TODAY’S RECORD LISTENING THEME: ‘DETROIT’

Listening to a ton of records everyday is a lot of fun and inspiring. It struck me this morning though, that its kind of random and aimless the way I go about it. (Often literally random, I walk up to my shelves and stick a finger on record to play.)

So today I asked my Facebook pals for a theme/prompt to pull a bunch of records. I got a bunch of great ones, but my friend Trish hit home with Detroit! So here’s my “Detroit” themed playlist:

Bobby Bare: Detroit City: (Single, RCA Victor 47-8183)The first song that popped to mind about Detroit. (I don’t think Bobby ever lived there, but hey its a “theme” not a mandate to use only Detroit area artists.)I really identify with the notion of unmet expectations that are woven through this country tune. “By day I make the cars, at night I make the bars” is about the most poetic indictment of the reality of an artistic life ever.

Suzi Quatro: Your Mama Won’t Like Me: (LP, Arista AL 4035): This record is a Chapman and Chinn glam classic. Weird, funky, mean and yet still very bubblegum. Suzi’s best album from this era was probably the Self Titled LP with Can the Can and the Detroit ode Shine My Machine, but this one is a really fun listen, with the title track, I Bit Off More Than I Can Chew, and her cover of Fever being standouts to me.

Alice Cooper: The Breadcrumbs: (10” EP, Ear Music 0214216EMU) Putting aside the ridiculous sticker calling this a limited edition of 20,000 copies, I was excited to buy this record a couple years ago. It’s a love story from Alice Cooper to his hometown with collaborations by other Detroit rockers like Mick Collins, Mark Farner, and Wayne Kramer. Perhaps not surprisingly my favorite song is Chains of Love with Collins, done as a medley with Devil in A Blue Dress ala Mitch Ryder.

? and the Mysterians: Cave Stomp Presents Are You For Real?: (LP, Rock Beat Records ROC 3456) Essentially a greatest hits record produced for Record store day. Recorded after a live performance at the Cavestomp music fest. One of the most amazing live performers I’ve ever seen.. When I saw the band play at the tiny Rhumba Room in Columbus I thought I was going to get blow out the back window… SO MUCH ENERGY in such a small place. Something had to give.

Edwin Starr: 25 Miles: (LP, Gordy GS940): Natch, it could be a prompt on its own. I could easily spend a whole day playing cool Motown (and subsidiary label) records. This is my favorite, though. Maybe because it sounds like a Stax record. (Whoops! Save it for a future “Memphis” theme day…)

Alice Cooper: Love It To Death: (LP, Warner Brothers WS 1883) Thing about Alice Cooper for me is that he always pulls me towards a deep dive. Maybe because the amazing and good songs are spread out across a bunch of of records. Knowing that I was already going to have to skip some of my favorite Detroit acts, I picked this album as the one most likely to satiate my compulsion. It worked, though an Alice Cooper deep dive my still be in my future

Cub Koda: Let’s Get Funky: (Single, New rose New 29): An only OK record by a generally better than OK album. Picking it for today was a concession to not having time to fit ina full Brownsville Station LP.

Trash Brats: American Disaster Special Edition: (LP, Alien Snatch Records SNATCH 014) I have a deep affection for this band, stemming from the time that they played an in-store at Rudy Goose Comics. For a long time, the Trash Brats were one of those bands whose albums were only available on CD. I spent a long time hoping somebody would release their stuff on Vinyl. When Alien Snatch released this comp, I missed getting it new somehow, so I spent another long time waiting to find a used copy. I eventually did and there was much celebration in cow town.

Nikki Corvette & The Stingrays: Back To Detroit: (LP, Dollar Record records DRR 017)

I don’t know would you call this a “comeback” record? The original Nikki & the Corvettes LP on Bomp! Records is a stone-cold power pop classic that came out in 1980. My copy is a 1998 reissue, so it stayed popular enough to merit at least one repress. This record (with the Stingrays, not Corvettes obviously) came out in 2006 and is at least as good. Better, I think. I certainly feel like I reach for it more than original LP! (Maybe instead of stone-cold, it’s red-hot) Ah fuck it… not a come back because Nikki clearly never went away.