Just want to make sure we’re cool. Culture Club suck the bad part of my ass, but you’re still okay in my book.
Your pal,
HVB
Jul 012008
hrrundivbakshi
Jul 012008
There’s always a part of me that’s glad I don’t always understand what E. Pluribus is saying, but this time, I started wondering if there was something that Gergley “gets” that I don’t, namely: *animality.*
I mean, what the heck is it? Let me ask some tough questions:
1. Do the Stones have it?
2. Did the Beatles? If they only had animality part of the time, what was it about their non-animality-infused music that made it good anyway?
3. Is it something Black artists seem to have more of? (I say seem. This is an important choice of words!)
4. Is there more animality in music made before 1970, and, if so, why?
4. Is the lack of animality “gay,” in the playground insult kind of way?
5. So, come on: who’s got the animality?
Just wondering,
HVB
Jun 302008
Quick, Townspeople! Who among us most firmly believes that rock and roll started losing its mind when bands began obsessing about albums, rather than finely crafted singles? Answer: E. Pluribus Gergely! Who’s the guy who thinks the Venn Diagram intersection of tradition, groove and melody is where the best pop music has always lived? E. Pluribus Gergely! Who’s the guy who thinks Paul Weller‘s greatest shortcoming as an artist was his unwillingness to put his heart on his sleeve and sing about his *feelings*? E. Pluribus Gergely!
For all these reasons and more, I’m happy to report that E. Pluribus Gergely — whether he knows it or not — loves the Style Council!
Now, let’s be clear: I have no illusions about our dear, beloved Plurbie and his willingness to open up even one small, wrinkled fold of his fevered brain to consider this overlooked phase in Paul Weller’s career. But I know, deep in my heart, that he should.
When Paul Weller shit-canned the Jam (one of the great, classy moves in rock history, as far as I’m concerned), his stated intention was to launch a loosely knit “band” — more of a collective, really — whose primary aim would be to produce killer singles (*not* albums!), loosely fashioned after the 45s that had brought meaning to his life as a youngster.
With that in mind, check out this vuh-deo, for the Style Council’s fourth single, “A Solid Bond In Your Heart.” Talk about an explicit blueprint for action! Weller wanted to bring back dancing, community, style, and general freedom from bullshit when he started this band. Mr. Mod may tamp his pipe and complain about the Weller “four on the floor” beat that he incorrectly perceives as being central to every Weller tune ever written — and I’m just waiting for the snarky observations about how Mick Talbot is the only guy in this video who’s actually chasing after a girl — but, hell. The tune still churns up the dancefloor, Paul’s heart is clearly in the right place, and there’s some positivity on display. As the band plowed through its first couple of years, Weller would open up even further.
Jun 262008
Forget the battle between Rod Stewart and the Rolling Stones, ca. 1976. I’m more interested in the battle between Little Stevie Wright and Rod Stewart! You be the judge!
“Hard Road”, Stevie Wright
HVB
Jun 232008
I was out at a baseball game with fellow Townsman Mockcarr the other day, and, as the beer began to flow, we both decided that things at RTH had gotten a bit contentious. What we needed, we agreed, was to find common ground — you know, to find the things we know we can all agree with. We also realized, however, that attempting to find common ground on things we all liked was a fool’s errand. That’s what got us into all this trouble to begin with! A more likely path to peace and harmony, we thought, was finding unity and one-ness in the things we know we all hate.
Townsman Kilroy started things off rather nicely by citing the Rolling Stones’ output, post-Tattoo You. I’m going to suggest Dennis DeYoung. Is anybody here willing to stand up for either of these things and claim they’re not as bad as we think they are? If not, perhaps you’d be willing to help promote the healing by finding something else we can all agree to hate — utterly and completely — together.
Come on, RTH — can’t we all just get along?
HVB
Jun 172008
Mr. Mod, if memory serves, you’re one of those guys who has a really hard time saying anything nice about Jellyfish. I’m betting that your reasons for being disdainful about this band are minor, largely Look- and style-obsessed — and may even be tinged with a hint of career envy. If that’s not so, then please explain: why do you hate these guys so much?
Eagerly looking forward to your response,
HVB
p.s.: just to show I’ve got my cards on the table — I think “Spilt Milk” is one of the most wonderful American pop/rock records ever made. And I use that term “wonderful” for a reason; it’s dizzyingly rich, crazily ambitious, hyper-Kentonite — yet it’s still ultimately a tuneful, finger-snapping, timeless celebration of *song*. I love it, and you should, too! Why on Earth don’t you?!
Jun 102008
Greetings, fellow seekers of the weird, the wonderful and the purportedly worthless! As RTH slogs its way through the merits of various over-produced girl groups from the ’80s, ’90s, and beyond, I thought I’d take a moment to showcase a couple of singles I found while scouring the bins at a local flea market.
First up: The Goodees, a girl group signed to Stax’s “Hip” sub-label as a result of winning a local talent contest in Memphis. Some of you might be familiar with their extremely modest hit “Condition Red” — but it was the B-side, “Didn’t Know Love Was So Good”, that really got me. That Isaac Hayes piano stab after the start of every verse — dang! Just goes to show you how one simple part can really make or break a tune.
Here’s my second thrifty find of the girlie variety: “Chu Sen Ling”, by oriental girl group The Bermudas. Or… wait. Not an oriental girl group. Turns out, the “Bermudas” — as well as The Majorettes, The Georgettes, Joanne & The Triangles, and Beverly & The Motorscooters — were all fake “bands” created by Los Angeles musical entrepreneur Rickie Page to showcase the talents of her immediate family. I’ll let Spectropop continue the story; it is a fascinating one:
This particular outfit comprised Rebecca (Becky) Page, her older sister Joanna, their mother Rickie and Susie Kuykendoll, Rickie’s sister. Rebecca shared lead vocals with Rickie, whose oldest daughter Sheilah sometimes took her place in photos of the group. In 1957 Rickie Page had begun a stream of recordings using her own name for every label under the California sun, not to mention some in Nashville. She also waxed as a member of the Jordanaires, the Spectors Three and Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett’s Crypt-Kickers; factors which make her one of the unsung heroines of the early-1960s Los Angeles scene. Rickie is still active in the music business, composing songs from her base in Fresno, California.
Anyhow, for me, the point is: I love this song!
Folks, I’m busy these days, so it’s hard for me to wax philosophic on this kind of thing, but I do have one far-ranging, and hopefully revealing, question for all of you: in one sentence, what purpose do “girl groups” serve?
I look forward to your responses.
HVB
