The Original Iron City Houserocker. Joe’s got co-writes on Bruce Springsteen’s latest release.

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/joe-grushecky/id1316200737?i=1000724964681

https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/b1618547-2454-4808-8a58-101b590c3208/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-joe-grushecky

This’ll keep you guessing.

This four part series stars Scottish actress Kelly Macdonald, whom you either love or just aren’t aware of yet. You most recently saw her in Netflix’s “Dept. Q,” and she was also in season six of “Line of Duty,” one of the best English series period. It’s all about “bent coppers,” if someone uses this term, you know they’ve seen the series. Macdonald was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland award for Best Actress Television for both of these series, and she won for “The Victim.” Macdonald doesn’t sacrifice her Scottish accent in both productions, which makes her even more believable. And unlike with Meryl Streep and many other vaunted actors, you don’t see the actor behind the role. “The Victim” sports a 92/96 rating on RottenTomatoes (and “Line of Duty” rates 96/94).

I know, I know, you don’t want to pay for another streaming service. But here’s what I do… I sign up via Amazon and immediately cancel, so I am only charged for one month. I’d like to say it’s easy to cancel on Amazon, it’s not, but give it a minute and you can figure it out. Cancellation is easiest on Apple, however having all your charges in one place, i.e. Amazon, can be advantageous. Is it worth the $10.99 for one month of BritBox? (Just raised from $8.99.) I can’t imagine anyone disliking “The Victim” or “Line of Duty,” but I’m not promising your money back, you’ll just have to trust me.

So there are multiple threads in “The Victim,” which ultimately all come together, but the main thread has to do with whether Kelly Macdonald as Anna Dean is liable for posting online the name and address of the person she believes killed her son. So, this is a courtroom drama.

But not at stake in the trial, but dominant throughout the series, is who exactly killed said son. The person she outed or..? This is done just brilliantly, you’re kept guessing, it’s never completely clear, and when you find out who is ultimately responsible…let me just say you’ll be shocked.

In addition there’s a thread about an addled addict coming in for mandatory drug testing, how does he fit in?

And then there’s the backstory and perspective of the investigating detective.

At first you will wonder how these threads all come together, but trust me, they will. And viewing is not as complicated as it may seem above. But having said that, TURN ON THE SUBTITLES! The Scottish accents are heavy, and unless you live there, you’ll have a hard time catching every word.

I’m stunned in a world where they remade the not so great original “War of the Roses” that they haven’t made American versions of these two series. In the case of “The Victim,” you could use the identical script, you’d only have to change the location.

People wonder why I watch so much streaming television. But it’s the highlight of my day. Because when done right it takes me away, puts me in a totally different headspace than I was when I was working.

Yes, I know some people still watch movies, but films are a different experience. They’re short stories and series are novels. In series the characters are more fleshed out, there’s more detail, less left unspoken, and if something is good it continues… “Line of Duty” has six seasons!

Once again, “The Victim” has only four, just under an hour apiece. The landscape is delineated and the action takes place.

What do you believe? Are your instincts correct? Are your conclusions tainted by preconceptions? These are all questions raised in “The Victim.”

I guess I’m selling “The Victim” not because it’s so damn good, although it is truly excellent, but it’s just that when discussing what people are watching they always come up with the usual suspects and oftentimes it’s tripe. But if you broaden your horizons just a little…

This is an English production. Meaning that every character is not beautiful, it’s regular people and therefore you can relate.

This is first class stuff.

WATCH IT!

September 4, 1970

GET YER YA-YA’S OUT!

The Rolling Stones

Incredible reviews, a disappointing listen.

“Live at Leeds” came out earlier in the year and was instantly labeled the greatest live album ever…assuming you don’t care about crowd noise, because there was none. You got plenty of crowd noise on “Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out,” but what was surprising was how rough the band was.

The Stones were mostly seen as a singles act prior to “Beggars Banquet.” But even though that album contains “Sympathy for the Devil,” there was such a bad taste in the public’s mouth after “Their Satanic Majesties Request” that there was not instant mass adoption of what was considered a masterpiece then and now. Furthermore, it was earthy as opposed to in your face, as if the Stones had licked their wounds and were making an album for themselves, in a studio cut off from the world of stardom.

HOWEVER, “Let It Bleed” began the sales juggernaut. There were no singles, but if you purchased the album you were wowed. It was slick where “Beggars Banquet” was rough. But as big as it was… Not every ticket was sold for the fall ’69 tour of America. The mania didn’t really start until the spring of ’71, when “Sticky Fingers” came out and “Brown Sugar” was ubiquitous. But in between those two albums we got this live LP.

Now at this point, there’s an extended version with a ton more tracks available on streaming services. But if you focus on the original ten cuts…it’s the two Chuck Berry covers that stick out, most especially “Carol,” however “Little Queenie” is pretty good. There’s a cool descending riff in the instrumental section of “Sympathy for the Devil” and “Honky Tonk Women” was okay, but this was the kind of album you bought and played, waiting for its greatness to be revealed, and when it wasn’t, you didn’t play it a hell of a lot more.

Now the truth is the Stones have always been rough live, sans hard drives more of a bar band that eventually locks into the groove. But having said that, they’re presently playing better than they ever have. Next time through you should go, because we are getting to the point where this could truly be the last time.

September 14, 1970

UNTITLED

The Byrds

Great reviews, but Crosby was gone and was part of the CSNY juggernaut and Gene Clark and Michael Clarke and Chris Hillman were gone too. This was more of a Roger McGuinn solo album. But the band did feature Clarence White, whom insiders knew, but was only truly appreciated after his tragic death.

However, this is the album that contains “Chestnut Mare.”

Yet only one person in my dorm owned this two LP set and we can say that ultimately McGuinn and the Byrds had trouble transitioning from the sixties into the seventies.

September 18, 1970

KILN HOUSE

Fleetwood Mac

The first post Peter Green album. They were a cult item in the U.S. but you did hear “Station Man” on the radio, and I always loved it.

Of course “Station Man”‘s magic was enhanced by Christine McVie’s vocal, even though she was not yet an official member of the group.

Fleetwood Mac built up a presence, especially with “Heroes Are Hard to Find,” but no one would be talking about them today if the group didn’t reconstitute itself with Stevie and Lindsey thereafter.

September 18, 1970

PARANOID

Black Sabbath

At the time the band was considered sludge rubbish by the cognoscenti and didn’t get much radio play. This was a band that was ultimately built by the fans, who heard the music and spread the word. But at this point, the word had not spread too far. It wasn’t like the band didn’t exist, you were aware that “Paranoid” had come out, but all the critics, who still had power, especially in a world where you had limited funds and could not hear most records without buying them, said no and most abstained, at this point anyway.

September 19, 1970

PERFORMANCE

I bought this soundtrack LP for “Memo from Turner,” featuring Ry Cooder’s slide.

That’s how it was back then, certain tracks were rare and you bought the albums to be able to hear them.

As good as “Memo from Turner” was and still is…the rest of the album didn’t require more than one or two listens.

September 19, 1970

AFTER THE GOLD RUSH

Neil Young

I bought it the day it came out because that’s how much I loved the highlights of “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere,” most especially “Down by the River.”

But “After the Gold Rush” was different. More subtle.

The country affect of “Tell Me Why”…most rock listeners had not cottoned to this sound, despite “Sweetheart of the Rodeo” and the Burritos…but they dropped the needle on the first side and came to know it.

When Neil sang “the 1970s” in the title track it was akin to an act naming your hometown from the stage. You have no idea of the weirdness of 1970. Never mind Kent State, this was a new decade. The sixties were over. What did the future portend? Turned out a licking of one’s wounds and a return to the land, and this album was a perfect soundtrack for that.

No one ever talks about the brief side closers, “Till the Morning Comes” and “Cripple Creek Ferry,” but they are killers.

But my favorite track was second on the second side, “Don’t Let It Bring You Down,” fantastic.

But really, as time went by, what I played most came two tracks later, “When You Dance I Can Really Love,” which truly rocked. The antithesis of the mellowness of so much of the album.

I vacillate between saying the debut or “After the Gold Rush” is better. “After the Gold Rush” is more consistent, but the intro of “Emperor of Wyoming” sets the debut in its own environment, far from the city. And then comes “The Loner” and “I’ve Been Waiting for You”…FOR SUCH A LONG TIME! And you have no idea what it was like to hear “The Last Trip to Tulsa” on underground FM radio for the very first time.

P.S. As big as “Southern Man” was, it truly became legendary when Lynyrd Skynyrd referenced it in “Sweet Home Alabama.”

September 23, 1970

ABRAXAS

Santana

Eagerly anticipated after the Woodstock movie, this album was a huge seller and is still the best thing Santana has ever done. Most people did not know that the single “Black Magic Woman” was originally a Fleetwood Mac song, and the cover of “Oye Cómo Va” is definitive, but really it’s the quieter numbers that create such a unique listening experience, like the opener “Singing Winds, Crying Beasts” and “Incident at Neshabur.” Having said that, my favorite tracks are those of Gregg Rolie on the second side, most especially “Mother’s Daughter” and “Hope You’re Feeling Better.” “Abraxas” truly stands the test of time.

September 23, 1970

IDLEWILD SOUTH

The Allman Brothers

Almost no one knew who the Allman Brothers were unless they’d seen them live. The original album is great, but it suffered from Adrian Barber’s production, it lacked a certain zing. However, the debut did contain “Trouble No More” and “Dreams” and the original five minute version of “Whipping Post.”

If you heard “Idlewild South” on the radio at all, they played the cheery opening track, “Revival,” which truly wasn’t representative of the rest of the album, never mind the band. “Idlewild South” started to gain traction at the end of 1970 into the beginning of 1971, once you heard “Midnight Rider” and “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed” you were a fan. As for everybody else…

Bill Graham made the Allmans the closing act at the Fillmore East, which is like…I can’t think of an adequate comparison. A band that plays theatres at best getting the best slot. And then came “Fillmore East” in the summer. But really, most people, the average citizen, didn’t get into the Allman Brothers until “Brothers and Sisters” and “Ramblin’ Man.”

As for the title… The airport had been called Kennedy for years by this point, the use of “Idlewild” was retro and notable.

P.S. In 1973, after the Allmans had left their mark, Atlantic released “Beginnings,” comprised of the two initial albums, that’s how much they were ignored/unknown. But I didn’t realize until this very moment that Tom Dowd remixed the debut for this package.

September 25, 1970

BEAUCOUPS OF BLUES

Ringo Starr

A ton of press, you’d see it in the bins, but I don’t know a single person who bought it. To this day I’m not sure I’ve heard it.

September 25, 1970

MAD SHADOWS

Mott the Hoople

All the hype was about the first album and its instrumental cover of “You Really Got Me.” When that failed commercially, the following three albums, which are viewed positively today might as well not have come out…did you know anybody who purchased them when they were released?

September 30, 1970

JOHNNY WINTER AND

Johnny Winter

Johnny Winter had tons of hype and the public didn’t buy it. There was not a specific track that drew people in and… It’s hard to perceive the era if you weren’t there. Music dominated the culture, press was important, you could hype something but that did not mean it sold. But after two Columbia albums, Johnny Winter formed a band with Rick Derringer, who brought along “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo,” which the public could understand with one listen, which they got, because radio played it consistently. Johnny didn’t return to his blues roots fully until later, after a few hit rock albums.

September 30, 1970

RUNT

Todd Rundgren

A veritable unknown, Todd was the mastermind behind Nazz, but although he wrote the songs, it was Stewkey who sang the slowed down original version of “Hello It’s Me.”

After the failure of that band Todd began a career behind the console and ultimately showed up as the engineer of the Band’s third album, “Stage Fright,” which was astounding if you were a fan.

Managed by Albert Grossman, Todd got the right to record a solo album. However, Grossman’s label Bearsville was distributed by Ampex, which felt it could diversify into the record business. Ultimately it couldn’t. In time Bearsville made a deal with Warner Bros., but before that Todd put out two LPs with Ampex and they were almost universally unavailable. In fact, you couldn’t truly buy them until they were dumped as cut-outs when Ampex failed. Which is how I bought this album and the second, “The Ballad of Todd Rundgren,” which to this day most people have never heard, even though it is Todd’s best work.

As for Todd’s solo debut…

There were two versions and the whole thing was an abortion. However, “Runt” did contain “We Gotta Get You a Woman.” Despite the rewriting of history, the truth was “We Gotta Get You a Woman,” despite being a fantastic track, was not anywhere close to a hit, you were lucky if you even heard it on the radio once.

As for the rest of the album? More than listenable, some quasi-memorable tracks, but the sound was thin and the stuff that came out thereafter was far superior. But if you’re interested in the history, where Todd came from…

Meanwhile, we couldn’t believe that Soupy Sales’s kids were the rhythm section, we thought they were a joke, this legitimized them.

“KPop Demon Hunters” is #1 on both the Global and USA charts.

However, Bad Bunny’s “DeBi TiRAR Más FOToS” is #2 globally, but only #8 in the USA.

Morgan Wallen’s “I’m the Problem” is #2 in the USA and #5 globally. Used to be that American country music didn’t translate overseas, this is no longer true. However, Wallen is the only country artist in either Top 50, so…maybe he’s just a phenomenon, an outlier, but what a success!

Laufey’s “”A Matter of Time” is #17 globally, but #3 in the USA. This is astounding, not only because Laufey is Icelandic, but Laufey has only had two songs on the American chart, and both were Christmas tunes and one went to #89 and the other to #56. Then again, in truth this album just came out on August 22nd. But it has not been forgotten by listeners. They didn’t check it out and move on, they continued to listen. This is akin to the old days, the truly old days, the sixties and seventies, when an artist who didn’t sound like anybody else could carve out their own niche. And the funny thing is it’s not even on a major label, it was released by AWAL…then again, at this point AWAL is part of Sony.

Deftones’ “private music” is #46 globally and #14 domestically. Pretty amazing for a band whose first album came out THIRTY YEARS AGO! Sure, the album came out on August 22nd, but the band is playing stadiums and very occasionally an act would have a hit single years later, but usually with the help of a current artist, and it was usually just about the single, the album did not sell in prodigious numbers. Would Deftones be as big if it weren’t for the internet, where all their music is available 24/7 around the world, able to be discovered and played by new fans? This proves you don’t need Spotify Top 50 hits to be a successful artist. Furthermore, “private music” sounds nothing like anything in the Spotify Top 50. Everybody’s chasing hits yet here a career act with hard core fans is triumphing doing it their own way.

Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season” is #13 domestically, even though it came out in 2022! This would be impossible in the old days. Once radio stopped playing the singles, the album stopped selling. But people love Kahan and keep streaming his music and this is what new acts have to compete with, stars with established fan bases. Best to start off slow and find your way with authentic music and hope to get lucky as time goes by than polish a written by committee single that might stream but doesn’t generate a dedicated fan base. Furthermore, the lyrics of “Stick Season” are personal and not always positive. Kahan is breaking all the rules and continuing to triumph.

Billie Eilish’s “Hit Me Hard and Soft” is #6 globally and #23 domestically. Are streams higher internationally because she was on tour over there? Tours drive streams.

Beéle’s “BORONDO” is #7 internationally. He doesn’t chart domestically. He’s Colombian. Not only is Latin music a big market, it’s bigger than ever because it can be listened to with a click around the world.

Fuerza Regida may have a Spanish name, but they’re from San Bernardino. Their album “111xpantia” is #10 internationally. And this does not represent the burst of streams of a recent release, this album came out on May 2nd, it’s got staying power. The album is #30 in the U.S.

“Mi Vida Mi Muerte” by Neton Vega is #21 internationally. He’s a Mexican artist, but he’s playing as far north as Jones Beach. The same album is #41 domestically.

Mexican artist Junior H’s “$ad Boyz 4 Life II” is #28 internationally and #42 domestically.

No one may want Katy Perry’s new albums, but 2012’s “Teenage Dream” is #40 internationally, it’s not on the USA chart. Katy did four Mexican dates in April and two Australian dates at the beginning of June… So international touring is not driving these streams.

Mexican rapper Tito Double P’s  “Incómodo” is #43 internationally. It doesn’t chart in the Top 50 domestically. The music is released by the Orchard via Sony.

Mexican urban music star Victor Mendivil’s “Tutankamon” is #45 internationally, it’s not in the domestic Top 50. He has no Wikipedia page. The music is distributed via Downtown…and you wonder why the majors are buying up the indie distributors…they’re the ones with all the breaking talent! The majors can’t find new hit music, never mind sign it and promote it. They rely on people who are in the weeds, who make deals that are far from rich.

Morgan Wallen’s 2023 album “One Thing at a Time” is #9 domestically. Wallen has two albums in the Top Ten, Taylor Swift only one, #6’s “Tortured Poets Department.” However, “Folklore” is #15, “Lover” is #26, “Midnights” is #35 and “reputation” is #36. Morgan Wallen’s “Dangerous: The Double Album” is #20.

“Hamilton” is #22 domestically. I guess it doesn’t translate overseas. However, one must note the album came out TEN YEARS AGO!

“Rumours” is #19 domestically and #33 internationally.

Arctic Monkeys’ “AM” is #22 internationally. It came out in 2013. In the days of physical retail, most stores would not have even stocked it. But today, the great records of the past never die.

Christian artist Forrest Frank’s 2024 album “Child of God” is #47. It came out in 2024, “Child of God II” came out in May. Both are distributed by Warner.

Hozier’s 2014 self-titled debut is #34 domestically. Welcome to the modern world where your original work can overshadow your newer music.

The Marías 2024 album “Submarine” is #25 domestically. They sing in English and Spanish, as for the style of music…can I say it’s all over the place? (In a good way!) This is on Atlantic, but the contract pre-dates Elliott Grainge’s tenure. The deal is through producer Ricky Reed’s Nice Life, which also has Lizzo and Pussy Riot as well as Tinashe, but the latter is distributed by RCA.