What Happens In Vegas Stays On Blogger

Just came back from my first trip to Las Vegas. What an incredible trip it was! Three days of fun shared with my wonderful wife. And how else should I commemorate the trip than create a playlist of memories, another Playlist of Pooh!

Gram Parsons - Ooh Las Vegas

To get psyched up for the trip I thought I should listen to Ac/Dc's "Sin City" or ZZ Top's "Viva Las Vegas" but I never did, instead I played this song on my Ipod repeatedly in the week leading up to the trip.

Journey - Raised On Radio

We listened to the radio on the way to the airport, I had no idea that Steven Seaweed and his Hot Lunch program was still on the air. In high school I loved listening to that show on the now defunct KRQR radio station. The weed man wanted folks to call in requests with "radio" as the theme, I would have called this in if I had time to hear it before arriving at the airport.

The Beatles - Ticket To Ride

It was a long wait for our flight at the airport, it was delayed by about two hours. I have an extreme fear of heights and flying, so even though I watched plane after plane take off the runway without incident I was still going nuts. I tried to think of how many of my favorite entertainers have spent decades flying all over the world without problem. Or the other times I had been on planes and safely gotten from one place to another. Unfortunately, all these rationalizations didn't help much so my wife bought me a magazine about The Beatles to distract me.

Asia - The Smile Has Left Your Eyes


Our trip to Vegas was off to a bad start, the flight was delayed and then it took another 30 minutes for our shuttle to leave the airport because they were waiting for other passengers. Except they didn't tell us that, they sat us in the shuttle and left us there to the point we considered just walking to the hotel. Our hotel was The Luxor, a pyramid shaped place that reminded me of the Asia Alpha album cover.

Ohio Players - Love Rollercoaster

Once we dropped off our stuff in the room we decided to walk around. The New York New York section nearby so we went on the roller coaster. It was a great coaster with huge drops and loops throughout. Easily the best roller coaster we had been on in ages. My only problem was I rode the coaster wrong. How do you ride a roller coaster wrong? On this one you have to keep your head flat against the headrest or else it bounces between two neck bars like a ping pong ball. I didn't know that going in, the sides of my lower jaw are still sore. But what a great ride!

Sammy Hagar - I Love This Bar

We had a drink at a bar, I think it was called Diablo. There are tons of restaurant / bars on the Strip including Sammy Hagar's Cabo Wabo and another owned by Toby Keith. I was sort of interested in going to Cabo Wabo since Sammy Hagar is as close to a prophet / philosopher that I can think of in the world. But when I heard their music system pumping new wave music I thought "ehhh". In Sammy Hagar land there should only be Saint Sammy's jams on the speakers!

Quarterflash - Take Me To Heart

The next morning this song was running through my head for no apparent reason. Just seemed to fit the mood of relaxing opulence at The Luxor.

Bruce Springsteen - Atlantic City

Vegas is all about tourism, for many living there it is working in the service industry but for others it's sales and promotion. There is this place under construction called The Grandview which will eventually be 20 towers tall but only has six built right now. The Grandview has hired an army of blazer wearing folk to offer package deals of show tickets and gambling money in exchange for going through what I assume is a lengthy presentation to get you to buy into a timeshare at the new establishment. While the sales people are perfectly pleasant, they're planted like ant farms all over Mandalay Bay, The Luxor and The Excaliber making their repeated "Do you have any plans for a show this evening" or "How long are you in town" queries irritating beyond belief. I actually preferred the porn peddlers waving their leaflets in my face up and down the strip to The Grandview reps. At least those guys and gals understand my shaking my head and hands at them means "no" and don't try to overcome my objections. It doesn't quite fit, yet "Atlantic City" came to mind when dealing with these people. I don't blame the salespeople themselves they're just people trying to earn a buck just like me, but damn...

Bella Notte

We had a nice romantic gondola ride through an indoor area that is designed to be like Venice, Italy. The...I guess maybe they're called Gondalier? Anyway, the guy that moves the boat with a pole was friendly and an excellent singer. One of the songs he sang he prefaced as being from The Lady And The Tramp which was this tune.

Ray Lamontage - You Are The Best Thing

While spending time with my wife looking thru the mall stores, this song came on which fit the mood perfectly.

Kool & The Gang - Too Hot

Did I mention it is hot in Vegas? The temp was over 100 degrees every day until when we left, when it was a cool 97. Even at night you feel like you walked into a broiler. After walking much of the day we were exhausted and took a hasty cab ride back to our room for some rest. Then we met with some of my wife's relatives for a very pleasant dinner.

Queen - Body Language

Won't go into too much detail, I'll just say seeing provocative dancing to this song was the first time I enjoyed hearing this forgotten track. Thought "Body Language" overdid the dance angle of the band following "Another One Bites The Dust" in terms of Queen's music, but in this context it was the perfect tune.

She And Him - You Really Got A Hold On Me

In a rare quiet moment in this very exciting city, I sat down with my Ipod and listened to some She & Him while reading the hotel magazines. This song really popped when I heard it.

Duffy - Mercy

If there is a song The Luxor likes, it's definitely "Mercy". Heard this play throughout the hotel multiple times every day. It's amazing how these hotel / casinos are designed, they're like mini cities within themselves with tons of food, shopping and entertainment at your disposal (at a high price of course). Oh, if you're ever in The Luxor I recommend having the fried rice at Rice & Co. upstairs, it is insanely good!

The Heights - How do You Talk to An Angel?

It's my wife's birthday! We had a delicious breakfast at the Mandalay Bay, it was a fancy place with a great view of other buildings and palm trees. I had a Norway Benedict while she had smoked salmon with bagels. It felt like the setting for a scene in a tv show with rich people, like 90210. A wonderful time with my wonderful, beautiful wife.

Styx - Mr Roboto

After breakfast I took her to The Fremont Street Experience. The magazine in the hotel room promised shopping and art and a good time. What actually was there was old Las Vegas, the original Strip. The Fremont Street Experience was fascinating, a sort of land-that-time-forgot. A place that emphasizes the "loosest slots in town" and offer prime rib dinners for $4.95 on posters. The older casino / hotels retain much of the 70s style sense of glitz with tons of light bulbs flashing on signs everywhere. Signs you could easily imagine having held the names of legends like Sammy Davis Jr or Dean Martin at one point in time. There weren't many people there when we went, adding to a ghost town effect. When I told my wife the magazine said Fremont Street was 80s themed this year, she jokingly said that was the reason I took her there. The topic came up when "Mr Roboto" blasted on the Fremont St audio system while we looked at a kiosk selling 80s t-shirts saying something like "Vegas says Relax" (for those too young to remember, the 80s had a lot of "Frankie Says Relax" t-shirts. Right up there with oversized "Choose Life" shirts).

John Waite - Going to The Top

My wife has always wanted to go to France, so I took her to the Eiffel Tower in the Paris section of Las Vegas Blvd. The view was really awesome, I just wished my fear of heights could have subsided so we could have enjoyed it more.

Elvis Presley - Viva Las Vegas

In the early afternoon we made our way back to the Bellagio / Ceasar's Palace part of the Strip. It was there on a private balcony we witnessed the famous water fountain show at The Bellagio. Done to the tune of "Viva Las Vegas", it was truly a spectacular show. So glad we got to see this.

The Simpsons - Monorail

We rode the monorail back towards our hotel afterwards. I love monorails!

Black Crowes - Share The Ride

That evening we saw Cirque Du Soleil Ka which I will write a separate review on. Once that ended we tried to catch a cab back to the hotel, but the cab stand line was too long so we footed it. Before Vegas, I had taken maybe two taxi cab rides in my life. In Las Vegas it was a daily necessity. It is so hot outside you have to find other ways to get around. Most of the taxi drivers were friendly and amiable, others not so much.

Nearer My God to Thee

The next morning we went to see the Titanic exhibit at the Luxor. On the one hand, it may not have been a good idea to delve into one of the greatest disasters in modern travel on the same day as catching a flight. On the other hand, it was a well done exhibit. It is solemn, informative and involving. To see the personal effects of the travellers and remaining pieces of the ship is so sad. The recreation of the grand staircase is impressive. But what really stuck with me is the facsimile of the side deck at night, it makes you feel like you're really on a ship. A feeling of calm and beauty, unaware of the disaster looming before them. Violin music played in the background, which I believe included this song that may have been performed while the boat sank. After Titanic we walked over to the Shark Reef to see an impressive display of animals and sea creatures.

Gym Class Heroes - Cupid's Chokehold / Breakfast In America

To cope with the flying I had to drink a lot before the flight. While downing a beer this song played in the background at the bar, my wife hadn't heard it before so it caught her by surprise. I had to break the news that yes, even Supertramp is not immune to sampling. Can't say I dislike this tho, it's Supertramp with a modern beat.

Led Zeppelin - Fool In The Rain

We sat in rush hour traffic through San Francisco to get home. The radio played three Led Zep songs in a row, after "Fool In The Rain" we talked about our trip matching the cadence of the verses.

Smokey Robinson - Being With You

Thank you for the trip honey, I loved being there with you :)

Weezer - Memories

While driving to get some food today, the radio was all advertisements so I threw in the Weezer cd I had in the car. This song was perfect for the moment. All the memories make me want to go back there...

Asia in Napa, or is it Napa in Asia...

Tonight I saw one of the greatest things ever, the original lineup of Asia powering through a killer set playing with a fired up fervor rarely seen on the oldies circuit. The first supergroup of the 80s flew into wine country and turned in a magical performance. And we had third row seats!

The set list:

I Believe / Only Time Will Tell / Holy War / Never Again / Through My Veins / Don't Cry / Steve Howe solo / The Smile Has Left Your Eyes / Open Your Eyes

intermission

Go / Time Again / An Extraordinary Life / End Of The World / The Heat Goes On / Carl Palmer Solo / Sole Survivor

encore

Days Like These / Heat Of The Moment

I've been to a lot of concerts and it's rare that there is one that I felt was perfect, but Asia got pretty close to perfection on a warm Sunday evening. In the remodeled Uptown Theater in Napa, I sat mere feet away from the four British gentlemen whose music I worshipped through my formative years.

The band came blasting out with a set list that mixed classic Asia with a fair amount of tracks from their past two reunion albums Phoenix and Omega. It's rare to see an "oldies" band play more than two modern songs in a show, let alone six cuts. This is the type of set list you would hear bands in their prime play, inspired by recent material and trying to push their record sales via live performance. Thunderous tracks like "I Believe" and "An Extraordinary Life" flew high on the backs of these talented guys. And who would doubt the total awesomeness of "Only Time Will Tell" or "Heat Of The Moment".

There were some amazing surprises in store as well, with two post Steve Howe tracks "Go" and "Days Like These" getting play. "Go" is one of my fave Asia songs and I was ecstatic to hear it live. "Days Like These" was also great, it had been so long since I'd heard it I didn't recognize the song until the chorus. Two Alpha songs got fine treatments with just keyboardist Geoff Downes and vocalist John Wetton on "Don't Cry" and "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes". The latter cut blew my mind when the ending switched from Wetton / Downes to a full band reprise. I'd dreamt of hearing a full band version of "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes" and now there it was.

Steve Howe's acoustic guitar solo (that included his classic "Mood For A Day") was mesmerizing. Howe was the most fired up I'd ever seen him, pulling out all the spastic awkward stage moves he's known for. Carl Palmer remains a beast on the skins even post heart surgery. His epic drum solo had me flashing back to Asia in Asia. Keyboardist Geoff Downes got short shrift from the soundman, his twinkling synths were buried under a wall of sound. Meanwhile, John Wetton sang excellently and impressed me with his nimble bass work.

Anyone who doubts Asia's ability should check out "Time Again", the old guys nailed the fancy instrumental interplay with gusto.

In terms of record sales Asia's time is gone, but in terms of inspired arena rock their time is now.

It Takes A Continent

Sometimes planned activities for the elderly pay off :)

Rating:

and a half

.

When the first supergroup of the 80s, Asia, reformed a few years ago it seemed as unlikely an event as, well, the first time it happened. Sure the four members were of similar prog rock pedigree, but with that came all the baggage of ego and excess that marked their prior careers. Plus two key members, bassist/singer/main songwriter John Wetton and guitarist Steve Howe really seemed to not like each other. So much so that I can't point to any musical moment between the two spanning from 1983's Alpha to 2008's Phoenix album. That's a lot of hate there when you consider the other former members of Asia have all interacted with each other in the intervening decades. So, believe it or not, we are now on the second album of the reconstituted Asia with the original lineup - John Wetton, Steve Howe, Carl Palmer (drums) and Geoff Downes (keys).

When last seen, our erstwhile heroes had rebanded with the Phoenix album. That disc, following the health scare of John Wetton, was a solid restablishing of the group as a creative entity. The songs tended to be a little laid back (not unusual for artists who have just faced death or given birth) yet the instrumental prowess was back. Asia's new disc, Omega, is the type of album that often happens following a relaunch of this type. They come back soft, tour a bit, and return more rockin.

Omega ('cause we've already had Alpha, so we either had to have a Beta or Omega coming) catches latter day Asia in full flight. The Wetton driven power anthems still make sweeping heroic statements like Superman facing General Zod in the Fortress of Solitude. Whether he's pledging his undying love ("Ever Yours"), teaching the children well ("Listen Children") or fighting for truth, justice and the, er, Asian way ("I Believe") John Wetton bellows out with assertive thunder. The arrangements are a little more restrained than the previous Phoenix disc, still no one could call Asia's music sparse. Steve Howe can still pick out a flurry of various textures with guitars sliding, careening and accenting all over the place. Geoff Downes seems focused on more organ work than normal (for that special "classic" sound!) but remains tasteful. And Carl Palmer, every other second is a drum solo for this guy.

In a lot of ways, Omega is reminiscent of Asia's third album Astra. The groups playing focuses more on the songs than solos and some of the songs aim at military goings on ("Finger On The Trigger", "Holy War") though with admittedly less silly bombast than the Astra classic "Countdown To Zero". Interestingly, the song that stands out the most musically is the bonus track "Emily" which has a sort of (intentional?) comic pleading happening over a pensive beat. Sort of Beatleish.

Asia Omega will do nothing to change the minds of anyone who knows the band. But it's a real good album. The Heat Is On! Oh wait, that's Glenn Frey. The Heat Goes On!

Hot Fun In The Summertime

"Is it hot in here, or is it just Summer?" My favorite line from The Big Bang Theory delivered by a drunk guy to the person above, Summer Glau.

"Summer Summer Summer, it's like a merry go round" said Ric Ocasek 25 years ago and you know he was right. The weather for the first half of Summer was on the cool to moderate side here in Nor. Cal., it took the second half to bring in the heat. And now that it actually gets warm to hot on a daily basis, the season is almost over. So before it all ends we're gonna squeeze in some Summer fun (like going to an Oakland A's game today) and I'm gonna - you guessed it - name my Top 10 favorite Summer songs.

10. Asia "Summer (Can't Last Too Long)" (1990)

From the Steve Howe-less era of the band released on the sort-of-greatest hits-sort-of-new songs Then & Now album. An Asia anthem about Summer? Can't put that down. I was living in Sacramento at the time, where the Summer heat would hit 100 plus degrees. When you walk out of the door of an air conditioned room that heat would hit you in the face like a frying pan. Now that we're in August, Summer really can't last too long now. Just the way John Wetton planned it.

9. Sheryl Crow "Soak Up The Sun" (2002)

Crow's last big hit, a sunny playful blast of modern pop rock. Pleasant feel good harmony driven tune, perfect for enjoying the Summer day indoors or outdoors.

8. John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John "Summer Nights" (1978)

In '78 I was hooked on Grease, mainly because I liked the songs and choreography which I suppose is the reason anyone would like a musical in the first place. While most of the raunch went over my head at the time, I could tell there was a difference between Danny Zuko's version of events and Sandra Dee's. And hey, it was '78 and I wanted to be slick and cool T Bird like John Travolta livin' that picturesque Summer romance with Olivia Newton-John. Below is a pretty amusing video of the song remade with Lego people. Tell me more, tell me more...

7. B - 52's "Summer Of Love" (1983)

Summer is the season known for fun, a chance to break out from your routine existence and try new things (or is that Spring? No, I'm pretty sure it's Summer). It's hard to top The B 52's for bright kitchy fun with a touch of postmodern cool. Danceable, kooky and silly yet not without intelligence.

6. Rush "Summertime Blues" (2005)

Covered probably a billion times since Eddie Cochran made it a hit in the 50's, "Summertime Blues" is a staple of anyone's Summer time playlist. While certainly drawing inspiration from the Blue Cheer version, Prog rockers Rush gang tackled the song a few years ago with a vengeance and made it their own. It's great to hear these famously ultra precise musicians cut loose with abandon, kicking so much ass that their version was a theme song to one of the WWE PPV's that year.

5. Don Henley "The Boys Of Summer" (1984)

In the 80's there was slavish nostalgia for the 60's and who better to bring it to you than a 70's rock star? Henley's ode to fleeting youth set to the backdrop of sun kissed skin and Grateful Dead bumper stickers struck a chord that still resonates today.

4. Weezer "Island In The Sun" (2001)

A relaxing loping beat and nicely strummed guitars calls to mind light blue skies, sandy beaches, clear water lapping on the shore - basically like those beer commercials with the man and woman sitting in their chairs throwing their cell phones into the Ocean when it rings. Pure bliss even with the slightly grungy guitars in the verse.

3. Bananarama "Cruel Summer" (1983)

Sometimes the Summer isn't so nice, like say you move from New York to Reseda thinking it's going to be so cool to go to school in L.A. only to find a bunch of karate kicking rich kid bullies chasing you wherever you go. When you have a Summer like that, you need a trio of nice British Ladies to sing your tale of woe. Focus power Daniel-san!

2. Seals & Crofts "Summer Breeze" (1972)

While sitting in the hot baseball park today, I thought of this song because the breeze blowing in was the only thing cooling us off. It's funny, in the 70's I didn't like this song because something about the sound of it bothered me. A couple of years ago this showed up in a TV commercial with a remixed back beat and I've been in love with it ever since. Adding to it's stock, Tommy Shaw (Styx) and Jack Blades (Night Ranger) teamed up last year and released a cover that does the original justice. Now I remember what bothered me, the thought of jasmine in my mind sounded painful!

1. Van Halen "Summer Nights" (1986)

The Summer of '86 was my first Summer after high school so of course it stands out in my memory. It was great to have a killer theme song to my first Summer of freedom. My strongest memory was just before graduating high school, my friends and I pulled an all nighter finishing off our Accounting final hours before getting on a bus to go to Grad Night at Disneyland. At around 3am, after playing the 5150 tape repeatedly, we all became fixated on the grunt Sammy Hagar does after the opening guitar lick. We sat there and played it, then rewind it, then played it again probably about 20 times over. Da Da Da Duh Na, Da Da Da Duh Na...Uh! The song epitomizes for me what Summer nights back then meant, hanging out with friends and warm nights.

So many songs came close to making this list, Bryan Adams "Summer of '69", Survivor's "Summer Nights" and Jerry Mungo's "In The Summertime" to name a few. It was tough to choose just ten (so obviously I'm cheating here) but that's my Top 10. And hey, if you have any favorite Summer songs you would like to give a shout out to feel free to. Have a great rest of the Summer!

Midnight Madness - Record Store Day

This week is support your local record store week so today I will be doing my duty by going to the only store in town. While I don't purchase vinyl anymore and don't plan to today, Rasputin's is the local record store in my town (though I guess Best Buy counts too now that they've been pushing some vinyl for collectors). After starting to listen to a lot of music in my early teens, I have a lot of memories of going to record stores. I've been to Tower Records (now defunct) all over California and in Seattle, perusing through 45's of the Top 100 singles and latest releases of the day. The overpriced music chains Wherehouse, Musicland and Sam Goody, now all but extinct, also have a lot of hours of my time logged.

As much as I like digital music's convenience (I like it a lot), I also like the shopping and evaluating of the physical artifact. That's why one of my favorite things to do is to go to Rasputin's and shop through their $3.00 bin of used CDs. It's a thrill to sort through a pile of crap like Britney Spears or N'Sync Cds to find Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks or Steve Vai's Passion and Warfare hidden in the crowd. So support your local music store, because someday soon they will probably be gone.

Go Bunny! - My wife made her weight loss goal this week (as posted on her blog here). Great job Bunny! She is also doing really well on Wii Sports Tennis. Her score is now over 2000.

Close to the Edge - A Prog Rock fan's dream tour is coming up with Yes and Asia hitting the road together. It will be the original Asia lineup along with the Jon Anderson-less Yes. I should be more excited about this tour but having seen outstanding performances from both bands in the past coupled with my expectation that they couldn't top what I've already seen, I feel indifferent. That is, until the actual tour date in my area arrives at which time I'll regret not going but probably forget about it the next day.

American Idol Update - The judges finally exercised their "get out of jail free" card by sparing Matt Girard from elimination this week. My question is, why? Girard is likeable and has talent but I don't think he stands a chance of winning. They're going to feel real stupid if a front runner gets voted off next week. Performance wise for movie week Quintan Tarantino directed the singers and did a good job of it. Particularly with Anoop Desai, Tarantino gave direction to sound more like Bryan Adams on "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" which I thought was a huge mistake until I actually heard it sung. It was one of Desai's best performances. Underdog Kris Allen gave a committed, emotional performance of "Falling Slowly", my favorite performance of the night. The judges, or at least Simon, have their sights set on 'Lil Rounds after she gospelized "The Rose" and was accused of copying the original. I think it was a bad move to use the save this week because next week is Disco week. On that week anybody can burn baby burn their way out of the show.

Hogan Knows Best? - Hulk Hogan was recently quoted as saying he "understands O.J." after being asked about his ex-wife. Fortunately, I don't think Hogan would really do anything to his ex, it's just not a good thing to say though. But if Linda Hogan suffers an injury by a leg drop, we'll know who to point the finger at.

Live To Tell - Madonna was injured after falling from her horse when it was startled by photographers. I didn't know she rode horses, I thought horses...never mind.

The Spector of Guilt - Famous record producer Phil Spector was found guilty of murder after what seemed like a long trial. He can now add iron bars to his wall of sound.

Drunken Master - Jackie Chan offended a huge chunk of his own Country by saying that Chinese people "need to be controlled." If that were true, shouldn't China outsource it's government to another race of people then? Because the government there I assume is made up of Chinese people. Just doing the math here.

No Home On The Horizon - Malibu residents object to plans for a new home planned by U2's guitarist The Edge. The makers of MTV's Cribs begin crying in their sleep.

Passings - Bad week for superstars from the '70's. Mark "The Bird" Fidrych, a Detroit Tigers pitcher who had a big start to his career before it tailed off, passed away this week. Also one of the first porn stars, Marilyn Chambers, met an untimely end.

Rule Brittania - Britain's Got Talent contestant Susan Boyle pulled off two amazing feats: Delivering a tremendous performance of a Les Miserable song and making a magic moment in reality tv.

Not Obsessed - The latest movie to saturate the television is Obsessed, the Beyonce' hatin' on cheaters film coming up. It's commercial is on like every ten minutes. What troubles me is apparently all movies must be one word titles now. Like we don't have the attention span left for a two or more word title.

Speaking of hatin' on cheaters...-Mel Gibson is in for an expensive divorce from his wife of 28 years and is rumored to have been a little on the unfaithful side. You know that point where a celebrity has had so many public embarrassments where they stop being funny and are just sad. I'm sorry to say Mad Mel has hit that point. Still like most of his movies though.

The Best of What's Around - I don't know if it's still going, the Dave Matthews Band is giving away their first single from the new album as a free download on their website. "Funny The Way It Is" is a pretty good tune.

Passion and Warfare - Since buying it from the $3.00 bin, I've been playing Steve Vai's CD a lot because it's really really good. Great pick Bunny! So to wrap things up, here's a video for the best known song from the album, "For The Love Of God".

Steve Vai "For The Love Of God"

Mr Mike AOR Project 1985

It's the roar of the crowd: Arena Rock's commercial slickness and focused energy became attractive to movies and aging rockers who wanted to meet mass appeal.

1985 was the year AOR went Hollywood, movie soundtracks and classic rockers hit the arena rock scene hard. The Iron Eagle soundtrack spawned a slew of Arena Rock classics, so much I purposely limited the number of songs on these CDs because it was dominating the whole thing. So, not included are Queen's "One Vision", Adrenalin's "Sign of the Gypsy" and Eric Martin's "These Are The Good Times". On top of that was the classic Rocky IV soundtrack, giving us another shot of John Cafferty and Survivor genius. Following '84's Footloose soundtrack, Arena Rockers were finding a lot of work playing over a film's ending credits or getting cut into that most famous of 80's film fads, The Montage. At the same time, Rock legends from the 60's like Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton jumped in too choosing slicker sonics to blend with the times. Arena Rock was still big business and everyone wanted in.

Disc 1:

Heart - What About Love

The Wilson sisters kicked off their new deal with Capitol records by releasing a nice shiny epic power ballad. Few on the planet can wail like Ann Wilson.

Fiona - Talk to Me

The smoky voiced chanteuse will forever be the person Demi Moore lip sync'd to in No Small Affair to me, though she is probably better known for acting opposite Bob Dylan in his big screen flick. Fiona tried every trick in the book to achieve fame to no avail, which is shocking because if a duet with Kip Winger called "You're Sexing Me" can't get you attention then what can?

David Lee Roth - California Girls

Diamond Dave rocked out the Beach Boys classic to the tune of random shouts and windmill kicks, giving him the delusion that he could do it all on his own. If only I could get a DeLorean and go back in time to stop him.

Alan Parsons Project - Days Are Numbers (The Traveller)

Wistful is not an adjective that comes up much in Arena rock, the pomp rockers get all teary eyed over the magic Traveller man. Travel on you questing spirit!

Loudness - Crazy Night

The Japanese Metal Gods tried the American market for a little while, I couldn't get a good copy of the excellent "Let it Go" so I went with another good tune from them.

Robert Tepper - No Easy Way Out

Just think, without Robert Tepper then Rocky might never have jumped into his Porsche to drive away his regrets and fears over Apollo Creed's death. Drago!

Supertramp - Cannonball

Who needs Roger Hodgson? Oh yeah, Supertramp does. The first single sans Hodgson was a sleek piece of jazz rock that sounds oddly close to the James Bond theme towards the end.

Bryan Adams - Heaven

Forgotten fact about this song: it was released as part of a soundtrack for a movie where Christopher Atkins (Blue Lagoon) is a male stripper in a relationship with his teacher Lesley Ann Warren. A Night in Heaven I think it was called. Or if it was made today, it would be titled Another Day at School.

Mick Jagger - Just Another Night

The Stones front man shaked and shimmied as hard as he could to make this song fly. He nearly succeeds as he pushed this to the Top 20. Sorry Mick, you really need Keith to make this stuff work.

Motley Crue - Home Sweet Home

Before it was American Idol's kiss off song, the Crue took power balladry to new heights on this jam which saw them switch from Satanic leather to spandex and scarves. No longer shouting at the devil, they're all sensitive and missing home.

Dokken - In My Dreams

Dokken still rhymes with rockin', their best heavy harmony topped off with George Lynch's blazing guitar. In the early 90's this song was remade as a dance track by a Disney group called The Party.

Starship - We Built This City

Stiff, mechanical, dopey and cheesy: everything I love! The Starship hit warp speed with this idiotic yet insanely memorable smash. I even had the twelve inch back then which consisted of five minutes of the drum machine pattern going over and over again followed by the regular song.

Marillion - Kayleigh

They didn't make much of a splash in the U.S., Marillion was a well respected British prog band who hit the European charts with this pop cut.

Survivor - The Search is Over

It's like Cats with rockers, Survivor croon their dramatic tale that made the list of VH1's Awesomely Bad Love Songs just because it's about finding true love after dating a lot of women.

The Hooters - And We Danced

Philadelphia's eccentric pop rockers were named after an actual musical instrument, not what you might think (get your mind out of the gutter!). For some reason this band has a knack for writing hits for female singers, case in point - Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" and Joan Osbourne's "One of Us" (you know, the what if God was on the bus song).

Fortune - Dearborn Station

One of the lost bands of AOR, Fortune released a classic Arena rock disc in '85 and was virtually ignored for their trouble. Not so, ahem, fortunate.

Van Zant - I'm A Fighter

Before reviving Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Van Zant took a shot at making a name for himself and made a little bit of headway with a two fisted rockers and ballads approach.

Disc 2:

Asia - Go

The last sort of hit for the British Prog AOR group, "Go" is like listening to Manheim Steamroller with Barry Manilow on lead vocals. That sounds awful, but it's really good. At least to me.

Magnum - On A Storyteller's Night

Germany likes to rock and Magnum serves up a bright shiny anthem that builds from a ballad to straight ahead rock. Combined with Asia, they serve up a special kind of cheese that can only come from Europe.

Tina Turner - Better Be Good To Me

Half the fun is listening to Turner's raspy insistent delivery, at it's core "Good to Me" is classic Arena rock dressed up in Adult Contemporary garb. The other part of the fun is listening to my wife's great Tina Turner imitation :)

REO Speedwagon - Can't Fight This Feeling

Along with Survivor, '85 was a big year for finding love right under your nose. Was it social commentary as the 60's spirit of unmarried sex combined with the wave of conservatism created a culture where it was expected to sleep around before getting married? Nope, just coinkidink. This song added some much needed miles to the Speedwagon's career as it shot to #1 on the Pop charts.

Joe Lynn Turner - Endlessly

Ex-Rainbow singer JoLT powered his solo debut with this magnificent moody ballad. I got to see JoLT live when he opened for Pat Benatar a year later, thought it was funny his tour shirts stressed JoLT with a lightning bolt because there was a caffeine heavy soda at the same time with a similar logo. Ah, that soda got me through many a college final.

Huey Lewis and the News - The Power of Love

Maybe a little too bar band to be true Arena Rock, nonetheless Huey Lewis and the News made a dent in the Pop Rock scene. This song gave Michael J Fox the power to skateboard his heart out in Back to the Future.

Mr. Mister - Broken Wings

Singer / Bassist / Songwriter Martin Page turned down a shot at replacing Peter Cetera in Chicago because he had faith in his own band. For one year he was right, Mr. Mister hit the top of the charts twice. Then after that it looked like he totally made the wrong choice as Mr. Mister decended into oblivion.

Eric Clapton - She's Waiting

Slowhand's hook up with Phil Collins produced some of his biggest AOR moments, "She's Waiting" was one of his best of Clap's 80's phase. Though I've always had a soft spot for that Miller beer remake of "After Midnight".

Michael McDonald - No Lookin' Back

Yes, there were occasional moments where Mikey McD would sing lead instead of background vocals. "No Lookin' Back" was McD's attempt to get out of R&B pop purgatory, an attempt that failed but still gave us a nice piece of soulful AOR.

Loverboy - Lovin Every Minute Of It

Written by Mutt Lange, it looks like Def Leppard, sounds like Def Leppard, but it's not. It's not Def Lep, it's Canada's Loverboy droppin' the New Wave to take their shot at full on Arena Rock.

The Power Station - Some Like It Hot

Driven by what I consider to be the single greatest drum performance of the Reagan Presidency, the late Tony Thompson gave the renegade Duran Durannies (John and Andy Taylor) something to dance about. And the cool sophistication of Robert Palmer didn't hurt either.

Heart - Never

This delicious chunk of wiry Arena Rock (Neevverrr! Never Run away...) was a huge smash not just for its catchiness. Nancy Wilson bouncing, writhing and kicking throughout the vid clip in tight spandex was a key selling point for millions.

Mike and the Mechanics - Silent Running

Okay, I never did figure out if this song went to a movie or not. The video made it seem like it belonged to a movie about aliens or something. Either way, Paul Carrack backed by Genesis' Mike Rutherford made a sleek proposition for high tech mystery.

Rush - The Big Money

The egghead hard rockers railed against THE MAN with this textured swipe at Corporate greed.

Y&T - Summertime Girls

Same old story: Long running Bay Area hard rock outfit sells out to pure cheese for MTV airplay. "Mean Streak" this is not. And yet I cannot resist it's sub-Hagar charm.

King Kobra - Iron Eagle (Never Say Die)

Damn right you never say die, this is America!

The Cars - Tonight She Comes

Little did we know at the time that this would be the last Cars hit to have any real impact. Ric Ocasek's offhand delivery distinguishes this synth heavy hit.

And Cut! That's a wrap people, see you in 1986.

Mr. Mike Project 1983

Make way for the New Wave! Arena rock bands were suddenly faced with obsolescence as MTV changed the rules from regular looking people to fancy hair cuts and costumes.

1983, MTV started to take hold. Music Videos began to break new acts left and right, particularly in the New Wave field. This took its toll on the established Arena rockers as they had made their name on live concert experiences more than having a photogenic look. Arena rock bands ran to the cameras for their closeups to compete with A Flock of Seagulls but ultimately could not translate their live appeal to video. The fact of the matter was that many of these guys weren't what would be called "pretty" and in 1983 looks mattered a lot more. As a result, '83 became the last gasp of true Arena rock. The regular guy look was out, glitz and glamour was in.

So my picks for my Arena rock songs of '83?

Disc 1:

Kansas - Fight Fire With Fire

John Elefante takes over for Steve Walsh on vocals and let's out a wail over a pounding riff as a giant mosquito bites his neck. One of the first records I ever bought. I used to get a lot of crap from my friend because it wasn't Metallica.

38 Special - If I'd Been The One

The video where the first Mrs. Springsteen shoots the singer and then drives off while the horses run free. A song where 38 asks a lot of "what if's", like what if I'd been the one to say goodbye, the one that makes you want to cry, the one that never fades away...dude, get over it!

Sweet Comfort Band - Don't Bother Me

Trying to be a completest here so despite my personal lack of spirituality I couldn't completely ignore Christian rock's contributions to the Arena rock genre. So I picked the most secular song I could find by a Christian rock band.

Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Runner

The 80's had these awesome synth rockers that were meant to sound futuristic and cool like this one. Would go great with a Logan's Run montage.

The Tubes - She's A Beauty

Maybe the most clean cut sounding song about a strip joint ever. In the video, I still can't believe what they got away with what's painted on the door the amusement park cart goes through towards the start.

Tony Carey - I Won't Be Home Tonight

Ex-Rainbow keyboardist strikes out on his own with a solid chunk of pop rock. And that's all I got here.

Genesis - That's All

Phil Collin's balladeer instincts began to kick in here though the group is clever enough to dress it up in an upbeat keyboard bit and tasteful guitars.

Vandenberg - Burning Heart

Flick your bic for a mighty fine power ballad courtesy of Adrian Vandenberg. This guy just has a name that is born to rock. Say it - Van Den Berg!

Def Leppard - Rock of Ages

The prime purveyors of Pop Metal get downright biblical on their hard rock stomper and introduce an unforgettable catchphrase to a generation - unta gleebin glossen globen.

Charilie - It's Inevitable

A song made for video arcades and miniature golf, this sounds awesome when you're trying to sink that last hole for a free game.

Eric Martin Band - Sucker For A Pretty Face

One of my favorite records back in the day, EMB aka 415 kicked out this blazin' ode to guys in Izod shirts with their collars up gettin' used by beautiful girls.

Billy Squier - Rock Me Tonite

The last of Squier's big run, of the Arena rockers to fail to transition to the video age few crashed harder than Squier. His fey dancing and rolling around in this clip has been cited as the killer of his career.

Alcatrazz - Hiroshima Mon Amour

Another Rainbow alumni, singer Graham Bonnet brought in guitar phenom Yngwie Malmsteen to burn up the fret boards like an A bomb.

Queen - Radio Ga Ga

Faced with the growing popularity of a medium they helped perpetuate, Queen takes on the music video era with a tribute to radio.

Night Ranger - Don't Tell Me You Love Me

Twin guitar fury hits like a locomotive. Night Ranger arrives on the scene guns blazing and Brad Gillis' whamming.

Journey - Faithfully

While "Open Arms" broke new ground for the Bay Area band's power balladry, "Faithfully" was the one that put the patent on it.

Dan Fogelberg - The Language of Love

Mr. Sensitive longer than same old lang syne dropped the misty eyed sentimentality for a second to find his inner cow bell.

Saga - On The Loose

More proof that Canada rocks, the Proggy Arena rockers lay down a thunderous groove for spinny keyboards and guitars to dance over.

Disc 2:

Def Leppard - Photograph

One of the first groups to really benefit from MTV exposure, the Lep unleash a butt load of hooks from the opening guitar riff to the "Oh!" chants to the cushy synths under the chorus to rock you in your living room.

I Ten - Alone

Songwriters Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly originally performed what would become a power ballad standard following Heart's remake in 1987.

Chris DeBurgh - Don't Pay the Ferryman

Before that whole "Lady in Red" thing, DeBurgh was a pop rocker with a dramatic flair.

Randy Newman - I Love L.A.

Sublime songwriter that he is, Newman went AOR in the early 80's penning one of the top rock anthems of the decade. The song became shorthand for the decadent feel good consumerism of the time.

Kiss - Lick it Up

The make up came off in '83, revealing...four pretty ugly dudes. Yet the trick worked, Kiss successfully switched from fading glam metal to hair band in a snap.

Bon Jovi - Runaway

Jon Bon Jovi makes his mark as a Foreigner styled rocker a few years before making the jump to premier hair band status.

Zebra - Who's Behind the Door?

One of the great forgotten power trios of 80's rock, Zebra mashed up Rush and Zep into a compelling sound.

Taxxi - I'm Leaving

Occasionally British bands would forget their from England and take a wholly American character. Point in case: Taxxi.

LeRoux - Carrie's Gone

Could vocalist Fergie Frederiksen be denied a spot on my CDs? Hell no!

Quiet Riot - Cum On Feel The Noize

The "Smells Like Teen Spirit" of the 80's, Quiet Riot's successful streamlining of a Slade classic ushered in the hair band era in an explosion of hair spray and spandex.

Toto - Africa

Showing the softer side of Arena rock, Toto gets mythical about "blessing the rains down in Africa" giving karaoke singers in the low vocal range something to shout about.

Journey - Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)

Own up to it, you would look for docks and warehouses to jump around in and do that grabbing the wrist of your shaking fist with your other hand thing for the "break those chains that bind you" part. Or maybe it was just me.

Michael Bolton - Fools Game

In one of his previous lives, Michael Bolton was a super cheesy rocker who oversang all over his backing track. As opposed to a super cheesy R&B crooner who oversang all over his backing track.

Asia - Don't Cry

The Fab Four of Prog rock score one more Top 10 hit before ego battling each other to the bitter end. And then coming back again two decades later.

Pat Benatar - Love is a Battlefield

You know, at the time "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" was her signature tune but now it's been supplanted by this one. Because taxi dancers need love too.

Loverboy - Hot Girls in Love

Did you ever notice in this video that the girl wasn't particularly hot? Or that the drummer was playing the drums with gas pumps? Or that no one was in love?

707 - Megaforce

Singer Kevin Chalfant strikes in this brilliant theme song to a craptacular movie about a military unit that rides rocket launching flying motorcycles and dune buggys. My younger brother loved this movie so of course I had to make fun of it, often referring to it as "Megafake".

Styx - Mr. Roboto

Japanese lessons courtesy of Dennis DeYoung, the song has become a kitsch classic that still gets referenced today. Even the Japanese guy who won an Oscar last week said "Domo Arigato Mr Roboto."

That's it for 1983, MTV makes an even greater impact on the next round. See you in 1984.

Mr. Mike Project 1982

Buda-Buda-Buda...on restrictions from watching Buck Rogers? Then find yourself some Rock & Roll on the radio.

1982, the year that essentially created this blog. I wasn't doing well in school and was restricted to staying indoors to do homework without access to television or baseball (my two childhood obsessions) to improve my grades. For entertainment the only thing I had was my clock radio, so I left it on while I did homework. Then I started to like some songs more than others, like Blondie's "The Tide is High" or Toto's "Rosanna". At the end of the year, Casey Kasem and America's Top 40 (Billboard) ran a program on New Years Eve counting down the Top 100 songs of the past 12 months. So I decided to sit down and record the whole program (it was hours long and took about all nite). The best songs of the year for free! I played those tapes incessantly afterwards, leading me to buying music resulting 27 years later with what we have in the present (me and a lot of music).

1982 was also the last year of true Arena Rock. The music industry was in a slump, sales were down and the industry complained about home copying as much as possible to anyone that would listen (sounds familiar?). MTV had just started the year before and was a channel dedicated to Rock music only (big controversy at the time) meaning music hadn't been Hollywood-ized yet. Rock bands didn't have to be pretty, just play music well. Michael Jackson's Thriller was released in '82, but it wouldn't be until the next year that there would be a push to put him on MTV and change music forever. But that was in the future, now it's 1982. Here's my picks for Arena Rock CDs for my car.

Disc 1:

Journey - Open Arms

The song most credited with starting the power ballad, Steve Perry makes the girls weep with his special brand of epic sensitivity and pre-American Idol melisma.

Steve Miller Band - Abracadabra

The Bay Area invasion continues, the 70's rocker got his last run at the pop charts in with this synthy dance cut. He heats up and can't cool down. I heard this was written about Diana Ross, wonder if that's true?

Survivor - Eye of the Tiger

Boxing gets a new theme song as this track from Rocky III scores a knockout. I remember the first time I heard it, got dragged into a friend's house after a baseball game because he wanted to play everyone a tape of the rockinist song ever.

Moving Pictures -What About Me

The Australian smash hit ballad did little business here in the U.S., but was a sign of the growing influence of Arena Rock worldwide.

38 Special - Caught Up In You

Don Barnes best vocal in my book, the 38's give Urban Cowboys something romantic to say to their best cowgirls.

Toronto - Your Daddy Don't Know

A kickin' track that...I can't figure out why it matters that your Daddy don't know what your Mama's gonna do tonight. I guess it means you're telling someone their Mom is sleeping around? Not the nicest thing to say! But it makes for a killer Canadian hit. I've read the New Pornographers covered this too.

Asia - Heat of the Moment

Take three of the greatest Prog bands of all time (Yes, ELP, King Crimson), pour into a cup add water and stir.

Spys - Don't Run My Life

While looking for songs for these CDs, I finally got an answer to a lifelong question: what happened to those dudes that were fired from Foreigner? Answer: they formed this band.

REO Speedwagon - Keep the Fire Burnin'

Did you know that there was a band called REO Speed Dealer? Too funny. Oh, this song is freakin' great in that "Roll With The Changes" kinda way.

Judas Priest - You Got Another Thing Comin'

Rob Halford drops another hint to his fans of what's what. And then sells burgers with it two decades later.

Fleetwood Mac - Hold Me

Lindsey Buckingham kicks his production skillz into overdrive for this overdub classic built on yet another sturdy Christine McVie tune.

Bad Company - Electric Land

You know what sucks? I can't find a cheap copy of "No Smoke Without A Fire" anywhere. Anyway, gotta represent the original lineup where I can, so all I got is "Electric Land".

Bryan Adams - Straight From The Heart

Bri Dog's first big hit was this ballad, maybe I should have went with "Lonely Nights"? I included "Heaven" later, did I really need two Adams ballads?

Dio - Rainbow in the Dark

Ronnie James throws his fists skyward and screams about rainbows.

Quarterflash - Harden My Heart

Swanky sax and a Pat Benatar vibe goes the distance on this big hit.

Alan Parsons Project - Eye in the Sky

I asked my wife to sing this song to me recently, it was beautiful. The song itself with it's Orwellian fears, so ahead of its time.

Joan Jett - I Love Rock and Roll

Snarling, simplistic and catchy as hell. Joan Jett "Ow!"s her way to greatness.

Headpins - Just One More Time

Another Canadian band to do decent business up North, I always liked the name of this group. They had this one video where their faces were on bowling pins, it was cool in that early 80's kinda way.

Disc 2:

Aldo Nova - Fantasy

Awesome futurism, I mean the guy's name is ALDO NOVA and he has helicopters and laser guns in his song. Like Buck Rogers with a guitar. Twiki rocks out.

Tane' Cain - Holdin On

Jon Cain's then wife shows Quarterflash a thing or two in the Pat Benatar copycat department. And then becomes a B movie actress appearing in movies like Illicit Dreams 2 and Bikini Academy. Speaking of futurism, she appeared and sang in the first Terminator movie too.

Supertramp - It's Raining Again

The group's final hit with Roger Hodgson was this sing songy confection complete with the children's rhyme at the end.

Axe' - Rock and Roll Party in the Streets

I heard if you take this record and spray it on you that chicks can't resist you.

Steel Breeze - You Don't Want Me Anymore

Blazin' keyboards and fired up guitar, this is what music is about! State of the Art rock for 1982. Where's my Rubik's cube?

Kiss - I Love it Loud

This is a song I got into from hearing it on Music Choice over the past few years instead of listening to it back then. But what the hell, may as well include some makeup era Kiss if I can.

Journey - Don't Stop Believin'

As Sammy Hagar once said, what is understood does not need to be discussed. A song for the ages.

Rainbow - Stone Cold

Downbeat dramatics rule as Joe Lynn Turner and Richie Blackmore get the cold shoulder. Oooh, ice cold.

Foreigner - Waiting For A Girl Like You

Upbeat dramatics rule as Lou Gramm and Mick Jones give a warm welcome. Having those cascading Thomas Dolby synthesizers didn't hurt either. You know that line in the verse "When we make love it's understood", who understands it? I would think the two people having sex already understand they are having sex. Are they having sex in public?

Toto - Rosanna

As I learned from Casey Kasem, that synthesizer solo took several passes of overdubbing to get the right sound. Rosanna Arquette, inspiration to all musicians everywhere.

Golden Earring - Twilight Zone

You know half of that song "Radar Love" kicks soooo much ass. Oh, this was their other hit.

J. Geils Band - Centerfold

So provocative back in the day, Peter Wolf shuffles his feet and fantasizes about girls in girlie magazines. Interesting compared to now where Centerfolds can have their own TV shows and what not. Not that I'm complaining.

Cheap Trick - She's Tight

The Tricksters lay down their last great rock song, Arena Rock with a touch of punky urgency and ribald sense of humor. No accident Green Day ripped off this song years later.

Eddie Money - I Think I'm in Love

A highlight from last Summer when we saw the Money man play at the Santa Cruz boardwalk, the staggering one stands and delivers a straight ahead shot of AOR.

Shooting Star - Hollywood

Before videos took hold, bands would occasionally get ambitious and tell their musical theater dreams on record only. Also ran AORsters Shooting Star were no exception, I bet Dennis DeYoung was ecstatic when he heard this.

Tommy TuTone - 867 5309 Jenny

Is there anything harsher than putting a real phone number in a hit song? And then making it about getting a girl's number off the wall? Burn!

Billy Squier - Everybody Wants You

Squier brings the beats again on this zippy, bangin track. If it's good enough for the CW, it's good enough for me.

John Waite - Change

Proof that Pat Benatar had male copycats too, Waite hooked up with Benatar's guitarist for this rocker that was only a medium sized hit despite two attempts at chart success (in 1982 and then re-released as a single in 1985 for the Vision Quest soundtrack).

And that's it for the year that was 1982. Next up, MTV takes hold of the video and airwaves.

Top 10 Favorite Albums of 2008

Coldplay had my 11th favorite CD of the year, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends. Coldplay had my 11th favorite CD of the year, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends. Hey, stop copying me Chris Martin!

2008 was the year that everything least likely to happen, happened. As I read what I wrote in this post, I see the words "unlikely" or "least likely" pop up everywhere. I have even named a former life long nemesis to this list. It was the year of "Go Figure", it was 2008:

10. Lindsey Buckingham - Gift of Screws

.

As his career has progressed, Buckingham's artful refinement of his unique distillation of roots rock, Brian Wilson and 70's melodicism has become increasingly studied though no less sharp. This makes Gift of Screws a pleasant surprise as Buckingham cuts loose a smidgen with a greater focus on energy and Fleetwood Mac-isms than much of his recent work (including Fleetwood Mac albums). Fleetwood Mac white album and Rumours era rock abounds with a cluster of acoustic and electric guitars and multitracked chorus vocals (with Buckingham seemingly raising the EQ on some of his singing to mimic the Buckingham/Nicks sound). Did You Miss Me embraces his softer, swoonier side while "Love Runs Deeper" and "The Right Place to Fade" had me reliving his "Go Your Own Way" glory days.

9. Rick Springfield - Venus in Overdrive

.

One of the unlikely candidates for a comeback, Springfield once again displays his Genius of adapting personal experiences to the Pop / Rock sound of the day. As he has done throughout his career, Springfield takes the modern style of commercial rock and personalizes it with his distinct brand of angst and weariness (of the many people to once hold Teen Idol status, Springfield stood out in writing downbeat lyrics to his happy sounding songs). The lead single "What's Victoria's Secret" recalled "Jessie's Girl" in parts and Springfield worked the promo circuit including his old stomping grounds of General Hospital to push it. The rest of the album is just as good as "Secret", referencing the Stones and the Beatles in between the slick sonics worthy of a Disney star. The Genius strikes again!

8. R.E.M. - Accelerate

The least likely of the bunch to ride the retro train, R.E.M. cut out the arty crap and got back to the jangly fast beat riddles that made them College Rock darlings. Like the album title says, it was time for R.E.M. to speed up a bit and tracks like Living Well is the Best Revenge and Supernatural Superserious give a caffeinated kick in the pants. There are still some slower numbers for R.E.M. to get their more ambitious ya-yas out, but what sticks are moments like the silly album closer I'm Gonna DJ. I haven't played this much R.E.M. since Automatic for The People (1992).

7. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black

The real success story for Winehouse is that she made it out of 2008 alive, I really didn't think she would make it. Forgetting that she is a violent mess of a junkie, the album Back to Black ties Classic Soul and Motown to engaging songwriting and a unique performer. Tears dry on Their Own recalls the rush of early Diana Ross while her hit Rehab was attention grabbing fun. Given her self destructive behavior, it's not likely Winehouse will make an album this good ever again. Winehouse is the beautiful sound of damaged goods, intent on proving that You Know I'm No Good was no idle boast.

6. Whitesnake - Good to Be Bad

Of all the 80's rockers to pull their spandex out of mothballs, David Coverdale was one of the least likely to succeed. Whitesnake had come to symbolize hair band excess almost as much as Winger and with little output from Coverdale since the 80's he seemed ripe for a limp pale performance. But Coverdale is a crafty one, bringing in guitarist Doug Aldrich to peel out simpatico Led Zep riffage to Coverdale's Plantish howl. Good to Be Bad is like a cross of the two best 'Snake albums, it has the down and dirty blues rock of Slide it In (1984) and the commercial hooks of Whitesnake (1987). With Good to Be Bad you get the best Whitesnake has to offer, the Led Zep lite of the title track, the power balladry of All I Want All I Need and the fired up go for broke rawk of Got What You Need. Coverdale proves he still has some hair spray left in his can yet.

5. John Mellencamp - Life, Death, Love and Freedom

Is this really my list? I've hated John Mellencamp for years so saying his name positively takes a bit of getting used to. This year I decided to cut Mellencamp a little slack and give him a fair shot at impressing me. His disc Life, Death, Love and Freedom was good but I didn't think it was great. So imagine my surprise when I made this list this week and found I liked this album to the point I would rank it my 5th favorite of the year. Like Springsteen's classic Nebraska (1982), Mellencamp takes a good hard look at the disillusionment with the American dream as it is taken away "Without A Shot" in this Troubled Land. Staring in the face of social and economic ills or maybe just a plain loss of values, Mellencamp paints a stark picture that mirrors the feeling of what's happening now like no other. Looks like all those people who recommended this CD to me was right: it is great and it's one of the best of the year. Hard to believe this all started with me liking the rockabilly My Sweet Love.

4. Asia - Phoenix

It only took a quarter of a century to get Steve Howe, John Wetton, Carl Palmer and Geoff Downes to record a new album, record time in the world of Progressive rock where band lineups change with the weather. Inspired by Wetton's recent health problems, Phoenix comes alive with feel good emotion and tricky band interplay. Surprising in its maturity, Wetton's smooth delivery backed by angular guitars, swirling synths and rapid fire drums bring back the Heat. I even got to live the dream and see these guys in concert this year. Easily the band's most optimistic record, Asia proves it's An Extraordinary Life. "Never Again" had the drama and poppy action expected from the First Supergroup of the 80's while at the same time delving into their storied Prog history like never before on tracks like Parallel Worlds/Vortex/Deya. Carl Palmer rules!

3. Sheryl Crow - Detours

.

.

Crow had become a bit of a media joke as her commercial power has faded, written off as a left wing nut job who survived cancer but failed in a high profile relationship with bicyclist Lance Armstrong. Detours shows Crow can have the last laugh, reteaming with Tuesday Night Music Club producer Bill Bottrell returns her to a more natural, lively sound than her recent outings. And with Bottrell, Crow finds her songwriting muse and writes an album of all killer and no filler (the first time I can say that about one of her discs). Serving as a self portrait, Detours gives insight into her openly lefty politics and wounded romantic heart. Cuts like God Bless This Mess, Love is Free and Now That You're Gone illustrate the power of her songwriting. My favorite of all the Sheryl Crow albums, one of those rare moments where talent, feeling and performance hit their peak at the same time.

2. Journey - Revelation

In what was one of the most controversial Lead Singer swaps in recent history, Journey picked a Filipino singer from You Tube to be the latest substitute for AOR legend Steve Perry. While predecessors Steve Augeri and Jeff Scott Soto fared well, Arnel Pineda turned out to be the best replacement yet for "The Voice". Able to mimic not just Perry's range but recapture some of the soulfulness, Pineda added clear enunciation, an egoless approach and a high flying stage presence to the mix. Surprisingly, Pineda was also able to inject an upbeat personality and genuine feeling into the group's sound to bring Journey back from the brink. Meanwhile, Jon Cain and Neal Schon wrote material strong enough to be the best Journey album since Raised on Radio (1986). Rockers like Change for the Better and Never Walk Away soared like the Journey of old. The band that practically invented the power ballad serve up more misty eyed sentimentality on After All These Years in grand fashion. An album worthy of Tony Soprano's respect.

1. Metallica - Death Magnetic

The Bay Area Bashers rolled back the clock to the speed metal sound that made their name. Unruly song lengths, multisection arrangements, blazing fast guitar solos and growling vocals tear up the landscape. That Was Just Your Life and My Apocalypse could have just as easily come from ...And Justice For All (1988) with its total commitment to heaviocity (a word I made up just now). Some of their later, catchier style works its way in on All Nightmare Long or Cyanide but not to the point of weakening their edge. It's Metallica the way I've wanted to hear them for years: brutal, fast and uncompromising. Most of all, other than the Black Album and Garage Inc. it's the first Metallica album in twenty years to sound more like fun than work.

And there it is, my Ten favorite discs of the past year. Next up, my Five favorite movies and TV shows of '08.

20 Favorite Songs of 2008

2008 - brought to you exclusively by Wal Mart

It's almost the end of the year so it's time to join the pack and bust out the "Best of the Year" lists. It could have been Guitar Hero, could have been Rock Band or just plain nostalgia but 2008 was a watershed year for Classic Rock. A slew of artists who I spent my high school years jamming to decided to reunite or reconfigure in some way to create new music. I normally pick just Ten favorite songs but this year I have enough for Twenty (I even had more than Twenty)! Most years I struggle just to find four songs to list so this just goes to show what a banner year it was for aging rock stars. Even Chinese Democracy came out (not that I care about the actual disc). So on with the countdown!

20. Lenny Kravitz - It Is Time For A Love Revolution

A brief marching blast of hippie Peace and Love with the reach to call for a cultural shift in values and sell department store clothing at the same time.

19. Chicago - Let's Take A Lifetime

The famed balladeers dial down the bombast and let the gooey syrup flow like Mrs. Butterworth colliding into Aunt Jemima in slow motion.

18. Def Leppard - Hallucinate

Sometimes self reverence pays as the Lep go full on "Photograph" mode with the hooky excess of multitracked vocals and revved up guitars that made them great.

17. The Bridges - Pieces

Matthew Sweet's protege's revive wholesome family oriented 70's AM Gold under a pillow of harmony vocals.

16. Flight of the Conchords - The Most Beautiful Girl In The Room

Pure love poetry: "You're so beautiful...you could be a part time model. Or a high class prostitute."

15. Alicia Keys - Like You'll Never See Me Again

Like a great lost Prince song, Alicia Keys pumps up the melodrama amid circling keyboards and a slow stepping groove.

14. Metallica - The Day That Never Comes

Time to stop guessing which other Metallica song this sounds like and just enjoy the ride. This I Swear!

13. The Lonely Island - Jizz In My Pants

Saturday Night Live wraps up their funniest year since I-can't-remember-when with the novelty tune of '08.

12. Rick Springfield - What's Victoria's Secret

Catchy ad campaign baiting pop rock awesomeness from The Genius.

11. Sheryl Crow - Gasoline

The theme song for a year that at its peak saw fuel prices skyrocket to the point people couldn't afford to drive to the next town while oil companies recorded record profits.

10. Death Cab For Cutie - Your New Twin Sized Bed

For anyone who at some point in their life wondered if there was another person out there for them, this song captures that feeling perfectly (fortunately I no longer have moments like these :)

9. Van Morrison - Soul

There's no way for me to describe Van the Man's butter smooth soulfulness in a way that hasn't been done before. But I'll try anyway. Van Morrison's voice is as smooth as C3P0's bronze ass. How's that? Oh, and this is a great song about how soul comes from within you, not what's outside of you.

8. The Ting Tings - Shut Up And Let Me Go

The New Wave revival has died off a bit though that hasn't stopped this duo from pushing this bit of IPOD worthy froth. The beat sticks in my head for days on end after I hear it.

7. Asia - Never Again

The Fab Four of my generation (not really, I just like saying that) regrouped and recaptured some Pomp Rock glory. Steve Howe shines with his most aggressive playing in ages. Never Again did I think I would hear these four guys play together, but here they are kicking ass like it's 1985.

6. Snoop Dogg - Sensual Seduction

I'm not big on rap music and not really a fan of Snoop Dogg so it was a shock to me that I like a song of his now. This jam is reminiscent of those old Zapp songs with the mechanized voices. Is it too late for me to learn the Running Man? Yes, yes it is. But not too late for me to like this song.

5. AC / DC - Big Jack

Barrelling down the freeway at 100 mph, AC/DC cranks up their trademark rumble and screech into a frenzy of Hard Rock ecstasy. I don't know who Big Jack is, but like most AC/DC songs it makes me want to drink till I fall down and yell loudly in the face of the nearest person available. Yeah!

4. Bruce Springsteen - Girls In Their Summer Clothes

Technically a 2007 song though it was released as a single this year so I'm including it. A touch of Brian Wilson enhances the reverie of this melodic masterpiece. The feeling of being too young to settle down yet too old to run with the kids paints a sharp picture of middle age. And it has Springsteen doing one of his best Orbison style dark crooning.

3. Journey - Never Walk Away

The 80's Arena Rockers put their new frontman Arnel Pineda straight in the line of fire by opening up with this soaring anthem. Energized by the new blood, Journey takes flight again with the power and grace that made them Platinum selling rock stars.

2. Coldplay - Viva La Vida

A song so good that everyone and their mother are convinced they wrote it, Coldplay brings in a sweeping orchestral sound I haven't heard since the hey day of the Moody Blues. Cold hearted orb that rules the night, steals the Sun from our sight...oops, wrong song. It may have just as well been the lyrics to "Viva la Vida" because I don't know what Chris Martin is going on about, something regarding bells ringing and St Peter or ruling the world. None of the words really matter, it's all about the symphonic groove struck here.

1. Dragonforce - Heroes Of Our Time

Well, let's get the disclaimers out of the way first. Yes, their recordings are said to be faked and sped up. Yes, every song they write sounds exactly the same as the song before it. Yes, their claim to fame is being a difficult level on a video game. So why can't I get enough of this cheese fest? Because I love me some cheese, especially with a little ham. And Dragonforce has got all that, Viking vocals, shred on top of shred guitar and ridiculous drum beats. I played this song more than any other song this year, so it deserves being named my favorite song of 2008. On the few occasions where I exercise, I love working out to this.

That's my Top 20 songs of the year, feel free to share your favorite songs of this year if you like because I enjoy reading about other people's faves. Oh yeah, I later realized Flight of the Conchords came from 2007 but I'm too lazy to redo this. I probably would have ranked Matthew Sweet's "Feel Fear" if I knew that. Next up, my Top 10 Favorite Albums of '08.

Turkey Shoot - The Top 10 Most Disappointing Songs

I missed posting on Thanksgiving, had a delicious dinner at my parents place. So my Thanksgiving post is a day late, with Turkey's being the key symbol of this Holiday I thought it would be a good time to do a Top 10 Turkey Songs. These aren't songs about...haven't you heard? I said HAVEN'T YOU HEARD? About the Bird? Bird Bird Bird, Bird is a Word...

Anyway, these are the 10 most disappointingly bad songs I've heard. They feature a lot of my favorite artists because it's harder to be disappointed in a musical act you don't have much of an interest in anyway. So here it is, the Ten most disappointing songs I've heard...Ten Turkeys- songs that should have been left overs. Pulled from the refrigerator, unwrapped from its protective foil and thrown out in the street. Somebody get the gravy!

10. Night Ranger - The Secret of My Success (1987)

The Bay Area rockers were on a roll with Top 10 hits and Platinum albums by the mid 80's. What could be better? How about a movie soundtrack theme for the latest Michael J Fox movie, co written and Produced by the inimitable David Foster? This is a plan that can't go wrong. The power of Night Ranger, the super slick sonics of David Foster and the likability of Michael J Fox all rolled into one. A Perfect Storm of marketing synergy. Depressingly, that's exactly what it sounds like- a marketing plan brought to life. Foster's Chicagoisms of synth horns, mannered guitar work and busy instrumentation didn't mesh well with Night Ranger's free wheeling high speed rawk. Unsurprisingly, Night Ranger saw their commercial fortunes slide after this song.

9. Cheap Trick - Woke Up With A Monster (1993)

By the late 80's / early 90's the Tricksters had been all over the map stylistically. When they got to "Woke Up With A Monster", the group seemed tired. It was like they were trying to work up some whimsy but only had enough juice to sound mean. Thankfully, shortly after Alternative Rock bands began citing Cheap Trick as an influence-buying them some much needed credibility.

8. Styx - Music Time (1984)

Styx was near the end of their initial run and to cap it they released a double live album, Caught in the Act. The record came with one new studio track, "Music Time". I was so excited, I was getting a live record by one of my favorite groups plus a new song. Then I actually heard the record. "Music Time" took all of the annoying excesses that ringleader Dennis DeYoung could muster and slammed it into a four minute tune. All the dorky Broadway jazz hands crap that DeYoung had in him to a cheap synth riff unchecked by anything. Seee it. Liiikke it. Loooovve it. DoitDoitDoitDoit. Waannt it. Neeedd it. Can't get enough of it! All the wayyyy!

7. Steve Perry - I Am (1994)

Can "The Voice" really do wrong? After hearing this track, the answer is Yes. The song is supposed to convey a sense of hard won maturity but instead it comes off as turgid and self indulgent. A torpid pace sinks any chance "I Am" has of winning me over, one of the few songs to be graced by Perry's voice that I just can't stand. It's like watching a bad episode of Dr Phil where a guy can't stop bleeding his heart out.

6. Boston - Corporate America (2004)

I like everything Boston, even this song I like in a so-bad-it-becomes-kinda-good way. Many an Arena Rock band has made the mistake of thinking a cheap, anxious synth line sounds good. Although this was recorded in the 21st Century, the overworked keyboards immediately dates the track as early 80's to the point that the rampaging guitars in the chorus isn't enough to ramp up interest. To top it off, Boston leader Tom Scholz stacks the deck with awful lyrics decrying the evils of large corporations. Look Out! Look Out!

5. Chicago - Bigger Than Elvis (1993/2008)

When Jason Scheff replaced Peter Cetera in 1985, Scheff was recognizably different in his approach though many did not notice. Jason Scheff had a more winsome style that could get more than a little sentimental. But until the recently released Stone of Sisyphus disc I had no idea how sentimental. On "Elvis", Scheff writes a heartfelt ode to lovin' his Dad ( not that way, get your mind out of the gutter sicko). Scheff's father was the bass player for Elvis Presley, the song chronicles how Scheff loves his Pop to the point that his Father is "Bigger Than Elvis". A beautiful arrangement can't mask the saccharine, be careful when listening to this or you may go into a diabetic coma.

4. Asia - Countdown To Zero (1985)

During the Cold War, the Arms race and possibility of Nuclear War was on everyone's minds. It was on John Wetton's mind, resulting in one of the worst anti-war anthems you could imagine. "Countdown to Zero" has more corn than, well, a corn field as Wetton builds the anxiety about irreconcilable international tensions. What really caps it is the ending, where Wetton reels off a list of Countries names and then pleads for Peace. In a large, booming echoey voice, Wetton slowly intones "Don't Do It. Don't Press the Button. No. Don't Start. Don't Start the Countdown to Zero. We Want To Live. We Will Live. Don't Press the Button." and goes on like this for a while. It's hilariously bad, in College I had a running joke with a roommate who also liked Asia where we would talk just like this.

3. Van Halen - How Many Say I (1998)

With Van Halen 3, Eddie Van Halen had finally gotten rid of all the lead singers that had stood in his way of total domination of the band. And now EVH could do what he really wanted to do...sing! With a weathered voice that made Roger Waters sound like Christina Aguilera, Eddie Van Halen ended Van Halen 3 with this piano based ballad containing an almost childlike circular melody. Raw ego never sounded so wrong.

2. GTR - The Hunter (1986)

Debuting with the outstanding "When The Heart Rules the Mind", GTR hit the scene as a team up of prog guitar legends Steve Howe (Yes, Asia) and Steve Hackett (Genesis). After taking in "Mind", I anxiously waited for the follow up single. What I got was this, the ridiculous "The Hunter". Musically, it's a very nice song featuring Howe and Hackett's fine acoustic guitars. What stops the fun is a sing songy melody with lyrics like "He's a fighter, he's a swan, he's the one I'm counting on. Steal the glory, take the prize - only the Hunter, only the Hunter...Survives!" El lamo.

1. Rod Stewart - Love Touch (1985)

For two decades this song has represented to me all that can be crappy in music. Taken from the soundtrack for the Robert Redford / Debra Winger rom com Legal Eagles, Stewart doesn't just go Pop but ingests it whole like a Sarlacc pit. It should be a slight, innocuous pop piece of fluff. But something in this song offends me on a deep deep level. Nothing here works for me, its not just the sound of someone selling out that gets me. It's the sound of a talented performer phoning in a performance to a song devoid any real feeling done in a style that's supposed to seem adventurous and fun. And then I had to watch this hunk of junk become a Top 10 hit. Oh the pain, the pain. I can't even bring myself to provide a link to this.

That wraps up my Top 10 musical turkeys, as I mentioned at the start these are some of my favorite groups so why carp on just one song versus the hundreds that I enjoy from these people? Simple, because it's fun. No one can be perfect all the time and these artists are no exception. Though that doesn't mean I can't have a little fun at their expense. And it's perfectly possible that other people may love these songs. So have you heard? Have you heard about the Bird? Bird Bird Bird, Bird is a Word...