Descendents' Frank Navetta ... is not in this pic! Thanks to QR. Photo from this site.
Frank Navetta at far leftTo paraphrase Descendents:
...and since punk rock does not pay the bills, does not put food on the table, and most of all, does not have a benefit plan, we present to you the first part of this episode in homage and in tribute to Descendents' and All's legendary bassist Karl Alvarez.
Alvarez suffered a "minor" heart attack (the exact diagnosis I am not too certain about) last August 2007. And while Karl is said to be doing fine at the moment, he needs to cover his rising medical bills (and we certainly have first-hand experience of how expensive cardiac medications are.) Thus, a MySpace benefit account has been put up by friends to serve as a central site of sorts to organize benefit shows and accept gifts to help with the medical expenses. You can check out The Karl Alvarez Benefit Page here.
For our part, we certainly recognize the fact that Karl Alvarez, together with Descendents and All, played a major part in shaping the lives of most music lovers this side of the planet. As an avid music fan myself, I personally swear by this fact, and I'm sure most of you do, too.
The playlist:
1. DESCENDENTS - "All, No All"
2. DESCENDENTS - "Coffee Mug"
3. ALL - "Just Perfect"
4. DESCENDENTS - "Pep Talk"
5. ALL - "Postage"
6. ALL - "She's My Ex"
7. ALL - "Frog"
8. ALL - "Excuses"
9. ALL - "Perfection"
10 DESCENDENTS - "Nothing With You"
11. ALL - "She Broke My Dick"
Photo courtesy of the Karl Alvarez Benefit MySpace page.
Do check out these sites as well.
The official site for the Descendents
Descendents MySpace Site
Punknews.org
For our second episode, we are featuring a cut off a rare vinyl, a couple of rare CD tracks, and a sprinkling of songs that, well, we have not heard for quite sometime.
Part 1 kicks off with a band called Farside. Originally released in 1990 as Crisis Records #1, the "Keep My Soul Awake" was Farside's first release as well as the first release for the new Revelation Records sub-label. There are four much revered songs that are exclusive to this EP; "Hero" opens the wax.
This is followed by a rare version of Sugar's bittersweet song "If I Can't Change Your Mind,"
coming off the "Besides" album.
Next are Descendents and Circle Jerks with the songs "Wendy" and "Jerks on 45," respectively. (Ever thought about the number and the title of pop songs included in the Jerks medley?)
A song from the short-lived group Cowboys International is in the list as well. Cowboys International counts the likes of Terry
Chimes (original drummer for The Clash) and Keith Levine (ex-Clash, PIL) as its members.
Also included is a track off "Please Describe Yourself," an album from the Scottish band Dogs Die In Hot Cars.
Lastly, the extremely luscious Louise Wener sums up the playlist with her band Sleeper's single off their debut, "Smart". That song could probably sum up the sentiments of some people I know. It could actually be your song, and mine too.
1. FARSIDE - "Hero"
2. SUGAR - "If I Can't Change Your Mind"
3. DESCENDENTS - "Wendy"
4. CIRCLE JERKS - "Jerks on 45"
5. COWBOYS INTERNATIONAL - "Aftermath"
6. DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS - "I Love You 'Cause I Have To"
7. SLEEPER - "Delicious"
