Joe Strummer Day 2023: The Music of Shane MacGowan & The Pogues (Show # 1018)

On November 30th, 2023, Irish singer/songwriter Shane MacGowan passed. Known as the lead vocalist and primary songwriter in The Pogues, the music they made drew on traditional Irish Celtic music that when combined with the energy and attitude of punk became its own thing. Some call it Celtic punk, but if anything it was a fresh take that took from the influences of Irish music of the past and when combined with MacGowan’s lyrical prowess created something new.

Born on Christmas Day 1957 in Kent, England to Irish parents, MacGowan began reading literature at a young age. He spent the early days of his childhood in Tipperary, Ireland being surrounded by family and Irish culture. By age eleven he was devouring works by authors such as James Joyce, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Samuel Beckett, Brendan Behan, to name a few. He won the Daily Mirror children’s literary award at age 13. He was also deeply fascinated by music. Music and literature would be forever linked for MacGowan. He arrived back in London just as the punk scene was starting as a teen, becoming a regular of shows by bands such as Sex Pistols and The Clash. He also started his own fanzine called Bondage published in 1976. Shortly after this he was in his own punk band that went by the name The Nipple Erectors and later The Nips with Shanne Bradley. He went under the alias Shane O’Hooligan. Despite being in this band and having some good songs, he quickly developed an interest in a band drawing on traditional Irish music upon seeing an early group that featured future Pogues members Spider Stacy and Jem Finer.

As the band’s popularity grew in London, it was apparent that MacGowan had a gift for lyrics, which are often called poetic. The way that some songs evoke feeling and meaning whether it’s the anti-war song that is also tied in with themes of regret and lost love “A Pair of Brown Eyes,” to songs such as “Dark Streets of London,” “A Rainy Night in Soho,” “Sally MacLennane” “Turkish Song of the Damned,” “Summer in Siam” or covers such as the vivid, yet dusty and grimy vignettes in “Dirty Old Town,” to name a few, showcase a range of depth that is not present in a lot of music. After the release of Red Roses For Me in 1984, Rum, Sodomy & The Lash followed in 1985. Produced by Elvis Costello, this is often viewed as an album where MacGowan’s songs really came into their own.

If I Should Fall From Grace With God from 1988 was their third full-length that featured their best-known song “Fairytale of New York.” The song itself took two years to complete, but was written by MacGowan and Jem Finer. This gritty, festive Christmas classic is unconventional and melancholic, but honest. Written as a duet, the song didn’t really click until Kristy MacColl was added as the guest vocalist on the track. The song reached number two on the UK Singles Charts in 1987 and number one in Ireland, but has climbed the charts every year since 2005 around the holidays. Many view this song as a masterpiece and it is hard to argue with its uncompromising, yet heart-warming spirit. MacGowan and The Pogues parted ways after the Joe Strummer produced album Hell’s Ditch in 1990. Shane would go on to play with Shane MacGowan & The Popes, releasing two albums (The Snake (1994) and Crock of Gold (1997)). MacGowan and The Pogues did reunite for live shows at different times between 2001-2014.

The music MacGowan created with The Pogues and afterwards, spoke to outsiders, marginalized people and those that felt left behind. It has a complexity and depth that yearned for something simpler, despite the complications of the present. The songs still do this and will many years from now when people will still sing songs of times long gone.

JSD 2023 Playlist: The Music of Shane MacGowan & The Pogues (Originally Aired December 22nd, 2023):

1.  The Nipple Erectors - King of the Bop (Bops, Babes, Booze & Bovver - Big Beat Records/Soho Records - 1987)
2.  The Pogues - Streams of Whiskey (Red Roses for Me - Stiff Records - 1984)
3.  The Pogues - A Pair of Brown Eyes (Rum, Sodomy & The Lash - Stiff Records - 1985)
4.  The Pogues - Body of an American (Poguetry in Motion EP - Stiff Records - 1986)
5.  The Pogues - Turkish Song of the Damned (If I Should Fall From Grace with God - Pogue Mahone Records/Island Records - 1988)
6.  The Pogues - White City (Peace and Love - Island Records - 1989)
7.  The Pogues - Lorca's Novena (Hell's Ditch - Island Records - 1990)
8.  Shane MacGowan & The Popes-  Come to Bower (Crock of Gold - ZTT - 1997)
9.  The Pogues - Dirty Old Town (Rum, Sodomy & The Lash - Stiff Records - 1985)
10. The Pogues - Boys from the County Hell (BBC Session) (The BBC Sessions 1984-1986
11. The Pogues - Rake at the Gates of Hell (Straight to Hell Soundtrack
12. The Pogues - Fairy Tale of New York (2nd Demo) (Just Look Them Straight in the Eye and Say... Poguemahone! - Rhino Records - 2008)
13. The Pogues - Waxie's Dargle (Red Roses for Me - Stiff Records - 1984)
14. The Pogues - If I Should Fall Grace with God (If I Should Fall From Grace with God - Pogue Mahone Records/Island Records - 1988)
15. The Pogues (With Joe Strummer) - Rain Street (Live) (The Pogues with Joe Strummer - Live in London - Rhino Records - 2014)
16. Shane MacGowan & the Popes - Haunted (featuring Sinead O'Connor) (The Snake - ZTT - 1994)
17. The Dubliners (with The Pogues) - The Irish Rover (25 Years Celebration - Harmac - 1987)
18. Ronnie Drew - The Dunes The Humour is On Me Now
19. The Pogues - The Auld Triangle (Red Roses for Me - Stiff Records - 1984)
20. The Pogues - A Rainy Night in Soho (Poguetry in Motion EP - Stiff Records - 1986)
21. The Pogues - Sally MacLennane (Rum, Sodomy & The Lash - Stiff Records - 1985)

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the December 23 file to download/stream the episode. 

Please note an encore edition of this episode aired on December 23rd, 2023.

2023 Album Highlights & Shows 1017, 1016, 1014

For our annual albums of the year episodes, Revolution Rock once again did not rank any of the albums with any specific number. The following selections for the two episodes posted here feature a mix of albums from 2023 in no specific order, but all of them were albums that we enjoyed. Below you will also find four write-ups from albums that were released in 2023. Following these words are playlists and download/listening links to two episodes featuring music released in 2023.

Psychic Void – Cemetery Eyes

Described as psych punk, mixing in elements of 80s hardcore, punk and psychedelia, Cemetery Eyes is the third full-length album from Windsor, Ontario’s Psychic Void. Picking up where 2019’s Skeleton Paradise left off, guitarist Josh Kaiser, bassist Matt Menard and drummer Sean Carpenter add more grit to their sound as Jesse Knight’s vocals bring another element to the music tapping into themes of paranoia, the surreal, authority, brat boys and existential emptiness. Recorded and produced by guitarist Josh Kaiser, Cemetery Eyes is just eight tracks long and was self-released on cassette/digitally. 

“In My Head” starts Cemetery Eyes off with fuzzy guitar and bass that sound both like hardcore punk and the burnt out sounds of Goggs. Driving drums and bass propel this track as vocalist Jesse Knight howls throughout adding even more atmosphere to this opening scuzzy track before “Wash It Down” begins. Psych driven garage riffs drift overtop of floating drums and deep cutting baselines as lyrics “This very strange world’s got you feeling like you’re stuck in a rut/Rock in your head/ They keep coming for you, man” taps into a world of paranoia and lack of thought. “Something Sweet” features lyrics such as “I’m dancing every night while I laugh in the dark/be better to yourself/ That’s a good place to start” and the chorus of “So let the poison hit my tongue/It’s what I need to have some fun” that conjures euphoric existential themes in between an overall grimy psych punk groove, “Back 2 Reality” is a faster track featuring intense guitar and bass riffs, punk drums that brings scuzzy hardcore punk influences, “Brat Boy” ignites punk and fiery psych vibes with character driven lyrics about a bratty kid that can’t seem to break bad habits, “The Man” features venomous socially critical lyrics and punk saturated tempos, while synth wave and horror punk dominate “Hear Me Out” and the haunting title track. Cemetery Eyes delivers grittier psych punk sounds and an introspective look that reveals the cracks in our modern world of malaise that is hard to escape.

Mononegatives – Crossing Visual Field

Crossing Visual Field is the second full-length album by London, Ontario’s Mononegatives. Their sound has been described as “raw punk meets new wave” and with 2021’s fast selling and critically acclaimed Apparatus Division, Mononegatives set themselves apart as a band experimenting with the punk meets new wave genre. Featuring Rob Brake on guitar/synth/vocals, Aaron Wallis bass and David Cereghini on drums, Crossing Visual Field was recorded once again with producer Preston Lobzun, but this time at a home studio in Scarborough. The band spent two years writing, recording and preparing for this record. With extra sonic details this time around, Crossing Visual Field brings a new atmosphere and broader scope to Mononegatives previous anxious nervous energy dynamic.

“North Carolina Atomic Bomb” was the lead off single for this album. Described as an atmospheric dark synth-wave track, this song features what sounds like a malfunctioning synthesizer, buzzing bass and crunchy guitar sounds tuning into an almost post punk electronic frequency as Brake sings lines such as “Splitting an atom/Flicking a switch,” “Frequencies shifting frequently” and “A clock moving backwards/The world spins in reverse/Never a moment/You can afford to waste” describing a wasteland of the future and technological ruin. The way the song is executed here is tense, restless and sounds like it is about to implode at any minute. Living in the Future” is a bass and midi-sounding synthesizer driving track with lyrics that convey a post-apocalyptic world, while “Deficit” ends Crossing Visual Field. The post punk/garage track with a thought provoking chorus of “Tomorrow is hand to mouth” leaves open a bleak, yet fragmented outcome between the apocalyptic worlds described throughout this album and our modern day dystopia. With Crossing Visual Field, Mononegatives combine elements of post punk, synth rock, punk, garage and the lo-fi genre into its own thing. With a deeper sense of complexity and experimentation, themes of distant and not so distant dystopias, nuclear paranoia and the apocalypse, all wrap around a new sense of atmosphere and musical structure. The songs found here are not just one thing, but many things at once. They are a bit cryptic and can elicit different meanings on repeat listens. Crossing Visual Field brings Mononegatives into a new focus as they travel across different sonic landscapes.

Ghost Woman – Anne, If

Ghost Woman’s Anne, If was released in January 2023 on the Full Time Hobby label. Following 2022’s critically acclaimed self-titled debut, Anne, If picks up where that album left off. The music was written/recorded/performed by multi-instrumentalist Evan Uschenko on a Tascam 388 tape recorder in a large, expansive house. The press release states that when recording the album there was not much to do “except record music, watch old VHS movies, and cook meals over an open fire in the backyard.” Recording songs at different times of day also influenced the sounds and nuances present on Anne, If. Influences such as songs from 60s garage Nuggets compilation, The Byrds, Jefferson Airplane, Love, Safe As Milk-era Captain Beefheart, Can, Neu!, and 60s Kinks/The Creation all float around in the musical atmosphere of these songs, however, these all add to the chemistry of the songs to expand Ghost Woman’s sound.

“3 Weeks Straight” features 60s sounding guitars, heavy drums and deep bass grooves hold down the beat, while lyrically the song searches for meaning in the complex glow of the light and darkness of a relationship. The chorus of “I can feel you under my skin” creeps and crawls with an eeriness emphasizing a presence that is omnipresent. “Anne, If” pulls from the large pool of garage psych sounds of the Nuggets compilation with a touch of The Yardbirds as lyrically, “Anne, if you're lonely/Listen to your words/There's nothing I can say/Living yesterday” deals with nostalgic complications that are hard to break free of, while the chorus juxtaposes this with the words “I am yours/I am yours too.” “Tripped” features vocals by Nick Hay (the bassist from the Ghost Woman live band) that evoke a Mark Lanegan howl as the bass, guitar, drums and background harmonies (all supplied by Evan Uschenko) offer a hypnotic psychedelia groove. The lyrics conjure up themes of haunting isolation and contemplation. On Anne, If we are presented with music that was described as being created during a “strange new chapter” in Uschenko’s life. The songs that we gravitate towards on this album feature lyrics that are sometimes cryptic and open ended. It is something that travels with you after and during each listen. If this was a strange new chapter for Uschenko, then we are also a part of it by extension of this album. With Anne, If the music is saturated with an analog warmth and feel that provides nuanced musical moments that pull you into the world that it creates.

Ghost Woman - Hindsight is 50/50

At the end of November 2023, Ghost Woman released their 3rd full-length album and second release in 2023. Hindsight is 50/50 changes up the dynamics of the first two Ghost Woman albums, which were recorded on 4 tracks by Evan Uschenko, who also performed all the instrumentation with the exception of a few tracks. This album as Uschenko stated in press releases “is meant to be played live.” Ghost Woman seems to have had a relentless touring schedule, but that seems to have benefited this album greatly. Adding drummer and co-songwriter Ille van Dessel into the mix, the songs take on a more live spontaneous direction. There are heavy guitar tones and drums throughout the record with bass looming in the background and lyrics that are a bit cryptic once again, but the mood and atmosphere of these tracks cut deep with reverb and heavier psychedelic grooves. 

Although Uschenko has stated “Vocals are not important. We prefer to not be understood. If you’re looking for meaning in these lyrics, might I suggest buying a Lenny Bruce record instead?” the lyrics and songs evoke a meaning and arrive on edge with the music found here. “Alright, Alright” features psych guitar lines loaded with reverb as drums and tambourine add to the groove and twang while hazy lyrics such as “Take a little walk with me/Just a look inside/It might even set you free/I won't lie” that seem to either be searching for something in the dark sonic tones here, or just emphasizing a feeling, “Highly Unlikely” is intense and arrives with some blues textures as lyrics tangle in another layer of subtle complexity, “Otessa” is a faster track featuring heavy drums and abstract vocals from van Dessel and Uschenko’s tense, psychedelic guitar work, “Yoko” swaggers as it builds up to an erupting moment of blistering guitars and drums, “Juan” with its atmospheric guitar parts, solid yet characterized drumbeats and cryptic catchy choruses captures the essence of the band, while the title track simmers in the darker noisier textures. On Hindsight is 50/50, Ghost Woman develop a sound that is complex, yet simple that is layered in different psychedelic and garage inspired tones with no need for evaluation of past efforts. In this new band dynamic, Ghost Woman find themselves. 

  

Show 1017 Playlist (Originally Aired On December 16th, 2023) (Albums of 2023 Part Two):

1.  Spiderbite - Human Body Human Brain (The Rainbow and The Dove - You've Changed Records - 2023)
2.  Golden Shitters - I Don’t Wanna Go to the Mall (Golden Shitters - Memorable But Not Honorable Records - 2023)
3.  The Hives - Countdown to Shutdown (The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons - Disques Hives - 2023)
4.  Dion Lunadon - I Don’t Mind (Systems Edge - In the Red Records - 2023)
5.  Protomartyr - Make Way (Formal Growth in the Desert - Domino Records - 2023)
6.  Joanna Sternberg - People Are Toys to You (I've Got Me - Fat Possum Records - 2023)
7.  Shana Cleveland - Bonanza Freeze (Manzanita - Hardly Art - 2023)
8.  PJ Harvey - Autumn Term (I Inside the Old Year Dying - Partisan Records - 2023)
9.  Mitski - The Frost (The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We - Dead Oceans - 2023)
10. The Clientele - Lady Grey (I Am Not There Anymore - Merge Records - 2023)
11. Autogramm - Plastic Punks (Music That Humans Can Play - Stomp Records - 2023)
12. La Securite - Hot Topic (Stay Safe! - Mothland - 2023)
13. Priors - Daffodil (Daffodil - Mothland - 2023)
14. Mononegatives - North Carolina Atomic Bomb (Crossing Visual Field - Dowd Records - 2023)
15. Osees - Blank Chems (Intercepted Message - In the Red Records - 2023)
16. Teke::Teke - Gotoku Lemon (Hagata - Kill Rock Stars - 2023)
17. Water From Your Eyes - True Life (Everyone's Crushed - Matador Records - 2023)
18. feeble little horse - Steamroller (Girl With Fish - Saddle Creek - 2023)
19. Horse Chops - Comely Girl, Machine Operator (Horse Chops EP - 2023)
20. Sonny & The Sunsets - Waiting (Self Awareness Through Macrame - Rocks In Your Head Records - 2023)
21. Wilco - Cousin (Cousin - dBpm - 2023)
22. Cat Clyde - Mystic Light (Down Rounder - SecondPrize Records - 2023)
23. Colter Wall - Little Songs (Little Songs - La Honda/RCA - 2023)
24. A.Savage - Out of Focus (Several Songs About Fire - Rough Trade - 2023)
25. Galen & Paul - Lonely Town (Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day? - Sony Music - 2023)
26. Ghost Woman - 3 Weeks Straight (Anne, If - Full Time Hobby - 2023)
27. Ghost Woman - Juan (Hindsight is 50/50 - Full Time Hobby - 2023)
28. Galen & Paul - Room at the Top (Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day? - Sony Music - 2023)

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the December 16 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1016 Playlist (Originally Aired On December 9th, 2023) (Albums of 2023 Part One):

1.  Tough Age - Scattered (Waiting Here - We Are Time - 2023)
2.  Sweeping Promises - Shadow Me (Good Living is Coming For You - Feel It Records - 2023)
3.  Hotline TNT - Stump (Cartwheel - Third Man Records - 2023)
4.  Yo La Tengo - Until It Happens (This Stupid World - Matador Records - 2023)
5.  Private Lives - Anything For Love (Hit Record - Feel It Records - 2023)
6.  The Routes - Lipstick (Reverberation Addict - Topsy Turvy Records - 2023
7.  Bloodshot Bill - Guess What (Psyche-O-Billy - Goner Records - 2023)
8.  Mudhoney - Little Dogs (Plastic Eternity - Sub Pop Records - 2023)
9.  King Khan - Sliver of Silver (The Nature of Things - Khannibalism/Ernest Jenning Record Co. - 2023)
10. Uh Uh - Citrus Song (Uh Huh - Telephone Explosion - 2023)
11. Marnie Stern - Plain Speak (The Comeback Kid - Joyful Noise - 2023)
12. Boygenius - $20 (The Record - Interscope - 2023)
13. Wednesday - Quarry (Rat Saw God - Dead Oceans - 2023)
14. Packs - Abalone (Crispy Crunchy Nothing - Fire Talk - 2023)
15. Moonwalks - Cherry Shade (Western Mystery Tradition - Fuzz Club Records - 2023)
16. The CIA - Inhale Exhale (Surgery Channel - In the Red Records - 2023)
17. Model/Actriz - Mosquito (Dogsbody - True Panther Sounds - 2023)
18. Ron Gallo - At Least I’m Dancing (Foreground Music - Kill Rock Stars - 2023)
19. Sparklehorse - It Will Never Stop (Bird Machine - Anti- - 2023)
20. Jeff Rosenstock - 3 Summers (Hellmode - Polyvinyl Record Co. - 2023)
21. Tommy Stinson’s Cowboys in the Campfire - Dream (Tommy Stinson's Cowboys in the Campfire - Done To Death Music, Inc. - 2023)
22. Tea Leaves - Fare Thee Well (Whistlin' Past the Graveyard - 2023)
23. Bry Webb - I Can’t See You (Run With Me - Indee Fix - 2023)
24. Tunic - Sounds Repeat (Wrong Dream - Artofact Records - 2023)

25. Psychic Void - The Man  (Cemetery Eyes - 2023)

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the December 9 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1014 Playlist (Originally Aired On November 25th, 2023) (The Minutemen, The Falls, The Chills, The Beatles, Bog Moss, The Bug Club, James Brown):

1.  The Minutemen - Little Man with a Gun in His Hand 
2.  The Fall - I Feel Voxish 
3.  Ghost Woman - Ottessa 
4.  U.S. Girls - 28 Days (Live) 
5.  The Routes - What Do I Get 
6.  The Bug Club - Marriage 
7.  Susans - Hands 
8.  Bog Moss - Candle Magick 
9.  Dion Lunadon - Rocks On 
10.  The Beatles - Not A Second Time 
11. The Beatles - All I’ve Got to Do 
12. Bentwood Rock - It Won’t Be Long 
13. Jaime Vernon - I Saw Her Standing There 
14. Guided By Voices - The Race is On, The King Is Dead 
15. Paige Drobot - Alright 
16. Hippie Hourrah - Les Murs 
17. The Chills - Wet Blanket 
18. The Chills - I Think I’d Thought I’d Nothing Else To Think About 
19. Dear Vandal - A Ripple in the Pond 
20. Brainrust - Schizoid Embolism 
21. Autogramm - Born Losers 
22. Native Cats - My Risks is My Art 
23. The Fruit Tones - MSG 
24. Bloodshot Bill - Tell Me To Go 
25. James Brown - Stone to the Bone 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the November 25 file to download/stream the episode. 

For those keeping track, Show 1015, which aired on December 2nd was a rerun of episode 1014 from the week before. You can find that playlist and download/stream link to the episode in this post. 

CJAM 40th Anniversary Pledge Drive and Archive Compilation Album & Shows # 1013, 1011, 1010, 1009

This November CJAM geared up to celebrate its 40th anniversary with their annual pledge drive and some events! 40 years of broadcasting and making sonic connections in the Windsor/Detroit area. A lot has changed since 1983, but one thing that hasn’t changed is CJAM providing a voice and content for the community and public as a whole that wouldn’t otherwise be heard. Whether it is obscure punk, hardcore tracks, indie rock, world music, jazz, soul, electronic music or everything in-between and beyond that CJAM has it and is highlighting it in some fashion. To celebrate this event CJAM held several events in the community ending off the pledge drive on November 18th with a party featuring live performances and a live broadcast from Art Windsor Essex. 

But, if you didn’t get a chance there’s still time to support CJAM FM. We offer some great incentives as a thank you for your support for non-profit, listener-supported radio. Whether you listen online through our archives, stream from our website or listen on the FM dial CJAM is here to provide with content you won’t hear anywhere else. Music, spoken word programming, exclusive interviews, a different perspective and more.

WAYS TO DONATE!

DONATION INCENTIVES:

$5 – CJAM Sticker
Various designs including 2023 Pledge Drive “CJAM 40 Years on FM” sticker done by longtime CJAM collaborator Greg Maxwell (@theuglyvision)

$20 – Music Prize Pack
Receive great music & band merch from the CJAM prize room

$25 – CJAM Live off the Floor: 2006 to 2023 (Cassette w/ zine)
A selection of recordings made in CJAM studios from 2006 the present. PLUS a zine with pictures and write-ups from the featured artists. Designed by Rosina Riccardo

*Digital available via Bandcamp

$30 - CJAM Coffee Mug “40 Years on FM”
Design done by friend of CJAM Greg Maxwell (@theuglyvision)

$50 – 2023 CJAM T-Shirt
Restock of 2023 T-Shirts “The Jamming One” in black and maroon. Design by Kristina Bradt (@krizzlepie)

$100 incentive – Ultimate Gift Pack
2023 t-shirt, music prize pack AND coffee mug - also pick and choose! (Swap CJAM comp and two stickers for the coffee mug, for example)

PATREON (new this year!)
This year for pledge drive we've started a patreon for listeners who want to support the station monthly for some perks! Direct people to http://patreon.com/cjamfm

Donation and merch site: https://cjam-merch.square.site or www.cjam.ca

There will be an option to pick up their incentive OR have it shipped!

C JAM Live off the Floor II: 2006 to 2023

I also wanted to talk a bit the compilation that CJAM FM has available this year. We have a limited edition compilation featuring recordings made in the CJAM studios from the past 17 years covering the years 2006-2023. Currently available as a pre-order, these are one of a kind performances that were done specifically for the station and you won’t be able to get anywhere else. There are performances here from artists such as Danny Kroha (of The Gories), By Divine Right, Shotgun Jimmie, Psychic Void, Steph Copeland, What Seas What Shores, The Locusts Have No King, Raised By Weeds (an early band featuring musician Paul Jacobs), Barzin and more! Twenty different artists and if that isn’t enough it is coming out on limited edition cassette (w/download code) and a zine that features each artist commenting on the song and performance featured in this set.

You can get this with the zine for $25 (as mentioned above) and support CJAM FM in the process. It is also available digitally via bandcamp.

Listen to some tracks here and save on shipping by ordering from:

 https://cjam-merch.square.site

 https://cjam-merch.square.site

 https://cjam-merch.square.site

Show 1013 (Originally Aired On November 11th, 2023) (CJAM Pledge Drive Episode)

1.  Shotgun Jimmie - Hot Pots (Live at CJAM)

2.  The Bug Club - Only in Love

3.  Trophy Knife - Class Outside
4.  Olivia Jean - Orinoco Flow
5.  The Hives - The Way the Story Goes
6.  Brainrust - Pacing
7.  Corey Hanson - Housefly
8.  Ducks Ltd. - The Main Thing
9.  Elliott Brood - Stars Align
10. Mountain Goats - Murder at the 18th St. Garage
11. Marnie Stern - Oh They Are
12. The Who - Bell Boy
13. Roxy Music - Amazona
14. Bruce Springsteen - The E-Street Shuffle
15. The Zeros - Getting Nowhere Fast
16. The Cigarettes - Surrender
17. Autogramm - Plastic Punks
18. Teenage Art Scene - Crystal
19. Hotline TNT - Out of Town
20. Bog Moss - Doesn’t Matter
21. The Golden Shitters - In the Green
22. Psychic Void - Back 2 Reality

23. Huron Lines - Bad Idea 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the November 11 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1011 (Originally Aired On October 28th, 2023) (Halloween Episode)

1.  Tony and the Monstrosities - Igor’s Party 
2.  Carlos Casel Jr. - Don’t Meet Mr. Frankenstein
3.  The Five Blobs - The Blob Theme 
4.  The Kac-Ties - Mr. Werewolf 
5.  Lord Luther - Teenage Creature 
6.  Bloodshot Bill - Dracula’s Castle 
7.  Bloodshot Bill - Horror Movies on TV 
8.  The Supraphonics! Ft. Bloodshot Bill - Le Monstre Mash 
9.  45 Grave - Surf Bat 
10. The Mummies - Red Cobra No. 9 
11. The Spaceshits - I’m Dead 
12. Forbidden Dimension - A Cold and Lonely Evil 
13. Shana Cleveland - Evil Eye 
14. Beck - Satan Gave Me A Taco 
15. The Deadly Snakes - Twice As Dead 
16. The Golden Shitters - Slaughter House Now
17. The Misfits - Night of the Living Dead 
18. Spider Bite - Hazmat Suit 
19. Mark Sultain - Black Magic 
20. White Lung - Down with the Monster 
21. The Dirty Nil - Zombie Eyed 
22. Psychic Void - Night Terrors 
23. The Cramps - Beautiful Gardens 
24. Suckerpunch - Lone Wolf Fever 
25. Atomic 7 - Devil’s Mittens 
26. Messer Chups - Crocotiger 
27. Gloin - Dark Moto 
28. Oh Sees - Cadaver Dog 
29. The North American Hallowe’en Prevention Initiative - Do They Know It’s Hallowe’en 
30. Titus Andronicus - Home Alone on Halloween 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the November 4 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1010 (Originally Aired On October 21st, 2023)

1.  Dion Lunadon - I Walk Away
2.  The Libertines - Run Run Run
3.  The Undertones - Wrong Way
4.  The Hives - Smoke & Mirrors
5.  Spider Bite - Smashed Glass
6.  Hot Garbage - Snooze You Lose
7.  Ghost Woman - Yoko
8.  The Strokes - 12:51
9.  The Strokes - The End Has No End
10. The Strokes - Meet Me in the Bathroom
11. The Unicorns - Tuff Ghost
12. The Unicorns - I Was Born (A Unicorn)
13. The Unicorns - The Clap
14. Modest Mouse - Tiny City Made of Ashe
15. Broken Social Scene - Looks Just Like the Sun
16. Paul Jacobs - Dancing with the Devil
17. Bikini Kill - Blood One
18. Bikini Kill - For Tammy Rae
19. Bikini Kill - Jigsaw Youth
20. The Linda Lindas - Rebel Girl
21. The Julie Ruin - Be Nice
22. The Beths - Future Me Hates Me
23. Blue Oil - Unwind
24. Bry Webb - Outbound Only, No Return
25. The Ducks - Human Highway (Live)
26. The Ducks - I Am A Dreamer (Live)
27. Neil Young - Captain Kennedy
28. Kiwi Jr. - The Sound of Music
29. The Leather Uppers - You Know I Do

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the October 21 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1009 (Originally Aired On October 14th, 2023)

1.  Brainrust - Pacing
2.  Runs With Kittens - Look Who’s Knockin’ 
3.  Motorists - Forced Perspective (Live) 
4.  Tough Age - Rat Doctor 
5.  Casper & The Cookies - Sorry About That
6.  Husker Du - It’s Funny Not Anymore
7.  Husker Du - First of the Last Calls 
8.  Jawbox - Jackpot Plus! 
10. Nation of Ulysses - Spectra Sonic Sound 
11. Crocodiles - Refuse Angels
12. Phuture Memoriez - Some Open Handed Cues
13. Public Image Ltd. - Walls 
14. Ten Million Lights - Cherry Red
15. Berner Herzhog - Sometimes It’s Hard to Break Free
16. Mekons - Lost Highway
17. Mitski - When Memories Snow
18. Cots - Flowers (Fresh Cut)
19. Love Language - New Money 
20. Merin - Heat Death
21. Spencer Krug - Nostalgia is the Rose
22. Sparklehorse - It Will Never Stop 
23. Sparklehorse - Evening Star Supercharger 
24. The Goldstars - Leave Me Alone (A Halloween Song) 
25. Hooper Crescent - Late Night TV
26. A.Savage - Elvis in the Army 
27. Lightheaded - Mercury Girl 
28. Teenage Art - Scene Full of it 
29. Night Lunch - Flames of Love 
30. Horse Chops - Broken Leg 
31. Psychic Void - Brat Boy

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the October 14 file to download/stream the episode. 

For those keeping track, Show 1012, which aired on November 4th was a rerun of our 2023 Halloween episode. You can find that playlist and download/stream link to the episode in this post. Revolution Rock was pre-empted on November 18th for CJAM FM's 40th anniversary party which was broadcasting live from Art Windsor Essex that evening.

Wronger: An Interview with Tommy Stinson & Show # 1008

Tommy Stinson’s Cowboys in the Campfire released their debut album Wronger in June 2023. The album collects a mix of alt-country, rockabilly, folk songs and features musicians Tommy Stinson and Chip Roberts. Stinson and Roberts’ history goes back many years, he even helped co-write a song on Stinson’s Bash & Pop album Anything Could Happen in 2007. But, for those of you who don’t know Tommy got his start playing bass in the Minneapolis band The Replacements, then went on to play in numerous groups such as Perfect, Guns n’ Roses, Soul Asylum, Bash & Pop. Wronger got its start with some sessions recorded in Texas with Christine Smith around 2016/2017 with John Doe on bass, the rest were recorded in Stinson’s New York studio. There are several different musicians on this album that all add to its makeup, but overall it comes off as a stripped down collection of songs that flows together so naturally.

“Here We Go Again” starts off Wronger with ukulele and horns. Lyrically drawing on themes of creativity and everything that comes along with it, “That’s It” is an upbeat and fast paced rockabilly track, while the third track “Mr. Wrong” is a sparse song reflecting a Bakersfield sound with lyrics such as “I see all your troubles playing out in a brand new light,” and “I hope your Mr. Next will be Mr. Right” that sketch out a catchy character study of love gone wrong. “Fall Apart Together” with its Nashville meets Bakersfield sound evokes a sense of giving it another shot, despite the fact that everything is in a destructive decline. “Hey Man” is another track featuring gritty soulful vocals and evocative country styled dynamics as a string section brings forth another element altogether. With lyrics such as “All the bridges that won’t go across the tracks/The grass is greener for the things that lax” and “To lead you onto war,” Stinson touches on several topics that dip into the realm of politics without overstating the message here.

“We Ain’t” begins with bass before a rockabilly guitar line comes in with locomotive-like acoustic guitars as Stinson sings lyrics such as “Waiting at the table/With your cemetery eyes,” and “We made a few mistakes/Make it hard to sleep alone/Except for all the ones/That I’ve learned to face right on” that draw on themes of determination and trials and tribulations that come along with it. This song has drawn comparison to Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison album and it matches the energy found in the songs there. “Souls” arrives with a shuffle as the bass and drums float in the background as acoustic guitar, electric guitar and piano weave in-between pop melodies. “Dream” ends Wronger. One of the strongest songs found in this ten song collection, if features steady drums, pedal steel slides and impassioned vocals, the lyrics “It’s a been a while since you’ve released your spell/I was just a lonely so and so trying to make myself a home/I had a dream, you weren’t in it” bring a certain feeling. It is reflective, realistic, yet profound.

Throughout Wronger, Stinson and Roberts produce songs that incorporate so many different musical elements naturally. There are a lot of experimental aspects found throughout the album and the songs also have a loose and have a spontaneous feel to them. Wronger creates and delivers music on its own terms.

Listen to an interview Revolution Rock did with Tommy Stinson here:

  

Show 1008 Playlist (Tommy Stinson Interview):

1.  Yo La Tengo - Double Dare 
2.  The Afghan Whigs - Be Sweet 
3.  Uncle Tupelo - The Long Cut 
4.  Tea Leaves - Meet Me at the Mausoleum 
5.  Window Lamp - Laughing at Me(
6.  Jeff Rosenstock - Doubt 
7.  The Rural Alberta Advantage - Bite My Tongue 
8.  Pooched - Bats 
9.  Tommy Stinson’s Cowboys in the Campfire - Fall Apart Together 

TOMMY STINSON INTERVIEW PT.1

10. Tommy Stinson’s Cowboys in the Campfire - That’s It 

TOMMY STINSON INTERVIEW PT.2

11. Tommy Stinson’s Cowboys in the Campfire - Dream 
12. The Replacements - Having Fun 
13. The Replacements - Kiss Me On the Bus (Demo) 
14. Dion Lunadon - Secrets
15. Pierre Omer’s Swing Revue - Tropical Breakdown 
16. Autogramm - WannaBe 
17. Olinda - Reverie 
18. Psychic Void - Cemetery Eyes 
19. McLusky - Unpopular Parts of a Pig 
20. Tunic - Boss (Revised) 
21. Packs - Honey 
22. David Bowie - Dirty Boys 
23. Buzzcocks - Harmony in My Head 
24. Constantines - Lizaveta 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the October 7 file to download/stream the episode. 

Run With Me: An Interview with Bry Webb & Show # 1007

“Thunder Bay” is the first single released by Canadian singer/songwriter Bry Webb from his forthcoming album Run With Me. Inspired by a desire to sing and play music again after not releasing music for quite a few years, the songs that make up Run With Me are made up with inspiration to play again and the connections/contributions from different musicians over Webb’s career. Also known for being the lead vocalist in Constantines, Webb’s forthcoming album is his third full-length release and his first new album since 2014’s Free Will (there was also a live album, Live at Massey Hall in 2015).

The lead off single “Thunder Bay” dates back to a recording made with a previous band that Webb was in called The Harbour Coats. This was a band Webb formed while living in Montreal, they recorded one album before disbanding when Webb moved to Guelph to start a family. For this track, Webb redid the vocals. It arrives with swirling guitars, kick drum, looming noise, feedback, hard to forget vocal melodies and absorbing, contemplative lyrics. Another song recently became available online from Run With Me, a song titled “Modern Mind.” A song steeped in elements of psychedelia, it first appeared on a split seven inch single with Chad VanGaalen in 2016. This version differs, not losing the edge of the original, but at the same time, as was described on the earlier version of the track, is an expansion of Webb’s musical palette. Bry Webb’s third full-length album, Run With Me will be released on November 3rd via Idée Fixe Records.

Listen to the interview Revolution Rock did with Bry Webb here:

Show 1007 Playlist (Bry Webb Interview):

1.  Leanne Betasamosake Simpson - I Pity the Country 
2.  Mitski - Buffalo Replaced 
3.  Wilco - Cousin
4.  Woods - Weep 
5.  Nora Kelly Band - Lay Down Girl
6.  Bry Webb - Thunder Bay 

BRY WEBB INTERVIEW PART 1

7.  Bry Webb - AM Radio 

BRY WEBB INTERVIEW PART 2

8.  Bry Webb - Rivers of Gold 
9.  Richard Laviolette - Bats 
10. Plumtree - July 3rd
11. Mean Red Spiders - Compromise 
12. Gaze - Shady
13. Horse Chops - Spaceship in the Sky
14. Melody Fields - In Love 
15. Slowdive - alife 
16. Animal Collective - Gem & I 
17. Faust - The Sad Skinhead
18. Faust - Jennifer 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the September 30 file to download/stream the episode. 

Blues, Soul, Nirvana and Synthesizers: Episodes # 1006, 1005, 1004, 1003, 1002

Recently, Revolution Rock has had several theme based episodes and some guest hosts. Here are some highlights from some of the artists featured on our blues, soul, R&B and doo wop episode (links to hear/download all the episodes can be found below the playlists in this post).

Revolution Rock: Early Blues, Soul, R&B and Doo Wop

Joined by guest host Graeme Sylvio of CJAM FM’s Sylvio & Soul program, we dug deep into some more obscure soul, blues and R&B artists with touches of doo wop influences. Here are a few of the artists featured on this episode.

Pink Anderson:

Pink Anderson was born in South Carolina in 1900 and was a self-taught guitarist who toured through the Southeast during 1915-1945, getting work wherever he could. He performed and worked with many different musicians such as Blind Simmie Dooley. Several songs were recorded with Dooley for Columbia Records in 1928 and released as Papa’s About to Get Mad/Gonna Tip Out Tonight and Every Day in the Week Blues/C.C. and O. Blues. In the 1950s he toured with Leo “Chief Thundercloud” Kahdot and his medicine show and would often play with harmonica player Peg Leg Sam Jackson. Paul Clayton the folklorist recorded Anderson in 1950 and released Harlem Street Spirituals for the Riverside label. A lot of the traditional folk material was featured on this release such as “John Henry” and “The Wreck of the Old 97.” In early 60s (Carolina Blues Man (1961), Medicine Show Man (1962), Ballad & Folksinger (1963)), Anderson made some more recordings becoming part of the Piedmont school, utilizing his musical style, which pulled from blues, ragtime and folk. Anderson performed until the 1970s, passing away due to a heart attack in October of 1974 at the age of 74. Pink Anderson’s name took on a further influence in culture when Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd combined his name with North Carolina bluesman Floyd Council to arrive at the band name of Pink Floyd. Pink Anderson’s music came from the tradition of Carolina blues and the practice of the traveling folksinger.

The Falcons:

The Falcons formed in Detroit in 1955, they are perhaps best known for their two hit singles “You’re So Fine” (1959) and “I Found A Love” (1962). The band went through a few lineup changes in their career, but were notable for quite a few things. They were one of the first bands that would go on to be influential into the genre of soul music and also featured many musicians that would have their own successes outside of the group. Musicians such as Joe Stubbs, Eddie Floyd, Mack Rice, Lance Finney and Wilson Pickett were all part of the group at different times in The Falcons existence. Stubbs performed in three other groups (The Contours, The Originals and 100 Proof (Aged in Soul)), Eddie Floyd went on to work with the Stax record label and had a #1 hit single “Knock on Wood,” Mack Rice went on to record the song “Mustang Sally,” as well writing “Respect Yourself” with Luther Ingram, while Wilson Pickett became a major figure in the development of soul music, recording over 50 songs that made the US R&B charts and also crossed over to the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Some of his best known songs are “In the Midnight Hour,” “Land of 10000 Dances,” “Funky Broadway,” “Don’t Knock My Love,” he also recorded a version of The Falcons “I Found A Love,” a song which he co-wrote, as a solo artist in 1967. It became a hit for Pickett and a two-part version of the song was recorded. It was featured on his album The Sound of Wilson Pickett and was also a single reaching #6 on the US R&B Charts. The Falcons lasted from about 1955 until about 1966, reforming briefly in 2005-2008.

Show 1006 (September 23rd, 2023)(Early blues, soul, R&B and doo wop Special):

1.  Bobby Louis - Fire of Love 
2.  Bunker Hill - The Girl Can’t Dance 
3.  Guitar Crusher - The Monkey 
4.  The Continentals - Don’t Do It Baby 
5.  King Coleman - Loo-key Doo-key 
6.  Nightriders - Looking For My Baby 
7.  John Lee Hooker - Let’s Talk It Over 
8.  John Lee Hooker - Just Me and My Telephone 
9.  Pink Anderson - My Baby Left Me This Morning 
10. Pink Anderson & Simmie Dooley - C.C. and O. Blues 
11. The Falcons - I Found A Love
12. Sir Mac Rice - Baby I’m Coming Home 
13. Lloyd Williams & The Highlights - Kangaroo Dance
14. The Supremes - Let Me Go the Right Way 
15. Eric Mercury & The Soul Searchers - Lonely Girl
16. The Playmates - It Must Be Love 
17. Dianne Brooks - In My Heart 
18. Dianne Brooks - Walkin’ On My Mind 
19. Shirley Matthews & The Big Town Girls - (You Can) Count On That
20. Jack Harden & The Silhouettes - I’m Not Running After You (Anymore) 
21. King Herbert & The Knights - Lucille 
22. Eric Mercury - Life Style 
23. The Fantastic Four - Take Him Back If It Makes You Happy 
24. The Fantastic Four - Man In Love 
The Detroit Emeralds – Radio Promo
25. The Detroit Emeralds - Do Me Right 
26. The Detroit Emeralds - Long Live the King 
27. Booker T. & The M.G.’s - Behave Yourself 
28. The Gems - That’s What They Put Erasers on Pencils For 
29. Mckinley Mitchell - You’re Not Gonna Break My Heart
30. Barrett Strong - You Knows What To Do
31. Terry Callier - You Goin’ Miss Your Candyman 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the September 23 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1005 (September 16th, 2023)(In Utero 30th Anniversary Special):

1.  Nirvana - Serve the Servants (2013 Mix) 
2.  Nirvana - Scentless Apprentice
3.  Nirvana - Heart-Shaped Box (Live) 
4.  Nirvana - Rape Me (1991 Boombox Demo) 
5.  Nirvana - Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle 
6.  Nirvana - Dumb (1991 Peel Session) 
7.  Nirvana - Very Ape 
8.  Nirvana - Milk It (1993 Rio Demo)
9.  Nirvana - Pennyroyal Tea (Live MTV Unplugged) 
10. Nirvana - Radio Friendly Unit Shifter (Live & Loud 1993) 
11. Nirvana - Tourette’s (2013 Mix) 
12. Nirvana - All Apologies (Live Reading Festival 1992)
13. Breeze - Serve the Servants 
14. Hervana - Scentless Apprentice (Live) 
15. The Weather Station - Pennyroyal Tea 
16. Teenanger - Very Ape 
17. Baptists - Tourette’s
18. D.O.A. - All Apologies 
19. Sara Simms - Heart-Shaped Box 
20. Tess Parks - Marigold 
21. Nirvana - Sappy
22. Nirvana - I Hate Myself and Want To Die (2013 Mix) 
23. Nirvana - Forgotten Tune 
24. Nirvana - Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol That Flow Through the Strip 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the September 16 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1004 (September 9th, 2023):

1.  The Rapture - Heaven 
2.  Hot Hot Heat - This Town 
3.  Ought - Celebration 
4.  Shonen Knife - Making Plans for Bison 
5.  Sturm Group - Caught in the Door 
6.  Swell Maps - Forest Fire 
7.  First Man Over - Umbrella Man 
8.  Fifth Column - Right Hook 
9.  Richard Laviolette - Taking the Long Way Home 
10. Richard Laviolette - Ordinary Fellow
11. Richard Laviolette - Break Down These Blues 
12. Henry Bemis & The Books - Let’s Go Shopping
13. Tim Swaddling - Devil’s Tail 
14. Aleks Stoykosky - Replica Art 
15. Tea Leaves - Interloper 
16. The Clientele - Blue Over Blue 
17. King Krule - Hamburgerphobia 
18. Bonnie “Prince” Billy - Good Morning, Popcatepetl 
19. PJ Harvey - A Noiseless Noise 
20. The Replacements - Can’t Hardly Wait (Cello Version)
21. Constantines - National Hum
22. Constantines - Sub-Domestic 
23. Protomartyr - For Tomorrow 
24. Osees - Chaos Heart 
25. Ramones - I Remember You 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the September 9 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1003 (September 2nd, 2023):

1.  The Routes - Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t Have) 
2.  Priors - Burgundy 
3.  Julie Doiron - Thought of You 
4.  The Kinks - This Time Tomorrow 
5.  The Kinks - A Long Way From Home 
6.  The Breeders - No Aloha 
7.  The Breeders - Divine Hammer 
8.  Sweeping Promises - Ideal No 
9.  Jeff Rosenstock - I Wanna Be Wrong 
10. The Rolling Stones - Dancing with Mr. D 
11. Tom Waits - Underground
12. Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
13. Colter Wall - Standing Here 
14. Beams - Morning Waits 
15. Pin Group - Ambivalence 2
16. The Clean - On Again/Off Again 
17. 25 Cents - Don’t Deceive Me 
18. Ritchie Venus and the Blue Beetles - Bleeding Heart 
19. The B-52’s - Give Me Back My Man 
20. Can - Moonshake 
21. Teke::Teke - Gotoku Lemon 
22. Sundried Whales - I’m So Tired 
23. Freak Heat Waves - Off My Mind 
24. TAFKAVince Band - Expiration Date 
25. Love Language - Ripples 
26. The Vertical Struts - Sh! 
27. Ghost Woman - Alright Alright 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the September 2 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 1002 (August 26th, 2023) (Revolution Synth Special - synth music from 1978-1983):

1.  The Payola$ - In A Place Like This
2.  The Vapors - Trains
3.  Wall of Voodoo - Factory
4.  Joe Naylor - I Hate Fluorescent Lights
5.  Null.set - Teats De Nuit
6.  Phollop Willing P.A. - Orphan Baby
7.  Iko - Elevator
8.  Subway Sect - Ambition
9.  Devo - Strange Pursuit
10. Tubeway Army - Me, I Disconnect From You
11. The Stranglers - Nice N’ Sleazy
12. Oingo Boingo - Ain’t This the Life
13. Talking Heads - Memories Can’t Wait
14. Rational Youth - Holiday in Bangkok
15. The Boomtown Rats - Blind Date
16. Kraftwerk - The Model
17. Nash the Slash - The Chase
18. Ceramic Hello - Symphony of Shudders
19. UJ3RK5 - Eisenhower & The Hippies
20. Active Dog - Nothing Holding You
21. Tim Ray & A.V. - Quarter to Eight
22. Suicide - Diamonds, Fur Coat, Champagne

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the August 26 file to download/stream the episode.

Revolution Rock: The Golden Episode

On August 12th, the 1000th episode of Revolution Rock aired on CJAM FM’s airwaves. To celebrate this we did an episode with a gold theme. We have done several theme episodes in the past (not just during our annual February theme month episodes), but I don’t believe we’ve ever done a theme like this before. Inspired by a shuffle playlist last year where songs with the word “gold” in it kept popping up, we decided to go with this theme for the 1000th episode. Every song that was in this episode featured the word “gold.” I suppose it can be called our golden episode.

Here is some info on some of the “gold” songs featured in our 1000th episode:

The Gories - Idol with the Golden Head

Written by Leiber/Stoller, “Idol with the Golden Head” was originally released as a single in 1957 by The Coasters. Recorded at Sheldon Recording Studio in Chicago of the at the time new Chess Records building at 2120 Michigan Ave. This late 50s soul track was covered by Detroit’s The Gories in 1992. Giving it a garage/soul spin featuring Peg O’Neil’s primal stomp combined with the dual guitar attack from Mick Collins and Danny Kroha, along with Collin’s great vocal and Kroha’s backing vox, this track is found in two places in The Gories discography, on 1992’s Baby Say Uhh! single (as the B-side) and on their 1992 studio album Outta Here labeled as “Great Big Idol with the Golden Head.” The song itself is a lesser known song it seems in The Coasters discography. It tells the tale of someone buying an artifact, in this case an idol with a golden head and asks it where their love interest big foot May is. It turns out she’s at Catfish Creek partying, but this track captures a sense of youthful spirit, romance and adventure.

This now legendary Detroit garage band, The Gories released three full-length albums Houserockin’ (in 1989), I Know You Fine But How You Doin’ (1990), Outta Here (1992) and was featured on compilations in addition to releasing numerous singles. In 2013, a live recording from 1988 titled The Shaw Tapes: Live in Detroit 5/27/1988 was released through Third Man Records. The live album, like their music is raw and uninhibited sounding, it was recorded by Jim Shaw at a converted storefront that no longer exists. The set was captured in the spring of 1988 prior to the release of their first full-length album Houserockin’. The set features tracks that would wind up on this album including several that wouldn’t such as a cover of The Stooges “Real Cool Time,” The Iguanas “Again & Again,” The Keggs “To Find Out,” the surf track “Nautiloid Reef,” and several others. In 2015, they released their first new recording in 30 years, the single Be Nice/On the Run through Third Man Records. The Gories since reforming in 2009 have been performing live off and on while Collins, Kroha and O’Neil have performed in a variety of other bands since The Gories initial split. O’Neil played with ’68 Comeback and The Darkest Hours, Collins currently performs with The Dirtbombs, Wolfmanhattan Project, Danny Kroha performs solo and as Danny & The Stools.

The Fire Engines – Big Gold Dream

Forming in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1979, the Fire Engines were a post punk band and part of the Scottish post punk scene at the time. In their brief career, they released one mini album (Lubricate Your Living Room) and three singles (Get Up and Use Me, Candyskin, Big Gold Dream) before disbanding in 1981. Known for their funky, yet discordant, anti-pop rhythms, “Big Gold Dream” followed their Candyskin/Meat Whiplash single, which when originally released in 1981 went to #7 on the UK Indie Charts. Previously their debut single Get Up and Use Me/Everythings Roses went to #9 on the UK Indie Charts. With “Big Gold Dream” the song with its catchy choruses, funky rhythms and female back up vocals seemed pegged to be another single charting song in the UK, but unfortunately it did not chart. The band imploded shortly after this and just before a potential US tour. The band’s history is also connected with Bob Last, who had the label Fast Product/Pop:Aural. He would release at the time new post punk music from not only The Fire Engines, but also Gang of Four, Mekons and The Human League to name a few. He would also be a manager for The Human League.

Two of the members of the band (Davy Henderson and Russell Burn) would go on to form the band Win, Henderson formed the noise rock oriented band Nectarine No.9 in the early 90s. More recently he has performed/recorded with The Sexual Objects. In 2004, The Fire Engines reformed to support The Magic Band in Edinburgh, although not with Captain Beefheart, the band had been a huge influence on Fire Engines. With that a new interest in the band grew. A limited edition single followed next with Franz Ferdinand. The Fire Engines covered their song “Jaqueline” and Franz Ferdinand covered “Get Up and Use Me.” Several compilations were released as well. Most recently, Codex Teenage Premonition in 2005, made up of live recordings and live sessions and Hungry Beat in 2007, which collected the band’s mini album Lubricate Your Living Room along with the three singles they’ve released.

 

Show 1001 (Originally Aired On August 19th, 2023) (The Hives, Robbie Roberston, Rodriguez, Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye):

1.  The Hives - Trapdoor Solution 
2.  The Hives - Stick Up 
3.  Hippie Hourrah - Rorschach 
4.  Joanna Sternberg - The Human Machine 
5.  Cat Clyde - Everywhere I Go 
6.  Lonesome Lefty & The Cryin’ Shames - Diga Diga Doo
7.  Canadian Squires - Leave Me Alone 
8.  Bob Dylan & The Hawks - Tell Me Momma (Live 1966 Royal Albert Hall) 
9.  The Band - To Kingdom Come
10. The Band - Jawbone 
11. The Band - Yazoo Street Scandal 
12. The Band - The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show
13. Sam Cooke - Mean Old World 
14. Sam Cooke - Laughin’ and Clownin’
15. Marvin Gaye - Please Stay (Once You Go Away (Alt Mix) 
16. Marvin Gaye - The World is Rated X 
17. The Scenics - In the Summer 
18. Protomartyr - 3800 Tigers
19. Odonis Odonis - Passing Us By (Feat. SUUNS) 
20. Frankiie - Garden 
21. Osees - Sleazoid Psycho 
22. Rodriguez - Hate Street Dialogue
23. Rodriguez - Street Boy 
24. Rodriguez - Crucify Your Mind 
25. Neil Young - Sedan Delivery

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the August 12 file to download/stream the episode. 

  
Show 1000 (Originally Aired On August 12th, 2023)(The Golden Episode):

1.  Pavement - Gold Soundz 
2.  Guided By Voices - Gold Star for Robot Boy
3.  Lizzie Esau - Fool’s Gold 
4.  Hole - Gold Dust Woman 
5.  Johnny West - Gold Smoke
6.  Damaged Bug - Lovely Gold 
7.  Daniele Lupi & Parquet Courts (Ft. Karen O) - The Golden Ones 
8.  David Bowie - Velvet Goldmine
9.  Broken Social Scene - Golden Facelift 
10. Brian Eno - Golden Hours
11. Car Seat Headrest - Golden Years 
12. Chad Vangaalen - Golden Pear
13. Neil Young - Silver & Gold 
14. Syd Barrett - Golden Hair 
15. Mac DeMarco - 2020819 She Get the Gold Star 
16. Wax Mannequin - Grover’s Gold 
17. Tom Waits - Diamonds & Gold 
18. Nirvana - Marigold
19. Sprinters - Struck Gold
20. Sloan - Golden Eyes 
21. Apollo Ghosts - Golden Teacher 
22. Thee Oh Sees - Golden Phones 
23. Dick Nolan - Golden Rocket 
24. Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros - Silver & Gold 
25. Fire Engines - Big Gold Dream 
26. Parquet Courts - Light Up Gold I 
27. Parquet Courts - Light Up Gold II 
28. Weak Signal - Dripping in Gold 
29. Paul the Tailor - Gold 
30. The Sadies - Reward of Gold 
31. Atomic Seven - The Man with the Golden Card
32. Iggy Pop - Gold 
33. The Gories - Idol with the Golden Head

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the August 12 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 999 (Originally Aired On August 5th, 2023)(The Chameleons, The Flaming Lips, Ed Keupper, Ron Gallo, Mononegatives, 999):

1.  999 - Direct Action Plan 
2.  The Replacements - Left of the Dial (Ed Stasium Mix)
3.  Wilco - Evicted 
4.  Ed Keupper - A Trick or Two 
5.  Ed Keupper - Not Too Soon 
6.  Stevie Wonder - Too High 
7.  Ike & Tina Turner - Higher Ground 
8.  The Dirtbombs - Livin’ for the City 
9.  Mononegatives - Deficit 
10. Fake Palms - Wasted Silhouettes 
11. Private School - Science Fiction 
12. Wasted Lives - Undercover 
13. The Spy’s - Don’t Touch That Dial 
14. The Chameleons - Don’t Fall 
15. The Chameleons - Thursday’s Child 
16. The Flaming Lips - Pilot Can at the Queer of God 
17. The Flaming Lips - Be My Head 
18. Tough Age - Hideaway 
19. The Ape-ettes - Remi 
20. Private Lives - Dead Hand 
21. Priors - Separation Anxiety 
22. Sunglaciers - Kafka (Mixtape Version) 
23. Tobin Sprout - The Natural Alarm 
24. The Particles - Remington Rand
25. Ron Gallo - At Least I’m Dancing 
26. The Cramps - Don’t Eat Stuff Off the Sidewalk
27. Young Rival - Heard it All Before 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the August 5 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 998 (Originally Aired On July 29th, 2023)(Olinda, Tea Leaves, Daniel Romano, Dan Sartain, The Ichi-Bons):

1.  Olinda - Dreams in Transit 
2.  Decliner - Gumbie 
3.  Trophy Knife - Again and Again 
4.  Aleks Stoykoysky - Dehydrated 
5.  Roye Trout - Snake Oil 
6.  Ancient Shapes - Imaginary Agony 
7.  Tea Leaves - Bipolar Skies 
8.  Daniel Romano’s Outfit - Rhythmic Blood (Live) 
9.  Ex Ox - Nervous Complaint 
10. Phantom Sender - Solstice Ring
11. Delta 5 - Triangle 
12. Essential Logic - Aerosol Burns 
13. La Securite - Suspens 
14. Magazine - Sweetheart Contract
15. Osees - Stunner
16. The Fall - Psykick Dancehall 
17. Sonny & The Sunsets - I See the Void 
18. Galore - Lydia 
19. Fake Fruit - Mutuas 
20. Duotang - The Cons & Pros 
21. The Exploding Hearts - Boulevard Trash 
22. Buzzcocks - Nothing Left 
23. The Hives - Rigor Mortis Radio
24. Link Wray - Jack the Ripper 
25. Link Wray - The Stranger 
26. Dan Sartain - Ruby Carol 
27. Dan Sartain - Bohemian Grove 
28. Dan Sartain - People Throwing Stones at Glass Houses 
29. The Garrys - Burger Buoy 
30. The Kan Dells - Cloudburts 
31. The Ventures - The Ninth Wave 
32. The Ichi-Bons - Don’t Call Me Flyface 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the July 29 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 997 (Originally Aired On July 22nd, 2023) (New York Dolls 50th Anniversary):

1.  Psychic Void - Back 2 Reality 
2.  Smashing Pumpkins - Pissant 
3.  Fruit Bats - Quiet 
4.  Blue Oil - From the Heart 
5.  Blue Oil - Sardine City
6.  Ancient Shapes - Imaginary Agony 
7.  Dead Bob - Party of One 
8.  B.A. Johnston - TV’s on Babe (Television Zombie)
9.  New York Dolls - Personality Crisis
10. New York Dolls - Looking For A Kiss (1972 Demo) 
11. New York Dolls - Vietnamese Baby
12. New York Dolls - Lonely Planet Boy 
13. New York Dolls - Frankenstein
14. Sylvain Sylvain - Trash 
15. New York Dolls - Bad Girl 
16. Johnny Thunders - Subway Train 
17. New York Dolls - Pills (Live 1974)
18. New York Dolls - Private World 
19. New York Dolls - Jet Boy 
20. By Divine Right - Mutant Message 
21. By Divine Right - Super Moon (Demo) 
22. Shotgun Jimmie - Sappy Slogans
23. Ron Leary - I Was Born 
24. The Ape-ettes - Trampoline 
25. The Stools - Buick Boogie 
26. Louder Than Death - Scum of the Moon 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the July 22 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 996 (Originally Aired On July 15th, 2023)(Lou Reed's Berlin, Wax Mannequin, Kid Congo Powers, Private Lives, Blue Oil): 

1.  Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds - (Are You) Ready Freddy? 
2.  Ron Gallo - Foreground Music 
3.  Ghost Woman - Street Meet 
4.  The Stoves - Moments 
5.  Mudhoney - Little Dogs 
6.  Lou Reed - Lady Day 
7.  Lou Reed - Men of Good Fortune 
8.  Lou Reed - Oh Jim 
9.  Lou Reed - Berlin (1971 RCA Demo) 
10. Grian Chatten - Fairlies 
11. Wax Mannequin - Even Then 
12. Amos the Kid - Well Water
13. Doug Paisley - If I Wanted 
14. Shana Cleveland - Mystic Mine 
15. Deer Tick - Grey Matter 
16. King Khan - The Nature of Things 
17. Tandoori Knights - Mr. Executioner 
18. Thee Retail Simps - Weapon of the Mystic 
19. Blue Oil - Money 
20. Private Lives - Hit Record 
21. Motorbike - Throttle 
22. Liquids - Bitter End 
23. Tiny Baby - Lake Temagami 
24. Spoon - She’s Fine, She’s Mine 
25. Funkadelic - Back In Our Minds

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the July 15 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 995 (Originally Aired On July 8th, 2023) (Fugazi, Spiderbite, Rick Froberg, Queens of the Stone Age, T.Rex):

1.  Fugazi - Witness Protection Program 
2.  Fugazi - Great Cop 
3.  Spiderbite - Fiberglass City 
4.  Mononegatives - Replaceable Anatomy 
5.  Skating Polly - All the Choices 
6.  boygenius - Satanist 
7.  PJ Harvey - I Inside the Old Year Dying
8.  Drive Like Jehu - New Math 
9.  Hot Snakes - Plenty For All 
10. Hot Snakes - Automatic Midnight 
11. Hot Snakes - Six-Wave Hold Down
12. Daniel Romano’s Outfit - The Long Mirror of Time (Live) 
13. Private Lives - Trust in Me 
14. Taxi Girls - After Effect 
15. Tough Age - In A Garden 
16. The Particles - Bits of Wood 
17. La Securite - Dis-Moi 
18. Feeble Little Horse - Tin Man 
19. Post Grads - Anxiety 
20. Ryan Bourne - Black Hole
21. Obits - Two Headed Coin
22. Obits - Spun Out
23. Obits - Let Me Dream If I Want To 
24. Albert Hammond Jr. - One Chance 
25. Cameron Noise - Did I Ever Tell You
26. TAFKAVince Band - Magazine Pages 
27. Queens of the Stone Age - Paper Machete 
28. T.Rex - The Slider 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the July 8 file to download/stream the episode. 

Sport Fishin': The Lure of the Bait, The Luck of the Hook: An Interview with Don Pyle & Shows # 994, 993, 992

In 1993, Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet released their third full-length album titled Sport Fishin’: The Lure of the Bait, The Luck of the Hook. Prior to recording the album the band was quite busy. Whether it was touring, rehearsing, recording music for the Kids In The Hall TV Series or recording singles, it was a whirlwind of activity for the band. Before the recording of Sport Fishin’, SMOASP recorded some singles with Steve Albini at his home studio. Some of these tracks would wind up on a few different releases such as the Dog & Squeegie single released in 1992 on the Estrus label and the Take Outs single released on the Derivative label in August of 1993. Just before Christmas of 1992 however, they recorded and mixed over a five-day period with Steve Albini at the Chicago Recording Company studio. The results would be the Sport Fishin’ album.

The album starts off with the track “Unwatchable,” a short eleven-second reverb driven surf influenced track, but don’t let that description fool you, this album is many things at once. “Spend A Night, Not A Fortune” is a musical interplay with the lead bass rhythms of Reid Diamond, as Brian Connelly’s masterful guitar work floats in-between and Don Pyle holds down everything with sparse, inventive drumming. The band starts off here with a slow build before the rich tapestry and chemistry of the band is revealed. It doesn’t take long for that to take effect as “Three Piece Suit” comes in as track three on Sport Fishin’. With Connelly’s rolling reverb saturated guitar riffs that lead the song and bass that builds tension with the drums in the background, the pace slows down briefly before the chorus of the song arrives again. It evokes something that Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet do so well, suck you into their musical orbit. The combination of all this on this track (and throughout this record) has a familiar, nostalgic feeling, yet it is something all of its own. “Fortune Telling Chicken” arrives a cappella before fiery surf and 50s influenced instrumental riffs lead the way into “(Relax) You Will Think You Are A Chicken,” which begins with another introduction and a hypnotizing piano backing. Musically the song kicks in with slithery basslines, marching, yet steady drumbeats and intense guitar, blending surf and that unnamable chemistry. The song ends with Pyle playing a series of toms on the drums, driving bass and spirited guitars.

“Plastics For 500, Bob” features smooth, twangy bass, bold guitars and energetic drums. “That Wuz Ear Me Callin’ A Horse” an example of a loud song that captures what the band must have sound like live at the time with a song title that, like many of their song titles, plays into their own irreverent sense of humour. “Singing Cowboy” is a short countrified track featuring Diamond on lead vocals singing of “Wide open spaces/Wide open skies” that comes off as both tongue in cheek and heartfelt, “Farbs” features stabbing guitar swells, propelling bass and drums and several false endings before the song finally concludes, but far be it from me to criticize this. It sounds like the band are in their element here. “Spy School Graduation Theme” features plotting basslines, drums filled with intrigue and guitar from Brian Connelly that despite the lack of lyrics conjures up an ominous, yet peering narrative. “Cheese in the Fridge” is one of the longest tracks found on Sport Fishin’ featuring frosty basslines, chilling drums and atmospheric guitars, “Mecca” is track thirteen on the album. When originally released it was not listed on the album’s track list, with the clang of an elevator door opening and someone saying “thirteen” many assumed that was the name of the track, when it is actually a SMOASP version of Gene Pitney’s “Mecca.”

“Algoma Reflections” branches out into jazz, “We’re Not A Fucking Surf Band” splinters into jagged post punk, sounding influenced by The Minutemen, “Honey, You’re Wasting Ammo” is a Pixies informed, alternative rock sounding track, while one of the album singles “They Don’t Call Them Chihuahuas Anymore” moves its way into Latin rhythms. There are many great moments on this record where you can hear the band really lock in and play in that great in the pocket groove moment. This track also shows how versatile, subtle and effective Don Pyle’s drumming can be, Connelly’s guitar and Diamond’s bass also prosper at just the right moments here. “What I Like About Grease” features dirtier guitar as bass and drums burn the musical oil, “Memories of Gay Paree” is primarily driven by its 60s organ sounds mixing in garage rock elements, while “Babywetsitself” ends Sport Fishin’ in cinematic noir reverberations mixed with jazz. There is a gap of no sound before a hidden track appears, a brief live version of “Shakin’ All Over” followed by crowd noises.

When recording Sport Fishin’, it was the only time that the band recorded in an uninterrupted fashion for a record. Recorded and mixed over five days, all of their previous work was recorded at different times and then gradually pieced together. The results are cohesive here. The band is in top form and seamlessly jump genres on songs throughout the record. The sound is bolder with a heavier sound and combines elements of surf, jazz, rock, punk and western-styled music, in addition to their other influences. Albini captured Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet, very in-the-moment and there is a certain intensity found throughout the songs. With Sport Fishin’: The Lure of the Bait, The Luck of the Hook, Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet cast their musical net out into the water and come back with that elusive sound that they create so well.

Listen to an interview that Revolution Rock did with Don Pyle of Revolution Rock here:
 

Show 994 Sport Fishin' 30th Anniversary Playlist (Don Pyle of Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet Interview) (Originally Aired On July 1st, 2023) :

1.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Unwatchable (I)
2.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Spend A Night, Not A Fortune
3.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Three Piece Suit
4.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Fortune Tellin' Chicken
5.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet (Relax) You Will Think You Are A Chicken
6.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - " Plastics For 500, Bob"
7.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - That Wuz Ear Me Callin' A Horse

DON PYLE INTERVIEW PT. 1

8.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - The Singing Cowboy
9.  Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Farbs
10. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Spy School Graduation Theme
11. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Cheese In The Fridge

DON PYLE INTERVIEW PT.2

12. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Unwatchable (II)
13. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Haig Earl
14. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Algoma Reflections
15. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - We're Not A Fucking Surf Band
16. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Peas Porridge Rock
17. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Honey You're Wasting Ammo

DON PYLE INTERIVEW PT.3

18. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - They Don't Call Them Chihuahuas Anymore
19. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Off Our Back Conrad Black
20. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - We'll Be Right Back!
21. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - What I Like About Grease
22. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Memories Of Gay Paree
23. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Babywetsitself

DON PYLE INTERVIEW PT.4

24. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet (W/Fred Schneider) - Lick
25. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - Song of the Lobster
26. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - That Wuz Ear Me Callin' A Horse (Live)
27. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - (Relax) You Will Think You Are A Chicken (Live)
28. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - The Last of my Hiccups
29. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet - The Jehrney

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the July 1 file to download/stream the episode. 

 
Show 993 Playlist (Liz Phair, Global Citizens, Yo La Tengo) (Originally Aired On June 24th, 2023):

1.  Water From Your Eyes - True Life 
2.  Model/Actriz - Mosquito 
3.  Swans - Los Angeles: City of Death 
4.  The Pop Group - Kiss the Book (1978 BBC Session) 
5.  Butthole Surfers - Ricky
6.  Spiderbite - Smashed Glass
7.  Psychic Void - The Man
8.  Liz Phair - 6’1” 
9.  Liz Phair - Soap Star Joe 
10. Liz Phair - Clean 
11. Packs - Laughing Till I Cry 
12. La Securite - Le Kick 
13. Joe Meek and The Blue Men - Orbit Around the Moon (Take 1) 
14. Global Citizens - Fireball 
15. Global Citizens - Happiness Ain’t Green Grass 
16. The Courettes Time is Ticking 
17. Tommy Stinson’s Cowboys in the Campfire - That’s It
18. Galen & Paul - Sea Shanty
19. Yo La Tengo - Tonight’s Episode 
20. Yo La Tengo - Moby Octopad 
21. Yo La Tengo - Serpentine
22. Yo La Tengo - Big Day Coming 
23. Teke::Teke - Hoppe 
24. Neither Could Dylan - Skeleton 
25. Wax Mannequin - Wrong About You
26. Tough Age - Paradise By Another Name 

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the June 24 file to download/stream the episode. 

Show 992 Playlist (John McGeoch, The Police Synchronicity, Violent Femmes) (Originally Aired On June 17th, 2023):

1.  Weird Nightmare - She’s the One
2.  Wrong War - The Call 
3.  Tricky Woo - Rock & Roll Vs. the World 
4.  Ex Ox - It’s Your Faul the World is Ending
5.  Universal Cleaner - Psychosocial Mother Matrix
6.  The Police - Synchronicity I 
7.  The Police - Miss Gradenko 
8.  Juliana Hatfield - Murder By Numbers
9.  Violent Femmes - Every Breath You Take 
10. Visage - Visage 
11. Gen X - Poison
12. The Armoury Show - Castles in Spain 
13. Public Image Ltd. - Seattle 
14. Bob Dylan - Wicked Messenger
15. Bonny Doon - Crooked Creek 
16. Deer Tick - Forgiving Ties 
17. Charlotte Cornfield - You and Me 
18. Shotgun Jimmie - Tumbleweed 
19. Love Interest - Midwinter, Violent Air 
20. Osees - Goon 
21. Zoon - Gaagige 
22. OMBIIGIZI - Back at Me 
23. Home Front - Real Eyes 
24. Frankiie - Cruel 
25. The Hives - Countdown to Shutdown
26. Jay Reatard - Paint It Shut

To hear this program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and click the June 17 file to download/stream the episode.