This is a guest post series about power pop featuring some of my favorite music writers. We’ll be sharing a new installment every few weeks or so (while supplies last). Full series here.
Is It Power Pop?
By Paul Heinz
Ah, the dreaded genre label.
Useful when communicating with fellow music fans, but with obvious limitations. After all, a term like “classical” throws Bach, Brahms, Stravinsky and Schoenberg into the same sonic soup—kinda crazy!
The power pop label might not be quite as broad, but even this genre had me wondering what I was in for when I joined a power pop band in 2014.
Oh, you mean Marshall Crenshaw and Matthew Sweet are considered power pop? Cool!
Since that time, I started cohosting the podcast 1,000 Greatest Misses, and as a result I’ve begun to more effectively consider genre labels, as imperfect as they might be.
My self-imposed challenge for the “Is it Power Pop?!” series was to pick songs by bands that hadn’t yet been featured. I hope you dig them.
Give the algorithm a piece of your mind!
“Money’s No Good” by Off Broadway
Off Broadway’s On is on my Mount Rushmore of all-time greats. The opening track, “Stay in Time,” got a bit of airplay back in the day, reaching 51 on the charts, but you could pick any song from the album and find yourself bopping your head. “Money’s No Good,” the penultimate tune on the album, expertly weaves together a plucky intro, powerful verses, and a driving chorus that keeps switching keys, breathing extra life into an already infectious tune. Add to that singer Cliff Johnson’s brief ode to Buddy Holly and a tasty guitar outro, and you’ve got yourself one killer track.
“Here Comes Sally” by Glen Burtnick
This gem borrows heavily from another gem, The Producers’ “She Sheila,” but when it’s done this well, I’m on board! Like “She Sheila,” key changes keep this song chugging along, not to mention a passionate vocal delivery with immaculately stacked backup vocals. As a keyboard player, I appreciate that piano and synths play a more prominent role here than is normally represented in power pop, but when the guitars do finally kick in, they sure do pack a punch.
“She’s So Young” by The Pursuit of Happiness
This song offers a different take of the predicament found in Steely Dan’s “Hey Nineteen,” in which the narrator struggles to relate to a younger girlfriend. Or maybe the singer here is just observing. I don’t know. Either way, he’s viewing the young woman with one part envy, and two parts pity, recognizing that life will eventually cloud her sunny outlook. The melody is so darn catchy and hummable that it’s remarkable it was there for the taking when this band’s debut album, Love Junk, came out in 1988. It’s all killer, no filler, and I love how Moe Berg’s lead vocals are backed by Leslie Stanwyck and Kris Abbott, providing an oft-absent female presence on a power pop album.
“Our Story” by The Judy Bats
I’m not sure if this qualifies as power pop, but the melodic opening guitar line, the up-tempo groove and the haunting backup vocals during the chorus took it over the finish line for me. What makes this song stand out is its heart-wrenching lyrics. Unlike so many relationship songs in which the narrator is barking bravado, here things are more nuanced, the singer wrestling with a love that isn’t likely to last: “In my youth, you know I loved you like gangbusters, and now I watch you fall, twisting turning growing small.” This relationship may not make it, but I sure am rooting for them.
“Caught in the Middle” by The Red Button
Chalk one up to happenstance. I was listening to an album by Emitt Rhodes a few years ago, when Spotify made a brilliant segue to a song called “As Far As Yesterday Goes” by The Red Button. A lovely track, but for this power pop series, I’m going with the album’s opening number, “Caught in the Middle.” Throw in a dash of ‘60s pop, a touch of Elvis Costello, and song craftmanship worthy of Fountains of Wayne, and you’ve got yourself a 21st Century power pop gem. Who says harmonica doesn’t work in a pop tune?
Paul Heinz is a musician, composer, writer, podcaster and record store staffer. He’s also married to a woman who actually pays the bills. Find his creative pursuits at paulheinz.com, hear his music on your favorite streaming service, and check out 1,000 Greatest Misses on your podcast app of choice..
Previously On “Is It Power Pop?!”
Is It Power Pop?!
This is a guest post series about power pop featuring some of my favorite music writers. We’ll be sharing a new installment every few weeks or so (while supplies last). Full series here.
Nice to see Off Broadway get some props! On is a fantastic album all the way through, but is unfortunately rarely remembered outside of the Midwest...
All cool choices! Ditto on the Off Broadway song…and The JudyBats! Hadn’t thought about them in a a minute — great song!