Welcome to my “liner notes” for my playlist “Who’s That? Vol 1”. As a long time fan of guitar driven rock, power pop, and progressive rock, I’ve experienced a lot of years of great music. This playlist includes a mix of favorite cuts from artists you may not have heard of and lesser known tracks by better known acts. Have some fun and see if you can guess the artist. If that’s not your cup of tea, then just enjoy the ride!
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(Note that you need to log on to Spotify in your browser to be able to listen to the full songs on this page.)
1. I’m On Fire – Dwight Twilley Band
The short lived duo of Dwight Twilley and Phil Seymour issued a number of albums of great power pop during the genre’s peak years in the 70s. This catchy self-produced debut single issued in 1975 was the band’s biggest hit, but poor follow-up promotion and multiple record company problems plagued the group and hurt the band’s chances at commercial success. Twilley and Seymour both had moderate success as solo performers, but one wonders what the band could have done with proper support.
2. Cruel To Be Kind – Nick Lowe
Singer-songwriter and producer Nick Lowe had a huge influence on power pop and new wave, and many of the albums he produced are as notable as his own work (Elvis Costello’s first five LPs, The Pretenders’ debut single “Stop Your Sobbin’”, several big albums by Graham Parker, to name a few); check his Wikipedia entry to truly appreciate his accomplishments. This 1979 release is his best known single and only Top 40 US hit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Lowe
3. Gloria – U2
I consider U2 the best thing musically ever to come out of Ireland (sorry Enya!). For most of us our first exposure to this band was not radio airplay, but the rock video of this single off the group’s second album, which was placed in heavy rotation on the then just months-old MTV Channel in the fall of 1981 and pretty much blew our minds. Who were these guys? Holy crap were they good! Their raw talent clearly shows, with Bono’s soaring vocals and The Edge’s unique style up front, but if we’re being honest, few of us then realized how massive this band would become. Check out the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybYgP48X2DY
4. Chemistry Class – Elvis Costello
The first time I heard this song it grabbed me and never let go… and it is still my favorite Elvis Costello tune, even considering all the other hits and great tracks he has created. This cut from 1981’s “Armed Forces” illustrates his ability to blend multiple influences (rock and roll, pop, jazz, reggae, blues, to name a few) and add fascinating lyrics (often with clever wordplay) and create a great pop song. Elvis and his band The Attractions are performing at their very best here. Listen to the lyrics, especially of the third verse; this is one helluva sexy song!
5. Shayla – Blondie
Back before YouTube and streaming services and today’s plethora of digital pathways to music (you know, when there were still a few dinosaurs roaming around), all that we rock and progressive fans had were FM rock and progressive radio stations and vinyl records. One of the beauties of vinyl LPs is that they allowed you to discover great songs that otherwise got little or no airplay. Full sides were great to listen to while we were doing life admin. And that’s how I found and fell in love with this great ballad by Debbie Harry and the band from their fourth album (and 3rd platinum LP), ‘Eat To The Beat’, issued in September 1979.
6. All Mixed Up – The Cars
In addition to the hits from their five US Platinum and one US Gold LPs, The Cars created a lot of other great songs. This gem is off their first and hugely successful self-titled LP from the summer of 1978 and features rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek on lead vocals. The band’s music video of “You Might Think” off their fifth LP, ‘Heartbeat City’, won Video of The Year at the first MTV Video Music Awards in 1984. It was state of the art then; sadly, it has not aged well…. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dOx510kyOs
7. She Loves To Be In Love – Charlie
This British rock band had several minor U.S. hits in the 70’s and early 80’s; this pop song is definitely the best of the lot. If you were a fan of the band (I owned four of their LPs) you enjoyed some clever wordplay in this number in that they worked in the titles of their albums’ 1978’s ‘Lines’ (where this track is found) and 1977’s ‘No Second Chance’. Cheeky devils, eh?
8. Moon Tears – Grin
Fronted by energetic singer/songwriter/lead guitarist/former gymnast Nils Lofgren, this group released four critically acclaimed LPs in the early 70s but never broke it big commercially. I became a fan when I lived in the Baltimore/DC area in 1975 where they were hugely popular. Before the days of streaming music digitally, we rock and progressive listeners were very dependent on FM radio airplay, and consequently it was not unusual for some bands to be really successful in specific markets but not enjoy the same sales at a national level, even with national distribution of their records. Lofgren later had greater success as a solo artist. You have probably heard his playing but didn’t know it, as he has been a recurring member of Neil Young’s band ‘Crazy Horse’ since 1970, and he also replaced Steven Van Zandt as the lead guitarist of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band and has been filling this role since 1985. This great number comes from Grin’s second album, 1972’s ‘1 + 1’.
9. Back To The Family – Jethro Tull
This British band enjoyed some success with their first LP, but 1969’s sophomore effort ‘Stand Up’ included new lead guitarist Martin Barre, and was the first of many commercial successes by Tull. This cut shows his virtuosity, and the combination with Ian Anderson’s writing, singing and flute riffs and the solid rhythm section of Glenn Cornick and Clive Bunker really rocks. It also illustrates why the band’s music was not easy to categorize; we Tull fans really liked that!
10. It’s Over – Bachman-Turner Overdrive
A rollicking number by this great Canadian power trio that evolved after Randy Bachman’s departure from The Guess Who. If bassist C.F. Turner’s vocals don’t give away the band’s identity, then Randy’s signature guitar sound surely does. This lesser known song was included on the band’s fifth consecutive U.S. gold and Canadian platinum album, 1975’s ‘Head On’.
11. The Warrior – Scandal, featuring Patty Smyth
This was the biggest hit by this 80’s U.S. rock band who only issued one full album before breaking up, 1984’s ‘Warrior’. It was the music world’s introduction to lead singer Smyth, who had some subsequent success as a singer and songwriter, though we should have heard a lot more of her talent than we did. After Scandal’s breakup, Eddie Van Halen approached Patty about replacing David Lee Roth as vocalist of Van Halen. She declined as she was eight months pregnant and “It was just not the right time for me,” she says now. “I was a New Yorker, I didn’t want to live in L.A. … and those guys were drunk and fighting all the time.” Smart woman!
12. Cornwall Blank – America
The best thing these three American military brats attending high school in the UK ever did was to get together and form a band. Along with their many massive hits, they produced plenty of lesser known gems such as this song from their second LP, ‘Homecoming’, released in 1972 and which went platinum, as did their sell-titled debut album.
13. Lorelei – Wishbone Ash
This British rock band was very successful in the early and mid 70s, though much more so in the UK than in the US. I first heard their music on WRPI, the progressive rock station at my college in Troy, NY, and immediately fell in love with this one. When they couldn’t decide between the last two replacements for a departing lead guitarist the band fortunately decided to keep both. Andy Powell and Ted Turner’s unique twin lead sound was hugely influential on other groups (Van Halen, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Thin Lizzy, and others) and they have been recognized by the music industry for their impact. Lorelei is found on the band’s seventh LP, ‘New England’, releaased in the fall of 1976 after they had relocated from England to (you guessed it), New England.
14. Couldn’t I Just Tell You – Todd Rundgren
This great song from Rudgren’s landmark 1972 LP ‘Something/Anything’ was not a huge chart success but had a huge influence on the world of power pop. One definition of power pop is that it is a more aggressive form of pop rock that is more energetic and based on catchy melodic hooks. Some have called this number the greatest power pop song ever made, and Todd is known as the king of power pop in many circles. There is simply no good reason that it took until 2021 for this incredibly talented multi-hyphenated singer/songwriter/producer/video and electronic experimenter/etc. to be inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todd_Rundgren
15. One Good Reason – The Alan Parsons Project
This unique British progressive rock band was highly successful in the 1970s and 1980s. The core of the band were Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson who co-wrote almost all of the group’s songs as well as performing. They were supported by numerous session players, notably most of the members of the band Pilot. A unique feature of their work was that often vocalists were chosen to complement the song, so many different singers performed on their LPs. However, band member Eric Woolfson handles vocals on this cut from their 1983 album ‘Ammonia Avenue’.
16. Consume Me – DC Talk
This trio of singers began their highly successful recording career as a hip hop group, then successfully made the transition to rock/pop. This powerfully gripping love song comes from their fifth and final album, 1998’s platinum ‘Supernatural’.
17. So Good To See You – Cheap Trick
Occasionally an album comes along that is chock full of great songs, with no weak ones in the bunch; this is one of those albums for me. ‘In Color’ was Cheap Trick’s second album and it was not a huge hit out the gate when released in September 1977, but these songs were the ones that led to the band’s massive success on tour in Japan and were the heart of the ‘Live At Budokan’ LP that then catapulted the group to international fame. I loved the whole album from the first listen, and this is my favorite cut. The album eventually went gold and then platinum, is now considered a classic of the power pop genre, and it made Rolling Stone’s list of the greatest 500 albums of all time. It is worth a listen! It’s also one of my top five albums as far as cover art; titled ‘Cheap Trick, In Color.’ on the front side; ‘And In Black And White.’ on the reverse side, it both cleverly and cheekily capitalizes on the diverse looks and styles of the four band members.
18. Brooklyn (Owes The Charmer Under Me) – Steely Dan
A Dan fan since their 1972 debut album ‘Can’t Buy A Thrill’, I love almost every one of their songs as well as the fact that their complex style of music and intriguing and sometime dark lyrics make them quite hard to categorize. Their debut LP was a big success that produced several major hits; though I like every single track, this one is my favorite. Jeff ‘Skunk” Baxter’s guitar intro is so beautifully rich that I can almost taste it every time I hear it; I know that sounds strange, but that is the imagery it has triggered for me every time I have listened to it since 1972.
19. Too Late For Goodbyes – Julian Lennon
Talk about a tough act to follow! I have always respected Julian Lennon for giving music his best shot even though he stands in the massive shadow of his father, former Beatle John Lennon. This was the most successful song (Billboard No. 5 hit) off his 1984 debut album ‘Valotte’, which went platinum in the US. His subsequent works have not charted as well but he is still making music and performing along with pursuing in other endeavors.
20. Feel The Benefit – 10cc
Rather than follow the rules of playlists, I included this relatively long song as a closer for two reasons. 10cc was a British rock band that was hugely successful in the UK in the 1970s, though never enjoying the same appeal in the US. My high school best friend Rich and I became loyal fans starting with their self-titled debut album. All four members were multi-talented artists and producers who honed their chops as studio musicians before forming 10cc in 1972. They were known for their often irreverent themes and lyrics (think Monty Python with instruments!) as well as for crafting great pop and rock songs. This three-movement cut is from their 1977 LP ‘Deceptive Bends’ and illustrates some of the breadth of their talent. I also felt the hopeful lyrics and closing verse were the perfect way to end this playlist in these unusual and challenging times. I hope you enjoyed ”Who’s That? Vol 1”.
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