Whole Wide World

December 15, 2015 1:07 pm

There is a lot to love about Stiff Records and Wreckless Eric is a significant part of it.

Featuring a highly eccentric roster of punk and new wave artists during the late ’70s, Stiff Records unleashed some fantastic wax during a fantastic period of rock and roll history. Poptician and headmaster Nick Lowe was responsible for much of the label’s output and shows up big time in this week’s pick.

Originally released April, 1977 on the compilation album, “A Bunch of Stiff Records,” “Whole Wide World” was ultimately released as a single. The song was produced by Nick Lowe, and featured him on most of the instruments. More than two decades after its release, the song was included in Mojo magazine’s list of the best punk rock singles of all time and has been acclaimed as one of the top 40 singles of the alternative era 1975–2000. A great new version can be found on Bill Lloyd’s upcoming SpyderPop release “Lloyd-ering”

After starting with a simple guitar chug and a stark, plaintive vocal, tension increases as your music antennae anticipates the crashing of the first chorus. And then you’re hooked – maybe for the whole day. The definition of earworm is “a catchy piece of music that continually repeats through a person’s mind after it is no longer playing.” If you seek an example, try this on for size:

I’d go the whole wide world 
I’d go the whole wide world just to find her 
I’d go the whole wide world 
I’d go the whole wide world 
To find out where they hide her  

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