The Legacy of LOUIE LOUIE

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This Music Player contains 11 hours of covers, clones, and cousins of "Louie Louie",
from 1957 to today in chronological order, spanning all musical genres.

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The Legacy of LOUIE LOUIE

Sometimes a single song is the refrain. You can group music by genres or eras, but one song can tie all of them together. Or even one riff.

In 1957, Richard Berry created one of those. His ode to Jamaican love was inspired by a few surprising sources: a variant of a Cuban Mambo song called "Cha Cha Chá Loco", and Chuck Berry's "Havana Moon" (which had in turn responded to the brief Calypso boom after "Day-O" broke big). It was a regional hit around San Francisco and made its way into many West Coast 45" collections and jukeboxes. It had a lurching stairstep riff that kids had gone crazy for, one that stuck to your brain and feet.

Richard Berry; The Kingsmen.

Up in Seattle, where cold and rain made the emerging early '60s rock'n'roll courser, bands battled each other for supremacy in frats, bars, and proms. Someone latched onto "Louie Louie" and then everybody had to. But The Kingsmen stumbled into the studio first, one day before their rivals Paul Revere And The Raiders. In their haste, they didn't know it well enough. The singer slurred the words to hide it and his false starts after the bridge got left in. The riff lost a beat and became the classic 1-2-3/ 1-2, 1-2-3/ 1-2 that made it The Riff. That arresting combo of jang-ing riff and sloppy attitude built the Garage of the future. It also got them investigated by the FBI on suspicion of slipping obscenities into the unintelligle lyrics.

Great riff + Attitude + Controversy = cultural phenomenon.

In comes imitation and mutation, the catalyst of all culture. There's a moment in music where a riff becomes a general rhythm, and a bedrock for new songs.

It sure stuck in its originator's mind, because Richard Berry did one of the first clones of his own song with 1960's "Have Love Will Travel". His original was a splice, and now that the chords have now become standard chops in any band's repertoire, the re-splicing by his followers begins. East L.A. Mexican rockers The Premiers used the riff under their cover of a different song, "Farmer John". The Trashmen combined both songs openly as "Farmer Louie". The Bobby Fuller 4 medley-ed the two together right into their own clone, "Jenny Lee". Wayne Fontana And The Mindbenders' "The Game Of Love" trysted the Bo Diddley beat into the middle.

Meanwhile, Surf naturally caught the wave, such as "Surfin' Louie" by The Shockwaves and The Surfaris' "Go Go Go For Louie's Place". Fresh from "My Boyfriend's Back", the girl group The Angels went tough chick with it, even preserving the false start in harmony! The Wailers, The Raiders and The Who wrote sequels to it (The Raiders also got 'revenge' on their friends for the lost hit with "Just Like Me"). David Bowie's first recording was a cover of The Raiders' sequel, as Davie Jones And The King Bees (1964). Meanwhile, the Seattle scene was still on fire with the song in every band's repertoire; The Kingsmen's rivals, The Sonics, virtually invent garage rock and punk with a 1965 take so brutal, even the Sex Pistols would wince in admiration.

The Sonics; The Troggs; The Rolling Stones.

Now the covers have turned into clones and cousins.

The riff has now become so common that everyone went from a cover into new creations. The Drifers usher in a new standard with "Sweets For My Sweet". The Castaways pull a cover-up with "Liar Liar"; the Soul group The Vibrations scooped a baldfaced substitute as "My Girl Sloopy", and The Real McCoys inserted irony by covering the clone as "Hang On Sloopy".

In Boston patois, The Barbarians' drummer plied his hand with the hook in his autobiographical "Moulty". The Kinks tried to cover it and instead found "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All Of the Night", two new standards. As garage and pop started colluding on radio hits, The Rare Breed ("Beg, Borrow, and Steal"), The Troggs ("Wild Thing", another new standard), The Rolling Stones ("Get Off of My Cloud", another), The Remains ("Why Do I Cry"), and The Eyes ("I'm Rowed Out") heisted the Jamaican ship for new ports.

Culture is typically cyclical based on response, and a song that was first inspired by Mambo cha-cha-cha rhythms was in turn covered extensively in Spanish-speaking countries (including its clones) by acts like Los Loud Jets, Sonia, and The Sandpipers.

Julie London; Bob Dylan;
Toots And The Maytals.

From covers, to clones, to cousins, and finally to culture. At this point it became a free-for-all. An idea has become universal, and every response transforms it with new perspectives. It's everybody's party, and everybody has a part in it.

Quincy Jones did a jazz cover of a clone with "Hang On Sloopy". Conga god Mongo Santamaria sailed back to Cuba in his take on "Louie Louie". Torch damsel Julie London gave it a sultry shoreleave it will never forget. Ike & Tina Turner gave it an soulful shakedown at the Apollo while Otis Redding cruised it through Memphis.

It lazes under the bridge of "You've Lost That Loving Feeling" by The Righteous Brothers. A twist on it rolls through Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone". It twined through Frank Zappa's work continously, including firing a guitarist when they couldn't play it. Quietly, the sing-song riff sways under The Rascals' "Good Lovin'", Erma Franklin's "Piece Of My Heart", and Tommy Roe's "Dizzy".

It was wham-bammed by Glam bands in the early '70s, of course. The funk-pop band Hot Chocolate familiarized it into their hit "Brother Louie". Toots & the Maytals brought it home to Jamaica in reggae stylee. It grooves under "Summer Days, Summer Nights" from the movie musical GREASE. Barry White got up close and personal with it. Stanley Clarke and George Duke funked around with it.

The Stooges; Lou Reed; Motorhead.

But the song never forgot its edge. The song had become less a riff and more of a shorthand writ of young swagger and rebel sneer. In the '70s and '80s it often took on a seedy and dangerous allure, continuing to kick against the pricks.

Garage rock had spat out the crazed stepchild, The Stooges. On a bootleg of their last gig in '74, Iggy Pop uses "Louie" as a frame to taunt his audience out of boozy complacency. One patron purportedly beans him with a beer bottle, which is the thump and buzzing mike heard at the end. Lou Reed's "Vicious" helped inspire Sid's name. The Clash lashed it and The Fall sneered it in concert in '77. Johnny Thunders stumbled through it on his way to the glass table.

"Louie Louie" was now being unfurled like a Jolly Roger. L.A. punks X flash glimmers of its sway within "We're Desperate". Some of its ghost can be traced in the swaying buzz of The Dickies' "You Drive Me Ape (You Big Gorilla)". It was Motorhead's first single. Black Flag refuses surrender with it in 1981. "Love Sinks", by The J. Geils Band, is a revamp of it via "Wild Thing". Acts as diverse as D.R.I., Joan Jett, The Pretenders, The Fat Boys, The Ultra Magnetic MCs, Sisters of Mercy, and more shanghaied its course through the '80s. For Russian emigres Red Square it was a very real rejection of repression and a charter to deliverance.

Nirvana.

Then it came full circle. From the hinterlands near Seattle, Kurt Cobain corrupted the chords into a splice with Boston's "More Than a Feeling" in 1991. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a perfect summation of everything that made "Louie Louie" great in the first place: a kicking riff, a sloppy attitude, mysterious lyrics, and a combustible audience. Again, it had become the rallying cry for fun and foment, which is Rock'n'Roll incarnate. Perfect.

From culture into community. Ultimately, a riff becomes a communal experience, a rallying cry, a Morse-code beacon, a universal bond like the heartbeat; this is Us, this is home.

In 1993 Iggy Pop revolted from style back into sting, using the song to navigate modern protests and soul-searching. He said the song always steadies him when he goes off course. Likewise, the insanely prolific punk Billy Childish keelhauled it for a sequel with his garage band Thee Headcoats in '95: "Louie Louie (Where Did She Roam)" sets course for new shores in pursuit of that elusive island love. Which, beyond the riff and its attitude, may be the secret refrain of the song that haunts the memory; ache at the landlocked present and longing for an open future.

Great idea + varied response + shared experience = culture.

Culture is formed and maintained by the interchange of community; like the ocean, every current, crosscurrent, ebb, flow, swell, and wave remolds it while holding it together. "Louie Louie" is an undercurrent of raw Rock'n'Roll spirit driving the tides across time. It is ever-current, from Jane's Addiction, The A-Bones, and Blur, to The Black Keys, Boonaraas, Foxygen, and The Love Me Nots. Set course. Said we gotta go now.

"Okay, let's give it to 'em, right now!"
A-A-A, D-D, Em-Em-Em, D-D...


© Tym Stevens

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See also:

-The Pedigree of PETER GUNN

-Shock Waves: How SURF MUSIC Saved Rock'n'Roll!

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BEST MUSIC: 2015, with Music Players!

A L A B A M A
S H A K E S

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ALL THE
REAL MUSIC!

Nevermind those suburban-angst
'Best Music' lists that taste like paste!

These tunes will divine your mind
and shake your goodness sakes!

Shortcut to Music Players:
• BEST ALBUMS: 2015
• COOL SONGS: 2015
• BEST RE-ISSUES: 2015

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B E S T
N E W
A L B U M S :
2 0 1 5

BEST ALBUMS 2015
by Tym Stevens
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This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.

• Jacco Gardner, "Hypnophobia"
Dreamy Psyche.
Mellotron swirls, hypnotic harmonies, and alternate consciousness.

(See also: Syd Barrett, Spitualized, Dungen, Morgan Delt)

• Liz Vice, "There's a Light"
Gospel Soul.
Everything forthright and moving about American spiritual musics.

(See also: Staple Singers, Aretha Franklin)

• Diane Coffee, "Everybody's a Good Dog"
Glamtastic.
Shaun Fleming (Foxygen's drummer) brings us ambitious Glam Rock with some serious Classic Rock kicks.

(See also: David Bowie, Foxygen, GUM, Uni)

• Alabama Shakes, "Sound And Color"
Blues Rock.
Brittany Howard and crew snap into sharp focus with this timeless, soulful Classic Rock.

(See also: Led Zeppelin, The Bellrays, The Black Keys)

• Bop English, "Constant Bop"
Pop Collage.
James Petralli's (White Denim) side-project harmonizes every great sound in one bracing collage.

(See also: Constant Bop, BC Camplight, Jim Noir)

• The Sonics, "This Is The Sonics"
Garage Rock.
The quinessential mid-'60s Garage band returns, as brutal and fierce as ever.

(See also: The Stooges, DMZ, The Gories, The Courettes)

• Anderson East, "The Muscle Shoals Sessions"
Southern Soul.
Unvarnished Soul, tapped right at the source.

(See also: Soloman Burke, Robert Palmer, Curtis Harding)

• La Luz, "Weirdo Shrine"
Girl Group Surf.
Wistful harmonies and whitecap guitars charm you on a dreamy coastline.

(See also: The Shangri-Las, The Aqua Velvets, The Neptunas, Khruangbin)

• J.D. McPherson, "Let The Good Times Roll"
Rockabilly and Soul.
Licks of fire, tongue of honey, stride of pride.

(See also: The Johnny Burnette Trio, James Hunter, Kyle Lacy)

• BC Camplight, "How To Die In the North"
Art Pop.
Brian Christinzio goes for Baroque with his complex arrangements and tuneful melodies.

(See also: Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren, Jeff Lynne, White Denim)

• Peach Kelli Pop, "Peach Kelli Pop III"
Power Pop.
Allie Hanlon makes perfect sunshine guitar pop.

(See also: Nikki And The Corvettes, Colleen Green, La Sera)

• Django Django, "Born Under Saturn"
Electro Indie.
A perfect album. Surf guitars, Wilson harmonies, Gore synth textures, A.C. Newman versatility, and sonic curveballs from all bases.

(See also: The Ventures, Depeche Mode, The Beta Band)

• Barrence Whitfield And The Savages, "Under the Savage Sky"
Garage Soul.
Barrence is still beltin' it out like fire alarms, gruff and raw and vital.

(See also: Little Richard, The Sonics, The Dirtbombs)

• Pond, "Man It Feels Like Space Again"
Funky Psyche-Prog.
Aggressively eclectic Electrodelia from Australia, shaking preconecptions and asses.

(See also: Tame Impala, Guerlilla Toss, Unknown Mortal Orchestra)

• Leon Bridges, "Coming Home"
New Soul.
Grounded in classic mid-'60s Soul with sheenier production and radio overtures.

(See also: Sam Cooke, Anthony Hamilton, Myron And E)

• Thee Tsunamis, "Saturday Night Sweetheart"
Garage Grrrl.
A trio out to punch barflys and rip dance cards.

(See also: The Trashwomen, The Coathangers, Baby Shakes)

• Father John Misty, "I Love You, Honeybear"
Alt Folk.
On his honeymoon, J.Tillman goes surprisingly romantic while characteristically wary and contemplative.

(See also: Randy Newman, Glen Campbell, Fleet Foxes)

• Mahalia Barnes And The Soul Mates, "Ooh Yea!: The Betty Davis Songbook"
Soul Funk.
The songs of Funk Rock goddess, Betty Davis, roaring like Sly and the family brimstone.

(See also: Ann Peebles, Rufus + Chaka Khan, Joi)

• Destination Lonely, "No One Can Save Me"
Garagedelic.
Acidhead bikers scorching tarmac and flailing chains.

(See also: Link Wray, The Lime Spiders, The Go)

• The Arcs, "Yours, Dreamily,"
Dreamy Soul.
Dan Auerbach goes trippy and warmly ethereal.

(See also: The Delfonics, The Black Keys, El Michels Affair)

• Erase Errata, "Lost Weekend"
PostPunk.
The politics are as barbed as the guitars in this welcome reunion.

(See also: Wire, Gang Of Four, Deerhoof)

• The Pop Group, "Citizen Zombie"
Noize Funk.
The politics are as barbwired as the beats in this welcome reunion.

(See also: Tackhead, Public Enemy, Flying Lotus)

• Public Enemy, "Man Plans God Laughs"
Conscious Rap.
The politics are as ballistic as the funk in this ongoing union.

(See also: Beastie Boys, Consolidated, The Coup)

• Delaney Davidson, "Rough Diamond"
Moody Roots.
Like a New Zealand cousin of Tom Waits, Davidson lives in some haunted highlands of ghostly Rockabilly, Folk, and cinema scores.

(See also: Nick Cave, Rev. Beat-Man, Graham Lindsey)

• Devo, "Hardcore Live!"
Neo Wave.
Devo remakes their harder-edged, pre-label material like they are livewired.

(See also: Suicide, Polysics, Autoramas)

• Groovy Uncle, "Life's a Gift"
Baroque Pop.
Mid-'60s Beatlesque inspiration, gliding on the belting Soul voice of Suzi Chunk.

(See also: Fabienne DelSol, Pugwash, The Moons)

• Mbongwana Star, "From Kinshasa"
Afro Rock.
Combining traditional Congalese instruments with ones cobbled from the scrapyard, along with driving percussion and chorals.

(See also: Tinariwen, Kasai Allstars, Jupiter Bokondji)

• Holly Golightly, "Slowtown Now!"
Garage and Soul.
Holly is more expansive this time, with some soulful jaunt and lively arrangements.

(See also: Billy Childish, The Delmonas, Thee Headcoatees, Ludella Black)

• Paul Weller, "Saturns Pattern"
Souladelic.
Melodic soulfulness, blasts of guitar, and sonic trippiness.

(See also: Small Faces, The Jam, Blur)

• Ty Segall, "Mr. Face"
Psyche Pop.
Less brutal fuzz and more acoustic and melodious tunes on this 4-song EP.

(See also: The Zombies, Mikal Cronin)

• Le Butcherettes, "Cry Is For the Flies"
Garage Punk.
Teri Suarez Cosío is aflame with inspiration and indignation on this fistpuncher.

(See also: PJ Harvey, The Kills, Yeah Yeah Yeahs)

• Lianne La Havas, "Blood"
Alt Folk.
The acoustic songwriter blossoms outward in this lush and metropolitan suite.

(See also: Nina Simone, Corinne Bailey Rae, Marques Toliver)

• The London Souls, "Here Come The Girls"
Classic Rock.
The best late-'60s album that should have happened; timeless catchy tunes, carousing vocals, and organic swagger.

(See also: "Disraeli Gears", "The White Album", "Traffic", "Let It Bleed", "Let Love Rule")

• Dengue Fever, "The Deepest Lake"
Cambodian Rock.
Channeling early-'70s Cambodian Psychedelia into new vistas of Prog and Indie.

(See also: Ros Sereysothea, Cambodian Space Project, Khruangbin)

• Panda Bear, "Panda Bear Meets The Grim Reaper"
Electro Pop.
Noah Lennox (Animal Collective) zeros in with shining harmonies, upbeat electronica, and spacey textures.

(See also: Brian Wilson, Steward Copeland, Madlib)

• Silencio, "She's Bad"
Twin Peaks.
The collective's moody and mysterious second album gives us more alternative soundtracks to 'Twin Peaks'>, in the style of Angelo Badalamenti's scores.

(See also: Angelo Badalamenti, Bookhouse, Ghost Of Wood)

• Promised Land Sound, "For Use And Delight"
CountryRockSoftPsyche.
A more roots-savvy Psyche band brings us hickory-smoked highs.

(See also: The Band, Graham Parsons, The Black Keys)

• Toro y Moi, "What For?"
Classic '70s Pop.
Chaz Bundick, an experimental chameleon, ramps it up with hooky tunes, arena chords, and warm grooves.

(See also: Todd Rundgren, Beck, Cornelius)

• The Mighty Mocambos, "Showdown"
Funk.
Propulsive groove that moves and smooths and soothes.

(See also: Bacao Rhythm And Steel Band, Brownout, The Soul Rebels)

• The Bright Light Social Hour, "Space Is Still The Place"
Hard Rockadelic.
A positive and epic album that rocks and grooves on a communal party plateau.

(See also: Hawkwind, Dr. Dog, The Arcs)

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C O O L
S O N G S :
2 0 1 5

All the REAL MUSIC
beyond the box!

Nevermind Gloss Pop, Stepford Idols, Karaoke Choruses ("woh-oo-oh"), Ego Brats, Emo Prats, Plinky Folk, Brittle Bombast, Vegas Country, Smug Thug, Mope Noodling, De-mixed Throb, and Robot-o-Tune schlock! >

Here's the
D R E A M
J U K E B O X !
Careen and cavort
with more leaps than an airport!


COOL SONGS 2015
by Tym Stevens
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*(This Player is limited to the first 200 songs.
Hear the unlimited Playlist here.)

This jukebox is sequenced into groups of sound, instead of randomly.
All the songs elasticize their genres.
Get your groove on in this sonic order.:
Rockabilly! Surf! Beat! Garage!

Psyche! Classic Rock! Glam! Blues!

Alt-Roots! Soul! Funk! World!

Riot Grrrl! Alt-Rock! Electro!

Alt-Rap! Cinematic! RESIST!

Cover Songs! Happy Holidays!

Dengue Fever; Gary Clark, Jr;
Motobunny; Young Fathers

12 hours of unblind-mind, fasttrack-ass music, featuring the following fine folks in this exact order!:
• Rockabilly! • Horst With No Name, Los Mambo Jambo, The Hillmans, and Du Blonde

• Surf! • Shannon And The Clams, The Cavernarios, La Luz, and Marietta

• Beat / Garage! • Ringo Starr, Suzi Chunk, The Beatophonics, Baby Shakes, Dance Cleopatrat, Sonny Knight And The Lakers, noonday underground, The Most, Cola Jet Set, Ultimate Painting, Pugwash, Holly Golightly, Palmyra Delran, Barrence Whitfield And The Savages, King Automatic, That's a NO NO!, Le Butcherettes, Thee Tsunamis, MotoBunny, Sister Paul, and Heaters

• Beatlesque / Psyche! • Groovy Uncle, LOVEBYRD, The Smoking Trees, Jacco Gardner, Death and Vanilla, Bop English, Yorick van Norden, Tess Parks And Anton Newcombe, Wilco, Destination Lonely, Dungen, Deep Cotton, The Moonlandingz, Serpent Power, of Montreal, The London Souls, Electric Light Orchestra, Matthew E. White, and Tobias Jesso Jr

• Classic Rock / Glam! • Alabama Shakes, The Bright Light Social Hour, Paul Weller, Parlor Snakes, Sam Cohen, Wavves, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Mikal Cronin, Uncle Acid And The Deadbeats, Ty Segall, Fuzz, Coke Weed, Diane Coffee, Hanni El Khatib, Faux Ferocious, and Chris Spedding

• Blues! • Gary Clark Jr, The Future Shape Of Sound, Keith Richards, Sister Sparrow, The Delta Saints, Patty Griffin, and Fantastic Negrito

• Alt-Roots! • Anielle Reid, Dave Rawlings Machine, Lianne La Havas, Father John Misty, and Liz Vice

• Soul! • Dustbowl Revival, JD McPherson, Saun And Starr, The Soul Surfers, Son Little, Monophonics, Bettye LaVette, Speedometer feat. James Junior, Leon Bridges, BC Camplight, Lee Fields And The Expressions, Anderson East, Toro y Moi, Luca Sapio, JJ Grey And Mofro, Chicano Batman, The Arcs, and Nathaniel Rateliff And The Night Sweats

• Funk! • D'Angelo, ROXY ROCA, Lucky Brown, El Michels Affair, Bilderbuch, Pond, Caboose, Sonny Knight And The Lakers, Orgone, whysowhite, Mark Ronson feat. Kevin Parker), Dokkerman And The Turkeying Fellaz, The New Mastersounds, Allen Stone, and The Mutants

• World! •The Lions, Jr Thomas And The Volcanos, Mbongwana Star, Zun Zun Egui, Fantasma, The Mighty Mocambos with Afrika Bambaataa, Warsaw Afrobeat Orchestra, Kanaku y El Tigre, Calexico, Red Baraat, and Dengue Fever

• Riot Grrrl! • Becky Lee and Drunkfoot, Las Robertas, Colleen Green, Courtney Barnett, Death Valley Girls, Peach Kelli Pop, Speedy Ortiz, My Brightest Diamond, and Rose Windows

• Alt-Rock! • The Dead Weather, Low, Blur, Made Violent, Ezra Furman, Wire, Savages, PINS, and LoneLady

• Electro! • Django Django, V V Brown, Jamie xx, Moon Duo, Betty Black, EL VY, Panda Bear, and Shamir

• Alt-Rap! • Public Enemy, Kae Tempest, The Pop Group, Blackalicious, Beat Detectives, Young Fathers, and Ghostpoet

• Cinematic! • Cara Stacey, Satanique Samba Trio, Mary Halvorson, Deradoorian, Silencio, Florence Joelle, Tracy Bonham, The Chamanas, Lera Lynn, Ennio Morricone, Nadine Shah, Calibro 35, Delaney Davidson, The Arcs, Amason, Sam Smith, Thomas Newman, and John Williams

• RESIST! • Erase Errata, Childbirth, Bill Fay, Sleater-Kinney, Promised Land Sound, Public Enemy, The Sonics, and The Sheepdogs

• Cover Songs! • List = Original By / Cover Artist
Songs are sequenced in the chronological order of the Originals.
Frank Sinatra / Bob Dylan • Nina Simone / Lana Del Rey • Bob Dylan / Willie Nelson And Merle Haggard • Doris Troy / Akane And The Neatbeats • Aretha Franklin / Spooner Oldham • The Beatles / The Grip Weeds • The Beatles / Bernard Fowler • 100 Proof Aged In Soul / The Woggles • Nick Drake / Tim Amukele • Bill Withers / My Brothers And I • Stevie Wonder / Analog Son • Betty Davis / Mahalia Barnes and The Soul Mates • DEVO / DEVO • Donna Summer / Fingathing + Jesca Hoop • The Kinks / The Sonics • Yoko Ono / Yoko Ono + Death Cab for Cutie • New Order / Autoramas • Depeche Mode / Lotte Kestner • Prince / Chris Cornell • Nirvana / La Grima + Jimetta Lewis • Portishead / Skydive Trio • Yoko Ono / Yoko Ono + Portugal. The Man

• Happy Holidays! • Lez Zeppelin, and Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings

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B E S T
R E I S S U E S :
2 0 1 5

Quality is timeless.

BEST REISSUES 2015
by Tym Stevens This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.


This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.

• 1930s and '40s •

• Lead Belly, "The Smithsonian Folkways Collection" ⇧
The essential Folk Blues musician and his repertoire.

• 1950s •

• The "5" Royales, "Think" ⇧
The former Gospel quintet swung some hard Rock'n'Roll, and forecast the coming of Soul.

• Various Artists, "Tam...Tam...Tam...!" (1958) (Brasiliana revue show)
A collection of forward-thinking Bossa Nova acts.

• 1960s •

• The Kinks, "The Anthology 1964-1971"
The core works of the British Invasion's> stealth champions.

• The Staple Singers, "Freedom Highway Complete" (1965)
The classic Gospel protest album, restored in its recorded entirety.

• Bob Dylan, "The Cutting Edge 1965-1966" ⇧
The Bootleg Series continues with unreleased rarities from Dylan's most celebrated period.

• Curtis Knight And The Squires (w/ Jimi Hendrix), "You Can't Use My Name" (1965, 1967)
In the mid-'60s, Jimi Hendrix was sideman to many touring R'n'B artists. The proto-Garage Soul of these rare and remastered sides hint at the maelstrom about to come.

• 1970s •

• Jimi Hendrix, "Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festival (Live)" (1970)
A full recorded concert (and coveted bootleg) finally released officially to the public.

• Fadoul, "Al Zman Saib" (Moroccan funk-rock, 1970)
A Morrocan funker who sounds like Free jamming with James Brown.

• The Rolling Stones, "Sticky Fingers (Deluxe)" (1971)
Arguably THE record that defines the band at its toughest, tightest best. Welcome, Mick Taylor.

• Gloria Ann Taylor, "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing" (1971-'77)
Gloria got a few singles and little love. This compilation of all her Soul works rectifies that.

• Led Zeppelin, "Physical Graffiti (Deluxe)" (1975) ⇧
The remastering campaign continues, with additional early versions and rough mixes.

• Alessandro Alessandroni, "Industrial" (1976)
Sandro was the guitarist, whistler, and choral leader on Spaghetti Western soundtracks>. And a fine composer, as this library album of urban-inspired instros attests.


• Led Zeppelin, "Presence (Deluxe)" (1976)
The remastering campaign continues, with additional early versions and rough mixes.

• Various Artists, "Ork Records: New York, New York" (late '70s Punk)
New York's first Punk label recorded valuable debuts by the Punk and New Wave underground.

• Fleetwood Mac, "Tusk (Deluxe)" (1979)
The contentious and experimental double-album, a clash of languid ballads and punky demos, grows more complex with copious alternate versions added.

• Lizzy Mercier Descloux, "Press Color (Deluxe)" (1979)
The most cosmopolitan and eclectic member of the New York underground, charting the musical future we now live in while no one was looking.

• 1980s •

• The Mothmen, "Pay Attention" (1981)
PostPunk, Dub, and politics, just as arresting as when it was first spat.

• Various Artists, "Sherwood At the Controls, Vol. 1: 1979-1984" (On-U Sound dub mixes)
The most radical Dub producer of the '80s was Adrian Sherwood (Tackhead, African Dub Charge), spinning the chaos into tracks by The Fall, Medium Medium, Shreikback, and Maximum Joy.

• Led Zeppelin, "Coda (Deluxe)" (1982)
The remastering campaign culminates, with additional early versions and rough mixes.

• Paul McCartney, "Tug Of War (Deluxe)" (1982)
The "Abby Road" of the '80s. Produced by George Martin, perfect in every way.


• Rodion G.A., "Behind the Curtain: The Lost Album" (c. 1980-83) ⇧
Additional rare tracks from the Romanian home auteur, electronic Prog with harsh bite.

• Various Artists, "Trevor Jackson Presents: Science Fiction Dancehall Classics" (mid-'80s dub mixes)
Extreme tracks curated from the Adrian Sherwood label, On-U Sound, favoring the industrial and experimental.

• 1990s •

• A Tribe Called Quest, "People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm" (1991)
The Native Tongues movement (Tribe, Jungle Brothers, De La Soul) was the Afrocentric pothead cousin to Public Enemy's agitprop, vibing good times while blissing heady rhymes.

• Kurt Cobain, "Montage of Heck" (early-'90s)
A solo overview of the Nirvana leader, culling home demos into a unique and intimate portrait.

• Pops Staples, "Don't Lose This" (unissued 1999 album) ⇧
The leader of the legendary Staple Singers, Pops' chiming guitar, sweet voice, and easy charm shine on this lovely unreleased album.

• 2010s •

• Ty Segall, "Ty Rex" (2011) ⇧
A loving tribute to T.Rex by the modern king of fuzz rock.



© Tym Stevens

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"A splendid time is guaranteed for all!"

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© Tym Stevens

See also:


• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2025
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• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2011
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• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2000-2010
• BEST MUSIC: 2000-2010
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• How STAR WARS Is Changing Everything!

• 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY - Its Transcendent Influence on all Pop Culture, with Music Player!

• How SPAGHETTI WESTERNS Revolutionized Rock Music!, with 3 Music Players!

• TWIN PEAKS: Its Influence on 30 Years of Film, TV, and Music!, with 5 Music Players!


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


_______________

• THE CANON 1: 50 Books That Created Modern Culture, with Music Player

• THE CANON 2: 50 More Books That Created Modern Pop Culture, with Music Player

• THE CANON 3: 50 Recent Books That Created Modern Culture, with Music Player

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ROCK Sex: "I CAN'T EXPLAIN" - The Who > David Bowie > The Clash > Fatboy Slim > The Hives

ROCK Sex can't explain but thinks it's love.

Creativity is each putting their own spin on an idea, advancing new directions. Here's another relay using one song.

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The Who were tearing it up in their early days as a Mod band doing blasting R'n'B and Blues covers. But Pete Townshend found his feet composing his first song and their first Top 10 hit, "I Can't Explain".


The song was inspired in its punching chords riff by The Kinks' "All Day And All Of The Night" (which was inspired by "Louie Louie", which was inspired by a Cuban mambo as well as a Chuck Berry Calypso song, which connects on to songs from the Old World, and the short of it is that I'm your Great Grandchild from the future. But back to the story.)

THE KINKS -"All Day And All Of The Night" (1965)



That's the hand-off. Now here's our young punks creating the future in two minutes flat. (Check for bruises and your wallet before going to the next song.)

Note that from the very start, the band finds its identity in insular lyrics with anthemic power chords.

THE WHO -"I Can't Explain" (1965)



Equally tongue-tied are Italy's Gli Uragani in this cover version.

GLI URAGANI -"Con Quella Voce" (1966)



In the early '70s, as The Who turned its Mod beginnings into the rock opera "Quadrophenia" (1973), others began to look back also.

From the '50s revival in films (American Graffiti, That'll Be The Day) and Glam Rock (T-Rex, Suzi Quatro, Gary Glitter), to the seminal NUGGETS double-album anthology, to DAVID BOWIE's covers album, PIN UPS...

DAVID BOWIE -"I Can't Explain" (1973)



Fresh off her success as Mary Magdalene in the screen version of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (1973), here's Hawaiian (by way of Ireland, Japan, and China) Yvonne Elliman with one of the best, unheralded versions ever recorded.

This becomes important again later.

YVONNE ELLIMAN -"I Can't Explain" (1973)



The Who's rock opera TOMMY was adapted into a feature film by director Ken Russell, and Elton John integrates "I Can't Explain" (at 2:00) into this classic performance.

ELTON JOHN -"Pinball Wizard" (1975)



The Clash loved this riff and used it a few times: in "Clash City Rockers" (1977), "Capitol Radio" (1977), and "Guns on the Roof" (1978); as well as a sample at the end of Big Audio Dynamite's "Contact" (1989, at 3:04).

THE CLASH -"Clash City Rockers" (1977)



Not far off from that spirit in a Big Beat dance style, here's Fatboy Slim sampling the overlooked Yvonne Elliman version over the drums from Led Zeppelin's "The Crunge".

FATBOY SLIM -"Going Out Of My Head" (1997)



Like The Clash, here's more young punks putting new kick in the strut: the premiere neo-Garage Rock band The Hives from Sweden.

THE HIVES -"Walk Idiot Walk" (2004)



And here it is in a rewrite by Brazilian band Ultraje a Rigor done acoustically.

ULTRAJE A RIGOR -"Eu Nao Sei (I Don't Know)" (2005)




© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• 1950s PUNK: Sex, Thugs, and Rock'n'Roll!

• THE BRITISH INVASION!, with Music Player!

• DON'T TREAD ON ME: The Original Punk of 1960s Garage Rock, with Music Player!


• "Brand New Cadillac" - Vince Taylor > The Clash > Ziggy Stardust

• "I'm Not Your Steppin' Stone" - Paul Revere > The Monkees > Sex Pistols


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

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LADIES FIRST: "I Go To Sleep" - (The Kinks) > Peggy Lee > Cher > The Pretenders

LADIES FIRST brings you another classic that 'she did first'.

Today, let's wake up to who sang "I Go To Sleep".

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The oft-told story is that Ray Davies was wracked with nervousness while his wife was giving birth to their daughter. To focus himself, he wrote this beautiful lullaby. What's less known is that The Kinks never really recorded it. Ray only had time to make a piano demo before embarking on their next tour, and the demo was only released decades later as a CD bonus track.

RAY DAVIES -"I Go To Sleep" (1965)



Instead, he passed the demo to his idol, Pop chanteuse Peggy Lee, who was the first to actually record this perennial classic.

PEGGY LEE -"I Go To Sleep" (1965)



Shortly after, it started making the rounds in various versions. Here's a nice moody one by Cher.

CHER -"I Go To Sleep" (1965)



From the UK come THE APPLEJACKS with this version, a Beat group especially notable for having a female bass player in a notoriously boys-club era: Megan Davies (no relation to Ray).

THE APPLEJACKS -"I Go To Sleep" (1965)



Here's the nocturnal waltz in Dutch.

CONNY VAN BERGEN -"Ik Val In Slaap" (Netherlands, 1965)



And here is MARION in a striking high-contrast video from West Germany.

MARION -"I Go To Sleep" (1966)



But most people know the song because of this famed cover by The Pretenders. At the time, Ray Davies and Chrissie Hynde were in a relationship, and Chrissie had already covered "Stop Your Sobbing". Having never heard the previous '60s covers, she learned the song from a cassette dub of the original demo.

THE PRETENDERS -"I Go To Sleep" (1981)



In an arrangement inspired by The Pretenders' version, here's Julie Pietri doing it in French.

(special thanks to 'Anonymous' for pointing me to this one!)

JULIE PIETRI -"Et C'est Comme Si" (1982)



Here's the Alt-Electro band Soulwax from Belgium hipping the headtrip.

SOULWAX With TRACY BONHAM -"I Go To Sleep" (1998)



Rasputina has a cult following merging Classical strings with Rock music, and here they incite the incubus.

RASPUTINA -"I Go To Sleep" (live, 2004)



Aussie singer Sia brings some Soul and Jazz into the dreaminess.

SIA -"I Go To Sleep" (2008)



...while the musicians collective Works Progress Administration brings an elegant Folk drift to it.

(thanks to Holly A. Hughes for pointing me to this one, as well as this lovely version by JUDITH OWEN!)

WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION -"I Go To Sleep" (live, 2009)





© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• YOU DON'T OWN ME: The Uprising of the 1960s GIRL GROUPS, with Music Player!

• SHE'S A REBEL: Decades Of Songs Influenced By The GIRL GROUPS, with Music Player!


• The Kinks > Sex Pistols > The Kinks

• ROCK Sex: Rock Revolution = Busted Amp! - Ike Turner > Burnette Trio > The Kinks > The Beatles


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

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ROCK Sex: "Dropout Boogie" - Capt. Beefheart > PJ Harvey > The Kills

PJ says, "Lick my decals off, baby!"


ROCK Sex relays another relay drop-off.

Today's song thread is "Dropout Boogie".

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"You told her you love her so bring her to mother
You love her adapt her, you love her adapt her"


The song takes its fuzzy riff from this Garage Rock classic.

THE KINKS -"You Really Got Me" (1964)



And here's how the manic Captain Beefeheart rechanneled it through Howlin' Wolf and Frank Zappa, with Ry Cooder slashing on guitar.

(Tom Waits fans, take note.)

CAPTAIN BEEFHEART And His Magic Band -"Dropout Boogie" (1967)



Captain Beefheart was so extreme as to be record industry poison, a cult status that made him that much more cool. Perversely, here's an English acolyte braving an excellent cover version.

EDGAR BROUGHTON BAND -"Dropout Boogie" (1969)



Here's PJ HARVEY doing a subtle sequel to the song, flipping the perspective; after the slow build-up it becomes apparent in the rhythm and similar lyric lines like "I love her, I kept her".

PJ HARVEY -"I Think I'm A Mother" (1995)



Lately here's The Kills with a cover they do often in concert. Music fans may also know singer Alison Mosshart from her other band The Dead Weather, with Jack White.

THE KILLS -"Dropout Boogie" (live, 2002)




© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• "Uh Huh Her" - P.J. Harvey > Uh Huh Her


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

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ROCK Sex: Rock Revolution = Busted Amp! - Ike Turner > Burnette Trio > The Kinks > The Beatles

ROCK Sex gets caught by the fuzzzzz.

Wanna change the world? Play through a busted amp! Here's a pervasive problem that became a brilliant revolution.

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In 1951 Ike Turner and his band made what is arguably the first Rock'n'Roll song, releasing it under singer JACKIE BRENSTON's name. It is a retooling of Jimmie Liggens' "Cadillac Boogie" (1947) but rowdier and revved up. The extra edge came from a fuzzed-out amp that had been broken in transit. Voila, Rock'n'Roll!

JACKIE BRENSTON AND HIS DELTA CATS -"Rocket '88" (1951)



Paul Burlison's amp was damaged before the recording of The JOHNNY BURNETTE TRIO's studio session, and more sonic revolution ensued:

THE JOHNNY BURNETTE TRIO -"The Train Kept A-Rollin'" (1956)



Dave Davies of The Kinks took a knife to his amp to get the distorted snarl he'd discovered. But he went too far and was thrown across the room by an electric shock!
(Legal Disclaimer: ROCK Sex says, "Don't try this, kids."):

THE KINKS -"You Really Got Me" (1964)



John Lennon used a busted amp to get the raw distortion for "Revolution", even singing on his back on the studio floor shouting at the mike to get the extra edge in the vocals:

THE BEATLES -"Revolution" (1968)



Have fuzz, will frazzle!



© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• "Rumble" - Link Wray > Adam Ant > TWIN PEAKS

• 1950s PUNK: Sex, Thugs, and Rock'n'Roll!

• DON'T TREAD ON ME: The Original Punk of 1960s Garage Rock, with Music Player!

• BEATLESQUE Songs: 1968-esque, with Music Player!


• The Kinks > Sex Pistols > The Kinks

• "I CAN'T EXPLAIN" - The Who > David Bowie > The Clash > Fatboy Slim > The Hives

• ROCK Sex: "THE TRAIN KEPT A-ROLLIN'", Tiny Bradshaw> Johnny Burnette Trio> The Yardbirds> Aerosmith


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

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