Orange Crush

1989 - I first heard "Orange Crush" by REM on WDRE 92.7 Garden State radio and immediately was drawn to it's driving guitars, the haunting vocals of Michael Stipe and the darkness and mystery of the song. I had it on cassette (I did not replace my tape deck and turntable until early 90's - I know a bit behind the times) and played it over and over till I knew it by heart.

It was the haunting feeling, the feeling of despair that I got from the lyrics that drew me inward to it. Later that year I saw a glimpse of the video where REM won the 1st ever "Post Modern Video" VMA at the MTV Awards..... and it stuck in my head - an image of a child in a white tee and jeans running behind what seemed to be a moving truck....the video added more mystery to the song for me...

Well - I recently got to see the video only last night, and then I got intrigued about what the song was about....according to Michael Stipe it's about Vietnam....a young American footballer leaving the comforts of home for Vietnam.

The song's title is a reference to Agent Orange - a chemical defoliant used in the Vietnam war.

The song was not huge in the US but was much bigger in the UK. It was however, an underground hit and it spent 8 weeks at #1 on the Modern Rock Charts. This song actually remains my fave REM song.

I might be mistaken but I believe that the song was also played on 21 Jump Street (remember that TV cop show that starred Johnny Depp before he was a huge movie star?)

Anyways peeps I do hope you enjoy the video.

TTYL!

Top 100 New Wave Songs of All Time

Here it is - for all you 80's lovers and lovers of new wave music - The Top 100 New Wave tracks of all time according to SteveA:
__________________________________________________________


100.Love Plus One - Haircut 100 
99. Two Tribes - Frankie Goes to Hollywood
98. When Love Breaks Down - Prefab Sprout
97. 99 Luftballons - Nena
96. Reap the Wild Wind - Ultravox
95. Kids in America - Kim Wilde
94. Dance Hall Days - Wang Chung
93. How Soon Is Now - The Smiths
92. I'd Like To Get To Know You Well - Howard Jones 
91. I Got You - Split Enz


90. Obsession - Animotion
89. The Ghost In You - Psychedelic Furs
88. Promises Promises - Naked Eyes
87. Forever Young - Alphaville
86. Der Kommisar - After the Fire
85. Cruel Summer - Bananarama
84. Love Comes Quickly - Pet Shop Boys
83. Alive and Kicking - Simple Minds
82. Love My Way - Psychedelic Furs
81. If You Leave - O.M.D.


80. Life In A Northern Town - Dream Academy
79. Wouldn't It Be Good - Nik Kershaw
78. In A Big Country - Big Country
77. Our House - Madness
76. Come Back and Stay - Paul Young
75. Please Please Tell Me Now - Duran Duran
74. You Spin Me Round - Dead or Alive
73. Here Comes the Rain Again - The Eurythmics
72. Talking In Your Sleep - The Romantics
71. Be Near Me - ABC


70. Rio - Duran Duran
69. Always Something There To Remind Me - Naked Eyes
68. Destination Unknown - Missing Persons
67. Voices Carry - Til' Tuesday
66. Hold Me Now - Thompson Twins
65. Something About You - Level 42
64. Just Like Heaven - The Cure
63. Poison Arrow - ABC
62. West End Girls - Pet Shop Boys
61. Tenderness - General Public


60. Need You Tonight - Inxs
59. Look of Love - ABC
58. Blue Monday - New Order
57. Mexican Radio - Wall of Voodoo
56. Pale Shelter - Tears for Fears
55. Video Killed the Radio Star - The Buggles
54. Rock the Casbah - The Clash
53. Too Shy - Kajagoogoo
52. Back on the Chain Gang - The Pretenders
51. Heart of Glass - Blondie


50. My Sharona - The Knack
49. Major Tom - Peter Schilling
48. Girls on Film  - Duran Duran
47. What I Like About You - The Romantics
46. Situation - Yaz
45. Blasphemous Rumours - Depeche Mode
44. Pretty in Pink - Psychedelic Furs
43. Small Town Boy - Bronksi Beat
42. Save It For Later - The English Beat
41. Talk Talk - Talk Talk


40. Tempted - Squeeze
39. Things Can Only Get Better - Howard Jones
38. Mad World - Tears for Fears
37. A Little Respect - Erasure
36. Lips Like Sugar - Echo and the Bunnymen
35. The Reflex - Duran Duran
34. Stand and Deliver - Adam and the Ants
33. Big in Japan - Alphaville
32. Words - Missing Persons
31. Original Sin - Inxs


30. The Metro - Berlin
29. Turning Japanese  - The Vapours 
28. Brass In Pocket - The Pretenders
27. Down Under - Men at Work
26. One Way or Another - Blondie
25. New Song - Howard Jones
24. One Thing Leads to Another - The Fixx
23. I Melt With You - Modern English
22. Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears for Fears
21. Cars - Gary Numan


20. Message In A Bottle - The Police
19. Take On Me - A-ha
18. Pop Muzik - M
17. True - Spandau Ballet
16. Do You Really Want to Hurt Me - Culture Club
15. Burning Down the House - Talking Heads
14. Just Can't Get Enough - Depeche Mode
13. Tainted Love - Soft Cell
12. Relax - Frankie Goes to Hollywood
11. Rock Lobster - The B-52's


10.Whip It - Devo
9. Sweet Dreams - The Eurythmics
8. Everything Counts - Depeche Mode
7. Hungry Like A Wolf - Duran Duran
6. I Ran - A Flock of Seagulls
5. Don't You Want Me - The Human League
4. Safety Dance - Men Without Hats
3. Don't You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds
2. Once In A Lifetime - Talking Heads
1. People Are People - Depeche Mode

Bob Turns 70 Today

Today is Bob Dylan's 70th....Happy Birthday Bob and thanks for all the great poetic lyrics that have inspired so many.....from rock stars to common man.....and across the generations!

Here's one for your listening pleasure - "Blowin' In The Wind"

TTYL cuties!

Top Female Singers According to SteveA

The 1st installment looked at the most memorable male singers, influenced mainly by the music I grew up with. Here now is my attempt at the most memorable female singers - like I mentioned in my 1st post, the list is not meant to be a list of merit (in which case the likes of Etta James, and Amy Lou Harris, would be in here), but really serves as a list for what is memorable during my youth and growing up!

Whilst I was preparing this list, I realised how much I was influenced by the mellow sounds of the 70's, as opposed to any other era. 

I also did a post some time ago on SteveA' s picks of the "Top Ten Female Artists of Rock According to SteveA",  and coincidentally most of the same artists appears on the both lists.

Here's my list!

10. Tracy Chapman

Tracy singing live "Baby Can I Hold You"

Tracy's voice is raw, but it evokes such depth and vunerability.

I first saw and heard Tracy at Nelson Mandela's 70th Birthday Concert which was aired live on TV. I remember hearing "Fast Car" and thinking "wow" - it was just Tracy, her acoustic guitar and a song that told a story in the simplest of ways....singing!

9. Carly Simon



Classic - "You're So Vain" - many have speculated about whom Carly was singing about in this song - most expected her ex- James Taylor. But I believe it turned out to be about "Warren Beatty".

I was just still single digits in age when I started singing to the tunes of Carly, like "You're So Vain", "Anticipation", and "Haven't Got Time for the Pain". Her voice reminds me of the era of classic 70's easy listening music.

8. Karen Carpenter

I love the simplicity and childlikeness in her voice.

Karen can evoke sadness (Rainy Days and Mondays) and happiness (Top of the World) as easy as the other in her music.

"Rainy Days and Mondays". Karen was a great singer and she was also a good drummer as well !

7. Pat Benatar

My fave from Pat - "Heartbreaker" - this is a more recent live performance - she looks great and sounds awesome, and her husband Neil Geraldo also looks good as well.

We referred to Linda Rondstadt as the original "Queen of Rock" and if their is another lady to take the throne it would have to be "Pat Benatar". Pat was not apologetic as a rock songstress - she rocked just as hard as her male counterparts with tracks like "Heart Breaker"; "You Better Run", and "Treat Me Right".

Pat has won 4 Grammies and "Treat Me Right" was the 2nd (yes - that's correct), the 2nd video aired on MTV back in August 1981!

See here for a post I did on Pat Benatar. In my post on the "Top 10 Female Artists of Rock" Pat was #1 (see link here).

6.  Whitney Houston

With some of the most memorable songs from the 80's, Whitney had a dynamic voice which was destined to make her a star. I just fell in love with "Saving All My Love For You", and "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" - such classic 80's tracks.


Whitney live on Joan Rivers back in the 80's baby! Singing "Saving All My Love for You". This song is my all-time favourite love song (see Valentine's Day Post here).

5. Linda Rondstadt

I loved Linda's greatest hits - "Blue Bayou" was a staple for me and my siblings and I can almost sound as melancholy as Linda did - such heartfelt emotion. Linda was regarded at one point as the "Queen of Rock" and also had the title as "The First Lady of Rock" - quite auspicious titles, even though her genres span country, classical and even mariarchi.

Linda has also won ten (10) Grammies, two (2) Academy of Country Music Awards, and an Emmy - wow! Her version of "Tracks of My Tears" (originally done by "Smokey Robinson") is awesome.

Linda ranked # 7 in the "Top 10 Female Artists of Rock".


Linda on "The Muppet Show" singing "Blue Bayou" - love the 70's baby!


4. Ann/Nancy Wilson (Heart)

Now these sisters rocked just as hard as classic 70's bands like Boston, Kansas, Blue Oyster Cult and the likes of any all-male 70's rock band. Hearing "Crazy On You" and "Magic Man" from their debut in 1976 "Dreamboat Annie", reveals the power, and strength of the female in hard rock. Whilst the male counter-parts sung about their dominance in relationships, Heart provided the equalising power for female power and showed that it was OK for women to sing about the same things that the men did!

The sisters were the original Seattle rockers before the likes of Soundgarden, Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains.

Heart was #5 in my post on the Top Female Artists of Rock.


Heart performing live on "The Midnight Special" - 1977. Nancy Wilson is also an amazing guitarist - check out this performance.

3. Barbara Streisand


Live performance with Barry Gibb on "What Kind of Fool" - the 25th Anniversary Edition of the classic album "Guilty"

Songstress, Actress, Director, Cultural Icon, Activist....what more can be added to the repertoire of this amazing woman? "Woman In Love", "Suddenly" and "Guilty" are my faves from her!

2. Tina Turner



"Proud Mary" - Awesome!

Tina has the hottest, and probably most famous pair of legs in rock, and those lips - ummmmm! Tina is a beautiful woman, and her voice possesses great power and awesomeness.

One of the classic all-time performances is Tina's performance of "Proud Mary"....a raw, energetic, performance that showcases Tina's amazing soulful voice - and boy can she dance.

Tina ranked #6 in my Top Female Artists of Rock.

1. Aretha Franklin

Was there any doubt about whom would be #1? Aretha' s voice is unmatched, and undoubtedly her signature. "Respect" is an anthem for women but the meaning and power of the song can run to anyone wanting recognition, and just "respect".



Well folks - I hope you enjoyed - Cheers!

Top Male Singers According to SteveA

I'm influenced by so many genres of music - from rock, reggae, classic blues, country, soul and sometimes even pop....from the classic rock voice of Robert Plant, to Jimmy Cliff, to Muddy Waters, to Johnny Cash, to Etta James, to even Madonnna.

Over the years I've grown to love the voice of some great musicians and just go simply back to them for pure listening pleasure, and also to bring back a memory or two from my youth, teen years and even adulthood.

I'm going to look at two posts, that counts down my Top Ten male and female singers that have evoked such thougt, emotion and pure talent.

Here's my Top 10 Male Singers of According to SteveA:

10. Morrissey (The Smiths; solo)

The clear, unmistakable voice of melancholy, matches a face of sweetness, innocence and sincerity. When Morrissey sings, it makes the happiest song seen dark and gloomy.

9. Willie Nelson

Willie - oh boy....My mom is a huge fan. The way he sings can evoke emotion and also pure country attitude!

8. Jeff Buckley

The voice of an angel - Jeff Buckley died way too long at the ripe age of 30 when his career was just getting kicked off, but he did leave one of the most highly acclaimed albums in the last 30 years with the album "Grace".


Jeff is the youngest artist here and he is the only one not alive - RIP Jeff!

7.  Ian Gillian (Deep Purple)

Listening to Ian belt out on "Sweet Child In Time" was enough for this 7 year old to get sold. Ian has an amazing voice that still gives me goose bumps.

6. Chris Cornell (Soundgarden, Solo)

When I heard the album "Louder than Love" in late 1989, I was deeply amazed by Chris' voice and the music Soundgarden played (welcome to 90's grunge). Henry Rollins said it best when he said "When Chris sings he can peel the paint off  walls".... Chris has a classic rock feel to his voice which reminds me of the classic rock voices from the 70's.

5. Dave Gahan (Depeche Mode; Solo)

Dave's voice was one of the biggest and best voices of new wave in the 80's. I grew up admiring the clarity, and deep, dark emotion with which Dave sang...listening to Dave today I find he's not lost that lustre and he sounds good today as he did 30 years ago.

4. Paul Rodgers (Bad Company; Free; Queen)

Now this man can sing a love song with ease, comfort and energy, even if that rock song drives a rockin' beat like "Feel Like Makin' Love". Paul has got one of the sexiest voices in hard rock and he looks quite hot too!

3.  Steve Perry (Journey; Solo)

That raspy voice has added fire and depth to some of rock's greatest and most memorable rock ballads...."Faithfully" is such a heart felt rock anthem about life on the road, and of course "Open Arms" can melt your lover's heart.

2. Robert Plant (Led Zepplin; The Honeydrippers; Solo)

Listening to Robert's voice today on Zeppelin, I realised how greatly influenced the band was by classic, old school American blues and even country music (see ***). When I was growing up, I wasn't yet into the blues and the impact it had on rock (see a post I did on Hard Rock and the Blues here), but now I really appreciate how great this band was.

Listening to Zep on their earliest of albums (Led Zeppelin I and II), from the late 60's, I am amazed as to how these songs still stand the test of time - they don't sound dated at all - and isn't that the essence of a great band and their music?

*** On Plant's latest solo effort he did a cover of a Townes Van Zandt track called "Harm's Swift Way". Townes is one of my fave country singers and I did a post on him as "One of the Great American Songwriters" - see link http://longhairedboy.blogspot.com/2011/02/townes-van-zandt-one-of-great-american.html.

You can buy this song on iTunes here.

1. Freddie Mercury (Queen; Solo)

Doesn't this picture say it all - VICTORY!

Listening to Bohemian Rhapsody was the song that made Freddie #1 on my list. Besides the song being one of the most creative, amazing rock songs of all time, it combines two opposing genres - opera with classic hard rock (something that only someone with Freddie's confidence can deliver).

You can feel the range of Freddie's voice as it moves between fields of opera, and rock - making Freddie the perfect narrator as the story unfolds!

When I look at the concert footage of Queen (live Wembley and Live Aid) I have to say that he was probably one of the most talented and greatest entertainers in rock - no artist I've seen live have  come close to touching the magic Freddie has as a front man of Queen.

If there's one track that proves my point look at the video (# 10) for "Under Pressure" per a post called "Queen - Larry's Fantasy and Ex-Lover" (see link here).

Well folks - I hope you enjoyed. There were some other artists whom I would like to mention like Bob Dylan, George Michael, Ray Charles and Sam Cooke - these guys have great voices, but one of the primary criteria for my selection was really the impact they had on me, whilst I was growing up.

Peeps - chat later! and Look out for the Top 10 Female Greatest Singers in a later post!

Super Mom

Today is that day that the world (well most of it anyways) pays tribute and recognition to the most important person to all of us - MOTHER.

For me - I remember the meekness and simplicity of mother - of the sacrifice and love. I can honestly say that God has blessed me with an Earthly Angel to keep me grounded in my everyday life and being.

Bless all mothers today and everyday O' God!

Anyways peeps - treat/honor you special lady with some awesomeness today!

The Mystery of Water

Over the last couple of days I've been in a yoga workshop with Kreel!

To begin with - I've never seen anyone in yoga so defined. Someone this ripped is usually seen in body builders or gym rats, but for someone in yoga it's not the usual body norm. I'm guessing he must work out.

Secondly, he is so hot to look at - I mean - look at this guy - he's completely dreamy!

Thirdly - we learned alot about "WATER" - yes "WATER".

It's quite interesting - people in Japan generally live longer, look younger and are more healthy than people in most parts of the world ..... and one of the reasons is the water they drink - ionised water. Most hospitals in Japan are equipped to produce ionised water - it's the norm and it increases the amount of anti-oxidants in your blood stream.

Kreel did some tests which showed how bad some off-the shelf brands like Dasani, soda and even carbonated water (like Perrier) increase the acidity and free radicals in your system making you for example become...more dehydrated, wrinkled and more prone to sickness.

In not going to go into specifics but basically from the tests he did in front of us - soda and club soda (especially Perrier) were bad for your system....its takes roughly 32 times the amount of ionised water to neutralise the acidity in these products. Tap water was even better than some brands of bottled water.

In a nutshell, ionised water can heal us - make our bodies more adaptive to change, stronger and also be more efficient in removing free radicals.

The  link to the "Great Mystery of Water http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLB--i5YAqY has been removed from YouTube - so if you can download from another site (like Torrent Bit) then please do - it would be worth your while!

TTYL peeps!

A Wedding, A Saint and Justice Served

Wow - this weekend past was just so crazy - Friday saw the Royal wedding, and Sunday was a day of two important events, depending on how you look at it!

First there was the beatification of Blessed Pope John Paul II -  this Sunday marked Divine Mercy Sunday - an important day in the Church which comes 1 week after Easter Sunday. Divine Mercy Sunday was close to Pope John's heart as it was a teaching he greatly endorsed and it might have been deliberate that he was beatified on this day.

The beatification marks the recognition of someone's entry into Heaven. Which brings us to another important happening on this Sunday - the death of Osama Bin Laden (not a martyr in most people's eyes and it won't (possibly) mark his entry into Heaven.

I would not have guessed that I can blog about a wedding, a saint and a terrorist all in the same post....but such is the world today.

This weekend with all it's happenings is truly historic for the monarchy on earth, the monarchy in Heaven and well......."the other guy". I can say for the latter that sweet justice has been served.

Anyways peeps - TTYL!