If
Murray "The K" Kaufman
host a series of great compilation albums featuring top singles in the '60s and the fabled
CKLW-AM
was able to do the same in the '70s, why shouldn't
Little Steven Van Zandt
, host of the best
rock & roll
radio show of the new millennium, bring this great tradition back to life?
The Coolest Songs in the World, Vol. 3
doesn't have as many Top 40 hits as any given installment of
Now That's What I Call Music
(truth to tell, there aren't any actual "hits" here), but if you're looking for 47 minutes of high grade
garage
-centric
rock
, you'll find this to be fine value for money. As on a typical episode of
Little Steven's Underground Garage
, this disc covers a broad swath of
-friendly noises, from the
hard rock
thunder of
the Dictators
(
"The Savage Beat"
) to
the Byrds
-meets-
the Beatles
refinement of
the Shake
"She's My Girl"
) -- and on
Vol. 3
, that's just the first two tracks! Further down the song list,
the Woggles
jump-start the party with
"Got a Heat On,"
Back in Spades
deliver some high-impact Motor City
on
"Detroit Slums (Here We Come),"
the Fleshtones
continue their endless East Coast
frat rock
bash in
"Pretty Pretty Pretty,"
Manic Hispanic
transform
Rancid
into a gang of batos locos on
"Rudy Cholo,"
and
the Sugar Twins
present a delicious
sunshine pop
parody/tribute with
"For You."
There are 15 tunes here and even the least of them sound pretty fine in this company, and
is the best album yet in this series, offering top-notch listening for
garage rock
mavens and beginners alive. So when is "Little Steven Presents Gassers for Submarine Race Watchers" coming out? ~ Mark Deming