Aquarium Drunkard Presents: Power Pop Twenty
Power Pop - you know it when you hear it. The genre was first coined by The Who's Pete Townsend in 1967, stating: "Power pop is what we play—what the Small Faces used to play, and the kind of pop The Beach Boys played in the days of 'Fun, Fun, Fun'." And while the descriptor obviously didn't take hold for his own group, others took notice and began appropriating it for other outfits; notably Badfinger, early Todd Rundgren, and most famously, Big Star - who soon became the patron saints of the genre.
This week's playlist highlights twenty favorites -- from the genre's nascent beginnings (Badfinger, Rundgren, Big Star), to its immediate acolytes (The Dwight Twilley Band, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe) on to The dB's, The Smithereens, The Nerves and beyond. A second playlist is in order focusing on the genre's post-1990 practitioners -- Matthew Sweet, Teenage Fanclub, Telekinesis, et al. Until then, dig in.
ABOUT AQUARIUM DRUNKARD
Based in Los Angeles, Justin Gage is the founder of the long-running, eclectic music blog Aquarium Drunkard. In addition to the blog you can catch his weekly radio show, Fridays, on SIRIUS XMU satellite radio -- noon-2pm EST.
Gage is also the founder of Autumn Tone Records and works as a music consultant and supervisor.