Author: Dan Seeger

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College Countdown: 90FM’s Top 90 of 1996, 78 and 77

Dan Seeger

78. White Zombie, Supersexy Swingin’ Sounds Perhaps every generation gets the Renaissance Man it deserves. The former Robert Bartleh Cummings first found fame as the co-founder and driving creative force behind the band White Zombie, a group with which he shared an adopted second half of a name. The group released four proper studio albums from the late-eighties to the early-nineties, with the remix effort Supersexy Swingin’ Sounds serving as their official parting shot in 1996. Featuring modified fan favorites with parenthetical names such as “Meet Bambi in the King’s Harem Mix” and “Sex on the Rocks Mix,” the album … Continue reading College Countdown: 90FM’s Top 90 of 1996, 78 and 77

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Spectrum Check

Dan Seeger

Through a combination of personal foresight and editorial generosity, I didn’t have anything new go up this past week at Spectrum Culture. Good thing I took the occasion of scrapping and scrambling for valuable Trivia points to slough off this regular update last week, meaning I do have some words to redirect curious souls towards. On the film side, I reviewed a new documentary on Ricky Jay, the noted sleight of hand artist and curious curator of all manner of ancient and enduring chicanery. The movie has its strengths and weaknesses, but what I really wanted to write was that … Continue reading Spectrum Check

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One for Friday: Jack Logan, “Teach Me the Rules”

Dan Seeger

When I was removed from the constant discovery zone of college radio, I often poured through music magazines to find my way to new artists. This meant that, like a sportswriter considering whose name to write on his or her MVP ballot, I was unduly susceptible to a performer with a good story. Jack Logan had a great story. He was a longtime songwriter who came to prominence fairly late in life, after moving to Georgia, where he befriended Peter Buck of R.E.M. While Logan was still making his living as a swimming pool motor technician, he started releasing albums, … Continue reading One for Friday: Jack Logan, “Teach Me the Rules”

Music34 Comments

Top 40 Smash Taps: “The Riddle (You and I)”

Dan Seeger

These posts are about the songs that can accurately claim to crossed the key line of chart success, becoming Top 40 hits on Billboard, but just barely. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 40. A guy born Vladimir John Ondrasik III is probably making the right choice in adopting a stage name before going into showbiz. Rather than adopt a straightforward name, Ondrasik opted for a moniker that called to mind a band, taking inspiration from his favorite sport, hockey. Under the name Five for Fighting, Ondrasik came out with his debut album, Message for Albert, in … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Taps: “The Riddle (You and I)”

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One for Friday: Super Morrissey Bros., “Come On Eileen (Blinky’s 8-bit Chasers version)”

Dan Seeger

As per tradition, the One for Friday format can shift on the day the World’s Largest Trivia Contest begins, in large part because I feel obligated to post a certain #1 hit from the nineteen-eighties. And so I once again present a version of my team’s theme song. The only way this track could be better would be if it utilized the sound effects from different version of Pac-Man. Continue reading One for Friday: Super Morrissey Bros., “Come On Eileen (Blinky’s 8-bit Chasers version)”

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Trivia Answer of the Day: “From Collier, Who Wants to Make You Jollier”

Dan Seeger

This weekend, I’ll participate in The World’s Largest Trivia ContestTM. I’m a little preoccupied with preparations for that, including some significant travel. To provide some sense of the madness of minutiae that dominates my mind this week, I’ll return to … Continue reading Trivia Answer of the Day: “From Collier, Who Wants to Make You Jollier”