Showing posts with label Glam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Glam. Show all posts

Sunday, July 8, 2018

DESDINOVA'S 20 FAVORITE ELTON JOHN SONGS


I've posted several Ipod playlist dedicated to such artist as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Monkees, The Doors, Chuck Berry and Prince. A few days ago, I thought "I've never made a Ipod playlist for Elton John." Well, now I think is the right time. These are my favorites in order.

  1.  Mama Can't Buy You Love 
  2.  Madman Across the Water (original version)
  3. All The Young Girls Love Alice
  4. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
  5. Lady Samantha
  6. Crocodile Rock
  7. Tiny Dancer
  8. Saturday Nights All Right For Fighting
  9. Philadelphia Freedom
  10. Burn Down The Mission
  11. Take Me To the Pilot
  12.  Kiss The Bride
  13. I'm Still Standing
  14. Your Song
  15. Bennie & The Jets
  16. Rocket Man
  17. Warp Her Up
  18. Funeral For a Friend
  19. Candle In the Wind (original version)
  20. Mona Lisa and Mad Hatters


Saturday, April 16, 2016

DESDINOVA'S FAVORITE DAVID BOWIE SONGS


I had promised to do this at the time of his death. I said I was going to compile a list of my favorite David Bowie songs. These are just my preferences.

Before I get into this list, I have something to admit. When I was small, there was a TV special called NBC: The First 50 Years. There was a segment, narrated by Dean Martin, on the history of music and variety program on the NBC network. He was doing the voiceover of clips from these various singers. There was a clip of some singer, like Eddie Fisher, then Dean Martin says something about The Midnight Special showcasing "current singers like David Bowie." On screen was this strange, inhuman looking person with bright red hair singing. It scared me to death. From that moment, I was frightened of David Bowie. There was a copy of the Pin Ups LP at the Consumers Supermarket in Lebanon and I would try not to walk past it. I was scared of this guy.

What changed this was his appearance on the Bing Crosby Christmas special. He looked normal on that. A few years later, I saw an attempt to bring back the old TV series Omnibus, which feature a segment on David Bowie appearing in The Elephant Man on Broadway and a debut of the video for the "Fashion." I was later delighted, when a college, my drama teacher told how she had got to meet him, after a performance, and he ask her to meet his personal trainer the next day.

However, my love for his music really started with a syndicated radio show, where there was a profile on his career and it featured music from his new LP called Let's Dance. I taped the music from it. From then on, I was hooked.

1. "Rebel Rebel"
2. "Panic In Detroit"
3. "Golden Years"
4. "1984"
5. "Blue Jean"
6. "Suffragette City"
7. "Space Oddity"
8. "The Man Who Sold The World"
9. "Ashes To Ashes"
10. "Modern Love"
11. "Fame"
12. "Lady Grinning Soul"
13. " Let's Dance"
14. "Day In - Day Out"
15. "The Jean Genie"

Let me add as an extra, I will also mention favorite covers David Bowie did.

1. "Wild Is the Wind" (Johnny Mathis)
2. "Knock On Wood" (Eddie Floyd)
3. "Let's Spend the Night Together" (The Rolling Stones)
4. "White Light/White Heat" (Velvet Underground)
5. "Friday On My Mind" (The Easybeats)

And three early Bowie tunes:

1. "You've Got a Habit of Leaving" - David Jones & the Lower Third
2. "Liza Jane" - Davie Jones & the King Bees
3. "Good Morning Girl" - David Bowie & the Buzz
4. "Love You Til Tuesday"
5. "Laughing Gnome" (It is probably the worst thing he ever did, but I like it)

R. I. P  Ziggy Stardust 1947 -2016         

Friday, February 5, 2016

DESDINOVA'S 25 GREATEST GUITAR INTROS OF THE 70s


One of the earmarks of 70s rock was the guitar intro. Some have called it a trend, but in reality, they were perfected in the 70s. Lets face it, the first one in rock & roll was Chuck Berry's open to "Johnny B. Good," followed by Buddy Holly's noodling at the beginning of "That Will Be the Day" and we should mention Dave Appell's riff at the beginning of  John Zacherely"s"Dinner With Drac."

The 60s brought the British Invasion, garage bands and psychedelic rock, all of which paved the way for heavy metal and prog rock of the 70s. I could do a whole post on 60s guitar intros too. Everything from "Day Tripper," "Satisfaction," "You Really Got Me," "I Can See For Miles," "Eight Miles High," "Pleasant Valley Sunday," "Sunshine of Your Love," "Who's Gonna Mow Your Grass"...like I said enough for another post.

The 80s & 90s had some great ones too, by Guns N Roses, R.E.M, Van Halen, Loverboy, Nirvana, just to name a few. That also could be another post.

In researching this subject, I realize that not every song began with a rocking guitar intro. Some of the biggest hard rock songs of the 70s began with a slow acoustic guitar build up before the hard rocking guitars began. The obvious example is Led Zeppelin's "Stairway To Heaven." Also in this group would be Boston's "More Than a Feeling," Kiss's "Black Diamond," Heart's "Crazy On You" and Chilliwack's "Fly By Night."

Also some of the great guitar riffs are preceded by keyboard parts. I ruled those songs out, because I wanted to list those that kick off the song in a big way or at least start song of within a short time. 

I'm going to rank these. I usually don't do that but with this list it would be impossible not to do so. I'm sure some will want to argue, I guess I will accept it.

1.  "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes: If I hadn't listed this as the number one guitar riff of the 70s, there would have been an outcry all over the Internet. This is one of the songs, if not the song, that set the standard for 70s guitar intros.

2.  "All Right Now" - Free: Like "Layla," it is one of the Class of 1970. This one is simple, but punches you right between the eyes.  Steve Miller wrote "Rock N Me" as a tribute to Free guitarist Paul Kossoff.

3.  "China Grove" - Doobie Brothers: This one was the guitar intro for mainstream pop-rock. This 1973 hit was the great guitar intro for AM radio. Granted, the top two were big AM radio hits too, but this one cemented the idea that a big hit needed a big guitar into, no matter what style of music you did.

4.  "Smoke On the Water" - Deep Purple: Anyone who doesn't try to play this the first time they pick up a guitar, has no business even holding a guitar. The great thing about it is that even if you are lousy and never held a guitar, people can tell that you are attempting to play this song. Like "China Grove" this was 1973.

5.  "Whole Lotta Love" - Led Zeppelin: I had to put Led Zep in the Top 5. Another one from 1970.

6.  "Life In the Fast Lane" - The Eagles: If you were cruising the main drag of your town on a Friday night, there wasn't a better song to have on the radio than this one. Hard to believe there are some people who don't like this song. In a good country, they would be executed for not liking that song.

7.  "Sweet Jane" - Lou Reed: This is an anomaly. Many people consider it one of the greatest guitar intros of the 70s, but it wasn't until the fourth version of the song that it people probably noticed it. The Velvet Underground's 1970 version actually opens with a psychedelic flourish before Lou Reed starts singing. The original version, not released until 1974 on the Live 1969 LP,  was a slow ballad, but still using that familiar riff. The version on the 1972 Live at Max's Kansas City LP actually has a longer intro with the riff. However, the version that more than likely made this one of the great 70s guitar intros was the version from the 1973 Lou Reed live LP Rock & Roll Animal. Guitarist Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner gave this a metal crunch that hits you like a sledge hammer to the head.

8.  "Iron Man" - Black Sabbath: Speaking of metal crunch that hits you like a sledge hammer to the head. Ozzy Osbourne said it best, when you hear this you actually imagine "a big metal bloke walking about." Beavis & Butthead would probably agree.

9.   "Jet Airliner" - Steve Miller Band: This is one of those that sounded better on AM radio than FM. I also think the single edit is better because it goes from the intro into the lyrics, whereas the LP cut goes into a rather redundant guitar bridge before the lyrics. Either way, it is a 70s classic.

10.  "Takin Care of Business" - Bachman-Turner Overdrive: This one builds up on a scale into a upbeat, fun,  heavy metal, boogie woogie jam.

11.  "Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress)" - The Hollies:  This one can send chills up my spine when I hear it. Not sure why. The fact that the light and innocent Hollies gave us this may have something to do with it. It's as sexy as...well, a long cool woman in a black dress.

12. "Treat Her Like a Lady" - Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose: Usually, soul & funk doesn't get mentioned in the pantheon of great guitar songs of the 70s, but they had some great guitar riffs and intros too. This is one of them. Much like "Takin Care of Business" builds up the scale into a great driving riff. It's so cool, it was used to introduce Ron Burgundy in Anchorman.

13. "Don't Fear The Reaper" - Blue Oyster Cult: Forget the cowbell, the guitar is what makes this song a classic. It is like a Byrds guitar riff on steroids. Not sure if it was on a 12 string guitar or it just sounded like one, but it certainly has a beauty to it that the others guitar intros don't.

14.  "Aqualung" - Jethro Tull: What better way to introduce a song about a homeless, drunken, pedophile with a runny nose than with a sinister guitar riff like this. One of the brilliant moves, on the part of the band, to make this guitar intro so memorable was to not just play it twice, but to isolate it with pauses between each of the two times it is played before the third time when the drums and Ian Anderson's vocal starts. They do almost the same thing at the end of the song, to further get it stuck in your head.

15. "Funk 49#" - The James Gang: The previous years "Funk 48#" was good, but "Funk 49#" was better. It has went on to become a favorite. One of Joe Walsh's early masterpiece guitar riffs.

16. "Stay With Me" - The Faces: During the early 70s, Ron Wood created some great guitar intros for The Faces, but this is the one that has stood the test of time. A bluesy riff that the kicks into high gear, then slows into a rollicking bluesy stroll. No wonder the Rolling Stones ask him to join.

17. "Can't You Hear Me Knocking" - The Rolling Stones: Speaking of the Rolling Stones, you have to include them on a list of great guitar intros, however, they didn't seem to create elaborate, signature guitar intros in the 70s. They had already set the standard in the 60s with "Satisfaction," "Jumping Jack Flash," and the "The Last Time." They gave us one of the great guitar intros of the 80s with "Start Me Up." This one is not just a great guitar intro but a great guitar finish. Keith Richards starts it off with nasty blues riff in an odd key that turns into a jam when joined by Charlie Watts drums. It ends with a psychedelic smooth jazz jam with guitarist Mick Taylor and saxophonist Bobbie Keys.

18. "Do Yo Feel Like We Do" - Peter Frampton: This intro is perfect for a song about waking up confused. It has a slow, groggy, fuzztone scale, that is then matched note for note by a electric piano. I know it is considered blasphemous to some people, but I prefer the original version from the Framptom's Camel LP to the version on Framptom Comes Alive, because the sound is crisper, it is shorter and he doesn't do that annoying talk box thing in it.

19. "Beautiful Girls" - Van Halen: Eddie Van Halen packed a wild party filled with bikini clad girls into this guitar intro.

20. "Panic In Detroit" - David Bowie: There are several of great guitar intros from Mick Ronson on David Bowie's hits. This one is not only is it underrated, but it is so tight and and so forceful, it punctuates Bowie's William Burroughs inspired, dystopian lyrics.

21. "Reelin In the Years" - Steely Dan: They were more of a keyboard band, but this guitar intro is a classic.

22. "Woodstock" - Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: Stephen Stills guitar intro made this one the most successful version of this rock anthem.

23. "Do Ya" - The Move/Electric Light Orchestra: This is kind of a tie, but then again The Move morphed into ELO.

24. "Jane" - Jefferson Starship: This one was one of two great guitar intros to close out the 70s. Craig Chaquico starts off with a light, spacey sound before turning out a chainsaw like riff that builds up to a sudden stop in the middle of the song, followed by one of the great guitar solos of the 70s.

25. "Driver's Seat" - Sniff N The Tears: This is the other great guitar intro that closed out the 70s. It begins with a rather intense sounding acoustic guitar part that is then joined by a fuzz guitar riff. Together it works into a great underrated open for a British New Wave one-hit wonder.

Honorable Mentions: "20th Century Boy" -T. Rex, "Stone Cold Fever" - Humble Pie, "Thunderbuck Ram" - Mott The Hoople, "Calling Dr. Love" - Kiss, "Man on the Silver Mountain" - Rainbow, "That Smell" - Lynard Skynard, "The Seeker" - The Who, "That Lady" - The Isley Brothers and "Don't Look Back" - Boston.

                   

Monday, January 11, 2016

R.I.P DAVID BOWIE






I may do another Bowie post later. I have been listening to his music quite a bit recently while I worked on the satirical post about "glam country." For right now, here is my favorite David Bowie song.


Sunday, November 15, 2015

I'M GOING BACK TO MY PLOW: I WANT TO CREATE GLAM COUNTRY

My idea of what my glam country singer will look like.

It seems like every five to ten years, you hear people complain that "Country music jest ain't what it usedta be." Since I hate most country music, it all country music sounds the same to me. The big complaint always comes from the hardcore country music traditionalist is that it is "soundin too much like dat thar ole rock & roll crap."  Supposedly, there are people from Hollywood, who are manufacturing hits with autotune and rapping by people, who never lived on a farm or drove a pickup or rode a horse. Like that is a bad thing.

Must of this hatred seems to be directed at a country music act called Florida Georgia Line. I checked out some of their music on YouTube. I don't see what the controversy is. It sounded like country music to me, although I might say better than most country music acts.

I've noticed that these country music fans, many of whom I went to school with, hated the music I liked. I've been thinking about possibly creating the next big trend in country music that will hack them off.

Many of my classmates, who liked country music, hated that I liked the music of the British Invasion. Creating a country music British Invasion wouldn't be the same. There is a big country following in Great Britain. I've seen some of these British country singers on RFD-TV. The problem is they are all older men, who play extremely, traditional, country music and frankly not that good. They place a heavy emphasis on yodeling. The young girls won't get hysterical about dorky, white men in their 50s & 60s yodeling.

These country music loving classmates of mine didn't like the fact that I liked psychedelic rock either. Now there is some debate as to whether there isn't already psychedelic country. Some might bring up music by The Flying Burrito Brothers, early Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, the Sweetheart of the Rodeo era The Byrds, The Band, a handful of Grateful Dead songs and most everything by Creedence Clearwater Revival. You could also argue Jim Stafford's "Wildwood Weed" and the Cross Canadian Ragweed song about "those boys from Oklahoma" (not sure what the name of that annoying song is). However, it is rare that country music ever tried to copy the sound of psychedelia, with about two exceptions: Buck Owens hit "Who is Gonna Mow Your Grass" features a fuzztone guitar and a harpsichord in the background, and then there is Porter Wagoner's "Rubber Room." I could also add the Dylan-esque "Fare Thee Well, Miss Carousel" by Townes Van Zandt.

I thought about punk country, but a radio consulting company already thought of it, as part of a satirical audio play. Here is a NSFW portion of it.

Then, it hit me what would hack these people off: a country version of glam rock. I think country music needs its own versions of David Bowie, Elton John, T. Rex and Mott the Hoople. I want to be the creator and driving force behind this trend; a cross between Tony DeFries and Chinn & Chapman.

First, I would need to find the perfect person to be the first star of the glam country movement, although I think it should have a hipper name like "bro-country." Maybe I'll call it "Brokeback Mountain Country."

First, I need to find the right person willing to try anything, as the classified ad, that gave rise to one of America's top glam acts, said. I could probably find someone on CMT's Next Superstar, Nashville Star, The Voice, America's Got Talent, or American Idol. If this does work out, I'll put an ad saying "Do You Want to Be the Next Big Country Star?" on Gay Farmer Central or Gay-Cowboy-dot-com. At the end of the ad, I'll put, "Transgender applicants strongly encouraged."

Once I find this guy, I will give him a makeover and dye his hair a garish orange or red. This guy will need more makeup than a teenage girl in the 80s. He should put as much of an Estee Lauder makeup gift set on their face as they can.

I stole Daisy Duke's legs for this pic.

One of the complaints about bro-country is the videos seem to focus on girls in Daisy Duke cut off shorts and cowboy boots. My idea is to have this guy not only wear Daisy Duke shorts, but pantyhose under them like Daisy Duke did on The Dukes of Hazard. He will wear cowboy boots, but as a tribute to the great glam rockers of the 70s, they will have seven inch platform heels.

The big complaint with bro-country is the songs all sound the same. They are all about how fun it is to be young in a small town in the South or Midwest. It is a kind of rural sitcom milieu. After the Friday Night Lights football game, we will party with the girls from Petticoat Junction, who will be wearing Daisy Dukes shorts, but we can't get too loud or Andy and Barney will show up and bust up our party. Of course, one could point out that outlaw country songs all seem to be about being, to paraphrase President Obama, an angry white man in a Red State afraid of change, living a life that sounds like the plot line of a Daniel Woodrell novel. There is whiskey, guns, fights, whiskey, pickup trucks, whiskey, divorce, whiskey, and (as bro-country star Luke Bryan said) waking up in the gutter.

Glam country will have some recurring themes that were recurring themes in glam rock, but some that will place them in opposition to both the bro-country and outlaw country crowd. Since rural rednecks don't like science fiction (probably they are not intelligent enough to understand it), my glam country artist will have sing about feeling out of place in a small town and wanting to live on another planet. He should sing about wanting to be an alien from Mars. As a matter of fact, I believe his backing band should be called The Red Dirt Cowboys from Mars. The video for this song should be shot in black & white, then solarised with a video synthesizer. The glam country singer will be dressed as a clown about to be run over by a giant steam roller, while drowning in quicksand.

One thing that is prevalent among the outlaw country crowd is a hatred for Hollywood. They believe they are trying to change country music. Anyone familiar with 70s glam rock will remember there were several songs about Hollywood icons of the past, such as Greta Garbo, Humphrey Bogart, Roy Rogers, Marilyn Monroe and even Dwight Frye. Since nobody has written a song about Rita Hayworth and bro-country sings about other alcoholic drinks, besides whiskey, I think that my singer will record a song called "Margaretta Hayworth." At some point in this song, the singer will stop and scream "Wham Bam thank you, mame!"

Also, there should be some songs celebrating 50s rock & roll. Maybe "I Want to Be The Sock Hop Queen." He should do a sexual song about cars like "Rub Yourself Against my Buick."

I also want the glam country singer to record a real pretty ballad that women will love. The kind off song a Russian dissident would dedicate to Bailey on WKRP. It should be called "Thing of Beauty." However, when anyone ask about the title, he should say, "Actually, 'Thing of Beauty' is my pet name for my cock."

This guy's interviews should be full of controversial statements like, "They said that as a country singer, I should try to look and dress like John Wayne, but I told them I'd rather look and dress like Jane Fonda in Klute. Hot pants, knee boots and a shag haircut" or "I don't chew tobacco. It is unhealthy, but I do spit rather than swallow."

Okay, I used Lita Ford's legs this time.

Since one of the complaints against bro-country is the use of audiotune, glam country will use it, but on backing vocals. They need to sound other worldly. Also, plenty of hard fuzztone guitar and synthasizers. If they use a violin, it should be a distorted electric violin. Also a grand piano must be used. There should be some songs with that Chinn- Chapman backbeat that was on Gary Glitter's hits that goes "Womp-a-chucka-womp-a-chucka-womp-a-chucka."


The album covers should be strange. I thought putting his head and torso on a cat's legs and tail to attract country kids to the furry fetish. Maybe call the album "Pussyboy." Maybe an Andy Warhol-ish black & white photo with color added, like the photo above.

He can do covers of both glam and country songs. First up, should be "Country Comfort" by Elton John. If he does country covers they should be female singer's hits. I'm thinking Dolly Parton's "Jolene," Bobbie Gentry/Reba's "Fancy" (my mama bought me a dancing dress) and Reba's "I Think His Name Was John."

He should do a Christmas song, although, sadly, he can't do a Christmas song with Bing Crosby.

Would anyone in Nashville go for this? I really doubt it, but it would be fun to try to irritate the country fans who hate bro-country's hip-hop traits and were all bent out of shape over Little Big Town's "Girl Crush."

Of course, an idea, like this one, is why I'm considered the Super Villain of the Ozarks!!! Mwu-HaHAHAHAHA!!

BTW: How many references to glam rock songs and artist did up pick up on.



 
  





           



Sunday, December 21, 2014

BING CROSBY, DAVID BOWIE & THE RASHOMON EFFECT



When you read or hear the stories behind most Christmas songs, they are very straight forward and have one definitive version. Maybe it is the "I-can't-believe-it-happened" factor involved or the fact that it happened fairly recently in history, but the details of the recording of Bing Crosby and David Bowie's duet "Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy" is getting more and more convoluted as the years go by. There is a Rashomon effect to what happened at the recording of the Christmas classic.


Here are the facts that are included in every version of the "behind-the-scenes" story:
  1. This was a segment in Bing Crosby annual Christmas TV special. It was recorded in September of 1977. What nobody knew at the time was that it would be Bing Crosby's last Christmas special, although for a few years after his death there were retrospective "clip" shows aired. Bing Crosby died in November of 1977, before the special aired in December of that year.
  2. This song was never meant to be a commercial recording. The performance was only for the TV special. Somewhere along the way, a radio station recorded the song off of one of the "clip" shows the aired after between 1978 - 1982. They began playing it on the radio at Christmas. In 1982, RCA released it against David Bowie wishes. He left RCA shortly after that. The version released by RCA was on a 7 inch extended single, ran for 5 minutes and contained the dialog from the TV special.
  3. By his own admission, David Bowie said, "I hate "The Little Drummer Boy"! Is there something else I can sing?" That was why songwriters Ian Frasier, Larry Grossman and Buz Kohan wrote the song "Peace On Earth" for Bowie too sing.
  4. Bowie and Crosby performed this with less than a hour rehearsal.
  5. David Bowie's mother was a Bing Crosby fan.
From there it gets almost as bizarre as the idea of Bing Crosby singing a duet with David Bowie seemed in 1977. Stories from those involved have contained such elements as mutual admiration by both artist to neither artist had ever heard of the other artist. There are also accusations that both men were wearing too much makeup. There are also reports that it almost didn't happen because of a performer's ego, tyrannical producers and one of the performers almost dying during the rehearsal.

Remember fact number 3? There have been a few articles which suggest that Bowie threatened to walk off the show if he had to sing "The Little Drummer Boy." However, in an interview Bowie gave a few years back with a British music magazine, and in at least one of Ian Frasier's interviews, they portray this as just a casual comment not a egotistical tirade as some articles have suggested. However, the song was written rather quickly to please Bowie.

However, Bing's children have said the producers almost cancelled Bowie's appearance at the last minute, because he showed up dressed in his Ziggy Stardust makeup and wearing an earring. They insisted he get a make-over from the makeup and wardrobe department (apparently something was used to make Bowie's hair brown).

At the same time, Bowie said, in that interview with a British music magazine, that Crosby had, in his words, been "heavily made up" to make him appear healthy. He went on to say that Crosby seemed despondent during rehearsal and was having a hard time speaking.  Then, according to Bowie, Bing collapsed. Bowie says Crosby was carried into another room and emergency personnel were called in. He was heard someone say that Bing "was gone," but a few minutes later, Crosby came in and said "Let's get back to work." This was the version that was used in the TV show and the eventual recording. He said Crosby was more alert this time and sounded great.

Mary Crosby (who later "shot J.R." on Dallas) said in an interview that "David seemed nervous." According to Bowie, the experience was "nerve wracking" after Bing collapsed. He said he had hoped to talk to Crosby and tell him how much his mother loved his music, but he said he felt that he "hadn't really met Bing Crosby. There was a light on, but nobody lived there anymore."

Then there is the on-going question of did Bing Crosby know who David Bowie was or did David Bowie really know who Bing Crosby was?  Everyone agrees Bowie did this because his mother was a Bing Crosby fan. He said in that interview that was why he did it. However, some wonder if Crosby knew who Bowie was or anything about him. According to Ian Frasier,  "I'm pretty sure he did. Bing was no idiot. If he didn't, his kids sure did." The Crosby kids said, in a recent interview, they vividly remember Bowie's arrival, so they were obviously excited about his.

Hearing the song played in heavy rotation on the radio at Christmas time in the "all Christmas, all the time" has taken part of the novelty away from this. After all, this was not made to be a commercial sold recording. It is essentially a song that was, more or less, taped off of a TV show.  Also younger generations do not realize how shocking this was at the time, because to them, this is how David Bowie has always looked. This was the beginning of his "Thin White Duke" era and the end of "Ziggy Stardust." Also, the younger generation doesn't associated Crosby with WWII, but as the "guy who sings all the Christmas songs."

Eventually, all the stories will come together in a definitive "story-behind-the-song" that will be told by DJs, music historians and retro bloggers for generations to come.

NOTE: If I can ever find the magazine with that Bowie interview in it, I will try to scan it and post it on this blog, because so many people question my sanity when I mention reading it.

  

  

Monday, March 25, 2013

HEAVY METAL IPOD PLAYLIST 3: HAIR BANDS AND 80s HITS

In the early 80s in Los Angeles, there were two kinds of rock bands that were in abundance. One was the power pop band and the other was the glam/heavy metal band. Power pop bands were influenced by the 60s British Invasion and garage bands and wore matching suits with the fashionable skinny ties. The glam/metal bands were influenced by 70s glam and metal and dressed in a mix of spandex and leather, topped off with makeup and long hair. Bar owners began refering to the groups as either the "skinny tie" bands or "hair" bands.

Music listeners and even the press didn't use these terms until sometime in the late 90s, when 80s nostalgia started come into vogue. I will eventually create a "skinny tie" power pop playlist, but since I've been on a heavy metal kick for the past few playlist, lets look at the "hair" bands.

Many people have commented that the difference between hair bands and old school metal bands was the hair bands had huge followings among girls and young single women (Mothers, of course, hated these bands). Each band had its "power ballad" - a slow, mushy love song that made girls sigh (Truth is the British Invasion bands may have invented the power ballad. i.e: "Yesterday," "As Tears Go By," and "Because") and the fact that hair bands smiled and were more photogenic, which was important during the heyday of MTV.

Not all of this will be what you would call "Hair band" metal, some are 80s hits by bands left over from the 70s. Radio would later stop calling these groups "heavy metal" and call this "classic rock," to appeal to white Baby Boomer men going through a mid-life crisis. I have even included a few songs from the 70s that influenced the "hair" band sound. So, crank it loud to offend your mom.

"So Young, So Bad - Starz
"Action" - Sweet
"Cum On Feel The Noize" - Quiet Riot
"Round and Round" - Ratt
"You Give Love a Bad Name" - Bon Jovi
"Talk Dirty To Me" - Poison
"Kickstart My Heart" - Motley Crue
"Fantasy" - Aldo Nova
"Rock in America" - Night Ranger
"Dance The Night Away" - Van Halen
"Sweet Child O'Mine" - Guns N Roses
"Rock You Like a Hurricane" - The Scorpions
"Seventeen" - Winger
"18 & Life" - Skid Row
"New Girl Now" - Honeymoon Suite
"We're Not Gonna Take It" - Twisted Sister
"Up All Night" - Slaughter
"In My Dreams" - Dokken
"Shake Me" - Cinderella
"Poison" - Alice Cooper
"She's A Beauty" - The Tubes
"Legs" - ZZ Top
 "Saulsolito Summernight" - Diesel
"Take It On the Run" - REO Speedwagon
"Don't Stop Believing" - Journey
"Heaven's On Fire" - Kiss
"Livin After Midnight" - Judas Priest
"Love In an Elevator" - Aerosmith
"Sign of the Gypsy Queen" - April Wine
"Going Crazy" - David Lee Roth
"Summertime Girls" - Y & T
"Cherry Pie" - Warrant
"Edge of a Broken Heart - Vixen
"7 O'Clock" - London Quireboys
"Once Bitten, Twice Shy" - Great White
"I Love Rock and Roll" - Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
"When The Heart Rules The Mind" - GTR
"Here I Go Again" - Whitesnake
"Two Steps Ahead" - Box of Frogs
"Wait" - White Lion
"Kiss Me Deadly" - Lita Ford
"Don't Treat Me Bad" - Firehouse
"Love Will Rock You" - Donnie Iris
"Rock & Roll Dreams Come Through" - Jim Steinman
"Back In Black" - AC/DC
"Since You've Been Gone" - Rainbow
"The Hero" - Queen
"The Final Countdown" - Europe
"Heaven Tonight" Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force
"To Be With You" - Mr. Big
"Hole Hearted" - Extreme
"Goodbye" - Enuff Z'Nuff
"The Stroke" - Billy Squire
"Lay It On The Line" - Triumph
"Silent Lucidity" - Queensryche
"Run To The Hills" - Iron Maiden
"Working For The Weekend" - Loverboy
"Burning For You" - Blue Oyster Cult
"Power" - Kansas
"Over The Mountain" - Ozzy Osbourne
"Too Much Time On My Hands" - Styx
"Twilight Zone" - Golden Earring
"Knocking At Your Back Door" - Deep Purple



  

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

I AM NOT ASHAMED or DESDINOVA'S MUSICAL GUILTY PLEASURES


This post has two titles, because websites call what I'm about to post by another name and people looking for such will no doubt Google the more common phrase. This is a list of songs I like that many bloggers and pop culture websites refer to as "guilty pleasures." However, I have a different view point than most people (Don't I always) on this. I will turn 43 later this year and I have two college degrees...I WILL LIKE WHATEVER I WANT AN NOT APOLOGIZE FOR IT!

I have gotten flak about the music I like ever since I was in elementary school. Rednecks who tell you that the only music you should like is Hank Junior or people, who  tell you that the music you like is affiliated with the Satanic/Leftist/drug culture. I thought being in radio, I would meet people that liked as many various kinds of music as I did. WRONG! The problem with radio is there are people who only like what is popular at that moment or hate everything that is popular. Of course, the morons in the talk radio area HATE pop music of any kind and want it all banned from radio.If you mention that you like a certain pop song around these people they frequently tell you "The only song I like is the Star Spangle Banner." These people also claim to carry a copy of the Constitution with them everywhere.

On a personal note, I have always made fun of people who like country music and I tell people that I hate country music. Truth is there are a few songs on here that are country songs that I cannot live without.

So I have decided to swipe a phrase from the types of people, who usually criticize my musical taste, use in their little cut-and-paste postings on Facebook.. This is not so much a guilty pleasures list but the "I AM NOT ASHAMED" list. This is only the start of this. I plan to do follow up list.

DESDINOVA'S GUILTY PLEASURES "I AM NOT ASHAMED" PLAYLIST LIST
(In no particular order)

"Do You Really Want To Hurt Me" Culture Club - (Boy George is the most underated singers of all time).
"Lonely Boy" - Andrew Gold (I hated this song when I was younger, until I noticed it kind of rocks).
"May the Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose" - Little Jimmy Dickens
"Just Like Heaven" - The Cure
"Fancy" - Bobbie Gentry
"Batman, Wolfman, Frankenstein or Dracula" - The Diamonds (If I ever meet a horror movie loving girl like the one in this song, I will marry her on the spot).
"Click Click" - Dicky Doo & the Donts
"Green Slime" - The Green Slime
"Dress You Up" - Madonna
"Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" - Edison Lighthouse
"Grazing In the Grass" - Friends of Distinction
"Rock & Roll Waltz" - Kay Starr
"Goodbye Earl" - The Dixie Chicks
"Bela Lugosi's Dead" - Bauhaus
"You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma" - David Frizzell & Shelly West
"Alice Long (You're Still My Favorite Girlfriend)" - Boyce & Hart
"Take On Me" - A-Ha
"Eloise" - The Damned (One of the few remakes that is better than the original).
"She-Bop" - Cyndi Lauper
"Point of No Return" - Expose
"Mmmbop" - Hanson
"Batman's Theme" - The Markets
"How About Us" - Champagne
"Let It All Hang Out" - The Hombres (Some people have called this a bad Bob Dylan imitation. I believe it is a really good imitation of Roger Miller).
"Della and the Dealer" - Hoyt Axton
"Gotta Get Away" - Jackie Trent & Tony Hatch (This song is in the pilot episode of the TV 70s show The Persuaders).
"Come Softly To Me" - Jane Olivor (Another remake that is better than the original).
"Pop Muzik" - M (This song bridged the gap between the disco era of the late 70s and the new wave era of the early 80s).
"Stop & Get A Ticket" - The Clefts of Lavender Hill
"I Can Make It With You" - Pozo-Seco Singers (Another underated singer, Don Willaims, before he was a major star).
"Psilocybe" - The Mad Violets (80s psychedelia)
"If I Can't Have You" - Yvonne Elliman
"Give It Up" - K.C. & The Sunshine Band
"Bad Time" - Grand Funk Railroad (This is as close as Grand Funk came to a power ballad - ignorred by classic rock radio).
"In The Year 2525" - Zager & Evans (The greatest one-hit wonder of the rock and roll era. It was number one the day we walked on the moon and the day I was born).
"Goody Goody Gumdrops" - 1910 Fruitgum Company
"Seventeen" - Winger
"I'd Love To Change the World" - Ten Years After
"Pretty Blue Eyes" - Steve Lawrence
"Rock Me Gently" - Andy Kim
"Unbelievable"  - EMF
"Experiments With Mice" - Johnny Dawkworth Orchestra
"Radioactive" - The Firm
"125" - The Haunted
"Yankee Rose" - David Lee Roth
"Don't Stop Believin" - Journey
"Walk Away Renee" - The Left Banke
"If You Seek Amy" - Britney Spears
"Rio" - Duran Duran
"Dust In the Wind" - Kansas
"Cherry Hill Park" - Billy Joe Royal
"King of Wishful Thinking" - Go West
"Tainted Love" - Soft Cell
"Bubblegum Factory" - Redd Kross
"Indian Reservation" - The Raiders
"Bend Me, Shape Me" - The American Breed
"Windy" - The Association
"Laid' - James
"My Special Angel" - Bobby Helms
"Butterflies Are Free" - The Free Design
"Who Do You Love (I Want To Know) - The Sapphires (One of the great lost R & B classics. Why oldies radio stations don't play it anymore is beyond me).
"Naughty Naughty" - John Parr
"Lotta Love" - Nicolette Larson
  

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

FACSIMILES AND COPY CATS


They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Copying something or someone who is s successful doesn't always mean success. Some of the biggest failures in pop culture have been copies or facsimiles of a more successful comic book, movie, TV show or personality. While not a scientific approach, I have decided to list my Top 10 list of pop culture copy cats and facsimiles that stand out as flops. I thought of this idea after reading about the possible cancellation of the Mad Men-inspired TV series Pan Am and the already cancelled Mad Men-inspired Playboy Club.

I should point out that I weeded out some famous copy cats and facsimiles because they manage to hang out briefly and survive on their own merit. So I left Webster, Apple's Way, Matt Houston, Northern Exposure and Hee Haw off the list (Northern Exposure outlasted Twin Peaks and Hee Haw, technically, outlasted Laugh-In thanks to first run syndication). Some of these resulted in lawsuits. I want to note, that I wanted to point these out as a historical look at how powerful an effect the originals had on pop culture. This is not like some many other websites which use the word "fail" as a noun in big capital letters.

These are in chronological order (sort of).


1. Billy West - Charlie Chaplin clone: I mention Billy west, but to be fair he was not the only Charlie Chaplin imitator to make movies. West is the only one who I could find on You Tube (Notice the Eric Campbell-like protagonist in this is played by a young Oliver Hardy). Another imitator named Charlie Aplin got sued by Chaplin himself. There is a whole blog dedicated to Chaplin imitations past and present.

2. Milton and Rita Mouse - Mickey and Minnie Mouse cartoons: Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse was such a phenomenon in the early days of sound cartoons that every other animation studio had a Mickey like character. Van Beuren Studios were sued by Disney because they actually used mice. Warner Brothers had Foxy, who was a fox and Universal had Oswald the Rabbit that looked and sounded like Mickey Mouse, but Van Beuren was stupid enough to make cartoons featuring Milton Mouse and his girlfriend, Rita. Another thing about these Milton and Rita cartoons is they are pre-Hayes Code, so they contain sexual humor. Here are is one called Office Boy.


3. Wonder Man - Superman's first imitator: Everyone knows about Superman and his court room battle with Captain Marvel. Captain Marvel eventually conceded in the early 1950's, due more to a falling sales. By the early 1970's, Captain Marvel returned as a DC Comics stable mate of Superman. Fox Publications Wonder Man on the other was a one hit wonder. DC sued Fox and they only produced one Wonder Man story. You can see it on this blog. A lawsuit really wasn't needed for this character. I don't think he had much going for him.

4. Turn On - The computerized version of Laugh-In: I decided to put Turn On under Wonder Man because like Superman, Laugh-In produced a successful copy and a copy that has went down in history as one of the biggest failures in history. CBS took the concept and production style of Laugh-In, changed the hip satire and psychedelia for hillbilly humor and country music and called it Hee Haw. CBS cancelled it after about two years, but it came back in first run syndication and ultimately ran longer than Laugh-In. On the other hand, ABC tried to copy Laugh-In with Turn On, which was supposed to be hosted by a computer. It only lasted one episode. It was cancelled because some complained of subliminal sexual humor. The odd part is one of the people behind it was George Schlatter, who created Laugh-In. Wonder if he didn't sabotage it a little. I couldn't find footage of it on You Tube but here is a bit of a documentary mentioning it and Schlatter telling about one irate TV station GM's reaction.


5. Strange Paradise - Canadian produced Dark Shadows: This knock-off of Dark Shadows was syndicated by Krantz Media, who produced the Marvel Super Heroes, Spider-Man, and Rocket Robin Hood cartoons. This show took place in the Caribbean and involved a rich guy posessed by an evil ancestor. Unlike Dark Shadows, there are no real monsters, just ghost who look like everyday people. Not exciting. Several episodes are on You Tube.


6. Jobriath - America's David Bowie: Jobriath became the most over-hyped rock star ever. He was signed to Elektra records and promoted as America's David Bowie. Here is his debut on The Midnight Special.

7. Streethawk - A motorcycle version of Knight Rider: Teen idol singer Rex Smith plays an injured cop, who has a computerized super-smart bike. This came along after Knight Rider and really seems to have been rushed into production. Here is a sample from You Tube.

8. Charlie and Company - The Cosby Show clone: This actually might have worked if the network hadn't moved it around on the schedule. It featured Flip Wilson, a Pip-less Gladys Knight and soon-to-be Urkel, Jaleel White. Many people figured out right a way that this was a knockoff and pointed out that the actor who played the oldest son, Kristopher St. John, had played Denise's smart-assed boyfriend in an episode of The Cosby Show. Here is the opening sequence from You Tube.

9. The Insider - Miami Vice with reporters: Once upon a time it was considered cool to be in the media, especially a reporter. This show copied the look, music and clothes of Miami Vice, but made the characters newspaper reporters rather than cops. Even used the Genesis song "I've Got a Job To Do" as its theme song. It didn't take off.

10. Mac & Me - Sort of an E.T. copy and very long McDonalds commercial: There was actually a good intention behind this, because a portion of the ticket sales went to Ronald McDonald House. The problem is it is an blatant E.T. ripoff only with lame special effects (kind of a stop-motion alien). Mac also prefers McDonalds food to Reese's Pieces. Here is the trailer introduced by Ronald McDonald himself.    
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