The 500 - #237 - My Generation - The Who

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: #237
Album Title: (The Who Sings) My Generation
Artist: The Who
Genre: Garage Rock, Power Rock, R&B, 
Recorded: April - November, 1962

Released: December 1962
My age at release: 5 months
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: My Generation

In 1980, my mom was working for Toshiba Canada selling their latest product, microwave ovens. She was stationed in department stores where she demonstrated this revolutionary technology to customers.

An advertisement for a '80s Toshiba Mircrowave.

It was during her December stint at a store that she decided to buy me a few records for Christmas. The records were Pink Floyd's The Wall; The Police's Zenyatta Mondatta; Eagles Live from Eagles; and The Who's Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy. I was delighted by her selections although she later confessed she had solicited assistance from a few of the young salesmen in the record department.

Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy was the first record by The Who that I owned. It was a compilation, containing songs from their previous five studio releases. and provided an excellent introduction to the English rock band which, by 1980 was legendary.

Back cover with track listing on Meaty, Beaty, Big And Bouncy.

The Who had fascinated me for several years and stories about the group (some perhaps exaggerated) were traded among my friends. They were listed in the Guinness Book Of Records as the loudest band in the world, with concert volumes exceeding 120 decibels, enough to immediately damage hearing. Their drummer had died in 1978 at the age of 32. His antics were legendary and included trashing hotel rooms, blowing up toilets with cherry bombs and even driving a Lincoln Continental automobile into a swimming pool.

The late Keith Moon of The Who

On December 3, 1979, The Who performed at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Fans had lined-up hours before the doors opened because there was no reserved seating -- a policy typical in the ‘70s called "Festival Seating". All the doors were supposed to be opened simultaneously; however , mistakenly, only two doors were unlocked. To make matters worse, the band were performing a late soundcheck which made the fans think they were missing the start of the show and a crowd surge began. Eleven fans, some as young as 15, were crushed to death, with many more badly injured.

A body is removed from Riverfront Stadium.

I was reaching concert going age in 1979, and the tragedy in Cincinnati made me apprehensive about attending my first show the next summer. It also added to the mystery and mystique of The Who. They seemed to be larger than life and weaving a story that seemed stranger than fiction. No wonder I became a massive fan during my teenage years, acquiring many of their records for my collection.

The Who performing in 1971.

My Generation was the debut record by The Who, established  in London, England, in 1962, initially under the name The Detours. They comprised singer Roger Daltry, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle, and drummer Moon. My Generation also featured session musician Nicky Hopkins, a pianist who also played with The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Beatles and the Steve Miller Band. As an aside, Hopkins might be the musician who appears most often on The 500 because he worked with so many legendary artists on their biggest records.

Nicky Hopkins.

The title track on My Generation  became one of The Who's most recognizable songs. The melody is considered by many critics to be the forerunner to the punk rock sound that exploded on the music scene a decade later in the 1970s. The anthemic lyrics celebrated youth rebellion and that resonated with me as a teen as much as they did with the youth in the ‘Sixties. The record features one of the most famous lyrics in rock history -- "I hope I die before I get old".

At 15, listening tof Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy, I reveled in Daltry's angry, frustrated, stuttering vocal performance of Townsend's lyrics to My Generation. It was one of those songs, like Rush's Subdivisions, or Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb, that I liked to imagine had been written specifically for me. Thanks mom ...and Toshiba microwaves...and those sales clerks in the record department for Christmas 1980.

The 500 - #238 - Howlin' Wolf - Howlin' Wolf

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: #238
Album Title: Howlin' Wolf
Artist: Howlin' Wolf
Genre: Chicago Blues
Recorded: Multiple studios

Released: January, 1962
My age at release: Not born
How familiar was I with it before this week: A little

Is it on the 2020 list? No, but a different Howlin' Wolf record is
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Little Red Rooster

In 1988, I went through a blues phase. I purchased Eric Clapton's Crossroads Box Set after becoming a fan of his third band, Cream (more on that story when we get to albums #205, #114 and #102). The boxset contained four compact discs, the first of which covered Clapton's time with Cream as well as his first band, The Yardbirds (#355 and #350) and John Mayall And The Bluesbreakers (#195), his second. All three bands wrote their own material, but also performed songs written by early blues artists, including Willie Dixon, Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker and Sonny Thompson.

Boxset cover for Eric Clapton's Crossroads.

Discovering those songs sent me down an audio rabbit hole and I began enthusiastically purchasing blues records and CDs. There was also a store called The Software Warehouse which rented CDs for a small fee. Consequently, I started recording my “favourite discoveries" on cassette  tape to play in my car, a 1987 Ford Mustang that I spent too much money on. (Tip of the hat to my Dad for co-signing the loan).

The 1987 Ford Mustang LX.

In the summer of 1988, I drove the “Stang” from London, Ontario, to Calgary, Alberta, to meet my future wife's father for the first time. I only stopped once, a one-hour nap beside a cornfield in Rugby, North Dakota -- the geographical centre of North America.

A stone monument in Rugby, ND, marking the geographical 
centre of North America.

That 32-hour journey was fueled by cigarettes, coffee, Jolt Cola (a cola beverage super-charged with caffeine,) and plenty of blues cassettes, including The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions, a 1971 record featuring blues legend Howlin' Wolf (born Chester Arthur Burnett) playing with contemporary artists who had been inspired by him. Among them were Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, and Rolling Stone members Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman. It was my introduction to the American singer and guitarist.

The self-titled record on The 500 list is a compilation of songs recorded by Howlin' Wolf between 1960 and 1962. Often called The Rocking Chair Album, it features 12 blues standards, all written by another blues legend, Willie Dixon. Deemed the third greatest guitar album of all time by Mojo magazine in 2004, it has been described as "an outrageous set of sex songs".

Howlin' Wolf (circa 1965)

The second track, Little Red Rooster, was released as a single in 1964 and became the first, and only, blues song to hit #1 on the U.K. singles chart. The song has been recorded by dozens of artists on The 500 list, including Muddy Waters, The Rolling Stones, Sam Cooke and The Jesus and Mary Chain. In 2007 the song was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's archive as one of the 500 songs that shaped the genre of rock.

The album was also a massive influence on the British rock band Led Zeppelin, with five records on The 500. Lyrics from the songs Back Door Man and Shake For Me were used on Zeppelin's hit song Whole Lotta Love from their second, self-titled record (#79 on The 500).

Single Release for Whole Lotta Love from Led Zeppelin

Howlin' Wolf died in 1976 at the age of 65, after battling health issues for years. He was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1980. A  29-cent stamp was issued in his memory by the U.S. Postal Service in 1994. Earlier, in 1991, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame added him to their roster. His influence can be heard today in releases by contemporary performers such as The Black Keys, Marcus King, Gary Clark Jr., and the guest on the accompanying episode of The 500 Podcast, Joe Bonamassa.

It has been a fun week or so as I revisited many of those songs that accompanied me across the continent in 1988, including that first disc from Clapton's Crossroads collection. It was a trip to remember.

The 500 - #239 - Like A Prayer - Madonna

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: #239
Album Title: Like A Prayer
Artist: Madonna
Genre: Pop
Recorded: Three California studios and Prince's Paisley Park studio in Minnesota

Released: March, 1989
My age at release: 23
How familiar was I with it before this week: I knew the hits

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #331, dropping 92 places from 239, since 2012
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Like A Prayer

Like A Prayer was the fourth studio record from the multi-faceted cultural icon, Madonna. It became the second of three records from the singer/songwriter to appear on The 500 list, with her Immaculate Collection coming up at #184. In June, 2021, I wrote a post about album # 367, Ray Of Light, providing some background and the story of seeing her perform during her 2015/16 Rebel Heart tour.

The Rebel Heart concert was a stunning visual spectacle. Performed on a massive set-piece that included a long, cross-shaped catwalk which led from the main stage to a smaller, heart-shaped second stage. The show featured set-changes, including a spiral staircase that descended from the arena ceiling.

Rebel Heart stage set.

The main stage also featured a hydraulic-powered, video-screen floor that was raised and lowered throughout the show. Consequently, the seven- piece backing band was set up stage left and right, while "Madge" and her 20-person dance troupe strutted their stuff on the many available surfaces and even aerially.

Rebel Heart main stage with the hydraulic video floor raised.

I thoroughly enjoyed the performance, but the night also marked the point where my opinion on Toronto shows (especially on a school night) began to sour. Notoriously tardy, Madonna did not grace the stage until after 10:00 that night. Consequently, my head did not hit the pillow at home in London, Ontario, 180 kilometres away until 3 a.m. Truth be told, even if the show had ended at the scheduled time of 11 p.m., we still would not have made it back until after 2 o’clock.

Madonna performing Iconic, to open her Rebel Heart show.

There was a time, prior to 2005, when a quick trip to Toronto to see a show or sporting event (Blue Jays, Raptors or Maple Leaf game) was easy, even on a school night. My wife or a friend and I would pop into my car at 3:30 and be in a downtown Toronto restaurant having dinner by 6:00. Even if the event ended at 11:00, I'd be sawing logs by 1:30.  An extra cup of coffee in the morning would vanquish any brain fog.

Things have changed. The volume of traffic in and around Toronto is now almost impenetrable. My friend Steve "Lumpy" Sullivan and I went to see Genesis in November, 2021. Lumpy picked me up immediately after my school day ended and we were on the 401 highway by 4 p.m.  By the time we parked, checked into our hotel and "sprinted" (more of a post-50-year-old fat guy jog) to the Scotiabank Arena, we plonked into our seats just as the band hit its first note -- no pre-show dinner for us.

Nevertheless, there was plenty of time for food post-show. That was only because we had booked a downtown room at, believe it or not, a reasonable rate of $220. Current rates for popular downtown Toronto hotels often exceed $500 on weekends. After the last few Toronto shows I have been to, I have driven directly home. Even so, that comes with its own set of complications. When friends and I went to see Porcupine Tree perform in September, 2022, we spent an hour trying to get from Meridian Hall on Front Street to the Gardiner Expressway -- a distance of 500 metres (1/2 a kilometre). It was then another hour before we cleared the Greater Toronto area, still an hour and a half from home.

1/2 kilometer distance from Meridian Centre to the Gardiner Expressway

Fortunately, I live about two hours from both Detroit, Michigan and Buffalo, New York – both big entertainment centres. Even with border stoppages, the journey is shorter and, despite the currency exchange rate, hotels are much cheaper. I even drove to Ottawa in September to see Peter Gabriel perform on a Saturday, rather than trying for his Wednesday date in Toronto. That trip was convenient because my dad lives not far from the entertainment venue, providing the opportunity for a visit and free digs.

Relistening to Like A Prayer in preparation for this post was a blast from the past. I did not own the record, but the six hits (including four that cracked the Top Ten in 1989) were omnipresent that year. The album marked a change in direction for Madonna and she made the recording during a time of emotional turmoil.  As she explained in a 2014 interview:

"It was a real coming-of-age record for me emotionally," Madonna told me. "I was at the end of my marriage [to actor Sean Penn] and I was working with Pat (co-producer Patrick Leonard), who was also in a very dark state of mind, and we worked in a very isolated place in the San Fernando Valley. I was very lonely when I was working on the record. I had to do a lot of soul-searching, and I think it is a reflection of that."

For many fans, Like A Prayer" marked the moment when Madonna figuratively and literally, left behind her 20--something pop persona. The newly-minted 30-year-old wrote introspective and revelatory songs and she explored her relationship with her family and faith. She also reflected on the brief time she had with her mother, Madonna Louise, who died of breast cancer in 1963 when the younger Madonna was six. It was not lost on the singer that, at 30, she was then older than her mother had been when she died.

Baby Madonna with her parents, 1958.

The record's title track was a monster hit for Madonna and is considered by many critics to be her best song. Rolling Stone Magazine's 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time listed it at #306 in a 2004 edition of the periodical. The video to the song was incredibly controversial at the time, with provocative images representing sexual assault, racism, interracial relationships and Catholic iconography, including Madonna revealing a stigmata. The video shows the songstress dancing in front of a church and burning crosses while wearing a crucifix and dressed in a small, sheer, slip-dress. She closes the video kissing a black Jesus. Technically, that was historically accurate, although evangelicals were fixated on a blue-eyed Son of God who looks more like Barry Gibb than a Middle Eastern Jewish man. Everything about the performance seemed intentionally executed to maximize the ire of the Christian right-wing, particularly in the south. I loved it!!

Screen capture from Madonna's Like A Prayer video.

Shortly before releasing the video, Madonna had signed a $5 million contract with Pepsi for rights to the song in a commercial campaign launched in January, 1989. The video from the Pepsi commercial was vastly different, depicting a far more wholesome All-American version of Madonna reflecting on her childhood and dancing in ‘50s-style vignettes. However, calls from evangelicals and even the Pope to boycott Pepsi products forced the soda company to pull the commercial and distance itself from the campaign. Interestingly, the complainers are mostly the same people who whine about “cancel culture”.

Promotional photo from Pepsi's ill-fated Like A Prayer campaign.

Despite this, Madge got to keep the $5 million and the controversy only helped record sales that spring. Now, if we can just get her to show up on time for her future concerts ...either in Detroit or Buffalo!

 

 

The 500 - #240 - Can't Buy A Thrill - Steely Dan

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: #240
Album Title: Can't Buy A Thrill
Artist: Steely Dan
Genre: Jazz Rock, Soft Rock, Pop, Folk Rock
Recorded: The Village Recorder, West Los Angeles, USA

Released: November, 1972
My age at release: 7
How familiar was I with it before this week: Quite

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #168, up 72 places from 240 since 2012
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Do It Again

Steely Dan's Can't Buy A Thrill album cover

Can't Buy A Thrill was the debut record by American Jazz Rock band Steely Dan and became the second of three records by the group to make The 500 list. In January, 2021, my friend Heather guest-blogged about about one of them – album #386, Pretzel Logic. She plans to return in about two years to write about the stronger performing album, Aja, at #145.

Steely Dan's Aja album cover, #145 on The 500

Last April, my wife and I got a chance to see Pretzel Logic, a Canadian tribute band who perform the music of Steely Dan. With us was Heather and  her husband. Also sitting in the front row were two other guest bloggers, Gary Fowler who wrote about Funky Kingston by Toots and The Maytals (#380) and Doug Hampson who wrote about Siren from Roxy Music (#374). It was a memorable 500 Blog reunion.

The band Pretzel Logic is a nine-piece group from Toronto who faithfully recreate the complex songs from Steely Dan’s ninerecord catalogue. The massively talented musicians capture the rich harmonies, saxophone and trumpet solos, intricate keyboard and guitar melodies with seemingly effortless precision. I was riveted. If you get a chance to see them...go!

Pretzel Logic performing in April, 2023 at Eastside Bar & Grill

As I prepared to write this post, I chuckled a little about my introduction to the band. It was in the summer of 1974 when the song Ricky Don't Lose That Number was an omnipresent hit on the radio. My parents had sent me on a wonderful, one-week vacation at a summer camp called Canterbury Hills Camp, nestled in the beautiful forest of the Niagara Escarpment near Ancaster Heights, Ontario. I spent seven glorious days swimming, canoeing, making crafts, learning archery and singing songs around a campfire.

Although we hiked and camped in a tent one evening, I spent most nights in bunkhouses. Despite the fact that it was a camp run by the Anglican Church, I had a bunkmate who told me the dirtiest jokes and shared the most offside stories I had ever heard. I can't remember his name, but I do remember one thing he said when Ricky Don't Lose That Number played on a nearby radio.

"Steely Dan was named after a dildo," he chortled. I had no idea what he meant, but I laughed anyway. It would be some time before I learned what a "dildo" was and I have no idea how a nine-year old had this information (I suspect he had older brothers) I learned, much later, that he was correct. Steely Dan had taken their name from a fictional, steam-powered dildo mentioned in the William S. Burroughs novel, Naked Lunch.

Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs

Can't Buy A Thrill is a wonderful record full of familiar hits, including Do It Again and Reelin' In The Years. It also features the hit single (in Canada anyway) Dirty Work. I've heard Dirty Work hundreds of times without paying close attention to the lyrics. I suspected it was more about the killer saxophone solo by studio musician Jerome Richardson. However, after listening to the companion episode of The 500 Podcast, I was surprised to learn that it is a song of self-loathing, written from the perspective of a man who is cheating with another man's wife. A remarkable bit of lyrical writing for two men in their early twenties.

It delights me when new information helps me reframe something  I have enjoyed listening to for many years and yet have misunderstood. Discoveries like this are gems. As I work my way through the next 240 records on The 500, I hope to uncover more. It is a learning thing. For now I will never listen to Dirty Work in the same way again. In the meantime,  I look forward to hearing Pretzel Logic perform the song the next time they’re in  London.