No messing around-nothing fancy- Straight ahead Rock n roll songs that still have plenty of rubber left on the tires.
I am not picking the usual worn out suspects for the cave medals.
Anybody and their un-house trained dog can pick ‘Back in Black” or “Satisfation” as the top rock songs of all time.
I went with songs I love that still have plenty of juice.
Like a big pack of energizer batteries with an expiration date of “never”.
Here we go
The Bronze:
Lynyrd Skynyrd.Call me the Breeze
J J Cale wrote it and they put it on one of the best sophomore albums of all time and just kicked the dry excrement right out of it. What a song and what an original line up of whoop-ass.
The Silver:
Pretenders.Mystery Achievement
Another great effort by another short lived line up. This first Pretenders record always gets forgotten when we talk of the greats. You can call it punky new wave if you like. I call it straight ahead Rock music with feeling and with conviction.
Wonder #7- “My band is playing __________!!! , O.K we are something now!”
I started this list with a somewhat obscure beginning point for the origin of rock music that is as much a fable as it is truth -The Crossroads in Mississippi. And I am good with that.https://caveoffame.com/2013/02/20/the-devils-music/
I wanted to finish with a music venue that is alive and well and where rock lives right at the moment I hit the publish button.
2. Credibility right now-A band practicing in a random garage anywhere in the world might dream that one day they will play there.
3. “It makes me wonder”-It has to be a destination that makes you want to visit and worth the effort no matter if you are a fan or a musician. It holds the weight of true wonder.
There have been many places rock music has been alive…from the to the Royal Albert hall to Budokan and everything in between like: The Hollywood bowl, The Fillmore East, Monterey Fairgrounds, CBGB’s, Central Park, The Hammersmith Odeon/Apollo, Madison square Garden and The Cavern Club in Liverpool- to name a few from a large list.
You can argue if you want but this is my page and I am first to attempt this so I give you:
RedRocks (Photo credit: Slithy)
Wonder of Rock #7 Red Rocks
History:
The Beatles played here in 1964 and it did not sell out!
Here is a Father’s day photo of my youngest son and I at the site of the original Woodstock Stage. Yes, this is where Jimi played the Star Spangled Banner and Janis sung her heart out. And yes, this was a great trip to take!
I will write more and add it to my list of Rock n Roll wonders but for now I will enjoy the rest of Dad’s day with my great family!
After attending community college part-time for longer than I want to admit and finally finishing my degree, I have learned a couple things about getting old:
I am now old…A.A.R.P wants me as a member! Jamie Lee Curtis wants me to eat Greek yogurt (and I am thinking about it)
So what
When you take classes with kids often half your age, you do reach a point where you just have to get over yourself and get on with it or risk not making it to the end. No one really cares about age more than yourself…As long as you focus on what you have to do and not worry about anything else, you will be O.K. That is basically it. Age only knocks you out if you let it- you can not stop it but you can stare it down until the very end.
So here is my little Rock Opera on the 5 stages of aging according to the Cave
“Look out you Rock n rollers, pretty soon you’re gonna get older”
I did not believe this wise oracle of rock the first time I heard this line. I thought I would stay young forever. David Bowie saw it coming and tried to warn us.
Act 2: Feel it slipping-try to get it back-Slight desperation-
Weezer.The Good Life
“And I don’t wanna be an old man anymore. It’s been a year or two since I was out on the floor.
Shaking booty, making sweet love all the night…It’s time I got back to the good life”
You sense it is fading but still don’t have a grasp on it
When Keith Richards does his vocal bit-it just takes this to another level- this is my favorite Rolling Stones song and it may be a straight-ahead country music tune. It’s got memories and pick-up trucks in it. This is a drinking song!
Age does build up a reservoir of hurt feelings to go immerse yourself in. It might seem like nice warm water, but you only need a few inches to drown in- and tears and beer can make this get to a level that will break those levees around your heart in no time. …But having said that…Wow!-this is a great song!
Act 4: Acceptance- Oh no- this is real! And happening to a person near me…in fact me, myself!
‘My body is a cage, it keeps me from dancing with the one I love”
When I saw Peter Gabriel perform this live in 2011, I was knocked right on my ass. The intensity he brought to this Arcade Fire song was something to watch erupt on stage. What I took away was this guy trapped in his 63 year-old body but still giving everything he had. The spirit is strong but the vehicle it operates in is getting worn. You could see it happening, and like only genius artists can do…you could feel it happening. There was this transference of emotion from the stage to the audience.
Act 5: So what- it happens to the best of us and the worst of us-I still choose to rock n roll
Little Feat.Old Folks Boogie
“You know that you’re over the hill when your mind makes a promise that your body can’t fill”
So you’re old!!—-Enjoy yourself—it will happen to the best of us in the end if we are lucky enough to make it that far.
The passage of time and the relentless scourge of gravity will hunt us down like dogs. We will be history to future generations. So let us rock while we still can!
Cave of Fame 