I had my own narrow neckwear aspirations but decided that I'd look like P. Ramlee waiting for his girlfriend at Zoo Negara in Masam Masam Manis. Not that that's a bad thing. Nevermind that he just got out of work (he's a teacher) and it was probably sweltering. As dashing a figure he was, it just wasn't, well, flattering.

But sartorially speaking, skinny ties, like skinny jeans, work on skinny people. Even P, who's developed the beginnings of a promising dad-belly, just about gets away with wearing one to his hotel's anniversary dinner. In abah's zegna 3 button jacket nevertheless, bought at one of the Sunday bundles.

Speaking of skinny jeans. While I was at primary school, just about all the cool kids wore tight pants. Thanks to the proliferation of local bands who wanted to be Van Halen or Iron Maiden or Bon Jovi. Being an impressionable young thing, I wanted a pair too. The problem was (and always have been) that I am, well, pudgy. Not grossly obese but definitely not as tall and lanky as Sebastian Bach (Skid Row vocalist) or even Yem Bai (some local band's bassist, I think) to warrant their pants-size preferences.

Anyway, I did my own alterations on a pair of white cotton slacks I wore to school. I was a prefect, hence the colour. It didn't take long to stitch just the bottom part of the pants because the top is just big enough to fit my big fat hips. So I'd slip a plastic bag over my feet so the pant-leg would slide easier over them. By the time I was ready I was sweating profusely even before I got on my bike for the ride to school.

It worked like a charm as the kids gave adoring glances down the legs of my pants. True, I wouldn't pass of as Richie Sambora in red star-spangled spandex. But at least I had a passing semblance to the fat guitarist from Utopia (Mithali Cintaku) or even Ozzy who was a little on the fatter side of the spectrum.

The bubble burst during PJ one day. We were playing rounders (a kid's version of softball) and I'd forgotten my track bottoms. So there I was, batting in my tight white pants. I hit a scorcher and went storming to start my run, As I reached second base, my right foot slid on a wet patch and down I went into an impressive James Brown split. There was a cracking sound somewhere below and sure enough I had split my pants. Bodies were tumbling all around me in fits of laughter. Even the girls a few yards away, shooting netballs.

All of this happened during my pre-underwear era. I told myself that nobody saw. A futile attempt at consoling myself. Sure enough, my nether regions, specifically the family jewels, were coated in damp earth and fragments of grass and what must've been kuah keropok. This last substance scaring the shit out of me as I thought I was bleeding.

So I started to wear briefs. Big red ones that showed through my white pants that the kids would snicker at from behind as we climbed the set of stairs to class. Fuck that. I went back to going commando. Until I was at boarding school and I got embarrased by not owning any underwear to scrub while doing laudry with the other boys who looked so happy scrubbing away at their skid marks. So I got a bunch of them thingies. White Funai's. I'm back in the fold: a happy guy with y-fronts on top of his laundry pile.

Until I saw one of them sprawled on a glass encased notice board along one of the hallways in the main school building. I knew I shouldn't have written my name on them pesky things.

Oh, one more thing. I wear boxers now. 

"The saddest thing about this is that `My Hero' was written as a celebration of the common man and his extraordinary potential," the band said in a statement. "To have it appropriated without our knowledge and used in a manner that perverts the original sentiment of the lyric just tarnishes the song."

Other artists such as Van Halen, John Cougar Mellencamp, and Bruce Springsteen have also made similar requests to the McCain camp.  Heart went as far to send a cease-and-desist letter to stop the usage of their song "Barracuda" during the Republican National Convention.   However, the McCain campaign used "Barracuda" regardless of the groups attempt to prevent usage.  Afterwards, Heart had the following to say:

"Sarah Palin's views and values in NO WAY represent us as American women. We ask that our song 'Barracuda' no longer be used to promote her image. The song 'Barracuda' was written in the late 70s as a scathing rant against the soulless, corporate nature of the music business, particularly for women. (The 'barracuda' represented the business.) While Heart did not and would not authorize the use of their song at the RNC, there's irony in Republican strategists' choice to make use of it there."

Obama is also guilty of unnverving some artists this season as well.  Soul legend Sam Moore also asked the Obama camp to stop using "Soul Man."

Can Musicians protect themselves?

The answer appears to be more complex than a simple yes or no answer.  From the looks of it, artists don't really have much control over the situation.  The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) controls how songs are used by selling licenses.  The McCain camp, and, although unclear, the Obama camp have both purchased licenses to legally use music for campaign purposes, which mean a vast catalog of any song registered with ASCAP is at their disposal.  Techdirt had the following to say about the matter:

There's nothing these bands can do from a legal standpoint. Assuming the venue where the music is being played has paid its standard ASCAP license, they can play whatever they want. So when the Foo Fighters make statements like: "It's frustrating and infuriating that someone who claims to speak for the American people would repeatedly show such little respect for creativity and intellectual property" is somewhat misleading. It implies that McCain is somehow breaking intellectual property laws. He is not. No matter how much a musician dislikes it, they can't stop these kinds of uses, thanks to the way performance licenses work.

However, after doing a bit of research, the Plain Dealer/Politico reported the following:

Though an ASCAP or BMI license is usually all it takes out on the campaign trail, if artists are really mad and feel the use of their music appeared to be an endorsement by them, the artist can sue under various states' laws about right of publicity, charging false advertising. Another option would be to sue under the Lanham Act, in relation to trademark law.

Realistically, as much as artists complain and bicker about the usage of songs, you have to imagine that most musicians won't bother suing political camps for using their music.  In the court of law, it sounds like a very difficult proposition to convince a judge. That said, Jackson Browne filed a lawsuit in August over McCain using his song "Running on Empty" in a TV ad.  The Huffington Post reported that McCain's usage of the song serves an endorsement even though Browne is a life-long liberal.  A representative for Browne said:

"In light of Jackson Browne's lifelong commitment to Democratic ideals and political candidates, the misappropriation of Jackson Browne's endorsement is entirely reprehensible, and I have no doubt that a jury will agree."

Although artists feel they are falsely being represented by candidates using their songs, it raises the issue regarding ownership of content.  Unfortunately, there isn't a clear cut answer to that either.  Especially since any person or organization can purchase a license to legally use songs.

The real damage is to the candidate if they choose to ignore the complaint.  Even if a political candidate has a license, you'd figure the smart political move is to respect the artist's wishes, with a vast catalog available to select from, and explore using other songs from candidates the support you and/or your party at least.  It doesn't pay for the complaints to draw attention that kind of negative attention in the public spotlight.  It makes the candidates look pompous and arrogant.

No matter how you look at it, pick any tune you want.  It all leads to the presidential candidates blowing a lot of hot air.

The first actual record that caught my ear was VH’s 1984.  That record will always have a special place in my heart.   When I was a kid I had this sweet ten-speed in which I would ride around the neighborhood with my Sony walkman tape-deck and DLR blaring through the headphones.  The people of my neighborhood probably thought I was a LOON.  But who cares?  1984 made you want to do silly shit.  Get up and Jump?  Panama?  A baby angel smoking a cigarette?  Does it get any more rock than that? 

The next cassette that comes to mind is Aerosmith’s Pump.  In middle school it was pretty much Pump all of the time.  That record is pretty damn good.  IMO this was the last album before they went all pop.  The boys from Boston really had it going on when they recorded this one. 

I am really getting somewhere with all of this. 

During middle school it all happened.  I got away from Q102 and their mindless drivel of pop music.  I couldn’t stand country music.  Rap music was somewhat OK depending on who it was.  My life was turned to rock. In Middle school Seattle broke free and became the Mecca of everything cool.  It seemed like every day there was a new band coming out of there and turning the rock world on its ear.  Pearl Jam, Mudhoney, Sonic Youth, Alice in Chains, The Pixies, Mother Love Bone, and the pinnacle in my eye, Nirvana came out during my transition from middle to high school. 

As a youth no other band changed my views on music, the world, or my life as Nirvana did.  They changed the way I saw music, they changed the way I thought, hell, they even changed the way I dressed (flannel was a STAPLE). 

A new Nirvana album was a holiday.  Not like today when you can pre-order the disc and have it at your house the next day.  No, you had to actually work for your music.  You had to suffer.  You had to stay up till Midnight on a Monday night with all your friends and wait.  I guess it really wasn’t suffering.  Countless Monday nights were spent either outside Phil’s records, or Media Gallery awaiting the newest disc. 

And don’t get me started on “Live, Tonight, Sold Out!”  That movie was wore out as a teen.  It was connected to me like my arms.  Everywhere I went I would bring it and pop it in the VCR wherever we were at.  To see the raw power that was Nirvana at their best was amazing.  It was Nirvana. 

Sooooooo enough with the rant. 

Today I give you a CRISPY soundboard that has been remastered somehow.  (That is what the file said.  Who knows?  It sounds good, that is all that matters.)

=================================================
NIRVANA
June 26, 1992
Dyrskuepladsen (Roskilde Festival)
Roskilde, Denmark
(JWB REMASTER)
----------------
01 (Intro)
02 Aneurysm
03 Drain You
04 Stay Away
05 Sliver
06 School
07 In Bloom
08 Breed
09 About A Girl
10 Scoff
11 Polly
12 Lithium
13 Blew
14 Been A Son
15 On A Plain
16 Swap Meet
17 Negative Creep
18 Something In The Way
19 (Encore Break)
20 Come As You Are
21 Love Buzz
22 Smells Like Teen Spirit
23 Territorial Pissings

DL Link:  http://www.sendspace.com/file/m5fbnj

Does Sammy Hagar really even play guitar in that song?  It's hard to tell if there's a legitimate second part just from listening to it.  But I love Eddie's finger-picking style in this one.  I'm not saying it's a David Lee Roth era quality Van Halen tune, but it's not bad.  Has a nice groove.  Allowed Alex to slick his hair back.  Of course, when you talk Van Halen it's damn near impossible to top this one:

Psych.  Have a good weekend, springs.

Corrían los 80 cuando mi hermano mayor no oía otra cosa que no fuera rock duro, lo que comúnmente se conocía como "heavy". Decenas de grupos y solistas atronaban las paredes de su habitación, y como consecuencia, hoy en día me encanta toda esa farándula de dioses del metal que pasó ya hace años.

Y entre los solistas, había uno que destacaba especialmente por su puesta en escena, descarada, titiritera, con una voz muy personal y un gusto por despatarrarse en el escenario que no tenía igual.

David Lee Roth fué el cantante original del grupo Van Halen, suya es la voz del más conocido tema de esta banda, "Jump", y en sus discos en solitario, acompañado principalmente de Steve Vai a la guitarra, supo mezclar el rock con el sonido "big band", y versionar temas como "Just a gigolo", California girls" o "That's life" con  un éxito (para la época) arrollador.

En este vídeo muestra todo repertorio de chatis del que hacía gala...

y este no tiene precio, sobre todo la intro, que forma parte de un VHS que se vendió recopilando sus videos a modo de Programa de tv (Dave TV) con "detras de las cámaras" disparatado... no tiene desperdicio.

Y porque ya no hay cantantes de pelo en pecho, capaces de salir al escenario en mallas y zahones de cuero, hacer videos musicales repletos de tias cañonas para disfrute propio y ajeno, y soltarle a las chatis de los conciertos de la primera fila autenticas perlas como "niña, no saques la lengua si no la vas a usar" queda para el recuerdo, de cuando los cantantes de rock eran machos y melenudos...

(curiosamente, ha vuelto a hacer gira con Van Halen, y eso que ya está cerca de los 60... que grande eres Dave!!)

Tunde Adebimpe, vocalista do TV On The Radio, Adam Drucker, do Subtle, e Mike Patton, ex-vocalista do grupo Faith No More, também irão se unir para formar uma banda. O trio, ainda sem nome próprio, pretende lançar um CD até o final de 2008, mas não revelou nenhuma data em especial.

Outra nova velha banda será a formada pelos ex-Van Halen Sammy Hagar e Michael Anthony, com Joe Satriani e Chad Smith, do Red Hot Chili Peppers. Eles já gravaram nove músicas e, assim que todos estiverem de férias da turnê com suas respectivas bandas, um CD deve sair.

Nada se cria, tudo se transforma. Até no rock.

Sammy Hagar is the one that stands head and shoulders above all others. Long before he joined Van Halen, Hagar was showing the world that there was “Only One Way To Rock,” and hasn’t slowed down despite some bumps in the road. He started out by teaming up with Ronnie Montrose in the early- to mid-70s, penning “Bad Motor Scooter.” He then had a string of very memorable songs from his early solo career, “Heavy Metal,” “I Can’t Drive 55,” and “I’ll Fall In Love Again” among them. In 1984, he joined forced with Neal Schon of Journey in HSAS, scoring a minor hit with “Whiter Shade Of Pale.” Then in 1985, after David Lee Roth’s departure, Sammy Hagar stepped in behind the microphone for the world renowned Van Halen. After several seemingly harmonious years with the band, there was an acrimonious split. Gary Cherone stepped in and Sammy went solo. Cherone didn’t last long, however, and Van Halen attempted reconciliation with the Red Rocker. Three new songs and a world tour later, the singer again left the band and returned to a solo career. It was recently announced that Hagar was teaming up with former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani, and RHCP drummer Chad Smith in a new project code-named Chickenfoot. Throughout the years, either with a band or without, Hagar has shown time after time that there truly is “Only One Way To Rock.”

Oh, and the latest from Sammy is posted here.

Janie, soon to be Jaine's Crying, is 38 and a former stunt woman and actress.  Her career highlights are having been in Spider Man 2 and in an Enrique Iglasias "Be With You" music video.

She's a little stupid to be marrying an old man with 2/3 of a tongue and a bad bad case of alcoholism.  Is he finally over the booze?  I hope so. I never want to see another picture of him like this again:

I saw Eddie last October (And in 1986) and that entire concert was a holy experience, where I watched many grown men cry.  I was amazed by his solo's and I have read that he was sober. I LOVE EVH for the pure joy his music brought to my life for many, many years.  I still remember the day I first head him play guitar.  It was @ Wildwood Park, Madison Heights, MI, 1979. Wow!  I have a clear picture of listening to that entire tape with my neighbor Wayne.  I was hooked.  I was in love.  I wanted his babies, and I was only 8 years old ...

Who is this Jamie woman?  I had to find out more ...

She also has her own cute website www.janiesgotagun.com where I learned she was a stunt double for J.Lo and I found out she is Latin, Middle Eastern, Native American, Eastern European, and has also worked as a firefighter and EMT. 

Hmm.  Is is still cool to be married to someone who once was the hottest thing in town?  I'm not sure...

1. Foo Fighters - Less formulaic than that other group Dave Grohl was in. You remember, sing-sing-sing-scream-scream-scream-sing-sing-sing, rinse, repeat.
2. Led Zeppelin - It's been a long time since they rock & rolled...
3. The Cult - What exactly is a love removal machine.
4. Guns N' Roses - Still waiting for Chinese Democracy.
5. Jimi Hendrix
6. Van Halen - and not Van Hagar
7. The Who - half price tickets
8. The Rolling Stones - once upon a time they did. no really...
9. The Black Crowes
10. Black Sabbath/Ozzy Osbourne

Muchas confusiones han generado los términos de ´Cover´ y ´Versión´.

El Cover se refiere, en buen español dominicano, a ´calcar´, tal cual un tema o canción conocida. Es algo de ley, el respetar la melodia y el tono de la canción. Es muy recurrente este recurso, en discos tributos u homenaje, aunque a veces, ciertas piezas distan de la similitud con la original.

La Versión, es algo parecido al cover, pero más atrevido. Por supuesto, se respeta la partitura original, pero se presta más a experimentar, y de allí, lo de ´versión´.

Ahora bien, todos recordamos esa mítica canción de Michael Jackson del disco ´Thriller´, me refiero a ´Beat It´. Todo un himno al pop y al rock. Recordemos a (Eddie) Van Halen con su guitarra, donde incluso le agregó un sonido a su colección personal de efectos dentro del hard rock: La Moto Sierra. Escuchariamos ese efecto en el track ´Poundcake´, años más tarde, con otro efecto particular.

Para inicios de este nuevo milenio, Fall Out Boy junto a John Mayer, retomarian este clásico de Michael. Una canción que rememoraba el Glam Rock, pero sobre todo la energia del mismo, en un ´cover´ de primerisima calidad.

Recientemente, la sorpresa llegó a mi vida, en forma de mp3. El blother REL me trajo a la realidad de esta media isla, al enviarme la ´versión´ de Beat It, por el merenguero (?), Mala Fé y este nuevo paradigma del ritmo de la tambora: ´Lo´ Tiguere´.

pb

Lezers,

u kunt met ons alle kanten op. Zo slepen wij u mee in verhalen over storm en bijlen, een andere keer verhalen wij van parfum of aardolie. Gisteren brachten wij u aan het huilen, zo bleek. Op 3vandaag@live.nl ontvingen wij zakken vol post hierover. Soms Boos, soms oprecht verdrietig, soms zelfs in regelrechte staat van paniek schreef u ons.

Zo ontvingen wij van dhr en mevr. S te Beneden L. het bericht dat: '

'als uw redactie niet meteen stopt met al die treurige muziek, wij heden

nog ons tientjes-lidmaatschap van de VPRO opzeggen.'

Beste heer en mevr. S., wij hebben het niet zo bedoeld. Wij bedoelden het anders. Doet u alstublieft geen overhaaste zaken, waar u en de VPRO later spijt van krijgen. Dank u.

Dhr. B.v.J. schrijft ons, kennelijk niet geheel bij zijn positieven:

'Lieve Redactie, thuis had ik ook ooit een hond. Toen ie wegliep was

dat niet leuk. Mijn moeder was al niet zo goed en daardoor was alles...

(Om wille van de ruimte ingekort - Redactie) ...En zo zat ik er mee.

Dus U snapt nu hoe het is.'

Ja, B. Dat is ons duidelijk. Wij hopen dat het tapijt inmiddels weer schoon en droog is. En dank u voor de complimenten.

En mevr. K.B. te A.:

'BillenReet, Fascisten!'

Tsja, mevrouw K.B....

Lezers, zomaar een greep uit de vele, soms uitgebreide, brieven. De meeste waren weliswaar tevreden over de geboden Tragiek, maar verlangden nu daardoor ook naar een Opsteker. Nu ja, dat kan. Eigenlijk zouden wij u liefst linea recta verwijzen naar een 3vandaag-item op de Hyves, Lekker Vaudt, waarvan wij zelf onmiddellijk buitengemeen vrolijk geraken. Om u echter nog meer van dienst te zijn hebben wij gemeend er nóg een mixtape-je tegen aan te moeten gooien. Een Bonte verzameling deuntjes waar wij blij van worden, van disco tot rock, voor een ieder wat...

Mano Negra - Soledad
Jim Sturgess - I've Just Seen A Face
Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band - Old Time Rock and Roll
CAKE - I Will Survive
Spargo - One Night Affair
Earth, Wind & Fire - Got To Get You Into My Life
Frank Zappa - Dancin' Fool
Stevie Wonder - Master Blaster (Jammin')
Tears For Fears - Sowing The Seeds Of Love
Rare Earth - Get Ready
Rick James - Superfreak
Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts - I Love Rock'n'Roll
The Darkness - I Believe In A Thing Called Love
Mötley Crüe - Kickstart My Heart
Van Halen - Panama
The Clash - London Calling
David Lee Roth - California Girls

Luister: Mixtape Kop Op

You people are very interested in the Lakisha Jones gettin' married meme this morning. Not sure why. Not sure why I had to retype this, because WordPress ate my original comment, and the caption for this photo, which probably said something about why I never watching American Idol, but I've forgotten what I would have said now, so we'll never know.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="240" caption="Janie Liszewski and Eddie Van Halen. Gettin' Married. Yawn.And who can blame her?Eddie Van Halen! Man, watch a catch. He's going to make some lucky girl very happy. When he croaks and leaves her the estate."][/caption]

Is it just me, or does the new chick look a lot like Valerie Bertinelli?

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="367" caption="Eddie apparently has a thing for chicks that look like Valerie Bertinelli."][/caption]

In more other news, Virginia Voter Registration looks to be favoring Democrats. Because they love them some pork in Virginia. Just ask ex-klansmen, Robert "sheets" Byrd.

You Internets is also searching for DNDN, or Dendreon. You guys aren't think of playing the stock market are you? In this financial climate? Seriously? O-kay.

Really...does music say something about me?

Well, Here is what is currently on my device.

Podcasts:  Dave Ramsey, Clark Howard, Tiki Bar (Video), HockeyBuzz, CEO Exchange, Bored Again Christian- I have others that I am trying but haven't decided if I love them enough to list them.

Music:  Wow, this list is really long so I will just hit on my favorites.  I am completely serious when I say I have everything from Manson to Dixie Chics (don't even go there).  My Favorites in music: Killers, Jeremy Camp, Todd Smith, ACDC, Van Halen, Big and Rich, Taylor Swift, Nickleback, Sir Mix A Lot(Yeah I go old school), Garth Brooks, Jason Mraz, Queensryche and Metalica.

So what does this say about me?  What should I have that is new, cool and probably never heard of?  What do you have on your iPod?

Ini adalah film favorit yang paling sering saya lihat setiap malem minggu khusus diatas jam 12 malam. Memang jadul produksi tahun 2001, tapi sungguh bisa membakar semangat kalo lagi stress atau males kerja. Mengisahkan tentang  band heavy metal kacangan (blood pollution) yang bermimpi pengen ngetop seperti band papan atas (steel dragon) dengan mengambil setting tahun 80’an.

Saya nggak meresensi filmnya, karena komentar saya pasti subyektif. Kalo anda rocker sejati, anda pasti setuju dengan saya kalo ini adalah film musik terbaik sepanjang masa. Lho si Rob “Judas Priest” halford saja bilang film keren ini adalah salah satu favoritnya juga kok, tapi bisa jadi karena film ini terinspirasi dari kisah hidupnya makanya dia bilang begitu hehehehe. Tapi tidak...film ini memang ok..

 Film yang ditaburi para rocker beneran macam John Bonham, Zackk Wylde (Ozzy Osbourne, Black Label Society), Jeff pilson (Dokken, Dio, Foreigner, MSG), Myles Kennedy (Alter Bridge) ini diperankan actor favorit saya ,  Mark Wahlberg. Memang orang satu ini bunglon bener…bisa jadi sniper, bisa jadi rocker….

Di film ini Mark dituntut bisa nyanyi betulan meski sepotong potong  dan tidak di semua lagu . Kalo sudah dituntut nyanyi kenceng kenceng vocal suaranya diganti oleh Miljenko Matijevic vokalis grup kondang “Steel Heart”. Buat kita kita yang angkatan 80’an pasti kenal dong dengan grup ini. Steel heart menyumbang satu lagu untuk Steel Dragon yaitu “We all die young”.

Ini lagu keren banget….gila… Intro awalnya kalem, kemudian vokalnya meledak di refrain lalu kalem lagi di akhir lagu, kalo buat para rocker sejati bakal bisa bikin “orgasme”  hahahaha..

Lagu lain yang juga nggak kalah keren adalah “Stand up”.

Wah  pertama dengar lagu ini langsung “nyambung”. Dan bertambah senang lagi karena pengarangnya adalah Sammy Hagar eks vokalis Van Halen. Sammy memang jago buat lagu, Van Halen belum tentu tambah ngetop kalo vokalisnya bukan orang satu ini karena lagu dari album 5150 sampai Balance banyak dikarang sama dia. 

Sound track film ini juga diisi oleh Super Group jaman 80’an seperti : Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Kiss, AC/DC, Bon Jovi. Wahhhh kalo saya habis nonton film ini,  tidurnya nyuuuueenyak gak ngreken istri.

Cuma sayang saya nggak punya DVDnya, Cuma punya VCD. Juga selama 5 tahun gak dapet soundtracknya. Heran juga kenapa OST film keren ini nggak terpajang di rack rack toko Kaset & CD.

Baru pagi ini saya bisa dapat download gratisan…uhhhhh rasanya lega banget. Itulah mengapa sekarang saya mengulas film ini diblog. Sepertinya malam nanti harus nonton lagi tapi kali ini harus diselingi dengan mendengarkan  sound track yang digeber habis habisan.  Siiipppp…!!!!  ...aduhhh sayang sudah nggak bisa nyruput Jack D lagi....sebenarnya cocok ya..nonton film dengan memeluk gitar, sound system menjerit jerit, segelas Jack D atau J Walker di atas meja...hmmm pasti huenyak tenan...

Husssshh batal..! batal !!

Man, I can't wait to see the names of this stuff!  Boob Berry? Butter Cups?

"It's really not that out there, and it's pretty--" Syd responded before being cut off.

"Not that out there?!  You're telling me that another one of your '90s bands is causing you--"

"They're not really a '90s band! They started in the '70s but the entire point involves their '80s career--"

"Please!  Enlighten me!"  The two paused.

"Well, one of their biggest albums is called '1984' and the other day when I was going through my CDs, I saw it and I stared at it for a while.  1984 was the year I was born, and it was mind-blowing to see that number written down and to really make the connection how long ago that year actually was," Syd explained.

"Right.  It was a long time ago.  Twenty-four years ago.  This isn't particularly insightful," Alexis responded.

"Only it is, though.  Things that happened in 2005 are outdated and obselete.  2001 seems like it was forever ago.  1984 was so long ago-- it's hard to comprehend!"

"No it's not."

"We're only getting farther away from it, you know," Syd stated.

"So you think you're old because you were born in a year that a popular Van Halen album came out?"

"No, that's not it, I mean it was just the first time I saw the year written out in a long time and it freaked me out."

"You're only 24 years old."

"That's not young!  Neil Young already had written 'Harvest' when he was 24!  Kurt Cobain had the number one album in the world when he was 24! I haven't--"

"Why!?  WHY do you hold yourself to those standards?!  Why do you look up to those plaid-wearing, torn-jeans wearing rockers?"

"I think you just answered your own question," Syd said bitingly.

"None of that is important.  You're not old and sitting around complaining about it is obviously preventing you from getting anything done.  I have NO IDEA why you beat yourself up over this stuff.  It's just some stupid album with stupid guitar sounds and Sammy Hagar vocals--"

"Okay BEFORE you call the album stupid you should at least fact check-- Sammy Hagar wasn't the singer on that album David Lee Roth was, and frankly I judge anyone who doesn't know that."

"You're insane."

"I'm okay with that."

"Why don't you try to make a career out of bitching about '80s metal then?"

"Chuck Klosterman already did that.  And Van Halen's not metal."

Alexis stormed out of the room.

Martha and the Vandellas - "Dancing in the Street," Pop #2

By Joel Francis

Poor, poor Kim Weston. Had she not passed on this song, she may be remembered for that being Marvin Gaye's first duet partner. Instead, Martha Reeves got to place another jewel in her crown.

Funk Brother Benny Benjamin's great drumming and the incessant, propulsive tambourine get the feet going before Marta Reeves opens her mouth. But once she does, Reeves embraces every syllable with her full voice, squeezing each note for maximum pleasure. The single was released at the end of July, 1964, but its not hard to imagine that even in the dead of winter, legions of listeners would heeded Reeves "invitation across the nation" and joined her in the streets.

The growing race riots throughout America soon cast the song in a different light. (Five years later, the Rolling Stones recast the number into the dark, political anthem "Street Fighting Man.") It's hard to erase the imprint that history has left on the number, but the heart of Reeves' words is utopia: Whoever you are, whatever you wear, wherever you're from, get outside, grab a guy (or gal) and dance. "All we need is music, sweet music." If only life were this simple.

Like many of Motown's signature songs, cover versions abound. The Kinks and The Who cut versions earlier in their career. Both fail to capture the joy in Reeves singing and translate the large soul arrangement to a rock quartet. Artists as diverse as Dusty Springfield, the Grateful Dead and the Carpenters also tackled the song.

Van Halen propelled the song back onto the charts nearly 20 years after the Vandellas' hit. Eddie Van Halen's post-disco keyboard part transforms the arrangement as Diamond Dave - never one to miss a party - celebrates the lyrics. The song is a high point on one of the group's most puzzling albums. "Diver Down" contains not one, but two Kinks covers (which should provide a clue as to why they decided to do "Streets"), a polka featuring Alex and Eddie's dad on clarinet, and closes with "Happy Trails."

No discussion of "Dancing in the Street" would be complete without mentioning the horrific, oh-my-god-look-away cover performed by David Bowie and Mick Jagger. While the intent was noble - a charity single for Live Aid - the results were anything but. It didn't help that the song was delivered at the nadir of these legendary careers. Bowie had just completed his dance-happy "Tonight" album and Jagger was in the middle of "She's the Boss" and attempting to break up his legendary band. The production is sickeningly slick and the vocals sound tossed off. Never ones to be swayed by taste, the public sent the song to No. 7 on the U.S. chart (and clear to No. 1 elsewhere in the world).

The most intriguing version of "Dancing in the Streets" may not exist. I maintain a secret hope that somewhere there is a demo version of Marvin Gaye's original performance. I have no idea if tape was rolling when Gaye, who co-wrote the song with Mickey Stevenson, presented the song to Reeves or if he attempted to cut a guide vocal, but I am optimistic an unmarked reel in the Motown archives will be unearthed and reveal this treasure. I got my hopes up a few years ago when the "Cellarful of Motown" rarities compilation was released, but so far nothing has surfaced. In the meantime, Martha and the Vandellas will more than suffice.