Artists Whose Later Non-Group Work May Need Reassessment (An Occasional Series): Special "For a Fat Girl You Don't Sweat Much" Edition

Okay, I'm going to hell for that joke. Sorry.

In any case, from her eponymous 1972 solo album, please enjoy the not then Mama Cass Elliot and a simply lovely cover of "Baby I'm Yours."

That came on the sound system at my local watering hole the other day and I couldn't immediately place it, but when Shazam identified it for me I was both pleasantly surprised and intrigued. Granted, it's not as good as the gorgeously sexy Barbara Lewis original, which is one of my all-time fave early 60s soul records, but it's beautifully sung and arranged, and it has a really nice almost sunshine pop vibe. Not surprisingly, I immediately decided to check out more stuff from the album, but don't worry, I have no intention of inflicting that on you; let's just say the side-two version of The Beach Boys' "Disney Girls" sounds uncomfortably like the work of somebody who's suffering from a debilitating disease. That said, I probably should investigate the 1970 album Cass did with none other than Dave Mason, which I recall being ambivalent about at the time, but who knows?

I should add that while researching the above I was gobsmacked to discover that in 1962 Cass had lost out to Barbra Streisand for the role of Miss Marmelstein in Broadway's I Can Get It For You Wholesale, a casting choice that clearly changed history in all sorts of unfathomable ways, and that, later, she did a week as a guest panelist on my favorite afternoon TV show Match Game '73, the videos of which I am gonna have to track down on YouTube immediately.

Sympathy for the Devil?

Uh, no.

"You've got nicer legs than Hitler

And bigger tits than Cher!"

Heh.

I should add that the above song, nastily hilarious as it is, is nonetheless better than that monster deserved.

I should also add that a certain Shady Dame and I had one of the most surreal moments of our lives a few years ago when, after exiting a Little Steven show at the Beacon Theater in Manhattan, we suddenly witnessed Henry the K. getting into a limousine.

I should also also add -- and I swear this on all that is kosher -- that nothing but serious regular postings related to the theme of this here blog will resume on Monday.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Your Thursday Moment of Why Didn't I Think of That Gag First?

Heh.

Also hah.

Seriously, THOSE guys I'd go see.

And yes, it's been a busy week, real life wise, here at Casa Simels, but I promise -- actual non-filler posting will resume on the morrow. I thank you.

Closed for Monkey Business

Or we could just call it Slacker Wednesday.

Actual stuff resumes on the morrow.

No Drugs Were Involved in the Making of This Recording. Honest!!!

Okay, I promised some of the people responsible for the below that I wouldn't post it on the blog, but on reflection I believe that it belongs to posterity, so here it is.

The short version: That's me and two of my long time garage band chums (who shall remain nameless, but their initials are Allan Weissman and David Hawxwell) in Dave's Teaneck living room sometime in the mid-70s, fooling around with an old-fashioned two track tape recorder. What specifically motivated us to do that has been lost in the sands of time, but I do recall we had a lot of fun doing it, particularly all those disgusting coughing noises toward the end,

I should also add that Al, who is responsible for the lead vocal, did a surprisingly soulful job under the circumstances. Way to go, Al.

Coming tomorrow: That interesting Vanda and Young story I teased yesterday.

Your Monday Moment of Why Didn't I Get the Memo?

From 2015, please enjoy power pop deity Marshall Crenshaw and his spectacular (and heretofore unknown to me) remake of The Easybeats' 1966 "Made My Bed, Gonna Lie In It" (aka the B-side to the epochal "Friday on My Mind.")

Long-time readers are aware of my enthusiasm for the Easys (and Harry Vanda and George Young, the auteurs of the band and much else); when people talk about them as being simultaneously both the Beatles AND the Stones of Australia, it isn't hypberole,

In any case, I was unaware of Marshall's cover until Friend of PowerPop© Sal Nunziato mentioned it in the Weekend Listomania just passed, and herewith a hearty "Thanks, buddy!"

Hmmm...I think tomorrow an interesting Vanda & Young related story might be appropriate.

Weekend Listomania: Special "A Boy Can Dream, Can't He?" Video Edition

[I originally posted a version of this back in 2007, which freaking astounds me. In any case, as is my wont, I've done some re-writing and substituted a couple of new entries, just so we have some music recorded in the current century for a change. In any event, enjoy. --S.S.]

Well, it's Friday, and you know what that means.

Yes, my hands on Asian manual catharsis technician Fah Lo Suee and I are heading off to Washington D.C. and the U.S Patent Office to register our revolutionary new Scrotum Deodorant Spray -- Elon Musk™!!!

But in the meantime, here's a hopefully fun project to help us wile away the idle hours until our return:

THE GREATEST COVER VERSIONS THAT NEVER WERE!!!

You know -- some really fabulous song you'd really like to hear some favorite artiste (solo or group) perform or record, but they never got (or haven't gotten) around to it (the bastards!!!).

Okay, my totally off the top of my head Top Ten is:

10. Vampire Weekend -- Here Comes My Baby [The Tremeloes]

My favorite three chord pop rock hit of all time performed by the guys who did "This Life"? I could die and go to heaven.

9. The Hold Steady -- The Boys Are Back in Town [Thin Lizzy]

They probably jammed on it at sound checks a thousand times -- if they're still an ongoing concern, it's about time they go public with it for gosh sakes.

8. The Pretenders -- Every Little Bit Hurts [Brenda Holloway]

My fave 60s soul ballad/torch song would be a natural for Chrissie Hynde, I suspect. Trivia note: The song was written by the same guy who wrote "Dirty Water." Pretty versatile dude, obviously.

7. Neko Case -- The First Cut Is The Deepest [Cat Stevens]

Because she'd do it better than Sheryl Crow, duh.

6. Steve Earle -- Street Fighting Man [The Rolling Stones]

C'mon -- this is the job he was born for.

5. Bob Mould -- Calvary Cross [Richard and Linda Thompson]

On the 1994 Thompson tribute album Beat the Retreat, Mould turned the rockabilly tinged "Turning of the Tide" into a killer piece of buzz-saw punk. I swoon to imagine what he could do with Thompson's most intensely doom-haunted song....

4. The Floor Models -- Second Choice [Any Trouble]

Hey -- as you can hear, we already ripped it off -- we should have just copped to it and covered it.

3. Elvis Costello and the Attractions -- One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later) [Bob Dylan]

If anybody is going to do the most majestic "Blonde On Blonde" song of them all, it should be these guys.

2. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers -- 19th Nervous Breakdown [The Rolling Stones]

Jagger's snarl would have morphed into Petty's sly drawl pretty good, doncha think? It's a shame that, to my knowledge, Tom never got around to covering it.

And the number one cover I'd love to hear is....

1. Led Zeppelin -- Bits and Pieces [Dave Clark Five]

For obvious reasons.....

Alrighty then -- what would YOUR choices be?

And have a great weekend, everybody!!!

If It's Thanksgiving, It Must Be Procol Harum

From 1969, here's the original classic lineup of the aforementioned Procol Harum...

......and their seraphically beautiful "Pilgrim's Progress."

Pilgrim -- get it? It's not rocket science, kids.

As long-time readers may recall, this song is something of a Thanksgiving tradition around here. Which is, of course, a pretentious way of saying I'm too lazy to come up with a new gag. Quel surprise.

In any case, enjoy the cranberry sauce and stuffing, everybody!!!

And be of good cheer; Weekend Listomania -- and a particularly cool one -- returns tomorrow!!!

PS: I have a really wonderful story about the instrumental fade-out of that song -- it involves a brilliant short film (a proto-music video, actually) shot by and starring some old college friends of mine circa 1970 -- and I'm going to tell it here one of these days. Promise.

Closed for Erev Thanksgiving Mishegass/Monkey Business

That's "the night before Thanksgiving" for our goyische readers, BTW.

Regular postings resume on the holiday tomorrow.

Well I'll Be Jiggered -- Sad Songs Really DO Say So Much!

Attentive readers nay recall that last week I waxed enthusiastic about former Blake Babies and Lemonheads chanteuse/alt-rock cover girl Juliana Hatfield.

Specifically, about her new album of ELO covers. I also mentioned that this was the third tribute album Hatfield had done in the last couple of years, and that I had enjoyed the one from 2018 devoted to Olivia Neutron Bomb Newton-John.

Anyway, the short story (yeah, I know) is I was moved the other night to revisit said album, and damn if this track didn't blow my tiny mind.

Seriously, I had never considered the original of that as much more than well-crafted commercial kitsch, but Hatfield's version really got under my skin, albeit in a sort of minimalist-ironic way. And I never would have believed this possible, so kudos to Bruce Welch and John Rostill, the two guys from Cliff Richards' legendary backup band The Shadows, who wrote the thing,

Coming tomorrow: I flip out over Metallica's version of "Hopelessly Devoted to You."

I keed, I keed!!!