Friday, July 8, 2011

Serious Contenders: Question Mark & The Mysterians, "96 Tears"



By 1966, the fiery opening riff of Chuck Berry songs had been replaced by the tinkering opening organ of this song. It was less about pulse-pounding in-the-moment rocking as it was about setting up a riff and then fighting against it. This establishment of boundaries in order to transcend them was the basis for the psychedelic movement. Soon Pink Floyd and Jefferson Airplane would come, eventually to be followed by Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and the Ramones. This song is one of many great mid-60's tracks that exemplifies this transitional moment when rock really started branching out. It doesn't embody the later forms of rock, but it does seem to carry the seeds.

In any case, it's a great listen. This one is actually one of the first songs I remember liking. My 6-year-old self would get really pumped when it would come on the Oldies station my parents listened to in the car. Maybe because that sinister, seemingly-palindromic organ riff is so distinct, both welcoming and bitter. It fits so well with that straight-forward "fuck you"-ness of "You're gonna cry! Cry, cry, cry!" Johnny Cash had used that lyric about a decade earlier, but here it sounds so much punkier, so much more careless. This is a great song, I think, because it shows the correct reaction to heartbreak isn't always "I'm sad now," but sometimes, "Fuck off!"

Also, it's a very specific number.

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