The first time I heard the Ramones, I said to myself, "YES!" Were they serious conceptual artists or degenerate glue sniffers? Does it matter? They should have had 100 hit songs, but that's ok - they changed the face of rock and roll instead.
Patti Smith had been doing her thing in the NY art scene since the late 60s. Plays, poetry readings, drawing. It feels like she was close to bursting when she finally got the chance to record "Horses." Her energy is almost palpable. "Horses" was produced by The Velvets' John Cale.
Oddly enough, one of the least known bands to emerge from CBGB - Television - was arguably the most talented. And they literally built the stage at the fabled punk club. The Ramones, Patti Smith, Talking Heads and Blondie all went on to bigger things. Television? They recorded one of punk rock's most gorgeously jagged footnotes: "Marquee Moon."
Also produced by John Cale, the eponymously titled debut from The Modern Lovers is a rock and roll anomaly. In the era of hippie free love and drug experimentation, the Boston band's leader/singer/guitarist/songwriter, Jonathan Richman, was "straight." Short hair, no casual sex, no drugs. He was a vegetarian. He didn't even smoke. It took some time for (a few) people to catch on to what he was doing. In the meantime, the band recorded "Roadrunner," which was a stepping stone for the punk rock movement. After the original Modern Lovers broke up, drummer David Robinson joined The Cars (another Boston band) and Keyboardist Jerry Harrison joined Talking Heads. Jonathan remains a cult hero.
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