12 Jams from Adam Schlesinger (R.I.P.)

Adam Schlesinger had a somewhat similar fate as Alex Chilton, another power pop icon whose most popular songs were far from their best. We're pretty sure "That Thing You Do" and "Stacy's Mom" are the two big ones that casual fans played most frequently over the past two weeks.

"That Thing You Do" always tasted too sugary. We're not surprised that so many people were attracted to its catchiness, but we also largely disagree with the multitude of claims mishearing its reasonable emulation as authentic. True sixties garage, even in its sugariest moments, was rough, dark, and generally sad. As an approximation, "That Thing You Do" is about 50% true to form, whether its largely remembered that way or otherwise, but that wasn't the point. By January '97, "Radiation Vibe" was merely a Buzz Clip, and he had already earned the title "Academy Award Nominee Adam Schlesinger."

Way too much had changed by May 2003. The hits of the '90s had zipped through so many different subgenres so quickly that none of its hitmakers had a chance to ride any momentum. By 2003, the biggest new rock bands were Evanescence and Good Charlotte.

We weren't alone in our alienation. We weren't the only ones who desired to hear Pinkerton era bands returning to commercial radio. But capitalism is cruel. By the time The Toadies finally released the follow up to Rubberneck in 2001, their momentum had plummeted. Nada Surf had signed to Barsuk. Both of these bands had planned 1998 albums that their labels refused to release. Bands like Eels' and Superdrag's major label contracts had run dry, signing with Vagrant Records and joining their emo-heavy touring packages. The Rentals were on a prolonged hiatus. It wasn't tough to quickly assume that no one would care about Welcome Interstate Managers.

The weirdest thing about "Stacy's Mom" was how unexpectedly it ignited FOW's comeback. We heard it a few weeks before was released and immediately winced at its ultra-sugar and corny lyrics. As current MD of our radio station, we opted to add "Mexican Wine" as our lead single choice.

They easily could have cashed in by donating "Stacy's Mom" to some Warped Tour band, but instead they went for it, flooding the video with subtle references to The Cars and a starring role from Rachel Hunter - last seen on MTV about ten years prior alongside Rod Stewart at one of their awards shows. The whole thing just didn't seem feasible. We were wrong. We were ALL wrong. By the year's end, "Stacy's Mom" was MTV's 24th biggest video of 2003.

So we're considering any songs besides these two as Schlesinger's deep cuts. Too bad if you disagree. Start your own damn blog.

Ivy "I Hate December" and "Get Enough" (1994, 1995)
We don't really know Ivy, but these two songs are non-powerpop and cool.



Fountains Of Wayne "Radiation Vibe" and "Sink to the Bottom" (1996)
In January '97, we saw FOW open for Smashing Pumpkins in a giant 11,000+ room occupied by less than 2000. We wish we knew more than these two songs at the time, but they did play both.



Fountains Of Wayne "I Want An Alien For Christmas" (1997)
We're not sure if this one is Schlesinger (FOW had two songwriters), but it's one of the only non-rap holiday songs that still sounds good every December.


Fountains Of Wayne "Denise" (1999)
It's hard for us to divorce this from CMJ New Music Monthly Volume 69. This was not a popular comp, but the first four songs were "Army," The Rentals' "Getting By," "Denise" and "Steal My Sunshine." And it was the same month that "Scar Tissue" and "All Star" and "What's My Age Again" premiered, so Side A of our Summer '99 mixtape filled up very quickly. We also possibly saw FOW again at 104Fest in May '99. We recall getting to the show around 1PM mid-way through their set, but we're pretty sure we heard them play "Denise."


Kay Hanley "Pretend To Be Nice" (2001)
We incorrectly assumed Schlesinger wrote the entire JATP soundtrack on his own, but it was really just this one song. And it's the best one, so this checks out.


Superdrag "I Guess It's American" (2001)
From Superdrag's split with The Anniversary. This one song has a Schlesinger co-writing credit.


Fountains Of Wayne "Mexican Wine" and "Bright Future In Sales" (2003)
A huge 1-2 punch, kicking off Welcome Interstate Managers. They easily could have been switched too. It was a win-win.



The Click Five "Just The Girl" (2005)
Our guiltiest guilty pleasure hit of the 2000s. The extremely dumb "slick and sleek" mid-00s pop-rock subgenre had no right sounding as good as it did. This would also include American Hifi's "Flavor of the Weak" and All American Rejects' "Swing Swing." Our hypothetical "best of" playlist would be topped by "Just The Girl." It's the greatest hit from this era.


Tinted Windows "Kind of a Girl" (2009)
With a starting lineup of Schlesinger, Bun E Carlos, James Iha, and Taylor Hanson, Tinted Windows was the best supergroup from 2009, a year that also included premieres from Chickenfoot, Them Crooked Vultures, and The Dead Weather among others. Tinted Windows did not get huge, but their aesthetic was dope as fuck, and we love them for giving it a shot.