The Laughable, Unforgivable, Wrong-headed, Mixed-up Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame

The latest round of Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame nominees has been announced and it is full of the usual head-scratchers and you-mean-they're-not-already-in? artists.

Jann Wenner's 2016 batch:

Bad Brains  -  Love these guys.  Hall of Famers?  Nope.  Influential?  To a good many young punk/post-punk bands, but . . . naaaaah.

Chaka Khan -  Nice lady.   But, no.

Chic -  The perennial nominees without a chance.  Do they deserve to be in?  No.  Will they get in some day?  If Jann Wenner has his say.  This year?  Perhaps.

Depeche Mode -  In the British Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame, maybe.

Electric Light Orchestra -  Jeff Lynne has many friends in high places.  That doesn't mean his band of MOR geezers belongs here.  I'd rather see The Move get a nod.

J. Geils Band -  Yes, yes, YES!  A million times YES.    

Jane's Addiction -  For what?

Janet Jackson -   Sure.  Why not?

Joan Baez -  Because she slept with Dylan?  This is not the Trad Folk Sopranos Hall of Fame.

Joe Tex -  Underrated and underappreciated.  But, no.

Journey -   Next . . .  (I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.)

Kraftwerk -  Probably deserves recognition in the INFLUENCE category.  I wouldn't be upset if they got in.

MC5 -  I mean . . . the Stooges and the Sex Pistols are in, right?   I could see these guys sliding in on the strength of the AARP Leftists' vote but . . . naaaah.  Don't deserve it.

Pearl Jam - Yes

Steppenwolf - OK, even if John Kay is a colossal dick.

The Cars -  I'm all right with these guys.

The Zombies -  No, it's not the time of the season for them.  

Tupac Shakur -  He'll probably get in.  Small body of work, short career, tragic death.  Rock and roll?   Ugh.  Huh uh.

Yes - No

Again, my not-so-humble opinions.

The Top 25 Double Albums of All Time

Another exercise in subjectivity.   In my not-so-humble opinion, these are the greatest Double Albums ever released.   I'm open for comments, suggestions, ridicule, whatever, but here's what I've got:

1)  Exile on Main Street - The Rolling Stones
2)  London Calling - The Clash
3)  Eat a Peach - The Allman Brothers Band
4)  Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs - Derek & The Dominos
5)  The Beatles - The Beatles
6)  It's Too Late to Stop Now - Van Morrison
7)  Blonde on Blonde - Bob Dylan
8)  The River - Bruce Springsteen
9)  Chicago II - Chicago
10)  Tommy - The Who
11)  Electric Ladyland - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
12)  Physical Graffiti - Led Zeppelin
13)  Zen Arcade - Husker Dü
14)  The Basement Tapes - Bob Dylan & The Band
15)  Quadrophenia - The Who
16)  Songs in the Key of Life - Stevie Wonder
17)  1999 - Prince
18)  Rock of Ages - The Band
19)  Uncle Meat - The Mothers of Invention
20)  Wheels of Fire - Cream
21)  Speakerboxxx/The Love Below - Outkast
22)  (Untitled) - The Byrds
23)  Double Nickels on the Dime - The Minutemen
24)  Chicago Transit Authority - Chicago Transit Authority
25)  Tago Mago - Can

That's it!

Time to pour it out.

All out.

Find the Impostor! Which are the REAL names of reggae artists?

As I have been in a reggae mood as of late, I figured I'd throw out a little pop quiz as an attempt to tease your musical instincts and to possibly gauge the actual interest in this silly little blawg thingie.

Below is a list of 12 names of reggae artists (solo acts, duos, groups, etc.).  Your task is to tell me which of these are REAL artists and which are FAKES.   Know that there are at least 6 names below that are NOT bogus.

Please take the time to go through the list and jot down your answers in an email to me at padlercctx@gmail.com and I will be sending a gen-u-ine reggae 12" vinyl LP (remember them?) to the top 3 respondents.  (Ties go to the runner.  Er, to the earliest emailer.)

And remember ---  

IF YOU'RE GOOGLIN', YOU'RE CHEATIN'!

Boogie on, reggae woman (and man).

1)  Bunny Lye-Lye

2)  Wellington Archer & The Echolites

3)  Chesley Pepperton

4)  Bim Selassie & The Chosen

5)  Delton Screechie

6)  Carlton & The Shoes

7)  Slinky Enos

8)  Theophilus Beckford

9)  Dennis Alcapone

10)  Old Youth

11)  Big Little Junior & The Killjoy Footstompers

12)  Hopeton Crawford

The Highly Disputable List of the Top 20 Reggae Albums of All Time

All such lists are subjective.

Having said that, this list of the Top 20 Reggae LPs of All Time is fairly conclusive, accurate, enjoyable, entertaining and informative, even if you don't like or don't get or can't stand reggae music (poor you).  

Enjoy (and pay attention; there will be a test).

Presented in copyrighted David Letterman Top Ten Reverse Order:

20)  The Abyssinians - Satta Massagana
          Reggae gospel music.
19)  Bunny Wailer - Blackheart Man
            Deep, dark Rasta groove.
18)  Ken Boothe - Mr. Rock Steady
          Early ska/rock steady classic.
17)  Mikey Dread - World War III
          Primal post-Clash dub.
16)  Bob Marley & The Wailers - Rastaman Vibration
          Bubblin' on the Top 100
15)  Burning Spear - Marcus Garvey
          Back to Africa?  Back to the hills!
14)  Gregory Isaacs - Night Nurse
          Reggae's Smokey Robinson?
13)  Upsetters - 14 Dub Blackboard Jungle
          Lee Scratch Perry masterpiece.  
          If you've never heard it, you've never heard anything else like it.
12)  Bob Marley & The Wailers - Live!
          Hit me with music!
11)  Joe Gibbs - African Dub Almighty, Chapter 3
          Heavy dub with everything including the kitchen sink.
10)  Horace Andy - Skylarking
          Nearly unknown outside of Jamaica and England.
          Influenced thousands of reggae singers and musicians.
 9)  Augustus Pablo - King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown
          Dub Rosetta Stone.
 8)  Mighty Diamonds - Deeper Roots
          Most like their Right Time LP over this.  Not me.
 7)  The Wailers - Catch a Fire
          The LP that sprung Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh into the spotlight.
 6)  The Heptones - Night Food
          Sweet vocal harmonies, killer tunes.
 5)  Culture - Two Sevens Clash
          Politically charged LP that put the dread in dreadlock.
 4)  Augustus Pablo - East of the River Nile
          The master of dub and melodica, this contains his most accessible work.
 3)  Original Soundtrack - The Harder They Come
          Not a less-than-stellar track in the mix.
 2)  Toots & The Maytals - Funky Kingston
          Reggae's Otis Redding?
 1)  The Wailers - Burnin'
          Masterful playing, chilling harmonies, classic songs.

Landing just outside of the 20 mark:

Barrington Levy - Shaolin Temple
Yellowman - Mister Yellowman
Dr. Alimantado - Best Dressed Chicken in Town
Bob Marley & The Wailers - Exodus

Shameless self-promotion

Take some time and check us out on Discogs.    You might find something that you just can't live without.

(You never know!)

The Top Ten Not-Quite-As-Famous Drummers

Downbeat Magazine used to have (probably still has) a category in their annual "Best of" issue that they called "Talent Deserving Wider Recognition."  The gentlemen on this list fit that designation quite appropriately.

These 10 fellows may not be as well-known as the drummers on my previous list but they're every bit as deserving of mention.  

WIthout further ado, I give you a list of 10 of the best, presented in copyrighted David Letterman Top Ten Reverse Numerical Order©. 




10)  Max Weinberg -- Steady timekeeper for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band since 1974, Max lays down a permafrost-hard backbeat and is a noteworthy rival to Charlie Watts for the title of "Human Metronome".

9 and 8)  Ed Marimba & John French -- When you play drums for the famously non-rhythmic Captain Beefheart, you have to have a certain extra talent -- the ability to keep time while being fully prepared to wander off into a completely divergent tempo with nary a moment's warning.  Marimba and French (a/k/a Drumbo) provided all the rhythm that the good Captain needed for the sonic journeys into his blues-based, dadaistic musical world. 




7)  Aynsley Dunbar --  Starting in the mid-60s, playing with various Merseybeat groups, through his days with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, and on into stints with Frank Zappa, David Bowie, Lou Reed, Journey and Jefferson Starship with many, many other side projects in between and beyond, Dunbar has proven to be a favorite go-to guy for the discerning rocker.  

6)  Richie Hayward --  The man who provided the funky bottom to all those Little Feat songs, Hayward started with the offbeat Fraternity of Man and played with too many other great rock artists to mention here.  But perhaps his most off-the-wall gig was as a member of The Bedbugs, a most anachronistic musical group that appeared on the TV comedy "F Troop".  




5)  Vinnie Colaiuta --  Frank Zappa was known as a taskmaster who loved to compose musical pieces that he pretty much dared his musicians to master or find another gig.  Colaiuta was the rhythmist who was able to take whatever Zappa handed him and perform with perfection.  Amazing drummer.

4)  Carlton Barrett --  As the drummer for the Wailers, later known as Bob Marley and the Wailers, Barrett was a master of the inside-out rhythms of Jamaican reggae.  He and his brother Aston, the Wailers' bassist known as "Family Man", were and unparalleled reggae rhythm section.



3)  Ed Cassidy --  Seated at his humongous drum kit, playing behind his teenage stepson Randy California and the other members of the band, Spirit, Cass looked more than a bit out of place.  A totally bald man in a world of long-haired musicians, he lent a jazz-flavored swing to the complicated music of Spirit.   Cass's rock career started in The Rising Sons with Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder.  As other members of Spirit came and went, even Randy California, Cassidy played in every single iteration of Spirit.  

2)  Dino Danelli --  Go back and check out some of those old (Young) Rascals performances on YouTube.  Keep an eye on Danelli at the drums.  He was the closest thing to Keith Moon that this world has ever seen.   Style and substance and a heavy r'n'b drive.




1)  John Badanjek --   Who?  Johnny Bee.  The driving force behind Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels.  Badanjek played all-out all the time.  A whirlwind behind the traps.  His work with the Detroit Wheels is some of the finest, hard-driving R'n'B/Rock 'n' Roll you'll ever hear.  His drum breaks and fills are admired by many of rock's finest drummers.  Badanjek went on to form The Rockets and later played with Alice Cooper, Bob Seger, Ronnie Montrose, Nils Lofgren and many others.  Badass Johnny Badanjek.