25 Golden Greats Chosen By Jesse Kimball (The Automatics) part 2

 






























  Following on from yesterday's post, here's the remainder of Jesse Kimball's selection of his favourite pop punk cover versions.....


13)   Crumbs - Sheila
This is the first Tommy Roe song on here but not the last. This Lubbock-sound Buddy Holly sound-a-like tune was number 1 for 2 weeks in 1962. This song came out on The Crumbs great 10" EP before they signed to Lookout! They are one of my favorite 90s pop-punk bands and have been around for 2 decades, but I still think they might be underrated.

12)  Groovie Ghoulies - Funny Funny
from back when The Sweet had that great bubblegum sound. The Ghoulies filter it through the Ramones and turn out this classic 45 that shows how great this genre can be.

11)  The Donnas - Wig Wam Bam
I considered their version of The Crystals "Da Doo Ron" (written by Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry - who come up again in #7 and covered by the Beach Boys and Dave Edmunds - also #7) but I had to go with the flip side of the Gearhead 45 with "Wig Wam Bam" because these are two of my favorite Sweet songs! Metal Mike also does a kick-ass version of this tune, and he does "Little Black Egg" by The Nightcrawlers, which was covered the next year (1966) by The Music Explosion, turned into PUNK by Cleveland's the Pagans and Joey Ramone's brothers band The Rattlers, and then covered by the Cars, who then replaced Ric's vocals with Bebe Buell's who released it as a single! The Lemonheads also cover it! But somehow it didn't make my list because none of those versions are really pop-punk, nor is The Lemonheads cover of "Strange" by Patsy Cline, that I wanted to include, even though it sounds a hell of lot more like the Smoking Popes, then it does Screeching Weasel covering Ms. Cline. WIG WAM BAM!!! oh yeah Metal Mike number 10...

10)  Angry Samoans - Beat Your Heart Out
OK here are the Samoans with their 90s (suck) version of the Zeros hit that might as well be a blueprint for this pop-punk genre. I'm also including The Muffs version because it is an actual cover, unlike the Samoans "adaptation". Angry Samoans version of "Laughing At Me" is great too!

 9)  The Muffs - You Can Cry if You Want To
is an awesome Troggs cover on "Groin Thunder" an album full of Troggs covers, and the best tribute record I have ever heard, and also features Flamin' Groovie Roy Loney covering "With a Girl Like You" that the Queers would later cover. And to come full-circle, The Queers cover of The Muffs "End it All" also RULES, OK!

 8)  The Queers - I'll Be True to You
The Monkees "I'll Be True to You" was actually a COVER of The Hollies 1965 hit "Yes I Will" written by Gerry Goffin. This is the first time Joe King showed off his amazing taste in music, which would come up in many more covers throughout the bands career. They would even record an album side of covers called "Acid Beaters" a reference to the Ramones covers album. This sincere love song should be a first dance at pop-punk weddings!

 7)  The Hard-Ons - And Then I Kissed Her
The Crystals' "Then He Kissed Me" re-worked as "And Then I Kissed Her" is a pop-punk gem along the lines of The Ramones cover of Bobby Freeman's "Do You Wanna Dance". Both songs might have been Beach Boys covers as they got to them first! The Crystals hit, written by Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry, was also covered by the pre-The Boys glam band The Hollywood Brats, then retitled "Then She Kissed Me" by another glam band Hello, which Kiss and Gary Glitter in turn covered. The Swedish Hurriganes had a go at "Do You Wanna Dance" as did T. Rex, Dave Edmunds, Darlington and The Queers!

 6)  Rivals - Here Comes the Night
Once again here is a band taking a classic and making it their own. The Rivals version is as aggressive as the beautiful Them song is low-key.

 5)  Forgotten Rebels - Dizzy
Another great Tommy Roe cover! There's gotta be a pop-punk cover of "Sweet Pea" somewhere too, but I haven't heard it, or can't remember it anyway. This snotty offensive pop-punk band turn Roe's bubblegumesque "Dizzy" into a great pop-punk song even though I'm not sure the rock video helps my case any.

 4)  The Ramones - Lil Bit of Soul
was originally by the Little Darlings, but was made into a HIT by The Music Explosion, an Ohio garage band, produced by bubblegum gods Kasenetz and Katz. The Ramones version also sounds like the junkshop glam arrangement of the song by Iron Cross. The song led off the Ramones 7th album Subterranean Jungle, which also featured their cover of the Chambers Bros "Time Has Come Today", also done by the Angry Samoans, whose cover I prefer (and has a great video).

 3)   Stiv Bators - It's Cold Outside
Another Ohio garage song was given the pop-punk treatment by fellow-Ohioan Stiv Bators, during the Dead Boy's power-pop career. This one was by the 60s garage band The Choir, a band that included future Raspberries members. There were some great punk covers coming out of these hit garage songs, Undertones "Let's Talk About Girls", The Pointed Sticks "Shape of Things to Come", many of them comped on Lenny Kaye's "Nuggets", a compilation released on Elektra records (home of the Stooges), that was so influential on punk rock it was reissued on Sire records alongside some of the first punk records. The Hard-Ons also do a great cover of this song, as do the Queers, but Stiv did it best.

 2)  Paley Brothers and Ramones - C'mon Let's Go
The movie Rock 'n' Roll High School was one of my introductions to punk rock, and the Ramones version of this Ritchie Valens song, with the Paley Brothers singing was my favorite song in the movie. The Ramones recorded this song with Tommy in 1977 and it the perfect combination of power-pop and punk making it just about my favorite pop-punk song.

 1)  Redd Kross - Heaven Only Knows

Redd Kross's "Teen Babes from Monsanto", an album consisting mostly of cover songs features this Shangri-Las B-Side written by Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry, their second on the list. I think this is the cover song that all pop-punks should strive for! It is perfect!
NO #1!!!:

I dream about you all the time, yes I do
When I can't sleep at night
Heaven only knows
I dream about makin' you mine, yes I do
Whe I'm holding you tight
Heaven only knows, mm hmm

Never been sure 'bout a girl before
But i want you to know
Heaven only knows, mm hmm
Given you my heart and my soul and my love
Cause I trust you so
Heaven only knows, mm hmm

Heaven only knows that I want you baby
Everytime I see you it drives me crazy
Coz you're the only girl that my heart wants to know
Whoah yeah

Tell me what you want and i'll do it for you
Baby let me show you that i adore you

Baby let me go everywhere you go

Never been sure 'bout a girl before
But i want you to know
Heaven only knows, mm hmm
I'm givin' you my heart and my soul and my love
Cause i trust you so
Heaven only knows, mm hmm

Heaven only knows that I love you baby
Heaven only knows that I hate you baby
Heaven only knows that I despize you baby
Heaven only knows that I idolize you baby

25 Golden Greats Chosen By Jesse Kimball (The Automatics) part 1

  

  Back in September I received a message which went "This is jesse k from automatics usa. I wanna do a top 20 if you want it." The Automatics have already had a song featured on here and are responsible for some of the best pop punk songs ever released so the obvious reply was hell yeah! Mid November brought another message, "I almost finished last night." Then yesterday, the list arrived. It's a top 25 (plus a few others), and it kicks ass. If you're unfamiliar with The Automatics, you can find all their stuff on their bandcamp (you'll be so glad you checked them out). https://automatics.bandcamp.com/

 I'll leave you now with Jesse (it's a big update so I'll split it over 2 days).........

"OK. I finished! It is 25 Best Pop-Punk cover songs"

25)   The Richies - Don't Wanna Know If You Are Lonely

As the 80s were turning into the 90s and we were buried in hardcore, there were a few bands like Head, the Queers, and the Hard-Ons playing three-chord punk songs with elements of POP and the Ramones. The Richies were doing it in Germany and treated us to this Ramonesy version of the best POP song given to us by hardcore, Husker Du's "Don't Wanna Know If You Are Lonely".

24)  Mister T Experience - Dont Go Away Go-Go Girl

A genuine version of a hit by the Banana Splits, who are one of my faves! The Queers did a good version of "I Enjoy Being a Boy" too. My friend Adam heard this Queers song and asked me if the Banana Splits were a 60s psych band. He was blown away when I explained it was a kids show and showed him pictures of Fleegle, Bingo, Drooper, and Snorky!

23)   Exploding Hearts - Sniffin' Glue

The first song I heard Adam cover was "You're Not Blank" by The Dils. His band The Exploding Hearts covered "Walking Out on Love", a hit for the Paul Collins Beat with its roots in the Nerves but first recorded by The Breakaways. The Methadones also covered this song on their covers album, and Green Day covered this song every night on Broadway at the end of their American Idiot musical. None of these guys can touch the Breakaways version (The Muffs, who we will hear from later, did a great version of The Beat's "Rock n Roll Girl") but I praise the Exploding Hearts for bringing F.U.2's "Sniffing Glue" to the pop-punk world! AMAZING!!!

22)  Methadones - Back of My Hand

There are a few records out there full of nothing but covers; The Vindictives "Partytime for Assholes", Face to Face "Standards and Practices", "Acid Eaters" by The Ramones and this one by the Methadones, full of power-pop covers. What a batch of great songs, many of which were on the Rhino D.I.Y comps that came out in the early 90s. "Starry Eyes" was one of my first 45s and they did a great version of that, but I think the best song on the album is this cover of The Jags "Back of my Hand" a power-pop hit that I have been hearing recently on WXPN.

21)   Pinhead Gunpowder - Mahogany

I just mentioned Green Day and Broadway I know, and know i'm including this Diana Ross song, don't stop reading now. Remember who took the Riverdales out on the road. Plus this came out on Very Small Records one of my favorite labels and it's a pop-punk supergroup! What did you expect "Hey Jealousy" by The Ergs!? OK! That's a good one too!

20)  Screeching Weasel - I Can See Clearly

These guys have to be on a best of pop-punk list. My favorite record by them is "My Brain Hurts" and this cover of Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" fits into this album seamlessly and is as strong as any of the originals. It even ended up in the movie "Jennifer's Body".

19)   A.G's - Good Girls Don't

A great pop-punk cover of a song by the Knack that isn't "My Sharona", that was also recently covered by the mighty Captain Nines and the Knickerbocker Trio! A lot of pop-punk bands were covering 80s songs in the early 90s and eventually we got Me First and the Gimme Gimmes who ran with it. I think the A.G.'s covered "Jessie's Girl" or maybe it was Doc Hopper, who also covered "Jenny 867-5309". All great tunes!

18)   GG Allin and the Jabbers - Up Against the Wall

Staying in New Hampshire for this one! If GG seems like a stretch for some of you pop-punkers, get the Jabbers stuff, or look at the catalogs in your ALL records, buy the The Chemical People records, and realize these are GG songs. Pop-punk's roots are in Ramones, and 50's rock n' roll, but also in garage, powerpop, glam, and bubblegum, like this song from one of my favorite bands the Ohio Express! Let me make this one a tie! I was saying that beat and garage influenced pop-punk. These Paisley Undergrounders, The Three O'Clock bridged that gap with the Easybeats classic, "Sorry".

17)   The Boys - I Call Your Name

Oh yeah! And the Beatles! Gotta have a Beatles cover. These '77 punkers are one of the first pop-punk bands as far as I'm concerned.

16)  Joan Jett - Make Believe

Some artists biggest hits are covers. Joan Jett and The Dickies have always been two of my favorite bands and they both have made a living off cover songs. This hit was co-written by Joey Levine from Ohio Express and Bo Gentry, and originally performed by Tony Orlando and Wind. If you don't think Joan Jett is pop-punk then just wait 'til the Queers cover this one.

15)  The Dickies - Eve of Destruction

This song is a lesson on how to turn a song into a pop-punk hit! 1965 hit written by P.F. Sloan and recorded by Barry McGuire. Johnny Thunders did a great version of this song too. He did a lot of great covers. Fuck, you know another good one The Heartbreakers cover of "Do You Love Me" by the Contours but covered in the 60s by Dave Clark Five, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Sonics, and The Kingsmen. The Heartbreakers and The Dickies are just as important to pop-punk as The Ramones.

14)   Descendents "Wendy" The Beach Boys covered a lot of the songs on this list but they wrote some amazing tunes as well. This one was written by Brian Wilson who is a genius. I love both versions of this song but when I hear the Descendents version I'm not immediately reminded of the Beach Boys. The Descendents and Beach Boys are equally important to the genre.