Seventy-one candles make for an awfully bright birthday cake. When I was sitting in my basement bedroom back in high school, studying Bruce Springsteen lyric sheets like they were holy documents (and, to me, I guess they were), I wasn’t … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Bruce Springsteen, “Ghosts”
These posts are about the songs that just barely failed to cross the key line of chart success, entering the Billboard Top 40. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 41. Maxine Taupin used to sew patches onto … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “Tiny Dancer”
455. The Tubes, Remote Control (1979) It was a pairing destined to take pop excess to new heights. Across the late nineteen-seventies, the Tubes made a name for themselves by going large and bold with their rock pronouncements, like Elton … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #455 to #453
Two guys. Drums. A guitar. And a song that is just right, that roars, that grinds, that slinks, that practically flecks sweat with every sonic bend. Sometimes, that’s all you need. This week, the Blue Stones’ “Let It Ride” is … Continue reading This Week’s Model — The Blue Stones, “Let It Ride”
These posts celebrate the movie trailers, movie posters, commercials, print ads, and other promotional material that stand as their own works of art. I can assure you that college radio programmers required no heavy-handed promotional coercion when They Might Be … Continue reading The Art of the Sell — They Might Be Giants, Lincoln
458. Beat Farmers, Tales of the New West (1985) Drummer Country Dick Montana and and Jerry Raney kicked around in various San Diego bands for years before they started playing together. They recruited guitarist Buddy Blue and bassist Rolle Dexter … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #458 to #456
Janelle Monáe does not stand down. Throughout this tumultuous year, she has taken her prominent platform as a responsibility. She may be on the entertainment talk circuit to promote an Amazon series or a psychological horror film, but she takes … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Janelle Monáe, “Turntables”
461. Peter Schilling, Error in the System (1983) For someone making arch synth-pop in the early nineteen-eighties, it was probably pretty obvious which established artist could be pilfered from most productively. German performer Peter Schilling muscled his way into the … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #461 to #459
“I tried so hard/ Not to let you all down,” Jessica Dobson sings on the new single from Deep Sea Diver, deeming the heavy burden “an impossible weight.” There’s only one reasonable conclusion: “So I’ll let you down now.” With … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Deep Sea Diver, “Impossible Weight”
This series of posts covers my long, beloved history interacting with the medium of radio, including the music that flowed through the airwaves. For over twenty years, a good friend of mine had held down one of the Sunday night … Continue reading Radio Days — Then and Now: Retro College Countdown edition
Coffee for Two 