Some Kinda Kinks....Show # 250

The year of 1968, was a busy one for The Kinks. Still banned from the USA (since 1965), the band was involved in a number of projects at this time. It was around this time that The Kinks would be working on material for The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society. Originally Ray Davies intended the songs for his first solo album. He was also working on a stage play around this time that had a similar concept to Village Green. Since the material was so different, Ray did not know if it was appropriate for The Kinks. Despite his original thoughts, Ray and the group worked on the songs and it became the album known as The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society. The album employed a concept (it would be the first of many concept albums done by The Kinks). The concept was about English life and the innocence of past times. It was also said to have been influenced by Dylan Thomas's Under The Milk Wood. Ray Davies also intended Village Green to be the last Kinks album. The last single was supposed to be the song "Days". Fortunately this did not happen. The album did not sell well upon its initial release, but has since then gone on to be a cult classic. It is often referred to as "The Most Successful Flop of All Time".

It was also around this time that Dave Davies recorded material for his first solo album. Davies had previously released successful singles such as "Death of A Clown", and "Susannah's Still Alive" in 1967. The backing band on these recordings were The Kinks. Dave had been recording songs off an on for a possible solo album since 1967. After touring and the recording of Village Green, Dave recorded a set of songs for yet another proposed solo album that was to be released in 1969. "Hold My Hand" was released as a single that would launch the album in 1969, but it failed to chart. The album was never released. Songs existed on bootleg from the sessions, but were never released officially. When the band re-issued their catalog, most of the tracks appeared as bonus material on the remastered editions of the albums.

Dave Davies first solo album would be in 1980 (although he talked of releasing a solo album in 1970 and again in 1974), Ray's first solo album would be in 1990. In 2004, Sanctuary Records released a 3 CD, deluxe edition of Village Green. It featured several outtakes and songs recorded around the same time, but not used for the album. In 1998, Dave Davies released Unfinished Business, which is a 2 CD set collecting material done with The Kinks and from his solo career. For more information on The Kinks and their releases, visit Dave Emulen's Unofficial Kinks website Kinda Kinks.

This week on my show I featured seven Kinks songs from this time period. Four songs from The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society ("Wicked Annabella", "Do You Remember Walter?", "Village Green", and "The Last Of The Steam Powered Trains"). "Creeping Jean" (found on the deluxe edition of Village Green) and "Mindless Child of Motherhood" (found on the remastered edition of Arthur) were both tracks that were considered for Dave Davies 1969 solo album. The final Kinks track featured on today's program was "Misty Water". This song was recorded in 1968 for a proposed US release that was cancelled (It was going to be titled Four More Respected Gentlemen).

Play List:

1. The Kinks - The Last Of The Steam Powered Trains
2. The Kinks - Wicked Annabella
3. Dark Knight Of The Soul - Little Girl (Featuring Julian Casablancas)
4. The Sonics - Have Love Will Travel
5. The Amboy Dukes - Baby Please Don't Go
6. Great Scotts - Ball and Chain
7. The Jury - Who Dat?
8. The Secrets - Cryin' Over Her
9. Painted Ship - And She Said Yes
10. The Brogues - I Ain't No Miracle Worker
11. Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Diddy Wah Diddy
12. The Kinks - Creeping Jean
13. The Kinks - Mindless Child of Motherhood (Stereo Version)
14. The Gruesomes - The Deal
15. Terminal Sunglasses - Antenna Dilemma
16. Thrush Hermit - Hated It
17. Mood - Who Do You Love?
18. Velvet Underground - Venus In Furs
19. The Standells - Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White
20. The Kinks - Do You Remember Walter?
21. The Kinks - Village Green
22. The Kinks - Misty Water

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on May, 26th 2009.

Kinks Videos:

The Last of the Steam Powered Trains & Picture Book (Julie Felix TV Show 1969)

Juxtaposition Jukeboxing

Today I did a fill in show for Juxtaposition Jukebox. The show is usually hosted by Kyle where he plays a wide variety of music genres. For more information on his show you can visit the Juxtaposition Jukebox Blog.

The picture shown above is a piece of art created by Johanne Itten. It can be found in his Elements of Color collection. It came up randomly during a google image search for "Juxtaposition". It kind of looks like a set of speakers.

Variety Play List:

1. Sam Cooke - Summertime
2. Otis Redding - Security
3. Sonny Boy Williamson - Fattening Frogs For Snakes
4. Big Youth - I Am Alright
6. Jimmy Cliff - You Can Get It If You Really Want
7. Los Straitjackets - Challenger 64
8. Phonocomb - At The Niteclub
9. Louis Armstrong - Song of the Vipers
10. Ben Pollack and His Park Central Orchestra - My Kinda Love
11. Diana Krall - Walk On By
12. Calidonia - Friday Night Rock Song
13. Field Assembly - Old Spell
14. Sunparlour Players - Nuclear
15. John Doe & The Sadies - Night Life
16. Gravity Wave - Nectar
17. Montag - Nord I
18. Fire Engines - Candyskin
19. The Diodes - Behind Those Eyes
20. Buzzcocks - Mad Mad Judy
21. The Victims - Television Addict
22. Jack O & The Tennessee Tearjerkers - Blood Bank Blues
23. Compulsive Gamblers - Two Thieves

To download Juxtaposition Jukebox visit the CJAM archives and select the files 1:00 PM and 2:00 PM on May, 25th 2009.

Don't Worry About Me...The Joey Ramone Story & Show # 249

Joey Ramone is best known for his role in the New York group Ramones. Being the lead singer of the group, Joey was also a song writer within the group. Born as Jeffery Hymann in Forest Hills, in Queens New York, Joey grew up on music such as The Beatles, The Who, The Stooges, bubble gum pop, surf music and Phil Spector produced groups. All of these influences would have a direct influence on his vocal style, but Joey started out playing drums. When his parents divorced, Joey became more focused on music and played drums with glam rock influenced rock and roll groups.

In 1974, Joey co-founded the Ramones with Douglas Colvin (Dee Dee Ramone) and John Cummings (Johnny Ramone). They adopted the stage surname Ramone (based on an early stage name used by Beatle Paul McCartney) and began playing as a group. Originally Joey was the bands drummer and Dee Dee was the vocalist. It wasn't until band manager Tommy Erdelyi suggested that Joey take the vocals (Dee Dee would shred his vocal chords after two or three songs) that they switched. Since the band had no drummer at the time, Tommy adopted the last name Ramone and became the groups drummer. Ramones were seen as the first punk rock group in America and influenced numerous US and UK music groups. While they have had cult status for a long time, the group never became a mainstream attraction. They did have some minor hits, but the band built up their following through their live shows. The band lasted for 22 years before calling it quits in 1996, after an appearance at Lollapalooza.


In 1994, Joey Ramone formed a group with his brother Mickey Leigh called Sibling Rivalry. They recorded an EP titled In A Family Way. Joey has collaborated with numerous artists. He produced a Ronnie Spector album titled She Talks To Rainbows in 1999. Joey put together a band featuring Daniel Rey (guitar), Andy Shernoff (bass) and Frank Frunaro (drums). Mickey would also help out on the recordings. Joey played a few live gigs before the album was actually completed. On April 15th, 2001 Joey Ramone passed away due to Lymphoma.

Don't Worry About Me featured 11 tracks. The album had two cover songs "What A Wonderful World" (Louis Armstrong), and "1969" (The Stooges). It also featured original compositions such as "Don't Worry About Me", "Stop Thinking About It", and "Mr. Punchy". The album was released in 2002. The album featured guest musicians such as Marky Ramone, Captain Sensible, Helen Love and Jerry Only. A five track, holiday EP was released in 2002 titled Christmas Spirit...In My House. Beginning on what was to be Joey's 50th birthday (May 19th), a birthday concert is held in his honour, titled The Joey Ramone Birthday Bash in New York City. The music that has been created by both Joey Ramone and the Ramones has been vastly influential on the world of music.

This Weeks Play List:

1. Joey Ramone - What A Wonderful World
2. Joey Ramone - Stop Thinking About It
3. The Hipshakes - Never Enough
4. The Animals - The Girl Can't Help It
5. Ride Theory - On Fire
6. Simply Saucer - I Can Change My Mind
7. Mark Inside - There Is Nothing To Admit
8. Dream Dates - Mess your In
9. Hot Nasties - (I'm Not Your) Stepping Stone
10. The Caesars - (I'm Gonna) Kick You Out
11. The Regulators - That's Right, Nothings Left
12. The Government - Paranoid Downtown Funk Pt.2
13. The Fall - Repetition
14. Only Ones - Programme
15. The Police - It's Alright For You
16. Franz Ferdinand - What She Came For
17. Arctic Monkeys - Plastic Tramp
18. Bush - My Engine Is With You
19. The Pixies - Alec Eiffel
20. Fiction Plane - Listen To My Babe
21. Dirty Pretty Things - Plastik Hearts
22. Babyshambles - Do You Know Me
23. Young Rival - Your Island
24. Carbon/Silicon - The Whole Truth

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on May, 19th 2009.

Joey Ramone Videos:

What A Wonderful World (Music Video)

Teenage Superstars...The Story of The Vaselines and Show # 248

The Vaselines formed in 1986, in Glasgow, Scotland. The band started out as a two piece group featuring Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee on vocals and guitar. The band released their first EP, Son Of A Gun in 1987. This would be released through 53rd & 3rd Records, which was an independent record label set up by Stephen Pastel (of The Pastels). The EP would feature three songs including the song "Son Of A Gun" and "You Think You're A Man", which was a reworking of a song originally done by the band Divine. The EP went to number 26 on the UK Indie charts. The band's 1988 EP was titled, Dying For It. This EP featured songs such as "Molly's Lips" and "Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam", which showed off some Velvet Underground influence, the song featured viola. The song "Molly's Lips" has been said to be a tribute to the Scottish TV star/actress Molly Weir. This EP went to number 11 on the UK Indie charts.

The band would become more of a full band around this time adding Charley Kelly on drums and James Seenan on bass. The band would record only one full length album, Dum Dum. Released in 1989, the album was released on the 53rd & 3rd label, but the label would fall apart at this time. The album would eventually be released through Rough Trade, but the band had already split up by this point. In 1990, the band reformed briefly to open for the US band Nirvana when they played in Scotland in 1990. Nirvana were becoming a bigger more well known group at this time, and Kurt Cobain would cite The Vaselines as a major influence on the group. Nirvana would cover "Son Of A Gun" and "Molly's Lips" (featured on their album Incesticide) and "Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam" (renaming it "Jesus Doesn't Want Me For A Sunbeam" and recording it for their MTV Unplugged album). Nirvana's covers of The Vaselines helped them become more well known than they were at the time.

In 1992, Sub Pop released a Vaselines compilation titled The Way of the Vaselines: A Complete History. The compilation featured all of the Vaselines recordings and a previously unreleased song titled "Bitch". Eugene Kelly would go on to form the group Captain America (they renamed themselves Eugenius) in 1990. Kelly has also released some solo albums. Frances McKee formed the group Suckle in the late 90s. The Vaselines have reformed for a few live shows in 2006 and in 2008 played a series of live concerts. A live show was also played in London in the UK, on March 27th, 2009. In May of 2009, Enter The Vaselines was released on Sub Pop. This compilation features all of the bands recordings, plus a live concert and demo recordings.

Play List:

1. Nirvana - Son of A Gun
2. Nirvana - Molly's Lips
3. Vaselines - Son of A Gun
4. Vaselines - Teenage Superstars
5. Pluto - Expelled
6. The Thermals - You Dissolve
7. The Odds - Say You Mean It
8. Clues - Elope
9. Bureaucrats - Killing Ground
10. Guided By Voices - Everywhere With Helicopter
11. Dim Stars - Rip Off
12. Mudhoney - Touch Me I'm Sick
13. Foo Fighters - Wattershed
14. Red Squares - Transmitter
15. Pointed Sticks - Marching Song
16. Tim Ray & The Druts - Dying in Brooklyn
17. The Buckets Of - 9 of 10
18. The Sounds - Painted By Numbers
19. Blondie - I Didn't Have The Nerve To Say No
20. Okmoniks - Teenage Timebomb
21. Nickel Eye - Another Sunny Afternoon
22. John Doe - The Golden State
23. John Doe & The Sadies - Are The Good Times Really Over For Good?
24. X - Your Phones Off The Hook, But You're Not
25. The Nerves - Hanging On The Telephone
26. Elvis Costello - (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on May, 12th 2009.

Evening standards...The Story of The Jags....Show # 247

Forming in the Yorkshire, England in 1978, The Jags consisted of Nick Watkinson (vocals), Steve Prudence (bass), John Alder (guitar), and Alex Baird on drums. In 1979, the powerpop group signed to Island records. They released a four track EP in 1979. In September of 79, they released a single "Back Of My Hand". It hit top forty in the UK (#17, where it stayed for ten weeks), but after the release of this single they would not have another hit. The bands first full length album Evening Standards, was released in 1980. The single to support that album was the song "Woman's World". It went to #75 on the UK singles charts. The ten track album was overlooked by critics, they tended to focus on Watkinson's vocal style rather that the musical material. While, Watkinson did have a voice similar to Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe, the album had some good powerpop tracks on it.

Following the release of Evening Standards, The Jags released No Tie Like A Present in 1981. The album showed the band making a change in musical direction, but it was overlooked. The album contained a cover of a Tremolos song and the singles "I Never Was A Beachboy" and "The Sound Of G-O-O-D-B-Y-E". In 1982, The Jags broke up. "Back Of My Hand" was featured on numerous compilations in the 90's. The Jags wrote catchy songs and were a short lived powerpop band from the UK new wave era.

Play List:

1. Undertones - Here Comes The Summer
2. Ian Dury & The Blockheads - Blockheads
3. Rock and Roll Bitches - Broad Daylight
4. Young Canadians - Well, Well, Well
5. Subhumans - Urban Gorillas
6. Dishrags - I Don't Love You
7. Lowlife - Leaders
8. The Jags - Back of My Hand
9. Nervebreakers - My Girlfriend Is A Rock
10. The Passengers - Two Lovers
11. The Diodes - Polaroid
12. Wavves - Gun In The Sun
13. Plunt - Bowling
14. Teenage Head - Picture My Face
15. The Horrors - I Can't Control Myself
16. The Misfits - TV Casualty
17. Magazine - Shot By Both Sides
18. Buzzcocks - Lipstick
19. The Stimulators - Loud Fast Rules
20. The Spys - Last Generation
21. Ramones - Bumming Along
22. Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - One Track Mind
23. Iggy Pop - I'm Bored
24. The Scabs - Don't Just Sit There
25. Nick Lowe - Shake That Rat
26. Generation X - Trying For Kicks
27. The Clash - Complete Control

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on May, 5th 2009.

Jag Vids:

Back Of My Hand (TOTP)
Party Games (Music Video)
Tune In To Heaven (OGWT)
Evening Standards (OGWT)

Great Sounds Great...The Story of The Clean and Show # 246

Forming in 1978, The Clean were an influential band from Dunedin, New Zealand. Brothers David Kilgour (guitar) and Hamish Kilgour (drums) joined forces with Peter Gutteridge (bass) and Doug Hood on vocals. This was one of the early incarnations of the band, they would go through a changing line-up until they settled on bassist Robert Scott after 1979 (Gutteridge would leave the group). The Clean soon created their own sound which was a mix of strange sounds, Ramones chords, and heavy organ sounds.

The first Clean single ("Tally Ho!") was released on Flying Nun records in 1981. The label was started by 1980 by a Clean fan named Roger Shepherd. The single went to # 19 on the New Zealand singles charts. When the band decided to record their first full length album, they ran into some difficulty. Since most record producers did not care for the bands sound, they recorded a four track EP titled Boodle Boodle Boodle themselves. Recorded with New Zealand musicians Chris Knox and Doug Hood, the album went to number four on the New Zealand charts. 1982 saw the release of the Great Sounds Great EP. The actual title of the EP was a bit longer, it's full title was Great Sounds Great, Good Sounds Good, So-so Sounds So-so, Bad Sounds Bad, Rotten Sounds Rotten. The Clean released one more single titled "Getting Older", which was also their loudest single at that point in their career before taking a break.

David Kilgour would leave the band shortly after this, with Robert Scott following soon afterwards. Hamish Kilgour would move to Dunedin and Hamish Kilgour moved to Christchurch, where the head offices of Flying Nun Records were located. Bassist Robert Scott formed his own band called The Bats. It wouldn't be long before Hamish started writing/working on his own material. David Kilgour would come up to help with the recording and the result was an album in the folk/acoustic musical direction. They named themselves The Great Unwashed (a pun on the name The Clean) and released the album titled Clean Out of Our Minds. They toured to promote this album, bringing Peter Gutteridge back into the music mix. While on tour, the band played quite a lot of material that was written by Gutteridge. They would in turn record another EP titled Singles, which came out in 1984. During this time the band would get a new bass player (Ross Humphries) since both Gutteridge and David Kilgour could play guitar. The Great Unwashed would break up and not last very long. They broke up with in a year of the bands formation.


Hamish Kilgour would form a new group called Bailter Space, Gutteridge formed Snapper and David Kilgour stopping making music for a couple of years. That would not be the end of The Clean though. The group would reunite for a few live shows in 1988, and record yet another EP. The Clean then embarked on a world tour. A full length album would follow in 1990 titled Vehicle. The album was more of a pop influenced album than their previous efforts. After another world tour the band would split again. They would reform yet again in 1994 and record another album titled Modern Rock. The Clean continue to record and produce music. They released Unknown Country in 1996, Getaway in 2001, and numerous other compilation albums. They also have numerous live compilations/EP's and as of 2008 have been working on material for a new album. Mister Pop was released in 2009.

While The Clean have done very well on the charts in New Zealand, they are virtually unknown in the US and other places of the world. They became part of Flying Nun Records which helped create the Dunedin, New Zealand sound. This included bands such as The Bats, The Chills, The Verlaines, and Sneaky Feelings. Flying Nun is New Zealand's biggest independent record company and have released several compilations featuring hard to find Clean material.

More information on The Clean can be found at:

The Clean - Anything Can Happen
The Clean Myspace Page

This Week's Play List:

1. White Stripes - The Union Forever
2. Sports - Warn Me
3. Neil Young - Fuel Line
4. The Clean - Point That Thing Somewhere Else
5. 3-D's - Hey Seuss
6. The D4 - Little Baby
7. Luger Boa - Don't Talk To Me
8. Clap Clap Riot - Thief
9. Valina - Idiom's Palace
10. 40 Thieves - Bangarang
11. The Unicorns - I Was Born (A Unicorn)
12. The Fresh & Onlys - Fog Machine
13. Ex- Boyfriends - To The Lowest Bidder
14. Sloan - Judy Is A Punk
15. The Killers - I Just Wanna Be Me
16. The Gears - Let's Go To The Beach
17. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet - Run Chicken Run
18. Atomic 7 - Chock Full O' Notes
19. Los Straitjackets - Kapt'n Krunch
20. Randy - Punk Rock High
21. The Takeover UK - Never Been So Sick
22. The Demics - The News
23. Jack O & The Tennessee Tearjerkers - Switchblade Comb
24. The Pointed Sticks - All That Matters
25. The Strokes - New York City Cops

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on April, 28th 2009.

Canadian Voodoo...The Story of Deja Voodoo...Show # 245

In 1981, Tony Dewald and Gerard Van Herk formed the group known as Deja Voodoo in Montreal, Canada. Influenced by Rockabilly, Punk, Garage Rock, Blues and bands such as Link Wray and The Cramps, Deja Voodoo came off sounding different than most bands. Using 50's horror imagery (like The Misfits have done), Deja Voodoo helped to create a new genre that was known as Sludge-a-billy. Their music was primal and dirty, Tony Dewald would be the drummer and Gerard Van Herk would cover guitars and vocals. There would be no bass player. Deja Voodoo can be seen as Canada's answer to The Cramps.

In the early 80s, numerous bands were popping up all over Montreal, in turn making it difficult for Deja Voodoo to find a label. While they were popular amongst the Montreal communities, they decided to form their own label in 1983 called Og Records. Deja Voodoo released their first album Gumbo on Og Records in 1983; It was released on cassette only. The album sold relatively well by independent record standards, but it did not find mainstream success. The band continued to release their own albums and other bands on their label. In 1984, Cemetery was released. Being the bands third album it sold well in Canada and in parts of the US and Europe; It was also the bands first album to be released on vinyl. Og Records would release a total of twenty nine albums in its seven year run. The label also released a series of compilation albums featuring Montreal artists such as The Gruesomes. There were five volumes of the It Came From Canada series.

Deja Voodoo toured in parts of Canada and Europe once Og Records started doing well. They toured places such as Greece, Finland and Scandinavia. This was seen as being unheard of at the time. For an underground Canadian band to reach audiences in Europe this was a great achievement. As a result they built cult followings. They started putting on special outdoor events such as "Voodoo BBQ's". These were held mainly in Montreal and drew in large crowds. The last Voodoo BBQ was in 2008.

Despite doing relatively well in their musical aspirations, Tony and Gerard split up Deja Voodoo in 1990. They pursued other careers. Gerard Van Herk became a Linguistics professor and Tony Dewald opened his own brewery on the West Coast. While Deja Voodoo did not achieve mainstream success, they were a well known one of a kind Canadian band that helped define a genre known as Sludge-a-billy. More info can be found on their Myspace Page.

Play List:

1. The Golden Hands Before God - The Ladder
2. Bob Dylan and the Band - Odds & Ends
3. The Troggs - I Can't Control Myself
4. The Count Bishops - Teenage Letter
5. Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Going Going Gone (Time Version)
6. Bad Brains - Sailin' On
7. The Heartbeeps - My Flash On You
8. The Charms - Action
9. The Haunted - Eight Hour Day
10. The Gruesomes - Leave My Kitten Alone
11. The Replacements - Takin' A Ride
12. The Replacements - I Will Dare
13. The Ettes - I Get Mine
14. Compulsive Gamblers - X-Ray Eyes
15. Rolling Stones - Complicated
16. The Leather Uppers - Say It In French
17. Young Rival - Poisonous Moves
18. Deja Voodoo - Shoobedy Hey
19. Deja Voodoo - My Girlfriend
20. The Cramps - She Said
21. Queens of The Stone Age - Battery Acid
22. The Locust Have No King - Goodman On A Strange Horse
23. Gun Club - She's Like Heroin To Me
24. The Stooges - Not Right
25. The Howlies - Sea Level
26. Black Lips - Drugs
27. The Collectors - We Can Make It
28. Libertines - I Get Along

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on April, 21st 2009.

Hungry Beat...The Fire Engines Story...Show # 244

Forming in Edinburgh, Scotland, The Fire Engines were an important part of the Scottish post punk music movement. They were playing at the same time amongst bands such as Orange Juice, Joseph K, and The Scars. Three of the band members (Davy Henderson (guitars/vocals), Russel Burn (drums), and Graham Main (bass)) were originally in the band called The Dirty Reds. Adding one more member (Murray Slade (guitars)), the band took on the name The Fire Engines, which was from a 13th Floor Elevators song. Their sound would not be as conventional as their musical contemporaries. They preferred anger and noise instead of pop hooks and melodies.

Their first release was the single Get Up and Use Me in 1980. It was backed with the song "Everything's Roses" (the single was # 9 on the UK Indie singles charts). Their first full length album was titled Lubricate Your Living Room (Background Music For Action People!). It was also released in 1980, and went to # 4 on the UK Indie Singles charts. What followed next was a series of singles in 1981. "Candyskin" would show off Henderson's unique nasally vocal style and featured a string section. It also did well on the UK Indie charts, but following the bands next single "Big Gold Dream", The Fire Engines broke up. In 1981, the band released a compilation album in the US titled, Aufgeladen Und Bereit Fur Action Und Spass. It featured live and studio tracks.


They have also released several other compilation albums. In 2004, the band released a split single with Franz Ferdinand. The single featured The Fire Engines covering Franz Ferdinand's "Jacqueline" and Franz Ferdinand covering The Fire Engines song "Get Up and Use Me". A compilation of demos and live material was released in 1995, titled Codex Teenage Premonition. A US compilation was made titled Hungry Beat in 2007. It compiled studio recordings from the band, that were previously unavailable in the US. Following the break up of The Fire Engines, Henderson and Russel Burn formed the group Win. David Henderson also had a group called Nectarine No. 9, in the 90's.

Play List:

1. New York Dolls - Vietnamese Baby
2. Ugly Ducklings - I Wish You Would
3. The Soft Pack - Bright Side
4. Dry Heaves - Portable
5. Metallica - The More I See
6. Black Sabbath - Wicked World
7. Motorhead - Tear You Down
8. John Doe and The Sadies - Detroit City
9. Bob Dylan & Johnny Cash - Guess Things Happen That Way
10. 13th Floor Elevators - (I've Got) Levitation
11. Lou Reed - Nowhere At All
12. Pretty Things - Come See Me
13. Big Town Boys - August 32nd
14. King Bees - What's Your Name
15. 49th Parallel - Citizen Freak
16. The Thermals - Now We Can See
17. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Heads Will Roll
18. Drums and Wires - Basement
19. The Government - Complications
20. Condofucks - The Kid With The Replaceable Head
21. Fire Engines - Get Up and Use Me
22. The Scars - Horrorshow
23. Rezillos - Top of the Pops
24. Franz Ferdinand - Bite Hard

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on April, 14th 2009.

The Beatles To Re-issue Entire Catalogue

If you haven't heard the news already, it was recently announced that The Beatles will be re-issuing their entire catalogue on September 9, 2009. The albums have been remastered in stereo and will include new and extended liner notes. In addition to this the CD's will also include mini documentaries on the making of each album that is re-issued. The remastering and re-issuing of The Beatles catalogue is long overdue, in my opinion and it's good to hear that they are finally doing it. They spent a long time on the remastering of the catalogue to make sure that it was done right and now it is finally ready. There will be 14 albums released in September, including the Past Masters I & II, which will now be one CD set. In addition to all this, all of the CD's can be bought in boxed set form. There will also be a Mono mix version released in boxed set form for die-hard Beatles fans. The Beatles also plan to released their material digitally, but they are still in talks at the current time.

More information on this can be found in the following links:

The Beatles Official Website
Billboard

Just Play Music!...The Story of Big Audio Dynamite...Show # 243

In 1984, one year after being fired from The Clash Mick Jones formed a new group. Big Audio Dynamite would blend elements of Punk, Pop, Hip-Hop, Funk, Reggae and Dance into their music. The band can be seen as an extension from the work that Mick Jones recorded on The Clash's Combat Rock. Recruiting friend Don Letts to do vocals and sound effects, Mick Jones assembled the first incarnation of what was to be known as Big Audio Dynamite. Leo "E-Zee Kill" Williams would play bass, Greg Roberts the drums and Mick Jones would cover guitar, vocals and song writing duties. "The Bottom Line" would be the bands first single. Their first album This Is Big Audio Dynamite would follow shortly after in 1985. The album would debut at # 27 on the UK album charts and # 103 on the US album charts.

"E=MC2" would be the bands next single. The song employed sampling techniques and is often seen as one of the first songs to take advantage of sampling technologies. Lyrically the song made reference to the film Insignificance by Noel Roeg. Chart wise the song did not do well in the UK, but in the US it went to #11 and # 37 on the dance charts. Other great songs contained on the BAD's first album include "Medicine Show" and "Sudden Impact". The music video that was made for "Medicine Show", features former Clash members Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon, and Johnny Rotten of Sex Pistols/Public Image Limited. The bands next album would contain producing and song collaboration with former Clash member Joe Strummer. No. 10 Upping Street, would be released in 1986. The albums title was a pun on the residency of the UK Prime Minister, whose address is 10 Downing St. Singles from the album would be "C'Mon Every Beatbox", "V.Thirteen", and "Sightsee MC". The album did well on the UK album charts (# 11), but was in the low 100's on the US album charts. It should also be noted that despite the low charting on the US album charts, it did well on the US singles charts.


Tighten Up,Vol.88 came next in 1988. The album used more free form song writing techniques as opposed to the earlier BAD albums. The albums first single "Just Play Music!" went to # 1 on the US album charts. The album artwork for Tighten Up,Vol.88 was also designed by former Clash bassist Paul Simonon. Megatop Phoenix followed in 1989. This would be the last album containing the original band members. The album would also produced by Bill Price (of Sex Pistols/Clash producing) and would have two high charting US singles, "James Brown" and "Contact". The album's title would be a reference to a near death experience that Mick Jones had during the recording of this album, which he successfully recovered from. In November of 1990, Big Audio Dynamite II (which was Big Audio Dynamite with new band members, with the exception of Mick Jones) recorded a song titled "Free", which was featured on the soundtrack to the movie Flashback. The song would be re-worked and re-titled "Kickin' It". The re-worked version of "Free" would be featured on the bands album Kool-Aid. The album was released in the UK only in 1990.

In 1991, The Globe was released. With the new line up (which featured two guitarists - Nick Hawkins and Mick Jones), the music took on more of a rock influence, while still keeping true to BAD's sampling techniques. The first singe from the album was the song "Rush". The song went to # 1 on the US Modern Rock charts. It should also be noted that around this time The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go" went to # 1 as well, due to it being featured in a Levi's jeans commercial. "Rush" was placed as the B-Side to the Clash single. The album contained songs in edited or altered state from the UK only release Kool-Aid, it also contained the song "The Globe". "The Globe" was essentially a remix of the Clash song "Should I Stay or Should I Go". It went to # 1 on the US Modern Rock charts, and # 8 on the Australian singles charts. Next Mick Jones shortened the bands name to Big Audio and released the album Higher Power in 1994. The band acquired two additional members for this album, Andre Sharp on Keyboards and Michael "Zonka" Custance as DJ/background vocalist. Higher Power was not well received and did not do as well as the previous album released by Big Audio Dynamite. It did however contain the reggae track "Harrow Road". Following this release the band left their label (Columbia Records).


In 1995, Mick Jones changed his bands name once again to Big Audio Dynamite and released F-Punk on Radioactive Records. This album was not well recieved at all. Despite the negative comments that have been printed about F-Punk, it contains some hidden gems. Songs such as "I Turned Out A Punk", "Gonna Try", "Got It All From My TV", and "Singapore". As a bonus, there is even a hidden track, a cover of David Bowie's "Suffragette City". This would be the last official full length album release for Big Audio Dynamite.

The bands next album was titled Entering A New Ride, but the bands record label at the time refused to release it. The band line up at this point, also included Rankin' Roger of The Beat. In order to get the songs and the album out to the public, Mick Jones set up a website and made the songs available for download for free. It was one of the first albums to be made available for download for free (it was in 1997/1998). After this the band basically dissolved. There would be a few compilation releases for the band, but only two after the band stopped playing. They were greatest hits compilations, Plantet Bad (1995), and Super Hits (1999). In 2007, a live DVD featuring the BAD II line up was released. Following his BAD days, Mick Jones would produce albums/bands, most notably his work with The Libertines. In 2002, Mick Jones formed a new group with Tony James (Generation X, Sigue Sigue Sputnik) called Carbon/Silicon. They have made several recordings available for free via their official website, and released one full length album titled The Last Post in 2007.

Also CJAM is still accepting votes for the 2009 Jammy awards (they will be until April 15th, 2009). If you are a listener of Revolution Rock or just a visitor of this blog, a vote would be greatly appreciated. You can vote by clicking this link.

This Weeks Play List:

1. The Saints - Lipstick Collar
2. Luger Boa - A Lonely Story
3. I Was King - Not Like This
4. Wavves - So Bored
5. The Nils - Fountains
6. Diodes - Cat Walker
7. 222's - Hold Up
8. Crash 80's - Waiting For The Heat
9. The Pretenders - The Phone Call
10. X - Adult Books
11. X-Ray Spex - Identity
12. Hot Hot Heat - Get In or Get Out
13. XX Teens - Only You
14. Lost Patrol - Commanche
15. Rudeboy - Midnight To Moscow
16. The Specials - Nite Klub
17. Dead 60s - Too Much TV
18. Wreckless Eric - Veronica
19. Magazine - Touch and Go
20. Siouxsie & The Banshees - Hong Kong Garden
21. Gang of Four - Why Theory?
22. Big Audio Dynamite - Gonna Try
23. Big Audio Dynamite - Get It All From My TV
24. Bob Dylan - Beyond Here Lies Nothin'
25. Radio Birdman - Crying Sun
26. Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros - Johnny Appleseed

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on April, 7th 2009.

BAD Videos:

The Bottom Line
Medicine Show
C'Mon Every Beatbox
V. Thirteen
Innocent Child
Looking For A Song
I Turned Out A Punk
Rush

Related posts:

A Carbon/Silicon History
Hey Amigo: The Havana 3AM Story
All The Young Punks: Story of The Clash Part One
Revolution Rock: The Story of The Clash Part Two
Ghetto Defendants: The Story of The Clash Part Three

Alright...The Story of The Subways...Show # 242

The trio known as The Subways formed in 2002 in Welwlyn, Garden City, in England. The group contains two brothers Billy Lunn (who uses his mothers maiden name) on guitar/vocals, Charlotte Cooper bass/vocals, and Josh Morgan drums (the actual brother of Billy). The group started out playing gigs in 2003 in Essex and went by a few different names before settling on The Subways. They were at one point known as Mustardseed, and Platypus. The brothers grew up listening to the likes of The Beatles, AC/DC, Ramones, and T-Rex. When Billy saw Oasis performing "Supersonic" on Top of the Pops, he began to take guitar more seriously. It was also around this time that he met Charlotte and they connected with similar musical tastes such as Nirvana, Mudhoney, and Sex Pistols. Charlotte learned to play bass and Josh learned the drums and the group was formed.

During their initial beginnings the band recorded many demos and EP's selling them at their gigs. They also played cover songs too such as Nirvana and various punk songs. Since the band did not have much money they bought their own recording equipment on which to record. Billy put up a website (thesubways.net) to put the songs online. The band won an unsigned band competition in 2004 and played at the Glastonbury Festival in front of 10,000 people. After this the band went on to play a few more big festivals in the UK and around the end of 2004, the band got signed to City Pavement & Infectious Records.

The band then began work on their first album Young For Eternity with producer Ian Broadie (Lightning Seeds). The bands first single "Oh Yeah" reached number 25 on the UK charts. The album was released in 2005 in the UK and in February of 2005 in the USA. The band made an appearance on the popular TV show the O.C. where they performed two songs "Rock & Roll Queen" and "Oh Yeah". They also had songs on the soundtrack for the show as well as on TV adverts for Kate Moss in the UK and even in the movies Live Free or Die Hard and Charlie Bartlett.

The album Young For Eternity itself was a mix of loud punk and pop inspired rockers mixing styles of Nirvana and Brit pop such as Oasis and Supergrass. It opens with the song "I Want To Hear What You Have Got Say", an acoustic and distorted rocker. "Holiday" is a roaring punk fuelled song that treads during the chorus as the drums and bass jump up and down. "Rock & Roll Queen" echoes elements of Nirvana, slow verses and loud chorus's. Other loud rockers include "Young For Eternity", the pop punky "Oh Yeah", and the loud and catchy "With You". The slower songs which are very poppy and British include the sun drenched-sounding "Mary", "Lines of Light", the mellow "No Goodbyes", the dreary "She Sun", The album ends with the song "Somewhere", which is a mix of floating verses and heavy roaring choruses. The album continues at the 9:23 mark with the hidden track "At 1 AM".

Young For Eternity (2005) & All Or Nothing (2008)

The band toured in 2006, but had to postpone some gigs because Billy had nodules in his vocal cords. He made a full recovery and the band returned playing a secret gig in their hometown under the alias The Audrey Hepburns. When the band hit America in the summer of 2006 they appeared on the talks shows Late Show with David Letterman, and Late Night With Conan O'Brien. After playing Lollapalooza they also appeared on The Late Late Show With Craig Fergusson. The band opened for Angels & Airwaves as well as Taking Back Sunday while on their US tour.

In June of 2007 the band began work on their second album with Butch Vig (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins) producing. The band went in with twenty five tracks worth of material and recorded the album in two instalments at Conway Studio in Los Angeles. After leaving to perform in the UK the band returned again to LA to finish up the new album. The bands second album is titled All or Nothing and was released in June of 2008. Many of the songs to appear on All or Nothing were actually performed at live shows before the band even started to work on the album. The songs reflect a new sound in the bands career, being at times more melodic and heavier sounding than Young For Eternity. The songs also reflect the break up of Billy Lunn and Charlotte Cooper who were seeing each other since 2003.

All or Nothing opens with the arpegiated and chunky rocker "Girls & Boys". "Kalifornia" is a dirty grungy rock song with a chorus that transcends into Brit Pop style, "Alright" was the first single from the album. It has more melody than any other previous Subways track. The heavy tracks include "Shake! Shake!", "I Won't Let You Down", "Turnaround", and the lyrically dark "Obsession". The album also contains more acoustic/mellow themed tracks such as "Strawberry Blonde", "Lostboy", and "All or Nothing" (which is pop punk track that sounds similar to Green Day at times). Overall All or Nothing shows The Subways maturing without losing their rock edge from their debut; It also features more dual vocals from Billy and Charlotte and even one track sung by drummer Josh Morgan ("All or Nothing"). The album went to # 17 on the UK album charts.

It's time once again for CJAM's annual Jammy awards. Once a year voting takes place so that the people that listen to CJAM can vote for their favourite shows. Voting does not take very long and it gives you a chance to have a say in what your favourite CJAM shows are. This year my show (Revolution Rock) is nominated in the Indie/Alternative/Rock Category. Show your support by voting for your favourite CJAM shows. You can vote by clicking this link.

Play List:

1. The Kinks - The Contendors
2. Booker T. - Potato Hole
3. The Sinners - In With The New
4. Spiral Scratch - Streetfighter
5. The Hippies - How You Gonna Live
6. The Regulators - What's in the City
7. The Perks - Escape
8. Blur - We've Got A File On You
9. His Mischief - Veins
10. Plunt - Boner
11. The Strange Boys - Woe is You and Me
12. Anagram - Leads To Nowhere
13. Drive Like Jehu - Luau
14. Pluto - Thirsty
15. The Subways - Holiday
16. The Subways - Oh Yeah
17. Mudhoney - Judgment, Rage, Retribution & Thyme
18. Nirvana - Very Ape
19. Japandroids - Wet Hair
20. Dirty Pretty Things - Chinese Dogs (Demo)
21. The Howlies - Sweet Denise Vs Road Rage Rhonda
22. Hater - Zombie Hand
23. Soundgarden - Ty Cobb
24. The Saints - Lipstick On Your Collar

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on March, 31st 2009.

So It Goes...The Story of Nick Lowe....Show # 241

Nick Lowe is known as a solo artist, multi-instrumentalist (guitar, bass, harmonica, piano), and record producer. He formed Brinsley Schwarz 1965 (originally they went by the name Kippington Lodge until 1968). The band would be known as pub rockers, but would also play blues rock and country music. With this group Lowe would compose some of his best known compositions, "(What's So Funny Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding", and "Cruel To Be Kind", the group would last until 1975. "(What's So Funny Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" would become a hit in the UK when it was covered by Elvis Costello & The Attractions in 1979. "Cruel To Be Kind" would be re-recorded in 1980 for a Nick Lowe solo album and become a UK charting hit as well.

Around this time Lowe began producing bands. He would produce the likes of Dr. Feelgood and Graham Parker. Since Lowe was still under contract that was signed while he was still in his pub rock band Brinsley Schwarz, Lowe composed several singles that were intended to not only flop, but get him kicked off the label. After releasing singles such as "Bay City Rollers We Love You" (which ironically did very well in Japan) and "Let's Go To the Disco", Lowe was dropped from the UA label. The music that Lowe composed around this time was also very different from his pub rock days with Brinsley Schwarz, they were more pop. After leaving UA Lowe signed to Stiff Records as an artist and their in house producer.

In 1976 Lowe released the single "So It Goes" backed with "Heart of the City". The single was seen as a proto-punk single, it did not chart well but received a lot of acclaim. In 1977 the Bowi EP was released. The four track EP's title was a joke in response to the David Bowie album Low. Lowe would also begin producing a lot of bands around this time. He did The Damned's Damned, Damned, Damned, Elvis Costello's My Aim is True, and The Rumour. Nick Lowe's early production style earned him the nick name "Basher". He was called this because the artists would bash out the song then fix it up later. If that wasn't enough he also became a member of the band Rockpile, who were Dave Edumund's touring band. They would also become Nick Lowe's backing band. After touring with the Stiff package tour, which featured Stiff Records artists, Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello left the label and went to Radar Records.

Jesus of Cool and Pure Pop For Now People (1978)

In 1978, Nick Lowe recorded his first solo album which would be titled Jesus of Cool. The album would address themes such as the greed and commercialization of music as well as how shallow pop music can be. The album featured songs such as "I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass" (# 7 on the UK singles charts), "Heart of the City", So It Goes", and "They Called it Rock". While lyrically the album contained many thought provoking and at times humorous themes, the music reflected new wave music. When the album was released in the US, it was retitled Pure Pop For Now People, and had a slightly different track listing. In 1979, Labour of Lust was released. It would contain a re-recording of a Brinsley Schwarz song "Cruel To Be Kind". The song would be Lowe's only top ten US hit. At this time Lowe would also produce The Pretenders single "Stop Your Sobbing" (which was actually a cover of a Kinks song) and marry the step daughter of Johnny Cash. He would produce two Carlene Carter albums Musical Shapes in 1980 and Blue Nun in 1981.

In 1979, since Lowe and Edmunds were still in Rockpile together, they toured together to support each others solo albums. Rockpile would be a double fronted group (by both Lowe and Edmunds), but they would only release one album under the name Rockpile. Seconds of Pleasure was released in 1980, but Rockpile would be the backing band for two Dave Edmunds solo albums (Tracks On Wax 4 and Repeat When Necessary) and on the Nick Lowe solo album Labour of Lust in 1979. In 1980 they would split up. Lowe would do another solo album in 1982 titled Nick the Knife. The album did well on the album charts in the US and the UK, but no singles charted that high. The only exception was the song "Stick It Where the Sun Don't Shine" which was a top 40 hit in Canada. After releasing one more solo album under his pop musical style format (The Abominable Snowman in 1983) he would then go into more of a country music oriented direction. In 1984 he released Nick Lowe & His Cowboy Outfit . The bands 1985 album Rose of England, produced some of Lowe's last high charting hits in the UK ("Half a Boy and Half a Man") and the US ("I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock and Roll)).

In 1986, Nick Lowe began producing other bands again. He produced Elvis Costello and The Attractions album Blood & Chocolate. He would also produce work by The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Paul Carrack, and John Hiatt. Lowe would also become a member of the studio band Little Village. This group of musicians which included Ry Cooder and Jim Keltner played as the backing band on John Hiatt's album Bring the Family. Released in 1987, the album was Hiatt's first album to chart on the Billboard 200 (it was in fact his 8th studio album). In 1992, Lowe's song "(What's So Funny Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" was covered by Curtis Stigers on the Bodyguard soundtrack. As a result Nick Lowe received a lot of financial compensation due to song writing royalties; The soundtrack sold more than 15 million copies.


In the mid 90s Lowe returned with the Country album Impossible Bird. He also toured to support this, which was his first tour in five years. In 1998, he released Dig My Mood. It received good reviews. The Convincer came in 2001, Untorched Takeaway in 2004 (it was a live album), followed by At My Age in 2007. The albums are seen as a trilogy (starting with The Convincer) in a Country/Rock music format. Lowe is now on Yep Rock Records in the US. Jesus of Cool was remastered/re-issued in 2008 with bonus tracks. In 2009 they released a double CD greatest hits collection titled Quiet Please...The New Best of Nick Lowe.


Play List:

1. The Hentchmen - Psycho Daisies
2. The Strange - East Side Crush
3. Obits - Pine On
4. Lowlife - Leader
5. Private School - I Wanna Know
6. Bureaucrats - Today & Everyday
7. Ex-Boyfriends - The Secret of Immortality
8. Nick Lowe - Heart of the City
9. Nick Lowe - When I Write the Book
10. Radiohead - Talk Show Host
11. The Slickers - You Can't Win
12. Joe Strummer - The Harder They Come
13. Flag of Convenience - Shut Out The Light
14. The Teardrops - Colours
15. Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen In Love
16. Grape Digging Sharon Fruits - Shouting At Cars
17. Supergrass - Mansize Rooster
18. Evaporators - Shakin' With the Shaggy Shaker
19. The Spys - I Wanna Be Be Like You
20. Sloan - Living With the Masses
21. Sloan - Emergency 911
22. Raconteurs - Headin' For the Texas Border (Live)
23. Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - I Wanna Be Loved
24. The Hives - No Pun Intended
25. The D4 - Exit To The City

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on March, 24th 2009.

Lowe Videos:

Heart of the City (Live 1977)
So It Goes (Live 1978)
Cruel To Be Kind (TOTP 1979)
I Love The Sound of Breaking Glass (TOTP)
Teacher, Teacher (Rockpile 1980)
I Knew The Bride (Rockpile)
(What's So Funny Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding (Live Jimmy Kimmel 2007)
Hope For Us All (Live 2007)

Justa Nother Rebel...The Outcasts Story....Show # 240

Forming in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1977, The Outcasts started out playing cover songs by bands such as The Clash, The Damned, Sex Pistols, Ramones. The band consisted of the Cowan brothers, Greg on bass/vocals, Colin on drums, and Martin on rhythm guitar and Colin Getwood on lead guitar. Initially the band had Blair Hamilton on vocals, but he left the group shorty after its original formation. The band, who apparently got their name by being turned down at numerous live venues, released their first single "Frustration" in 1978. This would in turn catch the attention of Good Vibration Records, who would release their second single "Justa Nother Rebel" in November of 1978. In 1979, Self Conscious Over You, The Outcasts first full length album was released. Just before the albums release, Gordy Blair replaced Greg Cowan on bass due to the fact that he was involved in a automobile accident and was unable to play bass. The band also got a new drummer at this time, Raymond Falls. The band would then be dropped from Good Vibration Records, but this would not stop them. The Outcasts released their next single "Magnum Force" independently on their own label GBH in 1981.

Following the "Magnum Force" release, The Outcasts had their first appearance on John Peel radio show. An EP titled Programme Love came next. In 1982, The Outcasts single "Angel Face" charted on the UK indie charts at number 21. Following this brief success the band was struck with a shock when Colin Cowan was killed in a automobile accident. Greg Cowan cited that his brother Colin was not only the person who gave the band their name, but also a key member to the band in the beginning. The band played a tribute gig shortly after this and received such a positive reaction, that they decided to carry on. The band then recorded another session for the John Peel radio show, and another album which would be titled Blood and Thunder. Released in 1983, Blood and Thunder came out on Abstract Records. The album climbed to number 20 on the UK Indie album charts. The Outcasts released a few more single and the Seven Deadly Sins album in 1984, but the band was essentially over. In 1985, The Outcasts official split and three members of the band formed another group called Time To Pray; They were only a band for one year. In 2003, Greg Cowan formed another band with other members from Irish punk bands.

Play List:

1. MC5 - Tutti Frutti
2. The Bohemians - I Need You Baby
3. The Meligrove Band - Monkey Mask
4. The Outcasts - Justa Nother Teenage Rebel
5. Undertones - One Way Love
6. Stiff Little Fingers - Gotta Get Away
7. Ruffians - I Never Will Marry
8. The Pogues - If I Should Fall From The Grace of God
9. The Wolfmen - Cecile
10. XTC - No Thugs in Our House
11. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Deanna
12. The Locust Have No King - Anna's Smoke
13. Dishrags - Bullshit
14. Active Dog - Fun While It Lasts
15. The Diodes - Time Damage
16. Cardboard Brains - Living Inside My Head
17. The Government - Zippers Of Fire
18. Talking Heads - Mind (Alternate Version)
19. The Police - No Time This Time
20. Klark Kent - Office Girls
21. The Normals - Almost Ready
22. Elvis Costello - Less Than Zero
23. Ramones - Surf City
24. Sex Pistols - Don't Give No Lip Child
25. Wire - 12 X U
26. Damned - Fanclub (Live Paris Theatre, London 1977)

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on March, 17th 2009.

Built For Speed... The Stray Cats Story...Show # 239

The Stray Cats formed in 1979. Consisting of Brian Setzer (vocals/guitar), Slim Jim Phantom (drums), and Lee Rocker on bass, the band originate from Long Island, New York. The Stray Cats were influenced by bands such as Elvis Presley, Gene Vincent, Bo Diddley, Eddie Cochran, and Chuck Berry. The music of the band was heavily influenced by 50's rock, but this did not go over well in New York. With and emerging 50's revival scene going on in the UK, The Stray Cats moved there. Along with the Teddy Boy youth subculture (which was a 50's revival scene there), The Stray Cats fit right in. Drawing all these influences the group played their rockabilly music with the energy of punk that was also emerging in the UK at this time.

While in London, the band met Dave Edmunds after a gig. Known for his work with Rockpile and for being a roots rock enthusiast, Edmunds offered to help the group record and album, they accepted. The result was Stray Cats, released in 1981 in England on Arista Records. The album was a hit. It contained three of the bands best known songs, "Stray Cat Strut" (#11 on the UK singles charts), "Rumble in Brighton", and "Rock This Town" (#9 on the UK singles charts). The album also contained "Runaway Boys", which was a hit in the UK (#9 on the UK singles charts). The band released Gonna Ball in 1981 next. The album did not do very well and was not as successful in the UK. Despite this fact, this was enough proof for EMI to sign the band in America.


Built for Speed was released in the US in 1982. The album was a combination of songs from the bands first two UK albums. The album took six tracks from Stray Cats ("Rock This Town", "Stray Cat Strut", "Rumble in Brighton", "Jennie, Jennie, Jennie", and "Double Talkin' Baby"), and five tracks from Gonna Ball ("Baby Blue Eyes", "Little Miss Prissy", "You Don't Believe Me", "Rev It Up & Go", and "Lonely Summer Nights"). The album also included the title track "Built For Speed", which at the time wasn't available in the UK. The album was a big hit in the US, "Rock This Town" went to #9 on the US singles charts, and "Stray Cat Strut" went to #3 on the US singles charts; The band also got a lot of airplay on MTV. The bands second album released in the US was Rant 'n Rave with the Stray Cats. Released in 1983, the album produced a top ten hit with the song "(She's) Sexy + 17".

In 1984 after the band had experienced their new success, tensions and conflicts built amongst band members. This would lead to the band splitting up the very same year. The band would go onto to other musical projects, but in 1986 they reformed. They recorded an album primarily consisting of cover songs called Rock Therapy. The album did not sell very well and the group would split up again going on to their previous post-Stray Cats musical projects, but it would not last long because the band would reunite yet again in 1989. They recorded the album Blast Off and supported it with a tour. The band released an album in 1990 titled Let's Go Faster (it was the bands first album not released on EMI America). In 1992, the band released Choo Choo Hot Fish, and a covers album Original Cool in 1993. The band called it quits again after this, but have reunited sporadically ever since. In 2002, Forever Gold was released, it was an album of live tracks and acoustic recordings. In 2004, Rumble in Brixton was released which was an album of live recordings taken from their 2004 European tour. The Stray Cats are an energetic exciting Rockabilly band that continue to tour.

Brian Setzer released his first solo album The Knife Feels Like Justice in 1986. In the 90's he formed The Brian Setzer Orchestra, they are a big 17 piece band who had a hit in 1998 with the song "Jump, Jive, an' Wail!". Setzer has continued to release both solo albums and Brian Setzer Orchestra albums sporadically. Other Stray Cats members have also been in other groups. Lee Rocker and Slim Jim Phantom formed the Swing Cats and have both released solo material. In addition to this Phantom also plays drums in 13 Cats, who are a rockabilly band. He has also played with the band The Head Cats, with Lemmy Kilmister (Motorhead) and Danny Harvey (13 Cats).

Songs Played This Week:

1. Them - I Can Only Give You Everything
2. The Remains - Don't Look Back
3. The Count Five - People Hear What I Say
4. The Black Lips - Take My Heart
5. The Howlies - Dirty Woman
6. The Velvet Underground - What Goes On
7. Painted Ship - Little White Lies
8. Tom Northcott Trio - Just Don't
9. 49th Parallel - You Do Things
10. Main Line - Don't Wait Around
11. The Haunted - Shake
12. Lilly Allen Featuring Mick Jones - Straight to Hell
13. The Rapture - Heaven
14. The Kooks - Victoria
15. The Kinks - Don't Ever Let Me Go
16. The Beatles - If You've Got Trouble
17. The Cramps - Garbageman
18. Vince Taylor & His Playboys - Brand New Cadillac
19. The Stray Cats - Runaway Boys
20. The Ugly Ducklings - Gaslight
21. The Gruesomes - You're Not the Boss of Me
22. The Hellacopters - Gotta Get Some Action Now!
23. The Stooges - Down On the Street
24. The 13th Floor Elevators - You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone
25. New York Dolls - Trash
26. The Pretty Things - Midnight To Six Man

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on March, 9th 2009.

Stray Cat Vidoes:

Rock This Town (Live Fridays 1981)
Baby Blue Eyes (Live Fridays 1981)
Stray Cat Strut (Live 1981)
Rumble In Brighton (Live Rockpalast 1981)
(She's) Sexy + 17
Look At That Cadillac

This Fire...The Story of Franz Ferdinand....Show # 238

Forming in Scotland in 2002, Franz Ferdinand had its beginnings amongst other bands. Alex Kapranos (who would be the lead singer/guitar in Franz) was at one point in a local Scotish group called Yummy Fur with Paul Thomson (who would play drums with Franz). The two began to write songs together and Kapranos would teach a friend (Bob Hardy) to play bass. Nick McCarthy then came into the picture. He returned to Scotland after studying classical piano and double bass. The seeds of the group began to grow and then the band named themselves after Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Franz Ferdinand is cited as a major cause for World War One. Originally the groups name was inspired by a race horse name The Archduke, after some discussion with other groups members, their conversation drifted towards the discussion of The Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The group thought that the name Franz Ferdinand sounded good and that a bands name should sound good, as should a song.

The band then rented an abandoned house where they would rehearse and have big parties celebrating music and art. In the summer of 2002, Franz Ferdinand had an EP's worth of material that they intended to be release themselves. Word of mouth spread as did the bands reputation, and in 2003 Franz Ferdinand signed to Domino Records. Darts of Pleasure was released in September of 2003 in the UK and November in Canada and the US. The EP contained three songs "Darts of Pleasure", "Van Tango", and "Shopping For Blood". The bands sound has often been described as post punk influenced. Listening to their early material an ominous Gang of Four influence is present, but the bands sound is more elaborate than that. They also draw in influences from David Bowie, Joy Division, The Fall, Talking Heads, Sparks, The Kinks, Buzzcocks, and electronic music.


In 2004, Franz Ferdinand released their first self titled album. The album was recorded in Malmo, Sweden with producer Tore Johansson (The Cardigans). "Take Me Out" did very well in the UK (#3 on the singles charts) and was one of the first singles to be featured from the album. Other singles from Franz Ferdinand were "This Fire", and "The Dark of the Matinee". Other interesting tracks include "Jacqueline", "Auf Achse", "Cheating On You", and 40". The album received high critical acclaim and eventually climbed the US Billboard charts. Franz Ferdinand incorporated intelligent literary topics into their music along with the music itself to create a unique, catchy combination of words and music. The band also has an art element to their music. Their videos have displayed this as well as their album artwork, which often reflects Russian Avant-garde imagery. Critics have gone on to say that Franz Ferdinand has the same feel as albums from bands such as The Beatles, Roxy Music, Wire, Blur, The Who, Duran Duran who all started bands influenced by art school. The album has since then gone on to sell over 3 million world wide.

In 2005, Franz Ferdinand released their second album You Could Have it So Much Better. Produced with Rich Costley at the bands own studio in Glasgow, the album took on more of a rock based influence as opposed to the bands first album which had elements of disco within the music. The first single "Do You Want To" was more reminiscent of the bands earlier sound, while the bands second single "Walk Away" was a more morose track. "The Fallen" was a song that is a good representation of the album, loud fast, and catchy. Other great tracks on the album include "This Boy", "Evil and A Heathen", and "You're the Reason I'm Leaving". Apparently the song is believed to be about a rivalry between former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and the current UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The album is a personal favourite of mine, it definitely takes on a 70s punk/post punk influence. The album debuted at #1 on the UK album charts and in top ten all over the world. The album was not only the first number one for the band, but also for Domino Records. The album art for this album reflects the artwork of Russian Avant-garde photographer Alexander Rodchenko.

After a long tour and a break the band reconvened to begin work on their third album. The band had material written in 2005 in preparation for their next album, but scrapped the songs because Kapranos wanted the band to take their time and develop the songs more. Beginning in 2007, Franz Ferdinand worked on material for what to was become Tonight. They worked with producer Dan Carey (initially the band was going to work with producer Brian Higgins before switching to Carey). The album was released in January of 2009 and all of the songs are based loosely, around the concept of a night of partying and the morning after. The first single from the album was the song "Ulysses". The song is apparently about someone who is lost (it also draws upon the literary reference to the story by James Joyce titled Ulysses). Other interesting tracks include "Turn it On", "Bite Hard", "Lucid Dreams", "What She Came For", No You Girls", and "Kiss Me Katherine". The album draws more on the bands earlier sound, bringing in elements of electronica, dub/reggae, 80's synthesizer music. The album debuted in the top ten on album charts across the world and was well received by critics and fans of the band. The album artwork was made to look like crime scene photos and comes off having a very Berlin-era David Bowie vibe.

Franz Ferdinand are a band that mix musical influences of post punk, 70s punk, disco, electronica, dance, indie rock, and elements of art into their music. They currently have touring plans which has included the Glastonbury Festival and Coachella music festival.

The Play List:

1. Beck - Leopard Skin Pill-Box Hat
2. Polymorphines - Call of the Sparrow
3. The Perms - As You Were
4. Chuck Berry - Beautiful Delilah
5. James Brown - I'll Never Let You Go
6. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - Get Ready
7. REM - See No Evil
8. Hot Nasties - This is Unlove
9. Ride Theory - Parking Ticket
10. Mink Devile - She's So Tough
11. Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Going Going Gone (Time Version)
12. The Real Kids - All Kindsa Girls
13. The Tighe Brothers Band - Thinking Too Much
14. The Mark Inside - Carousel
15. The Marble Index - We Can Make It
16. Hairspray - The Ridge
17. Dum Dum Boys - Let There Be Noise
18. White Stripes - Jolene
19. The Steps - Cold Floors
20. Von Bondies - Shut Your Mouth
21. Franz Ferdinand - Call Me
22. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Sheena is A Punk Rocker
23. Franz Ferdinand - Send Him Away
24. Franz Ferdinand - Turn it On

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on March, 3rd 2009.

Franz Videos:

Take Me Out
Darts of Pleasure
Michael
The Dark of the Matinee
The Fallen
Walk Away
Eleanor Put Your Boots On
Do You Want To
Ulysses

Surfari's Stomp. The Story of The Surfari's....Show # 237 (Surf Show)

Known as the band that created the surf anthem "Wipe Out," The Surfaris formed in Glendora, California in 1962. The band was originally made up of Jim Fuller (lead guitar), Bob Berryhill (rhythm guitar), Pat Connolly (bass), and Ron Wilson on drums. After one of their first recording sessions (one that produced "Wipe Out" the song "Surfer Joe"), Jim Pash was added to their ranks as a saxophone player. Ken Forsai would also play bass for the group, as would Jack Oldham from 1966-1967. The Surfaris wrote "Wipe Out" in 1963, their biggest and well known song in the studio on the spot. It was an instrumental song that was composed by the original four members of the group and at first was going to be titled "Switchblade". The drumming in the song is seen as an energetic and well known drum solo performance by Ron Wilson. The song went to # 2 on the music charts. The B-side of "Wipe Out" was a song titled "I'm A Hog For You Baby," which has been covered by The Kinks and can be found on their Picture Book box set. The single that followed "Wipe Out," was "Point Panic," which did not do as well chart wise. The Surfaris recorded a number of albums, but by 1966 they broke up. Although they have broken up, The Surfaris have reunited on more than one occasion and as of 2008, are still playing with a slightly different line up.

As a bonus, Greg of the band The New Waves has made his song Macabre Surf" available for download via his website, The Ugly Vision. The song was composed by Greg himself, and is definitely a track worth checking out.

Surf Play List:

1. The Squiers - The Sultan
2. The Beach Boys - Heads You Win, Tails I Lose
3. The Gamblers - Moon Dawg!
4. The Tornadoes - Bustin' Surfboards
5. Fabulous Playboys - Cheater Stomp
6. Richard Allen - The Rising Surf
7. Burnin' Sands - Typhoon
8. Reverb Syndicate - Lunar Attack
9. The Eradicators - Friends & Enemies
10. The Robots - Robots Rock
11. Ramontures - She's The One
12. Surf Punks - My Beach
13. Surfdusters - Save the Waves
14. Phantom Surf - Banzi Run
15. Rotations - Heavies
16. Snow Men - Ski Storm
17. Fender IV - Malibu Run
18. Mongols - Nautoloid Surf
19. Astronauts - Montezuma
20. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet - Bennet Cerf
21. The Treblemakers - The Grudge
22. Atomic 7- Phantom 101
23. The New Waves - Macabre Surf
24. Modelos - Tidal Wave
25. The Wipeouters - Rocket Full of Power
26. Los Straitjackets - Calhoun Surf
27. Surfaris - Point Panic
28. Surfaris - I'm A Hog For You Baby
29. Jack Nitzsche - The Lonely Surfer
30. Dick Dale & His Deltones - The Victor
31. The Ventures - The 2000 Pound Bee (Parts 1 & 2)

This Is Radio Clash...The Clash Special Part Two (1980-1985)...Show # 236

This week I did part two of my special on the UK band The Clash. This weeks show focused on the later stages of the band from 1980-1985. In 2007, I did an extensive history on the Clash for this blog. The following links are to my three part history on the band:

All The Young Punks: Story of The Clash Part One
Revolution Rock: The Story of The Clash Part Two
Ghetto Defendants: The Story of The Clash Part Three

Here is an interesting interview and some performances that The Clash did in 1981 for the Tom Synder Show. This was just after the release of Sandinista! and during the Bond's concerts that the band did in New York.







Clash Play List Part II (1980-1985):


1. The Magnificent Seven (Sandinista! 1980)
2. The Leader (Sandinista! 1980)
3. Rebel Waltz (Sandinista! 1980)
4. Louie Louie (Sandinista! Outtake 1980)
5. Know Your Rights (Combat Rock 1982)
6. Overpowered By Funk (Combat Rock 1982)
7. The Beautiful People Are Ugly Too (Rat Patrol From Fort Bragg 1982)
8. Radio Clash (This Is Radio Clash Single 1981)
9. Midnight To Stevens (Clash On Broadway 1991)
10. The Call Up (Sandinista! 1980)
11. This is England (Cut The Crap 1985)
12. Somebody Got Murdered (Sandinista! 1980)
13. Sound of the Sinners (Live US Festival 1983)
14. Bankrobber (Live At Bonds 1981)
15. Charlie Don't Surf (Sandinista! 1980)
16. Police On My Back (Live at Shea Stadium 1982)
17. Should I Stay or Should I Go (Alternate Version) (Rat Patrol From Fort Bragg 1982)
18. Straight To Hell (Combat Rock 1982)

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on February, 16th 2009. Part one of my Clash special can be found here:
Clash Special (1976-1979)


Next week will be my third annual surf show, it will also be my final themed show for the month of February. If there is anything you would like to hear, leave a comment so I can play it on next week's show.

Clash City Rockers ...The Clash Special 1976-1979...Show #235

This week I did part one of my special on the UK band The Clash. This weeks show focused on the early stages of the band from 1976-1979. I played recordings that were released or originally recorded between the time frame of 1976-1979. So for example, I played "London Calling" Live at Shea Stadium, but the song was originally recored in 1979. In 2007, I did an extensive history on the Clash for this blog. The following links are to my three part history on the band:

All The Young Punks: Story of The Clash Part One
Revolution Rock: The Story of The Clash Part Two
Ghetto Defendants: The Story of The Clash Part Three

As a bonus, I found an interesting article that Clash guitarist Mick Jones did for Gibson guitars in 2007. He discusses his musical influences, the beginning and end of The Clash, and his guitar gear. A very interesting read:

From the Archives: Stay Free: The Gibson Interview with Mick Jones of the Clash!

Clash Play List (1976-1979):

1. London Calling (Live At Shea Stadium 1982)
2. 1977 (The Clash 1979)
3. Tommy Gun (Give'Em Enough Rope 1978)
4. Jail Guitar Doors (The Clash 1979)
5. White Riot (The Clash 1977)
6. Deadly Serious (Live 1976)
7. City of the Dead (From Here To Eternity 1999)
8. Hateful (London Calling 1979)
9. One Emotion (Clash On Broadway 1991)
10. Safe European Home (Give'Em Enough Rope 1978)
11. (Whiteman) In Hammersmith Palais (The Clash 1979)
12. The Man in Me (London Calling: 25th Anniversary: The Vanilla Tapes 2004)
13. Oh Lonesome Me (London Calling: 25th Anniversary: The Vanilla Tapes 2004)
14. Stay Free (Give'Em Enough Rope 1978)
15. Spanish Bombs (London Calling 1979)
16. Koka Kola (London Calling 1979)
17. Janie Jones (The Clash 1977)
18. Remote Control (The Clash 1977)
19. I'm So Bored With the USA (The Clash 1977)
20. Career Opportunities (The Clash 1977)
21. Police & Thieves (The Clash 1979)
22. Guns of Brixton (Live NYC Palladium 1979)
23. I'm Not Down (London Calling 1979)
24. Capital Radio Two (Cost of Living EP 1979)

To download this week's show visit the CJAM archives and select the files 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM on February, 10th 2009.

Part two of my Clash Special can be found int he link below:
The Clash (1980-1985)