Peter, A Pirate, and The Ramones

I am going to conjure up some more work memories this week. Bear with me.

I remember the date well, January 5th, 1976. I was standing in line at a Canada Manpower Centre with a completed registration form in hand. A staff member came up to me, checked it over, noticed that I had Grade 13 and asked if I’d be interested in employment with the Federal Public Service. I famously replied  “Sure, I’ll do anything!”

Gary Pig Gold’s Great Unsung Heroes of Rock ‘N’ Roll Radio

Do you remember Murray the K,  Alan Freed and high energy?

Do you remember rock ‘n’ roll radio?

Do you remember rock ‘n’ roll radio?

– The Ramones

Roxanne Tellier – Mid August

Mid August, and most days I feel like, this year, summer never really got started. Maybe it’s the weather, or the political climate, but something feels off-kilter. My potted veg and herbs are in shock; it’s been either torrential rain or temps in the 90s – sometimes in the same 24 hours – every day since they were planted. Sodden pots sit cheek by jowl with containers so arid they threaten to burst into flame. There won’t be much of a harvest this year.

JAIMIE VERNON – MUSIC BUCKET CHALLENGE

There’s a new Facebook challenge going around that asks people to choose the 12 albums that have “stayed with you” over the years. I’m not sure what they mean by that exactly. “Stayed with you” like your dog does when you’ve got a half-eaten bean burrito sitting unattended on your plate while you remote control your way through 177 channels on your TV set looking for a Season 9 marathon of the ‘Simpsons’? Or “Stayed with you” like a bad one-night stand that turned into a three-year commitment, a shared bank account and pink throw pillows on the bed you’ve had since Middle School?

GARY PIG GOLD’s ALL-TIME TOP TEN POWER POP PEOPLE

I very recently had the immense pleasure, and honor – as did my fellow DBAWISayers Jaimie Vernon and Our Leader Bob – to be interviewed by the esteemed Bosstown (or Boston, to you cats in Squaresville) director/producer Justin Fielding for his up-coming Power Pop Movie.

Which got me to thinking, as it quite often does:
Just what exactly is, or should I say who, IS “Power Pop” ??

Well, for a start: (in strictly Chronological Order, that is)….

Pat Blythe: Toronto Scrapbook – Chapter Two

Well…. This was supposed to be Part Five of The Women of Rock. However, I’m going to take a break and fill you in on some of the sights and sounds of this dynamic city I call home….Toronto…. Hogtown… Muddy York…. The Big Smoke…. Tdot…. where I’ve been going, who I’ve been seeing, what I’ve been drinking (G&T w/lemon if you must know. Bombay Sapphire is the chosen one.) AND update you about an exciting event that’s coming to Toronto. Yep….it’s another Toronto Scrapbook!

Cameron Carpenter: Rock’n’Roll Rewind – Cam Goes To College

As hard as it might be to believe I did attend college, and, studied Journalism. Sure, I only went for one year before I was hired by Quality Records, but, I was the first in my family to get any sort of post-secondary education. Luckily my children took University a little more seriously and the family now has a Dalhousie and a McGill graduate in their ranks.

Cameron Carpenter: Rock’n’Roll Rewind – Rating The Records

This week we rewind to 1977 and the first issue of Shades Magazine. My feature was a re-cap of all the new punk records that had been released.

“I realize a lot of the material I’m going to cover is somewhat dated, but this being the first edition, I thought I’d quickly go over some of the best new music to come out over the past few months. Next month’s reviews will be much longer and in-depth.”

Roxanne Tellier – Books, Music and Stuff!

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” – The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien

Since I’m effectively agoraphobic during winter, it seems like a good time to turn my attention to this mess around me that I’ve accumulated, and scan through the wee bits of paper on which I’ve written a germ of an idea, usually accompanied by an *asterisk* and several exclamation points!!! I just have to haul them out from under the weight of the newspaper clippings, flyers, magazines, library books and paper backs they’ve landed under, over and in between.

Cameron Carpenter: The Great Rock’n’Roll Rewind

Give me a couple of Jack’n’Cokes and I can spill out rock’n’roll stories with the best of them. For forty years my life has been consumed by music and I have been fortunate to meet and talk to most of my idols, and, at one point, I even got paid to do it.