Reviews of tasty and obscure hook-filled rock'n' roll releases (Glam, Heavy Bonehead Crunchers, Powerpop, Pop/psych,Garage, Surf, 60s Girl Group Rock)...Plus any quirky musings that tickle my fancy...
I created this blog in order to stimulate interest, share discoveries and encourage people to go out and search for the original vinyl. Hopefully this blog might also encourage labels to actually compile some of this stuff officialy.
OK, time to go West and Wester still.... In a few hours I will be flying into Austin (TX) for the record fair starting Friday, then heading West, expecting to be hitting the West Coast probably around the 7th or 8th of May; ending the trip in LA... Be sure to say Yihaa (or whatever you people do out there). I will have a portable turntable, camera and laptop, so I should be able to report back along the way...
Boys and Girls Together –Knock Knock/Progressive Halavah –Intrepid 75015 (1969 US) Supremely bouncy and hard knocking at the same time, Knock Knock has a real snarly and tough Punk vocal delivery within its Bubblegum delivery service. Add the fuzz, hammering drums, and the woah woah background vocal and you have all the ingredients for a cult dance floor classic. With a song writing team led by mighty Gary Zekely (Alder Ray, Ragamuffins, Jan & Dean, Yellow Balloon etc...) how could you go wrong!
Thanks to William for the turn on and to Jeremy to finding me a copy
Hear a full version of Knock Knock
Note this is my last review from home for a while, but I will posting again soon on finds from several locations (think West and then MORE West)
Yes there were cool happenings in Rouen before the advent of Les Olivenstein and The Dogs. Hard to believe this is 1971, it’s not just proto Punk but Proto Hardcore for chrissakes!. With enough spite and fiery attitude to make Joan of Arc squeal; Fightin’ Cock is pure flammable high energy. The vocals are nuts...Fight...Cock, he was a fightin’ COCK. The guitar riffs and grinds and approaches a Stooges via Motorhead apocalyptic grandeur in the lead break and finale. Rotomagus were previously on CBS, but reconvened on the small Butterfly label for this incredible release. Thanks to Henry for making me aware of this gem
William –Hey, Hey, Hey/ Gulliver –M2 MMR 0301 (1974 Italy)
This is fun, but what the hell is it? Right in the middle of the PFM, Goblin or Banco progressive miasma, Gulliver shines like a rallying call of hope. Although found on the flipside of an amiable near Fading Yellow (mild Giallo?) Italo ballad, Gulliver is where it’s at. Could this be the missing link between Prog, Bubblegum and Glam? The synths burp, William sings his little heart out and the driving beat underlines the hooky chants. No idea what this guy was on about or who he actually is. But it’s a charming and captivating number housed in an evocative sleeve. Per Favore –Let’s hear the facts!
Today it was quality, not quantity...and my last day as I had to change my plans and fly back early...I had my most efficient discovery, to finding out who, to purchasing the item ever...I am talking about Stengun by Linda Van Dyck (with Boo & The Boo Boo's!!!). I caught footage of this on a video screen, was transfixed, manage to find out who the artist was and actually locate a copy all within 5 minutes (Yes it must be a record...)
Ooops. Looks like I went a bit over the top today...11 Grand Funk Singles-was this wise?
I am not going to list each single, but a picture tells a 1000 words -no?
2 special notes: There is a gem of an Italian single in the pictures below. Any of our Italian friends able to provide some information on this before I review it?
And a really special item at the end that I have been seeking for over 30 years!
And here it is..the fan club 10" from The Quick signed by the whole band...200 copies. Nuff Said
Total mystery time. This is MOONQUAKE, not Earthquake...hard cardboard sleeve Canadian issue. What happened?-how late in the day was it before they found out there was a band in SF called Earthquake?
Dwarf –Gotta Get Louder/ I Won’t Be Back –Merlyn Records 3378 (1975 US)
Once in a while a single gets plucked out of obscurity which is a total revelation and becomes an obsession to track down, but rarely does this same single get played over and over and you know it has the staying power to remain a firm favourite forever. I am very glad to say that this single is one of these rare beasts. It is everything you could ever wish for and absolutely ticks ALL the right boxes.
I first heard a snippet of the tracks when a copy appeared on eBay in February, but I got outbid, then low and behold a second copy appeared and I lost out again. It was clear that I wasn’t the only one bit by this particular bug. I finally secured a spare copy, but its condition is far from pristine as you will hear. It appears that many copies suffered the same fate as mine being pressed off-centre, plus this copy has some nasty gouges on the B side, so I am still on the look-out for a better copy...
How to put a tag on Gotta Get Louder? It sits somewhere between Proto-Punk, Bubblegum/Hard Rock and Powerpop. It's insanely catchy and an instant exuberant classic. What makes this even more amazing is that most of the band were 15 at the time!
I Won’t Be Back is stupendous in its snotty Teenage Punk attitude. I was thinking of The Runaways as I believed a girl singer was involved, but this is not the case as explained by Nick Piunti “that would be me, make that pre-pubescent me...” The guitars clang and crash, the drums are full power with added momentum of a glorious cowbell nailing everything down to the beat. So put both tracks together and you end up with the best coupling since Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton!
Hear a full version of Gotta Get Louder
Hear a full version of I Won’t Be Back
The line up on Gotta Get Louder was: Left on the photoPete Madary: vocals, bass, aboveMike Finn: lead guitar vocals, frontNick Piunti: vocals, guitar rightMickey Patay: drums
After a minimal amount of tracking down I contacted Dwarf’s Singer/guitarist Nick Piunti and Pete Madary followed suit from LA where he still plays with Mike “Dorsal” Finn in a band called Southbound. Apart from co-owning what appears to be a fine eatery Nick Piunti also officiates as a member of The Respectables who are a great tough sounding Powerpop outfit with an affinity to Cheap Trick in their prime, check them out here: http://www.reverbnation.com/therespectables
As expected the band was formed as school chums, but back in 1972 in Riverview Michigan.
NP:“Three of us, Nick, Pete, and Mike formed in the spring of 1972 for a performance at our 6th grade talent show. Mickey replaced our original drummerin 1973.
We played at local school dances to audiences our same age who could really relate to us. At times it was like Beatlemania with young girls rushing the stage. They especially loved our drummer Mickey...”
PM:“In my mind – Dwarf was always a great little band. But for the longest time – Mike “Dorsal” Finn was the only accomplished musician. We were very, very raw. We’d make up for lack of talent with pure energy...”
The lead guitar is indeed blistering within the pure energy, but the drumming, singing and general playing is very accomplished considering their age at the time! The band started by doing covers including some tasteful choices, but as is clear from this single, they had real talented song-writers in Nick Piunti and Pete Madary with a real affinity to Purepop and Rock’ N’ Roll.
NP:“We did covers of course, Stones, Beatles, Alice Cooper, Slade, Chuck Berry songs. Back in 1973, 1974 we would do a set of 50's rock and roll. But we soon started writing songs and we slipped as many originals in a set as we could. Covers included Under My Wheels, Mama Kin, 30 Days in a Hole (HUMBLE PIE!!!) Ma Ma Belle, Tie Your Mother Down, Live With Me, Brown Sugar, Jumpin ‘Jack Flash etc...The first song I ever sang live was Be My Lover at our sixth grade talent show. I kept getting shocked every time I stepped up to the microphone... As we got older we progressed to playing high schools, colleges, bars and eventually doing some original show case gigs...”
PM:“As far a covers went – we stuck to material that we could handle. The reason we played, Stones, Slade, T-Rex and 50’s tunes was because they were easy! We weren’t trying to be eclectic or cool – we were just trying to make it through a song! Merle (Manager) always encouraged us to write songs. We were doing original tunes as far back as 1972 (when we were 12). We knew our limits as singers and musicians so we stayed within them. As we grew older and our tunes began to fill up the sets – we’d actually “fib” to the audience – “Here’s a rare “B” side from Tom Petty,” or, “Here’s a John Cougar song you haven’t heard...”
But was the band ever overtly influenced by the Detroit Total Energy scene (Stooges, MC5 etc...?
NP:“I think the MC5 influence may be more of a geographical influence. Back then we were probably only influenced by Kick Out The Jams. It wasn't until years later that I discovered more of their catalogue. Detroit radio didn't play much MC5 on the radio back then. Curiously enough, the guitarist in The Respectables, Joey Gaydos, was the guitarist with Rob Tyner in his last band...”
PM:“Our little community, an area about 20 miles South of Detroit was a real Hot Bed of Rock. Because Merle was nine years older than us – he would make sure that his established musician friends were accessible to us. Derek St. Holmes was from our hometown. He rehearsed across the street from Nick’s house until he became Ted Nugent’s lead singer in ’75. Merle’s friend Randy Meyers drummed for a fabulous band called Julia. Julia was Bob Seger’s back-up band in 1972. So again, our local scene may have influenced us more than what was happening in Detroit...”
Dwarf managed to release 3 singles and an EP:
Gotta Get Louder / I Won't Be Back - Merlyn 1975
Backstage Queen/Couple of the Night –Merlyn 1976
Another Chance/Perfect Pair -Merlyn 1977
A Little Rock Goes A Long Way EP –Merlin (1981)
The band stayed together as Dwarf until 1983. Mickey Patay moved to Central California in May of 1980 and Merle took over on drums. The band then moved to LA playing Madam Wong’s, Troubadour, The Lingerie and the usual West Coast haunts before finally breaking up in 1986.
PM:“As a general rule, Merle would accept bookings within five hours from home in any direction. As a result – we played throughout Michigan, most of Ohio, parts of Indiana and Ontario, Canada. We enjoyed regional success, but Nick suggested we move to New York or Los Angeles to pursue a major recording contract. Moving across the country is not for everyone. After Merle stepped aside in 1983, we added new drummer Mike Pientka, changed the name of the band to The Take and focused our efforts on recording a strong demo tape before moving to LA in the fall of 1984..."
NP:“Well we graduated college. Our girlfriends moved on. I definitely did not want to be in a cover band, so we figured New York or L.A. After 24 years of Detroit winter we picked the weather. But we were probably y a few years too late. It was 1984 and the L.A. Hair Metal Bands were happening and that just wasn't our thing. We were much more like The Plimsouls than Guns and Roses or Poison...”
It now looks like Dwarf will receive the amply deserved late recognition as the folks at Sing Sing have been quick off the mark and will be reissuing Gotta Get Louder soon. There will be more Dwarf on Purepop in the future as their other releases are no slouches either!
NP:"This renewed interest in Dwarf after all these years is a bit baffling to me as we were just a bunch of kids learning our way to rock. It was a great way to grow up. A lot of fun for sure...”
PM:“Let me just say that the band ran its course. Mike, Nick and I were 11 years old at our first full rehearsal. 11! We stayed together for 14 years until we were 26. When I got married in Southern California the very next summer, Nick flew out from Michigan, Mickey came down from Central California, Mike and Nick stood up at my wedding and Merle sent well wishes from back home. We still have a tremendous friendship. Now, all these years later; we speak on the phone or email each other daily - talking band business...!"
Keep watching this space!
DWARF is now on facebook -plenty of photos and more to come...
Originally sought after for the B side as it was one of those “secret” DJ plays around 5-6 years ago, the A side has been unjustly totally overlooked. Midnight Flight is a cracking little number: All pop with style featuring a strong chorus, nifty guitar and class singing. The track then ends with hints of what will appear on its B side. The most striking thing about Flight 2 is that it is totally incongruous with 1972 and It somehow ends up sounding like mid 90s Prodigy! Again I have no info on Angelo & Eighteen. I have heard a rumour that there may be some Canadian connection, but this is yet to be confirmed...
Young London Permissive Paradise –Young London/Permissive Paradise –SFI 31/32H (1969 UK)
This was a free promotional flexi disc put out to promote the Young London –Permissive Paradise book of late 60s swinging London featuring photos by Frank Habicht. Side A is fun listen –with old codgers giving their impromptu insight on youth culture with star appearances from Jonathan King and Emperor Rosko. The B side is a really good fuzzy psych track and it has only recently become clear that The Pleasure Garden was in fact The Iveys moonlighting for the sake of a session fee. The song is not an undiscovered Pete Ham gem, but was written by Jeremy Cox and John Sidey
The things you find when trawling through record fairs bins in the Midlands...
Hear a full version of Permissive Paradise as performed by “The Pleasure Garden” (The Iveys)
Agnes Strange –Can’t Make My Mind Up/Johnny B. Good –Baal BDN 38048 (1977 UK) Agnes Strange was a great Hard Fuzz outfit out of Southampton comprising of Dave Rodwell, Alan Green and John Westwood. Agnes Strange were primarily known for their Strange Flavour LP released on Birdsnest who also released the killer Give Yourself a Chance as a single. Can’t Make My Mind Up is a later non-LP release, and although not as frenetic as the aforementioned single, it still packs a mighty wallop albeit on a more firm yet stomping level. Dig those hand claps....the track is somehow caught in limbo between Hard Boogie, Glam and NWOBHM. Johnny B. Good is well... Johnny B. Good as you expect it to sound, but delivered in quite excited fashion.
Lazy –Let Me Down Easy/ Good Times Coming –Libra LS-16 (1977 DK)
I picked this one up a couple of weeks ago in a bargain bin on the strength of the cover and Danish origins and it is only now that I got round to actually spinning it. Don’t know anything about this lot, perhaps their only release? To me Let Me Down Easy is like the (US) Marbles attempting 2-4-6-8 Motorway with a healthy dollop of Carpenters. The vocalist has a classic pop voice, really endearing. The B side is if anything better; rougher and more sprightly, the outwardly poppy-ness remains also with the bonus of hand claps. Undiscovered Powerpop genius or run-of-the mill Continental Pop fodder? –you decide...
Ganip Ganop – Toot Toot Toot (Hear The Whistle Blow)/ The Toot Toot Song –Polydor 421497 (1969 French issue)
Just to alleviate the heaviness of Bonehead, I give to you Toot Toot Toot- an enthralling Bubblegum ditty that is as dumb as it is disposable. Totally infectious it hits all the spot a real Bubblegum classic should. In the sterling tradition of maximising the minimum; the B side is the A side but without the vocals. Ganip Ganop (anyone remember the game?) is the creation of Howard Bogess and Neil Goldberg (who were also behind Linus and The Little People) and on this evidence they have nothing to envy from Resnick/Levine...
Larry Mann The Wild Mann –The Meat Grinder/The Crawdad Hole –Wildmann Records 911062 -3805 (197? US)
Sleazy Dirty Ass Boogie time with Larry Mann (The Wildmann!) “I wanna grind you in the back of my car...” spouts Larry and you wouldn’t want to end up doggin’ with this chap around either with or without his chainsaw... The presence of Gradual Taylor probably places this one in Ohio. Stranger still; the B side is performed by Will Begley and The Poor Boys and is a country/rockabilly number full to the brim of innuendos but of limited interest musically. Really need more information on this one –anyone?
Armada –Just For You/ Get Ready Get Mean –Houston Records SRI (1976 US)
From Framington (Ma), Armada was a high school band who became a pretty successful cover band. It appears that this is their only release, but there is actually a Myspace page up with some live tracks and line-up information:http://www.myspace.com/armadathebandthatmoves
Just For You falls somewhere be Boston RAT era rock and more overt Powerpop. The chorus really reminds me of the Rich Kids for some reason. Get Ready Get Mean is tougher and wilder insofar as approaching US Proto Punk/Glam NYC style...All in all a great find!
Dahcotah - Too Easy To Love/She’s a Bore –Cognito 006 (1976 US)
Dahcotah was an Iowa based combo who had been around for a few years, before experiencing their own road to Damascus, in this case Kansas, by the means of a Mott The Hoople gig! OK, we’ve had Geoff Appleby with Hey Sadiehttp://purepop1uk.blogspot.com/2008/02/geoff-appleby-hey-sadie.htmlbut this cranks The Hoopleness up a few extra notches...It is full of Marionette twists and turns, the Ian Hunter approach and Piano could not be more (real) life-like, but the song itself stands up in its own right. She’s a Bore is less Mott, but more ROCK with a cool Cheap Trick feel. If nothing else these guys had taste, aptitude and attitude. There is a facebook Dahcotah page up- I’ll send them a note...
Kiss Inc. –Hey Mr. Holy Man/Kids Are Cryin’ –Admiral AD 1152 (1972 German issue) Inspired by the Gregorian chant Dies Irae as interpreted by The Mec Op Singers (Belgium), i Samurai and Formula 3 (Italy) and finally covered by Swiss band The Shiver as Hey Mr. Holy Man in 1969, prior to this later version by Kiss Inc. ( Stephen Sulke). Hey Mr. Holy Man is as atmospheric as it is thumping, the voice over is neatly European, and the fuzz is all encompassing before its abrupt turn of direction for the run out. A bizarre but captivating single that’s really out there. Enjoy both sides as Kids Are Cryin’ is nearly as bonkers ...
Hooky, brash and tight as F**k is the most accurate way to describe the driving catchiness which is Fee -Fi-Fo-Fum . The Hungry Tiger single is as much a Bubblegum classic as it is a “Mod Dance floor Filler” (although the poor dears would probably ruin their tight jackets in their over-exuberance)- but just dig the loud drums and tight arrangement with its kick ass horns. One of the many fascinating White Whale releases, but who was the band? Any relation to Professor Morrison’s Lollipop? The B side Tic Tac Toe is not the Magid Triplets tune, but a moody Garage Folk Rock number with its song writing credit appropriated by Kasenetz/Katz as was often custom...
Shocking Blue –Good Times/Come My Way –Pink Elephant PE 22.846 (1974 NL)
Released at the tail end of their career, Shocking Blue’s performance of the Easybeat classic is as incisive and invigorating as it is fitting as a send off. Mariska Veres belts out the tune in expected fine fashion and the lead guitar is suitably Dutch and 70s to be worthy of note. Anyhow just how could you go wrong when twinning NederGlam and Vanda & Young?
Dickens –Sho’ Need Love/ Don’t Talk About My Music –Scepter Records SCE 123 22 (1971 US)
OK, the time has come to unleash this one. Dickens was a concept by NRBQ’s road crew based on the premise “that an E chord played loud enough on an electric guitar was enough to satisfy a certain segment of the populace...".The Dickens would turn the amps up to 10 and swap to instruments they were unaccustomed to. Whatever the premise; Don’t Talk About My Music is an insane piece of shambolic in your face Bonehead ROCK and is to be heard to be believed. The A side on the other hand is all about mood and atmosphere and reaches haunting heights of psych Pop glory. Read the full story here:http://www.spectropop.com/Dickens/
Air Traffic Control –Gotta Get A Message Back To You/Move On Up –Epic EPC 5665 (1977 UK)
Air Traffic Control is in fact The Glitter Band (Springate, Phipps and Shephard -but sans Rossall) at the end of their luck trying to hit the charts one last time without the weight of the Glitter legacy on their shoulders. Gotta Get A Message Back To You is a sublime piece of Powerpop, unashamedly commercial yet tasteful –you are just going to love the juxtaposition of the muffled monkey beats and Mellotron. It still sound like The Glitter Band with a little of ELO thrown it, but without a trace of their misplaced allegiance to Disco. Yes...Gotta Get A Message Back To You hits the proverbial... G Spot!
Hear a full version of Gotta Get A Message Back To You
Skid –I Saw Her Standing There/Endless Sleep –Panky 514 (1977 Belgian issue)
Produced and probably created by Tommy Scott (co-writer of I Can Only Give You Everything, producer of Terry (Twinkle) and discover of Lena Zavaroni!), Skid was his attempt at going PUNK whilst probably relying on his 60s leftover connections as performers. It would be interesting to identify who is on the sleeve of the German issue –any clues? Who is the screeching vocalist?
Of the two tracks I much prefer Endless Sleep with its marked 74 Glam beat, but I Saw Her Standing There is a more obvious choice for this “if you can’t beat ‘em - join them “exercise as covering this Beatles tune was bound to teach the young whippersnappers that Punk was not invented in year 0. The Belgian sleeve is the winner and a classic Faux Punk cover for the masses (well Belgium anyway)
Supa Chief –Red Brained Woman/ Animal Woman –Prince Records P 6920 X (1969 US)
The term Heavy Bonehead was coined for this one! It’s loud, sleazy and dumb, but oh so good. Supa Chief was an Orange County band with Bob DeMalignon on Vocals, the Shattuck brothers (Dan and James) on guitar and drums respectively) along with Mike Carousal (guitar) and Dennis Koker on bass. The lead guitar is masterful and the thudding drums are further nailed to the beat by a gleaming cowbell. The B side Animal Woman sounds exactly as you expect it to –Neanderthal and sublime. Coincidence... or could The Muffs’Kim Shattuck be a younger sister to the Shattuck Bros?
