BEST OF 2011 - #1 - SOCIAL DISTORTION "HARD TIMES AND NURSERY RHYMES"

So far, I haven't seen Social Distortion's Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes on anyone else's "best of 2011" lists, and what a shame that is. But: your loss, rock critics and bloggers!

And that's the story of Social Distortion in a nutshell.  Because the thing is, even though they've never really fit into a radio format (or tried to), they were never critics' darlings, and are a bit too scary for the mainstream, they sell out all their shows.  The audience really don't care what punk bands are "in," or what's the latest trend in pop culture.  These people see Social D whenever they come to town and they wear their fandom on their sleeves. Many times on tattooed sleeves.

This is an incredible album. I raved about it when it first came out.  Maybe a little less angry than the earlier ones (maybe). But it's filled with great punk rock anthems that a younger guy couldn't have written: they are songs written from someone with experience.  He's seen it all, and still isn't interested in toning it down, or lightening up, or pandering in any other way, to appeal to anyone.  And thank god for that.

Get the album. Trust me.  But I'll name names: "California (Hustle and Flow)" is classic, so is "Sweet and Lowdown."  But my favorite song on the album is "Far Side Of Nowhere," which sounds like Bruce Springsteen was subbing in for Michael Stipe at a R.E.M. session.  I'm not sure Mike Ness would appreciate the R.E.M. comparison, but that's what it made me think of.  On any planet that makes sense, this would have been the #1 hit of the summer.

Whenever I've told anyone that this would be my #1 LP of 2011, they were sort of surprised, but only because they hadn't heard the album.  Which is their loss, and my ongoing mission.  It should be yours too.  Listen to this album. Tell people about it.  When I listen to it, I feel good to be alive.  I don't know many other albums that you can say that about these days.

THE GREATEST ALBUMS OF NO EXPIRATION'S LIFETIME

This is my 2,000th post! It feels like a big deal to me.  I've really enjoyed doing this blog, reading your comments (both here and on the No Expiration Facebook page) and occasionally meeting people who read the blog in person.  Thanks for your support, I'm going to continue doing No Expiration, and maybe add a video element to it at some point. I am in my early 40s, and love music as much as I ever did.

It was difficult to decide what to write about for my 2000th post.  I decided to do a list of the best albums that have come out since I launched this blog in the fall of 2007.  Some of my friends have a laugh over the fact that so many of the artists I listen to are "old" (which is silly and ageist), but in fact there are some newer artists, some who are celebrated by the hipster elite.  In fact, one of these albums topped the Village Voice "Pazz & Jop" album list!

1. The Drive-By Truckers - The Big To-Do was my favorite album of 2010, and also my favorite album of the past few years.  The DBTs is a band I was hardly aware of until a few years ago.  It was basically listening to SiriusXM's Outlaw Country that turned me on to them, and for that, I'm grateful. Once I started hearing a couple of songs, I started buying albums, and then attending concerts.  I'm in: I'm a fan for life. The Big To-Do is one of their best albums.  If my peers ask me about "new" bands to get into, I'll mention the Truckers.  They're not new, but they're new to a lot of people.

2. Bob Dylan - Together Through Life was my favorite album of 2009. It's amazing to me that Dylan still is adding to his unbelievable body of work. He was 68 (I think) when this came out.  How many 68 year olds are still putting out classic LPs? Well, I guess you can't compare anyone to Dylan anyway. The songs on this album were incredible - instead of writing them all on his own (as he usually does), he collaborated with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter.  But the secret sauce here is in the musicians he assembled for this record: Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell and Los Lobos multi-instrumentalist David Hildago.

3. Bruce Springsteen - Magic He's as relevant as he ever was, and he drove that point home with this album. By this point, he'd driven away lots of his politically conservative fans, and goes hard at the bu$h administration.  And he did it with some of his best songs ever.  I love "Long Walk Home." The line "The flag flying over the courthouse, certain things are set in stone: who we are, what we'll do and what we won't."  The song has one of Clarence Clemons' last great sax performances.  Actually, the live version is even better than the one on Magic, it has great vocal performances by Steve Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren. On the same album is "Girls In The Summer Clothes" which is pretty self-explanatory. This was around the time that lots of younger acts, from Arcade Fire to Gaslight Anthem, were citing Bruce as a major audience.  For a long time you didn't have young artists referencing Bruce that much, around Magic that started to change.

4. Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals - Lifeline My favorite album of 2007.  It was an album that they recorded in Paris over a (I think) two week period while touring for 2006's Both Sides Of The Gun, but it it totally a different album. The Innocent Criminals were really gelling as a band at this point... so it's weird that this is the last that we've heard of them (Ben has recorded either with Relentless7 or Fistful Of Mercy since then). I really hope we hear more from Ben and The Innocent Criminals in the future (I love R7 and Fistful though).  The album has a laid back but really soulful sound.  It's one of my favorites by Ben (who is one of my favorite artists ever).

5. Cocktail Slippers - Saint Valentine's Day Massacre There are two bands that I won't shut up about when people ask me about good relatively recent bands: The Drive-By Truckers and The Cocktail Slippers. Saint Valentine's Day Massacre is just a classic rock record, it actually blows my mind that more people haven't heard of them.  Little Steven, who produced the album, said it is one of the best albums he has ever worked on.  Think about that for a second.  By the way, I agree with him.  This album would be considered a classic and they would be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame if this came out in the '60s, '70s or '80s.

ANOTHER STATE OF MIND

I've been listening a lot to Social Distortion's latest album, Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes lately. But to have a look at their earliest days, I just watched the documentary, Another State Of Mind," shot on the band's 1982 U.S. tour with Youth Brigade (whose Shawn Stern organized the tour).

You want to talk "hard core?"  Try putting 11 punks into an old school bus with 90,000+ miles on it and driving around the circumference of the United States. But it was an interesting documentary for sure.

I wasn't part of that scene - or even aware of it. At that time, I was in junior high school, just discovering music through older friends and, of course, MTV. I don't know that I would have been part of that scene even if I was aware of it: I really liked aggressive music, but I definitely wasn't as angry as lots of the kids in this doc.

In some ways, the film was a downer: you watch the guys on the bus realize that their ideals of "unity" sort of disappear when there's no money and no food. On the other hand, you can see the commitment of some of the guys, mainly Mike Ness. Some of the film is pretty prophetic.  At one point, the other guys in Social D complain about Mike's drinking and his response is, "I've been playing these songs for three years! I know them like I know my mother, I can get as drunk as I want!"  That attitude would later get him into trouble.  Later on, the other three guys leave the tour to return to L.A.: that's where the money is, they don't see the purpose in playing places where people don't know them.  Mike Ness stays, but ends up leaving also: he realizes that at that point, he can't play without a band. But he does say that they can leave, "I'm keeping the name, and I'm still playing these songs!" Which is exactly what he's done.

Also of great interest is the footage of the Washington, D.C. part of the tour, when they bands stayed at The Dischord House, HQ of Ian MacKaye and Minor Threat. Even back then, Ian was a straight edge, and promoted that lifestyle. You could see the bands respected each other, but no way would a Social D and Minor Threat tour on a bus have worked out!

Major props to the filmmakers Peter Stuart and Adam Small for having the presence of mind to document this tour - back then, in the pre-digital age, making a doc like this must have been incredibly difficult, but their commitment to it was on par with Ness and MacKaye's commitment to their art.

TOMORROW ON OUTQ: SOCIAL D, GREGG ALLMAN, CAKE

For those of you who are new to No Expiration, every Wednesday morning, I am a guest contributor to the SiriusXM OutQ show The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick (co-hosted by Keith Price). Every week I talk about music and this week, I've got some great stuff to discuss.  I usually go on at at 9 am ET, but tomorrow I'll be on at 9:25, I'm being pre-empted for Miss America, believe it or not. Larry was nice enough to invite me to sit in on that, but I'm more than twice her age, so I'll pass!

First off is the new Social Distortion album, Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes. Mike Ness makes you wait a long time inbetween albums, but in my mind, it's worth it. I've never felt let down, by either Social D's albums or his solo records. However long it takes him to make them is fine with me.

Gregg Allman's first solo album in over 15 years, Low Country Blues, is also worth the wait. Very different from an Allman Brothers Band album, the record sees him teaming up with "Him Again," the great producer T-Bone Burnett. They make an amazing team, and they've produced an excellent album. I love it.

I've been a Cake fan since 1994: I remember seeing them at The Mercury Lounge in NYC in maybe 1994 or 1995. I had no idea that they'd get as big as they did, but I think they have that... thing ... that makes a band become a "cult" band. They have a career and most of the country don't even know who they are. It's a beautiful thing. They don't have anything to do with trends, they totally do their own thing, and I really admire them. But I'm a fan because of their great songs. I didn't love their last album, but the new one, Showroom Of Compassion, is growing on me, and I'm told it's the #1 album in the country this week!

The Jayhawks are a great "Americana" band, and they are reissuing what are arguably their two best albums, 1992's Hollywood Town Hall and 1995's Tomorrow The Green Grass this week. The latter has "Blue," which is a perfect song if there ever was one. These guys should have been bigger than they were. The band has recently reunited with their principal singer/songwriters Marc Olson and Gary Louris, and have a new album coming out this year. But both of these reissues are really worth your time and money, especially if you don't have them yet (but the bonus tracks make it worth it, even if you do).

Finally, this week Pearl Jam release their second live album, Live On Ten Legs. Although given the fact that they've released "official bootlegs" of pretty much every concert they've done for the past decade, I don't really see the point - it would have been cooler if they put all their rare covers or one-off guest spots on the album. I don't really need more versions of "Jeremy" and "Rearviewmirror" as much as I like those songs.  I have like 20 official bootlegs!  It does have one very cool rarity: a cover of the Public Image Ltd song "Public Image." Which I bought on iTunes. But if you don't have any live Pearl Jam stuff, you're missing out, and this would be a great place to start.

SOCIAL DISTORTION - HARD TIMES AND NURSERY RHYMES

Musically speaking, 2011 is off to a rocking start.  I've been looking forward to the release of Social Distortion's new album, Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes which came out today. Although my copy didn't come in the mail, I've listened to it a bunch of times, via an incredibly smart promotion Social D did on their website. They put up the entire album for streaming, and for every 100,000 streams, they'd lower the price of the CD $1, with the price starting at $12.99.  Now the price is $8.99. (Each song counts as a single stream.)

But enough about that, the album is amazing. Mike Ness isn't the most prolific artist: the last Social D. album (the very underrated Sex, Love and Rock N Roll came out in 2004), but I think that's because he doesn't just want to crank out albums. When he's got enough songs, then he goes into the studio to do an album, and this time he was definitely ready. Sonically, he's pretty consistent, but there's a new element to some of the songs on the album: female backing singers. It definitely works, and gives some songs more of a Stonesy feel (even a Skynyrd-y feel, but I think Ness would kick my ass for saying that).

Some of the songs I've already heard: "Machine Gun Blues" has been out on iTunes, and I heard "Bakersfield" (one of the highlights of the album) and their cover of Hank Williams' "Alone And Foresaken" when they played Roseland a few months ago. Maybe my favorite is "California (Hustle and Flow)," which makes great use of the backing singers.  But really, the album is great start to finish.  It's kind of a shame that the media won't pay much attention. But then again, Social D have always been outsiders - a true "alternative" if you will - and they sell out shows all over the place without a huge marketing campaign. So while the media fawns over the next bloodless indie rock band, put your hard earned $7.99 towards this album.  If you love heart, soul and rock and roll, you'll be glad you did.

SOCIAL DISTORTION AT ROSELAND - AWESOME, AS ALWAYS

 "Social Distortion is playing at Roseland?  Really, I didn't know!"

I work around the corner from New York City's Roseland Ballroom, and lots of folks who I work with, who enjoy Social D's music, had no idea that they were playing just three blocks away this past Thursday night.  And yet, they sold the joint out, it was packed!

I saw Social D this summer at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, and my post about it started out in on similar theme.  So many people don't know that Social D is still a working band, and yet they sell out fairly large venues, without help from radio or the press or whatever.

And just like this summer, the band was totally rockin'. Every time I see Mike Ness perform, I'm blown away.   I don't like to put other bands down, and I'm not calling anyone out, but when I think of rock bands that get a lot of attention today... compared to Ness and Social D, they just look like twerps.  He's sort of quietly hit "living legend" status in my mind, but he still has great music left in him.  I'm definitely a big fan of the last Social D record, 2004's Sex, Love and Rock 'n' Roll, and I'm looking forward to the next one, Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes, due in January on Epitaph Records. They played "Bakersfield" and a cover of Hank Williams' "Alone And Foresaken," both of which will be on the album. People were into it. I was bummed that they didn't draw from their last album, though, "Reach For The Sky" and "Nickels and Dimes" are two of my favorites.

Of course, you can't play too many new songs - Ness isn't going to try and force too much new stuff down people's throats, he knows why he can still sell out Roseland, and it's because of his incredible body of work.  He started the show off in real old school form, with "The Creeps," "Another State Of Mind" and "Mommy's Little Monster." By rights, a 40-something (or 50-something?) guy singing songs that were popular in the punk rock scene nearly thirty years ago shouldn't work, but it does. Kind of because his music has actually progressed (probably more than he would want to admit) because of his country music influence - that's really what seperated him from the pack in the first place. And while they didn't play all of thier classics (I don't think Ness really wants to be a "greatest hits" revue type guy) they did awesome versions of "Don't Drag Me Down," "I Was Wrong," a country-fied (or country-fried) "Ball and Chain" (it kind of split the difference between the band's original version, and Mike Ness' country version from his 1999 solo album Under The Influences), "Prison Bound," "Making Believe," "Cold Feelings" and their cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring Of Fire."

Ness mentioned that the band will be back after the album comes out ("after the snow is all gone," so I guess that's spring hopefully - give the guy a break, he's from Orange County)... so if you're a fan, I'd say to follow the band on Facebook, or at least keep an eye on the Village Voice or your local "alternative" paper.  But don't sleep on it!

MIKE NESS DISCUSSED: TOMORROW NIGHT ON THE CATHOLIC CHANNEL

Longtime readers of No Expiration know that every few weeks, I pop up on SIRIUS XM's Catholic Channel's Busted Halo Show to discuss the music of a certain artist. Last time it was Annie Lennox. Tomorrow night it will be the music of Social Distortion leader Mike Ness.  If you've read this blog, you know that I'm a huge fan - I saw them this summer and they blew me away, as they have every time I've seen them... starting with a bizarre arena gig in 1990, where they were the opening band on a bill with Neil Young & Crazy Horse and Sonic Youth at Nassau Coliseum.

Anyway, sin and redemption has always been a theme throughout Ness' music (including his solo albums, which I'll touch on tomorrow night as well) and I think that that makes him perfect for discussion on Busted Halo.  Also, I'm going to see them tomorrow night at Roseland Ballroom right after I leave Father Dave's studio! So expect a review in the next few days.

SOCIAL DISTORTION IN SAYREVILLE

(this photo courtesy of my beautiful and talented wife and her Leica camera)

I often hear people asking "whatever happened to good old rock and roll?" 

It's still here, and doing fine, thank you.  You just have to look for it a bit. When I mentioned that my wife and I were going to see Social Distortion, I got a few people saying "They're still around?"  That's the problem!  It's true, they aren't the most prolific band in the world, never were, but people really slept on their last album, 2004's Sex, Love & Rock 'n' Roll.  It was a great album, and I was glad that they played two songs from it, "Reach For The Sky" and "Nickels and Dimes." They hit all of their eras, actually, doing the early hardcore stuff ("Prison Bound," "Another State Of Mind," "The Creeps"), their major label stuff that approached "hit single" status ("Bad Luck," "Ball and Chain") and some of thier excellent covers (The Rolling Stones' "Under My Thumb," Johnny Cash's "Ring Of Fire," the country standard "Making Believe").

Seeing Social D. is inspiring.  Mike Ness has been through a lot of life, and you believe him when he sings about hard times (whether he is playing rock with Social D, or country music as a solo artist).  He reminds me of Tom Petty.  Years ago, I asked Tom Petty why he thinks there are so many young kids at his concerts.  He said "Because we don't pander to them."  Plus, his shows were relatively affordable. I think it's the same deal with Ness (and sadly, Petty's shows are now probably too expensive for kids, unless they are die-hards). The show was filled with greying (myself included), balding (thankfuly not) people who have been fans for decades (my first Social D. show was seeing them open for Neil Young & Crazy Horse in 1990 and that's when I became a fan).  But lots of younger kids too. Ness has played these songs so many times, but he puts so much heart and soul into them, and he still seems to believe in punk rock as much as he did back in the day. He really means a lot to people. I'm so glad Social D. are still around. In fact, Ness mentioned that they signed to Epitaph Records, and have a new album out in November.  I can't wait to hear it. I think rock and roll has many decades left in it.  But I can tell you one thing: as long as Ness is walking this earth and carrying a guitar with him, rock and roll is in fine shape.  You just won't hear about him on the radio (too busy with nickelback) and you won't read about him in the press (too busy with animal collective and the like).  But if you love Social D, you haven't been using radio or the media to decide what you like anyway.

SOCIAL DISTORTION IN THE STUDIO, HITTING THE ROAD

Since Social Distortion are on the Lollapalooza lineup, I thought I'd check their website to see what they were up to. It turns out that they are currently on their very first South American tour, and they are also working on thier first album since 2004's Sex, Love & Rock 'n' Roll, which was a great album that lots of people slept on. Mike Ness and Social D just don't get their due, but it's a real bummer that people don't pay attention to his more recent stuff. That Social D album, and also Mike's two solo albums (both released in 1999, Cheating At Solitare and Under The Influences) are really great. Check out Social D's dates at their website.

LOLLAPALOOZA 2010: SOUNDGARDEN, GREEN DAY, LADY GAGA

Well, the rumors were true. Soundgarden, Green Day and Lady Gaga are headlining Lollapalooza this year (August 6-8 in Chicago's Grant Park). I am pretty sure this is the first show that Soundgarden has announced, and it is appropriate as they are one of the only bands (along with Tool) to be a Lolla headline act more than once (in 2991 and 1997), Also on the bill: Arcade Fire ,Social Distortion, Jimmy Cliff, the Black Keys, Devo, Cypress Hill, The Drive-By Truckers, and many more.  Find out more at the festival website.

MIKE NESS: A LOT COUNTRY, A LOT ROCK AND ROLL

Last night, I caught Mike Ness' solo show at The Fillmore (aka Irving Plaza). I thought it was weird that Mike was doing a solo tour, as I've heard that he's been working on the next Social Distortion record. But why complain: it was a great show.

I guess you could complain all day that this is how country music should be: soulful, ass kicking and not pandering. I hear Mike Ness sing Hank Williams' "You Win Again," and I think "Now that's country." It's cool how, without ever really spending too much time in the mainstream (other than a few minor hit singles) that Mike has become a legend. But f*** the radio and mainstream media - Mike embodies the coolest aspects (and some of the less cool aspects) of the terms "punk" and "outlaw," and radio stations don't figure into the equation. What's cool is, Social D. hasn't released a record in a while, Mike hasn't released a solo album in almost a decade and Irving was sold out (with another show scheduled tomorrow and two for the Stone Pony this weekend) and not only that - people knew the words to all of the songs. It was a beautiful thing.

I'll allow myself this one complaint: while his band was great, I wish he had a sax player. On certain songs (definitely "Misery Loves Company" and "Crime Don't Pay") I really missed it. But whatever, it was a great show. I'm looking forward to Mike's next album, whoever it's with.

(P.S. the last Social D record, 2004's Sex, Love & Rock 'n' Roll, was awesome, especially "Reach For The Sky" and "I Wasn't Born To Follow").

MIKE NESS SOLO TOUR

Mike Ness is going on a solo tour. You can get the dates on his myspace page. I was wondering for a while if he was going to do solo stuff any more. Since the death of Social Distortion guitarist Dennis Danell in 2000, it has pretty much seemed like Social D. is more Mike Ness' band than ever. In fact, the guy who played drums in his solo band, Charlie Quintana, now plays in Social D. 

But Mike Ness doesn't play his solo stuff, which is more country oriented, during Social D. shows. His two albums, Cheating At Solitaire and Under The Influences (both released in 1999) are these sort of forgotten gems. I'm looking forward to seeing him revisit those songs (many of which were covers, but Ness kind of owns a song once he sings it).  But I'm also looking forward to the next Social D. album, which is supposed to come out this year. Their last album, Sex, Love and Rock & Roll, from 2004, was pretty great and yielded at least one classic, "Reach For The Sky." 

GREAT SONGS FROM 2007 - part 2

Here's more songs I loved from 2007, not including tracks from my favorite albums of the year.

Green Day: "Working Class Hero" I was a bit disappointed with the Instant Karma John Lennon tribute that came out this year. Still, the proceeds went to Amnesty International, so at least a good cause benefited. Andyway, Green Day did a great job on "Working Class Hero," which features a short bit of Lennon's own version at the end of the song. I'll also give Green Day a shout out for their version of "The Simpsons Theme" from The Simpsons Movie.

Rush: "Far Cry" No secret that I'm a huge Rush fan. I didn't love thier new album, Snakes & Arrows, but I think this song is among their best. I know that back in the '70s, they were thought of as totally un-hip because (among other reasons) drummer/lyricist Neal Peart was very influenced by the writings of Ayn Rand whose writings were very pro-individualism and were not what you could call "altruistic." But after traveling across the country (Peart has crossed the country many times on his motorcycle trips, which he's written books about) he's gotten scared by the way religion and dogma has been influencing many (mostly republican) leaders, and the direction of our country, and the direction of the world. "Far Cry" addressed that in a global way, "It's a far cry from the world we thought we'd inherit/It's a far cry from the way we thought we'd share it" (which seems to be pretty un-Rayd-ish, but maybe he grew out of that). But he also personalizes things: "One day I feel like I'm on top of the world/and the next it's falling in on me/ I can get back on, I can get back on." It resonates with me.

Dropkick Murphys: "The State Of Massachusetts" I've always kind of known about this band from going to the Warped Tour back in the day, they were always part of that scene. I think I saw them once at the Fleadh Festival as well and liked them. And I think Dicky Barrett of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones told me that they were his favorite band ever. But they really got my attention last year with "I'm Shipping Up To Boston" from soundtrack to The Departed. But this song, "The State Of Massachusetts," is great, just a classic combination of punk rock and traditional Irish music that really "works." I'm going to have to start checking out their albums based on this one.

Grace Potter & The Nocturnals: "Ah Mary" This is the first I've heard of her, I don't really know how long she's been around for. I've heard that Bonnie Raitt is a fan. I enjoyed the rest of this album: I can see her being a real "people's" artist, the way Dave Matthews or Jack Johnson is.

Wyclef Jean and Norah Jones: "Any Other Day" I kind of mentioned this one when I was writing about Norah's album Not Too Late (which this doesn't appear on). It's on Wyclef's The Carnival II, which features all different collaborations with 'Clef. I like that Wyclef can get on stage with any hip-hop act and freestyle, or get on stage with a rock band, strap on a guitar and jam, or produce hits for everyone from Whitney Houston to Santana. Norah is such a great duet partner too, isn't she? Anyway, I didn't love the whole album, but it did have some great moments, including "Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill.)" I'm surprised to mention that song, because it features two guys who seem to be on every other hip-hop/pop single, Akon and Lil' Wayne. But what can I say, it's a great song.

Social Distortion: "Far Behind" This is one new track from Social D's Greatest Hits album. I don't think that they get enough credit, they are just super-consistent and great. Really, it's all about frontman Mike Ness, who is the only founding member left in the band. He also did some really underrated solo albums a few years back. Social D. fly under the radar these days, but still sell out almost all of their shows. They've earned the loyalty of their fans. I saw them last year, they killed it.

Ray Davies: "Morphine Song" I didn't love Ray's latest, Workingman's Cafe, as much as his last one, Other People's Lives. Still, this is a great song. I do hope that The Kinks do some shows this year, as long as they're in shape to do it. But I think Ray is better served doing solo albums, and not trying to recreate the magic of The Kinks in the studio.

I'm still not done: there are still songs by The Hives, The Arctic Monkeys, The Afghan Whigs, Mark Ronson, Q-Tip, Randy Newman, Paul McCartney and more to write about.