DOESN'T WORK IN DIGITAL. BUY THRASHED.

This is such a great package. The title song is a slice of good ol' fashioned American snottiness. Worth the price of a banged up copy, which is the only way to hear it. This is not a museum piece. This is something you run across with a slightly split sleeve and among the scuffs on the vinyl, what looks to be a beverage stain. Two bucks. Five bucks. Whatever, consider the lineage of ownership. Look at the cover image, iconic. This is an excellent example of a record you will run into and remember only vaguely but know that it's in your head for a reason. See it, buy it.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~

Listen:
The Standells - Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White mp3 at 30 Milkshakes

IF YOU CAN'T WIN, CHANGE THE GAME

In the early to mid-sixties, American bands had to compete with the British Invasion. Around 1966 they threw in the towel, as if Rubber Soul convinced them to just be their simple three chord selves. Snotty vocals, fuzz, a little organ and an air of arrogance. Two and a half minutes on plastic. Done. Not rocket science here.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~

Listen:
The 13th Floor Elevators - You're Gonna Miss Me mp3 at Internet Archive
The Standells - Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White mp3 at Internet Archive
Love - My Little Red Book mp3 at Internet Archive
The Barbarians - Are You A Boy or Are You a Girl mp3 at Internet Archive
Syndicate of Sound - Hey Little Girl mp3 at Internet Archive
Count Five - Psychotic Reaction mp3 at Internet Archive

THANKS ANNETTE

One reunion I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to see was the very short lived Standells reunion period when original lead singer Dick Dodd rejoined them, ending last June. It was for less than a year, and it won't happen again. Dick Dodd died on November 29, a litle over a week ago. I feel like a shit for that initial thought, not getting to see Dodd. Self absorbed as it is, how could it not be? I certainly didn't know Dodd. I really didn't know much about him, other than his role in the Standells. What am I supposed to think, when the member of a band dies? Cut me some slack.

Interesting factoids about Dodd: He was an OG Mouseketeer, along side Annette Funicello, and it was Annette that sold him his first snare drum.  He was later in the Belairs ("Mr. Moto") and then Eddie and the Showmen, both of them top shelf South Bay surf bands.

The Standells' "Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White" is like gospel around here. I don't care if it happens that Dodd didn't sing lead on that particular song. I don't give a damn if he was the waterboy. It's just that good of a song, the subject, the lyrics, the spoken outro, the whole attitude thing they got going. The less I know from here, the better. Suck on that fact checkers.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~

Listen:
The Standells - Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White mp3 at So Many Records So Little Time
The Standells - Barracuda mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Standells - Riot On Sunset Strip mp3 at Indie Rock Cafe
The Standells - Medication mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Standells - Rari mp3 at The Calico Wall
Video:
The Standells - Try It at YouTube
The Standells -Dirty Water/Why Pick On Me at YouTube
Read:
The Standells at Wikipedia

GET YOURSELF A CREW CUT BABY

I listened to the Standells' "Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White" on the drive home tonight, and it felt gooood. If you're of a certain age you know the song, and you know the LP cover too. That cover photo is an absolute classic. Shot from above, your eyes are drawn to the pointy boots (it's been copied with regularity over the years). The song is every bit as good, and belongs on every snotty kid's playlist, no matter what age you are. "Good guys, bad guys, which is which? The white collar worker or the digger in the ditch?" Pure poetry in these parts. And the spoken fills rank with the best: "If you don't dig this long hair, get yourself a crew cut, baby!" That's quite enough gushing for one song. Your turn.

The Standells - Riot On Sunset Strip (movie opening sequence)

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~

Listen:
The Standells - Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White mp3 (via Box.net) at The Beat
The Standells - Barracuda mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Standells - Riot On Sunset Strip mp3 at Indie Rock Cafe
The Standells - Medication mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Standells - Rari mp3 at The Calico Wall
Video:
The Standells - Try It at YouTube
The Standells -Dirty Water/Why Pick On Me at YouTube
Read:
The Standells at Wikipedia