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SUPPORT ME ON PATREON\n\nWATCH MUSIC is not a GENRE VIDEOS and MORE\n\nI was born in Philly. It will always be my first city love \u2013 hell, it\u2019s right there in the name. I\u2019ve been a New Yorker for over two decades. It will always be my favorite city. But for the 30 years in between, I was a proud resident of New Jersey, possibly the greatest state in the nation. Alright, some of that last statement may be hyperbole. As a teen I didn\u2019t feel proud. It took leaving NJ to love it. And greatest state? Nope, that I stand by. Whether you agree, one thing we can\u2019t dispute is that a turnpike-load of legendary & incredibly diverse music has come from NJ.\n\nTake the 3 artists that most people think of first: Sinatra, Springsteen, Bon Jovi. None of them sound alike. In fact, their only commonalities are their NJ roots & Italian heritage \u2013 which OFTEN go hand in hand. Then there's the Fugees/Lauryn Hill & Whitney Houston. Two more legends. And I have to shout out 2 of my all-time faves: Fountains of Wayne & Kool & the Gang. Here\u2019s a list of some of the greatest acts from the greatest state:\n\n\xb7 The Sugarhill Gang\n\xb7 Blues Traveler\n\xb7 Thursday\n\xb7 The Gaslight Anthem\n\xb7 Looking Glass\n\xb7 Skid Row\n\xb7 The Feelies\n\xb7 Dramarama\n\xb7 Donald Fagen\n\xb7 Naughty By Nature\n\xb7 Queen Latifah\n\xb7 Ice-T\n\xb7 Redman\n\xb7 Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes\n\xb7 Ricky Nelson\n\xb7 The Shirelles\n\xb7 Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons\n\xb7 Dionne Warwick\n\xb7 Sarah Vaughan\n\xb7 Count Basie\n\xb7 Wayne Shorter\n\xb7 John Pizzarelli\n\xb7 Halsey\n\xb7 Patti Smith\n\xb7 Debbie Harry\n\xb7 The Misfits & Danzig\n\xb7 Yo La Tengo\n\xb7 My Chemical Romance\n\xb7 Jonas Brothers\n\xb7 Gloria Gaynor\n\nWhich band didn\u2019t I include? The Smithereens. I did that to prove a point. Most of these artists almost anyone can identify (okay, maybe not Dramarama & Looking Glass, but overall that\u2019s true). Ask most people who the Smithereens are & you\u2019ll draw a blank. You can say that about other bands. But what makes the Smithereens special is they were once HUGELY successful. They had a string of hit singles & albums in the late 1980s & early 1990s. Their songs were in movies. They performed & recorded with artists as big as Tom Petty, Lou Reed, Julian Lennon, Suzanne Vega & Belinda Carlisle.\n\nAND their music was awesome. Listen to \u201cA Girl Like You\u201d, \u201cBlood and Roses\u201d, \u201cOnly a Memory\u201d or \u201cToo Much Passion\u201d and tell me I\u2019m wrong. I haven\u2019t heard these songs in years and I can still recall them, because their dynamic mix of revivalist 1960s rock, punk & power pop is well crafted & infectious. It\u2019s a crime that this band has been so forgotten & that many of their releases are so hard to find.\n\nI have a soft spot for artists who hang in there for decades. It shows that music is their passion. That they don\u2019t let the ups & downs derail their journey, including in this case the 2017 death of their prime mover, Pat DiNizio. I feel so strongly because of my own career. Despite very little recognition & even less money, I\u2019ve put out 15 albums, hundreds of songs, and worked with dozens of bands on the side. And since my band REC is releasing a new album later this year, it ain\u2019t ending anytime soon.\n\nThe Smithereens are a great power pop band that show you can be singer/songwriter-y & even haunting in the midst of sheer rock joy. You can hear their influence in lots of my earlier work, including \u201cDo You Wanna\u201d, \u201cDeal\u201d, \u201cIt\u2019s Almost Over\u201d, and this week\u2019s pick, which clearly has the jangly/beefy power pop pedigree:\n\nREC \u2013 \u201cBeautiful Love\u201d (from the album, Parts and Labour)\n\n\n--- \n\nThis episode is sponsored by \n\xb7 Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app\n\nSupport this podcast: https://anchor.fm/musicisnotagenre/support\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices