Don't Touch Me There

As my longtime viewers can attest, when I post something from an album, I’ll usually go for the deep tracks; the stuff you wouldn’t normally hear. My intent is to broaden your musical horizons, not reinforce what you already know.

I recently got hold of White Punks on Dope, a 2003 Tubes album that is basically a re-release compilation of their first two albums. To be fair, I really wasn’t too familiar with the early Tubes, other than what I'd heard years ago on the radio. After listening to the album, I don’t feel like I’ve missed much. My first impression was, with its operatic pretensions, it sounded like the worst of Frank Zappa. And, unless there’s some subtlety I’m missing, the songs didn’t seem to have the satiric bite of, say, “What Do You Want from Life”.

So, I’ve forsaken my usual rule and decided to go with the stuff that used to get played on radio. In my own defense, other than “She’s A Beauty,” I doubt the Tubes even get any airplay anymore. I also learned that the album version of “White Punks on Dope” has a little stronger language than the version I had grown up hearing on the radio.

I don’t want to bore you with a band history. It’s all on the band’s Wiki page. You can also go to the Tubes’ own site for upcoming live shows (they’re playing mostly California dates through the end of the year).

Here are some fun facts I thought I’d share about the band:

*In 1972 the Tubes appeared in the Mitchell brothers film Resurrection of Eve as Jesus Bongo and the Millionaires;
*In 1973 they opened for Led Zeppelin at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco;
*In 1978 they headlined the Knebworth Festival with Frank Zappa and Peter Gabriel;
*In 1980 the band appeared in the Olivia Newton John film, Xanadu;
*On September 23, 2007, the surviving members of the Tubes reunited in Phoenix for their induction into the Arizona Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame.

Mondo Bondage.mp3
What Do You Want from Life.mp3
White Punks on Dope.mp3

Labels: classic rock

posted by aikin @ 9:39 PM