WWTBAM Bored

40. DANGEROUS MEN-HORNAL w/SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR
Album: The Game Begins With The Lights Out

Iain Hornal was a sideman with Jeff Lynne's ELO and 10cc before releasing his own album in
2017. He certainly picked up a trick or two during those tenures. This one actually reminds me of early 80's
Hall & Oates a bit. Definitely a catchy little number and the guy's voice has a very appealing quality to it.
We'll be hearing from him again later in the countdown....MUCH later...





39. MY ANGEL-BRET BINGHAM
Album: The Well Curve

Another ear pleasing pop tune. Sounds like a 70's Top Tenner to me. What can I say? I'm a sucker for those hook
filled earworms..





38. SO NOW WHAT-THE SHINS
Album: Heartworms

From Albuquerque, New Mexico comes this band with a shimmery, falsetto-drenched dreamlike number. Frontman
James Mercer also records with Danger Mouse in the duo Broken Bells.





37. RED SUN-LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM & CHRISTINE McVIE
Album: Lindsey Buckingham Christine McVie

The duo return for their second entry (so far) on my countdown. This time McVie takes the spotlight.





36. THE SKY IS A NEIGHBORHOOD-FOO FIGHTERS
Album: Concrete and Gold

Down and dirty rocker that carries an aura of menace that would fit perfectly as a musical background accompanying
a Godzilla rampage through Tokyo. Well, if Blue Oyster Cult hadn't beaten them to the punch.





35. BIG BOYS-CHUCK BERRY
Album: Chuck

2017 also saw the passing of one of Rock & Roll's pioneers at the age of 90. I had mixed feelings about the album
itself, his first consisting of all-new material since 1979. I thought some of it was great (like this lively track),
some of it not so much, but hey....name me someone else pushing 90 who could rock like this. By the way, I LOVE this video!





34. I'M INSIDE OUTSIDE IN-COLIN HAY
Album: Fierce Mercy

The former Men At Work frontman has been putting out music consistently since that band's heyday esveral decades ago, much
of it fine indeed. Not that anyone's noticed, unfortunately. This song is another of Hay's easygoing melodies that is his
strength.





33. ON THE LIPS-JD McPHERSON
Album: Undivided Heart & Soul


The musical style and recorded sound hark back to 60's soul, which is this artist's stock in trade.





32. DOOM OR DESTINY-BLONDIE
Album: Pollinator

Debbie Harry & Co. returned in 2017 with a new record. This song is reminiscent of early, punky Blondie. The good
stuff, in other words (I'm grinning devilishly here...). This time, the VIDEO is a not suitable for work kinda thing
(but it does guest star Joan Jett, so...)





31. NOT MY PROBLEM-PUNCH PUNCH KICK
Album: Punch Punch Kick


What do you get when you cross Fountains of Wayne with Bowling For Soup? This.






30. LINES-DANNY de la MATYR
Album: Crybaby

This easy pop number harkens back to the days when you heard this kind of tune on the car radio..say, late 70's, as a brief
respite from all the disco stuff.





29. WANT THAT BACK AGAIN-CARPENTER CASWELL w/FELICITY URQUHART
Album: Carpenter Caswell

The music is light and breezy, but the message is very important: never take your love for granted.





28. GHOSTS OF MY HOMETOWN-THE STRIKE
Album: Faint Of Heart

If you recall with fondness the music of the 80's, this one's for you. In fact, if this doesn't remind you
at least a LITTLE of The Police, I'll go out in public wearing some parachute pants and one sequined glove.





27. I STAND CORRECTED-THE TRIPWIRES
Album: Fat City Let's Go!

Early Beatles inspired track with a super nifty little guitar run.

No You Tube available for this, here's an audio link:


https://thetripwires.bandcamp.com/track ... -corrected


26. UNDIVIDED HEART AND SOUL-JD McPHERSON
Album: Undivided Heart and Soul


The second entry on my list from this retro soul artist. Definitely sounds like something that could've been
blasting out of a '67 Mustang's radio.





25. SIGH-CHRIS PRICE
Album: Stop Talking


I hate to keep using the "could've been a hit in the '--'s" line, but...put this midtempo number out in 1974, you
got yourself a Top 10 record. Once you get to the chorus, you'll see what I mean.





24. DON'T KNOW WHAT CAME OVER ME-MIKE + THE MECHANICS
Album: Let Me Fly

A really pretty song with a beautifully done vocal.





23. IN THE BLOOD-JOHN MAYER
Album: The Search For Everything

A song about family ties and influence. One of those "everybody join in" songs.





22. IN MY WORLD-LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM & CHRISTINE McVIE
Album: Lindsey Buckingham

More Fleetwood Mac type goodness.





21. PAPERBACK WRITER-THE WEEKLINGS
Album: single track.

New Jersey based band whose two albums mix early Beatles inspired originals with songs written, but never recorded by, The Fab
Four themselves. One of the band members actually got his career started by playing Paul McCartney on Broadway in "Beatlemania".
This was a single "download only" track they put out last year. Obviously this song WAS recorded by The Beatles, but wow, do The
Weeklings deliver the goods. They don't stray very far from the original, but they sweeten it up with additional harmonies and,
apparently just to see if you're paying attention, toss in a riff that comes from a different popular quartet of the 60's (think
"made for TV band"). I'm quite fussy about Beatles covers, but this is great!





The heavy hitters are coming up next week!

I had no idea that Chuck Berry was still recording, let alone that he could still rock. I noticed that in the video, he was always in background or shadows. There's no chance of a ghost player is there?

Colin Hay has always stayed on the fringes of my awareness. Nice to see he is still putting out good stuuff.

Blondie - wow.

Maybe it's all that country music my wife is always listening to, but I really like Carpenter Caswell's sound.

Gosh, you think Chris Price listened to some ELO or Wings growing up?

That is one of the best Beatles covers I've ever heard, bar none. And I love the Pleasant Valley Sunday riff (my personal favorite Monkee song)

kroxquo wrote:I had no idea that Chuck Berry was still recording, let alone that he could still rock. I noticed that in the video, he was always in background or shadows. There's no chance of a ghost player is there?

Colin Hay has always stayed on the fringes of my awareness. Nice to see he is still putting out good stuuff.

Blondie - wow.

Maybe it's all that country music my wife is always listening to, but I really like Carpenter Caswell's sound.

Gosh, you think Chris Price listened to some ELO or Wings growing up?

That is one of the best Beatles covers I've ever heard, bar none. And I love the Pleasant Valley Sunday riff (my personal favorite Monkee song)

I believe "Chuck" is an actor in this video. He had been working on the album for a while, but nonetheless...the music proves he was still rockin' in his late 80's.

I'm Facebook friends with Michael Carpenter. I passed along your sentiments. He was quite pleased.

I have noticed that, over the last few years, an awful lot of ELO/Jeff Lynne influenced music has been popping up.

The Weeklings are great. Their two albums are Beatle influenced originals mixed in with covers of Lennon/McCartney compositions that were never released by the Beatles (including some I had never even heard of before, despite all the reading of Beatle history I have done). "Paperback Writer" was put out as a single downloadable track and is not on an album. Youtube has a lot of their videos, including live covers of better known Beatles tunes, and a couple of Christmas tunes ("Revolution Wonderland" is a cool mashup).