Classic Rock Song of the Day (Deep Cuts now being featured!!)

[Big Hath]

Boston - Rock and Roll Band

funny, I heard this song tonight at a little bar/restaurant on the water in Key West.  Great song!

[KevShmev]

Five Man Electrical Band - Signs

I suspect many are more familiar with the Tesla cover from the early 90s, but the original by Five Man Electrical Band was somewhat of a classic rock staple for quite a while.  I was never much of a fan of this song, regardless of what version it was, but it was popular enough to warrant being featured.

[Orbert]

This is a song where the message and the concept are more important than the song itself.  I of course grew up with the original version by the Five Man Electrical Band.  I remember environmentalists talking about how the beauty of nature is being spoiled by all the huge billboards, and it did seem like everywhere you went, there was a sign telling you what you couldn't do or were supposed to do or whatever.  And of course I always wanted to be one of those "long-haired freaky people" who people judge by their cover, just so I could mess with people's perceptions and expectations.

But I do understand why some people think the song is dumb or trite or whatever.  I just think they're wrong. 

[hefdaddy42]

Maybe it was more popular in some areas than others, but I never heard this in my life until after Tesla released their cover.

[DebraKadabra]

If I'm not mistaken, the two versions were also in different keys, and George Martin had to play with the tape speeds to get them to sound in the same key when he put them together.  I may be thinking of a different song.  But I know he did it at least once.  George Martin was a genius.  To me, he was the real Fifth Beatle.

You're correct about the different key thing, and I agree with you - George Martin was most definitely the fifth Beatle.

Boston - Rock and Roll Band

You cannot convince me that anything from Boston's first album is not a masterpiece.

Five Man Electrical Band - Signs

Maybe it was more popular in some areas than others, but I never heard this in my life until after Tesla released their cover.

I'm with hef on this one.

[hefdaddy42]

Yeah, baby. 

[KevShmev]

I'll be curious to see if anyone knows this one...

Jonathan Edwards - Shanty

This is kind of a folk song more than anything, but it was a KSHE staple for decades (hell, it still might be, for all I know ), as it was always played on Friday morning, kind of their way of announcing, "Hey, the weekend's almost here!"  I can't say I've ever gone out of my way to hear it, but it's notable to me for that reason. 

[Orbert]

Don't know this one.

[Jaq]

Most definitely local.

You stumped me and Orbert. I think you win something for that, Kev. 

[KevShmev]

Awesome.  One of you guys can PM me for my address so you know where to send my prize.

[KevShmev]

Steely Dan - Deacon Blues

Like the rest of Aja, this song is pretty much aces.  I love the jazz rock feel of it, while still having memorable melodies all over the place.  I know that Steely Dan isn't everyone's cup of tea, but when I am in the right mood, they scratch just the right itch, and this is one of my go-to Steely Dan songs.

[Orbert]

Great song.  Aja was my first Steely Dan album, a record club purchase, after hearing them on the radio for years but never really checking them out.  Whoa.  I played the hell out of that album.  It's still my favorite, but mostly because I know it inside and out.  I worked my way back through their catalogue, and it's all pretty great.  Gaucho isn't quite as good, but when they reformed years later, the two new ones are pretty good.  As with most bands, their earliest stuff is often the best.  They were younger, hungrier, and more willing to take chances.  Also, they mellowed out a lot.  Those early albums have a certain edge to them that got dulled a bit as they got older.

[hefdaddy42]

Great song.  Aja is also my favorite SD album.

[King Postwhore]

LOVE LOVE LOVE this song and album. 

[KevShmev]

The Cars - Since You're Gone

This has always been one of my favorite Cars songs since getting into the band in '83/'84.  Heartbeat City made me a fan, and when I heard the rest of their hits on a friend's greatest hits cassette - that's right, cassette - this song really stood out.  It's still pretty great.

[King Postwhore]

BTW Kev, I never heard Jonathan Edwards - Shanty either!


Since your gone is a fun song but a middle of the pack song from the Cars for me.

[Orbert]

I like The Cars, but after playing their debut album to death, pretty much everything after that tended to sound the same.  Their sound did evolve a bit over time, but never ventured far from that quirky, new wave sound.

This song's okay, but I'd honestly forgotten about it until just now.

[Jaq]

Love the Cars to bits. Ric Ocasek just wrote endless reams of perfect pop-rock songs, and their initial association with new wave music aside, they were just plain a great rock band. Looking over my top 50, I am kicking myself for not getting an album by the Cars on it (probably Candy-O, that's fucking amazing.) I haven't mentioned the song much because any single off their first five albums pretty much defaulted to awesome, and this is no exception.

[Orbert]

Hey Jaq, what did you think of Move Like This?  I picked that one up when it came out, just to see.  Did you grab it?  You sound like a big Cars fan.

[Jaq]

As huge of a fan of the Cars as I am, I actually haven't gotten around to listening to it yet. Will have to rectify that. 

[Orbert]

You should.  I was gonna offer my opinion and comments, but if you haven't heard it yet, I'll hold off.

[Jaq]

I think part of my reason for not listening to it was the lack of Ben Orr-was concerned it would be a bit one note without his vocals to balance out Ocasek's. I'll check it out.

[King Postwhore]

I found it good, but not great.  I haven't listened to Move Like This in a while.

[Orbert]

It was pretty much what I expected.  Without Benjamin, yeah the vocals are all Ric, and they went with programmed and keyboard bass, which was actually kinda cool.  It was the remaining four original members, no substitutions.  Overall, pretty good, a couple pretty catchy songs, Ric is still weird.  I was hoping for maybe something weird, way outside the box, but that's not The Cars.

[hefdaddy42]

No love for the Cars here. 

[KevShmev]

Molly Hatchet - Flirtin' with Disaster

This is another one of those classic rock staples that I almost never go out of my way to hear, but whenever I hear it, I always think, "This is pretty damn good," so who knows why I don't ever actually seek it out.  Even listening now, one of the few times in my life I actually have gone out of my way to hear it, I am enjoying the hell out of it.  Some songs are just like that, I suppose.

[King Postwhore]

Put me in the boat as the official hater of Molly Hatchet.  Can't stand their music, saw them live twice with BOC and I hated them and Flirtin' is the only song I can tolerate.

[Podaar]

Some interesting and fun guitar work. Monotonous drums. Poor imitation Ronnie Van Zant vocals. Hyper annoying cowboy whistle. All in all, the bad outweighs the good or so it seems to me...y'all know what I mean? Not my thing.

[Orbert]

I picked up a Molly Hatchet album a long time ago; I'm sure I still have it, but I couldn't tell you the name.  I'd heard a few songs by them, thought their guitar work was pretty good, and decided to check out an album.  I guess Southern Rock is one of those genres I'm okay with in small doses, but I found myself getting kinda bored listening to a whole album.

This song is pretty good.  Most bands, most genres even, if it's upbeat and not too obnoxious, I'm okay with it.

[Jaq]

I love Molly Hatchet, especially their first two albums, but I never really much liked Flirting With Disaster. If there's a Molly Hatchet by numbers song, this is it. Nice guitar work though, they always had that.

[hefdaddy42]

Hatchet is OK, but there is a lot better Southern rock out there.

[KevShmev]

I wasn't expecting more meh and bad comments than good ones about this tune, but hey, that's the fun of this thread, right?

[KevShmev]

April Wine - I Like to Rock

This song got a lot of airplay here in St. Louis back in the day.  The coolest thing is the intro, which is a nice little build-up to the meat of the song.  Overall, it's pretty much a run of the mill 70s rock tune, but I like it.  Nothing too fancy about it, really, but it's enjoyable.  And of course, it's like the 245th song to borrow the Day Tripper riff (hear at the end of the song).

[Orbert]

It's not just the Day Tripper riff, they combine it with a combine others.  I haven't heard the song in a while, but I'm pretty sure Satisfaction is in there, and I think one other.  I mean, that's the whole point of the song.  It's a rock and roll song about rock and roll songs.

[Jaq]

It's just Satisfaction and Day Tripper bouncing off the main riff of the song. I always remembered it as three too, but I just listened to it on Spotify and it's those two, each one in a channel with the main riff taking up the middle. I remember long ago hearing this song on the radio and the DJ derisively saying "real original, guys" and my response being "way to miss the point, jack ass."

A constant: local radio has sucked all my life.