Wednesday, September 12, 2012

If I Had A Hammer by The Neighborhoods

This week is covers week at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. I am going to share some well-known and some overlooked covers. The song of the day for September 12, 2012 is 'If I Had A Hammer' by The Neighborhoods, a cover on their 1984 album Fire is Coming.

'If I Had A Hammer' was written in 1949 by Pete Seeger and Lee Hays. This might be one of the top  protest songs of all time. Peter, Paul, and Mary had the most successful cover of this song, but I decided to share a rockin' version by the Boston trio, The Neighborhoods.

Shame on you for not knowing The Neighborhoods. They started off with a punk influence in the late 1970s and by the late 1980s and early 1990s they had progressed into a pretty slick rock band. The 'Hoods, their Boston area nickname, didn't gain much mainstream attention outside of their hometown, which in my opinion is pretty sad.

My first exposure to The Neighborhoods was on a Rhino 70s Boston punk CD. 'No Place Like Home' caught my attention because it was a Ramones inspired anthem about finding solace in music while you are bombarded with nonsense from your parents and teachers. I tried to find their music at a local store, but I had no luck. I asked my friends on a Guided by Voices mailing list if they knew anything about The Neighborhoods, and a music expert, Clem Lane, told me that he would send me a mix tape of their tunes. Clem was kind enough to record Fire is Coming and The High Hard One. I still have that mix tape and I've played the hell out of it because The 'Hoods were an incredible band. I hope you enjoy this cover of 'If I Had A Hammer'.   

No comments:

Post a Comment