Category: Power Pop Review

Great Tributes: Todd Rundgren and John Fogerty

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Todd Rundgren Tribute

Assorted Artists “Someone​/​Anyone? A 50th Anniversary Tribute to Todd Rundgren’s Something​/​Anything?”

Guitarist Fernando Perdomo is on a roll, so let’s keep it going. In 2021 he created a 50th Anniversary edition of Paul and Linda McCartney’s Ram which was approved and praised by Paul himself. Now he’s organized a group of artists to pay homage to Todd Rundgren’s ahead-of-its-time 1972 classic Something/Anything. It was with this album Todd proved to the world he could play any genre from power pop, blue-eyed soul, psychedelic rock, and more. It lends itself to a variety of interpretations from this eclectic group of performers.

Louise Goffin’s version of “I Saw The Light” is faithful, but a unique vision. Tiny Demons featuring Bobby Strickland leans heavily into the Motown funk style of “Wolfman Jack.” Another faithful version that adds to the original is “It Takes Two To Tango” with Nezrok, Dennis Diken, and Chris Bolger.  Fernando (with Jordan Rudess) is in his element with “Breathless” and its multi-layered instrumental guitar goodness. The pop hook of “Couldn’t I Just Tell You” by Marshall Crenshaw is measured, and clear. There are tons of great versions of your favorites, and some weirdness (Adrian Bourgeois). Get it on Bandcamp.

John Fogerty Tribute

Assorted Artists “Commotion: A Tribute to John Fogerty and Creedence Clearwater Revival”

Adam Waltemire produced this tribute to the CCR and its unique brand of countrified rock, blues, and soul. Norman Kelsey’s version of “Commotion” is a great deep track (from Green River) to open things up. Joe Giddings slick version of “Down On The Corner” gives it  more of a pop shine, similarly, that crisp production with the Popdudes “Have You Ever Seen The Rain.”

The tortured “Effigy” is lifted by the haunting vocals of Gretchen’s Wheel; a perfect fit here. Jason Berk’s “Up Around The Bend” is another fine faithful version. But in some cases, the Southern-style is completely absent on “Out My Back Door” and “Fortunate Son.” And the Yorktown Lads turn “Green River” into a Beatles song! It’s a mixed bag as with most tributes, but there are more good interpretations than passable ones.  Get it on Bandcamp too.

Elvis Costello and Tom Curless

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Elvis Costello

Elvis Costello & The Imposters “The Boy Named If”

I was ready to count Elvis out after the mess that was Hey Clockface and Spanish Model– and thankfully I was wrong. This is a man with a mission, and with The Imposters, he delivers the goods. He looks back on his youth, as the title is really “The Boy Named If (And Other Children’s Stories)” and he sounds great here on the opener “Farwell, OK.” with a big call back to his early sound from the late ’70s. You will hear many callbacks to past works, and that’s part of the fun.

The tortured autobiographical title track is both melodic and biting emotion works over the haunting arrangements. Lots of highlights; “The Difference,” “Paint the Red Rose Blue,” “Magnificent Hurt,” and “Mistook Me For A Friend,” which references his big hit “Pump It Up.” Great storytelling, with jazz, funk, blues bits sprinkled all over. Many songs here require study and repeat listens to get the full story. I never put Costello in the power-pop category as an artist, but he’s had some really catchy hits in the past and this album relights that fuse. What a great comeback (IMO) and brilliant return to form.

Amazon


Tom Curless

Tom Curless “Person of Interest”

Tom Curless approaches this album differently, without supporting players and everything done himself (except the sweet mixing by Nick Bertling.) Starting with a very Foo Fighters-like “Scare Tactics” its full of crunch and angst, but things lighten up with the wonderful “Street Kids” a grooving power-pop melody full of overlapping harmonies.

The influences here are varied as “Something for Nothing” has Genesis meets The Police vibe, and the chorus is both catchy and inspiring. “Silent Partner” has a little David Gilmour, and there are plenty of great songs here; “Soar High,” “Call Time,” and “Take My Hand.” Curless always has a unique point of view and a knack for earworms, and this album has enough here to make it highly recommended.

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Ronnie D’addario and The Split Squad

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Another selection of late 2021 albums that prove the theory “better late than never”…

Ronnie D'addario

Ronnie D’addario “Egg Yolks and Artichokes”

Ronnie D’addario is a musician in the mold of Gilbert O’Sullivan and The Left Banke who’s got a sweet spot for baroque pop songs. “Out Of Sync” is a fine start with a harpsichord melody and sweet harmonies across the chorus. “Corners of The Mind” has that late 60’s DNA, with some Byrdisan guitar. That Byrds influence really comes out on “The House I Live In,” a patriotic song with lots of jangle and heart. One of my favorites here is the father-son chat set to the song “Turn It Around One Day,” and like Dana Countryman, Ronnie is a super skilled composer of classic melodic pop.

Another patriotic sing-along “For Better or For Worse,” would make a great theme for a new Schoolhouse Rock cartoon.  You can also hear the influence of  Tommy Makem(The Clancy Brothers) on the folkie “My Single Days Are Over.” At times the romantic balladry gets a bit corny (“Sweet On You”) and a few covers here feel like filler. But some songs are strong enough to compete with his earlier gems. And if you are a fan of those classic pop sounds, you don’t want to miss this LP. It deserves to be heard.

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The Split Squad

The Split Squad “Another Cinderella”

Billing themselves as “America’s least famous Supergroup!” Keith Streng (The Fleshtones), Eddie Munoz (The Plimsouls), Clem Burke (Blondie), Michael Giblin (Cherry Twister), and Josh Kantor (The Baseball Project) make big riffs and like to keep things simple. They roar out of the gate with “Hey DJ” and it feels like part Ramones and part Cheap Trick. This isn’t rocket science but simple rock and roll, and the title track “Another Cinderella” is a nice earworm of a song that keeps you hooked.

The heavier guitar tracks “Palpitation Blues” and “Bigger Than Heroin” are entertaining (if a bit over the top vocally). But the meat of the album delivers prime cut power-pop. Highlights include ” Taxi Cab”, “Showstopper” and the fun “Sinking Ship.” The band sounds like it’s having a ball here, and it’s infectious. The guest list in the studio includes faves Scott McCaughey (The Young Fresh Fellows) and Joe Adragna (The Junior League) Overall a great album that is very highly recommended.

Amazon | Kool Kat Musik

The Cheap Cassettes and Chris Church

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The Cheap Cassettes

The Cheap Cassettes “Ever Since Ever Since”

Seattle’s Cheap Cassettes starts the year right with a rocking release for 2022, “Ever Since Ever Since” and screams out of the gate with the catchy “She Ain’t Nothing Like You” and is followed by the riff-tastic “Malnutrition.” The band follows the blueprint laid by The Flamin’ Groovies, The Jam, and The Dwight Twilley Band.

This is an album you turn up in the car with the windows down. Lead singer-songwriter Charles Matthews is joined by Mike Isberg (Bass) and Kevin Parkhurst (Drums/Vocals) and they form a tight combo. The songs are quick and very repeatable.  They take the typical power pop riff structure and build original gems all around it. They take a cover of The Elevator’s “Your I’s Are Too Close Together” and make it their own. Most often the band hits with “Red Line Blue”, “Endless Summer,” and the massive crunch of “Wishing The Sun Away.” No filler here, even the 4 minute + “One Black Summer” flys by with its joyous ringing guitars. Very highly recommended.

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Chris Church

Chris Church “Darling Please”

Chris Church unearthed this early work and had it remastered by sonic guru Nick Bertling, with additional backing vocals by Lindsay Murray (Gretchen’s Wheel). Overall a very heavy-sounding album and the Matthew Sweet influence is unmistakable here. Church’s thick layered riffs are the dominant sound throughout, starting with the opener “History” and then the tempo speeds up a bit with “We’re Going Downtown” with its echoing grunge feel.

A big highlight here is “Pillar To Post” and the vocals and harmonies come through. The album’s songs deliver an intimate mood but the sound is very “stadium-sized,” a great example is “Never So Far Away” and “Bad Summer.” A great thing also is the consistency of Church’s sound here, with harmonies added at just the right moments. It gets a little ponderous towards the latter tracks, here “Nepenthean” is a standout with strong keyboard chords leading the way. This is a grower of an album, that gets better with multiple listens and is a welcome addition to the Chris Church catalog. Highly Recommended.

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Lost and Found: Adam Roth and Steve Rosenbaum

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The Lost and Found category is for bands that up to this point were not “discovered” by the power pop community until recently.

Adam Roth

The Adam Roth and his Band of Men “Down The Shore”

Adam Roth was a musician mostly under the radar, but well-loved by those who knew him. Once a member of the Boston rock band Del Fuegos, and regular collaborator with comedian Dennis Leary, his album of 80s frat rock was just about lost to history. The 1982 movie Beach House (aka Down The Shore) was a very low-budget Animal House/Porkys teen comedy without much positive to mention, other than the soundtrack. It jump-started Roth’s career in movie soundtracks (The Ref, Monument Ave, Hollywood Vietnam) and TV commercials. He passed away in 2015 of cancer, but Hozac Records remastered his album and featured new liner notes written by Adam’s brother Charles Roth.

The music is very much a product of its time, but brilliance shows through. “Judy Won’t You Dance With Me” is similar in some ways to The Shoes, and “Now You’re Runnin” and “I Just Wanna Have Some Fun” have more of a punk attitude displayed on the faster-tempo rockers. Overall a good addition to your 80’s power-pop collection.

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Steve Rosenbaum

Steve Rosenbaum “Have A Cool Summer”

Steve Rosenbaum is a DIY San Diego musician with a jangling guitar and lots of songs written between 1979-89. Similar in style to Tom Marolda (The Toms), The Modulators, The Deal, The Rubinoos – Steve really should have been signed by a major label at that time. But it never happened.

Fortunately, these songs are finally available to the public at Bandcamp. The songwriting here is pretty good, but the production was recorded mainly on the Tascam 244 cassette 4-track, and the sound quality is pretty spotty. There are some gems to be found; the Beach Boys-like “Me Alone,” “Come On Over,” the Twilley-like “Got To Tell Ya,” and REM-like jangle of “72 days.” Steve does offer a FREEBIE sample of these tracks on his Two-Cassette Deck Bounces EP. Fans of the era will see the potential in these songs because it’s music that deserves to be heard.

Bandcamp