Neal Cassady was an author and a poet and an influential member of the Beat Generation of the 1960s. He was also Allen Ginsberg's sometime lover. In February of 1968 Cassady, inappropriately dressed, went for a walk along the railway line in freezing cold weather and passed out. He isn't discovered until the next morning, by which time he was comatose. He was rushed to the nearest hospital but passed away a short time later.
Morrissey opens up this 2014 track with the image of Ginsberg, distraught at his loss: "Ginsberg's tears shampoo his beard", but then takes us into a darker realm but portraying Ginsberg as a man struggling with lust that now only lives in nostalgia: "Allen Ginsberg's hosed down in a barn" and "Allen Ginsberg's howl becomes a growl". Morrissey then proceeds to throw us off-kilter by launching into a semi-rap style diatribe about babies with rabies.
This is not the first time that Cassady has been immortalised in song. The Grateful Dead launched an immediate tribute after his passing with their track "That's It For the Other One", where Cassady is portrayed as a train driver called "Cowboy Neal". This appears on their 1968 album "Anthem of the Sun". The Doobie Brothers recorded "Neal's Fandango" for their 1975 album "Stampede" and King Crimson paid homage to the Beat Generation as a whole with their 1982 song "Neal & Jack & Me".
2. Making Plans For ____
Answer: Nigel
Appearing on XTC's 1979 album "Drums and Wires" this song would emerge as the breakthrough single for the band. Written by bass player, Colin Moulding, it looks at parents dominating their children and steering them into the direction that they want rather than allowing the children to follow their own hearts.
This was semi-autobiographical for Colin who added that his father was always pushing him to study harder, that university was what he should be aiming for, that he needs to cut his hair... and in the end it only led to rebellion on his part.
3. ____ to Alaska
Answer: North
"North to Alaska" is sung by Johnny Horton over the opening credits to the 1960 John Wayne movie of the same name. It serves as a means of putting forward the back story to the film and leads into its opening. For Horton though it introduced him to a massive hit, topping the Billboard Country charts and reaching number four on Billboards' Hot 100. Sadly for Horton he would not live long enough to enjoy the fruits of this success, he lost his life in a car accident less than three months after the song's release.
4. Rak Off ____
Answer: Normie
In 1975 Bob Hudson had a huge hit on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles' charts with a song called "The Newcastle Song". That track detailed the adventures of a young man (Normie) cruising the streets of Newcastle with his mates in their hotted up FJ Holden (car) looking for sheilas (girls).
He spies a likely sort outside the Parthenon Milkbar and things are going well until the arrival of the girl's nine foot tall Hell's Angel's bikie boyfriend and Normie has to beat a hasty retreat.
There's an old saying that when you're on a good thing you stick to it and Hudson quickly wrote a sequel to the track ("Rak Off Normie") which detailed the same story but, this time, from the young lady's perspective.
It was recorded and released by Maureen Elkner, a sought after pop vocalist at the time, who sang the song "in character".
It would peak at number six on the same Australian charts that year.
5. Poor ____ (You're Better Off Dead)
Answer: Ned
In 1978 Redgum were still only a part-time band, made up of university students from Flinders' University in Adelaide, South Australia, when they released their debut album "If You Don't Fight, You Lose". Though still lacking polish they had established a strong following singing protest songs that were laced with sarcasm. "Poor Ned...", which appears on this disc, is more of a "bush" ballad and it was written for the band by Trevor Lucas, formerly a member of UK folk band Fairport Convention. The track looks at the story of one of Australia's most notorious bushrangers, Ned Kelly.
6. ____ Solo
Answer: Napoleon
This track appears on the 1998 album for At The Drive-In "In/Casino/Out". It represents the band's second studio release. This was a tumultuous period for the band as they struggled to find a new label after the demise of Flipside, however, they were able to turn a dire situation into a positive and produced an album full of energy complete with forceful, yet heartfelt vocals.
As one critic would write "you could feel the passion exploding". "Napoleon Solo" is dedicated to two of the band's closest mates who were killed in a motor vehicle accident.
The title, which has nothing to do with the subject matter of the song, was taken from the name of Robert Vaughan's character in the 1960's television series "The Man From U.N.C.L.E."
7. Ronnie and ____
Answer: Neil
In 2001 the Drive By Truckers released a concept double album called "Southern Rock Opera". It explored the makeup and machinations of US Southern rock through the eyes of an unnamed teenager growing up in this music mad environment. He forms a rock band, tours the world and, eerily, he and his band are killed in a plane crash in much the same way as members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, the band that was the inspiration for this album.
The track "Ronnie and Neil" traces the friendship between Skynyrd's Ronnie Van Zant and Neil Young.
It also endeavours to lay to rest the "mythical" feud that supposedly existed between the pair after Ronnie's quip about Neil Young's "Southern Man" in the single "Sweet Home Alabama".
8. The Love of Richard ____
Answer: Nixon
The Manic Street Preachers recorded this track for their 2004 album "Lifeblood". It uses the premise that former US President Richard Nixon is more readily associated with the negative aspects of Watergate rather than the positives of being the first US President to visit China and opening up prosperous trade negotiations.
They then parallel their work with the life of their guitarist and chief lyricist Rickey Edwards, his use of a razor blade to carve the words "4REAL" into his forearm and his subsequent disappearance. No matter how strong the body of songs that the Preachers have been able to produce since the troubles of Edwards (he is still missing, now presumed dead) they have not managed to come out of that shadow.
9. (Free) ____ Mandela
Answer: Nelson
After Terry Hall, Neville Staples and Lynvel Golding had parted ways with The Specials to set up Fun Boy Three, keyboardist Jerry Dummers became part of the re-born Specials, The Specials A.K.A. Their first album under this name, "In The Studio" (1984), features Dummers' "(Free) Nelson Mandela".
The song calls for the release of the African National Congress (ANC) leader and it would move on to be a major anti-apartheid anthem. The song was not allowed air time in South Africa, however, it did not stop it from reaching the ears of the black community and instilling them with a sense of optimism.
The track would soon capture the attention of the wider music community and the call to free Mandela gathered traction and momentum across the globe.
10. ____ of Time
Answer: Nick
During the 1980s Bonnie Raitt's career was going nowhere. A once promising artist had been seduced by substance and the lethargy she developed from this was reflected in her record sales. As the decade started coming to a close so, it seemed, was her career.
Her label saw her as "washed up" and they cut her from their stable. This proved to be a turning point for Bonnie. Suddenly she had to rely on touring to support herself. She went on the road, downsized, found sobriety and went back to her roots.
Then came her tenth studio album, "Nick of Time". The title track not only opened the album for her but it seemed to condense all the angst, history and feelings of the previous years into three minutes and fifty seconds of rejuvenation. It also set the tone for the rest of the album.
The three singles that she released from this disc did not garner a great deal of airplay though her interpretation of John Hiatt's classic song "Thing Called Love" would provide her with her best selling song in a number of years and set the foundation for an enduring album. How enduring? A sleeper hit it finally reached the number one spot on Billboards' 200 Album charts a little over twelve months after its release and it would go on to win three Grammys, including the coveted "Album of the Year".
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor 1nn1 before going online.
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