From the Vaults: Modcasts #176 & #18

Modcast #176: A Firm Grasp Of The Obvious

Welcome to Mr. Suave's Mod Mod World. My mod world has been rocking out to a lot of power pop this week, so I kicked things off with a bit of early 80s Seattle power pop, courtesy of Jim Basnight and the Moberly's. Basnight is a jack of all trades when it comes to music, and something of a basketball fiend with the rest of his life, running a college basketball blog dedicated to the UW Huskies.

Even with all the power pop I've been imbibing of late the first full set of the show is new soul music. The soul revival continues, full-fledged with groups like the Diplomats and Fitz & The Tantrums, and winding its tentacles into indie pop with acts like She & Him. And, since it is summer, or at least the last few days of summer, I had to throw a little bit of summery, sunshiny, effervescent pop music. I don't know what in the world Japanese band The Bridge is singing about, but whatever it is it sounds good to me. They were one of the forerunners of Tokyo's whole Shubuya-kei scene in the early 90s that produced a slew of great artists/bands like Pizzicato Five, Towa Tei, Flippers Guitar, Fantastic Plastic Machine and a bunch more. I'm thinking I could do an entire show with just Shubuya bands. Hell I could easily do two such shows. And I just might.

Just to keep you all on your toes I've rounded things out with a set of two-tone styled ska, most notably featuring all girl ska band The Belle Stars. Most people, if they know The Belle Stars at all, probably know them from their hit cover of "Iko Iko" that was featured in the movie Rain Man, allegedly because Dustin Hoffman liked the band and lobbied for their inclusion -- no matter that the song had languished for five years before that and the band had already broken up. But, for my money their best stuff was their early stuff, so you get their debut single from 1980 like it or not (I think you'll like it).

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Jim Basnight & The Moberlys -- Tonight (198?)
Fitz And The Tantrums -- Dear Mr. President (2010)
Diplomats of Solid Sound -- Promise Of A Brand New Day (2010)
She & Him -- Don't Look Back (2010)
Bridge -- Pool Side Music (1994)
Very Truly Yours -- Things You Used To Say (2010)
Skypark -- Secret Hideaway (1998)
Belle Stars -- Hiawatha (1981)
Kingpins -- Plan Of Action (1996)
The President's Men -- State Of Mind (1980)
The Ruiners -- Happy Birthday Bitch! (2010)

She & Him -- You Really Got A Hold On Me


Fitz & The Tantrums -- Winds Of Change

Modcasst #18: Chillin' in Mr. Suave's Mod Lounge

Welcome to Mr Suave's Swingin' cocktail lounge and now you can enjoy a few of the songs that started me down the lounge music path. There is no doubt that my involvement in the mod scene led me to being a lounge music junkie loving all sorts of easy listening, space age pop, acid jazz, swing and other retro types of music. Lucky for me!

Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 -- Mais Que nada
Madness -- Los Palmas 7
The Style Council -- Paris Match
Burt Bacharach -- Bond Street
Bert Kaempfert & His Orchestra -- Mambo Mania
Les Baxter -- Tropicando
Combustible Edison -- The Millionaire's Holiday
Pink Martini -- Sympathique
Stereophonic Space Sound Unlimited -- Robot A Go Go
Combustible Edison -- The Checkered Flag

Modcast #223: Good to the Last Drop

Welcome to the show. And what a show. Of course I have this little advanatage of having heard all the songs already while I was putting this thing together. And repeatedly. I couldn't help grinning the entire time. Kinda like soup. Mmm. Mmm. Good. It's a tasty treat you got coming people. I'm actually happy for you.

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Missing Andy -- Heartbeat Away (2011)
The Men -- I Don't Need No Doctor (2003)
Mystery Action -- Conspiracy (2000)
Diplomats of Solid Sound -- Fascination (2010)
MG & The Escorts -- A Someday Fool (1967)
The Rolling Stones - Little By Little (1964)
Danny White -- Natural Soul Brother (1966)
Amy Winehouse -- The Girl From Ipanema (2011)
Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 -- (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay (1966)
Sarah Vaughn -- One Mint Julep (1962)
Lack Of Afro -- P.A.R.T.Y. (2011)


The Men -- Four Good Men And True


Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 -- Pretty World

From the Vaults: Modcasts #63 & #69

Once more into the vault my friends, once more into the vault. Step back in time, to a time when the modcast was young and fresh. Take a giant step outside your current listening constraints and journey with me all the way back to those oh so sweltering days of Summer 2007. I've opened up the vaults and dusted off a classic modcast that I think you'll enjoy. Again.

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Modcast #63: Mod For The Summer

Welcome to Mr. Suave's Mod Mod World, I opened today's show with a track from a band called Airborne Toxic Event, and even though they're out of Los Angeles man they sound a lot like a british band with obvious influence from Franz Ferdinand and the Fratellis. The rest of the show is equally as good. I think there is pretty much something for everyone here -- except for the Def Leppard crowd (you know who you are, now leave me alone and learn to like better music).

The Airborne Toxic Event -- Does This Mean You're Moving On?
Tsar -- Wanna Get Dead
Pristine - King Without a Crown
The Rifles -- One Night Stand
The Mary Onettes -- Void
The Procession -- Major and Minor
The Lodger -- Kicking Sand
Mando Diao -- Paralyzed
Crawling Walls -- Tell Me Why
Paul Bevoir -- Maybe Not

The Lodger -- Let Her Go

Modcast 69: Mods, Skins, Punks

Welcome to Mr. Suave's Mod Mod World, this week is a very garage rock sorta show so enjoy.

Fleshtones -- Push Up Man
The Lizardmen -- Mind on Fire
Plan 9 -- I'm Not There
Pandoras -- Stop Pretending
Tuff Darts -- (Your Love Is Like) Nuclear Waste
The Indikation -- Don't Send Me No Flowers
The Groovie Ghoulies -- An Unsolved Mystery
The Professionals -- Mods, Skins, Punks
The What -- East Coast Kids
The Tearjerkers -- Love Affair
TSOL -- Word Is

The Pandoras -- You're All Talk

Modcast #222: Just The Ladies This time

This week it's the ladies turn at Suave HQ. I realized that it's been a while since I did a show feturing just the ladies, so here it is. In going through my catalog I realized that while I have a lot of great female bands and singers, the ratio of male to female singers is about 30:1. Still, I did find some good stuff, so don't worry there's lots of X chromosomes coming your way. There are soul singers, garage rockers and guitar mavens. Got bands from the UK, the US, the Netherlands, Finland, and even Seattle just to name a few. Sort of an international estrogenfest you might say. There's some old, some young, some new, some famous, some obscure. Lots of fishes in the sea, as they say. So, cast your line and reel in some fresh ones on this week's modcast.

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Eleanor Rigby -- Getting Through The Day (198?)
Nicole Willis & The Soul Investigators -- A Perect Kind Of Love (2005)
Laura Vane & The Vipertones -- Hours On Hours (2011)
Fonxinaires Feat. Brandy Butler -- Till You Love Me Too
Petula Clark -- Who Am I
Truly Smith -- Takin' Time Off (1966)
Tracey Rogers -- Back With You Baby (1967)
The School -- Valentine (2010)
The Like -- I Can See It In Your Eyes (2010)
Seapony -- Dreaming (2011)
Shocking Blue -- Send Me A Postcard (1968)
Daughters of Eve -- Don't Waste My Time (1966)
She -- Outta Reach (1970)
Looker -- Gates Of The Old City (2008)
Tiger Trap -- Words And Smiles (1993)
Madder Rose -- Beautiful John(1993)
Cocktail Slippers -- Give It To Me (2007)


Shocking Blue -- Mighty Joe


Looker - After My Divorce


Comments Please!

Modcast #221: Baby It's Cold Outside

What a week. Icy cold storm kept me holed up in suave headquarters most of the week, only to emerge to the news that Etta James had died, Jamesetta, that was her real first name which she later reversed for her stage name, grew up hard, lived hard, worked hard, and sang hard, she had a voice that was large and in charge. Didn't seem like much of a show without something from the legendary Ms. James.

Most of the week though was spent sipping hot beverages like hot chocolate with coffee liqueur and amaretto just to keep warm. And of course I had these beautiful songs to heat me up. So, listen up and I guarantee you'll get hot. Of course, as usual, you get what you pay for.

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Etta James -- Something's Got A Hold On Me (1962)
The Accidents -- Trigger Happy (1980/1996)
The Haywains -- Desperately Seeking Something (1993)
The Soup Dragons -- Slow Things Down (1986)
The Pepper Pots -- Time To Live (2009)
JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound -- Everything Will Be Fine (2011)
Secret Affair -- Don't Look Down (Demo) (1981/2003)
The Red Squares -- You Can Be My Baby (1966)
The Beat Chics -- Now I Know (1964)
Strawberry Alarm Clock -- Hummin' Happy (1967)
The Standells -- Rari (1966)
The Len Price 3 -- Julia Jones (2007)
The Postelles -- 123 Stop (2011)
The Rascals -- Suspicious Wit (2008)
The Robustos -- My Heart & Soul (2005)

JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound -- I Am Trying To Break Your Heart


The Postelles -- White Night

Modcast #125: Mod Essentials II - The Revival

Welcome to Mr. Suave’s Mod Mod World. This is a special episode of the modcast, the second in a series I call Mod Essentials. The first one, Mod Essentials: In The Beginning premiered last summer and featured my take on the most essential mod tracks of the 1960s. As you can imagine it was hardly definitive. And this one likely won’t be either . This is Mod Essentials II: The Revival. You will see that while there are some fantastic songs here, there are a number of key artists missing like The Crooks, Squire, The Amber Squad, Long Tall Shorty, The Cigarettes and lots more. 

[Original broadcast 2010]

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From 1977 to 1981 mod was reborn in the UK, which sparked mod revivals around the world. For a few glorious years the energy and angst of punk was wed to the rhythm of soul, the pulse of power pop, and the fashions of the sixties. The Who released Quadrophenia at the height of the revival creating even more interest in all things mod. Inevitably the mod scene became overexposed, it went mainstream briefly, and that more than anything else killed it and drove the remaining mods back to their soul clubs to await the movements next revival -- still more than a decade away.

Here then are the songs that I think epitomize the wide range of sounds in the mod revival. So, what are your essential mod revival tracks? I'm dying to find out from people what they see as the quintessential mod revival sound. Leave a comment and let me know what you think of my list here, what you would have added, or what you would have scrapped. Don't be shy.

The Jam – In The City
Secret Affair – Days of Change
Small Hours – Hangin’ In The Balance
Teenbeats – I Can’t Control Myself
Purple Hearts – Can’t Help Thinking About Me
The Chords – Something’s Missing
The Lambrettas – Go Steady
Beggar – Don’t Throw Your Life Away
Speedball – No Survivors
The Adverts – Bored Teenagers
Merton Parkas – Put Me In The Picture
The Jam – Precious (12” dance mix)

Mod documentary clip featuring interview with Secret Affair's Ian Page, and Secret Affair performing Time For Action

Modcast #220: The Best of 2011

Welcome to 2012, sure to be a better year than 2011 (the Mayan calendar fiasco not withstanding). Even though it is 2012 the focus of this modcast is actually 2011. It is time for my annual "best of" show where like all the other music critics out there I am going to give you a piece of my mind, specifically the piece that lists out what I thought were the best releases of the past 12 months. I'm highlighting some power pop, some indie pop, some soul, some garage rock, all of which rose to the top of the heap of last years new music. Enjoy!

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Agony Aunts (The Corner Laughers) -- Transamerica Pyramid
James Taylor Quartet -- Woman
Nick Pride & The Pimptones -- Lay It On The Line Feat. Zoe Gilbey
Raphael Saadiq -- Movin' Down The Line
The Vaccines -- Norgaard
Title Tracks -- No Air
The Perms -- High School High
Suedehead -- All I Need
The Red Button -- I Can't Forget
Steve Craddock -- Last Day Of The Old World
Miles Kane -- Come Closer
The Movements -- I Feel Groovy
The Love Me Nots -- I'm Gonna Be Your Girl
Sick Rose -- Before You Go
The Gents -- How It All Began


Sudehead -- New Traditions


The Vaccines - Tiger Blood

Mr. Suave's 3rd Annual Christmas Modcast Extravaganza

Well, it is Christmas time even if it doesn't really seem like it around Suave HQ. Usually I'm fully into the Christmas spirit by this time of the season, but this year just hasn't done it for me. As will be evidenced by the somewhat ho-ho-humbug attitude of this year's annual Christmas modcast extravaganza. Back to share his despair is Ken from The Shingles. I issued a challenge for him to find better Christmas tracks than I could in several categories including power pop, soul, exotica, jazz and so on. The resulting picks make for a very eclectic show. Hopefully that will be enjoyable for an after dinner moment of relaxation.

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While you're relaxing you might want to enjoy one of our Christmas cocktails. Mine is the Christmas cooler whille Ken favored a hotter drink.

Christmas Cooler
2 parts gin (Hendricks works nicely adding a bit of cool sweetness)
1 part peppermint schnapps
Add to ice in a hi-ball glass, top it off with 7-Up.

Volcano House Hot Buttered Rum (the recipe for which comes courtesy of Rumdood.com)
1.5 oz Rum
.75 oz Sugar
.75 oz Lemon Juice
.25 oz Maraschino
Hot Black Tea
Butter
Place juice, sugar, maraschino, and rum into a pre-heated mug. Add hot tea. Stir and then float the butter. Garnish with lemon peel and cloves.

Enjoy the drinks. Enjoy the show. I'll be back next year with a look back at the best albums of 2011.

Osaka Popstar - The Christmas That Almost Wasn't
Farrah - Santa Don't Go
Solomon Burke - Presents For Christmas
James Brown - Go Power At Christmas Time
Trade Winds - New York's A Lonely Town
Claudine Longet - I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You
Combustible Edison - Christmastime Is Here
Arthur Lyman - Mary's Boy Child
Chet Baker - Winter Wonderland
Kenny Burrell - My Favorite Things
Jamie Cullum - Next Year, Baby
Mel Torme - It Happened In Sun Valley
Darlene Love - Christmas Time For The Jews
Rigby - #Christmas Time
The Jetz - Father Christmas
The Risk - There Ain't No Sanity Clause

Pointed Sticks -- Power Pop Santa