COOL BAND ALERT: THE MAKE OUT

I don't usually write about bands who only have a few songs out, but The Make Out stopped me in my tracks.  I heard their song "I Don't Want Anybody That Wants Me" on The Underground Garage, and I loved it. It was actually one of the "Coolest Songs In The World." They have an EP out, How To, and they've opened for The New York Dolls.  One of the guys in the group was (or is) in the band Junior Senior, and some pretty big blogs are into them, including My Old Kentucky Blog. Anyway, this is a band I'm definitely going to bring to Larry Flick's show, and I'll be keeping an eye out for what they do next!

THE NEW YORK DOLLS - DANCING BACKWARD IN HIGH HEELS

I became a New York Dolls fan fairly late in life. I guess my first exposure to the band was singer David Johansen's solo videos on MTV back in the day: they used to always play his medley of Animals covers. Of course, after that was his era as Buster Poindexter, which in retrospect, was a very clever character (but I don't need to hear "Hot, Hot Hot" anymore).

When I finally learned about the Dolls, I wasn't into it: they reminded me of the hair metal bands that I wasn't into. But I was missing out! And in 2004, I realized it, when a publicist took me onstage to watch the band. They were playing Little Steven's Underground Garage Rock Festival, right before the two other headliners, The Strokes and The Stooges. The Dolls were unbelievable. The minute Johansen walked on stage, he just owned it. After that reunion, they started making records again.

Their latest, Dancing Backward In High Heels, is their third since getting back together. They only did two albums before breaking up, so they've more than doubled their discography! And let's get one thing straight: nothing they do will ever match the power and impact of their self-titled debut from 1973. But even though there are only two original members: Johansen and guitarist Syvian Sylvian, the current band kicks ass live and has made good records.  Dancing Backward is cool: it sort of leans heavily towards their big "wall of sound" and girl group influence, and doesn't have much of the aggressive punk rock sneer. The thing I like about that is, they are being relatively appropriate for their age, while remaining true to their influences (that said, I love the in-your-face sound of some of the songs from their last album, 'Cause I Sez So). I think the album makes more sense if you listen to Johansen's SiriusXM show (yes, I work there, but I listened to his show before I worked there), where he plays everything from Motown to opera to country to girl group songs to soft rock (like Toto and Bread!) to, well, The New York Dolls. Dancing Backward brings more of these influences to the forefront than maybe their previous albums did. "I Sold My Heart To The Junkman," with its strings and female backing singers is something that Johansen probably wanted to do for years. "Funky But Chic" is a great mission statement for the band and Johansen himself, and is one of the only rockers.

I was a bit appalled to find out what the band is doing this summer (and I imagine Morrissey - who coaxed the band out of retirement in the first place to perform at the Meltdown Festival, which he curated - feels the same way).  They are OPENING on the Motley Crue/Poison tour. I guess it's cool of those bands to take the Dolls out: they don't need openers, and at any rate, their audience probably won't "get" the Dolls. It's strange that they are promoting their least rock album on a tour with conservatively rock bands on the bill. But who knows, maybe a few people will get turned on to the Dolls, which would be a great thing. If you are one of those people, start with the 1973 album, but Dancing isn't a bad one either.

MEET THE LEN PRICE 3

This is turning out to be a pretty cool year for new music. I've really been digging the new album by The Len Price 3, Pictures. I talked about them and played some of their songs earlier this week on The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick on SIRIUS XM's OutQ channel.

As I mentioned, they remind me a lot of The Who and The Kinks circa the early '60s.  Short hair, mod suits, scooters.  They also sound like a lot of other garage rock bands of the era, maybe I'd add in The Pretty Things or The Creation.  They also remind me a bit of The Jam, or Green Day's alter egos, Foxboro Hot Tubs. Of couse, The Jam and FHT are totally influenced by the aforementioned bands. These guys should be in the next "Austin Powers" film if there is one.

I don't think I would have ever heard of the band if it weren't for Little Steven's Underground Garage. They used to play the band's music (this is their third album) but this time around, they actually signed the band and Steven exec produced the album. The songs are all tight and memorable, with firm backbeats and excellent backing vocals.  It's not a mellow album, it's a high energy dance party album from swinging London in 1964.  Some people will write it off as "retro" or something like that, but I personally prefer great songs to originality.  I also firmly believe that more songs should have "ba ba ba BA!" backing vocals.  Anyway, this is another cool album that you may not hear about elsewhere, but you should check it out.

40 REASONS TO GET EXCITED ABOUT MUSIC

So, as promised, I'm posting my "40 Reasons To Get Exicted About Music," in response to Rolling Stone magazine's recent cover story. It turns out that I agree with half of theirs.  Here, then, are twenty of my reasons to be excited.

Bob Dylan. Not including his recent Christmas album, he has released four classic albums in a row: 1997's Time Out Of Mind, 2001's "Love & Theft," 2006's Modern Times and last year's Together Through Life, which was my favorite album of 2009. Plus, his concerts are getting good again. It's just inspiring how great he is, as he approaches the big seven-oh. Plus, he's been allowing Sony Legacy to put out great releases from his vault.

Speaking of approaching the big seven-oh, there's also the legend, Solomon Burke.Two weeks ago, I talked about Solomon's latest album, Nothing's Impossible, on The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick on SIRIUS XM OutQ, and people loved it. The man still makes incredible albums, and has been doing so since his 2002 record, Don't Give Up On Me.

The Underground Garage. Anyone who reads No Expiration, anyone who listens to me on OutQ, or anyone who talks to me about music ever, knows my love for the Underground Garage, which I write about often. As someone who has not been interested in music radio for decades, the Underground Garage got me back into it. You can hear new and old music, famous bands, obscure bands, brand new bands that haven't gotten to the pop culture radar yet, well know songs, rare tracks, and it doesn't discriminate by race or sex. In fact, I don't think you'll hear more female fronted bands, or all girl groups, anywhere else. The Underground Garage, in fact, introduced me to one of my favorite bands, The Cocktail Slippers. Other bands it turned me on to: The Boss Martians, The Hawaii Mud Bombers, The Jessica Fletchers, The Woggles, The Chesterfield Kings, The Charms, The Contrast, The Grip Weeds, and more. These are some of the best bands you haven't heard of. I hear tons of great new music on this channel all the time.

I need to mention The Cocktail Slippers again. Their last album, Saint Valentine's Day Massacre was one of my favorite albums of last year. I can't wait to hear what they will do next.

Everyone knows that Little Steven Van Zandt runs The Underground Garage, but he is also the force behind Outlaw Country, a truly awesome channel, that combines every generation of country music, with a sort of rock and roll spirit. It seems pretty crazy that there aren't radio stations that play Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Loretta Lynn, Steve Earle and Lucinda Williams in high rotation. Luckily, Outlaw Country does. They've also introduced me to some great artists, including Reckless Kelly, (DJ) Elizabeth Cook and one of my favorite bands, The Drive-By Truckers.

The Drive-By Truckers deserve their own entry! Their new album, The Big To-Do, is my favorite album of 2010 so far. They've been doing their thing for over a decade now, and I'm glad that people are starting to notice.

Speaking of the Truckers, they played on Bettye Lavette's last album, The Scene Of The Crime. What an inspiring story this lady has. She's been working for decades, almost having breaks a few times over the years, and finally in the mid-00's, Anti- Records (owned by Epitaph, they have also put out records by Tom Waits, Solomon Burke and Joe Henry) gave her a deal, and now the world is starting to get to know her. Better late than never: what a voice. She is a great song interpreter.

Another great singer/song interpreter with an inspiring story is Miss Sharon Jones. She started getting her first break in her 50s! Her new album I Learned The Hard Way is really great. She loves old-school sounds so much, it's like the last few decades haven't happened, but her songs are great, so it's cool (the same could be said of Jack White).

And yet another great singer/interpreter with a great story is former Band drummer/singer/mandolin player Levon Helm. A couple of years ago, Levon was on the brink of bankruptcy, foreclosure and was staring down cancer. Today, he is healthy, does really popular concerts at his home (which wasn't foreclosed), tours, and has made two great albums.

The Stooges. One of the best bands of all time. They are finally getting the credit they deserve. And they are touring. They will destroy bands one third of their age.

Robert Plant. For years, his ambition seems to outreach what he was capable of as a solo artist. Then he let go of a bit of control, worked with Alison Krauss (and, it must be said, producer T-Bone Burnett)and put out a true classic with Raising Sand. Now he's working on a solo album (he doesn't rule out another album with Alison though) but he's sticking in the Americana vein: he's got Buddy Miller and Patty Griffin in his touring band, and Buddy is producing his next album.

Bruce Springsteen. Although I didn't love his latest album, Working On A Dream, I thought that Magic was a classic. I think Bruce still has classics in him. His latest tour was maybe his best yet. The E Street Band is one of the best combos in the world. And Bruce can still turn around and so something great with his other group, The (Seeger) Sessions Band or as a solo acoustic artist.

Talib Kweli. I think he is one of the best MCs around, I like his solo music, I like what he does with Hi-Tek in Reflection Eternal, and I hope that he and Mos Def do another Black Star album that lives up to the first one. Honestly, I don't care if Jay-Z retires, I hope Kweli makes music for a long time.

Two more reasons together: Aimee Mann and Ben Harper. Two of the best songwwriters in the world. They are always honest, make no concessions to anyone, and keep putting out great albums. Actually, I'll add Steve Earle to that.

Jack White: I write about him often, and it is a running joke on Larry Flick's show that I keep coming up with ways to play his music on the show (Larry isn't a Jack White fan). For all three of his bands, and for his great label, Third Man Records. Jack was my "Artist of the '00s."

Kanye West: he is a commerical hip-hop artist whose music I sometimes like and he keeps things interesting!

Roger Waters taking The Wall on tour. I wasn't old enough to go to concerts when Pink Floyd toured for The Wall!

Green Day: because they can rock Broadway, do a guitar hero game, tour stadiums and still do club shows as Foxboro Hot Tubs.

Those are my reasons: here are the Rolling Stone reasons that I was down with: U2's tour, LCD Soundsystem, concerts sound better than ever today, Them Crooked Vultures, Chuck Berry still performing, concert tickets are sometimes under $50 (I have to look for more sales like that!), T.I. is out of jail, M.I.A., "cloud based music," Tom Morello still fights the power, great tribute bands (I'm kind of iffy on this, I don't really see too many tribute bands, although I kind of want to check out The Fab Faux), Keith Richards is writing an autobiography, Mike Campbell rocks out on the new Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers album, The Gaslight Anthem (cool young punk rock band), The Roots, country newcomer Jamey Johnson, vinyl sales tripled since 2006, R-Bone Burnett's productions and artist vaults with lots of great stuff in them (Dylan, Springsteen, Young).

LITTLE STEVEN'S END-OF-DECADE CHARTS

Little Steven has just posted his top albums and songs of the decade on his website. Some really great stuff there: I immeadiately made a rockin' ipod mix based on his songs list. Well, a slightly altered version, but "best of" lists are subjective, right?  And, sorry, Kelly Osbourne didn't have one of the best garage rock songs of the decade. Aerosmith may have: but it wasn't "Girls Of Summer."

The coolest song of the decade?  Joey Ramone's "Maria Bartiromo." Good pick. Rounding out the top ten: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band's "My Lucky Day" (great underappreciated song from Working On A Dream), Oasis' "Lyla" (really underrated, I'd only heard it on Underground Garage) and at number 4, Mick Jagger's "Too Many Cooks (Spoil The Soup)," produced by John Lennon. I would call foul on that one, as it was obviously not recorded this decade, but in the '70s.  But it was only released on the 2007 The Very Best Of Mick Jagger collection, so OK. At #5, one of my personal favorites, Foxboro Hot Tubs with "Stop, Drop and Roll." At #6 is Locksley, one of those bands I would never ever ever have heard of if it wasn't for Little Steven.  Cool band: the song he choose was "There's A Love." At #7 is another personal favorite of mine, The Cocktail Slippers with "Don't Ever Leave Me" from my second favorite album of 2009, Saint Valentine's Day Massacre. And that's another band that I would never have heard if not for Steven. Thank you Little Steven! The top ten was rounded out by Cheap Trick's "If It Takes A Lifetime," Primal Scream's "Dolls" and Tinted Windows' "Nothing To Me" (Bun E. Carlos makes the top 10 twice!). I don't know if I would have choose that Cheap Trick song, or even Tinted Windows, but that's what I'm talking about!

Other entries included legends: Aerosmith, Iggy Pop (a collaboration with Sum 41!), The Pretty Things, Steve Earle, Ray Davies, Neil Young, one-time Underground Garage DJ Joan Jett, Les Paul with Jeff Beck and Sam Cooke, John Fogerty, The New York Dolls, Pearl Jam, The Go-Go's, The Dictators (featuring Underground Garage DJ Handsome Dick Manitoba), The Buzzcocks, U2 and The Rolling Stones.  But there's also younger acts too: The Soundtrack Of Our Lives, Tegan & Sara, Noisettes, The Breakers, The Grip Weeds, The Red Button, The Catholic Girls, The Urges, The Forty-Fives, The Hives, The Len Price 3 and The White Stripes.

The albums chart was a bit rigged. Well, not rigged, but The Beatles In Mono box set was the #1 "album." Not fair. Then at #2 was the Nuggets II box set.  Come on, that's tough to compete with! So the best album that actually contained music that was new during the past decade was Bruce Springsteen's Magic. which is one of my favorite albums of the decade as well. Some people may complain about Bruce placing so high in both charts when Little Steven is a member of the band, but hey, in the Underground Garage, Steven is the boss! #4: The Chesterfield Kings with Psychadelic Sunrise #5: Primal Scream's Riot City Blues #6: Tinted Windows #7: Foxboro Hot Tubs' Stop Drop and Roll!!! #8: The Cocktail Slippers' Saint Valentine's Day Massacre #9:  Iggy Pop's Skull Ring and at #10: Ray Davies' Other People's Lives. Most of the same bands on the singles chart were on the albums chart, which also featured the One Kiss Can Lead To Another box set, of classic girl groups music.

I always check out the year and decade end charts in all the magazines, but I like Steven's the best, even when I disagree with them. (Where was King Khan & The Shrines???)

BEST OF THE '00s: LITTLE STEVEN VAN ZANDT

As the '90s were moving toward their close, it looked like Little Steven Van Zandt was getting ready for retirement.  He hadn't released a record all decade and hadn't done much production work (the exceptions being for Southside Johnny, Meat Loaf and The Arc Angels - an Austin Texas group featuring Charlie Sexton, Doyle Bramhall II and the Double Trouble rhythm section of Tommy Shannon and Chris Layton).

And then 1999 happened.

A few years prior, his beloved Rascals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Steven gave the speech introducing them. That speech led directly to his acting career. He'd never acted but David Chase offered him the role of Silvio Dante in the HBO-transforming series The Sopranos. The show debuted on January 10, 1999, introducing Steven to a new audience. Later that year, Bruce Springsteen announced
that he was reactivating The E Street Band, complete with Little Steven (making them a three-guitar band, with Bruce, Steven and Nils Lofgren all playing, as well as occasionally Patti Scialfa).

In the 00s, Steven has spent a lot of time on the road with The E Street Band, playing some of the best concerts this planet has ever seen.

But he's also spent a lot of time trying to rescue rock and roll. Not metal, not indie rock, and not adult contemporary, but rock and roll.  He started with his syndicated Underground Garage radio show, which brought non-formatted (and not always old, and not always male-driven and not always white!) rock and roll, one night a week, to the embarassingly boring and dull classic rock format. I heard it on the local classic rock station here, and could not believe it. It was amazing.

He started promoting concerts by garage rock bands old and new.  He also started his own record label, Wicked Cool, for old school garage rock bands, and he also started a twenty-four hour channel at SIRIUS Satellite Radio, with a lineup of DJs that include Dictators frontman Handsome Dick Manitoba, KO & The Knockouts frontwoman Ko Molina, former Rolling Stones manager/producer Andrew Loog Oldham, Radio Legend (and when I say Radio Legend, I mean from the awesome, pre-corporate radio era) Kid Leo and Steven himself.  At one point, Joan Jett was a DJ also. Comedian/actor/game show host Drew Carey hosts a show once a month. And Little Steven gets on the mic as well. (That channel is what made me a SIRIUS subscriber, and that was what gave me the idea to try and get a job at SIRIUS when I needed a job... and that's where I am today).

My second favorite album of 2009 was Saint Valentine's Day Massacre by The Cocktail Slippers, produced by Little Steven and released domestically by Wicked Cool; a bunch of the songs got played fairly frequently on The Underground Garage, and now they are becoming one of my favorite new bands. I would never, ever have heard of this band if it weren't for Little Steven.  But I also have gotten turned on to many others that I would never had heard of without the Garage: The Charms, The Chesterfield Kings, Creatures of the Golden Dawn, The Downbeat 5, The Contrast, The Grip Weeds, The Fondas, The High Dials, The Len Price 3, The Night Marchers (even though I'm a fan of Rocket From The Crypt), The Pigeon Detectives, Vibeke Saugestad and The Jessica Fletchers, among others. I may very well hear something for the first time tommorrow when I'm listening. Do I buy full albums by these bands? Sometimes. Sometimes, it's just about havng a song on one of Steven's many Coolest Songs In The World compilations. Sometimes I'll just buy a song or two on iTunes. But with rock bands, it isn't always about the legends with box sets, tribute albums and huge tours. Sometimes it's about just having one classic 45". Just one 45". That's the magic of the Nuggets collections, and that's kind of what Steven curates with the Garage. He is a man on a mission, you should join him. Check out his radio show, or his radio station, or his website and order some albums. You'll be glad you did. It's the kind of music that makes your life better!

WHAT WAS THE COOLEST SONG IN THE WORLD THIS YEAR?

I have been writing about the best albums of 2009 and the best artists of the '00s. But at Little Steven 's Fuzztopia website, you can vote for the coolest song in the world from 2009.

"The Coolest Song in The World" is sort of part of Steven's "brand": each week, he announces the what song it is on his SIRIUS|XM channel The Underground Garage, and also on his syndicated radio show. He has also released a number of excellent CD compilations with a bunch of the recent "coolest songs."

So, the poll he's holding features some of the best songs of the year, and if you look at it, you can see why The Underground Garage rules. It has songs by artists you know, like Pearl Jam and Green Day and Rancid, and songs by artists you may not have known were still around like The Pretenders and The New York Dolls (but if you haven't heard their latest records, shame!) and bands you may not have heard of, but you should check out, like one of my favorites, The Cocktail Slippers, and also King Khan & The Shrines, The Len Price 3 and The Night Marchers.

Anyway, it's free to register for Fuzztopia, and you can vote for your choice here.

PUNK ROCK SUMMIT: IGGY MEETS HANDSOME DICK

Back in May, I attended the Road Recovery concert at the Nokia Theater in New York. The great Iggy Pop was a special guest performer, and he didn't seem too impressed with many of the artists on the bill. Except for Dictators frontman and Underground Garage DJ Handsome Dick Manitoba. As an employee of SIRIUS|XM, I sometimes see Handsome Dick, and got to talk to him about the show a few days later. He told me that having Iggy tip his imaginary hat to him onstage was one of the highlights of his career. So, I know getting the chance to interview him for the Underground Garage was a big deal for him too. The interview aired Friday night (hopefully they will replay it at some point), but the above clip was a good moment. The interview was to promote the book The Stooges: The Authorized and Illustrated Story by Robert Matheu. The book comes out just as The Stooges are up for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the eighth time, in their fifteenth year of eligibility.

TOMORROW ON E STREET RADIO: NO EXPIRATION

Tomorrow morning at 10 am ET, I will be hosting the "You Be The Boss" program on SIRIUSXM's E Street Radio. For those who don't know, E Street Radio is the all-Bruce Springsteen-all-the-time channel on SIRIUSXM (I work there). On "You Be The Boss" you play five songs in a row and introduce them. Without giving too much away, my set is sort of a tribute to Little Steven. So, there's one Little Steven song, as well as a Southside Johnny song. I hate when people guest DJ and play the obvious stuff. (you can get a free trial here and tune in).

Why pay tribute to Little Steven? Well, as I mentioned I work at SIRIUSXM. But before I worked there, I was a SIRIUS subscriber. Here's why: years ago, someone told me about Little Steven's FM radio show "The Underground Garage." I was in my 30's by then, and hadn't really listened to much radio other than NPR in, maybe 20 years. I never liked radio formats, even classic rock. Classic rock turned the music that I loved into a museum - no new artists, and no new music by classic artists, many of whom (like Bruce, Bob Dylan or Neil Young) were still putting out great music. Foreigner or Journey instead of The Stooges or James Brown or Prince. Too much repetition. Boring DJs. I had my own tapes (and later CDs) and radio was completely unnecessary. Then I heard Steven's show. I listened on weekends - and I'll admit, I had a friend who works with Steven, and I got some copies of his shows on CD. They were amazing. Then, in the summer of 2004, I convinced my boss at Video Hits 1 to let me cover Little Steven's Underground Garage Rock Festival at Randall's Island in the summer of 2004. The Stooges, The New York Dolls, The Pretty Things, Bo Diddley, The Romantics, The Dictators, The Electric Prunes, The Chocolate Watch Band, The Mooney Suzuki, The Creation, The Charms, The Boss Martians, The Contrast, The Shazam, The Paybacks, The Woggles and The Cocktail Slippers (who, years later, would put out one of my favorite albums of the year) all played. To be fair, The Strokes also played: it was one of the most pathetic performances I'd ever seen. I don't know if it was really so bad, but coming between The Stooges and The Dolls, they just looked so lame. I thought they were boring before, but this took them to a new level of zzzzz. Little Steven still plays them on The Underground Garage. I don't love everything he plays, but I love maybe 80% of it, and I trust his taste enough to sit through stuff that I dislike, because I know I'll probably like the next song, and plus, I actually look forward to hearing the DJs.

As you can see, I was totally sold on this Underground Garage concept. At some point, I subscribed to SIRIUS so I could access the channel 24/7. (I also liked Howard Stern, Outlaw Country, Meg Griffin's SIRIUS Disorder channel, and the idea that there were channels for blues, bluegrass, jazz, soul, heavy metal and old-school hip-hop, but it was mainly the Underground Garage that got me to part with the cash). Then, when I needed a job, I checked the "Careers" part of the website, and ended up getting a job on the website. I don't know if I would have thought of that without Little Steven's Underground Garage. So, I thought I'd take the opportunity on "You Be The Boss" to thank the man on the airwaves. Maybe I'll do another "You Be The Boss" in the future - I'd like to do a set paying tribute to Nils Lofgren as well, and one celebrating Bruce's music from the past ten years. I have a lot of themes in mind actually.

THE MUMMIES, THE JIVE FIVE... ANOTHER GREAT DAY ON THE UNDERGROUND GARAGE

I know, I've written about the Underground Garage before. And before that. But I had to share this. The other day I was listening, and they played this song by The Jive Five - "My True Story." Just one of the most beautiful songs ever. I'd heard it before, but I didn't know who sang it. I pulled over to write it down.

Then, the next song was this awsomely primitive, totally hilarious, righteously ass kicking song by a band called The Mummies - "You've Got To Fight
To Survive (On The Planet Of The Apes)."

Like I did when I first heard Ognir & The Night People, I ran home and logged onto iTunes to buy the songs. I did get "My True Story," but The Mummies barely tolerate CDs, apparently, so mp3s ain't happening. No problem, I'm going to order one of their albums.

Some people will tell you that people who like doo-wop don't like primitive garage punk, and vice-versa. There are some good uses for these people: they are good to laugh at. They are good to ignore. But don't invite them to any parties. And if you do, for the love of god, DON'T LET THEM NEAR THE SOUNDSYSTEM (no matter what their "research" says).