I had a few unofficial rules when I assembled my shows during my college radio days. One of the oddest was this: when in doubt, look to the H’s. That’s the section of the library that I generally gravitated to when I was momentarily at a loss as to what to play next. This may be in part because my most dependable standby, Robyn Hitchcock, had an impressive bevy of albums there in the music stacks, but there were other performers there, like Husker Du and Hunters and Collectors and the Housemartins, who were equally well-equipped to help turn the show around. Much as I liked all of these artists, the true secret weapon in there was often the well-loved records of Hoodoo Gurus.

There music was flatly perfect for radio. They crafted concise, inventive pop songs that burst in with bold guitars and irresistible hooks. Lead singer Dave Faulkner belted out the lyrics with decibel-enhanced conviction, and they played fierce and fast, as if they were afraid someone was going to take away their guitars at any moment and the needed to make the most of it while they could. It didn’t hurt that they were from Australia, either. We DJs liked to talk about where bands were from.

This was the sort of band that I was always a little surprised didn’t cross over, that didn’t seem to connect with fans of more conventional music when I’d play them a song and insist “You’re gonna love ’em.” The music always seemed like perfect summer pop to me, the sort of song you want to hear blasting from your radio as you drive around on an impossibly sunny day. Of course, that last sentiment may derive from the not insignificant detail that their album Magnum Cum Lounder was released at the beginning of my first summer at the college radio station, and the lead single, “Come Anytime,” was a staple of playlists through all those sun-baked months.

No matter the association, I still think it’s a great song. If you haven’t heard this before, well, you’re gonna love ’em.

Hoodoo Gurus, “Come Anytime”

(Disclaimer: To my surprise, Magnum Cum Louder is out of print. Though I neglected to do the proper research to find out for certain, I assume it’s readily available on any “best of” style compilations featuring the band, but the one that Amazon has these days doesn’t seem to be available at this moment. They do have a few other excellent albums available for purchase if you’ve got some spare Xmas money and an inclination to add to your collection. As usual, if anyone with due authority to do so asks me to remove this file from the Interweb, I will certainly comply.)