Snobbin: Beautiful Trash in the Pop Culture Gutter

It's been some time since I posted a "Track This," so I figured that discussing one of my favorite rockabilly songs by an underappreciated great, Gene Vincent, who does not get as much coverage as he should, would be an excellent return to form. Most of his career, he attempted to recapture his former rock and roll glory, and never completely turned country like his contemporaries Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis. Elsewhere on this blog, I discuss his self-titled Kama Sutra album, which should also receive more accolades. In a perfect world, Gene Vincent's "Race With The Devil" would have been a bigger hit, but it never managed to capture the public attention like his first hit, "Be-Bop-A-Lula." I first heard The Stray Cats cover "Race With The Devil" on their underrated fourth studio album, 1986's Rock Therapy , and needed to track the original down as soon as I could. The countrified rhythms and frantic pace of the song leave the li...

I had an internet discussion with friends a few weeks ago and was shocked to find out that one of them was a Pink Floyd fan. Either I never noticed or ignored it because he never really seemed like the type. Of course, there is nothing wrong with liking Floyd, but it got me thinking about what I want in music since prog always reminds me of hanging out with stoners and listening to Dark Side of the Moon for the thousandth time.  At his suggestion, I attempted to listen to Pink Floyd's Division Bell . I made it through, but I was awfully bored. I enjoyed parts of it, but my mind strayed, and I wanted to listen to something pithier and more straightforward. I know it is an unpopular opinion to rip on bands like Floyd in some circles, but they just don't do much for me. (Of course, other groups make a sport of it.) Nor does much radio classic rock because it lacks the hooks and melodies that I like. I'm not saying I don't listen to longer songs or other genres because I l...