Jill Sobule Too Cool… by Jay S. Jacobs It’s Friday evening at the Upstage; a new Philadelphia venue built in a beautiful old bank building that has been used as a Goth nightclub for the last several years. Lloyd Cole, the Scottish cult-singer who turned some heads with his 80s band the Commotions, is unpacking … Continue reading
Jimmy Webb All He Knows… by Ronald Sklar If you are under thirty and have even the slightest retro sensibility, chances are you are familiar with the classic pop songs of Jimmy Webb, and good for you. And if you are over thirty, endlessly toiling in an office and music appreciation is just a faint … Continue reading
BOBBY VEE SOMEWHERE DOWN THE LINE BY RONALD SKLAR Rock and roll is cram-packed with ironic stories. Read the bio of almost any artist and you’ll find the woulda-coulda-shoulda tale of how he almost became an accountant. And prefacing almost every Top 10 hit is the tiresome fable of how the song nearly wound up … Continue reading
Chuck E. Weiss Chuck E.’s In Love by Jay S. Jacobs “How come he don’t come and p.l.p. with me down at the meter no more…” With that opening line to a hit song in 1979, singer/songwriter Chuck E. Weiss was introduced to American popular culture. Problem was he didn’t write the song – or … Continue reading
Del Amitri – Hatful Of Rain… The Best of Del Amitri (A&M) Del Amitri’s single from about two years ago, “Not Where It’s At” was about a guy who had fallen for a woman who was a total scenester, but she rejected him because he just wasn’t cool enough for her. Ironically, that also pretty much nails … Continue reading
Brian Wilson – Imagination (Giant) It’s kind of sad that after decades of being an acknowledged pop musical genius, former Beach Boys front man Brian Wilson is probably best known now by kids as the guy that Barenaked Ladies sang about. On Wilson’s first solo album in nearly a decade, he sets about straightening that out. … Continue reading
Garbage – Version 2.0 (Almo Sounds) The surprise success of Garbage’s debut album took this band from being a vanity project for producer Bruce Vig and a bunch of studio boffins with a hot British bird fronting into an actual working rock band. This new sense of permanence works in this follow-up’s favor, giving a sense … Continue reading
The Rolling Stones – Bridges To Babylon (Virgin) The world’s oldest rock group still has some tricks up their sleeve. While Bridges To Babylon lands pretty low in the group’s body of work compared to Let It Bleed and Exile On Main Street, it does rate a lot of the cheap thrills of the band’s best work. Mick still prances around like … Continue reading
Duran Duran – Medazzaland (Capitol) Duran Duran’s career has been up and down so many times that you think it was built by the Otis Elevator Co. Right now the band is way down after the disastrous reaction to their 1995 covers album Thank You, a curious follow up to 1992’s Wedding Album, which had them back on … Continue reading
Todd Rundgren – The Very Best Of Todd Rundgren (Rhino) It’s a little easy to forget now that he is calling himself TR-i (Todd Rundgren Interactive) and putting the technology cart before the musical horse, that once upon a time, Upper Darby, Pa.’s favorite son was just a damned good singer and songwriter. The Very Best … Continue reading
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