Namesakes #142: The Strokes

As actor, songwriter and game-show* host Alan Thicke once put it...

(*Not to mention being the father of that doofus Robin. He must be so proud.)

Now, the world don't move to the beat of just one drum
What might be right for you, may not be right for some
A man is born, he's a man of means
Then along come two, they got nothing but their jeans

But they got, Diff'rent Strokes
It takes, Diff'rent Strokes
It takes, Diff'rent Strokes to move the world

Yes, Alan was the man behind the theme tune to popular 80s sitcom Diff'rent Strokes. You know the one...

Whatcha talkin' 'bout, Willis?

And what Alan said was very true. But which of these diff'rent Strokes will rule your world? There's not many to choose from, but after last week's Odyssey epic, I figured I'd give you a break...

THE STROKES #1

I lament the fact that I can't find audio for our first Strokes and their 1979 single I Am A Plastic Carrier Bag... though I did find the lyrics, above. Sing them out loud and imagine what the tune went like. Or buy a copy of the 7" for £171 on discogs. One reviewer who has it heard tells us, "this seems like the cigarette ash of studio musicians rather than the fire and brimstone of underground visionaries."

The Strokes - I Am A Plastic Carrier Bag

STROKES #2

Tennessee's Vinny DeGeorge formed a band called Strokes in 1981. They started recording an album in New York, but only two songs were finished before their producer died. DeGeorge would go on to front a number of other bands, including Technical Difficulty, Jambox and Starfighter... he also wrote the music for a horror film called Night of the Living Dean (sic). And he's still gigging today, folks. 

Strokes - Nuclear Power Man

THE STROKES #3

The Strokes most people know, New York post-punk revivalists Julian Casablancas, Albert Hammond Jr., Nick Valensi, Nikolai Fraiture, and Fabrizio Moretti. They got together in 1998, and their first EP led to a frantic bidding war among record companies. I hope the boys made a penny or two out of that.

These Strokes are apparently still together, though they're more often seen indulging in solo projects these days.

The Strokes - Last Night

Only three to choose from, but which is your Strokes of luck?