Across at least 2 generations, what is your favorite rock 'n roll family?
Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan, Casey Waits.

Family or MFSB?
Family Stone? If so, then Family

What's a record from either your present or past that you and your family dig/have dug together?
Currently #1 on the ride to daycare for my three year old: I Saw The Light by Todd Rundgren.
Past favs: Yellow Submarine,
Mr Rabbit - Paul Westerberg
Here Comes Terry – NRBQ
Roly Poly – Bob Wills

Which father-related song best describes your relationship with your father?
You Dad Did – John Hiatt. Not necessarily for the details but more for the general "everything comes full circle" theme.

Who's the Hank Aaron/Tommie Aaron combined sibling home run leader among rock 'n rollers?
Bob and Jacob Dylan, if I understand the question.

"Mother and Child Reunion" or "Loves Me Like a Rock"?
LMLAR

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?
Great Grandpa by Bo Diddly but just because it’s the only one I can think of right now.

What's the most underrated family in rock, siblings or transgenerational?
Tough one I gotta think that one over, although I’m tempted to say the Everly Brothers.

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?
The Replacements. They always seemed slightly lacking in self confidence even when they were talking trash, and they never get the level of respect that they deserve compared to bands like the Pixies (who I’m okay with but feel like they get a disproportionate amount of critical praise).

1. Mama Tried, Merle Haggard

2. I'm a big fan of Carlene Carter (can anyone vouch for her new album?) and Roseanne Cash.

3. MFSB

4. Right before my dad died, I discovered that he liked Charlie Rich. Of course he liked the mellow Behind Closed Doors era, but still it was a first, and it offered a couple of bonding opportunities.

5. Papa Don't Take No Mess, James Brown

6. Pete and Simon Townshend

7. "Mother and Child Reunion" definitely. Great record.

8. Me & My Uncle, Grateful Dead (even though the narrator leaves the uncle "dead by the side of the road" at the end of the song).

9. Ringo & Zak Starkey.

10. Dave Davies.

What's a record from either your present or past that you and your family dig/have dug together?

"Rocket Ship Beach" by Dan Zanes

Who's the Hank Aaron/Tommie Aaron combined sibling home run leader among rock 'n rollers?

Ringo and Zak Starkey

"Mother and Child Reunion" or "Loves Me Like a Rock"?

LMLAR

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

The Who's "Uncle Ernie"

What's the most underrated family in rock, siblings or transgenerational?

The Friedbergers (Fiery Furnaces)

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?

Bob Stinson (The Mats lost a lot when he left...)

Which mother-related rock 'n roll song ...?

I Was a Teenage Fuck Up - Really Red

Across at least 2 generations

Duh, I honestly can't think of any more than 2 generations, so a "favorite" is going to have to default to the Carters or some such. Meh.

Family or MFSB?

Is this some code you sent out to only the anti-Deep Purple folks? Is MFSB a bank or insurance company?

... family dig/have dug together?

John was digging Dread Beat An' Blood (LKJ) the other day in the car, and I had to subtly switch it before the harsher violent lyrics came on. It's damn catchy otherwise!

Which father-related song...?

My Old Man by Ian Dury is nothing like my father, but always sets up a vibe where I can consider his memory in generous, if not sentimental, terms.

Who's the Hank Aaron/Tommie Aaron...?

The Nevilles, maybe, when the Meters were going on, or the Allmans.

"Mother and Child Reunion" or "Loves Me Like a Rock"?

B

What's ... as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

Grandma's Hands - Bill Withers. Big Mess rejected the album title "Songs We Learned On Pappy's - Hey! THAT's not Pappy's knee!"

What's the most underrated family in rock, siblings or transgenerational?

I'm glad we can finally just talk about the transgenerational. Times have changed! That said, I don't know any myself. Flo and Eddie?

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?

I can't think offhand of any. The ones brought up so far seem to have gotten about their just desserts, IMO. But why weren't the Fabulous Poodles more popular?

General, MFSB is short for Mothers, Fathers, Sisters, and Brothers, the house band behind The Sound of Philadelphia. For shame! You lose 10 rock nerd points. Otherwise, nice effort. I know this Deep Purple stuff has been hard on you.

Keep 'em comin', Townspeople.

MFSB I know; the only "Family" I'm familiar with was these guys, who I assume you weren't talking about:

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=11:0zfpxqu5ldde

Interesting how this overview neglects to mention that "The Family" was basically a beard for Prince who wrote all their songs -- and performed most (in some cases all) of the instruments on record.

So anyway: who you mean by the Family?

The Family I'm talking about is the British band that supergroup bassist Rick Gretch (sp?) was in following (or along with?) Blind Faith. I've always been slightly fascinated by that band.

I thought he meant the Manson Family, so I chose MFSB.

1. "Your Momma Don't Dance"
2. Ringo/Zach Starkey
3. MFSB
4. W/ my parents - Herb Alpert
W/ my kids - The Beatles
5. N/A
6. Paul & Michael Mccartney
7. Mother & Child Reunion
8. Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey (bite me, Mr Mod - I like this song)
9. All the Van Zandt's
10.Johnny Lydon would want to be thought of as this

Which mother-related rock 'n roll song best describes your relationship with your mother?

”I’ll Always Love My Mama” with fewer stolen hubcaps.

What's a record from either your present or past that you and your family dig/have dug together?

Probably Let It Bleed, as far as an equal level of appeal through my immediate family. My parents and I are all Beatles fans of varying levels of nerdery, though I have a sibling who could take or leave everything outside of “In My Life”. My dad and I like Steely Dan, bond over the sleaziness of the lyrics, which has always been fun.

Which father-related song best describes your relationship with your father?

There really aren’t many positive dad-related songs in rock, are there? You people and your issues. I guess Bowie’s “Kooks”, though my old man could more than handle his own at punching other people’s dads back in his day. Probably still thinks he can.

Who's the Hank Aaron/Tommie Aaron combined sibling home run leader among rock 'n rollers?

Good question! Paul McCartney and Mike McGear came to mind right away. David and Jimmy Ruffin feels like it’s probably slighting Jimmy Ruffin. “What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted” is better than an eight-homerun rookie season.

Who is the Billy Ripken of rock? Maybe that's what the redheaded stepchild question is asking, but I guess I'm asking who/what is the musical equivalent of the "fuckface" card?

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

Grizzly Bear’s “Marla” – I think, specifically, it’s about a great-aunt or great-great aunt or something like that, but it’s great at evoking the sense of long-dead relatives unmet and the weight of accumulated family history.

Which mother-related rock 'n roll song best describes your relationship with your mother?

Well, since I'm 43 and never been married, I'll say Shop Around by Smokey Robinson and the Miracles.

Across at least 2 generations, what is your favorite rock 'n roll family? (Note: This category may extend to not-exactly-rock 'n rollers like the Cash clan, the Thompsons, the Williamses, and so forth.)

I kind of like that Into The Sun album by Sean Lennon, so I'll say the Lennon family, ignoring Julian for the most part.

Family or MFSB?

MFSB as long as it's an acronym for naughty words.

What's a record from either your present or past that you and your family dig/have dug together?

Spike Jones and His City Slickers "I Pagliacci"

Which father-related song best describes your relationship with your father?

"Nothing To Say" by the Kinks

Who's the Hank Aaron/Tommie Aaron combined sibling home run leader among rock 'n rollers?

Ray & Dave Davies

"Mother and Child Reunion" or "Loves Me Like a Rock"?

The former. I'd prefer "Kodachrome".

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

"My Perfect Cousin" by the Undertones

What's the most underrated family in rock, siblings or transgenerational?

Those Ramone brothers were great...I kid. I like the Charles brothers from the Knickerbockers. Beau wrote some good songs, John played great bass.

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?

Would Ringo qualify? He's shorter than the other Beatles and has blue eyes. He wrote only two Beatle songs and doubtless got some help with those. When he got sick, they didn't cancel shows, they just replaced him. He's roundly insulted as a sub-par member of a great band even in Saturday Night Live Beatle reunion jokes. When peers or critics want to pick on the band, they usually bring Ringo up. Even though he gets some solo love from this group, I think he's seen as the guy who didn't write songs, sang off key and was a worse drummer than guys like Moon, Watts, Mitchell, Bonham, etc.

Which mother-related rock 'n roll song best describes your relationship with your mother?

”Only the Strong Survive”

Across at least 2 generations, what is your favorite rock 'n roll family? (Note: This category may extend to not-exactly-rock 'n rollers like the Cash clan, the Thompsons, the Williamses, and so forth.)

The young Finn boy's (Liam, son of the main Crowded House guy) record was pretty good, so they've got potential. The Cash clan is hard to beat. Dani Harrison showed potential at the tribute for his father. No one family's a standout for me, though, at least none that I can think of. I'll tell you who's pretty cool, the family or families that stretch back from that North Mississippi All-Stars band. The younger generation was very good when I saw them live, and they've got some Muscle Shoals blood, right? I think that's my choice.

Family or MFSB?

MFSB!

What's a record from either your present or past that you and your family dig/have dug together?

Growing up, my Mom and I bonded over Motown, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, and The Surpremes, in particular. With my own family, Elvis Costello & the Attractions, The Beatles, and in recent weeks, since the boys asked me about the band that did the songs "Living Thing" and "Do Ya", ELO. I should report that on Sunday I played our older son The Move version of "Do Ya" and he declared that to be his favorite. "It's heavier," was his immediate response.

Which father-related song best describes your relationship with your father?

"Father", sung to the tune of John Lennon's "Mother".

Who's the Hank Aaron/Tommie Aaron combined sibling home run leader among rock 'n rollers?

Paul McCartney and Mike McGear is the correct answer. There were some other good answers too, excluding the father-son answer or two that was proposed, unless there's a Chinatown thing going on with Ringo and Zack that I was no aware of.

[Alexmagic asked: "Who is the Billy Ripken of rock? Maybe that's what the redheaded stepchild question is asking, but I guess I'm asking who/what is the musical equivalent of the 'fuckface' card?" Great follow-up question. No, this is not exactly what I had in mind with the stepchild question. I'll say Freddie Stone.]

"Mother and Child Reunion" or "Loves Me Like a Rock"?

"Loves Me Like a Rock"

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

The Band's "Rocking Chair". Gets me every time.

What's the most underrated family in rock, siblings or transgenerational?

The Young family, including the Easybeats' guy and the AC/DC brothers. I'm not a huge fan of AC/DC, but those brothers make it happen.

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?

Julian Lennon

1. "Mother" by John Lennon. (My Mum passed away at a very young age)

2. The Cash/Carter clan probably gets the nod here (Johnny, June, Carlene, Roseanne, add in all the ex-husbands)

3. MFSB

4.. My parents were into the Mama's & Papa's, Lovin' Spoonful and Everly Brothers, Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan and music steady in the house and I have vivid memories of all of us listening to those records to name but a few,

5. Fire "My Father's Name Was Dad"

6. Doug Yule- Billy Yule

7. "Mother and Child Reunion"

8. have to think about this

9. The Finn family

10. NRBQ

Across at least 2 generations, what is your favorite rock 'n roll family? (Note: This category may extend to not-exactly-rock 'n rollers like the Cash clan, the Thompsons, the Williamses, and so forth.)

I will vote for the Johns engineering clan: Glynn, Andy and Ethan. Lots of goodness there. Also, I am fond of the Wainwright/Roche/McGarrigle clusterfuck.

Family or MFSB?

MFSB. In either configuration of the name, the M still stands for Mother.

What's a record from either your present or past that you and your family dig/have dug together?

As both parent and child - anything by the Beatles. My daughter likes Los Lobos' Kiko (esp. "Two Janes"), Rhett Miller and she went through a really funny Haydn phase.

"Mother and Child Reunion" or "Loves Me Like a Rock"?

Mother and Child Reunion, but only because I tend to sing it as "chicken and parm reunion".

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

The sex pistols song about Auntie Christ.

What's the most underrated family in rock, siblings or transgenerational?
The Finns

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?
Ike Turner

Which mother-related rock 'n roll song best describes your relationship with your mother?

I dunno -- "Mama Said"?

Across at least 2 generations, what is your favorite rock 'n roll family? (Note: This category may extend to not-exactly-rock 'n rollers like the Cash clan, the Thompsons, the Williamses, and so forth.)

Elvis and Lisa Marie. I figure his talents were so astronomically high that however horrible she may be, the Presleys still come out on top.

Family or MFSB?

MFSB

What's a record from either your present or past that you and your family dig/have dug together?

Woody Herman greatest hits comp -- though Mockcarr's Spike Jones answer would also suit, and would include Mom.

Which father-related song best describes your relationship with your father?

"Your Fadda's Moustache," Woody Herman. It's silly, and it's Herman.

Who's the Hank Aaron/Tommie Aaron combined sibling home run leader among rock 'n rollers?

The Davies brothers

"Mother and Child Reunion" or "Loves Me Like a Rock"?

The former

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

"I'm My Own Grandpa" -- though I guess that's not really rock. "Aunties and Uncles" by the Jam is always good for a larf -- one of their worst. ("But wait!", I hear you exclaim -- "what about Foxton's "Innocent Man"?"

What's the most underrated family in rock, siblings or transgenerational?

The Lee brothers from Supagroup.

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?

That dude from Simply Red. The white-headed stepchild of rock was Johnny Winter.

mockcarr said:

I kind of like that Into The Sun album by Sean Lennon, so I'll say the Lennon family, ignoring Julian for the most part.

Mod said:

Who's the redheaded stepchild of rock?

Julian Lennon

You know, I bought and enjoyed Into The Sun when it came out, and then ended up buying the Julian Lennon album that came out shortly after, possibly out of some kind of weird music fan guilt-by-association hang-up. I can’t remember now what I thought of the actual album. So I guess Julian is the best answer for the original question, on multiple levels. I sense a Showdown: Julian vs. Sean on some slow RTH day in the future.

To answer my own question, I’m leaning towards Jermaine Jackson naming his son Jermajesty as the Billy Ripken/fuckface equivalent of the musical world.

What's your favorite rock 'n roll song that pays homage to a relative outside the immediate family, such as a grandparent or aunt/uncle?

I'd like to change my answer to "I'm My Own Grandpa". Technically it's a bluegrass song rather than rock and roll, but it should still count since it describes Bill Wyman's family situation from a few years ago, and he’s, you know, a Rocker.


“Oh, many, many years ago
When I was twenty-three
I was married to a widow
Who was pretty as can be
This widow had a grown-up daughter
Who had hair of red
My father fell in love with her
And soon the two were wed

This made my dad my son-in-law
And changed my very life
For my daughter was my mother
'Cause she was my father's wife
To complicate the matter
Though it really brought me joy
I soon became the father
Of a bouncing baby boy

This little baby then became
A brother-in-law to Dad
And so became my uncle
Though it made me very sad
For if he was my uncle
Then that also made him brother
Of the widow's grown-up daughter
Who of course is my step-mother

Chorus
I'm my own grandpa
I'm my own grandpa
It sounds funny I know
But it really is so
Oh, I'm my own grandpa”

Doh! Hrrundivbakshi beat me to the punch!

I do think a "Hey Dad, can I have the keys to the act" showdown would be a decent slow RTH day.

I must note, at this time, that I think it's an insult to nominate the Davies brothers for the Hank/Tommie Aaron question. I'm going to assume that anyone who did this did not understand the question. Hank and Tommie Aaron probably have the most combined home runs of any brothers in major league baseball because Hank his 755 and Tommie hit - I just looked it up - 13. Surely Dave Davies has pulled more weight than the 13:755 ratio of Tommie:Hank.

I also want to change a vote. I picked Merle Haggard's Mama Tried because it was the first mother song that popped into my head, even though it's not really a rock & roll song. I just remembered that great song by Junior from the early 80s called Mama Used To say:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwTTGnDcwoA

I think it was the mention of Jermaine Jackson that triggered my memory, because I associate this song with Jermaine's (really Stevie Wonder's) Let's Get Serious.

1. Er...who's written a song called "Okay, I realize it wasn't your fault you were bipolar, but damn, that didn't make it any easier to be your kid"? Roseanne Cash, I bet.

2. The late nomination of the Finns intrigues me, but I don't know if we really know enough about Liam yet. Especially once you factor in the Carters and the sons in law, I don't really see how you could possibly beat the Cash family tree.

3. What do you think, you motherfucking son of a bitch?

4. Probably the tape that got the most plays during family vacations would be Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits, simply because it was something we all agreed on.

5. The first verse of "I'm An Adult Now" by the Pursuit of Happiness

6. Nigel and Simon Blackwell of Half Man Half Biscuit. Nigel is one of the greatest songwriters of his generation, and they didn't even bother to invite Simon back into the band when they reformed after a short hiatus in the late '80s.

6a. The original cover of the first Moby Grape album, both for the subtle obscenity and the eventual lack of follow-through.

7. "Mother and Child Reunion" because it's a reggae song about Chinese food and I'm multi-culti like dat.

8. I have to bite on whoever said "My Perfect Cousin."

9. Okay, the Finns can go here.

10. Tiffany

OK, if you're gonna get steamed about the Davies brothers, how about I change my answer to Tom and John Fogerty?

Dave Davies is at least a Daffy Dean or Sandy Alomar.

Jakob Dylan is Aaron Boone, maybe Dale Berra.

Much better answer, Mockcarr. I wouldn't say "steamed" was how I was feeling but, especially coming from a baseball fan such as yourself, disappointed. Carry on. No Rock Points have been taken off for this uncharacteristic oversight.

YES, Dale Berra fits Jakob Dylan nicely! Although to our knowledge Jakob has never been busted for coke.

Now that I understand the Hank/Tommie question, perhaps it is the Yorke brothers. Thom is very successful with his little outfit, the other brother, not so much.

I was gonna say Ringo as red-headed step child, but Julian might be a better answer.

Yes, Ray and Dave are like Sandy and Robbie Alomar - I bet Ray would even spit on you, well, splash his beer on you after it fell off his head...

Pete and Simon Townshend

Who are the rock Molina's?

The Porcaros from Toto?

Spinning off general topic, and potentially the Showdown poll, who is the biggest disappointment as a musical heir, son or daughter? Feel free to name your own children, Townspeople, if it applies. And if they don't know your screen names.

Mom's crying. Her special day has turned into fraternal squabbling. Again.

Which father-related song best describes your relationship with your father?

While it doesn't applied to me, I just remembered the wonderful "Dad I'm in Jail" song by Was (Not Was). I recently bought that and "Earth to Doris" by those fellows from Amazon.

I don't know about a song but a musical analogy may be Marvin Gaye's relationship with his father.

Doug Sahm's guitar playing son was always dependable to crash a song with some horrendous metal licks. John Cash Jr. brought down his share of Cash Family shows with his arsenal of Southern Rock covers.

Alexmagic asked:

who is the biggest disappointment as a musical heir, son or daughter?

To us or to the parent?:) Hank Williams Jr. must have had the original Hank spinning in his grave. Elvis' daughter sucked mightily on her one record - and how can you be the daughter of Elvis and Priscilla and not even be good looking? I'd bet that even God was disappointed in her, although to be fair, she mustn't have had much of a childhood.

There's not a dugout chatter for this, but I wanted to post an excerpt from an article in the Hardball Times regarding Julio Franco's apparent resignation from the major leagues; with particular reference here as to the date when he was drafted by the Phillies. Has anyone gotten more fans from fewer songs than Jimmy Buffet?! I strongly dislike that fellow.


Chris Jaffe sez:
- America was in a cultural low point at the moment. Roller derby was so popular that NBC was about to debut a new TV show "Rollergirls" around the concept. Even worse, disco was at its zenith, with "How Deep Is Your Love" topping the singles chart, the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack at #1 on the albums chart. "Take a Chance on Me" was the highest-charting debut single.

Though Van Halen's first album had come out the month before, it was slim pickings otherwise for rock fans. Johnny Rotten had just quit the Sex Pistols and the Clash's debut album wouldn't be officially released here for another year. Meanwhile, Barry Manilow had the #3 album in the country. Yuck.

People looking to avoid dreck were more likely to turn to something like Jimmy Buffett's "Cheeseburgers in Paradise," which came out as a single that week. Imagine, if you dare, a baseball player whose career lasted so long he started when Buffett's career centered original works rather than hosting a series of "Pirates of the Caribbean"-themed parties for Alcoholics Unanonymous.