My First Concert
My First Concert By David Bash In early 1972, The Carefree Sugarless Gum Company (remember them??) had a contest where they asked junior high schools within a 50 mile radius of New York City to send in as many of their product’s wrappers as they could, and the school which sent in the most wrappers would receive, as their prize, an appearance by none other than The Grass Roots! Even though by 1972 their best days were behind them, we the students of Clarkstown Junior High School in New City New York still dug them, and wanted to win...
read moreMy Top 10 Beach Boys Songs of All-Time
My Top 10 Beach Boys Songs of All-Time by David Bash 10. Time To Get Alone-I don’t waltz, but if I ever learn, this would be the song to which I’d do my first! I love all the counterpoint, which had become a Beach Boys staple not long before and would flourish even further in the next few years. The echoed “Deep And Wide” just kills me, as do the strings after the final “aren’t you glad we got away”. Check out Redwood’s (earlier) version, which is also on You Tube; in case you...
read moreThree Reviled Men Who Need To Have Their Due
Three Reviled Men Who Need To Have Their Due By David Bash As most passionate Beach Boys fans would agree, Murry Wilson, Mike Love, and Eugene Landy have been villified, castigated, even reviled for having done so many heinous things over the years, several in particular which have adversely affected Brian Wilson. I’m not here to take issue with any of that, other than to say that while these attacks are not errors of commission, they are definitely errors of omission, because each of these men, and I’m not exaggerating...
read moreWho Will Be The Next Beatles?
Who Will Be The Next Beatles? By Aaron Kupferberg www.powerpopaholic.com Trick question. With the onset of years, the more we look back, with more certainty we can say that no one will ever approach what the Fab Four have done. You can argue that Michael Jackson had more #1 debuts, or Madonna had more top ten singles, but none will make the same musical, cultural, and social impact. It goes well beyond Beatlemania to the way an rock group is conceived. Prior to the Beatles, bands were put together by powerful record labels, and ruled...
read moreA Very Good Thing: An Appreciation of Material Issue
A Very Good Thing: An Appreciation of Material Issue By John M Borack Power pop was in sort of an odd place in the early ’90s. Most of the bands that are now considered pioneers of the genre were long gone, and many of the titans of the second wave (20/20, Plimsouls, stc.) were dormant. It would be a few years before Jordan Oakes’ Yellow Pills fanzine and L.A.’s Poptopia festival would bring melody-based guitar-pop back to a small-yet-rabid following in a (relatively) big way. Sure, there were pop acts...
read moreInternational Pop Overthrow Vol. 14
International Pop Overthrow Vol. 14 Written on October 25, 2011 by powerpopaholic in Power Pop Review If there is one person I could pick at the forefront of power pop opinion, it’s IPO founder David Bash. The IPO festival is dedicated to bringing to the public the latest bands and unsigned talent, and next week he hits New York City (where I’ll make my annual pilgrimage). The festival’s 14th compilation has been out and it’s loaded (3 CDs worth) so I’ll highlight some of my favorite tracks… Starting on disc 1 is...
read moreDavid Bash’s Favorite Albums of 2011
David Bash’s Favorite Albums of 2011 Hi Everyone, Here are my lists of favorite albums of 2011. As is my usual custom, I’ve broken this down into several categories, as I’m just not comfortable ranking unlike entities on one list. Contemporary Categories The year 2011 marked the emergence of LP-only releases, as well as download-only releases (I’m not in favor of the download-only model, but I have to acknowledge it). Those marked with an * are LPs and those marked with an ** are...
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