Mixology: Slammin' Summer Tunes

Mixology is a recurring feature in which I take a look at one of the many mix tapes I made over the years. Some are better than others, but all of them are fun to revisit.

Slammin' Summer Tunes (7/15/92)

This was the first tape I made after trading in my old Hyundai Excel hatchback for a bigger sedan, the Hyundai Elantra. The car had way more pickup than my previous putt-putt of a vehicle. It was a pretty fun summer. I was the lead reporter at the Peabody Times, the Blue Jays were on their way to their first of two consecutive World Series, and I was enjoying life as a 24-year-old.

I saw an up-and-coming band called Pearl Jam play at Axis, a tiny club on Landsdowne Street in Boston, just before they joined the second Lollapalooza tour; a month later, I also saw Soundgarden play next door at Avalon before jumping on the same tour. I also saw said tour at Great Woods in Mansfield (now known as the Comcast Center, I think). Other shows I caught included Matthew Sweet touring behind the classic Girlfriend album opening for Robyn Hitchcock at Avalon; the Black Crowes at the Orpheum in August; and in November, my brother and I saw Mudhoney at the Paradise and Alice in Chains and the Screaming Trees at the old Channel club.

Red Sox tickets were a lot cheaper and easier to get back then; I saw the Jays play the Sox at Fenway six times that season for the mere price of $7 each for bleacher seats. Visited Toronto in late September and saw the Jays play the Sox and Brewers on their way to wrapping up the division title. On the way out of the city, I picked up a six-pack of Labatt's Blue, which I drank when the Jays clinched the division, beat the heavily favored Oakland A's in the ALCS and then knocked off the also heavily favored Atlanta Braves to win the World Series. I only had one bottle left by that point, but it tasted sweet. And even though it was after midnight into the morning of Sunday, Oct. 25, my buddy Eric (a Sox fan) came over with a bottle of champagne. Good egg.

With the exception of the first song (which I will admit to liking because it was catchy and sung by the dude from Red Rider, a band I dug as a kid in Toronto), this tape holds up pretty well nearly 18 years later. It starts off bluesy, gradually gets heavier and heavier, and then works its way back to the blues with Stevie Ray Vaughan's great "Life by the Drop." It was a great soundtrack for a fun summer and lead-in for a terrific fall. Little did I know that the following year would be a massive bag of crap. But at least I made the most of '92.

Side A
Life is a Highway - Tom Cochrane
Sting Me - The Black Crowes
Only Fool in Town - Gary Moore
Wham! - Stevie Ray Vaughan
She Runs Hot - Little Village
Spanish Moon - Arc Angels
One Shot - Tin Machine
The Big Wheel - Rush
Jerry Was a Race Car Driver - Primus
The Power of Equality - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Prisoner - King's X
Porch - Pearl Jam
Right Turn - Alice in Chains

Side B
Into the Void (Sealth) - Soundgarden
Lithium - Nirvana
Bring the Noise - Anthrax with Public Enemy
Grip - Rollins Band
New Jack Theme - Living Colour
Got Me Wrong - Alice in Chains
Black - Pearl Jam
Funky Monks - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Ghost of a Chance - Rush
Solar Sex Panel - Little Village
Black Moon Creeping - The Black Crowes
Life by the Drop - Stevie Ray Vaughan




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