As Modern Lovers were on the cusp of breaking through in the early 1970s, famously straight band leader Jonathan Richman decided to take the group in another direction. He wanted to play gigs at nursing homes and never play at a volume loud enough to hurt a baby’s ears. The group disbanded, but not before recording a set of demos that form the nucleus of their only studio record released years later in 1976.
Perhaps the best explanation for this change of heart can be found in the live version of “Monologue About Bermuda” on a later album, in which Jonathan recalls a trip to the Caribbean and hearing an acoustic island band of old guys playing fun and funny songs that rocked. It made him rethink his commitment to the Velvet Underground-inspired proto-punk sound of the Modern Lovers band. Jonathan has been going strong ever since, still rocking but with a more playful spirit, and no babies have gone deaf listening to his music.
All that said, the loud, minimalist, droning Modern Lovers album is an all-time classic of its era and genre. Thematically, it’s a celebration of innocence that doesn’t get spoiled. If anything, it’s about an innocence that turns snotty. The songs often focus on a girl who has denied Jonathan’s unwanted advances, which he whines about before turning self-righteous. They’re the kind of knock-off teenage lyrics that likely make an adult Jonathan cringe.
Yet, the more out of touch Jonathan gets, the more punk in spirit. The band is amazingly tight and Jonathan’s vocal performances come off as off key and half spoken in his New England accent though heartfelt and genuine just the same. “Roadrunner” serves as a counterpoint to Springsteen’s “Born to Run.” While the characters in the Boss’ song are driving around to escape their lives, the narrator of “Roadrunner” has nowhere he wants to go. He drives for the sake of the drive late at night along the highways of Massachusetts to a rock ‘n’ roll soundtrack with the radio on. The message: Find a way to love your life in all its moments. Not exactly punk. One hundred percent Jonathan.
Coda: A genuinely terrific article about Jonathan Richman’s transformation appeared in the June 1986 edition of Spin magazine. The article inspired this guy to become a forever Modern Lovers fan.
