The 500 - #332 - Shoot Out The Lights - Richard and Linda Thompson

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: # 332

Album Title: Shoot Out The Lights

Artist: Richard and Linda Thompson

Genre: British Folk Rock

Recorded: Olympic Studios, London, U.K.

Released: March, 1982

My age at release: 16

How familiar was I with it before this week: Not at all

Is it on the 2020 list? No

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Shoot Out The Lights

There are six Learning Skills on which Ontario Elementary Educators evaluate their students for report cards. Of the six, Collaboration is the skill I spend most of the year helping students foster.

Collaboration is challenging, and an attribute that requires effort to master. It is more than "working with someone." I can work with anyone, especially if the desired outcome is simple, clear and measurable. Washing dishes, cooking a meal, doing  yard work with someone else is  "co-operation" rather than "collaboration". The real test of collaborative skill is co-operating on a creative project – a coming together of minds where input from each determines the outcome.

Recently, I watched the new documentary Get Back. The three-part, eight-hour series covers the making of The Beatles' 1970 album Let It Be, which was their eighth and final studio recording. It is an intimate examination of collaboration -- four creative minds   working toward an album, concert and film project over 21 days in a London studio. The film chronicles the challenges, triumphs, drudgery, levity and frustrations of the creative process. There is a moment when guitarist George Harrison jokingly suggests that his friend Bob Dylan join them in the studio. Bandmate Paul McCartney immediately retorts: "It's bad enough with four of us!"

Shoot Out The Lights is also an interesting product of strained collaboration. It is the sixth and final album from British husband and wife folk-rock duo Richard and Linda Thompson. It is the second album from the couple on The 500. I wrote about I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight, back in July, 2019. It is at position #471.

In 1979, the couple found themselves without a record contract after disappointing sales of their fifth album, Sunnyvista. By 1980, they were touring as the opening act for Gerry Rafferty and working on new material. Rafferty offered to help finance a new record and used his connections at United Artists to help secure a new contract for the Thompsons.

Singer/Songwriter Gerry Rafferty performing with his band (1979)

However, the Thompsons' collaborative relationship with Rafferty was short-lived. The couple, Richard in particular, were unhappy with Rafferty's production work on many of the songs that would, eventually, make up the Shoot Out The Lights record. Consequently, the songs were re-recorded. The original version was eventually leaked as a bootleg recording dubbed Rafferty's Folly.

The relationship between the couple was further strained when Richard began an affair with tour promoter Nancy Covey while Linda was pregnant. By the time the record was finished and released, the couple was separated. They continued to perform together promoting the record, but the relationship was tense. In fact, the acrimony was so apparent on stage that fans of the group labelled it the "Tour From Hell".

Linda & Richard Thompson on stage (1981)

The album, which was filled with songs containing barbed metaphors about their failing marriage, was critically well received. AllMusic magazine praised it as "a meditation on love and loss in which beauty, passion and heady joy can still be found in defeat." 

Much like The Beatles accomplished a decade before them with Let It Be, Richard and Linda Thompson managed to create something remarkable while simultaneously falling apart. Collaboration in a cauldron. It is not ideal, but sometimes it works -- testimony to the value of dedication, talent and creativity.

Truth be told, I think the other Thompson record on The 500 list, I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight, is far superior. I am flummoxed by Shoot Out The Lights being rated higher. These thoughts were echoed by podcaster Josh Adam Meyers and a guest, Avery Pearson, on the accompanying episode of The 500 Podcast. It is well worth a listen as the comedic pair, Meyers and Pearson, take Shoot Out The Lights to task in a riotous, one-hour conversation.

The 500 - #333 - Wild Gift - X

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: # 333

Album Title: Wild Gift

Artist: X

Genre: Punk

Recorded: Clover & Golden Sound Recording Studio, Los Angeles, CA

Released: May, 1981

My age at release: 15

How familiar was I with it before this week: Not at all

Is it on the 2020 list? No

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: White Girl selected by my friend Albie Jasinski, a long-time fan of X.

In January, 1980, the California-based punk band X went to a studio to record their first record, Los Angeles. It was a massive critical success and sits, waiting for us, at position #287 on The 500 list. However, the group had so many quality songs ready for that recording session that most of them had to be put on hold. Those shelved recordings make up the bulk of  the band's second release, Wild Gift, which has also earned a spot on The 500.

With the exception of The Beatles, I am hard pressed to think of a band on The 500 that had so much exceptional material ready to record that had enough for another album. Additionally, much like The Beatles releases, Wild Gift, was met with critical acclaim.

X is regarded by many critics, including journalist Robert Hilburn, as "one of the most influential bands of their era". Despite their musical prowess, the group had limited commercial success but became a cult favourite. Indeed, I knew little about them before discovering this record on The 500.

X was formed in 1977 when bassist, vocalist and songwriter John Doe (born John Duchac) met guitarist Billy Zoom (born Stuart Kindell) in Los Angeles. The pair had independently put ads in a local music magazine searching for like-minded musicians. When they met to discuss a collaboration, Doe took along his poetry-writing girlfriend, Exene (born Christina Cervenka). She planned on penning lyrics for the band, but soon became the vocalist.

X in 1980 (l-r) Exene, Zoom, Doe & Bonebreak

The final recruit was the only native Californian – drummer D.J. (Donald James) Bonebrake.  Perhaps you, like me, assumed Bonebrake was also a pseudonym. After all, punk rockers are known for adopting peculiar stage names -- Sid Vicious, Johnny Rotten, all The Ramones or the aforementioned Doe, Exene and Zoom. With a name like D.J. Bonebrake, the drummer fit into the group perfectly.

D.J. Bonebrake (1980s)

However, Bonebrake is  D.J.'s legitimate birth name, with roots dating back to 17th century Switzerland. Despite variations in spelling over the years  (Pinebrech and Bonbright), there are many examples of the Bonebrake name throughout American history, including soldiers from the Civil War.

The Wikipedia entry for the album Wild Gift categorizes the genre as punk. However, that is a woefully narrow definition of the sounds on this terrific disc. Sure, there are some punk rock bangers on the  album, but the songs Adult Books and In This House That I Call Home are reminiscent of the art-rock, New Wave sounds of Talking Heads. By contrast, Some Other Time and Beyond and Back clearly have their roots in 1950s rockabilly.

X in concert 2016

Despite a lengthy hiatus, several side projects and some temporary line-up changes, the original band still performs today. In 2020, they released their first new material in 27 years, the critically well-received Alphabetland. A  tour planned to support the record was delayed by the Covid pandemic, but the group played a few dates in 2021. Fans hope a full tour is launched this year.

Alphabetland Album by X (2020)

We'll revisit X in about 46 weeks with their debut record, Los Angeles, an album endowed with so much material that it required a Wild Gift to bring it to completion.

The 500 - #334 - Squeezing Out Sparks - Graham Parker

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: # 334

Album Title: Squeezing Out The Sparks

Artist: Graham Parker

Genre: New Wave

Recorded: Landsdowne Studios, London, UK

Released: March, 1979

My age at release: 13

How familiar was I with it before this week: Not at all

Is it on the 2020 list? No

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Nobody Hurts You selected by my good friend Billy Gudgeon -- who managed a band that played that song.

Sometimes I'll share high-school advice with my Grade 7 or 8 students. I don't hector them with, "You'll never pass in high school if..." statements.

Sadly, I used to.

In my defence, it was all I knew. It was, after all, the method my Grade 8 teacher had employed to introduce post-elementary education to me. According to Mr. Durocher, high school was going to be a cold, hard and unforgiving place where "nobody could help you, but yourself."

I suppose I should have been terrified, but I had the focus and attention span of a 12-year-old, resigning myself to thinking I would struggle and then figure things out. After all, it was a strategy that had worked so far.

Now that I am a middle-school educator, I no longer choose this foreboding supposition with my young charges. Instead, I try to inspire excitement, wonder and joy. I tell them they will "find their tribe" and that they will "meet expert teachers who will help prepare them for the next chapter in their lives" -- be it post-secondary education, an apprenticeship, the broad-spectrum work force, or even travelling.

I also encourage them to get involved as much as they can in endeavours that capture their interests. It is not like there is a shortage of volunteer opportunities in a typical high school.

"Push past the hesitation and fear."

"Try out for school teams, even if you don't make them."

I tried out for every school team in Grade 9, making the cross-country and wrestling teams because...well...they didn't cut anyone who kept showing up. Made the Grade 9 basketball team as the coach's 14th option. Only during the fourth quarter when the game was clearly out of reach for one of the teams -- usually us -- would I be allowed to step on the court.

If asked what position I played in high school basketball -- I'd say bench.

I also tell my young charges  to investigate the many different clubs and social groups available at their new academic home.

"Joining a club is a great way to meet new people and, often, engage with teachers outside the academic environment. "Often, club involvement will become an important bullet point on your resume."

In the first weeks of my Grade 9 year there was an open invitation for wannabe writers and artists to join the school newspaper. A few days later, I had my first assignment -- write a music review. 

The launch pad for a wandering mind

At the time, 1979, the New Wave genre was finding its way into the collective teen conscience...even in the sleepy, farming/fishing town I called home. So, I decided to write about that.

New Wave is a "catch-all" term to describe the music that came out of the punk movement of the late 70s. It was, like punk, created with a "Do It Yourself" (DIY) philosophy. But, unlike punk, it was more accessible to mainstream audiences, borrowing a little from the pop sensibilities of the 60s.

I was out of my element writing the piece I submitted. There was no access to Google, let alone research at the local or school library -- which were void of my subject matter. Wanting to appear knowledgeable and hip, I cobbled together a few ideas from things I had heard on local radio and about the artists I had seen perform on television -- mainly Saturday Night Live.

The original Saturday Night Live players

I knew a few songs from four bands which fell under the big umbrella of "New Wave" -- The Police, The Cars, Devo and Blondie. So, I talked about them and used inspirational words such as, "groundbreaking", "revolutionary", and "the future of music". It turns out, I wasn't far off. All four bands have records on The 500 - The Police have four. However, listening to Graham Parker's record in preparation for this post, I was transported to the New Wave sounds I would hear as the seventies became the eighties. They were reminiscent of Elvis Costello (four records on The 500) and Joe Jackson -- whose second album, I'm The Man, should be on The 500. If only life were fair.

Four 1978 records that influenced my taste for New Wave

Graham Parker, often paired with his supporting band, The Rumour, was an artist I had heard of, but did not know very well. Although, I was familiar with Heat Treatment from his second record of the same name, it was better described as rock or blue-eyed soul. Parker wouldn't make the move to the New Wave sound until Squeezing Out Sparks.

Parker was born in Hackney, East London, in 1950. Like many of his generation, he grew up a fan of The Beatles, soul music, Motown and the emerging genre of British ska, a reggae influenced sound imported to the U.K. from Caribbean immigrants. While learning the guitar in his late-teens, he worked at a rubber glove factory and later, raised animals for research into foot and mouth disease, a devastating affliction for cloven foot beasts.

He spent a year living in Gibraltar, unloading ships by day and practising guitar at night. When he returned to live with his parents in 1972, he was determined to pursue music full-time. He placed an ad in Melody Maker magazine, looking for like-minded musicians.

Melody Maker Magazine (1872)

Voila! Parker attracted the attention of guitarist Brinsley Shwarz,  a veteran U.K. pub performer. Shwarz brought with him his bandmates Bob Andrews (keyboards), Martin Belmont (guitar), Andrew Bodnar (bass) and Stephen Goulding (drums). They called themselves The Rumour and performed as Parker's supporting band while also touring and recording on their own.

Parker (foreground) with The Rumour (l-r) Bodnar, Shwarz,
Andrews, Goulding & Belmont 

Squeezing Out Sparks, the band's fourth record, was a departure from their work on the first three albums. Parker spurned the horns, he had used on previous releases, and drew upon the punk rock sound that was exploding in both London and New York. The record was planned to follow an over-arching concept about growing up in suburbia, but that idea was discarded. Regardless, many of those themes are evident in songs such as Local Girls, You Can't Be Too Strong, and Saturday Night Is Dead.

Squeezing Out Sparks - album back cover

Squeezing Out Sparks was voted Album Of The Year for 1979 in the year-end poll by Village Voice Magazine, as well as being lauded by Rolling Stone Magazine and the New Music Express. It was launched back into the spotlight in 2012 when Parker and his music were featured as an important plot point in the Judd Apatow comedy film, This Is 40. Parker played a slightly-fictionalized version of himself and performed several songs in the film and for the soundtrack.

A 40th anniversary edition of the record was released in 2019 as a solo-acoustic recording by a (Rumour-less) Parker. He followed it with a (Covid-delayed) U.S, tour in 2021 and also performed solo in small venues. He remains on good terms with The Rumour, who have also recorded and performed without him. There is a possibility of a reunion tour.

When I return to my Grade 7 class in two weeks following foot surgery, I may share the story of Parker with them: A non-musician who took a chance and picked up a guitar at 18 to pursue a dream that became a nearly 50-year career. Of course, I'll remind them of the expert teachers in high school who will help them on their journey.

The 500 - #335 - Superunknown - Soundgarden

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: # 335

Album Title: Superunknown

Artist: Soundgarden

Genre: Hard Rock, Grunge, Heavy Metal, Stoner Rock

Recorded: Bad Animals Studio, Seattle, Washington

Released: March, 1994

My age at release: 28

How familiar was I with it before this week: Very

Is it on the 2020 list? No

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Like Suicide (Acoustic) from the Deluxe version

Superunknown, the fourth release by American rock band Soundgarden, is one of the three records on the 500 list that I purchased on the day of its release. The other two were Vitalogy by Pearl Jam (#485) and Hysteria by Def Leppard (#464). I had been a Soundgarden fan for a few years, first hearing them on the soundtrack to the 1990 film, Pump Up The Volume.

However, it was their third album, 1991's Badmotorfinger, that made me a huge fan. After finishing my bartending shift at 1 a.m. at a restaurant in London, Ontario. I would strap on my roller blades, pop my portable CD player into my fanny pack and blast Badmotorfinger through my headphones, skating the empty streets. Typical 90s stuff.

Technics SLP7 Portable CD player ($600 in 1985)

Soundgarden were originally called The Shemps which played mainly cover songs in and around the Seattle, Washington, area. In 1984, bassist Hiro Yamamoto left the band and was replaced by Kim Thyil. Drummer Chris Cornell moved from behind his kit and took over vocal duties. They took the name Soundgarden from a wind- channeling pipe sculpture called a Sound Garden in nearby Magnusson Park.

A Sound Garden in Magnusson Park, Seattle

Eventually, Yamamoto returned and Thyil moved to guitar. Drummer Matt Cameron joined in 1986. Yamamoto departed for good in 1989 and the final line-up was formed with Cornell, Thyil, Cameron and bassist Ben Shepherd.

(l-r) Shepherd, Cornell, Thyil & Cameron in 1990

Badmotorfinger was a critical and commercial success. The singles Rusty Cage and Outshined got radio play and the videos were in regular rotation on Much Music and MTV. The third single, Jesus Christ Pose, was banned on MTV because of controversial lyrics that were perceived as anti-Christian. However, the perception was preposterous. Even a cursory examination of the lyrics reveals the song is a criticism of public figures (celebrities, politicians) exploiting religion for their own purposes.

Jesus Christ Pose single release

If Badmotorfinger was a hand grenade, Superunknown was an atomic bomb that blasted Soundgarden into the popular music stratosphere. My first taste was the single Spoonman, which was released about a month before the full album. There was a rumour in my social circle that the song was based on a London, Ontario, character named William "Snake" Pulley. Pulley was a local celebrity in the 80s and 90s who rode around town on a hyper-extended front wheeled “chopper” motorcycle. Moreso, he sported 4,000 tattoos covering 90 percent of his body, and was sometimes spotted at music festivals playing the spoons. These days, tattoos are fairly commonplace and there are even well-known musicians with face tattoos. However, in the 80s, he was an oddity. I met him on several occasions as a teen and he was soft-spoken, approachable and pleasant -- the opposite of what one might expect from his menacing appearance.

William "Snake" Pulley

The Spoonman rumours proved untrue. In reality, the song was about Seattle native and street performer Artis The Spoonman, who busked at local markets and fairs in the west coast city.

Artis The Spoonman performing in Seattle

Superunknown went on to sell nine million copies worldwide and introduced Soundgarden to a mainstream audience. The band released one more record, Down On The Upside in 1996 before taking a hiatus until 2010 when they reunited for a new album, King Animal, and a tour. They visited my hometown in July, 2011, and I finally got a chance to see them with my brother.

On May 18, 2017, after a performance by Soundgarden at the Fox Theatre in Detroit, Michigan, Chris Cornell was found dead in his hotel room – suicide by hanging, according to the medical examiner. However, his wife, Vicky, believed the drug Ativan, which he was taking, may have contributed to his death. The band cancelled the remainder of their tour and, with the exception of a tribute concert in January, 2019, have never performed together publicly since.

I remain a loyal fan of both Soundgarden and Cornell's other projects, including the supergroup Audioslave, which he formed in 2001 with three members of Rage Against The Machine.

Ticket Stub from the Audioslave concert I attended,
Thanksgiving Weekend, 2005

If it wasn't for the pins in my toes from a recent major foot surgery, I would have slapped on my roller blades and cued up Badmotorfinger and Superunknown on Spotify for a cruise around the streets. Rest In Power, Chris. Thanks for helping me get into the best shape of my life. I need to do it again.