(Above: You may wish to add a few 45's to the table as well.) I grew up in a predominantly Catholic suburb of Chicago in the 1970s and 80s. We didn't stop to ask questions about other belief systems, especially not in grade school. The Spring Break calendar was the same every year: no classes … Continue reading Kosher for Passover: Jewish folk songs reimagined as rock and roll records
1950s
Hitting the big time: The Isley Brothers, “Shout (Parts 1 and 2)” (1959)
(Above: Rock, brother.) "Dude - you made it!" The first phone call I got on my first shift at WJMK in Chicago - 21 years ago today - was shortly after the start of the first song that I played on the station. It was from my friend Dave. Dave had been there since the … Continue reading Hitting the big time: The Isley Brothers, “Shout (Parts 1 and 2)” (1959)
RIP Chuck Berry: “Come On” (1961)
(Above: The 45 copy of Chuck Berry's "Come On," which is missing from my collection.) Within the last six months I wrote about Chuck Berry turning 90 and about Leonard Chess turning 100 (were he still with us). Both of those posts come together today in this obit. Chuck Berry died today at his home … Continue reading RIP Chuck Berry: “Come On” (1961)
Leonard Chess at 100: Jackie Brentston and his Delta Cats, “Rocket 88” (1951)
(Above: Leonard Chess, who I don't think looks like Adrien Brody.) One hundred years ago today - March 12, 1917 - Lejnor Czyz was born in Motal, which was in Poland then but is in Belarus today. I'm sure that no one in the village had any idea that he'd go on to become a … Continue reading Leonard Chess at 100: Jackie Brentston and his Delta Cats, “Rocket 88” (1951)
One boy’s quest for vinyl: Buddy Holly, “That’ll Be the Day” (1957)
The tragic story of Charles Hardin Holley has always fascinated and saddened me. What would rock and roll have been had Buddy Holly not perished in the famous plane crash on the early morning of February 3, 1959 in Clear Lake, Iowa? Would a British band inspired by his music so much that they also … Continue reading One boy’s quest for vinyl: Buddy Holly, “That’ll Be the Day” (1957)
12+ Blogs of Christmas, Airing of Grievances Edition: Bob Rivers, “The Twelve Pains of Christmas” (1988)
(Above: "I gotta lot of problems with you people..." Say the word "festivus," and most people with a handle on popular culture of the 1990s will know exactly what you mean. The holiday, first introduced to the lexicon by Seinfeld (a show that added such phrases as "double-dipping" and "not that there's anything wrong with … Continue reading 12+ Blogs of Christmas, Airing of Grievances Edition: Bob Rivers, “The Twelve Pains of Christmas” (1988)
12+ Blogs of Christmas: We Need a Little… Edge
(Above: The Edge of Christmas, Oglio Records. Another one from my collection.) I don't want to give the wrong impression: I don't dislike Christmas music. In the last piece I talked about how some of the music of the season isn't helping those who are having emotional issues. (Fun fact: in each of the last … Continue reading 12+ Blogs of Christmas: We Need a Little… Edge
12+ Blogs of Christmas: We’ll Muddle Through Somehow
(Above: Bummed Out Christmas (Rhino), one of the pieces of my collection.) "What came first - the misery, or the music?" This question, asked by Rob Gordon in High Fidelity (one of my all-time favorite films), is appropriate today. The Christmas season is not all snowflakes and candy canes for everyone. Depression escalates for some, … Continue reading 12+ Blogs of Christmas: We’ll Muddle Through Somehow
12+ Blogs of Christmas: Observe the snow.
(Above: Christmastime in Michigan.) If we really wanted to, we could break the songs heard on the radio at the holidays into themes. There are Christmas songs and there are winter songs. One could argue that the winter songs could stay in rotation well into February were it not for the fact that by the … Continue reading 12+ Blogs of Christmas: Observe the snow.
12+ Blogs of Christmas: The Les Tucker Singers*, “Hardrock, Coco, and Joe” (1951)
(Above: It's not Christmas without these puppets.) You can take the boy out of Chicago, but you can't take Chicago out of the boy. Get in a discussion with anyone of a certain age about growing up in Chicago, and the discussion inevitably turns to local television, especially for kids. It's amazed me how many … Continue reading 12+ Blogs of Christmas: The Les Tucker Singers*, “Hardrock, Coco, and Joe” (1951)
45 Ruminations Per Megabyte 