PORTER WAGONER & THE WILLIS BROTHERS

“I’ll Fly Away”

(1960s)

MARTY STUART

“This Little Light of Mine”

THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES

EP: “Jethro’s Pad” - 1966

International playboy Jethro Bodine runs his game on Edy Williams, before she became Mrs. Russ Meyer and starred as Ashley St. Ives in Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.

Runnin’ Down a Dream Trailer

dir: Peter Bogdanovich

2007

Before I get into this, I want to be clear: Tom Petty is the Man. For most of the 70s & 80s, Tom was the only guy on mainstream radio you could be sure still listened to his copy of Nuggets.

Runnin’ Down a Dream looks amazing, if only because a four-hour DVD cut will allow them to use as much vintage footage of the band as they can find.

But here what Tom says at about 2:50 in to the trailer:

“There’s something special about this group of people. I treasure it now, because one link in the chain gone could make it all go away.”

What the hell?

Is that comment highlighted because the kid who edited the trailer thought it sounded uplifting or is it a cheap shot at ex-drummer Stan Lynch?

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers managed to alternate between Ron Blair & the late Howie Epstein on bass, but things haven’t been the same since Stan quit in 1994. Steve Ferrone may be a more technically accomplished player, but Stan meshed better with the band.

Maybe it’s out of context and there will be half an hour’s worth of serious Stan love in the completed film.

Or maybe I just have an overdeveloped ear for band politics. I thought the Bruce Springsteen Wings for Wheels documentary was most notable for how everyone went out of his way to make amends and give credit to Mike Appel. And all I can remember about Michael Stipe’s speech at R.E.M.’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction is how he pointedly left Jefferson Holt off a thank-you list of what seemed like a hundred people.

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers = still worth seeing any night you can get a ticket. But it was better when Stan was in the band.

LIL JON & THE EAST SIDE BOYZ

“Stop Fuckin Wit Me”

Crunk Juice

(Atlanta 2004)

Rick Rubin produced this one. I’m pretty sure they were listening to this one down at the studio:

SUICIDAL TENDENCIES

“Institutionalized”

Suicidal Tendencies

(Los Angeles 1983)

AL GREEN

“Jesus is Waiting”

1970s

THE HIVES

“Tick Tick Boom”

Black & White Album

(Sweden 2007)

These guys cashed a $12 million check from Jimmy Iovine and keep making the same record over and over. Good. I’ll keep buying it.

AVRIL LAVIGNE

“Hot”

(Canada/Sweden 2007)

Hands down, “Hot” is the best Dr. Luke production since “Since U Been Gone.”

And the extreme use of Autotune is okay by me when it creates a vocal effect and sounds weird on purpose.

Stop complaining. The rock kids of 2025 will worship this, just like how it’s finally okay for everyone to like ABBA now.

DWIGHT YOAKAM

“The Old Rugged Cross”

1980s

Basquiat

1996

Benicio del Toro explains the business of art to Jeffrey Wright.