The face and sound of one the pre-eminent bands of the New Wave era _________________ You thought God was an architect, now you know
He’s something like a pipe bomb ready to blow
And everything you built that’s all for show
goes up in flames
In 24 frames
Scott Tobias
@scott_tobias
Imagine your first album having “Just What I Needed,” “My Best Friend’s Girl” and “Good Times Roll” as singles. Imagine the level of pop genius right out of the box. And he was just getting started. What a legend.
Joined: 02 Jan 2011 Posts: 36081 Location: 502 Bad Gateway
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2019 6:21 pm Post subject:
The wrap on this band (I used to know someone from Boston) is that they were terrible live. I always wondered if that explained why Ocasek went into producing.
To be honest, as good as that first album is, I don't think I've ever heard the second.
The wrap on this band (I used to know someone from Boston) is that they were terrible live. I always wondered if that explained why Ocasek went into producing.
To be honest, as good as that first album is, I don't think I've ever heard the second.
Too bad Ocasek didn't die after the first album then. _________________ Under New Management
Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 52648 Location: Making a safety stop at 15 feet.
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2019 6:26 pm Post subject:
greenfrog wrote:
The wrap on this band (I used to know someone from Boston) is that they were terrible live. I always wondered if that explained why Ocasek went into producing.
To be honest, as good as that first album is, I don't think I've ever heard the second.
Regardless, the videos of their great songs were iconic. _________________ You thought God was an architect, now you know
He’s something like a pipe bomb ready to blow
And everything you built that’s all for show
goes up in flames
In 24 frames
The wrap on this band (I used to know someone from Boston) is that they were terrible live. I always wondered if that explained why Ocasek went into producing.
To be honest, as good as that first album is, I don't think I've ever heard the second.
Regardless, the videos of their great songs were iconic.
And one of the ugliest frontmen smashed Paulina poizkova.
Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 52648 Location: Making a safety stop at 15 feet.
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2019 6:49 pm Post subject:
Hector the Pup wrote:
DaMuleRules wrote:
greenfrog wrote:
The wrap on this band (I used to know someone from Boston) is that they were terrible live. I always wondered if that explained why Ocasek went into producing.
To be honest, as good as that first album is, I don't think I've ever heard the second.
Regardless, the videos of their great songs were iconic.
And one of the ugliest frontmen smashed Paulina poizkova.
Apparently, he was actually pretty good "live". _________________ You thought God was an architect, now you know
He’s something like a pipe bomb ready to blow
And everything you built that’s all for show
goes up in flames
In 24 frames
Jason Isbell
Man, do those lyrics resonate right now
Last edited by DaMuleRules on Sun Sep 15, 2019 6:51 pm; edited 1 time in total
As for the comment about them being terrible live, I don't know where that comes from. It could have been true when they were a new band, but they were a successful national touring act later on. Here are a couple songs from Live Aid:
The last time I saw them was on The Colbert Report when they released their last album. I was hoping for one more album, but alas.
The first and fifth albums (The Cars and Heartbreak City) are the classics. They never put out a bad album. Even Door to Door had its moments. More than anything else, new wave just faded out of style. They same thing was true for a number of bands, including Talking Heads and Blondie.
Joined: 02 Jan 2011 Posts: 36081 Location: 502 Bad Gateway
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2019 8:42 pm Post subject:
Aeneas Hunter wrote:
Noooo. RIP
As for the comment about them being terrible live, I don't know where that comes from. It could have been true when they were a new band, but they were a successful national touring act later on. Here are a couple songs from Live Aid:
The last time I saw them was on The Colbert Report when they released their last album. I was hoping for one more album, but alas.
The first and fifth albums (The Cars and Heartbreak City) are the classics. They never put out a bad album. Even Door to Door had its moments. More than anything else, new wave just faded out of style. They same thing was true for a number of bands, including Talking Heads and Blondie.
"No energy" is the complaint I recall from this person who claimed to have seen them in clubs in the early days. I've heard DJ's remark on it, too.
Anyway, I'll give the 5th album a listen.
A presidential candidate has chimed in on the news.
Scott Tobias
@scott_tobias
Imagine your first album having “Just What I Needed,” “My Best Friend’s Girl” and “Good Times Roll” as singles. Imagine the level of pop genius right out of the box. And he was just getting started. What a legend.
The wrap on this band (I used to know someone from Boston) is that they were terrible live. I always wondered if that explained why Ocasek went into producing.
To be honest, as good as that first album is, I don't think I've ever heard the second.
You're missing a lot, Candy-O was a great album. I personally consider it their best. And the album art was classic.
Sad news. Unique and talented front man. _________________ “Properly read, the bible is the most potent force for atheism ever conceived.”
― Isaac Asimov
Joined: 09 Dec 2009 Posts: 4330 Location: Meeting the man who met Andy Griffith.
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2019 12:04 am Post subject:
Damn, I was just listening to this on repeat on Thursday night. Repeat for the entire drive from ladera ranch to Buena Park.
You might think I went crazy, but nope I loved it. RIP _________________ "The best there is. The best there was. The best there ever will be.", said Bret Hart regarding the Los Angeles Lakers.
"No energy" is the complaint I recall from this person who claimed to have seen them in clubs in the early days. I've heard DJ's remark on it, too.
I saw them live a couple times. Wouldn't call them "bad," and they certainly had their moments -- they just weren't a band whose music came alive when performed live.
The Cars were a serious guilty pleasure, a true power pop band of the era that softened the edge of new wave with pop. It was the sound that punk aficionados wouldn't be caught dead listening to with their friends, but you knew damn well that they played The Cars in private.
Joined: 07 May 2014 Posts: 13823 Location: Boulder ;)
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2019 8:44 am Post subject:
Hector the Pup wrote:
Seriously between him and Eddie money I just lost about 20 percent of my childhood soundtrack.
So many Cars tunes up in my head
A friend and I back in 87 had a big Klipsch Denon system
Bowls and lights and things are moving in stereo
Skill and musical perfection right there with Beatles Pink Floyd The Eagles
I love my old tunes and the freedom it meant to listen
Lived in a upper middle ghetto apartment with like 60" of woofer in the apartment bumping everything from
Mozart/Too short/NWA 2Live Crew/Hendrix/Slayer/FloydZepBeastiesZZTOzzyBeatles etc
Joined: 02 Jan 2011 Posts: 36081 Location: 502 Bad Gateway
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2019 12:33 pm Post subject:
angrypuppy wrote:
The Cars were a serious guilty pleasure, a true power pop band of the era that softened the edge of new wave with pop. It was the sound that punk aficionados wouldn't be caught dead listening to with their friends, but you knew damn well that they played The Cars in private.
Yeah that kid was me. Unlabeled TDK cassette with The Cars on one side and Stevie Nicks on the other.
Regarding the comment about the new wave sound dying out, I always wonder how these songs would sound without the synthesisers and dated 80's overproduction. That's where Stevie Nicks lost me after "The Wild Heart". I suspect the same will be true for The Cars when I go through their discography, but that first album is pure.
Damn it. What a (bleep) shame. For my money, he was one of the better songwriters of the late 70's and 80s. Not necessarily the voice of a generation, but definitely someone who's composition have aged well. The deeper you get into them, the more you can appreciate them. The first two Cars records contain some of the BEST pop music from their respective eras. The third record, Panorama, is a bit more eclectic and experimental, however it also manages to meld some strong pop hooks with more dissonant instrumentation and oddball song structures (a concept I've always liked). To my ears, their later stuff isn't quite as consistent, but you'll manage to come across quality tunes scattered throughout. As far as the 1st Cars record, it's right up there with Van Halen I, The Police's Outlandos, and The Ramones s/t as one of the BEST debuts of the late 70s.
RIP Mr Ocasek, thanks for all the great tunes
I'd be remiss not to shoutout Ben Orr, one of the most underrated frontmen ever, who helped give life to Ric's compositions.
The third record, Panorama, is a bit more eclectic and experimental, however it also manages to meld some strong pop hooks with more dissonant instrumentation and oddball song structures (a concept I've always liked).
I liked Panorama for the reasons you give. We are a minority, though.
Regarding Benjamin Orr: The Cars and Dire Straits emerged about the same time. They both made a swing through Texas. I recall reading an article in which the reviewer said that he assumed that The Cars would be a backup band for Ric Ocasek, but that Dire Straits would be a real band. When he saw them live, he realized that he had it exactly backwards. Ocasek may have written all the songs, but Orr provided the vocals on many of their biggest hits over the years. When The Cars put out Move Like This a few years ago, I recall reading a comment by Ocasek to the effect that a lot of the new songs would be better with Orr, but he had to sing them now.
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Very sad news. Big Cars fan when I was younger.
