Willie Simpson

Tag: 70s rock

  • AC/DC Week, Girl's Got Rhythm

    AC/DC week…why the hell not.  AC/DC is one of my guiltier pleasures.  Adored by a fan base that never understood that they were probably a parody band, AC/DC took rock and roll to a comical level of extremeness.  The Young brothers who founded the band were very talented rock and roll artists, but were also…

  • John Lennon Was Wrong About Bob Dylan's New Morning LP

    Here is an exchange between John Lennon and Jann S. Wenner of Rolling Stone Magazine on Bob Dylan’s 1970 release New Morning, ” WENNER: What do you think of Dylan’s album? LENNON: I thought it wasn’t much. Because I expect more–maybe I expect too much from people – but I expect more. I haven’t been…

  • Finding Some "Lesbian Concentrate" at the Flea Market

    I was at the Park Slope Flea Market yesterday and came across this gem.  It’s a vinyl LP called “Lesbian Concentrate: A Lesbianthology of Songs and Poems.”  I wasn’t gonna drop 15 bucks on it, but I sure as Hell was gonna take a picture of it.  When I got home, I did a little…

  • Carl Perkins and Friends, Rockabilly School

    It’s a star studded part 97 on my youtube countdown, and the stakes are getting higher, and the stars are getting hotter as we close in on 100!  This time I have the undeniably fantastic performance of Carl Perkins and his super friends from the 1985 concert Blue Suede Shoes: A Rockabilly Session.  Get this. …

  • The Beach Boys, The Ramones, Do You Wanna Dance?

    Part 95 is a double dose of glorious rock and roll.  I’ve got the Beach Boys and the Ramones rocking the Bobby Freeman classic, “Do You Wanna Dance?.”  In the Beach Boys version, drummer Dennis Wilson takes the lead vocals, and man is he good.  Dennis was the only Beach Boy that actually surfed, and…

  • George Harrison, Bangladesh

    Part 80 of the countdown continues with George Harrison’s charity rock performance of “Bangladesh.”  This is the second video I’m posting from the “Concert for Bangladesh,” the first being the incredible rehearsal video of Bob Dylan and George Harrison playing “If Not For You.” This song starts off really sad and maudlin, but kicks into…

  • Jeff Bridges, The Man in Me

    For part 77 of my countdown, I got Jeff Bridges performing “The Man in Me” at a Lebowski Fest in Los Angeles.  The song of course was featured beautifully in the Coen Brothers ultra cult classic, “The Big Lebowski,” when the Dude is riding that magic rug.  Dylan wrote this song for his 1970 LP…

  • The Ramones, Blitzkrieg Bop

    Part 74 roars on, as I guess its punk week here on williesimpson.com.  This time I have the Ramones smashing through a blistering live performance of “Blitzkrieg Bop,” the lead off track from their debut record.  The Ramones, hailing from Forest Hill, Queens, NY, are probably the world’s first original punk rockers.  This video is…

  • Elvis Costello, Pump it Up

    Lets “Pump it Up” with part 72 of my youtube countdown.  That’s right, I got Elvis “Declan MacManus” Costello’s 1978 hit “Pump it Up” from This Year’s Model. Now according to wikipedia, “Pump it Up” is a double entendres song about turning up your music’s volume and masturbation.  The two seem to go hand and…

  • John Lennon, Instant Karma

    Part 71 of my youtube countdown begins in a flash with John Lennon’s 1970 release “Instant Karma.”  “Instant Karma” is one of the fastest released songs in rock history.  John wrote it in the morning, recorded it in the afternoon, and released it ten days later.  The urgency of its release convinced karmic minded George…