This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio # 957: Countdown!
We have fans. We know that we do. But there ain’t no bigger fans of This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio with Dana & Carl than…us. Dana & Carl. We started this show just over 20 years ago, and began doing similar shows even before that, because we had a vision of what rock ‘n’ roll radio could be, what it should be. We still believe in that vision. I think we live up to it, every Sunday night, by joyfully mingling records from hot off the presses and way, way back, and all points in between. Rock ‘n’ roll radio–rockin’ pop radio!–needs to play Smokey Robinson & the Miracles alongside current gems like Wilkerson and The Grip Weeds; we need to hear The Sex Pistols and The Bookends and The O’Jays and Chris Paine & the Lettertrain, we need The Kinks and Dean Landew, Ray Paul and P. P. Arnold. Prince. Irene Peña. The Ramones. Gretchen’s Wheel. Buck Owens & his Buckaroos. Vegas With Randolph. Warren Zevon (solo, and with Hindu Love Gods). The Slapbacks and The Small Faces. Last year’s # 1 by Circe Link & Christian Nesmith, and our all-time # 1 by Big Star. Mannix. The Jayhawks. Lulu, The Pandoras, The Monkees, Steve Barton, Al Green, Derrick Anderson, The Bay City Rollers, Orbis Max, Pop Co-Op, Merry Clayton, Lisa Mychols, The Flashcubes. Screen Test. The Hit Squad. Eytan Mirsky. The Beatles. Bob Seger! All of it, and so much more, side by side, one after another. Great records don’t care what year it is. People who are fans of great records don’t care what year the damned record came out. Right now, the everlasting immediate. It sounds good now. That’s why we’re fans. That’s why this is rock ‘n’ roll radio.
And, as fans, we can state with some authority that this week’s show is one of the best we’ve ever done.
The annual countdown show sums it up for us. This is what we played a lot in 2018, including classic fave raves and hot new crushes, from 1964 to 2018. A song from 1958 missed the Top 47 countdown by a single spin, and it keeps company with bubbling-under tracks from the ’60s, the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, ’00s and ’10s. Congratulations to Syracuse’s own Harmonic Dirt, whose catchy 2017 tune “Maybe” is our brand-new # 1–huzzah, and play it LOUD! Thanks again to the mighty Fritz Van Leaven for keeping track of all of this, and thank you all for allowing us to continue our ongoing pursuit of The Best Three Hours Of Radio On The Whole Friggin’ Planet. We fans have to stick together.
In 2018, This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio played 1,688 different tracks. Only 439 of them were played more than once. A mere 70 were played five times or more. Ladies and gentlemen: our Top 47. This is what rock ‘n’ roll radio sounded like on Sunday nights in Syracuse in 2018.
This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio with Dana & Carl, Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse on The Spark WSPJ-LP 103.3 and 93.7 FM, and on the web at http://sparksyracuse.org/
Spark Syracuse is supported by listeners like you. Tax-deductible donations are welcome at http://sparksyracuse.org/support/
You can follow Carl’s daily blog Boppin’ (Like The Hip Folks Do) at
https://carlcafarelli.blogspot.com/
Our new compilation CD This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio, Volume 4 is now available from Kool Kat Musik! 29 tracks of irresistible rockin’ pop, starring Pop Co-Op, Ray Paul, Circe Link & Christian Nesmith, Vegas With Randolph Featuring Lannie Flowers, The Slapbacks, P. Hux, Irene Peña, Michael Oliver & the Sacred Band Featuring Dave Merritt, The Rubinoos, Stepford Knives, The Grip Weeds, Popdudes, Ronnie Dark, The Flashcubes, Chris von Sneidern, The Bottle Kids, 1.4.5., The Smithereens, Paul Collins’ Beat, The Hit Squad, The Rulers, The Legal Matters, Maura & the Bright Lights, Lisa Mychols, and Mr. Encrypto & the Cyphers. You gotta have it, so order it at https://tinyurl.com/ycnly8oz Digital download version (minus The Smithereens’ track) now available at https://tinyurl.com/ycauy9xt
TIRnRR # 957: The 20th Annual Countdown Show
TOP 6 MOST-PLAYED ARTISTS IN 2018:
# 6
BOB SEGER: Get Out Of Denver (Reprise, Seven)
# 5
THE RAMONES: Judy Is A Punk (Rhino, Ramones)
# 4
THE KINKS: All Day And All Of The Night (Sanctuary, The Ultimate Collection
# 3
THE FLASHCUBES: When We Close Our Eyes (Northside, Brilliant)
# 2
THE MONKEES: You Just May Be The One (Rhino, Headquarters
# 1
THE BEATLES: I’m Happy Just To Dance With You (Capitol, single)
TOP 47 MOST-PLAYED TRACKS IN 2018:
# 47
CHRIS PAINE & THE LETTERTRAIN: Might Have Found Me (chrispainemusic.com, Indiscriminate Chatter)
# 46
THE BOOKENDS: Laugh Or Cry (Otto Raw, The Bookends)
# 45
STEVE BARTON: The Shadow Of The Bride (Sleepless, Tall Tales And Alibis)
# 44
VEGAS WITH RANDOLPH: She’s An Intellectual (Caged Giant, Legs & Luggage)
# 43
THE PANDORAS: Just A Picture (Burger, Hey! It’s The Pandoras)
# 42
LISA MYCHOLS: He’s Got Me Dreaming (n/a, Sugar)
# 41
DERRICK ANDERSON: When I Was Your Man (Omnivore, A World Of My Own)
# 40
ORBIS MAX: What’s It All About (orbismax.bandcamp.com, single)
# 39
SCREEN TEST: Notes From Trevor (Northside, Through The Past, Brightly)
# 38
THE FLASHCUBES: You Got My Promise (Northside, Forever)
# 37
PRINCE: I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man (Warner Brothers, The Hits/The B-Sides)
# 36
THE MONKEES: Me & Magdalena [Version 2] (Rhino, Good Times! [digital edition])
# 35
WARREN ZEVON: Poor Poor Pitiful (Rhiono, Genius)
# 34
LULU: The Boat That I Row (Rhino, From Crayons To Perfume)
# 33
HINDU LOVE GODS: Raspberry Beret (Rhino, WARREN ZEVON: genius)
# 32
THE MONKEES: Porpoise Song (Theme From Head) (Rhino, 50)
# 31
AL GREEN: I Want To Hold Your Hand (The Right Stuff, Green Is Blues)
# 30
THE KINKS:Waterloo Sunset (Sanctuary, The Ultimate Collection)
# 29
THE BEATLES: Hey Bulldog (Apple, Yellow Submarine Songtrack)
# 28
THE KINKS: You Really Got Me (Sanctuary, The Ultimate Collection)
# 27
MANNIX: Highway Lines (Kool Kat Musik, VA: This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio, Volume 3)
# 26
THE RAMONES: Blitzkrieg Bop (Rhino, Ramones)
# 25
THE GRIP WEEDS: Vibrations (Jem, Trip Around The Sun)
# 24
THE SMALL FACES: Afterglow (Of Your Love) (Castle, The Autumn Stone)
# 23
RAY PAUL: I Need Your Love Tonight (Kool Kat Musik, VA: This Is Rock ‘n’; Roll; Radio, Volume 4)
# 22
THE JAYHAWKS: I’m Gonna Make You Love Me (Columbia, Smile)
# 21
THE BAY CITY ROLLERS: Rock And Roll Love Letter (Arista, The Definitive Collection)
# 20
THE RAMONES: Sheena Is A Punk Rocker (Rhino, Rocket To Russia)
# 19
MERRY CLAYTON: Gimme Shelter (Sony, VA: 20 Feet From Stardom OST)
# 18
IRENE PEÑA: Must’ve Been Good (Kool Kat Musik, VA: This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio, Volume 4)
# 17
SMOKEY ROBINSON & THE MIRACLES: The Tears Of AClown (Motown, VA: Hitsville USA)
# 16
THE SEX PISTOLS: God Save The Queen (Virgin, Kiss This)
# 15
EYTAN MIRSKY: This Year’s Gonna Be Our Year (M-Squared, Year Of The Mouse)
# 14
BUCK OWENS & HIS BUCKAROOS: Who’s Gonna Mow Your Grass (Rhino, 21 # 1 Hits)
# 13
THE HIT SQUAD: Best Of Me (Kool Kat Musik, VA: This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio, Volume 4)
# 12
THE SLAPBACKS: Make Something Happe (Kool Kat Musik, VA: This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio, Volume 4)
# 11
CIRCE LINK & CHRISTIAN NESMITH: I’m On Your Side (Kool Kat Musik, VA: This Is Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio, Volume 4)
# 10
WILKERSON: Let It Go Tonight (SpyderPop, Wilkerson)
# 9
POP CO-OP: If Everything Was Easy (Silent Bugler, Four State Solution)
# 8
THE O’JAYS: Love Train (Sony, Love Train)
# 7
THE FLASHCUBES: No Promise (Northside, Bright Lights)
# 6
GRETCHEN’S WHEEL: Plans (Futureman, Black Box Theory)
# 5
DEAN LANDEW: After Work (deanlandew.bandcamp.com, single)
# 4
P. P. ARNOLD: The First Cut Is The Deepest (Immediate, The First Cut)
# 3
BIG STAR: September Gurls (Big Beat, VA: Thank You, Friends)
# 2
THE BOB SEGER SYSTEM: 2 + 2 = ? (Capitol, single)
AND OUR # 1 MOST-PLAYED TRACK IN 2018:
HARMONIC DIRT: Maybe (n/a, Anthracite)
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