Rock and Roll History: The 90's!!!

[ABlairican Pie]

Another pic:

[ABlairican Pie]

Her 1988 release, The Right Stuff:

The Right Stuff

I was standing at 7:15 waiting for my baby's car
Just then out stepped the driver of a limousine
And asked if I was going far
I said I've got my mind made up
I don't wanna leave him baby cause it's clear to me
That it's just too tough to find another lover like mine

With the right stuff
The right stuff baby
I don't wanna miss out on the right stuff
Ooh no with Mr. Right


Just Friday 'bout a week ago
This fellow called me on the phone
And said 'I live in Paris, don't you want to go
I know you must be all alone'

Well, it'll take more than a fancy trip
Or a chauffeured limousine
Cause I ain't never seen no one
Who could give me love like this
The other fellows don't compare

To the right stuff
The right stuff baby
I don't wanna miss out on the right stuff
Ooh no with Mr. Right
Sing

He's the only to give me that lovin'
Cause next to him there is no other one
He's very sexy and oh so sweet
And he knocks me off my feet
Say it

I need the right stuff
I got to have the right stuff
I don't wanna miss out on the right stuff

[ABlairican Pie]

In the aftermath of the scandal, there was much controversy as to who was to blame for her fall from grace. It was easy to blame Penthouse publisher Bob Guccione for the alleged "trampling" of the image of Miss America with the publication of Williams' photos. But in fact, after a second set of photos was later published, it was clear that Williams was not everything everyone wanted her to be, "clean, pristine, for an American queen". If anything, it proved she was a woman in charge, people behind the photo sessions admitted she was rather sexually assertive and daring. She was in fact challenging (perhaps unwittingly?) the whole outmoded concept of Miss America's "antiseptic virtue", as if nice young girls didn't think of sex and weren't able to define their own image. This of course was unspeakable in 1984, the year of the end of the Sexual Revolution and unabashed American uber-conservativism. Actually, Miss America began as an Atlantic City leg show parade in the 20's, which morphed into these very unreal, cosmetic expectations when it became this bogus televised event. Williams was outraged at first that Penthouse published her and brought down her reign, but later admitted that Guccione helped her career more than anything.

Dreamin'

For the life of me
I never thought that it could be
The way it stands right now
Emotions running high
Every night I wish that I
Could tell you how I feel
Those words are here in my heart
Oh but there is just one missing part
How to put it together
How to say it right
And let you know that
Every night
I'll be dreamin'
Dreamin'
Hoping baby you will be there
I'll be dreamin'
Dreamin'
Hoping baby you will be there
Let me take time out
To try and find out
If this could be real
Cause reality scares me
I've been living a fantasy
How should I feel
Those words are here in my heart
Oh but there is just one missing part
How to put it together
How to say it right
And let you know that
Every night
I'll be dreamin'
Dreamin'
Hoping baby you will be there
I'll be dreamin'
Dreamin'
Hoping baby you will be there

[ABlairican Pie]

Paula Abdul's 1992 album Spellbound was not quite the big hit that Forever Your Girl was, but it did have a few nice surprises, such as "Promise of a New Day", "Rush Rush", and "Will You Marry Me"--even though I always thought that last one was kind of corny.

Promise of a New Day

EAGLE'S CALLING AND HE'S CALLING YOUR NAME
TIDES ARE TURNING BRINGING WINDS OF CHANGE
WHY DO I FEEL THIS WAY
THE PROMISE OF A NEW DAY

::Chorus::LyricsCafe.com::
THE PROMISE
THE PROMISE OF A NEW DAY

AS THRU TIME THE EARTH MOVES UNDER MY FEET
ONE STEP CLOSER TO MAKE LOVE COMPLETE
WHAT HAS THE FINAL SAY

THE PROMISE OF A NEW DAY

{Chorus x 2}

AND SO TIME OVER TIME
WHAT WILL CHANGE THE WORLD
NO ONE KNOWS
(No One Knows)
SO THE ONLY PROMISE IS A DAY TO LIVE, TO GIVE
AND TO SHARE WITH ONE ANOTHER

SEE THE WISDOM FROM MISTAKES IN OUR PAST
HEAR THE YOUNGER GENERATION ASK
WHY DO I FEEL THIS WAY
THE PROMISE OF A NEW DAY

{Chorus x 2}

AND SO TIME OVER TIME
WHAT WILL CHANGE THE WORLD
NO ONE KNOWS
SO THE ONLY PROMISE IS A DAY TO LIVE, TO GIVE
AND TO SHARE WITH ONE ANOTHER

{Repeat}

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

This video was interesting in how she was trying to recreate the 1955 James Dean movie "Rebel Without a Cause" with the "chickie run" (which featured Dennis Hopper in that scene):

Rush Rush

YOU'RE THE WHISPER OF A SUMMER BREEZE
YOU'RE THE KISS THAT PUTS MY SOUL AT EASE
WHAT I'M SAYING IS I'M
IN TO YOU
HERE'S MY STORY, AND THE STORY GOES

YOU GIVE LOVE, YOU GET LOVE AND MORE THAN HEAVEN KNOWS
YOU'RE GONNA SEE
I'M GONNA RUN, I'M GONNA TRY
I'M GONNA TAKE THIS LOVE
RIGHT TO YA
ALL MY HEART, ALL THE JOY
OH BABY, BABY PLEASE

Chorus:
RUSH, RUSH
HURRY, HURRY LOVER, COME TO ME
RUSH, RUSH
I WANNA SEE, I WANNA SEE YA
GET FREE WITH ME
RUSH, RUSH
I CAN FEEL IT, I CAN FEEL YOU ALL THROUGH ME
RUSH, RUSH
OOH WHAT YOU DO TO ME

AND ALL I WANT FROM YOU IS WHAT YOU ARE
AND EVEN IF YOU'RE RIGHT NEXT TO ME
YOU'RE STILL TOO FAR AWAY IF I'M NOT INSIDE YOUR ARMS
I GET DRAMATIC BABY, YES I KNOW
BUT I NEED YOU, I WANT YOU
OOH MAN, I LOVE YOU SO

OOH, OOH

YOU'RE GONNA SEE
I'M GONNA RUN, I'M GONNA TRY
I'M GONNA TAKE THIS LOVE RIGHT TO YA
ALL MY HEART, ALL THE JOY
OOH BABY, BABY PLEASE

{Chorus x 2}

WHEN YOU KISS ME
UP AND DOWN
TURN MY SENSES ALL AROUND
OH BABY, OH BABY

I DON'T KNOW
JUST HOW OR WHY
BUT NO ONE ELSE
HAS TOUCHED ME
SO DEEP, SO DEEP,
SO DEEP INSIDE

YOU'RE GONNA SEE
I'M GONNA RUN
I'M GONNA TRY
I'M GONNA TAKE THIS LOVE RIGHT TO YA

ALL MY HEART, ALL THE JOY
OH BABY, BABY PLEASE

[ABlairican Pie]

This is a lovely song:

Blowing Kisses to the Wind

So tell baby tell
Your true heart
Say what you say
When you’re all alone
I’m trying
Trying to try
And feel you
And see if I see
I’m feeling alone
And all I want is
To get through
So baby, you’d see that the
Way you’re leaving me
It won’t do
It’s like i’m...

Chorus:
Blowing kisses in the wind
Giving you love that you
Haven’t been given
I cross my heart
And hope to die
I’m only wishing you’d
Love me like i
Blowing kisses in the wind
Waiting, waiting, waiting
Waiting for you is
Like blowing, blowing kisses

So please baby, please
Release me
If time after time
Your heart’s growing cold
I’m saying
If you don’t believe
In believing
Then how could true love
Ever be so
And all I want is
To get through
So maybe you’d see that the
Way you’re leaving me
It won’t do
It’s like i’m

Chorus

Like I’m like blowing kisses
I’m some-biddy-bum-bum
Like I’m blowing kisses
And all I want is
To get through
So maybe you’d see that the
Way you’re leaving me
It won’t do
It’s like i’m

Chorus

Like I’m blowing
Kisses in the wind
Like I’m blowing
Kisses in the wind
Like I’m blowing
Kisses in the wind
Waiting for you us
Is like blowing,
Blowing kisses

[ABlairican Pie]

Mariah Carey released her Unplugged album during the height of MTV's
"unplugged" craze. Her audience-scream-inducing hit was a cover of "I'll Be There" by the Jackson 5.

I'll Be There

You and I must make a pact
We must bring salvation back
Where there is love
I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll reach out my hand to you
I'll have faith in all you do
Just call my name
And I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll be there to comfort you
Build my world of dreams around you
I'm so glad that I found you
I'll be there with a love so strong
I'll be your strength
You know I'll keep holding on

Let me fill your heart with joy and laughter
Togetherness is all I'm after
Just call my name
And I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll be there to protect you
With an unselfish love that respects you
Just call my name
And I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll be there to comfort you
Build my world of dreams around you
I'm so glad I found you
I'll be there with a love so strong
I'll be your strength, you know I'll keep holding on

If you should ever find someone new
I know she'd better be good to you
'Cause if she doesn't
Then I'll be there (I'll be there)

Don't you know baby
I'll be there
I'll be there
Just call my name
And I'll be there
Just call my name
And I'll be there

[ABlairican Pie]

Gloria Estefan released Into the Light, which featured a breezy, Carribean mango-flavored hit, "Live For Loving You":

Live For Loving You

Ooh, la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la

Lying awake, I turn to you
As you are softly sleeping
I think of what I'd like to do
While you are somewhere dreaming
I...I feel so happy by your side
Oh, why...I wonder, wonder, wonder why

Find it hard to find the words
To say what I am feeling
I'm so in love, I'm so alive
And I know you're the reason
Why...why I'm so happy all the time
Oh, why...I wonder, wonder, wonder why

I need nothing else in life
Than to hold you
I...oh, I am in so deep
I don't need no sleep
I just need you here with me
Baby, I live for loving you
(Ooh, la la la la la la la)
Live for loving you
All I wanna do is love you, love you

It would never cross my mind
To find another lover
'Cause, after having been with you
There could be no other
I...just touching you, I'm satisfied
Oh, why...I wonder, wonder, wonder why

I need nothing else in life
Than to hold you
I...oh, I am in so deep
I don't need no sleep
I just need you here with me
Baby, I live for loving you
(Ooh, la la la la la la la)
Live for loving you
All I wanna do

Is live for loving you
(Ooh, la la la la la la la)
I live for loving you
All I wanna do is love you, love you

Ooh, la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la
Why...I wonder, wonder, wonder why

Baby, I live for loving you
(Ooh, la la la la la la la)
I live for loving you
All I wanna do, all I wanna do
Is love you, is love you
(Ooh, la la la la la la la)

Yes, I live for loving you
Yes, I live for loving you
Baby, I live for loving you
(Ooh, la la la la la la la)
Live for loving you
All I wanna do, all I wanna do
Is love you, is love you
(Ooh, la la la la la la la)

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

Another rapper for the ever-growing roster was formerly "old-school" LL Cool J, whose 1990 album Mama Said Knock You Out was a still a big seller in 1992.

Mama Said Knock You Out

[ll]

C’mon man

[news report]

And with the local dbt news ll cool j with a triumphant comeback
[mumbling]
But tonite...

[ll]

Don’t call it a comeback
I been here for years
Rockin my peers and puttin suckas in fear
Makin the tears rain down like a mon soon
Listen to the bass go boom
Explosion overpowerin
Over the competition I’m towerin
Wreckin shop when I drop these lyrics that’ll make you call the cops
Don’t you dare stare, you betta move
Don’t ever compare
Me to the rest that’ll all get sliced and diced
Competition’s payin the price

Chorus:

I’m gonna knock you out [huuuh!!!]
Mama said knock you out [huuuh!!!]
(repeat 4x)

Don’t u call this a regular jam
I’m gonna rock this land
I’m gonna take this itty bitty world by storm
And I’m just gettin warm
Just like muhummad ali they called him cassius
Watch me bash this beat like a skull
Cuz u know I had beef wit
Why do u riff with me, the maniac psycho
And when I pull out my jammy get ready cuz it might go
Blaaaaw, how ya like me now?
The river will not allow
U to get with, mr. smith, don’t riff
Listen to my gear shift
I’m blastin, outlastin
Kinda like shaft, so u could say I’m shaftin
Old english filled my mind
And I came up with a funky rhyme

Chorus
[ll]

Breakdown!!!

Shadow boxin when I heard you on the radio [huuuh!!!]
I just don’t know
What made you forget that I was raw?
But now I got a new tour
I’m goin insane, startin the hurricane, releasin pain
Lettin you know that you can’t gain, I maintain
Unless ya say my name
Rippin, killin
Diggin and drillin a hole
Pass the ol’ gold

Chorus

Shotgun blasts are heard
When I rip and kill, at will
The man of the hour, tower of power, I’ll devour
I’m gonna tie you up and let you understand
That I’m not your average man
When I got a jammy in my hand
Daaaaam!!!!! oooooohh!!
Listen to the way I slaaaaay, your crew
Damage [uhh] damage[uhh] damage [uhh] damage
Destruction, terror, and mayhem
Pass me a sissy so suckas I’ll slay him
Farmers [what!!!] farmers [what!!!]
I’m ready [we’re ready!!!]
I think I’m gonna bomb a town [get down!!]
Don’t u neva, eva, pull my lever
Cuz I explode
And my nine is easy to load
I gotta thank god
Cuz he gave me the strength to rock
Hard!! knock you out, mama said knock you out

Chorus

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

The Black Crowes released their sophomore album, Southern Harmony and Musical Companion, which featured the closest thing to rock and roll by a hard rock band in a long while. The album featured the hit "Remedy", as well as cover which was soon deleted after its release: oddly enough, some record company execs found the image of a girl joyously lying spread-eagled in a field to be too "risque" for their tastes, so it was quickly replaced with a group shot in the middle of a junkyard. Political correctness running amok. :rolleyes: Though there was nothing very suggestive about it, but then the Crowes weren't about playing by the rules.

Wait, that girl WAS fully clothed?? :confused:

Remedy

Baby, baby why can’t you sit still?
Who killed that bird out on you window sill?
Are you the reason that he broke his back?
Did I see you laugh about that?
If I come on like a dream?
Would you let me show you what I mean?
If you let me come on inside?
Will you let it glide?

Can I have some remedy?
Remedy for me please.
Cause if I had some remedy
I’d take enough to please me.

Baby, baby why did you dye your hair?
Why you always keeping with your mother’s dare?
Baby why’s who’s who, who know you too?
Did the other children scold on you?
If I come on like a dream?
Would you let me show you what I mean?
If you let me come on inside?
Will you let it slide?

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

Thorn In My Pride

Wake me when the day breaks
Show me how the sun shines
Tell me about your heartaches
Who could be so unkind?
Do you dream to touch me?
And smile down deep inside
Or could you just kill me?
It’s hard to make up your mind, sometimes.

My angels, my devils, my thorn in my pride.

Are you wanting inspiration
You spill your secrets on me
Then you tell me with a whisper
Of things that will never be.
Do you hear me breathing?
Does it make you want to scream?
Did you ever like a bad dream?
Sometimes life is obscene.

My angels, my devils, my thorn in my pride.

Lover cover me with your sleep
Let your love light shine
Lover cover me with a good dream
Let your love light shine

[ABlairican Pie]

Def Leppard finally returned with their new album, Adrenalize, their first after the death of Steve Clark. The band, now a temporary quartet, had guitarist Phil Collen do all the guitar parts. Even though the music continued in the same vein as Hysteria, only seven years before, the poppy, synthy rock seemed dated as the music scene had gotten a little heavier, rawer, and more stripped down. The band was able to squeeze out a few hits such as the danceable "Let's Get Rocked" and a ballad, "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad." The album while initially being a huge seller, was the beginning of slow decline of the once-mighty band.

Everyone remember the corny computer animation for this song?

Let's Get Rocked

Do you wanna get rocked?
Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked

I'm your average ordinary everyday kid
Happy to do nothin', in fact that's what i did
I got a million ways to make my day
But daddy don't agree
Cause when i try to get away
He says he got plans for me
"get your butt right out of bed"
Stop buggin' me
"get up and move your sleepy head"
Don't shake my tree
He said "mow the lawn" - who me?
"walk the dog" - not my style, man
"take out the trash" - no way
"tidy your room" - c'mon get real
Sorry dad, gotta disappear
Let's get the rock out of here

Seven day weekend, up all night
In at the deep end, hang on tight
It won't take a minute, it won't take long
So get on in it, come on, come on, come on

Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Let's go all the way
Get it night'n'day
Come on, let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked

I'm your average ordinary everyday dude
Drivin' with my baby to get her in the mood
She's dialin' through my radio
And i'm ready to make my move
But what she got ain't rock'n'roll
And it really blew my groove
It was chopin, mozart, beethoven
It makes me wanna scream
Bach, tschaikovsky, violins
Turn it off, that ain't my scene
Well i'm sorry girl here's my confession
I suppose a rock's out of the question

Seven day weekend, up all night
In at the deep end, hang on tight
It won't take a minute, it won't take long
So get on in it, come on, come on, come on

Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Let's go all the way
Get it night'n'day
Come on, let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked

All i wanna do is take a ride into the blue
Every time i want to love you
I get stuck inside my room
Heaven knows i'm sick 'n' tired of dancin' with this broom

I feel lucky today
Hey look at that, man
Do you wanna get rocked?
Do you wanna get rocked?

It won't take you a minute
It won't take that long
So get on, get with it
Oh, come on everybody

Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Get on top baby
Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Do you wanna, do you wanna?
Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Get on top of it
Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Love to rock your body baby
Let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked

Let's go all the way
Let's do it night'n'day
Let's get out and play
Rock the night away
Come on, let's get, let's get, let's get, let's get rocked
Do you wanna get rocked?

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad

Here i am, i'm in the wrong bed again
It's a game i just can't win
There you are breathin' soft on my skin, yeah
Still you won't let me in
So come on

Why save your kisses for a rainy day
Baby let the moment take your heart away

Have you ever needed someone so bad, yeah
Have you ever wanted someone you just couldn't have
Did you ever try so hard that your world just fell apart
Have you ever needed someone so bad
And you're the girl i gotta have
I gotta have you baby, yeah

There you go, midnight promises again, yeah
But they're broken by the dawn
You wanna go further, faster everyday, baby
But in the morning you'll be gone
And i'm alone

Why save your kisses for a rainy day
Baby let the moment take your heart away

Have you ever needed someone so bad, yeah
Have you ever wanted someone you just couldn't have
Did you ever try so hard that your world just fell apart
Have you ever needed someone so bad

Every dream i dream is like
Some kinda rash 'n' reckless scene
To give out such crazy love
You must be some kinda drug
And if my time don't ever come
For me you're still the one
Damned if i don't, damned if i do
I gotta get a fix on you

Have you ever needed someone so bad, yeah
Have you ever wanted someone you just couldn't have
Did you ever try so hard that your world just fell apart
Have you ever needed someone so bad, so bad
Have you ever wanted someone, have you ever wanted someone, yeah
Did you ever try so hard that your wourld just fell apart
Have you ever needed someone so bad
And you're the girl i gotta have
I gotta have you baby, yeah

It's a game i just can't win, oh

Have you ever needed someone so bad, yeah
Have you ever wanted someone
Have you ever wanted someone, you just couldn't have
Did you ever tried so hard, yeah

[Steve M.]

.

Come on. How many other Miss Americas can you name who have gone on to bigger things? :rolleyes:



Three others -

Mary Ann Mobley, Miss America 1959 - she became an actress.
Lee Meriweather, Miss America 1955 - ditto.
Bess Myerson, Miss America 1945 - She was New York City's consumer affairs advocate, then she ran for the U.S. Senate in 1980, then she. . .uh, I don't want to go there! :eek:

Famous runners-up include Cloris Leachman (Miss Chicago) and Mary Hart (Miss South Dakota).

[Steve M.]

The five hundredth anniversary of Christophner Columbus's discovery of the Western Hemisphere was celebrated in 1992. A big celebration was held in New York to celebrate the anniversary of Chris's landing on what is now Watling Island in the Bahamas, with fireworks and tall ships. (Well, I would have prefered a world's fair like the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago, but we don't do world's fairs in America anymore thanks to EPCOT, which ruined everything! :mad: )

http://worldroots.com./brigitte/gifs/columbus.gif

Columbus (pictured above) was not celebrated universally for discovering the Americas. Several intellectuals noted that Columbus exterminated several native Caribbean peoples, introduced slavery to the New World, and began the ongoing exploitation of the hemisphere's natural resources. Several rockers and rappers - especially rappers - made it clear trhat they wanted to part of the celebration of Chris's "discovery," many of them preferring to wear T-shirts declaring. . . .

Columbus didn't discover America, HE INVADED IT!

Columbus, of course, was the first in a series of five hundred years of honkies, such as Thomas Jefferson, George Custer, Richard Nixon, and Michael Bolton, known for their crimes against humanity.

Hispanic Americans also joined in the anti-Chris chorus, even though they got their names, language, culture and religion from their Spanish, not their indigenous American, ancestors. :eek: Yes, Chris was Italian, but he sailed for Spain. Some Italian-Americans took the criticism of Columbus personally, convinced this politcal correctness was anti-Italian.

Conservative columnist Robert Novak defended Columbus, insisting he brought European civilization to America. He did? You mean we have great thinkers and great painters too? :confused:

[ABlairican Pie]

Three others -

Mary Ann Mobley, Miss America 1959 - she became an actress.
Lee Meriweather, Miss America 1955 - ditto.
Bess Myerson, Miss America 1945 - She was New York City's consumer affairs advocate, then she ran for the U.S. Senate in 1980, then she. . .uh, I don't want to go there! :eek:

Famous runners-up include Cloris Leachman (Miss Chicago) and Mary Hart (Miss South Dakota). :bonk: :doh: I sit corrected!! :lol: I remember
Lee Meriweather was one before she became an actress.

Wow, Cloris Leachman, Beverly Ann Stickle from FOL, a runnerup!! :clap:

What did Bess Myerson do that you don't want to say? :confused: Or can you not say? ;) Okay, in addition to being the first Jewish Miss America, in the 80's, there was something about alleged criminal activity.

[Steve M.]

What did Bess Myerson do that you don't want to say? :confused: Or can you not say? ;) Okay, in addition to being the first Jewish Miss America, in the 80's, there was something about alleged criminal activity.

Something like that, I forget the details.

She was "Mess" America long before Vanessa Williams! (And "Bess the Mess.") :eek:

[ABlairican Pie]

Def Leppard finally found their replacement for sadly departed Steve Clark with Vivian Campbell, the former axe-slinger for Dio and Whitesnake. Campbell, who was dubbed one of the most talented guitarists of the 80's, had left Whitesnake in a huff over their perceived "pop-metal" direction, when in the early 80's they racked up hits in Europe as a more hard-driving blues-metal direction after David Coverdale left his vocal slot in Deep Purple. (By comparison, think of Rod Stewart's rockier bluesy albums and vocals in the early 70's than where he ended up at the end of the decade...)
Oddly enough, Def Leppard had taken on a poppier direction as well (largely through no fault of their own), so this matchup was rather ironic for a person who complained about his "radio-friendly" stint in Whitesnake. Still, a band as huge as Def Leppard were was not a bad thing to be in for someone like Campbell who had finally been more exposure after years of searching.

Campbell's big unveiling in the mighty Leppard came at one of the biggest rock events that year...

[ABlairican Pie]

On April 20, 1992, rock bands and fans swarmed into Wembley Stadium in London to say their fond farewell to one of music's greatest entertainers at the Freddy Mercury Tribute Concert. The extravaganza featured members of Def Leppard, who introduced Vivian Campbell as their newest member, Slash from Guns N' Roses, members of The Who, Metallica, Tony Iommi from Black Sabbath, Extreme (whose members were huge Queen fans), Robert Plant, Seal, Lisa Stansfield, David Bowie and many others.

There was a bit of contention within the members of Queen whether to have legendary diva Liza Minelli sing "We Are the Champions" at the end--after all this was a rock event. But after careful consideration, it made perfect sense to have one flamboyant performer pay honor to another fallen entertainer of such magnitude. It was a choice made in heaven.

Metallica Enter Sandman/Sad But True/Nothing Else Matters

Extreme
Queen Medley: Mustapha/ Bohemian Rhapsody/Keep Yourself Alive/ I Want To Break Free/Fat Bottomed Girls/ Bicycle Race/Another One Bites The Dust/We Will Rock You/ Stone Cold Crazy/ Radio Ga Ga/Bohemian Rhapsody/Love of My Life/ More Than Words

Def Leppard Animal/Let's Get Rocked/Now I'm Here (s Brianem)

Guns N' Roses Paradise City, Knockin' On Heaven's Door

Elizabeth Taylor Speech

Joe Elliot Tie Your Mother Down

Roger Daltrey/Tony Iommi I Want It All

Zucchero Las Palabras de Amor

Gary Cherone/Tony Iommi Hammer To Fall

James Hetfield Stone Cold Crazy

Robert Plant Crazy Little Thing Called Love

Brian May/Spike Edney Too Much Love Will Kill You

Paul Young Radio Ga Ga

Seal Who Wants To Live Forever

Lisa Stansfield I Want To Break Free

David Bowie/Annie Lennox Under Pressure

Ian Hunter/David Bowie/Mick Ronson All The Young Dudes

David Bowie/Mick Ronson Heroes

George Michael '39

George Michael/Lisa Stansfield These Are The Days Of Our Lives

George Michael Somebody To Love

Elton John/Axl Rose Bohemian Rhapsody

Elton John/Tony Iommi The Show Must Go On

Axl Rose We Will Rock You

Liza Minnelli/Cast We Are The Champions


Queen with Elton John:

[ABlairican Pie]

Unfortunately, for all the greatest intentions that the concert made over raising funds for AIDS awareness and finding a cure, too many people in the world callously sneered that "Freddy Mercury brought AIDS on himself" by being bisexual. Such self-righteous attitudes crippled people's ability to take the disease seriously, who knew who was next for infection and possible death?

Here is Roger Daltrey with Queen guitarist Brian May and his homemade "Red Special" guitar:

[ABlairican Pie]

Brian May speaks to the crowd.

Unfortunately, that year after the concert, Brian May went through his own personal turmoils, his marriage was hitting major turbulence, and he became so depressed that he seriously considered suicide. :( Fortunately, he found the strength in his music and began recording a solo album for later that year.

[ABlairican Pie]

George Michael with Brian May:

[ABlairican Pie]

George Michael and Lisa Stansfield:

[ABlairican Pie]

Tony Iommi with Brian May:


http://www.black-sabbath.com/gallery/albums/tonyiommi/iommibm.sized.jpg

[ABlairican Pie]

Tony Iommi with James Hetfield:

[ABlairican Pie]

Tesla returned with one of their best albums, Psychotic Supper, which featured some of their most honest rocking songs of their career. One of the big songs from the album dealt with a familiar subject, as part of the "great radio controversy" between the band's namesake and his rival inventor Thomas A. Edison, who, according to them, was not perhaps the most scrupulous inventors, stealing glory from the underrated Nikolai Tesla early on in the century...

Edison's Medicine

You're guilty of crime in the first degree,second and third as
well.
My jury finds you'll be serving your time,when you go straight
to Hell.
Cause he was lord of the lightning though socially frightening.
But never out to sell.
Their nickels and pence made more than good sense.
And not the sensible thing.

Nor did the man out of time, man out of time
Thought you was crazy you was one of a kind
Man out of time , man out of time
All along the world was wrong, you was right

All that he saw, all he conceived
They just could not believe
Steinmentz and Twain were friends who remained.
Alone among the three
He was electromagnetic completely kenetic
New wizard of the west
But they swindled and whined that he wasn't out kind
And said Edison's best

He was the man out of time man out of time
Thought you was crazy you was one of a kind
Man out of time man out of time
Said you was out of your mind

You took a shot and it did you in
Edison's Medicine
You played your cards but you couldn't win
Edison's Medicine

I spent twelve years of hard time
More like the best years of my life
Never heard or read a single word
About the man and his wicked mind
He'll sell you on Marconi, familiar but a phony
Story goes they sold their souls
And swore that you'd never know

About the man out of time man out of time
Thought you was crazy you was one of a kind
Man out of time man out of time
Said you was out of your mind

You took a shot and it did you in
Edison's medicine
You played your cards but you couldn't win
Edison's medicine
Thomas A.

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Here is a song for their fallen friend, Def Leppard's Steve Clark, with whom the band toured several years earlier:

Song and Emotion

See him there
Most every day
A lonely man and his guitar
In his eyes, I see the pain
All the faces and the places
All the trouble that he's seen

There was a time
There was a day
They'd come from miles around
They all knew his name
But days gone by are gone
Now only memories remain

Then he starts to play
Suddenly the pain slowly fades away
Tattered, torn, and frayed
There's a place within his heart he'll always save
For the song and emotion
Know he's got to his dying day
Song and emotion
You can hear him play
You can still hear him say
"Better run for cover, 'cuz it looks like rain again!"

And now his life is but a shadow of his dreams
The calm is over, been stormin' for years
He turns and leans his shoulder to the wind
Lost again

All alone on his way to the top
Somehow, somewhere, something was lost
Through it all he knew his only friend was
Song and emotion
Know he's got to his dying day
Song and emotion

Where are they now?
Where are those people who promised him his dreams?
Where are they now for this lonely creature on the streets,
Broken, humbled by the cold reality?
Life at the top ain't always what it seems
Oh, better run for cover 'cuz it looks like rain again!
You best be careful of what you dream
Of what you dream

Song and emotion...
Song and emotion...
Song and emotion...
Song and emotion...

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

A more recent live shot of Tesla, with a photo of Steve Clark:

[ABlairican Pie]

Call It What You Want

I'm in love with a lady
And I know the lady's in love with me
And she knows how to always be there
That's why she's willin' and ready

But now and then, every once in a while
Something inside of me, maybe inside of her...
Have you ever had one of those days
Where it all is going wrong
And it just can't seem to get along?
But through it all you know you're gonna make it.

Call it true love
Call it not meant to be
You can call it anything at all, you see.
Call it what you want
It's all the same to me.

Music means a lot to me
Like love, I make it when I can.
All I am is all I'll ever be
And that's just a boy from Texarkana.

But now and then oh, but once in a while,
They start treating me like some kind of superstar.
Need I mention, at the end of the day
What matters most of all
It's not where you're at
Or where you're comin' from
When all is said and done
You can call it...

Heavy metal, hard-core, pop, punk, or thrash
You can call it anything, it don't matter to me
Call it what you want
It's all music to me

Call it communism, call it free
Some call the ocean what some call the sea
Call it what you want
That doesn't change a thing for me
Not a thing...

Baby's lyin' in the cradle
Universe is all within his reach
Wearin' rags or mink and sable
Needs a guidin' hand or it's out on the streets

Now momma's out
She's never at home
Daddy's taking care of business
He's out on the road
It's rainin' cats and dogs
But the child within us all must face the storm

Call it individuality
Some call it fate, others reality
Call it what you want
It doesn't matter to me

Call it communism, call it free
Some call the ocean what some call the sea
Call it what you want
That doesn't change a thing for me
Not a thing!

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

With the grunge hype sweeping Alternative Nation, it was refreshing to see Tesla not changing a thing to their straight on rock and roll sound.

A great ballad:

What You Give

Who's the one that makes you happy?
Or maybe, who's the one always on your mind?
And who is the reason you're living for?
Who's the reason for your smile?

I feel so lonely and I know I'm not the only one
To ever feel this way
I love you so much that I think I'm goin' insane
I'm goin' crazy, Outta my head
Goin' crazy, Outta my head
Can't think about nothin' but your good, good love
And what you give

Everyone needs somebody
And you know
Everybody needs someone
Well then I guess it's true
Everybody needs a special kind of love
And you're the only one I'm thinking of
You mean the world to me
You are my only

I feel so lonely and I know I'm not the only one
To carry on this way
I love you so much I lose track of time
Lose track of the days
I'm goin' outta my head
Goin' crazy, Outta my head
Can't think about nothin' but your good, good love
And what you give

It's not what you got, It's what you give
It ain't the life you choose, it's the life you live
It's only what you give
It's not what you got
But the life you live
It's the life you live

And you're the one that makes me happy
Oh yeah baby
And you're the one always on my mind
Well then I guess it's true
You are my reason
My one and only
That I've been living for
Why can't forever be
Forever and nothing more?

I feel so lonely and I know I'm not the only one
To ever feel this way
I love you so much I lose track of time
Lose track of the days
I'm goin' outta my head
Goin' crazy, Outta my head
Can't think about nothin' but your good, sweet love
And what you give

It's not what you got, It's what you give
It ain't the life you choose, It's the life you live
It's not what you got, It's what you give
And it ain't what it's not, But what it is
Only what you give

It's not what you got, But what you give
Only what you give
It's only what you give, yeah
Can't get enough girl, of that sweet lovin' baby
What you give

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

In what was touted as the biggest concert tour of the summer, Metallica and Guns N' Roses teamed up as double headliners on a tour which took them all over the world. The biggest names in hard rock promised to be the headbangingest show all summer. Instead, both bands-and fans--got a little more than they bargained for when the tour made a stop in Canada.

So far the tour went well, all though the members of Metallica saw something very bloated on Guns N' Roses' entourage: tons of dancers, chefs, orchestra musicians, even a a basketball coach?? :confused: and heaven knows what else were trucked around the continent. Something very un-rock-and-roll about this arrangement. Axl and Co. were living like the very stars they wanted to be.

On August 8, at their concert in Montreal, a very serious near tragedy broke out. While performing "Fade To Black", James Hetfield stepped a little too close to where pyrotechnics were to go off. Halfway through the song, a flashpot erupted, engulfing him in flames and giving him third degree burns over various parts of his body. Fortunately, he prevented even more serious burns by shielding himself with his double-neck electric guitar. But if he had happened to inhale the flames, he would surely have cooked the insides of his body. Their set was cancelled, and he was quickly taken to the hospital where he clung on tenaciously to life. His bandmates were besides themselves with worry as to whether he would pull through. They stuck around at the arena awaiting word on his condition.

Meanwhile , Guns N' Roses began their set, but after a few songs, Axl announced he could not sing, he was having troubles with his voice. After he and the band walked off the stage, the audience began to engage in what was a common practice at G N' R shows and proceeded to riot. Police were called to straighten out widespread looting and vandalism around the arena. Backstage, Kirk Hammett could not believe what he was seeing, he was upset with stress over James' condition, and all Axl was doing was sipping down champagne while the crowd outside was engaged in a full-scale riot. It was like Nero fiddling while Rome burned--and Axl was the new emperor. It was at this point all friendly, civil relationships promptly ceased between Metallica and Guns N' Roses--or at least with Axl. The members of Metallica could not believe his arrogance and lack of concern for safety.

Fortunately, James pulled through, but he would spend the next few months in
reconstructive physical therapy trying to regain the use of his arms. He went out on the road with the band, this time doing once again what he had done after breaking his arm skateboarding several years earlier: he used his guitar tech (and Metal Church guitarist) John Marshall as his rhythm guitarist. Within a few months, James was back into playing guitar. They spent the good part of into next year playing around the world.

The opener for Metallica and Guns N' Roses was Metallica's old friends Faith No More.

Tour t-shirts:

[ABlairican Pie]

Faith No More, the opening band on the Metallica/Guns N' Roses tour, released
Angel Dust, not quite the commercial success that The Real Thing had been. It was also a time of change in the band when guitarist Jim Martin had left, but the band managed to carry on later with a new guitarist. It seemed as if Martin had never really been quite with it, but Mike Patton and the band always liked to push the envelope. A dark zaniness pervaded the album--which was a good thing, of course.

Midlife Crisis

Go on and wring my neck
Like when a rag gets wet
A little discipline
For my pet genius
My head is like a lettuce
Go on and dig your thumbs in
I cannot stop giving
I'm thirty-something
Sense of security
Like pockets jingling
Midlife crisis
Suck ingenuity
Down through the family tree
You're perfect, yes, it's true
But without me you're only you
Your menstruating heart
It ain't bleedin' enough for two
It's a midlife crisis...
What an inheritance
The salt and the Kleenex
Morbid self attention
Bending my pinky back
A little discipline
A donor by habit
A little discipline
Rent an opinion
Sense of security
Holding blunt instrument
I'm a perfectionist
And perfect is a skinned knee
You're perfect, yes, it's true
But without me you're only you
Your menstruating heart
It ain't bleeding enough for two
It's a midlife crisis...........

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

Crack Hitler

Sink the eight ball
Buy the lady a drink
And nobody knows my name
Bodies float up
From the bottom of the river
Like bubbles in fine champagne
He's the one, no doubt
Walkin' on a tightrope
He's the one, no doubt
Got a gash on my head
And a grin on my face
And a shadow called danger
Hidin' in the sheets
And on the streets
In the heart of every stranger
Here he comes, look out
Teach the world a lesson
Here he comes, look out
Sweat on the brow
And a tap on the phone
And lives are on the line
Pick up the briefcase
On a high speed chase
Breathin' by the roll of the dice
Reachin' up to the top
We're dependin' on you
Reachin' up to the top
"In regards to
My usage of the drug...
It modified my personality
to the extent that I was
highly irritable"
"I was like a crack Hitler"
Keep up the fight
And in the wink of an eye
Never give up
Ooh..ahh..
look out

[ABlairican Pie]

Extreme returned with an ambitious "three-sided" concept album entitled III Sides to Every Story, whose sides contained "Yours", "Mine", and "The Truth." The album revolved around relationship conflicts involving various points of view, and discussed at length issues of conflict in both individual persons as well as with society in general. The band's playing was top-notch, and while not the intense shred-fest that was Pornografitti, featured some straight up bluesy and funky hard rock playing courtesy of Nuno Bettencourt.

However, a battle of words developed between Nuno and the Red Hot Chili Peppers over "who owned funk in the 90's." Nuno accused the Chili Peppers of being "ripoffs" of every style of r & b in the 60's and 70's while professing to be "progressively alternative" while Flea and Co. criticized him back of being "ripoffs of RHCP" (There may as well have been the implication with both the Peppers and their fans that Extreme's music was a dying relic). Nuno said that Extreme was taking chances with bringing funk into the 90's with shred-style guitar, and for the Peppers to think that Extreme was ripping them off was a bit of self-flattery. Nuno felt that both fans should enjoy both bands, and not only was he sorry for the silly argument, he did listen to the Peppers' Bloodsugarsexmagick album and thought it was actually a great album! :cool:

:argue:

While it seemed that Extreme's style of adventurous funk-metal was "a thing of the past", Nuno and the boys were full of ideas about conveying positive messages through their music. Themes of peace were rampant through the songs on the new album.

Rest In Peace

Let's talk of peace,
Sounds so cliche
A novelty,
Catch phrase of the day
Middle, index,
Sign of the time
Just as complex,
As water to ...

Someone said
Give peace a chance
And, that's all that we're saying
While we're sitting
On the fence
Pretending,
Our hearts are in the right place
But, your face
Shows a trace of,

Hypocrisy,
Don't tread on me,
Now you can see

MAKE LOVE NOT WAR,
SOUNDS SO ABSURD, TO ME
WE CAN'T AFFORD
TO SAY THESE WORDS, LIGHTLY
OR ELSE OUR WORLD,
WILL TRULY, REST IN PEACE

Let's not pretend,
to justify
Rather amend,
Where treasures lie
Straight through the heart,
Peace can be found
That's where you start,
Not all around

Someone said
Give peace a chance
And, that's all that we're saying
While we're sitting
On the fence
Pretending,
Our hearts are in the right place
But, your face
Shows a trace of,

Hypocrisy,
Don't tread on me, boy
Now you can see

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango peace: peacesign:

[ABlairican Pie]

The members of Extreme discussed the following song with the son of the Rev. Martin Luther King, in that it seemed that each time a person spoke out about the truth and justice, he or she would end up in an early grave, ironically. Martin Luther King III was unsure at first about the lyrics and the quote by his father in the song, but after further discussion, became very excited about the song and wholeheartedly supported it.

Peacemaker Die

PEACEMAKER DIE,
Mr. Righteous One
You say you have this plan?
If we care to understand

PEACEMAKER DIE,
Mr. Nice Guy
You dare to speak the truth?
I'll twist and turn it into lies

Blessed are the warmongers,
Blessed are the warmongers
For they shall be called,
Man-made Gods

PEACEMAKER DIE,
PEACEMAKER DIE,
PEACEMAKER DIE,
I DON'T KNOW WHY?
PEACEMAKER DIE,
PEACEMAKER DIE,
PEACEMAKER DIE,
PEACEMAKER DIE,
PEACEMAKER DIE,
I DON'T KNOW WHY?

PEACEMAKER DIE,
Mr. Goody Two
Do you really thing the world
Can be Black, White, and Jew?

PEACEMAKER DIE,
Mr. Music Man
Don't turn your back on me?
Cause I'm the one with the gun

Blessed are the warmongers,
Blessed are the warmongers,
For they shall be called,
Sons of God

I have a dream this afternoon,
That the brotherhood of man,
Will become a reality
In this day, with this faith,
I will go out and,
Carve the tunnel of hope,
Through the mountain of despair
With this faith,
I will go out with you and,
Transform dark yesterdays
Into bright tomorrows
With this faith,
We will be able to achieve
This new day
When all of God's children,
Black men and white men,
Jews and gentiles,
Protestants and Catholics
Will be able to join hands
And sing with the negroes,
In the spiritual of old
Free at last, free at last,
Thank God almighty,
We're free at last.

MINE

peace: peacesign:

[ABlairican Pie]

Stop the World

All the world’s
A masquerade
Made up of fools
And philosophers
Were it to rain
On our charade,
All washes away,
Except for our true colors

If any people bothered
Looking for truth, please,
Stop the world
From spinning ’round
Instead we choose to follow
Footsteps of fools, please
Stop the world
From spinning ’round
If nothing’s new under the sun
For me and you
Won’t somebody please...

Stop the world
Stop the world
I wanna get off
Stop the world
Stop the world
Where there is love

If we forget
Yesterday,
We’re bound to repeat it
Tomorrow
It’s not too late
To start today,
Better off safe,
Than sorry

Do unto those as you would
Do to yourselves, please,
Stop the world
From spinning ’round
We need more feet to walk
In one another’s shoes, please

Stop the world
From spinning ’round
There’s nothing new
Under the sun
For me and you,
Won’t somebody please...

Paul Geary, Pat Badger, Gary Cherone, and Nuno Bettencourt:

[ABlairican Pie]

In something totally un-related to Extreme ;) , Van Halen released a live album, Right Here, right Now, which featured the band at the top of their game (Sammy-wise at least). The album also featured a live version of Hagar's "There's Only One Way To Rock" and The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again."

[ABlairican Pie]

It was still a very good year for Metallica, at the Grammies that year, they won for the Best Hard Rock/Metal song, "Enter Sandman," no suprised there. The band thanked the audience and fans for believing in them and sticking by them. The band played the song in a set that was less bombastic and incendiary than in 1989, with video accompaniment of the haggard "Sandman" figure looming menacingly in the back. Lars Ulrich thanked Jethro Tull for not releasing an album in the past year. ;) :lol:

[ABlairican Pie]

Back on the death metal side of music, German thrashers Kreator released Renewal, which featured songs such as "Winter Martyrium,", "Realitatskontrolle", and the title track. The lyrics were not merely sounding morbid and desolate for their own sake, but strongly suggesting a possible future.

Winter Martyrium

Hypnotized by the masses
And a future torn apart
Agony, the final conflict
Hatred yet ignored
Love is colder than death
And in coldness we'll remain
Everlasting territories
Freedom lies in chains

Destroying dreams against all norms
They spread it all across the earth
Dominion without a form
Winter martyrium

Dead civilization on a mission
Lead by gods
Etiquette creates a cause
To turn your back from life
Secrets never told before
Construct culture absurd
Hit you like a shellshock
As integrity has died

Destroying dreams against all norms
They spread it all across the earth
Dominion without a form
Winter martyrium

Wide awake to the end
Wide awake to the end

Crisis and perpetual incest
Performance of a nameless act
Sadness takes your concentration
Individual cages that we face

Destroying dreams against all norms
They spread it all across the earth
Dominion without a form
Winter martyrium for masses
And a future torn apart
Agony, the final conflict
Hatred yet ignored

[ABlairican Pie]

Renewal

Imperfection, new temptation
Innocence will breed new life
Disillusion, desperation
Free my mind and let it rise
Mass enslavement, brutal torment
Tomorrow will they see it clear
Resurrection, disconnection
Substance that can make us fly without fear
Without fear

Never to be seen again
Ever to release the pain
Renewal of your mind

Female's poison, male aggression
Distance to reality
Foreign places, fallen kingdoms
Always keep secrets from me
Subliminal, disciplinal
The art of lying lives on and on
As we struggle, as we suffer
Inferior to life renewal has begun

Never to be seen again
Ever to release the pain
Renewal of our minds
Renewal of my mind

Isolation, illumination
Modern men embrace the light
War believers, peace deceivers
Remaining in eternal night
Politicians, fake musicians
Create no relationships
Hate frustrators, penetrators
Resistance from a path that should not exist

Never to be seen again
Ever to release the pain
Renewal of my mind
Of my mind

[ABlairican Pie]

Kreator released Coma of Souls in 1990:

Coma of Souls

Masters of war
Merchants of false peace
Bleeding the lives of the lost
Feeding them terminal disease
Breaking the rules

No matter who gets hurt
Wholesaling useless trash
Charging twice what it's worth

Freedom of thought a mirage
The coma is endless and deep
Feeling so worldly and wise
Fooled by the friends that we keep

Spirits on ice
They'll never be free

One-dimensional lives
Will the coma of souls outlive eternity

Children are pawns
For generals to play with and kill
Mercy will never be found
Where mayhem is done for the thrill
Righteous crusades
Murder to honor a god ?
No one is saved
Dead bodies shrivel and rot

[Second chorus]

[SOLO - FRANK]
[SOLO - MILLE]

Deep in the unconscious mind
Lies the oldest wisdom
Buried by centuries
Of war and inquisition
Truth is raped and crucified
By men with savage brains
And greed flows forth in endless waves
From fools to wretched slaves

[ABlairican Pie]

Material World Paranoia

[SOLO - FRANK]

Dehumanization through industrialization
Bring fear to the masses of reincarnation
Manic frustration deterioration
Nature fights back for its own preservation

Concrete coffin breeds lunacy
Cold steel skeleton
Desperation in the factory
Crank out oblivion

Material world paranoia
Corporations rule the earth
Material world paranoia
Enslavery begins at birth

Power's illusion brings global confusion
A forgone conclusion of mind's evolution
Nature's destruction through massive production
A blatant example of mindless construction

Concrete coffin breeds lunacy
Cold steel skeleton
Desperation in the factory
Crank out oblivion

Material world paranoia

Don't dream about how life can be
Experience your dreams
Before this prefab culture wastes your life
Stay on the straight and narrow course
Material wealth is yours
But the promise of a better future is a lie

[SOLO - MILLE]

The promise of a better future is nothing but a lie

[ABlairican Pie]

Heading back to 1991 for a moment, let's get one more look at Dangerous Toys with their album Hellacious Acres. The album was not quite the big seller as their debut, but still had a few good hellaciously good hair-metal tunes. Such fun was not to be had for many a summer after this album came out as the straight on party-metal was heading for a long cold winter.

Gypsy (Black-N-Blue Valentine)

She's a dancer, a hot night heaven romancer
Her piece of mind is wearin' thin
She can't stand the shape she's in
Time killer a fool for your money fulfiller
Your sugar daddy left ya
The creation of your own desperation
Sure can kill ya

Don't dance your life away
Tell me how you feel
Think you need a holiday
Stop spinning your wheels
Bang, bang, bangin'
Your head against the wall
Need another hand-out
Headed for a fall

Gypsy black-n-blue valentine
Had enough of bang time
Caught you hangin' 'round
Wasted from the hips down
Gypsy black-n-blue valentine
Runnin' out of hang time
In the lost-n-found
Wasted from the hips down, Gypsy

She's grindin', but all of time never mindin'
She'll look you in the face with a smile
Eyes starin' blank all the while
Tongue twister, a bad mean midnight sister
Livin' on half time
Honey can't you see
End of the line is comin'

Bag full of money
And there goes your innocence
Lipstick smile is
All for your defense
Push, push, pushin'
Your luck against the wall
Pack your bags baby
Get away from it all

Hey you
What the hell is your story
Stop makin' yourself go down in flames
Seems all you do is worry
Stop the shame game baby
Man is to blame

[ABlairican Pie]

Another album certainly not to be forgotten in 1991 was the Union album by Yes where the band accomplished the near impossible: they recorded and toured with both sets of members of the then-current "90125" lineup (Trevor Rabin, Tony Kaye) and the classic lineup the 70's (Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman), as well as Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, and Alan White. There was some question as to whether both factions of the group could pull it off without some tension, but they managed well.

Lift Me Up

Look around - Got no place to stay.
God I hate this town, depending on the day.
You look me up, you look me down - Alright, OK.

While I got no life, I got no hope;
I'm falling in love.
Help me through the fight;
Help me win tonight - I'm calling.

What to do I find it hard to know;
The road I walk is not the one I chose

Lift me up and turn me over;
Lead me on into the dawn.
Take me to the highest mountain;
Tie me up, love in a storm.
Have you decided on my fortune?
Facing the future in your eyes,
With your imperial behaviour
We fight amidst the battle cries.

Open doors - They may be closed to me;
The fire's still burning in my heart...

What to do I find it hard to know;
I want to turn my life around...

[ABlairican Pie]

Back on the alternative side, the Scottish band The Soup Dragons released their album Hotwired which danceable rocking songs such as "Divine Thing."

Divine Thing

You are the one supreme being
Just dressed to kill and fulfill
Just any dream
And you are the one heart's desire
All hips and lips to trick any fool

And I could've sworn that you were an angel
'Cause you're a
Sweet,
Sweet,
Sweet divine thing
But I should've known that you were the devil
Dressed like a
Sweet,
Sweet,
Sweet divine thing

And you lack the one thing
That is devotion
Not always there
In your hair
In a daze
Just too mixed up in your own emotions
Your vanity will always be your greatest thing

And I could've sworn that you were an angel
'Cause you're a
Sweet,
Sweet,
Sweet divine thing
But I should've known that you were the devil
Dressed like a
Sweet,
Sweet,
Sweet divine thing

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

The Soup Dragons were part of the Madchester scene with their dance oriented tunes that went over well at the clubs.

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1992, KISS picked themselves up after the untimely death of their drummer and friend Eric Carr and began collaborating with their old producer Bob Ezrin for a new album: Revenge. The album was a return to form for the band which sounded like the old KISS of way back when, jettisoning the fluff of their too-polished 80's catalog. The songs were virtual anthems, such as the excellent scary opener sung by Gene Simmons, "Unholy."

Unholy

I was there through the ages
Chained slaves to their cages
I have seen you eat your own
I'm the cycle of pain
Of a thousand year old reign
I'm suicide and salvation
The omen to nations
That you worship on all fours
I'm the infection and famine
That's knocking at your door

That's why you're feeling so

Unholy
Oh, i was created by man, you know i'm....
Unholy
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

I am the incubus
I lay the egg in you
The worm that burrows
Through your brain
But you are the beast
That calls me by my name

You send your children to war
To serve bastards and whores
So now you know
You created me
On the day that you were born

Unholy
I was created by man, yeah i'm the lord of the flies, you know i'm
Unholy
From the left hand of power comes the father of lies
Unholy - unholy!

(instrumental break)

I lay you down to sleep
Your soul to keep
Better cross your heart before you die
And now you know
Know that you are mine

That's why you're feeling so

Unholy, unholy, unholy - unholy!!


:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Fortunately, KISS had found a new drummer to replace the late Eric Carr: Eric Singer, who had played with various bands including Black Sabbath and others. Singer was an interesting choice, he was perhaps the first member of KISS to be totally blond. They hired him just in time for the Revenge Tour, which oddly enough, toured in nightclubs as well as a few smaller-size arenas. Were the days of sports arenas over?

This next song is sung by Paul Stanley:

I Just Wanna

I got a body built for sin and an appetite for passion
Yeah i can see the road to ruin and i'm lookin' for some action
I got my finger on the trigger and a match to the fuse
I'll make someone an offer that's too big to refuse
Tired of tryin' to be what i'll never be, baby, you could never see that

Chorus:
I don't want a romance, i don't wanna dance, i just wanna forget you
Time to take my chances, find somebody new
I just wanna for, i just wanna for, i just wanna forget you

I'm gonna set the night on fire, shootin' like a roman candle
Ooh yeah, i'm burnin' with desire and i'm much too hot to handle
I'm like a runaway, crazy train, i'm out of control
If you try to put the brakes on, i'm still gonna roll

Tired of tryin' to do what you want me to, baby, i'm just tired of you, yeah

I don't want a romance, i don't wanna dance, i just wanna forget you
Time to take my chances, find somebody new
I just wanna for, i just wanna for, i just wanna for
I just wanna forget you

(instrumental break)

Wake up, baby, don't you sleep, i can't take this one more week
If i can't go out to play, i can't make it one more day

I wanna play with dynamite, time is right for heavy breathing
Gettin' stone cold crazy till the dawn without a reason
I wanna take me a vacation down a long stretch of track
I'll find a new sensation and i ain't comin' back

Tired of tryin' to be what i'll never be, baby, you could never see that

I don't want a romance, i don't wanna dance
I don't want a romance, or a second chance
I don't want a romance, i don't wanna dance
I just wanna for, i just wanna forget

Chorus repeats 2x

I just wanna forget you, yeah!

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

This song is sung by Gene:

Domino

"now lemme tell ya my story, i got a man-sized predicament
And it's a big one, goes like this, yeah"
My my, ow, yeah!

Never had confession, never had a home
Never had no worry, until i met domino

Ain't the virgin mary, love her i confess
Got my hesitations, 'cause she kisses like the kiss of death

Loves lots of money, back's against the wall
Calls me "sugar daddy", she knows she's got me by the balls

They call her domino - "so fine"

Got a reputation, haven't got a hope
It's a sticky situation, if she ain't old enough to vote

Loves to play with fire, loves to hurt so good
Loves to keep me burnin', 'cause she's a bad habit, bad habit
Bad habit that's good, good, good

They call her domino, domino, domino

(instrumental break)

"every damn time i walk through that door, it's the same damn thing
That bitch bends over, and i forget my name - ow!"

Loves lots of money, back's against the wall
Calls me "sugar daddy", she knows she's got me by the balls - ow!
Loves to play with fire, love her i confess
Got no hesitations, cause she's a bad habit, bad habit, she's a bad habit!

"yeah"

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

And what more could one ask for--than a concept album from W.A.S.P.? The Crimson Idol , which was released to widespread scorn by music critics, told a tale of a disenfranchised young man named Jonathan who felt emotionally orphaned after the death of his brother. He wandered through a wasteland of drugs, alcohol and decadence until he found an electric guitar, beheld the power of its music,and began his life's calling to become a rock star. It may have been neither Rush's 2112 nor Queensryche's Operation: Mindcrime, but Blackie Lawless (the band's only original member at that point) was immensely pround that critics hated it. At least he was true to himself. Fans of the album also roared their approval of the album.

The Invisible Boy

[Lawless]

[Jonathon]
I was the boy unwanted, a prisoner I'm born to them
My brother was the one, that couldn't do no wrong
And I was there dying in the shadow of him

[Jonathon to his father]
Red, crimson red, am I the invisible boy?
Feel the strap, cross my back
Yeah I'm the new whipping boy

Who am I - the orphan son you would never need?
Who am I - cause I'm the boy only the mirror sees
Who am I - the slave you gave just the air I breathe?
Who am I - cause I'm the boy only the mirror sees

[Jonathon]
Oh I got the same old reruns, horror movies in my head
And I can't rest, the scare me to death
But if I'm not alive, how can I be dead?

[Jonathon to his father]
Red, crimson red, am I the invisible boy?
Feel the strap, cross my back
Yeah I'm the new whipping boy

[Jonathon to the mirror]
Oh, why me?

[The mirror]
Why him

[Jonathon]
Can you tell me?

[The mirror]
It's confession again?
Come talk to me, I see in your eyes
Titantic misery, ashamed that you're alive
I'm the face that you see
When the face isn't yours
I'm the mirror my boy

Some people never go crazy
What truly boring lives they must lead
Is there no love to shelter me?
Only love, love sets me free

[ABlairican Pie]

The young man Jonathan finds that in order to become the very thing he wants to be, he sells his soul into the rock-star-industry machinery. A very common theme running throughout music, the story of Faust by German writer Wolfgang Goethe, who tells the story of the man who exchanges his soul to the devil for pleasures and vice. The story by Blackie Lawless is very much a cautionary tale.

Dockter Rockter

[Lawless]

[Jonathon]
The tarot is fate, said the Gypsy Queen
And she beckoned me, to glimpse my future she'd seen

[Gypsy to Jonathon]
She said, do you see what I see?, be careful to choose
Be careful what you wish for, cause it may come true
When I lay the card down will it turn up the fool?
Will it turn up sorrow? If it does then you lose

[Jonathon to the Gypsy]
I'm the lost boy can you help me
Yeah, I'm the lost boy can you help me

[Jonathon]
Then the illusion was real, a crimson idol I saw
But the higher he'd fly, then the further he'd fall

[Jonathon to the Gypsy]
I'm the lost boy can you help me
Yeah, I'm the lost boy can you help me

[Jonathon to the Gypsy]
I just wanna be, I just wanna be, I just wanna be
The crimson Idol of a million
I just wanna be, I just wanna be, I just wanna be
The crimson Idol of a million eyes
Of a million

[ABlairican Pie]

One young guitar genius who fronted his own band was Eric Gales, a left-handed player who was touted as the next Hendrix, but clearly had his own style. His three-piece band included Hubert (H-Bomb) Crawford and his brother Eugene Gales. Their self-titled debut album featured songs such as "Resurrection" and "Sign of the Storm". He amazed everyone with his brilliant guitar ability.

[ABlairican Pie]

Yngwie Malmsteen released another one of his brilliant-yet-oh-so-predictable
virtuoso albums, Fire and Ice. It was one thing for him to stand by his convictions and resist tides of trendiness such as grunge and alternative, but he was really breaking no new ground and no one but his diehard fans were buying it. Technique-wise, the album was a masterpiece if you wanted to be blown away by really, really fast playing, but once you listened to songs such as the slow-moving "I'm My Own Enemy" with his guitar frenzy weaving around a rather plodding lyric and melody, it was hard to remain impressed.

Guitar fans expressed great disappointment with this album. The Bach-rock phenomenon was pretty much played out by that point.

Teaser

To be the main attraction
Might become someone someday
With the right connection
You might find the night so lonely
But you're not the only one
I just wanna go with ecstasy
To the river of love I run
Teaser you set my heart on fire

Teaser put out the flames of my desire
If you let me stay inside
I give satisfaction
In the night we might lose our way
In the tunnel of love I ride
Teaser you set my heart on fire
Teaser put out the flames of my desire
Ohh I guess we all need someone
Teaser you set my heart on fire
Teaser put out the flames of my desire

[ABlairican Pie]

This song seemed to sum it all up about Yngwie:

I'm My Own Enemy

To the sound of a blue and broken string
Left behind with the dust upon a shelf
The remains of a long forgotten song.
All that we had but now again
I stand alone all love has an end.
You cannot see this is my destiny
I'm my own enemy
In my life there was no-one like you
You cannot see this is my reality
I'm my own enemy
In my life there was no-one like you.
From now on I'm sleeping with my shadow
In the night my thoughts can be my own
All the pain and all this endless sorrow
I miss you more than I will ever know.
Holding you never again
It cannot be all love has an end.

You cannot see this is my destiny
I'm my own enemy
In my life there was no-one like you
You cannot see this is my reality
I'm my own enemy
In my life there was no-one like you.
Now I know there is no-one that is waiting
At the end of that long and winding road
Memories in the dead of night are calling
All the way I carry on my heavy load.
All that we had but now again
I stand alone all love has an end.
You cannot see this is my destiny
I'm my own enemy
In my life there was no-one like you
You cannot see this is my reality
I'm my own enemy
In my life there was no-one like you.


Yngwie MUST be his own enemy: He doesn't even realize he's playing a bass!! :eek: :lol: Actually, on many albums he did record his own bass parts. Probably because his real bassists could not match his own musical prowess. Vocalist Joe Lynn Turner, who sang earlier with Rainbow and later with Ritchie Blackmore's 90's version of Deep Purple, said that the reason he left his vocal slot with Yngwie was due to "religious differences--he thought he was God, and I didn't share that opinion." :lol:

[ABlairican Pie]

Here's another song which says a lot about Yngwie:

All I Want Is Everything

But through all lies
I feel my calling
They always said that I can't do it
But even so I walked right through it.
Why can't you see
The way that it must be
You think you're so strong
You know that you are wrong.
Come on woman
Just gimme a touch
You gotta know I'm not asking too much
Once a king always a king

All I want is everything.
You always thought that you were so cool
You used to say that I was a fool
And all this time you were just a tool
You couldn't see that I made the rules.
I have to feel
I know this is for real
I gotta live
I want all you can give.
Come on woman
Just gimme a touch
You gotta know I'm not asking too much
Once a king always a king
All I want is everything.


Yngwie says his name means "Young viking." As in:

[ABlairican Pie]

And the early 90's wouldn't be complete with out a trip down that twisted avenue to visit:

'Ren and Stimpy'!!!!

Created by renegade animator John Kricfalusi, Ren and Stimpy were the best of buds who ended up in warped escapades. Ren was a fully pedigreed Asthma-hound Chihuahua, and Stimpy was just a big dopey loveable cat. Shown on cable network Nickelodeon, the show became an instant success with its wacky, gross-out humor. The theme song was the greatest jazzed-up instrumental, and even featured a few musical guests. The voice of Stimpy was Howard Stern character Billy West, and the voice of Powdered Toast Man, a 50's-style t.v. superhero who delivered breakfast food and performed amazing feats of strength, was voiced by veteran voice-over personality Gary Owens. Frank Zappa even made an appearance as the voice of the Pope.

There were many references to 50's/60's t.v. pop culture, such as "Log", an all-purpose wooden toy which borrowed from the Slinky jingle, and Sugar Frosted Lumps which was basically gelatinous clumps of evaporated milk "which stayed lumpy even in cereal!" Other features included Stimpy in "Ask Dr. Stupid" with his patented "Stupometron helmet" and Ren urging viewers to watch only the Ren and Stimpy show and wear unwashed lederhosen in order to gain entrance to their secret underground hideout. And how about their Space Madness episodes!!

[ABlairican Pie]

Ren and Stimpy in a particularly touching scene where they were homeless:
:(

[ABlairican Pie]

Stimpy the inventor creates the Happy Helmet which controls Ren's outbursts of anger. It was a step above the Cheese-O-Phone, which allowed him to talk to cheese anywhere around the world regardless of their foreign dialects.

[ABlairican Pie]

One of the big hits that actually received huge radio airplay in New York was a little ditty from the Happy Helmet episode called "The Happy Happy Joy Joy Song," which was sung by a Burl Ives-soundalike by the name of Stinky Weaselteets. As the song played Ren and Stimpy would burst into a dance of pure unbridled merriment. The title was based on Stimpy's common expression.

The Happy Happy Joy Joy Song

Hello, boys and girls. This is your old pal, Stinky Wizzleteats. This is a song about a whale. No! This is a song about being happy! That's right! It's the Happy Happy Joy Joy song!

Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Joy!
I don't think you're happy enough! That's right! I'll teach you to be happy! I'll teach your grandmother to suck eggs! Now, boys and girls, let's try it again!

Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Joy!
If'n you aint the grandaddy of all liars! The little critters of nature... They don't know that they're ugly! That's very funny, a fly marrying a bumblebee! I told you I'd shoot! But you didn't believe me! Why didn't you believe me?!

Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Happy Happy Joy Joy
Happy Happy Happy Happy
Happy Happy Happy Happy
Happy Happy Joy Joy Joy!

:banana: :mango :bouncers

Here is a Ren and Stimpy collectable of them performing the Happy Happy Joy Joy Dance:

[ABlairican Pie]

Here is a clip of

POWDERRRRRRRED TOOOOAAAAST MAAAAAAN!!!!!

The popular breakfast superhero was featured in a few of his own episodes, which oddly enough, ran afoul of the Nickelodeon censors. In a later version of the one where he saves the Pope from the clutches of villain Muddy Mudskipper, the cartoon version of His Holiness could not be referred to as "the Pope", but simply as "the Red Guy With the Big Pointy Hat." In the same episode, when Powdered Toast Man becomes president, he pontificates authorization of printing a new Three Stooges stamp while warming the room with "dusty old papers" as kindling in a fireplace--which happen to be the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence. A little political black humor which depicted Powdered Toast Man as an inept bungler with democracy (life imitating art? ;) ). He roasted marshmallows in the company of a lovely lass in the Oval Office (more life imitating art? ).

[ABlairican Pie]

Soon Nickelodeon gave Ren and Stimpy animator and originator John Kricfalusi the axe over not meeting animation submission deadlines, as well as his brand of "politically incorrect" humor. Ren and Stimpy became another victim of the Culture Wars, and while the show continued with new animators (and a little less groundbreaking humor and commentary), Kricfalusi was out of a job for a while. This was not the first time Kricfalusi courted controversy: in 1986 he was accused of showing Mighty Mouse "snorting cocaine" in an updated Saturday morning cartoon of Mighty Mouse, according to media watchdog and hysteria-monger Rev. Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association.
The show's producers explained that Mighty Mouse was not snorting cocaine, but was inhaling a type of energy-enhancing snuff made of flower petals. Don Wildmon was not buying it, and urged other viewers not to buy from the show's sponsors. Gee, people looked for dirt wherever they could find it... :rolleyes:

Kricfalusi ventured into animation on the internet where he felt he would have more free reign with his un-PC humor.

[ABlairican Pie]

In other Zappa-related news, 1992 was also the year that the popular president of Czechoslovakia, Vaclav Havel, resigned from office in Prague. In addition to being a public figure, he was also immersed in culture and the humanities, even writing plays in the 60's. He even participated in the Prague Spring cultural uprising in 1968 which was surpressed by the Soviet invasion that year. For the next few decades he became an outspoken opponent of government oppression, even spending some time in prison, until the 1989 Velvet Revolution, which promoted democratic reforms in the country. Once the Cold War had ended, he became president of Czechoslovakia. He stepped down in 1992 due to his own personal convictions conflicting with that of the rest of the government.

As a cultural figure in Eastern Europe, he was one European leader who was friends with American cultural maverick Frank Zappa. Both understood the problem of government crackdown on the arts, music and intellectual life.

[ABlairican Pie]

As Election Year reached its final frenzied peak, Americans, frustrated with the lack of leadership and economic downturn, had chosen a fresh young face to take the helm of the country...A friendly governer from the state of Arkansas:

Bill Clinton.

:clap: patriot: :clap: patriot: :clap: patriot:

[ABlairican Pie]

On May 17, 1992, the famed t.v. bandleader and promoter of 30's/40's big band nostalgia, Lawrence Welk died at the age of 89. :(

It was a day the bubbles fell silent. :bath

[ABlairican Pie]

On a more serious note, in August of 1992, one of the brightest lights in Christian music, Mark Heard, died a month after lapsing into a coma following a heart attack during a show at a Christian music festival. He was one of the most talented songwriters in the genre, who successfully merged his faith with his art, and was able to create thought-provoking lyrics on the human condition while sounding in the vein of Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp, Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty. From folk to rock, he played it all. Not surprisingly, his music was largely ignored by more sugar-coated Christian pop fans. He was attempting a crossover into the mainstream field with Bruce Cockburn when he died.

:crying:

Age of the Broken Heart
from Ashes and Light, 1984

She gets his letter and she reads it well
With tears on her face
He says he's leaving her but he feels no disgrace
He can't pity her while he pities himself

Living in the age of the broken heart
In the age of the broken heart
We take it so hard
We drive ourselves insane
We make things worse
And we aggravate the pain
Living in the age of the broken heart
In the age of the broken heart
So what is the crime
In crying out to God
In the black of the night
I must let down my guard

Every day as she drives downtown
She's distant and cold
The rear-view mirror reveals her soul
She forces a smile
But it comes out a frown

Living in the age of the broken heart
In the age of the broken heart
We take it so hard
We drive ourselves insane
We make things worse
And we aggravate the pain
Living in the age of the broken heart
In the age of the broken heart
So what is the crime
In crying out to God
In the black of the night
I must let down my guard
She's fought a war with her callousness
And her callousness won
She would deny it but the words won't come
Acting like she don't care is her only defense

Living in the age of the broken heart
In the age of the broken heart
We take it so hard
We drive ourselves insane
We make things worse
And we aggravate the pain
Living in the age of the broken heart
In the age of the broken heart
So what is the crime
In crying out to God
In the black of the night
I must let down my guard

[Cactus Jack]

Mention Enicno Man LOL

[Cactus Jack]

Since I mentioned it, here goes, its time for

ENCINO MAN

[Cactus Jack]

It was a movie starring Sean Astin and Pauly Shore they played these two guys that dug up a caveman played by Brendan Fraser that they teach to do stuff and just anything, thewy even enroll him in their school!

http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:mX-L7zdiPtAJ:tim.movementarian.com/archives/encino_man.jpg

[ABlairican Pie]

Mark Heard began his career in Christian music right at the height of the "Jesus Music" phenomenon in 1972, with a band called Infinity which played the kind of folk-rock which was very popular with "Jesus people" at the time. They released an album entitled "Setting Yesterday Free." He released a later album called "On Turning to Dust" in 1978, but it was not until the following year that he received more attention by the growing Contemporary Christian music field with his folk-rock solo album called Appalachian Melody, which Christian young people's publication Group magazine gave it rave reviews (but Oral Roberts University a lousy review :rolleyes: ). The lyrics were very poetic and sensitive, as well as doing something that was only slowly being accepted by the church: playing rock and roll--with honest lyrics.

Appalachian Melody
from 1979:

Appalachian melody drifting softly down
Instruments of gold and red and brown
Do not need no dulcimer or banjo-fiddle sound
For right now I'll watch these leaves come down
Chorus:
How peculiar liking old dead leaves against the sky
There is something more than meets the eye
Funny how I sit and watch these leaves come down from high
But these things are music to my eyes

Such a pretty song I see, have I been beguiled
This day is not imagination's child
Every time the leaves come down I've just got to smile
For they sing a melody so mild
Chorus

But these things are music to my eyes

[ABlairican Pie]

With songs like "Two Trusting Jesus" and "Castaway" being surefire hits on Christian radio, one would think that he would hit it big. But it was tunes like this that made many in the church brigades nervous--simply for being a rock and roll song--and non-religious at that. Many Christians hated the idea of "compromising" and "diluting" the Christian message with "pagan" rock and roll with its "jungle rhythms", but they even hated it more when a "non-religious" or "non-evangelistic" message was conspicuously absent. Heard felt that as a Christian, you were free to write about whatever you wanted. You didn't need to justify it with religious language.

On the Radio
from Appalachian Melody, 1979:

Greenback band of the hour
Setting half the trends we know
They've got the power
They're on the radio

Flap-trap terminal D.J.
Repeating everything he know
He picks the hits
Hey, he's on the radio

Just by flipping one button
You got an instant song
You needn't try to learn it
'Cause no one'll like it long

Hark to the three word poet
Making up the words as he goes
But you'd never know it
'Cause he's on the radio
Talkin' bout the radio

Big wigs in ivory towers
Gotcha forty songs to play
You can hear them every hour
While they're laughing to the bank each day

Play it to me over and over
Play it in your car on the go
Play it on the jukebox
Play it on the radio

Pay no mind what you're playing
But turn it up a whole lot more
Be like your D.J.
Be like your radio

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now don't touch that dial
And lemme hear you smile
Ooo yeah - I said ooo yeah
Join the crowd
Turn it up loud

[ABlairican Pie]

Mark Heard also spent much time in Europe, discovering and producing young bands as well. He went to the Christian fellowship community L'Abri in Switzerland, founded by American evangelical scholar Francis Schaeffer, to re-examine his faith and intellectual questions relating to it. He came back with a stronger view of Christianity's relationship to the arts and culture, wrote extensively on the subjects in his liner notes, and toured America with a more current rock and roll sound. His 1981 album Stop the Dominoes, was his first straight on rock record.

One of the Dominoes

Heaven help a timid child in a trendy tide
He really doesn't know
That his heart's being taken for a ride
Doing what the world lays down
As a steadfast rule
And (hanging when the world says to change
Like a steadfast fool
chorus:
Heaven heaven help me
I'm one of the dominoes
Chain reaction coming
Blow by blow

Heaven help a heedless man in a time of need
He can't feel the knife In his back
Or see the blood that he bleeds
Walking 'round blind
To the harm that's being done
He thinks it's alright
'Cause it's happening to everyone
(chorus)

Heaven help a seeker of truth
In an age of lies
Gonna make himself believe
That the truth is whatever he buys
Gonna buy what the world says to buy
In a monotone
Gonna cry when the whole world cries
And the truth is known
(chorus)

[ABlairican Pie]

One of the main topics of Mark Heard at this point was the quandary of living in contemporary society. During his visits to Europe, he caught a sense of modern man's isolation and frustration of living without a sense of purpose or direction in a secularized universe. But also he caught a sense of even American Christians' tension with trying to live "saintly" with the desire to live with down-to-earth humanity. He caught flack for his ironic sense of humor--while on the other hand, many Christian musicians were irritated they couldn't live on holy pedestals ALL the time,

I'm In Chains

I used to think life was worth living
And everything was just fine
I came and I went
And I spent all the best of my time
But then I learned to live
Just to care about Heaven
Like the only thing on my mind
Now I've forgotten my existence
Like a prisoner serving his time
I'm in Chains
Me oh my
Somebody said I'll feel better
In the by-and-by
I'm in Chains
My oh me
This life wants to hold me
Till the next one sets me free

I used to like being a human
And having a mind of my own
I never would've thought
I ought to be like a holy drone
But then my mind it was illumined
And my identity was gone
I've got to follow to the letter
Like a beggar with leg-irons on

I'm in Chains
Me oh my
Somebody said I'll feel better
In the by-and-by
I'm in Chains
My oh me
This life wants to hold me
Till the next one sets me free

[ABlairican Pie]

Interview featured in Stop the Dominoes liner notes:

--This is your first Christian album in nearly three years. How have you spent the interim period?

Has it been that long? Well, as far as recording goes, I've been busy helping on other people's projects lately. I still work with Larry Norman quite a bit, and he and I have been co-producing a guy from England named Steve Scott. I think Steve's images and poetic sense far surpass what the Christian public has been used to. I'm looking forward to the changes which may come about as a result of projects like Steve's. Also, I have been spending a good bit of my time in Europe, producing in the studios there. One band I've produced in Switzerland is already getting national airplay . I like to call them the Screaming Cheese Band. All their lyrics are written in Swiss-German dialect. There are no Christian radio stations there; the radio is run by the government. But the "secular" society seems somewhat tolerant of projects done by Christians, because the Christians there are clearly interested in being real, and not allowing their Christianity to set them culturally apart from their friends.

--I understand you've been playing concerts back and forth across the Atlantic and have released a new album in Europe?

Yes; the overseas concerns and record provide feedback from different cultures. I think it's good for anybody to see how people live and how they think in different places. It helps you see the good and bad aspects of your own culture more clearly. It is quite a challenge to try and help some of these friends avoid mistakes that have been made in Christian music in the last decade in the US.

--What do you do when you're at home?

I've been putting together a collection of photographs and notes made during past excursions hoping they may be of use to somebody . I've been doing exotic things like learning to knit. My wife taught me (she spins the yarn from wool). I feel guilty sometimes knowing that somewhere a sheep is running around naked while we say we own his warmth in sweater form. Last but not least, Larry and Little Bobby Emmons and I have been honing our careers as bleacher bums at Dodgers games.

--In the past you have mentioned your involvement with L'Abri. Have your recent trips to Europe spawned continued involvement with them?

Yes. I feel closer than ever to the people there. They were of such help to me when I had questions as a skeptic, and as a Christian. Their attitude towards the value of creativity and the Arts and their support of my work has meant quite a lot to me.

--You referred earlier to your days as a skeptic. Is skepticism a sin, or does it seem to you a plague of sorts to those so minded?

Skepticism doesn't have to be viewed as a liability . Unfortunately, most of the time Christians see it that way. I have had hard times in thepast because of that -- my questions were equated with sin by most of the believers around me, and that caused still more questions, like, ''well, shouldn't God's people be concerned enough about me to help me instead of crossing their arms and waiting for me to see things their way?" It bothered me for a long time. When a person has no rational basis for his faith, or feels that he has lost that rational basis, it is quite painful . It's hard to believe with your heart if there is conflicting information in your mind. To ignore the mind and brush off the questions is wrong, and is more an Eastern idea than a Christian one. So finally I figured, ''well, if Christianity can't stand up to questioning, it's not the truth, and if it's not worth scrutiny, it's not worth believing." So my skepticism continued and led me to look deeply into the matters in question. Most of my answers came from quiet study. Skepticism was an asset to me in that it forced the roots of my faith to grow deeper.

--Did becoming a Christian change your approach to music at all?

Well, in the late Sixties when Christian music was becoming popular, it was "in'' in the secular world to inundate your songs with a message. You know, revolution and all that. So Christian Rock got off on that foot, and of course most Christians began to see music as a tool with which young people could be reached evangelistically. I always kinda resented that idea. It is valid to say that music can be used by God, but it's unfair to put a limit on the number of ways in which music can be valuable to a Christian or to someone who isn't. I hate to see music be only a podium on which one stands to voice his convictions. To Christians especially, there is a broad spectrum of human and artistically valuable purposes for making music other than to have some background music for a revival meeting. So much Christian music is missing the human touch. When people who aren't Christians look at the Christian music field as a whole, they probably don't see much honesty. It's hard for me to say that because it may offend somebody; many Christian artists may really be breaking their backs to make an honest presentation of their faith. But sometimes we're so wrapped up as Christians in our own terminology, and our own trends of thought, and our own circle of understanding that we don't venture out and truly relate to a person on the outside so that he might look at us and say, ''Regardless of what I think, and the biases I have, this person has really shown me the truth.'' We need to be concerned about being real, honest people, not haughty and pious; we should begin to avoid writing things that are supposedly "spiritual' and contain all the terminology and inundations of songs that have been written throughout Christian history. We need to move on from where we are and make our faith real in the eyes of the human beings around us, taking off our masks and letting them see that ours are human faces as well. Otherwise, we are slighting those people and fooling ourselves, and not living up to the expectations that God has of us to present the Truth as the TRUTH, and reality as it actually is, including all its real joy, all its real pain, all its complexity and ambiguities, all its wonder.

--Do you think Evangelism means more than telling the simple gospel message?

We modern Christians live in an age in which Evangelism enjoys a high position on the totem pole of Christian activity or at least theology. But I'm not so sure we know what evangelism is anymore. We have told ourselves what it is thousands and thousands of times, and we have believed ourselves. It has become a creed unto itself, and the rules of if are usually structured to lump the ''unsaved'' together in a general heap, and then to "witness" to them according to a prefabricated plan. Once you're a Christian, it's easy to tell other people that they should be too. It seems so obvious and easy to you that you can forget that it may not seem that way to someone who is not yet a Christian himself. It's too easy to believe that everyone realizes his need for a Savior, but just will not accept Him. I tell you, that's not the case in our society anymore, and it's becoming less and less the case. What does our message mean to these people? Usually nothing. We are not even in their realm of thought. We blame their disbelief on their hard hearts, but we may be causing them to harden more because we do not understand their presupposed notions of what the nature of the universe really is, and that may be, and likely is, quite different from the orthodox Christian view. I'm not saying God can't work in their hearts, but we are responsible as well to reach their minds. So we have to learn to meet people where they are without condescending. If someone doesn't believe God exists, do we have something more to discuss with him than to tell him we'll pray for him and leave him a tract? We have become an ugly sort of non human in our noble efforts to take the message (the one we have told ourselves is the best form of the message) to the people, and we have failed miserably. we must realize that our non-theistically oriented society needs some background, a foundation if they are to ever understand our personalized versions of the Christian message. We must broaden our horizons in order that we may totally understand the thought forms of those around us.

--Some have said your songs are too esoteric, not simplistic or straightforward enough for the Christian public. Couldn't one accuse you of doing the same thing you have called unfair, that is writing what you want to write rather than seeking a lower common denominator which more people would respond to? If that's where the people are, Christians in this case, according to yourself, shouldn't you meet them there?

If I placed the highest value on pleasing the largest number of Christian people, that's what I'd do. But I'm not looking for votes, and my music isn't only for Christians. I figure that given the level of consciousness found in most present day media efforts, it's important now not to compromise depth for more widespread acceptance. Most people should be intelligent enough to comprehend something if they want to, so I write what I want to write, hoping they will seek to understand the things I'm saying. You can't depend on the public market to help you decide what to write anyway. The Oral Roberts Press said my last American album was only worth one listen, and then Group magazine picked the same album as album of the year. I don't listen to either side. There'll always be plenty of people on both sides, so there's no point trying to tailor your work to fit someone's expectations.

--Do you think Christian records will ever be accepted in the pop field?

It's according to what you mean by Christian records. I don't think the pop market will ever accept the cultural trappings which so often accompany contemporary Christian messages. Here's George Gallup running around the country telling us that well over half of all Americans are "born again''. Well then, why don't Christian records share well over half the sales figures with other records? I think there are fewer real Christians than the pollsters have realized. So then we have the opposite reactions by those in the Christian market, namely, ''Oh, the Devil owns this wicked world, and therefore, the record business, and so it is no wonder they run and hide from us when we try to bring them the Gospel message!" So then, it's comfortable to pass the buck to Satan and turn your back. I don't think an honest attempt has been made yet by large numbers of Christians with access to the media, to be truthful in their messages, yet without cultural additions from Christian circles. You cannot expect someone who does not know or presently care if God exists to understand what "Hallelujah" means to you and your Bible study group. I think the truth can still be communicated after being stripped of unnecessary cultural overtones.

--How can Christians become aware of the "Secular" thought forms around them?

That's a good question. How can you explain your frame of reference to somebody if they will only view it through their frame of reference? How can you try to explain a foreign culture to somebody who will probably never understand another culture, primarily due to the fact that he thinks he understands the other culture already? He has a defined niche for it in his present frame of reference and any new information is simply guided to the proper pigeonholes, right beside other particulars which are thought to be familiar and understood by him. Why is it so hard to surprise someone with reality? One should be at times surprised to see it with objective eyes, or another pair than one's own. How can you explain color to a blind man, especially if he already thinks that he understands the concept of color? How can you give him sight, surprise him, confront him with the way things are outside his world?

I think if is desirable to be able to see things in more than one way, from more than one vantage point. That is the purpose I think education should be capable of fulfilling, but how do you break down walls gently and properly? You can't tell someone that the world they see is not the real world, after they've believed it is for many years. How do you strive to take somebody's mind on a trip so real that they see their own bubble from the outside, and others' thoughts from the inside? It takes a lot of creativity to do that, but that is what must be done if whole people are to be the products of the educational process, and I don't just mean in the school system; our education comes as much from those around us as it does from books and teachers.

--You've spoken a good bit about contemporary media influence on the popular level in society. Do you think the death of Marshall McLuhan will have any significant effect on thought forms in media circles?

Probably not, on the popular level. McLuhan was more of an observer than a consultant anyway, and any effect he had on the media themselves was probably rather indirect. Of course his most famous observation, "the medium is the message" has turned out to be relatively true, I think, but with exceptions. By that he meant that the effect of the nature of the media themselves is more significant than the effect of any content which the media have been used to convey. Anything you put on television, for example, loses much of its impact by the fact that it's just something else on television. A newspaper is always the same number of pages whether there's any news or not. I think Christians have been prey to this phenomenon in broadcasting Christian shows that look like every other show. The message can become just one more of the myriad of opinions thrown at us by the electronic toys we've surrounded ourselves with, with filler to make it standard broadcast length.

--You make phonograph records. In considering media as environments, according to McLuhan, couldn't phonograph records also be viewed as prisons for the content they are wished to convey?

Yes; I think, however, the question of whether the content of any medium is eligible for parole to the thinker is still a valid one. One might also say that since familiarity breeds contempt, the cumulative effect of the content of a recording is lost by its repeated playback. That is a very real danger, but to the willing, content can still be gotten, even from well-worn discs. The same is true of oft-repeated phrases, and the battle is not entirely new.

--How do you think media influences people?

I agree with McLuhan that those of us born in the latter half of this century are influenced to a higher degree than we may realize by the media bombardment we have grown so accustomed to. Man made the media, and now they are making him, telling him what he is. Media can destroy a culture by encouraging popular or expected feedback patterns instead of true and heartfelt ones. The real us can be lost in the us media have given us. I read a book by an anthropologist recently, and the author noted the demise of Eskimo art in Northern Canada. It seems some art dealers discovered the genuine Eskimo art pieces and saw them as marketable. But in the meantime, they encouraged the Eskimos to modify the art, so it would be more like most people's preconceived notions of Eskimo art. The product the Eskimos ended up turning out had little resemblance to their original folk-art, but the public never knew that. The next generation of Eskimo artists had never seen the original art, and each artist producing works to the specifications of the art dealers thought he was making genuine original Eskimo art. So, they had been told who they were, and they had believed it. Something irreplaceable was lost in the process.

Likewise, media would encourage a saleable culture to dominate a real one, and the next generation's self-identity would be molded in part by it. If you tell people what they are long enough, pretty soon they will start to believe it. Their children will grow up never knowing they are not what they would have been without the outside influence. This is what media have done in answer to the question, "what is man?" We're only now starting to realize its effects on ourselves. And however noble the original intentions, this is exactly what has happened as well with Christian media. We have told ourselves popular and sale-able ideas about what Christians are, and we have believed what we told ourselves. Now, many people are financially involved, so it is harder and harder to break away and seek out what we really are. But I think it is time more of us were concerned with reality, and not let the nature of media and public opinion manipulate us any longer. But we have to keep our eyes open. We have to find out what manner of creature we are, and ignore popular ideas and the things we've told ourselves about ourselves over the years. We have to fight to keep the sociological dominoes from sweeping us into their falling pattern, whether the pressure is from secular society or Christian society. We have to learn to think for ourselves.

--Do you think hype can occur in the promotion of "Christian" products?

Yes, I do. What is hype? It's just finding out what you think the most people want and then saying it in an exciting way that you have something that meets all those criteria. In the secular fields, you can do it with sex, sales figures, anything. In the Christian field, you can do it that way too, or even worse, you can do it with conformity and orthodoxy. You can do it with promises of spirituality. It can be so unreal, but people will go for it. It sickens me at times. I don't want the next generation thinking this is normal. We hear so much hype, and not enough truth any more. This is another sad side effect of the media on our Christian endeavors. Is it possible to inform a public of a product using the truth and not hype, or will the nature of promotion itself, having been established by secular media, reduce even a truthful statement about a "product" to a form of hype? We have all been told to play Wizard of Oz for so long, that pretty soon, no one will know how to look behind the curtain.

--What advice would you give to someone who writes songs and is thinking of getting involved in Christian music?

Well, you know there's always the problem of pinpointing just where you fit in. Do you feel that you are to be a minister, and the music is secondary to you, or are you primarily a musician who is a Christian? The spectrum for involvement seems to he broadening, and I'm glad to see it because it's wrong to force someone who could be of value on one level to be committed on another level. So there's that whole struggle. Then too, there is and has always been a struggle between creative art and popular art.

Most creative Artists wish to be popular, or accepted in their field, and most popular artists make some kind of a stab at being creative, or at least at remaining popular. But how does an artist become popular? Perhaps by doing something unheard of and new; this novelty, in time, could he interpreted in terms of creative genius, or it may pass and seem rather dated in the near future. Or, the artist could become popular by doing himself what is already accepted as popular. Rock and Roll propagates Rock and Roll, New Wave propagates New Wave; if something is popular, that popularity is imputed to anything else that resembles that something. Do what the people like and the people will like you. There's an obvious fallacy here, though: It is wrong to mistake acceptance for success or for art. Popularity only means you're doing what the people want. So that artist is in actuality being manipulated by the public. On the other hand, if an artist tries and fails to gain recognition or acceptance, it could mean one of two things: 1) maybe his work isn't that good (the public has to he given at least some credit for distinguishing between good and bad, or 2) maybe his work will not fit the popular trends. Fail to do what the people want and the people do not want you. So someone who can't get a niche for himself in the hearts of the people is wrong to despair, as is the "successful" artist wrong to revel in his mass acceptance. Both attitudes are wrong. One minute, you might despair because of rejection, and the next minute you're overwhelmed with complacency because of success. All that happened was somebody pushed the button. And it can work in reverse - the flash in the pan syndrome. So one shouldn't seek acceptance. The best idea seems to try to get better and better at what you do and what you like, with as conscientious an attitude towards the validity of art for the Christian as you can. If people should decide to accept you en masse at some future date, or if God decides to use what you do, then, okay.

Remember though, it is simply the nature of fame that attracts gawkers, not qualities in the gawkee. As Christians, I think we are to be concerned with the quality of our lives, regardless of and in spite of public acceptance or rejection, including that from the Christian public. Don't ever let anyone tell you what God wants to do with your life. That's for you and God to decide. We have no way of knowing what God will use and what He will not use. I think a lot of people may get surprised one day in that matter.

--Do you think that there is any value in secular artistic endeavors for the Christian from either the aspect of the artist or the listener?

Yes, because God made man in His image, and that image includes creativity. So I think any truly creative act has value, intrinsic value, because God put it there. It is a shame for Christians to reject art done by non-Christians (though it's also a shame that these creators don't know the origin of their creativity). When I look around today at the art that is being done, looking past the hype, I'd have to say that the "secular" art does exhibit a higher quality than does the corresponding "Christian" art. It hasn't always been that way -Christians in the Renaissance period were the ones setting the trends which everyone else was following, the opposite of what is happening today. I think it's time we started really listening to what some of these "secular" artists have to say; they are the true spokesmen for the society of which they are parts and prophets. It is they who are defining the ramifications of problems of society as they relate to the individual. It is they who are defining life and love and man himself to the world; we'd better listen to who they say we are before we try to tell them who God says we are, so that we don't insult them by our ignorance of their emotions and thoughts. These artists are often unhappy and their songs are their tears. Why do we sometimes treat them as if it is wrong to cry in a fallen world? More often our songs should he our tears as well. If you are crying and all you see are others laughing, it gets to you. Where is our sympathy? Why do their tears fall so unfelt at our very feet? Why do we not cry more ourselves? We live in reality too.

--How can one combat the mass-mindedness of society especially as it relates to Christian endeavors?

I don't know exactly, but it takes a human touch. You know the Waltons TV show lasted so long because people liked the folkiness of it, the human touches, if you will. Now that was hyped up to an unnatural state, but it survived. But how to bring Humanness to all things, I don't know. I can just tell you some of the things I've done recently. Instead of buying pieces of furniture, I've just made some. I made my desk from antique pine lumber which had been a structural part of my reat-grandfather's country house in South Georgia. My parents salvaged the lumber when the house was torn down. That way, the desk means something to me. I work on my songs there, and it's much more than just a piece of furniture. My personal stationery is also homemade. I made a photographic design from a butterfly I had in my insect collection as a kid - I think I caught him in Florida. My wife and I print them up at home with a silkscreen process. So when I send somebody a letter, there's some thought and work represented in the stationery.

As far as public efforts, my recently released European album was a joint effort towards encapsulating humanness, made by myself and the European company, King's Records. We tried a lot of things to make the record a very personal vestige and not just another package of supposedly personal things. On the front cover, I put a blowup of my right index fingerprint, as a statement against the impersonality that generally accompanies record releases. For the same reason, I don't make myself smile for photographs unless I just happen to be smiling and the photographer snaps it spontaneously. I don't think we should try to make people think that being a Christian means we smile all the time. That's ugly and not real. So I guess if we start making a stand for humanness in small ways, maybe some of the impersonal trappings of media efforts will loosen their strangleholds on our lives. I hope so.

--Aren't some of the ills you've pointed out just a manifestation of man's sinful nature? Shouldn't the worsening of the world's condition only serve to remind us of Christ's imminent return?

Christians sometimes seem to me to have a warped enjoyment in attesting to the fallenness of the world, so much so that sometimes they go to great lengths in books to correlate all the horrible things that happen daily with Biblical prophecy. They get so excited about it, as if it were wonderful that people are going to Hell under our very noses. Now surely recognition of sin and evil in the world is proper, but I think we are bombarded by it so much that some Christians have begun to think of the earth itself as evil. (That thought is not originally from God's mind at all.) Life is sometimes seen by them as a negative thing, and eschatology can become an escape valve. The prospect of being taken from the earth without pain or death is certainly popular.

But living only for fulfillment of one's eschatological views can rob one of the fullness of life still possible. The world is fallen but not ruined for the believer. The garden still exists because of our redemption through Christ. We shouldn't squander our lives and our live's effects on those around us away, while looking for Christ to return. We in so doing defeat our whole purpose. Paul had some strong words to some first century Christians concerning the same problem in Thessalonica. We must never allow ourselves to lose sight of the present. Often I wonder why Christian leaders do not realize what is happening around us as the meetings go on, hoping to draw new believers out of the world like a rescue operation on a sinking ship. Is there any hope to help make the world slow down in its demise? Some are so sure of Christ's imminent return that society around them goes to the dogs as they continue in their emergency salvage operations. Is it not time to ask the question, "what hope will our children have in a worse world if Christ does not return in thirty years?" It scares me to think what kind of world this will he in thirty years if we continue to be separatists and refuse action against the atrocities of our society. How selfish of us. Pessimism about the future, even if based on eschatological theology, is no reason to refuse to accept responsibility for what the future turns out to be. I imagine that, if Christians during World War II had seen the war as Armageddon (and I'm sure some did), responsibilities would have been shirked, seemingly justifiably. But the world is still here today. Now that we are faced with the potential of having the world as we know it blown right out from under our noses, it is again easy to shirk the responsibility we have to make the world a more godly place, and let events run their courses, not realizing that in doing nothing, we are contributing to that course. If we Christians do not progress in our thinking, our children will be at the mercy of whatever happens. We live in a post-Christian era, regardless of what George Gallup has said with his polls. Naturalism, not Theism, long ago became the basis for thought in nearly every field of endeavor, and if we fail to recognize that, we are fools. Christians may have trouble seeing that because few of us rub elbows with people in the "secular" world any more. We operate on the assumption of Theism, and the world does not, plain and simple. We have failed to give substantial criticisms to the non-Theist system, preferring to avoid hard questions, and we have cut ourselves off from them and live in separatism. If our faith doesn't visibly and honestly address the basis of that split, then our children will be without the basis of a faith that is anything more than mysticism. Their questions and dilemmas will he real, and our old separatist answers will he insufficient. So they will lose their faith without answers or they will have a meaningless and inadequate faith, with our simplistic solutions. Their problems will be more complex than we know. Naturalistic thought is busy working its way out in society, and just as it eventually affected the philosophers a century and two centuries ago, so it is now affecting the thought patterns of the man on the street. Non-Theistic ethics are here already, and any other ethic will soon he forgotten entirely, as it is now in some circles, being without sufficient rational basis to them because of our past hiding. I'm afraid we maybe too late to stop it now. Most Christians are not really aware that the problem exists; those that do realize it seldom recognize it as a conceptual problem, and they treat each manifestation of it symptomatically. There must be education for today's Christians. We are already so ineffective in formulating thoughtthat our role as mystics can't be far behind. If we are to suffer later for that role, part of the blame will be ours for not taking the opportunity sooner to speak rationally concerning the basis of truth and ethics.

--But why all this concern with society? Isn't someone who preaches social concern just preaching a "social gospel" instead of a spiritual one?

Isn't it nice that we have terms like that, and pigeon holes too, so we can classify things and rob them of their depth and complexity? When Jesus healed the blind man, or when He drove the money changers from the temple, or when He shed tears for Lazarus, was He preaching the "social gospel?" Do not misunderstand; if our faith does not affect our thought patterns, and if it does not interrupt our "business as usual" approach to life, and if other human beings' lives are ignored by us while we cling to theological affirmations, be assured that we are not whole people. The "social gospel" is irrelevant only to someone who thinks human lives are irrelevant. Christians can be so busy playing doctor that they forget to use their stethoscopes. Pretty soon we may find ourselves being sued for malpractice.

--I'd like to ask you to give me a brief summary of your perceptions of some of the songs on your album, Stop the Dominoes. First, "I'm In Chains."

This song was an attempt to draw a satirical picture of the philosophy so often espoused, sometimes unconsciously, by modern Christians in their attempts to separate spirituality from the rest of human existence. Activities get labelled as spiritual or non-spiritual and it seems a hierarchy comes about concerning which activities are the most spiritual. Our humanness often gets pushed aside. (After all, Paul urged us to set our minds on the things Above, didn't he?) Truly we should he careful about our lives becoming entangled in themselves. But I think Christians sometimes go too far in "denying the self." We can lose the humanness that God created us with. We can miss a large portion of life if we aren't careful. In Eastern philosophy it is of great value to lose the consciousness of day-to-day existence in favor of "higher truths." Life becomes merely an illusion, a shadow of the real. To be human becomes undesirable; transcendence is sought after and deemed superior. But in the end, no one can live explaining everything about his life away. As C.S. Lewis said, "You will find that you have explained explanation itself away..." Any system of thought which allows no value to human thought will destroy its own efforts. Life for the Christian is not an illusion, nor was it intended to be. It's all too real, and we are not to try to escape its reality as the existentialists have done. Nor is humanness evil in itself. Sometimes it seems Christians confuse their human nature with their sinful nature. But they are different. The former we were created with, the latter we chose. It does us no good to try and escape the humanness and in so doing think we are escaping the sin. Our lives are important, and we are responsible before God for how we live them. That's what I'm trying to say in this song, and much of my other work also reflects that view.

--In your song, "One of the Dominoes" you portray people as hapless victims of their own collective popular opinions, especially in regards to the methods by which truth is established. Comments?

And that's just the problem. Nowadays it's popular in society for each individual to decide what truth is for himself, aided of course by the propaganda thrown at him from virtually every angle in each field of endeavor. So maybe in the end he doesn't actually decide, he just thinks he did, but society has made the decision for him. It may he a simple case of mass ignorance like, "Truth is either A, B, or C," society not realizing that D is also an alternative. Today it is really more like, "Truth is sort of like A,'' and people pick up their values in this way unconsciously. We are victims of our own trends. This can lead to serious consequences. Take ethics, for example. The Bible is not society's basis for ethics anymore. When it was the basis, something was right or wrong because God had revealed that it was, and it was not open to discussion. But when the Bible was rejected by society, and this happened a longer time ago than most Christians may realize, then the basis for ethics became what the largest number of people believed to be right and wrong. Well, while a lot of people who initially derived their ethics from the Bible were around, the system still looked like a fairly Bible-believing society. But today some of the changes are becoming rather obvious. Today, whether something is considered right or wrong by society is not inherent in the act, but is determined by the consequences of it. On the popular level that translates to "I'll do whatever I want as long as I don't hurt anybody." On the intellectual, academic, legislative or judicial level it translates, "It is legal (and therefore right) to perform this abortion, because due to Down's syndrome, this child would have been a misfit in society anyway." So you see, the criteria can slowly change. Today it may he okay to kill because of fetal-genetic imperfection, tomorrow it may graduate, if you can call it that, to be okay to kill (or terminate) because of genetic imperfection at age ten, or sociological imperfection at age forty. So you see, we've left the mandate "Thou shall not kill." The new rules are made by society, and whatever society decides is best for society is the ethical basis. It's a horrible thing when you realize what that means. We who are Christians should certainly recognize that, and should not allow the dominoes to sweep us over in their flow; rather we should seek to try to stop the chain reaction, and even reverse it. But it will be a long hard process. Society doesn't accept the Bible as the ethical basis anymore, and any appeals we make on Its behalf will not do much good. We must first help establish that the Bible is indeed credible, the only certain final moral authority, being revealed by God Himself as our guideline for ascertaining right and wrong. How to patiently do this in the face of an overwhelmingly non-Theist society will perhaps be our biggest problem to deal with as Christians in the coming years, but we must try. We must affirm the true value of each and every human being in the eyes of God. We must affirm that truth is different from mass opinion, and we must look to God, not society, not Christian leaders, for final authority ourselves.

--Do you think it is possible for Christians to collectively make mistakes or bad decisions which affect society in an adverse way?

Yes.

--What in your opinion is the worst such mistake made by Christians in the last twenty years?

I think it would have to he the syndrome of trying to make the truth desirable and needed in people's eyes in efforts to sell it. You know, saying the reason one should become a Christian is for one's own ultimate happiness. "You should become a Christian because it will give you real peace." Now that statement is true in some respects, but there are a lot of things which will make you happy, and they are all being hawked too. You could make a pitch for Christianity, and a group from India could make a pitch for Krishna, and Proctor & Gamble could make a pitch for dishwashing detergent, and if you put them side by side, the only differences would be of the fill-in-the-blank type. Of course, we cannot demonstrate that Christ is the only way if we do it in a fashion which puts us in the same boat with other people trying to work the same persuasion with a different product. How utterly absurd.

We do not become followers of Christ in order to feel good or to have peace. We become followers of Christ because His message is the Truth, regardless of how we may ever feel. We bow to the Truth because it is the Truth, and we bow to God because He is God. Our faith is not a method for our satisfaction - it is obedience to the Creator regardless of the consequences.

--What caused you to include "One Night Stand" on this album?

Well, it's just an expose of sorts on the impersonality of the times in which we live. As a twentieth century songwriter, I don't walk to the next village to sing my songs. I fly thousands of miles through the air on a big wad of factory produced metal from Pennsylvania and plastic from Long Beach and glass made in New York from African sands; eat a piece of conveyor-belt grown chicken from North Carolina as I pass over Albuquerque and wash it down with water put on board in Chicago, which fell as rain heaven knows where or when. For dessert there's a delicious combination of chemicals from all over the country, chemicals people have fought wars over, all made into a cake somewhere in Ohio. I'm unaware of some radio signals coming to a guy I can't see, nevertheless who holds my life in his hands, and soon we exchange the cloudless blue for a rain some people have been experiencing all day. I go to claim my baggage, and a sign reminds me that it looks like everybody else's baggage, because they all come from the same factory in Detroit. I go to a motel that looks like every other motel, a concert hall that looks like every other concert hall, stand in front of two Shure sm-58 microphones, that look like the same ones from the night before, and I try to be an individual human being, a unique creature of God, for an audience that has become accustomed to everybody being like everybody else they've heard, so they come up afterwards to tell me who else I sound like. It's just the times in which we live. How I long for mass production and mass-mindedness to lose their grips on us. How I long to see more creativity on the individual level. You can't build your own 747, but after all you only need one in the first place because somebody told you it is better to fly a thousand miles than to walk to the next village.

(one of his poems included on Stop the Dominoes liner notes):

Midday in London
The terrorists were evidently on strike
So we chanced the tube
Subterranean refugees that we were
Up through the sidewalk in Soho
We chanced only the meat pie
A man was being propositioned
It was a middle-aged female prostitute
"I make love for a living;
Want to do business?"
"No thanks, I'm just having a sandwich"
Mister Freddie B. Morris
Insists that we are Communists
He, aided by two bottles of rum
And half his remaining live brain cells
He's crying over his lost wife whom he left
He's going to France
He wishes he could go to Canada
An hour out from Dover
He doesn't feel the deck move beneath our feet
Hollywood on a November night
The volcano's ashes wouldn't fall through the smog blanket
The air cast a shadow
Somewhere in the city someone was singing
I could hear it
Somewhere in the city someone was dying
I could feel it
Good and bad news from the same messenger
"Hot and cold running reality"
I said to the guy in the next car
Waiting for the light to change
"Leave me alone man
I want to go home"

These days
We put on cars like shoes
And walk faster
We form lines and remain mute
Almost unaware of the walkers around us
As we transcend space
We put on wings like a coat
And spend morning and evening in separate worlds
Instant schizophrenia
As we transcend time

Maps hide cities
And cities hide houses
And houses hide faces
And faces hide hearts
But hearts still beat quietly
Few feel even their own pulse
But hearts are made to beat
We can drown them out with more accessible rhythms
But they continue the counterpoint
Hearts are made to beat
Our souls are still within us
Our Creator waits for us to notice
As our geographical boundaries
Are chased around the sun by time
Decaying in a fashion some call normal


Mark Heard with Christian music pioneer Larry Norman in recording studio; Heard with fellow Christian music pioneer Randy Stonehill while in Europe:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1982, Mark Heard released "Victims of the Age", his most mature and ambitious rock release to that point. Having jettisoned his folky past, his latest record told of more tales of living in an alienated contemporary world, and of Christians' inability to address it properly.

Victims of the Age

Asphalt ocean roars
At islands with rubber wheels
City kid can't keep on even keel
Neon world says, "Gotcha"
Heart says, "No, no no
Don't be swimming in the undertow"
Caught between these voices
The sirens and the sage
One too many choices
For the victims of the age

Radio says, "I love you"
Street says, "That's a lie"
Billboard says, "Give anything a try"
Sidewalks don't say nothing
Streetlights don't ask whyCould stars be screaming in the evening sky?

Caught between these voices
The sirens and the sage
One too many choices
For the victims of the age

Faces In Cabs

Hypothetical mortal beings
Known only to themselves and God
Come and go and play the cameo
They're just faces in cabs

All the hearts that are gonna break today
All the lovers who won't come home tonight
Nobody feels their dynamite
They're just faces in cabs

They're just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls

Somebody cries the tears of tragedy
Somebody cries the tears of joy today
Nobody knows exactly what to say
About the faces in cabs

Ten million in freshly dug graves
Ten thousand who will die by noon today
Four billion who will follow soon
They're just faces in cabs

They're just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls

All the heathen in Africa
All the heathen in West L.A. today
All of raging humanity
Is just faces in cabs

They're just faces in the cabs-so I've been told
Just faces in the cabs-the masses out there
Just faces in cabs-anonymous souls

[ABlairican Pie]

Some Folks' World

Some folks' world is war-torn
Some folks' world is fine
This planet makes no sense to the untrained mind

Some folks hope for fortune
Some folks hope to die
Each man sees his fate through his own two eyes

And when it's day to me it's night to someone
And when it's night you might not want to go on

Some folks eat what flies leave
They get what they can take
Hunger has no heart and it will not wait

Rain can ruin your weekend
Or rain can spare your life
Depending on who you are and what your thirst is like

And when it's day to me it's night to someone
And when it's night you might not want to go on

All folks' days are numbered
But most folks do not care
And no man calls his coin when it's in the air

Some folks taste of Heaven
Some folks taste of Hell
Some folks lose their taste and they cannot tell

And when it's day to me it's night to someone
And when it's night you might not want to go on

Growing Up Blind

The sun goes down in Tinseltown
Lights light the hype and the human debris
The gazes that guide these half-a-million eyes
Can't seem to make them want to see

Growing up blind, growing up blind
Hearts in the darkness killing time
Growing up blind, growing up blind
How does it feel to be growing up blind

The images form like a gathering storm
Ruin rains down on unfortunate souls
But in the haste of the day we look the other way
And cast our eyes on things more pleasant to behold

Growing up blind, growing up blind
Hearts in the darkness killing time
Growing up blind, growing up blind
How does it feel to be growing up blind

So we forsake this festering waste
And all of the wounds that we've seen bleed
In the name of the One who says that what we've done
Is turn our backs on Him in leaving the least of these

Growing up blind, growing up blind
Hearts in the darkness killing time
Growing up blind, growing up blind
How does it feel to be growing up blind

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1983, Mark Heard returned to his folk acoustic roots with the album Eye of the Storm, which featured a traditional rocker or two. Some of the songs on the album seemed quaint and more geared for Christian radio airplay.

The Pain That Plagues Creation

As this planet falls around the suntrapping us in the orbit
Creation groans in unison like a race of frightened orphans

The darkness of this raging storm is covering up our portals
But a yearning for the light is bourne in the heart of every mortal

Day to day we ache
With the pain that plagues Creation
Night to night we lie awake
And await its restoration

Heaven knows our lonely ways, heaven knows our sorrows
And Heaven knows things that we don't know and the joy of eternal tomorrows

But through this glass we dimly see yhis world as it was made
Oh and the good we know must surely flow
From the heart of a kind Creator

Day to day we ache
With the pain that plagues Creation
Night to night we lie awake
And await its restoration

So hold on in this restless age and do not fear your shadow
Your alternating tears and praise are prayers that surely will matter

Day to day we ache
With the pain that plagues Creation
Night to night we lie awake
And await its restoration

These Plastic Halos

These plastic halos
They seem so out of place
Behind the mask
lurks a scarred and fragile face
We lie so spiritually
Familiar smiles
displayed
Misleading masquerade

We hide our pain
We try to laugh
Fools to think our tears
Would provoke holy wrath
In stone-gray silence
We do not face our fears
We bite our lips
And we press on with feeble cheer
With hearts of sadness
We say our thankful prayers
Refusing comfort unawares

We hide our pain
We try to laugh
Fools to think our tears
Would provoke holy wrath

We learn the protocol
We bare our souls to none
We praise our peers
For the optimism shown
"Brave men don't cry", we say
As we watch the world turn to dust

The tears of God fall for us

[ABlairican Pie]

Here was one his more uptempo electric rockers from Eye of the Storm, criticizing the "Gospel of Greed" that was running rampant in the early 80's:

Gimme Mine

Ever since I was a young boy I wondered what to be
Watching all the grownups shaking on the money tree
You know that everybody's got their places
Everyone fits just fine: all except me, Lord
Now when You gonna gimme mine?
All across the nation (everywhere) people do their things (pulling their hair)
Pushing on buttons and pulling on different strings
You know that everybody's got their places
Everyone fits just fine: all except me, Lord
Now when You gonna gimme mine?

Now when You gonna gimme importance
When You gonna gimme wealth
When You gonna make me like everybody else?

I got to get me a high position, got to get me a Cadillac
Got to get me a raise, I got to get me a heart attack
You know that everybody's got their places
Everyone fits just fine all except me, Lord
Now when You gonna gimme mine?

Oooh working at the Neiman Marcus, working at the five and dime
Got to have the money gonna make it in the nick of time
You know that everybody's got their places
Everyone fits just fine all except me, Lord
Now when You gonna gimme mine?


Uhhh...the second line in the second-to-last stanza there...No comment... :eek: :lol: Life imitates art. :rolleyes:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1984, in honor of the death of one of his greatest Christian mentors, Francis Schaeffer, Mark Heard released another folk-rock album that was much more mature and cutting edge than his previous effort, Ashes and Light.
On this album, he wrote songs of such startling depth, with a bit of verbosity that were a lot for many people to digest. Still, a remarkable album for those who dared to hear something different.

The Winds of Time

It takes more than a good intention
It takes more than a cursory line
It takes more than mortal vigor
To withstand the winds of time
It takes more than an eager heart beating
It takes more than an enigmatic smile
It takes more than positive thinking
To stand against this tide

It takes a saturated soul
And a faith that will never let go

It takes more than mindless passion
It takes more than dogma in mime
It takes more than virtuous fashion
To withstand the winds of time

It takes a saturated soul
To withstand the winds of time

True Confessions

Oh the sun runs its course from the east to the west
With the best of our motives illumined
Then it sinks with a sigh in the dusk of the heart
And our virtue lies worthless as rumour

You can be what you like if you like what you are
We reflect but the sum of our creeds
But we don't seem to seize on the tenets we hold
And they slip through the sieve of our deeds

When we see our mistakes we ache with regret
And the pain makes a lasting impression
But we are stoics at heart when the time is at hand
To beat our breasts and make a true confession

[ABlairican Pie]

Francis Schaeffer, one of Mark Heard's spiritual advisors in Europe, was one whose impact on evangelical Christianity and contemporary culture was immeasurable--for both good and bad. Born in 1912, the young Schaeffer had gone from being an agnostic to embracing a fervent Christianity after reading the Bible in its entirety. He married his wife Edith in 1935 and entered seminary, and after the births of his children, decided to relocate to Switzerland in 1952 where he founded L'Abri, a Christian retreat community where seeking souls could come and find answers to their questions about philosophy and faith. As a conservative, Schaeffer was alarmed by the growing trend toward what he considered "unbiblical" and "Christless" liberal Christianity which he felt was responsible for the breakdown of morals and philosophy in the Western world. While he was a great champion of Christian involvement in creativity, he criticized what he felt were the "secular humanist" premise in European art, literature, and culture, beginning with the Italian Renaissance and moving onward. His books such as "Escape From Reason" and "How Should We Then Live?" (which became a documentary film series) discussed at length the historical breakdown leading up to the current day. He alienated evangelical scholars by accusing them of abandoning Biblical inerrancy and the authority of Scripture, and made fans out of his commitment to pro-life ethics such as opposition to abortion and euthanasia. Many felt that for all his impressive critiques of contemporary culture, he was too rigid and separatist in his views.

Unfortunately, some of the Christian leaders who championed his cause were none other than Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. :eek: His message of Christians becoming more involved in the political field was not lost on these two figures.

Schaeffer died in 1984 from a brain tumor. His son Franky Schaeffer made a name for himself by becoming a controversial firebrand filmmaker and mudslinger who wrote entertaining yet often caustic books such as "Addicted to Mediocrity", which criticized evangelical Christians' abandonment of the arts and championing of Christian "kitsch".

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1985, Mark Heard released Mosaics, one of his best rocking albums with a solid rhythm section. The album featured songs with great lyrical quality it was a shame that the light of his art was hidden under the bushel of
the Christian label. His lyrics were steeped in the pain of modern life, the irony of "progress." Perhaps a little too much fiber for the candy-coated Christian sugar-pop market. The album also featured a cover of his friend T-Bone Burnett's "The Power of Love."

The album cover was designed by various musicians and friends who contributed to a little "mosaic" piece which added up to a composite picture of Heard.

Schizophrenia

The tears still fall
The birds still sing
And life is bittersweet
With a schizophrenic ring
The sun still shines
The darkness still falls
We must see both
If we see them at all

SCHIZOPHRENIA
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
MAN FROM DUST TO DUST
THE BEST AMONG THE WORST
SCHIZOPHRENIA
GAZING ON THE STARS
AND WALKING IN THE DUST
SCHIZOPHRENIA

So much to love
So much to hate
So much to represent
With chalk and slate
We see the expression
Of the original face
And the mask that hides it
We're a schizophrenic race

CHORUS

The one-eyed man
Still has one good eye
Blind man must have something
He can be thankful for
And the sweetest child
Still carries scars
From the ancient collapse
In the falling of stars

CHORUS

All is Not Lost

When civilization takes a nasty turn
And concepts are hushed when books are burned
All is not lost
All is not lost
When swine are the ones who steal the pearls
From the human oysters of the western world
All is not lost
All is not lost

TRUTH LIVES ON
TRUTH LIVES ON
TRUTH LIVES ON

When beauty seems beaten by the callous beasts
And it looks like it will be 'cause history repeats
All is not lost
All is not lost
You can still see grace in the children's eyes
And this planet's face still gladdens the wise
All is not lost
All is not lost

CHORUS

When the hand of man becomes inept
And sketches the truth in silhouette
All is not lost
All is not lost
The hand of God has not worked in vain
And this globe is fodder for the feeblest brain
All is not lost
All is not lost

CHORUS

[ABlairican Pie]

Heart on the Line

He remembers in the days of his youth
He had an aptitude for acting cool
And never unmasking his mind
Never putting his heart on the line
Penny ante in the peer-group game
Taking chances for a fling with fame

And never confessing the crime
Never putting his heart on the line

PUTTING HIS HEART ON THE LINE
PUTTING HIS HEART ON THE LINE

He remembers when his senses came
And he recognized his foolishness
And started to speak his true mind
Started putting his heart on the line
He saw the world through unused eyes
Started ignoring what was cool
And all the lies in society's shrines
Started putting his heart on the line

CHORUS

He rocked the boat and the culture-at-large said,
"We don't want to talk truth or God
Or no other themes of that kind
Or of putting your heart on the line"
So now he blends in with the bourgeoisie
He learned the lesson that society
Rewards only those who decline
To go putting their hearts on the line

CHORUS

He Plays the Game

He fights for his own environment
And never, never to repress his whims
Right is what he thinks he does for others
Wrong is what he thinks they do to him
HE PLAYS THE GAME
HE PLAYS THE GAME SO WELL
HE PLAYS THE GAME
HE PLAYS THE GAME SO WELL

He smiles when it buys him favors
Gives money when he knows he's watched
Gives love when he wants love returned
Looks cordial when he knows he's not

CHORUS

Silent assassin to the puritan ethic
Trigger finger on a shaky gun
His life floats between attainment and death-wish
Though well-kissed by the lips of fun

CHORUS

The Power of Love

The power of love
Can make a blind man see
Can bring a man to his knees

The power of love
Can make a sultan grieve
Can make a skeptic believe

THE POWER OF LOVE IS SOUTH OF SOUTH
AND SCORCHES OUT ALL THE DOUBT
THE POWER OF LOVE IS THE NAME OF NAMES
AND BURNS AWAY ALL THE PAIN

The power of love
Can make a gangster cry
Can make a loser try
The power of love
Can make a strong man weak
Can make a bigot meek

CHORUS

The power of love
Can make a coward brave
Can make a hero afraid

The power of love
Can make a miser give
Can make a dead man live

Two of the above songs were electric rock songs, while the cover of The Power of Love was an acoustic ballad. Many in the Christian music industry were intent on promoting him as an acoustic "folky" artist, hence the album below:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1987, Mark Heard totally shifted musical gears recorded an album unlike anything he had ever done previously--as a one-man band called Ideola with the title Tribal Opera. Given his experience as a record producer as a performer, it was an excellent work that was released on the "non-evangelistic" Christian label What? Records. There were smatterings of techno, dance, straight on rock that basically defied categorization. Heard recorded all the instruments with more or less from few other performers, but the sound and ideas were all his own. The song "Is It Any Wonder" was promoted as a potential radio and MTV hit.

I am an Emotional Man

in the primal jungle streets
where the sky is smothered
two-legged creatures breathe and eat
bruising one another
i wish i'd never been told
that the species has souls

i am an emotional man
emotional man with obsolete tears i guess i'm just an emotional man
emotional man with out-of-place feelings

underneath the tropic sun
political desire
eight-year-olds with loaded guns
told to open fire

i wish i never had seen
how human beings can be

i am an emotional man
emotional man with obsolete tears
i guess i'm just an emotional man
emotional man with out-of-place feelings

i see a comfortable land
living in a world of its own
and it's working on me
i'm an emotional man

in the ruins of ancient streets
moments lie in rubble
weary tourists rub their feet
and wonder what's for supper
i wish i knew what it's like
to never have to think twice

i am an emotional man
emotional man with obsolete tears
i guess i'm just an emotional man
emotional man with out-of-place feelings

Is It Any Wonder

i had a dream, it was a mystery
i dreamed of science and of history
i dreamed that since we stood up out of the dust
we formed our words on lips of beauty and trust
i should've known better than that
i should've known better than that
everything looks different in the morning

is it any wonder
is it any wonder
is it any wonder we dare to live in our dreams
is it any wonder
is it any wonder
is it any wonder we scare ourselves with our screams

i had a dream, it was a comedy
i dreamed i made a documentary
i looked in closets for the skeleton bones
i found them empty save for measures of gold
i should've known better than that
i should've known better than that
everything looks different in the morning

CHORUS

[ABlairican Pie]

Go Ask the Dead Man

what's the worth of one warm smile?
go and ask the dead man
how bright the light in loved ones' eyes?
go ask the dead man
where's the charm in cloudy skies?
go and ask the dead man
oh-go ask the dead man

who has eyes for an evening sun?
go and ask the dead man
the smell of earth, the sound of storms?
go ask the dead man
how intense is the lightest touch?
go and ask the dead man
oh-go ask the dead man

they say dead men tell no tales
but if you want to hear your own heart beating
listen well, listen well
go ask the dead man
go ask the dead man

how potent is the joy of fools?
go and ask the dead man
what price these diplomatic duels?
go ask the dead man
what sorrow in the rape of rules?
go and ask the dead man
oh-go ask the dead man

How to Grow Up Big and Strong

This song was actually covered by Olivia Newton-John:

strong man strangle universe
he drown the stars
blinded by the mission of a thousand wars
he fit and dominant
not wonder why
he love the battlecry

strong man is survivor
he live to pound
little wooden crosses in the bloody ground
he fit and dominant
he stand a chance
he not bow to circumstance

and the world keep on turning
and the sun keep on burnring
and the children keep learning
how to grow up big and strong
how to grow up big and strong

strong man take no prisoner
favor no plea
he leave no gold in teeth of enemy
he fit and dominant
he rise above
he not have word that mean love

and the world keep on turning
and the sun keep on burnring
and the children keep learning
how to grow up big and strong
how to grow up big and strong

strong man melt the plowshare
he forges sword
he take the flower and he curse the thorn
he crush the serpent
he bite the fruit
he hand is absolute

and the world keep on turning
and the sun keep on burnring
and the children keep learning
how to grow up big and strong
how to grow up big and strong

[ABlairican Pie]

One of Mark Heard's last albums was Dry Bones Dance from 1990, a return to his folk roots, with more alt-country thrown in:

Rise From the Ruins

Nobody asks to be born
Nobody wishes to die
Everybody whiles away the interim time
Sworn to rise from the ruins by and by
The engines are droning with progress
The pistons are pounding out time
And it’s you and me caught in this juggernaut jaunt
Left to rise from the ruins down the line

We will roll like an old Chevrolet
The road to ruin is something to see
Hang on to the wheel
For the highway to hell needs chauffers
For the powers that be

Go and tell all your friends and relations
Go and say what ain’t easy to say
Go and give them some hope
That we might rock this boat
And rise from the ruins one day

Ever try to carry water in a basket
Ever try to carry fire in your hand
Ever try to take on the weight of the everyday freight
Til you find that you’re too weak to stand

Why so pale and wan, fond lover
Why so downcast and desperately sad
We can walk, we can talk
We ain’t yet pillars of salt
And we will rise from the ruins while we can

[ABlairican Pie]

Mark Heard's last album was Satellite Sky in 1992.

Tip of My Tongue

There's an oasis in the heat of the day
There's a fire in the chill of night
A turnabout in circumstance makes each a hell in its own right
I've been boxed-in in the lowlands, in the canyons that think
I've been pushed to the brink of the precipice and dared not to blink
I've been confounded in the whirlwind of what-ifs and dreams
I've been burned by the turning of the wind back upon my own flames

Knock the scales from my eyes
Knock the words from my lungs
I want to cry out
It's on the tip of my tongue

I've seen through the walls of this kingdom of dust
Felt the crucial revelation
But the broad streets of the heart and the day-to-day meet
at a blind intersection

I don't want to be lonely, I don't want to feel pain
I don't want to draw straws with the sons of Cain
You can take it as a prayer if you'll remember my name
You can take it as the penance of a profane saint

Knock the scales from my eyes
Knock the words from my lungs
I want to cry out
It's on the tip of my tongue

There's an oasis in the heat of the day
There's fire in the chill of night
And when I know them both, I'll know your love -
I will feel it in the twilight

As circumstance comes crashing through my walls like a train
Or like a chorus from the mountains of the ocean floor
Like the wind-burst of birdwings taking flight in a hard rain
Or like a mad dog on the far side of Dante's Door

Knock the scales from my eyes
Knock the words from my lungs
I want to cry out
It's on the tip of my tongue

[ABlairican Pie]

Another death in 1992 was the tragic passing of America's most controversial comic, Sam Kinison, in a car crash en route to a show on the desert highway near Needles, California. The fiery former preacher who turned to standup comedy once his congregation turned on him, died in a bizarre instance of could be seen as poetic justice when his car crashed into a pickup of teens drinking and driving--horribly ironic for a man who earlier had claimed "we GOTTA drink and drive--it's the only way to GET THE CAR BACK TO THE HOUSE!!!!!" His new wife suffered injuries but eventually recovered.

In 1985, Kinison was one of the new upstarts of comedy, as featured on Rodney Dangerfield's HBO comedian specials. His rants about religion and the Ethiopian famine drew a huge following, as well as did his rants against former wives and gays. Many AIDS activists condemned him as a homophobe who promoted hatred and ignorance about the AIDS epidemic ("Do we like wearing rubbers, guys??? NO!!!! WE F:censored:ING HATE'EM!!!!" and "jokes" which said if "we don't trust the *women who may or may not be infected*, then why are we having sex with them??"; "Name ONE HETEROSEXUAL WHO'S DIED OF AIDS!!!!" Someone who was brave enough blurted out, "Ryan White!!").

Soon, as his star rose in Hollywood, he found himself in the company of rock stars and well-endowed celebrity women such as Jessica Hahn (with whom he was disappointed that his relationship with her was more platonic than he cared to admit), and filmed a video for the cover of the Troggs' "Wild Thing". Soon drugs and alcohol took over his life, even resulting in the rape of his girlfriend by a bodyguard while Kinison lie passed out in a drunken stupor. His groundbreaking comedy soon was replaced by pandering to sexist heavy metal crowds who wanted more rants about women and gays with the usual heavy-handed obscenity and rants. He appeared on an episode of "Married...With Children" in a parody of "It's a Wonderful Life." Elton John refused to appear on a nationally televised show with him.

However, it appeared that in later years he seemed to find a sense of closure to his past problems. He was devastated by the suicide of his brother at a family reunion (which later prompted him to warn the departed Liberace not to go near his brother in heaven), but he seemed to find a sense of peace with his religious faith, which he never personally gave up. He gave an interview in a Christian magazine that he saw his religious humor as making people think in a different way about Christianity, but his more politically incorrect humor eclipsed any "profound" statements he had to make. Just as he was finding peace and stability in his life and in a new marriage, the car crash in the desert brought a quick end to a promising new beginning.

The one significance of Kinison's short career was that it opened the doors for
bad taste, shrill, irresponsible shock-"commentary" and cheap scatalogical humor to comedy and popular culture. What Kinison had accomplished in standup comedy would carry over under the guise of "news reporting" in the 90's--in a development known as disinfotainment.

[ABlairican Pie]

Americans had shown their choice for the new young president from Arkansas, the friendly Southern boy who had so much over his dour predecessor. Bill Clinton had a connection with younger voters with his appearance on Arsenio Hall and MTV, playing the saxophone and making jokes about his use of pot back in the 60's ("I never inhaled"--or was that Al Gore??) Clinton had also a connection to youth activism twenty-five years earlier: He spoke out against the country's policies in Vietnam as a student overseas. This provided ample fodder for his critics such as Rush Limbaugh (who, ironically, didn't serve in Vietnam either). The question of Clinton's marital fidelity was also brought up with the name Gennifer Flowers, a high-priced call girl from Little Rock with whom he had allegedly some personal connections. Regardless, most Americans found Bill to be a likeable character with a real down to earth charm and ability to talk with everyone.

It was morning in America once again.

[Steve M.]

Americans had shown their choice for the new young president from Arkansas, the friendly Southern boy who had so much over his dour predecessor. Bill Clinton had a connection with younger voters with his appearance on Arsenio Hall and MTV, playing the saxophone and making jokes about his use of pot back in the 60's ("I never inhaled"--or was that Al Gore??) Clinton had also a connection to youth activism twenty-five years earlier: He spoke out against the country's policies in Vietnam as a student overseas. This provided ample fodder for his critics such as Rush Limbaugh (who, ironically, didn't serve in Vietnam either). The question of Clinton's marital fidelity was also brought up with the name Gennifer Flowers, a high-priced call girl from Little Rock with whom he had allegedly some personal connections. Regardless, most Americans found Bill to be a likeable character with a real down to earth charm and ability to talk with everyone.

It was morning in America once again.

Clinton made Fleetwood Mac's "Don't Stop" hiscampaign theme song for its hopeful, forward-looking message about the future. Ironically, Christine McVie wrote that song about the aftermath of her divorce from husband John McVie. Even more ironically, America's worst days were yet to come! :(

(Two words: Newt Gingrich!)

[Cactus Jack]

Anyone see my Eninco Man stuff?

[ABlairican Pie]

Anyone see my Eninco Man stuff?YES!!! EXCELLENT MOVIE!!! All movies about Valley dudes, especially with Pauly Shore, are very cool!!! :rock:

Actually, I hadn't commented on it, because I haven't yet seen it! :doh:

Then why am I saying it's an excellent movie?? Because I trust Ron Burgundy's judgement!!! :D

[Cactus Jack]

YES!!! EXCELLENT MOVIE!!! All movies about Valley dudes, especially with Pauly Shore, are very cool!!! :rock:

Actually, I hadn't commented on it, because I haven't yet seen it! :doh:

Then why am I saying it's an excellent movie?? Because I trust Ron Burgundy's judgement!!! :D
Awesome!:D Ah ok awesome!!!:D


You should see it! its HILARIOUS!!! Youll LOVE IT!!!! I highly recommend it!

[ABlairican Pie]

One alternative band that upped the guitar-drone factor was My Bloody Valentine, whose feedback-drenched album Loveless featured some rather atmospheric, melodic songs such as "Blown a Wish" and "Only Shallow." Their guitarists Kevin Shields and Bilinda Butcher contributed layered fretwork that drew instant comparisons to Sonic Youth and Smashing Pumpkins.

Only Shallow

Sleep
Like a pillow
Down(ward)
And

(Where)
She won't care
Anyway (where)

Soft
As a pillow
Touch her there
Where she won't dare
Somewhere
Sleep
Like a (royal)
(subject)
____

Think
That you grew
Stronger there

Speak
Your trouble(s)
She's not sc(ared)
Soft like there's silk
Everywhere
Sleep
(is a) pillow
Come ___
____
Where she won't dare
Anyway (where)

(Look)
In the mirror
She's not there
Where she won't care
Somewhere

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1992, in the midst of the growing culture wars, PiL (Public Image Ltd.) with John Lydon, the former Sex Pistols front man Johnny Rotten, released That What Is Not, an album which featured an otherwise provocative image on the cover, until Lydon poked fun at people's hysteria over unintentionally "Freudian" objects--hence the album's title. In other words, for all the silly Americans, it was not what you thought it was, get your minds out of the gutter!! To Lydon, the church brigades of "morality" were dirtier-minded than your basic rock fans in the U.K.

The opening song dealt with Lydon's frustration with censorship and government repression:

Acid Drops

What does it mean, what does anything mean
Sending out signals I see the smoke screens
What is not dirty, what is not clean
What should we not hear, what shouldn't be seen
Running off verbals like a runaway truck

Who censors the censor, can I do that myself
Make up my own mind like anyone else
Forget me, forget me not
Remember me like acid drops

Mind over morals, anything banned
The zealots are marching with Bible in hand
Keyed to the roof 100 proof
Some of them hairpins, some of them clams
Desperate Susans, desperate Dans

Who censors the censor, can I do that myself
Make up my own mind like anyone else
You read but missed my plot
You only see that what is not

These are clueless, living in fear
Scared of their own sex or anything clear
Still looking down proboscis crown
Vague hope and no charity-welcome to the 21st century

The hush puppy hushes, a dummy dumb struck
What is bad language, what shouldn't be heard
Or used as a token or used as a word
What is not dirty what is not clean
What is not filthy, what is obscene

Who censors the censor, can I do that myself
Make up my own mind like anyone else
Forget me forget me not
Remember me like acid drops

These different colours, different style
Different cultures-these blend in a while
Prejudice prods through a big picket fence
Divided we fall without a defense

The seat of easement, the privy parliament
Petticoat merchants bent on intent
There everywhere, these tricks of the trade
Some in the light, some in the shade

[ABlairican Pie]

PiL released their Greatest Hits So Far album in 1990:

Don't Ask Me

What you gonna do
When the river runs dry
Put your drills in the mud
And death up in the sky
You should have saved those bottles
You should have saved those cans
You shouldn't ought'a listen to the plastic man

And there's no more toilet paper
It's gone just like the trees
Do you like the taste of honey
Isn't it best without the bees
Be careful what you're doing
You're messing up my life
And if all the world's a cake
Then you cut too big a slice

What's it all about
They scream and then they shout
Don't ask me
Cause I don't know
What's it all about
They scream and then they shout
Don't blame me
I told you so
You read it in the papers
You hear it on the news
Very few listen
A spew without a view
And is it really worth it
Choking on remote
I can see the red tide coming
But I don't even vote
Infection in the greenhouse
Dizzy in the clouds
Oily as an ocean
Heaven disembowelled
Still planning on a future
Well lucky for some

You can develop your body
But your mind is still a slum

The product in the packaging
Of multi-layered glam
150 layers of materials
To cover up a sham
Protecting my planet
Wrap it in plastic
The package is product
Perfected eternal
A crap in a cling wrap
I never met yet a prime minister or president
Who told the truth yet

Swimming in the slurry
Burning in the heat
Wind blown is the weather
I eat what you secrete
Climb the highest derrick
This circus has no prayer
No UFO to save us
And do we really care

Kiss goodbye to the earth, the sun, the moon

It's easy to deceive a child

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

Another forgotten classic from 1990: The Cramps' retro-rockabilly album Stay Sick!

Bikini Girls With Machine Guns

i been a drag racer on LSD,
and i rode bare-assed on top of the sphinx,
i even had a gorilla on the slopes of kismet,
and man, that was fun for a while you bet but...

<i>[chorus:]</i> bikini girls with machine guns,
bikini girls with machine guns,
that stuff will kill ya, it's loaded with fun,
bikini girls with machine guns

well i savored many foriegn kinds of delicacies,
intoxicated til i can't tell what the hell i could see,
had all the violence and liquor within close reach,
but all bars, pills and threeways lead me back to the beach

and... now they say that virtue is it's own reward,
but when that surf comes in i'm gunna get my board,
got my own ideas about the righteous kick,
you can keep the rewards, i'd just as soon stay sick...

:guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

One British band that experimented with dreamy, atmospheric pop guitar was
Catherine Wheel, whose lead singer Rob Dickinson was a cousin to Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson. The band also featured
Brian Futter on guitar, bassist Dave Hawes, and drummer Neil Sims. Their 1992 debut Ferment featured the hit "Black Metallic."

Black Metallic


I've never seen you when you're smiling
It really gets under my skin
You say it's easy when it's faster
I still can't guess what you're after

It's the colour of your skin
Your skin is black metallic
It's the colour of your skin
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic

I think of you when you're sleeping
Of all the secrets that you're keeping
You can't stay all day under the covers
'Cause under there you'll discover

It's the colour of your skin
Your skin is black metallic
It's the colour of your skin
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
You're turning black metallic

It's the colour of your skin
It's the colour of your skin

Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
You're turning black metallic

It's the colour of your skin
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic
Your skin is black metallic

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1992, a rock movie documenting the takeover of grunge and alternative from the year before was released: 1991: The Year Punk Broke, featuring performances by Nirvana, Sonic Youth, and the Ramones.

But was the alternative invasion a good thing?

[ABlairican Pie]

Meanwhile, a new menace rose in Eastern Europe in the disintegrating nation of Yugoslavia: as the former Soviet Bloc nation splintered into separate nations trying to gain autonomy, warfare on a grand scale erupted through the new republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Soon picturesque towns such as Sarajevo, once the site of the Winter Olympics, would be devastated.

Below a library burns, while at the right, the ruins of Kozarak after "ethnic cleansing" of Muslims by Serbs.

[ABlairican Pie]

Haven't much else to say about the year 1992, so unless anyone else has anything else to add, we go on to the next year.....

1993!!!


Another huge year for alternative nation, with the most anticipated followup albums in the world!!!

But first, before we get to that, let us take a look at what is considered a long lost, underrated classic album that came out that year.....

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1993, Winger, now a three-piece due to the departure of guitarist/keyboardist Paul Taylor, recorded a strong, surprisingly mature album that laid to rest they were just a poppy hitmaking group only capable of fun songs like "Seventeen." Their third album, Pull, featured some of their best material to date, such as "Blind Revolution Mad" and a potential hit, "Down Incognito". Unfortunately, forces beyond their control kept the album from reaching very high on the charts.

Paul Taylor left the band feeling fatigued from the road and decided to pursue a career in writing. The band carried on as a power-trio much like Rush, which was amazing that a group reduced in members could record an album of such quality music. The album remains highly underrated.

The opening song features a lament of turbulent changes blowing through the world at that time, one of the best titles for a song:

Blind Revolution Mad

Into this world
Little boy brave
Charity heart
Faithfully plays
Heal the scars
Unto his eyes
Salvage the goodness
Of dreams never lived
Dreams never died
Again and again
Again and again
Haunted by the trust of a child
With no place to go now
Little boy brave
Wanders the streets
Faithfully plays
But his broken arrows
Once filled with pride
Aimed and missed
At the dreams never lived
Dreams never died
Again and again
Again and again
Haunted by the trust of a child
Never give in
Never give up
Little boy brave
Never lived
Never died

Appears to be
Blind Revolution Mad
The mercy ends
Where the mercy began
Seems justified
I'm turnin' this around
Jawbreaker Lawmaker
Have it your way

Campaign smokescreen
Glorifies the mainstream
Cities on remote control
Meanwhile vigilante gangs
Dig their fangs into the streets
They've overthrown
While plastic faces
Run for king of this
Disassociation land
I'm dying to find
Anyone who understands
Behold........

One more Blind Revolution Mad
One more chance of a lifetime

Rage runs rampant
Always been abandoned
Killin' for some pocket change
Blames being force fed rules
Governed by fools
Slammin' you against the grain
And the nation's glued to CNN
To watch their own creation
Behold

One more Blind Revolution Mad
One more chance of a lifetime
One more Blind Revolution Mad

Fee Fi Fo Fum
One for all and all for one
Don't try to stop me
I've already gone crazy
One for all and all for one
Overthrow your kingdom come
Don't try to stop me
You're the reason I'm crazy
Behold

One more Blind Revolution Mad
One more chance of a lifetime
One more Blind Revolution Mad
Mind in the gutter turned
another boy bad
Oh behold

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Down Incognito

Days undercover
All out of sync
Haven't paid the rent
Even talking in my sleep
My monkey's M.O.
Is all out of commission
I'm waiting for a good
old-fashioned cure
For my condition

'Cos I'm all out of charm
And I'm all out of money
Hanging
Down Incognito
Waiting for the sun to shine

Fools to the left
Jokers to the right
Waitin' for the rest of us
To come and take a bite
But I'll wait it out
Call it superstition
I'll be fine for now
Just reminiscing

(Repeat Chorus)

I just had to let it go
Took all the pennies I had
Threw 'em in the wishing well
And I wish you well
Days undercover
All out of sync
Haven't paid the rent
Even talking in my sleep
My monkey's M.O.
Is all out of commission
I'm waiting for a good
old-fashioned cure
For my condition

(Repeat Chorus)

Me and my amigos
Down Incognito

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

This might happen to be Winger's heaviest song. It segues into a softer ballad as well:

Junkyard Dog/Tears On Stone

So you never meant lettin' it
go this far
The lifestyle that seemed so charmin'
You couldn't see
They saw you comin'
Buried you in their sin
Promisin' ecstasy
You were so blind
Look out

'Cos now the dog's inside you
The Junkyard Dog speaks for you
Ain't no master of the Junkyard Dog

How does it feel to live
Where there's no dimension
I wonder if it was ever your
intention
A straight -A- student
Straight down the drain
Master of the mainline
Keeper of the ball and chain
You were so blind
Look what you've done now
Rolled the dice
For paradise
Damn you for taking bad advice

(Repeat Chorus)

Frozen there jackknifed forever
In the foaming jaw
And invisible claw
Ain't no master of the Junkyard Dog
Ain't no master

Now you're gone
What an irony
My friend I feel not much sympathy
No one could tame you
You wouldn't listen
Voices in your head
Screaming absolute submission

And now the dog's inside you
The Junkyard Dog speaks for you
Ain't no master of the Junkyard Dog
Frozen there jackknifed forever
In the foaming jaw
And invisible claw
Ain't no master of the Junkyard Dog

You were blind
Look what you've done now
Rolled the dice
For paradise
Damn you for taking bad advice
Baby ain't no master of the Junk

I guess my pride got the best of me
But it would have taken a war
To get through to you
I know I'd walked out too soon
When I found you on the floor

No it's never been the same
The dreams they come
They never change
Nothing left but my tears falling
on stone
No it's never been the same
Guess I've only got myself to blame
See the nest
The bird has flown
There's nothing left
But my tears falling on stone
....say goodbye....

I guess my pride got the best of me
There's nothing left but the tears
Falling on stone
Damn you for taking bad advice

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

Kip and Reb in the studio:

[ABlairican Pie]

Lucky One

No sun would rise
In my silent heaven
Without your love
Lord knows I've tried
But I keep looking into
Your empty eyes
Don't take for granted
I'll be lyin' here
When the morning comes
If there's still a chance
Tell me now
But don't think I'll be waitin'
around
While you treat my love
Like it's all a dime a dozen
You don't feel the pain
Baby, you're the lucky one
Every day and night
I keep wondering
Should I just tear out these
pages
Can't you see it girl
You're the lucky one
Who have you been lyin' to
Is it me baby
Or is it you
How long would you trust
Before your Lady Luck
Gives you up
Any truth to your promises
Washed away before the war began
If there's still a chance
Tell me now
(Repeat Chorus)
Maybe it's true nothing lasts forever
So they say
So sad
Baby without your love
No sun would rise again
But girl these open arms are
gettin' tired
And pretty soon I'm gonna
walk away
No you don't feel the pain
Baby you're the lucky one
And don't think I'll be waitin'
round
While you treat my love
Like it's all a dime a dozen
Can't you see it girl
You're the lucky one
You're the lucky one
And every day and night
I keep wonderin'
Should I just tear out these
pages
Can't you see it girl
It's you yeah
You're the lucky one


However, Winger faced an unlikely foe that definitely defeated their chances to a high-charting album with Pull.... :eek:

Kip recording:

[ABlairican Pie]

Yes, the one thing that destroyed Winger's further chances at chart success (and pretty much dashed their career as a band) was not a rival band or music scene, but a pair of music and cultural critics on MTV known as....


BEAVIS AND BUTTHEAD!!!!

The two animated teen buffoons basically called the shots on what was "cool" and what "sucked", offering such sagely advice as "I don't like stuff that sucks." The braindead metal heads sat in their Metallica and AC/DC shirts glued to the t.v. making commentaries on videos and t.v. shows, when not shuffling over to the local mini-marts for 10-cent roach-infested nachos and playing frog baseball. As hopelessly inept as the two were, for the next several years they would call the shots on what was "cool"
in music.

Apparently Winger was not: in the cartoon, drawn by animator Mike Judge, one of the younger neighbor kids, a diminutive twerp by the name of Stewart, wore a Winger shirt when he stopped by the boys' house. As the two liked to pick on the hapless kid, the message was loud and clear to millions of viewers across the country: "To like Winger was a sure sign you were not cool--you were a sissy like Stewart!!"

Winger guitarist Reb Beach commented on the phenomenon that killed the band's sales: it was that "300-pound zit covered kid on Beavis and Butthead! Our sales stopped cold. We played my home town of Philadelphia and the place was barely even half full." Stewart may not have actually been so glandularly enhanced as Beach made it sound, but after recording the best album of their careers, it was as if a huge chocolate-eating fiend HAD taken a gluttonous bite out of their livelihoods. "Beavis and Butthead definitely killed Winger", Beach asserted, but it also broke in quite a few other bands that applauded coverage on the cartoon, as we shall see.

[Steve M.]

Beavis and Butthead were just two more white males who, in common with a lot of people who shared their Y chromosone and skin color, were worthless and stupid!

The culture wars heated up in 1993 as more women and people of color fingered the white male as the cancer of humankind. After all, white guys were responsible for genocide, environmental destruction, slavery, talk radio, and Pat Boone! And they couldn't dance!

http://www.kabel1.ch/imperia/md/IMAGES/Film_Kino/Bfaz/F/falling_down/falling_down_ein_ganz_normaler_tag_123_123_pv.jpg

In his most recent movie, Michael Douglas (above) played the archetypal white male American who, upset with the deck now stacked against him, has finally snapped. In Falling Down, laid-off aerospace worker Bill "D-FENS" Foster gets back at his ex-wife, as well as street gangs, traffic jams, and various other things that have made LA a living hell. "I'm protecting my rights as a consumer!" Bill Foster bellows. "I'm rolling prices back to 1965!" As the movie progresses, he realizes that America is going down the tubes not because of militant brown people and uppity women but because of people like. . . him.

"I'm the bad guy?"

[Steve M.]

Meanwhile, a group of religious fundamentalist maniacs started a cultural war against all Americans - and fired the first shot at 12:18 P.M. on February 26, 1993, in Lower Manhattan.

At that moment on that day, a truck bomb went off in the basement of New York's World Trade Center. The objective of the Muslim extremists who carried out this attack was to cause one of the Twin Towers to topple into the other. The blast was powerful enough to blow a large hole in the foundation and weaken the supports of the towers - and kill six people. Scores of people were treated for smoke inhalation. But the Towers stood.

http://www.everyscreen.com/photos_02/WTC_19930226_02.jpg

(The World Trade Center towers and the WTC Marriott Hotel on the night of February 26, 1993, hours after a truck bomb went off in the basement, with a full investigation underway.)

Despite the damage, the Towers remained firmly in place even when a ferocious blizzard struck the greater New York area two weeks later. The damage was repaired just in time for the World Trade Center's twentieth birthday (the complex was officially dedicated on April 4, 1973), new security measures went in place, and life went on.

With the new security, it seemed unlikely that terrorists would hit the World Trade Center again. Or so people thought. :(

[Steve M.]

Back to 1992 for a moment. . . .

It was then that Lawrence Welk, one of America's most beloved stars and the greatest figure of what is derisively called "sweet jazz," died at 89.

http://www.welkmusicalfamily.com/LawrencePortrait.jpg

But, just as Baby Boomers had VH-1 to keep the likes of Hendrix and Joplin alive, their parents had PBS to rerun Welk's old TV show. And Baby Boomers, eager to keep PBS on the air against conservative onslaughts and donating money to it, were (ironically) picking up the tab for keeping music they hated on the air! Champagne music for everybody! ;)

[Steve M.]

Also in 1992, Bob Dylan was honored with a star-studded tribute concert for thirty years as a recording artist and composer, at New York's Madison Square Garden.

http://www.bobsboots.com/CDs/d-28f.JPG
(Dylan in 1992.)

Kris Kristofferson was the master of ceremonies, and performers doing Bob's songs included the Chieftains, John Mellencamp, Johnny Winter, Shawn Colvin, Neil Young, Tom Petty, Chrissie Hynde, and Eric Clapton, among others - plus Dylan's good friend George Harrison, in what would be his last scheduled public perfromance.

Oh yeah, some chick named Sinead O'Connor was supposed to perform a Dylan song, but she got booed off the stage. Now, what was the reason for that again? ;)

The concert was criticized for not being a benefit, but it still had great music and great performances. The man of honor himself closed the show with a set that included "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)." When he sang the line "Even the President of the United States sometimes must have to stand naked," the audience roared with approval. :lol:

[Steve M.]

Ironically, the same year Bob Dylan was being celebrated by his peers for his songwriting talent, Dylan himself released an album comprised entirely of covers.

http://www.cdshakedown.com/1993_pictures/dylan_good.jpg

After 1990's Under the Red Sky, Dylan conculded that he had lost his aiblity to write songs and that he could only get it back by immersing himself into the folk and blues standards that inspired him in the first place, and 1992's Good As I Been To You, his twenty-sixth studio album, was his initial step in that direction.

[Steve M.]

Then, in 1993, Bob Dylan issued another album of covers, World Gone Wrong.

http://glen.utdallas.edu/Glen/CDs/Bob%20Dylan/Bob%20Dylan%20World%20Gone%20Wrong.jpg

World Gone Wrong was an interesting experiment in which Dylan employed old folk and blues songs to illustrate the unfairness and injustice of life in 1993. It was a concept album of covers; the songs originally had nothing to do with each other, as they were composed separately by different people at different times, but Dylan used them to convey a single theme.

Dylan would spend the mid-nineties away from the recording studio. Would he get his songwriting talent back? We would find out soon enough. :)

[ABlairican Pie]

Beavis and Butthead lived fairly simple lives: They went to a typical high school where they dealt with teachers such as the touchy-feelie hippie-type instructor Mr. Van Dreasen, the tough gung-ho former army jarhead Mr. Buzzcut, the terminally stressed principle Mr. McVicker, the detatched brainy feminist girl Daria (or as they called her, "Diarrhea!!" :lol: ), and of course, the nerdy runt of a neighbor kid with the "uncool" Winger T-shirt, Stuart. One
character in town Beavis and Butthead idolized was the slimy mullet-wearing, muscle-car-driving thug Todd, who constantly abused them in every way possible--and yet, the two considered this an act of love. "Todd is cool..."

Of the two, Butthead was the leader of the duo. Beavis was the more passive member who always remained in agreement with Butthead when corrected. "Oh yeah. Yeah. That's pretty cool." The two were fortunate to be employed at Burger World, where they would meet characters like the town
redneck Mr. Anderson who constantly harangued the boys with complaining about his order of fries (which he didn't realize had fried mice and other nasty surprizes) and other things. But no amount of correction and verbal abuse could change these two around.

Beavis and Butthead were pretty much the last two metal-heads in the country, and while heavy metal appeared to be in its Cretaceous Age as once-mighty bands were declining in popularity, Beavis and Butthead became an instant sensation. But their popularity was not without backlash: many adult viewers complained of Beavis' exclamation of "Fire!!" Fire!! Heh-heh-heh..." as he reveled in pyromaniac displays. Unfortunately, one toddler, apparently enamored by the show, took it upon himself to light his home on fire. But not even parental warnings by MTV were enough. One person appeared on an afternoon talk show to announce he would use his lottery winnings to eradicate Beavis and Butthead from the airwaves! :eek: :rolleyes:

Beavis and Butthead with Daria:

[ABlairican Pie]

Beavis and Butthead in class, where they constantly interrupted everyone's studies by their constant cackling.

[ABlairican Pie]

Beavis lights up a smoke while Butthead looks on. Oh, those boys with their politically incorrect role model example-setting...ohno: :lol:

[ABlairican Pie]

While Reb Beach admitted that Beavis and Butthead definitely killed Winger, there was no question that airplay on the wildly successful animated series brought much success to White Zombie, a theatrical groovy metallesque band from New York featuring lead vocalist Rob Zombie, a performer whose roots went way back in show biz and the circus, as well as New York's underground porn/horror kitsch culture. Their debut album La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Volume 1 featured the hit "Thunderkiss '65."

Thunderkiss '65

Well sweet little sista’s high in hell cheat’n on a halo
Grind in a odyssey holocaust heart kick on tomorrow
Breakdown
Agony said ’ecstasy’ in overdrive she come a riding on the world
Thunder kiss’n 1965
Yeah, wow! five, yeah, wow!!
Demon-warp is coming alive in 1965
Five, five, yeah!

Livin’ fast and dying young like a endless poetry
My motor-psycho nightmare freak out inside of me
My soul salvation liberation on the drive
The power of the blaster move me faster 1965
Yeah, wow! five, yeah, wow!!
Demon-warp is coming alive in 1965
Five, five, yeah!

"I don't try anything, I just do it. Wanna try me?"

Gimme that, gimme that now, now, now, yeah!
Roll’n like a supersonic another fool that gets down on it
Pig sweat a million miles, I got a heart atomic style
I make it look easy, that’s what I said
Blast of silence explodes in my head
Yeah, yeah, yeah, gimme that, gimme that now
Step to the moonshine frenzy hail: the resurrection
What’s new pussycat, can you dig the satisfaction
Well, you can’t take it with you, but you can! in overdrive
Yeah! some like it hot and twist’n, 1965
Yeah, wow! five, yeah, wow!!
Demon-warp is coming alive in 1965
Five, five

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Obviously, the members of White Zombie weren't about subtlety: their songs and themes were a mishmash of horror, porn, pulp fiction, B-movie pop retro-culture and comic book Satanism.

Welcome to Planet M:censored:F:censored:

Woven in the surface a premonition of a land erupting
A sparkling occasion of a city
Crashdown! Overhead
Revolv'n in a whirlpool a drag-o-rama
Walk'n on the sidewalk so let me see ya howl'n through the keyhole
'Goddamn, swept away' she shouted, she love it, get in away yeah!
I concentrate the midnight without the benefit of ceremony
Whoever said, 'The one who strips your soul is the one that got away'
A weather-beaten angel descending to embrace the cemetery
Got love, so mystifying
'Goddamn, swept away' She shouted, she love it, get in away yeah!
She shouted, she love it, get in away yeah!
Voodoo beat on the mind the digs too deep to find
Something has got to give, man [psych-out] racketeer or star
You are just what you are, Don't play the misty, baby!
[Get you] into a river sky electro nation cry
'I need another, now' drift beyond the sleeping
The moon is shift'n shadows on her figure
Swamptime locomotion 'I can't take it, anymore!'
Sunlight through the shutters
Illuminating moment to the moment buzz a halo over
'Goddamn, swept away' she shouted, she love it, get in away, yeah
Planet pretty kill, motherf:censore:r hang me on the thrills
Psychoholic slag tomorrow is another drag [yeah] picnic in the homeland
Like a Jesus super star yeah! Kiss me deadly, baby [baby]
I know who you are [come on]
Planet pretty kill, motherf:censored:r hang me on the thrills yeah!
No small heaven [haven] I got the left hand of the keeper
Meet me in St. Louis, 'God', a one way ticket's cheaper yeah!
Time-travel I'm walk'n [walk'n]
I got a white line zombie fever [fever] yeah!
Time bomb the hero [hero] yeah get down!!!

[ABlairican Pie]

The following intro was voiced by Iggy Pop:

Black Sunshine

(Gripping the wheel his knuckles went white with desire
The wheels of his Mustang exploding on the highway like a slug from a .45
True Death: 400 Horsepower of maximum performance piercing the night
This is Black Sunshine.)

Yeah! Move me in the silence baltic motorway
Hang me on the edge before I fall away
Apocalypse is dawnin' action on the mile
A 'can-do' revolution, earth to the river [nile]
Sweet'n the ride Black Sunshine
Sweet'n the ride, yeah!
Sweet'n the ride Black Sunshine
Sweet'n the ride, yeah!
Cry a river 'cosmic', moon in scorpio
Feel her body 'breathe', acid radio
Tell me that you like it, when I'm going down!
Tell me that you like it, move to the speed of [sound]
Sweet'n the ride Black Sunshine
Sweet'n the ride, yeah!
Sweet'n the ride Black Sunshine
Sweet'n the ride, yeah!
Go! Slide into, I said '44' cool heart can
A hypnotize dream into infinity, I turned the love to lies
Crawl across the water, wave and sink into the sea
Reflect'n onto everything, that you can never be
'Check-out!', yeah!
To the devil a daughter comes 200 worlds away, yeah
Born to lose the love you choose, destroy another day
Check out!!
Sweet'n the ride Black Sunshine
Sweet'n the ride, yeah!
Sweet'n the ride Black Sunshine
Sweet'n the ride
Stare into the T.V. kiss off the pain
Wonderland is falling, no sing, no rain momentary
Damage into the high drift me to the circuit sky

(Finally nothing moves. High noon.
Black top rolling below the asphalt drive
A concrete fascination scraping the edge of nothing
This is Black Sunshine.)

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

Rob Zombie:

[ABlairican Pie]

The band also featured female bassist Sean Yseult and guitarist simply known as J.

Warp Asylum

Been down yeah! Well I look down and my mind blows away
Deep in the darkness 'illuminate' beyond a million miles
Something slid up to my head circling around my eye
Eye
Eyes and I said, 'Smooth operator', Sez:
Get up, Get up
And outta here, smooth operator sez: Yeah! Lights
Band the traffic thunder two blocks west of the rest
Tore away the bottom and saw life is a test
Beyond a 1,000,000 miles
Well I ricocheted through my head
One hand kills and the other's cra-a-crazy
What she said
Smooth operator sez: Get up! Get up! And outta here
Smooth operator sez: Yeah!!! Sail into night
Ghost ship a tripping
Struck by the plunge something to see
Yeah
Bootleg the girl
She is a looka
Pure is the fear that breaks away
Straight to the sun I am a walk'n state of the art
All that I see [yeah] new Gods move wipp'n the shore and dash on the reef
Surf city... I walk alone and stare, man, right in the sun
Tear-jerk asylum and cemetery run
Well, how'd I ever get this far man
Smooth curves switchback the sweat
Underneath the body, baby
Where what you see is what you see and what you get.

Below is a mural based on the inner album cover art which was reminescent of R. Crumb and Ed "Big Daddy" Norton:

[ABlairican Pie]

Bassist Sean Yseult:

[ABlairican Pie]

1993 was apparently a very bad year for the "hair" metal bands, even for those who were showing some promise and maturity in their songs. The boys of Winger may have found it necessary to blame Beavis and Butthead and the Seattle grunge and alternative scene for their travails and the killing of their careers, but it might have just been that Winger were just a little too good at their game. It might have not even been their fluff-pop metal anthem "Seventeen" which flattened them, but in fact their prog-ish leanings.
Kip and the boys were without a doubt excellent musicians, he being trained at the prestigious Julliard School of Music. But when Kip started talking about his combining his concertos with his ballet abilities in his rock opuses, fans began to feel his stuff was becoming a little too highbrow. One music producer told him, "Kip, no one wants to hear you do concertos and dance steps, they wanna hear you get laid with a hot blonde, they just want to rock!" Was the world ready to hear the hair metal equivalent of Yes in the age of Grunge and Flannel?

One band that definitely felt the brunt of the hair metal backlash was Warrant. 1993 was "the Black Year" as guitarist Eric Turner called it. First off, they noticed that after the past few years of their posters being plastered all over the Columbia Records offices, they were shocked when an Alice in Chains poster replaced them. "Wait a minute, weren't these the guys that opened up for us??"

To make matters worse, their manager Tom Hulet died, and soon the band were dropped by the label. But the band sought to fight back with a solid rocking effort called Dog Eat Dog, which featured an angry, driven Jani Lane, who had quit the band, but then returned. It was too late. The band's "serious" album and tour both tanked. A sad, ironic decline for a band that had initially earned the label millions.

Machine Gun

Well, the first time that I saw you
I could not speak a word.
My tongue was tied in giant knots
and I felt so disturbed.
At the feeling rushing through me.
The heat inside my veins.
The way my nerve ends tingle.
Every time you call my name.
Got a lust ignited fever,
and I can't put out the flame.

Next time that I saw you,
I felt so at ease.
You had a languid disposition.
I had an willingness to please.
And your candy apple red lips,
Full of violets and sex.
Had me harder than a coal train.
Had my collar wringing wet.

Know I'm gonna crash and burn,
but I'm not finished yet.

CHORUS
My heart is pounding like a big bass drum.
Excited at the thought I might get me some.
Lick it off my fingers,
taste it on my tongue
Love you little baby like a ma-ma-ma-machine gun

You are a symphony of elegance.
A masterpiece of grace.
An animated work of art,
Who's acquired a taste,
for the flesh of weaker lovers,
who'll lie down on their backs.
To be ridden at your leisure,
and be taken off like hats.
I'm not here for you to walk on,
And I'm not your welcome mat.

CHORUS

The first time that I saw you,
I could not speak a word.
My tongue was tied in giant knots,
And I felt so disturbed.
At the feeling rushing through me,
The heat inside my veins.
The way my nerve ends tingle,
Every time you call my name.
I've got a lust ignited fever,
and I can't put out the flame.

CHOURS
Ma Ma Ma Ma-ma-ma-machine gun
Ma Ma Ma Ma-chine

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[Cactus Jack]

1993 AWESOME!!!! Beavis and bUtthead are cool LOL

[ABlairican Pie]

Poison introduced a new lineup change after the firing of C.C. Deville. Oddly enough, for all the slamming the band had endured for being "poseurs" (Hey, how can ANYBODY fake having nothing but a good time?? :confused: ), the band auditioned guitarists and came across Shrapnel Records shredder extraordinaire Richie Kotzen. The band was impressed by his enthusiasm for wanting to be in the band, but decided to milk the suspense for all it was worth. He bit his nails and stressed the whole time while waiting for the band's decision. They told him they weren't quite sure if he was really right for the band. His heart sank--when they told him, "Now if you think you can handle all the girls and touring, and everything..." They then told him they had allready decided to hire him right off the bat. He was so relieved and grateful--but a little miffed that they kept him hanging like that.
The band then recorded Native Tongue, an attempt at a "serious" Poison album. The effect of grunge, rather than killing hair metal outright, as is commonly believed, made all the L.A. veteran dudes all revamp their image into "sensitive, issues-oriented" rockers--and trim their locks at the same time. Unfortunately, no one was quite taking it seriously the new hair-dude makeovers. And hair metal would not go out with a bang but a whimper.

Unfortunately for Kotzen, his tenure with Poison was short-lived--when it was found he was having an affair with drummer Rikki Rockett's girlfriend! :eek: :nonono: Poison then replaced him with another shred great Blues Saraceno, but by then it was pretty much over for the band. :(

Stand

We all carry the cross and speak what we're taught
Lies and money become the white man's god
We've burned all our bridges one too many times
The time has come now to draw the line

Chorus:
You know you've got to
Stand, stand, stand for what you believe
You know you've got to
Stand, stand, stand for what you believe
Ohh, You got to...Stand for what you believe

Alright, alright
You got to listen now...
Express yourself in the face of change
Repress yourself, you surely seal your fate
You got to look inside, the answer lies in wait
Resurrect before it's too late

Chorus

Somebody rescue me, come down and rescue me
I know the soul of a good man has got to be free
When you stand, stand for what you believe

Solo, repeat chorus

Richie Kotzen:

[ABlairican Pie]

Bastard Son of a Thousand Blues

Well it's four o'clock in the morning
and I'm knocking on your door
She says she's tired of me
Don't want me here no more

She said stop your pissin' and moanin' and groanin'
go sleep outside with them dogs
Now honey let me please explain
cause I didn't mean you no wrong

I didn't mean to hurt you baby
Wouldn't do that to you
She said bite your lip, now, sweet child
You're the bastard son of a thousand blues

Well my Daddy was gone by the day I was born
And my Mama I have never seen
I was born in the back of a black Cadillac
And raised by a Gypsy queen

And as a child I was hell gone wild
Raised in the eye of a storm
By the time I was ten I was doing time again
Cause I knew what that gun was for

Chorus:
No, no, no, I'm the bastard son of a thousand blues
No, no, no, Don't know what I'm going to do
No, no, no, I'm the bastard son of a thousand blues
No, no, no, Tell me, mama, what I'm going to do

Ladies have come and ladies have gone
But there's one I remember quite well
Years have gone past, but her memory lasts
But the story I cannot tell

Well I've lived and I've lied
And I've loved and I've tried
To put my soul to good use

Guess I'm s:censored: out of luck
Cause that name, it just stuck
I'm the bastard son of a thousand blues, dig

Chorus, out

[ABlairican Pie]

No matter how you look at it, whether grunge killed hair metal outright or reduced it to total irrelevancy--pretty much the same thing, one thing was clear: alternative was the real deal in 1993. Unfortunately, as good as the music was, not only was it open season on all follically enhanced rock bands, but all things heavy and pretty much all above partying, fun and frivolity were out the window. It became a BAD thing to rock out and crank it up--or even to admit to doing so when you were younger. Many bands felt awkward and embarrassed to admit they liked KISS when they were kids. And of course, Kurt Cobain, almighty provocateur of "honesty", had to reinvent his past by saying that his first concert he ever attended was punk band D.O.A. from Vancouver rather than in fact Sammy Hagar at the Seattle Center Coliseum.

Now that the last vestiges of hair metal were falling out of the scalp of popular culture, it was time for the long-awaited followups:

Pearl Jam returned with their second album Vs. amid much media hype and expectation. Not surprisingly, it did not set the world on fire as did its predecessor, though the songs were actually excellent. Now that the big grunge explosion had taken over the world, the aftershocks were not so severe. But Pearl Jam soon found themselves in the aggravating position of being spokespersons for the entire youth culture, which they did not wish to be saddled with. They wished that people focus on the music rather than their celebrity. But they did use their celebrity status for social issues--one that significantly cut down their exposure to fans when they took on entertainment giant Ticketmaster over the issue of excessive handling and service charges which priced tickets out of the hands of who could barely afford them. The act promptly kept them out of every venue booked by Ticketmaster (or as many in Seattle called them "Ticket bastard" :lol: ), so they tried to find alternate routes to distributing tickets for shows. They set up their own ticket service, but that turned into a muddled disaster. Ticketmaster defended their practice of service charges by explaining they guaranteed good seats at shows. Pearl Jam's TM alternative actually did not.

Go

Oh, please don’t go out on me, don’t go out on me now
Never acted up before, don’t go on me now
I swear I never took it for granted, just thought of it now
Suppose I abused you, just passing it on
Go...f:censored:...

Once fastened, servile, now your getting sharp
Moving oh so swiftly, with such disarm
I pulled the covers over him, shoulda’ pulled the alarm
Turned to my nemesis, a full on f:censored:ing god
No...time...s:censored:k...my...please...
Don’t go on me (4x)
Please...oh...

Suck...blood...touch...please, tunnel vision...tuck...time...see...
Please, please, please...
Don’t go on me (4x)
Please...don’t you want me...don’t go on me...
Please...don’t go on me..

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

The lyrics below suggest some sort of gang rape of a helpless victim (perhaps Vedder himself, figuratively speaking?). Themes of sexual violence and crimes against women were becoming a big topic in music and media at this time, for reasons as we shall see.

Animal

One, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five, against one
Said one, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five...five, five...five against one

Torture from you to me
Abducted from the street

I’d rather be...
I’d rather be with...
I’d rather be with an animal

Why would you wanna hurt me, oh
Oh, so frightened of your pain...yeah...ooh...

I’d rather be...
I’d rather be with...
I’d rather be with an animal
I’d rather be... (2x)
I’d rather be with an animal

I’d rather be...
I’d rather be with...
I’d rather be with an animal
I’d rather be...
I’d rather be with...
I’d rather be with an animal

Said one, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five...five, five...five against one
One, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five...five, five...five against one

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

This next song was about violence in general that was taking over society. Most likely the guys were thinking of shootings of abortion clinics that year by religious vigilantes who felt God was on their side. No doubt the word from conservative shock-jock radio was that it was "un-American" to not be free to own or use their guns. It was a violation of their Second Amendment Rights, they claimed. And so the battle brewed some more in the ongoing culture wars.

Glorified G

Got a gun, fact I got two
That’s o.k. man, cuz I love god
Glorified version of a pellet gun
Feels so manly, when armed
Glorified version of a pellet gun (4x)

Double think, dumb is strength
Never shot at a living thing
Glorified version of a pellet gun
Feels so manly, when armed
Glorified version of a pellet gun (3x)
Glorified version of a...

Always keep it loaded (3x)

Kindred to be an american...
Life comes...i can feel your heart...
Ooh...life comes...i can feel your heart through your neck...
Life comes...i can feel your heart through your neck...
Like some...i can steal your heart form your neck...

Glorified...glorified...

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

This is reminescent of "New World Man" by Rush:

Rearviewmirror

I took a drive today
Time to emancipate
I guess it was the beatings made me wise
But I’m not about to give thanks, or apologize
I couldn’t breathe, holdin’ me down
Hand on my face, pushed to the ground
Enmity gaged, united by fear
Forced to endure what I could not forgive...

I seem to look away
Wounds in the mirror waved
It wasn’t my surface most defiled
Head at your feet, fool to your crown
Fist on my plate, swallowed it down
Enmity gaged, united by fear
Tried to endure what I could not forgive

Saw things (4x)
Clearer (2x)
Once you, were in my...
Rearview mirror...

I gather speed from you f:censored:g with me
Once and for all I’m far away
I hardly believe, finally the shades...are raised...hey...

Saw things so much clearer }
Once you, once you... }
(3x) rearview mirror }

Saw things so much clearer
Once you...oh yeah...

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Dissident

She nursed him there, ooh, over a night
I wasn’t so sure she wanted him to stay
What to say...what to say
But soon she was down, soon he was low
At a quarter past...a holy no...
She had to turn around

When she couldn’t hold, oh...she folded...
A dissident is here
Escape is never, the safest path
Oh, a dissident, a dissident is here

And to this day, she’s glided on
Always home but so far away
Like a word misplaced
Nothing said, what a waste
When she had contact...with the conflict...
There was meaning, but she sold him to the state
She had to turn around

When she couldn’t hold...she folded...
A dissident is here
Escape is never, the safest path
Oh, a dissident, a dissident is here, oh...oh...oh...

She gave him away when she couldn’t hold...no...she folded...
A dissident is here escape is never, the safest path
Oh, a dissident, a dissident is here, oh...
Couldn’t hold on...she couldn’t hold...no...she folded...
A dissident is here
Escape is never the safest place, oh...
A dissident is here

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Here is the acoustic song that served as a "female" version of "Jeremy", about an abused child. It is one of their biggest songs.

Daughter

You guys ready...

Alone... listless... breakfast table in an otherwise empty room
Young girl... violins... center of her own attention
The, mother reads aloud, child, tries to understand it
Tries to make her proud

The shades go down, it's in her head
Painted room... can't deny there's something wrong...

Don't call me daughter, not fit to
The picture kept will remind me
Don't call me daughter, not fit to
The picture kept will remind me
Don't call me...

She holds the hand that holds her down
She will...rise above...ooh...oh...

Don't call me daughter, not fit to
The picture kept will remind me (2x)
Don't call me daughter, not fit to be
The picture kept will remind me
Don't call me...

The shades go down (2x)
The shades go, go, go...

[ABlairican Pie]

Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town

I seem to recognize your face
Haunting, familiar, yet I can’t seem to place it
Cannot find the candle of thought to light your name
Lifetimes are catching up with me
All these changes taking place,
I wish I’d seen the place
But no one’s ever taken me
Hearts and thoughts they fade, fade away... (2x)

I swear I recognize your breath
Memories like fingerprints are slowly raising
Me you wouldn’t recall, for
I’m not my former
It’s hard when you’re stuck upon the shelf
I changed by not changing at all, small town predicts my fate
Perhaps that’s what no one wants to see
I just want to scream...hello...
My God it’s been so long, never dreamed you’d return
But now here you are, and here I am
Hearts and thoughts they fade...away...

Hearts and thoughts they fade, fade away... (2x)
Hearts and thoughts they fade...away...
Hearts and thoughts they fade, fade away... (3x)
Hearts and thoughts they fade...

Jeff Ament:

[ABlairican Pie]

Nirvana returned with their long-awaited follow-up, their second full-length major label album, In Utero. This was considered by many to be the "true" Nirvana album, as Kurt Cobain admitted he was disappointed by Nevermind's production "sounding like a Motley Crue record." They switched from former producer Butch Vig to Steve Albini--but still problems continued.
The record company basically wanted a "Nevermind Part II" but the band wasn't about to give it to them. The recording and songwriting was frought with frustration over the band struggling to keep artistic control over what they wanted to do, not just merely crank out "hits" for the label. Wasn't that the problem with 80's scene? In the end, the band came up with an excellent, edgy, honest album.

Unfortunately, another dark cloud hung over the band which eclipsed the music: Cobain's "celebrity marriage" to Courtney Love. For a long time, Seattle news broadcasts told repeatedly of problems going on within the Cobain castle on Lake Washington:
arguments, guns, and drugs. The national press had a field day with it. Ahh, the perks of supermondostardom. ohno:

Serve the Servants

Teenage angst has paid off well
Now I’m bored and old
Self-appointed judges judge
More than they have sold

If she floats than she is not
A witch like we had thought
A down payment on another
One at salem’s lot

Serve the servants - oh no
That legendary divorce is such a bore

As my bones grew they did hurt
They hurt really bad
I tried hard to have a father
But instead I had a dad

I just want you to know that i
Don’t hate you anymore
There is nothing I could say
That I haven’t thought before

Serve the servants - oh no
That legendary divorce is such a bore

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Obviously Kurt Cobain was frustrated with his being a rock and roll icon, a star and an anti-fashion fashion plate. It really disgusted him that there was a huge possibility that the jocks who beat up on him in high school were now
rocking out to his tunes. He was "commercial." His songs were no longer his domain, they were dispensed like so many Pillsbury Hungry Jack roll-up dinner biscuits from the dairy case at the supermarket. Everyone had a piece of it, and of him. So this could be the meaning behind the title of the next song--X amount of product sold due to strategically placed potential pre-hit on peak air time and heavy rotation:

Radio Friendly Unit Shifter

Use just once and destroy
Invasion of our piracy
Afterbirth of a nation
Starve without your skeleton key

I love you for what I am not
I do not want what I have got
A blanket acne’ed with cigarette burns
Speak at once while taking turns
Second-rate third degree burns
What is wrong with me
What is what I need
What do I think I think
This had nothing to do with what you think
If you ever think at all
Bi-polar opposites attract
All of a sudden my water broke
Hate, hate your enemies
Save, save your friends
Find, find your place
Speak, speak the truth

[ABlairican Pie]

The next song was one of the most clever, surreal and imaginative videos ever filmed, with crucified Santas, singing crows, and an obese woman in a see-through fat suit. But note Kurt's expression at the end when his pasted on grin drops to a bored scowl. The lyrics of the song seem Freudian, when you look at them.

Heart-Shaped Box

She eyes me like a pisces when I am weak
I’ve been locked inside your heart-shaped box for weeks
I’ve been drawn into your magnet tar pit trap
I wish I could eat your cancer when you turn back (alt: ... when you turn black)

Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Hey! wait! (alt: hate! haight!)
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Your advice

Meat-eating orchids forgive no one just yet
Cut myself on angel’s hair and baby’s breath
Broken hymen of your highness I’m left black
Throw down your umbilical noose so I can climb right back

Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Your advice

She eyes me like a pisces when I am weak
I’ve been locked inside your heart-shaped box for weeks
I’ve been drawn into your magnet tar pit trap
I wish I could eat your cancer when you turn back (alt: ... when you turn black)

Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice
Hey! wait!
I’ve got a new complaint
Forever in debt to your priceless advice

Your advice (x3)

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Many birth images appear in the lyrics and images on the album. Not surprising, since his daughter Frances Bean was born the year before.

Scentless Apprentice

Like most babies smell like butter
His smell smelled like no other
He was born scentless and senseless
He was born a scentless apprentice
Go away - get away, get away, get a-way
Every wet nurse refused to feed him
Electrolytes smell like semen
I promise not to sell your perfumed secrets
There are countless formulas for pressing flowers
I lie in the sole and fertilize mushrooms
Leaking out gas fumes are made into perfume
You can’t fire me because I quit
Throw me in the fire and I won’t throw a fit

Top pic: Kurt and Dave have a moment; :love:

Bottom: Kurt with Frances. Awwwwwww. :D

[ABlairican Pie]

The next song was frequently misquoted as song promoting sexual violence (it was actually bowdlerized in Malaysia to be titled "Waif Me" :confused: ), but considering Kurt's frustration at this point at trying to maintain artistic integrity, the figurative meaning is clearer:

Rape Me

Rape me
Rape me my friend
Rape me
Rape me again

I’m not the only one (x4)

Hate me
Do it and do it again
Waste me
Rape me my friend

I’m not the only one (x4)

My favorite inside source
I’ll kiss your open sores
Appreciate your concern
You’ll always stink and burn

Rape me
Rape me my friend
Rape me
Rape me again

I’m not the only one (x4)

Rape me! (x9)

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Dumb

I’m not like them
But I can pretend
The sun is gone
But I have a light
The day is done
But I’m having fun
I think I’m dumb
Or maybe just happy

Think I’m just happy [repeat 3x]

My heart is broke
But I have some glue
Help me inhale
And mend it with you
We’ll float around
And hang out on clouds
Then we’ll come down
And I have a hangover

Have a hangover [repeat 3x]

Skin the sun
Fall asleep
Wish away
The soul is cheap
Lesson learned
Wish me luck
Soothe the burn
Wake me up

[repeat first verse and chorus]

I think I’m dumb [repeat 12x]

[ABlairican Pie]

In addition to birth images, one censored image was that of "carnage" of baby dolls on the back of the album, which prompted outlets such as K-Mart and Wal-Mart to stop selling the album until a more appropriate image could replace it. The following song was about a deadly beverage which was known to cause abortions. What was Kurt saying in this song?

Pennyroyal Tea

I’m on my time with everyone
I have very bad posture
Sit and drink pennyroyal tea
Distill the life that’s inside of me
Sit and drink pennyroyal tea
I’m anemic royalty
Give me a leonard cohen afterworld
So I can sigh enternally
I’m so tired I can’t sleep
I’m a liar and a thief

Sit and drink pennyroyal tea
I’m anemic royalty
I’m on warm milk and laxatives
Cherry-flavored antacids

[ABlairican Pie]

One song of note is one titled after a once-glamorous 30's actress who became the namesake of Kurt's daughter. Frances Farmer was a beautiful screen star who tragically began a descent into hell after an incident involving
a parking ticket. When she was arrested and booked into jail, her manic-depressive personality took over to the point where she was treated horribly by police and doctors specializing in the mentally ill. She was thrown into a straight jacket and even partially lobotomized by surgeons who had little understanding of what we now know as bi-polar disorder. She was brutally mistreated and even raped, a horrible waste of a promising career. She died in 1970 from esophagal cancer, having long been ostracized by Hollywood. Kurt obviously drew parallels from the life of the actress who was born and raised in Seattle.

Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle

It's so relieving
To know that you're leaving as soon as you get paid
It's so relaxing
To hear that you're asking wherever you get your way
It's so soothing
To know that you'll sue me, this is starting to sound the same

I miss the comfort in being sad (x3)

In her false witness, we hope you're still with us,
To see if they float or drown
Our favorite patient, a display of patience,
Disease-covered Puget Sound
She'll come back as fire, to burn all the liars,
And leave a blanket of ash on the ground

I miss the comfort in being sad (x3)

It's so relieving
To know that you're leaving as soon as you get paid
It's so relaxing
To know that you're asking wherever you get your way
It's so soothing
To know that you'll sue me, this is starting to sound the same

I miss the comfort in being sad (x3)

[ABlairican Pie]

The final song on the album was a Kurt's kiss-off to all the people who analyzed all his comments in the press. He was tired of being a star. The music was no longer pure. He was lionized and criticized for being an everyman. Strange for the world's most unwilling rock star. A change was in order.

All Apologies

What else should I be
All apologies
What else could I say
Everyone is gay
What else could I write
I don't have the right
What else should I be
All apologies

In the sun
In the sun I feel as one
In the sun
In the sun
I'm married
Buried

I wish I was like you
Easily amused
Find my nest of salt
Everything is my fault
I'll take all the blame
Aqua seafoam shame
Sunburn with freezeburn
Choking on the ashes of her enemy

In the sun
In the sun I feel as one
In the sun
In the sun
Married, Maried, Maried!
Buried!
Yeah yeah yeah yeah

All in all is all we are [x20]

[ABlairican Pie]

1993 was also the year that established Smashing Pumpkins as one of the biggest stars in the alternative universe with the album Siamese Dream. Oddly enough, as the band members were still in the midst of personal squabbles, guitarist Billy Corgan played all the instruments by himself. The album not only proved to be a virtual hitmaking disk but it displayed Corgan's redefinition of guitar "shredding" in the anti-virtuoso 90's, as well as his ability to be a very versatile musician.

Bassist D'arcy and guitarist James Iha were still in a breakup stage, but returned to performing band duties when hitting the road. Grunge may have been a Seattle phenomenon, but Chicagoans Smashing Pumpkins proved you didn't need to be from the Pacific Northwest to be part of the "grunge" scene.
The album was one of the biggest of the decade.

Cherub Rock

Freak out
And give in
Doesn't matter what you believe in
Stay cool
And be somebody's fool this year
'cause they know
Who is righteous, What is bold
So I'm told
Who wants honey
As long as there's some money
Who wants that honey?

Hipsters unite
Come align for the big fight to rock for you
But beware
All those angels with there wings glued on
'cause deep down
We are frightened and we're scared
If you don't stare

Who wants honey
As long as there's some money
Who wants that honey?

Let me out
Let me out
Let me out
Let me out

Tell me all of your secrets
Cannot help but believe this is true
Tell me all of your secrets
I know, I know, I know,
Should have listened when I was told

Who wants honey
As long as there is some money
Who wants that honey?

Let me out
Let me out
Let me out
let me out

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

The next song is one of their best. It shows Billy Corgan at the peak of his guitar prowess. Unlike Kurt Cobain, Billy Corgan admitted his love for 80's bands such as Van Halen, especially the Fair Warning album, with its dark themes.

Geek U.S.A.

Lover lover let's pretend
We're born as innocents
Cast into the world
With apple eyes

To wish wish dangerous
My dear delirious
To try and leave
The rest of us behind

Shot full of diamonds
And a million years
The disappointed disappear
Like they were never here

Kiss kiss all of this
The hiss that we had missed
And understand what can't be understood

Sear those thoughts of me
Alone and unhappy
I never liked me anyway

If by chance
Or circumstance
We should fail
Don't be too sad

Shot full of diamonds
And a million years
The disappointed disappear
Like they were never here

In a dream
We are connected
Siamese twins
At the wrist

And then I knew we'd been forsaken
Expelled from paradise
I can't believe them
When they say that it's alright

Words can't define what I feel inside
Who needs them?
Caught with this virus of my mind
I give in to my disease, of my needs
To my disease, of my needs

She really loves to break
Her dad says its OK
She really loves to break
And give it all away

Her ma says she's afraid
What more can she fake
She really needs to break
And give herself away

She gave it all away
She gave it all away
She gave it all away
We really love the USA

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

This is one of their biggest hits, a soft ballad.

Disarm

Disarm you with a smile
And cut you like you want me to
Cut that little child
Inside of me and such a part of you
Ooh, the years burn

I used to be a little boy
So old in my shoes
And what I choose is my choice
What’s a boy supposed to do?
The killer in me is the killer in you
My love
I send this smile over to you

Disarm you with a smile
And leave you like they left me here
To wither in denial
The bitterness of one who’s left alone
Ooh, the years burn
Ooh, the years burn, burn, burn

I used to be a little boy
So old in my shoes
And what I choose is my voice
What’s a boy supposed to do?
The killer in me is the killer in you
My love
I send this smile over to you

The killer in me is the killer in you
Send this smile over to you
The killer in me is the killer in you
Send this smile over to you
The killer in me is the killer in you
Send this smile over to you

[ABlairican Pie]

This song seems to start out happy, but Corgan admits it was written at a time when he was seriously contemplating suicide. But no one could really tell from the video where a gaggle of happy youths gamboled around an ice cream truck in such a carefree manner.

Today

Today is the greatest
Day I've ever known
Can't live for tomorrow,
Tomorrow's much too long
I'll burn my eyes out

Before I get out
I wanted more
Than life could ever grant me
Bored by the chore
Of saving face

Today is the greatest
Day I've ever known
Can't wait for tomorrow
I might not have that long
I'll tear my heart out
Before I get out

Pink ribbon scars
That never forget
I tried so hard
To cleanse these regrets
My angel wings
Were bruised and restrained
My belly stings

Today is
Today is
Today is
The greatest day

I want to turn you on
I want to turn you on
I want to turn you on
I want to turn you

Today is the greatest
Today is the greatest day
Today is the greatest day
That I have ever really known

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

This song is not to be confused with the Def Leppard track of the same name:

Rocket

Bleed in your own light
Dream of your own life
I miss me
I miss everything I'll never be
And on, and on

I torch my soul to show
The world that I am pure
Deep inside my heart
No more lies

A crown of horns
An image formed deformed
The mark I've borne
A mark of scorn to you

Consume my love, devour my hate
Only powers my escape
The moon is out, the stars invite
I think I'll leave tonight

So soon I'll find myself alone
To relax and fade away
Do you know what's coming down
Do you know I couldn't stay free?

I shall be free
I shall be free
I shall be free
I shall be free
I shall be free free
Free of those voices inside me
I shall be free
I shall be free

------------------------
(Alternative Lyrics)

Bleed in your own light
Dream of your own life
I hear you
I hear you return, come back again
Come on, come on

And when your days return
You'll find yourself alone
With your hands above your heart
And we'll rise

We'll rise again
I won't pretend, yeah yeah
We'll rise again
I won't pretend, yeah yeah, with you

'Cause when you find yourself alone
With your hands above your heart
'Cause when you find yourself alone
With your hands above your heart

You'll find yourself alone
To relax and fade away
You'll find yourself alone
To relax and fade away

I shall be free
I shall be free
I shall be free, of me
Come on, come on
Come on, come on
Come on, come on
I shall be free
Let go that rocket inside of me

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Here is another track with great guitar:

Mayonaise

Fool enough to almost be it
Cool enough to not quite see it
Doomed
Pick your pocket full of sorrow
Run away with me tomorrow
June

We'll try and ease the pain
Somehow we'll feel the same
Well, no one knows
Where our secrets go

I send a heart to all my dearies
When your life is so, so dreary
Dream
I'm rumored to the straight and narrow
While the harlots of my perils
Scream

And I fail
But when I can, I will
Try to understand
The way I can, I will

Mother weep the years I'm missing
All our time can't be given
Back
Shut my mouth and strike the demons
Cursed you and your reasons
Out of hand and out of season
Out of love and out of feeling
So bad

When I can, I will
Words defy the plans
When I can, I will

Fool enough to almost be it
Cool enough to not quite see it
Tall enough to always feel it
Always older, I'll always feel this

No more promise no more sorrow
No longer will I follow
Can anybody hear me
I just want to be me
When I can, I will
Try to understand
The way I can, I will

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Now that anything grunge and alternative had supplanted everything else in rock and roll, everyone wanted to take part in that pre-packaged rebellion, including none other than Madonna. On her new Maverick record label, she found part of that new cutting edge music from Seattle to market, a cutting edge band so digestible that it was sure to become another next big thing.

The Seattle band in question was Candlebox. The band were quite competent musicians with decent songs, but their music was considered
Pearl Jam lite. Many of their songs had that decent bouncy little alterna-groove, but the band seemed to be cashing in on the now cresting grunge tide. What was once a bold, radical sound was quickly becoming predictable and safe. And the fact that Madonna herself was trying to cash in on the trend sent warning bells that were largely unheeded: THE GRUNGE REVOLUTION WAS BECOMING CO-OPTED BY THE MUSIC ELITE. Were Candlebox a grunge band, or just a decent corporate "hip" band of the 90's?

Candlebox were fronted by vocalist Kevin Martin with Peter Klett on guitars, Bardi Martin (no relation to Kevin) on bass and Scott Mercado on drums. The band took their name from a Midnight Oil song "Tin Legs and Tin Mines": "Boxed in like candles." The band was rather good at what they did, and Kevin Martin did have an impressive set of pipes.

Far Behind

Now maybe I didn’t mean to treat you bad
But I did it anyway
And not maybe
Some would say your life was sad
But you lived it anyway
And now maybe
Your friends they stand beside they watch you crumble
As you falter to the ground
And now maybe
Your friends they stand beside as you were flying
Oh you were flying oh so high
But then some day people look at you for what they call their own
They watch you suffer
Yeah they hear you calling home
But then some day we could take our time
To brush the leaves aside so you can reach us
But you left me far behind
Now maybe I didn’t mean to treat you oh so bad
But I did it anyway
Now maybe some would say you’re left with what you had
But you couldn’t share the pain
No, no, no
Couldn’t share the pain they watch you suffer
Now maybe I could have made my own mistakes
But I live with what I’ve known
Yes maybe we might share in something great
But won’t you look at where we’ve grown
Won’t you look at where we’ve gone
But then someday comes tomorrow holds a sense of what I fear for you in my mind
As you trip the final line
And that cold day when you lost control
Shame you left my life
So soon you should have told me
But you left me far behind
Now maybe I didn’t meant to treat you oh so bad
But I did it anyway
Now maybe some would say you’re left with what you had
But you couldn’t share the pain
No, no, no
Now maybe I didn’t mean to treat you oh so bad
But I did it anyway
No maybe some would say you’re left with what you had
But you couldn’t share the pain
I said times have changed your friends
They come and watch you crumble to the ground
They watch you suffer
Yeah they hold you down
Hold you down
Maybe brother maybe love I didn’t mean to treat you bad
But you left me far behind
Left me far behind
Left me far behind

:guitar:

[ABlairican Pie]

This is actually a very decent song:

Change

As I stand here I ponder greater things
No longer a part of
A part of your lover’s dreams
So much for your
Common complications
So much for your
Constant desperation
For what’s to come
It’s all been written
Down, written down
But I feel that a change is
A change is gonna come
I feel so alive now
And I feel that a change is
A change is gonna come
As I sit here I’ll tell you greater things
No longer a part of
A part of someone else’s dreams
So much for your
Common escalations
So much for your
Constant fabrications
For what’s to come
It’s all been written down, down, down
I said for what’s to come
For what’s to come your way
It’s all been written
Down, written down
But I feel that a change is
A change is gonna come I said
I feel so alive now
And I feel that a change is
A change is gonna come
Keep on time
Keep on time
You run along
Keep on child
Keep on child
You move along
Keep on my time now
I run around for you
Keep on time
Keep on time
You run along
Keep on child
Keep on child
You push it on
Keep on my time now
I run around for you
You don’t know yet

You don’t know yet
You don’t know yet
But you’ll feel it in your soul
You don’t know yet
But you feel it in your soul
As I lay here I wanna fall asleep
No longer
No longer a part of your tv screen
A part of your tv dream
I said so much for your
So much for your common complications
So much for your
So much for your constant desperation
For what’s to come it’s all been written
Down, written down
But I feel that a change is
A change is gonna come I said
I feel so alive now
And I feel that a change is
A change is gonna come

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Cover Me

Cover me
When I walk alone
Cover me
When my stance it stumbles homes
Cover me
We’ll trip on through the sands of time
And cover me
Cause I’ve been branded
I’ve lost my mind
Lost my mind
But you’ll cover me yeah
Give me shelter from the storm
Over me
You fade into the night
Over me
You melt into the light
Over me
You will fear the things I need
Over me
You will feel the hate I breed
You’re under me
And you will question my authority
You’re under me
You will lose almost everything
You’re under me
You will feel the pain I bring you
You’re under me
And you never change
You never change a f:censored:ing thing
Not a f:censored:ing thing
But you’ll cover me
Yeah, give me shelter from the storm
Cover me
Cover me
Don’t you cover me
Cover me
Won’t you
Cover me
Cover me
Give me shelter from the storm
People push & shove on time
I give it to you
What I haveis what is mine
I feel it for you
You’ve got to cover me
You’ve got to cover me
People take & people steal
I have it for you
What I have is what I fear
I fear it for you
You’ve got to cover me
Cause I’ve been branded a broken man
Broken man
But you’ll cover me, yes
Give me shelter from the storm

[ABlairican Pie]

One of their most popular songs:

You

You
It's for you
Only you
It's for you

I never know
I never care
I never believe my people
I'll tell you what I say
I never lie
I never try
I never cry for you people
I'll push you
Push away
As you lonely people
Keep on running around my door
Yes, you lonely people
Keep on begging
Beg for more
And I'll cry for you
Yes I'll die for you
Pain in my heart it is real
And I'll tell you now how I feel inside
Feel in my heart it's for you

It's for you
Only you
It's for you

I'll never try
I'll never die
I'll never push for you people
I'll tell you how I feel
I'll never lie
I'll never cry
I'll never try for you people
I'll tell you, yes it's real
And you lonely people
Keep on passing time away
Yes you lonely people keep on passing,
Pass away

And I'll cry for you
Yes, I'll die for you
Pain in my heart it is real
And I'll tell you now how I feel inside
Feel in my heart it's for you
And I'll take everything
As it comes my way
Pushin' your pain 'round my door
Will I cry for you as I die for you
Is this blood on my hands all for you?

You shiver
And shudder
Recovers your mother
You feel it take control
All alone
Feel alive
In your soul

Come around town
Steal another dime
Take another line
Won't you feel it
Blanket your soul
Out of mind

Come around town
Steal another dime
Do another crime
Won't you get it higher & higher
Roll through time

Come around town
Steal another dime
Don't you push your drugs in my face
Yes, I'm feeling
Feeling fine
Don't you push your drugs in my face
Or I'm gonna put you in your place
F:censored: you
I don't want it no more
And it's mine
Said this pain in my heart is all mine
Yes, it's mine all alone

I don't want it no more
I don't want it no more
I don't want it no more
I don't want it no more

And it's mine on my own
Yes, it's mine all alone
As I cry for you
Yes, I'll die for you
Pain in my heart, it is real
And I'll take
Everything as it comes my way
Feel in my heart it's for you
And I'll lie for you as I die for you
Pain in my heart it is real
And I'll tell you now
How I feel inside
F:censored: you
It's for you

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango

Concert poster:

[ABlairican Pie]

In addition to the rising slew of bands suspiciously sounding like the Seattle grunge titans, there was one British band that drew instant comparisons to Nirvana: Bush, so named for their home in England, Shepherd's Bush. Their debut album Sixteen Stone featured such hits as "Everything Zen", "Comedown", "Little Things" and "Glycerine." Their lead singer Gavin Rossdale was a bit of a hunk with a decent rasp, and their lead guitar player Nigel Pulsford sported a shaven head and chopped his drony riffs on a Fender Stratocaster.

There was a total difference between "soundalike" artists in the 80's and in the 90's: countless bands in the 80's who ripped off Van Halen's licks could not be faulted--everyone wanted to be Eddie. He set the standard for other acts to follow, many bands who wanted to tap and shred with the same kind of abandon and ease that he did. No one could duplicate his style but did in fact invent their own. On the other hand, when bands attempted to sound like Nirvana, people accused them of being "shameless clones." Perhaps it was because Kurt Cobain had his own style and felt his music could not and should not be duplicated by wanna-be's. His music was deeply personal to him and was not up for everyone else to imitate--which is what was supposed to make alternative so special. But many artists who did not have the same gift as Kurt eventually ended up sounding like cheap bogus Nirvana knockoffs--could alternative wannabe guitarists even be considered
"poseurs"?

Not that Bush and other bands were intentionally mimicking Nirvana's sound--but chances were good that record companies were deliberately trying to duplicate their success with similar sounding bands.

Everything Zen

There must be something we can eat
Maybe find another lover
Should I fly to los angeles
Find my a:censored: brother

Minnie Mouse has grown up a cow
Dave’s on sale again
We kissy kiss in the rear view
We’re so bored
You’re to blame

Try to see it once my way
Everything zen
Everything zen
I don’t think so

Raindogs howl for the century
A million dollars a steak
As you search for your demi-god
And you fake with a saint
There’s no sex in your violence
There’s no sex in your violence

Try to see it once my way
Everything zen
Everything zen
I don’t think so

I don’t believe that elvis is dead
I don’t believe that elvis is dead
I don’t believe that elvis is, elvis is

There’s no sex in your violence

:rock: :guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

This is one of their better songs:

Machine Head

Breathe in breathe out
Tied to a wheel fingers got to feel
I spin on a whim I slide to the right
I felt you like electric light
For our love
For our fear
For our rise against the years and years and years

Got a machinehead better than the rest
Green to red machinehead
And I walk from my machine
I walk from my machine

Deaf dumb and thirty
Starting to deserve this
Leaning on my consious wall
Blood is like wine
Unconscious all the time
If I had it all again
I’d change it all

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Comedown

Love and hate get it wrong
She cut me right back down to size
Sleep the day let it fade
Who was there to take your place
No one knows never will
Mostly me but mostly you
What do you say do you do
When it all comes down

Chorus:
I don’t wanna come back down from this cloud
Taken me all this time to find out what I need

There is no blame only shame
When you beg you just complain
More I come more I try
All police are paranoid
So am I - so’s the future
So are you - be a creature
What do you say do you do
When it all comes down

Repeat chours

:rock: :guitar:

[ABlairican Pie]

Little Things

I bleach the sky
Every night
Loaded on wrong
And further from right
Spinning around
Two howling moons
Cos there always there
Whatever I do

The river is loaded
I’ve been there today
Took it some questions
She does me again
I’d die in your arms
If you were dead too
Here comes a lie
We will allways be true

Going up
When coming down
Scratch away
It’s the little things that kill
Tearing at my brains again
The little things that kill
The little things that kill

Bigger you give
Bigger you get
We’re boss at denial
But best at forget
Cupboard is empty
We really need food
Summer is winter
And you always knew

Going up when coming down
Scratch away

I touch your mouth
My willy is food
Addicted to love
I’m addicted to fools
I kill you once
I kill you again
We’re starving and crude
Welcome my friends to

The little things that kill

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Glycerine

Must be your skin that I'm sinkin in
Must be for real cause now I can feel
and I didn't mind
it's not my kind
not my time to wonder why
everything's gone white
and everything's grey
now your here now you away
I don't want this
remember that
I'll never forget where your at
don't let the days go by
glycerine

I'm never alone
I'm alone all the time
are you at one
or do you lie
we live in a wheel
where everyone steals
but when we rise it's like strawberry fields

If I treated you bad
you bruise my face
couldn't love you more
you got a beautiful taste
don't let the days go by
could have been easier on you
I coudn't change though I wanted to
could have been easier by three
our old friend fear and you and me
glycerine (repeat)
don't let the days go by
glycerine

I needed you more
when we wanted us less
I could not kiss just regress
it might just be
clear simple and plain
that's just fine
that's just one of my names
don't let the days go by
could've been easier on you
glycerine

Nigel Pulsford:

[ABlairican Pie]

Testosterone

I'm a man
I'm real proud of my manhood
I like to smoke
Ten thousand cigarillos
Eight ball
I could climb any mountain
I never cry
I only bowl when I'm losing
And I've never been wrong
Never been wrong
And I'm looking so good
Looking so good

Chorus:
Got a big gold gun
Got a big gold bullet
And I guess you could say
And I guess you could say
I'm real full of it
I'm real full of it

I'm real straight
You wanna see my pecadillos
Hot dog 7:30 every morning
And I'm big into war
Big into war
Big into war
I am a whore
I am a whore

Repeat Chours

I shave with gillette
Shave with gillette
And I'm patting my back
Patting my back

Repeat Chorus

[Cactus Jack]

Weird Al Yankovic put out a new album called Alapalooza

The cover was a parody of Jurassic Park
http://140.115.95.15/wenchi/Song/alapalooza.jpg

[ABlairican Pie]

Here was Weird Al completely in his element: on his takeoffs of popular alternative videos, he borrowed the Blind Melon bee-girl and clips from the Red Hot Chili Peppers videos for his hilarious version of "Give It Away":

Bedrock Anthem


Sometimes I feel
Like I need a vacation
Sometimes I feel
Like I wanna go
To the city of cavemen
The city of bedrock
I’d be a flinstone
Now I’ll tell you why...

Well, I’ve got I’ve got a woman named wilma
Well, I’ve got I’ve got a baby named pebbles
Well, I’ve got I’ve got a doggy named dino
We do a little bowling and we drink a little vino

Well, I’ve got a little buddy, barney rubble
Got a neighbor by the name of barney rubble
He’s a midget but he makes a lot of trouble
Doesn’t like to shave, he got caveman stubble

Me and barney, loyal order water buffalo
Lodge brothers, loyal order water buffalo
There’s a handshake everybody gotta know
How come grand poo-bah always gotta run the whole show?

Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
I get by on all my prehistoric knowhow

Betty and barney got a baby named bamm-bamm
Little pebbles is his number one fan
He’s the strongest toddler in the whole land
Tear your arm off if he shakes your hand

Got a car, gonna push it with my feel now
Gonna take my family out to eat now
Jumbo ribs at the drive-in can’t be beat now
Made from brontosaurus, baby, not a moo-cow

Wanna chill with a sabretooth tiger
Wear a loincloth, natural fiber
Be the first rolling stone subscriber
Got a pterodactyl for a windshield wiper

Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Don’t know what it means but I say it anyhow

Luck me, workin’ down in the gravel put
Movin’ rocks, on a big dinosaur I sit
Mr. slate gets mad and he throws a fit
Pull the birdie’s tail, everybody knows it’s time to quit

I realize I’m living in the stone age
No fax, no cellular phone-age
Pick my teeth with a dinosaur bone-age
Liftin’ heavy boulders every day for my wage

Barney rubble, laughin’ like a hyena
Barney rubble, what a little weiner
Where’s wilma? anybody seen her?
Got a baby elephant vacuum cleaner

Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now

:banana: :mango

Weird Al also released his Food Album, which featured previous hits like "Eat It", and "I'm Fat". :eat:

[ABlairican Pie]

While on the subject of our prehistoric friends, one big name in 1993 was that of Dinosaur Jr., a band fronted by explosive guitarist and vocalist J. Mascis. He was known for cranking vintage Fender
Stratocasters and other decades-old guitars to obscenely high volume levels on Marshall amps in concert. It was loud, it was wild, it was beautiful. Their 1993 album, Where You Been, featured a standout track with an incredibly emotive guitar solo, "Start Choppin'."

Start Choppin'

There's no goin' back to that i'm so numb, can't even react didn't say it's not ok but we aren't dealin' the same way i ain't tellin' you a secret i ain't tellin' you goodbye it's the last thing
Y mind still you won't let things unwind spinnin' tight around your head can't you hear a word i've said? i ain't tellin' you a secret i ain't tellin' you goodbye when you call it's just not fai
S the last thing you should share i can't deal, i'll let you know still i wish you'd let it go i ain't tellin' you a secret i ain't tellin' you goodbye i'm tellin' you for one last time it's not
You, the problem's mine to hide i waited as long as i could if you need it, sure i would, that's fine [solo]

Well, there's no goin' back to that i'm so numb can't even react didn't say it's not ok but we aren't dealin' the same way i ain't tellin' you a secret i ain't tellin' you goodbye goodbye goodby
Dbye i'm tellin' you for one last time it's not just you, the problem's mine to hide i waited as long as i could if you need it, sure i would, that's fine i'm takin' away a lot of stuff i'm tell
Ou it's rough but not goodbye [solo]

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[Steve M.]

Paul McCartney released his sixteenth post-Beatles album (Wings and solo), Off the Ground, in 1993.

http://www.musicmatic.de/M/McCartn1a.jpg

Critics and fans found it less consistent and enjoyable than 1989's Flowers In the Dirt, but it still featured a couple of fine songs, like "Hope Of Deliverance." Macca toured the U.S. to promote the album, just as he did with Flowers In the Dirt. It was the first time in Paul's solo career that two consecutive LP releases were accompanied by American concert tours. (Eight albums had gone under the bridge between his 1976 and 1989 American tours.)

[Steve M.]

A year earlier than Paul's LP, in 1992, Ringo Starr began to take his music career seriously again. Building on the success of his semi-annual All-Starr Band tours, Ringo went back into the recording studio for the first time in nine years and delivered a new solo LP, Time Takes Time.

http://eil.com/newGallery/Ringo-Starr-Time-Takes-Time-314083.jpg

His Starrness got the LP issued on a small label in the States, and although it didn't exactly rocket up of the charts the way Ringo and Goodnight Vienna had back in the early seventies, critics and fans agreed that Time takes Time was his wittiest, most endearing album in years. "The Weight Of the World" and "Don't Go Where The Road Don't Go" were favorite tracks from the LP.

Ringo would record more frequently in the nineties, and he would form a lasting partnership with producer and professional lunatic Mark Hudson (Kate's uncle). :)

[ABlairican Pie]

The band actually were about to name themselves The Dinosaurs but found out that former members of Country Joe and the Fish named themselves that.
So they came up with the next best thing.

Out There

I know your name i know the people out there feel the same i know you're gone i hope you got some friends to come along i know you're out there i know you're gone you can't say that's fair can't
Be wrong? i feel ok sure, i know that's not what people say maybe they're wrong maybe you weren't on my side all along i know you're out there i know you're gone you can't say that's fair can't
E wrong? i know you're out there you're still a case it's still the place weren't you invited? it's what you can't spare whatever's left, just hide the rest and bring it right in i know it's sic
Now you think a game is just a trick maybe i've changed just tell me was this all in vain? [solo] i know you're out there i know that space is not a race weren't you invited? it's what you can't
E whatever's left, just hide the rest and bring it right in maintained inside i've lost my range feel the strain weren't you invited? just never try it's still the place you're still the case no
Ng it right in

J. Mascis:

[ABlairican Pie]

One band even stretched the boundaries of heaviness even further: A band fronted by a rather eccentric, tortured but theatrical lead singer by the name of Maynard Keenan, as well as Adam Jones on guitar, bassist Paul D'Amour, and drummer Danny Carrey. The quartet formed a loud, loose form of metal, if you will, which had not been attempted before (though Soundgarden comes close). The band was known as

TOOL.

Jones' guitar playing was more influenced by avant-garde prog-rock acts such as King Crimson, a clear inspiration with Robert Fripp's cutting edge approach to guitar. The son of a Hollywood set designer, he had foregone everything else that was popular in Tinseltown to concentrate on music that was both abrasive and freeflowing, dark, textural and atmospheric, with quirky time signatures as well. He even used electric motors from toys to create wild effects on guitar, such as the creaking sound heard at the opening of "Prison Sex". Bassist D'Amour was also an integral part of Tool's sound. The band was acclaimed as one of the bands to most watch for in the 90's. Their 1993 release was Undertow.

Sober

There's a shadow just behind me,
shrouding every step I take,
making every promise empty,
pointing every finger at me.
Waiting like a stalking butler
who upon the finger rests.
Murder now the path called "must we"
just before the son has come.
Jesus, won't you f:censored:ing whistle
something but the past and done?
Jesus, won't you f:censored:ing whistle
Something but the past and done?

Why can't we not be sober?
I just want to start this over.
Why can't we drink forever.
I just want to start this over.

I am just a worthless liar.
I am just an imbecile.
I will only complicate you.
Trust in me and fall as well.
I will find a center in you.
I will chew it up and leave,
I will work to elevate you
just enough to bring you down.
Mother Mary won't you whisper
something but the past and done.
Mother Mary won't you whisper
something but the past and done.

Why can't we not be sober?
I just want to start this over.
Why can't we sleep forever.
I just want to start this over.

I am just a worthless liar.
I am just an imbecile.
I will only complicate you.
Trust in me and fall as well.
I will find a center in you.
I will chew it up and leave,

Trust me. Trust me. Trust me. Trust me. Trust Me.

Why can't we not be sober?
I just want to start this over.
Why can't we sleep forever.
I just want to start this over.

I want what I want.
I want what I want.
I want what I want.
I want what I want.

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Maynard Keenan grew up in a middle-class Baptist home where enjoyed listening to KISS as a youngster. While he was a gifted young man who enjoyed art and theater projects, he soon joined the military where he observed a strict code of honor to not lie, cheat or steal and to not tolerate those who do. Anyone who reneged on these principles was considered a "tool": i.e., a sellout. After leaving the military he studied design in college and began painting artworks. He even became friends with Gillian Anderson of
"The X-Files" fame.

The following song is a harrowing description of child abuse he suffered at the hands of his stepfather:

Prison Sex

It took so long to remember just what happened.
I was so young and vestal then,
you know it hurt me,
but I'm breathing so I guess I'm still alive
even if signs seem to tell me otherwise.
I've got my hands bound,
my head down, my eyes closed,
and my throat wide open.

Do unto others what has been done to me,
Do unto others what has been done to you

I'm treading water,
I need to sleep a while.
My lamb and martyr, you look so precious.
Won't you come a bit closer,
close enough so I can smell you.
I need you to feel this,
I can't stand to burn too long.
Released in this sodomy.
For one sweet moment I am whole.

Do unto others now what has been done to me
Do unto others now what has been done to you.

You're breathing so I guess you're still alive
even if signs seem to tell me otherwise.
Won't you come just a bit closer,
close enough so I can smell you.
I need you to feel this.
I need this to make me whole.
There's release in this sodomy.
For I am your witness that
blood and flesh can be trusted.
And only this one holy medium brings me piece of mind.

Got your hands bound, your head down,
your eyes closed.
You look so precious now.

( Show me something
Thought I could make it end
Thought I could wash the stains away
Thought I could break the circle if I
Slipped right into your skin
So sweet was your surrender
We have become one
I have become my terror
And you my precious lamb and martyr.) *

I have found some kind of temporary sanity in this
s:censored:, blood, and *** on my hands.

I've come round full circle.
My lamb and martyr, this will be over soon.
You look so precious.

In spite of the horrific theme of the song, the music and guitar is excellent:

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

Maynard and the claymation figure for the video:

[ABlairican Pie]

The lyrics borrow from his military code of honor:

Intolerance

I don't want to be hostile.
I don't want to be dismal.
But I don't want to rot in an apathetic existance either.
See
I want to believe you,
and I want to trust
and I want to have faith to put away the dagger.

But you lie, cheat, and steal.
And yet
I tolerate you.
Veil of virtue hung to hide your method
while I smile and laugh and dance
and sing your praise and glory.
Shroud of virtue hung to mask your stigma
as I smile and laugh and dance
and sing your glory
while you
lie, cheat, and steal.
How can I tolerate you.

Our guilt,our blame ,
I've been far too sympathetic.
Our blood, our fault.
I've been far too sympathetic.

I am not innocent.
You are not innocent.
No one is innocent.

I will no longer tolerate you
Even if I must go down beside you.
Because,
No one is innocent.

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[Cactus Jack]

Here was Weird Al completely in his element: on his takeoffs of popular alternative videos, he borrowed the Blind Melon bee-girl and clips from the Red Hot Chili Peppers videos for his hilarious version of "Give It Away":

Bedrock Anthem


Sometimes I feel
Like I need a vacation
Sometimes I feel
Like I wanna go
To the city of cavemen
The city of bedrock
I’d be a flinstone
Now I’ll tell you why...

Well, I’ve got I’ve got a woman named wilma
Well, I’ve got I’ve got a baby named pebbles
Well, I’ve got I’ve got a doggy named dino
We do a little bowling and we drink a little vino

Well, I’ve got a little buddy, barney rubble
Got a neighbor by the name of barney rubble
He’s a midget but he makes a lot of trouble
Doesn’t like to shave, he got caveman stubble

Me and barney, loyal order water buffalo
Lodge brothers, loyal order water buffalo
There’s a handshake everybody gotta know
How come grand poo-bah always gotta run the whole show?

Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
I get by on all my prehistoric knowhow

Betty and barney got a baby named bamm-bamm
Little pebbles is his number one fan
He’s the strongest toddler in the whole land
Tear your arm off if he shakes your hand

Got a car, gonna push it with my feel now
Gonna take my family out to eat now
Jumbo ribs at the drive-in can’t be beat now
Made from brontosaurus, baby, not a moo-cow

Wanna chill with a sabretooth tiger
Wear a loincloth, natural fiber
Be the first rolling stone subscriber
Got a pterodactyl for a windshield wiper

Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Don’t know what it means but I say it anyhow

Luck me, workin’ down in the gravel put
Movin’ rocks, on a big dinosaur I sit
Mr. slate gets mad and he throws a fit
Pull the birdie’s tail, everybody knows it’s time to quit

I realize I’m living in the stone age
No fax, no cellular phone-age
Pick my teeth with a dinosaur bone-age
Liftin’ heavy boulders every day for my wage

Barney rubble, laughin’ like a hyena
Barney rubble, what a little weiner
Where’s wilma? anybody seen her?
Got a baby elephant vacuum cleaner

Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now
Yabba dabba, yabba dabba dabba do now

:banana: :mango

Weird Al also released his Food Album, which featured previous hits like "Eat It", and "I'm Fat". :eat::rotflmao: Weird Al rocks da house

[ABlairican Pie]

One popular Seattle "grunge" band was Gruntruck, made up of former members of Skin Yard and The Accused. Their 1993 album was Push, which featured hits such as "Tribe," "Crazy Love", and "Machine Action." Their sound was a heavy, groovy din of psychedelic sludge, and their live shows featured a visual trip back into another era of peace, love, and brown M & M's.

[ABlairican Pie]

Gruntruck's earlier album Inside Yours featured a local hit, "Crucifunkin'", with the memorable chorus, "Get off your cross and dance!!"

[ABlairican Pie]

Gruntruck pic:

[ABlairican Pie]

Guitarist/vocalist Ben McMillan live:

[ABlairican Pie]

Other bands that aspired to the grunge throne were ones like Paw, a group from Lawrence, Kansas, whose album Dragline featured songs such as "Jessie" and "Couldn't Know." "Jessie" is a sad yet rocking song
about losing a beloved dog. :crying: It even contains slide guitar for a nice "country grunge" edge.

Jessie

Pet the dog, pet the dog, pet the dog
And, scratch my ear, scratch my ear, scratch my ear
Please play with me, play with me, play with me

Aw, but Jessie
It's cold outside
And I'm not comin' home
I don't know where I'll be
Oh, when the mornin' comes
And Jessie you're a good dog
Please don't follow me
Just go on home

I ran away
Dog tagged along
I lost the dog
Dog tagged along
I lost the dog
It broke my heart
Please stay with me, and play with me, stay with me

Aw, but Jessie
It's cold outside
And I'm not coming home
I don't know where I'll be
Oh, when the mornin' comes
And Jessie, you're a good dog
Please don't follow me
Just go on home
Just go on home
Jessie, don't follow me
Jessie, go on home

Aw, Jessie, you're a good dog, such a good dog
Yeah and Jessie, you're a good dog, such a good dog
Hey, Jessie, you're a good dog, such a good dog
Aw, Jessie, you're a good dog, such a good dog
Mmm, Jessie, you're a good dog, such a good dog
Jessie, you're a good dog, such a good dog

Go on home, boy

:rock: :guitar: :dog:

[ABlairican Pie]

Couldn't Know

Ah, the sun beats down
On my tan and my well-fed body
And the fishermen at the end of the pier
Strike a chord of curiosity
With their thick lines
Yeah, they've caught something big
And they asked me
Can I lend a hand?

Want you to see
What I, I could not see
I want you to know
What I, I could not know

They got the ropes down underneath her
And we started, to pull her up, as she
Started to abandon all her children
As she got along-side the pier
I stared into her one sad eye
And I, I began to dream

I want you to see
What I, I could not see
I want you to know
What I, I could not know
The most beautiful thing I'd ever seen
Oh she's, she's staring back at me

She, was eight feet long
And she weighed four hundred twenty pounds
And I'll name all her children
In hopes that they obtain
Some degree of her perfection
And it will take them all
Two years to hit the water

I want you to see
What I, I could not see
I want you to know
What I, I could not know

The most beautiful thing I'd ever seen
Oh she's staring back at me
And she's in my mind right now
Yeah, the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen

Alright, here's the rub
She, she's not comin'... back
Yeah, and that's why I sing this song

Hey, I could not know
What I got myself into
I could not see, what I'd become

I believe, I guess believing
Won't bring her on back
Yeah, take it away
Aw, everything
I'll sit on a ledge... outside
For the tenth time
Too wide
Don't wanna have to...

[ABlairican Pie]

Just as the Seattle grunge scene had hit its peak, a horrific tragedy had befallen the music community when Mia Zapata, lead singer for The Gits, was found murdered on the streets of Seattle's Central District late at night. Not only was she raped but also found strangled with the cord to the hoot of her jacket. Many close to her were not only devastated but wondered--why in the world would she go up to a very bad part of town late at night? While it may have been politically incorrect to suggest something "racist" in light of the fact that the section of town was populated by mainly people of color, the fact remained that it was not a very safe area for anyone, especially a young white woman. Was it drugs that drew her to the area? In any case, the killer remained at large and for years the crime remained unsolved. The Gits broke up, but Mia's legacy remained as many members of local bands such as 7 Year Bitch formed an organization and benefit album called Home Alive, which brought awareness to the plight of violence against women.

:crying:

[ABlairican Pie]

Mia with The Gits live:

[ABlairican Pie]

Home Alive was the organization and benefit album which raised awareness of violence against women, citing sobering statistics about the levels of brutality and rape against women and showing how they could protect themselves.

[ABlairican Pie]

One band that took the heavy edge out of alternative and took it back to more traditional rock and roll roots was Counting Crows, whose dread-haired frontman Adam Duritz attempted to write and play folksy rock and roll that would be more suitable in coffee houses than in cramped clubs and arenas. Their 1993 album August and Everything After featured the hit "Mr. Jones."

Mr. Jones

I was down at the New Amsterdam staring at this
yellow-haired girl
Mr. Jones strikes up a conversation with this black-
haired flamenco dancer
She dances while his father plays guitar
She's suddenly beautiful
We all want something beautiful
I wish I was beautiful
So come dance this silence down through the morning
Cut up, Maria! Show me some of them Spanish dances
Pass me a bottle, Mr. Jones
Believe in me
Help me believe in anything
I want to be someone who believes
Mr. Jones and me tell each other fairy tales
Stare at the beautiful women
"She's looking at you. Ah, no, no, she's looking at me."
Smiling in the bright lights
Coming through in stereo
When everybody loves you, you can never be lonely
I will paint my picture
Paint myself in blue and red and black and gray
All of the beautiful colors are very very meaningful
Gray is my favorite color
I felt so symbolic yesterday
If I knew Picasso
I would buy myself a gray guitar and play
Mr. Jones and me look into the future
Stare at the beautiful women
"She's looking at you.
I don't think so. She's looking at me."
Standing in the spotlight
I bought myself a gray guitar
When everybody loves me, I will never be lonely
I want to be a lion
Everybody wants to pass as cats
We all want to be big big stars, but we got different
reasons for that
Believe in me because I don't believe in anything
and I want to be someone to believe
Mr. Jones and me stumbling through the barrio
Yeah we stare at the beautiful women
"She's perfect for you, Man, there's got to be
somebody for me."
I want to be Bob Dylan
Mr. Jones wishes he was someone just a little more
funky
When everybody loves you, son, that's just about as
funky as you can be
Mr. Jones and me staring at the video
when I look at the television, I want to see me staring
right back at me
We all want to be big stars, but we don't know why
and we don't know how
But when everybody loves me, I'm going to be just
about as happy as I can be
Mr. Jones and me, we're gonna be big stars...

:guitar: :banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

The only problem with the success of Counting Crows is that it began a rash of pale imitators who sought to push alternative rock even further away from its heavy roots. The age of alternative lite was now beginning.

A Murder of One

Blue morning, Blue morning
Wrapped in strands of fist and bone.
Curiosity, Kitten, doesn't have to mean you're on your own.
Your can look outside your window,
He doesn't have to know.
We can talk a while, baby.
We can take it nice and slow.

All your life is such a shame, shame, shame.
All your love is just a dream, dream, dream.

Well, are you happy where you're sleepin'?
Does he keep you safe and warm?
Does he tell you when you're sorry?
Does he tell you when you're wrong?
I've been watching you for hours.
It's been years since we were born.
We were perfect when we started...
I've been wondering where we've gone.

All your life is such a shame, shame, shame.
All your love is just a dream, dream, dream.

Well, I dreamt I saw you walking up a hillside in the snow
Casting shadows on the winter sky as you stood there counting crows.
One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for girls and four for boys,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret never to be told.

There's a bird that nests inside you
Sleeping underneath your skin.
Yeah, when you open up your wings to speak
I wish you'd let me in.

All your life is such a shame, shame, shame.
All your love is just a dream, dream, dream.
Open up your eyes
You can see the flames, flames, flames.
of your wasted life.
You should be ashamed.

Yeah, you don't want to waste your life, baby.
You don't wanna waste your life, now darlin.
You don't wanna waste your life, baby.
You don't wanna waste your life, now darlin.
Oh, you don't wanna waste your life, now babe.
I said you don't wanna waste your life, now darlin.
Oh, you don't wanna waste your life, now baby.
Oh, you don't wanna, you don't wanna waste your life, now darlin.
Change, change, change.
Change.
Change.
Change.

I walk along these hillsides in the summer 'neath the sunshine.
I am feathered by the moonlight falling down on me.

I said I walk along these hillsides in the summer 'neath the sunshine.
I am feathered by the moonlight falling down on me.

I said I will walk along these hillsides in the summer 'neath the sunshine.
I am feathered by the moonlight falling down on me.

I said I will walk along these hillsides in the summer 'neath the sunshine.
I am feathered by the moonlight.

change, change, change.
change, change, change.
Yeah.
change, change, change.
Oh, change, change.
Y-y-y-y-y-yeah.
Change, change, change. (4X)

[Cactus Jack]

One band that took the heavy edge out of alternative and took it back to more traditional rock and roll roots was Counting Crows, whose dread-haired frontman Adam Duritz attempted to write and play folksy rock and roll that would be more suitable in coffee houses than in cramped clubs and arenas. Their 1993 album August and Everything After featured the hit "Mr. Jones."

Mr. Jones

I was down at the New Amsterdam staring at this
yellow-haired girl
Mr. Jones strikes up a conversation with this black-
haired flamenco dancer
She dances while his father plays guitar
She's suddenly beautiful
We all want something beautiful
I wish I was beautiful
So come dance this silence down through the morning
Cut up, Maria! Show me some of them Spanish dances
Pass me a bottle, Mr. Jones
Believe in me
Help me believe in anything
I want to be someone who believes
Mr. Jones and me tell each other fairy tales
Stare at the beautiful women
"She's looking at you. Ah, no, no, she's looking at me."
Smiling in the bright lights
Coming through in stereo
When everybody loves you, you can never be lonely
I will paint my picture
Paint myself in blue and red and black and gray
All of the beautiful colors are very very meaningful
Gray is my favorite color
I felt so symbolic yesterday
If I knew Picasso
I would buy myself a gray guitar and play
Mr. Jones and me look into the future
Stare at the beautiful women
"She's looking at you.
I don't think so. She's looking at me."
Standing in the spotlight
I bought myself a gray guitar
When everybody loves me, I will never be lonely
I want to be a lion
Everybody wants to pass as cats
We all want to be big big stars, but we got different
reasons for that
Believe in me because I don't believe in anything
and I want to be someone to believe
Mr. Jones and me stumbling through the barrio
Yeah we stare at the beautiful women
"She's perfect for you, Man, there's got to be
somebody for me."
I want to be Bob Dylan
Mr. Jones wishes he was someone just a little more
funky
When everybody loves you, son, that's just about as
funky as you can be
Mr. Jones and me staring at the video
when I look at the television, I want to see me staring
right back at me
We all want to be big stars, but we don't know why
and we don't know how
But when everybody loves me, I'm going to be just
about as happy as I can be
Mr. Jones and me, we're gonna be big stars...

:guitar: :banana: :mango

Did you know that people thought that song was about his you know what?

[ABlairican Pie]

Did you know that people thought that song was about his you know what? :lol: I did not know that!! :rotflmao: :banana:

[Cactus Jack]

:lol: I did not know that!! :rotflmao: :banana:
:D Yeah well that was the theory, but it's reallt about a friend of his :D

[ABlairican Pie]

Depeche Mode sank deeper into its "goth-y" depressing stage on Songs of Faith and Devotion which featured the techo hit "I Feel You." This was the beginning of a very dark period for the band, as lead vocalist David Gahan lapsed into heroin use. For a while, it remained to be seen if he would pull out of it. Heroin was apparently becoming the drug of choice among 90's musicians.

I Feel You

I feel you
Your sun it shines
I feel you
Within my mind
You take me there
You take me where
The kingdom comes
You take me to
And lead me through
Babylon

This is the morning of our love
It’s just the dawning of our love

I feel you
Your heart it sings
I feel you
The joy it brings
Where heaven waits
Those golden gates
And back again
You take me to
And lead me through
Oblivion

This is the morning of our love
It’s just the dawning of our love

I feel you
Your precious soul
And I am whole
I feel you
Your rising sun
My kingdom comes

I feel you
Each move you make
I feel you
Each breath you take
Where angels sing
And spread their wings
My love’s on high
You take me home
To glory’s throne
By and by

This is the morning of our love
It’s just the dawning of our love

[ABlairican Pie]

Duran Duran began a comeback of sorts, after being dismissed from the spotlight for several years, with their 1993 release Wedding Album, which featured band members' parents in wedding photos. The album featured a decent soft hit, "Ordinary World."

Ordinary World

Came in from a rainy Thursday
On the avenue
Thought I heard you talking softly

I turned on the lights, the TV
And the radio
Still I can't escape the ghost of you

What has happened to it all?
Crazy, some are saying
Where is the life that I recognize?
Gone away

But I won't cry for yesterday
There's an ordinary world
Somehow I have to find
And as I try to make my way
To the ordinary world
I will learn to survive

Passion or coincidence
Once prompted you to say
"Pride will tear us both apart"
Well now pride's gone out the window
Cross the rooftops
Run away
Left me in the vacuum of my heart

What is happening to me?
Crazy, some'd say
Where is my friend when I need you most?
Gone away

But I won't cry for yesterday
There's an ordinary world
Somehow I have to find
And as I try to make my way
To the ordinary world
I will learn to survive

Papers in the roadside
Tell of suffering and greed
Here today, forgot tomorrow
Ooh, here besides the news
Of holy war and holy need
Ours is just a little sorrowed talk

And I don't cry for yesterday
There's an ordinary world
Somehow I have to find
And as I try to make my way
To the ordinary world
I will learn to survive

Every one
Is my world, I will learn to survive
Any one
Is my world, I will learn to survive
Any one
Is my world
Every one
Is my world

[ABlairican Pie]

On the less serious side of alternative, Flaming Lips were one band from down South that impressed everyone with its high-pitched vocals, garage-y guitars and cheesy sense of weirdness on songs such as "Plastic Jesus", "Oh My Pregnant Head", and their big hit everyone knows the words to, "She Don't Use Jelly."

She Don't Use Jelly

I know a girl who thinks of ghosts
She’ll make ya breakfast
She’ll make ya toast
She don’t use butter
She don’t use cheese
She don’t use jelly
Or any of these
She uses vaseline
Vaseline
Vaseline

I know a guy who goes to shows
When he’s at home and he blows his nose
He don’t use tissues or his sleeve
He don’t use napkins or any of these
He uses magazines
Magazines
Magazines
Magazines
Magazines

I know a girl who reminds me of cher
(reminds me of cher)
She’s always changing
(she’s always changing)
The color of her hair
(color of her hair)
She don’t use nothing
That ya buy at the store
She likes her hair to be real orange
She uses tangerines
Tangerines
Tangerines
Tangerines
Tangerines
Tangerines

:guitar: :banana: :mango peace:

[ABlairican Pie]

Band Pic:

[ABlairican Pie]

Former Sugar Cubes vocalist Bjork became the first Icelandic superstar with the release of her first solo album Debut, which featured
an interesting set of danceable electronica tracks such as "Human Behavior."

Human Behavior

If you ever get close to a human
And human behaviour
Be ready to get confused

There's definitely no logic
To human behaviour
But yet so irristible

There's no map
To human behaviour

They're terribly moody
Then all of a sudden turn happy
But, oh, to get involved in the exchange
Of human emotions is ever so satisfying

There's no map
And a compass
Wouldn't help at all

Human behaviour

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

One extreme alternative band that refused to be co-opted by the lure of big bucks was Fugazi, fronted by the former guitarist of 80's punk band Minor Threat, Ian McKay. The band took its name from the military acronym "F***ked Up, Got Ambushed, Zipped Up", and were big Washington D.C. favorites since the late 80's. Fugazi were known for their low-price shows and merchandise, as well as their intense brand of emotionally driven post-punk which would later be known as emo-core, or "screamo." Their 1993 album was In For the Kill Taker.

Last Chance For a Slow Dance

Coughing inside your coffin
like at the bottom of the sea
inside you're breathing
too numb for asking
so I will leave it outside your door
warning the threat of morning that just extends you another day
some lights were shining
not much for seeing
but you'll be leaving the way you came
shot shooting shot shot shot
shooting yourself again for what
to taste all the waste
flare fakes a flower
a burnt-out shower
no one can see
you were needing too shy for asking
so I will leave it ouside your door
pulse stalls uncut but clotted
when you had thought it would force a flow
some lights were shining
not much for seeing
but you belivee in the way you came

[ABlairican Pie]

Ian McKay live:

[Steve M.]

After keeping his fans waiting eleven years for another album - a record that hopefully will stand (although John Fogerty would tie it in 1997), Steely Dan's Donald Faigen finally released his second solo album, Kamakiriad.

http://www.oursimplejoys.com/music/kamakiriad.jpg

The record was a concept album about going for a ride in a futuristic vehicle in a George Jetsonesque world. Or something like that. Anyway, Kamakiriad produced a hit with "Tomorrow's Girls," and it featured other typical Faigen tunes such as "Teahouse On the Tracks." But the real news for Steely Dan fans in 1993 was that Faigen and Walter Becker would reunite to play their first concerts in nineteen years! party:

[Steve M.]

Sadly, there was some bad news as well as good for progressive rock fans. Frank Zappa, a prolific performer, an ace guitarist, and an acerbic rock satirist, lost his battle with cancer just short of his 53rd birthday. :(

http://www.play.com/covers/114676m.jpg

Zappa's final album was The Yellow Shark, an album of piano duets, string pieces, and miniature ballets performed with the Ensemble Modern. It remained on the classic charts for yearly a year, providing an anticlamactic swan song for Zappa's career.

[Steve M.]

David Crosby, on the rebound after getting out of prison and kicking cocaine, released his third solo album, Thousand Roads, in 1993.

http://www.ubidubium.net/Personal/Recommendations/Playlists/album_art/Thousand_Roads.PNG

The title song was a quirky tune, one of those Crosby songs that made the listener ask "What the hell is the Cros talkin' about?" But the album was noteworthy in greater part because it produced Crosby's first big hit outside the Byrds and CSN - "Hero," a hypnotic ballad featuring help from Phil Collins.

[ABlairican Pie]

In between Dirt and their upcoming studio album, Alice in Chains released another acoustic EP, Jar of Flies, which became the most successful EP of all time. The band focused more on their softer, acoustic side and still came out with a superior album with songs that were both dark, sad, poignant and joyous.

The acoustic tone of this song is haunting and riveting, coupled with electric guitar featuring two of Jerry Cantrell's favorite devices, the "wah" pedal and talk box. Clearly one of their best.

Rotten Apple

Hey Ah Na Na
Innocence is over
Hey Ah Na Na
Over
Hey Ah Na Na
Ignorance is spoken
Hey Ah Na Na
Spoken
Hey Ah Na Na
Confidence is broken
Hey Ah Na Na
Broken
Hey Ah Na Na
Sustenance is stolen
Hey Ah Na Na
Stolen
Hey Ah Na Na
Arrogance is potent
Hey Ah Na Na
Potent, yeah
What I see is unreal
I've written my own part
Eat of the apple, so young
I'm crawling back to start
Hey Ah Na Na
I repent tomorrow
Hey Ah Na Na
Tomorrow
Hey Ah Na Na
I suspend my sorrow
Hey Ah Na Na
Sorrow, yeah
What I see is unreal
I've written my own part
Eat of the apple, so young
I'm crawling back to start
Hey Ah Na Na
A romance is fallen
Hey Ah Na Na
Fallen
Hey Ah Na Na
Recommend you borrow
Hey Ah Na Na
Borrow, yeah
What I see is unreal
I've written my own part
Eat of the apple, so young
I'm crawling back to start
Hey Ah Na Na (4x)

[ABlairican Pie]

Here is a surpisingly light-hearted track with bittersweet lyrics. Another one of their best:

Don't Follow

Hey, I ain't never coming home
Hey, I'll just wander my own road
Hey, I can't meet you here tomorrow
Say goodbye don't follow
Misery so hollow
Hey you, you're livin' life full throttle
Hey you, pass me down that bottle, yeah
Hey you, you can't shake me round now
I get so lost and don't know how, yeah
And it hurts to care, I'm going down
Forgot my woman, lost my friends
Things I'd done and where I've been
Sleep in sweat the mirrors cold
See my face it's growin' old
Scared to death no reason why
Do whatever to get me by
Think about the things I said
Read the page it's cold and dead
Take me home (5x)
Say goodbye Don't follow

A 1993 Rip magazine, and new bassist recruited from Ozzy's band, Mike Inez:

[ABlairican Pie]

Here is one of their biggest songs from the album. The stanzas are written in an odd fashion:

I Stay Away

Yeah, I want to travel south this year
Aaah, Woah, Woah
Won't prevent safe passage here

Why you act crazy
Not an act maybe
So close a lady
Shifty eyes shady

Yeah, hey Yeah, tears that soak
A callous heart
Why you act frightened
I am enlightened
Your weakness builds me
So someday you'll see

I stay away

Why you act crazy
Not an act maybe
So close a lady
Shifty eyes shady
I stay away (4x)

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Another one of the big sogns on the album:

No Excuses

It's alright
There comes a time
Got no patience to search
For peace of mind
Layin' low
Want to take it slow
No more hiding or
Disguising truths I've sold
Everyday it's something
Hits me all so cold
Find me sittin' by myself
No excuses, then I know
It's okay
Had a bad day
Hands are bruised from
Breaking rocks all day
Drained and blue
I bleed for you
You think it's funny, well
You're drowning in it too
Everyday it's something
Hits me all so cold
Find me sittin' by myself
No excuses, then I know
Yeah, it's fine
We'll walk down the line
Leave our rain, a cold
Trade for warm sunshine
You my friend
I will defend
And if we change, well I
Love you anyway
Everyday it's something
Hits me all so cold
Find me sittin' by myself
No excuses, then I know

[ABlairican Pie]

Continuing on in the electronica dace vein of the highly successful Achtung Baby, U2 released Zooropa, which coincided with their major Zoo TV tour. The standout track was one sung by The Edge in a drony monotone called "Numb", which featured a video where he sat stoically singing while people tried in vain to distract him by doing such acts as kissing and licking his face, posing with him and flashing a camera in his face, wrapping a rope around him, etc. It was a very entertaining video and song, something very different for the band.

Numb

Don't move
Don't talk out of time
Don't think
Don't worry
Everything's just fine
Just fine
Don't grab
Don't clutch
Don't hope for too much
Don't breathe
Don't achieve
Or grieve without leave

Don't check
Just balance on the fence
Don't answer
Don't ask
Don't try and make sense

Don't whisper
Don't talk
Don't run if you can walk
Don't cheat, compete
Don't miss the one beat

Don't travel by train
Don't eat
Don't spill
Don't piss in the drain
Don't make a will

Don't fill out any forms
Don't compensate
Don't cower
Don't crawl
Don't come around late
Don't hover at the gate

Don't take it on board
Don't fall on your sword
Just play another chord
If you feel you're getting bored

enough

Don't change your brand
Don't listen to the band
Don't gape
get
Don't ape
Don't change your shape
Have another grape

enough

Don't plead
Don't bridle
Don't shackle
Don't grind
Don't curve
Don't swerve
Lie, die, serve
Don't theorize, realise, polarise
Chance, dance,dismiss, apologise

get

enough
Don't spy
Don't lie
Don't try
Imply
Detain
Explain
Start again

Don't triumph
Don't coax
Don't cling
Don't hoax
Don't freak
Peak
Don't leak
Don't speak

Don't project
Don't connect
Protect
Don't expect
Suggest

Don't project
Don't connect
Protect
Don't expect
Suggest

Don't struggle
Don't jerk
Don't collar
Don't work
Don't wish
Don't fish
Don't teach
Don't reach

Don't borrow
enough
Don't break
Don't fence
Don't steal
Don't pass
Don't press
Don't try
Don't feel

Don't touch
Don't dive
Don't suffer
Don't rhyme
Don't fantasize
Don't rise
Don't lie
Don't project
Don't connect
Protect
Don't expect
Suggest

Don't project
Don't connect
Protect
Don't expect
Suggest


:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

The other standout track was the danceable "Lemon", with Bono singing. The video was a unique splash of black and white images with captions below describing what was being displayed above. Bono even looked very campy in the video.

Lemon

Lemon
See through in the sunlight
She wore lemon
But never in the daylight
She's gonna make you cry
She's gonna make you whisper and moan
And when you're dry
She draws her water from the stone
And I feel
Like I'm slowly, slowly, slowly slipping under
And I feel
Like I'm holding onto nothing

She wore lemon
To colour in the cold grey night
She had heaven
And she held on so tight

A man makes a picture
A moving picture
Through the light projected
He can see himself up close
A man captures colour
A man likes to stare
He turns his money into light to look for her

And I feel
Like I'm drifting, drifting, drifting from the shore
And I feel
Like I'm swimming out to her

Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins

Lemon
See through in the sunlight

A man builds a city
With banks and cathedrals
A man melts the sand so he can
See the world outside
her there
A man makes a car
destination
And builds roads to run them on
A man dreams of leaving
But he always stays behind

And these are the days
When our work has come assunder
And these are the days
When we look for something other

Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins

Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins
Midnight is where the day begins

A man makes a picture
A moving picture
Through the light projected
He can see himself up close
her there
A man captures colour
destination
A man likes to stare
there
He turns his money into light
To look for her
She is the dreamer
She's imagination
Through the light projected

:banana: :mango

Clip of "Numb":

[ABlairican Pie]

Zooropa actually became the band's most adventurous album and tour as well.
The band was awash in ritual technology abuse and video overkill, a bold statement on the Information Age and cultural enslavement. It was very different for many fans, but a musical treat for people willing to expand their musical boundaries.

Zooropa

(what do you want?)
(what do you want?)
Zooropa...vorsprung durch technik (a step ahead through technology)
Zooropa...be all that you can be
Be a winner
Eat to get slimmer

Zooropa...a bluer kind of white
Zooropa...it could be yours tonight
We're mild and green
And squeaky clean

Zooropa...better by design
Zooropa...fly the friendly skies
Through appliance of science
We've got that ring of confidence

And I have no compass
And I have no map
And I have no reasons
No reasons to get back

And I have no religion
And I don't know what's what
And I don't know the limit
The limit of what we've got

Don't worry baby, it'll be alright
You got the right shoes
To get you through the night
It's cold outside, but brightly lit
Skip the subway
Let's go to the overground
Get your head out of the mud baby
Put flowers in the mud baby
Overground

No particular place names
No particular song
I've been hiding
What am I hiding from

Don't worry baby, it's gonna be alright
Uncertainty can be a guiding light
I hear voices, ridiculous voices
Out in the slipstream
Let's go, let's go overground
Take your head out of the mud baby

She's gonna dream up
The world she wants to live in
She's gonna dream out loud
She's gonna dream out loud

[ABlairican Pie]

The band also covered Johnny Cash in the song, "The Wanderer":

The Wanderer

I went out walking
Through streets paved with gold
Lifted some stones
Saw the skin and bones
Of a city without a soul
I went out walking
Under an atomic sky
Where the ground won't turn
And the rain it burns
Like the tears when I said goodbye
Yeah I went with nothing
Nothing but the thought of you
I went wandering

I went drifting
Through the capitals of tin
Where men can't walk
Or freely talk
And sons turn their fathers in
I stopped outside a church house
Where the citizens like to sit
They say they want the kingdom
But they don't want God in it

I went out riding
Down that old eight lane
I passed by a thousand signs
Looking for my own name

I went with nothing
But the thought you'd be there too
Looking for you

I went out there
In search of experience
To taste and to touch
And to feel as much
As a man can
Before he repents

I went out searching
Looking for one good man
A spirit who would not bend or break
Who would sit at his father's right hand
I went out walking
With a bible and a gun
The word of God lay heavy on my heart
I was sure I was the one
Now Jesus, don't you wait up
Jesus, I'll be home soon
Yeah I went out for the papers
Told her I'd be back by noon

Yeah I left with nothing
But the thought you'd be there too
Looking for you

Yeah I left with nothing
Nothing but the thought of you

[ABlairican Pie]

The band's outlandish video-Vegas style tour was the biggest in the world. Bono looked more and more like a jaded rock star, and in his interviews he seemed to be moving away from the "serious" cowboy preacher stance from several years before. He was known to say that everyone should be filled with the Holy Spirit, "but a bottle of whiskey comes in handy now and then." People were appalled by Bono's comments and persona. Which was precisely why he made them--he was tired of being taken too literally.

Daddy's Gonna Pay For Your Crashed Car

You're a precious stone
You're out on your own
You know everyone in the world
But you feel alone
Daddy won't let you weep
Daddy won't let you ache
Daddy gives you as much as you can take
A-ha sha-la, a-ha sha-la
Daddy's gonna pay for your crashed car
A little uptight
You're a baby's fist
Butterfly kisses up and down your wrist
When you see daddy coming
You're licking your lip
Nails bitten down to the quick
A-ha sha-la, a-ha sha-la
Daddy's gonna pay for your crashed car
Daddy's gonna pay for your crashed car

You've got a head full of traffic
You're a siren's song
You cry for mama
And daddy's right along
He gives you the keys to a flamin' car
Daddy's with you wherever you are
Daddy's a comfort
Daddy's your best friend
Daddy'll hold your hand right up to the end
A-ha sha-la, a-ha sha-la
Daddy's gonna pay for your crashed car
Daddy's gonna pay for your crashed car

Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday's
Alright.

[ABlairican Pie]

As Steve mentioned, on December 5th, 1993, Frank Zappa died from prostate cancer at the age of 53. Perhaps his incessant smoking had something to do with it. He was an unrepentant smoker who regarded cigarettes as food. But regardless, he was one of the most accomplished musicians who ever lived, with a tremendous outpouring of albums, and was one of the most outspoken musical satirists in music who never failed to stir up controversy. He managed to run afoul of the law, politicians and preachers throughout his career, constantly accused of disseminating "obscenity".

Here is one of his earlier hits with The Mothers of Invention in the 60's:

Trouble Every Day

Well I'm about to get sick
From watchin' my TV
Been checkin' out the news
Until my eyeballs fail to see
I mean to say that every day
Is just another rotten mess
And when it's gonna change, my friend
Is anybody's guess

So I'm watchin' and I'm waitin'
Hopin' for the best
Even think I'll go to prayin'
Every time I hear 'em sayin'
That there's no way to delay
That trouble comin' every day
No way to delay
That trouble comin' every day

Wednesday I watched the riot . . .
Seen the cops out on the street
Watched 'em throwin' rocks and stuff
And chokin' in the heat
Listened to reports
About the whisky passin' 'round
Seen the smoke and fire
And the market burnin' down
Watched while everybody
On his street would take a turn
To stomp and smash and bash and crash
And slash and bust and burn

And I'm watchin' and I'm waitin'
Hopin' for the best
Even think I'll go to prayin'
Every time I hear 'em sayin'
That there's no way to delay
That trouble comin' every day
No way to delay
That trouble comin' every day

Well, you can cool it,
You can heat it . . .
'Cause, baby, I don't need it . . .
Take your TV tube and eat it
'N all that phony stuff on sports
'N all the unconfirmed reports
You know I watched that rotten box
Until my head begin to hurt
From checkin' out the way
The newsman say they get the dirt
Before the guys on channel so-and-so

And further they assert
That any show they'll interrupt
To bring you news if it comes up
They say that if the place blows up
They will be the first to tell,
Because the boys they got downtown
Are workin' hard and doin' swell,
And if anybody gets the news
Before it hits the street,
They say that no one blabs it faster
Their coverage can't be beat

And if another woman driver
Gets machine-gunned from her seat
They'll send some joker with a brownie
And you'll see it all complete

So I'm watchin' and I'm waitin'
Hopin' for the best
Even think I'll go to prayin'
Every time I hear 'em sayin'
That there's no way to delay
That trouble comin' every day
No way to delay
That trouble comin' every day

Hey, you know something people?
I'm not black
But there's a whole lots a times
I wish I could say I'm not white

Well, I seen the fires burnin'
And the local people turnin'
On the merchants and the shops
Who used to sell their brooms and mops
And every other household item
Watched the mob just turn and bite 'em
And they say it served 'em right
Because a few of them are white,
And it's the same across the nation
Black and white discrimination
Yellin' "You can't understand me!"
'N all that other jazz they hand me
In the papers and TV and
All that mass stupidity
That seems to grow more every day
Each time you hear some nitwit say
He wants to go and do you in
Because the color of your skin
Just don't appeal to him
(No matter if it's black or white)
Because he's out for blood tonight

You know we got to sit around at home
And watch this thing begin
But I bet there won't be many live
To see it really end
'Cause the fire in the street
Ain't like the fire in the heart
And in the eyes of all these people
Don't you know that this could start
On any street in any town
In any state if any clown
Decides that now's the time to fight
For some ideal he thinks is right
And if a million more agree
There ain't no Great Society
As it applies to you and me
Our country isn't free
And the law refuses to see
If all that you can ever be
Is just a lousy janitor
Unless your uncle owns a store
You know that five in every four
Just won't amount to nothin' more
Gonna watch the rats go across the floor
And make up songs about being poor

Blow your harmonica, son!

peace:

[ABlairican Pie]

Originally a drummer in the 50's, Zappa became a guitarist fronting the band he originally called The Mothers, but when the name became too suggestive to the record company, he re-dubbed it The Mothers of Invention. But there the controversy didn't stop. He was arrested for alleged "obscenity" when he recorded a girl suggestively moaning and put it on a record. He spent a few days in jail, which began his drive to fight the forces of censorship. His music was also rather bizarre as well. But he was a person who bowed to no one.

Who Are the Brain Police?

Aahh ah ahahahaaa, aahh ah ahahahaaa
What will you do if we let you go home,
And the plastic's all melted,
And so is the chrome?
WHO ARE THE BRAIN POLICE?

Aahh ah ahahahaaa, aahh ah ahahahaaa
What will you do when the label comes off,
And the plastic's all melted,
And the chrome is too soft?

Aaahhh!

Think I'm very tired and I'm going to die
I think I'm going to die, I think I'm going to die
WHO ARE THE BRAIN POLICE?

Aahh ah ahahahaaa, aahh ah ahahahaaa
What will you do if the people you knew
Were the plastic that melted,
And the chromium too?
WHO ARE THE BRAIN POLICE?

Freak Out, from 1966:

[ABlairican Pie]

His 1967 album Absolutely Free featured tracks such as "Brown Shoes Don't Make It", "Plastic People", "The Duke of Prunes", "The Invocation and Ritual of the Young Pumpkin", and "Son of Suzy Creamcheese." Many food references showed up in his song titles.

Brown Shoes Don't Make It

Brown shoes don't make it
Brown shoes don't make it
Quit school, why fake it?
Brown shoes don't make it?
TV dinner by the pool
Watch your brother grow a beard
Got another year of school
You're OK, he's too weird
Be a plumber He's a bummer
He's a bummer every summer
Be a loyal plastic robot
For a world that doesn't care
Smile at every ugly
Shine on your shoes and cut your hair
Be a jerk and go to work Be a jerk and go to work
Be a jerk and go to work Be a jerk and go to work
Do your job, and do it right
Life's a ball! (TV tonight!)
Do you love it, do you hate it?
There it is, the way you made it (WOOOooow)

A world of secret hungers,
Perverting the men who make your laws
Every desire is hidden away,
In drawer, in a desk,
By a Naughahyde chair
On a rug where they walk and drool
Past the girls in the office

You see in the back, of the cynical mind
The dream of a girl about thirteen
Off with her clothes and into a bed,
Where she tickles his fancy all night long

His wife's attending an orchid show
She squealed for a week to get him to go
But back in the bed his teenage Queen
Is rocking and rolling and acting obscene
Baby! Baby! Baby! Baby!

And he loves it! He loves it! It curls up his toes!
She bites his fat neck, And it lights up his nose,
But he cannot be fooled, Old City Hall Fred,
She's nasty, she's nasty, She digs it in bed!

Do it again, and do it some more!
That does it, by golly, it's nasty for sure!
Nasty-nasty-nasty! Nasty-nasty-nasty!
(Only thirteen, and she knows how to NASTY)

She's a dirty young mind. Corrupted, corroded...
Well she's thirteen today, And I hear she gets loaded

If she were my daughter I'd...
What would you do, Daddy?
If she were my daughter I'd...
What would you do, Daddy?
If she were my daughter I'd...
What would you do, Daddy?
Smother my daughter in chocolate syrup,
And strap her on again, Oh baby!
Smother that girl in chocolate syrup,
And strap her on again!
She's a Teenage Baby, and she turns me on,
I'd like to make Her do a nasty
On the White House Lawn!
Going to smother that daughter in chocolate syrup,
And boogie till the cows come home!

Time to go home, Madge is on the phone
Gotta meet the Guerneys And a dozen gray attorneys
TV dinner by the pool I'm so glad I finished school
Life is such a ball I run the world from City Hall

[ABlairican Pie]

Plastic People

Ladies and Gentlemen...
The President of the United States!
"Fella Americans...Doot, Doot, Doot..."
He's been sick!--Doot! Doot!
And I think his wife is gonna bring him
Some chicken soap
Plastic people!
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag

I know it's hard to defend an unpopular policy
Every once in a while--

Plastic people!
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag

And there's this guy from the CIA he's creepin'
Around Laurel Canyon
A fine little girl She waits for me
She's as plastic as she can be
She paints her face With plastic goo
And wrecks her hair With some shampoo

Plastic people
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag

"I dunno...sometimes I just get tired
Of ya honey--it's...ah..your
Hair spray...or something..."

Plastic people
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag

"I hear the sound of marching feet...
down Sunset Boulevard to Crescent Heights
...and there...at Pandora's box...
We are confronted with...a vast
Quantity of...Plastic people..."
Take a day and walk around
Watch the Nazi's Run your town
Then go home and check yourself
You think we're singing
'Bout someone else

But you're Plastic people
Oh, Baby, now
You're such a drag

Me see a neon Moon above
I searched for years I found no love
I'm sure that love Will never be
A product of Plasticity
A product of Plasticity
PLASTIC, PLASTIC PEOPLE--PLA-HA-HA-HA
HA-PLASTIC--You are--your foot--your hair
--your nose--your arms--you suck--you love
--you are--your being is--you're plastic--blah
--blah--blah--blah plastic Peoples
-A prune is not a vegetable
--cabbage is a vegetable; makes it O.K.
--plastic people--plastic People
--you dream about...you think about...you eat
...you are...Ooo-Hoo-Hoo...
purple prancing--plastic People-
Pee-Pee-Pee-Pee-Pee-Peep!

[ABlairican Pie]

In the fall of 1967, he released the first of one of his more orchestral works, Lumpy Gravy, a two-song album which featured over fifteen minutes of a bizarre epic work. Zappa was a very versatile musician.

Lumpy Gravy I

Theme
The way I see it, Barry, This should be a dynamite show.

Orchestral


Surf Music
Bit of nostalga for the old folks

Dialogue
I'm advocating dark clothes
If I'm not alone
How long have I been asleep
As long as I have
Did you ever live in a drum?
No
Well then you aren't me
I only dreamed I lived in a drum
Ever since it got dark
Dreaming is hard
Yea, but with nothing over your head?
No just light over my head and underneath too
I don't think I could take it without anything over my head
M-M - ???
Well why don't you go out and see what's out there?
Well I don't know if that's what's out there.
That's a thought, if you'd like
Yes but still you can say darker and darker
I don't know what the outside of this thing looks like at all
I knew it's dark and murky
How do you get your water so dark?
Cause I'm paranoid
I'm very paranoid and the water in my washing machine turns dark out
of sympathy
Out of sympathy?
Yes
Um where can I get that?
At your local drug store
How much?
It's from Kansas

Dixieland Music


Effects
Bored out .90 over with 3 strong burt 97ths

Car Dialogue
Almost chinese huh yeah.
Good bread, cause I was making um $2.71 an hour
I keep switching girls all the time because if i'm able to find a girl with really a groovy car that I can build up, man, I'll go steady with her for awhile until I can build up her car and blow out the engine.

Orchestral (sped up)


Orchestral (1)


Dialogue
I worked in a cheesy newspaper company for awhile but that was terrible, I wasn't making enough money to build anything
Louie Louie
And then I worked in a printing company and a couple of gas stations. Oh at the gas station where I was working my brother had just gotten married and uh, he bought a new car and his wife was having a kid and all this miserable stuff and he needed a job so I gave him a job at the gas station of which I was fired because, you know, he was going to work there. And he had his car on the rack and he was lubing it and changing tires and everything all the time. And so then he got fired because he was goofing off, man, and he just kept taking parts and working on his car day and night. So he lost that job and I went to work in another gas station. He took that one, you know, so he could feed the kids and that. Then I went to work in a aircraft company, and uh, I was building these planes. I worked on the XB-70, I was the last welder on there. Yea but, It was pretty good bread because I was making um, $2.71 an hour. I was making a hundred and a quarter a week, and uh, yea it was good enough money to be working on so i got an Oldsmobile, a groovy Olds. But I was going with this chick at the time. By the time I got the olds running decently, she went out and tore up the engine, and the trans and let her girlfriends get in there and booze it up and tare up the seats. They ripped the seats completely out. So uh, I got a '56 olds, which was this one chick I was going with, and uh we used to drive out all over the place and finally she got rid of that and uh, I got another pickup.

Fast Rock


Sound Effects


Sped Up Drums


Orchestral
Oh man, I don't know if I can go through this again.

Orchestral (1)


Orchestral (sped up)


Sound Effects


Percussion,Orchestra

[ABlairican Pie]

Lumpy Gravy II

Very Distraughtening
Ah, that one again.
It's a little pig with wings.
I hear you've been having trouble with pigs and ponies!
It's very distraughtening.

Everything in the universe is, is, is made of one element,
which is a note, a single note.
Atoms are really vibrations, you know.
With your extensions of the BIG NOTE, everything's one note.
Everything, even the ponies.
The note, however, is the ultimate power,
but see the pigs don't know that,
the ponies don't know that.

You mean just we know that?

RIGHT!

Merry-go-round, Merry-go-round,
tu-tu-tu-tu tu-tu-tu tu-tu-tu

And they call that doing their thing.
Oh yeah? That's what doing your thing is!
The thing is to put a motor in yourself.

White Ugliness
Arf arf arf!

I whipped the teeth out.
I had to fight back and hit 'em, like..., you know...,
hit 'em and hit 'em and hit 'em and kick 'em and kick 'em.
Did he get on top of you?
No, I fought so back, hard back and...
Hard back?
White!
White?
Yeah, white ugliness.
Did it have teeth?
And it was two, it was two boogiemen along the side of 'em.
I really bunked into 'em.
I had to, I had to kick,
I had to fight to four or five boogiemen in front of me...
Well, maybe he can turn into...
One of 'em could maybe be, uh killed.
Yes, but I've heard these ponies are really vicious.
I know, but, I know they're vicious, but I...
These claws!
He doesn't have people doing it.
They get on top of you and they just tear you apart.
I know...
But I hope they don't get 'em.

Ponies...if, if, if...
Was it white? 're you sure?...it wasn't white,
I mean uh...black, uh...
But I was too scared to notice their physical...
...gold or something...
...I was too, I was too scared to no-no-no-notice their physical,
ah, appearance, 'cause they...they...they were attackin' me!
They were?
They were attackin' me.
What were they doin' to you?
They were, they were, they were come and surrounding me
and attackin' me and I had to fight back and fight,
fight and fight back and pick up sticks.
Pick up sticks?
Yes, pick up sticks.
I used to play that game, Pick Up Sticks.
Me too, did you ever play that game?
Yeah! That's funny! Ha Ha Ha!

Now anyway, yes, pony, or president, or popes, I don't know.
Something out there is dangerous.
Could be a cigar or somethin'
A cigar!
A cigar? No, you're insane, come on!
No no.
I remember when I was ah, well, I don't remember.
Those were the days!
That was before the days it will forces.
Yes, before the days ah eh, ponies or boogiemen or somethin'.
What's out there?
But then it was a...what was it then?
Newspapers.
Noooo...
Sure!
Positive.
You had to have 'em.
No no no...
You've got one right in your nose right now!
Hah hah hah!

Zzzzzzz, scratchin' 'em...
Well, I'm gettin' tired...
We should, we should go to sleep...
I just hope he comes back...
I think I'll pray for him...
I think I'll join you...
You do yours and I'll do mine...
OK

Ha Ha Ha!

We hope for the best.

Ha Ha Ha!

(Alfred Motorhead).

Now I lay me down to sleep.
Amen!

Amen


Just One More Time
Oh yeah!
That's just fine!
Come on boys!
Just one more time!

I think I can explain about how the pigs music works.
Well, this should be interesting.
Remember that they make music with a very dense light.
And remember about the smoke standing still and how they,
they really get up tight,
when you try to move the smoke, right?
Right...
Yeah...
I think the music in that dense light
is probably what makes the smoke stand still.
Any sort of motion has its effect on, on the pony's manes.
You know, the thing on their neck.
Hmm...
As soon as the pony's manes starts to get good in the back,
any sort of, like motion, especially of smoke or gas,
begins to make the end split.
That's the basis of all their nationalism,
like if they can't salute the smoke every morning
when they get up.
Yeah, it's a vicious circle, you got it!

A Vicious Circle
Pony!

King Kong


Drums Are Too Noisy
Drums are too noisy, you've got no corners to hide in.

So when she's beating him over the nose with a tire iron
and then we both jump away and disappear
and the pig will turn around and there'll be this pony.
Oh no man: kangaroos!

Kangaroos
And then they eat it when they get hungry.
If it's still alive.

Envelops The Bath Tub
'Cause round things are... are boring...

Take Your Clothes Off

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1968, the band released We're Only In It For the Money, which caused a few legal problems with The Beatles for having a cover resembling the Seargent Pepper album. They quickly changed it to something more suitable. Clearly The Mothers were not buying into the happy hippie themes of the time.

The album featured short tracks including "Are You Hung Up?", "Who Needs the Peace Corps?", "Concentration Moon", "Harry, You're a Beast", "What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body?", "Flower Punk", "Hot Poop", "Nasal Retentive Calliope Music", "Let's Make the Water Turn Black", "Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance", and "The Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny."

Who Needs the Peace Corps?

What's there to live for?
Who needs the peace corps?

Think I'll just DROP OUT
I'll go to Frisco
Buy a wig & sleep
On Owsley's floor

Walked past the wig store
Danced at the Fillmore
I'm completely stoned
I'm hippy & I'm trippy
I'm a gypsy on my own
I'll stay a week & get the crabs &
Take a bus back home
I'm really just a phony
But forgive me
'Cause I'm stoned

Every town must have a place
Where phony hippies meet
Psychedelic dungeons
Popping up every street
GO TO SAN FRANCISCO

How I love ya, How I love ya
How I love ya, How I love ya Frisco!
How I love ya, How I love ya
How I love ya, How I love ya
Oh, my hair is getting good in the back! Every town must have a place
Where phony hippies meet
Psychedelic dungeons
Popping up on every street
GO TO SAN FRANCISCO...

Hotcha!

First I'll buy some beads
And then perhaps a leather band
To go around my head
Some feathers and bells
And a book of Indian lure
I will ask the Chamber Of Commerce
How to get to Height Street
And smoke an awful lot of dope

I will wander around barefoot
I will have a psychedelic gleam in my eye at all times
I will love everyone
I will love the police as they kick the **** out of me on the street
I will sleep...
I will, I will go to a house
That's, that's what I will do
I will go to a house
Where there's a rock roll band
'Cause the groups all live together
And I will join a rock & roll band
I will be their road manager
And I will stay there with them
And I will get the crabs
But I won't care

[ABlairican Pie]

It seemed to Zappa and the others that the hippie movement was as every bit as plastic as the "square" establishment they rebelled against. Wasn't the whole thing a cash cow, a bunch of pretty colored hype that changed little? Apparently the revolution could be bought and co-opted.

Concentration Moon

Concentration Moon
Over the camp in the valley
Concentration Moon
Wis I was back in the alley
With all of my friends,
Still running free:
Hair growing out
Every hole in me
AMERICAN WAY
How did it start?
Thousands of creeps
Killed in the park
AMERICAN WAY
Try and explain
Scab of a nation
Driven insane
Don't cry
Gotta go bye bye
SUDDENLY: DIE DIE
COP KILL A CREEP!
pow pow pow


Concentration Moon
Over the camp in the valley
Concentration Moon
Wish I was back in the alley
With all of my friends,
Still running free:
Hair growing out
Every hole in me
AMERICAN WAY
Threatened by US
Drag a few creeps
Away in a bus
AMERICAN WAY
Prisoner: lock
SMASH EVERY CREEP
IN THE FACE WITH A ROCK


Don't cry
Gotta go bye bye
SUDDENLY: DIE DIE
COP KILL A CREEP!
pow pow pow

[ABlairican Pie]

Later in 1968, the band took a more traditional rock and roll theme with Cruising With Ruben and the Jets.

How Could I Be Such a Fool

When I won your love, I was very glad
Every happiness in the world belonged to me
Then our love was lost and you went away
Now I shed my tears in lonely misery

I know now that you never ever really loved me
It hurts me now to think you never ever really cared
I sit and I ask myself a thousand times to try and find
What really happened to the love that we shared

How could I be such a fool
How could I believe all those lies you told me
How could I be taken in by your sweet face
You spoiled out love, your ruined my life
I'm so tore down, I'm a terrible disgrace

But there will come a time and you'll regret the way
You treated me as if I was a fool and didn't know
The many times you lied about your love for me
Someone else is going to know that your love is just a show

How could I be, be such a fool
How could I be, be such a fool
How could I be, be such a fool
How could I be, be such a fool
How could I be, be such a fool
How could I be, be such a fool

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1969, it was back to more esoteric themes on Uncle Meat. The album featured such songs as "The Voice of Cheese", "The Legend of the Golden Arches", "Sleeping in a Jar", "Electric Aunt Jemima", "Cruising For Burgers", and
a six-part suite called "King Kong." An album with a ton of food in the titles.

Dog Breath, In the Year of the Plague

Please, hear my plea!

Cucuroo carucha (Chevy '39)
Going to El Monte Legion Stadium
Pick up on my weesa (she is so divine)
Helps me stealing hub caps
Wasted all the time

Fuzzy Dice
Bongos in the back
My ship of love is
Ready to attack

Primer mi carucha (Chevy '39)
Going to El Monte Legion Stadium
Pick up on my weesa (she is so divine)
Helps me stealing hub caps
Wasted all the time

Fuzzy Dice
Bongos in the back
My ship of love
Ready to attack
Won't you please hear my plea

Primer mi carucha (Chevy '39)
Going to El Monte Legion Stadium
Pick up on my weesa (she is so divine)
Helps me stealing hub caps
Wasted all the time

Fuzzy Dice
Bongos in the back
My ship of love
Ready to attack

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1969, Frank Zappa went solo from The Mothers of Invention for the album Hot Rats, which featured one of his biggest songs, "Peaches En Regalia", "Willie the Pimp," "The Son of Mr. Green Genes", "The Gumbo Variations", and "It Must Be a Camel". The album was mostly instrumental pieces.

[Steve M.]

Daryl Hall tok a break from his partnership from John Oates and released his third solo album, Soul Alone, in 1993.

http://www.hallandoates.de/Covers/soulalone.jpg

The title of Soul Alone was derived from a lyric from Hall and Oates's 1984 hit "Out Of Touch," and it suggested a more R&B sound in the tradition of Hall and Oates's best records, rather than the less commercial sound of Hall's previous two solo LP's. And the album's two radio hits - "Stop Loving Me, Stop Loving You" and "I'm In a Philly Mood" - certainly backed up that suggestion. :) :cool:

When would Hall reteam with Oates? In 1993, that was a question no one really bothered to ask, much less answer. The eighties were indeed over.

[ABlairican Pie]

In December of 1969 Frank returned with The Mothers on the mostly-instrumental album, Burnt Weeny Sandwich. The album featured tracks such as "Igor's Boogie" (Phases One and Two), "Overture to a Holiday in Berlin" and "Holiday in Berlin, Full Blown", "Theme From Burnt Weeny Sandwich", and "Little House I Used to Live In."

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1970, Zappa and the Mothers of Invention released Weasels Ripped My Flesh, which included songs such as "Didja Get Any Onya?" "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Sexually Aroused Gas Mask", "Toads of the Short Forest", "The Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbecue", "Dwarf Nebula Professional March & Dwarf Nebula", "My Guitar Wants to Kill Your Mama", which was later covered by his son Dweezil in 1988, and "Orange County Lumber Truck."

It must also be noted that it was around this time the infamous Frank Zappa and the Mothers concert at the Montreaux casino in Switzerland, made famous by the Deep Purple song "Smoke on the Water", occured. As the story goes, a reckless fan wielding a flaregun fired it into the ceiling and set the building on fire, causing major panic and massive rescue efforts as the structured burned to the ground.

My Guitar Wants to Kill Your Mama

You know, your momma and your daddy
Saying I'm no good for you
They call me dirty from the alley
Till I don't know what to do

I get so tired of sneakin' around
Just to get to your back door
I crawl past the garbage and
Your momma jumps out, screamin'
"Don't come back no more"
I can't take it

My guitar wants to kill your mama
My guitar wants to kill your mama
My guitar wants to burn your dad
I get real mean when it makes me mad

Later I tried to call you
Your momma told me you weren't there
She told me: "Don't bother to call again"
'Less I cut off all my hair

I get so tired of sneakin' around
Just to get to your back door
I crawl past the garbage and
Your momma jumps out, screamin'
"Don't come back no more"

Later I tried to call you
Your momma told me you weren't there
She told me: "Don't bother to call again"
'Less I cut off all my hair
I get so tired of sneakin' around
Just to get to your back door
I crawl past the garbage and
Your momma jumps out, screamin'
"Don't come back no more"

My guitar wants to kill your mama
My guitar wants to kill your mama
My guitar wants to burn your dad
I get real mean when it makes me mad

[ABlairican Pie]

Later in 1970, Frank released Chunga's Revenge (anything like what happens after you eat too many chimichungas? ;) ). The album featured such tracks as "Transyvania Boogie", "Road Ladies", "Twenty Small Cigars", "Would You Go All the Way?" and "Rudy Wants to Buy Yez a Drink."

[ABlairican Pie]

It is also worth noting one of Frank Zappa's musical discoveries in the late 60's, a truly musically warped theatrical band by the name of Alice Cooper, who were commonly known for the front-person of the same name. Frank invited the band to come to his place at 7 for a rehearsal. The band showed up bright and early on the appointed morning, set up in his basement and proceeded to play good and loud. A frustrated Frank, freshly awakened, marched downstairs and demanded to know what the hell was going on. The band told him that he had told them to show up at 7. "I meant 7 at NIGHT!!!" he replied.

Here is a lyric from the Mothers' Fillmore East - June 1971 album where they discuss the goings on at certain Seattle landmark made into the stuff of legend by Led Zeppelin (though not mentioned by name):

The Mud Shark

Mud Sh-sh-shark

THE MUD SHARK DANCING LESSON!

Mud Sh-sh-shark
We're gonna do a little dancing,
A little dancing thing called the Mud Shark
Now, this dance started up in Seattle

Lemme tell you 'bout the Mud Shark...
The origins of the Mud Shark are as follows: There's a motel in Seattle, Washington called the Edgewater Inn. The Edgewater Inn's built on a pier.. so that means that when you look out your window you don't see any dirt -- it's got a bay or something out in your backyard,,, And to make it even more interesting, in the lobby of the aforementioned motel there's a bait and tackle shop where the residents can go down whenever they want to, and rent a fishing pole and some preserved minnows and schlep back up to their rooms, open the window, stick their little pole outside and within a few minutes actually catch a fish of some sort that they can bring into their motel room and do whatever they want with it... you know what I mean? Now in this bay there's quite a variety of ah... fish! Not only do they have mud sharks up there, they got little octopusses that you can catch. And all these denizens of the deep can come in real handy... Let's say you were a travelling Rock and Roll band called the Vanilla Fudge. Let's say one night you checked into the Edgewater Inn Motel with a 8mm movie camera, enough money to rent a pole, and just to make it more interesting -- a succulent young lady (Mnaaaah!) with a taste for the bizarre... My mind drifts back to a meeting, a chance meeting in the Chicago O'Hare Airport where the members of the Vanilla Fudge told Don Preston about a home movie they made at the Edgewater Inn with a Mud Shark. I'm gonna tell you, this dance, the Mud Shark, is sweeping the ocean!...

Out
You go out
So far out
You do the Mud Shark. baby ... etc


The album also contained the profane love-filled song, "What Kind of Girl Do You Think We Are?"

Here is Frank in 1970, with a film clip of Alice Cooper at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival Festival in 1969, the band's first performance:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1971, Zappa released a humorous film documentary of life on the road called 200 Motels, with the typical fare of sex, insanity, and nutritionally marginal foodstuffs, all things attendant in the life of a touring band. The film included such notables as Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, and one of the world's most popular groupies Pamela Des Barres.

[ABlairican Pie]

1973's Over-Night Sensation featured one of his most popular songs, "I'm the Slime":

I'm the Slime

I am gross and perverted
I'm obsessed 'n deranged
I have existed for years
But very little had changed
I am the tool of the Government
And industry too
For I am destined to rule
And regulate you

I may be vile and pernicious
But you can't look away
I make you think I'm delicious
With the stuff that I say
I am the best you can get
Have you guessed me yet?
I am the slime oozin' out
From your TV set

You will obey me while I lead you
And eat the garbage that I feed you
Until the day that we don't need you
Don't got for help...no one will heed you
Your mind is totally controlled
It has been stuffed into my mold
And you will do as you are told
Until the rights to you are sold

That's right, folks..
Don't touch that dial

Well, I am the slime from your video
Oozin' along on your livin'room floor

I am the slime from your video
Can't stop the slime, people, lookit me go

[ABlairican Pie]

Apostrophe ( ' ) from 1974 featured such favorite tracks as "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow", "Stink Foot", "St. Alphonso's Pancake Breakfast", "Father O'Blivion", and "Cosmic Debris". By now, having disbanded the Mothers of Invention, Zappa created an ever-expanding band with a constantly rotating lineup of musicians who would go on to bigger things. It was a badge of honor for many musicians to be associated with Zappa's outfit. Figuring the chances were slim that any aspiring musician to join Led Zeppelin, Zappa avowed that if you were a good enough musician, you may definitely have a shot in his band. It was quite easier than one expected. Aynsley Dunbar was one drummer who went on to other bands after being in Zappa's group--and there would be many others.

Don't Eat the Yellow Snow

Dreamed I was an Eskimo
Frozen wind began to blow
Under my boots and around my toes
The frost that bit the ground below
It was a hundred degrees below zero...

And my mama cried
And my mama cried
Nanook, a-no-no
Nanook, a-no-no
Don't be a naughty Eskimo
Save your money, don't go to the show

Well I turned around and I said "Oh, oh" Oh
Well I turned around and I said "Oh, oh" Oh
Well I turned around and I said "Ho, Ho"
And the northern lights commenced to glow
And she said, with a tear in her eye
"Watch out where the huskies go, and don't you eat that yellow snow"
"Watch out where the huskies go, and don't you eat that yellow snow"

[ABlairican Pie]

Stink Foot

In the dark
Where all the fevers grow
Under the watah
Where the shark bubbles blow
In the morning
By your radio
Do the walls close in to suffocate, yah
You ain't got no friends
And all the others they hate, yah
Does the life you been leading gotta go? (HMMmm?)
(Well let me straighten you out)
About a place I know
(Get your shoes and socks on people, it's right around the corner)

Out through the night and the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep the imaginary diseases
Out through the night and the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep the imaginary diseases

(This has got to be the disease for you
Now scientists call this disease, Brohm-a-drosis
But us regular folks, who might wear tennis shoes
or an occasional python boot,
know this exquisite little inconvenience by the name of
STINK-FOOT)

You know
My python boot is too tight
I couldn't get it off last night
A week went by
And now it's July
I finally got it off
And my girlfriend cried, YOU GOT STINK-FOOT!
Stink-foot, darlin'

Your Stink-foot
Puts a hurt on my nose
Stink-foot, stink-foot, I ain't lyin'
Can you rinse it off, do you suppose?
(Here Fido, Fido, mpt, mpt, mpt, come here little puppy
Bring the slippers
Arf, arf, arf
(C-R-A-S-H)
Huhm, HAH, HAH, HAH...hmhmhm)
STINK!

(Well then Fido got up off the floor, and he rolled over
and he looked me straight in the eye
And you know what he said?
"Once upon a time, somebody say to me"
This is the dog talkin' now
"What is your, conceptual, continuity?"
"Well I told 'em right then", Fido said
"It should be easy to see
"The crux of the biscuit
is the apostrophe"
Well you know, the man that was talking to the dog
looked at the dog, and he said
Sort of staring in disbelief
"You can't say that"
he said
"It doesn't, and you can't, I won't, and it don't
it hasn't, it isn't, it even ain't, and it shouldn't
it couldn't"
He told him, "No, no, no"
I told him, "Yes, yes, yes"
I said, "I do it all the time
Ain't this boogie a mess"?)

The poodle bites, the poodle chews it
(Repeat + ad lib)

One of the most memorable images of Frank Zappa: :fart:

[ABlairican Pie]

1974 brought Roxy & Elsewhere, a live album which featured such tracks as "Penguin in Bondage", "Pygmy Twylite", "Echidna's Arf (of You)", "Don't You Ever Wash That Thing?" and "Be-Bop Tango (of The Old Jazzmen's Church".

[ABlairican Pie]

1975's album One Size Fits All featured "Inca Roads", "Can't Afford No Shoes",
"Sofa #1 and #2", "Po-Jama People", and "Evelyn, a Modified Dog".

[ABlairican Pie]

Another album from 1975, Bongo Fury, featured another eclectic musician, Captain Beefheart on harp. Captain Beefheart was another interesting performer in his own right. The album featured tracks such as "Debra Kedabra", "Poofter's Froth Wyoming Plans Ahead", "Sam With the Showing Scalp Flat Top", "Man With the Woman Head", and "Muffin Man."

[ABlairican Pie]

1976 brought Zoot Allures, which featured such songs as "Wind Up Workin' in the Gas Station", "Black Napkins", "Wonderful Wino", and a ditty slamming disco culture, "Disco Boy", one of his first to poke fun at the dance craze sweeping the nation like a bad scabies-like rash.

Disco Boy

Disco boy! Run to toilet and comb your hair.
Disco boy! Pucker your lip, and check your shoulders,
'cause some dandruff might be hiding there.

Disco boy, your the disco king, aw the
disco thing made you think someday that you
just might go somewhere.

Disco girl, you're outa sight, you need a
disco boy, to treat you right.
He'll do a little dance, take you home tonight.
Leave his hair alone, but you can kiss his comb.

Disco boy! Run to toilet and comb your hair.
Disco boy! Shake it more than three times and you're
playing with @!#%! while you're standing there.

Disco boy, do the bump every night, 'til the disco girl
who's really right, gonna fall for your line,
and feed you a box full of chicken delight.

Disco chit-chat so demure,
pump that booty all across the floor.
A disco drink, a disco wink,
you never go duty that's what you think.
You never go duty that's what you think.
You never go duty that's what you think.

Duty. Go duty!
Duty. Go duty!
Duty. You never go duty.
Duty. You never go duty.
Duty. You never go duty.
Duty. You never go duty.
You never duty. Go duty.
Duty. You never duty.

Disco boy! You got one more chance, to comb your hair again.
Disco boy! They're closing the bar, and she's
leaving with your friend.

Disco boy, that's the way it goes, so wipe your nose, and
try it again, to get a little lay tomorrow.

Disco boy, no one understands, but thank the lord that you
still got hands, to help you do that jerkin' that'll
blot out your disco sorrow.

It's disco love tonight. Make sure you look alright.
It's disco love tonight. Make sure you look alright.

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1978, Zappa released In New York, which featured the crowd favorite,
"T:cow:tt:cow:s and Beer", "Cruisin' For Burgers", "Honey, Don't You Want a Man Like Me?" "Punky's Whips", and other titles reflecting his twisted, irreverent commentary on scatology and salactiousness.

http://coverart.last.fm/300x300/13384.gif

[ABlairican Pie]

Also in 1978 was Studio Tan, which featured "The Adventures of Greggery Peccary" and "Revised Music For Guitar and Low Budget Orchestra."

http://www.science.uva.nl/~robbert/zappa/files/jpg/Studio_Tan.jpg

[ABlairican Pie]

1979 saw Sleep Dirt, which included such tracks as "Filthy Habits", "Spider of Destiny", "Regyptian Strut", and "The Ocean is the Ultimate Solution."

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1979, Frank Zappa, who was a prolific though rather uncommercial artist, released one of his more popular albums, Sheik Yerbouti, which featured the standout hit, "Dancin' Fool", which satirized further the disco craze (which was now on its last legs). Other tracks included "Flakes", "Broken Hearts Are For A:censored:", "I'm So Cute", "Whatever Happened to All the Fun in the World", "Rubber Shirt", "The Sheik Yerbouti Tango", and "Jewish Princess".

Dancin' Fool

Don't know much about dancin'
That's why I got this song
One of my legs is shorter than the other
'N' both my feet's too long
'Course now right along with 'em
I got no natural rhythm
But I go dancin' every night
Hopin' one day I might get it right
I'm a dancin' fool, I'm a
Dancin' fool
I hear that beat; I jump outa my seat,
But I can't compete, 'cause I'm a
Dancin' fool, I'm a
Dancin' fool

The disco folks all dressed up
Like they's fit to kill
I walk on in 'n' see 'em there
Gonna give them all a thrill
When they see me comin'
They all steps aside
They has a fit while I commit
My social suicide, I'm a
Dancin' fool, I'm a
Dancin' fool
The beat goes on
And I'm so wrong
The beat goes on
And I'm so wrong
The beat goes on 'n' I'm so wrong
The beat goes on 'n' I'm so wrong
The beat goes on 'n' I'm so wrong
I may be totally wrong, but I'm a
Dancin' fool, I'm a
Dancin' fool
Youwsa, youwsa, youwsa
I got it all together now
With my very own disco clothes, hey!
My shirt's half open, t'show you my chains
'N' the spoon for up my nose
I am really somethin'
That's what you'd prob'ly say
So smoke your little smoke
Drink your little drink
While I dance the night away, I'm a
Dancin' fool, I'm a
Dancin' fool, (etc., etc.)

I may be totally wrong, but I'm a
I may be totally wrong, but I'm a
I may be totally wrong, but I'm a
FOOL-uh!

Hey darlin'...can I buy ya a drink?
Lookin' for Mister Goodbar? Here he is...
Wait a minute...I've got it...You're an Italian!
Hah?
Yer Jewish?
Love your nails...you must be a Libra...
Your place or mine?

:banana: :mango:

[ABlairican Pie]

Another popular album was 1979's Joe's Garage. One performer on the album was drummer Terry Bozzio, the husband of the hot female lead singer Dale Bozzio of Missing Persons, who would both find success in the next few years.
The album included "Catholic Girls", "Wet T-Shirt Night", "Why Does It Hurt When I Pee?" "Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up", "A Token of My Extreme", "Sy Borg", "Keep It Greasy", "He Used to Cut the Grass", and "Watermelon in Easter Hay."

[ABlairican Pie]

Also in 1981, Frank Zappa released Tinseltown Rebellion, with songs such as
"Easy Meat", "I Ain't Got No Heart," "Panty Rap", "Dance Contest", and "Bamboozled By Love."

[ABlairican Pie]

Frank Zappa also demonstrated his amazing guitar prowess on 1981's Shut Up 'N' Play Yer Guitar, obviously an instrumental album with songs such as the title track, "Treacherous Cretins", "Heavy Duty Judy", "Soap 'N' Old Clothes", "Variations on the Carlos Santana Secret Chord Progression", "Gee, I Like Your Pants", "Deathless Horsie", "Shut Up 'N' Play Yer Guitar Some More", "Pink Napkins", "Beat It With Your Fist", "Return of Son of Shut Up 'N' Play Yer Guitar", "Pinocchio's Furniture", "Why Johnny Can't Read", "Stucco Homes", and "Canard du Jour." Some musicians commented that Frank Zappa was so unique as a musician that he belonged neither to rock, jazz, fusion or any other genre, but that he was a genre unto himself.

[ABlairican Pie]

Another 1981 album was You Are What You Is, featuring songs such as "Teenage Wind", "Goblin Girl", "Theme From the 3rd Movement of 'Sinister Footwear", "Society Pages", "I'm a Beautiful Guy", "Beauty Knows No Pain", "Charlie's Enormous Mouth", "Any Downers?" "Conehead" (perhaps a reference to his appearance on Saturday Night Live), "The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing", "Dumb All Over", "Heavenly Bank Account", and "Drafted Again".

Drafted Again

Registered mail...special delivery
OH NO
You're gonna hafta sign fer this, buddy
OH NO
I know you're in there, ya little sumbitch
OH NO
Goddam little communist...
(weep, weep, weep)

I don't wanna get drafted
I don't wanna go
I don't wanna get drafted
PHOOEY!

I don't wanna get drafted
I don't wanna go
I don't wanna get drafted
NO-OH-WOH-OH-WOH...

Roller skates 'n disco
It's a lot of fun
I'm too young 'n stupid
To operate a gun

LaCelia Jackson! Come on down!
I DON'T WANNA GET DRAFTED
Nancy Butterworth! Come on down!
You're the next contestants on
SOOOOO WHAT!
I DON'T WANNA GET DRAFTED
And, but, also...
I DON'T WANNA GET DRAFTED
A new car!
I DON'T WANNA GET DRAFTED
But that's not all...

My-y-y sister don't wanna get drafted
She don't wanna go
My sister don't wanna get drafted
My-y-y sister don't wanna get drafted
She don't wanna go
My sister don't wanna get drafted

Wars are really ugly
They're dirty and they're cold
I don't want nobody
To shoot me in the fox hole...fox hole

Aiieeeeeeeee...shot in the fox hole
Aiieeeeeeeee...shot in the fox hole
Aiieeeeeeeee...shot in the fox hole
Aiieeeeeeeee...shot in the fox hole

"Leave my nose alone, please..."

[ABlairican Pie]

Frank Zappa was not known to be the most hospitable person toward religion, especially when it was combined with politics (and commerce).

Heavenly Bank Account

And if these words you do not heed
Your pocketbook just kinda might recede
When some man comes along and
claims godly need
He will clean you out right through your
tweed

That's right, remember there is a big
difference between kneeling down
and bending over...
He's got twenty million dollars
In his Heavenly Bank Account...
All from those chumps who was
Born again
Oh yeah, oh yeah

He's got seven limousines
And a private plane...
All for the use of his
Special Friends
Oh yeah, oh yeah
He's got thousand-dollar suits
And a Wembley Tie...
Girls love to stroke it
While he's on the phone
Oh yeah, oh yeah

At the House of Representatives
He's a groovy guy...
When he Gives Thanks
He is not alone...

He is dealin'
He is really dealin'
IRS Can't determine
Where The Hook is

It is easy with the Bible
To pretend that
You're in Show Biz

They won't get him
They will never get him
For the naughty stuff
That he did

It is best in cases like this
To pretend that
You are stupid

He's got Presidential Help
All along the way

He says the grace
While the lawyers chew
Oh yeah
They sure do

And the Govenors agree to say:
"He's a lovely man!"
He makes it easier for
Them to screw
All of you...
Yes, that's true!

'Cause he helps put The Fear of God
In the Common Man
Snatchin' up money
Everywhere he can
Oh yeah
Oh yeah

He's got twenty million dollars
In his Heavenly Bank Account
You ain't got nothin', people
You ain't got nothin', people
You ain't got nothin', people
Thank the man...oh yeah

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1982, Frank Zappa released the album Ship Arriving Too Late to Save Drowning Witch, with perhaps his most well-known song, "Valley Girl", which featured his daughter Moon Unit in a hilarious commentary on San Fernando Valley culture and dialect. The album also featured a young and very talented guitar acolyte by the name of Steve Vai, whom Zappa found valuable for transcribing his "impossible guitar parts". Though not on the album, another guitarist to find fame was Warren Currecullo, who went on to play in Duran Duran.

Valley Girl

Valley Girl
She's a Valley Girl
Valley Girl
She's a Valley Girl
Okay, fine...
Fer sure, fer sure
She's a Valley Girl
In a clothing store
Okay, fine...
Fer sure, fer sure
She's a

Like, OH MY GOD! (Valley Girl)
Like - TOTALLY (Valley Girl)
Encino is like SO BITCHEN (Valley Girl)
There's like the Galleria (Valley Girl)
And like all these like really great shoe stores
I love going into like clothing stores and stuff
I like buy the neatest mini-skirts and stuff
It's like so BITCHEN cuz like everybody's like
Super-super nice...
It's like so BITCHEN...

On Ventura, there she goes
She just bought some bitchen clothes
Tosses her head 'n flips her hair
She got a whole bunch of nothin' in there

Anyway, he goes are you into S and M?
I go, oh RIGHT...
Could you like just picture me in like a LEATHER TEDDY
Yeah right, HURT ME, HURT ME...
I'm sure! NO WAY!
He was like freaking me out...
He called me a BEASTIE...
That's cuz like he was totally BLITZED
He goes like BAG YOUR FACE!
I'm sure!

Valley Girl
She's a Valley Girl
Valley Girl
She's a Valley Girl
Okay, fine...
Fer sure, fer sure
She's a Valley Girl
So sweet 'n pure
Okay, fine...
Fer sure, fer sure
She's a
It's really sad (Valley Girl)
Like my English teacher
He's like... (Valley Girl)
He's like Mr. BU-FU (Valley Girl)
We're talking Lord God King BU-FU (Valley Girl)
I am SO SURE
He's like so GROSS
He like sits there and like plays with all his rings
And he like flirts with all the guys in the class
It's like totally disgusting
I'm like so sure
It's like BARF ME OUT...
Gag me with a spoon!

Last idea to cross her mind
Had something to do with where to find
A pair of jeans to fit her butt
And where to get her toenails cut

So like I go into this like salon place, y'know
And I wanted like to get my toenails done
And the lady like goes, oh my God, your toenails
Are like so GRODY
It was like really embarrassing
She's like OH MY GOD, like BAG THOSE TOENAILS
I'm like sure...
She goes, uh, I don't know if I can handle this, y'know...
I was like really embarrassed...

Valley Girl
She's a Valley Girl
Valley Girl
She's a Valley Girl
Okay, fine
Fer sure, fer sure
She's a Valley Girl
And there is no cure
Okay, fine
Fer sure, fer sure
She's a Valley Girl
And there is no cure

Like my mother is like a total space cadet (Valley Girl)
She like makes me do the dishes and (Valley Girl)
CLEAN the cat box (Valley Girl)
I am sure
That's like GROSS (Valley Girl)
BARF OUT! (Valley Girl)
OH MY GOD (Valley Girl)

Hi!
Uh-huh... (Valley Girl)
My name?
My name is Ondrya Wolfson (Valley Girl)
Uh-huh
That's right, Ondrya (Valley Girl)
Uh-huh...
I know
It's like... (Valley Girl)
I do not talk funny...
I'm sure (Valley Girl)
Whatsa matter with the way I talk? (Valley Girl)
I am a VAL, I know (Valley Girl)
But I live like in a really good part of Encino so it's okay
(Valley Girl)
Uh-huh... (Valley Girl)
So like, I don't know (Valley Girl)
I'm like freaking out totally (Valley Girl)
Oh my God! (Valley Girl)

Hi - I have to go to the orthodontist (Valley Girl)
I'm getting my braces off, y'know (Valley Girl)
But I have to wear a retainer
That's going to be really like a total bummer
I'm freaking out
I'm SURE
It's like those things that like stick in your mouth
They're so gross...
You like get saliva all over them
But like, I don't know, it's going to be cool, y'know
So you can see my smile
It'll be like really cool
Except my like my teeth are like too small
But NO BIGGIE...
It's so AWESOME
It's like TUBULAR, y'know
Well, I'm not like really ugly or anything
It's just like
I don't know
You know me, I'm like into like the clean stuff
Like PAC-MAN and like, I don't know
Like my mother like makes me do the dishes
It's like so GROSS...
Like all the stuff like sticks to the plates
And it's like, it's like somebody else's food, y'know
It's like GRODY...
GRODY TO THE MAX
I'm sure
It's like really nauseating
Like BARF OUT
GAG ME WITH A SPOON
GROSS
I am SURE
TOTALLY...

[ABlairican Pie]

In addition to his contemporary music albums, Frank Zappa also played with the London Symphony Orchestra on one album. He was a very special musician in that regard, a conductor in his own right.

Here was his 1984 album, Them or Us, which featured "Sinister Footwear II", "Truck Driver Divorce", "Stevie's Spanking" (a salacious little ditty dedicated to his young guitarist Steve Vai), "Baby, Take Your Teeth Out", "Planet of My Dreams", "Be In My Video", and "Frogs With Dirty Little Lips." While in British court around this time, Frank Zappa had the pleasure of
explaining the meaning of "Stevie's Spanking" during an obscenity trial.

[ABlairican Pie]

Another recording from 1984 was Thing-Fish, which featured "The Mammy Nuns", "You Are What You Is," "The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing, "Clowns On Velvet", "He's So Gay", "Artificial Rhonda", "The Crab-Grass Baby", and "Briefcase Boogie."

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1985, Frank Zappa became immersed in one of the biggest controversies involving pop music and popular culture in the country when the Parents' Music Resource Center, or, the P.M.R.C., announced plans to place warning stickers on rock and pop music albums considered "offensive" or "corruptive of the minds of children", according to the judgement of a few wives of Washington, D.C. senators. When Tipper Gore, wife of Tennesee Senator Al Gore, discovered references to masturbation on her daughter's Purple Rain album by Prince, she was so shocked and outraged that "smut" would be peddled in young peoples' music. For this the nation needed to be warned. She and other senators' wives gave their warnings to the record company of what they were doing, and the record company gave in to their demands, no doubt due to the power their famous husbands held.

Zappa entered the fray, comdemning the attempts at censorship and repression by "The Washington Wives", accusing them of forcing their narrow views and prejudices on the rest of the country. While the P.M.R.C. insisted they were not about censorship ("we advocate more information, not less"), Zappa pointed out that the stickering system would lead to albums not being carried by stores, which proved to be right. He believed that the P.M.R.C.'s policy was an example of religious right hysteria over constitutionally protected material, and was a plan to enforce religious prejudices on the rest of the country, due to many of the members identifying themselves as born again Christians. Zappa wrote many scathing critiques about the group, and that fall was invited to speak, with country pop artist John Denver and Twisted Sister's Dee Snider, at the Senate hearings over "porn rock". All three gave well-reasoned defenses for for freedom of musical expression and condemned government suppression, and were very entertaining with their statements as well. Comments from the hearings were included on a song on Frank Zappa's next album, 1985's Frank Zappa Meets the Mothers of Prevention, especially on the opening song "Porn Wars". The album also included tracks such as "Alien Orifiice", "Aerobics in Bondage", "Little Beige Sambo", "One Man, One Vote", and "H.R. 2911", songs which reflected the "cultural terrorism" foisted on the nation by P.M.R.C. And, just as was predicted, many artists decried as having "objectionable" lyrics and content, such as W.A.S.P.'s Blackie Lawless, were hounded by the F.B.I., merely for being named by Tipper Gore and the others.

Porn Wars

The reason for this hearing
is not to promote any legislation,
(indeed, I don't know of any suggestion
that any legislation 'd be passed),
but to simply provide a form
for airing the issue itself,
for ventilating the issue,
for bringing it out in the public domain.

Senator Hollings?

I've had the opportunity to ah,
attend a, a showing you might say,
a presentation of ah,
this Porn Rock as they call it.
In the tested pornography,
one of the things to look at
is that it does not have any redeeming social value.
Ah, there could be an exception here
because I haven't attended that presentation.
A redeeming social value,
I find that it's inaudible.
I have a hard time understanding it.
And, Paul, since I travelled the country for three years
and they said they couldn't understand me,
maybe I could make a good rock-star, I don't know.
But in all candour I would tell you it's,
it's outrageous filth.
So I'll be looking from this senator's standpoint
not just to bring pression,
but to try to see if there is some constitutional provision
to tax, or procedure can be used on the Congress
to limit this outrageous filth.

Senator Trible?

Rape, incest, it's outrageous filth...
Sexual violence
Now, the effects of such lyrics on a well adjusted child may
not be cataclysmic
It's outrageous filth!
A lot of the emotional damage is more subtle
Fire and chains and...leather
It's outrageous filth!
Objectionable...

Tools and presentations in some twisted minds...
...effects of such lyrics on a well adjusted child may not be
cataclysmic...
...Porn Rock...
A lot of the emotional damage is more subtle
Fire and chains and...leather

This must be the end of the world!
All the people turning into pigs and ponies
I can't let it happen to me!

What is the reason for these hearings...
Sex!
Well...
Sex!
Thank you, I think that statement...
Sex!
...tells the story of these many...
Listen you little slut...
What is the reason for these hearings...
Sex!
Bondage!
Listen you little slut!
Listen you little slut!
Mixture of drugs...
Sex! Sex! Sex! Sex!...

I might be interested to see what toys your kids ever had

Why would you be interested?

Just as a point of interest in this ah...

Well, come on over to the house and I'll show them to you.
Really!

I, I might do that!

Now, the effects of such lyrics on a well adjusted child may
not be cataclysmic
It's outrageous filth!
A lot of the emotional damage is more subtle
Fire and chains and...leather
It's outrageous filth!
Objectionable...
Tools and presentations in some twisted minds...
...effects of such lyrics on a well adjusted child may not be
cataclysmic...
...Porn Rock...
A lot of the emotional damage is more subtle
Fire and chains and...leather

Thank you very much, Mr. Zappa.
You understand that ah,
the previous witnesses were not asking for legislation
and ah, I don't know,
I can't speak for senator Hollings,
but I think that the prevailing view here is
that nobody's asking for legislation.
The question is just focusing
on what a lot of people could feel that could be a problem.
And you've indicated that you at least understand
that there is another point of view.
Really nearly over the year...

Senator Gore?

Thank you very much, ah, mister chairman.
I found your statement very interesting and,
ah let me say although I disagree with
some of the statements that you make,
and have made on other occasions
- I have been a fan of your music, believe it or not -
and I, I ah respect you as a true original and,
and ah tremendously talented musician.

Wait a minute!
Maybe I could make a good rock-star, I don't know
Comics, comics, comics daddy!
Maybe I could make a good rock-star, I don't know
Comics, comics daddy!
Maybe I could make a good rock-star, I don't know
Comics, comics, comics daddy!

They don't even understand their music...
of course nobody does, but ah...
They don't, they don't even know what they're doing
No!
I've, I've seen 'em a couple of times...
Did you, did you see their uniforms?
Unbelievable!
Which ones? They're the red ones?
All those rhinestones of their rings and things like that
Do you know what I...
Golden May hoof-covers
Unbelievable!

Maybe I could make a good rock-star!
Gonna drive my love inside you!
etc...
It's outrageous filth!
Comics daddy!
etc...
Rock, rock, Porn Rock!
etc...

And I think your suggestion is a good one
if you pledge those words.
That would go a long way for...
All we have to do is find out how it's gonna be paid for...

Pyromania!
No question!
Burn the building!
Burn! Burn! Burn!
Yeah!

If I could find some way constitutionally to do away with it I would!

This issue is too hot...

So I'll be looking from this senator's standpoint
not just to bring pression,
but to try to see if there is some constitutional provision
to tax, or procedure can be used on the Congress
to limit this outrageous filth.
Yeah!

We'll get back to de whimp
and his low-budget conceptium of personal freedom
in just a moment.
But foist, welcome to:
What de **** gwine on here?
A celebratium o' de American way o' life!
I see some y'all be FROWNIN'...
'cause mebbe y'think what I's tellin' ya' is a LIE!
Am I right?
Les' jes' have a test...
How many o' you nice folks think I knows what I's talkin'
'bout?
RAISE Y'HAIN UP!
Uh-huh!
An' how many thinks my potato been bakin' too long?
RAISE YO MIZZABLE HAIN UP!
Uh-huh!
Now...how many you folks is CONVINCED
de gubnint be totally 'UNCONCERNED'
wit de proliferatium o' UNDESIRABLE TENANTS
in de CONDOMINIUM o' LIFE?
An' how many folks believe THEY number won't come up,
next time de breeze blow fum de Easterly directium?
Les' face it, peoples!
Ugly as I mights be,
I AM YO' FUTCHUM!
Ain't that right, SISTER OB'DEWLLA?
Hmm hmm! Oh, oh yeah! Thass right!

Senator Gorton?

Mr. Zappa, I ah, am astounded at the ah,
courtesy and soft-voiced ah,
nature of the comments of my friend
the senator from Tennessee.
I can only say that I find your statement
to be boorish, ah, incredibly and ah,
insensitively insulting the people who were here previously.
That you could manage
to get the first amendment
of the Constitution of the United States
a bad name - if I doubt that you have the slightest
understanding of it - which I do not,
and have the slightest understanding of the difference between
government action and private action.
And ah, you have certainly destroyed any case
you might otherwise have had with this senator.
Thank you Mr. Chairman.

Is this private action?

I don't think this is constitutional...
The voluntary labelling is NOT censorship...
Bend up and smell my anal vapor!
The voluntary...voluntary...voluntary...
...is not censorship...
De-de-de-de-degradation...humiliation...
Is this private action?
In chains...
Listen you little slut...
There-there-there...
There's no absolute rock...
There's no absolute rock...
Well... ... Bend up and smell my anal vapor!
There-there-there...
There's no... There's no...
Mr. Zappa, thank you very much for your testimony.
Thank you.
Next witness is John Denver...

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1986, Frank Zappa released Jazz From Hell, which featured such tracks as
"Night School", "The Beltway Bandits", "While You Were Art II", "G-Spot Tornado", and "Damp Ankles." Oddly enough, this album was also stickered by the P.M.R.C. for "explicit lyrics"--when in fact all the songs on the songs were instrumentals. :eek: :confused: :lol:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1987 Frank Zappa released London Symphony Orchestra Vol 2, which featured three long tracks, "Bogus Pomp", "Bob In Dacron", and "Strictly Genteel". At this point, Zappa seemed to enjoy doing his music from home, while performing sporadically.

Here is Frank with one of his furry friends:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1988, Frank Zappa released another guitar album, simply entitled Guitar. Family and friends noticed that Frank was playing guitar less and less, prefering to play more with his synclavier. The songs on the album included "Sexual Harassment In the Workplace", "Republicans", "Do Not Pass Go", "Chalk Pie", "In-A-Gadda-Stravinsky", "That's Not Really Reggae", "Jim and Tammy's Upper Room", "Were We Really Ever Safe In San Antonio?", "That Ol' G Minor Thing Again", "That's Not Really a Shuffle", "Orrin Hatch On Skis", "Winos Do Not March", "Swans? What Swans?", "Too Ugly For Show Business", "Things That Look Like Meat", "Watermelon in Easter Hay", "Canadian Customs", and "It Ain't Necessarily the St. James Infirmary."

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1988 Frank Zappa released Broadway the Hard Way, which featured "Elvis Has Just Left the Building", "Planet of the Baritone Women", "Why Don't You Like Me?" "Bacon Fat", "Hot Plate Heaven at the Green Hotel", and his charming commentary on t.v. preachers and religious conservatives, ""Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk":

Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk

There's an ugly little wasel 'bout three-foot nine
Face puffed up from cryin' 'n lyin'
'Cause her sweet little hubby's
Suckin' prong part time
(In the name of The Lord)

Get a clue, little shrew
Oh yeah, oh yeah
Jesus thinks you're a jerk

Did he really choose Tammy to do His Work?
Robertson says that he's The One
Oh sure he is,
if Armageddon
Is your idea of family fun,
An' he's got some planned for you!
(Now, tell me that ain't true)

Now, what if Jimbo's slightly gay,
Will Pat let Jimbo get away?
Everything we've heard him say
Indicated that Jim must pay,
(And it just might hurt a bit)
But keep that money rollin' in,
'Cause Pat and naughty Jimbo
Can't get enough of it

Perhaps it's their idea
Of an Affirmative Action Plan
To give White Trash a 'special break';
Well, they took those Jeezo-bucks and ran
To the bank! To the bank! To the bank! To the bank!
And every night we can hear them thank
Their Buddy, up above
For sending down his love
(While you all smell the glove)

Jim and Pat should take a pole
(Right up each saintly glory-hole),
With tar and feathers too --
Just like they'd love to do to you

('Cause they think you are bad --
And they are very mad)

'Cause some folks don't want prayer in school!

(We'd need an ark to survive the drool
Of Micro-publicans, raised on hate,
And 'Jimbo-Jimbo' when they graduate)

Convinced they are 'The Chosen Ones' --
And all their parents carry guns,
And hold them cards in the N.R.A.
(With their fingers on the triggers
When they kneel and pray)

With a Ku-Klux muu-muu
In the back of the truck,
If you ain't Born Again,
They wanna mess you up, screamin':
"No abortion, no-siree!"
"Life's too precious, can't you see!"
(What's that hangin' from the neighbor's tree?
Why, it looks like 'colored folks' to me --
Would THEY do THAT...seriously?)

Imagine if you will
A multi-millionaire Television Evangelist,
Saved from Korean Combat duty by his father, a U.S. Senator

Studied Law --
But is not qualified to practice it

Father of a "love child"
Who, in adulthood, hosts the remnants
Of papa's religious propaganda program

Claims not to be a "Faith Healer",
But has, in the past,
Dealt stearnly with everything from hemorrhoids to hurricanes

Involved with funding for a 'secret war' in Central America
Claiming Ronald Reagan and Oliver North as close friends

Involved in suspicous 'tax-avoidance schemes',
(Under investigation for 16 months by the I.R.S.)

Claims to be a MAN OF GOD;
Currenty seeking the United States Presidency,
Hoping we will all follow him into --
The Twilight Zone

What if Pat gets in the White House,
And suddenly --
The rights of 'certain people' disappear
Mysteriously?

Now, wouldn't that sort of qualify
As an American Tragedy?
(Especially if he covers it up, sayin'
"Jesus told it to me!")

I hope we never see that day,
In The Land of The Free --
Or someday will we?
Will we?

And if you don't know by now,
The truth of what I'm tellin' you,
Then, surely I have failed somehow --

And Jesus will think I'm a jerk, just like you --
If you let those TV Preachers
Make a monkey out of you!

I said:
"Jesus will think you're a jerk"
And it will be true!

There's an old rugged cross
In the land of cotton --
It's still burnin' on somebody's lawn
And it still smells rotten

Jim and Tammy!
Oh, baby!
You gotta go!
You really got to go!

[ABlairican Pie]

This was not a total list of everything that Frank Zappa had done in his long prolific career. We must not forget his You Can't Do That Onstage Anymore series of live albums, Does Humor Belong in Music, and his various compilations of past tunes. After his death there were several more albums to come.

Frank Zappa with a Fender Telecaster guitar:

[ABlairican Pie]

Going back to the current year, one release that had everyone talking was the one-man band/alternative hitmaking machine that was known as Beck (not to be confused with Jeff "The Guv'nor" Beck of the Yardbirds
and "Blow By Blow" fame). His album Mellow Gold featured a variety of sounds that he created himself which made for some rather "sterile", yet intruging music, such as the hit "Loser":

Loser

In the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey
butane in my veins so i'm out to cut the junkie
with the plastic eyeballs
spray paint the vegetables
dog food stalls with the beefcake pantyhose
kill the headlights and put it in neutral
stock car flamin' with a loser and the cruise control
baby's in Reno with the vitamin D
got a couple of couches sleep on the love seat
someone keeps sayin' I'm insane to complain about
a shotgun wedding and a stain on my shirt
don't believe everything that you breathe
you get a parking violation and a maggot on your sleeve
so shave your face with some mace in the dark
savin' all your food stamps and burnin' down the trailer park
(yo cut it)
Soy un perdedor I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me?
(double-barrel buckshot)
Soy un perdedor i'm a loser baby,so why don't you kill me?
Forces of evil in a bozo nightmare
banned all the music with a phony gas chamber
'cuz one's got a weasel and the other's got a flag
one's got on the pole shove the other in a bag
with the rerun shows and the cocaine nose job
the daytime crap with the folksinger slop
he hung himself with a guitar string
slap the turkey neck and it's hangin' on a pigeon wing
you can't write if you can't relate
trade the cash for the beef for the body for the hate
and my time is a piece of wax
fallin' on a termite who's chokin' on the splinters
Soy un perdedor I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me?
(get crazy with the cheeze whiz)
Soy un perdedor I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me?
(drive-by body pierce)
(yo bring it on down)
soooooooyy....
(I'm a driver I'm a winner things are gonna change I can feel
it)
Soy un perdedor I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me?
(I can't believe you)
Soy un perdedor I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me?
Soy un perdedor I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me?
[repeat]
(Sprechen sie Deutches, baby)
Soy un perdedor I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me?
(Know what I'm sayin'?)

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

A photo of Beck:

[ABlairican Pie]

One band that did not take itself too seriously was King Missile, whose album Happy Hour gave the world everyone's favorite hit, "Detachable Penis", with its haunting tremelo guitar and deadpan vocals about just about every guy's worst nightmare. The album also included a cuddly song about director Martin Scorcese.

Detachable Penis

I woke up this morning with a bad hangover, and my penis was missing again.
This happens all the time. It's detachable. This comes in handy a lot of
the time. I can leave it home when I think it's going to get me in trouble,
or I can rent it out when I don't need it. But now and then I go to a
party, get drunk, and the next morning I can't for the life of me remember
what I did with it. First I looked around my apartment and I couldn't find
it, so I called up the place where the party was, they hadn't seen it either.
I asked them to check the medicine cabinet coz for some reason, I leave
it there sometimes, but not this time. So I told them if it pops up to let
me know. I called a few people who were at the party, but they were no help
either. I was starting to get desperate. I really don't like being without
my penis for too long. It makes me feel like less of a man and I really
hate to have to sit down every time I take a leak. After a few hours of
searching the house and calling everyone I could think of, I was starting
to get very depressed, so I went to the Kiev and ate breakfast. Then as I
walked down Second Avenue toward St. Mark's Place,where all those people
sell used books and other junk on the street, I saw my penis lying on a
blanket next to a broken toaster oven. Some guy was selling it. I had to
buy it off him. He wanted 22 bucks, but I talked him down to 17. I took it
home, washed it off, and put it back on. I was happy again. Complete.
People sometimes tell me I should get it permanently attached, but I don't
know. Even though sometimes it's a pain in the ass, I like having a
detachable penis.

:banana: :mango

[ABlairican Pie]

A pic of King Missile:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1993, former Seattle band The Melvins (who convinced Kurt Cobain to start
a band) released Houdini, which featured a song with one of their more cryptic lyrics, "Hooch." The minimalist grunge-metal band also released a cover song from one of their favorite bands, KISS, the tune "Going Blind". The band that helped start the grunge movement found itself not sharing in the glories that its other Seattle compatriots did. The band at this point relocated to San Francisco.

The album cover was illustrated by Frank Kozik.

Hooch

Los ticka toe rest.
Might likea sender doe ree.
Your make a doll a ray day
sender bright like a penelty.

Exi-tease my ray day
member half lost a beat away.
Purst in like a one way sender
war give a heart like a fay.

Cuz I can ford a red eed
only street a wide a ree land.
Die-mond make a mid-evil bike
a sake a like a ree caste.

Cuz I can ford a red eed only
street a wide a ree land.
On a ree land.
Find a ree land.

You sink a my swan.
Rolly a get a worst in.
Maybe minus way far
central poor forty duck a pin.

Milk maid dud bean.
Master a load a head.
Pill pop a dope a well run
general hash pump a gonna led.

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

A photo of the Melvins:

[ABlairican Pie]

In 1993, Mudhoney was one Seattle band that was not cashing in on the co-opting of the grunge-alternative movement. That is until Warner/Reprise Records decided that it wanted a piece the of pie (or cake? ;) ). Mudhoney made their album Five Dollar Bob's Mock Cooter Stew their first major label release. Many independent music critics in Seattle, particularly some of the local magazine The Rocket, condemned their move to a major label: "Celebrate or lament the moment." The critics decried the event because it meant that the local revolutionaries of the Seattle scene had "sold out" to the lure of big bucks and falling in line with the record company's demands, rather than remaining true to their own vision, one that could only be achieved on an independent label which granted
them complete freedom. Sure, the band would sell more, but at what price creatively? It was clear that while people thought that the throwing on of the flannel was "the rebellious punk statement", no one really got it about the true originators of grunge (and it was Mudhoney, and not Nirvana, that were the band that best represented the low-fi sound of grunge and were the ones who really officially started it before Nirvana did). Seattle's own scene was no longer its own.

The album was praised by a few critics, but failed to make quite the commercial dent Warner had hoped for.

No Song III

No legs
No legs
No legs
No legs can't get me where I want to go

No eyes
No eyes
No eyes
No eyes can't see what I'd like to see

No mind
No mind
No mind
No mind can't know what I've got to know

No heart
No heart
No heart
No heart can't feel what yearn to feel

No (no) No (no) No (o)No (no no) NO (no no no no no no)
No legs
No legs
No legs
No legs can't get me where I want to go

No eyes
No eyes
No eyes
No eyes can't see what I'd like to see

No mind
No mind
No mind
No mind can't know what I've got to know

No heart
No heart
No heart
No heart can't feel what I yearn to feel

[ABlairican Pie]

Sonic Youth also made waves as their music became more accessible with their album Dirty. Much of the band's radical feminist politics were featured throughout the album, such as with the comment "We believe Anita Hill", in a clear attack on the most dubious choice for Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas. The band's politics were as uncompromising as their music.
The 90's had truly arrived.

Swimsuit Issue

I'm just here for dictation - I don't wanna be a sensation
Bein' on Sixty Minutes - was it worth your fifteen minutes?

Don't touch my breast - I'm just working at my desk
Don't put me to the test - I'm just doing my best

Shopping at MaxFields - power for you to wield
Dreams of going to the Grammies - `till you poked me with your whammy

You spined the disc - now you're moving your wrist
I'm just from Encino - why are you so meano

I'm just here for dictation - and not your summer vacation
You really like to shmooze - well now you're on the news

I'm from Sherman Oaks - just a wheel with spokes
But I ain't giving you headace - in a Sunset bungalow

Roshumba, Judith, Paulina, Cathy, Vendella, Naomi,
Ashley, Angie, Stacey, Gail
Ice women
Ice women
Ice women

[ABlairican Pie]

Youth Against Fascism (Hate Song)

[sung by guitarist Thurston Moore]
another can of worms
another stomach turns
yeh yr ghetto burns
it's the song I hate, it's the song I hate

you got a stupid man
you got a Ku Klux Klan
yr f:censored:in' battle plan
it's the song I hate, it's the song I hate

a sieg heil-in' squirt
you're an impotent jerk
yeh a fascist twerp
it's the song I hate, it's the song I hate

black robe and swill
I believe Anita Hill
judge will rot in hell
it's the song I hate, it's the song I hate


Bassist Kim Gordon, shown with a guitar:

[ABlairican Pie]

One of the most influential bands of the alternative revolution was British group Radiohead, whose debut album Pablo Honey brought a potent "loser-slacker" anthem "Creep", which was akin to Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", although a bit more mournful and slow. The guitar power chord in the chorus added a needed kick to the song. The band featured members Thom York, Phil Selway, Ed O'Brien, and Colin and Jonny Greenwood.

The lyrics below are perhaps not to the radio version most people are familiar with:

Creep

When you were here before
Couldn't look you in the eye
You're just like an angel
Your skin makes me cry
You float like a feather
In a beautiful world
I wish I was special
You're so f:censored:ing special

But I'm a creep
I'm a weirdo
What the hell am I doing here?
I don't belong here

I don't care if it hurts
I want to have control
I want a perfect body
I want a perfect soul
I want you to notice when I'm not around
You're so f:censored:ing special
I wish I was special

But I'm a creep
I'm a weirdo
What the hell I'm doing here?
I don't belong here

She's running out again
She's running out
She runs runs runs

Whatever makes you happy
Whatever you want
You're so f:censored:ing special
I wish I was special

But I'm a creep
I'm a weirdo
What the hell am I doing here?
I don't belong here
I don't belong here

:(

:rock: :guitar: :guitar: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

Anyone Can Play Guitar

Destiny, destiny protect me from the world
Destiny, hold my hand protect me from the world
Here we are with our running and confusion
And I don't see no confusion anywhere

And if the world does turn
And if London burns I'll be standing on the beach with my guitar
I wanna be in a band when I get to heaven
Anyone can play guitar
And they won't be anything anymore

Grow my hair, grow my hair
I am Jim Morrison
Grow my hair
I wanna be wanna be wanna be Jim Morrison

Here we are with our running and confusion
And I don't see no confusion anywhere
And if the world does turn
And if London burns I'll be standing on the beach with my guitar
I wanna be in a band when I get to heaven
Anyone can play guitar
And they won't be anything anymore

[ABlairican Pie]

One "Riot Girrrl" band actually had a sense of humor, Bratmobile, whose album Potty Mouth featured such tracks as "Love Thing", "Cherry Bomb", "F:censored: Yr Fans", "Juswanna", and "Kiss and Ride".