My fellow Townspeople, this is a call to scribe!
On a lark I Googled “online petitions” and found a place that we can actually put one up. I need some help writing it though. Here’s what I have so far:
As the self-proclaimed guardian of all things rock, the music discussion blog Rock Town Hall-
What next?
(No fair telling me that I “need to free my mind instead”.)
In re-reading an old Robert Quine interview, I got to thinking about how much fun he would have been with us, here in the Halls of Rock. Since he can’t be here with us, I thought I’d pass along this link. Enjoy. Imagine.
In thinking about how cool Robert Quine was, and in searching for a killer live clip of Richard Hell and the Voidoids, I was reminded of how weak Richard Hell’s career was beside that first Voidoids album. Oh, the second album has a couple of good tracks, especially a cover of Them’s “I Can Only Give You Everything”, but the truth is Hell got a ton of mileage out of a couple of good ideas, a great Look, and lord knows how many Sugar Daddies and Sugar Mommas.
For starters, who funded the making of this film, entitled – with prescience of the man’s severely limited supply of greatness – Blank Generation? I don’t recall it having been released back in the days when I was young enough to have run out to see it. Have any of you seen this? Check out the plot synopsis from IMDB:
Nada, a beautiful French journalist on assignment in New York, records the life and work of an up and coming punk rock star, Billy. Soon she enters into a volatile relationship with him and must decide whether to continue with it, or return to her lover, a fellow journalist trying to track down the elusive Andy Warhol.
By the time I was 20 I didn’t need any more proof that Hell was one multi-untalented dude.
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It’s time, people… time to TAKE RTH TO A WHOLE ‘NOTHER FUCKING LEVEL! Time to RAMP UP THE INTENSITY TO THE EXTREME! Time to KICK SOME MUTHA-FUCKIN’ AY-UHSSSSS! Time to DECIDE WHAT KIND OF BREAKFAST CEREAL YOUR FAVORITE ROCK BAND WOULD BE IF IT WERE, LIKE, TOTALLY A BREAKFAST CEREAL! TO THE MAX!!!!!!!!
Beatles
Rolling Stones
Kinks
Dylan
Van Fucking Halen
ZZ Top
Prince
ELO
Lou Reed
Television
Elvis Costello
Walter Becker’s Beard
Here’re those nuggies you ordered.
The 101ers (live), “Lonely Mother’s Son”…ring a bell?
In the recent Last Man Standing: Suitcase Songs thread, I made mention of Joe Strummer having salvaged a song by his old band, The 101ers, for use in The Clash’s “Jail Guitar Doors”. Then, after 2000 Man called me on it, I started to doubt myself. Surely I’ve been wrong at least once before…but not this time. Here’s “Lonely Mother’s Son”, which features the entire chorus that would be used in “Jail Guitar Doors”. The verses ring a bell too, like something that might have been used on a song I usually skip on Sandinista. Let me know if you figure it out so I can save myself the effort of dropping the needle on one of those stinkers. Thanks.
Finally, some of you may know how much I dig The 101ers’ Elgin Avenue Breakdown album, which was a holy grail of sorts for me and my bandmates in our much younger days. “Lonely Mother’s Son” really sucks; there’s good reason it didn’t appear on the original vinyl release of this album. Rather than leave you possibly thinking “Is that all there is?” here are some of the tracks that give this album its pitcher-full of pub rock value. The last two tracks, covers that will ring a bell, were recorded live on a crappy cassette recorder. I love the sound of them, and through Strummer’s final 15 years of wandering, I wished he would have recorded a batch of kick-ass, low-fi pub rock recordings rather than waste his time name checking Ethiopian DJs on those ponderous Mescaleros albums.
“Letsagetabitarockin'”
“Keys to Your Heart”
“Motor Boys Motor”
“5 Star Rock ‘n Roll Petrol”
“Shake Your Hips”
“Junco Partner”
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