Flashback Friday: Social Distortion

Every Friday on my drive to work I listen to an album from my past; Flashback Friday. The selection criteria are as follows:

1. The album must have been on steady repeat at some point in my life

2. The album must be over 10 years old

3. No skipping tracks

There are only a few universal truths in this world, and the one truth I’m most confident in is adolescent males love songs with fast guitars, loud drums and lyrics extolling the virtues of girls and booze. No one encompasses those characteristics better than a couple of punk rockers out of Orange County.

Artist: Social Distortion

Album: Social Distortion

Sometimes a person needs a little rock ‘n’ roll in their life, and this Friday morning was one of those times. A gray overcast morning needed to be kick started by something loud and fast. Social Distortion was just what the doctor ordered.

Right from the start the guitars blast away any remaining sleep or grogginess this morning’s shower missed. Next the drums kick in, setting the pace for today’s commute. The two combine to create a punk, rockabilly, rock ‘n’ roll sound that is unique to Social Distortion. This sound carries on throughout the entirety of the first song, rumbling like a big old freight train barreling down rickety tracks. In my head I imagine all the rock ‘n’ roll air guitar moves I could be doing right now, to bad I’m driving.

As I push on through the album the freight train keeps rolling along. When I get to “Story of My Life” the lyrics make me pause. It’s strange how as a teenager I could connect with this song, but the experiences described throughout the song resonate more with the struggles of adulthood. More likely than not I missed the point of the lyrics entirely and was busy thinking about rock ‘n’ roll weekends or outlaw love songs. This feeling is not exclusive to “Story of My Life’, it is pervasive throughout the whole album, and just like before with “Story of MY Life” I’m sure younger me missed the point entirely and just wanted to go loud and fast.

There would be no Social Distortion without lead singer Mike Ness. His soul is the one bared out across all of the songs that make up this album. I’m sure other members of the band contributed as well, but Social Distortion is the singular vision of Mike Ness. It’s not on this album, but hearing all of these songs remind me of some of Ness’ stage banter from the live albums, and how he mused over being five foot four but still able to kick the shit of people. That memory is good for a chuckle this morning.

Something I never really thought about until this morning was how Social Distortion was responsible for introducing me, and many others, to Johnny Cash. I don’t know how many years it took me to discover that “Ring of Fire” was a cover and a cover of a country song no less, but it blew my mind. Prior to Discovering “Ring of Fire” country music was just a bunch of songs for sad sack hillbillies about horses or something. Knowing how cool a country song could sound and how a guy like Johnny Cash could influence these punk rock kids changed everything. I wouldn’t truly discover real country music for a few more years, but there is no doubt Social Distortion paved the way.

With the screeching guitars beginning to play their last cords, I realize there is nothing like Social Distortion on the radio today. This particular brand of punk rock has stopped being served. Sure there are still loud guitars and songs about boozing, but today’s songs somehow seem more clean and homogenized. That makes me a little sad, but my next thought brings a sly smile to my face. I think how today’s Mike Ness is probably in their room right now, making crazy sounds on his or her computer, attempting to distill their soul into something only their peers will understand, and good for that person. The sound of Social Distortion may be outdated, but the spirit lives on.

My taste in music and Social Distortion’s style may have changed over the years, but their self-titled album fits like a broken in pair of jeans. Even when the album was released it felt like it came from another time and place. Somewhere rough tumble, somewhere where Johnny, Dally and Ponyboy could drink beers and raise hell with no consequences. It’s a place where thoughts and visions of the past collide head on with the dreams and hopes of the future, and in that place, they play their guitars really loud and really fast. That’s the place for me this morning.