The 500 - #144 - Straight Outta Compton - N.W.A.

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by New York-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: #144
Album Title: Straight Outta Compton

Artist: N.W.A.

Genre: West Coast Rap, Gangsta Rap

Recorded: Audio Achievements Studios, Torrance, California

Released: January, 1989

My age at release: 23
How familiar was I with it before this week: A couple songs

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at 70, rising 75 places
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Straight Outta Compton

In his 1890 novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, satirist Oscar Wilde famously wrote:

“There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.” 

With this quip, Wilde critiqued the vanity and superficiality of Victorian high society. He challenged the era’s rigid emphasis on morality and reputation, suggesting that notoriety, even though scandalous, was preferable to being ignored. By mocking the obsession with public image, Wilde exposed the hypocrisy of a culture that valued appearances over authenticity, and celebrity over character.

The quote resonates with me as a middle school educator. There are times when a student feels excluded by their peers. Heartbroken, they confide that former friends are “talking behind their back” or “spreading rumours.” In these moments, I turn to Wilde’s words to offer comfort and perspective. I explain that being talked about, while painful, can also be a sign of significance…that they matter enough to be noticed.

To deepen the message, I share a lyric from The Go-Go’s song Our Lips Are Sealed, which wisely reminds us:

“There’s a weapon we can use in our defense — silence.”

Together, Wilde’s wit and the Go-Go’s wisdom can help students reclaim a sense of agency, reminding them that their value isn’t defined by gossip, and that silence can be a powerful response.

Our Lips Are Sealed from the debut album 
Beauty and the Beat from The Go-Go's
#414

In 1989, the hip hop group N.W.A., hailing from the Compton neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, burst onto the North American music scene with their debut studio album Straight Outta Compton. In many ways, their unapologetic presence echoed Oscar Wilde’s philosophy that being talked about, even scandalously, is better than being ignored. N.W.A. didn’t just make music, they made noise, challenging societal norms and demanding attention.

Originally a six-member collective, the group featured four rappers: Eazy-E (Eric Wright), Ice Cube (O’Shea Jackson), MC Ren (Lorenzo Patterson), and  Arabian Prince (Kim Nazel) -- who left before the album was released. Supporting them were two innovative DJs, Dr. Dre (Andre Young) and DJ Yella (Antoine Carraby), who crafted the group’s sound using drum machines, turntables, and early sampling technology to drive the rhythm and melody. Together, they redefined the boundaries of hip hop and forced mainstream audiences to confront the realities of life in South Central L.A.

The original five members of N.W.A. (Arabian Prince left
the group before the release of Straight Outta Compton)

I was in my mid-twenties when the controversies surrounding N.W.A. reached my corner of the world, Southwestern Ontario. At the time, I was managing a restaurant in North Toronto, near the Downsview area. The location sat among two vibrant cultural hubs and a college campus, creating a unique social dynamic. To the west were York University and the Jane and Finch intersection, a densely populated, low-income area renowned for its extraordinary cultural diversity, with over 100 nationalities and a multitude of languages spoken. To the east lay North York and Thornhill, the heart of Toronto’s Jewish community, characterized by high-rise apartments and a growing number of Jewish-owned businesses, including kosher markets, wig shops, and clothing stores.

North Toronto area where I worked (see pin). Jane & Finch
neighbourhood to the west, Jewish neighbourhood to the east.

This geographic intersection was reflected in the restaurant’s staff. Roughly a third came from the Jane and Finch area, primarily working in the back of house. Another third hailed from the Jewish community, working as servers and hosts. The remaining staff were university students and second-generation Chinese immigrants. For me, a young man raised in predominantly WASPy environments, it was an eye-opening and enriching experience, one that broadened my understanding of cultural identity, community, and the power of music to spark conversation across boundaries.

At night, during closing duties, the kitchen staff often played hip hop music on a cassette deck, including Straight Outta Compton. At the time, I didn’t grasp its innovative brilliance or cultural significance. Like many in the WASPy white majority, I dismissed it as simplistic, aggressive, and laced with misogyny, homophobia, and even racism. I suspect I saw it as a threat to the music of my generation. Ironically, most members of N.W.A. were my age. However, their cultural experiences were vastly different.

The group’s confrontational tone and unapologetic language were jarring, especially to someone like me, unfamiliar with the realities of systemic racism and urban poverty. The track F**k Tha Police felt unnecessarily caustic, and I struggled to understand its purpose. Looking back, I realize it wasn’t just provocation, it was protest, a raw and urgent expression of lived experience that I simply wasn’t equipped to interpret at the time.

I wasn’t the only one who misinterpreted Straight Outta Compton. Tipper Gore, wife of future Vice President Al Gore, led a high-profile campaign against explicit music in the 1980s through the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC). Her activism began in 1984 after buying Prince’s Purple Rain for her 11-year-old daughter and being shocked by the lyrics in Darling Nikki, which referenced masturbation. Disturbed by the lack of warning labels, she rallied support from other Washington insiders to form the PMRC.

Prince - Purple Rain (#76 on The 500)

The group compiled the infamous “Filthy Fifteen”-- a list of songs they deemed offensive and featuring artists such as Prince, Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, AC/DC, and Def Leppard. Their efforts culminated in a Senate hearing in September, 1985, where musicians, including Frank Zappa, John Denver, and Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider, testified against what they saw as censorship and a threat to artistic freedom.

Zappa, Snider and Denver testify in front of Tipper Gore
and a Senate Hearing on artistic freedom.

Ultimately, the PMRC’s campaign led to the creation of the now-iconic “Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics” sticker, which began appearing on albums in 1990. Straight Outta Compton was among the first records to retroactively bear the label, a symbol of both controversy and cultural impact.

However, in Wilde’s immortal words: – “The only thing worse than being talked about, is not being talked about" -- the controversy around N.W.A. only served to amplify their reach, especially to white, suburban youth, who pushed Straight Outta Compton to triple platinum status (three million records sold) the following year.

By the time I left that Toronto job and returned to London, Ontario, to continue my university studies, N.W.A. had become a cultural phenomenon. The generation just behind me was ravenous for the group’s sound and raw social commentary. They recognized something that took me longer to understand: N.W.A.’s music wasn’t just entertainment, it was journalism, reporting on the harsh realities of life in South Central L.A. Their refusal to sanitize their message for white audiences or advertisers was a radical act of defiance. As Ice Cube said in 1989:

“Our music's not shocking to people who know that world. It's reality. It's shocking to outsiders. Sometimes the truth hurts.”

Looking back, I realize that Straight Outta Compton didn’t just challenge the music industry…it challenged listeners like me to confront truths we hadn’t been exposed to. And that, perhaps, is the real power of art -- to disrupt, to provoke and to be talked about. After all, when it comes to issues of social equity, the only thing worse than being talked about…

The 500 - #227 - Doolittle - Pixies

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: #227
Album Title: Doolittle
Artist: Pixies
Genre: Alternative Rock
Recorded: Downtown Recorders, Boston, MA, U.S.A.

Released: April, 1989
My age at release: 23
How familiar was I with it before this week: Two songs

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #141, moving up 86 places since the 2012 list.
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Here Comes My Man

Doolittle is the second studio record from Boston-based Alt-Rockers the Pixies. I wrote about their debut record, Surfer Rosa, in May, 2022. When I penned that post, I mentioned, erroneously it turned out, that I had only been familiar with one song from the group. It was the track Where Is My Mind? which is featured significantly in the climactic scene of the film Fight Club. There are actually two tracks from Doolittle that I had heard prior to this week – Here Comes My Man and Monkey Gone To Heaven. They are in regular rotation on my home's internet streaming station of choice, Radio Paradise.

Radio Paradise is a listener-supported, commercial-free streaming music service that features four channels (Main, Rock, Mellow & Global). Although there is no mandated charge, my wife and I support it with a modest $5 monthly subscription. The service is trying to expand and I recommend you give it a try. A new channel was recently launched - Radio 2050 - which combines music with conversations about important issues.

I was texting with a friend this week about Doolittle. He goes by the pseudonym Various Artists on social media accounts and has guest blogged for me twice. He is a huge fan of Pixies and shared his own blog entry about seeing them at the Ottawa Civic Centre in April, 2011. He began his post with a story about the moment he fell in love with the Doolittle record after being lukewarm about it for several months. 

That got me thinking about albums that didn't wow me at first, but eventually became favourites -- often dominating my stereo system, headphones and car radio for months at a time. 

Three come to mind:

• Acadie by French-Canadian musician and legendary producer Daniel Lanois.
• Trick Of The Tail from British progressive-rock band Genesis, released in 1976 following the departure of founding member and singer and theatrical front-man Peter Gabriel.
• Tommy the two-disc rock opera from The Who, #96 on The 500.

In all three cases, the records came with positive reviews and were recommended by friends whose opinions I valued. My expectations were high when I gave each one its first spin on my turntable. I was nonplussed. I didn't dislike the music, but I wasn't hooked. I was just ... "meh".

However, I stuck with each one and my perseverance was rewarded. Suddenly, each one clicked. At first, it was a single track -- an earworm that was "cloggin' my noggin". Then, song by song, the records won me over and spent hours on my audio devices.

A Technics Linear Tracking Turntable, similar to the one I owned.

I think, in part, this was due to living in a generation before digital, on-demand music. In order to hear most records, I had to purchase a physical copy. This financial commitment inspirited an obligation to justify the purchase. 

Music writer and broadcaster Alan Cross said much the same last week in an appearance at the Forked River Brewery and Pub in London, Ont. In a two-hour Q&A session, Cross posited that music today, typically released via on-demand streaming, is disadvantaged. A song, or a record, has to capture the attention of today's listener quickly or risk being clicked away into audio oblivion.

Cross, speaking at Forked Brewery Pub, Saturday, February 3, 2024

Cross, who has hosted the radio program (and now podcast) The Ongoing History Of New Music for 30 years, supported his views on audio technologies through examples. He talked about his transition from disdain to love of the mellow folk-duet Battle Of Evermore from Led Zeppelin's fourth studio release (often called Zeppelin IV- #69 on The 500).

Album cover for IV from Led Zeppelin

Zeppelin's song, a mandolin-driven track featuring lyrics inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord Of The Ring fantasy series, was nestled in between the much heavier Black Dog and Rock And Roll, and the band's best known epic, Stairway To Heaven. 

Cross admitted he begrudgingly listened to The Battle Of Evermore because he was simply too lazy to get off his bed and move the needle. However, over time, the repeated listens made him a fan and he now considers it to be one of his favourite tracks from the British rockers.

That, he suggested, is unlikely to happen today, when a quick tap on a smart phone screen would dismiss the song forever. Can you imagine a young music listener discovering U2’s masterpiece album The Joshua Tree (#27 on The 500) today? The opening track, Where The Streets Have No Name, begins with an instrumental section that fades in with a slowly building series of atmospheric synthesizer notes. The guitar comes in after 40 seconds and the bass and drums don’t appear for another 30 seconds. It is the type of song that takes its time to build to a magnificent crescendo; however, it is also the type of song that could quickly bore a new listener... especially one with a short attention span and a device that allows for a song to be instantly relegated to digital purgatory with the flick of a finger.

Album cover for The Joshua Tree by U2.

I agree with Cross' assessment and consider myself fortunate to have grown up in the heyday of vinyl records. I am also delighted to have a Spotify account and access to 100 million songs on demand. Without it, I wouldn't have been able to hear Doolittle to prepare for this post. I listened to it in its entirety (never skipping a track) and much like Tommy, Acadie or, in Cross' case, Battle Of Evermore, it won me over.

I realize that I meandered a bit from the topic of Doolittle on this post. We sometimes call this "birdwalking" in the teaching profession. It happens when you plan to teach a specific lesson but let questions from the students lead you to a meandering series of stories and anecdotes -- like the seemingly aimless sandpiper foraging on a beach.

I appreciate you taking that stroll with me today. Better information on the album can be found on the accompanying episode of The 500 Podcast. Guitarist Joey Santiago from Pixies is the surprise guest this week and, despite being flanked by comedians Josh Adam Meyers and Patton Oswalt, he provides funny and engaging commentary on his band and the making of Doolittle.

The 500 - #230 - Nick Of Time - Bonnie Raitt

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: #230
Album Title: Nick Of Time
Artist: Bonnie Raitt
Genre: Rock, Americana, Blues-Rock
Recorded: Three Studios, Hollywood, California, U.S.A. 

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

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at 492, dropping 262 spots since 2012
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: Have A Heart

Nick Of Time was the tenth studio record by American singer, songwriter and guitarist Bonnie Raitt. It is also the second of two records by her on The 500 list. I wrote about her 1972 record, Give It Up, nearly five years

When I re-read my post from 2019, I confronted a wide range of emotions I suspect were similar to an adult looking back on his own school work or photographs. For instance:

• Embarrassment. The writing is pedestrian and seems to have been written without much editing. Granted, it was my fifth post on this 10-year journey. I was still treading water, feeling my way. Additionally, at that time, my father hadn't come on board to give my copy a once-over. His suggestions have improved my writing and perhaps more importantly, he serves as "first reader". His comments about the album of the week help me understand the perspective of someone less familiar with the music or artists in question.
• Satisfaction. I remind myself that 270 records are now in the rearview mirror, and that my writing style and approach to my posts have improved significantly.
• Frustration. The story I chose to share on my Give It Up post would have made more sense being shared here. It would also have been better written.
• Amusement. In 2019, I set the ambitious goal of writing about two records a week. That pace helped me catch-up to The 500 Podcast, which began four months ahead of me. However, it was ultimately unsustainable and I am glad I lowered my weekly output to one.

• 

  Album cover for Give It Up, #495 on The 500.

Such is the unsettling or pleasing consequence of looking back. As I mentioned in that 2019 post, Nick Of Time was Raitt's biggest commercial breakthrough. It came at the end of the lowest point in her career and life. In 1983, Raitt had been released from her record company (Warner Brothers) because of dissatisfaction with her record sales. The record she had just recorded and mastered (edited and produced), Tongue And Groove, was shelved by the executives. Additionally, she was struggling with a drug and alcohol addiction.

Bonnie Raitt (early 80s).

Raitt continued touring to pay the bills and support her partying lifestyle. However, as crowds dwindled, she could no longer afford her backing band and the group was dissolved. Further frustrating Raitt was Warner Brothers  decision to release her Tongue and Groove record with the new title, Nine Lives. It received little press and Raitt was now promoting a record over which she had little control. This exacerbated her substance abuse and plunged her deeper into depression.

Album cover for the Nine Lives album.

Pop star Prince was a fan of Raitt's and invited her to his studio, Paisley Park in Minneapolis, with the promise of a record contract. The gesture was derailed by a skiing accident which hospitalized her for two months. However, the silver lining  was that her convalescence gave her a new perspective on life and she began attending Alcoholic Anonymous meetings -- which she now credits with her nearly 40 years of sobriety.

Raitt continued to tour as a solo performer in order to stay afloat. In late 1987, she joined singers k.d. lang and Jennifer Warnes as the background vocalists for one of my favourite television specials, Roy Orbison and Friends: Black and White Night. It was a highly acclaimed concert film, featuring a who's who list of performers who have multiple records on The 500 list, including Bruce Springsteen (8), Elvis Costello (4), Jackson Brown (3) and Tom Waits (3).

Promotional Poster for 30th Anniversary release
of Roy Orbison Black and White Night DVD.

At about the same time, Raitt connected with now legendary songwriter and producer Don Was. The pair collaborated on several recordings and, in 1989, Raitt signed a new contract with Capitol Records. Her sobriety, hard work and the positive connections she had built in the music industry led to her breakout album, Nick Of Time, in 1989. At the age of 40, her eight-year journey of perseverance and success paid off, in the "nick of time".

Raitt in 1989.

I was fortunate to see Raitt in October, 2023 when she came with her band to my hometown of London, Ontario, on her Just Like That Tour. The opening act was the Juno-nominated multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter Royal Wood.

Promotional photo for the London show of Raitt's tour.

It was a marvelous performance and I am so happy that we were able to attend with our good friends, Terry and Heather. As I watched, I couldn’t help but reflect on the journey that brought her to our town that night. Raitt’s story of perseverance is a valuable lesson for us all when we face adversity – whether it comes from without or within.

A photo I took at the October 5, 2023, curtain call for 

Raitt and Royal Wood and their bands

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!