The College Crowd Digs Me

"And I had begun to doubt  all the things that were me." --> Jim Croce <-- Jim Croce's breakout album was "You Don't Mess Around With Jim" (1972) ...with the uptempo title track being his radio debut single. Three tracks from this album would become radio staples. The next year, Croce's follow-up record... "Life and Times" (1973) quickly went gold with another three singles taking over the airwaves. He had just finished recording the album... "I Got A Name" ...that same year with plans of a holiday release. Barely a week out of the studio, after doing a show in Louisiana, Jim and longtime partner Maury Muehleisen would tragically be involved in a fatal plane crash. Jim Croce and Maury Muehleisen Made no difference whether you were a bruising truck driver or a scared young boy with a broken heart.   Redneck or longhair...it didn't matter. He was one of us and he was singing our life. LOST GEM:--> ...

"Impossibility. Impissibolity." --> Black Sabbath <-- "Born Again" (1983) is a pretty good Black Sabbath album...but receives even higher marks as a post-Ozzy album. Ronnie James Dio had a good run as the first Ozzy replacement. (four albums...the first one being diamonds.). But near the end of his tenure... Dio (may he RIP) was sounding a wee-bit tired and uninspired. Hence he cut bait. This allowed legendary screamer Ian Gillan of Deep Purple to be brought into the fold...(this move caused a nasty backlash from Sabbath fans...Dio wizards...and Deep Purple purists!) After one album... Gillan left. However, Gillan's banshee vocals wailing atop classic Sabbath thunder riffs sometimes worked. The album deserved better. LOST GEM:--> "Zero The Hero" ...is dark, heavy and catchy. Tony Iommi fires off blistering riffs and solos ...while Ian Gillan 's vocals give the song a fresh twist of metal magic. Nicely done. H...

"Offered us his hospitality but of course... we were too busy." --> The Embarrassment <-- The Embarrassment (Embos to their fans) were four young guys who seemed to have dropped through a weird..." CBGB Time Crack" ...that borned them smack dab in the middle of ... Wichita, KS ? Freshly original, Embarrassment were off-center but always on target, making music that connected with the stressed-out and the left-out. They were penguins on the prairie. They were kool. Casey Chambers...In the daytime...In the sunshine. LOST GEM:--> "Wellsville" ...a great roadtrip song with snapping drumbeats and bass runs. Snaggly guitar trim from Bill Goffrier almost disguises vocalist John Nichols' regret of rushing through life. Have you heard this gem? Driving fast down the road on the highway I guess so We stopped just past the Flint hills there's a sign it was Wellsville. Met a country man willing to lend a hand fix the ...

" If life is just a gamble... gamble if you want to win." --> Harry Nilsson <-- He was handed the ultimate stamp of approval any artist would cream their jeans to receive...complimentary long-distance phone calls from each one of The Beatles. Harry Nilsson . The eclectic musical magi with a head full of moonage daydreams. John Lennon's... "favorite group". Nilsson was like nobody else. He had spirograph vocals and lite-brite visions. But his fear of performing in front of crowds all but voided any chance for growing that much larger fan base he justly deserved. Nilsson was Nilsson ...and it's exactly these strange attributes that drew me in. And it is especially rewarding for me when I discover any Nilsson song being utilized in a film...( "Coconut" in "Reservoir Dogs" & "Jump Into The Fire" in "Goodfellas") quickly come to mind. LOST GEM:--> "The Lottery Song" ... a gentle Mc...

"Johnny tell the chaplain go and polish his tombs." --> The Buggles <-- The Buggles , and their now-famous and delightful opening video for MTV , will always be an answer on some game show somewhere. And that ain't such a bad thing. But The Buggles were more than a one-hit-wonder. They were blending synth sounds and tones creating a unique electronic pop experience that masked a darker future of a more antiseptic society. The band consisted of just two guys experimenting in the studio...making moods. But with one rare difference. They were outstanding musicians. Trevor Horn & Geoffrey Downes Geoffrey Downes spun his magic over the keyboards and percussion ...while Trevor Horn pottered the bass, guitar and vocals. When the  legendary prog band... Yes ...heard The Buggles debut... "The Age Of Plastic" (1980) ...they quickly asked them to produce and also join the band. Now that's some pretty strong cred. LOST GEM:--> "C...

" For your life to begin ol' Money Bags, your life will have to cease. " --> White Witch <-- White Witch were a gifted group of young Florida boys who oddly signed with a Southern Rock label (Capricorn) ...but who were not Southern Rock. On this 2nd and final album, " A Spiritual Greeting" (1974) ... White Witch were RnR chameleons...sounding Beatlesque one minute... Bowieglam the next. Sabbath another time and Uriah Heep yet another. But White Witch were not merely imitators. Their songs stand as Premium Original 70's rock jams . Played and performed at Premium Octane level . This range, however, would sadly prove to be their undoing. Capricorn obviously didn't know how to market them...so they didn't. LOST GEM:--> "We'll All Ride High (Money Bags)" ...The intro is a "hoist-your-beers" feel-good chant that quickly turns into a guitar-burn.   Wicked vocals preside over a cemetery burial. A sacr...

"I'd cried for every lesser thing... Whiskey, pain and beauty." --> Guy Clark <-- Guy Clark is a kool hoss singer/songwriter...and he is absolutely one of the best. C rafting each song with a surgeon's steady hand and a rebel's defiant turn, it's no wonder other artists line up to cover his songs. And "Live From Austin, TX" is a great Guy Clark introduction. LOST GEM:--> "The Randall Knife - Live" ... a deeply personal telling of a father's passing. The song captures perfectly how hurt feelings left unspoken can turn into a powerful matzo ball. Have you heard this gem? My father had a Randall knife My mother gave it to him When he went off to WWII To save us all from ruin If you've ever held a Randall knife Then you know my father well If a better blade was ever made It was probably forged in hell My father was a good man A lawyer by his trade And only once did I ever see Him misuse t...