The Best 50 Powerpop Albums according to RYM

(In fact, I get the idea that, for some people, not concentrating too much on rhythm is almost a powerpop requirement.)

Concentrating a lot on melody and harmony is definitely a powerpop requirement. If that, by your definition, means "not concentrating too much on rhythm", then you are perfectly right.

And btw. I am not able to distinguish much between powerpop and pop/rock. Unless AOR is also counted in the latter category.

A few extremely archetypical powerpop songs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3t66Nrqteo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAH1ioLiaHw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7tkDZ58DEw

That is, jangly guitars with not too much fuzz/overdrive, a very "classic" melody built upon verse-bridge-chorus with lots of hooks. A bouncy singalong chorus and a lot of vocal harmonies.

I like all of those, btw, and agree that they're all undeniably powerpop. (In fact, "Starry Eyes," which I love, was the first archetype that came to mind for me.) Just don't think they're the only kind of powerpop; for a somewhat tougher variety, maybe listen to Cheap Trick's "Surrender" or the Knack's "My Sharona" or the Sweet's "Blockbuster" or the Bay City Rollers' "Saturday Night" or Urge Overkill's "Sister Havana" or 38 Special's "Caught Up In You." (Haven't listened to the song clemenza recommended yet, though I will try to.)

I always include Urge Overkill's beautiful "Back on Me" (same album) on power-pop CDs I make for friends.

And that's probably the most pressing issue of all: is it powerpop or power-pop?

Rick Springfield's "Love is Alright Tonight" (hell most of Working Class Dog) is a perfect example of "power-pop."

So where do "Orgasm Addict" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" fit in?

I like all of those, btw, and agree that they're all undeniably powerpop. (In fact, "Starry Eyes," which I love, was the first archetype that came to mind for me.) Just don't think they're the only kind of powerpop; for a somewhat tougher variety, maybe listen to Cheap Trick's "Surrender" or the Knack's "My Sharona" or the Sweet's "Blockbuster" or the Bay City Rollers' "Saturday Night" or Urge Overkill's "Sister Havana" or 38 Special's "Caught Up In You." (Haven't listened to the song clemenza recommended yet, though I will try to.)

On the other hand, I would say Jellyfish and Crowded House, and possibly even ELO (lots of powerpop fans absolutely love ELO) represent a less tough variety that is also undeniably powerpop.

Rick Springfield's "Love is Alright Tonight" (hell most of Working Class Dog) is a perfect example of "power-pop."

All of his 80s albums are great powerpop albums. I guess he was wrongfully seen as some kind of teenybopper because of his 70s material.

Yeah, see, stuff like Jellyfish and Crowded House is where I start not hearing at all what's so powerpop about it. Seems to me more like....art-pop. Or soft rock. Or indie rock. Or something.

CH and Split Enz are definitely neither "power-pop" nor powerpop: too many spongy keyboards and sludgy tempos.

Yeah, see, stuff like Jellyfish and Crowded House is where I start not hearing at all what's so powerpop about it. Seems to me more like....art-pop. Or soft rock. Or indie rock. Or something.

it's called crap

Well, it's at least called adult contemporary (or adult alternative?), maybe. And I say that as somebody who has come to not-hate "Don't Dream It's Over" over the years, btw. But if that counts as powerpop, then why not, I dunno, Heart's or Chicago's or Air Supply's or Phil Collins's '80s ballad hits? (So yeah, I deifnitely need to hear some power in there, somewhere.)

"Orgasm Addict" is just punk to me; it doesn't fit in with my conception of power-pop at all. Ditto "Smells Like Teen Spirit," even though I realize it borrows its key chord progression from "More Than a Feeling," which definitely is power-pop at the edge of...I don't know, something--it's power-pop, but it's more high-tech than most of my favourites. (It's a great song, I'm not taking anything away from it.) I've coined a different word for "Smells Like Teen Spirit": I call it "grunge." Rick Springfield's stuff I don't know at all, but I will say that "Jessie's Girl" in Boogie Nights might be the most self-reflexively great use of a pop song in any film ever.

Crowded House--ugh.

Well, what makes "Orgasm Addict" (or at least, say, "What Do I Get?" or "Why Can't I Touch It?" or "Homicide" by 999 or the first Generation X album or whatever) not just punk and "Teen Spirit" (or Local H's "Bound To The Floor," or maybe Stone Temple Pilots' "Big Bang Baby") not just grunge is how sweet and bouncy their melodies are. I mean, I'd say early Green Day were just as much powerpop as punk, too. And even though I mostly hate it, emo probably has a lot of powerpop in it, too. Songs are allowed to be in two genres at one time.

I'd say lots of teen-pop (by Avril or whoever) overlaps with powerpop by now, too. And even some Tom Petty/Bryan Adams/Springfield-influenced Nashville country (from Brad Paisley, Jack Ingram, Keith Urban, etc.)

Actually, Skye Sweetnam's debut LP from a couple years ago was totally a powerpop album, as much as Exploding Hearts' (which I also like a lot) was. (So's some hair metal: early Poison, for instance.)

Green Day is powerpop to the bone

I love Crowded House but it doesn't belong in this category.

Most of that punk and grunge stuff, I just don't hear it as power-pop. (I guess I could stretch my definition to possibly include something like "Walking Contradiction.") It's more of an intuitive feeling with me, which admittedly does not provide for a very cogent definition. (It's like that old I-know-pornography-when-I-see-it evasion.) But to start admitting anything and everything just by virtue of it having guitars and a melody--and I'll agree that most everything you mention is melodic--widens the net way too much. Recent teen-pop and '80s hair-metal, maybe...somewhat. Most of what I know, I just think it's kind of generic. Country I draw a blank.

I remember talking about this on another thread years ago. The chord progressions in "More Than a Feeling" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" are actually different. The Boston one is all diatonic chords, but the Nirvana one has a bIII and a bVI. The bIII in particular is more of a blues chord.

So, it brings up the whole issue of the extent to which "power pop" is associated with diatonicism to the exclusion, really, of pentatonicism.

xp But you're not saying "generic" precludes it being "powerpop," are you? (I don't see how most teen-pop or most hair-metal {or most skinny-tie 1979 new wave, as you suggested upthread} are more generic than "most" of any other genre -- things are by definition generic to their own genre, after all, some some of every genre is generic -- but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt there.) Anyway, there's lots of generic powerpop that I have no use for, sure. But that doesn't mean it's not still powerpop. (Uh, maybe I missed your point. And I'm also hardly saying everything with guitars and a melody is powerpop, either. Depends on the melody. And the guitars! And probably other stuff.)

I know for a fact that the Rubinoos were dangerously preoccupied with that very issue.

The chord progressions in "More Than a Feeling" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" are actually different. T

yeah was gonna bring this up but so tired of pointing this out

You're right, Xhuxk, to be generic by definition locates you within that genre. (Duh.) I guess I meant that I focus on what I love when trying to define a genre, and that personally I don't pay much mind to what I don't.

And I say that as somebody who has come to not-hate "Don't Dream It's Over" over the years, btw. But if that counts as powerpop, then why not, I dunno, Heart's or Chicago's or Air Supply's or Phil Collins's '80s ballad hits?

Because Crowded House - like Paul McCartney before them - made highly sophisticated quality pop. Neil Finn usually uses more different chords in one song than David Foster has done in his entire career.

And it's not about anything having guitars and a melody. The melody has to be McCartneyesque, it has to have more than just the standard MOR corporate pop song.

xp For instance, the Allman Brothers and Led Zeppelin and Yes and U2 and Radiohead and Counting Crows and Alice In Chains and R.E.M. definitely had guitars and melodies; few would argue otherwise. And I'd never claim they were remotely powerpop, I don't think. (Since they didn't have -- what? Guitars and melodies that seem to be in the tradition of Badfinger and the Raspberries and Rubinoos and Knack and Pezband and Blue Ash and "Substitute"? Yeah, something like that.)

is John Waite powerpop? I'd say so.

X-Post: I would say in the tradition of Beatles, Beach Boys and Byrds. Those three are the essence of all things powerpop.

And I know some people like Marshall Crenshaw have been very fixated on Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly too, but I would say that is a sidetrack. Sort of the influences of powerpop's influences.

the Beach Boys don't have anything to do with power pop really (they never had any power lol)

why do you have to ruin every thread

Power doesn't have anything to do with power pop.

I'm sure this won't go over well, but, for me, John and George's best '65/'66 songs are much closer to my ideal of power-pop than Paul's.

Which is why I dislike the term. It should have been called Beatly-pop or something. "Powerpop" was just something Pete Townshend came up with to describe The Who. It fitted The Who, but never fitted what was to be named powerpop.

Alfred, I mentioned the Babys (who were definitely a powerpop band) upthread. I'd say Waite's solo career is more a mixed bag ("Missing You" maybe, "Change" definitely.) Bad English? Probably not. (Though not, uh, because they didn't make "highly sophisticated quality pop." Pretty sure they didn't, though.)

Oh, and poprock is actually a much better term. Except it isn't really rock either.

"Beatly-pop": let's all take a blood oath to never utter that word again.

Alfred, I mentioned the Babys (who were definitely a powerpop band) upthread. I'd say Waite's solo career is more a mixed bag ("Missing You" maybe, "Change" definitely.) Bad English? Probably not. (Though not, uh, because they didn't make "highly sophisticated quality pop." Pretty sure they didn't, though.)

What you are talking about is AOR. Which is an entirely different genre (more corporate, and also more rock oriented)

yes tell us all how corporations sound

Corporate=music that is constructed for the hitlists rather than coming from the heart of the songwriter. Usually written by professional songwriters and performed by acts unable to compose their own songs.

I'm guessing any one of us could dismantle that, but let's step aside and make way for Xhuxk!

that was not a serious request btw

xp

Oh for god's sake. Who cares?

Well, first of all, it's pointless discussing powerpop without making a distinction between powerpop and AOR. Because it may sound the same for people who are not into either. But it's two mutually exlusive genres containing absolutely none of the same acts (except for Cheap Trick who started out as powerpop and later became AOR)

how many times can I sb you

let's find out!