http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSlPGa1DSp4PMejsDhrassQ/videos
Fans of early 1980s LA punk rock and early late night cable TV rejoice! Someone has uploaded multiple episodes of “New Wave Theater,” the highlight of the USA Network’s legendary late night show “Night Flight,” at the YouTube channel located the link above. Hosted by the late great Peter Ivers.
After giving high praise to the Beatles’ original, here’s the lost, molar-rattling, rude, and punk-as-hell Beastie Boys cover that was supposed to be included on their legendary Rick Rubin-produced 1986 masterpiece “Licensed to Ill,” but was left off for legal reasons. Rumor has it that Michael Jackson, by then the copyright owner, put the kabosh on it. He felt fine licensing the Beatles’ most political song “Revolution” to Nike but … well … that’s another story. All I can say is … thank God for YouTube.
Recorded during the same 1965 session as “Yesterday,” “I’m Down” is in my opinion, the Beatles’ best flat-out rocker and the best B-side of all-time. Yes, “Revolution” and “Helter Skelter” may sound “heavier,” but “I’m Down” is much more ferocious in terms of speed and attitude. McCartney tries to out “Little Richard” Little Richard here and he comes really damn close to achieving his goal. A phenomenal tune that again … shockingly … was merely the B-side to “Help” and wasn’t included on a proper album until the late 1970s, when it appeared on their “Rock n’ Roll Music” compilation.
OK … who out there remembers Michael Winslow? For those who don’t remember, he was the guy that became notorious in the 1980s for making funny noises with his mouth in countless comedy films, most famously the “Police Academy” series and a couple of “Cheech and Chong” films.
In case you wondered, Winslow is still around … and still doing some amazing things with his voice. Here’s Winslow doing a cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” for a Norwegian talk show called “Senkveld med Thomas og Harald.” Everything here, but the acoustic guitar is courtesy of Winslow’s mouth. Prepare to have your mind blown … seriously! Why someone hasn’t released this a single is beyond comprehension.
You wanted the best, you got the best! It’s KISS! At the height of their powers in 1977! With all four original members! Performing live in Japan! .. (exclamation points officially ending here) … This was recorded for HBO and I remember seeing this very concert during the summer of 1979 when me and my brother went to visit my Dad in Northern Virginia. Two of my Dad’s female neighbors in their early 20s invited us all over to watch the concert on their TV since they had HBO. I can’t imagine my Dad’s neighbors were particularly interested in KISS … or my brother and me, for that matter … but I’m not going to complain that they used my interest in KISS to get to know my Dad better. It was doubly cool because I was now able to see my favorite band at the time life, I also got to check out this thing called HBO that I had seen advertised on TV, but wouldn’t be available in my neighborhood for two more years. As always, Paul Stanley doesn’t disappoint with his stage raps here.
Why is this my favorite Misfits song of all-time? Because I ain’t no goddamn son-of-a-b–h!
One of the byproducts of listening to 70s stations is the appearance of a Harry Chapin song every now and then. Running into a Harry Chapin song is like running into a pastor you try to avoid because they can’t resist giving you a parable … and said parable always makes you feel either terribly depressed or very guilty.
Maybe it’s a lapse in taste, maybe I’m a glutton for punishment, or maybe it’s just the fact that Chapin is a great songwriter / storyteller (or all of the above), but I’ve been listening to a lot of Chapin these days. The above song is about an aging DJ who chose a radio career over family and as that part of his life is fading, he finds he doesn’t have a family to fall back on. This could be a metaphor for any career that routinely chews idealistic people up and spits them out … from academia to journalism … and the emptiness that such an endeavor often leads to, admittedly unfairly.
Back to Chapin, the man led a very interesting life to say the least. He started out by going to the Air Force Academy … dropped out … became an Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker .. before turning to music professionally. Unlike a lot of peers in the 1970s, he dove head first into activism (especially for world hunger) and seemed to perform more free concerts than paying gigs … even at the height of his popularity when he could’ve commanded top dollar for every gig he performed. He has been credited as the inspiration for Band Aid, USA for Africa, Live Aid, Farm Aid, and every major benefit concert of the 1980s. The man was the definition of the word mensch and he left the world too soon in 1981 when he was killed in a car accident on the L.I.E.
If you want to know more, you’re encouraged to check out the terrific VH1 documentary below. One of the more interesting things Chapin did (not mentioned in the documentary) is that when he signed his recording contract with Elektra Records (despite a much bigger offer from Columbia Records), he only took a small advance in exchange for free recording time throughout the entire time of his contract. This was incredibly shrewd, because most artists who record for major labels find themselves in massive debt when the label charges back astronomical costs for recording time that are never recouped … so much so that no matter how many records the artist sells, they are always in debt to the label.
The first three songs from side 2 of Roxy Music’s incredible 1974 album “Country Life,” my favorite album from that legendary band. And with a graphic that is finally safe for work! Anyone familiar with the “Country Life” album will know why this is significant. In some ways, “Country Life” is the perfect “desert island disc,” not only for the great music, but … well … the cover. If you’re alone on a deserted island with no companionship and limited media, this album has what I will call “multiple purposes.” If you have no idea what I mean, you can do a search on Google Images. After that, you’re on your own.
Oh … hell yeah! From Boston … here’s the Downbeat 5 doing a wonderful slammin’ cover of the Shangri-Las’ “Dum Dum Ditty.” Bang your head and smile.
From the infamous 1970 Beatles documentary film “Let it Be” is the band performing the title song, done in a much rawer and intimate version than the version we all know and love, pre-Phil Spector “sweetening.” I realize this will sound like a cliche and that the Beatles are the last group of musicians on this planet who deserve belated praise, but this footage of all four Beatles performing this together towards the end of their career … with a very young Billy Preston on keyboards … really takes my breath away. I realize the Beatles, as brilliant as they are, may seem like the most overrated band in history, but it’s moments like this that really make me swallow hard and reassess. They weren’t always brilliant, but they had way more hits than misses. And the sheer quantity of great music made over an 8-year period … a very short period of time … is astonishing. And one more thing … all of these guys were 30 years of age or younger when they finally hung it up.
Dave's Strange World 