FIRST, we interrupt your regularly scheduled program to bring you a special offer!
Get the printed edition of “Songs Stuck In My Head” for half off! That’s $15.00; you will not find the printed edition in any bookstore (including Amazon), so this is the only way to get one. This offer expires on 1/14/2024.
What better way to spend a slow holiday week than with a power pop documentary?
Power pop documentaries are all over YouTube, so here is a short list of my favorites. The last two are more TV/internet specials and not full-on documentaries, but worth a watch if you don’t know these band’s histories. Of course, we are still waiting for a real power pop documentary. In the meantime, enjoy these links below:
Once part of the 90’s wave of great power pop artists, Chris Von Sneidern had virtually vanished by the beginning of the new century. His first three LPs are power-pop classics, but Chris changed musical direction with The Sportsman in 1999, and he’s self-released in small spurts since then. A cult favorite, he’s been the subject of a documentary and endless speculation. But that exile is coming to an end.
Emerge is very much a therapeutic type of album. The gentle “Madrigal” is an acapella prayer, which leads to the title track. Chris explains where he’s been, “Imagine feeling drowned/oppressed, confused, and bound” with some beautiful piano and horn flourishes. “Fight” is a brutal depiction of childhood, sounding like a Mark Knopfler narrative. Chris still has melodic gifts and “Tree Fort” is a great example with its layered chorus and marching rhythm. The big highlight “Hey Ron” is pure power pop; catchy and infectious – it’s what fans have been waiting for. While he doesn’t stay in that lane, Chris does have some really great soaring AOR songs like “Leaving Here” and “It’s Gonna Be Alright.” The dramatic requiem ballad “It’s Time To Go” and the acoustic folk “Why Didn’t You Save Me?” are also highlights. Not so immediate, it is one that needs to grow on you. I’m just glad he’s back, and you should check it out.
The Doughboys are veterans of rock and roll, so anything they play will sound good. The team of Gar Francis, Mike Caruso, Myke Scavone, and Richard X Heyman are a tight unit and they truly make these covers sound like their own. The band’s sound is very much in the mold of The Rolling Stones, The Who, and The Animals.
The band picks songs that you don’t often see on cover albums. They totally own the opener “96 Tears,” and it sounds much better than the original. The Kinks “The Hard Way” and Neil Diamond’s “Solitary Man” stick to the Doughboys formula, as well as rarities by Tony Bruno, David Essex and even Mose Allison (!) Overall a really fun LP that will keep you entertained the whole way through. Go boys, go!
