Gobble Gobble Gobble-2009 Turkey Turds Of The Year

Greetings folks. Since you're probably tired of turkey that you had today, it's time for the annual 2009 Turkey Turd Albums Of The Year. This will be the final Turkey Turds Of The Year since next year I am retiring from reviewing new albums. I've been doing this on a regular basis since 1975 and I heard just about everything imaginable. I like variety and not be held hostage by the same playlist that classic rock radio has been shoving down our throats for the last twenty years. Which is why I have continue to buy and listen to music, I need to hear something different.

This decade has to be the worst in terms of music and what has come out of it. I really haven't played much of any albums of this decade all that much and what I read from these magazines touting the best of this decade I don't get. Kid A? yuck. The Strokes Is This It? Unfortunly yeah and pretty bland too. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot? Good but that not great. But what do I know? I perfer three chords and the truth and a little boogie to boot. I'm easy to please but the big four labels don't care and don't want to appease me so screw em.

I reviewed 87 albums this year. Some good, some not so good and the rest fall in between. But there were some turds this year that did make the infamous list. I thought I was getting better in buying some good music but these examples proved that I don't know it all. Radiohead fans you're spared this year. And here's this year's least.

1. Train-Save Me San Francisco (Columbia) Sure they were never much of a critic's band but I did like their first album and For Me It's You and perhaps it was Brendan O'Brien that kept them from the compose heap but on this their latest, Pat Monahan and company sell their soul to get back to the MOR radio station and fall on their ass as this record bombed bigtime. You know your in trouble when you start sampling Black Water in order to get a hit. It didn't work. By far their worst album ever. It may even get them booted from Sony Music.

2. Hoobastank-For(n)ever (Island) Why these guys are still on a major label is beyond me. This type of emo music hasn't been in favor since they trotted out The Reason, which had their best song but like everything else, Hoobastank couldn't come up with enough songs to make that album memorable. Everytime their lead singer sings that annoying boy band falsetto whine, I hit the fast forward button. I bought this cd in the bargain bins for three bucks, just a week after it was released. That should have been a indication that this cd would suck.

3. Wolfmother-Cosmic Egg (Interscope) Never trust Rolling Stone and their four star rated albums such as this. Wolfmother made a pretty good decent album a couple years ago and it proudly showed off it's Black Sabbath/Deep Purple/Hawkwind roots. This time out Andrew Stockdale gets rid of the other guys, and goes for a more Billy Squier leading Black Sabbath mode. Ugly as it sounds but I think Billy Squier wrote better songs. Musically it's not bad but when Stockdale starts singing or yelling, it's a headache upon itself.

4. Grizzly Bear-Veckatimest (Warp) Progessive folk rock?!? Are you kidding me? Yet another band that is touted by Spin or Rolling Stone and when I listen to this I wonder what the hell is the fuss is about. Grizzly Bear, along with Animal Collective might just be one of the most overrated bands that I have heard. I long for the days of three chords and the truth and some boogie rather than be bored out of my ass listening to slow, plodding songs that take forever to get done.

5. UFO-The Visitor (SPV) Once upon a time, this band made some classic albums and even into this decade Phil Mogg and company still could come up with some listenable albums which the last one You Are Here had Jason Bonham setting in and actually singing background. But with the loss of Pete Way, The Visitor kinda loses focus and Phil Mogg can't sing very well anymore. Disappointing but not as bad as the four albums ahead of this.

6. Melody Gardot-My One And Only Thrill (Verve) Gardot made one of the most refreshing albums of this decade with Worrysome Heart to which she was paired with a very small combo and she made some cool soft jazz/pop. This time out, Larry Klein sticks her with plenty of strings and things and slows the tempos down to a crawl and it didn't work very well. I say get her back to basics with her first album and she'll be all right.

7. Jet-Shaka Rock (EMI) They're becoming a one hit wonder with each new record. Shine On bombed and so Jet tries to return to the sound of Get Born. It didn't work, they actually got more pompous if you can believe that. It's pretty bad when on your hit you rip off The Knack. Another forgettible effort from a band who better save up their royalty checks. Even Budweiser couldn't find a useable song off Shaka Rock.

8. John Rich-Son Of A Preacher Man (Warner Brother) The musiz mafia is falling apart. Big And Rich put out a greatest hits package after three albums, Big Kenny's new CD is so eco friendly you can plant it into the ground and it will grow and there's rumours that Gretchen Wilson is no longer on Sony Music. Had a top ten song with Shuttin Detroit Down and I have heard that his acoustic version would have been classic. Some fairly good stuff but there's a lotta FOX news influenced crapola as well.

9. Radio Moscow-Brain Cycles (Alive) Great debut album and this followup isn't as good and a bit more toward the Blue Cheer sound and Parker Griggs sounding a bit more like Dicky Peterson at spots down to the screams. But like Wolfmother's latest the music remains pretty good. It's the vocals that drag it down.

10. Green Day-21st Century Breakdown (Reprise) And finally, it's unthinkable for me to include a Green Day album into the gobble gobble bins (maybe their first but since they were mare teens back then they get a pass) but on listening to this again I can't believe how overproduced this record was and how LOUD and DISTORTED it is when I play it on the player. Perhaps their performance on the AMA's have something to do with this album on the ten least. They made their great statement on American Idiot five years ago but on this effort it sounds like rehash and their great statement is no different nor better than U2's latest which didn't make the least ten since I didn't buy it. I do not need Billie Joe Armstrong making great statements, I want him to rock out and not overproduce it. This record is 71 minites long and feels longer and for a Green Day album that's unthinkable. And won't warrant too many listens either.

So basically, the first four albums are turds down to the core and the rest do have moments but somehow either the arrangements or the album overstaying their welcom plays a role into this.

And so it goes people. This concludes my final Turkey shoot for the decade and my reviewing career. But don't worry, I still have lots of decent music to listen to.

Top Ten Of The Week-Happy Thanksgiving

Top Ten Of The Week-Happy Thanksgiving

It's been a very trying month here in Crabbland.  A wasted trip to Ames/Des Moines, then getting just about ran over from some dorkfish from J & K Trucking to which they have yet to send a payment for that accident.  Then have some psycho Trucker trying to do his own version of Duel 2 the next week.  Figuring in with a damn toothache and a fucking wayward eyelash into my eye and nothing going right at work and you can come up yet another shitty November here in my life.  Yep, it's true, I might end up getting either a stroke or a heart attack or both but we're doing our best to stay sane.  In the meantime, we have about five more top tens to go before the year is out. 

This week's tunes are as follows.

1.  Gardenia-Kyuss 1994  Before Josh Homme started hanging out with Those Crooked Vultures, he was in this stoner band that made four uneven albums for Dali/Elektra.  Relics Records sold a ton of Welcome To Sky Valley and I did find a used copy later to see what's the fuss was about.  All guitars were turned up loud and John Garcia's vocals was buried way back in the mix somewhere.  This probably could have been a hit if Garcia wasn't rapping "get back, get back you mutherfucka" at the fade.  Still I think Kyuss was a bit more fun than Homme's Queens Of The Stone Age projects.

2.  Inside Looking Out-The Animals 1965  Hooray for Beaker Street for playing this song the other night.  I think I wore the grooves off my forty five of this song.  The Animals jammed out and at 3:47 it was considered an epic song before Bob Dylan raised the bar with something called Like A Rolling Stone.

3.  Get Behind The Mule-Tom Waits 2009  From his new live album and better seen than heard.  As a bonus on the live album, Waits was kind enough to add 35 minites of stage banter as a bonus disc titled Tom's Tales to which Tom pretty much becomes ask Mr Wizard.

4.  Wasting Time-Kings Of Leon 2002  Hooray for Kings Of Leon breaking big time with their album of last year but I still perfer their EP Holy Roller Novacaine, which sounded a bit more rough and a lot more rock and roll and lot less Coldplay sounding.

5.  Waited Up-The Samples 1990  A jam band from Golden Colorado that somehow managed to get their debut snapped up by Arista and then dropped almost as fast.  Sean Kelly has that Sting via way of Tony Lewis high voice that annoys most people but on this song the whole band sounds like they're having a fun jam time.  Nobody hears much from The Samples anymore but for a time they were supposed to be the next big thing.  Anyway I was trying to hear this album on the way to work while trying to out race some psycho truck driver that I think I cut off by accident.  Told him I was sorry but since he was trying to stick his damn semi up my ass, all bets were off and he got the number one.  I said I was sorry for cutting you off dumbfucker.

6.  Wheels-Foo Fighters 2009  New song from the Foo's Greatest Hits album.  It all goes to show that Dave Gorhl can write catchy singles but made subpar albums.  Only Foo Fighters album I cared that much about was the debut which was powerhouse pop and roll and while The Colour And Shape had it's moments I didn't like that one all that much and each ensuring album was mundane.  So perhaps The Foo Fighters needed a Greatest Hits just to remind me that they do write a good song or two from time to time.  And Wheels is a very good track.

7.  Candyland-James McMurtry 1992  Title track from his 2nd album which was produced by John Mellencamp and played with his band.  I don't think Mellencamp's band was perfect for McMurtry songs, they came across a bit heavy handed but as the years progressed on, James McMurtry would write better songs, namely the song of the decade We Can't Make It Here Anymore.

8.  Good Day In Hell-The Eagles 1974  It seems like this song is perfect for the kind of month that I have been having dealing with J & K Trucking trying to flatten my car into a beer can and the wrong place at the wrong time luck that seems to be norm for myself.  It doesn't get any easier now we are into the Xmas season and I'm sure the weather will get colder and suck even more.  Some days we have good days in this hell we call Cowpie Iowa and most of the time it's usually bad.  What am I saying? Hell I don't know, I'm just blabbling on.  On to the next song.

9.  I Want You Back Again-The Zombies 1966  One of the lesser known hits for this British band that Tom Petty has covered live in concert and you can hear it on his 4 CD Live album that came out this week.  Appently Best Buy has a 10 CD 4 DVD blue ray set that makes Springsteen Live 1985 album look like an EP.  Thought I had The Zombies version somewhere but i didn't but you can find it on Absolutely The Best.

10.  Top Of The Pops-The Smithereens 1991  By then The Smitereens were ready to get gone from Capitol but not before they had this top 50 single that came out in 91.  Alas, this song never did get up to the Top Of The Pops, it barely made it halfway.  Rock and roll that's still fun.  So they say.

Top Ten Of The Week-Days Are Numbered

top ten of the week-Days are numbered

For all the years of doing the R S Crabb Top Ten Of The Week, i have been blown away by the feedback of y'all for the past three years and thank everybody for checking out what's in the player.  I've spent three years before on the forgotten MSN Groups and then came here on My Space since 2006 and at Multiply this year.

A couple things on my mind.  This year will be the final year that I will review new music on a regular basis.  After 2009, I'll stick with the music that I grew up with and I'm sure I'll continue to find them at the pawnshop and thrift stores across this fair city.  I can no longer continue to review crappy new music that I seldom play after playing it the first time.  Yeh, I'll find some new stuff to review in 2010 but if you care about hearing any Fall Out Boy or Taylor Swift or what passes for new rock, let somebody else pay the 10 to 15 bucks per CD to review it.

Number 2, The My Space top ten will conclude on the last week of December.  Seven years has been a long time for keeping some sort of top ten going and since 2003 I have managed to do that,keep a top ten going.  But with the departure of Brooksie, and despite help from some of y'all out there, I've never sustain the groove and feel of the times of Brooksie, and some of the stuff she posted even rival my finding of the lesser knowns.   And of course there's supply and demand, if there's too much supply and not enough demand then people move on to other things.  Kinda like buying cds from outdated stores such as Hastings in Ames or Tower Records.  But i have made the committment to continue this to the EOY.  Starting next year I'll be doing playing of backtracking to put together the R Smith Review Consortium, to which I will do reviews of past artists and rate their albums according to plan but will move it to a more reliable website than My Space.

A top ten is a top ten from anybody that can tempt you into checking out new tunes.  I only threw in suggestions left and right.  I love music and will continue to do so but there's a new Crabb format on the horizon. And where it leads, even i don't know.

The Top Ten Of The Week.

1.  I'm Not A Number-Gary Myrick & The Figures 1981  Gary Myrick has finally got his Epic albums reissued (with bonus tracks) from Wounded Bird Records and how and why they beat The Brains to the reissue department is a pox upon Andy McKaie.  Had this record once and found a cheap copy at the Ankeny Goodwill on my illfated Ames/DM trip of last week and found that Living In A Movie sounds better this time around then it did when I originally reviewed it.  Produced by Geoff Workman (Queen, Journey, I Love You).  Uselss music fact: drummer Jack White (no relation to White Stripes Jack White) used to be married to Katy Segal of Married With Children and Sons Of Anarchy fame. 

2.  Pictures Of Home-Deep Purple 1972  From Machine Head.  A lesser known track that I used to play quite a bit when I was in high school.  Deep Purple could jam out and people consider Machine Head to be the ultimate DP.  Of course, I could have just put on Smoke On The Water instead but I'm trying my best to promote the lesser known stuff.

3.  Life In London-Pat Travers 1977  Classic rock seems to never pay much attention to PT and neither did I till I went to see him in concert at 3rd Avenue Live in 1992 thereabouts and got to shook the man's hand (and Peter 'Mars' Cowling) and the drummer I think and became a big fan afterwards.  PT still looks like he did thirty years ago.  Great song with drums by Nicko McBrain who later would bang the drums for one Iron Maiden.

4.  Run Like Hell-Devin Hill 1994  Hill used to be the lead vocalist for the long gone Dangtrippers till he went solo and made two albums for the indee pop label Big Deal Records.  Very catchy song too bad it's only a minite and half long.

5.  Scumbag Blues-Them Crooked Vultures 2009  The supergroup featuring Josh Homme (Queens Of The Stone Age), Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) and John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) and surprise! They actually made a pretty good album that stands on its own merit.  I always perferred Grohl's drum playing over his guitar work for the Foos and the Foos tend to bore me at times but when he plays drums, we rock.  If anything this record reminds me of the Queens' Songs For The Deaf when Grohl filled in and we're spared of the antics of Nick Ovelitti that dragged that album down.  Of course when you get a legend such as John Paul Jones on bass you are talking serious shit here.  Gives me hope for rock n roll of the future.

6.  This Diamond Ring-Gary Lewis And The Playboys 1965  Overplayed oldies classic I know but I did find a Gary Lewis Best of and it seems that some of the lesser known songs are really quite good despite Lewis' one dimentional songwriting.   Of course Gary's arranger of songs was none other than Brother Leon Russell.

7.  Made In England-Elton John 1995  The 90s may have treated EJ pretty good although you wouldn't notice that with all the EJ albums that are in the buck bins at HP Books so I decided to check out this forgotten album.  It owes a bit to the past with Paul Buckmaster doing the strings like he did on Madman Across The Water.  Actually, Made In England might be the best 90s album that EJ did.  Perhaps I'll take another look at his much mellower The Big Picture when I find a dollar copy at some thrift store.  But then again I have always been a EJ fan (but not to the point of getting his 1979 discoesque Victim Of Love though I was suckered into buying his crap Single Man album of 1977).

8.  Lovin, Touchin, Squeezin-Journey 1979  Live version from a British 45 EP.  This version is much more livier than the one found on Captured and KRNA played this in regular rotation but never did tell us where to find a copy till I found one at BJ's in IC around 1983 I believe.  This song was my first introduction to Journey and Steve Perry believe it or not.  Got the edited 45 version which pissed me off.  Early CD editions would find the song end and go right into City Of The Angels.

9.  Good Way-Monsters Of Folk 2009 

10. Funny How Time Slips Away/Crazy/Night Life-Willie Nelson 1976  From The Sound Of Your Mind, Willie revisits his three biggest hits for other people back in the 60s.  Seems like every year Willie would record about 10 albums per year and most had moments.  I recall my mom bought this record for the old man but I think he used it more as a ashtray then playing it.  But then again My Dad never took care of his records like I do mine.  In fact my Dad scratched up my mom's Bee Gees Best Of CD to which took me forever to find a replacement copy for her.  She was ready to kill him.  But anyway everybody should have at least three or four Willie Nelson albums in their collection.

Archives: CD's Plus Closing (The First Time) Who Hit My Car?

n 1991, some wiseguys opened up something called Disc Go Round to which was the alternative to the head shop vibe of Relics Records, back when Relics was a big part of this life.  Somewhere along the way, Disc Go Round was renamed CDs Plus to basically become part of the DVD boom that eventually replaced CDs as the media of choice.

With the closing of CDs plus, it ends the used CDs store concept.  CDs Plus was the final store to remain opened, till two years after CD Wherehouse closed their doors.  CDs Plus was unique for having a stale, sterile smell everytime I went in there.  Perhaps I was too used to the incense smell of Relics or the moldy mildew fragence of Rock n Bach.  Those were the days of spending endless hours bullshitting with Jerry at Relics or Bruce at the other store or hanging with Kibler at RNB and the gay guy at CDs plus who was there from the start. 

The internet have changed the way people buy music.  Lefsetz continues to trumpet streaming and Spotify, two things that can't be accessed to dialup.  Ownership is for pussies, how long will it take for me to tell him he's right he ask?  Not this decade, but if you think streaming is in your future then go for it.  If your savvy online, if you can keep up on the changing technology and have the latest then great.  But if you tell me Ownership is for pussies then fuck off.  I'll be the last holdout before steaming becomes a part of this future and that virtual jukebox on the net that buffers so much on dialup.  I have total access to what i want to listen to Mr Lefsetz and that's um records cds and still tapes.  That's where I find it and till Bill Amesbury or The Brains make it to the great net in the sky, I will stick to the tried and true.  You don't care, your not listening to the arguments so be it and fuck off anyway for trying to stick things down our throats, against our will, and making us listen to the songs we grew up with.  Streaming is for ADD folk, I still get more entertainment watching the label spin around the record player.  So i'm a cheap date blow me anyway.  This is what I grew up with and this will be what i perfer till i'm dead.

There will still be used cds to be found at Thrift stores or Half Priced Books, HP Books isn't going away anytime soon and if they do, there'll be other alternatives.  CDs Plus was in bad shape the last few months anyway with a lousy selection of both DVDs and CDs.  Perhaps I should have gotten that free CD discount on my last time there on Halloween night.  David Lindley El Rayo X is the final CD to be brought from CDs Plus.

I'll give them credit for outlasting Relics and Rock N Bach and being the final used CD store to shut their doors but they never had the personality that Bruce or Jerry or Erin gave at Relics or Jim Henson and Jim Kibler had at Rock N Bach.  They'll be missed.
RIP CDs Plus

 I forgot my badge today on the way to work and had to turn around to get it.

It hasn't been a good day.  Can't find my fucking Social Security card anywhere and I tore down this fucking basement looking for it.  Had to mail some letters off and put them in my totebag along with 4 CDs of choice and got on the highway.

Forgot my badge, mutherfucker anyway, so had to wait for a dumbass to pass by to get back home, run into the house, cuss up and down and got the badge and ran out to the car and drive down the road.

Had a semi in front of me going about 65 miles or so, so thought I ride on his coattails till we got to the turnoff to highway 1 from county home road.  All of a sudden another semi decided to turn on C H Road and then I saw the semi in front of me started backing up fast.  WTF?!?!?  So trying to get it back into gear, the damn car stuck in neutral and then BAM!

Fucking Great!  He moved forward and then I saw him back up and I got out of the car SCREAMING  CAN"T YOU SEE I"M FUCKING BEHIND YOU!!!!!  STOP THE FUCKING TRUCK IDIOT!

Old Purple died earlier in the year and so my brother has been fixing up this grey 1992 Corsica and I just got it and drive it for about four months till this happen.  Brendan, the driver did get out and he gave me the number to the owner of the trucking firm and they said they would repair the bend hood, the punched out right turn signal and the cracked grill.  Luckily, the radiator escape damage and I suppose I be thankful that I wasn't kill but I am still pissed off about the fact that Country Home Road is a very narrow street to the stop sign at E-34.  And there SHOULD NOT Be a fucking other semi trying to turn right when there's a semi at the damn stop sign.  Doesn't the dumb cock sucker driver turning right should have gone down to US 151 and get on there?

BAM!

Mutherfucker anyway!  So I spent part of the evening getting car estimates of getting my new gray 1992 Corsica to be fixed and it's going to cost 1500 bucks to get things squared away.  I hope the folks at J & K Trucking stand by their promise to repair it but I don't hold out much hope becuz I'm a skeptial SOB anyway.  So I guess we'll have to chalk this up to yet another life expierence and out 1500 bucks.

So I managed to make it work about 7, gave up my lunch hour but didn't feel like working but then again my senior Steven didn't show much sympathy.  And I'm thinking here's hoping that when you get home fukcer that you don't have a fucking semi backing up to hit your car but then again I am sure that they would see your Jeep unlike the dood that couldn't see my poor Corsica getting ready to be flatten like a pancake.

So I'm tired, I'm bitchy and really can't type worth a fuck but I'm still alive.  Too tired to bitch about it to my other half.  She keeps saying she wants to hear it, I say they usually call it spousal abuse in this situation.  Yes I'm pissed at the dumbass truck driver turning right, pissed at the poor dood who didn't see me in his mirror and mad at the Creator once again for subjecting me through yet another situation that I didn't ask for.  But most of all, I'm pissed at myself for forgetting my fucking badge and having to turn around and lose precious time to work and meeting the truck driver.

Next fucking time, I'll shove that fucking badge up my ass and then we won't have to worry about it.  Or just leave it out in the damn car.

Fuck, can't have nuthing nice in this fucking world without some kind of shit trying to destroy you in the process.

Top Ten Of The Week-Carrie Nation Vs Crabb Nation

I guess I stuck a nerve on some things, so thought I'd share some with you before going into the songs of the week.

There was this spambot name Luvlot in Mingles that flooded my mailbox with winks and a chain letter and I took it to Twitter.  And, the Twitter bot known as Fart Robot got a hold of it.  Check this.

RT @RSCrabb Too bad there's not a I fart in your direction email that I can send to you.. FART ROBOT APPROVES.

Thank You Fart Robot, lord knows I do that a lot (as my other half would know all too well)

Oh those Carrie Underwood fans in Twitter. I made a comment about Underwood being a diva and got two responses from a overzealous CU fan on the subject of Carrie Underwood Vs Taylor Swift.

ny4carrie

  

@RSCrabb Carrie Underwood is definitely not a diva. She is amazing to her fans but doesn't brag about it like Taylor does. Taylor Swift remixes every song to pop, so if anyone is a pop diva pretending to be country, it is Taylor.

Hate to differ on you on that one Ny4Carrie but I think Taylor does care a little bit more for her fans and doesn't come as Diva like as Carrie seems to do.  Anybody who writes with Max Martin on their latest IS trying for the pop market.  And Taylor did a good job on SNL.  Ms. Underwood would she do something like that on SNL?  Probably not unless making a bit of demands.

RIP Tom Brumley who was Buck Owen's steel guitar player on most of Buck's big recordings.  He passed October 20th I think.

And Nicole isn't in a jolly mood.  2 of the Michigan music stations she listens to are now playing Christmas music.  Um, too early for that.  Only after Thanksgiving and Christmas Day is when I play anything Christmas and usually not the overplayed Vanessa Williams garbage.

Top ten of the week.

1.  There's No Other Way-Blur 1991  Oh yeah you can't go to a sports arena without hearing Song 2 (The Woo Hoo Song) but once upon a time they were in that shoegazer alt rock scene along with Stone Roses, Catherine Wheel, Charlatans UK etc and really was seeking direction till discovering The Kinks and redefining their music on Parklife, then later discover Pavement and cheapen up their sound but this UK top ten is off their Leisure album, which didn't sell very well in the US.

2.  Runaway-Love & Theft 2009  This is getting some airplay on the new country charts and I have to say that this is pretty good considering that it is new country and most new country is cookie cutter crap.  Thankfully somebody decided to keep the fiddles and banjo at the minimum and focused more on those smooth harmonies.  No relation to either the Del Shannon nor Bon Jovi songs.

3.  Mercury Blues-David Lindley 1981  Lindley, you know from Jackson Browne's Running On Empty and earlier a band called Kadlieoscope (sic) that had a few albums out on Epic in the late 60s but he managed to do three albums on his own for Elektra/Asylum Records in the 80s.  This is the final cd that was brought at CDs Plus, a day before they closed up shop and never bothered to tell nobody.  So much for my next free cd up there.

4.  Melt The Ice Away-Budgie 1978  The first Budgie album that I ever got was Impeckable, although they had been around for a while I had  a friend Leon D that told me to buy some Budgie if I needed a different type of rock n roll.  So I got this on cassette and later spent 25 bucks for a Japenese copy at Relics.  Still love this album a lot and to me has the craziest album art ever.  This song appeared on the Proctor and Bergman video J Men Forever, which was shown quite a bit on Night Flight on USA in the early 80s. I did managed to record the movie on audio.  Would love to get a DVD of J Men Forever.

5.  Sexy Little Thing-Chickenfoot 2009  This is actually pretty good.  Sammy Hagar and Mike Anthony, booted from Van Halen picks up Joe Satriani on guitar and Chad Smith on drums and make a rock album that Van Halen should have done had Eddie decided to take up Casino Keyboards (although 5150 was pretty good in spots).  Chickenfoot is destined to rock out more then do limp ballads but at least they only put two on this album.  Not sure if this is the record of the year but it a surprise and rocks pretty damn hard too.

6.  Saved-Swans 1989  Goth rock from a band that seemed out of place when they got signed to MCA/UNI records.  With Mike Gira's deadpanned vocals and Bill Laswell's production The Burning World was supposed to break them but most cds and tapes got dumped in the dollar bins.  I do recall seeing a lotta cassettes of the Burning World for 50 cents but I think I only saw the CD one time and that was in Arizona at Zia's and yes it's in my procession.

7.  Lucy In the Skies With Diamonds-William Shatner 1968  Say what you want about Bill's acting in Star Trek as the OTT James Kirk but somebody at Decca Records thought it would be a hoot to get him to recite songs in that manner with a cheesy backing vocals.  And somebody at Universal thought it would be a great idea to reissue The Transformed Man on CD back in 2004.  And fucking Andy McKaie still won't reissue The Brains for frek's sake.  Later Shatner and Ben Folds would collerbrate on Has Been.  Is it comedy or is it serious music?  Good question.

8.  Woman With Soul-The Cruel Sea 1993  Another forgotten band whose album made a bee line in US bargain bins, this is actually pretty good Austrialian rock n soul and they even have 4 instrumentals on this album to boot.  They wouldn't get away with that in this day in age.

9.  New Shoes-Bus Boys 1982  Real hard rock and roll from a black band that made two albums for Arista Records but never got their due.  They are featured in 48 Hours with The Boys Are Back In Town.

10.  Blow Your Tuneless Trumpet-The Mekons 1989  Dedicated to the Dublin Messiah.  You know who he is and what important band he plays in.  If you don't, your not paying attention, googie it then.

History Of Music 2004

History of the music world-2004

1.  New Pornographers-Electric Version (Matador 46:34)  A-
2.  Danny Joe Brown Band (Wounded Bird Reissue 45:22) A
3.  The Kings-Are Here/Amazon Beach (Wounded Bird Reissue 66:15) A-
4.  Helmet-Unsung The Best Of Helmet (Interscope 71:40) A-
5.  Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers-Americano (EmmaJamma 50:26) A-
6.  Widespread Panic-Ball (Sanctuary 73:26) B+
7.  Incubus-A Crow Left Of The Murder (Epic 58:35) B-
8.  The Essential Dan Fogelberg (Epic 63:55) B+
9.  Porch Ghouls-Bluff City Rockus (Roman 31:06) B
10.Steven Stills-Turning Back The Pages (Raven 78:27) B

11.  Probot (Southern Lord 52:45) C
12.  Deep Purple-Bananas (Sanctuary 51:25) B
13.  Ivory Wire-The World Is Flat (Independent 42:15) B-
14.  The Funk Brothers-20th Century Masters (Motown 38:22) A-
15.  The Living End-Modern Artillery (Reprise 49:35) A-
16.  54-40 Goodbye Flatland (Smiling Buddha 44:50) B+
17.  Von Blondies-Pawn Shoppe Heart (Sire 40:42) B
18.  Descendents-Cool To Be You (Fat Wreck Chords 36:26) C+
19.  Brother Trucker-Something Special (Trailer 45:07) B
20.  Stone Temple Pilots-Thank You (Atlantic 58:32) B+

21.  Bob Weir-Weir Here (Hybrid 78:11-77:18) B-
22.  Graham Parker-Your Country (Bloodshot 43:40) B+
23.  Aerosmith-Honkin On Bobo (Columbia 43:55) A-
24.  Matthew Sweet-Big In Japan (Shout Factory 39:51) B+
25.  Yeah Yeah Yeah's-Forever To Tell (Interscope 37:25) C
26.  Rooney (Geffen 39:05) B-
27.  Yellowcard-Ocean Avenue (Capitol 47:25) C+
28.  Rock Against Bush Volume 1 (Fat Wreck Chords 70:51) B+
29.  The Damnwells-Bastards Of The Beat (Red Ink/Epic 44:38) B
30.  Bill Haley-Rock Around The Clock (Geffen Reissue 39:33) A-

31.  UFO-You Are Here (SPV 51:47) B-
32.  Franz Ferdinand (Domino 38:48) B+
33.  Evan & Jaron-Half Dozen (12 Between Us 36:05) B+
34.  Marshall Tucker Band-Beyond The Horizon (Shout Factory 49:57)B
35.  Ryan Adams-Love Is Hell (Lost Highway 68:00) C
36.  Modest Mouse-Good News For People Who Love Bad News (Epic 48:50)B+
37.  Death Cab For Cutie-Transatlanticism (Barsuk 45:35) B-
38.  Secret Machines-Now Here Is Nowhere (Reprise 50:39) A-
39.  Velvet Revolver-Contraband (RCA 56:47) B+
40.  Lost Trailers-Welcome To The Backwoods (Universal/Republic 55:26)B+

41.  Bad Religion-The Empire Strikes First (Epitaph 39:46) B
42.  Joni Harms-Let's Put The Western Back Into Country B+
43.  The Killers-Hot Fuss (Island 45:39) B
44.  Owsley-The Hard Way (Lakeview 47:32) C
45.  Bruce Hornsby-Greatest Radio Hits (RCA 77:01) B+
46.  Joe Jackson Band-Afterlife (Rykodisc 55:32) B+
47.  The Blasters-Going Home (Shout Factory 72:26) B
48.  Rush-Feedback (Atlantic 27:11) B+
49.  Ministry-Houses Of The Mole (Sanctuary 54:22) B+
50.  Sonia Dada-Test Pattern (Razor & Tie 46:30) B+

51.  Snow Patrol-Final Straw (Fiction 43:58) A-
52.  Hives-Tyronsouaous Hives (Universal 30:09) B-
53.  Less Than Jake-B Is For B Sides (Sire 27:46) B
54.  Gary Bonds-Back In 20 (MC 46:20) B+
55.  Los Lonely Boys (Epic 52:32) B-
56.  Scissor Sisters (Universal 43:00) A-
57.  The Notorious Cherry Bombs (Universal South 46:25) B
58.  Chris Stamey-Travels In The South (Yep Rock 52:28) C+
59.  The Cash Brothers-Brand New Night (Zoe 43:29) B
60.  Steve Earle-The Revolution Starts Now (Sheridan Square 39:24)A-

61.  Rock Against Bush Volume 2 (Fat Wreck Chords 73:20) B+
62.  The Clarks-Fast Moving Cars (Razor & Tie 45:43) B
63.  The Libertines (Rough Trade 42:11) A-
64.  Mooney Suzuki-Alive And Ampified (Columbia/Red Ink 40:52)B+
65.  The F Ups (Capitol 31:53) B+
66.  Dan Bern-My Country II (Messenger 34:06) B
67.  Trace Atkins-Coming On Strong (Capitol 41:45) B+
68.  Green Day-American Idiot (Reprise 57:16) A-
69.  John Fogerty-Deja Vu All Over Again (Geffen 34:00) B+
70.  Lucille Brogan-The Best Of (Legacy 59:10) A-

71.  Delta Moon-Going Down South (Deep Rush 43:09) A-
72.  Elvis Costello-The Delivery Man (Lost Highway 53:18) C+
73.  Brian Wilson Presents Smile (Nonesuch 46:54) A+
74.  Social Distortion-Sex Love And Rock And Roll (Time Bomb 39:41)B+
75.  Supergrass Is 10 (Capitol 71:26) A-
76.  Best Of Revenend J.M.Gates (Columbia 62:03) A-
77.  Brooks & Dunn The Greatest Hits Collection II (Arista 63:17) B+
78.  Nancy Sinarta (Attack 37:55) A-
79.  The Animals-Retrospective (Abkco 77:20) A
80.  Leonard Cohen-Dear Heather (Columbia 49:57) B

81.  Gretchen Wilson-Here For The Party (Epic 39:51) B
82.  Lowen & Navarro-All The Time In The World (Redhen 48:48)B
83.  Big Head Todd-Crimes Of Passion (Big/Sanctuary 47:48) C+
84.  Rise Against-Siren Song Of The Counter Culture (Geffen 40:57) C
85.  Elton John-Peacetree Road (Universal/Rocket 52:00) B
86.  Zutons-Who Killed The Zutons (Deltasonic 2002 43:00) C+
87.  Peter Cetera (Wounded Bird Reissue 35:24) A-
88.  Collective Soul-Youth (El Music Group 37:51) B
89.  Butch Walker-Letters (Epic 51:13) C-
90.  Montgomery Gentry-You Do Your Thing (Columbia 48:14) C+

Top Ten Of The Week-She Said He Said

This week, Miss Nicole Sassypassy returns with another guest star top ten of the week. As you can tell she's into country but she dips into the good country songs of yesterday and not that Carrie Underwood Divacountry that seems to be the rage.  Carrie has a brand new album out and I'm sure it's all the rage although All Music only gave it a 2 and half star rating.

In this day and age of new country, I like it as much as the new rock and roll of this era.  Which isn't saying too much although Miranda Lambert's album is the best.  I don't get on Taylor Swift's case since she's more fan friendly than above mentioned Ms. Underwood.  There seems to be a genuineness that Swift has whereas Ms. Underwood seems to lack.

Nevertheless I'm not in a great mood.  Fucking Wells Fargo continues to take 3 bucks out of my savings account and i'm bout ready to go up there with a vengence.  Fucking banks sure look out for their profits and taking three bucks out for a service charge just to make up for their loss isn't cutting it here.  So with my mind elsewhere, Nicole wanted to come in and take the load off me for this week with her selections.  Again folks, I'm looking forward for another people to guest host a top ten and if your interested, then submit one to me and I'll put it up word for word.

The crabb mailbag, the one and only Mark Prindle writes....you shouldn't be playing dipshit games anyway. Rodney - I've been unemployed for TEN GODDAMNED MONTHS. Cherish your job, because I can't get one. Don't blow it on bullshit dumbass video games.  (from a Crabb rant of not being able to get into Farmtown at home due to dialup issues and Bejeweled, a video game that is an addiction that when i play it at work, i don't work).

and what you've been waiting for, Nicole's Top Ten Of The Week (subbing for Crabby) Bring it.....

Dear Crabby,
Here's the top 10 for you. I don't care what description you give the songs at all. This is a list of what happens when you listen to a station that plays nothing but classic country songs because your either tired of some of the new stuff or you don't like it.

Anyways, enjoy.

Nicole

John Conlee - Old School

Waylon Jennings - Wulitzer Prize

Dan Seals - Bop

Charlie Pride - Is Anybody Going to San Antone (don't know if that's right or not)

Charlie McCain (sp?) - Who's Cheatin' Who (was redone by Alan Jackson and his video included NASCAR drivers)

Ronnie Milsap - Smokey Moutain Rain or the song Lost In The 50's Tonight    (surprise me)

George Jones - Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes  (I still think this song holds true because I miss some of the older singers)

Glen Campbel - Southern Nights

Eddy Arnold - Cattle Call   (later redone with LeAnn Rimes on her debut CD)

Roger Miller - Dang Me  (why don't they take a rope and hang me - at work that is.....) lol

Thank You Nicole for that fine top ten of classic country songs.


The damn My Space editor is messing me up so I'll throw my two cents worth down in the bottom.  Charly McCain is probably best known with Who's Cheatin Who, but she did some duets with Mickey Gilley in the early 80s.  I guess from some reports she was a bit of a diva and didn't like Gilley all that much and wanted more money on another duet album but Epic balked on that.

Smokey Mountain Rain was also done by the ill fated singer Mel Street who better known for the 1976 Borrowed Angel for the long forgotten GRT label.  I've seen some old Street best ofs in the cutouts for the cheapo budget Gusto label but none seem to have Borrowed Angel on it.


Charley Pride is the best selling black country singer that had a hit with Is Anybody Goin To San Antone, which was covered by the late great Doug Sahm of the Sir Douglas Quintet.

Dan Seals was once known as England Dan Seals with his 70s recordings with John Ford Coley and had top tens with I Really Love To See You Tonight and Nights Are Forever Without You.  Seals had a bigger run at the charts with Bop in 1982 which was played every night up at Skate Country and may still be.  I haven't rollerskate in years.