An awful lot of pop & rock songs get released annually. Some become famous & entrenched in our listening, many never hit our ears, and some have a comet-like life; they flash into our listening for a period of time, then disappear only to return now & again. I heard …
Sparks blazed into my musical psyche just like their music – fast, fun, creative & quirky. Kimono My House was released in May, 1974. Purposefully campy, having fun making fun of all sorts of stuff in the world. The lyrical messages were similarly witty & oddball as the first couple …
It’s no surprise that cover versions of songs can be very successful. The rock and roll business started off with songwriting teams cranking out the songs & producers finding bands to cover & record them. It really wasn’t until the mid ’60’s that bands started to write, record and be …
This is a very hard luck band. Their lead guitarist, Les Harvey (younger brother of Alex Harvey) was electrocuted on stage in 1972 during a live performance. While popular on the local circuits, they never achieved a breakthrough and commercial success. They disbanded in 1973. Ode To John Law is …
Time to get off the hard rock mainline, and take the siding into lost love & melancholia. Most of us have experienced lost love at some point in our lives and succumbed to those angst-y feelings. Music is often a refuge, whether it’s to escape those feelings or just …
This was the first release from Australia’s Hoodoo Gurus, released in March 1984. The wonderful cover art really complements what’s inside: a lot of really great hoppin’ & boppin’ rock with elements of surf, punk & pop. This album dares you to stand still while listening. The Gurus remind me …
Not only are the Rolling Stones one of the most influential rock bands of all time, they are also responsible for creating the groundbreaking mobile recording studio: the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio (wiki link). Ian Stewart, the band’s road manager and pianist oversaw the creation of the first unit in …
A little shout out to the homeland! Released in January 1970, this was The Guess Who’s sixth studio album. The album was harder & edgier than their previous releases that provided the hits “Laughing”, “These Eyes” and “Undun”. This was the culmination of the collaboration between Burton Cummings & Randy …
A member of the guitar great birthing group John Mayall’s Blues Breakers, a founder of Fleetwood Mac, the writer of Black Magic Woman, a great guitarist and a troubled soul, Peter Green passed away July 25, 2020. We lost one of the best blues/rock guitarists and writers of all time. …
The founder of The Modern Lovers, Jonathan Richman, was heavily influenced by the Velvet Underground. His original band had members that went on to bigger bands (Jerry Harrison to The Talking Heads and David Robinson to The Cars). Richman himself changed musical direction after the dissolution of The Modern Lovers, …
