Added: 3 years ago
From: benny11letters
Views: 117,584
Sort by time | Sort by thread (beta)

Link to this comment:

Share to:
see all

All Comments (201)

Sign In or Sign Up now to post a comment!
  • Ben's vocal performance here is just so good that it's sick.

  • RIP Ben. Thank God we've got the videos to see you again and again. You were so great !

  • love the song but can you turn up the bass please? grown men wearing booties - gotta love '80s fashion!!

  • Sadalite...not a weird comment, but it shows how humble Ben was....I'm sure he knew what he wanted after he died.

  • not to sound creepy or weird but Ben Orr is buried less then an hour from my house, its a very peaceful cemetary here in Ohio. Very quaint and humble grave marker, all it has is a guitar engraved in the marble beside his name. He was always the perfect gentleman and he proved it many times. RIP Ben

  • What a voice!!! What a great looking guy....don't see too many of those anymore.

  • Elliot with a strat!

  • This version is better than the studio. And yes the outfit is awesome . I cant. Imagine wearing a jacket onstage. Ben was a bad ass!!l

  • I ❤ Ben's outfit

  • BEN Is Out of Control Here:) "RAW" Talent!!My Favorite lines: "Flip the Switch and Pull the Plug" @ 3:12 "You don't Easily Get Amused, DO YA" ...omg:) " @ 3:41 YEEAUH " **-**

  • 2:38 my favorite line :) I just love it, ♪Tell the world why you're so glad♫

  • OMG How HOT~~~~ is this ONE of their best!! BEN BEN Ben,,why did you have to go so young;( miss you; RIP angel

    what a BABE

  • One of the Cars coolest songs that very few people know about. It proves

    that they are a rock band at heart. Ben really nails this version!

  • @spiglator ABsolutely~~ IT"S Awesome!!!

  • I always liked the Cars for their sound, obviously, but also because they didn't look like your normal run of the mill intimidating rock band members. More like five guys from your science or biology class that decided to form a band. Some guys who were actually approachable and that you could have a conversation with. And I am betting that they are that type of down to earth people who haven't buried themselves in their stardom.

  • @65metal I couldn't have said it better myself

  • Benjamin Orr was the Sinatra of New Wave!

  • @lamfdtkkro Ric always said if it was a pretty song he knew it'd be better if Ben sang it.....guess his voice has gotten alot better over time, cause he does a FINE job, beautiful song

  • When I first got this album, I thought they had replaced David Robinson with drum machine!

  • Ya know, until I saw some of 'benny11letters' videos here, I always thought that Ocasic did all the singing and was just able to change his voice! What a dumbass I am.

  • @6superb9 Ah ah ah !!!Ben's voice is much softer and smoother than the voice of Ric !!! But it is true that on some songs , there may be confusion. Ben was the best.

  • 2;50 what an downswing

  • 1:20 I never thought I would say I wished I was a microphone, but, darned if I don't after seeing this video.

  • JUST AWESOME !!!!!!!! RIP BEN .

  • Cool, a Cars song I'm not really familiar with. It's a new song to burn out by listening to it too much.

    My 1st casseette tape was "The Cars" and I had every sound on that thing memorized before long. Little did I know that the music and my life (13years old at the time) wouldn't get much better!

    Oh it's worth carrying on and learning about the Youniverse, but damn, for the glory days of teendom.

    I've obviuosly forgot all of the awkward bs that went along with middle school.

  • Ric said "when we need a good singer I'll sing, when we need a great singer Ben will sing"

  • @drcabe Yeah, I remember Ric saying that. He's pretty humble considering he wrote most of the songs that they put out!

  • @lamfdtkkro

    Rics the first to admit that Ben was a better singer.

  • @Orrphan -was there ever a question? Ben was heavily influenced by Talking Heads style.

  • @MsJollycholly

    i've never heard that he was influenced by talking heads. That's funny because TH are one of the worst groups out there, in my opinion. never cared for them.

  • Ben looks like Luke Skywalker in this video performance. LOL Miss him. They had a lot of energy in this performance. Love the Cars.

  • Love the extra flourish Ben puts into the vocal at about 3:40. Definitely a great song.

  • Ben looks pastey to me, wish he could've lived  thru that one

  • Love Love Love the music !!! Orr had such a great vocal range and stage presence

    Wow

  • I've loved Benjamin for so long too......miss him.

  • My favorite Oooooooooo lucky microphone, blue boots, and DO YA? version!! Love that GRRRRRRRR, right back at ya Benjamin! XOXO

  • Did they only have Greg sing the lyric, "cruiser," because he has the highest-pitch voice in the group? Haha. Anyway, I love this song — it's so goddamn mesmerizing.

  • Ben had the most amazing voice ever. No offense to anyone, but how could you possibly confuse Ben's voice with Ric? I don't get that. TOTALLY different sound.

  • They sound alot like DEVO in this live song. Ben espcially sounds like Mark Mothersbaugh!

  • Hope they do this song on the Spring tour. I wonder how it will sound with Ric singing all these songs - I think he'll do a great job. Half the time I don't know who is singing on a Cars tune anyway.

  • Ben was simply amazing....loved that man for so long...RIP Ben

  • Those are the coolest pants ever. One Million People Like This.

  • Rick may have always been the face of the cars, but Ben was the true voice of the band. RIP Ben..........

  • I love the music to this but ive never really gotten the meaning of the lyrics. Can anyone help me?

  • @ricocasekfan to me cars lyrics tend to evoke mental visuals ie "chrome red eyeballs reflect and roll" or "flip the switches pull the plug"..many of their songs evoke visuals and not only emotions

  • Benjamin in my heart always

  • @ladybluluv Me too !!!!

  • Benjamin sure was running on all cylinders that night...no pun intended. His everything is smashing!

  • Ben is the best. Forever in my heart. RIP Benjamin.

  • NASSAU COLLISEUM SHOW

  • I remember this song when it came out in 1981. Im 36. It did get some ample of amount of airlplay through 81 and 82 on the old WNEW Fm NY when they played real rock. This song sits well in the middle of the Shake it Up album from 1981

  • They rereleased the solo albums by Ben and Elliot Easton. I hope they release those videos again too on DVD. Welcome back CARS !

  • Ben's base is equally good. Love the original Cars. Love the early stuff especially.

  • Benny.....ORRsome!!!

  • The late, ever great Ben Orr!

  • Nunca me di cuenta de lo bueno que fue la Banda.

    Este tema me tiene loco, es super. No dejo se escucharlo una vez al dia

  • @CATHEZABA

    Esta banda siempre fue gran banda aca en USA...en sur america no es muy conocido...al menos en Argentina...una lastima..lo que se pierden...

  • Nunca me di cuenta de lo bueno que fue la Banda.

    Este tema me tiene loco, es super

  • I love how all their songs are about cars and chicks they are such a tight concept sound, theme, and band.

  • Comment removed

  • does anyone remember when they went to Medford, Oregon?

  • Boston Garden 1982 (think it was the Mar 16th show), Ben sang "Tell the world why you're so glad...to be in Boston tonight" I will NEVER forget that concert.

  • Extraordinary musicians!!!

    ¡Músicos extraordinarios!!!

  • 0 dislikes pretty much sums it up.Great song by one of the all time great bands.

  • The intro to this song is so unique and catchy, great hook the whole way through...and as for Ben, well well....there are no words!!

  • a singular sound that will always haunt

  • one of the most rocking songs ever

  • The Shake it Up album doesn't get enough praise in general. It really is fantastic.

  • "You need a hit, you need a slug......" Sounds good to me!!

  • Ben Orr was incredible. He and Ocasek complimented each other which made the Cars so unique. Each had their own style and both were fantastic. As Benny said, check out the video for Enerything You Say and you will see how incredible Orr's voice was. The acoustics and his vocals are insanely good in that video...

  • Elliot always looks like he's the sh!t...but it's Ben and Ric after all...Ric landed Paulina!! wow!

  • awesome band - caught in between - still made it through with some hits on the REAL MTV...many missed out on the real songs by these guys

  • Ohh the keyboard is a little to high in the mix. The hook of this songs is the Guitar Riff. But still sounds amazing though.

  • Everyone always says that their favorite Cars songs happen to be the ones Benjamin sang. He could sing the phone book and it would be great!

  • All this time i thought Ocasek sang lead on this tune. I love this song. it received a lot of airplay in the early 80's on KROQ here in L.A.

  • This song should have been on the two classics THE CARS & CANDY-O Its that great!

  • interesting setup. everyone is to the left of robinson

  • first time I heard this song right now. must say it's a notch above anything they did after candy o

  • ben orr sang lead on some of the cars best songs, and their only number one hit Drive, i started listening to the cars in 1979, they are my favorite band of all time, but once i got into the middle 80s i started listening and turning into a major def leppard fan, but ben sang most of their best and memorable songs, bye bye love, all mixed up, drive, plus ben and ric both sang on the same songs alot, one of them was dont tell me no, of panorama album,

  • I am the biggest cars fan! It sucks that I was born in the late ninetys! Iblove everything about the 80s! I have all of the cars albums (except for candy-o but I have that on a cd) and I listen to them on my dads turntable all the time. It just makes me so mad that I never knew about Ben when I was little but I would have been a toddler anyways. I miss you so much Ben. RIP :(

  • BEN RULES. RIP.

  • still have this tour poster!!

  • One of the baddest motherfucking rock songs ever written ! I always thought Ocasek sang lead on this, but Benjamin Orr sings like this like a true front man.

  • @serekithegreat I'm 40 now and am laughing for I had the SHAK IT UP 45 at age 12 and never once...ONCE played side 2 Which was this song?!? I have just heard this for the first time last week. To my credit I have had THE CARS and THE CARS CANDY-O since I was 16 But yeah this song KICKS.....................

  • I think this song ( Cruiser ) is the last song on the second side. It is the most Kick-Butt song The Cars ever released. I remember when I first heard it, and couldn't believe my ears. I still, to this day, can't believe that it wasn't a number one hit. That's cool though, only real Cars fans will know this tune and appreciate it for what it is, songwriting genius !

  • Comment removed

  • I always thought it was strange Ric Ocasek was normally the singer since Ben Orr is handsomer and a better singer. RIP Ben, I listened to Drive and cried when you died.

  • big city noise disappears sucker punch is in your heart light is reason light is due my shape is shapeless in your suit chrome red eyeballs reflect and roll a simple sun is slowly sinking roman shoes and pretty hats glitter bombs that beat the beat you comb the night 'cause you're a cruiser and ya you never get enough when you're cruisin' down the street and takin' off the heat when you're on the moonlight run floating jets and big vignettes get the treatment grab a cab
  • sweet....no things the same....

  • when i was a kid in 79 i thought i was cool just because i liked the cars. while my friends were listening to the bee-gees.

  • @stardaddyo9 damm straight, if u like the cars your always so cool...

  • Actually at 3:39 3:40 he is saying the work 'run', but yeah...very sexy indeed. I love their stage set in this.

  • underrated song

    I always think of Ben Orr and George Harrison as the perfect young rock star look

    and TOO YOUNG TO DIE

    SHT!!

    RIP BEN AND GEORGE

  • The Cars weren't really new wave, even though that's what some people consider them, they were just a rock band. Why people often mention Blondie in the same sentence with them, I'll never know.

  • @ladybluluv Eh... I see your point more about maybe the first two albums not really being new wave (some of candy-o is, tho), panorama and shake it up could fairly be called new wave, IMO, with all the weird quirky keyboard and electric drum components, blah blah...

  • Blondie wasn't New Wave either.

    Lita

  • @ladybluluv

    your right, they were a rock band, but that doesnt mean they didnt use new wave in some of their songs. In a sense, they were also a hard rock band. Cruiser, bye bye love, candy-o, take what you want, cool fool, strawberry moonlight, dont cha stop and you're all ive got tonight are all hard rock songs from them.

  • @TheMajorHawke Well yeah....rock/hard rock...that's what I meant....they are pretty much the same to me.

  • @ladybluluv

    I think the only band that can challenge The Cars diversity is their inspirations The Beatles.

  • @TheMajorHawke and dont forget All Mixed Up , the famous Just What I Needed and Good Times Roll : )

  • @dmgcat; I'm British, but I much prefer American New Wave....

  • There was British new wave and then theres American . I don't know which came first but Blondie and the Cars were ours!

  • is it me or did youtube mess with the live sound? it sounds different, a little slow, anyone sense this?

  • It just sums up "New Wave" for me!!

  • I really love the intro to this song!

  • muy buena version en vivo !! me encanta este tema , the cars es una de las mejores bandas de rock de la historia , es un lugar que lo tienen bien ganado ,al menos eso pienso yo, saludos a todos sus fans .

  • What a GREAT performance! He sang this so perfect here.

  • About their voices, it's like many dual singer groups. They always sound very cohesive as a group if the similarities in style is sometimes indistinguishable to the point of confusing the listener of which is which. Once you get your 'fav' then you can always tell. With the Cars Ric could pull off a rockabilly tone, but Ben never could because he was so deep and clean. I love contrast. That's why I like the Cars, Pink Floyd, and the Beatles. Like Lennon,like Waters, but like Ric & Ben equally.

  • addicted2benorr...I think it's the poweful dynamic that he had to his voice...He was able to deepen his voice and just 'let her fly!'....

  • i love him around 3:39-3:40..he sounds just so powerful!!..i don't quite know how to put it..

  • I never got their voices mixed up. They definitely sounded different.  Ben IS easy on the eyes and yes...Magnetic and Captivating! He truly had it all.

  • I close my eyes and I hear Ben! Deeper richness and register to this voice...unmistakeable!

  • Right Kat, I never mix them up either!!!

  • This song always messed me up the most when it came to figuring out who was singing it. Close your eyes and you heard RIC and not Ben; at least I do.

    Love this song, and love The Cars -- forever!

  • Another wonderful performance from an under rated band. I adore them all, Ben sings just like the record. And he's always easy on the eyes.

  • Thank you for posting! Shake It Up and Panorama tour footage is rare. Great stuff, Ben is an all time best!

  • I happen to love all five of these guys equally, but wow, kudos always gotta be handed-out to Ben first! He defines 'cool' in every imaginable way! He's so magnetic and captivating, and could do no wrong. He is a true legend. Merry Christmas to Ben, Ric, Elliot, Greg, David, and to all of the awesome Cars fans out there! Love ya's all!

  • i was here a week ago..and from then till now, this track has just been 'crusin' around in my head..canNOTget enough of benjamin !!!..u are the best :)

  • Oh my word...another top performance from Ben! He sounded even better live than on the albums..... I love how he could change his hair colour and still he always looked hot!

  • it's 'slug'.

    cool song. Between ric's writing, Ben's voice, and elliot's smoking guitar playing...this band always ROCKED!

  • Ben's voice is ABSOLUTELY SMASHING here!!..how amazing is he:)!!!!

  • @addicted2benorr Quite amazing!!

  • @addicted2benorr u British?

  • the definition of good rock 'n roll

  • One bad ass song...the best one from The Cars...

  • I realise the Lyric sheet says 'slug'..but thats when lyrics were being looked at by the record CO's and 'altered' as to appear less offensive...the song is about a gay cruiser ....its 'suck'

  • its not about a gay cruiser, he is talking about a chick with a wild side to her just look at the Cruiser vid from their 84-85 tour

  • kroo-oozer....

  • Great song......never heard this one before!!

  • Wow, forgot what a great song this was. RIP Ben Orr

  • THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH FOR THIS POST! I am so glad I lived during the days of great music!

  • Absolutely fantastic! come from Italy and just love them, especially cruiser and a dream away!

  • Happy Birthday Benjamin ! wonder how you would have celebrated your birthday ?

  • the cars had SO SO SO many great songs, the R/R hall of fame doesn't have them? That is absolutely rediculous. I would have never in a million years expected that. RIP Ben, you were one of the all time greats!

  • You would think that since Benjamin was from Parma (suburb of Cleveland) where the Rock Hall of Fame is located, they wouldn't have ignored a homeboy who made it to the bigtime!

  • "You need a hit, you need a slug..." Cool lyrics, as always. This, too, is my favorite Cars song from this album and one of their best period. Love driving down the highway with this baby cranked up.

    Yeah, why isn't this band in the R&R Hall of Fame? They were true groundbreakers and their music stands the test of time.

  • you stated things perfectly ....

  • Its 'Suck'  not Slug

  • According to the album's lyric sheet, it's "need a hit, need a slug." I admit it kinda sounds like suck here, but listen to the other versions here on youtube. "Need a hit, need a slug" is the original version, and is exactly the kind of double entendre that The Cars loved.

  • Sure sounds like "suck" to me in all the versions on YouTube -- Ben breaks up the word when he sings it: "suh-uck" and you can hear the "ck" clearly.

  • Amazing ? I think it's a damned dirty disgusting disturbing disgraceful shame !

  • Comment removed

  • Amazing that the Cars arent in the R and R Hall of Fame

  • Comment removed

  • This is on my top 5 all time Cars fav song

    list! DAMN I LOVE THIS SONG!!

  • Lpve Roc's looming presence at the opening this performance.. he is awesome. Eeaston is a total rockstar! I love his entire style! The drummer and keyboardist are so talented. And,well, there's Ben.. sigh.. like the rest of us, Ben is such a central figure in The Cars and his voice is so diverse and beautiful. Sexy as hell, too! I especially love his vocals in this from 2:50 on.. gah!

  • Ben was Brilliant & SOOOO GIFTED! RIP BEN, we miss you!

  • Ocasek - Genius

  • i think its orr, and the whole band together is the shit

  • that was pretty good

  • Like so many others, I am all about Ben, but I have to say that I have a growing respect for EE. I like his style a lot! Plus those pants (long underwear? lol) are cool. I like the way he (EE) moves when playing guitar. Now as far as Ben goes, I go nuts at the 03:39 - 03:40 part where he emphasizes the word "Gone" with such meaning. I love this band.

  • If I had a time machine......

  • never tire of hearing Ben sing :) he should have recorded more with the Cars

  • Don't forget Ben was :( one the BEST bassists around!!!

  • and singer! LOL

    I miss him...

  • Ooops! Yes, he was :(  a great vocalist and (before you email me) a really good song writer.

  • Well, he didn't write any songs for the cars...

  • yeffenough-- OOps. I just assumed. :)

  • Yes, he definitely was one of the Best musicians around and still is post mortem... miss him! :(

  • I always thought Ric sung this song.

  • When watching MTV as a kid,It seemed they gave all the Ric songs heavy airplay

  • So did I. (And I prefer Ben's voice.. always have) I'm going to say that this performance is one of my favorite examples of Ben's voice. He isn't being lazy at all in it.. quite the opposite, in fact. Fine band, great times.

  • "you need a hit

    you need a suck;

    you don't easily get amused"

    HA

    could've been talking about me

    rock on ben

  • You need a hit,

    You need a Slu-ug is the lyric. LOL.

  • Does anybody know where this venue was.

  • I had no clue that Ben Orr sang this song also. The more I learn about this band, the more I realize the little that he sang lead, I like almost every song he sang. Did he sing any songs on Door to Door or did Ocasek just take over completely to the band's detriment?

  • He sang lead on 3 of them: double trouble, go away and everything you say - check out the video here for that song :)

    You're right - Benjamin didn't get to sing lead enough.

  • Hey Benny, got any "go away" from door to door?

  • Thanks, I did not know. At three songs, that seem to be more than past albums so I take it back - he sang lead 30% of the time on the final album!

  • Some of my friends would say that they preferred the Cars songs that Ben Orr sang over the Ric Ocasek vocal songs. I like Ben Orr's vocals as much as Buddy Holly's, oops Freudian slip, I mean Ric Ocaseks, but truth is Ric is a very good singer as well as Ben. I like songs that either one sang on. They both had their own distinctive styles and the song writing with the Cars was consistent as well as the musicianship. This song brings back memories of high school in the early '80s.

  • His voice was incredible, especially when he talked his words. Like in songs like "Cruiser" and "Down Boys" because he had to pull that voice up and out of himself.

  • There IS and will be, no other DECADE better than the 80's and all the great genres of music being played

    The CARS were a BIG part of it-

    Today's music--→ §uX.