pierson

Someone mentioned this in the recent AC thread... and this is not to take anything away from the thrill of hearing the Raspberries do a cover version... it's almost always a pretty cool idea & it's great to hear Eric talk about his roots... that said, the main complaint I heard from friends who saw the NYC show was that there were too many covers & that they would've loved to have heard a few more originals in their place (Matt Pinfield & I agreed on this one)... I think they made a wise decision to drop the Beatles covers ("Twist & Shout" & "Please Mr. Postman")... and just do one Beatles tune ("Baby's In Black") and do a smattering of classic '60s tunes... still, in lieu of "Needles & Pins" or even a spot-on "Mr. Tambourine Man", it's probably a better idea to include tunes like "I Can Remember," "Don't Want To Say Goodbye," "I Saw The Light," & "Starting Over" especially since these are MUCH MORE IMPRESSIVE & they're the band's own songs... I still remember HOW AMAZING "I Saw The Light" was in Cleveland & I'm still befuddled as to why they don't bring it back... THAT was where the band really became transcendent that November night... And I'm guessing those who attend LA will be much akin to the NYC crowd... maybe even more diehard... and to wait & hear this band (live!) play those songs IS THE EXACT reason why this whole reunion is so special... I don't think LA should be spared one single original tune they have in their repertoire... IT'S TOO IMPORTANT! Since there is going to be some push from LA's "Breakfast With The Beatles" radio program, a couple of Beatles tunes will most likely have to be played. And that's cool, but I hope they decide to include as many originals as possible...

i can't argue with 1&2:A Day In The Life- The Beatles Waterloo Sunset- The Kinks #3: Common People by Pulp or The Universal by Blur (for a '90s Brit Pop choice, that is) how about Bowie's "Heroes" & "Life On Mars" or Mott The Hoople's (via Bowie) "All The Young Dudes" or The Jam's "That's Entertainment"-- i'm sure most are on the list...

they are also influenced by the zombies... great background vocals

lotsa McCartney albums are mixed & appeal to different parts of the crowd... records like "Wild Life" & "Press To Play" never get the props they deserve & I find them vastly more interesting & appealing than "Band On The Run".... that doesn't mean they're better... i have yet to hear the new one, but it's been a long time since I REALLY liked anything from a new McCartney record... also...check out his b-sides like "Flying To My Home" & "Ode To Koala Bear" -- there's a lot of "lost" areas of Macca's that are worth seeking out... if you've heard everything & need the next best thing, seek out Van Duren's "Are You Serious"-- an LP from 1977 that i rank right up there w/ "RAM" & "Something/Anything" as a pinnacle of '70s pop.. it's CD pressing on the Japanese label Air Mail is already out of print, but copies may be afloat out there...

for swagger purposes nuthin touches the 1st album, "Definitely Maybe": check out: 1. "Rock & Roll Star" 2. "Supersonic" 3. "Cigarettes & Alcohol" 4. "Live Forever" 5. "Digsy's Diner" great non-LP stuff made it to a collection, "The Masterplan"... 1. "Underneath The Sky" 2. "It's Good To Be Free" 3. "Stay Young" 4. "Rockin Chair" Beatlesque stuff: 1. "Whatever" 2. "She's Electric" 3. "I Am The Walrus" they went downhill after the 2nd LP (Morning Glory)....

watching Raspberries doing "I Can Remember" at HOB in Cleveland alongside Tommy & Bob Allen & Nick Celeste... we were all stunned... seeing a "healthy" Brian Wilson play his first solo NYC gig at The Beacon... saw Handsome Dick Manitoba at the After-party seeing Hamell On Trial return to the NYC stage after his near-fatal car crash which took him a year to recover from... seeing Roxy Music reform & play NYC and open w/ "Remake Remodel" Cheap Trick numerous times: 1. my first concert in Kingston, Ontario where they encored w/ Alice Cooper's "I'm 18" 2. 1993 New Year's eve where they did "Heaven Tonight" 3. 1997 when they did "Cheap Trick" in its entirety.... Raspberries at BB Kings playing harder & better than the Cleveland gig... & doing "I Don't Know What I Want" Flashcubes (aka Screen Test +1) at TT Bears doing a ripping version of The Move's "Hello Susie" ... drummer Tommy Allen doing the Bev Bevan break w/ thunderous aplomb... a moveable feast--very hammer of the gods... Chris Von Sniedern doing Big Star & Flamin Groovies songs w/ Flashcubes at IPO... this bill also included The Shazam, & The Nines REM at Drew University in '84 for the "Preconstruction" tour which was limited east coast swing of colleges to play most of the then unreleased "Fables Of The Reconstruction" LP-- unlike the LP, the material was performed with an intesnity & magic... they opened w/ "Feeling Gravity's Pull" and you immediately knew this was another step into the unknown.... & i got to meet them at sound check where they doing the 2nd part of Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain" seeing Screen Test in 1982 (underage) at The Jab in Syracuse after years of waitng to see them live... it was on the same night me & friends saw the Police at The Carrier Dome which was sorely lacking any kind of magic or power.... this crystalized the "club" experience for me & it was the band at the peak of their powers... Psychedelic Furs reunite in 2000 & play Surf Stock & open w/ "Into You Like A Train" Echo & The Bunnymen reunite in 2001 & play a secret gig for press at Fez & encore w/ "Ocean Rain" scalping tix for face value to see Radiohead at Tramps in NYC... "The Bends" had just come out... going to see Jeff Buckley the next night at Roseland (opening for Juliana Hatfield) making the usually crappy sounding club sound like heaven... met Claire Danes in the lobby between sets (i was a huge My So-Called Life fan)

and that brings to mind Grapefruit.... Cherry Vanilla Grapes Of Wrath

mine were: 1. Kiss- Alive 2. Aerosmith- Rocks 3. Lynyrd Skynyrd- One More For/From The Road 4. Pink Floyd- Wish You Were Here 5. BTO- Not Fragile 6. Alice Cooper- Greatest Hits 7. Elton John- Goodbye Yellow Brick Road 8. Led Zeppelin- IV 9. Kiss- Dressed To Kill 10. Queen- Sheer Heart Attack what I now think are the ten best "Junior High" albums ever: 1. Kiss- Alive 2. Alice Cooper- Greatest Hits 3. Aerosmith- Rocks 4. Montrose- Montrose 5. Led Zeppelin- IV 6. Guns n' Roses- Appetite For Destruction 7. My Chemical Romance- Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge 8. Nirvana- Nevermind 9. New York Dolls- New York Dolls 10. Ramones- Rocket To Russia honorable mention: 11. Dictators- Go Girl Crazy for some reason power pop is too wimpy except some of "Starting Over" for the junior high school male... other dubious & not-so dubious notables would be AC/DC's "Back In Black", Van Halen's "Women & Children First", Deep Purple's "Machine Head", Who's "Who's Next", Judas Priest's "Screaming For Vengence", Iron Maiden's "Number Of The Beast", Black Sabbath's "Paranoid", Black Flag's "Damaged", Sex Pistols' "Never Mind The Bollocks..."

everything popdude said was spot on... there is also this to consider... power pop should not be a term to categorize a band... it should be a term to define a certain type of song!!!!! sure, in the post-Berries daze there were bands like 20/20, pezband, rubinoos, flashcubes, shoes who were primarily considered "power pop" bands because they took the lead from songs like "Go All The Way" and Big Star's "September Gurls"-- but usually there was much more depth to these bands than 10 songs that were all 3 minutes long w/ high energy.... if you don't think "September Gurls" has as much magic as any of the prime 'Berries tunes, that's a matter of taste... & popdude clearly explains the differences betwen the two bands... some people think the reverse... I DON'T-- I Think both are the two DEFINING/QUINTESSENTIAL power pop songs... but there is a difference in style & attitude... and lyrics.... that said, the Raspberries pack more punch & truly expanded on the concept to much more stellar (power pop purist) results with songs like "Tonight," "Ecstasy," & "Play On"... Also, yes Bernie, there's not one song on the new Big Star CD that could be considered "power pop" a la "September Gurls" or even the more-standard "In The Street"... the new Big Star CD sounds like what it truly is: a Posies CD with some songs by Alex Chilton the solo artist (2 Jon Auer songs, 2 Ken Stringfellow songs, 1 Jody Stephens song & the rest are Alex's)... not one of Alex's songs bears any of the haunting magic that the three Big Star LPs had... the opening cut, "Dony" is a good basic Big Star rock/pop song, but not a power pop song (that requires urgency which Alex ain't got)... the rest of Alex's songs sound like bar-room rock... not bad, but not great.... The Posies' tunes are really good, though.... Jon Auer is still getting better (i.e. "Lady Sweet" or from the new Posies CD, 'Every Kind Of Light' check out "Conversations")

well there are some cycles:1955-1959 (1st r&r boom) 1964-1968 (british invasion) 1971-1974 (glam/power pop 1st phase & good singer-songwriters) 1977-1982 (punk/new wave) 1991-1996 (grunge) 1994-1999 (Brit Pop) 2001-2005 (new new wave/indie/garage) AM radio was best between 1966-1970 although it was good through 1975... FM radio was best between 1968-1975 & was good up until 1980... got a boost between 1981-1987 when alternative radio flourished & college radio picked up some slack...

Fragile was late '71-- and "Roundabout" was a '72 release... & Closer to The Edge was '72... correcto

It was definitely the music first... all of his choices made sense... but it's definitley a personal thing & it fit his personality, as far as i could tell-- despite his nasty reactionary side & the horrid typing... but that's what we all sorta strive for-- music that resonates with our deepest feelings... he did just that... no one i know says they love art garfunkel's solo work because it's fashionable...

it's my 2nd choice... 1972 singles/songs: Alice Cooper- School's Out Raspberries- Go All The Way- Badfinger- Day After Day & Baby Blue (the former charting in Dec 71) Todd Rundgren- I Saw The Light Roxy Music- Virginia Plain America- I Need You Mott The Hoople- All The Young Dudes T. Rex- Telegram Sam & Metal Guru Lou Reed- Walk On The Wild Side Slade- Coz I Love You Sweet- Little Willy Raspberries- I Wanna Be With You Bread- The Guitar Man & Everything I Own Ringo Starr- Back Off Boogaloo David Bowie- Starman & Suffragette City Elton John- Rocket Man Rolling Stones- Tumbling Dice Alice Cooper- Elected Gary Glitter- Rock n Roll Pt II Bill Withers- Use Me Stevie Wonder- Superstition Nilsson- Without You Neil Young- Heart Of Gold Looking Glass- Brandy Temptations- Papa Was A Rollin' Stone Leon Russell- Tight Rope ELP- From The Beginning Lobo- I'd Love You To Want Me Jo Jo Gunne- Run Run Run Gilbert O'Sullivan- Alone Again (Naturally) Sly & The Family Stone- Runnin' Away Marvin Gaye- Trouble Man Bee Gees- Run To Me Hollies- Jesus Was A Crossmaker A Foot In Cold Water- (Make Me Do) Anything You Want Spinners- I'll Be Around Thundermug- Orbit Jonathan Edwards- Sunshine Cat Stevens- Morning Is Broken Al Green- I'm Still In Love With You LPs: Big Star- #1 Record Lou Reed- Transformer David Bowie- Ziggy Stardust Mott The Hoople- All The Young Dudes Badfinger- Straight Up Raspberries- Raspberries & Fresh Al Green- I'm Still In Love With You Roxy Music- Roxy Music Rolling Stones- Exile On Main Street Todd Rundgren- Something/Anything Alice Cooper- School's Out Joni Mitchell- For The Roses Stevie Wonder- Talking Book T. Rex- The Slider Steely Dan- Can't Buy A Thrill Yes- Fragile Neil Young- Harvest Pink Floyd- Obscured By Clouds Peter Frampton- Wind Of Change Deep Purple- Machine Head Nick Drake- Pink Moon Black Sabbath- Vol 4 Carly Simon- No Secrets Rod Stewart- Never A Dull Moment Al Green- Let's Stay Together Aretha Franklin- Young Gifted & Black The Wailers- Catch A Fire Curtis Mayfield- Superfly Elton John- Honky Chateau Jethro Tull- Thick As A Brick

also... to refresh some memories... 1976 gave us: #1s: Convoy- CW McCall Rhythm Heritage- Theme From SWAT Johnnie Taylor- Disco Lady Bellamy Brothers- Let Your Love Flow Walter Murphy- Fifth Of Beethoven Starland Vocal band- Afternoon Delight Bee Gees- You Should Be Dancing Rick Dees- Disco Duck KC & Sunshine Band- Shake Your Booty Barry Manilow- I Write The Songs not what i would call a highpoint in pop music... 1976 just brings to mind a world before punk (Ramones did debut, but to virtually zero fanfare) & new wave, where disco was rising, rock was becoming more corporate, and AM radio sounded like a bunch of jingles where the production resembled the backing music to "CHiPS".... also, it was where Elton John lost the thread as well as Rod Stewart, Alice Cooper, ... even McCartney/Wings were too bland..

not for nuthin... but this was where the honeymoon began to end.... by comparison 1966 makes '76 look like the worst year ever.... in 1966 we had: Beatles- Revolver Beach Boys- Pet Sounds Kinks- Face To Face Rolling Stones- Aftermath Who- Quick One Small Faces- Small Faces Byrds- Turn Turn Turn & 5D Hollies- Hear Here & Bus Stop Love- Love Bob Dylan- Blonde On Blonde #1 songs: Sounds Of Silence- Simon & Garfunkel We Can Work It Out- Beatles These Boots Are Made For Walkin- Nancy Sinatra Good Lovin'- Rascals Paint It Black- Stones Paperback Writer- Beatles Strangers In The Night- Frank Hanky Panky- Tommy James Wild Thing- Troggs Summer In The City- Lovin' Spoonful Sunshine SUperman- Donovan You Can't Hurry Love- Supremes CHerish- Association 96 Tears- ? & The Mysterians Last Train To Clarksville- Monkees Poor Side Of Town- Johnny Rivers Good Vibrations- Beach Boys I'm A Believer- Monkees one-hit wonders: Knickerbockers- Lies Bob Lind- Elusive Butterfly Capitols- Cool Jerk Standells- Dirty Water Syndicate Of Sound- Hey Little Girl Napoleon XIV- They're Coming To Take Me Away, Ha Haa! Count Five- Psychotic Reaction

the thing about what Beatlebum liked was that it came from a guy who was near 50 who live in NYC & was gay & got to see/hear a lot of interesting stuff... he really liked a lot of campy stuff... but I think he liked all the great disco & synth pop bands which I know a lot of rock/pop or pop/rock fans would find useless... for those of us rock/pop fans who want the GOOD disco & synth pop records, he liked things like First Choice (great early '70s pre-disco soul girl group)... George McCrae & he liked Soft Cell, Human League, Heaven 17 etc... lotsa good '90s Brit pop: Blur, Suede, Pulp, Oasis but on top of that, he GOT the late '60s soft pop (sunshine pop) & '70s mor soft pop that to me is intrinsic to Eric Carmen's best stuff... even though some of it teeters into cheese... it is very good guilty pleasure AM pop stuff like Orpheus, Alessi, Cowsills, Dino Desi & Billy, Carpenters... & he liked all the good glam rock stuff... even Edgar Winter's "Shock Treatment" LP... the newest thing he'd want everyone to check out was the Scissor Sisters... THAT he was crazy about... I'm not a huge fan, but they seem to channel in a mid-'70s AM pop vibe with '90s Brit pop... & they are totally unfashionable... in a fashionable way... Kinda like George Michael meets Hello (the band who did "New York Groove" originally)....

Tony, I am as anti-PI as they come... but I do try to think outside a box... Tolerance is NOT a politically correct idea... forcing a specific "Tolerance" on people IS... You had every right to react the way you did to Beatlebum... that's fine... but if one follows his reactionary lead, then it usually snowballs... and it becomes useless fast... just like the majority of right-wing/left-wing banter on cable news & radio.... if you try to actually talk to someone who you disagree with, it might be beneficial.... or it might be infuriating... the best discussions/debates are those where the talk may be heated & passionate, but never vitriolic or disrespectful.... either way, it's better than screaming obscenities & flipping the bird, however cathartic those reactions may be.... some people can bring out the worse in all of us because they do indeed press all the wrong buttons & have no sense of tactfulness... beatlebum was very good at that the more you block out diverging opinions the more close-minded you get... there's nothing wrong w/ being conservative or liberal, just vent your opinions & beefs with courtesy & understanding.... if you do run into someone who won't listen or learn or respect your space/ideas, then screw them... move on... we do all have our limits... rock on... and keep your ears open...

I Do Bernie... and out of enormous respect to you & the people who have kept this site alive & helped give the Berries the much needed kick in the tush to get reunited, I don't want to sound like I believe Beatlebum was right & everyone else was wrong... i was very hesitant to put up that post on his behalf.... because i do think he was unable to curb his negative enthusiasm.... & i can only imagine what was said in the emails he sent others & the posts I didn't get to see... and honestly, i was surprised when you did allow him back on after the first major blow up.... Your heart was always in the right place & I know you gave him every chance possible.... still, there were things that created a bigger monster & some of the stuff that was "edited" made one think that this place was becoming like a sunday school... little short asides that are cheeky should be tolerated & embraced because they make things fun.... pulling them off made one think there was a morality police here, not a smart civil adjuster.... Obviously, Beatlebum wanted his cake, the car, the ring whatever and wanted to devour it whole, without any repercussions... & he made your life as moderator an impossible nightmare.... & since this is a community, I understand why such a bull in a china shop could not be tolerated... in the end it was impossible to steer him in the right direction... and no one here deserves to be abused that way... still, it's too bad because he added a much needed flavor to the postings here & he really helped stir some sh*t up.... THAT's pretty cool... too bad he didn't know when to stop... or learn to respect other people's feelings... damn that beatlebum... tell richard meltzer (and lester bangs & lenny bruce the news)

this really is much ado about nothing.... Beatlebum was & IS fanatical & OBSESSIVE & very much a REACTIONARY person--- all of you who have prodded him and have expected a lesser reaction from the HYPER BOY are STOOPID..... you threw gas on the fire & expected a cool calm & collected person.... YOU ARE ALL GUILTY... Bernie had to let him go because he's not MADE for this website-- no one handled him with proper care... & NO WANTED TO.... That is your choice.... & you look like a bunch of prudes because of it.... even when he attacked me I responded with a civil response & HE UNDERSTOOD.... I LIKED HIM because he was thinking outside a box & had an intense way of thinking.... & his typing was ATROCIOUS!!!! there was a point in my life where i understood those who THOUGHT way different than I DO had something to offer, even if they were obnoxious, rude & insufferable... usually there was a human being underneath the facade/surface... those of us who emailed beatlebum KNEW he/them was troubled & a bit of a train wreck, but we still enjoyed his presence because it added some life to the all-too predictable "yadda yadda yadda"... he also had a great ear for music... he liked orpheus & first choice fer god's sake... those of you who enjoy people who like MOR crap & prefer to not upset the status quo are now sleeping happily ever.... enjoy the white bread.... may u be happy in your black & white "PLEASANTVILLE" worlds where all of Eric Carmen's songs are absent from Raspberries LPs because those songs speak of doing the beast with two backs prior to the alter (i.e. "Go All The Way")....

I'm sure he does seeing that you left out the "r" in strike... very thoughtful....

Eric Carmen was beatlebum (& the Walrus)..... i remember it just like yesterday when we were goin' back & forth about how cool it would be to create a "psuedonym" and be creative with it.... needless to say Eric was more than creative.... it was his idea to do the duel identity/"anthony & drew" part of it.... crafty fella he......

damn, that beatlebum never learned.... bea arthur sighed... & yes Marvin, the cryptic word mangled luvfest is over

definitely... Waterloo SOS Knowing Me Knowing You Name Of The Game Take A Chance On Me On & On & On

IT WASN'T UNTIL "FERNANDO" that I started to question them.... by far, their lamest song, imho

i could probably replace these with 5 other choices, but these stand out... in no specific order... 1. Radiohead @ Irving Plaza (1997) reasons why: it was the pre-OK Computer show-- only two days after the Tibettan concert which had every cool band in town.... & i had VIP passes... so i rubbed shoulders with an insane amount of in-crowd people: blur, oasis, rem, U2... and others who were floating around: marilyn manson, madonna... it was nuts... they opened w/ "Lucky" and were in a zone very few bands reach.... surreal stuff... 2. Screen Test @ Jab 1982 (& CBGB 1983)-- both shows were my cherry busting moments as far as club experiences were concerned... The band completely captured the essence of live power pop (late '70s early '80s US power pop, that is) at its greatest & intense rarified high.... Tommy Allen on drums.... 3. Raspberries at BB Kings (7/24/05)-- w/ my friends Screen Test (Gary Frenay, Arty Lenin, Tommy Allen) in the audience watching in complete awe & wonder.... why? this was the greatest live performance of classic power pop ("Ecstasy" & "Go All The Way" & "I Don't Know What I Want") ever... 4. R.E.M.- Drew University (spring 1985) this was the "Pre-Construction" tour where they played a bunch of east coast colleges before the release of "Fables Of The Reconstruction".... they opened w/ "Feeling Gravity's Pull" and were stunning-- too bad the recorded versions were inferior to these intensely magical live versions performed... saw them a few days later in Mass. & met the band... 5. Jon Brion @ Largo (3/21/03) of all the times i saw JB at Largo, this one was the mountain top... the US just invaded Iraq & the artist onstage let the music do the talking.... opening with a cascading "Isn't It A Pity" ...he performed by making tape loops of all the backing instruments: drums, bass, piano in front of the crowd & then stepping up to the mic w/ a guitar & singing... other highlights: Elvis Costello's "Shipbuilding," Emitt Rhodes' "You Should Be Ashamed" & Brian Wilson's "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times."