Care to tell us about the day you went punk? (*Or indie or goth or whatever—it’s all part of a similar coming of age process.) Come on, I bet most of us still recall that special moment when we crossed the threshold and made our first bold punk rock statement. Remember when James Franco‘s Daniel went punk on Freaks and Geeks to impress a cute punk girl?
I noticed a post by Townsman Buskirk that R. B. Greaves has gone on to his ultimate reward. I honestly don’t know anything by him except the most excellent “Take a Letter Maria,” a song covered by RTH All-Stars Nixon’s Head (whose version, by the way, is preferred by my 5 year old, no disrespect to the recently departed intended). Based on that one song alone, I suggest that he was a GREAT man.
NEXT: Rock Town Hall’s Official Eulogy…
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Remember teen-hearthrob Shaun Cassidy‘s play for musical credibility, an album called Wasp? On this 1980, Todd Rundgren-produced album the younger half-brother of David (and star of The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries TV series),covered songs by David Bowie, The Who, The Animals, Ian Hunter, Talking Heads, and more. Cool songs. Rundgren and Utopia back young Shaun.
As mind-blowing as the thought of this album was when it came out, I never heard a lick of it…until now. Have you ever heard the entire album? Check out the following tracks and let me know if Shaun Cassidy belated deserves credit where credit is due.
…not exactly my cup of tea, musically. – Mickey Thomas, on the Jefferson Starship’s mid-’70s output.
Here’s a story that needed to be told: living legend Mickey Thomas discusses his move from the Elvin Bishop Band to Jefferson Starship. I can’t tell you, when I’m out and about and run into fellow Townspeople, how frequently the band’s late-’70s rebirth comes up in discussion. “Can you believe they bounced back with a smash hit like ‘Jane’?” someone might ask. Or, “What forces do you think came together to reboot the Starship? It’s a topic that’s completely overlooked in rock history books.” Well, this interview may provide the answers you’ve been seeking.
…The more I didn’t want to do it, the more they wanted me. – Mickey Thomas, on his initial indecision about joining the band.
Please rank the following in the order of most tolerable to least tolerable:
Free free to use any criteria that you like, but make sure that you show your work.
And please don’t just say that you hate them all, because we all do for the most part (except for Jungleland and one other guy, maybe Konajinx?).
It’s takes two, baby. Tell us what’s on your mind.
I just finished reading The World According To Garp, by John Irving. Again. This book has meant so much to me that I toted it across country to grad school and then, many years later, moved a much more bedraggled paperback copy back to California. I’ve re-read it at least five times. My family has humored me in my love of All Things Related To The World According To Garp (and by extension, John Irving): my sister allowed me to drag her to Exeter Academy to try to find locations, such as the Jenny Fields Infirmary; my family buys me hardback versions of Irving’s new novels (we are purveyors of the paperback and the used book stores); and they have tolerated my discussion of such John Irving deep cuts as Trying To Save Piggy Sneed or the awful The Fourth Hand. When I met Mr. Royale, I was happy to find a paperback copy of Garp among his possessions; if he had not liked the novel, it would have been a deal breaker.
1978’s Garp, initially entitled *Lunacy and Sorrow, is one of those amazing books that everyone should read (don’t try to get out of the 609 page count by watching the 1982 George Roy Hill film starring Robin Williams as Garp. It’s too cute). It is one of my nominations for The Great American Novel. It includes those quintessential American themes: Sex, Violence, Death, Love, Family, Religion (although in this case, through political causes). In fact, I could make a case of Garp also being The Great (Rock ‘n Roll) American Novel: the focus on lust, the contrast of being an outsider with the need to be accepted by a group, a sensitive main character who communicates his feelings about the world through art, the desire and confusion about fame.
Maybe for you, the Great American Novel is Moby Dick. Or The Great Gatsby. Or The Sun Also Rises, The Grapes of Wrath, Look Homeward, Angel, or (another personal contender) Don Delillo‘s Underworld.
But what is The Great American Album? Which album best exemplifies those American themes? When I asked Mr. Royale this question, his first response was Exile On Main Street. But the Rolling Stones? Do you have to be American to have created an American record?
I look forward to your discourse. Typed, double-spaced, with appropriate margins and font size. Consult Strunk and White for further details.
