ROCK Sex: "Exile On GRRL Street", Or How THE STONES Can Tribute Riot Grrrls Tributing Them!

Jerry Hall and Mick Jagger (1978)
ROCK Sex says, "Imagine THE ROLLING STONES honoring women who have honored them!"

Take a walk on the wild side with the Video Playlist below!

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F O R E P L A Y
Or, 'I Bet You're Papa Don't Know You Can Bite Like That'


THE ROLLING STONES went into tax exile in 1971 to avoid England's insane tariff fees. The resulting double-album EXILE ON MAIN STREET (1972) has a sloppy grace to it, recorded by shifting members with bad habits in the basement of a French villa. That shambling excess and ruined glory parade had a huge impact on bands from Glam to Punk, from New York Dolls and Patti Smith to Husker Du and Sonic Youth.

Keith Richards had a surprise signature hit from it with his 'stud on the run' anthem, "Happy".

THE ROLLING STONES -"Happy" (1972)



That song is the obvious blueprint for John Cougar's boneheaded "I Need A Lover". But it also triggered this scorching riposte.

Liz Phair felt like an outcast in a male-driven Chicago music scene. Her 1993 debut album EXILE IN GUYVILLE leveled the playing field, routinely voted as the best Indie album of the year. Before her, Pussy Galore had done a cassette-only remake of Exile On Main Street in their trademark 'rip it up and fall apart' Punk style. But Liz's album was a song-by-song response of original songs.

Her response to "Happy" is a scalpel stripping away stupid male bullshit. After years of 'personal freedom' songs by selfish guys who just treat women like groupies, this song killed all that flat dead with a cold stare and a wounded heart. And it has a great riff, too!

LIZ PHAIR -"Fuck And Run" (1993)

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C O I T U S
Or, 'Have You Seen Your Daughter, Baby, Stepping Out Of The Shadows?'

My fantasy is that THE STONES should cock a snook at their own studboy stance in their finest androgyne tradition and record a cover album of female rockers' songs influenced by them.

Here's a video set-list of songs they should do.


Presenting

E X I L E
O N
G R R R L
S T R E E T !

- - - - S I D E / O N E - - - -


BETTY DAVIS -"They Say I'm Different" (1974)


IKE & TINA TURNER -"Baby Get It On" (1974)


THE RUNAWAYS -"Hollywood" (1977)


SUZI QUATRO -"Tear Me Apart" (1978)


PATTI SMITH -"25th Floor" (live 1978)


CANDY SLICE (Gilda Radner) -"Gimme Mick" (1979)


(This one begs for a duet of Mick and Marianne playing the two parts...)
MARIANNE FAITHFULL -"Why'd Ya Do It?" (1979)



- - - - S I D E / T W O - - - -

HEART -"Even It Up" (1980)


(In the spirit of "Miss You"...)
GRACE JONES -"Pull Up To The Bumper" (1981)


(In the spirit of "Shattered"...)
BUSH TETRAS -"Too Many Creeps" (1982)


THE PANDORAS -"Want Need Love" (1984)


THE STAPLE SINGERS -"City In The Sky" (1974)


EURYTHMICS -"I Need A Man" (1988)


(This was Liz's response to "Loving Cup" from EXILE ON MAIN STREET...)
LIZ PHAIR -"Mesmerizing" (1993)


PJ HARVEY -"Rid Of Me" (1994, live 2001)



- - - - S I D E / T H R E E - - - -

(In the spirit of "Dead Flowers"...)
HOLE -"Doll Parts" (1994)


ELASTICA -"Never Here" (1995)


MARSHA HUNT -"Baby John" (1973)


THE HEADCOATEES -"Punk Girl" (1997)


(For the title alone...)
TRACY BONHAM -"You Can't Always Not Get What You Don't Want" (2000)


BOSS HOGG -"Whiteout" (2000)


GARBAGE -"Cherry Lips" (2002)



- - - - S I D E / F O U R - - - -

THE KILLS -"Cat Claw" (2002)


(Just for the genderfunk chorus "Boy, you're such a stupid bitch and girl, you're just a no-good dick" alone...)
YEAH YEAH YEAHS -"Black Tongue" (2003)


(In the spirit of "Wild Horses"...)
GILLIAN WELCH + David Rawlings -"Look At Miss Ohio" (2004)


THORNETTA DAVIS -"The Deal" (1996)


LUCINDA WILLIAMS -"Atonement" (2003)


JULIETTE LEWIS & THE LICKS -"Hot Kiss" (2006)


PEACHES + Joan Jett -"You Love It" (2006)


THE ALABAMA SHAKES -"I Ain't The Same" (2012)

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A F T E R G L O W

Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall
C'mon, Mick and Keith, it's a win-win.

You bring all their audiences into yours, stay hip, honor those who honored you, get them some really deserved royalties, put some perverse verve back into your image, don't strain for any new songs, and inspire a lot more young women out there. It's all good!


Ah well, this awesome album will probably never happen. You can't always get what you want.

I know, it's only ROCK Sex, but I can fantasize! (Yes, I do!)



© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• WOMEN OF ROCK: The 1950s, with 2 Music Players!

• WOMEN OF ROCK: The 1960s, with 2 Music Players!

• THE RUNAWAYS, And Why Women Of Rock Are Essential!


• THE BRITISH INVASION!, with Music Player!

• Rolling Stones > The Clash > Garbage

• "Jumpin' Jack Flash" - The Rolling Stones > Ananda Shankar

• "Use Me" - Bill Withers > Grace
• "PHYSICAL GRAFFITI" - Led Zeppelin > Branford Marsalis > Rolling Stones


• The Real History of Rock and Soul!: The Music Player Checklist

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ROCK Sex: "Walk On the Wild Side" - Genderblenders/ Enders/ Transcenders!

ROCK Sex wants everybody to come.

Previously we explored the themes of "I'm A Man" and "I'm A Woman". That's a couple of colors, and now let's get into the rest of the spectrum.

Rock'n'Roll is all about dancing your way out of your constrictions. From the beginning it laughed at 'Either/Or' deadends like race, status, and age. It also cocked a snook at gender and sexuality barriers, too.

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What better avatar of androgony than the ever fabulous Little Richard, from whom Jimi Hendrix, Prince, and Rupaul all descend?

LITTLE RICHARD -"Lucille" (1957)



While the sensual abandon and preening glamour of Elvis Presley unnerved the squares, imagine how they must have felt about the legions of young Rockabilly women who belted it out just as strong. Alis Lesley went beyond mimicking his name to wearing his clothes, doing his moves, and styling her hair in a pompadour with spitcurls for sideburns!:

ALIS LESLEY -"Heartbreak Harry" (1957)



It's always been common for singers to keep the lyrics of a song the same without changing the gender context, such as Ella Fitgerald covering "Lady, Be Good". The Beatles' version of The Shirelles' "Boys" is one of those. But for an act who had already rattled the androgony limits with their haircuts, this song must have had a special import to certain fans:

THE BEATLES -"Boys" (live, 1964)



As proven out by the subtext of this song by Ray Davies, working out his kinks:

THE KINKS -"David Watts" (1967)



Singapore's Rita Chao was probably just reproducing the Tommy James hit song "Hanky Panky" phonetically, but it takes on a deeper dimension nonetheless when she sings it.

I made this video to illustrate the history of women in love throughout the centuries:

RITA CHAO & The Quests/ NANCY SIT -"Hanky Panky" (1967)



Maybe the only label that's interesting is in the collar. Syd Barrett says grin and bear it.

PINK FLOYD -"Arnold Layne" (1967)



You are who you say you are.

THE TAGES -"She Is A Man" (1967)



By the late '60s, with long hair, free love, liberation movements, and tribal bonding, a more open attitude about gender, sensuality, and orientation came out. Previously Paul McCartney had made an unintended crossdressing implication by mis-singing the lyrics to "Ob-La-Di-Ob-La-Da". This time he does it on purpose:

THE BEATLES -"Get Back" (1969)


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Enter Ray Davies again with one of the most loaded moments in Rock lyric history;

"Then I looked at her, and she at me...":

THE KINKS -"Lola" (1970)



Lou Reed hung out in Andy Warhol's Factory scene with those who put the free in freak. Here's his transversive travelogue:

LOU REED -"Walk On the Wild Side" (1972)



Why choose between being The Rolling Stones and The Shangri-La's when you can have it all?

THE NEW YORK DOLLS -"Personality Crisis" (1973)



For those gandering at the spruce gooses, here's a gander goosing it up herself. (Who writes this stuff? Oh, heh heh, it's me.) From Suzi Quatro we get Joan Jett and The Runaways, Gaye Advert of The Adverts, and myriad more riot grrls:

SUZI QUATRO -"Glycerine Queen" (rec. 1973)



John Lennon opined that Glam Rock was "Rock'n'Roll in lipstick". Here's the almighty Alien Androgyne to declare the rouged rebellion:

DAVID BOWIE -"Rebel Rebel" (1974)



"He could lick 'em by smiling/
He could leave 'em to hang..."

BRETT SMILEY -"VaVaVa Voom" (1974)



Time for education by reading the physical graffiti...

MEG CHRISTIAN -"Ode To A Gym Teacher" (1974)



From Motown to GoGoTown...

THE MIRACLES -"Ain't Nobody Straight In L.A." (1975)



Parliament/ Funkadelic was as Glam as anyone, with their platforms, make-up, and flash costumes:

FUNKADELIC -"Jimmy's Got a Little Bit Of Bitch In Him" (1975)



The all-female Funk collective known as Isis was led by Carol McDonald, who wrote openly about her lady loves in her songs. Evidently Glam guys could get away with the genderbender thing while women couldn't, which is why few people have ever heard of this great and neglected band:

ISIS -"Bobbie And Maria" (1975)



This movie was a disastrous flop when it came out, but forged a hardcore fandom that would have astounding influence on the next decade:

THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW: "Sweet Transvestite" (1975)



Let's tryst again with Chuck Berry, The Beach Boys, and David Bowie in a blender.

ELTON MOTELLO -"Jet Boy Jet Girl" (1975)



Funk-Rock shocker Betty Davis was so fierce that sometimes her voice became a gutteral lion's roar that might possess even Linda Blair to twist to attention:

BETTY DAVIS -"Shut Off The Light" (1975)



If Keith Richards had a sister who didn't give the slightest damn about your gender ideas?...

PATTI SMITH -"Pumping (In My Heart)" (1978)



The Rolling Stones had dressed in drag on the cover of their 1966 single, "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby (Standing In the Shadows)". A lot of artists would make a career from that revelatory moment. Here's the future Jayne County of Georgia being man enough to be a woman:

WAYNE COUNTY And The ELectric Chairs -"Man Enough To Be A Woman" (1978)


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They say this video killed Queen's career in America. Maybe just with people who have no sense of humor:

QUEEN -"I Want To Break Free" (1981)



'What's the buzz, cock?' We're all human, pass it on...

PETE SHELLEY -"Homo Sapian" (1981)



Here's Boy George with this soulful Lover's Rock classic:

CULTURE CLUB -"Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?" (1982)



Bowie's daughter tears the roof off the sucker:

GRACE JONES -"Demolition Man" (1981)



Bowie's other daughter opens up heaven wider:

EURYTHMICS -"Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This" (1983)



If Rita Chao had sung Tommy James' "Hanky Panky" in innocence, then JOAN JETT knew exactly what she was saying with his "Crimson and Clover":

JOAN JETT -"Crimson and Clover" (1983)



This retooling of Prince's song makes an already enticing ménage à trois even more evocative:

CRISTINA -"When You Were Mine" (1984)



Let's look for the purple banana.

PRINCE -"If I Were Your Girlfriend" (1987)



"Jackie couldn't decide if he was a girl/
Or if she was a boy"

DUKES OF STRATOSPHEAR -"Have You Seen Jackie?" (1987)


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There's a pleasing symmetry to having a threesome for three days...

JANE'S ADDICTION -"Three Days" (1990)



"Everybody loves you when you're Bi!" Maybe Bi means Hello!

LIVING COLOUR -"Bi" (1993)



Who's your Mama now?

TRIBE 8 -"Femme Bitch Top" (1995)



Out and upward, the march toward Queercore begins:

PANSY DIVISION -"I Really Wanted You" (1994)



Go, team!

TEAM DRESCH -"Fagetarian and Dyke" (1995)



Bowie strobes through this like alternating current:

BLUR -"Girls And Boys" (1994)



If Bill Wither's original was charged with paranoia, Meshell ramps up the sexual intrigue:

MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO -"Who Is He and What Is He To You?" (1996)



This quill comes from birds of a feather.

QUEEN PEN, w/ Meshell Ndegeocello -"Girlfriend" (1997)


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It's not the length, it's how you use it.

HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH: "Angry Inch" (2001)



Glam, bam, thank you, man.

GARBAGE -"Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go)" (2004)



Prince's daughter says, "Come on, baby, let's go!"

PEACHES -"I U She" (2004)



"I don't need your boys school of etiquette/ I don't need to be something I'm not/ This is who I am so take me as I come".

Go scout out their records:

BOYSKOUT -"School of Etiquette" (2007)



Turn on, tune in, come out!

LESBIANS ON ECSTASY -"Sedition" (2007)


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It's true. We ahould all have a lotta love.

LEZ ZEPPELIN -"Whole Lotta Love" (2015)





'Where the wild things are'? Everybody you know.



© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• "I'm A Man" - Bo Diddley > Muddy Waters > Spencer Davis > Chicago > Devo

• "I'm A Woman" - Peggy Lee > Helen Reddy > Yoko Ono > Chaka Khan > Neneh Cherry

• Love and Let Love! -Bessie Smith, Rita Chao, Nancy Sit, Tina Turner

• "Exile On GRRL Street", Or How THE STONES Can Tribute Riot Grrrls Tributing Them!

• REVOLUTION! - A 'Fight The Power' Music Player


• LGBT-themed Songs


• The Real History of ROCK AND SOUL!: A Music Player Checklist

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ROCK Sex: "Fame" - James Brown > David Bowie > James Brown

ROCK Sex meets you again on the flipside.

Here's another example of one artist who inspires another artist who re-inspires the first artist, using the classic song "Fame".

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James Brown upended the pop melody formula by perfecting purely rhythmic vamps into a new dance music called Funk. He emphasized driving beat, hypnotic length, and scratchy rhythm guitar:

JAMES BROWN -"The Payback (Part 1)" (1974)



David Bowie and John Lennon sparked the song "Fame" during an impromptu studio jam, built on a riff by guitarist Carlos Alomar. Carlos had toured with James Brown in '69 and the song is a sonic love letter, or payback, to James' style:

DAVID BOWIE -"Fame" (1975)



James must've felt turnabout was fair play because he used that very arrangement the following year:

JAMES BROWN -"Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved)" (1976)

"Fame, it's not your brain, it's just the flame
That burns your change to keep you insane"

© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie > Bauhaus

• "Walk On the Wild Side" - Genderblenders/ Enders/ Transcenders!

• "You Can't Hurry Love" - The Supremes > Iggy Pop > The Jam > David Bowie

• ROCK Sex: "Let's Dance" - David Bowie > George Clinton > Craig David

• "We Can Beat Them, Forever And Ever!" - Question Mark + Mysterians > Redbone > Bowie

• ROCK Sex: "Ground Control to Major Tom" - THE LONELY ASTRONAUT Movies


• The Real History of Rock and Soul!: The Music Player Checklist

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ROCK Sex: "Sweet Dreams" - Squeeze > Eurythmics

ROCK Sex quickies are all about tit for tat.

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Pop wizards Squeeze recorded this synth-wave classic, featuring the chorus line "because dreams are made of this":

SQUEEZE -"Take Me, I'm Yours" (1978)


Whereupon Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart were sparked to brilliance uniquely their own:

EURYTHMICS -"Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This" (1983)


"Sweet Dreams" has been covered in various styles by Sylvie Vartan ("Déprime"), Marilyn Manson, Yo La Tengo, Nouvelle Vague, Ministry, and Tracy Bonham; and sampled by Blondie, De La Soul, Nas, Tricky, and Faith Evans.

It's become such a cultural touchpoint that Eurythmics referred to it themselves in their reunion song, "17 Again".

EURYTHMICS -"17 Again" (1999)




© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• "Time Is Tight!" - Booker T > The Clash > Elvis Costello > Squeeze

• Kraftwerk > Trouble Funk > Afrika Bambaataa > New Order

• "Don't Bring Me Down" -The Animals, The Beatles, Neil Young, WAR, McCartney, ELO


• The Real History of Rock and Soul!: The Music Player Checklist

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