Rockstar Playlist: Black Lips
The crazed garage punks offer up their classic party playlist, courtesy of guitarist Ian St. Pé.
The crazed garage punks offer up their classic party playlist, courtesy of guitarist Ian St. Pé.
Photo: Zach Wolfe / Elastic Artists
Playlist: Old-School Classics
1. Canned Heat, “On the Road Again”
I basically like real, organic rock’n’roll like this. I tend to prefer older music, because it’s like the wheel: If it’s not broke, there’s no need to fix it.
2. Dave Dudley, “Two Six Packs Away”
This is like truck-driving music from the ’60s. Truck drivers and musicians have a lot in common—they’re always on the road, they’re only in town for a little bit of time, and they like their good times.
3. Chambers Brothers, “Time Has Come Today”
This is a soul band from the ’60s with a bit of rock. I don’t know if any of them were actually brothers, but they definitely knew how to rock out.
4. Third Bardo, “Five Years Ahead of My Time”
People think punk rock broke in 1977, but I truly feel it started in ’66 or ’67 with bands like this. It’s like more punk than punk.
5. Love, “Can’t Explain”
If there’s one rock dude from the ’60s who should have been more famous than he was, I’d say it’s Arthur Lee, the lead singer of Love. I think Jimi Hendrix stole his look from him.
6. The Gentrys, “Keep on Dancing”
This is just a little ’60s band from Memphis, kind of a one-hit wonder.
7. Kenny Rogers, “The Gambler”
You know, just because a song’s popular doesn’t mean it’s not good. Hell, a lot of times things are popular for a reason, and “The Gambler“ is an example of that.
8. Bob Dylan, “Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again”
You know, when you’re partying like crazy 24 hours a day, sometimes it’s nice to zone out and go on a little journey, and Dylan songs do that.
9. Ritchie Valens, “Come On Let’s Go”
10. Eddie Cochran, “Nervous Breakdown”
11. Bobby Fuller, Four “Saturday Night”
These three are all classic ’50s rock singers, and they all died young. This is my favorite type of music. If I could sum up the music I like to play, it’s ’50s music on drugs.
13. Freddie Cannon, “Palisades Park”
This is a fun dude from the ’60s, the kind of music where you can knock a couple back and have a good time.
14. Diamond Rugs, “Blue Mountains”
This is my new band—just six guys getting together to make good-time music. It’s definitely great beer-drinking or barbecue music.
15. Black Lips, “Fairy Stories”
This song sums up what I said about when something’s not broken, you don’t need to fix it. Rock’n’roll was done right the first time around, in the ’50s and ’60s. And this song is like that; just add drugs and partying to the mix.
DRINK WHILE LISTENING: Ian’s take on the Greyhound: The St. Pécation Deux
Check out more Rockstar Playlists: Paramore, Ke$ha, and Vampire Weekend.
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