I came home from work today to find a brown 9” x 9” cardboard box waiting for me in the mail. It came from Aurora, IL, and it contained the free bonus 7” Devo/Black Keys split I had been not-so-patiently waiting for!
The 7″ was only available to the first 200 fans who replied to an inscribed email address on the Tighten Up/Howling For You 12″ vinyl release they bought on Record Store Day 2010.
The artwork has a vintage vacation postcard vibe to it and even reads “Greetings from Akron Ohio, Home of Devo & The Black Keys” across the front. It’s got a grainy/scratchy washed-out look to it (which adds to its charm), and a postcard snapshot of Akron, OH, on the rear cover.
There’s a typo on the back of the sleeve. It says “McMoore McLeest Publishing” but it should read “McMoore McLesst Publishing”, which the Black Keys named after the late Akron, OH artist Alfred McMoore. Alfred was a good friend of Patrick and Dan, and The Black Keys’ band name came from a term that Alfred coined.
Side-A has Devo’s “Human Rocket” on it, which sounds like, well, Devo – what did you expect? Although it’s not a cover song, it sounds a bit like Devo covering a Glenn Danzig tune to me. Check it out.
Side-B contains The Black Keys’ glorious gift to their home state – “Ohio”. And what a gift it is! With a sing-a-long chorus and a raging guitar solo that even Neil Young would dig, it’s sure to be a crowd pleaser. It’s got a fantastic head-bob inducing bassline and drums driving it, and sounds especially cool during the reverb-dripping outro. You can listen to Ohio here.
Lyrics:
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Well the road it overtook me to the point where I was blind
My body was weak but not as much as my mind, oh my mind
I just can’t get, can’t get my fill of those hills, oh but still
No matter where I am in this land I feel alone, when I’m not at home
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
So if you, if you see me hunkered down in your town
I’m just watchin’ the clock on the wall
‘Til I can go to the place I love most of all
Radiate- just wait to die
Break your back and never, never wonder why
Get me home before I, ‘fore I lose my mind
I need some space to let my, my tape rewind
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa-oh whoa-Ohio! Hiyo!
-Dan Auerbach
Related posts:
- The Black Keys’ Record Store Day Surprise 2010
- Alfred McMoore: The Inspiration For The Black Keys Band Name
- The Black Keys unlock fans’ generosity
- The Black Keys’ Record Store Day Surprise 2011
- The Black Keys’ New York Pop-Up Store
Want to discuss The Black Keys with other fans? Check out The Black Keys Fan Lounge Forum here
just got mine the other day as well! so good.
Glad to hear it! It’s a great time to be a Black Keys fan, no? Enjoy! =)
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jimmy Fleming. Jimmy Fleming said: I'm so incredibly jealous of the 200 fans that got this bonus 7" split with The Black Keys and Devo. Just look…. http://bit.ly/d23xib [...]
Just giving it a listen now… love the contrast between the Devo track on side A and the Keys on side B.
The Devo track is enjoyable as well…
[...] items stuck out at me: first, there was a handful of copies of the elusive, limited edition of 200, Devo/Black Keys Akron split 7” that was offered as a bonus via their announced Record Store Day 2010 12” single; secondly, the [...]