Top Ten Of The Week-Oh Baby

Our other senior, William B and his wife welcomed a baby boy into his world on Thursday.  Basically he pretty much kept it hid from the rest of the working stiffs  so I imagine that he'll be gone for a couple weeks thanks to our company's wonderful maternity leave policy.  I think guys get two weeks off whereas the women get a full six weeks off.  So I guess we'll be losing our designated web-surfer for a while.  No word on what they named the boy but I think he wanted to name it Wesley, since his other son is Wyatt.  But that has met with stiff resistance.   They eventually settled on Landon Laine????  Gawd.  Congratulations anyway Billy.

I was very disappointed that the Jimi Hendrix box set had a truncated version of Little Richard's I Don't Know What You Got But It's Got Me so i started looking to the web for the complete 4:44 version of it.  I have the 45 but it's in poor condition and EBAY had 45's starting at 10 bucks and what I saw really don't appeal to me.  So I settled on a CD of Little Richard's Best Of The Vee Jay Years Volume 1 and it had the complete version of said song.  The best part of the song is hearing Richard work up to a frenzy at the last part of the song.  This remains a underrated and one of the best soul songs that Little Richard ever did but it stalled around #82 on the Billboard chart.   The CD was the cheapest of what was out there.  Fun fact:  Don Covay who wrote the song, sings background.  And of course Jimi Hendrix on guitar.  I would include it on the Top Ten but it's already been on there back in January.

And if anybody out there knows where I can get a copy of the 1953 novelty song One Beer by Chuck Murphy (Coral 9-61014) let me know.  Been trying to find a copy and EBAY don't have it and my dad's copy has seen much better days.  Probably 1953.

The Top Ten Of The Week:

1.  The Chain-Fleetwood Mac 1977  The first song that lead off the midnight hour at KKPT after the ending of Beaker Street and perhaps it was the station's backhanded compliment to Clyde that he shouldn't break the chain.  The chain of the overplayed classic rock that's killed many a song.  Nevertheless, this remains one of the highlights of Rumours, and I'm sure this song had more to do with the romance on the rocks of the McVies and Buckingham/Nicks rather than KKPT and Beaker Street parting of the ways.  I think everybody in high school had their own copy of Rumours.  I think a friend left this at my house and never came back for it.  Maybe I still have it somewhere..................

2.  Shot Down In The Night-Hawkwind 1979  If memory serves me well this was the first Hawkwind song I have ever heard and it off a compilation of bands for the now defunct Bronze Label (some of the bands were Motorhead, Uriah Heep, Angel Witch, Girlschool to name a few).  The album was called A Quiet Night In, and this song was a edit of the 7:42 song which was on their Live 79 album, which was only available as an import.   Supposedly, the highest charted single in the US but don't take my word for that.

3.  The Unknown Soldier-The Doors 1968  I gotta love my mom for finding me some interesting 45s in my childhood which has made me what I am today.  I know when we lived in Waterloo she bought me Hello I Love You at the old Ben Franklin (or was it Woolworth's?). So basically when we moved to Webster City later that year I became acquainted with the 4 for dollar bins at their Woolworth's and basically I played word association with what I saw for 45s.  Namely anything Doors or Jimi Hendrix or Steppenwolf got snapped up.  One day I found two Doors 45 that I bought, one was Love Me Two Times and then the other, this number. Freaking weird as a single and it wouldn't be released in this PC world of today.  Which is why the late 60s was the best times for music on 45.  Jim Morrison goes out in three parts about war, capture and execution of the unknown soldier. And then proclaims the war is over betwen ringing bells at the end.  I think the bells got left off the 45.  But then again I played this song so much that the grooves were worn off so I couldn't tell.

4.  The Impression That I Get-The Mighty Mighty Bosstones 1997  I suppose you can call them a one hit wonder although they were around a long time before they got this top ten hit.  Hell, their ska punk was around before No Doubt but No Doubt had the bigger hit with Don't Speak from Tragic Kingdom that came out a year before Let's Face It.  Kind of bizarre hearing this alongside Mister Mister or Kenny G on the soft rock catastrophe that is KDAT but they do from time to time.   It's just when I don't listen to KDAT.  The Bosstones sold a ton of Let's Face It, and the majority now in the dollar bins all across America.  Dicky Barrett went on to be MC/Sidekick to Jimmy Kimmel on Kimmel's late night show.

5.  Absolute Dissent-Killing Joke 2010  With Youth and Big Paul Ferguson back in town, Killing Joke's original lineup has made their first album together since the 80s and it does sound a bit like Hosannas From The Basement Of Hell although I think Bennie Calvert played more manic drums than Ferguson did but Big Paul pounds the hell out of the drums on this album.  The title track is a great lead off and it pretty much keeps things steady although I think side 2 of this album tends to drag a bit.  Nevertheless, when Killing Joke reunited back in 1993 they started making their best music and the high points remains the 2003 self titled with Dave Grohl setting in and then 2006's Hosanna's, the fitting finale to the career of Paul Raven.  The new KJ isn't bad but the production reminds me of 1995's Democracy; muddy and mirky.  Just the way Jaz Coleman likes it I gather.

6.  Must Of Got Lost-J. Geils Band 1974  I came across an old ad for Iowa Jam which used to be a big deal back in the 70's.  Where else could you see such notables as Foghat, or J.Geils Band or Johnny Winter sharing the bill, ya think Iron & Wine or The Strokes or Kings Of Leon would do that nowadays?  Oh yeah, Coachella.  Not the same.  Neither was J. Geils when they were playing their Detroit boogie blues via way of Boston sound and the old coot in me likes the Atlantic mid 70s period more than the new wave EMI albums that broke them big. 

7.  Wanted Man-Johnny Cash 1991  Later day recording for Mercury that didn't get much airplay but Johnny Cash still made pretty damn good country records after Columbia and before Rick Rubin.

8.  I Know Why-Phil Spector & The Spectors Three 1959  Another scratchy forty five that has been in my collection and found during a visit over my folks out.   Carol Connors from The Teddy Bears sings backing vocals on this song.  Sounds closer to The Fleetwoods to the wall of sound although there's plenty of echo in the background.  Co produced by Lee Hazlewood and Lester Sill to which Phil would co found Philles Records.  Can be found on You Tube if you look hard enough. However if you really want to hear it.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqzlJsP3ctQ

9.  Are You Happy-Iron Butterfly 1967  Long time ago Iron Butterfly's In da Gadda Da Vadda was the best selling album in Atlantic Records history before a certain band called Led Zeppelin rewrote the book on that and of course Hootie & The Blowfish in the 90's.  In other words a little case of hippy dippy for ya.  No need to thank me.

10.  Back On The Streets-Gary Moore 1978  RIP Gary.