Is It Power Pop?!
PART THREE: Josh Rutledge
This is a guest post series about power pop featuring some of my favorite music writers. We’ll be sharing a new installment every week or two in January and February. Full series here.
Is It Power Pop?
By Josh Rutledge
I can say that I’ve loved power pop almost all my life, but I didn’t really perceive it as an actual genre until I was in my twenties in the later ‘90s. I gravitated to classic power pop then as a natural extension of my love for first generation pop/punk.
Being a huge fan of the Ramones and Buzzcocks, it wasn’t much of a stretch to venture into the world of The Knack or the Paul Collins’ Beat. One could even argue that some of my favorite punk groups (The Undertones, The Boys, The Real Kids) had even planted a foot in the world of power pop.
Regardless of labels, I’ve always loved music that combines loud guitars with sweet melodies, silky-smooth harmonies, and big, hooky choruses. To me, a great power pop tune is like a piece of hard candy with a soft, chewy center.
Never one to be too much of a purist, I would never define power pop based on a band’s choice in guitars, hairstyles, or footwear. To me, power pop is exactly what it sounds like—powerful pop music.
Power pop, in my book, is one of the simplest and most satisfying forms of rock ‘n’ roll. Not every great power pop song has to be a love song, but the fact that so many of them are is a big plus for me. Give me a tuneful melody, a killer hook, and some punch in the guitars, and I’m a happy camper. If you can get the job done in less than three minutes, that’s all the better.
Here are the five power pop songs I consider my personal favorites.
“Precious to Me” by Phil Seymour
If invaders from another planet came to me and told me that my life would be spared if I could introduce them to the definitive power pop song, this would be my choice. The lead track from Seymour’s 1980 debut album, “Precious to Me” is everything I could want a power pop song to be. With its infectious melody, ear worm chorus, hooky guitar line, and lovelorn vocals and lyrics, this song truly is power pop perfection. You can hear the classic ‘60s influences, but the feel of the song is pure early ‘80s. It’s still hard to believe that this was not a massive, chart-topping hit.
“Cheri” by 20/20
As far as I’m concerned, 20/20’s first album is the greatest power pop album ever made. Every song on the record is a classic. I know “Yellow Pills” gets all the love, but “Cheri” has always been my favorite track. A friend included the song on a mixed tape he sent me in the late ‘90s, and hearing it for the first time was a life-changing moment for me. This was my kind of music. I loved the way those muscular guitars and thumping drums danced in unison with those gorgeous melodies and dramatically impassioned vocals. I’ve always lived by the principle that nothing in life matters more than love, and “Cheri” exudes that very sentiment.
“Christy” by Tina and the Total Babes
As I was thinking about which five songs I would pick for this article, “Christy” was one I knew I could not exclude. Tina and the Total Babes was a one-off collaboration between producer/songwriter Travis Ramin (Candygirl, Nikki Corvette) and garage punk legend Tina Lucchesi (Bobbyteens, The Trashwomen). Tina and the Total Babes set out to make a record that sounded like late ‘70s power pop but with a punk rock attitude. Thanks to the exceptional quality of the songs and Lucchesi’s vocal performance, they fully pulled it off. I would put “Christy” up against almost any power pop song from any era. My god, that chorus!
“L’il Christine” by Material Issue
“Li'l Christine” is such an incredible song that it even survives the dreaded ‘90s echo-y drum production. Material Issue is one of my favorite bands of all time, and I can’t think of a song that captures the essence of Jim Ellison as a vocalist and songwriter better than “L’il Christine.” When it comes to unrequited love, the line between pining and stalking can be a thin one. In a way that’s both sweetly humorous and completely devastating, this song illuminates that concept. Ellison was a master at writing from the point of view of the spurned or rejected lover, and I must confess that his music influenced or at least reinforced a good deal of foolish behavior in my twenties. Years later, in happier, more settled times, I still get chills listening to “L’il Christine.”
“News At Ten” by The Vapors
When I became obsessed with power pop in the late ‘90s, The Vapors were one of the first bands I gravitated to. I had always loved “Turning Japanese” as a child, and the entire New Clear Days album had me tingling with Cold War nostalgia. I don’t know if there’s a single album I’ve listened to more in my lifetime. It’s perfect from start to finish. And while it includes a few love songs, it demonstrates that the magic of power pop is transferable to almost any subject matter. I got into the habit of listening to side 2 first so the album would start with “News At Ten.” If any topic in songwriting is more universal than romantic love, it would be family dynamics. This song about a generational clash between a father and son is truly timeless, and I’d be lying if I said the theme of resenting and dreading the idea of ending up just like your dad didn’t hit me hard. I would definitely put David Fenton on my Mt. Rushmore of underrated songwriters.
Josh Rutledge published the fanzine Now Wave Magazine in the ‘90s and 2000s. Today his blog Faster and Louder champions new music in the punk rock/power pop/underground rock and roll universe. He also co-hosts the podcast Born Too Late.
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 week or two in January and February. Full series here.
Agree about 20/20s first album as the bar setter. Chicago’s own Oh Boy! (Of which I was a member) covered Cheri, Backyard Guys, and Remember the Lightning. Quite well actually too!
That Phil Seymour debut album is just a murderer's row of hit songs.