posted November 10, 2002 09:03 PM               

So from time to time there appear acts that are good, but only succesful for a while. They are heroes, they are stars and they ain't one-hit-wonders. But one day it looked like they had disappeared. How are those forgotten heroes? Those talented young and old men and women we maybe remeber but do not think about?

The first three examples:

posted November 11, 2002 10:46 AM               

stone temple pilots...gotta say, pearl jam rip offs early on, and I had no interest then or later...heard of nik, but haven't listened to him...VU is a given.

I have tons of people like this...but I don't know if unknowns that I just happen to love fit into the category or not...but I will list a few..

Greg Kihn...possibly the popularity of The Break Up Song or Jeopardy both made and doomed him, but he wrote tons of great pop gems you probably have never heard...now a DJ somewhere and has written a book as well. There is a greatest hits out there available.

Don McLean...same fate, bestowed upon him by the success of American Pie, but, again, wrote tons of great songs many have not heard. If you can find Solo, a double live release, it is a great place to start.

Thin Lizzy...again, big hits with Boys are Back in Town and Dancing in the Moonlight, but tons of other songs, especially early in their career, are really really good. Pioneered the twin melodic guitar sound (out of necessity, since they kept losing guitarists). Live and Dangerous is a great live album, and there are probably 3 or 4 collections out there.

Be Bop Deluxe...Bill Nelson's band, a guitar attack sound extraordinnaire, sometimes a little Hendrix, sometimes a little Glam. There is a Best of that has a great selection. Rock with brains.

Big Star...big influences on tons of people like REM, the Replacements and tons of others...both powerful and fragile, a band always on the verge of falling apart (you may know their September Gurls, covered by the Bangles). Some really tender songs, some raucous ones...you can either get the double collection of Third/Sister Lovers or No.1 record/Radio City (the former being my favorite, but not by much)

Dada...one big hit, Dizzneeland, but four albums full of great power pop...like Crowded House, criminally overlooked band.

Innocence Mission...always seeming to be under the radar, while similar bands like the Sundays get much more recognition, this band is a treasure. With an incredibly sweet voice in Karen Peris, and mostly Cocteau Twins like atmospheric guitars from her husband Don...this is some really gorgeous music. I would suggest starting with Umbrella or Glow.

Jesse Johnson...if you like Prince, especially his mid period stuff like Purple Rain, Controversy, etc, you might just love the two releases of Jesse's that I have, Shockadelica and Every Shade of Love. The former especially, seems like the great funk album Prince never made...great funk lead guitar and beats that don't stop. Hey look ma, I'm dancing.

Mojo Nixon...yeah, Elvis is Everywhere is a great novelty song (and Mojo has a plethora, yeah, a plethora, of great novelty songs), but there are so many others...such as Stuffin Martha's Muffin (about MTVeejay Martha Quinn), I Saw Jesus at McDonalds at Midnight, Gimme back my Money, oh, the list just never ends. His voice sounds like George Thorogood, but the lyrics are from some backwater, white trash asylum...real fun, baby! I would start with Frenzy or Bodayshus.

Stan Ridgeway...ex Wall of Voodoo (Mexican Radio), he has made something like 7 albums so far, and his idosyncratic delivery and choice of subject matter remain singular. He is a storyteller with many twists, and continues to make good music to this day...I dunno where to start, maybe with Mosquitos or The Big Heat...he also has a greatest hits available as well.

Loudon Wainwright III...father of Rufus, maker of Dead Skunk in the Middle of the Road...and a hundred other songs that are sometimes crossing the border to novelty ditties, but frequently straying into really meaningful pieces. He writes often about himself, but he makes it universal enough that they still work...try the great live release, Career Moves, or the studio albums Therapy, History....ah, so many great songs....

ok, that is my list...I could've stuck a bunch of eclectic names few know, but I stuck with mostly musicians that I think people think they have pegged, but may be wrong about (a sin I am sure I am guilty of too...maybe even in STP's case!).

Enjoy, minions of D.