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In this week’s dispatch, Contributing Author and historian Bill Bois introduces us to a man who heard a weird noise on Radio Moscow and thought, quite reasonably, that his radio had finally given up. Instead, it turns out Paul Pena was just warming up for his eventual career as Tuva’s most improbable “Earthquake,” proving once again that the universe rewards curiosity—and occasionally, bathroom acoustics.
In this final installment of a three-chapter tour through the 1980s charts, Contributing Author Ozmoe explains why some songs achieved year-end canonization while others apparently slipped behind the office radiator. It’s a data-driven joyride through pop nostalgia where even the numerical footnotes seem to be wrestling with their own identity.
In a studied autopsy of the chart phenomenon known as recession pop, Music Historian revisits the era when America tried to fix its problems with louder choruses. It recalls a time when the GDP crumbled, yet “Gimme More” and “Right Round” remained fully committed to the nation’s most reliable stimulus plan: denial via dancefloor.
December 1985: a month when a certain former psychedelic rock group abandoned hippie ideals for yuppie glory, a famous comedian tried to become the next Prince, and the charts were overrun by 60s cover songs like invaders with perfect hair. Contributing Author DJ Professor Dan guides you through the absurd, the over-the-top, and the gloriously ridiculous moments that made this era unforgettable – synths, shameless DJ patter, and all.
Richard Feynman, a Nobel-winning mind used curiosity, clarity, and a bit of showmanship to change history. In a piece that captures that rare mix of brilliance, mischief, and pure joyful curiosity, Contributing Author and Historian Bill Bois delivers a wonderfully bright portrait of the physicist who treated the universe like a favorite percussion instrument.
Contributing Author And Chart Historian Ozmoe serves up the second installment of his three-part comparative retro-chart odyssey, with the sort of numerical precision that suggests he may actually dream in the Billboard font. It’s a sharp, surprising, and groove-filled look at musical scorekeeping of the 1970s.
Some album titles are clever, the kind that make you knowingly nod and smile. Others? They sound like they were a product of a debate in the recording studio parking lot. Contributing Author Rollerboogie investigates the fine line between inspired wordplay and full-on naming regret.
Prompted by a commenter’s observation, this brand new edition of Record Relays turns music discovery into a puzzle worth solving, weaving artists together through unexpected collaborations and deep-cut gems. Enjoy a clever musical treasure hunt crafted by Contributing Author Chuck Small – a writer who always knows something about a perfect needle drop.
November ’75 had it all: Freddie arguing with a jury? Donna turning a song into a 17-minute experiment in… enthusiasm? And a football player’s backup band cruising through town? Contributing Author DJ Professor Dan dives headfirst into a month where rock went operatic, disco got dangerously long, and funk cruised like it owned the strip.
I poked around the odd corners of four artists’ musical tastes and ended up with a few unexpectedly gentle discoveries. Call it a quick walk through the back rooms behind the stage lights—quieter, more reflective, and much more revealing than advertised.
Somewhere between awe and mild panic, you’ll wonder how anyone could track every year-end hit this precisely. In the first of three parts, Contributing Author and Chart Historian Ozmoe delivers a treasure trove of charts that makes you admire the effort and secretly hope you never have to do it yourself. This week: The 60s…
He scored five Top 40 hits and then pulled off the rarest trick in pop: vanishing so completely that even Google seems a little unsure about him. Contributing Author Music Historian gamely follows the breadcrumb trail of Dean Esposito, a man who briefly ruled the charts and then slipped into the witness protection program of 90s music trivia.
Contributing Author and Record Collector Chuck Small takes us through K-Tel’s Sounds Spectacular, a 1975 collection so stuffed with hits it’s practically bursting at the grooves. From Rubettes’ truncated charm to Gloria Gaynor’s disco fire, it’s a record that both dazzles and occasionally asks, “Really? That edit?”