“Hello, Daddy; Hello, Mom!”
March 21, 2010
I’m a Runaways fan. It begins today, boys and girls. Wake up and smell the rock and roll.
It’s rock and roll: they tore each other apart. For a time. (There are exceptions: see Ford, Lita, whose beauty was more conventional that that of the front girls. And her music? Much less, thank you very much.)
Showtimes here.
The “Joan meets Cherie” scene from the movie.
Dakota Fanning’s delicious version of “Cherry Bomb.” She emulates Currie’s voice perfectly, and only puts her own stamp on it by adding a syllable here and there, and enunciating the words slightly differently. Word is that Fanning was terrified of participating in the project, and it took a bit of coaching to get her to want to sing. One of her coaches? Cherie Currie.
And more:
Wikipedia on our fallen angels.
The official Runaways website, with its own alternate version of the movie trailer.
Joan Jett and Kristen Stewart, on the new movie.
Joan Jett being interviewed about The Runaways and The Blackhearts for Rolling Stone in 2008 (warning: sound-enabled).
Woman down: Lita Ford got dissed. That sucks.
UPDATE: Someone is going to come along right now—Charlie, I imagine—and demand the real thing. Well, here you go:
Oh, but you wanted the one about the firecracker, right?
UPDATE II: We got to get Suzi in here; she’s important. You’d understand that, if you knew Suzi.
UPDATE III: There are a few little issues. Like this page from the official Runaways history, which mentions a “Micki Steele.” It’s a familiar name, on a certain level . . . could it be the redheaded Michael Steele? Perhaps:
And by then, I was crushing on her. Bad.
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March 21st, 2010 at 3:40 am
Love the Bangles’ version of that song, both because its’ them and because it’s another example of a song that was just “meh” or worse when done by the original artist (Simon and Garfunkel) but came out extremely well when covered. Another example is “Blinded By the Light”, which sounded so cool when Manfred Mann did it, but is actively painful when performed by the original author, Bruce Springsteen.
March 21st, 2010 at 6:58 am
Ever see one of Joan Jett’s New Year’s shows at the Roxy? Gal works hard for the money….
March 21st, 2010 at 10:22 am
I grew up in the band scene in 1970s LA. Van Halen as the house band at Gazzarri’s, Runaways at the Whiskey-a-Go-Go, Quiet Riot (with Randy Rhodes) at the Roxy and Stardust. Neil Diamond at the Troubadour. All great memories.
Since we discussed covers which are equal to or better than originals, some other random choices for your aural consideration. After watching the recent slaughter of Rolling Stones songs on American Idol, I was thinking about great covers and in no particular order these came to mind:
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds - Elton John (different, in a nice way, but not better)
Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix (requires no validation)
Hazy Shade of Winter - Bangles (Another Paul Simon song they stepped up on)
Spirits in the Night - Manfred Mann’s Earth Band (a trend? others singing Bruce?)
Don’t Let It Show and No You Don’t - Pat Benatar (love Alan Parsons but his version is dark. Same, loved Sweet but Pat adds a sultry attitude which makes the song hers)
Workin’ In A Coal Mine - Devo (surprisingly good - find the original and you’ll be impressed)
So What? - Metallica (very few bands can cover Punk and do it right. They can)
Because the Night - 10,000 Maniacs (LOVE Patty Smith and the entire horses album but Natlaie sung for her life on this one, it’s great)
So there ya go - some Sunday thoughts as we wait to for (hopefully) Democracy to save us. There are a hundred others I’m sure.
March 21st, 2010 at 12:21 pm
More covers that sound better than the originals:
Good Lovin’ by the Rascals (the band took The Olympic’s mid-tempo-R&B minor hit, packed it with weapons-grade energy and fire, and created one of the great singles of the Sixties)
Mr. Tambourine Man by the Byrds (the only real rival to Hendrix’ Watchtower as the greatest Dylan reinterpretation of all time)
The Mighty Quinn by Manfred Mann (another Dylan adaptation by a band that made a career of playing great covers of otherwise-forgettable songs)
Train Kept a Rollin by the Yardbirds and Aerosmith (both these versions have a kinetic drive and fury lacking in the Johnny Burnette original)
Baby Please Don’t Go by Them and the Amboy Dukes (another two-fer; the latter version features a fiery guitar workout by a teenaged Ted Nugent)
Pills by the New York Dolls (not to dis the immortal Bo Diddley, but Johansen & Co’s speedy, sleazy, chaotic cover more truly captures the song’s theme)
…and those are just the ones I came up with off the top of my head.
March 21st, 2010 at 1:19 pm
Can’t argue with any of your list Mikal, but I give my nod to the Aerosmith version. I had it on the strings of my PRS this morning…
A few others as we watch our liberty and free choice swirling down the Congressional toilet:
Joan Jett’s own “Do You Wanna Touch”, and “Crimson and Clover” - not to mention her best cover ever, “I Love Rock & Roll”
Diamonds and Rust by Judas Priest - rock hard, rock leather, rock gay. errr, I mean…
Crossroads by Cream. Eric Clapton is God, or so it was said…
Cocaine by Eric Clapton/Cocaine by Jackson Brown - both trounce their original versions
Black Magic Woman by Santana - How many people know this was originally a Fleetwood Mac song?
Hard to Handle by Black Crowes - Originally a fair to good Otis Redding song.
Hey Joe by Jimi Hendrix - originally recorded by The Leaves, it was and always will be Jimi’s
Tuesday’s Gone by Metallica - Off Garage Inc. and originally recorded as a something of a joke. Loose at the beginning, but you can feel when James finally gets the song (after the harmonica solo) and it becomes something personal. Perhaps not as good as Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ultimately, but an under-appreciated remake of a fabulous song.
March 21st, 2010 at 3:25 pm
I love so many of these, but the Judas Priest take(s) on “Diamonds and Rust” is/are surely worth a special mention.
March 21st, 2010 at 5:21 pm
This happened thirty-five years ago, like the inescapable Patti Smith. Thirty-five.
March 22nd, 2010 at 1:46 pm
[...] Anent which, Little Miss A notes: She emulates Currie’s voice perfectly, and only puts her own stamp on it by adding a syllable here and there, and enunciating the words slightly differently. Word is that Fanning was terrified of participating in the project, and it took a bit of coaching to get her to want to sing. One of her coaches? Cherie Currie. [...]
April 6th, 2010 at 5:10 pm
Another example is “Blinded By the Light”, which sounded so cool when Manfred Mann did it, but is actively painful when performed by the original author, Bruce Springsteen.