The SFB

Random musings from a Gen X life lived on the edge… of nothing except Lake Erie. 70s and 80s pop culture and music.

music

  • Is Panorama the most Cars Cars album?

    What I want to discuss is the brilliance of the album Panorama. I though I loved The Cars’ first album the best. And then I though I loved Candy-O the best. And then I gave Panorama a serious listen. For a record that wasn’t particularly important to me over forty years ago, it has become Read more

  • Were The Cars too pop to be truly New Wave?

    I don’t think so but… I’ve been working on a post for quite a while about what I think may be the not-so-hidden gem of all The Cars albums but it’s not quite where I want it yet. So because I haven’t posted in a while, I’m writing this as a sort of preface to Read more

  • Driving with The Cars

    Anyone else out there just get in their car and drive with no particular destination in mind? The fall weather has been spectacular this year and the conditions are perfect for long drives.  Four days past Halloween and there is still a lot of color on the trees. We’ve had gorgeous sunsets and very few Read more

  • Searching for Ben Orr.

    Kind of weirdly personal and took a long time to write this one. I also hesitated quite a while before sharing, but here goes… Benjamin Orr. Gifted singer, talented musician, gorgeous human, sad, happy, “randy”, funny, quiet, father, bandmate, son, brother, lover, husband. Ben died twenty four years ago this month, a few minutes before Read more

  • 1984-What a year for music!

    And the year I graduated from high school. I followed a thread on Twitter (I still can’t call it X) started by @PreetBharara in which he posed the question “What was the best song of 1984?”. Impossible to choose.  I have been meaning to write about the music of 1984 for a while now in Read more

  • The Comfort of the Way Back

    I’ve invested a lot of time recently in an entire subculture; people who write, blog, post, and make videos about musicians and bands and singers they remember from their formative years who may or may not still be around.  This begs some questions.  Why have I done this and why does this subculture exist?  Why Read more

  • Born In the Wrong Era- I should have been a Hippie. Or a Mod. Or a Disco Diva!

    Do you ever feel like you really belong in a different generation? What if you’re 58 when you finally realize what you should have done with your life? I’ve  always had a feeling that I was born too late and took the wrong path.  As I have written before, I never really knew what I Read more

  • 1980 and the Teenage Soundtrack of a New Decade

    And where have 44 years gone? I wrote about the greatness of music from 1978, so time to discuss the tunes that ushered in the ‘80s. A new decade and new beginnings for me as I finished middle school and entered high school. What an awkward time in a person’s  life- thirteen and fourteen years Read more

  • It’s All I Can Do- The Cars’ Absolute BEST SONG

    Photo by Lynn Goldsmith- Elektra press kit 1980 ADDENDUM 3/25/25 I already gave props to the mighty Elliot Easton and his superior guitar work, but listening to this song again recently, for some reason I was really struck by the beat, the momentum, and decided I  must discuss the rhythm section in this song. That Read more

  • Remember when your friends were in bands? And when bands played house parties?

    I miss the tribal communal musical adventures of my misspent youth. Many things lead to the demise of radio, and the entire musical landscape. Many people who are way more expert than I have written about it.  But here are the things I think contributed and they are all connected. -Loss of free-form radio stations Read more