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