Beth's Music Moment: "Editions of You" by Roxy Music

Sometimes you find a yearning for the quiet life
The country air and all of its joys
But badgers couldn't compensate at twice the price
For just another night with the boys oh yeah
And boys will be boys will be boys

"Editions of You" by Roxy Music

As I mentioned at the close of the last record (a little Tubes reference for you there), Roxy Music is often considered to be one of the premier proto-punk bands. While I don't hear a lot of that in their music itself (they're much more refined), their DIY attitude was definitely punk. If any of their songs comes closest to a punk sound, I think it's "Editions of You." 

I see it in the rapid-fire lyrics and the frenetic pace of the song. And the fellas themselves are in fine form. Let's go to the video! 



First, we've got Bryan Ferry in full Lounge Lizard mode, running around the stage like someone just zapped him with a Taser. Andy Mackay's shakin' those maracas, Eno's shakin' that tambourine. Andy tosses the maracas to who knows where and there he is in his demented space alien outfit blasting out a sax solo while Bryan pounds the keys. 

Then we immediately switch to Eno, who is decked out in that famous peacock feather jacket, workin' his synth, swiveling those hips. 

Then we slam right into a blistering guitar solo from Phil Manzanera. 

All the while, The Great Paul Thompson and John Porter keep the rhythm going with drums and bass respectively. 

After some rapid fire drums from Thompson, we're back to Bryan. He sings another chorus and with a "this way!" he prances across the stage to do his own one-handed synth solo (no, that's not a euphemism for anything). He hurries back to his mic to sing the final lines, Eno tosses his tambourine also to who knows where (maybe the same place Andy's maracas ended up), Bryan ends with one last "you-hoo-hoo-hoo-oooo," the band winds it up with a couple of shots and Bryan looks like he gets walloped in the head, and...just like that, we're done. 

The first time I saw that, some fifty years after it was first performed, I thought, "I don't know what the fuck I just watched but I think I'm in love!" 

Honestly, it's an absolutely bonkers performance and I can only imagine what it was like to be in the audience for something like that. 

You know that hypothetical question about if you could go back in time, where and when would you want to go? My answer to that used to be the library at Alexandria, but my new answer is one of Roxy Music's early gigs somewhere in England. 

How perplexing it must have been for some, both fans and journalists. This was the early '70s, not long after the Summer of Love, and most musicians were still wearing bell-bottom jeans and and a denim shirt to match. Roxy Music seemingly came out of nowhere, resplendent in feathers and lamé platform boots and sometimes wearing—gasp!—makeup! How shocking! How scandalous! And how glorious! 

As I think about it, that in itself was rather punk of them. They were a shock to the system of the staid singer-songwriter template, ballads, and more traditional rock tunes. A few short years later, punk rock would poke a fat finger in the eye of the music establishment. 

But Roxy did it before them. 

Teenage Music

Buy time don’t lose it

~ Duran Duran “The Reflex”

John Taylor and Roger Taylor of Duran Duran recently did a Q&A session on their Tumblr page, and among the many gems (I love the ‘70s Batman show, too, Roger!), I was struck by this answer from John Taylor about his thoughts on today’s music scene.

I seem to recall reading an article about research that shows that our brains are more susceptible to lasting imprints when we are adolescents, but anecdotal evidence would seem to bear that out as well. I think John summed that up very nicely.

I grew up listening to quite a bit of different music (my Dad liked country, especially Johnny Cash, my Mom liked gospel, and my big sis Diana was a stone cold Beatlemaniac!), but I really got serious about listening to music in the ‘70s, when I was in high school. So much of it was Top 40, AM radio stuff, but when Shane and I discovered Devo, the B-52s, and so many others, that was all she wrote. We became obsessed, and the nascent MTV fueled the obsession. Duran Duran was obviously a big part of that.

So here I am, some 35 years later, still loving all of those bands, so much so that we’re flying to Berkeley in October to see DD! (More on that in the coming months.) I still seek out new music, and there is a lot of great stuff out there. One of my pet peeves is to hear someone say, “Today’s music SUCKS!” No, it doesn’t. You’re just too lazy to look for the good stuff. There are plenty of newer bands that I dig a lot.

But when it comes down to what moves me the most, what touches me inside and brings out my inner lizard, it’s the stuff of the punk/New Wave era. It was a time when Shane and I pored over the liner notes of albums and learned the lyrics. I subscribed to Creem and later Rolling Stone and learned everything I could about the bands I loved. I was a little musical sponge soaking up everything I could.

I believe that JT is right. The music of our adolescence is what remains the best...at least for us. I’ve made an effort to not stagnate or be stuck in a musical rut, and there is so much fun music being made out there even as I type! But for those of us a certain age, pop in “The Reflex” and see how we react. You’ll probably be a little embarrassed for us, but we won’t care!

Beth’s Music Moment: It’s the end, the end of the Seventies

I am finally caught up with all my online class lectures! It’s amazing how far behind I got with that week in New Orleans and my subsequent difficulty in adjusting back to normal life. Good thing, because I start a new class on antibiotics next week!

Today I finished up Week 3’s lectures in History of Rock Part Two, and I loved it so much that I got a little verklempt. It was about punk and new wave in the late ‘70s. That was MY time. It brought back so many great memories of Shane and I (and our friend Steve) discovering all this great music and being so caught up in this movement that was so far removed from what most people at our high school were listening to. They were into Kenny Rogers and Air Supply, and we were blowing pictures off the walls with “Death or Glory”! (Yes, that really happened, and we still crack up over it!)

We seemed to have a knack (Ha! Knack...get it?) for learning about groups before they hit it big here. I recall loving Tom Petty when I heard “Breakdown,” and had a couple of early albums before they hit it with “Damn the Torpedoes.” I had the early Cheap Trick albums before “At Budokan.” We always joked that we should be A&R people! For whatever reason, these small town kids were plugged into the broader music scene and so into finding new music. It was really a heady time in music, and there was so much happening and so much great music. That continued for Shane and I through much of the ‘80s as we loved telling each other about new bands, and it continues to this day as we turn each other on to music we think each other would like. We’re music buddies, so we’re usually in tune on that. Haaaa, I made a pun! In tune.

It was also interesting to me to hear the professor’s confirmation that yes, punk really did originate in New York City. I’ve maintained that since forever, but there are those that feel that it originated in London. No...its roots were in the US, with bands like the Stooges, the Velvet Underground, and the New York Dolls. There was an underground scene going on in New York, and Malcolm McLaren heard about it and created his own version of it with the Sex Pistols. Then it started getting attention because of the Pistols’ bad behavior, and it came back to the US and came up from the underground. The record companies defanged it quite a bit, because they weren’t going to risk their money on unreliable and volatile acts like the Pistols, who broke up very quickly. But what an influence they had! They were like a punk rocket, flaming out quickly but leaving a huge sonic boom in its wake.

Another interesting thing was that this period marked the end of what the prof has dubbed the “hippie aesthetic.” That is the idea that music should be serious and of substance, that the musicians should be seen as professionals and virtuosos in their craft, and that the songwriters, the songs, and the music should be “authentic.” Two very different musical styles set this idea on its head at the same time, for very different reasons. Disco was all about “let’s dance,” and it really didn’t matter who the artist was...all that mattered was getting out and shakin’ what your mama gave you. Punk said “fuck the virtuosity,” and you got kids who could barely play making records and up on the stage. Very much a DIY mentality. There were of course exceptions to that, but that was a pretty pervasive attitude. Definitely a garage band attitude. I had never thought of it in those terms, but that seems dead on to me.

I was also fascinated by the idea that this was a time when bands and artists were looking back to the roots of music and using irony in their approach. The best examples of that are Debbie Harry purposefully taking on a Marilyn Monroe look, and Elvis Costello and his Buddy Holly specs. Rock and roll was old enough by then that it could look back and plumb iconic looks and sounds from the beginning of rock and roll. A lot of us were old enough to understand the cultural references and to “get it.” It was a perfect time and perfect music for people of my and Shane’s age to plug into that.

I enjoyed this week’s lectures so much. I try not to get swamped in nostalgia and I still love finding great new music—and for anyone who says that there isn’t any good music these days, well, you just aren’t looking hard enough, because there is a lot of great stuff out there...seek it out!—but it was a lot of fun to revisit one of the most influential times in my musical development, and look at things a little deeper and in the context of the time.

Rock on, Citizens! You know I will!

Sid and Nancy (Love Kills)

Could someone please ‘splain to me how I managed to miss this movie all these years? Argh!

Since Ken is on a business trip (he’ll get home late tonight), I watched a movie or three that I know he wouldn’t have much interest in watching, either for the first time or as a repeat viewing. We both have our favorites and our dislikes, and we know that if either of us isn’t in the mood for a movie, the other can watch what they choose. For him, it’s repeat viewings of some of my favorites or certain rock and roll movies. For me, it’s anything with Steven Seagal or any kind of Fast & Furious-type stuff. Just not my cuppa, and Steven Seagal just makes me cringe. Anyway, I was in a rock and roll mood last night, so I took the opportunity to watch “Sid and Nancy.” I’ve had a copy for a while, but just hadn’t gotten around to watching it.

Well, shame on me. Feel free to throw safety pins at me, because it is on the verge of inexcusable that someone who is STILL a fan of the Sex Pistols never watched this movie. It’s even more egregious than missing out on “The Boondock Saints” all these years.

Before I comment more on the movie, can we set aside our partisan differences, and whether right or left, gay or straight, black or white, freckle, burn, or tan,  Miley is gross or just a kid finding her own way...can we all just admit that Gary Oldman is one of the finest actors of our time? Holy shit, the guy just disappears into whatever role he’s playing. He just OWNED the Sid Vicious role, getting his mannerisms down perfectly. Whew. Blown away.

Okay. Apparently John Lydon, AKA Johnny Rotten, was not pleased with this movie. He felt that he should have had more of a consulting role, especially because he was one of Sid’s best friends in the early days. He felt like it glorified heroin addiction, portrayed a somewhat glamorous picture of Sid. I love John, and I get his objection to some of the stuff in the movie. But glamorous? Not even close. Sid going on the nod and burning Nancy with his cigarette isn’t glamorous; Nancy throwing it on the floor and starting their Chelsea Hotel room on fire isn’t glamorous. Shooting up isn’t glamorous. Puking in the subway isn’t glamorous. The screaming, tears, blood, and vomit isn’t glamorous. John especially objected to the final hallucinatory scene, in which Sid hops into a cab with a lovely Nancy (who was already dead by this time), saying that it was just awful and made Sid’s death seem somehow a sort of redemption. I have to disagree...I just found it sad and tragic.

I love the Pistols to this day, and I have a soft spot for Sid. But he was a troubled and addicted young man. Some would make the case that he was taken advantage of by Malcolm McLaren and the record company. I wouldn’t argue very hard against that viewpoint. I feel that he was also taken advantage of by Nancy; she was also very troubled. I read a biography of her years ago, And I Don’t Want To Live This Life, written by her mother. I think this was a case of two seriously fucked up individuals meeting and being drawn into a seriously fucked up and mutually destructive relationship. I don’t doubt that they loved each other, but they both had major problems that were only compounded by their relationship. It was like reverse synergy: neither participant benefits from the relationship. It ends up killing them both. Nancy is portrayed in the movie as a real pig. She had her problems, too, but I don’t think you can blame either one for bringing them both down. It was mutual destruction.

Visually, the movie was just lovely. Whether it was crowded club scenes, street scenes, or the scene up there at the beginning of this entry where Sid and Nancy are leaning up against a dumpster with trash raining down all around them as they kiss...if that isn’t a perfect metaphor, I don’t know what is. The soundtrack is fantastic, with Joe Strummer providing the title track “Love Kills.”

The movie was fascinating for me, and man, the Pistols’ music STILL stands up. Sid couldn’t play for shit, but he had a sort of raw talent that was perfect for the time. I think he had a lot of potential, but his addictive personality and the influence of Nancy brought him to an untimely end. I wish he would have lived so we could see what he would become. John Lydon is one hell of a smart businessman and artist, and continues to make music and headlines; Steve Jones is still out there making music; Paul Cook is, too. They all made it through the crazy years, but Sid flamed out so soon. TOO soon.

This movie didn’t make me want to go out and do drugs because Sid and Nancy were somehow “glamorous.” It made me sad and angry that addiction killed them both.

Let Yourself Go

I am admittedly a bit behind on some music. A while back, Shane played Green Day’s “Uno!” for me when we were in his car, and I loved it...but I hadn’t gotten it until recently. I now have that one, “Dos!”, and “Tre!” is on its way.

This is some primo punk-pop. It’s got that punk drive and edge, but also genuine melodies, harmonies, and lyrics. Major props to Green Day for being around all these years and still writing infectious and fun songs! I’ve added them to my “watch list” for concerts, because my new goal is to see them in concert. I had always been content to just enjoy the music, without any real desire to go see them. That has changed for me now. They’re really kicking ass, and with a newly sober Billie Joe, I suspect that they will be touring and making music for quite a few years yet. I’d say that they have as much staying power as some of the great groups from the ‘60s and ‘70s. Seriously...MAJOR respect to these guys. This is everything I love about punk rock: the attitude, the rage, the sneer. But it also has some real musicianship behind it, and a sense of pop that was often missing from pure punk bands. Not to take anything away from that, and I still love punk! It’s just cool to see it evolve a bit. I love it! Love Billie Joe, too...a punk for the modern age!

I listened to “Uno!” while I worked out today, and my favorite song was “Let Yourself Go.” I laughed out loud when I heard the lyrics. It’s actually a pretty good message, too!

Shut your mouth 'cause you're talking too much
And I don't give a damn anyway
You always seem to be stepping in shit
And all you really do is complain

It's your lie, tell it how you like
Small minds tend to think alike
Shut your mouth 'cause you're talking too much
And I don't give a fuck anyway

[Chorus:]
Let yourself go, let yourself go, let yourself go [x4]
Gotta let me go, gotta let it go [x2]

Cut the crap 'cause you're screaming in my ear
And you're taking up all of the space
You're really testing my patience again
And I'd rather get punched in the face

You're getting on my every last nerve
Everything you've said I've already heard
I'm sick to death of your every last breath
And I don't give a fuck anyway

[Chorus:]
Let yourself go, let yourself go, let yourself go [x4]
Gotta let me go, gotta let it go [x4]

Always fuck fuckin' with my head now..
Always fuck fuckin' with my head now..
Always fuck fuckin' with my head now..
Always fucking with my head and I gotta let it go!

[Chorus:]
Let yourself go, let yourself go, let yourself go [x8]

TURN IT UP!

College Daze

I went through the other two boxes of albums today (more photos to come), and spent some time working on getting a favorite onto the computer. I have so far successfully transferred one side of a two-album compilation! It’s slow going, but I think I’m starting to get it figured out. I really do have some cool, obscure stuff, and some of it might be worth something. But I wouldn’t sell these.

Yesterday, I promised some college-era photos that I ran across, and I got those scanned today. A little background. My next door neighbor in the dorm was a super cool chick named Barb, and she was a photojournalism major. Barb and I are friends to this day...even though we don’t see each other very often, whenever we do, it’s like no time has passed at all. Don’t you love friends like that? Anyway, Barb would occasionally have to do photo projects for some of her classes, and asked me to model a couple of times for her.

This was the punk/new wave era, and in one series, she had me transforming from mild-mannered, studious, bespectacled Beth to rocker girl. A rare photo of me wearing my big glasses (check out the Devo poster behind me!), as well as a rare photo of me smoking. Also me wearing almost-black lipstick, also very rare.

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In the other series, we went to the West Quad, one of the oldest buildings on campus, which housed mostly professors’ offices and art classes. The building had really neat old woodwork, tile floors, and actual radiators. The guy in the pictures is Jeff, Barb’s triplet sister’s boyfriend, now husband (still with me?). His nickname was Babes. I still have the dress, although I shortened it at some point, but the hat is long gone.

Something that Barb and I still laugh about is while we were doing this, one of the professors came out of his office, watched us for a while, then said in a Lebowski voice (long before there was a Big Lebowski, of course), “Wow. This is so out of context.” I suppose it was.

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Beth’s Music Moment – Punk Rock

When I was running errands today, I was playing one of my newer CDs. I rarely buy CDs in stores, but love going online to places like BMG (now YourMusic) and Amazon to search for bargains and cool bands that I've never listened to before. I love the feature on most websites where you can listen to a 30-second clip of the songs, and decide whether or not you're interested. I've gotten pretty good at picking out CDs that I think I will like, and I've been very happy with some of my recent purchases.

In the car today, I was playing "Waterloo" by a band called Dirty Pretty Things, and although they're a relatively new band, formed in 2005, I was struck by what a punk sound they have, and it got me to thinking about my love of punk rock. My love for it has never gone away, and neither has punk rock!

This isn't about any band in particular, although I'll put up videos from the Ramones and the Sex Pistols. Here are the Ramones with "Blitzkrieg Bop." Hard to believe that the core members of the band, Joey, Johnny, and Dee Dee, are all gone now. The first two from cancer, and Dee Dee from an overdose. R.I.P., guys.

Punk was a musical force from about the mid-70's to the mid-80's, and although a brief run, what a ten year run it was. Into the midst of lame-o 70's AM rock (There were some fun songs from then, but a lot of it was crap. I give you "Afternoon Delight" by Starland Vocal Band. The prosecution rests, your Honor.) and God help us all, disco, exploded these nasty, sneering, street punks who stuck safety pins in their faces, yelled unintelligible lyrics, and played their instruments at an insane volume and pace. I generalize, because not all artists of that time fell into that mold. That was certainly the perception of middle class America, though, when the Sex Pistols crossed the pond and embarked on a two-week tour. I can still remember Shane and I listening to our parents talk about how awful it was and how disgusting these people were. Shane and I were already into it by that time, and I'm certain that we exchanged glances during these discussions, then headed off to the bedroom to listen to records and read liner notes!

Shane and I always had a knack for sniffing out new bands before they became highly popular. I think it was just a matter of being in-tune with what was going on and reading magazines like Creem, or watching "The Tomorrow Show" with Tom Snyder (he interviewed lots of punk bands), or watching the new acts on "Saturday Night Live." Whatever it was, we could really pick 'em. We were into Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers as soon as we heard "Breakdown" on the radio, and that was well before he hit it big; we loved Blondie before "Heart of Glass"; we loved Cheap Trick before they were "Live at Budokan"; and we were B-52's (more of a New Wave group) fans as soon as we saw them perform "Rock Lobster" and "Dance This Mess Around" on SNL, long before they hit mainstream popularity with "Cosmic Thing." I'm sure there are more, and maybe Shane can help me out here, but those are the ones that really stick in my mind.

Years later, when Green Day debuted their first CD, I remember talking to Shane and saying, "This is punk! Have you heard this?!" We were always a little ahead of our time musically, and it turns out that so was punk. It persists today in bands like Green Day and the Offspring and any other band that plays loud, simple chords.

For two kids in the Midwest who loved music, punk was exciting and a little bit...dangerous. It was diametrically opposed to the sweetness trickling from the radio, and we welcomed it with open arms and open ears. A lot of it was angry, especially the stuff coming out of the UK from bands like the Clash and the Pistols. A lot of the band members were poor working class kids, and they had a big chip on their shoulders. I can't say that either Shane or I were what could be called angry teenagers, but for whatever reason, we loved the music. Maybe we just liked to rock. That still endures, as does punk.

Here are the Sex Pistols doing "Pretty Vacant." Johnny Rotten did angry very well, snarling "We're so pretty, oh so pretty, we're vacant...and we don't care!"

*Note: All words and thoughts here are my own, but for an extensive discussion of punk rock, including subsequent bands that were influenced by it, the Wiki punk entry is pretty good!