“I don’t care to belong to any club that will have Bon Jovi as a member.”
– Groucho Marx
On April 14, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will induct several worthwhile acts and Bon Jovi. Over the coming weeks, Tunes du Jour will spotlight artists that are eligible for induction (i.e. they commercially released their debut recording at least 25 years ago), but have not been inducted as they are not as talented, innovative or influential as Bon Jovi.
Today we look at and listen to The Replacements. Per the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s website, consideration for induction involves “factors such as an artist’s musical influence on other artists, length and depth of career and the body of work, innovation and superiority in style and technique, but musical excellence shall be the essential qualification of induction.” Starting out as a punk band, The Replacements evolved their sound over the course of 12 years and seven albums. Mixing humor with heartbreak and vulnerability, loud thrashing anthems with melodic quieter songs, the band influenced so many artists that made it bigger in a commercial sense, including Nirvana, R.E.M., and Green Day, all of whom are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Still, Bon Jovi has had a longer career, more albums, and, um, influenced Nickelback (probably), so they win.
“Right now I’m listening to this band called The Replacements – they’re from the ‘80s or something – and half the songs make me think, ‘God, I should cover this!’”
– Lorde
Here are twenty of The Replacements’ finest tunes.
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Today is the birthday of Peter Gabriel. It’s also the birthday of Peter Tork of The Monkees. And Peter Hook of New Order/Joy Division fame. Those three inspired today’s playlist of guys named Peter. Only on Tunes du Jour, folks. And before anyone drags me on social media for not including any women, I couldn’t think of any female Peters. #SorryBernadettePeters
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This playlist consists of twenty songs, most performed by artists who fall somewhere under the LGBTQ umbrella, a couple with queer lyrical content. Artists include R.E.M., k.d. lang and George Michael.
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In creating this LGBTQ series, I’ve purposefully stayed away from songs our community has adopted as anthems, such as “We Are Family” and “I Will Survive.” However, this time I’m including one such song, performed by Diana Ross and written by the same pair who wrote “We Are Family.” While the lyrics aren’t expressly gay, they knew what the chorus would mean to a core audience of Ms. Ross, thereby intentionally creating an anthem.
Elsewhere, we have a couple of bands from Georgia, a handful of artists from England, some mainstream acts and some obscure ones, all of whom fall somewhere under the LGBTQ umbrella or sing queer lyrical content.
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One of 1987’s most popular and critically-acclaimed hits began its life as a demo recording named after the duo who sang “It’s Raining Men.”
It’s by the band U2, who referred to the track as “The Weather Girls” or “Under the Weather.” Their guitarist, The Edge, told Rolling Stone magazine that the song sounded like a reggae band’s version of Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger.” Over time they developed the song. Instruments were added to the initial drum pattern. When it came time to come up with lyrics, The Edge gave singer Bono a piece of paper on which he had written a phrase that came to him earlier that day – “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.”
That became the song’s title, with lyrics inspired by the gospel music Bono was listening to at the time. “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” was U2’s second consecutive #1 single, following “With or Without You,” which was included on part 1 of Tunes du Jour’s Throwback Thursday – 1987 playlist.
Here are twenty of 1987’s best, kicking off not with The Weather Girls, but with U2.
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Inspired by the election cycle in which those of us stateside are presently immersed, here are twenty songs about the democratic process and some of the players, including songs about Presidents Bush (the second), Nixon, Obama, Reagan and Truman. Artists include R.E.M., Pet Shop Boys and Anohni.
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A very minty tribute to New York, specifically New York City, with a side trip to a local weekend getaway.
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By 1986, Aerosmith appeared to have had their best years behind them. Sales of their releases that decade lagged significantly behind their hits in the 1970s, and the group’s members were struggling with drug addictions.
They did have fans, though. One was music producer Rick Rubin. He was working with rap group Run-D.M.C., who were known in hip hop circles and with music critics for incorporating rock guitars and beats in their boastful raps, such as “Rock Box” and “King of Rock.”
Rubin suggested Run-D.M.C. do a remake of Aerosmith’s 1977 hit “Walk This Way,” but the rappers had no interest in doing a cover. However, the group’s DJ, Jam Master Jay, was open to the idea, and Rubin called Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry to come into the studio. Perry was familiar with the rappers, as his stepson was a fan. Jam Master Jay convinced Run and D.M.C. to give the remake a shot, seeing as Tyler and Perry were in the studio with Rubin.
The Run-D.M.C./Aerosmith version of “Walk This Way” was not only massively successful, but highly influential as well. It became Run-D.M.C.’s first crossover hit, and the first rap track to make the top ten of Billboard’s Hit 100, peaking at #4, six notches higher than Aerosmith’s original peaked. It opened the door to future song/rap collaborations, something that continues to dominate the charts to this day, not to mention bringing “rock rap” to a wide audience.
Steven Tyler went to rehab in 1986, and the other members of Aerosmith also sought treatment for their drug addictions. On the heels of the success of the “Walk This Way” remake, Aerosmith released the Permanent Vacation album in the late summer of 1987. Its first single, “Dude (Looks Like a Lady),” became the group’s first hit single outside the Run-D.M.C. collaboration since 1978’s “Come Together.” They followed that single with a string of big hits over the next few years, including “Love in an Elevator,” “Cryin’,” “Janie’s Got a Gun,” “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” “Livin’ on the Edge,” and “Jaded.”
This week’s Throwback Thursday playlist spotlights the best of 1986, kicking off with the groundbreaking “Walk This Way,” performed by Run-D.M.C. and featuring Aerosmith’s “Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.
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Per the site WhoSampled.com, Joe Cocker’s “Woman to Woman” (1972) has been sampled 24 times. Joe Cocker! Twenty-four times! Who knew?
The best-known track to sample “Woman to Woman” is 2Pac’s “California Love,” which utilizes the instrumental riff from the beginning of the Cocker song as one of its hooks. Here is “Woman to Woman:”
“California Love” kicks off this week’s Throwback Thursday playlist, spotlighting the music of 1996.
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