The Cars, "The Cars"

CJ takes the wheel

, and

Jun 09, 2021

CJ’s Pitch:

The Cars were so big in New England in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s that it tilted my worldview. I figured that every rock radio station in the country was playing their self-titled debut album as much as WBCN in Boston did. That record was the soundtrack to my summers in Maine and my winters on the USY dance circuit. We all had the cassette and we all knew every word to every song. I would estimate that I listened to The Cars all the way through at least once a week for the better part of a year.

And why not? It’s as close to perfect a debut album as there ever was.

Born from the ashes of disco and punk, The Cars led the new wave charge that was transforming pop music. Rather than completely give in to the synthesizer-heavy tracks that would define new wave, though, they retained the sensibilities of guitar rock. The result is a truly singular, multi-layered sound where Elliot Easton’s guitar and Greg Hawkes’ synthesizer take turns driving and the killer rhythm section of Benjamin Orr and David Robinson compliments them both. The cherry on top was Ric Ocasek’s voice. It was some combination of Joey Ramone and Buddy Holly delivered from the body of Ichabod Crane. It just didn’t sound like anything else at the time. And his lyrics were otherworldly. Consider this stanza from the opening track “Let The Good Times Roll”:

If the illusion is real

Let them give you a ride

If they’ve got thunder appeal

Let them be on your side

Thunder appeal? I don’t know what it is, but I want it on my side for sure. That’s to say nothing of the chorus, which celebrates your “rock and roll hair”. I’ve spent my life trying to grow rock and roll hair. Not happening.

Then, there’s the description of the color of the sky in “Bye Bye Love”. What particular hue is it?

“Orangy”

It’s a nonsensical word, but somehow you know exactly what it means. And just when you think it’s all skinny ties and mirror balls, Ric slips in an American Psycho line like the one from “Just What I Needed”:

I guess you’re just what I needed

I needed someone to feed

I guess you’re just what I needed

I needed someone to bleed

Yowza!

Of the nine tracks on this album, there are eight that I play on a regular basis. But, I would have to say that my favorites are the last two. When I think about songs that are often played back-to-back, four pairs come to mind:

Zeppelin’s “Living Loving Maid” and “Heartbreaker”

ZZ Top’s “Waitin’ for the Bus” and “Jesus Just Left Chicago”

Queen’s “We Will Rock You” and “We are the Champions”

The Cars’ “Moving in Stereo” and “All Mixed Up”

[We need to take a moment to acknowledge the scene that everyone of a certain age imagines when they hear “Moving in Stereo”. Let’s put it this way: My rabbi would tell you that I became a man the day of my Bar Mitzvah. The truth is that I became a man the first time I saw Phoebe Cates emerge from the pool in slow motion while this song played in the background.]

At first blush, “Moving in Stereo” and “All Mixed Up” don’t seem to have anything in common. One is a fever dream comparing life to manipulating knobs on a hi-fi and the other is a heartbreaking tune about unrequited love. But, somehow the two songs melt into each other to create nine minutes of everything this band does best.

Leave it to me. Take The Cars for a spin and everything will be alright.

Don’s Response:

Sometimes artists catch lightning in a bottle, when everything comes together perfectly on their first record. Led Zeppelin’s eponymous debut catapulted them to instant superstardom, but Jimmy Page was already a household name, and Led Zeppelin I was highly anticipated. By contrast, The Black Crowes emerged out of nowhere with their surprising Shake Your Money Maker, but while refreshing, it was hardly original. As great as those debuts were, their best records were still in front of them. Both bands were just beginning to grow into themselves.

There have been many other great debuts, but I’m hard-pressed to think of a better, more complete, and fully realized introduction than The Cars, souped up with three smash hits to jump-start Side A before kicking into another gear with several deep cuts that got heavy airplay on the flip side.

By the time The Cars emerged, they were a well-oiled machine with multiple lead singers, seasoned players on every instrument and an utterly distinctive sound, meshing ‘50’s rock & roll basics with classic rock guitar licks and modern synthesizers. It was vintage New Wave and I can’t think of any band who did it better.

I just love “My Best Friend’s Girl.” It never occurred to me until listening afresh this week that it’s clearly an homage to Buddy Holly, from its rockabilly guitar lines to Ric Ocasek’s vocal affectations.

While The Cars were driven by Ocasek’s songwriting, the band fired on all cylinders. I think this is best captured on “Bye Bye Love,” featuring Benjamin Orr’s fabulous lead vocals and the wonderful guitar and keyboard call-and-response interplay between Elliott Easton and Greg Hawkes down the home stretch.

Every band member is given room to be creative throughout the album, including David Robinson’s underrated, clever drumming. More bands should give every member a turn behind the wheel the way The Cars did.

The Cars were not one-hit wonders, for they had a few more solid albums and some even bigger hit singles in the 1980s. But even they couldn’t live up to the promise of their own debut. Who could catch up to their head start?

Pitch Successful

Mitch’s Response:

Unlike most guys my age I never cared about cars. I never saved up for a car, I never had a dream car, and I avoided driving whenever possible, content to hitch a ride in Ken’s 1977 Dodge Diplomat. To me, cars have always been an unemotional, functional form of transportation - the antithesis of trains. Now, trains are a whole different story! Trains are cool and romantic. Trains are emotional. Trains are full of friends you haven’t met yet. Hopping a train is an adventure; Driving a car is a chore.

My indifference to cars apparently extended to The Cars as well. A perfectly serviceable new wave rock band, my relationship to The Cars was always functional: if I wanted to have fun I’d let the good time roll. If I wanted to be sad, I would wonder who was going to drive me home. If I wanted to watch a quirky video, well you might think that I’d watch The Cars on MTV, and if I wanted to ponder the mysteries of life, I’d question how Ric successfully wooed Paulina. But I never got emotionally involved with The Cars, I took them out for a spin just when I needed them.

But thanks to my friend CJ and his seemingly bottomless reservoir of lost classics from the ‘80s I finally logged some fresh miles with an album that I knew well growing up, but haven’t thought about in years.

This album fires on all cylinders. The hits still sound fresh (“Bye Bye Love”) and the rest of the tunes are quirky, interesting and unique (“I’m In Touch With Your World”). It’s the kind of album that ends too soon and makes you wonder how they can jam so many hits in so few minutes. What a great ride.

Ceej, you’ve made me love The Cars, but I’m still gonna need one of you guys to drive me home tonight.

Pitch Successful

Ken’s Response:

Growing up in the suburbs of Boston, I just assumed that every kid was a fan of Aerosmith, J. Geils Band, Boston, and The Cars. In the same way you’d give a confused, bitter stare to the kid wearing a Maurice Cheeks jersey at the old Boston Garden, people who didn’t like Massachusetts-based bands were subjected to similar treatment. For fear of being publicly shunned, I was sure to collect any new album that came out. From ‘Til Tuesday to The Lemonheads, I had them all. Of course, the three most prized possessions of any local record collection were Boston, Toys In the Attic, and The Cars.

In the last days of disco, the world was trying to figure out some sort of musical Marshall Plan to rebuild what disco had destroyed. Out of the rubble came New Wave, a combination of early rock ‘n roll, pop, and modern electronic equipment to save the day. Bands like Blondie, Talking Heads, The Police, and The Cars had come to save us from the preprogrammed, electronic nightmare we’d be living for the majority of the 1970s.

What’s not to like about The Cars? With an easily identifiable guitar sound, a driving rhythm section, and the unmistakable vocals of Ric Ocasek, The Cars were pioneers of modern musical performance and production, they were fun, and they were really good! With radio hits like “Good Times Roll”, “My Best Friend’s Girl”, and “Just What I Needed”, and deeper cuts like “You’re All I’ve Got Tonight”, their debut album is as good as anyone’s.

I know CJ already mentioned this, but as an ‘80s teen, I can’t thank Cameron Crowe enough for putting “Moving in Stereo” in his 1982 film Fast Times at Ridgemont High. You know why.

Pitch Successful

CJ’s pitch was successful and The Cars’ The Cars has driven into the Newbury St. Collection.

Clearly this album was just what we needed, but you might think otherwise. Shake it up, drive over to the comments section, and let us know if The Cars is magic or if you find it touch and go.

Exile on Newbury St.

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