, you’re all that was there.
Stood by on believing, stood by on my own.
Always thought I was someone, turned out I was wrong.
And you brought me through and you made me feel so blue,
Why don’t you stay behind?
So blue. Why don’t you stop, and look at what’s going down.

If I had an old woman she’d never sell me a lie
It’s hard to sing with someone who won’t sing with you.
Give all of my mercy, give all of my heart.
Never thought that I’d miss you, that I’d miss you so much.
And you brought me through and you made me feel so blue.
Why don’t you stay behind?
So blue.
Why don’t you stop and look at what’s going down.

All my life (staying while) I’m waiting for (staying while)
Someone I could (waiting around) show the door
(now that I’m blue) but nothing seems to change (that I’m blue from now on)
You come back that month so blue.
Why don’t you stay behind?
So blue.
Why don’t you, why don’t you stay behind?
So blue.
Why don’t you, why don’t you stay behind?
So blue
Why don’t you stop and look at what’s down

Jayhawks – I’m Gonna Make You Love Me

I first found out about this group in 2000 with this song. When I heard it I knew I had to find out more about this band. The Jayhawks formed in Minneapolis–Saint Paul in 1985 and played alternative country-rock. They have released 10 studio albums and are worth checking out.

The song peaked at #5 in the Billboard Triple A Chart in 2000. It was off the album Smile, and The Jayhawks took a more pop approach to this album than their earlier alt-country albums. Gary Louris… guitar player, singer, and songwriter, when this album was released: “I grew up listening to pop music, and that was my love. I loved the Beatles and I loved Big Star.”

There is a difference between this and their earlier music. They stuck on the alt-country for a long time. I would call this their “power pop move,” but there’s still that unmistakable Jayhawks DNA, those rich vocal harmonies, the bittersweet chord changes, and Louris’s yearning delivery in the vocals.

The evolution of the song was interesting… Gary Louris: “I wrote that song when my ex-girlfriend walked out the door… I had a different chorus that was a little more subtle, a little more of an artist’s song that you wouldn’t even know is a chorus maybe but it was cool.”

The record label and producer Bob Ezrin wanted a better chorus to make it more accessible. “And that became the thorn in my side, y’know, because I had written a song I liked and it seemed like that’s what it was. This was the beginning of a long process where I wrote with a lot of different people… And I saw a lot of people I respected write many different ways on the same song.”

A suggestion from songwriter Taylor Rhodes helped Louris find the hook he needed. “So that was definitely a lot of hard work on that song. Now I love it, but for awhile I just wanted to be left alone. I didn’t want to ever hear that song again.”

They recently backed Ray Davies on his albums Americana and Our Country – Americana Act II. Their 2016 album Paging Mr. Proust was produced by Peter Buck of REM.

I’m Gonna Make You Love Me

The world never ends
It’s only the beginning
And we can’t pretend
To discover it’s meaning

We talked for hours at a time
Then I came to my senses
You’re more than a friend
You’re my perfect lover

I’ll never be all you want me to
But that’s all right

I’m gonna make you love me
I’m gonna dry your tears
And we’re gonna stay together
For a million years

It’s the least I can do
Just to make you my baby
No words could describe
Oh, pinch me I’m dreaming

Your hair’s long and black
As it lays ‘cross my pillow
When I stare in your eyes
I get lost in your glory

I’ll never be all you want me to
But that’s all right

I’m gonna make you love me
I’m gonna dry your tears
And we’re gonna stay together
For a million years

When you were a little girl
Your great big world came tumbling down
So sad

Yeah, the river it bends
But it flows to the ocean
And baby here I am
I’m your sea of devotion

I’ll never be all you want me to
But that’s all right

I’m gonna make you love me
I’m gonna dry your tears
And we’re gonna stay together
For a million years

Jayhawks – Quiet Corners & Empty Spaces

I first found out about The Jayhawks in 2000 or so with a song called I’m Gonna Make You Love Me and the song Blue.

The Jayhawks formed in Minneapolis–Saint Paul in 1985 and played alternative country rock. They have released 11 studio albums and are worth checking out. The band went on hiatus in the early 2000s but soon reformed and returned in 2003 with a highly regarded album Rainy Day Music and has stayed together ever since.

This song was written by Gary Louris. The song did reasonably well when released. I would hear it on our alternative channel in Nashville. They are one of those bands that never could get over the hump to a mass audience. I always think of them, Wilco, and Big Star coming from some of the same musical territory. The Jayhawks have had a few successful albums but never became household names.

The album peaked at #75 on the Billboard Album Charts and #51 in the UK in 2016. The single peaked at #26 on the Alternative Album Charts.

Since our Kinks Weeks are coming up I thought I would mention this. They have a Kinks tie… They backed Ray Davies on his albums Americana and Our Country – Americana Act II. T

Gary Louris: Quiet Corners & Empty Spaces” started with the idea that I wanted to write a big, soaring, old-school pop song. With lyrics, I either tend to do a stream-of-consciousness or a cut-and-paste kind of thing. This one was something out of a newspaper that I cut out. I just have piles of stuff.

For me, it’s a spark to kind of throw some things together, along with other methods, like mumbling. A lot of times, when I’m writing, I sing and play and whatever comes out comes out, and these words are inferred by sounds and half-words. Then I come around and get the meaning out of that, and it’s usually coming from some place inside that is kind of revelatory in a way. It’s almost like therapy.

So, from there, I wrote a song about running away from certain things. Again, in a Proust kind of way, finding a spot where you can be introspective, away from the noise, and get your head together.

Quiet Corners & Empty Spaces

Aside the wandering eye has openedA stare all the way bare and brokenThe start of a brand new adventure

Hey nowCatch me quick before I walk awayTell me if there’s something I should sayI’ll find the quiet corners and the empty spaces

Not far a blue guitar is playingIt drew me like it knewAnd it’s saying

Hey nowCatch me quick before I walk awayTell me if there’s something I should sayI’ll find the quiet corners and the empty spaces

We drown in ups and downsNeglectingThe beauty of my sun is setting

In the end there’s no way in redemptionHey nowCatch me quick before I walk awayTell me if there’s something I should sayI’ll find the quiet corners and the empty spacesHey nowCatch me quick before I walk awayTell me if there’s something I should say

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Max Picks …songs from 1995

1995

We have come to the end of the line for Max Picks. I decided to draw the line this year. What a year it was for me in music. I was 2 when the Beatles stopped playing music. I never got to experience a new Beatles song and this was it. It’s still a favorite of mine. I’m going to work up a few Missed Max Picks because of the songs I missed. I want to thank ALL of you for the support and your comments on this series. It was a fun one to do. We started this on June 23, 2023!

Beatles – Free As A Bird

In the 1990s I kept reading about the Beatles Anthology coming out and the three surviving Beatles getting back together to release old never heard before music as well as new. They were going to take a John Lennon demo and add something to it. This was beyond exciting for me. I was too young to remember a new Beatles song coming out.

It had an older feel but sounded modern at the same time. George Harrison’s distorted slide guitar playing brought an edge to it. It even had a strange ending like some of their other songs.

I got an early release of the Anthology CD from a friend of mine who worked in a record store and he said…don’t tell anyone. I sat glued to Free As a Bird because for once I was listening to a new Beatles song… I was one year old in 1968 so I missed them when they were originally out. I liked the song and still do. I have talked to Beatles fans who don’t really like it that much but the song has stuck with me. .

Was Free As a Bird the best song in the Beatles catalog? No not even close but just to hear something new was fantastic. The Anthology videos and CDs jump-started their popularity all over again…and it hasn’t stopped since then. I had cousins who were teenagers at the time who were never interested in them until Anthology came out. All I could say to them was…I’ve told you for years.

Also…my favorite music video of all time

Jayhawks – Blue

This song would rank high among my favorite songs. The Jayhawks were an Alt-Country band with a pop/folk sound formed in Minneapolis–Saint Paul in 1985 and played alternative country rock. They have released 10 studio albums and are worth checking out.

The song was on the album Tomorrow the Green Grass.

They recently backed Ray Davies on his albums Americana and Our Country – Americana Act II. Their 2016 album Paging Mr. Proust was produced by Peter Buck of REM.

They combine country, folk, rock, and pop with good harmonies.

Oasis – Wonderwall

This song is awash in sixties influence…which isn’t surprising by Oasis. It caught my attention in the 90s seeing that it had a mod mid-sixties influence.

This song was supposedly about Noel Gallagher’s then-girlfriend Meg Mathews, who is compared with a schoolboy’s wall to which posters of footballers and pop stars are attached. He said: “It’s about my girlfriend. She was out of work, and that, a bit down on her luck, so it’s just saying, ‘Cheer up and f—in get on with it.’” Noel later married and then divorced Meg Mathews.

Noel also said… “The meaning of that song was taken away from me by the media who jumped on it. And how do you tell your Mrs. it’s not about her once she’s read it is? It’s about an imaginary friend who’s going to come and save you from yourself.”

Everclear – Santa Monica

With my big black boots and an old suitcase
I do believe I’ll find myself a new place

Those lyrics hit me for some reason as did the song. It was my first introduction to the band and I loved it. This is one of the few new bands at the time that I followed.

Art Alexaskis formed Everclear in Portland, Oregon, in 1991. Portland in the early 90s had a huge music scene. Everclear broke out first with this song nationally. Many bands there didn’t think Everclear deserved it over everyone else…there was a lot of competition there at that time.

Santa Monica is a seaside town in California where Everclear lead singer Art Alexakis grew up. He describes it as Like LA but on the coast.

The song peaked at #1 on the Mainstream Rock Charts, #4 in Canada’s Alternative Charts, #27 in New Zealand, and #40 in the UK in 1996.

It was on the 1995 album Sparkle and Fade. John at 2 Loud 2 Old Music reviewed all of their albums in this article. It’s a great review of their recording career.

Ramones – I Don’t Want To Grow Up

This came off of the Ramones’ last album Adios Amigos. This song is a Tom Waits cover. This song actually made the top 30 for the Ramones. Their reputation grew through the years. They probably got more popular after they broke up than they were when they were together. It’s a shame that many of their songs didn’t hit bigger at the time. Their songs are short, to the point, and usually very catchy. You would have thought radio would have loved them.

The album is really good and it was a good way to go out for them.

BONUS PICK… I’m going to break my own rule about only 5 songs since this is the last Max Picks…and I’m breaking another rule by featuring a band twice in one post. Which band should it be?

Beatles – Real Love

This was the second “new” song by the Beatles to be released in the 1990s and it was on the Anthology 2 album. I liked the song but it didn’t resonate with me like Free As A Bird did. Real Love sounded more like a Lennon solo song with the Beatles backing him…but I love Lennon’s solo output so I did like it but it wasn’t as “Beatle-ly” to me as Free As a Bird.

The song was more fully realized than Free As a Bird and didn’t take as much input by the other three shaping it. This is the only Beatles song where the songwriting credit is John Lennon alone instead of Lennon-McCartney or all four Beatles.

Paul McCartney did his best John Lennon’s imitation to help the lead vocal because the recording of John’s voice was low and spotty in some places. The lead vocal is actually a John and Paul duet.

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Max Picks …songs from 1992

1992

Ride – Twisterella

This is a fantastic-sounding song by a band named Ride. It’s high up on my top powerpop songs. The band was part of the shoegaze genre. Along with the previous year’s There She Goes by the La’s…I was in power pop heaven.

Ride was formed in 1988 in Oxford by school friends Andy Bell and Mark Gardener, before recruiting drummer Loz Colbert at the Oxfordshire School of Art & Design and local bassist Steve Queralt.

They broke up in 1996 because of differences between Andy Bell and Mark Gardener. Gardener wanted to go forward in a more dance style of music…Bell didn’t but both wanted to go more contemporary style. Bassist Steve Queralt said: The band had two future directions open to them, and they chose the wrong option.

They reunited in 2014 and released their first album in 21 years in 2017.

Melon – No Rain

This 1993 song has a sixties feel to it. The lead singer Shannon Hoon did a great job on this track. I think when movies are made about the 1990s…this has to be on the soundtrack. It screams 90s more than about any other song.

Blind Melon bass player Brad Smith wrote this song before he formed the band. He had moved from Mississippi to Los Angeles, where he fell into a down period. He said that the song is about not being able to get out of bed and find excuses to face the day when you have nothing. At the time he was dating a girl who was going through depression and for a while, he told himself that he was writing the song from her perspective. He later realized that he was also writing about it himself.

The video was very popular. It has a very intriguing video featuring a girl dressed in a bee costume. The bee girl, Heather DeLoach, was 10 years old when she starred in it, creating one of the most enduring images on MTV.

The concept for the video was inspired by the Blind Melon album cover, which features a 1975 photo of Georgia Graham, the younger sister of Blind Melon drummer Glenn Graham. DeLoach was the first to audition for the role, and because she resembled Graham’s sister so much, director Samuel Bayer (who also directed Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”) chose her.

R.E.M. – Man On The Moon

I’ve noticed that I have never written about this song which is a shame since it’s in my top 5 of REM. This song is about one of my comedic heroes…the very different Andy Kaufman.

It was the title of a new movie starring Jim Carey as Kaufman. I went to see the movie at the theater and this song fits brilliantly. I think it’s one of the best-written songs they did. Bill Berry came up with the melody and Peter Buck helped finish it off. Stipe came up with the lyrics as their back was against the wall to finish the album.

Bruce Springsteen – Better Days

On March 31, 1992, I purchased two albums by Bruce. Lucky Town and Human Touch…both albums released on the same day. I’ve always liked Lucky Town more than Human Touch. Better Days kicked off the album.

Bruce Springsteen: “With a young son and about to get married (for the last time) I was feelin’ like a happy guy who has his rough days rather than vice versa.”

Jayhawks – Waiting For The Sun

Ever since I heard this band on our alternative radio station in Nashville…Lightning 100 I’ve liked them. The Jayhawk’s writing and voices won me over with songs like Blue and I’m Gonna Make You Love Me. The Replacements had broken up by this time and The Jayhawks took their place beside REM.

Benmont Tench, Charley Drayton, and Nicky Hopkins play on the album with the Jayhawks.

The song, like most of The Jawhawk’s early cuts, is credited to the band’s guitarist Gary Louris and frontman Mark Olson.

Gary Louris: I didn’t know there was a song called “Waiting for the Sun,” I was not a Doors fan. I like them now, but I didn’t know there was a song called that. Maybe in my subconscious I did.

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Jayhawks – Save It For A Rainy Day

This band is another “Big Star” but just in a later decade. I wrote this on my last Jayhawks post. I love this band…it seems I have a fondness for bands that released good to great music but never could get over that hump to mass audiences. Maybe if they would have cleared that obstacle their music would have changed…but who knows… maybe it’s a part of their appeal. Who knows what would have happened if they would have made it..but I wish they would have had the chance.

The Jayhawks are an American alternative country and country rock band that emerged from the Minneapolis–Saint Paul music scene in the mid 80s. Minneapolis had a strong scene for bands in the 80s. The Replacements, Husker Du, Soul Asylum, and of course the big one…Prince. They have a little of The Flying Burrito Brothers and Big Star in them.

I first found out about this group in 2000 with the song I’m Gonna Make You Love Me. On our local alt channel it was played over and over but wasn’t a hit on the Billboard 100 charts. When I heard it I knew I had to find out more about this band. The Jayhawks formed in Minneapolis–Saint Paul in 1985 and played alternative country-rock. They have released 10 studio albums and are worth checking out.

As if I needed another reason to like them. They have a Kinks tie… They recently backed Ray Davies on his albums Americana and Our Country – Americana Act II. Their 2016 album Paging Mr. Proust was produced by Peter Buck of REM.

Save It For A Rainy Day peaked at #10 on the Alternative Charts in 2003. The song was on the album Rainy Day Music that peaked at #51 on the Billboard Album Charts and #70 in the UK.

Save It For A Rainy Day

Pretty little hairdo
Don’t do what it used to
Can’t disguise the livin’
All the miles that you’ve been through

Lookin’ like a train wreck
Wearin’ too much makeup
Burden that you carry
More than one soul could ever bear

(So sad) Don’t look so sad, Marina
(There’s another part) There’s another part to play
(So sad) Don’t look so sad, Marina
(Ooh) Save it for a rainy day
Save it for a rainy day
Save it for a rainy day

You never make your mind up
Like drivin’ with your eyes shut
Rough around the edges
Won’t someone come and take you home

Waitin’ for a breakthrough
What will you set your mind to?
We stood outside the Chinese restaurant
In the rain

Jayhawks – Big Star

I love this band…it seems I have a fondness for bands that released good to great music but never could get over that hump to mass audiences. Maybe if they would have cleared that obstacle their music would have changed…but who knows… maybe it’s a part of their appeal.

This song comes out in 1997 and was on their Sound of Lies album. At first I thought it was about the Memphis band Big Star and it is kinda…and also about The Jayhawks and loving what you have now. The album peaked at #112 in the Billboard Album Chart and #61 in the UK.

They have a Kinks tie… They recently backed Ray Davies on his albums Americana and Our Country – Americana Act II. Their 2016 album Paging Mr. Proust was produced by Peter Buck of REM.

They formed in the mid-80s in the Twin Cities .

Gary Louris when asked if the song is about the band Big Star: “Not exactly. Maybe in the back of my mind.” “You could say it about the Velvet Underground or Big Star or The Jayhawks,” “world’s unluckiest bands. They should have been bigger. But everybody in the audience started a band. Everybody that saw them started a band. The old cliché. But it’s true.”

“I have a lot of famous friends.” “about achieving a place that you thought you wanted to be and maybe it would make you happy. It’s a typical human response. If I get there, then I’m finally going to be happy. And in reality, you probably won’t be. You should just be happy with what you have.”

Big Star

I’m flat-busted
Wild-eyed and free
I couldn’t get arrested if I tried
A has-been at a mere thirty-five

Straight, honest, forthright and true
Great expectations for someone
Doesn’t anybody know how to have fun
But I’m

Gonna be a Big Star
I’m gonna be a Big Star someday
I’m gonna be a Big Star someday

Grape’s bitter
I’m no quitter
Revolutions come one by one
Seems it’s high noon and I ain’t got no gun

But it’s so hard
So hard
So hard getting by

Gonna be a Big Star
I’m gonna be a Big Star someday
I’m gonna be a Big Star someday

Fine bourbon, Cuban cigars
Rude remarks observed at the C.C. Bar
I’m perfecting the finest art of wasting hours
But I’m

Gonna be a Big Star
I’m gonna be a Big Star someday
I’m gonna be a Big Star someday

I’m gonna be a Big Star
I’m gonna be a Big Star someday