Today’s show kicks off with the new single for John Petkovic (Cobra Verde) and Pat Carney (Black Keys), together as Sad Planets. We also introduce the new releases from Motorpsycho and Specials who reunited after many years. We introduce Low Life from Sydney Australia and Katla from Iceland. Shagg is a new quartet from Cleveland and we also hear one of their songs recorded live. Sara Romweber, drummer of Let’s Active, Snatches of Pink and Dex Romweber Duo passed away at the age of 55 on March 4th, and today’s show is dedicated to her memory.
Nikki Hill – Take The Ride (It Don’t Matter);
Sad Planets – Not of This World;
Specials – Breaking Point;
Specials – Ghost Town;
Sunwatchers – New Dad Blues;
Motorpsycho – Psychotzar;
Katla – I Will Hunt You.;
Outrageous Cherry – Last Nice Guy In Detroit;
Coldcock – I Wanna Be Rich;
Low Life – Lust Forevermore;
Shagg – Switchblade Baby;
Shagg (Live in CLE);
Dex Romweber Duo – Jungle Drums;
Snatches of Pink – Thing of the Past;
Let’s Active – Ring True;
The Lemonheads – Magnet;
NRBQ – Magnet.
Paul Hamann worked as the recording engineer at Suma Studios in Painesville, OH. The first time I saw his name was back in my old home town, when I was reading the liner notes to fIREHOSE album fROMOHIO. But, when I spoke to him about that record, it was just one of many that he did. His breakthrough happened with the first Pere Ubu album The Modern Dance. In the following years, Hamann recorded almost all Pere Ubu records and many of the essential Cleveland underground records: The Girls, Human Switchboard, Pagans, Pressler Morgan… Hamann had a way to capture raw power from almost any band that asked for his services. Part of it is an excellent set up at his Suma Studio, but also, his ear and unmistakable instinct to press the recording button at the right time. That was recognized by many of the Alive Records bands, who used his services. Black Keys made another huge mark on modern rock’n’roll and a large part of it was due to the spirit of Suma embodied in Paul Hamann. His departure is leaves a big void in the recording world. This episode of The Little Lighthouse is dedicated to his work.
fIREHOSE – Riddle of the Eighties
Pere Ubu – Non-alignment Pact
Pere Ubu – Modern Dance;
Pagans – Street Where Nobody Lives;
Pagans – Whats This Shit Called Love;
The Girls – Jeffrey I Hear You;
Human Switchboard – Prime Of My Life;
Pressler Morgan – You’re Gonna Watch Me;
15 60 75 – Here In The Life;
The Trees – Happy to See You;
fIREHOSE – In My Mind;
fIREHOSE – Time with You;
fIREHOSE – Some Things;
fIREHOSE – Understanding;
Brimstone Howl – Bad Seed;
The Black Keys – Strange Times;
Left Lane Cruiser – G Bob;
Mondo Drag – Fade Out (Into Space);
This Moment in Black History – Forest Whitaker;
The Safeties – No Fun;
Scarcity Of Tanks – Over And Done.
Today’s show goes out to the two blues musicians which we lost within one single week (not in the same day as I said in the show). First Keef Hartley went away, English drummer who has worked in the late 60s with several different bands, most notably his own Keef Hartley band. Then Hubert Sumlin, the legendary Chicago blues pioneer left as well. It’s sad to see them go, so we remember their work in today’s show.
Besides these tributes, we also have new albums for John Hiatt, Black Keys and The Love Me Nots. Pow Wows from New York City and Black Bananas from the Los Angeles scene are for the first time at the Little Lighthouse.
Byrds – She Don’t Care About Time;
John Hiatt – Detroit Made;
Pow Wows – Do The Splash;
Jerusalem and the Starbaskets – First Cigarette in the Rain;
John Paul Keith – Somebody Ought To Write A Song About You;
The V-Roys – Sooner or Later;
Amy LaVere – You Can’t Keep Me;
Bobby Charles – Keep Cookin’ Mama;
Black Bananas and Kurt Vile – Before They Make Me Run;
The Rolling Stones – Before They Make Me Run
Keef Hartley Band – Leavin’ Trunk;
Hubert Sumlin – My Guitar and Me;
The Black Keys – Little Black Submarines;
The Shazam – Rollercoaster;
The Mark Lanegan Band – The Gravedigger’s Song;
The Love Me Nots – The Girl Lights Up.
On November 6 1985, exactly 25 years ago, one tradition started to take shape. Zikica Simic in Belgrade (Yugoslavia), decided to start a radio show featuring “the new American rock music” called Tajanstveni voz (Mystery Train). Zikica was featuring bands of the 80s rock’n’roll scene that was impossible to hear anywhere in the world except on college radio stations in the USA. He recognized the respect that these bands had for traditional rock’n’roll and persistently for the next 25 years (and hopefully more) he followed this musical genre as it transformed throughout the years: Husker Du, Green On Red, Violent Femmes, Giant Sand, Tav Falco then a new injection of power with Uncle Tupelo in the nineties and now with Endless Boogie, Phosphorescent, Black Keys and Kurt Vile. He introduced a small army of listeners to the true rock’n’roll sound, including myself. To be perfectly honest, influence of Zikica’s radio show is so enormous on me, that I can easily say how Little Lighthouse is a pale copy of Mystery Train, and still consider it an understatement and a compliment to my show. In the latest installment of his show, Zikica Simic re-played his very first playlist and also threw in a few songs from todays moment in between. A great way to mark quarter of a century of one helluva show.
Playlist 25 years ago…
Violent Femmes – Add It Up The Long Ryders – I Had A Dream Beat Rodeo – Without You R.E.M. – Driver 8 The Del-Lords – Mercenary Dream Syndicate – Medicine Show Husker Du – Books About UFOs Beat Farmers – Bigger Stones Green On Red – That’s What Dreams X – What’s Wrong With Me Minutemen – Cheerleaders Guadalcanal Diary – Ghost On The Road.
Mixed bag today, folks. Soul, blues, glam, power pop… and the stones. Yeah, the reissue of Exile On Main Street is scheduled for May, but as the record company decided to put out a special single out on the record store day with a song dug out from the Exile vaults called Plundered My Soul. When you think of that the Stones actually had so many good songs those days that they just threw out something like that… Another reissue for this year is Elvis Costello’s Live At The Hollywood High ep this time expanded to a full blown long playing CD reissue. Red Shoes sound particularly good on that one. We also check out new albums for the Black Keys and for Sharon Jones. Moaners are here again with some demos that they keep putting pretty much regularly on their myspace page.
The Enjoyables – I’ll Take You Back;
Ann Mason – You Can’t Love Me (In The Midnight Hour);
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings – I Learned the Hard Way;
The Pack AD – The Slow Down;
Mr. Airplane Man – Like That;
The Moaners – Blue Moon;
The Moaners – Humid Air;
Black Keys – Howlin’ For You;
Gary Glitter – Rock’n’roll Part 2;
Shoes – Boys Don’t Lie;
The Only Ones – Another Girl Another Planet;
Elvis Costello – (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes;
Sweet Apple – Dead Moon;
Sweet Apple – Dead Moon (demo);
John Paul Keith – Lookin For A Thrill;
Reigning Sound – Call Me;
Harlan T Bobo – Bad Boyfriends;
Rolling Stones – Plundered My Soul;
Easter Monkeys – Hiding In Bedroom.
Podcasting from Cleveland, Ohio. Broadcasting on Radio Kragujevac, every Sunday from 4-5pm (Central European Time). Streaming on Rock XS every Thursday at Midnight (Eastern European Time).