ALBUM OF THE WEEK #152 THE CARS - CANDY-O (1979)

[RJhog (Admin)]

Artist: The Cars

Genre: Rock

Country Of Origin: United States

Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Member: No

Album: Candy-O

Released: June 13, 1979

Producer: Roy Thomas Baker

Best Single: Let's Go

Best Album Cut: Got A Lot On My Head

Filler:  Shoo Be Doo

Lyric Of The Week: "Can I touch you, are you out of touch" (Dangerous Type)

I'm dipping back into 1979 for the second straight week and serving up Candy-O by The Cars as this week's Album Of The Week.  I would never claim to have been a big fan of The Cars, although I have always liked their hits.  I posted the debut a little over a year ago.  I remember liking that album, and I have to say I like this one as well. Here are a few odds and ends from Wikipedia and from myself concerning the album:

• Candy-O is The Cars sophomore album and it reached number 3 on the US charts (Wikipedia).
• The album is certified 4 x Platinum (Wikipedia).
• The cover art was painted by Alberto Vargas.  He was retired and in his 80's, but was talked into it by his niece, who was a fan of The Cars (Wikipedia).
• The model's name was Candy Moore.  She dated David Robinson (the drummer) briefly afterwards.  It was his idea to hire Vargas to begin with (Wikipedia).
• All of the songs for this album were written by Ric Ocasek (Wikipedia).
• For some reason, I have a hard time knowing when Benjamin Orr is singing and when Ric Ocasek is singing.  
• There is very little filler on this album.  The only song that I'd assign that judgement to is track number five.  I think the second half is a hair stronger than the first half of the album.
• One other thing that strikes me is the fantastic guitar work.  It's often understated but extremely effective.  It's also much heavier in places than I ever realized, like in the track Nightspots and the track I've Got A Lot On My Head.   Dangerous Type also features a short but killer guitar solo. 

1. Let's Go

2. Since I Held You

3. It's All I Can Do

4. Double Life

5. Shoo Be Doo

6. Candy-O

7. Nightspots

8. You Can't Hold On Too Long

9. Lust For Kicks

10. Got A Lot On My Head

11. Dangerous Type

[Scott]

Some other little known facts...

• My favorite Cars album!
• Made my top ten album covers (actually was at the top of the list http://classic-rock-bottom.ning.com/forum/topics/top-10-album-cover...)
• Double Life was featured on one of the earliest SHT lists

[Scott]

I remember how big The Cars were when their debut came out.  They were so New Wave and so cutting edge.  It was definitely very cool to be a Cars fan at this time.  I distinctly recall a very cute girl who really liked them as well, so I had to be very well versed in all things Cars at the time.

 

By the time Candy-O was released she had moved on and so had I (so many fish in the sea back then!), but the Cars were now fully embedded into my musical life.  Lets Go hit airwaves hard, it was another hit!  I remember seeing the band play it on The Midnight Special.  And then All I Can Do came out and it hit the charts but faded quickly into the background.  The albums strength wasn't it hits though, it was the ground breaking new wave and grunge feel it had at the time.

 

Candy-O, the song, has to be considered a front runner in the Grunge movement (along with God of Thunder), but at the time it was a hard edged rocker.  Side One contains a lot of poppy New Wave grooves.  Double Life being my personal favorite.  Side 2 is deep dive into a Rock/New Wave fusion that worked on so many levels.  Lots of cool riffs, and bass lines!

 

Truly a classic!

[Jon]

My second favorite Cars album. I rate them thusly:

1. The Cars

2. Candy-O

3. Shake It Up

4. Door To Door

5. Move Like This

6. Panorama

7. Heartbeat City

And ya know, "Shoo Be Doo" fits in perfectly for me, it leads in quite nicely to "Candy-O". The cover art bugs me since it's so perverted. Good thing they weren't perverted on any other covers or else I would have stopped buying their stuff.