Skip to main content

The Brains - Money Changes Everything

It's become undeniably evident that the president of the United States had a sexual fling with a porn star while his wife was pregnant. Right before the 2016 election, his lawyer paid Stormy Daniels off with $130,000. POTUS denies the whole thing.
I'm so sick of money and the terrible things that it enables. It's pretty obvious no one in the GOP or Trump's base is going to bat an eye at this little hush money cover up. What it reveals about the soul of America is no surprise, but still troubling. Yeah, money changes everything. Even the core values of religious zealots and fiscally conservative nut jobs. But, we should have known that. The Brains called it back in '80. "You think you know what we're doing. We don't pull the strings. It's all in the past now. Money changes everything."


The Brains were a hard rocking quartet from Atlanta, Georgia. For their 1980 debut, Steve Lillywhite stepped in to the production role, added a little signature, Cars-y keyboard and transformed them into new wavy gravy. Lillywhite had just wrapped up working with U2, Peter Gabriel and XTC. "Money Changes Everything," which would later become a hit for Cyndi Lauper, is arguably the best song on the record. From the opening break up scene in the car to the realization that the singer's friends are all fake, the lyrics are compellingly fatalistic. Tom Grey repeats the chorus and by the second time through, you're joining in. As you sing along, a tear slides down your cheek at the realization that, perhaps, the moral arc of the universe actually bends toward dark corruption. 



Fun fact: Their bass player went on to join The Georgia Satellites.

Comments

Post a Comment

Trending Tracks

Sweetbottom - Shrapnel In My Ankle

Sweetbottom -  Angels of the Deep . I can provide a totally valid explanation for the existence of this record in my collection. You see, I'd been eyeing this peculiar 12" at my favorite little hole-in-the-wall record shop for about a month. It was in the $5 box. After a few weeks it finally landed in the $1 bin. For the album artwork alone, I thought, this is worth a buck. Four late-70s dudes clad in white, cotton shirts and pants, hairy chests and... white shag carpet. Sweetbottom indeed. Adding to the allure, the notes revealed that the album had been recorded at the Shade Tree Resort Studio in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin between 1977-78. Could this be like the Great Lakes version of Yacht Rock? Could I be holding some long-forgotten, Midwest soft rock obscurity? I was tempted to cheat and pull out my cellphone to Google them, but then I paused. This is $1 we're talking about. Let's take the risk and live dangerously. As I approached the register, I noted that the ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Jules & the Polar Bears - Good Reason

Jules & The Polar Bears is one of those bands that you want to like, but continue to remain on the fence about even after a decade of failed listens. Recently, I've been sampling bands from the late 70s and early 80s who released fake new wave albums -- major label acts who played middle of the road rock, but disguised it in skinny ties, brightly colored sweaters and catchy, Cars-y keyboard riffs. Jules & The Polar Bears are a good example. Their first record, 1978's Got No Breeding, was compared to Dylan, The Kinks and Springsteen. Personally, I hear a quirky Jackson Browne in the songwriting. Everything sounds bearded and mid-tempo, except Jules Shear, the singer. He gives the band a distinct sound with his "singing at the top of my range" yelp. But even with Shears' interesting squelch, the songs never break out of 70s rock conformity. The guitarist's resemblance to a member of Orleans or Doobie Brothers is telling. Enter 1979's "Fenêt...
Post a Comment
Read more