Old Man Yells at Music

We're headed back to Christmas Eve 1988, when sneaky French nobility and the return of the quintessential 70s family were on screens. On the radio, there were songs about being grateful for motherhood, romantic espionage, a family of outlaws, and people who were famous, but not to me. Plus there were songs from a soda commercial and a fictional Australian wedding. And the all important UK Christma...

This week Roger is in the holiday mood as he tells the story of a Christmas album featuring a dozen up and coming artists on the Atlantic Records label. There are a couple stars, but most of the acts featured here remain unknown to the vast majority of listeners. And there's a mix of traditional carols, popular favorites, and lesser known songs. Hear it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?lis...

This week we had back to 1975. Just when you thought it was safe to turn on the radio...disco is on the rise, whether that's the way you like it or not. But rock was still around: sometimes showy, sometimes funky, and sometimes eeeEEEvil. Also a song that’s not really about eating (food, at least), a small town gridiron tearjerker, and another case of movie stars becoming hit makers...nearly 40 ye...

It's the final set of second round matchups in the 80s Uneasy Rider Tournament. There's sex, murder, Australia, boat travel, surfing, mistaken identity, surfing, and more. And a new theme! Have a look and a listen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDWLXjsOJPQk7eqMOJS0BX5DqEXDqawEa Listen to this episode. Listen to it good.

This time Roger goes back to late 1996. While Michael Jordan was jamming in space, people on earth were singing about what made them happy, what it would be like to meet God, and line dancing. And also love, sex, and lack of Diggity. Hear about all the hits and listen to them and more on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDWLXjsOJPQnGGxZopx8TVzjuDBsmmOQF I promise you a stress-free e...

This week Roger turns on the machine that allows him to access TV shows of the past, tunes in to an episode of the biggest syndicated American pop music show of the 80s, and rocks out to Paul Simon, Dire Straits, Andy Gibb, Grace Jones and more. There’s also everyday Americans singing bland jazz pop, watermelons being smashed, Geraldo Rivera jokes, and of course The Solid Gold Dancers. Plus 1980 c...

This week Roger looks back at another US election year in which the incumbent president lost. Wait...does saying that make me part of the Lamestream Media? Wow, that was easy. Anyway, on the charts, rock was pushing back to the front, with mainstream stars leading the way, but there were younger acts with newer (and sometimes older) sounds right behind. And disco wasn't quite completely dead, and...

More action from the event that aims to determine the most unique and interesting US Top 40 hit of the 1980s. By land and sea, with anxiety or blissful ignorance, on TV or at the movies, on Earth or in space, this set of contenders cover a variety of topics and points of view. Follow along on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDWLXjsOJPQlTLx_mefKS5WO0cCH48hQm And I promise, you will...

This week the Old Man goes back to the fall of 1977, when the world was still mourning Elvis. There were hits looking to the future, others looking to the past, and another one that reminded people of ancient Chinese outlaws. There were also songs about predatory record company fish, women who seek financial security, and iris-altering heartbreak. And a huge hit sung by a nice girl but written by...

It's the scariest time of a scary year, and Roger marks the occasion by turning on, tuning in and rocking out to look at a 1978 TV movie in which the rock band for whom every day is Halloween try to expand their fan base by portraying cosmic-powered superheroes who stop a mad genius from using robots and gizmos on people's necks to destroy an amusement park and make a young woman really sad. Will...

This week Roger sifts through the cutouts in the mid-90s record store in his mind and pulls out a copy of the major label debut of a trio of Japanese ladies who loved the Ramones, fishing, candy, and Barbie dolls. Kurt Cobain was a big fan, but would his fans feel the same? The Old Man has a listen, and he breaks the album down, in the process talking about Speed Racer, beef dishes, bad NBC progra...

This week Roger takes you back to October 1991. A lackluster month for movies and a horrible month for Bulgarian communists. And for music...well, there was techno with good advice for children, metal to scare the crap out of children, a deep voiced Canadian, a high voiced New Zealander, a comic take on mortality, and an achingly sincere declaration of love. Plus, all the Philly steaks you can eat...

It's another leg of the journey to determine the most unique and unlikely hit of the 80s. Roger runs down another set of second round matchups, featuring skippers, gamers, robots, scientists, talkers, apocalypses, wars, needs, knuckleheads, cowboys, dancers, "actresses", nuts, hosers, and it don't stop. Watch and listen to the contenders on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDWLXjsOJ...

This week Roger steps back to 1986, a year that could very much be described as "peak 80s." But there was quite a bit of looking to the past, whether it was covering or borrowing from old hits, bringing back a voice that hadn't been heard for a while, or waxing nostalgic about cheaply lit teenage get togethers. There's also smooth jazzy soul, thirst for a gender archetype, a couple clunkers from a...

In 1978, NBC saw the success of ABC's Battle of the Network Stars and decided to do their own...with pop stars! Michael Jackson swimming! Anne Murray sprinting! Rod Stewart kicking balls! Joan Jett on a non-motorized bike! And Sha Na Na, all ten of them. Add Phyllis Diller, Sandy Duncan, Fred Travalena and more, and you've got a 70s sundae that Roger could not resist. And if you watch it and other...

This week Roger looks back at September of 1974, when a new president let the old one off the hook, readers were hooked on a story about a big nasty fish, and radio was full of hooks of the musical kind. This week's hits included a song about the power of positive thinking by a band named after an irritating childhood prank; glam rock about picking up the pieces of someone's shattered dreams; a co...

We're now into the second round of Roger's quest to determine the most unique US Top 40 hit of the 1980s. The songs here are about war, drugs, crime, history, motherhood, sex, TV, aging, racism, economic inequity, and more. The songs are on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDWLXjsOJPQku206PzO_mdlEzm6fWrqNP You don't need no education to enjoy this episode, but hopefully you're weari...

This week Roger concludes his look at late August 1995 by looking at the race for the UK #1 between the new singles by the bands Blur and Oasis. But this was more than a battle of bands: it was a clash of styles, classes and personalities. And it was the biggest event in a period where British guitar bands were considered part of the national fabric. The Old Man takes you through it, and you can f...

In this episode, the Old Man begins his look at the charts of a late summer week in the middle of the decade. While PC owners were learning the ins and outs of Bill Gates' latest upgrade, the radio played songs about the wonders of the city, alcoholic codependency, females who probably weren't extraterrestrial, and intimate encounters with flowers. And the band names were inspired by such things a...

The Old Man sifts through pop history's discount rack and pulls out his most intriguing find yet: the debut album of a former piano prodigy and musical theater actor who, under the guidance of a veteran pop Svengali, aimed to out-glam Britain's glammiest glam rockers while becoming mainstream music's first openly gay star. The fact that he's the subject of this episode should tell you how well tha...

This week we're going back to 1982, when new wave was waving, from England to East California. The songs on the radio told of unsatisfying holidays, men who were scared of bodies of water, loneliness, regret, going out on the prowl, turning state's evidence, and of course, getting up off life's canvas and coming back hard under the watchful gaze of a jungle cat. Follow along on YouTube: https://ww...

At last, the eighth and final first round bracket of the tournament to determine the Uneasiest Rider on the US Top 40 of the 80s is upon us. There are horses, cats, criminals, lawyers, old ladies, obese young men, dubious boat captains, mistaken identity, symphony orchestras, and so much more. Keep track of the action on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDWLXjsOJPQkENFmYDZQItPO...

This week Roger goes back a whole half century to July 1970 - he wasn't even born yet! The 60s were technically over, but from the sights and sounds of things, a lot of people were still puffin' stuff. The charts featured songs about environmental issues, government sanctioned brutality, and all the other ills of the day. But there was still plenty of love, sex, and silliness for the listening ple...

Quite a long title for one of the shorter episodes. This week, Roger begins a new series of shows about pop music TV specials with a look at the 1983 show on which the record label that helped give Detroit its nickname welcomed many of it's biggest stars home...to Pasadena. It's got Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Richard Pryor, Dick Clark, Smokey Robinson back with the Miracles, and Diana Ross back w...

This week Roger takes you back to the summer of 1998, when you could go see the world threatened by an asteroid at the movies, turn on your TV and watch New York women get it on, or listen to the radio and hear an update of a Greek standard, the start of the American boy band revival, a rock song about a suspicious mix of aromas, the second wave of world conquering Canadian women, and an Australia...