Top Ten Of The Week-FU BP

I didn't catch the MTV movie awards the other night, basically no reason to, but I heard a lotta echoing from those attending out there to give the finger to BP and their lackadasical attitute about stopping the oil flow since they been polluting the gulf with oil since April 20th. Ya think by now somebody would be smart enough to stop it now but guess not. So....all together now....FU BP. May you swim in your oil muck Tony Hayward you limey.

The top ten of the week songs are as follows.

1. On The Border-Al Stewart 1976 I bought the single years ago when it came out. Stewart became a household name with Year Of The Cat which still gets mucho airplay on classic rock radio but I always liked the followup even more. Came out on Janus Records but they were failing and Arista picked the record up soon after.

2. Diamond Mine-Blue Rodeo 1989 On the Crabb show last night for the second time I have introduced a song and gave the wrong band name once again. I cannot understand why I keep doing that, slip of the tongue maybe? Blue Mountain is a whole different band from a different part of the US and no way anything like Blue Rodeo but I started out "and now here's Blue Mountain.........er Blue Rodeo...GD IT! I hate to find that I'm getting alzheimer's at so young of a age already. Nevertheless this is the title track from Blue Rodeo's 1989 album produced by Malcom Burn, who best known as Daniel Lanois' sidekick. Check out Bob Wiseman's mad keyboard work in the instrumental break.

3. Here For The Party-Gretchen Wilson 2004 I had a very tense exchange with some fans of a up and coming country star who when I saw her video said that this up and coming country star is moreorless another Penthouse Pinup making a softcore video. And of course they took exception to that. Basically the shelf life of a female country cutie is not much more than a gallon of milk, it spoils after a certain time. And it's not me to predict that this up and coming country star will be forgotten by next year, history has shown that. About six years ago, Gretchen Wilson came out of nowhere and got a number 1 hit with Redneck Woman which features Hank Jr and Kid Rock and she followed that up with this number. Six years later, her big record company rejected her latest album (to which she released on her own and it flopped sad to say since country radio has yet to play it) and to cut losses put out a Best Of. It does remind me of Wilson had some yee haw kicking singles that are still played on the radio today. Country radio today, like anything else lives for the moment and flavor of the day and a cutie is here today gone tomorrow. Wilson's latest is her best effort if you can find it. As for the up and coming country cutie that i talked about, she remains nameless but I can assure you you wont be missing much. She won't have a career that lasted as long as Gretchen Wilson's did.  Britney something, or Miranda Whoever (not Miranda Lambert but another one who recorded a digital single for Warner Brothers that got her video played twice on GAC at that time.

4. Fat Boy Rag-Asleep At The Wheel 1999 "AATW had been nominated for 5 GrammysTM for best instrumental of the year....As a lead singer I am proud of that." Ray Benson.

5. Journey To The Center Of Your Mind-Amboy Dukes 1968 Upon my trip to Michigan I remember that when I was up ther 35 years ago that where we stayed at, the guy lived next doors to a private spot of land owned by Ted Nugent and the consensous was that if you trespass, the Nuge would gun you down and eat you for dinner soon afterwards. It's bizarre to note that when I'm up there it will be 35 years to the week that I last seet foot in Michigan but we won't be nowhere near Nugent's property around Jackson anyway. The Amboy Dukes were one of Michigan's toughest rock and roll bands but I always liked the band when John Drake did the vocals and not OTT Rusty Day. Had this as a single once. Ted Nugent would go on to have some Epic classic albums of the late 70s and then OD on Rush Limbaugh.

6. Clinic Cynic-Widespread Panic 2010 Still jamming away and now having Jimmy Herring helps out bigtime. They also returned to John Keane producing and making their best album since Ain't Life Grand. Can't say that if its record of the year yet but it's in my top three.

7. Second Hand-Bachman Turner Overdrive 1974 Never a critics band, BTO knew a good riff or two and anything with Fred Turner doing those vocals gives it personality. But of course everybody back then had copies of Not Fragile or BTO2 with Taking Care Of Business. For the first time in over 25 years Randy Bachman and Fred Turner are putting out a brand new album and yes I do care enough to buy it since I'm a fan. BTO always brings back great memories, even though TCOB is been radio overkill.

8. Riot Radio-The Dead 60's 2005 Sure The Clash did it better but I always liked this UK band more enough to spin this a few times. However this CD was part of the infamous Sony/BMG copy protected scandal that gave computers major virsus when attempted to play. Copy Protected CDs eventually tanked CD sales and they never recovered. SONY BMG did replace my copy protected cd with a regular copy after I sent it in to complain. The Dead 60s made another album only availble in the UK and then broke up in 2007.

9. Chelsea Dagger-The Fratellis 2007 If you go to a Chicago Blackhawks hockey game chances are you have heard this when the Blackhawks score or win. I have no idea why they picked this one, the story behind the song sure don't have anything to do with hockey but I think the crowd just likes to shout that Doot doot doot doot dadooda doot chorus. I'm sure The Fratellis can't complain when they get royality checks for sure of that song. That is if they do get paid for the use of that song.

10. Tellin Stories-The Charlatans UK 1997 Keeping it UK, The Charlatans lost their well known keyboard player in a car crash and got Primal Scream's Martin Duffy to sub and they made their best sounding album at that time but once again their major label had no idea how to promote this and tried to alter their sound on the less satisfying Wonderland and Us And Us Only to which the lead singer tried that ugly falsetto that Mick Jagger would use for his Stones disco years albums. After leaving Universal, The Charlatans made a decent album for failing Sanctuary records Simpatico before boring us once again with You Crossed My Path. Sure they'll be forever known as band that gave us The Only One I Know, which includes a nice replica of Deep Purple's Hush organ but Tellin Stories remains the best album outside of best ofs that show the world what they could do. And it's still very good a decade and half later.