February 15, 2010 - It's Payback Time!

The last time we had a show, John left all my music at home so he played things that he thought I might like. As usual, he was way off the target. I was annoyed. He was laughing hysterically for an hour. It was the worst thing we ever did. I vowed to get back at him the following week. Unfortunately, there was a big snowstorm the following week which closed down the campus and canceled the show.

That gave me an extra week to put together a group a songs that John won't like. The extra week really helped because it gave me a chance to dig even deeper into the collection and find even more music that he wouldn't like. I ended up sending him 22 songs that ranged in length from 11 seconds to four and a half minutes.

Of the 22 things that I sent him, only 12 of them came from my own cd collection (although I did have all the music on my computer already). The person that really needs to be thanked for this week's music is Rich Tully because all 22 of these songs can be found in his cd collection. Thanks Rich! I guess this proves Leane's point that you have very strange taste in music. What was even better was that playing these things actually got Rich to listen for the first time in many, many months. Ok, so what exactly did I play this week? Here goes:

Frank Zappa & The Mothers - Florentine Pogen
Adrian Belew Power Trio - a2
King Crimson - King Crimson Barber Shop
Bongwater - David Bowie Wants Ideas
King Missile - Gary & Melissa
XTC - Cairo
Beat Farmers - Whale-Oil-Beef-Hooked
Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper - Debbie Gibson Is Pregnant With My Two-Headed Love Child
Naked City - Batman
Naked City - Blood Duster
Naked City - Hammerhead
Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band - Frownland
Copernicus - Break From The Senses
Big Black - Colombian Necktie
The Residents - Hello Skinny
The Knack - Oh Tara


I got to play 16 of the 22 songs and more than anything else, the Captain Beefheart did the trick. Trout Mask Replica is an album that everyone must experience at least once in their life. John got to hear less than two minutes of it and he was begging for mercy. Mission accomplished!

Some of the listeners (besides Rich) did like a lot of what I played. Some just thought it was dissonant noise. Barbara Ryan told me that I had made her ears bleed. Ron Cianciaruso didn't seem to be too thrilled with Gary & Melissa(which wasn't even supposed to be played because of the subject matter). That's what is so great about music. There are so many different styles and everyone has their own taste about what is good and what isn't. Give me Captain Beefheart over Britney Spears any day!


I had told John that there would be no power pop played on this show, but I did make one exception, Oh Tara, by The Knack. Doug Fieger, lead singer of the Knack lost his battle with brain and lung cancer on Sunday. He was 57. I was 13 years old when Get The Knack came out and it is one of the albums that changed my life when I was a kid. The tight playing, the in your face lyrics and oh those hooks! Get The Knack changed my life and every time I hear that album, I feel like I am thirteen years old again. Rest in peace Doug. You will be missed!


Next week, unless something else happens, it looks like I may finally be playing the music from January 11th, that has been on hold for 6 weeks. I just wish I could remember what those songs were. See ya next time!