blue rodeo

REVIEW: Evil Elvis – Evilest Elvis (2025)

EVIL ELVIS – Evilest Elvis (2025)

Evil Elvis is back in 2026 with his new album Atomic Psycho, but you can get a taste of the new tunes on his new compilation:  Evilest Elvis!  KC Carlisle is a Toronto psychobilly artist who has a reputation for a hot live show, great musicianship, and horror-inspired lyrics.  The tunes range from punky spunk to loungy rock.

 

 

The songs:

“Cat Woman” from 2017’s Undead Or Alive:  The rambunctious chorus of “Here, kitty kitty” will keep you rocking while that bassline keeps things moving!

“Zombified” from 2001’s Evil Elvis:  Now we’re on a slow nocturnal groove, perfect for those spooky nights.  This smooth, smoky tune has an intoxicating quality.

“Evil Love” – new song from 2026’s Atomic Psycho:  The master of the drum, Cleave Anderson from Blue Rodeo, makes his Evil Elvis debut here.  It is incredible to think that this veteran drummer from one of my favourite bands is now burning down the house with Evil Elvis.  On this one, EE channels the original Elvis a bit on the chorus, but in ways the King could never have foreseen.  “I’ll kill your fuckin’ parents and make it look like suicide!” he growls.  “Evil Love” indeed!  Cleave absolutely proves his punk rock mettle here.  A promising song.

“Too Fast For You” – a 2015 single that ended up on Undead Or Alive, is a personal favourite.  There’s an Alice Cooper vibe here, of the Detroit variety.

“Surfin’ To Hell” – from 2011’s Tattoo’d Fuckwit.  This adds surf rock sounds to the repertoire.    The guitar solo is manic panic fun.

That concludes “Side Eh” of the album, and on to “Side B”:

“My Evil” from 2017’s Undead Or Alive:  A jaunty number with organ and a shuffle beat.  This impressive song has lush backing vocals, on a chorus that reminds me a little bit of Big Bad Voodoo Daddy.  Possibly the best track on the album and a song which deserved to be a hit somewhere somehow!  “GO!”

“I Wanna Wed (The Undead)” is a funny title, from 2001’s Evil Elvis.  This has the most traditional rock and roll sounds, like something out of a 1950’s graveyard.  Just pure fun, with a Halloween dance party vibe.

“Wolf Woman” – from 2006’s Viva Las Vampire:  If you have a thing for a woman with body hair, you will probably love this ode to werewolf love!

“Heavenly Body (From Outer Space)” is the second of the new songs to come from 2026’s Atomic Psycho.  The bassline plays a bit of the Twilight Zone theme before Cleave rings the band in with a thumping beat.  We’re off to space this time!  The backing vocals provide a the hooks on the chorus.  Once again, the musicianship and singing are really top notch here.  The guitar solo is way fun!

“Let’s Make Sin” from 2011’s Tattoo’d Fuckwit:  “Come on baby, let the sinnin’ begin!”  Vampire love is fun way to end the album.  But wait!!

There’s more!  Two “XXXtra Tracks” bring the total track count to 12.

“Backseat Love” – from 2017’s Undead Or Alive.  A fun duet with one foot in the 1950s and the other in the grave!

“Hey Space Girl!” – from 2001’s Evil Elvis.  The roughest, most garage-y song on the album.  An ode to a woman from Mars that’s here to stay.  “Hey space girl, wanna see my laser gun?”

This album was dedicated to photographer Ron Boudreau, a staple of the Toronto scene who took pictures of many of the bands I loved.  Rest in peace Ron.

4/5 stars

 

#1188: I Wanna Be A Lifeguard: Long Weekend at the Lake – May 2025

RECORD STORE TALES #1188: I Wanna Be A Lifeguard: Long Weekend at the Lake – May 2025

Jen and I were fortunate enough to spend a long weekend at the cottage, arriving Thursday night (May 8).  As has been my goal for several seasons now, I try to do new things each time, when possible.  This time, it was something out of the box.

Having become more comfortable working from home thanks to the pandemic, I asked my bosses if I could work from home Thursday afternoon, saving me 30 minutes of commute time and accumulating traffic, and getting to the lake that much faster.

“That’s a great idea, you should do that,” came the first response.

“Why don’t you just work the whole day from home?” came the second.

I was pleased to receive so much support.  With that plan in motion, we hit the road at 4:30 sharp.

Unfortunately traffic was slow, and it took over two hours to get there, but imagine if we didn’t have that extra time.  Music on the way up included Sing the Sorrow by AFI, to prepare for that Saturday’s show with D’Arcy Briggs, an album in review.  Once we arrived, I hit the porch and rocked out to “I Wanna Be A Lifeguard” by Blotto.  I delighted in emailing Broadway Blotto the video footage.

With coffee and snacks in hand, we were well prepared for a great weekend.  Though cold, I did manage to spend a lot of time outdoors, with hoodie protecting me from the bitter breeze.  All the snow was gone now, though only recently.

The next morning I went for a fly down to the river with my drone, and captured some wonderful footage.

Music: Blue Rodeo – “Dragging On”

At 8:15 AM, we headed out to get the best choices of steaks at the Beef Way.  We chose two T-bones, some fry-pies, and for me, lake trout and duck legs.  The duck legs made for a tasty lunch that afternoon.  I wanted to do some kind of potato in duck fat, so I boiled two potatoes in hot water until they were soft, but still solid.  I then got a grooved aluminium tray, and laid slices of potato in the grooves.  I placed the seasoned legs on top and seasoned everything.  When the duck fat started to render, the potatoes fried in it, making them so crispy with a pleasant accent to the flavour.  In short, the best fries I ever made.  And the duck legs weren’t bad either.

Sometimes at the cottage when it’s cold, you have to force yourself to be outside, so I pulled out some old Transformers toys (some vintage, some reissues) and did some fun photos on the front porch.  I even experimented with filming one of the big ones from the air with my drone.

I had more changes to fly on the weekend, capturing incredible images of Lorne Beach, on the western coast of Lake Huron.  The footage was some of the nicest I’ve managed to take.


Music: Bruce Cockburn – “Lovers In A Dangerous Time”

It is always fun editing these drone videos to music.  This time it was all Canadian content and nothing too hard.  There’s a line in “Lovers In A Dangerous Time” that has long resonated with me:

“Nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight, got to kick at the darkness ’til it bleeds daylight.”

Playing the song on the front porch that afternoon, I dedicated the song to a couple of friends who are dealing with health struggles.  Raise your goblet and send some love to these friends.

I watched a lot of Doctor Who, ate too much meat, and had a great time feeling like a kid again.  There was one eerie moment of déjà vu, and I absolutely love when these moments come.  Usually the come when music was the trigger, but this time it was Doctor Who.  I was watching some classic Tom Baker era episodes on Tubi, on my laptop on the front porch.  As a kid, I always associated Doctor Who with Sunday nights.  There would be a few episodes to watch (either Jon Pertwee or Tom Baker) before bed time, and back to school the next morning.  As the day grew late and I started working on dinner, it felt like a Sunday night again.  Family dinner as the sun was getting low.  It was actually Friday, but the feeling of Sunday was uncanny.  Do you ever get the Sunday blues?  It was like that, but warmer because it was Friday and just a memory of happy childhood.

We didn’t see any wildlife, which was disappointing, but there’s always next time.

Seeking to avoid a Monday crash, I tried to place my mind in the right set.  We drove home without much talking, but a steady soundtrack of Kiss.  Rock and Roll Over, Love Gun, and Dynasty.  When I really need to feel good, Kiss are usually a good band to go to.  Nothing but good memories with Kiss.

As for the cottage, it is always sad saying goodbye, but we came home on Mother’s Day and had a nice visit with the folks, and a dinner on Dad.  We’ll be back soon enough.  And in fact, when we do return, we’ll be doing our first live episode of 50 Years of Iron Maiden from the cottage.  Little things like that get me excited.  I’ve already started packing.

Allons-y!

Check out the cottage video below.

Music:  Blotto – “I Wanna Be A Lifeguard”

REVIEW: Jim Cuddy – “We Used to Be the Best of Friends”

JIM CUDDY – “We Used to Be the Best of Friends” (March 7 2025)

This is less a review, and more of a share.

We currently live in the darkest times in our lives.  Decades of history washed away.  The gravity of this situation is hard to express.  Google “Manifest Destiny”.

Jim Cuddy has captured our disappointment and fear in his brilliant new song “We Used to Be the Best of Friends”.

The poignant final lines are simple.  “Give us a call when the fever ends…maybe we can be best friends again.”

“Let’s hope,” adds Jim.

5/5

 

#1172: Top 5 Storeplay CDs – A Personal List

A sequel to #167:  Top Five Albums That Got Us In Shit At The Record Store
and #27:  Store Play

RECORD STORE TALES #1172: Top 5 Storeplay CDs – A Personal List

Let it be said:  The Beat Goes On had a lot of rules about what could and couldn’t be played in store.  You couldn’t scare off Grandma, shopping for the new NSync CD for the grandkid.  Therefore, Metallica’s Black Album was banned from store play.  Musicals, classical, and a large chunk of rap (language!) was banned.  Certain bands were banned outright:  Kiss & Rush.  (Tell me that wasn’t personal against me!)  Therefore, any time I could break the rules when bosses were not around, I would try to get away with playing music that I actually liked.

Another rule stated that you must pick five CDs of different genres, put them in the changer, and hit shuffle.  Me?  I preferred listening to albums, not shuffles.  But I was a good little employee 97% of the time.  This story is about the other 3%.

Here is a list of my Top 5 CDs that I loved playing at the Beat Goes On, whether it was allowed or not.

5. DIO – Holy Diver 

Most definitely NOT allowed to be played in store!  I didn’t care.  The boss man was out of town one day in 1996, and I knew I wouldn’t be caught by anyone that mattered.  Tom Morwood, who worked at our Waterloo store, popped in that afternoon to check out our jazz section.  We had just opened a few months earlier.  Upon hearing Holy Diver blasting from the speakers, Tom remarked:  “Holy Diver?  Wow.  That’s ballsy man!”

I didn’t own Holy Diver yet and I was checking it out for myself.  There was a lot to love, such as “Caught in the Middle” and “Don’t Talk to Strangers”.  I also played The Last In Line around the same time, and loved “Egypt (The Chains Are On)”.  It was a great way to discover classic music.  Which, of course, wasn’t the point of working in a used music store and trying to sell CDs.  “Nobody buys Dio,” reasoned the boss.  In ’96, he wasn’t too far off.  But I didn’t get caught.  Tom wouldn’t rat me out.

4. BLUE RODEO – Just Like A Vacation

This 1999 double live album came out when I was running two stores at the same time.  I was in charge of my own store on Fairway Road, but that summer I was also managing T-Rev’s store in Cambridge.  He was off helping put a new franchise together in (I think) Ajax Ontario, and I wasn’t given much choice in the matter.  I suppose it was a great compliment and a testament to management’s confidence in me, to give me two stores to run, but it sucked.  I felt like I was in exile when I wasn’t at my own store.

When this was a new release, I listened to both discs in sequence.  The acoustic balladeering and jams of Blue Rodeo really helped soothe that homesick feeling.  It’s a fabulous album.  In particular, the live version of “The Dimestore Greaser and the Blonde Mona Lisa” really hit.

3. MARILLION – Radiat10n

Same location, back in exile, but a different summer.  I discovered Marillion in 2000.  I had heard some of the Fish era stuff, but not the Hogarth.  This controversial album was on the shelves, so I put it in the player.  Mark Kelly looked a little weird on the inside, with the designs painted on his bald head, but let’s give it a shot.  By the end of the shift, I knew I was going to buy it.  I put in on a shuffle with four other discs.

As soon as it came on, I said, “Ah this must be the new Marillion singer.”  Steve Hogarth perked up my ears. Several songs jumped out immediately:  “Cathedral Walls”, “Under the Sun” and “The Answering Machine” in particular.

While my bosses might have scolded me and said “Don’t play Marillion, you’re not going to sell any!” a decades long obsession began by playing it in store.  So there you go.  The balance sheet doesn’t reflect that kind of lifetime impact.

2. The Candidates – Meet The Candidates

This Cambridge band included bassist/vocalist Neil McDonald, who also worked at our Cambridge location.  I genuinely loved this album he made with the Candidates.  Many of the songs connected with me in a big way, such as “Barely Bruised”.

They didn’t love that I played this frequently in store.  It was for sale, but it was unlikely that I would make a sale just by playing it.  People liked buying CDs with bands and songs they already knew, generally.  I was given a pass because, frankly Neil was favoured by management.

The reasons I played this in store so frequently are really simple.  One, I genuinely loved and connected with this album.  There are still songs, such as “Who’s Your Daddy Now?” that still connect with me.  “Sold your soul for a photograph, I tore it up and had the last laugh.”  I burned some bridges when I started Record Store Tales, and while I don’t know for sure that Neil was upset with me, I think it’s pretty likely.  I’m sorry about that – I’ll always think fondly of him and this band.

1.    – The Box Set

The closest I came to a breaking point, before I finally quit the store, was when I was working (exiled) to a miserable location in Oakville Ontario.  I have written extensively about this experience.  The customers were generally snooty and holier than thou.  A story about an asshole lawyer was a favourite with early readers of Record Store Tales.

The only good thing about Oakville was that I was working alone all day, and no bosses came there.  It was like working in another province, such were the frequency of the visits from head office.  The drive was really difficult and the mental health situation was not good.

And so, I played all five discs of the Kiss Box Set in sequence.  Because fuck you, boss.

Best song exclusive to the box at the time:  “Doncha Hesitate”, a classic sounding Kiss demo featuring all four original members, intended for Destroyer.

Had I been caught, I would have been given a boatload of trouble. But mental health is a thing too, and stuff like this helped keep me sane during a difficult few months managing two stores at once.  I was pushed so close to the edge, that it was a matter of luck that I survived.  And Kiss.  And that’s not hyperbole.  Playing the music I loved made the experience survivable, and that’s barely.

Thank you Kiss.

And that’s the list.  I hope you enjoyed this trip down memory lane.

REVIEW: Blue Rodeo – Nowhere to Here (1995)

 BLUE RODEO – Nowhere to Here (1995 WEA)

This album, recorded during what I consider to be Blue Rodeo’s jammy psychedelic phase, is one of my favourites (it’s up there with the preceding Five Days and Tremolo, to which it is related). It isn’t an album to like instantly, but only through multiple listens.  It suddenly clicked with me after seeing the band play these songs live.

This album began life during writing sessions in 1993, but the band was so inspired with some spontaneous new songs, they ended up writing and recording Five Days In July in, well…five days in July.  That album was released first, and the band later returned to the other songs written during that period.  Five Days was a huge hit, so when Blue Rodeo  finally got back to making this album, the difference took fans by surprise.  (Some of the leftovers became the similarly jammy but acoustic Tremolo, such as  “Moon & Tree”, which was once more psychedelic and electric.)

When I  saw the band live on this tour, they blew me away. I hadn’t seen them live since  the 1991 Casino tour, so this was my first exposure to the new six-man lineup. Greg Keelor was on fire, playing gonzo Young-esque feedback-laden solos that lasted up to five minutes. It was incredible. This album distills that kind of  sound down to 5 and 6 minute songs.

The first two tracks, “Save  Myself” and “Girl In Green” were not about to become hit singles, as both are slow and melancholy.  “Save Myself” is  painstakingly slow, much like Greg’s first solo album, while “Girl In Green” is  funky with a powerful, almost yelled chorus, backed by James Gray’s organ. Both  songs are winners to this listener, because they are completely noncommercial,  while retaining melody and tons of emotion.

Interestingly:  There was both a 12″ and promo CD single of “Girl In Green”, a rare trance-y “Space Knowledge” remix.  Very cool, very weird — I have both.

“What You Want” sounds a lot  more like traditional Rodeo, Jim’s first upbeat rocker of the album. Greg’s hit single “Side of the Road” is track 4, a moody 6-minute tour-de-force with an  incredible chorus and plenty of solos.

Like a one-two punch, Jim comes  back with “Better Off As We Are”, possibly the best song on the album, if not the best rock song that Cuddy’s ever written. I love Jim’s lyrics; conversations with his brother and recollections of young adulthood.  Such power in the performance!

My older brother he left the day he finished school,moved down to New York to Washington Square.he calls me up and says you should come and see me,watch the waves of people rolling everywhere.

“Sky” slows things down a bit, a Jim ballad  with a slow tempo that sounds more like something from Greg territory. That ended side 1 of the original LP,
and side 2 began just as slowly with Greg’s “Brown-Eyed Dog”. Great chorus, with comatose verses that may put the unprepared to sleep.  Then Jim’s “Blew It Again” is a sad
ballad, lyrically similar to “Bad Timing”, but musically based on a catchy little piano line.

“Get Through To You” follows, which features Greg waking up and letting rip again with an uptempo rocker. This song, one of Greg’s best, is kind of similar to Jim’s catchy tunes on side one. Jim’s “Armour” is another plaintive ballad as only Jim can do, and perhaps should have been a single, as it could have been a hit.

The album closes with two more slow ones, “Train”  and the eight-minute-plus “Flaming Bed”. These songs drone off into the distance, meandering lazily, like the hot humid July that spawned them.  This ends an album that is largely misunderstood as ignored by the general record buying public.  And a shame that is.

As you can see, this isn’t the light-hearted countryfied Blue Rodeo of  Casino or Outskirts.  Greg’s health problems (diabetes) coincided with  an interest in slowing things down, and that’s what this album is. It will either click with you, or it won’t, depending on the setting. Find the right place and time, however, and you will enjoy a surprising listening experience, full of depth and emotion, melody and lots of meandering jams.

I suggest listening during an evening, on the porch.  In July.

5/5 stars

Of note, if  there’s a third voice in the background that’s sounds familiar, it should: It’s Sarah McLachlan.

The 1002nd Album – S2E3. Blue Rodeo – “Hasn’t Hit Me Yet” (Mike Ladano)

I was honoured to be back on Geoff Stephen’s excellent show, the 1002nd album, to talk this time about a special song instead of an album.  I don’t know why I’m drawn to acoustic-based music when I’m with Geoff, but I know he loves a lot of those old Blue Rodeo songs.  I instinctively chose “Hasn’t Hit Me Yet” from Five Days in July, a remarkable song from a spontaneously recorded album.  It captures the cold and loneliness of a Canadian winter, yet with the warmth that only acoustic guitars and electric bass can nullify.  But don’t let me spoil it for you.  Here’s Geoff and yours truly with our chat on “Hasn’t Hit Me Yet” by Blue Rodeo.  My favourite.

#1065: Even the Best Weekends Can Turn to Crap

RECORD STORE TALES #1065: Even the Best Weekends Can Turn to Crap

It started great!

Thursday night, the music on the trip up to the lake was amazing. We began with The Cult’s Fire Woman EP, and moved on to Michigan Left by the Arkells.  Jen fell asleep in the car and I was left to sing along by myself.  Never a problem!

We came packed with lots of Lego, and plenty of new music to unbox live on Grab A Stack of Rock.  We arrived with coffee, treats and tunes!  Immediately I set up on the front porch and started playing mellow music.  Jim Cuddy’s All In Time is one of the best cottage front porch albums for dancing that I have ever heard.  From rockers to tear-jerking ballads, what an album!  I used to consider it “just a Blue Rodeo album without Greg” but it’s actually far more than that.  Articulating it is hard, but the album evoked emotions and dance moves that Blue Rodeo didn’t.  We also played some of Alice Cooper’s more emotional, cinematic tunes that night.  It was a magical start.

Friday was a wonderful day!  I commenced with some more porch music, and then we hit The Beef Way for our weekend meat!  We chose two T-bone steaks, a turkey breast fillet (for Jen) and a beautiful duck breast (for me).  It was my first duck breast.  I seasoned heavily with salt, pepper and garlic powder to offset that gamey taste.  I scored the fat, cooked it skin side down in a frying pan for 10 minutes to get it cripsy, and finished it in the BBQ.  When finished, you could have mistaken it for steak, it was that good.  The skin was the best part, and I’ll get duck breast from The Beef Way again.  Just an awesome lunch!

Of course, Friday night was Grab A Stack of Rock, and an excellent show was had, almost two hours long!  Grab A Stack really did rock this time!  Lots of new music revealed, to be reviewed in the coming weeks/months, including Journey Through Time.

First thing Saturday morning, I taped an excellent Tim’s Vinyl Confessions, reviewing the new Def Leppard Drastic Symphonies.  I cannot wait until this airs!  Although we were both kind but critical, I’m sure the Fanboy trolls will be out when it’s released on YouTube.  I will of course be posting it here for ease of viewing.  It was possibly my favourite Tim’s Vinyl Confessions that I’ve been involved with to date!

We did “Jazz Saturday” morning with Herbie Hancock’s Quartet.  By recommendation of Robert Lawson, next Jazz Saturday will be to Pat Metheny’s Bright Size Life.  It’s ordered and on its way.  Then we switched to the back yard, and built Lego all afternoon.  We are both enjoying the Lego “Speed Champions” series of licensed car models.  They are all roughly the same scale and although they are similar in design, very few of them use the exact same design techniques.  Jen also build a New York City skyline, while I finally finished my knockoff Titanic set.  I’ll never buy knockoff Lego again.  It looks cool complete, but it was very hard to build with confusing instructions and bags.  The final fitting pieces were not up to Lego’s standards.   It does look good, but never again.

It was Saturday evening that turned everything to shit.

I made the steaks, damn perfect if you asked me, and Jen proclaimed “I’m gonna eat the whole thing!”  I was already half full from snacking on chips so I knew I was keeping leftovers.  As she took a mid-meal break, Jen had a seizure.

The coffee spilled.  The Coke spilled.  I could stop neither because I was busy keeping her from falling off her chair.  Eventually I got her safely down, where she soaked herself in spilled coffee.  It took some work to get her into bed.  More seizures later that night.  She fell off the bed, and once again Mike managed to pull off a save.  I’ve lost track of the rest of the seizures that night but we figured it was four or five total.  Not the most restful night, and I was completely exhausted from cleaning up the spills.  I went to bed early and slept in late.  Not the way I usually do things at the cottage.  I like to stay up late and enjoy the creatures of the night.  That didn’t happen this weekend.

I came home Sunday completely exhausted and Jen slept the entire way.  Music on the way home was also mellow:  Ward One: Along the Way and When the Bough Breaks by Bill Ward.  Really good and felt appropriate to my mood.

We will have more Lego to build next time.  My Jazz Quartet set looks challenging and interesting.  Hopefully the next trip will be less eventful!

 

 

#1045: The Lost Chapters: Doctor Kathryn

The original title for this chapter was “My Sister, Age, and How Things Change”.  It was originally Chapter 8.

RECORD STORE TALES #1045: The Lost Chapters: Doctor Kathryn

My sister had some distinct musical phases.  Early on, she decided that she was going to like most of the music that I liked.  At first that meant Quiet Riot, Kiss, and Motley Crue.  Motley Crue was her favourite, but not for the right reasons.  They were her favourite because a) Nikki and Tommy were really tall, and b) they both had spikey hair.

There was further evidence that my sister was bordering on wimp territory.  One was that she didn’t like W.A.S.P.  In fact she hated W.A.S.P.  I’m not sure if it was Blackie Lawless’ voice, or if it was the fact that he drank “blood” from a “human skull”.  Either way, I liked W.A.S.P. a lot, and if she didn’t like them too, this demonstrated an unhealthy streak of independence.

Then, the proverbial shit hit the fan.  (We didn’t have air conditioning back then, just fans.)  One day in 1985, she decided that she liked The Pointer Sisters.  And Cyndi Lauper.  And Corey Hart.  She always liked Bryan Adams, but I forgave her this.  Bryan wore jeans and T-shirts, so he was still firmly in rock territory, even if he wasn’t heavy metal.  (I didn’t find out for a while yet that Bryan did in fact have some metallic roots.  He wrote several songs with Kiss, including the heaviest material on the Creatures Of The Night album.)  The music that Kathryn liked was incorrectly labelled by us as “New Wave”.  We didn’t know that New Wave was a term usually used for bands like Blondie, Devo, or the Talking Heads.  We just assumed all crappy pop music with synthesizers was New Wave.  And New Wave was bad.  Very very bad.

Back then, life was simple.  Life was black and white.  Whatever MuchMusic’s “Power Hour” played was good.  Everything else was bad.  The only exceptions to that that rule were Kim Mitchell and Bryan Adams.  I’m not sure why Kim was an exception, except that he and long hair, and that I liked him, and so did the next door neighbour.  If you wanted to boil it down further, stuff with guitars was good.  Stuff with keyboards was bad.  And the stuff Kathryn listened to didn’t have any guitars, just lots of keyboards, fake synth drums and people with really silly clothes and hair.

There were a few exceptions.  I had never known a Van Halen without keyboards, so I accepted them.  They were clearly a heavy metal band.  The Power Hour played them all the time, David Lee Roth had wicked hair, and everybody was talking about that guitar player.  Even if I didn’t know the difference between a guitar and a bass, and thought that Michael Anthony was in fact Eddie Van Halen, I decided that Van Halen were cool.  You were allowed to like them.  Eventually I sneaked ZZ Top into the list of music that was allowed as well, because one of the neighbours said they were like Van Halen.

So if the music Kathryn liked was bad, and the music I liked was good, you can imagine the arguments.  They were glorious and often ended in physical injury and/or destruction of property, and not just by me.

Her awful taste in music even held back my own progress.  She liked Bon Jovi first, therefore I had to dislike Bon Jovi—until they released that damned “Wanted: Dead Or Alive” song.  The song was so good, so undeniable, I had to let Bon Jovi into my life.  I still think it’s a fantastic song, well written, well played, with some beautiful 12 string guitar.  (Another reason Bon Jovi didn’t make the grade at first was due to their keyboards.  This does not explain why Europe did make the grade.  There were many inconsistencies.)

Kathryn’s rebellion worsened.  Her taste in music declined.  I won’t even begin to list some of the awful music she listened to, but I will say that she bottomed out in 1990 with New Kids On The Block, MC Hammer, and Vanilla Ice.  Obviously, this was a person who had no clear idea about integrity within music.  However, like a junkie who hits rock bottom, she eventually started to rise up again, with a little encouragement from Her Loving Brother.

The turning point was when Vanilla Ice cancelled his Kitchener tour date in early 1991.  His reason stated was that he was too big a star to play a town like Kitchener.  There was an instant hatred for the man all over town.  Kathryn sold her Vanilla Ice tape immediately.

There were some other clear signs of improvement.  A newfound obsession with Cheap Trick was good.  Sure, they weren’t metal, but they were definitely rock!  Hell, they even worshipped Kiss within their song lyrics.  I happily encouraged this love of Cheap Trick, and even bought her Cheap Trick tapes.  I think most of her Cheap Trick collection was courtesy of moi.

Rod Stewart came next.  I feel that perhaps Rod snuck in the door due to his enormous hair, but I didn’t care.  Rod still had a rock pedigree.  I encouraged her love of Rod.  I asked her questions about him and his music.  It was like carefully manipulating a mentally ill person back to health, and I was succeeding in a marginal way.  I felt that she’d never come all the way back to metal, even though she owned tapes by Bon Jovi, Def Leppard and Poison.  Yet I was satisfied with the progress we were making.

Now, 15 years later, I own Rod Stewart, Cheap Trick, Bryan Adams, The Payola$…all music that she introduced me to.  She got the last laugh.  I’ll never admit that she was always the smarter one (I can’t, since she never understood any movies we watched) but I’ll admit that she got the better of me on this one.  We even attended concerts together.  It started with Blue Rodeo, then we saw Jann Arden and Amanda Marshall.  While I still won’t own any albums by Arden or Marshall, they both put on excellent shows.  Blue Rodeo blew us both away and now they’re one of my favourites.  I’ve never seen any band more often than Blue Rodeo, and I’ll argue that they’re Canada’s best band, with Rush as a close second.

Even my parents get points.  They sure hated “Big Balls” by AC/DC, but now I own more Johnny Cash and Gordon Lightfoot than they do.

Now, I certainly can’t allow Kathryn to come off as the winner in this chapter.  So here’s a punch in the arm for you.  There, now we’re even.

REVIEW: Blue Rodeo – Daze In America (1995 promo EP)

BLUE RODEO – Daze In America (1995 Discovery Records promo CD)

Blue Rodeo have a number of promo-only releases of great value to fans.  There’s the The Live CFNY Concert for one.  “Diamonds in the Rough” / Demos and Other Stuff….. is another.  Perhaps the most superb of them was 1995’s Daze In America CD, including five live songs but never released to retail on any Blue Rodeo album or single.

The sextet were riding high with the triumphant Five Days In July album, a surprise hit recorded spontaneously in…well, five days.  An utter masterpiece, Five Days in July produced numerous classics that endured in setlists for decades.  “Head Over Heels” was one such track, an upbeat Jim Cuddy stomper with harmonica, mandolin, and the kitchen sink.  It’s the kind of Blue Rodeo track that gets people off their seats.  The version here is the studio cut, which is logical since it was one of the big singles they were promoting at the time.

“Hasn’t Hit Me Yet” is live in Omaha, and it emanates energy from the crowd.  “This ain’t nothing new to me, it’s just like going home,” sings Greg Keelor.  “It’s kinda like those sunsets that leave you feeling so stoned…”  Crowd roars.  Live, Jim Cuddy’s harmony line is more prominent.  Blue Rodeo’s best song, hands down.  And check out Bazil Donovan’s lyrical walking basslines and tell me he isn’t one of the best bass players in this great nation of ours!  Yes, “Hasn’t Hit Me Yet” is a freakin’ gem, where every facet matters, and elevates the song further.

Jim’s bluest ballad, “Bad Timing” is received by quiet punctuated with screams.  If you see Blue Rodeo live, then you know this is a common reaction to Cuddy’s crooning, a country heartthrob if there ever was one.  “Bad Timing” is sentimental, beautiful, and soothing in its own pain.  The ultimate breakup song.  It’s just bad timing, that’s all.

Casino‘s “Til I Am Myself Again” brings us back to one of those upbeat Jim songs that people love to dance to.  Being seated during this song at a Blue Rodeo concert is not optional.  Often a set opener, this one kicks!  Laying back a bit, “Rain Down on Me” was another big hit, this time from Lost Together.  The size of the chorus, a big huge cumulus, is one reason why it is so beloved.  The pedal steel guitar solo by Kim Deschamps is outstanding.  Then “Last To Know” is another Jim ballad, but with a monolithic chorus.

Ex-Andy Curran drummer Glenn Milchem is all over “Trust Yourself”, a real bolder-buster of a tune.  It was always a bit of a jam, but live it just explodes from all its bounds.   Then it descends in a two minute outro of solos and jamming.  Blue Rodeo are one of the best live bands you’ll ever see, and this track shows why.

A great promo EP, somewhat rare, but worth the extra few bucks for these rare recordings.

5/5 stars

#980.5: The Adventures of an Anxious Walmart Shopper on Easter Saturday

“Hey Jen, if you’re up early enough, let’s go to Walmart tomorrow morning.  I want to look for that new Coke,” I said stupidly, not thinking about what weekend it was.

“Sure,” she agreed, and that’s how it ended up that we left for Walmart at 9:45 on Easter Saturday morning.

The “new Coke” I was referring to is “Coca Cola with Coffee”, available in three different brews:  Caramel, Dark, and Vanilla.  I want to try all three.  I was a big fan of Coca Cola Blaq about 15 years ago, their first attempt to mass market a coffee/Coke hybrid.  Coke Blaq was delicious, like regular Coke but with the extra note of coffee bean.  I’m eager to try these new ones.  Coke Blaq came in a small black bottle in these come in cans, which makes me wonder if they are similar to those creamy coffee beverages, with a Coke taste?  Or something more like Coca Cola Blaq?  Inquiring minds wanted to do, and I had heard that these were showing up in Walmart stores.

Walmart was already pretty busy and then I smacked myself and realized, “Of it is.”  Ah well.

I wore an N95 mask this time; my first time.  Easy breathing but hard on the ears.  If I’m wearing one long term I’ll have to do something about the ears.  About 75% of Walmart shoppers were masked, and 100% of the staff.  This is good since virtually everybody I know has Covid, or has had a recent close brush.  I can’t believe this is my third Covid Easter.

First I made my way to the entertainment section where I picked up the newest Blue Rodeo album, Many A Mile.  On slide guitar, The Sheepdogs’ own Jimmy Bowskill, once a child prodigy discovered by Jeff Healey at age 11.  Blue Rodeo are one of those bands where I just want to own all the albums, and stay current, even if the last five or six albums have been good but not memorable.  There’s never anything wrong with ’em.  Many A Mile is as good as any.  In some regards, it’s a throwback to the classic first three Blue Rodeo albums.  Lots of awesome guitar work and hooks.  Just gets hard to remember the songs, record after record after record.

Also found in the music department were the new albums by Slash and Greta Van Fleet, but I found myself staring indifferently at them.  I didn’t even know Greta had a new album out.  Have they already dropped off the radar that badly?

Come on, where are you Spiderman: No Way Home?  Not in stock – sold out!  They had a three-fer with all three MCU Spidey films in one, but I wanted something with the bonus features that I crave.  Ah well, next time, I’ll get you Spiderman!

Finally a trip to the toy section.  No Marvel Legends figures at all, and only a couple Star Wars Black Series.  They were well stocked in Transformers and I noticed they had some reissue Beast Wars toys.  Hard to believe Beast Wars was 25 years ago.  I never bought an original Beast Wars toy, and wanted to give one of these reissues a shot.  They only had Optimus Primal and Megatron, so obviously I chose the dinosaur.  Beast Wars has always been an enigma to me.  When it was new, the toys seemed to barely transform.  The cartoon was very primitive in terms of computer animation.  But Beast Wars appealed to kids worldwide and it saved the Transformers franchise.  Curiosity got the better of me and now I am the happy owner of a reissue purple dino Megatron.

Finally, the Coke. I scoured the racks but they did not have the coffee beverages that I require.  I shall have to try convenience stores and gas stations next.  I love Coke.  I try every variety that I can get my hands on.  I have no problem with Pepsi, but it’s Coke that I want to catch ’em all.

Walmart did have two sweet looking consolation Cokes:  Quebec Maple, and British Columbia Raspberry.  Only having enough hands for one case, I chose Quebec Maple.  Upon paying, I realized that someone swapped out one bottle of Maple and replaced it with a Raspberry.  Win!  I get to try both.

I only had one panic attack while waiting to pay, and I managed to breathe my way out of it.

Walmart had run out of plastic bags and only had the more expensive cloth ones.  I could feel the tension as word spread among the customers.  I hate standing in line at grocery stores and Walmarts.  Everybody does, but I get tense.  It passed; my glasses fell off because of the way the N95 pulls on my ears, but I paid for my stuff and got out.  Didn’t need a bag.  Didn’t have the energy to look at Sunrise Records or Toys R Us.  Just came home.

Put the Coke in the fridge, pulled up a chair and started listening to the Blue Rodeo.  They’re usually pretty good for reducing the anxiety. I feel a lot better already!  Happy Easter everyone, and stay away from places like Walmart if you can!