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  • Paula Abdul Drug Addiction – The Scoop At LHJ

    Paula Abdul at charity event in 2005
    Paula Abdul at charity event in 2005

    We can stop dissin’ on the former Laker girl who showed Janet some moves and then became a caricature often portrayed as a blowsy has-been while judging American Idol.

    Paula Abdul finally admitted she was addicted to pain medication, telling Ladies Home Journal of all publications, that a series of accidents were the cause of her originally seeking treatment.  Abdul, who reeled off six #1 hits in the 1980s, married actor Emilio Estevez and appeared on the path to long-term stardom.  But a series of accidents — not just a car accident, but even a light plane crash –  and lawsuits regarding her music and performances left her taking a combination of alternative medicines, painkillers and muscle relaxants.

    With a new release and the potential for a shakeup among Idol judges in next year’s 9th season, jaded music nerds justifiably may question the timing of Abdul’s revelations, but all should support her step forward.

    American Idol is due to cut a contestant tonight, setting up a battle of the final three.  SonicClash’s Double G covered Abdul’s latest music release here earlier this week.   Abdul has appeared more lucid in appearances this season and has not committed a faux pas equivalent to previous years when she once commented on a contestant who had not yet performed the song.

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  • FORTY-FIVE REVOLUTIONS PER MINUTE #34: I Died In Burst Of Lemon Piper

    The Seeds' "Pushin' Too Hard"

    THE SEEDS  “Pushin’ Too Hard”  b/w  THE STANDELLS  “Dirty Water”  (Collectibles Records #3028, early-’80’s reissue)

    Though yet another questionably licenced oldies-bin cheapie, this two-fer practically reads like page one of Garage Rock 101:  Lesson One.  Woe to Ye Puny Mortal Punkf who’ve ne’er Deigned Immerfe Thyfelvef unto Yon Hard-Drivin’, Pot-Fmokin’ Clafficf.  I Pity the Soolf.

    Originally released on Crescendo in late ’66, A-side “Pushin’ Too Hard,” a “gassy” barnstormer by L.A.-based rockers The Seeds (led by the still-sometimes-active-yet-very-reclusive Richard “Sky Saxon” Marsh), crept to #36 by early ’67.  And at a time when the charts were dominated by acts like The Association and The Supremes, mind you.  But teens had sent proto-punk classics like “Wild Thing” and “96 Tears” to the top of the pops in months previous, so the doors (and The Doors) were wide open, and the ’60’s were in full-swing.

    Watch The Seeds lip-sync \”Pushin\’ Too Hard\” on Casey Kasem\’s SHEBANG! (1967)

    While you’re YouTubin’ it, stop by here for a low-res kinescope of Saxon & Co.’s ’66 appearance on the Kaye Ballard/Eve Arden vehicle, The Mothers-In-Law.  A true brain-burner if there ever was one.  Our next guests were once prominently featured on The Munsters, but we’ll save that for another time.

    The Standells' "Dirty Water"

    Now, try not to let the Massachucentric subject matter fool you;  this band did not hail from Beantown.  Side B backtracks to the Summer of ’66 with “Dirty Water” by Sunset Strip mainstays The Standells.  Originally pressed on the Tower Records label (a Capitol subsidiary, no relation to the failed retail chain), “Water” spent 9 weeks on Billboard, peaking at #11.

     (The little video linker suddenly crashed, but you can see The Standells roll their eyes, pick their noses, and lazily mime “Dirty Water” on TV circa 1966 by going here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBD8SObQYD0)

    When I was a kid, I (along with many others, I’m sure) mistook this for a Stones track.  Years later, my junior-high pals & I were rocking again to “Dirty Water” as redone by British new-wavers (read:  neo-garage-rockers) The Inmates.  Since then, it’s become the flagship theme song for MA’s legendary Tewksbury Comets Action Paintball Team.  Great rock never dies.  (And don’t even pretend to be a rock guitarist if you don’t know that killer opening riff, pal.)

    As for the song’s subject matter, I’ll let Money Mike fill you in on how much he loves that dirty water.

    NEXT WEEK:  I get a bullet in the head.

  • Is That Paula Abdul’s Voice?

    On Ryan Seacrest’s blog (which I found through his Twitter account), he premiered Paula Abdul’s new single (I’m Just) Here For The Music.

    A couple of weeks ago, Paula instructed the American Idol contestants through a dance routine, which basically showed that the girl can still go. But can she go on the mic?

    The song is exactly what you’d expect a Paula Abdul song in 2009 to sound like. Abdul’s voice is doctored with to the extent that it could be anyone singing, but there’s something fresh about hearing her again. Check it out for yourself below.

    Paula Abdul’s (I’m Just) Here For The Music