Bradley's Buzz

Blondie's New Video

The new single and video by BLONDIE - it's "MOTHER" from the album PANIC OF GIRLS:

Labels: Blondie, Deborah Harry, Mother's Day, Panic Of Girls

posted by swivek @ 11:21 AM 0 comments

Rare Blondie!

Well you find something cool almost every day - here is an alternative video for Blondie's "Island Of Lost Souls" from 1982 that I never even knew existed:

Labels: Blondie, Island Of Lost Souls, Rare video

posted by swivek @ 10:12 AM 0 comments

New Blondie Song!

Here's an exciting little clip - Blondie doing a new song called "Mother Of The Night" - love it!

Labels: Blondie

posted by swivek @ 9:53 AM 0 comments

The Gifts That Keep Giving

My pal Geoffrey works for a big party planner and he was rummaging through the endless array of artwork in a back storage room when he came upon a most exciting item. An item he decided I would love (for some strange reason). So here it is, to boast and to make envious - my latest and greatest gift!

Labels: Blondie, Deborah Harry

posted by swivek @ 10:03 AM 0 comments

Christmas Video For You

Here's some Christmas cheer from my fav band in the world!

Labels: Blondie, We Three Kings

posted by swivek @ 11:37 AM 0 comments

What A Pair

What do Amy Sedaris and Dolly Parton have in common? Well to tell you the truth I'm not really sure but Miss Jeri Blank (and sister of one of my favorite writers ever) is in the brand new Dolly video "Better Get To Livin'" - don't believe me? Check out the circus themed video out at CMT here - Dolly Video

and for more circus video fun, check out Blondie's 2003 brilliant "Good Boys" - just because I said so:

Labels: Amy Sedaris, Blondie, Circus themes, Dolly Parton

posted by swivek @ 10:02 AM 0 comments

5 Albums That Changed My Life

I've been meaning to make this post for awhile, ever since I got one of those My Space bulletins about it. I thought "what a perfect blog post".. so I hope whoever started this doesn't think I'm a complete thief but I had to add my two cents and so should you.

As for me, my 5 are a bit on the odd side, but considering whose writing this piece it will come as no big shocker. First and foremost I have to say my gamut of music really stretches all across the universe so I thought it might be hard to come up with the music that actually CHANGED my life and had some big effect on me but after a few minutes of deliberation I came up with my list - and they are only in order of release, so I guess they are in order of when they affected me. Also note that these are albums that affected me upon their release, there are plenty of important albums that I wasn't fortunate enough to hear upon their initial release and thus I had already been affected by these 5:


Grease Original Soundtrack (1978; RSO Records) - I know you really lost all your respect but hey I was a tee weeny little boy and the soundtrack and the film were the first real adult type of fare that I came across which actually affected me in any way. The film was so exciting to me I made every relative I had take me to see it claiming I had never seen it before. My Aunt Sarah and I listened to it on my Grandma's big record player in the living room - one of those things that look like a cabinet but actually house a record player and in Grandma Ferlie's case an 8 track player. Then I made my mom buy me the 8-track for myself. I sang every song as if it were my own and as if I knew what half the words meant. "Summer Nights", "You're The One That I Want", "Greased Lightning" - not to mention the 1,2 punch of sassy pants Rizzo with her teaser "Look At Me I'm Sandra Dee" and "There Are Worse Things I Could Do", plus the Sha Na Na whole middle of 50's dance music, and the Cindy Bullens sung "It's Raining On Prom Night", "Freddy My Love" and "Mooning" from the original play (which I didn't even know existed at the time). The soundtrack to Grease made me grow up and to this day I still sucked in to both the flick and the soundtrack and it made me a life long Livvie fan.

Stockard Channing - Look At Me I'm Sandra Dee
Cindy Bullens - It's Raining On Prom Night


Blondie - Parallel Lines - (1978; Chrysalis) Anyone who has ever heard this album from start to finish should be affected by it as well. Opening with telephone buzz and breaking into the punky new wave "Hanging On The Telephone" through 12 songs of neon nuances, organ bounces, sultry cooing and downright new wave genius this is arguably one of the best albums released ever, and that comes from other real critics and not just my blonde head. When I first saw Debbie Harry on TV singing I was transfixed. I had to know who she was, what she was, where she was. Once again Aunt Sarah stepped in by having the Parallel Lines album since they had done a cheerleading routine to "Heart Of Glass", I stole that record from her and I've never looked back. The rocking jaunt of "One Way Or Another", the 60's popness in "Sunday Girl", the gloomy "Fade Away And Radiate", "11:59", "Will Anything Happen?", "I'm Gonna Love You Too" - there isn't a bad song on this bunch. In fact, I used to act out the entire album from beginning to end in my room. There was also one of Smokey and Evelyn's neices who bought the album and brought it to the Smokey home where I insisted I knew all the words - they laughed at me until they started following along on the lyric sheet while I sang. That's how cool of a kid I was! Just listen to some of the amazing lyrics and the incredible music and you'll be hooked too - "Your mouth is permanently entrenched where a molar should be" - how frickin' cool! Parallel Lines made me want to be a singer, it made me want to write songs, it made me proud to be blonde, and it made such an effect on me I can't go without it for more than a few months without pulling it out and playing it from start to finish all over again.

Labels: Blondie, Grease, Lisa Hartman, Music Life Pat Benatar, Nirvana, Olivia Newton-John

posted by swivek @ 4:16 PM 2 comments

Blondes To The Musical Rescue

ONLY 6 DAYS UNTIL MY BIRTHDAY!

As if my birthday wasn't cause enough to celebrate the impending CD releases coming up certainly are. A few of my favorite one time blondes have some stuff coming out and I can barely contain myself.

First up former Concrete Blonde singer/bassist Johnette Napolitano is releasing her first official solo album (she's had two internet CDs prior). The CD is called Scarred and it comes out May 29, 2007. You can hear some of the songs at her My Space page and check out the list of tour dates - she is probably coming to a town near you.







And you can pre-order Johnette's Scarred Cd by clicking here.

Then the gal known as Debbie Harry and her boys of Blondie have another reissue coming out but this time it's uber cool.. finally after years and years of waiting the Eat To The Beat music video (all 12 songs in video form from 1979) is finally having a release though instead of just buying the DVD you get the combo album/DVD. The album is the remastered version of the 1979 hit and probably my all time favorite Blondie album plus you get the DVD that only a few people in the world have (Bubbatunes did a DVDR version for Christmas).

Labels: Blondie, Concrete Blonde, Deborah Harry, Eat To The Beat DVD, Johnette Napolitano, Necessary Evil, New Music Releases, Scarred, Swivek

posted by swivek @ 12:13 PM 0 comments

The Top 100 Of The 70's - THE TOP FIVE

THE TOP FIVE
After what seems likes months and months, we have finally made it into the top 5 singles of the entire decade in the 1970's and as I know you're just itching to find out what my warped little ears picked up on, here they are the top 5 Singles Of The 70's - According To Bradley:


#5 – Video Killed The Radio Star – The Buggles
(Downes/Horn/Wooley)
Island single #49114 US /
Chart Debut: US Pop 11/10/1979 #40 / UK 09/29/1979 #1
A song about the future, where the future was really only a few months away. Most people know this jumpy little synth track from the early days of MTV, but the song was actually released and a hit two summers before MTV ever even debuted, it’s just that some genius thought of “Video Killed The Radio Star” as the perfect first video to be played on a new medium they hoped would take over radio programming. The boys at MTV got their wish but there was a time when no one thought it would ever work. The song itself is a cool ditty full of metallic synths and overdubs telling the tale of radio star who just can’t get the praise in the video age she used to get in the days of radio. It’s almost creepy how in touch the Buggles seemed to be in determining how music would be shaped. But I’m sure it was just coincidence and they were just trying to make a catchy new wave song. They succeeded for sure because “Video Killed The Radio Star” has to be one of the most clever and memorable songs to come out of the new wave era. With the bee bop girls singing along behind the lead vocals and the different instrumentations and melodies coming in, it really ushered in the age of plastic, just as the title of the album it came from, had announced.

#4 – You’re The One That I Want – Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta
(John Farrar)
RSO single #891 US / #6 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 04/01/1978 #1 / UK 05/20/1978 #1
When I was but a wee tyke, my mommy took me out to the bar with her and it ended up being the very first time I ever took to the stage. Yes, I was a child protégé, can you even believe it? That night, there was a band playing and they asked the audience if anyone would like to come up and join them in a song, well of course this kid shouted and screamed to get up on stage. When they asked me what I wanted to sing all I could think of was “You’re The One That I Want” from the movie Grease. Actually it wasn’t that hard of a choice since I had already seen the movie about 8 times, having convinced every single relative that came within hearing distance, that I had yet to see the movie, so one by one they all took me to see the film. I instantly fell in love with Olivia and John and Stockard and well, the whole gang. I also ran out and had my mother buy me the soundtrack, on 8 track of course so I could hear it in the car. Anyhoos, the highlight of the film is of course Livvie coming out as “Sandy II” in her tight leather pants and red Candie heels, and as she snubs out her cigarette and kicks Travolta’s chest, the whole world goes wild, and they break into “You’re The One That I Want.” The song is interesting as it wasn’t part of the original Grease play, the song was once again written by John Farrar, Olivia’s main producer and writer, but to show how good and how loved the song is, it’s become synonymous with Grease and I’m sure anyone who put on the play post-film would be a fool not to include the song. I mean even the new reality show where they are trying to find a new Danny and Sandy to play on Broadway is called You’re The One That I Want. As for the reasons the song struck such a chord, I really believe it has a ton to do with the sweet lovable but push over that Olivia was at the time prior to her transformation into Sandy. She goes from sissy to sassy in two minutes and turns the tables on her man defending her actions as a way to make sure he can handle her for all that she is. The fact that John Travolta was huge at the time didn’t hurt either. “You’re The One That I Want” begins with that great John high pitched “I’ve got chills/ they’re multiplyin’/ and I’m looosin’ control…” and the combination of the piano and that jazzy bass beat pump the song through plus the speedy chorus is so catchy everyone sings along with it yet no one can sing it like those two, try it, and you end up sounding like you’re talking and not singing at all. I guess that’s just the talent of Miss O, as for my debut all those years ago, you can bet that little white haired boy nailed it. I mean I didn’t even sing it with someone else, I took a duet and made it all my own. I’m sure I seemed rather schyzo but still I was able to blow them away. I was great and even if I wasn’t, in my memory I remember it being a magical time and I’ll keep it that way forever .


and for a special treat to imagine what I may have looked like at the time I made my big debut here's a little pic to put it into perspective:

#3 – Heart Of Glass – Blondie
(Deborah Harry/Chris Stein)
Chrysalis single #2295 US / #2275 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 02/17/1979 #1 / UK 01/27/1979 #1


Like so many other people, “Heart Of Glass” was my first taste of Blondie music. I remember being up with my mom one late New Year’s Eve night and seeing Blondie perform the song. I fell in love instantly with Deborah Harry and when my mother informed me that my father liked her I was even more stoked. I thought maybe we’d finally bond over something. As it turns out, we didn’t bond but boy did I bond with Blondie. My aunt had the Parallel Lines album and informed me she had done some cheerleading routine to the song so I stole the album. Psst, don’t tell her. Later, some relatives of our neighbors had the album and were more than impressed to know that I knew every single song back and forth. As for the single itself, “Heart Of Glass” is so often miscast as the band’s disco single it used to drive me nuts. For the record even early renditions of the song was called “The Disco Song” by the band so I suppose it was what they were going for, but if you listen to the music itself, “Heart Of Glass” is so much more than a run of the mill disco song, in fact there’s more of a smooth new wave feel to it than something KC & The Sunshine Band would do. There are the winding synths, the tic tic of the keyboard and the drums, the guitar, and Debbie’s oh so cool passivity in her vocals. The song is one of their most famous and still plays in clubs from here to England. Of course it doesn’t hurt that there are about 100 different versions of the song available. The original single faded out right after Debbie’s fab line, “Once I had a love/ it was a gas/ soon turned out to be a pain in the ass…” but when some radio felt uncomfortable playing it, a second version was released with it fading out before the line, then of course there was the 5:50 ‘disco version’ that showed up on 12” and on most of the pressings of Parallel Lines; and from there it just got remixed and remixed. But it’s the original that stands up the best, I get a thrill from the intro and when Debbie’s bridge comes in you can’t help but sing along, “Lost inside adorable illusion/ and I can’t hide/ I’m the one you’re using/ please don’t push me aside/ we could’ve made a cruisin’ yeah” and the boys “na, na, na, na”’s are an excellent touch until we get to the part that everyone loves, the breakdown and the “oooh wahoh”. “Heart Of Glass” is so full of little things to make it awesome, it’s almost amazing there could be a group of people so talented they could put all of this together. “Heart Of Glass” is a classic single that has definitely stood the test of time.

#2 – Heartbreaker – Pat Benatar
(Gill/Wade)
Chrysalis single #2395
Chart Debut: US Pop 12/22/1979 #23
If all Pat Benatar had ever offered to us was “Heartbreaker” I would still be a die Benatar fan. From the moment the intense drumbeat begins you are taken into a whole new level of high-energy new wave rock. Then the voice comes in and there’s no turning back, “Your love is like a tidal wave/spinning over my head/ drowning me in your promises/ better left unsaid…” in that now familiar Benatar growl but then she goes up three octaves to give us a bridge, “You’re the right kind of sinner/ to release my inner fantasy/ the invincible winner/ and you know that you were born to be” before growling the chorus, “You’re a heartbreaker/ dream maker/ love taker/ don’t you mess around with me/ no, no, no!” and if you’re smart you wouldn’t mess with the little petite firecracker. After listening to song after song from the 70’s I knew Benatar’s first big single would hit high and to be perfectly honest it was just a hair from being our #1 single of the 70’s, that’s how much I love this song and how much I believe you should love it too. There wasn’t another rocker like Miss Benatar when she hit the scene – there were the hard rocking boys in endless bands, and there were women hitting the scene like my Debs, Chrissie Hynde, Heart and Patti Smith but Pat had more of a gleam to her, she used a boy’s use of sexiness to get her gut wrenched messages across. Not as centerfold in looks in Debbie and not as lyrical as the Blondies, nor as political as Patti or Chrissie or even as hard rock as the Wilson sisters, Pat blended pop and rock with banging guitars on this single being meshed together by a new wave production done by Mike Chapman’s right hand band Peter Coleman. “Heartbreaker” bashes through the supposed prejudice that women can’t rock like men, Pat reestablishes the first verse with the second and then there’s a guitar solo and the drums come pounding back with Pat’s intense bridge only for all the music to fall away and an accapella rendering of the chorus which sounds amazing turned up to almost full volume. The music comes back and as Pat winds up the chorus, her soon to be husband Neil Geraldo creates one of the best guitar solos (almost 30 more seconds of the song) of the entire decade. Of course, the most thrilling part of it all is that voice, you never heard a woman sing like that behind those incredibly hard rock sounds. In fact the radio stations didn’t want to play the song at first as they felt it was too hard of a sound. It would take over 3 months to even move into the top 40 in March of 1980 but would eventually reach the lower 20’s and help put Pat Benatar on the map. Of all of her wonderfully crafted and exciting singles nothing punches like “Heartbreaker”, and the song and its album In The Heat Of The Night made a life time fan out of this little blonde, and that’s why it made it all the way to our number 2 spot. I couldn’t live without this song in my life.

On a side note I don’t think it hurt any that Pat looks smokin’ hot on the record jacket, in the UK, where the song didn’t chart or sell I blame completely on the record jacket issued, I mean it’s just downright goofy.

and just to keep things a little on the edge, before we get to the very best single of the 1970's let me give you a little trivia about our list... I love this stuff, even if you don't...

1. Completely coincidentally but so wonderful is the fact that every single year of the 70's has been represented in our list of the top 100. Being a child of the 80's it's probably not terribly surprising that the year with the most entries is 1979, with a total of 25 singles, including 5 of our top 10; 1979 is followed by 1978 (23), a tie between 1977 & 1976 (11), 1970 has 8 singles, 5 singles are a tie between 1971 and 1974 and there are 4 singles from 1972x1973 and 1975, so it looks like a fairly good representation.

2. Blondie (of course) has the most singles entries in our list with 7, followed by Fleetwood Mac with 4 singles, and then third place finds a tie between Donna Summer & Olivia Newton-John each with 3 hits, and the total number of artists with double entries is 11 - Linda Ronstadt, Barry Manilow, Melanie, Billy Joel, Patti Smith Group, Aerosmith, Queen, ABBA, Bee Gees, Carly Simon and our #2 entry winner Pat Benatar, but should you feel that's a lot of songs by repeated artists there are still 61 songs that are by artists with only one entry.

3. Producer Mike Chapman produced the most singles on our countdown with 6 but since he did produce 4 of Blondie's 7 that's not a big surprise but he also produced Benatar's "If You Think You Know How To Love Me" (#34), The Knack's "My Sharona" (#13), Sweet's "Ballroom Blitz" (#9) and Nick Gilder's "Hot Child In The City".

4. It's not surprising considering the size and period of time they were in business but Columbia Records has the most chart entries with 11 including Elvis Costello, Billy Joel & Boomtown Rats on their roster. And because of Blondie's prominence on the chart the record label with the second most entries goes to Chrysalis Records but they also had Pat Benatar, Nick Gilder, and Claudja Barry; and the third is another big sized company Capitol Records with 7 entries including Anne Murray, The Knack and Sweet.

now stay tuned for the #1 Single Of The 1970's According To Bradley

Labels: 70s, Blondie, Grease, In The Heat Of The Night, John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Pat Benatar, Retro songs, The Buggles

posted by swivek @ 8:48 AM 0 comments

Top 100 Singles Of The 70's - 10-6

THE TOP 10!
10-6
We have done it, we have gone through 90 songs from that decade of decadence the 70's; and here we are in the top 10 - the ten best reasons to love music from the 70's - according to me.


#10 – I Don’t Like Mondays – Boomtown Rats
(Bob Geldof)
Columbia single #11117 US / Ensign #30 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 02/02/1980 #73 / UK 07/21/1979 #1
With “I Don’t Like Mondays” we end up with a story song that doesn’t really tell a story per se but is based upon a true story - a tragic true story if ever there was one. Long before Columbine which found disgruntled students shooting and killing their fellow classmates, On January 29th, 1979, the first day of school after Christmas break, 16-year-old Brenda Ann Spencer opened fire on kids arriving at Cleveland Elementary School in San Diego from her house across the street, killing two men and wounding eight students and a police officer. Principal Burton Wragg was attempting to rescue children in the line of fire when he was shot and killed, and custodian Mike Suchar was slain attempting to aid Wragg. The girl used a rifle her father had given her as a Christmas gift. As to what impelled her into this form of murderous madness, she told a reporter, ''I don't like Mondays. This livens up the day.'' The "Mondays" comment was not the only eyebrow-raising declaration to issue from Spencer that day. According to a report written by the police negotiators who spoke with her during the six-hour standoff, she made such comments to them as ''There was no reason for it, and it was just a lot of fun''; ''It was just like shooting ducks in a pond''; and ''[the children ] looked like a herd of cows standing around, it was really easy pickings.'' The stand off eventually ended after 6 ½ hours with Brenda surrendering and she is still in prison, but the story doesn’t end there. Instead Bob Geldof wrote this keyboard laced cry about the girl, “The silicone chip inside her head gets switched to overload/ and no one’s gonna go to school today/ she’s gonna make them stay at home/ and Daddy doesn’t understand it/ he always said she was good as gold/ and he can see no reason/ casue there is no reason/ what reason do you need to know..” before a choir type vocal comes in for the chorus, “Tell me why!” and Bob’s answer, “I Don’t Like Mondays” “Tell Me Why!” “I Don’t Like Mondays/I wanna shoot/ oooh / the whole day down.” Intense subject matter for a song, and no doubt what the song is talking about, in fact it was banned in the US long before 2 Live Crew ever got that major distincition. By the early days of 1980 however, the song was being played on some radio stations and eventually cracked our top 100 but in the UK it was released in the summer of ’79, less than 6 months after the actual shooting and Brenda Spencer didn’t even go to trial until early October. The really strange thing about it all is the song is very catchy and sing songy. I love singing it and for some reason the subject matter doesn’t terrify me as I belt out the song. But isn’t art supposed to have a grain of truth and some actual substance and meaning behind it? For that “I Don’t Like Mondays” should be an automatic Best of in just about any music list.

#9 – Ballroom Blitz – Sweet
(Mike Chapman/Nicky Chinn)
Capitol single #4055 US / RCA single #2403 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 06/14/1975 #5 / UK 09/22/1973 #2
I love me some high energy and Sweet certainly delivers that on “Ballroom Blitz”. Sure it’s a tad cheesy, it’s also a tad over the top but it is also a heaping help of fun. I love singing this song because of the different voices you get to use. The song begins with a crazed shout out to band mates before going slightly calm in the lyrics and then taking off again for the bridge before the awesome, “yeah/yeah/yeah” leads us to the rapid fire chorus, “And the man in the back said ‘everyone attack’/ and it turned into a ballroom blitz/ and the girl corner said ‘boy I wanna warn ya/ it’ll turn into a ballroom blitz” and then there’s the awesome drum breakdown in the middle that always gets me. I’ve been meaning to do a cover of this song for years and perhaps someday I’ll get to it, but for now I just bring the energy levels of Karaoke night up a few notches.

#8 – Hot Child In The City – Nick Gilder
(Nick Gilder/James McCulloch)
Chrysalis single #2226
Chart Debut: US Pop 06/10/1978 #1
“Hot Child In The City” was one of my favorite songs when I was a kid, though I always thought it was a woman singing. Of course all I could ever remember was the chorus so for all I knew it could’ve been a woman. As it turns out, Nick Gilder is not a girl but a slightly high voiced male who performed awesome new wave rock songs usually about sex. Nick was originally the singer of the band Sweeney Todd until he went off on his own. “Hot Child In The City” comes from his second album, 1978’s City Nights. The whole song is a huge homage to some seductive teenage runaway ruling the streets of the city. I love the imagery as I wanted to be that slutty teen running along the streets of Los Angeles. “Danger in the shape of something wild/ stranger dressed in black/ she’s a hungry child..” replace she with he and I tell you this was me! In recent years I’ve been able to get most of Nick’s great Chrysalis Records releases all of which contain some form of city slick teens running wild and sharing their sex, and I love every single one of them. Another killer track of his titled “Rated X” would end up on Pat Benatar’s debut album In The Heat Of The Night, another record full of stylistic seductiveness and Nick would also go on to write for others including “The Warrior” by Scandal, but “Hot Child In The City” is his most famous song and his one and only single to make it into the top 40 which if you ever heard “Here Comes The Night” proves to be a real shame.


#7 – Dreaming – Blondie
(Deborah Harry/ Chris Stein)
Chrysalis single #2379 US / #2350 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 09/29/1979 #27 / UK 09/29/1979 #2
Blondie drummer Clem Burke has claimed “Dreaming” was just one long giant drum roll and in some aspects he may be right. The song starts with his drumming before the guitars and keyboards come in and the fact that the whole 3 minute song is one smashing drum hit after another makes it pack a whole hella punch. Of course it’s Blondie so every little musical aspect borders on genius, from that punching drum, to Jimmy’s too cool for the real world keyboards, Nigel’s bass and Chris and Frank etching out the guitar work, and of course not only do we get Debbie’s icy cool vocals but we also get her ambiguous lyrical workout. I love songs that talk of reflective dreaming, the type that walk you through how your dreams can come true, or even how daydreaming the day away can make your whole life seem a lot better. Debbie does a fantastic job with “Dreaming” by taking a lyric that could easily have played in a ballad and putting it into a jaugernat of a rock song. “When I met you in the restaurant/you could tell I was no debuante/ you asked me what’s my pleasure/ a movie or a measure/ I’ll have a cup of tea/ and tell you of my dreaming/ dreaming is free…” Oh Debbie, how your sometimes incoherent ramblings can turn the world on its ear, I’m not sure what a measure is, and Debbie probably doesn’t know anymore either but it makes for a very interesting line, and when we go to our next verse we get even more brilliant yet random thoughts, “I don’t want to live on charity/ pleasure’s real or is it fantasy/ reel to reel is living rarity/ people stop and stare at me/ we just walk on by/ we just keep on dreaming…” I love that line. Then Clem goes into hyper drive and the song shifts gears a bit, “Beep/beep/ walking a two mile/ meet/ meet/ meet me at the turstile/ never met him/ I’ll never forget him/ dream/ dream/ even for a little while/ dream/ dream/ filling up an idle hour/ fade away/ oooh / radiaaaaaaattee..” Which I always thought was such a cool line because well fade away, radiate is just an awesome line but it’s also a song from Blondie’s previous album so it’s kind of like a shout out to themselves. The song goes back to its original beat for our final and favorite verse, “I sit by and watch the traffic go/ I sit by and watch the river flow/ Imagine something of your very own/ something you can have and hold/ I’d build a road in gold/ just to have some dreaming…” and after Debbie informs us a few more times that Dreaming is free, we fade out with Jimmy’s keyboards coming up and taking over. A clever and classic little single of daydreaming, ethereal images, awesome musicianship and cooler than cool lyrics,“Dreaming” would hit #2 in the UK but only scored in the top 30 here, I guess we were too busy dreaming to pay attention to the brilliance.


#6 – You’re So Vain – Carly Simon
(Carly Simon)
Elektra single #45824 US / #12077 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 12/02/1972 #1 / UK 12/16/1972 #3
In the past few months I have discovered that Carly Simon kicks ass. Perhaps not in the leather clad Joan Jett style but in a very real way nonetheless. After hearing a ton of her early albums and the chances she takes in both lyrics and music styles, she has now made me a life long fan, and it only took about 23 years to catch up. One song that didn’t need any reintroduction to the Carly canon is our #6 single “You’re So Vain.” The single is a song that is so famous it has its own urban legend. Of course perhaps it’s the urban legend that has made the single last so long in our concioussness. For all purposes, “You’re So Vain” is a piss off to someone from Carly and when it came out who exactly that someone was had everyone’s mind buzzin. Was it Carly’s boyfriend soon to be husband James Taylor that she was singing about? Was it Mick Jagger who sings a very audible appearance on the back up? Was it Warren Beatty who had dated our girl for a while? The question has never been answered and Carly liked it that way, stating in a not too long ago interview that if she told who it was about then the whole mystique of the song may be taken away. Finally, after over 30 years of prodding she did a fairly interesting thing by auctioning off to a high bidder who the song was really about. The deal was she would whisper in the winner’s ear who she wrote about and then perform the song for them. Of course they had to sign wavers as to not repeat the information. So some guy won and she did perform him and now there are at least two people who know who the real scheister is. As for us momo’s who can’t win auctions or have the ability to whip Carly into a corner at an exclusive party, we are left just imagining who she is singing about. But thanks to the power of the lyrics we could put just about anyone in the song, the theme that the person is a bastard in the night who is so vain he may actually think we’re singing about him can be fairly universal.
Perhaps it’s the appeal of the attitude behind the song that makes it so great. I know that it surely doesn’t hurt that Carly has a pretty cool reserve about her in her vocal performance and her lyrics are always three notches higher than the normal intellect, I mean just look at her rhymes, “You walked into the party like you were walking onto a yacht/ your hat strategically dipped below one eye/ your scarf it was apricot/ you had one eye in the mirror as you watched yourself gavotte/ and all the girls were dreaming that you’d be their partner…” Who writes like that? I tell you who, Carly Simon. A woman who would seem above reproach to the lowlies who didn’t grow up in Manhattan or vacation in the Hamptons, but with her willingness to let us into her very personal feelings, she never seemed the hardened upper crust New Englander, instead she came off very folky, very mature, and very sexy. Add to the mix with that filtering bravado of a guitar at the beginning, her refrain about her dreams being clouds in her coffee and Mick Jagger’s incredible backing vocal and you have a song that will last long after Carly’s unable to even remember who she wrote the song about.

And so you have the first batch of our top 10 singles of the 70's - I hope I'm not terribly disappointing all of you with my somewhat prejudiced and eclectic tastes but these really are the songs I listen to over and over and deserve to be in the top 10 according to Bradley - oh and because I'm such a trivia buff here's a little trivia about our latest list - 3 of the 5 songs are produced by Mike Chapman, I know strange huh? And completely coincidental - Mike produced some of the best music ever from the 70's on up and on this list he produced and co-wrote Sweet's "Ballroom Blitz", and produced the Nick Gilder single "Hot Child In The City" and pretty much reinvented Blondie with his produced albums including Parallel Lines which has a few singles on our countdown and today's "Dreaming" which is from the Chapman produced Eat To The Beat album - okay, until next time when we have that long awaited post which will give you not only the top 5 singles of the 70's but the very best - the #1 single of the 70's - According to Bradley.

Labels: 70s, Blondie, Boomtown Rats, Bradley, Carly Simon, Nick Gilder, Retro songs, Sweet

posted by swivek @ 8:54 AM 1 comments

Top 100 Singles Of The 70's - 20-16

The Top 100 Singles Of The 70's - According To Bradley
#20-16
Welcome back to the world of yellow, gold and avacado green polka dotted bliss - the 70's - a decade that gave us so many things from the Ford Maverick to the Brady Bunch, and plenty of tunes to listen to including our next batch of the top 70's singles - according to yours truly - the bradley of bradley's buzz.. so let's get on with it man...

#20 – Magic Man – Heart
(Ann & Nancy Wilson)
Mushroom single #7011 US / Arista single #71 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 07/16/1976 #9
Ann Wilson can sing the paint right off of a house, her energy is incredible and even on their first album the Wilson sisters, with Ann in the front on vocals and Nancy sliding her guitar, were an incredible force. The single “Magic Man” is just one of the many reasons the band deserves a lot more recognition than I think they get. The grinding rock and seduction of Ann’s vocals draws you in from that very first note. Add in the somewhat mystical Stevie Nicks-ish lyrics a classic is born. “Come on home girl, Mama cried on the phone/ too soon to lose my baby and my girl should be at home/oh try to understand/ try to understand/ try, try, try to understand/ he’s a magic man, mama…” I understand it, I have a magic man myself. The song always reminds me of an old pal of mine named Angie Rachenback (the last name was massacered in spelling to protect the innocent) who had this crazed relationship with her man JB and she always felt this was their song.. god I miss those people.

#19 – Paradise By The Dashboard Light – Meat Loaf
(Jim Steinman)
Cleveland International single #50588 US / CBS single #6673 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 08/12/1978 #39
“Paradise By The Dashboard Light” is an 8 minute opus of raw sex, losing your virginity and teenage boy’s lust dreams – you know rock and roll. Originally conceived as a stage rock opera the Bat Out Of Hell concept by writer Jim Steinman is one that has lasted through out the years. When the team of Steinman and singer Meat Loaf finally secured a record deal in early ’77, no one could’ve been prepared for the storm that followed it. One of the biggest selling albums of all time, Bat Out Of Hell, is actually a very riveting album even all these years later. Of course the single found here is one of those enduring reasons, Meat Loaf’s huge voice beckoning to his girl to do it in the car while Ellen Foley’s breathy sexiness and attitude come in wondering if he’s going to love her forever should she give in. After all the foreplay, fooling around and of course lying, our hero gets the girl while we get a play by play action by a sportscaster then as things are over and done we get the realization that the sexual couple are now linked forever much to Meat’s dismay. A brilliant opus of real life set to a bombastic rock melody that changes into three different songs. Say what you want about the overplayed song but there is a reason it has been so permanently imprinted into our rock and roll minds.

#18 – Time For Me To Fly – REO Speedwagon
(Kevin Cronin)
Epic single #50582 US only
Chart Debut: US Pop 07/22/1978 #56
I love this song. I can’t tell you how loud I start signing it whenever I hear it, and I’m not exactly why the lyrics have attached themselves to permanently into my mind, but it constantly pops up, “I’ve been around for you/ been up and down for you/ but I just can’t get any relief/ I swallowed my pride for you/ lived and lied for you/ but you still make me feel like a thief/ you’ve got me stealing your love away/ cause you never give it…” I tell you I sing it with so much conviction you’d think I actually had been treated this way. A perfect break up/ kick em to the curb song, “Time For Me To Fly” flows effortlessly with great guitar strums and Kevin Cronin’s impassioned vocals, even Dolly Parton’s honky tonk blue grass version of it from her 1989 White Limozeen album couldn’t take away the guts found in the verses.

#17 – A Little More Love – Olivia Newton-John
(John Farrar)
MCA single #40975 US / EMI single #2879 UK
Chart Debut: US Pop 11/25/1978 #3 / UK 12/16/1978 #4
After Grease, our Olivia held onto those tight leather pants and created a whole new image for herself, one of a hot, blonde rock chick who could take a pop single and add sexiness to it while still staying somewhat middle of the road sweet. Her 1978 album Totally Hot and it’s cover said all it needed to but a make over and the success of Grease didn’t necessarily guarantee a huge new career and that’s where the songs had to come in. Luckily, her main songwriter and producer John Farrar was on the same wavelength as Livvie and they created a slew of rocking little pop songs including the guitar laced “A Little More Love.”

The song opens with a rocky little pop guitar hook, “Night is draggin’ her feet” and a guitar kick up comes in, “I wait alone in the heat”, and Olivia’s sexiness begins to shine through, “I know/ know that you’ll have your way/ til you have to go home/ ‘No’s a word I can’t say…” and the song shifts into a catchy pop beat, “Cause it gets me nowhere to tell you ‘no’/ and it gets me nowhere to make you go” before shifting into the real part of the chorus and Livvie’s vocals go higher, “Will a little more love make you start dependin’?/ will a little more love bring a happy ending?/ will a little more love make it right?/ will a little more love make it right?” and of course she throws in some of those off the charts Livvie screeches I so adore, and we end up with a perfect single to introduce the new and improved post-Grease Olivia Newton-John.

#16 – One Way Or Another – Blondie
(Deborah Harry/Nigel Harrison)
Chrysalis single #2336 US only
Chart Debut: US Pop 06/02/1979 #24
Blondie’s final US single from their third album Parallel Lines, “One Way Or Another” is the ultimate stalker song, Debbie grunted through this three and a half minute rock fest, and though it’s been used in endless commercials, the single itself is still a worthy piece of 70’s gloriousness. “One Way Or Another I’m gonna getcha/ getcha/ getcha…” begins the catchy verse before moving into a darker melody and the actual stalking parts, “I will drive past your house/ and if the lights are all down/ I’ll see who’s arouuuwwwwnd…” I love singing this song in karaoke because of the different parts and just the whole nastiness of it all. Of course it turns even cooler when the end of the song turns the whole thing around with Debbie’s interest in her prey completely over with, “One way or another I’m gonna lose you/ I’ll trick ya/ I’ll trick ya…” and once again the song changes melody only this time it turns into a marching band of craziness, “I’ll walk down the mall/ stand over by the wall/ where I can see it all/ I’ll find out who you call/ lead you to the supermarket/ checkout some specials and rat food/ get lost in the crowd…” and the song fades out with Debbie’s voice alternating lines in each speaker. “One Way Or Another” is a masterpiece in musicianship, vocals and Mike Chapman’s superb production. It’s still one of the highlights on the 1978 Parallel Lines album that finally put Blondie into the mainstream.

and there you have it, only 5 more until we hit the top 10 singles of the 70's and if you're like me, you're just twittering in anticipation...

Labels: 70s, Blondie, Bradley, Heart, Meat Loaf, Olivia Newton-John, REO Speedwagon, Retro songs

posted by swivek @ 1:59 PM 0 comments

Top 100 Singles Of The 70's - 30-26

#30-26

and we are back for some more fun and games as we look even further into those hot hits from the decade that was the 70's - and so let's take a look at today's entries shall we?

Labels: 70s, Blondie, Bradley, Elvis Costello, Pretenders, Queen, Retro songs, Tanya Tucker

posted by swivek @ 10:32 PM 0 comments

The Bubbatunes Vaults 3

And so here we are again, this time we'll look through those dusty vaults and you know when you dust them off, there's some pretty interesting music to be found here. This time out we have some punky covers, some cheesy pop, some smoky vocals, and some live tracks, so let's get pumpin...

bub 13 Me First & The Gimme Gimmes - OTHER GUY'S 7" (2003)
Me First & The Gimme Gimmes are probably THE premier punk cover artists, a conglomerate of some of the more recognizable faces in new school punk, singer Spike Slawson formed the Gimme Gimmes with NO FX bassist Fat Mike, Lagwagon singer/guitarist Joey Caop, No Use For A Name guitarist Chris Shiflett and Lagwagon drummer Dave Raun. They were drawn together by a mutual love of 60s and 70s music, and decided to work exclusively as a cover band. Never originally planning to record they ended up appearing on punk compilations and then in 1995 they began releasing 7" singles named after the singer they were covering.

Beginning with "Denver", they produced "Billy" (joel), "Diamond", "Paul", "Barry" and "In Your Barcelonger" in this manner. Then in 2003, the Leivas found the band and I became a fan, so I took what songs I had and created this compilation of those 7" singles - they aren't all the songs included nor are they all the A-sides of the singles but they are a hoot and a half none the less, yes here on CD are those Other Guy's 7 inches done in that Gimme Gimmes work over.

Covering Neil Diamond, Paul Simon, Barry Manillow, James Taylor, Bob Dylan, Cat Stevens and Del Shannon, and as a special bonus a Hall & Oates cover, this is one fun and gyrating little comp. Of course you know all the songs but you don't know them this way. The punk hollering of "You've Got a Friend" is worth it alone.

Track List:
01. Take Me Home Country Roads 02. Only The Good Die Young 03. America 04. I Write The Songs 05. Mother & Child Reunion 06. Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me 07. The Boxer 08. You've Got A Friend 09. The Times They Are A Changing 10. Father & Son 11. Hats Off To Larry 12. Rich Girl

bub 14 Kristy McNichol - PUMPIN' (2003)
This very short (9 songs) compilation was one of the hardest to compile. In fact, it was so hard to track down Kristy McNichol’s music; this compilation almost never came to be. With all downloads you can never be sure how well the quality is until you actually get the song on your computer. Half the time it’s not even what you were expecting. Luckily there are Kristy fans out there – fans so adoring they loaded the classic “Baby Bye Bye” to their computer which is THE best song on The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia yet never ended up on the soundtrack album. Talk about injustice!

The first step was completed when a lovely girl named Amy (a girl I bonded brought to me by our devoted love of Lisa Hartman) made me a pristine copy of The Pirate Movie Original Soundtrack. Her cleaned up versions of the songs made me realize I HAD to make this comp.

My initial plan was to put “Pumpin’ & Blowin’” my favorite song by Kristy at the end of the comp but realized that with it at the beginning, it would surely hook me into Kristy’s musical world and I wouldn’t just fast forward. And so it begins with the nugget that is “Pumpin’ & Blowin’” The song is really the highlight of Kristy’s music and The Pirate Movie.

The song has the 80s all over with its thumping pop beat. Think Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical” and you get the picture. In fact that’s not all too surprising when you realize the song (and all the original pop songs from the movie) are written by Terry Britten and Sue Schifrin who were devoted Olivia Newton-John song writers circa 1982. Despite it’s very obvious double entendre message, I’ve always felt “Pumpin’” was written with its tongue firmly in cheek. The song is so catchy and fun, you can’t help but love it. Sure it’s cheese, in fact it’s so cheesy it’s cheez whiz, but gee whiz I love cheez whiz.

The most important thing is Kristy is very believable singing the song. It’s one of her best vocal performances and the song is so sing songy everyone I know can’t help but give it two listens at a pop…

Thanks to Amy’s robust handling of the CD version to The Pirate Movie (not on CD officially so FCC back off!) there are two more Kristy songs to offer – “First Love” and “Hold On.”

“First Love” is the obligatory duet all musicals must do. In this case, it’s when the two characters meet for the first time. It’s love at first sight and we learn it all through this 80s ballad. Kristy really does a great job on her vocals in all the movie’s songs; sounding better than any previous effort and Christopher Atkins (not a singer at all) isn’t too bad either. According to Christopher, the producers amped up his vocals a little and he was surprised saying, “They can do anything, they can make a dog sound good.” And boy that dawg looked good …

In the film, both “Mabel” and “Frederick” get to sing their weepy ballad after all hope of their love affair is gone. Christopher got to do his, which ended up being the only official single, and Kristy’s was “Hold On.” This is one pop song that could’ve been done by any number of artists at the time and released to radio. It’s right out of 1982 and although not on the cutting edge side by any means, it’s pop cheese that would’ve or could’ve surely done some chart action…. Though it’s no “Pumpin’ & Blowin’”

Kristy’s only other singing role in film was in 1980’s The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia which is of course another of my all time favs. When I had Alf listen to the Kristy McNichol compilation (He does love me so) the first song heard from the Georgia soundtrack is “Hangin’ Up The Gun” a duet between Kristy and Dennis Quaid. I love the song, it’s a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll and Dennis is really quite good. I know he had or has a band in real life and was in fact part of Bonnie Raitt’s big revival in 1988 as they were next door neighbors and he loved her music. (Take that information any way you want to). But Alf just said, “What was it about the 80s that made every actor want to sing?” I don’t have an answer but I do know I liked it.

The biggest surprise for me was “I Need You Strong For Me”, a ballad of Kristy’s from the Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia. I didn’t really remember it from the movie and I didn’t expect to like it so much. But this is coming from the boy who is suddenly in love with “Somebody Must’ve Loved You Right Last Night” a Tanya Tucker keyboard heavy 70s number in a very similar vein to this. “I Need You Strong…” is actually a very pretty little number with Kristy singing, “Don’t go changing your life now/cuz I’m changing mine/It’s time that I am free/but I need you strong for me.” It would of course be a lot more effective if Kristy sang in a more recognizable key but anyone who ever heard a Swivek CD knows the off track key can be very effective and Kristy really takes off by the end of the song and something has to be said for one who gives their all in a performance and once you’re this far into the compilation you are so far into Kristy’s world you are ready to drop a tear.

It’s probably no surprise but I like the rock edge of pop music a tad more than ballads and “Baby Bye Bye” was always my favorite Kristy song fom The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia. She sings with a little more gusto than normally and there’s actually a pretty good guitar solo going on. The only problem is this wasn’t put on the soundtrack so the only version I have is one someone taped from the film which includes dialogue from the movie and a fairly shabby sound. But with a little cleanup the sassiness is at least audible. Kristy growls, “I heard from everyone in town/you’ve been slippin’ around/bye bye/baby bye bye.” I can’t help but think Tanya Tucker was somewhere on the set urging the girl on… “Do it like this, now like this, listen to how I sing and try, try you little boy girl, try!” Whatever it was, it happened and 1979 Tanya Tucker is definitely heard on this track.

The final tracks on this short 9 song compilation are from a 1978 album called Kristy & Jimmy McNichol, that’s right I’m not even joking. The brother and sister team who brought you endless Teen Beat covers brought you not only an album but a Kristy McNichol doll as well (but that’s another story)…

Though I haven’t heard the entire album ever I can probably safely assume it is very discoish and very 1978. The three songs picked here are made up of two covers and one very very disco song. In fact this thing is so disco Gloria Gaynor would probably hit the floor.

Kristy does her versions of “He’s So Fine” with the actual Chiffons singing backup (!) and “My Boyfriend’s Back”. The Chiffons song was actually a single credited to the brother and sister team though I don’t hear him at all, but the song actually cracked the top 100 (#79). Her covers aren’t too bad, but they aren’t all that different from the originals and her voice is a tad thin, but we’re talking about a 16 year old girl here who did not have the production advantages of the no talent girls of the 2000s, and I can’t help it – I like them.

The ending song is the fitting “Hot Tunes” which almost was put at the beginning of the CD, but thought others who listened may not get through it all to venture further into Kristy’s musical side. The song is a duet with Jimmy and it begins with those beats only a disco song would have, in fact the music sounds like something from a ChiPs episode, it’s that 1978!

“Can’t stop/Strong flow/Sounds so good/on the radio/Stomp my feet/Clap my hands/Surrender to the rhythm dance/The rhythm dance!”

Then the almighty chorus:

“Love those Hot Tunes/Hot flash/like a laser blast/Countdown/All systems go/Flying high/Like a UFO/ Like A UFO! / 10,9,8,7.6,5,4,3,2,1… blast off!”

Oh yes, it’s that good… and the perfect way to end a perfectly dive into the cheez whiz world of Miss Kristy McNichol.. the coolest piece of white bread the world ever saw… or heard.. Oh Kristy, where are you now?

Track List:
01. Pumpin' & Blowin' 02. He's So Fine 03. Hangin' Up The Gun 04. Hold On 05. My Boyfriend's Back 06. I Need You Strong For Me 07. Baby Bye Bye 08. First Love 09. Hot Tunes DOWNLOAD KRISTY McNICHOL - PUMPIN'

bub 15 Kim Carnes - ROUGH EDGES (2003)
Like most people, my introduction to Kim Carnes’ music was the mega hit “Bette Davis Eyes.” It was one of the first 45s I ever bought and I used to play it all the time. I loved the synthesized “slaps” through out the song and used to annoy my little brother to no end by pretending to slap him as the song played.

But Kim can’t be tossed off as just a one hit wonder; no you won’t find her next to Toni Basil in the Rock & Roll Museum. Kim had hits prior to and after “Bette Davis Eyes” she just never had as big of a hit. But that’s fairly understandable, this song was so huge repeating its success was impossible.

By the time “Bette Davis Eyes” was released in April 1981, Kim had been around for more than a decade. She sang with country bands and released a few albums in a more country folk vein that her big hit.

In 1978, her and her husband wrote the album Gideon for Kenny Rogers. It was a concept album of sorts with a cowboy theme. Kenny and Kim sang on “Don’t Fall In Love With A Dreamer” (not included on this compilation) and it became a hit.

The following year, she was the very first artist signed to EMI America Records on the insistence of the record company’s owner. Her first album on the label, St. Vincent’s Court didn’t do all that well but the following album Romance Dance spawned the top 10 hit “More Love” – a Smokey Robinson cover. Romance Dance also saw Kim moving into a more pop territory.

It was 1981’s Mistaken Identity that put Kim into the stratosphere. The album combined synthesized rock with country pop and it scored big. No doubt thanks to “Bette Davis Eyes” which was also a cover song of Jackie DeShannon’s. The original didn’t have those synthesizers in it and even the initial Kim recording didn’t have them. But after a little retooling they had the song everyone would come to know.

From the album I included not only that smash single but some of my favorites - Mistaken Identity as a whole is a kind of strange album, one album is synth rock and the next is pure coutnry, but for some reason it all works.

After the smashing success of Mistaken Identity and most notably the single, Kim’s next few albums were synthesized laden. Voyeur and Café Racers took different approaches however. Voyeur (the first full Kim album I had) was synthesized rock, while 1983’s Café Racers was dance pop, set to the tune of all those 1983 synthesizers and drum machines.

In 1985, Kim recorded Barking At Airplanes and took the helm as producer for herself. The album was a fairly big success considering the last two and she actually scored a top 20 hit with “Crazy In The Night.”

By 1986, even her minor hits were drying up, so she switched gears again and went back to her country roots. Kim is still recording and releasing records but it’s those five years on EMI America that makes up Rough Edges. They are my favorite Kim songs and they should be yours too.

The 1980 hit “More Love” is the only pre- Mistaken Identity I included. I had never heard the song either by Smokey Robinson or Kim until years after this song was a hit. I wasn’t even completely mad about it, but after numerous listenings, it really has a nice little ring to it. Kim gives her all to an almost disco country beat. I have since heard the original version and I hope the Motown gods don’t strike me down, but I actually like Kim’s version better.

The other songs from that country/hybrid of Mistaken Idenity include the country flick of “Don’t Call It Love.” I really like this song and the sentiment is so sweet it almost makes my teeth fall out, but being in such a wonderful relationship as I am, it touches me… “Nobody believes that I really care for you/they don’t think my heart is true/I don’t think you’d agree/you know I’m a life time guarantee/so if they ask you what you mean to me/don’t call it love/heaven’s above/we got a better thing/don’t call it love/that ain’t enough/tell them you’re my everything.” Awww.

“Still Hold On” has always been one of my favorite songs Kim ever wrote. It’s a country rock ballad that is full of powerful lyrics and a kick ass chorus. In 1986, my country girl Tanya Tucker came back from a hiatus of dried up hits to release the album Girls Like Me, and the last song on the album was her version of “Still Hold On.” Tanya’s is just as good as this original version, and on a side note in 1979 Tanya released her Tear Me Apart album featuring the title Chinn/Chapman song, and Kim did her version of the song on her album St. Vincent’s Court. Everything is connected in my little Bradley world...

A song often neglected on Kim Carnes' compilations is "Draw Of The Cards", a synthesized heavy ditty that is full of dark images and the is a fairly scary song. It was the follow up single to "Bette Davis Eyes" and hit the top 30. Once again, I recall the video and it kind of frightened me.

Through out the song, the music gets quiet and then loud, loud, until the end when the sax begins kicking in, loud, loud, LOUD, LOUD, SYNTHESIZER, HORNS, GUITARS, and a BIG SCARY JOKER LAUGH, before fading out. One of the most original songs to come out of this time period I think.

From Kim’s 1982 album Voyeur, I ended up using quite a few songs. “Voyeur” opens up Rough Edges and it is one of my all time favorite Kim tracks. I recall the video gained a lot of controversy as it was filled with violence and sex. Set to a synthesized rock beat, the story of the woman and her obsessions come shining through, “when voices through the thin walls/speak of abhorrent behavior/and the video’s her only savior…” Kim’s smoke filled voice adds to the eerie effect of the song, “Voyeur, voyeur/are you hot tonight? /dance dance dance/til it makes you feel good.”

The song was the opening number on the original album as well. I used to listen to that album over and over again. I loved that album, it had everything plus I loved the cover - a black and white photo of Kim in a mini skirt, jacket and high heels standing in front of some kind of factory looking building. It was so industrial, so dark. For the music inside there was rock guitars, synthesizers, keyboards, Kim’s rugged voice and some really good lyrics – plus Martha Davis of the Motels even showing up to sing along on one of the songs…

From that 1982 favorite I’ve included a few other songs including the pseudo duet with Martha – “The Arrangement.” It’s one of my favorites from that album. This track doesn’t bother using the keyboards or synthesizers of some of the others but it doesn’t go into country territory either. It’s pretty much a balls out rock song telling the tale of a very vain and selfish woman and her “arrangement” with her man. “He drives her all day long/to fancy bars and restaurants/she acts like nothings wrong/she satisfies his needs and wants/He will drive her/she will drive him crazy with demands/until he takes all he can stand" and that my friends is the arrangement.

The second single from Voyeur, was the rock ballad “Does It Make You Remember”. I’m not sure if there was a single version released or if the album version was the single. The album version is over five minutes and this is rare for a single, however listening to the song, I can’t imagine where or how they could’ve edited it down for a single version. If Kim weren’t a performer she would be (and was) a songwriter and it’s her lyrics that always affect me. If not a fan of 80s music or Kim’s voice, one would have to admit she writes some damn good stories.

My favorite song from Voyeur has always been “Looker.” It’s a song written by outside writers but it could’ve been one of Kim’s. Heavily laden synthesizers start out the song with Kim singing, “A pretty face reflected in a mirror/so perfect in every way/with every move the picture’s getting clearer/she’s got it all/she’s got it made,” / “She’s a Looker/that’s what they say/she’s got it all/ yeah she’s got it made/she’s a Looker/ with a beautiful face/always on display.” I can totally relate to this song as I too am quite a looker and it’s not so easy being pretty!

In the fall of 1982, a little movie known as Flashdance took the world and this little Bradley by storm. It was the first R rated movie I ever got to see. I could not stop talking about, whining and crying until my mother could take no more and brought me to the theater.

Anyway, Kim contributed to the soundtrack with her ballad, “I’ll Be Here Where The Heart Is.” To this day, it’s still one of my favorite songs, not just by Kim, and not just from the soundtrack but in general. Like I’ve said, Kim has a very clever of writing a lyric, then with her scratchy voice, I somehow am able to empathize with whatever she’s saying.

“I’ll Be Here Where The Heart Is” was never released as a single but Kim did put in on her next album, 1983’s Café Racers, and it was the B-side to that albums first single Invisible Hands.

For Café Racers, Kim hired Keith Olsen (Pat Benatar, Fleetwood Mac, and co-producer of the soundtrack to that flashy trashy strip movie we were just talking about) to produce and they came up with something she had never done before. A full blown synthesized dance oriented album. Full of drum machines, fake guitars, and Kim’s vocals…it’s not as bad as you would think.

There are a few highlights from the album including “Invisible Hands.” Sounding like a hybrid of Olivia Newton-John’s “Twist Of Fate” and Madonna’s “Burning Up”, the song might as well have “1983” as a subtitle. Needless to say I love it. Kim took the song to #40 on the pop charts; meanwhile Olivia hit #3 with “Twist Of Fate” and Madonna was yet to “conquer the world.”

“You Make My Heart Beat Faster (And That’s All That Matters)” was the long-winded second single from Café Racers. Done in a very similar vein as “Invisible Hands” it’s a fun little piece of synth pop, but nowhere near as enjoyable as the first single.

I love “story songs” and “Young Love” happens to be the one chosen here. You know the type of songs I’m talking about, Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ On A Prayer” comes to mind with its story of the guitar player and his girlfriend. Usually these stories involve a guy named Johnny or John. I’m not sure why but that’s the way it is – perhaps there’s an unwritten law in pop music that says you have to use Johnny as your protagonist in story songs.

John shows up in “Young Love”, “Jenny loves John/ but he doesn’t care/ Now that he loves another/I know he’s been getting his share/sometimes I want to tell her/but I wouldn’t dare/cause tonight when she calls/she won’t know that I’m there…” That’s right, Kim is a slutting ho sleeping with her friend Jenny’s boyfriend John! I love it. The song would’ve been better if someone got killed at the end but I guess that’s Tanya Tucker’s department, not Kim’s.

The final single chosen from Café Racers was “I Pretend.” The song only hit in the upper 70s of the top 100 but it’s totally Kim Carnes. In fact it probably fits better on Mistaken Identity or one of her more recent albums than it did on the Café album.

Kim hadn’t had a bona fide hit in a few years when she decided to take over as her own producer for her next album. 1985’s Barking At Airplanes came out in the summer, and I remember hearing the first single “Crazy In The Night (Barking At Airplanes)” on the radio. I loved it and so did others as it hit #15 on the pop charts giving Kim another hit.

If Voyeur was my favorite Kim album to this point, Barking At Airplanes had the makings of taking over the title. All of the songs were either clever little ballads that pulled at my heartstrings or synthesized pop confections like “Crazy In The Night.”

The best ballad Kim has ever done in my opinion is the title track to this compilation, “Rough Edges.” The music is very minimalist and the song is mostly just Kim singing her misery but it’s so chilling, leaving me awestruck every time I hear it. For some reason, it’s the song I turn on every time I break up with some bastard.

Chosen as the third single from Barking At Airplanes, the song never had a chance on the radio, but Kim performed it around the TV circuit and I caught a live performance on some award show and I immediately fell in love with it.

Beginning in a similar vein to Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors”, there’s a bongo playing and then some clever guitar loops for Kim to sing along with. “Rough Edges” came out about six months before Cyndi’s “True Colors” and this song really should’ve been just as popular as Cyndi’s ballad. The second single from Barking was the synth laden “Abadabadango”. Abadaba what o? I know, it sounds silly and it is silly but like “Crazy In The Night” which isn’t exactly poetry, this song is fun. And it’s done for fun’s sake.

If I were to analyze this song, I would say "abadabadango" is the moment when you hear that inner voice telling you how stupid you’ve been acting, how you need to realize what you have right in front of you. But I’m not Kim Carnes so what the hell do I know about abadabadango?

“Divided Hearts” is the final song of Kim’s EMI America catalog chosen for Rough Edges. The song comes from Kim’s 1986 album Lighthouse. The album went back to Mistaken Identity territory, not only in musical styles (mixing country pop with rock pop) but also reuniting Kim with producer Val Garay. It would be her last EMI album and her last contemporary pop album. But what a way to go.

So now you know the songs and stories of that smoky voiced Kim Carnes. Perhaps you too can share some of her rough edges and see beyond those Bette Davis Eyes. It’s all in the draw of the cards, but choosing Kim will give you an ace every time.

Track List:
01. Voyeur 02. Invisible Hands 03. Rough Edges 04. Bette Davis Eyes
05. More Love 06. Abadabadango 07. Does It Make You Remember 08. Crazy In The Night (Barking At Airplanes) 09. Don't Call It Love 10. I'll Be Here Where The Heart Is 11. Looker 12. Draw Of The Cards 13. I Pretend 14. Divided Hearts 15. Still Hold On 16. Take It On The Chin 17. Young Love 18. The Arrangement 19. You Make My Heart Beat Faster (And That's All That Matters)

bub 16 Linda Ronstadt - THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION (2003)
I didn't realize how much I love Linda Ronstadt until I decided to make this compilation. Not the new Linda, the one who does Broadway and Spanish tunes or even the late 80s Linda who hooked up with Aaron for a series of successful though benign duets, I'm talking the uber popular, radical (though thankfully she's still quite radical) and 'there isn't a song I won't cover' 1970's Linda Ronstadt. Dubbing the official sound 'the Southern California sound' hybrid of rock and country folk, she did it before the Eagles or Fleetwood Mac - after all the Eagles were Linda's first backing band and the Mac hadn't yet recruited Stevie or Lindsay when Linda began scoring her hits. It's a real testament to her voice that most of these songs were huge hits, since hardly any of them were originals. After all Linda is foremost a vocalist and she would take any old song she wanted and make it her own, another testament since most of the arrangements she used were identical to the originals. I decided to do the Linda songs I would listen to over and over so there's no Aaron duest here, no big band but plenty of 70's and early 80's stuff including a slew of album tracks from the Mad Love album, which was her new wave attempt in 1980 and probably my favorite Linda album.

But between the first and last songs are a ton of really great tracks, some familiar, most hits and all of them great. We begin with her rockin' 1982 little hit "Get Closer" mostly known now as the Dentyne single from a few years back, there really is a song in here and it has a rockin' little back beat. My ultimate favorite Linda track ever "You're No Good" follows and it just goes from there.

All her early and late 70's hit singles - "Poor Poor Pitiful Me", "It's So Easy", "That'll Be The Day", "When Will I Be Loved", "Blue Bayou", "Tracks Of My Tears", "Tumblin' Dice" - you know all the covers she did.

When going through the Ronstadt catalog I had, I realized there were a few early hits I may have overlooked and luckily I realized what gems they really are - her very country "Silver Threads & Golden Needles" has a great vocal take, "Love Is A Rose" another country ditty is so catchy and "Long Long Time" is a song I hadn't really ever listened to but it is now one of my favorites.

From her later years in the rock new wave mode I put on her hit singles from Mad Love - the Billy Steinberg composition "How Do I Make You", "Hurt So Bad", "I Can't Let Go" and the album cuts "Mad Love", and the Elvis Costello cover "Girls Talk". Also from her 1982 Get Closer album is her cover of the 60's "Lies" and "Tell Him", both real rocking little ditties and the ballads (both which were singles) "Easy For Me To Say" and "I Knew You When" which is amazing in just the opening lines Linda sings. The only left over from her post hit making period is the single "Heartbeats Accelerating" from 1994 which I immediately fell in love with back in '94 when I heard it on the radio - too bad that it wasn't a hit.

Track List:
01. Get Closer 02. You're No Good 03. Poor Poor Pitiful Me 04. Hurt So Bad 05. It's So Easy 06. I Knew You When 07. That'll Be The Day 08. Just One Look 09. Love Is A Rose 10. Easy For You To Say 11. How Do I Make You 12. Heartbeats Accelerating 13. Blue Bayou 14. Lies 15. Tracks Of My Tears 16. I Can't Let Go 17. Someone To Lay Down Beside Me 18. Girls Talk 19. Tell Him 20. Tumbling Dice 21. Long Long Time 22. Mad Love 23. Ooh Baby Baby 24. Silver Threads & Golden Needles 25. When Will I Be Loved

bub 17 Blondie - MUSICKLADEN LIVE '78 (2003)
A live concert on DVD taped for German TV, the Leivas put this on a disc for me and I couldn't just let it sit there without a Bubbatunes makeover now could I? It's a pretty interesting CD just for the fact that this was a show where they were basically promoting the Plastic Letters album, so this is when they still very new and hadn't hit the world over yet. 11 songs of pure punky pop and surf bliss that was early Blondie. Some of these songs were probably never played live again so it's kind of a rare treat to have such oddities as live versions of "I Didn't Have The Nerve To Say No", "Kidnapper" and "Bermuda Triangle Blues." The actual DVD that is available is worth having as well since Debbie shows off what made her the star she would become include her fetish for camoflauge which I immediately took up as well.

Track List:
01. X Offender 02. Little Girl Lies 03. Look Good In Blue 04. Man Overboard 05. In The Flesh 06. I'm On E 07. Love At The Pier 08. I Didn't Have The Nerve To Say No 09. Bermuda Triangle Blues (Flight 45) 10. Kidnapper 11. Youth Nabbed As Sniper

bub 18 Pat Benatar - LIVE HEAT (2003)
As you know, where there's Debbie there's going to be Pat. Here is another really great oldies live set. Recorded in Denver in early 1980, this was recorded on the tour of her very first album In The Heat Of The Night, this is Pat at her earliest and grittiest. Her vocals are young and raw and it's really quite a thrill to hear some of these songs. Not to mention some songs are ones she never recorded or did a different version of, including the Richie Valen's cover "Come On Let's Go", which she never recorded but really rips up on stage; and a really early and super gritty version of the Raider's "Just Like Me" which she did end up recording for album in 1981, but it wasn't as cool as this live version. Of course there's songs from the debut album all performed live, the hits "Heartbreaker", "We Live For Love", "I Need A Lover" all before they were hits and as an encore she comes back with "You Better Run" which she would end up recording and releasing as the first single from her second album Crimes Of Passion.

Track List:
01. If You Think You Know How To Love Me 02. So Sincere 03. I Need A Lover 04. My Clone Sleeps Alone 05. In The Heat Of The Night 06. We Live For Love 07. No You Don't 08. Just Like Me 09. Heartbreaker Encore: 10. You Better Run 11. Come On Let's Go

And there you go, you made it through #s 13-18 - I know I'm long winded but these CDs are great! Stay tuned for next time when we visit some boys who made a real difference in the world of alternative music and the world, and oh I don't know probably some Pat Benatar and Blondie.

Labels: Blondie, Bubbatunes, Kim Carnes, Kristy McNichol, Linda Ronstadt, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Pat Benatar

posted by swivek @ 8:54 AM 2 comments