50 Rock Songs I Want Everyone To Hear

This one is a big favourite of mine. I bought the Sundazed/Rocket CD reissue shortly after it's release. There is something dark and spooky about this music -- even the lighter, ostensibly happier songs ('Little Children'). That, coupled with the fact that this balanced, cohesive concept was conceived and written by a 15-year-old -- a year before Tommy no less -- completely fascinated me, so much so that I resolved to someday write a piece about it. I went so far as to pitch it to Shindig!, and they loved the idea.

Toward that end I made several attempts to contact Jay Kaye, but never received a response (last I heard he had a blues band and was living in Spain).
Undeterred, I pursued other leads, the most promising of which came when I tracked down producer Robin Spurgin, a legend of the Vancouver music scene.

Sadly, Spurgin was obviously not a well man when I spoke to him (he died shortly thereafter), and his recollections were few. He was, however, adamant that the entire project was the result of Kaye's vision, and eschewed any credit for the songs or story. (For purposes of eliciting info, I had taken the role of devil's advocate and suggested that he, as producer, had perhaps assumed a larger role in the creation of the material than previously reported. He fervently denied this.)

My most recent attempt to contact Jay was about three months ago. Once again there was no response. Where I'd had doubts that he received the previous messages, I was fairly confident he received this last message, to which I received no response, so I've since abandoned the story. There's really no point if he's not interested.

My fascination with this record remains undiminished.

 

Wow! What a fantastic story. What little I know is what's already out there in the open and that's not much. This shows exactly why that's the case.

 

The odd thing is that Jay obviously had some role in the 2002 reissue, so it's not as if he's written this album out of his history (it was still listed in his website's discography last time I checked). I guess he simply has nothing left to say about it, so I will respect his decision.

 

M. Ward (w/ Neko Case) – To Go Home (2006/Daniel Johnston Cover )

Another one of my favorite covers from one of my favorite singer-songwriters. It never hurts to have the lovely Neko Case harmonizing in the background.

I liked M.(atthew) Ward leading up to Post-War but he really hit a home run with that album. I know I’ve previously mentioned only liking a few songs from some of the albums that these songs were pulled from, but that’s not the case here. This is a superb album with nary a duff track to be found. The album opener, “Poison Cup” is just a perfect 2 minute slice of music with its Chamberlin (Mellotron precursor) strings, strummed guitar and simple, stated lyrics. Like the Space Needle track I posted earlier, “Poison Cup” also made an appearance on Veronica Mars. I’m not doing that on purpose. It just goes to show that they had a music programmer with fine taste.

 

I think I also have this comp somewhere, but your song did not get "proper" attention at the time.

 

Agent Orange – Bloodstains (1980)

One of the finest sub-2 minute tracks in existence. If Black Flag’s “Wasted” were to play directly after this I think my head would explode. Surely one of the best punk songs to come from the 80s California scene.

That signature surf/punk hybrid sound had not yet come into realization on their earliest recordings like this classic. The albums Living In Darkness and This Is The Voice are both well worth owning. They quickly developed into their own unique style and were covering surf classics on a regular basis. They injected a much-needed, melodic breath of fresh air into the hardcore punk scene. Plus, they are MUCH better than The Surf Punks.

 

Now we are talking. Mike & Co. are still touring. I have seen them here 3x in the last 3 years and they have been fantastic. DO NOT miss them if they come your way.

 

I remember being really into This Is The Voice in the mid-'80s - that album got a reasonable amount of play through the college/late night public radio channels, as did the video for the single "Fire in The Rain" on MuchMusic, which is where I first heard it.

 

Found " the bends" and have been listening and still can not get it. Wrong record?

 

Now this song and "Wasted" would be a heck of a way to start a playlist

(I like how the Rhino reissue of Living In Darkness has this song on it)

 

This was one of the best "free magazine CDs" I've ever gotten! The band (She) was from my current hometown Sacramento
California.

 

I bought this 45 not long after it came out, circa November 1971. It was all over the top 40 airwaves then!

 

The Frogs – These Are The Finest Queen Boys (I’ve Ever Seen) (1989) *EXPLICIT LYRICS*

Please don’t even think about clicking on the YouTube link if you are easily offended. The Frogs use satire in a very in-your-face manner. Wikipedia says, “They are also known for their improvised home recordings which are delivered in a comedic style, and often include controversial issues such as race, religion, and sexuality (notably homoeroticism).” With that said, these are some of the funniest songs I’ve ever heard. I’ve listened to It’s Only Right And Natural, My Daughter The Broad and Bananimals hundreds of times over the years and they still make me crack up.

Basically Jimmy and Dennis Flemion would improvise songs in their bedroom on a cheap recorder. History was then made. Tapes were traded, Albini landed a copy and over 25 years later people are still listening.

Some other favorites:
Baby Greaser George
Out Of The Mist
Hot C0ck Annie
Where’s Jerry Lewis?
April Fools (He Had The Change Done At The Shop)
Children, Run Away (The Man With The Candy)

 

The songs on the B-side were great too.

 

Yes they were are!

 

I'm not sure about a "like" here, but the concept is terrific: folk song styling with 'viewer discretion advised' lyrics

 

Thanks to this thread, my most recent SecondSpin order is on the way with Bikini Kill's OOP The Singles, Fugazi's Repeater, and Fugazi's 13 Songs

 

Built To Spill - Wherever You Go (2006)

I'm sure some of you have been expecting me to post something from Built To Spill since the very beginning of this thread. I love these guys and have posted about them many times here. The wait is over.

I'll admit that I was kinda underwhelmed by You In Reverse for a long time. I just never really warmed up to the opening cut "Goin' Against Your Mind" and that's always something I've had a problem with. You better knock me out with that first track. Unfortunately that song goes on for almost 9 minutes and Doug doesn't even start singing until over 2 minutes in. But you know what? A mediocre BTS album is still a very great thing.

I guess it's a little odd then that I'd pull a track from one of my least favorite albums of theirs. They have so many great songs on albums of past and even the great There Is No Enemy that was the followup to YIR. Really, my ulterior motive was to pick a track that is so close to Neil Young's sound as to maybe win over a few new fans who dig Neil.

 

Built to Spill is an act I've been reading about for a decade or two and I was always mildly curious about what they sounded like. Now I know. It's not bad, probably a notch above "passable", but I'd have to try to really get into it with repeated listens, which I'm unwilling to do. On the other hand, that's how I came to love Nursery Cryme, so you never know ...

 

The Gun Club - She's Like Heroin To Me (1981)

Sorry for the delay but I've been on vacation at beautiful Big Bend National Park as well as a few other spots along the way.

Surely one of The Gun Club's more well-known tunes. I love to create mix CDs that are packed with thirty or so 2 to 3 minute songs and I've included this one many MANY times. I think it's much stronger than "Sex Beat."

 

No way is it stronger than "Sex Beat", but man, it's right up there.

 

Actually, I prefer "Ghost On The Highway" just a bit more, but it's impossible to pick a favorite off that album, it's a monster. Saw them at Maxwell's around that time on their first East Coast tour, and they just burned, a great live band. The follow up album, Miami was every bit as good but the thin production almost sinks it.

 

I like that. It has a neat garage 70s vibe to it.

 

The Gun Club was on fire at the time. Wonderful tune that packs a niffty punch. Saw them a couple times around this time and they left a smoking crater. Big Bend is a lesser known National Park, what a treasure, glad you got to enjoy one of our countries great legasies The National Park System... Nice to have you back spinning great music!