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23 August 2006

Chunklet Magazine's list of 118 Acts That Will Never Become Retro-Hip. Several of them (Marshall Tucker band Blues Image, Blues Magoos, Wishbone Ash, Jobriath, Kathy Mattea, Jason & the Scorchers and a few others) I actually enjoy on occassion. I'm not sure whether to be insulted or relieved.

post by: jonmc at: 11:00 | 18 comments

sorry about the extra white space. admin, hope me?

posted by jonmc 23 August | 11:01

Plenty of them are one hit wonders, which pretty much means they were never hip to begin with, just flashes in the pan.

Also: Can bands that are still actively producing new music (Collective Soul, for instance) legitimately be retro-hip?

posted by me3dia 23 August | 11:07

Well, Marshall Tucker had a string of multiplatinum albums, which actually sound remarkably good. Jason & the Scorchers were ahead of their time with the cowpunk/Americana thing, Jobriath is swaggeringest gay rocker of all time, and Kathy Mattea, well, she has a great voice and she's totally MILFy.

More evidence that trendy people are, in fact, insane.

posted by jonmc 23 August | 11:14

imho, mc 900 ft. jesus' stuff was (and still is, in some ways) years ahead of its time, and it still sounds fresh today. they're still using clips from his one step ahead of the spider album as bumper music on npr news programs!

posted by syntax 23 August | 11:19

I saw Jason (sans Scorchers) a few months ago and he was absolutely fricking awesome.

posted by essexjan 23 August | 11:23

I agree with the inclusion of The Christians. I mean, what was the point of them doing a cover of "Harvest for the World" that was note for note identical to the original, only without that added Isley-ness that made the original a sublime piece of listening?

posted by essexjan 23 August | 11:25

Interesting list. I don't agree with GTR and Glass Tiger, however.

Chokebore's A Taste for Bitters is one of my fave records ever.

posted by dobbs 23 August | 11:27

Also, The Brooklyn Bridge? 'The Worst That Could Happen,' is pure street corner symphony heaven. And Urban Dance Squad deserve props for leading me to Ray Barretto.

posted by jonmc 23 August | 11:38

I like way too many of those people and groups on the list.

posted by sisterhavana 23 August | 11:47

Hold up ...

Guiffria was never too awesome, but their logo was excellent.

Asleep at the Wheel was, is and shall always remain relatively badass, just so long as they keep working that throwback Bob Wills Texas Swing vibe.

But really, the inclusion of still-viable Kathy Mattea gives the whole list an air of "here's some names pulled from a hat."

posted by grabbingsand 23 August | 12:08

I'm sorry, but I don't care. Being from the school of 70's soul, I have to say that Ambrosia was the shizzznit!

Dope arrangements. Flawless lead vocal. Knock-your-socks-off lyrics (for the love song enthusiasts, that is).

That band is on every Barry White-Type-Sweet-Love-Mix-Tape I've ever concocted.

posted by Joe Famous 23 August | 12:14

*surreptitiously tucks My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult CDs behind something cooler to own.*

posted by small_ruminant 23 August | 12:31

aw, I like My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult. They rocked Baltimore a couple times while I was living there.

posted by gaspode 23 August | 12:34

yay, s_r!!

posted by gaspode 23 August | 12:35

I'm not sure about Boris Grebinshikov either, unless he only talking about stateside retro-hip. I can see Aquarium albums being retro-hip in Russia in the not too distant future.

posted by small_ruminant 23 August | 12:36

As long as we're sticking up for people on the list...Urban Dance Squad totally rocked. Their live shows were intense.

And I agree with syntax on MC 900 Ft. Jesus being ahead of his time. ("Welcome to my Dream" was on permanent rotation in my car at one point.) I don't think the people who made this list know all that much about music.

posted by Otis 23 August | 12:48

That guy's staking a claim for his own hipness by making this list, which is pathetic.

The Marshall Tucker Band was good, and, frankly, has already been rediscovered and mined in alt.country circles - so if you believe in such a thing as retro-hip, they're included in it.

posted by Miko 23 August | 14:41

Hm, is this reposted from elsewhere? It also says:

In 2002, all of the aforementioned performers still suck.

Note present tense

posted by Miko 23 August | 14:44

← Time to feel old. || According to Forbes, →

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