Bart Bealmear is a freelance writer, the Drastic Plastic Press music
editor, and long-time CJAM disc-jockey. His great radio show, Circa,
can be heard on 91.5 in Windsor and Detroit or via the CJAM web
site, Fridays at 1 PM EST.
editor, and long-time CJAM disc-jockey. His great radio show, Circa,
can be heard on 91.5 in Windsor and Detroit or via the CJAM web
site, Fridays at 1 PM EST.
Reissue of the Year {sunday morning coming down}: Red Hash by Gary Higgins (Drag City)
Considering this album induces a drug-like state ala Gene Clark’s No Other and David Crosby’s If
Only I Could Remember My Name, it’s no shock to learn that Higgins went to prison for selling
marijuana shortly after the record’s release (oh, and there’s the title, too). Distributed in limited
quantities in 1973, this inspired piece of psychedelic folk sees wide release for the first time.
Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em.
Song of the Year {download it now}: “Our Love Will Change The World” by Outrageous
Cherry (Rainbow Quartz)
Matt Smith proves that yes, he can write a perfect pop song. Upbeat and bubbling over with hooks,
at first glance it appears to be just another love song (though a great one at that). But Smith pulls
a lyrical fast-one, since what he’s really talking about is the power of a cynical love, one that will
bring the planet down, not the other way around. Yet the high harmonies, handclaps and soaring
melody keep the listener in the clouds, blissfully unaware that Smith and his love will change the
world. When a song’s this good, you believe it.
Show of the Year {nostalgia is our passion}: Gang of Four at the Majestic Theatre
(Detroit, 5-13-05)
As a band that sang about consumerism and a dying culture, the very idea of a Gang Of Four
reunion tour seemed all wrong. But the four original members made all thoughts of this being a
purely commercial venture disappear during their Detroit appearance last May. Though it took a
few numbers for singer Jon King to warm up, the group responsible for the greatest and most
influential post-punk record (Entertainment) converted any non-believers. For a bunch of geezers,
they possessed a surprising abundance of energy, running around the stage, with King grabbing
whatever mike was handy. Andy Gill still plays his guitar like he’s having a seizure, thankfully, and
the group sounded so tight you’d swear it was 1979. And turning a television into a percussion
device seemed just about right.
Book of the Year: Souled American – How Black Music Transformed White Culture by
Kevin Phinney (Billboard Books)
Essentially three books in one, Phinney not only addresses the controversial topic of how black
musicians are often the innovators and then white performers reap the benefits—i.e. the cash
(though sometimes vice-versa), but traces the evolution of American popular music dating back to
the 17th Century, as well as taking the needed hard look at relations between the races and the
development of the civil rights movement. Fascinating for anyone interested in any of the above
subjects, Souled American is the absolute best kind of musical history book imaginable.
Joyous Moment: discovering Bettye LaVette.
Pressing the buttons on the car stereo is one of those things that’s so routine you forget the
reason why: the hope you will land on something truly great. Hearing Betty LaVette sing for the
first time is one of those moments. Miss LaVette, a Michigan native who’s been recording since the
1960s, had slipped under my musical radar—until I caught hear working her way through the song
“Joy” live on WDET. It became apparent instantly that she possesses the kind of ideal hoarseness
that makes Rod Stewart sound like a pre-pubescent choirboy, and has enough soul to fill your
heart with exactly what she was singing about on that summer day.
Top 5 Albums of the Year (but not in order):
M.I.A. – Arular (XL)
The adjectives have long since been exhausted to describe the biggest Internet hype of the year,
but words like fresh, innovative, and exciting are well-deserved.
Outrageous Cherry – Our Love Will Change The World (Rainbow Quartz)
Fall in love to the sound of Matt Smith falling out of love. Psychedelic-tinged pop hasn’t been this
good in a long, long time.
The Detroit Cobras – Baby (Bloodshot)
Though they receive their share of criticism for being a “cover band,” try and name another group
that reinterprets obscure ‘60s R&B and Soul at the level of the Cobras….That’s right, you can’t,
‘cause there ain’t.
Rock 'n' Roll Monkey and the Robots – Detroit Trauma (Drastic Plastic)
Ok, so the DPP webmaster put out a CD this year. It just happens to be the most spirited punk
rock record since The Briefs’ Hit After Hit—how could I not find it irresistible?
The White Stripes – Get Behind Me Satan (V2)
The White Stripes are one of those groups that can do no wrong. Even their mediocre tracks are
still better than most of what ends up in the cesspool called the Top 40. They’re also one of the
rare units that, regardless of what instrument they decide to incorporate (marimba this time out), it
still sounds like the same band, thanks to Meg White’s distinctive drumming and the songs of Jack
White. It’s now apparent that Jack, by drawing on 20th Century greats like Porter, Lynn and Bolan,
will eventually be remembered as one of the finest songwriters of this century.
--Bart Bealmear
TOP FIVE FOR 2005 LISTS: PAGE 1 2 3 4
Considering this album induces a drug-like state ala Gene Clark’s No Other and David Crosby’s If
Only I Could Remember My Name, it’s no shock to learn that Higgins went to prison for selling
marijuana shortly after the record’s release (oh, and there’s the title, too). Distributed in limited
quantities in 1973, this inspired piece of psychedelic folk sees wide release for the first time.
Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em.
Song of the Year {download it now}: “Our Love Will Change The World” by Outrageous
Cherry (Rainbow Quartz)
Matt Smith proves that yes, he can write a perfect pop song. Upbeat and bubbling over with hooks,
at first glance it appears to be just another love song (though a great one at that). But Smith pulls
a lyrical fast-one, since what he’s really talking about is the power of a cynical love, one that will
bring the planet down, not the other way around. Yet the high harmonies, handclaps and soaring
melody keep the listener in the clouds, blissfully unaware that Smith and his love will change the
world. When a song’s this good, you believe it.
Show of the Year {nostalgia is our passion}: Gang of Four at the Majestic Theatre
(Detroit, 5-13-05)
As a band that sang about consumerism and a dying culture, the very idea of a Gang Of Four
reunion tour seemed all wrong. But the four original members made all thoughts of this being a
purely commercial venture disappear during their Detroit appearance last May. Though it took a
few numbers for singer Jon King to warm up, the group responsible for the greatest and most
influential post-punk record (Entertainment) converted any non-believers. For a bunch of geezers,
they possessed a surprising abundance of energy, running around the stage, with King grabbing
whatever mike was handy. Andy Gill still plays his guitar like he’s having a seizure, thankfully, and
the group sounded so tight you’d swear it was 1979. And turning a television into a percussion
device seemed just about right.
Book of the Year: Souled American – How Black Music Transformed White Culture by
Kevin Phinney (Billboard Books)
Essentially three books in one, Phinney not only addresses the controversial topic of how black
musicians are often the innovators and then white performers reap the benefits—i.e. the cash
(though sometimes vice-versa), but traces the evolution of American popular music dating back to
the 17th Century, as well as taking the needed hard look at relations between the races and the
development of the civil rights movement. Fascinating for anyone interested in any of the above
subjects, Souled American is the absolute best kind of musical history book imaginable.
Joyous Moment: discovering Bettye LaVette.
Pressing the buttons on the car stereo is one of those things that’s so routine you forget the
reason why: the hope you will land on something truly great. Hearing Betty LaVette sing for the
first time is one of those moments. Miss LaVette, a Michigan native who’s been recording since the
1960s, had slipped under my musical radar—until I caught hear working her way through the song
“Joy” live on WDET. It became apparent instantly that she possesses the kind of ideal hoarseness
that makes Rod Stewart sound like a pre-pubescent choirboy, and has enough soul to fill your
heart with exactly what she was singing about on that summer day.
Top 5 Albums of the Year (but not in order):
M.I.A. – Arular (XL)
The adjectives have long since been exhausted to describe the biggest Internet hype of the year,
but words like fresh, innovative, and exciting are well-deserved.
Outrageous Cherry – Our Love Will Change The World (Rainbow Quartz)
Fall in love to the sound of Matt Smith falling out of love. Psychedelic-tinged pop hasn’t been this
good in a long, long time.
The Detroit Cobras – Baby (Bloodshot)
Though they receive their share of criticism for being a “cover band,” try and name another group
that reinterprets obscure ‘60s R&B and Soul at the level of the Cobras….That’s right, you can’t,
‘cause there ain’t.
Rock 'n' Roll Monkey and the Robots – Detroit Trauma (Drastic Plastic)
Ok, so the DPP webmaster put out a CD this year. It just happens to be the most spirited punk
rock record since The Briefs’ Hit After Hit—how could I not find it irresistible?
The White Stripes – Get Behind Me Satan (V2)
The White Stripes are one of those groups that can do no wrong. Even their mediocre tracks are
still better than most of what ends up in the cesspool called the Top 40. They’re also one of the
rare units that, regardless of what instrument they decide to incorporate (marimba this time out), it
still sounds like the same band, thanks to Meg White’s distinctive drumming and the songs of Jack
White. It’s now apparent that Jack, by drawing on 20th Century greats like Porter, Lynn and Bolan,
will eventually be remembered as one of the finest songwriters of this century.
--Bart Bealmear
TOP FIVE FOR 2005 LISTS: PAGE 1 2 3 4
