Hair Band Friday - 5/27/22

1.  "Stranger Than Paradise" by Sleeze Beez

2.  "Our Love" by Krokus

3.  "Lonely Too Long" by Britny Fox

4.  "No Surprise" by Ratt

5.  "Feel The Shake" by Jetboy

6.  "Magdalaine" by L.A. Guns

7.  "Sunday Afternoon In The Park" by Van Halen

8.  "Summertime Girls" (live) by Y&T

9.  "Atomic Bombs" by Kix

10.  "Words of Wisdom" by Europe

CoronaVinyl Day 425 (H): Just Another Day in Paradise by Bertie Higgins

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "H," and what better way to spend a Wednesday than by listening to soft rock hirsute lothario Bertie Higgins's 1982 debut album, Just Another Day in Paradise.

Higgins grew up in the Tampa area, drummed in pop singer Tommy Roe's backing band, and was also a friend and protoge of Burt Reynolds.  Then, in the early '80s -- when he was already in his late 30s -- Higgins decided to make a go of it as a solo artist.

Just Another Day in Paradise is pure yacht rock, and it gave Higgins his two biggest hits.  The title track went to #46 on the Billboard Hot 100, #10 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, and #90 on the Billboard Country singles chart.  But if you know one song by Bertie Higgins, it's the soft rock masterpiece "Key Largo," a song about love lost, with references to Humphrey Bogart movies as a backdrop.  The song went to #8 on the Billboard Hot 100, #1 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, #50 on the Billboard Country singles chart, and Top 10 on the pop charts in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand.  The album itself went to #38 on the Billboard album chart.

Higgins never found the same success after Just Another Day in Paradise, but continued to make music and tour since the early '80s.  He has also produced some movies with his sons, and he has been inducted into the Florida Music Hall of Fame (receiving a lifetime achievement award in 2016, along with Jimmy Buffet, Julio Iglesias, and Tom Petty) and the Florida Artists Hall of Fame.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "Key Largo"
I certainly couldn't choose any other song.  Every time I hear anything about Key Largo, Key West, or any other key, I sing to myself "We had it all / Just like Bogey and Bacall."

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Down at The Blue Moon"
This one is a little departure from the rest of the songs on the album, as it's more of a honky tonk country rock song than soft rock.  It's also about getting laid and snorting coke at a hotel, so pretty spot on for the early '80s.

Retro Video of the Week: "Why Can't I Be You?" by The Cure

Today is the 35th anniversary of the release of goth/synth pop lords The Cure's seventh studio album, the double LP Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me.  While it was the band's fourth straight Top 10 album in their native UK, they hadn't quite broken through across the pond until this album, which was their first to crack the Top 40 on the Billboard album chart, reaching #35 and becoming their first platinum album in the U.S.  It also reached the Top 10 on the album charts in Australia, Austria, France, Germany, The Netherlands, and Switzerland.

The album featured what would go on to be one of their signature songs, "Just Like Heaven," which was their first Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and also reached #29 on the UK pop chart.  Two other songs also went Top 40 in the UK, "Why Can't I Be You?" (#21) and "Catch" (#27), giving the band their ninth, tenth, and eleventh Top 40 songs in the UK.

I'm going with "Why Can't I Be You?," which is a catchy, uptempo synth pop song.  The video features the band dancing horribly while dressed up in various costumes, but I suppose it showed that the band had a lighter side.

CoronaVinyl Day 424 (G): Road Food by The Guess Who

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "G," and I listened to Canadian rockers The Guess Who's 12th studio album, 1974's Road Food.

The Guess Who was arguably Canada's most successful rock musical export in the late '60s and early '70s, with 13 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1969 and 1975, including 7 Top 10 hits and two #1s.  The band powered through and continued their success after guitarist Randy Bachman left in 1970 (and would go on to form Bachman-Turner Overdrive a few years later), though as the early '70s carried on, the band's success in the U.S. started to fade.

Road Food was a mini renaissance for the band, as the album reached #60 on the Billboard album chart (which was their highest-charting studio album in the U.S. since 1971).  It also featured the band's last Top 10 hit in the U.S. -- "Clap For The Wolfman," a tribute to famed DJ Wolfman Jack, who made a cameo on the track -- as well as another Top 40 hit, "Star Baby," which reached #39 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Over all, the album has kind of a kitschy feel to it.  There is almost a Vaudeville feel to it, with some call-and-response vocals, and some of the songs seem to be trying to tap into the nascent country rock genre.  Of course, Burton Cummings's lead vocals are still great, but this album does not have the same punch as their earlier, more well-known stuff.

In late 1975, Cummings disbanded the group, but a couple years later, former member Jim Kale realized the band's name wasn't trademarked in Canada, so he formed a band using the name "The Guess Who" and began recording and touring using that name.  Apparently, that has continued to today, so if The Guess Who comes to a town near you, be warned that there is only one original member of the band who is still playing (drummer Garry Peterson).

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "One Way Road to Hell"
The final song on the first side is the least kitschy song on the side, and it's more reminiscent of their earlier work.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Ballad of The Last Five Years"
The last song on the album is a 7-minute ballad, and again, it reminds me more of their earlier stuff than the other songs on the second side.  Cummings's vocals are more soulful than poppy, which is when he's at his best.

CoronaVinyl Day 423 (F): The Very Best of The Fleetwoods by The Fleetwoods

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "F," and I went with the 1975 "very best of" compilation of hits by the '50s doo wop group The Fleetwoods.

The group formed in Olympia, Washington in the late '50s, with high school classmates Gretchen Christopher, Barbara Ellis, and Gary Troxel.  They signed a record deal in 1959 and had a string of hits in the following few years until Troxel, who had been in the Navy Reserves, had to fulfill his active duty requirement.  Hence, the photo on the album cover with Troxel in his naval uniform, flanked by Christopher and Ellis.

The group's sound was a little on the softer and more syrupy side of doo wop, but the three-part harmony and mixed-gender lineup made the group a little unusual.  Between 1959 and 1963, they had nine Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including three Top 10s and two #1s.

Spotify doesn't have the exact album I have, but there is a larger "very best of" album with 28 songs, so that's what I embedded below.  Here are the songs on the album I have, along with each song's highest charting position on the Billboard Hot 100:

Side 1
1.  "Come Softly To Me" (#1)
2.  "He's The Great Imposter" (#30)
3.  "Graduation's Here" (#39)
4.  "We Belong Together" (N/A)
5.  "Mr. Blue" (#1)

Side 2
1.  "Tragedy" (#10)
2.  "Run Around" (#23)
3.  "Goodnight My Love" (#32)
4.  "Confidential" (N/A)
5.  "Outside My Window" (#28)

As I mentioned above, the group parted ways when Troxel had to go into the Navy, and then with the changing landscape of music in the early '60s, doo wop was no longer en vogue anyway.  The group has seen several reformations by individual members over the years.  In 2006, they were inducted into both the Vocal Group Hall of Fame and the Doo Wop Hall of Fame of America.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "He's The Great Imposter"
Perhaps playing off the success of The Platters' hit "The Great Pretender" from 1955, this one was co-written by Jackie DeShannon and Sharon Sheeley.  It's a standard tale of some '50s mimbo.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Outside My Window"
A study in '50s teen voyeurism, this one is all about some creep watching some chick walk by his house.

Hair Band Friday - 5/20/22

1.  "Don't Go" by Judas Priest

2.  "Come Back" by Bon Jovi

3.  "This Time" by Y&T

4.  "Why Are They Watching Me" by Dio

5.  "Hell on My Heels" by BulletBoys

6.  "Hello America" by Def Leppard

7.  "Heaven Sent" by Dokken

8.  "Same Ol' Situation" (live) by Mötley Crüe

9.  "Attack of Life" by Bang Tango

10.  "A Roll of the Dice" by XYZ

CoronaVinyl Day 422 (E): Pictures at An Exhibition by Emerson Lake & Palmer

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "E," and I listened to prog rockers Emerson Lake & Palmer's first live album, 1971's Pictures at An Exhibition.

The album continued ELP's success in their native UK, where it went to #3 on the UK album chart, their third Top 5 album in a row.  In the U.S., the album reached #10 on the Billboard album chart.

It's a rock adaptation of Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky's 1874 piano suite Pictures at an Exhibition, which is about as prog rock as it gets.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "The Gnome"
This is a brooding, organ- and drum-heavy instrumental about a gnome, probably.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "The Hut of Baba Yaga"
It's only 1:12 long, but it's a fast and furious 72 seconds.

CoronaVinyl Day 421 (D): Loose Jewels by Diarrhea Planet

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "D," and I went with one of my favorite bands from last decade, the inimitably named Diarrhea Planet, and their debut full-length album, 2011's Loose Jewels.

The band signed with one of my favorite independent labels, Nashville's Infinity Cat Recordings (who I first discovered about 15 years ago thanks to the now-defunct garage punk band Be Your Own Pet), and Diarrhea Planet was quite simply awesome.  I remember seeing them for the first time, and I paraphrased Jon Landau's famous quote about Bruce Springsteen, saying to no one in particular, I have seen the future of rock and roll, and its name is Diarrhea Planet.

The band had four guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer.  All four guitarists could absolutely shred, and three of them also sang lead vocals.  The band was pure energy, both on tape and in concert.  They combined the energy of punk with the technical proficiency and guitar solos of metal, and as I've previously described them as a blend of Weezer, Van Halen, Thin Lizzy, and Phil Spector's Wall of Sound.

I pre-ordered Loose Jewels when it came out in 2011, after reading about the band on Infinity Cat's website and then checking out some of their songs on their MySpace (!) page.  The album is 11 songs and less than 19 minutes long, and it's awesome, fuzzy, frantic, lo-fi garage punk metal.  If you have a third of an hour to spare and want to be lifted up by the majesty of rock, give it a listen.

Sadly, the band sadly broke up in 2018, but as long as there are people who love rock and roll, there will be a place for Diarrhea Planet.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "Ice Age"
Pure energy, packed into one minute and fifteen seconds, with Weezer-on-speed riffs and solos.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Raft Nasty"
One of the longer songs on the album at a mere 2:12, "Raft Nasty" is another blistering ball of energy, and this is one of those songs that I remember the band just killing it live.

Retro Video of the Week: "Cross My Broken Heart" by The Jets

Friday is the 35th anniversary of the release of Beverly Hills Cop II and its accompanying soundtrack, which itself was a rousing success.  The soundtrack reached #8 on the Billboard album chart and eventually went platinum in the U.S.  It featured the #1 song "Shakedown" by Bob Seger, a pre-Faith release of George Michael's #2 hit "I Want Your Sex," a #7 hit for The Jets, "Cross My Broken Heart," and a #42 song by The Pointer Sisters, "Be There."

Since I haven't featured any songs by The Jets in the last decade-plus since I started doing Retro Video of the Week, now is as good a time as any.  For a few years in the late '80s, Minneapolis-based family band The Jets had a nice string of hits, with six Top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1986 and 1988, five of which reached the Top 10.  One of those was "Cross My Broken Heart," which, as I mentioned above, went to #7.  The Jets are one of those bands that are so quintessentially '80s to me.  Any time I hear one of their songs, I'm immediately transported back to grade school and listening to Z-95 on my boombox in my bedroom while doing homework.

The video is perfectly '80s, from the teased hair to the drum machines with those hexagonal electronic drum heads to the dance moves to the keytar.

CoronaVinyl Day 420 (C): Chevy Chase by Chevy Chase

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "C."  Did you know that Chevy Chase released an album of music in 1980?  I sure didn't, and neither do most of us, I would assume -- and with good reason.  It's fitting that this album is on Day 420 of CoronaVinyl because you'd have to be completely stoned to think this is any good.

First, let me say this.  I love Chevy Chase.  He's one of my favorite actors, and I think he's one of the funniest people of all-time.  His comedic timing is as impeccable as can be.  Coming off his successful stint as one of the original SNL cast members and a burgeoning movie career, including his starring role in Caddyshack, also released in 1980, I suppose it's not difficult to see why Arista Records gave Chase a record deal.  Hopefully it was only a one-album deal.

Chase actually has some musical ability.  He reportedly has perfect pitch, and he was the drummer in a precursor to Steely Dan that he described as a "bad jazz band."  I've always appreciated his description, since I hate Steely Dan and their pretentious brand of shitty jazz rock more than any other musical artist or band.  

Anyway, whatever musical talent Chase had doesn't shine through on this album.  It's an amalgamation of parody covers of various songs, like a butchering of "The Star-Spangled Banner," Randy Newman's "Short People," Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff," The Beatles' "Let It Be" (which is sung in a Chipmunk-like high-pitched voice), and The Troggs' "Wild Thing."  There's also a take on Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" called "Rappers' Plight," a song about dealing drugs that I assume was intended to be funny.  It is not.  I imagine the entire session was a blizzard.

It was difficult to pick a favorite song on each side, since they're all pretty bad.  Thankfully no one appears to have known about this album, and it didn't hurt his acting career.

Unsurprisingly, the album is not on Spotify, but I found a website that had the entire album embedded if you too want to engulf yourself in the rabid splendor of Chase's musical genius.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "Never Never Gonna Sing For You"
This is pretty clearly a parody of Barry White, but it's not as annoying as some of the other songs.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Love To Have My Baby"
This is a disco song with Chase kind of acting out a woman having a baby in the background.