Black Napkins by Frank Zappa

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I don't expect everyone to "get" Frank Zappa as an artist, but I'd like for people to appreciate his work. If you just see Zappa as a weirdo then you've failed to see a gifted musician who has an impressive discography. Don't forget that it was the infamous Zappa Montreux Casino concert where a fan with a flare gun burned down the legendary venue, which inspired the Deep Purple classic rock anthem, 'Smoke on the Water'. Zappa also went before the United States Senate in 1985 to protect free speech against the evil empire known as The Parents Music Resource Center.

Take a listen to 'Black Napkins', an instrumental from the album Zoot Allures, and you'll see a guy that could kill it on the guitar. Zappa passed away at the age of 52 in 1993, but left a musical legacy that can not be overlooked.

I've Been Loving You Too Long by Otis Redding

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Last night, my wife asked me to name a song that was "sexy" and I mentioned 'These Arms Of Mine' by Otis Redding. She found the song online and played a clip, but then she played 'I've Been Loving You Too Long'. Both of those songs are definitely sexy and I decided to share Otis Redding's performance of 'I've Been Loving You Too Long' at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival.

Otis Redding has been a personal favorite of mine for many years and his songs can be incredibly sexy or incredibly sad. For every 'Try A Little Tenderness' there is a 'I've Got Dreams To Remember'. His catalog is solid and don't forget that this was the man that wrote 'Respect', which became a major hit for Aretha Franklin. Sadly, Redding was 26 years old when he died in a plane crash, but his musical legacy will never be forgotten.

One of the biggest highlights of Redding's career was his performance at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival. This is the event where the world discovered Janis Joplin, where The Who smashed their equipment for an American audience, and where Jimi Hendrix set his guitar on fire. Backed by Booker T. and The M.G.'s, Redding made a splash on a predominately white audience, which made him a bigger star. He died six months later and the video below shows a one-of-a-kind artist that left us too soon.  

I Can't Drive 55 by Sammy Hagar

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I have jury duty today and this is the fifth time I've been selected in the past ten years. I don't know if I'll make it to a courtroom, but I hope I'll be lucky enough to witness something equal to the tomfoolery that occurs in Sammy Hagar's video for 'I Can't Drive 55'. Let's watch the video and then read my thoughts.


After seeing that video again, I have come to a few conclusions. First, just drop the '55' from the song title and call the song 'I Can't Drive'. Was it just me or does Hagar put everyone's lives at risk when he is behind the wheel? Secondly, I have no sympathy for Sammy in this video. He drives like a dick, assaults a police officer, and then starts a riot with his grease monkeys/band mates in the courtroom. His reason? He can not drive 55 miles per hour. We must hire Atticus Finch and put this injustice to an end. On a side note, one should catch the spelling mistake at the 2:05 mark.

I don't know what awaits me for jury duty, but if Sammy Hagar shows up then it is going to be one awesome day. Hopefully he brings some Cabo Wabo. 

Hair of the Dog by Nazareth

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I didn't expect my Monday to turn into a Facebook frenzy. My good friend, Billy Soundwave, likes to post items of a political nature on Facebook and I enjoy debating with him because he is willing to hear my opinion. Billy posted something last night and the end result was some guy I never met ended up insulting a friend and said something horrible and disgusting to my wife. Instead of jumping in my car and finding this buffoon, Billy Soundwave made the right move by deleting the post and by getting rid of the buffoon. You're my boy, Billy.

Music helps when I'm really angry, so a personal favorite I like to blast is Nazareth's 1975 hard rock classic, 'Hair of the Dog'. You may know Nazareth from their cover of 'Love Hurts', but they hit one out of the park with 'Hair of the Dog' because it's tough to beat the chorus of 'Now you're messing with a son of a bitch.'   

Things Can Only Get Better by Howard Jones

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Sometimes it takes a few weeks, months, or years for a blogger to find their true voice. I'm 99% certain I just found my voice last night during dinner. The assigned music days are gone and from this point forward, I'm posting the songs that are stuck in my head.

Every day a different song creeps into my brain and parks itself there for approximately 24 hours. The songs show up while I'm driving home from work or at the grocery store or at three in the morning when I'm lying awake in bed. Those songs eventually fade away and are replaced by another song. The cycle is never ending.

'Things Can Only Get better' by Howard Jones popped into my head last night during dinner. My wife and I were talking about the string of bad luck we've had with some minor issues around the house and with our cars. A bad alternator, a busted garage door, the inability to find a sane buyer for our mini-van, and dealing with a check engine light have been the highlights of our past few weeks. The chorus of 'Things can only get better' popped into my head and I instantly felt better. Yes, these are small things to deal with in life, and I'm aware that people are still living in tents in Haiti, people are fleeing in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and some are still rebuilding their lives after tsunamis and earthquakes. I know I'm sweating the small stuff, so if you're dealing with a similar string of bad luck, then enjoy this 1985 hit from Howard Jones' Dream Into Action.    

Turn it to Eleven Thursday: Summertime Blues by Blue Cheer

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Turn it to Eleven Thursday is a column at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll where every Thursday I select a gem from the world of hard rock and heavy metal for your listening enjoyment.

This week I have selected Blue Cheer's cover of Eddie Cochran's 'Summertime Blues'. August has arrived and when I was a kid enjoying my summer break, I always caught the summertime blues when August arrived. I knew school was weeks away and my days of sleeping in and playing video games were about to end. As an adult, I still feel a little blue in August and I have come to believe it is some sort of sympathy for the younger generation who must return to school. Let's rock out to some Blue Cheer to beat the blues. 

Blue Cheer, a San Francisco power trio named after a certain brand of LSD, helped pave the way for hard rock and heavy metal with 1968's Vincebus Eruptum.  For those of you that know your rock and roll history, 1968 was a landmark year for hard rock and heavy metal because Blue Cheer's 'Summertime Blues', Steppenwolf's 'Born to be Wild', and Iron Butterfly's 'In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida' were released, plus it should be noted that 'Summertime Blues' was the first of the three songs to chart. I hope you enjoy the performance below and be sure to check out drummer Paul Whaley who might be mistaken for Cousin It from the Addams Family.

What The...Wednesday: You Standing There by Jandek

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What The...Wednesday is a weekly series at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. Every Wednesday I select something wonderfully odd from the rock and roll universe, and this week I present to you 'You Standing There' by Jandek.

You are not ready for Jandek. You think you're ready, but you are not prepared to enter the avant-garde folk universe of Jandek. Who is Jandek? Houston resident Sterling Richard Smith is believed to be Jandek due to the fact that Smith's name is credited to all of Jandek's work at the Library of Congress. Jandek has released over 60 albums on his label, Corwood Industries, since 1978 and has kept his personal information a complete secret. There are two known Jandek interviews and one was conducted in 1985 with Spin magazine. You can click here to hear some of the interview so you can understand how we know almost nothing about this artist. This week I have posted 'You Standing There', a song from his twenty-seventh album, New Town, which was released in 1998. Enjoy.