I was 7 years old in 1970, and the musical memory from 1970 here for me is being the right age for The Partridge Family, but not being interested in David Cassidy. I wanted to be as good a musician as Susan Dey. I can’t play, but writing about it is just as good.

So 1970 as a whole is somewhat retroactive for me, but what a lot of good music there was that year! Very rich, very diverse, and, as shown here on We All Shine On, brought into the present in very good ways. If you're at all interested in the 70s, this comp is a must have.

John Borack, the producer, who also played on the comp, was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: How did the comp get put together?

John Borack: I’ve produced three other tribute compilations—2001’s Shoe Fetish: A Tribute to Shoes, 2002’s Right to Chews: Bubblegum Classics Revisited, and 2015’s Beyond Belief: A Tribute to Elvis Costello—and right around the time of the beginning of the pandemic in 2020 I felt it was the right time to take a stab at putting together another one. I had previously worked with SpyderPop Records on the Costello compilation and they are a great label with a wonderful bunch of folks working behind the scenes. I approached them with my idea for a tribute focusing on the year 1970 and they gave me the go-ahead. From there it was deciding what artists to invite to contribute and what songs they would cover. I didn’t want the artist roster to consist solely of the same indie pop artists who generally appear on these type of tributes, so I made sure to invite a few personal favorites who were also sort of wild cards: artists such as Richard Barone, Marc Jonson, Darian Sahanaja, and Starbelly, for example.

AW: Why 1970? What was special about that year?

JB: Well, the original plan was to have the collection released in 2020 and have it celebrate the 50-year anniversary of some amazing tunes, but COVID-19 shot that idea to hell. Beyond that, I felt that 1970 was sort of a watershed year in popular music. As I mention in the liner notes, 1970 had a ton of memorable tunes that encompassed hard rock, bubblegum, soul, proto-punk, AM radio pop, and lots of those glorious one-offs. So many great songs.

AW: Did anyone have a preference for what they wanted to cover, a song they knew would be perfect for them?

JB: Several artists knew right away what songs they wanted to do: for example, Chris Price had worked with Emitt Rhodes on Rhodes’ final recordings, so it made sense for him to do one of Emitt’s songs. The Used Electrics cover the Stooges’ “Loose” during their live performances, so that was an easy choice for them, and Richard Barone chose Donovan’s “Riki Tiki Tavi” straight away and even recruited Donovan’s original percussionist, Candy John Carr, to appear on the recording. There were a few artists I suggested songs to: I felt Joe South’s “Walk a Mile in My Shoes” was right up Lannie Flowers’ alley, and I think he did a marvelous job on it. Similarly, I thought “Indiana Wants Me” would be a good fit for Bobby Sutliff.

AW: I like the mix of FM and AM radio hits. What drew everyone to these particular

hits?

JB: Well, I wanted the disc to be a representative look at the year in music and not just focus on one single genre. To accomplish that, we drew on a variety of sources which included both AM and FM radio favorites, as well as songs by some acts who didn’t receive a hell of a lot of airplay at the time, such as the Stooges. As far as what drew folks to particular songs, it varies. Some had great memories of certain songs from their childhood; Darian Sahanaja mentioned to me that he used to listen to the 45 of Mark Lindsay’s “Arizona” constantly when he was young, so he picked that one to cover. I’ve always loved the Guess Who’s “Share the Land” and I felt its message was relatable to some of the things going on in our world today, so I selected that one for my band Popdudes to cover.

AW: In 1970 the Vietnam war was raging, the civil rights movement, gay rights movement, feminism, and other new rights movements got going. Does this song selection represent that, and do these songs embody that revolutionary spirit?

JB: I think more than anything else, the song selection on We All Shine On represents the varied tapestry of music that helped make up the year 1970. It was a time when you could hear soul, rock, bubblegum, novelty and singer/songwriter stuff back-to-back-to- back on the radio, and it was a perfectly normal occurrence. Now that mainstream radio has become so segmented, you never hear that sort of thing happening anymore. There are definitely some songs on the tribute that (lyrically) speak to the time period in which they were recorded: the aforementioned “Share the Land” and “Arizona” are certainly two, along with “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain),” “Mama Told Me Not to Come,” and a handful of others.

AW: One of the tie-ins to today is that Richard Nixon was president, who was much like Trump. Could these songs that were against Nixon be used today in the same way against the GOP?

JB: I think one of the great things about music is that any song can mean anything to anyone. I mean, you can listen to “Riki Tiki Tavi” and at first it sounds like nothing more than a cute little tune for kids, but then you pay closer attention to the lyrics and there’s a whole ‘nother thing going on under the surface.

AW:These songs also could speak to the lack of peace and love today, which is what these musicians were calling for in 1970. Are the artists on this album doing the same?

JB: I certainly can’t speak for all the artists involved but knowing what I do know of the contributors to the comp, I think it’s safe to say that everyone would agree that peace and love is always welcomed and necessary. Even though the songs don’t all come out and say it in a direct manner, I think the overriding theme on We All Shine On is one of positivity and happiness. I think it’s really a “feel good” collection of songs.

AW: The policies of 1970 were shaped in part by the Kent State tragedy, and so was the political content of some of these songs. Do you think they speak to today just as much as back then?

JB: I think a number of these songs will resonate with people on a personal level, be it via nostalgia, a fond memory, or otherwise. To put more of a fine point on your question, though: sometimes the more things change, the more they remain the same.