There are some songs that just make you feel good, and this is one of them. This song has such an easygoing sound that I can almost picture myself cruising around on a beautiful spring afternoon with the windows down and this playing loudly. There’s nothing complicated about it. It’s just a really pleasant song that puts me in a good mood, and I wanted to share it today. I also love that sax in this song. It has an Under the Boardwalk type of vibe.
The song appeared on the band’s 1977 album Monkey Island, written by Peter Wolf and Seth Justman. The J. Geils Band could deliver plenty of gritty R&B and hard-driving rock, but they also had a softer side that sometimes gets overlooked. This is a perfect example. The melody, the harmonies, and the relaxed feel give it a warmth that makes it stand out from some of their better-known material.
I don’t know if it’s the time of year, the mood I’m in, or just the song itself, but I could listen to this one over and over. It doesn’t demand anything from you. Just roll the windows down, turn up the volume, and enjoy the ride. Sometimes that’s all a song needs to do.
The song peaked at #83 in 1977 on the Billboard charts.
You’re The Only One
It’s very hard to define it Just why I feel this way There must be all kinds of reasons So many things I could say And I know I’m not mistaken This is love and that’s for sure
You, you’re the only one You, you’re the only one
There are times I remember It wasn’t so long ago I was lonely, sad and confused I didn’t know where to go But baby I want to tell you Just how good you make me feel
You, you’re the only one You, you’re the only one
I’d be a fool to deny it I want everyone to know
You, you’re the only one You, you’re the only one You, you’re the only one You, you’re the only one
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 her But she loves him And he loves somebody else You just can’t win And so it goes ‘Til the day you die This thing they call love It’s gonna make you cry
I’ve had the blues The reds and the pinks One 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 side Love’s gonna find you, yes, it is You just can’t hide You’ll hear it call Your heart will fall Then love will fly It’s gonna soar
I don’t care for any casanova thing All 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 diamonds I’ve been through minks I’ve been through it all (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, 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)
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.
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.
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 kiss Before I walk out the door I’m gonna hold you tighter Than I ever did before
And I, I never promised you The things you promised me And I, I can’t justify The way it’s gotta be
And the good times are the best times The bad times fade away The good times are forever But now, baby, the last time is today
Just one more night There’s no time for anymore I’m gonna tell you something That you’ve never heard before
But I, I can’t find the words To ease your lovers pain And I, I know the feeling’s gone I can feel it in my veins
And the good times are the best times The bad times fade away The good times are forever But now, baby, the last time is today
One last kiss
And the good times are the best times The bad times fade away The good times are forever But now, baby, the last time is today
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
