Gruesomania!...The Gruesomes Story and Show # 207

The Gruesomes formed in 1985 in Montreal,Quebec in Canada. The band took inspiration from Sixties garage rock and early punk. The band started off with very little musical ability and were also known for their on stage humour and energetic live shows. Their band name came from the TV show The Flinstones. The Gruesomes were the Flinstones scary neighbours. The band also created a band image which consisted of sixties style dress, moppy haircuts, and beatle boots. The original band consisted of John Davis (Guitar), Eric Davis (drums), Gerry Alvavez (guitar/vocals), and Bobby Beaton (guitar/vocals). The band released their first EP Jack The Ripper in 1986 and another EP titled Unchained in 1987. The bands sound fused together the snotty energy of 70s punk, with the primitive sounds of 60s garage rock.

The bands first full length album was titled Tyrants of Teenage Trash and it was released in 1986. By the time this album came out the band had built up a large fan base not only in Canada, but in the US and Europe also. The band would get a new drummer in 1987, John Knoll. He would bring the band into more of an R&B sound as opposed to Eric Davis who brought in more of a punk sound. The bands next album Gruesomania! came in 1987 and Hey! came in 1988. The band became Canada's biggest selling underground act and all over their albums did very well. In 1990, the band called it quits when they were at a high point in their career.

In 1999, the band reformed and recorded the album Cave In!, which was released in 2000. They also started touring again. They went to Europe for the first time, as well as going back to places in the US and Canada. The Gruesomes were a loud Canadian band from Montreal, they still perform live occasionally. In 2003, the band released a compilation called Gruesomology and in 2008 All three of the bands albums were re-released. In 2002 John Davis and Bobby Beaton of The Gruesomes formed a side project called Fuad and The Feztones. They recently released an album in 2008 titled Beeramid

The Play List:

1. The Jam - London Traffic
2. The Cramps - Human Fly
3. Golden Hands Before God - Communist Party
4. Albert Hammond Jr. - Rocket
5. Ugly Ducklings - Mama Keep Your Big Mouth Shut
6. Gruesomes - Unchain My Heart
7. Gruesomes - No More Lies
8. The Brigands - (Would I Still Be) Her Big Man
9. The Monks - Complication
10. Night Crawlers - Little Black Egg
11. Tricky Woo - Liberty Drawl
12. Young Rival - Master of None
13. The Stills - Snow in California
14. Neil Young - Drive Back
15. David Bowie - Hang on to Yourself (Live Santa Monica 72)
16. MC5 - Back in the USA
17. Futureheads - This is Not The World
18. The Outcasts - Magnum Force
19. Undertones - Mars Bar
20. Gang of Four - 5:45
21. Black Kids - Hit the Heartbreakes
22. Subway Sect - Paralell Lines
23. The Subways - Shake! Shake!
24. Radiohead - Bangers n' Mash
25. Elvis Costello & The Imposters - Go Away 

Videos:

Way Down Below (Music Video)
Hey! (Music Video)

A Million in Prizes...The Iggy Pop Story and Show # 206

Iggy Pop was born as James Newell Osterberg Jr. in April of 1947. He would be known for his work with his first band The Stooges, whose influence still shakes the very foundations of modern music today. He would be known as "The Godfather of Punk" and be recognized for his on stage antics and behaviour. After the demise of The Stooges, Iggy Pop went on to pursue a solo career. He has also acted in several films including The Color of Money, Sid and Nancy, The Crow: City of Angels, Snow Day, Tank Girl, and Coffee and Cigarettes.

Born in Muskegon, Michigan, Iggy was raised in a trailer park near Yipsilani, Michigan. Iggy began his musical career as a drummer. He played drums in two bands The Iguanas and then The Prime Movers. Iggy got his nickname "Iggy" while in the Iguanas. After dropping out of the University of Michigan, he moved to Chicago to be closer to Chicago Blues. Along with his blues inspiration, Iggy was influenced by the likes of The Sonics. After being in Chicago learning about blues, Iggy pop returned to Ann Arbor and formed a rock band. He would abandon the drums and become a singer/front man taking inspiration from The Doors Jim Morrison, and Lou Reed. In 1967, Iggy formed The Psychedelic Stooges with Ron Asheton on guitar, Scott Asheton on drums, and Dave Alexander on bass. The band experimented first before settling on the primitive, repetitive, and aggressive sound of The Stooges that we know today.

The band became known for their live performances. Iggy in particular pushed the boundaries of the live performances by inventing the stage dive, rolling around in broken glass, smearing himself with peanut butter, and other oddities. Around this time the band also shortened their name from The Psychedelic Stooges to The Stooges. The band was signed to Elektra Records in 1968, when Danny Fields came to see another excellent Detroit based band The MC5; He signed both bands to the same label. The band had five songs for what would become their first album, The Stooges which would be released in 1969. The songs that were to make up the album were ones which the band played during their live shows, but Elektra said that that they did not have enough songs. Iggy told the label that they had lots of songs (even though they did not) so the band then wrote three more tracks to have enough material for the album. The songs that were written were "Real Cool Time", "Little Doll", and "Not Right". The songs were played for the first time in the studio. The other five tracks that compiled The Stooges were "No Fun", "Ann", "We Will Fall", "1969", and "I Wanna Be Your Dog". The album was produced by John Cale, but his original mixes for the album were rejected. They were instead done by Iggy Pop (credited as Iggy Stooge on the album) and Jac Holtzman (Elektra President). The result of the eight tracks was an album that was unlike anything the world had heard before. It was raw, energetic and straight to the point. It would become a cult classic. In 2005, The Stooges was reissued featuring the original Cale mixes as well as alternate takes.

In 1970, The Stooges released Fun House. The album was recorded live in the studio in May of 1970 and released in July of 1970. It featured little or no overdubs and since it was recorded live in the studio, many people feel it captured the essence of The Stooges live sound. The album was once again mixed by Iggy Pop and it was named after the bands rehearsal space which was called, the fun house. The album featured seven tracks "Down On The Street", "Loose", "TV Eye", "Dirt", "Fun house", and "LA Blues". The album took a step up from the bands first album, capturing their minimalist, pure sound, also bringing in saxophones. The album was produced by Don Gallucci who wanted the album to have a similar sound to the Kingsmen's "Louie, Louie". Single versions of the songs "Down On the Street", and "1970" were also recorded featuring organ sounding like The Doors. The complete Fun House sessions were released in 2001 by Rhino (they are no longer in print). The collection featured every take of every song for the album as well as outtakes and demos. The eight disc set was titled 1970: The Complete Fun House Sessions. The album like the bands first, sold poorly. They both became cult classics and have been cited numerous times as main inspirations for punk rock. In 2005, Fun House was reissued with bonus tracks from the Fun House sessions including unused tracks "Lost in the Future", and "Slide (Slidin' the Blues)".

The band would be dropped from their label in 1971 due to poor album sales and Iggy's and the bands increased drug use. The band would regroup as Iggy & The Stooges when David Bowie offered to record the band in England. Iggy got friend James Williamson as lead guitarist and the Ashetons (Ron went on bass and Scott on drums) to complete the line up; Dave Alexander passed away in 1975, he was fired for being too drunk to perform with the band in 1970. The band would then record what would be known as Raw Power. The album was a sonic assault on the ears and featured such songs as "Search and Destroy", "Shake Appeal", "I Need Somebody", and "Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell". The album was released on Columbia Records and originally mixed by Iggy himself, but the label did not agree with his mixes and stated that if David Bowie did not remix it, the album would never see release. The album came out in 1973 and shortly after the band would be dropped from their label and split up. The album also did poorly, but like the other two Stooges albums is seen as a classic album just as unique and important as the other two Stooges albums. In 1997, Iggy Pop remixed the album himself closer to his original vision, which has been called his "In the red mix", because a majority of the faders were pushed into the red while mixing. Upon hearing Iggy Pop's original mix, it was said to have sounded like the speakers were melting.

Iggy then strung out on drugs checked himself into a Neuropsychiatric institute in Los Angeles. During this time Iggy wrote and recorded material with James Williamson. The material was released in 1977 as Kill City, but recorded in 1975. The album was intended to be a demo tape in hopes of getting Iggy a new record deal. The album would feature great tracks such as "Kill City", "Johanna", "I Got Nothin'", and "Consolation Prizes". Vocals for the album were recorded on weekends when Iggy was allowed out of the hospital. In 1976, David Bowie took him along for his Station to Station tour. After the tour Iggy and Bowie moved to Berlin to get off of drugs. Bowie also got Iggy a record deal with RCA.

Iggy would record in collaboration with Bowie. Two albums were produced and released in 1977. The Idiot came off sounding very different to Iggy's previous work with The Stooges. It had more of industrial sound and can be compared to David Bowie's album Low. The album would contain songs such as "Night Clubbing", "Sister Midnight", and "China Girl". The title of the album came from a Dostoevsky novel called, The Idiot. Lust For Life came next and it was released in the same year. This album had more of a rock feel and contained some of Iggy Pop's best known songs such as "The Passenger", "Lust For Life", "Tonight", and "Success". Apparently the riff in the song "Lust For Life" was inspired by a Morse code intro message for The American Forces Network News in Berlin; The song itself is a survival message to the masses. "The Passenger" was inspired by a Jim Morrison poem. Both The Idiot and Lust For Life are seen as some of the best work he ever produced. The backing band for Lust For Life, were a team of brothers Tony Sales (bass) and Hunt Sales (drums), along with Ricky Gardinier on guitar, and David Bowie on Keyboards. He would get more recognition when the song "Lust For Life" was used in the film Trainspotting.

In 1979, Iggy Pop released New Values. The album was his first for Arista Records; He left RCA after releasing the live album TV Eye Live 1977 to get out of his three album contract. New Values featured Ex-Stooges guitarist James Williamson as producer. The album featured some collaboration with Williamson and did quite well in Europe, but not in the United States. The album is seen as more of a new wave album. It featured songs such as "Tell Me A Story", "Girls", "New Values", "I'm Bored", and "Five Foot One". It is one of my personal favourites. Music videos were made for two of the songs on the album "I'm Bored", and "Five Foot One". In 1980, Iggy released another excellent solo album titled Soldier. For this album Pop collaborated with ex-Sex Pistol bassist Glen Matlock. The album was originally supposed to be produced by James Williamson and Iggy Pop, but both wanted a different sound and Williamson left the project. The album also featured a song with David Bowie "Play It Safe"; He sung back up vocals on it. The song featured great tracks such as "Loco Mosquito", "Ambition", "Knocking 'Em Down (In the City)", "I Need More", "Dog Food", and "I'm a Conservative". In 1981, Party was released. The song "Bang, Bang" would be remixed by Monkees producer Tommy Hart and it would also reach # 35 on the Billboard singles chart. It would be his final album for Arista.

In 1982, Iggy Pop wrote his own autobiography and received royalties in 1983 when David Bowie covered the song "China Girl" (written by Bowie and Pop for his album The Idiot) on his album Let's Dance. He also released the album Zombie Birdhouse in 1982. In 1986, Iggy Pop released Blah Blah Blah. The album was produced by David bowie and featured Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones. It brought him a top ten hit in the UK with "Real Wild Child". In 1988, Instinct was released, in 1990 Brick By Brick, and 1993 American Caesar. In 1996 Naughty Little Doggie was released, in 1999 Avenue B, and in 2001 Beat 'Em Up. In 2003, Skull Ring was released. The album featured collaborations with numerous artists such as The Trolls (his backing band used for Beat 'Em Up), Sum 41, Green Day, and Peaches. The album also featured collaboration with The Stooges. The song "Little Know It All" featuring Sum 41 got a lot of airplay. Iggy Pop also started playing live with the Stooges again around this time. The bassist would be Mike Watt from the Minutemen. In 2007, The Stooges released another album titled The Weirdness. It was produced by Steve Albini and sounded like a mix of the first two Stooges albums, The Stooges and Fun House.

The Stooges have since played numerous places all over the world. They played off and on from 2003 through 2008. In March of 2008, Madonna (a fellow Detroiter) was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Stooges inducted her playing two Madonna songs "Ray of Light", and "Like A Virgin". They played this as an act of protest for the Stooges not being inducted into the hall of fame, despite being nominated six times. In 2005 A Million in Prizes : The Anthology was released containing 37 tracks spanning Pop's entire musical career since The Stooges. In January of 2009, Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton passed away due to a heart attack, he was 60 years old.
In May of 2009, it was announced that Iggy and The Stooges would reform with James Williamson on guitar to perform Raw Power tracks. The reunion is set to take place at some point in 2010. Even though Iggy Pop was not a giant mainstream success, his influence still resonates on rock music today. He is a unique, interesting, inspiring artist no matter what era of his career you look at. Currently a biopic is being made about Iggy Pop, which will focus mainly on when he was with the Stooges. Directed by Nick Gomez and starring Elijah Wood as Pop, The Passenger is currently in production.

Play List:

1. The Damned - See Her Tonight
2. The Bears - Fun, Fun, Fun
3. Diodes - Time Damage
4. Young Canadians - Well, Well, Well
5. The Sinners - No Brains Required
6. Hot Nasties - Get Away From Me
7. Television - Friction
8. Patti Smith - Redondo Beach
9. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Watching the Detectives
10. The Police - Bombs Away
11. Nick Lowe - So It Goes
12. Only Ones - Another Girl Another Planet
13. Ultravox! - Frozen Ones
14. Devo - Jerkin' Back'n Forth
15. Stranglers - Nice n' Sleazy
16. Magazine - Feed the Enemy (Live)
17. The Government - Flat Tire
18. Teenage Head - You're Tearin' Me Apart
19. Mark Inside - These Apparent Things (Live @ XM)
20. The D4 - Too Stupid
21. Dirty Pretty Things - Hippie's Son
22. The Stooges - Not Right (Alternate Vocal Take)
23. Iggy Pop - Some Weird Sin
24. Iggy Pop - Knocking 'Em Down (In the City)

Videos:

The Stooges - TV Eye & 1970 (live Cincinati Pop Festival)
Iggy Pop - 1977 CBC Interview
Iggy Pop - The Passenger (Live 1977)
Iggy Pop - Sister Midnight (Live Dinah Shore Show 1977 - Featuring David Bowie on Keyboards)
Iggy Pop - Sixteen (Live 1978)
Iggy Pop - I'm Bored (Live OGWT 1979)
Iggy Pop - I Wanna Be Your Dog (Live OGWT 1979)
Iggy Pop - I'm Bored (Music Video)
Iggy Pop - Five Foot One (Music Video)
Iggy Pop - Knocking 'Em Down (In the City) (Music Video)
The Stooges - No Fun (live in Detroit 2003)
Jonathan Ross Show 2007 Part One (Interview)
Jonathan Ross Show Part Two (Interview/I Wanna Be Your Dog)

Changes...The David Bowie Story and Show # 205

The career of David Bowie is one that spans decades. He is known for his innovative fashion trends, the variety of musical styles that he has covered, and his career as an actor. Since the career of David Bowie is so large and interesting, it is impossible for me to talk about such a diverse, expansive career in one post. I have decided instead to focus on certain parts of his career.

Born as David Robert Jones in 1947, he first picked up the saxophone in his early years. While at school at the age of fifteen, Bowie got into a fight with his friend George Underwood. Underwood who was wearing a ring on his finger punched Bowie in his left eye; The fight was over a girl. As a result Bowie suffered eye damage and has a permanent dilated left pupil, which at times appears to be a different colour than his right eye. He started playing in several groups beginning in 1962. In the early sixties, Bowie began performing under the stage name Davie Jones, but this was also the name of Davy Jones from The Monkees, who were quite popular at the time. To avoid the confusion of the two David Robert Jones adopted the name David Bowie in 1966. He got the name Bowie from Jim Bowie, who was responsible for the Bowie knife and was an Alamo Hero. At this time he recorded singles as Manish Boy and Davy Jones, and as David Bowie and The Lower Third; All of which were unsuccessful.

In 1967, Bowie signed to Decca Records and released his first album. David Bowie was a mix of Music Hall, Pop, and Psychedelic music. It was also unsuccessful. In 1969, Bowie had his first hit single with "Space Oddity". The song would be featured on his second album known as Man of words, Man of Music; It was later re-released in 1972 as Space Oddity. In 1970 came the third Bowie album titled The Man Who Sold the World. The album was the first in which Bowie would collaborate with guitarist Mick Ronson. Tony Visconti played bass (and produced the album), Michael Woodmansey played drums, and along with Bowie formed the beginnings of the band The Spiders From Mars. the album has more of a heavy rock sound, one that can be compared to bands such as Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. The actual song "The Man Who Sold the World" regained popularity when it was covered by Nirvana for their MTV Unplugged album.

1971 brought the album Hunky Dory. For this album Visconti departed as bassist and producer and was replaced on bass by Trevor Bolder. With Bolder on bass, this album would feature all the members of Bowie's backing band known as The Spiders From Mars. Hunky Dory had more pop than that of The Man Who Sold the World, some people have compared it to the pop styles of Space Oddity. The album opens with the saxophone drenched pop song "Changes", which is a song that can describe Bowie's diverse career. The album also featured songs such as the acoustic/flamenco styled "Andy Warhol", the Broadway bordering "Life on Mars?"(also a big hit for Bowie), and "Queen Bitch". The song "Queen Bitch" is a song inspired by Bowie's love of The Velvet Underground, while the song itself features the wonderful mix of acoustic guitar mixed with the punkish guitar techniques of Mick Ronson.


In 1972, Bowie adopted the persona of Ziggy Stardust, who was an androgynous rock star coming from another planet. As Stardust, Bowie dressed in what would be known as glam style (mostly in women's clothing); This style of dress was influenced by his friend and Musician Marc Bolan (of T-Rex). Along with his band, Bowie released the concept album The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars in 1972. The album, which i feel is his best, features some of the best songs recorded by Bowie. The album draws influence from bands such as Velvet Underground, The Stooges, T-Rex, and The Kinks. The album contains great songs such as "Five Years", "Moonage Daydream", "It Ain't Easy", "Hang On To Yourself", and "Suffragette City". The album got Bowie notice in America. His second album Space Oddity would be re-released in 1972 in the US and reach the top 20.


In 1973, Bowie produced (along with guitarist Mick Ronson) Lou Reed's Transformer, Iggy & The Stooges Raw Power, and Mott the Hoople's All The Young Dudes. In that very same year Bowie recorded Aladdin Sane. The album took elements of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars, and added more rock to it. Some critics described the album as a disappointment, but it contains great songs such as "Panic In Detroit", "Jean Genie", and "Cracked Actor". The album also features a cover of the Rolling Stones song "Let's Spend the Night Together". The album was described by Bowie as "Ziggy goes to America". The album was written during his 1972 US tour. Originally the album was going to be titled Love Aladdin Vein, but changed it because of the reference it made to drugs. The title Aladdin Sane, is a pun of the word "A Lad Insane".

In the same year came the release of yet another Bowie album with the Spiders From Mars, Pin-Ups. This was a collection of cover songs. Around this time Bowie also announced that the band was breaking up and would no longer tour. This of course was not the end of Bowie's career. Bowie then recorded Diamond Dogs, which was originally intended to be a musical based on the George Orwell novel Nineteen Eighty Four; The album spawned the hit single "Rebel, Rebel". Bowie then became fascinated by Soul music and released the album Young Americans in 1975. This album would bring Bowie into the top ten in the US, it would also feature the song "Fame" which was written with and features John Lennon. In 1976 Bowie had a new stage persona called "The Thin White Duke", which reflected his cocaine addiction. The album Station to Station was also released in the same year, which would be the last of his soul inspired efforts it would bring in influences of Avant-garde Pop; He had yet another top ten hit with the disco flavoured "Golden Years".


He would then retreat to Berlin from 1976 to 1980, where he would record three albums Low, Heroes, and Lodger. These albums would reflect his interest in electronic music and the German music scene. Low advanced the avant-garde style that Bowie created with Station to Station. It was more experimental and featured collaboration with Brian Eno; The music began as compositions to the soundtrack to the movie The Man Who Fell To Earth, but when the director was going for more of a folky sound for the film. He got someone else to compose the films music. Heroes featured more collaboration with Brian Eno and would bring in influences of Krautrock. Lodger was the final album in which can be titled the Berlin Trilogy. It brought in the sounds of New Wave and World Music. In 1980, Bowie released Scary Monsters which featured the songs "Ashes to Ashes" and "Fashion".

Bowie would also kick his drug addiction. He also brought along Iggy Pop, who was also battling with addiction. Together the two kicked their habits and recorded some great albums. Bowie helped Iggy write and produced songs and even played keyboards with Iggy Pop on tour. The albums recorded were The Idiot, and Lust For Life which were released in 1977.

Bowie would still record and make hit songs and records well into the 80's, 90s, and 2000's. Along with changes in his musical stylings, he would also adapt his look with each subsequent release to reflect the new directions his music was taking. Bowie also involved himself in acting and a movie career. He has been in numerous films throughout his career such as The Man Who Fell to Earth, the cult classic Labyrinth, The Last Temptation of Christ, and The Prestige.

Bowie's last album was titled Reality and it was released in 2003. Bowie has toured the world more than few times throughout his long career, but since 2006 has stopped performing live. David Bowie's place in musical history is not one that can be summed up so easily because his influence is so vast. He truly is an interesting and talented musician that influenced thousands of artists ranging from 1970s up to today.



The Play List:

1. 13th Floor Elevators - You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone
2. Nazz - Open My Eyes
3. Northwest Company - Hard To Cry
4. Golden Hands Before God - The Ladder
5. Locusts Have No King - Down Here (Live At the Avalon)
6. 49th Parallel - Citizen Freak
7. The Strangeloves - Night Time
8. The Remains - Don't Look Back
9. Gruesomes - For All I Care
10. Young Rival - Another Nobody
11. David Bowie - Hang On To Yourself
12. David Bowie - Queen Bitch
13. David Bowie - Cracked Actor
14. Supergrass - Alright
15. Guitar Wolf - Invader Ace
16. The Subways - Kalifornia
17. The New Odds - Breakthrough
18. Ex-Boyfriends - Special Occasion
19. The Saints - Run Down
20. Radio Birdman - Murder City Nights
21. Velvet Underground - I Heard Her Call My Name
22. Luger Boa - Please Please
23. Talking Heads - Paper
24. The Clash - Overpowered By Funk
25. Radio 4 - Too Much To Ask For

People interested in this show may want to check the comments section.

Bowie Videos:

Hang On To Yourself (Live 1972)
Suffragette City (Live 1973)
Queen Bitch (Old Grey Whistle Test 1972)
Young Americans (Live Dick Cavatt Show 1974)
Rebel Rebel
China Girl
Golden Years
Let's Dance
David Bowie with Tin Machine - Baby Universal
I'm Affraid of Americans
Never Get Old (Live German TV 2003)
David Bowie & Lou Reed - Queen Bitch & Waiting For the Man

This is Real...The Story of The Wipers...Show # 204

The Wipers were a punk band from Portland, Oregon that began playing in 1977. The band was led by Greg Sage (vocals/guitar/main song writer), with Dave Koupaul (bass), and Sam Henry on drums. The original plan was for The Wipers to record 15 LP's (or albums) in ten years without touring or promotion. Greg Sage thought that music was more of an art form than entertainment and that it was something personal for the listener rather than a product you pay for. The band did despite this fact, play live shows. When dealing with independent labels Sage realized that being involved with them involved a great deal of compromise, distorting the original vision Sage had for the band.

Their first single was titled "Better Off Dead" and was released on Sage's own label Trap Records in 1978. The Wipers first album was titled Is This Real? and it came out in 1979. When the album was originally released on Park Avenue Records they insisted that the band record it in a professional studio; It was originally recorded on a 4-track recorder in the band's rehearsal space. The album came out sounding great, but the band did not receive royalties from the album until 2001 when it was re-released after being remastered by Sage himself. The album itself contained 12 songs. "Return of the Rat" is a raging punk song, "Mystery" a pop and punk mix, "Let's Go Away" a descending sounding track, and "D-7" a song that starts off slow and picks up with lyrics reflecting darker subjects. Other great tracks include "Is This Real?", "Tragedy", and " Up Front". The album is viewed as a punk classic now, but when it was originally released it was seen as odd and not fitting in with other styles of music being made at that time.

In 1980, The Alien Boy EP was released. The song "Alien Boy" was actually the seventh track on the bands first album Is This Real? The song was inspired lyrically by American singer/song writer James Chasse. The other three tracks on the EP were actually outtakes from Is This Real? The other tracks featured on the EP were "Image of Man", "Telepathic Love", and "Voices in the Rain". In the 80's the band also developed a large following in Europe. Many of their albums and releases were bootlegged overseas and Is This Real? was released without the bands permission under different titles. It would take them over twenty years to see any money from Is This Real?

Youth of America came next in 1981. The album would feature longer songs (the song "Youth of America" is over ten minutes). The album was also recorded, produced, and engineered by Sage himself. Featuring only six tracks, the album was seen as a departure from the bands earlier sound. It was recieved well in Europe, and not in America when it was originally released. During this time the band would also get a new drummer (Brad Naish), and bassist (Brad Davidson). Over The Edge came in 1983. This album had more of a pop influence than the bands previous efforts. It also got airplay in the USA due to the fact that the band got better distribution by signing to a new record label, Restless records. The songs "Romeo" and "Over the Edge" got quite a bit of airplay on radio station's in the US.

In 1985 came the live album Wipers Live and in 1986 Land of the Lost was released; Drummer Brad Naish would leave the group in 1985 and was replaced by Steve Plouf. Follow Blind was released in 1987, followed by The Circle in 1988. The Circle was originally intended to be the final album by The Wipers. In 1989, Sage announced that following a tour the band would stop playing together. Sage moved to Phoenix, built his own studio and would release his own solo albums. In 1991, he released his second solo album Sacrifice (For Love).  This album followed his first solo album, which was released in 1985 while Sage was still with The Wipers. It was called Straight Ahead.

In 1991, The Wipers started receiving recognition from bands of the Seattle music scene, most notably Nirvana. Kurt Cobain cited The Wipers as being a big influence on the band. Cobain asked Sage to open for them on their tours on a number of occasions, but Sage did not accept the offers. Sage gave a few reasons for not opening for Nirvana. One being that he never really liked touring, another being that he did not have a bassist to learn all the songs he wanted to play. In 1993 a Wipers tribute album was released. Fourteen Songs for Greg Sage and The Wipers featured "Return of the Rat" covered by Nirvana; Nirvana also covered the song "D-7" for a BBC Session. The Wipers also influenced the likes of Mudhoney, The Melvins, and Dinosaur Jr. The Wipers released three more albums in 1993 Silver Sail, in 1996 The Herd, and in 1999 Power in One.

In 2001 Sage released a Wipers boxset on his own newly started Zeno label. The set included the first three Wipers albums (Is This Real?, Youth of America, and Over The Edge) remastered with a plethora of bonus tracks. If you are interested in The Wipers this is the best collection to get. Several Wipers albums have been re-issued without Sage's permission, but this is the ultimate collection for early Wipers material anyway. Greg Sage is a perfect example of an independent artist who had a devout underground following, but never received the proper mainstream notoriety that he deserved. He still makes albums. In 2002, he released another solo album called Electric Medicine. For more information on the band visit The Wipers Homepage or Sage's Label Zeno Records.

Play List:

1. Generation X - Wild Youth
2. Adverts - Bored Teenagers
3. Ramones - I Just Want To Have Something To Do
4. Dishrags - I Don't Love You
5. Private School - Science Fiction
6. Female Hands - Divided By Three
7. Smugglers - Revenge
8. Vibrators - London Girls
9. Alternative TV - Action Time Vision
10. The Prefects - Things in General
11. Meat Puppets - Get On Your Own (1980 Demo)
12. Buzzcocks - Promises
13. Cardboard Brains - Out Out Out
14. Spiral Scratch - Faith
15. Demics - The 400 Blows
16. Lou Reed - I'm So Free
17. Albert Hammond Jr. - The Boss Americana
18. Albert Hammond Jr. - In My Room
19. The Wipers - Mystery
20. The Wipers - Can This Be
21. The Wipers - Over The Edge
22. The Wipers - Romeo
23. The Rapture - Notes
24. Caesars - It's Not the Fall That Hurts
25. Sloan - Cheap Champagne
26. Sloan - Down in the Basement
27. Cheap Trick - Auf Wiedersehen

Related Videos:

Over The Edge (Live 1983)
Return of the Rat

Show # 203

Play List:

1. Public Image Limited - Low Life
2. Sex Pistols - Pretty Vacant
3. Pointed Sticks - What Do You Want Me To Do
4. Diodes - Blonde Fever
5. Young Canadians - I Hate Music
6. The Government - Hemingway Hated Disco Music
7. Modernettes - Little Girls
8. Young Rival - 4:15 (Demo)
9. TV Smith's Explorers - I Live for Everything
10. Klark Kent - Don't Care
11. Big Audio Dynamite - Get it All From My TV
12. Carbon/Silicon - Caesars Palace
13. Evaporators - You Got Me Into This, Now You Get Me Out!
14. The Jolts - DXM
15. Brant Bjork - Punk Rock Guilt
16. Gang of Four - Ether
17. XTC - Respectable Street
18. Arctic Monkeys - Teddy Picker
19. Death Ramps - Nettles
20. Last Shadow Puppets - Calm Like You
21. Guided By Voices - Everywhere With Helicopter
22. The Subways - Alright
23. The Subways - Strawberry Blonde
24. Dirty Pretty Things - Tired of England
25. Dirty Pretty Things - Best Face

Don't Look Back..The Story of Them and Show # 202

Them are known for creating the garage rock staple/standard "Gloria" and for being the first band of Van Morrison. Coming from Belfast in Northern Ireland, Them originally started out as The Gamblers, playing at a R&B club in Ireland. The band contained Van Morrison (vocals/harmonica), Alan Henderson (bass), Eric Wrixton (keyboards/piano), Billy Harrison (guitar), and Ronnie Millings on drums. The band changed their names from The Gamblers to Them in 1964; The name came from a science fiction horror film titled Them.

Them would build a following playing at The Maritime Hotel. The band was known for their unique live shows. They are said to have gotten their energy from the various members on stage and the audience. Morrison would often make up lyrics and songs on the spot (that is how he came up with many songs) and play covers. The band would also sometimes do a twenty minute version of the song "Gloria", which was born on stage. When a fans recording of Them performing "Turn On Your Love Light" made it's way to Dick Rowe of Decca Records, he went to see the band live. Signing Them to Decca records, Rowe quickly put the band in the studio to start recording right away. To sign the two year contract the band members parents were required to sign and when Eric Wrixton's parents refused, he was replaced by another member. The band moved to England to correspond with their two year Decca recording contract.


Them first recorded in London, England in July of 1964. Studio musicians would be brought in for the records (a pattern that would occur through out Them's brief career). "Don't Start Cryin' Now" was the bands first single. It was released in August of 1964 and was backed with the song "One, Two, Brown Eyes". The single was not successful, so Dick Rowe and Them's band manager Phil Soloman brought in a different set of session musicians, which included the likes of Jimmy Page. The band's next single was a cover song it was "Baby Please Don't Go". This song got them an appearance on the Ready Steady Go UK TV show; The song charted at #26 in the UK. The B-side to the single was the song "Gloria", which would bring the band into the UK Singles Chart at number 10. The song charted higher when it was covered by the band Shadows of Knight.

The band's first album came out in 1965 and was titled The Angry Them. The band released their second and final album Them Again in in 1966. During this time the band also played live and had more hits in the UK with songs such as "Here Comes The Night" and in the US with "Mystic Eyes". In June of 1966, Them secured a three week residency at the Whiskey A Go Go in Los Angeles. At this time The Doors would play their first show and even perform a twenty minute version of "Gloria" together. Shorty after this in 1966, Van Morrsion broke up Them due to a dispute with the band and management over financial situations. The band would turn into the band The Belfast Gypsies and Van Morrison would go on to have a very successful solo career. Them were known for the blue print they left on rock. They used R&B and Soul influences along with rock to create a sound some would call garage rock. The bands two albums consisted of songs written by Morrison and cover songs of R&B and Soul songs.

The Play List:

1. MC5 - Call Me Animal
2. Ugly Ducklings - Nothin'
3. Marble Index - Anytime
4. Hentchmen - Psycho Daisies
5. Undertones - Teenage Kicks
6. Iggy & The Stooges - I Got A Right!
7. Them - Gloria
8. Them - You Just Can't Win
9. The Who - The Goods Gone
10. Munks - Long Time Waitin'
11. Great Scots - Ball and Chain
12. Collectors - We Can Make It
13. Ride Theory - Truce
14. Velvet Underground - Temptation Inside Your Heart
15. Golden Hands Before God - Communist Party
16. Revolvers - Shuffle
17. Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blues
18. Mint Chicks - Walking Off a Cliff Again
19. Clap Clap Riot - Thief
20. White Stripes - Bone Broke
21. Luger Boa - What is Real?
22. The Hives - I Can't Give it to You
23. Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros - Arms Aloft
24. Bob Dylan - New Morning
25. Compulsive Gamblers - Two Thieves

Hey, Bo Diddley!... The Bo Diddley Story and Show # 201

Bo Diddley was born as Ellas Otha Bates in McComb, Mississippi in 1928. He grew up with his mother's cousin and was adopted. He would adapt his name changing it to Ellas McDaniel. As a kid he took violin lessons and when moving to Chicago and hearing John Lee Hooker, he decided to take up the guitar. He would begin his guitar career playing on street corners and in 1951, he got a residency in Chicago at the 708 Club. His music was influenced by the likes of Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, and Louis Jordan. Besides being a musician Diddley also worked as a carpenter and mechanic. He Changed his name to Bo Diddley. There are three places where the name is said to have originated from. One being a southern slang "He ain't bo diddley" which means nothing at all, the other is to have been from the nick name of a boxer, and the third is from a one stringed instrument known as a diddly bow.

In 1954, Bo Diddley and a set of musicians Clifton James (drums), Roosevelt Jack (bass), Billy Boy Arnold (Harmonica) recorded demos of the songs "Bo Diddley" and "I'm A Man". They would re-record the songs with a backing section at Chess Studios and in 1955 the single "Bo Diddley/I'm A Man" was released. It went to number one on the R&B charts. Bo was known for his rhythm style which was known as the Bo Diddley Beat. The style is said to have originated from street musicians and Rhumba/Clave beat. Regardless of it's origins it has been influential on rock music since Diddley started playing it. Along with fellow Chess artist Chuck Berry, Bo and Chuck could be seen as not only the founding fathers of rock and roll, but also innovators.

The Bo Diddley beat can be heard in the songs "Hey Bo Diddley" and "Who Do You Love?". The style somewhat resembling an oncoming train sound, rarely changes notes. Bo would use a variety of styles through out his career along with his Bo Diddley beat. Bo was also known for his homemade square Gretsch guitar which he called, "The Twang Machine". In November of 1955, Bo Diddley appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show. He was asked to perform a cover song, but instead did his song "Bo Diddley". This made Ed Sullivan extremely mad who banned him from further appearances; He also said that Bo Diddley wouldn't last six months, he was wrong about that one.

He did have some minor hits with songs such as "Say Man" in 1959, and "You Can't Judge a Book By Looking at the cover" in 1962. Despite having a number one with "Bo Diddley" he did not do well commercially. He recorded at total of eleven full length albums for Checker (a sub-label of Chess). Bo also had interesting album titles such as Have Guitar, Will Travel (1959), Bo Diddley's a Gunslinger (1961), and Bo Diddley's Twister (1962). As the 60's came Bo's influence came through in the new form of rock. Bands such as The Rolling Stones, The Pretty Things, The Yardbirds, and The Animals. "Bo Diddley" was actually covered by Buddy Holly and when the Rolling Stones covered Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away", they gave it a Bo Diddley rhythm.

In 1963, he toured in the UK with The Everly Brothers, Little Richard and Rolling Stones. In 1979, he opened for The Clash on their tour. He would continue playing live and recording off and on through out his career. In 1987, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in 1983 he appeared in the film Trading Places, and starred in a series of Nike commercials with Bo Jackson. In the 70's he also spent some time in New Mexico where he worked as a Deputy Sheriff, he then moved to Archer, Florida.

On June 2nd, 2008 Bo Diddley passed away due to heart failure, he was 79. He left a large lasting effect on the world of rock music. His music has been covered by and influenced by many musicians. He was influential on the early punk scene by bands such as New York Dolls and The Clash, who covered a few Diddley songs during the London Calling Sessions. He was also influential to the likes of Elvis Presley, Rolling Stones, David Bowie, The Clash, The Pretenders, The Supremes, to The White Stripes.

The Play LIst:

1. Bo Diddley - Hey, Bo Diddley!
2. Bo Diddley - I Can Tell
3. Bo Diddley - You Can't Judge a Book By Looking at the Cover
4. Buffalo Springfield - Mr. Soul
5. Gruesomes - Get Outta My Hair
6. Faud and the Feztones - Cool Bird
7. The Diodes - Terminal Rock
8. Extroverts - Living in Poverty
9. Hot Nasites - Get Away From Me
10. Futureheads - Radio Heart
11. The Smiths - London
12. The Police - Truth Hits Everybody
13. Wire - Outdoor Miner
14. Black Lips - O Katrina!
15. Raconteurs - Top Yourself
16. Awesome Color - Already Down
17. Luger Boa - 1000 Hooks
18. Valedictions - Hey Lady
19. Mudhoney - I'm Now
20. Supergrass - Caught By the Fuzz
21. Sloan - Emergency 911
22. Sloan - I'm Not a Kid Anymore
23. Dirty Pretty Things - Tired of England
24. Ramones - Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment
25. Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Lowest Common Denominator
26. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Senior Service
27. The Clash - Koka Kola

Bo Videos:

Hey, Bo Diddley & Bo Diddley
You Can't Judge A Book By It's Cover
Road Runner/Mona (Live 1972)
I"m A Man (Live)
Road Runner/Bring It To Jerome/Mona (Live Whembly Stadium 1972)

The Auckland Four... The Complete D4 Story and Show # 200

The early 2000's garage rock revival spawned the likes of The Hives, The Vines, and The Strokes but The D4 were quickly dismissed as another garage rock band. The truth is the band contained elements of garage rock, but also 70's punk, soul, and classic rock; they also come from Auckland, New Zealand. Forming at a party in 1998, guitarists and lead vocalists Jimmy Christmas and Dion Palmer formed the group with other members Rich Mixture (drums), and English Jake on bass; Dion was previously in a band called Nothing At All. Drummer Rich Mixture would leave shortly after the bands first album to pursue a taxidermy career (then joining the band The Rock N' Roll machine) and English Jake left. The band would get Vaughan Williams on bass and Daniel Pooley on drums; They would just be known as Vaughan and Beaver.

In a Rolling Stone magazine interview Dion admitted the band got their name from a brothel that advertised in Auckland. "D1 was a massage, D2 was a hand job, D3 was fellatio and D4 was going all the way." In the same interview the band described their sound as this "some people call us garage rock, but we sound more like meat, glass and tires in a blender." The band started out playing around New Zealand building up a fan base and reputation for their live shows. Their shows were high quality and intensely fueled rock and roll. In 1999, The band released The D4 EP. Containing four tracks, the EP would also contain one of the bands best tracks "Come On!". The EP was a quick hard rocking, energetic EP leaving you wanting to hear more. "Girl", "Come On!", "Outta Blues" and "What U Want" were the tracks and it was released on the New Zealand label Flying Nun. In 2000, the band went on their first overseas tour to Australia and Japan; The tours were self funded.


The band then began work on their debut album 6Twenty. The album would be named after an old fashioned type of JansZen guitar amplifier. Recorded in New Zealand at Frisbee Studios, the album was engineered by Andrew Buckton, Co-Produced by Bob Frisbee, and The D4. It was released in October of 2001 in New Zealand. The rest of the world would see the album in 2002/2003 in the US (on Hollywood Records), in the UK on Infectious Records, and on Sony Music in Japan. 6Twenty starts off with the song "Rock and Roll Motherfucker" and it blares all the way to the end with the volume up all the way. Other great tracks include the punk influenced "Get Loose", the drum manic "Party", the flowing "Exit to the City", the crunchy "Ladies Man", and the descending "Little Baby".

The album also featured three cover songs, "Pirate Love" originally by Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers, "Mysterex" originally by New Zealand punkers The Scavengers, and "Invader Ace" originally by Guitar Wolf; The band did them justice. Containing 12 tracks the album was a declaration of rock with the spirit of punk, sounding like an explosion; The US release contained 14 tracks, while the Japanese 2003 release contained 17 tracks.

The band spent about two years touring to support 6Twenty. They even played on late night talk shows David Letterman, Last Call with Carson Daily, and the Jimmy Kimmel Show. They also played a variety of festivals such as Reading, Leeds, Pukklepop, Big Day Out, and the South By Southwest Festival. The band would begin working on songs for their second full length album in 2004. Initially Jimmy Christmas and Dion Palmer went to Thailand and to different locations in New Zealand to work on songs. They came up with about 40 songs, but most of them weren't used. They weren't happy with the material. The band was dealing with producers and record companies as well so they had their work cut out for themselves. They decided in February of 2004 to go to England to work on their next album and get away from all the distractions at home. The band moved in together, sharing a flat and worked on songs.


A large majority of Out of My Head was recorded at two studios in London. They also used two studios in Auckland and Sing Sing Studios in Melbourne, Australia. The band also had a variety of producers The Dirty Geezers, Alan Moulder (Nine Inch Nails), and The D4 themselves produced one track on the album, "Stops Me Cold". The different locations and producers came at the recommendation of their manager Alan McGee (responsible for finding Oasis, and The Hives). The band was asked to play at Little Steven's Underground Garage Festival in August of 2004.

In 2005, Out of My Head was released. The album came off sounding a little different than 6Twenty. All of the songs on the album were recorded in live takes to give the band and the album more of a live feel. The band expanded their song writing and lyrical abilities on Out of My Head. The album opens with the fast and twisting "Sake Bomb" before being thrown into the next song "Feel It Like It", which is a song featuring a lot of bass work and short stabbing guitar parts. Other great tracks include the D4 anthem "What I Want", the punk induced "Trust Nobody", the Maraca shaking "Omerta", the slow stalker anthem "Stops Me Cold", and the fast and creepy "Peepshow". The album came out as a limited edition which included three bonus tracks. These songs were a Japanese sung version of "Sake Bomb", "Rock N' Rule", and the dirty Stooges flavoured "Diamond, Ruby, Stone".


Like the first album, the band included cover songs on Out of My Head. The band covered Australia's Lime Spiders on "Out of Control", and the Fun Things with "Savage". After touring for a little bit, The D4 announced that they were going on an indefinite hiatus in June of 2006. They played their last show on June 9th of 2006 in Auckland, New Zealand. The band released this statement about the split :

"They are leaving the book open, but have no foreseeable plans for The D4 in the future and would all like to try other things, musically and otherwise. The band would like everybody who has worked with them and their fans to know that they have had the time of their lives being in this group and done so many amazing things, but at this point in time need to explore other avenues. Thank you all for being part of such an incredible trip."

Even though the band did not break it that big in terms of mainstream status, The D4 has toured with the likes of Oasis, Foo Fighters, and The Hives. Currently Jimmy Christmas has formed a new group called Luger Boa, Vaughan plays bass with The Shocking Pinks, Beaver moved to the UK and currently drums for the Valedictions, and Dion currently plays with his new band The True Lovers. What ever you want to call the band, The D4 were a great, honest, in your face rock band. They were straight to the point, played for the love of music, and rocked out like any band should with high energy and passion. I urge you all to check them out and the various musical projects that they are currently involved with.

D4 Play List:

1. Come On! (6Twenty 2001)
2. Sake Bomb (Out of My Head 2005)
3. Girl (The D4 EP 1999)
4. Party (6Twenty 2001)
5. Ladies Man (6Twenty 2001)
6. Invader Ace (6Twenty 2001)
7. What U Want (The D4 EP 1999)
8. Out of My Head (Out of My Head 2005)
9. Trust Nobody (Out of My Head 2005)
10. Out of Control (Out of My Head 2005)
11. Pirate Love (6Twenty 2001)
12. Running On Empty (6Twenty 2001)
13. Little Baby (6Twenty 2001)
14. Stops Me Cold (Out of My Head 2005)
15. Feel It Like It (Out of My Head 2005)
16. What I Want (Out of My Head 2005)
17. Omerta (Out of My Head 2005)
18. Exit To The City (6Twenty 2001)
19. Rock and Roll Motherfucker (6Twenty 2001)
20. Mysterex (6Twenty 2001)
21. Get Loose (6Twenty 2001)
22. North Shore Bitch (6Twenty B-side 2003)
23. Joe Orton's Wedding (6Twenty B-side 2003)
24. Peepshow (Out of My Head 2005)
25. Savage (Out of My Head 2005)
26. Diamond, Ruby, Stone (What I Want B-side 2005)
27. Evil Heart (Final Song released by The D4 2006)

I have tried to assemble the most complete history of the band since most of the info on them is scarce. Their home webpage is no longer active. I have also included some relevant links with good information on the band.

The D4 link round up:

Amplifier D4 Timeline
Rolling Stone Magazine Article
Sake Bombers : NZ Magazine Article
Launch Interview
My Previous Post on The D4 (not as complete as this post)

D4 Videos:

Party
Get Loose
Exit To The City
Sake Bomb
What I Want
Feel It Like It
Out of Control
Invader Ace (Live Yahoo Exclusive)
Yahoo Exclusive Interview

Other D4 related links:

The D4 Myspace
Luger Boa Myspace
The True Lovers Myspace
The Shocking Pinks Myspace
Valedictions Myspace
D4 Party Fan Site (No Longer Updated)

Harmonies in My Head: Buzzcocks Special...Show # 199

This week I did a show of all Buzzcocks songs. It was a mix of songs from some of my favourite albums by the band (mostly early ones). I already have done an extensive band history on the band. You can read that by clicking this link. Recently the band released 30. The album is a live CD containing 28 tracks, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the band. Here's an interesting and Newer Interview with Pete Shelley.


Next week will be my 200th show. The show will focus on the music of the New Zealand band The D4.


In other news, The Green Man Music Festival which is in the UK from August 15th-18th, 2008 is looking for music lovers to help pick a band to open the festival. The festival is looking for the public to vote on the band that they want to see open the festival by voting using something called the green poll.

This is how it works:

- Bands register for Green Poll on their site
http://www.thegreenmanfestival.co.uk/greenpoll
- The public vote for the bands they like and get a chance to win a pair of tickets
- Band with most votes plays Green Man attended by 10,000 people and they also get 6 extra tickets

Anybody can enter Green Poll signed or unsigned. There's tickets to be won, and new bands to discover. This is a cool opportunity to choose who you'd like to hear open the festival if you are in the area. The festival includes the likes of Super Furry Animals and more.

The Play List:

1. Breakdown (Spiral Scratch 1976)
2. Boredom (Spiral Scratch 1976)
3. Lester Sands (A Drop in the Ocean) (Time's Up 1977)
4. I Can't Control Myself (Time's Up 1977)
5. Orgasm Addict (Singles Going Steady 1979)
6. What Do I Get? (Singles Going Steady 1979)
7. Fast Cars (Another Music in a Different Kitchen 1978)
8. Sixteen (Another Music in a Different Kitchen 1978)
9. I Don't Mind (Another Music in a Different Kitchen 1978)
10. Autonomy (Another Music in a Different Kitchen 1978)
11. Moving Away From the Pulsebeat (Another Music in a Different Kitchen 1978)
12. Love You More (Singles Going Steady 1979)
13. Promises (Singles Going Steady 1979)
14. Real World (Love Bites 1978)
15. Ever Fallen in Love (Love Bites 1978)
16. Sixteen Again (Love Bites 1978)
17. E.S.P (Love Bites 1978)
18. Everybody's Happy Nowadays (Singles Going Steady 1979)
19. Harmony in My Head (Singles Going Steady 1979)
20. Paradise (A Different Kind of Tension 1979)
21. Sitting Round At Home (A Different Kind of Tension 1979)
22. Raison D'etre (A Different Kind of Tension 1979)
23. I Don't Know What To Do With My Life (A Different Kind of Tension 1979)
24. What Do You Know? (Parts 1,2,3 1981)
25. I Look Alone (NME : C81 Compilation 1981)
26. Flat-Pack Philosophy (Flat-Pack Philosophy 2006)
27. Sell You Everything (Flat-Pack Philosophy 2006)
28. Reconciliation (Flat-Pack Philosophy 2006)

Drivin'...The Kinks Story Part Two...Show # 198

In 1969, The Kinks released King Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire). Originally Ray Davies conceived this concept to be a soundtrack to a TV play. The play was cancelled and the Kinks recorded the album. The story of the album was based on the life of Ray Davies real life brother-in-law who moved to Australia named, Arthur. The album was also the album in which Peter Quaife left the band (he was one of the original founding members), he was replaced by John Dalton. The album was moderately successful in the US, the band who was on a four year US ban starting visiting the states and getting more notice (the ban was over in 1969).

The album King Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) contained alot of great songs. The starting track, "Victoria" is an upbeat excellent track. The drum work is simply amazing. The song itself did not chart in the US, but it did in Sweden and Canada. Other great tracks include "Brainwashed", "Australia", and "Shangri-La". When the album was re-issued on CD it contained bonus tracks. One of them being the song "King Kong" which is a rocking almost White Stripes sounding song. The album is also constantly being compared to The Who's Tommy. Tommy also is a concept album, the band was influenced by The Kinks. The truth is Dave Davies was friends with Pete Townshed, and the two bands both made a concept album; It doesn't really matter who did it first because both albums are great.

After adding John Gosling on keyboards, The Kinks recorded Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneyground Part One in 1970. The album was taking a look at the music industry, poking fun at it. The album also contained the hit "Lola", which was a huge hit all over the world for the band. "Apeman" also cracked the top ten in the UK. In 1971, Percy was released. The album was a collection of instrumental and non instrumental Kinks songs that was written for the British comedy film Percy. The album is seen as not as great as the bands other albums by critics. It was not released in America.

In 1971, the bands previous contracts expired and they signed to RCA. Muswell Hillbillies came next in 1971. The album was the first album recorded in the bands own studio titled Konk studios. The album was named after Muswell Hill in London where the Davies brothers grew up. The album is more acoustic than the bands previous albums. It contained elements of country, blues, and music hall. Despite the fact that the album wasn't successful commercially many regard the album as an example of Ray Davies best work.

Everybody's In Show-Biz came out in 1972 and it was a double album. The first disc is studio recordings, while the other is a live compilation of the bands two night stay at Carnegie Hall. The album also showed a shift in the musical stylings of Ray Davies. He was progressing towards a more theatrical, operatic style. These would be expressed in the bands next four albums Preservation Act 1, Preservation Act 2, Soap Opera, and Schoolboys in Disgrace.

The band would continue their career into the 90's; In the 80's the band achieved more success in the US. In 1995, X-Ray was released it was an autobiography written by Ray Davies, and in 1996 Dave Davies released Kink his own autobiography. Ray and Dave have since had solo careers. In 1990, The Kinks were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2005, inducted into UK Music Hall of Fame.

The Kinks were a band that were lumped into the British invasion of the 60s, that included the likes of The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, and The Who. Despite the fact that they didn't do as well in the US as the UK, the band is an influential group that has influenced the likes of The Who, The Clash, The Jam, Richard Hell, Buzzcocks, The Knack, The Pretenders, Oasis, Blur, Libertines, and Franz Ferdinand. The Kinks created a different kind of platform for creating music that is still relevant today as it was back in the 60's. Recently rumours have been flying on whether or not The Kinks will do a reunion tour, but it is not known whether this will happen or not. In December of 2008, The Kinks released a 6 CD box set. It contains a 60 page booklet, demos, outtakes, and previously unheard material. The box set is titled Picture Book.

To see part one of my kinks history click Here. Also if you are looking for further Kinks information, the best site to go to is Dave Emlen's Unofficial Kinks Web Site. Next week I will be doing a show on the UK punk band Buzzcocks.

Kinky Play List:

1. Party Line (Face to Face 1966)
2. Got My Feet on the Ground (Kinda Kinks 1965)
3. Dancing in the Street (Kinda Kinks 1965)
4. Rosie won't You Please Come Home (Face to Face 1966)
5. Sunny Afternoon (Face to Face 1966)
6. I Need You (B-Side of Set Me Free 1965)
7. Come on Now (Kinda Kinks 1965)
8. You Shouldn't Be Sad (Kinda Kinks 1965)
9. Never Met a Girl Like You Before (Kinda Kinks 1965)
10. Situation Vacant (Something Else 1967)
11. Till the End of the Day (Kink Kontroversy 1965)
12. She's Got Everything (B-Side of Days 1968)
13. Harry Rag (Something Else 1967)
14. Dedicated Follower of Fashion (Single 1966)
15. Susannah's Still Alive (Single 1968)
16. This Strange Effect (BBC Session 1965)
17. Days (Single 1968)
18. Shangri-La (Arthur 1969)
19. Waterloo Sunset (Something Else 1967)
20. Love Me Till the Sun Shines (B-Side of Death of A Clown 1967)
21. Where Have All the Good Times Gone (Kink Kontroversy 1965)
22. Dead End street (Single 1966)
23. Everybody's Gonna Be Happy (Single 1965)
24. Victoria (Arthur 1969)
25. Brainwashed (Arthur 1969)
26. King Kong (Arthur 1969)
27. Starstruck (Village Green 1968)
28. I'm Not Like Everybody Else (Sunny Afternoon B-Side 1966)

Kinks Videos:

Victoria (Live 1979)
Days
A Well Respected Man
The VIllage Green Preservation Society
Commerical featuring I'm Not LIke Everybody Else

Waiting For the Real Thing... Pointed Sticks Story and Show # 197

The Pointed Sticks are a Canadian punk/power pop band that came from Vancouver in Canada. Forming in 1978, the band named themselves after a Monty Python sketch. The band was a mix of punk and pop and only lasted until 1981. They were the first Canadian band signed to stiff records, but the label never released an album by the band just a few singles. After releasing four singles, the band released their only full length album during their first incarnation, it was titled Perfect Youth. Coming out in 1980, the album was produced by Bob Rock (later of Metallica producing fame) and contained twelve tracks.

The band consisted of Nick Jones (vocals), Tony Bardach (bass), Bill Naper-Hemy (guitar), and Ian Tiles on drums. The line up would switch up a bit when Scott Watson went on bass and Tiles was replaced by Robert Bruce. They would also get a keyboard player named Gord Nicholl who was from another Canadian band called Active Dog; Bruce (also from Active Dog) would also be replaced by Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery on drums.

In 1995, the band released the Part Of The Noise Compilation. The album was a mix of unreleased songs and songs from their previous releases, serving as a greatest hits of sorts. In 2005, Sudden Death Records re-issued the bands Perfect Youth album and released the live bootleg Waiting For the Real Thing. All of the re-issues contained bonus tracks, but Waiting For the Real Thing serves in my opinion as the best release by the band. It is an energetic and exciting album and its loaded with songs, 24 of them.

In 1980, the band was featured in Dennis Hopper's movie Out of the Blue. In 2006, the band reunited for a series of shows in Japan, and in tours in Canada and the US in 2006 and early 2007. The band has plans to tour and record again. For more info on the band you can visit their official website. Next week I will continue counting down to my 200th show by doing a show focusing on the band The Kinks. Leave requests in the comments section if there's anything you'd like to hear.

The Play List:

1. What Do You Want Me To Do? (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
2. Somebody's Mom (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
3. Real Thing (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
4. Marching Song (Perfect Youth 1980)
5. Perfect Youth (Perfect Youth 1980)
6. American Song (Perfect Youth 1980)
7. Must Be Crazy (Part of the Noise 1995)
8. Nothing Else To Do (Part of the Noise 1995)
9. Shape of Things To Come (Part of the Noise 1995)
10. Man of the Crowd (Part of the Noise 1995)
11. Careless (1980 Demo)
12. Middle Aged Teenagers (1980 Demo)
13. When She's Alone (Perfect Youth 1980)
14. True Love (Perfect Youth 1980)
15. 1-2 (Perfect Youth 1980)
16. The Witch (Perfect Youth 1980)
17. Out of Luck (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
18. Lies (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
19. I'm Numb (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
20. It's O.K. (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
21. Apologies (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
22. New Ways (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
23. All That Matters (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
24. The Witch (Waiting For the Real Thing 2005)
25. Part of the Noise (Perfect Youth 1980)
26. Somebody's Mom (Single Version) (Perfect Youth 1980)
27. Way You Do (Perfect Youth 1980)
28. My Japanese Fan (7" Single 2007)

Pointed Videos:

Lies
Out of Luck/Somebody's Mom (From Out of the Blue 1980)

Let's Shake...Show # 196

This week was the first show as part of my 200th show count down (starting this week I will be doing a series of shows foucusing on a different band until i reach my 200th show). Recently Teenage Head released a new album this April comprised of re-recorded versions of their old songs with Marky Ramone from Ramones on drums. Teenage Head with Marky Ramone, as the album is called was released on Sonic Unyon Recordings. Produced by Daniel Rey (who has worked with Ramones) captured the Teenage Head with Marky Ramone sound on the 12 tracks featured in this collection. The album contains loud and energetic versions of Teenage Head songs ranging from their first 1979 self titled album (6 tracks), Some Kinda Fun (1980) (2 tracks), Frantic City (1982) (1 track), Head Disorder (1998) (1 track), and two tracks from 1988's Electric Guitar. 

For a more concise history of Teenage Head you can visit this post I did in 2007. Next week I will be doing a show on the Vancouver Canadian punk band Pointed Sticks. If you have a request for next weeks show feel free to leave a comment. 

 The Play List: 

1. Little Boxes (Teenage Head 1979) 

2. Get Off My Back (Teenage Head 1979) 

3. Top Down (Teenage Head 1979) 

4. Ain't Got No Sense (Teenage Head 1979) 

5. Picture My Face (Teenage Head 1979) 

6. You're Tearin' Me Apart (Teenage Head 1979) 

7. Total Love (Frantic City 1980) 

8. Infected (Frantic City 1980) 

9. Disgusteen (Frantic City 1980) 

10. Let's Shake (Frantic City 1980) 

11. Somethin' Else (Frantic City 1980) 

12. Let's Go To Hawaii (Some Kinda Fun 1981) 

13. Want You To Know (Some Kinda Fun 1981) 

14. Teenage Beer Drinkin' Party (Some Kinda Fun 1981) 

15. Some Kinda Fun(Some Kinda Fun 1981) 

16. Fist To Face (some Kinda Fun 1981) 

17. Wild One (Live 1978) 

18. Lucy Potato (Alternate Version) 

19. Disgusteen (Alternate Version) 

20. First Time (Teenage Head With Marky Ramone 2008) 

21. Full Time Fool (Teenage Head With Marky Ramone 2008) 

22. You're Tearin' Me Apart (Teenage Head With Marky Ramone 2008) 

23. You're The One I'm Crazy For (Teenage Head With Marky Ramone 2008) 

24. Little Boxes (Teenage Head With Marky Ramone 2008)

Neil Young Annouces Archive Project...Show # 195

Neil Young announced this week that he will finally be releasing his much anticipated Chronicles/Archives project. He is planning on releasing a 10 disc set on Blu-Ray disc only. This archive project has been in the works for many, many years (since the 80's). Young said that he wants this to be released on Blu-Ray so that listeners will also have visuals as they listen to the music. The 10 disc set is said to be comprised of unreleased Neil Young material ranging from 1963-1972. For more information on this release visit:

Neil Young rocks Java One
Neil Young to release Blu-Ray Archive
Billboard

In other news Revolution Rock is quickly approaching its 200th show. To celebrate this I will be doing a series of specialty shows focusing on certain bands. The shows will be on the bands Teenage Head, Pointed Sticks, Buzzcocks, The Kinks, and The D4. Next week will be a show focusing on the Canadian band Teenage Head. If you have any requests for Teenage Head or any of the above mentioned bands, leave a comment and I will play them on the corresponding shows.

Songs Played:

1. Beastie Boys - Remote Control
2. Big Audio Dynamite - Contact
3. Undertones - Here Comes The Summer
4. The Shades - New Clientele
5. The Jam - Set the House Ablaze
6. Locusts Have No King - Trench Song
7. Lou Reed - Hangin' Round
8. The Cigarettes - They're Back Again, Here They Come
9. The Strokes - You Only Live Once
10. Demics - New York City
11. LI 150's - Destiny
12. Gruesomes - Hey
13. Spiral Scratch - England's Burning, 81
14. Talking Heads - Who Is It? (1975 CBS Demo)
15. XTC - Statue of Liberty
16. Iggy Pop - Five Foot One
17. Magazine - Boredom (BBC Session)
18. Joe Strummer - Slant Six
19. The Saints - Church of Indifference
20. Richard Hell & The Voidoids - I Can Only Give You Everything
21. Bob Dylan - One More Weekend
22. Bob Dylan - I Wanna Be Your Lover
23. Neil Young - Song X

Young Videos:

Blu-Ray Archive Preview
Don't Let It Bring You Down (Live 1971 BBC Studios)
Mr.Soul (Live)

One Way Ticket...the Nerves Story and Show # 194

The Nerves formed in LA in 1976. the group consisted of Peter Case (bass), Jack Lee (guitar), and Paul collins on drums; all three wrote and sang the songs. The band did not last long (1975-1978) and only ever had one release during their time, an EP. The Nerves EP came out in 1976 and only contained four songs, the most notable one being "Hanging On the Telephone". A Lee composition the song was covered later by Blonde for their album Paralell Lines and became a big hit for Blondie cracking the UK top 5 in 1978. The other songs on the EP were equally as good "When You Find Out" (Case), "Give Me Some Time" (Lee), and "Working Too Hard" (Collins).

The band did do a tour and even supported the likes of the Ramones. The band was only around for a short period of time, but are still known (probably due to the excellent cover done by Blondie) and are classified as a power pop band, despite being around at the time of punk. After the Nerves broke up Case and Collins formed the short lived group The Breakaways, then the Plimsouls, and finally The Beat. In 1993, two songs from The Nerves EP were put on a compilation DIY: Come Out and Play - American Power Pop I (1975-1978). In 2005, an unreleased Nerves track was put on a compilation by Rhino Records called Children of Nuggets. In 2001, The Nerves released a compilation containing more previously unheard tracks.

Play List:

1. The Specials - Gangsters
2. The Slackers - Estranged
3. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
4. Elvis Costello & the Attractions - The Beat
5. Strokes - What Ever Happened?
6. Young Canadians - I Hate Music
7. Evaporators - Where's The Butterknife?
8. Modernettes - Celebrity Crackup
9. Unknowns - Teenage Terrorist
10. The Negatives - Echoes
11. The Scabs - Amory Building
12. Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - All By Myself
13. The Nerves - Hanging on the telephone
14. Diodes - Tennis (Again)
15. The Breeders - It's The Love
16. The Old Haunts - Sister City
17. The Black Lips - M.I.A.
18. Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely
19. Compulsive Gamblers - Stop & Think it Over
20. Sloan - I Can't Sleep
21. Sloan - Ana Lucia
22. Queens Of The Stone Age - Infinity
23. David Bowie - Panic in Detroit
24. Ramones - Bad Brain
25. The Clash - The Leader
26. The Clash - Up in Heaven (Not Only Here)

Here Are The Sonics...The Sonics Story and Show # 193

The Sonics had their beginnings in the early 1960s and were from Tacoma, Washington. The band known for its raw driving garage fueled sound first got its initial start as part of other local bands. After going through some line up changes the classic line-up of The Sonics formed around 1963/64. The classic line up was Gerry Rosalie (Lead vocals), Larry Parypa (Lead Guitar/vocals), Andy Parypa (Bass), Bob Bennett (Drums), and Rob Lind on Saxophone. The bands sound can be described as R & B influenced, but also they took some of their influence from bands such as The Kingsmen, The Kinks, and The Wailers. Gerry Rosalie's vocal style has often been described as a white Little Richard. The band was quite influential on any band in the Seattle area, they were known for their energetic live shows. In 1964 the band released their first single which was the song titled "The Witch". The single was very popular with the local fan base and was one of the biggest selling singles in the Northwest; The song contained controversial lyrical subject matter (as are a majority of their original songs). The song was also considered quite strange by others compared to what was coming out musically at the time.

In 1965, The Sonics started recording their first album with recording engineer Kenny Barton. It would be titled Here Are The Sonics. Recorded in Seattle, Washington the album is known for employing different recording techniques which resulted in the bands unique sound. For the drums the band used only one microphone to capture their sound (usually when recording drum sounds bands use at least three or more mics). The actual album contains many of the bands well known songs which lyrically were very different with subject matter ranging from drinking strychnine in ("Strychnine"), to witches ("The Witch"), and psychopaths ("Psycho"). This was contrasted with more light-hearted subject matter dealing with 60s culture such as girls, surfing, cars, and guitars. The album also contains some cover songs by Chuck Berry and Little Richard as well as other originals that are equally as great such as "Boss Hoss".

The next album would be titled Boom and would come out in 1966. For this album the band reportedly ripped out the sound proofing of the studio they were recording in to give it more of a live sound. Many Sonics fans choose Boom as their favourite album, but the first and second albums are both very good. This time the band came in with more unique original songs such as "He's Waitin'", "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark", and "The Hustler". The album was also balanced out with some covers of R&B classics such as "Louie, Louie", "Hitch Hike", Skinny Minnie", and "Let the Good Times Roll". After this album the band would go to another label (Jerden Records) and go to Hollywood to record yet another album, this time with a more polished, cleaner sound.

Introducing The Sonics came out in 1967, and did poorly. Because of its more conventional sound, it did not do as well; The band would later denounce this album calling it "The Worst Garbage'. After this the band was essentially over and in 1968, the band dissolved. Members of the band would go on to other bands or to school to lead more conventional lives. The Sonics would briefly fade into obscurity. The band reformed in 1972 for one live show and in 2007 the band reunited for the Cavestomp Garage rock festival. The Sonics are currently still together and in 2008, recorded a radio session for BBC 2. The Sonics have been influential on numerous bands, being known as unique garage rockers. The band has influenced the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Eagles of Death Metal, The Dead Boys, The Fall, The D4 and others. They are known for their raunchy, raw, garage rock, punk influencing sound.

The Play List:

1. Buzzcocks - No Reply
2. Sex Pistols - New York
3. Teenage Head - Picture My Face (With Marky Ramone)
4. Gruesomes - You Said Yeah
5. Munks - Long Time Waiting
6. Haunted - Eight O'Clock
7. Painted Ships - And She Said
8. Hammersmith Gorillas - My Son's Alive
9. Standells - Riot on the Sunset Strip
10. Pretty Things - Buzz the Jerk
11. Sonics - Strychnine
12. 13th Floor Elevators - Reverberation
13. Velvet Underground - What Goes On
14. MC5 - Looking At You
15. Modern Lovers - Modern World
16. Stooges - Shake Appeal
17. Generation X - Night of the Cadillacs
18. The Saints - Nights in Venice
19. Ride Theory - Alright
20. Young Rival - Authentic Child
21. Tokyo Police Club - In A Cave
22. Young Knives - Up All Night
23. Only Ones - City of Fun
24. The D4 - Omerta
25. The D4 - Trust Nobody
25. Dirty Pretty Things - You Fucking Love it