walking upstream…
The Cars
Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr had already sung folk harmonies together in the group Milkwood when they assembled the Cars in Boston in 1976, adding guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes, and drummer David Robinson, fresh off a stint backing Jonathan Richman in the Modern Lovers. Their self-titled 1978 debut turned deadpan cool into a science: Ocasek's flat, ironic delivery and stiff, motorik rhythms wrapped around glossy synthesizer hooks and Easton's needling guitar leads, a blend so complete that critics dubbed them America's answer to Roxy Music. 'Just What I Needed' and 'My Best Friend's Girl' made them new wave's biggest early crossover act, and 'Heartbeat City' (1984) later turned them into an MTV fixture with 'You Might Think' and 'Drive.' They disbanded in 1988 and entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.
the sound in question
1978
Just What I NeededThe Cars
walk the tributaries ↓
The Velvet Underground1960s · Art rock / Proto-punk / Experimental rock
Ocasek called the Velvet Underground his other favorite band besides Bob Dylan, and saw them repeatedly during their extended residency at Cleveland's La Cave club as a teenager. That fandom shows up in the Cars' cool, half-sung vocal delivery and their taste for droning, hypnotic chord vamps dressed up as pop songs.
listen: upstream & here
1967
I'm Waiting for the ManThe Velvet Underground
1978
Bye Bye LoveThe Cars
listen forCompare the flat, deadpan vocal riding one insistent chord pattern on 'I'm Waiting for the Man' with Ben Orr's cool delivery over the Cars' churning 'Bye Bye Love' — both let a monotone vocal float above a rhythm that never lets up.
Roxy Music1970s · Art rock / Glam rock / Pop rock / Sophisti-pop
Critics routinely called the Cars America's answer to Roxy Music, and writers on Ocasek's arranging style trace his meticulous production instinct — giving every instrument its own dedicated space in the mix — to hours spent studying Bryan Ferry's band. The result is glossy synthesizer glamour draped over otherwise terse, hook-driven pop songs.
listen: upstream & heresource: Post-Punk Monk ↗
1972
Virginia PlainRoxy Music
1979
Let's GoThe Cars
listen forLine up Roxy Music's gleaming, synth-topped 'Virginia Plain' against the Cars' 'Let's Go' — both dress a compact pop song in shiny electronic sheen and an aloof, stylish vocal cool that never breaks a sweat.
Jonathan Richman1970s · Proto-punk / Rock and roll / Folk rock
Biographers of Ocasek describe him forming the Cars directly inspired by proto-punk outfits including the Modern Lovers, and the connection went beyond taste: drummer David Robinson had played in the Modern Lovers' lineup before joining the Cars in 1976. Richman's love of a plain, insistent two-chord vamp under a half-spoken, deadpan vocal carried straight into the Cars' minimalist verses.
listen: upstream & here
1972
RoadrunnerJonathan Richman
1978
Good Times RollThe Cars
listen forSet the Modern Lovers' chugging 'Roadrunner' next to the Cars' 'Good Times Roll' — both ride one hypnotic, unchanging rhythm guitar figure under a flat, conversational vocal that refuses to oversell the tune.