Doctor Mooney's 115th Dream: June 2010

Magnificent Noise: The Modern Lovers’ “Roadrunner”

The first band to catch the new-wave: Boston-bred Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers hold a firm affinity for The Velvet Underground – a sound that is stamped strongly on their breakthrough two-chord joyride down Route 128, “Roadrunner.” Starry-eyed Richman says, “If there was no Velvet Underground there would have been no such record. Does that tell you what you need to know?”

Recording in 1972, the quirky quartet teamed up with producer and The Velvets’ John Cale on their ode to the AM dial. Yeah, the cut sounds a touch like a bare boned rendition of VU’s “Sister Ray,” but hey, Richman’s unhitched delivery takes a strong hold on the blueprint to proto-punk – the sound that took the UK by storm five years later.

Patients, can you believe that their demos were shelved until 1976?

“Roadrunner”
Written by: Jonathan Richman

One two three four five six
Roadrunner, roadrunner
Going faster miles an hour
Gonna drive past the Stop 'n' Shop
With the radio on

I'm in love with Massachusetts
And the neon when it's cold outside
And the highway when it's late at night
Got the radio on
I'm like the roadrunner

Alright
I'm in love with modern moonlight
128 when it's dark outside
I'm in love with Massachusetts
I'm in love with the radio on
It helps me from being alone late at night
It helps me from being lonely late at night
I don't feel so bad now in the car
Don't feel so alone, got the radio on
Like the roadrunner
That's right

Said welcome to the spirit of 1956
Patient in the bushes next to '57
The highway is your girlfriend as you go by quick
Suburban trees, suburban speed
And it smells like heaven(thunder)
And I say roadrunner once
Roadrunner twice
I'm in love with rock & roll and I'll be out all night
Roadrunner
That's right

Well now
Roadrunner, roadrunner
Going faster miles an hour
Gonna drive to the Stop 'n' Shop
With the radio on at night
And me in love with modern moonlight
Me in love with modern rock & roll
Modern girls and modern rock & roll
Don't feel so alone, got the radio on
Like the roadrunner
O.K., now you sing Modern Lovers

(Radio On)
I got the AM
(Radio On)
Got the car, got the AM
(Radio On)
Got the AM sound, got the
(Radio On)
Got the rockin' modern neon sound
(Radio On)
I got the car from Massachusetts, got the
(Radio On)
I got the power of Massachusetts when it's late at night
(Radio On)
I got the modern sounds of modern Massachusetts
I've got the world, got the turnpike, got the
I've got the, got the power of the AM
Got the, late at night, (?), rock & roll late at night
The factories and the auto signs got the power of modern sounds
Alright

Right, bye bye!

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Jonathan Richman – vocals, guitar
Jerry Harrison – piano, organ, backing vocals
Ernie Brooks – bass, backing vocals
David Robinson – drums, backing vocals

Enjoy this single cc The Modern Lovers

MP3: The Modern Lovers – “Roadrunner”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Blues Majesty: John Lee Hooker’s “Walkin’ The Boogie“
The White Stripes Have too Much to Think on “Party of Special Things To Do” Sub Pop Single
The Morning Benders Radiate Cosmic Sunshine on “Excuses”
Dawes Delivers Stone Cold Classic with “When My Time Comes”
Woozy, Back Alley Blues on The Strange Boys’, “Be Brave”

On Chess long-player House of the Blues, the no-nonsense Motor City blues cat John Lee Hooker cuts straight to the heart of a stockpile of stompin' six-shooter blues recorded from 1951 to 1954. The collection holds one of the finest blues tunes of all-time – a gloriously modified version of “Boogie Chillen.”

Throughout “Walkin’ The Boogie” – the B-side to “Sugar Mama” on Chess 1513, the electric boogie man beats the living daylights out of the floorboards as he pounds, strangles, shudders and shakes through the gruff, crawling saw-tooth rhythms. The Hook’s double-tracked vocals and slapback effect add to the primal runaway rattles and bewitching Boogie Woogie Dee-troit blues grooves.

“Walkin’ The Boogie”
Written by: John Lee Hooker

Well my mama she didn’t ‘low me, just to run around all night long, oh Lord
Well my mama she didn’t ‘low me, just to run around all night long
I didn’t care what she didn’t ‘low, I would slip out of the house
When I first came to town people, I was walkin’ down Park Way
Every was talkin’ about, the Henry Swing Club
I decided I drop in there that night
When I got there, I say, “Yes, people”
They was really havin’ a ball, oh Lord

One night I was layin’ down,
I heard mama ‘n papa talkin’
I heard papa tell mama, let that boy boogie-woogie
Because it’s in him, and it got to come out
And I felt so good,
Went on boogie’n just the same

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy these 2cc John Lee Hooker

Chess 1513
April 24, 1952
Recorded in Chicago, Illinois

MP3: ”Walkin’ The Boogie” (Single Version)
MP3: “Walkin’ The Boogie (Alternate)

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
The White Stripes Have too Much to Think on “Party of Special Things To Do” Sub Pop Single
The Morning Benders Radiate Cosmic Sunshine on “Excuses”
Dawes Delivers Stone Cold Classic with “When My Time Comes”
Woozy, Back Alley Blues on The Strange Boys’, “Be Brave”
Boogie with Freddie King’s “Going Down”

Beginning at the tail end of 1998, the famed, Seattle-based label, Sub Pop began releasing 7” singles through a mail order subscription service called the Sub Pop Singles Club - a springboard for a legion of up-and-coming acts kicking around the indie scene. Enter The White Stripes.

In 2000, the peppermint twistin' duo doused three Captain Beefheart tunes with their feedback-ridden, candy-colored blues. A trio of tracks that tickle our rock ‘n roll stethoscopes pink. Side-A, “A Party of Special Things to Do” is a second to none cover – a full scale air raid of over-driven guitars wrapped in chicken wire, partnered with the deep ringing velocity of White’s gutbucket vocals. Jack White recalls, “On Party of Special Things to Do we used different recording techniques, going straight into the board, with fuzz guitar and bass. That was the first time we've ever done that. When a song feels like it needs something, I just wanna have it there.”

On the flipside they deliver their therapeutic, fuzzed-out pyrotechnic power with a pair of gems: “China Pig” recalls the sounds of hellhounds with a dose of White’s heavy-handed special madness. “Ashtray Heart” is a staggering behemoth of twisted sound that finds the aristocratic horseman of rock barking out, "Someone's had too much to think!"

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Sup Pop Records
December 5, 2000
Catalogue #: SP-527
Written By: Don Van Vliet (aka Captain Beefheart)

“Hey loser. Wanna find some action? Here at SUB POP we've started a special club for lonely record collectors like yourself...Every other month we'll send you 2 limited edition 45's. All you have to do is SEND US YOUR MONEY"

Enjoy these 3cc of The White Stripes

MP3: A. The White Stripes – “Party of Special Things To Do”
MP3: B1. The White Stripes – “China Pig”
MP3: B2. The White Stripes – “Ashtray Heart”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
The Morning Benders Radiate Cosmic Sunshine on “Excuses”
Dawes Delivers Stone Cold Classic with “When My Time Comes”
Woozy, Back Alley Blues on The Strange Boys’, “Be Brave”
Boogie with Freddie King’s “Going Down”
Flat Duo Jets Set “Frog Went A-Courtin’” Ablaze

The Morning Benders, Frisco’s darlings, have effectively merged into the front lines with their Talking Through Tin Cans follow-up, Big Echo.

Throughout their sturdy sophomore LP, co-producer and Grizzly Bear bassist Chris Taylor lends his fanatic devotion to noteworthy helpings of marvelous, multi-colored sounds. The defining moment for the asylum’s doctors and nursemaids comes during the memorable "Excuses." Perhaps an indie ode to the symphonic mad man’s [Phil Spector] Wall of Sound. In reality, an alluring cut that’s filled with lush swathes of spectacular, wide open shining sonic tones and a kaleidoscope of dazzling twists – a true pop gem.

The Morning Benders are: Christopher Chu (vocals/guitar), Timothy Or (bass), Jonathan Chu (keyboard/guitar) and Julian Harmon (drums).

"Excuses"
Written by: Christopher Chu

You tried to taste me
And I taped my tounge the southern tip of your body
Our bones are too heavy to came up
Squished into a single ceel of wood

Oooooooh .... Oooooooooh

And I made an excuse
You found another way to tell the truth
I put no one else above us
We'll stil be best friends when all turn to dust

Oooooooh .... da-da-da-da-da

Dum du-dum du-dum du-dum du-du-dum
(repeat)
da-da-da-da-da
(repeat)

We are so smooth now
Our edges are beaten drift wood widdled down
Old bodies slip when they make love
We'll mine our sparks to shout us above

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of The Morning Benders

MP3: The Morning Benders – “Excuses”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Dawes Delivers Stone Cold Classic with “When My Time Comes”
Woozy, Back Alley Blues on The Strange Boys’, “Be Brave”
Boogie with Freddie King’s “Going Down”
Flat Duo Jets Set “Frog Went A-Courtin’” Ablaze
Wail on, Skydog: Duane Allman's Muscle Shoals Serenade

Last year, this heralded Laurel Canyon quartet — Taylor Goldsmith (vocals, guitar) Alex Casnoff (piano, vocals), Wylie Gelber (bass), and Griffin Goldsmith (drums, vocals) released their strikingly consistent debut album, North Hills. This album invokes the down-home spirit of L.A. bands like the Flying Burrito Brothers, the Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash. “We're very much aware of the fact that we're from Los Angeles, California, and all of the associations that come with that,” lead singer Taylor Goldsmith declares, “A lot of our favorite records were made in L.A., and while they have this overwhelming American feel to them, they also have this Los Angeles resonance, and Los Angeles cynicism that's entirely unique. I'm always happy people notice that in us.”

While North Hills is filled with a fine collection of noble moments, “When My Time Comes” is the crowning achievement for the California folk-rockers – a weather-beaten singsong anthem for the ages that’s delivered with priceless precision and wide-open balance. As good as a tumble in the hay, “When My Time Comes” is a choice cut for the doctors and nursemaids here at the asylum.

“When My Time Comes”
Written by: Taylor Goldsmith

There were moments of dreams I was offered to save
I live less like a workhorse, more like a slave
I thought that one quick moment that was noble or brace
Would be worth the most of my life.

So I pointed my fingers, and shout a few quotes I knew
As if something that's written should be taken as true
But every path I have taken and conclusion I drew
Would put truth back under the knife.

And now the only piece of advice that continues to help:
Is anyone that's making anything new only breaks something else.

When my time comes,
Ohhhhh, oh oh oh.
When my times comes,
Ohhhhh, oh oh oh.

So I took what I wanted and put it out of my reach
I wanted to pay for my successes with all my defeats,
And if heaven was all that was promised to me
Why don't I pray for death?
And now it seems like the unraveling has started too soon,
Now I'm sleeping in hallways and I'm drinking perfume
And I'm speaking to mirrors and I'm howling at moons
While the worst and the worst that it gets.

Oh you can judge all the world on the sparkle that you think it lacks.
Yes you can stare into the abyss, but it's staring right back.

When my time comes,
Ohhhhh, oh oh oh.
When my time comes,
Ohhhhh, oh oh oh.

Oh you can judge all the world on the sparkle that you think it lacks.
Yes you can stare into the abyss, but it's staring right back.

When my time comes,
Ohhhhh, oh oh oh.
When my time comes,
Ohhhhh, oh oh oh.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of Dawes

MP3: Dawes – “When My Time Comes”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Woozy, Back Alley Blues on The Strange Boys’, “Be Brave”
Boogie with Freddie King’s “Going Down”
Flat Duo Jets Set “Frog Went A-Courtin’” Ablaze
Wail on, Skydog: Duane Allman's Muscle Shoals Serenade
Just Add Grease: Lowell Fulson’s Take on “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road”

With their sloppy, off-the-cuff roadhouse charm, Austin-based garage-rockers, The Strange Boys stir up a feisty lo-fi brand of rock ‘n roll that pulls from a catalog of sounds. We like to think of it as one part, laidback Stones-y R&B, and another part children of the Nuggets – dig those pesky ankle-biting riffs. If you haven’t heard The Strange Boys yet our rock ‘n roll stethoscopes suggest you check them out.

The barbed wire breeze of “Be Brave” storms through on the third track of their In The Red released LP of the same title. This sparkling cut is full of life and highlighted by Ryan Sambol’s heroic, dilapidated drawl, Jenna Thornhill-DeWitt’s bruising sax and
the howling chorus, “You gotta be brave!” Patients, these kids are alright.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

The Strange Boys are:
Ryan Sambol (Guitar, Lead Vocals, Harmonica), Philip Sambol (Bass), Greg Enlow (Guitar), Mikey La Franchi (Drums), Jenna Thornhill-DeWitt (Saxophone, Backing Vocals), and Tim Presley (Backing Vocals)

Enjoy this single cc of The Strange Boys…

MP3: The Strange Boys – “Be Brave”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Boogie with Freddie King’s “Going Down”
Flat Duo Jets Set “Frog Went A-Courtin’” Ablaze
Wail on, Skydog: Duane Allman's Muscle Shoals Serenade
Just Add Grease: Lowell Fulson’s Take on “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road”
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"

Our rock ‘n roll stethoscopes are happy to report that Freddie King’s “Going Down” is an electrifying, magnificent romp – the crown jewel of his Shelter records debut, Getting Ready.

The lonestar bluesman recorded the swagger filled, “Going Down” at the famed Chess Records on Chicago’s South Side – home to many of his idols and confidantes. “I used to be 16 years old, livin’ next door to the Zanzibar Club [Chicago]. I was underage and Muddy [Waters] would slip me through the side door. That’s when him and Jimmy Rogers, Little Walter and Otis Spann was the band. Muddy would sneak me in and sit me down by the bandstand and I would listen. That was a heavy band, man.”

Produced by Leon Russell and written by Don Nix, “Going Down” is anchored by a vicious eruption of pounding piano, a pair of drummers delivering rattling, earthshaking bombs, monster bass lines from Donald 'Duck' Dunn and searing, razor sharp vocal blitzes with pile driving guitar lines by the Texas Cannonball [King].

“Going Down”
Written by: Don Nix

I'm going down
I'm going, down, down, down
Down, down
Yes, I'm going down, yes
I'm going down, down, down
Down, down
Yes, I've got my feet in the window
Got my head on the ground

Let me down
And close that box car door
Yes, let me down
And close that box car door
Well, I'm goin' back to Chattanooga
And sleep on sister Irene's door

(guitar & instrumental) Hey!

Yes, I'm going down
I'm going down
I'm going, down, down, down
Down, down

Yes, I got my feet in the window
I got my head on the ground

(instrumental to end) 'close'

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of the Freddie King…

Shelter, SHE8905, 1970
Freddie King (vocals, electric guitar); Leon Russell (guitar, piano); Don Preston (guitar); Jon Gallie (organ); Donald "Duck" Dunn (bass); Charles Blackwell, Charles Myers (drums).

MP3: Freddie King – “Going Down”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Flat Duo Jets Set “Frog Went A-Courtin’” Ablaze
Wail on, Skydog: Duane Allman's Muscle Shoals Serenade
Just Add Grease: Lowell Fulson’s Take on “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road”
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Shades of Heartache: Doris Duke’s “I Don’t Care”

The Flat Duo Jets play their brand of rockabilly with red hot, crazed intensity – a spooky make of spine chilling rave-ups and blistering shock waves of throaty growls. The type of calculated restlessness that had a huge influence on the aristocratic horseman of rock, Jack White’s music: “I owned all of his records as a teenager, and was thrilled at the fact that we were able to play together recently on tour. His attitude towards music is remarkable. His songwriting, along with his love of classic American music from the south, be it rockabilly, country or R&B, is one of the best kept secrets of the rock ‘n roll underground.” Ninnies they are not.

Armed with a rusty razor sneer and ’62 Silvertone, Dexter Romweber and ace drummer “Crow” Smith attack the traditional ballad, “Frog Went A-Courtin’” mercilessly and give it a gear-grinding, sonic facelift. Originally released on Go Go Harlem Baby - well after the 1986 Athens, GA rockumentary: Inside/Out, “Frog Went A-Courtin’” is trashabilly at its peak – Romweber hollers and boogies like a crazed lunatic: “Frog went a courtin' and he did ride / With a sword and a pistol by his side, uh-huh uh-huh uh-huh,” This cut is a warhorse of epic proportions, a romp that packs quite a wallop.

“Frog Went A-Courtin’”
Written by: Traditional
Frog went a courtin' and he did ride, uh-huh
Frog went a courtin' and he did ride, uh-huh
Frog went a courtin' and he did ride
With a sword and a pistol by his side, uh-huh uh-huh uh-huh

Took Miss Mousie on his knee, uh-huh
Took Miss Mousie on his knee, uh-huh
Took Miss Mousie on his knee,
Said Miss Mousie, will you marry me, uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh

Where shall the wedding supper be, uh-huh
Where shall the wedding supper be, uh-huh
Where shall the wedding supper be
Way down yonder in the hollow tree, uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh

Frog went a courtin' and he did ride, uh-huh
Frog went a courtin' and he did ride, uh-huh
Frog went a courtin' and he did ride
With a sword and a pistol by his side, uh-huh uh-huh uh-huh

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of the Flat Duo Jets…

MP3: Flat Duo Jets – “Frog Went A-Courtin’”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Wail on, Skydog: Duane Allman's Muscle Shoals Serenade
Just Add Grease: Lowell Fulson’s Take on “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road”
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Shades of Heartache: Doris Duke’s “I Don’t Care”
Hidden Charms of The Undertones’ 'Teenage Kicks' EP

Before the Southern-fried, twin-dueling lead-guitar lines, runs and riffs of Duane Allman and Dickie Betts in The Allman Brothers Band, Duane Allman was a prolific sideman - enhancing tracks with his bottleneck slide guitar sorcery and blazing venomous sting on a string of cuts, by a wide variety of acts: Wilson Pickett, Aretha Franklin, Clarence Carter, Otis Rush, Boz Scaggs, John Hammond, LuLu, Ronnie Hawkins, King Curtis and Cher. True hip-shaking goodness.

Duane's recording career lasted only a few short years, but the strength of his session work at FAME Recording Studios alone could have solidified his legendary status. Check out the six-string fretted fire on Wilson Pickett’s cover of the Beatles’ classic, “Hey Jude.” Eric Clapton recalls, "I remember hearing Wilson Pickett's 'Hey Jude' and just being astounded by the lead break at the end. ... I had to know who that was immediately - right now." Find out for yourselves, patients.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy these 7cc of Skydog...

At FAME Recording Studios, Muscle Shoals, AL

MP3: Clarence Carter featuring Duane Allman - "The Road of Love" (1967)
MP3: Wilson Pickett featuring Duane Allman - "Hey Jude" (1968)
MP3: Arthur Conley Featuring Duane Allman - "Stuff You Gotta Watch" (1968)
MP3: Aretha Franklin featuring Duane Allman - "The Weight" (1969)
MP3: Otis Rush Featuring Duane Allman - "You Reap What You Sow" (1969)
MP3: Lulu featuring Duane Allman - "Dirty Old Man" (1970)
MP3: Johnny Jenkins Featuring Duane Allman - "Down Along the Cove" (1970)

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Just Add Grease: Lowell Fulson’s Take on “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road”
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Shades of Heartache: Doris Duke’s “I Don’t Care”
Hidden Charms of The Undertones’ 'Teenage Kicks' EP
Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed, Soul’s Prodigal Son, Readies For Launch on “Explosion”

What we have here is, frankly, Lowell Fulson pulverizing the raunchy Beatles cut, “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road” with wrecking ball force – a genuine knockout. Recorded with the Muscle Shoals rhythm section and released in 1970 on the Shreveport, LA-based Jewel records, “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road” is the kind of track that retains the power and emotion of the original and adds a heavy slice of nitty gritty fuzz and thunderbolt fury, plus a few more places, in addition to the road, where you can do it – try a car or a house.

“Why Don’t We Do It In The Road?”
Written by: Lennon/McCartney

Why don't we do it in the road
Why don't we do it in the road
Why don't we do it in the road
Why don't we do it in the road
No one will be watching us
Why don't we do it in the road

Why don't we do it in the car
Why don't we do it in the car
Why don't we do it in the car
Why don't we do it in the car
Why can’t we do it in the car
You know we don’t have too far to go
Why can’t we do it in the car

Why can't we do it in the house
Why can't we do it in the house
Why can't we do it in the house
Oh let’s do it in the house
Nobody knows what it’s all about

Well let’s do it in the road
I say we can do it in the road
Oh let’s do it in the road
Why can’t we do it in the road
No one will be watching
Why don’t we do it in the road

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of The Lowell Fulson…

1969
Jewel 802
MP3: Lowell Fulson – “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Locked and Loaded: The Dead Weather, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death"
Shades of Heartache: Doris Duke’s “I Don’t Care”
Hidden Charms of The Undertones’ 'Teenage Kicks' EP
Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed, Soul’s Prodigal Son, Readies For Launch on “Explosion”
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange

Get the goods at emusic.com or amazon.com

On the flipside of “I Cut Like A Buffalo,” The Dead Weather take on the obscure West Coast Pop Art Experimental track, "A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death" with pure vengeance. It’s an unrelenting attack that delivers an explosive, footstompin’ depth charge of quivering energy and chug-a-chug-chug, powerhouse graveyard bliss.

Music Row’s favorite son, Jack White barks out some of the most frightful, whiskey-soaked lyrics that our rock 'n roll stethoscopes have ever heard: "A child of a few hours/is burning to death/her eyes are full of smoke/her mouth is full of fire/napalm is perfect for women and children," Not to be outdone, Alison Mosshart aka Baby Ruthless, cries out some choice lyrics of her own: "We should have called Suzie and Bobby/They like to watch fire." Poor children. All this savage absurdity is anchored by a rhythm section that besieges the listener, drumming with unshakable raucous grooves and switchblade garage cool.

Patients, this is a track that really cooks - some might call it pure musical excellence.

Take Up Thy Rock 'N Roll Stethoscope and Walk,

Enjoy this single cc of The Dead Weather...

MP3: The Dead Weather – “A Child of a Few Hours is Burning To Death”

MORE PRESCRIPTIONS
Shades of Heartache: Doris Duke’s “I Don’t Care”
Hidden Charms of The Undertones’ 'Teenage Kicks' EP
Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed, Soul’s Prodigal Son, Readies For Launch on “Explosion”
The Black Keys Slay Peel Session at Old Corn Exchange
The Lone Star Seduction of Townes Van Zandt’s “Waiting Around To Die”

Get the goods at emusic.com or amazon.com

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