Mid-Sixties Garage Punk Screamers!
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984 |
TAMRONS- “Wild-Man”
Twangin’ this LP off to a jolt via a “Twilight Zone” riff comes this way cool tale of a teenage terror whose hormones go berserk for the babe next door, much to the dislike o’ her square pop and the entire adult population of Concord, North Carolina, where the Tamrons were born out o’ the ashes o’ two junior- high bands called the KINGS and the NIGHT RAIDERS (from which sprang the HUNS, to be heard on SIDE TWO!).
Local teen clubs like the Green Dragon and the Brass Bottle, school dances, Jack’s Dairy Bar & Grill, battles-of-the-bands and gas-station openings were the sites of MANY a wild show by the mighty Tamrons. They also played on a TV telethon in Wilmington and musta shocked the squares expectin’ a Larry Welk bill o’ fare!
The extra-productive Arthur Smith Studios in Charlotte was responsible for a whole slew o’ ultra hep teen punk bands of the N/S Carolina, ‘cludin this mofo.
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
CYCLONES- “She’s No Good”
Great Stonesy stomp from this ace St. Mary’s PA foursome, who got together as JOHNNY & THE CYCLONES in 1964, using Johnny & the Hurricanes as their moniker inspiration. John Chambers (gtr) & Rick Hampton (bass) founded the combo and along w/ a rhythm guitarist, Victor St. John, and & drummer, began gigging in clubs along the PA/NY border.
In August of ’65 the foursome split in half, Rick & John keeping the moniker and adding their pal Spike Walters on drums. It was this trio that cut this most swangin’ Stones-like track that yer diggin’ here, in March 1966. The guys called it quits for the usual reasons in late ’66.
FABS- “Dinah Wants Religion”
The poundin’ flip to “That’s The Bag I’m In” (GRAVENr 1). Fullerton, California – NOT TEXAS – is to thank fer the FABS: The group started in ’65 and were “discovered” by drummer Bob Ellis’ mom’s boss, who owned a bunch of hair salons and a make-up line.
A business pal of hers from Dallas liked ’em too, and said “You guys wanna release a disc?” – to which the Fabs heartily replied, “YASSS!”. So they cannibalized a folk song (“The Bag . . . “) & “arranged” this hot tune from a sing-song poem that doesn’t really mean anything.
The guy in Texas released it on COTTONBALL RECORDS with a Dallas address (confusin’ the hell outta punk nuts), and it was released for airplay in test areas in the Southwest. It got a little local airplay in Fullerton and the Fabs started getting lotta shows, at places like “The Salty Cellar” in Huntington Beach, “Marine Palace”, the Anaheim Bowl, the Danny Kaye TV Show, and in the KRLA radio Halloween Freak-Off opening for the Seeds, Rain, and Davie Allan & The Arrows. They also played in several band battles with the brutally primitive SLOTHS, heard on SIDE TWO
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
RED BEARD & THE PIRATES – “Go On Leave”
This savage slapper turns the tables on a naggin’ gal who figgers her boypal will wimper and sob for forgiveness when she threatens to split, but his reply: “GOON, LEAVE!!!” Hee Hee Heeeee! Sensitivity Training, this is not . . . From Atlanta, Georgia on GAYE records, home o’ Little Phil & The Night Shadows, the Mondells & the Blades.
HALLMARKS – “I Know Why”
A REAL DEAL fer ya – Here’s an UNRELEASED gem (Thanks to Mrs Falcone!) from the sleepy state o’ New Jersey, where there was NEVER much in the way o’ wildness as far as surf/rockabilly/punk 45s released, prob’ly due to the crushing impact of ho-hum do-wop and Big Apple sophisticato (I mean, face it: WHAT THE FUCK do people make such a fuss outta the Velvet’s about, when there were so many goddamned SAVAGE, NOISY, SCREACH-ASS truly “PUNK-ROCK” bands ALL across America makin’ PRIMAL boom that didn’t utilize square instruments such as CELLOS, F’rchrissake?!).
Anyhoo, this is from a ’66 acetate-only demo by an Ocean Port, NJ group who didn’t see their recording make it on to vinyl until ’67, when it was destroyed with a lot of “groovy” shit, like backward sound effects, psychedelic voice phasing, etc – as “Soul Shakin’ Psychedelic Sally” on SMASH records. Well, psychedelia ain’t what Crypt is about, so dig this snotty girl-killer from the summer of HATE!
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
SONICS – “Santa Claus”
Yep, THEM Sonics – those LOUD, GUT-WRENCHIN’ GODS o’ de Northwest Howl! This here’s a cut from the “Merry Christmas” LP o’ various Etiquette label-mates, and in typical Sonics’ thug-mode, they’re demandin’ girls & guitars from ole St Nick!
ROCKY & THE RIDDLERS -“Flash And Crash”
This bone-crunchin’ Seattle mofo has the punch o’ de Sonia, which makes sense seein’s how ’twas the work of Jerry Dennon, the man who took over the Sonics after they moved to Jerden from Etiquette for their 3rd LP. This was Rocky & Co’s second 45, a follow-up to their first mayhem: “Riot City” – a wild-ass instrumental.
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
TONTO & THE RENEGADES -“Little Boy Blue”
Real sharp teen garage from Lansing, Michigan, home of a lotta cool punk outfits, such as the BEAUX GENS (dig their INTENSE tearjerker “She Was Mine” on GRAVE Nr 6). Tonto & Co played frequently at a teen club called THE SCEEN, and the club-owner issued this 45 of theirs on the club’s SOUND OF THE SCEEN record label, with the ballad b-side making it as a local radio hit.
(By the way, when I say LOCAL – this MEANS local: some folks actually believe the 60s were some real cool era where ya got to hear garage-band punk on the RADIO: WRONG! The radio was just about as LAME as ever, with the big-names and big-labels gettin’ non-stop airplay and NONE of the small-time joes of the REAL UNDERGROUND had a chance at a “hit”.
Dick Wagner
LOCAL meant that the group was unknown, even by another punk band 20 miles away fer chrissake! I didn’t grow up in the USA, but after talking to hundreds of the ex-members of these garage bands, ya realize that a groups’ “scene” meant MAYBE a 10-mile circumference of their hometown. Sad but true . . . )
Anyhoo, for their 2nd 45, they unfortunately got saddled with local big-shot producer Dick Wagner, who had ’em cut a “pop” single: “Pop” meanin’ horns, wimpery, etc.
BOTUMLESS PIT – “13 Stories High”
WAH0000!!! Here’s a super-frantic plunge into grunge! On August 23, ’66 a cable snapped on the elevator to the 13th floor of the Cecil McNabb department store in downtown San Antonio, Texas and sent the car hurtling towards certain disaster. Upon landing, four teens discovered themselves to be the sole survivors of the crash, wiped the debris offa their Cuban heels, and ran across the street to the famed Alamo Audio Studios (birthplace of the awesome “Fluctuation” by the Shades of Knight).
There they snatched some equipment, quickly learned the rudiments o’ “musicianship” and thrashed out this zippy tribute to their close scrape w/ death. Unfortunately, all four members and all but 4 copies of their 45 were crushed in a foolish publicity stunt in which they tried another elevator drop, this time from a famed 99-floor skyscraper referred to in song by fellow Texans, the Moving Sidewalks. (Ummmm . . . this entire story does seem rather, ehm, “tainted”, but heck, absolutely NO NEWS has been turned up on these cats in the 17 years since ’twas re-ished on Grave Volume 4, so why not continue the lie.)
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
AZTEX – “I Said Move”
GREAT GOOGLY MOOGLY!! Major NOISE! This time from Gary, Indiana, home of geek-master general, Mikey Jackson. Mebbe this’ll make up for the Gloved One’s shamegiving of Gary, a very grimy, pollution-laden town near de Indiana/Illinois border.
The AZTEX started out in ’63 as the Valuables, trying their hand at Everly Bros & Beatles songs, but by ’64 they had changed over to a looser, rockin’ style and blastin’ out Kingsmen, Kinks & Stones covers. They played against local bands such as the RIOTS (an all-girl band), the KRITTERS (not the Top 40 folk-rock group of the same name), and the SQUIRES (not the “Going All The Way” Squires).
The lead singer/guitarist of the Aztex joined the Squires in late ’66, so this screamer (recorded in mid-’66) didn’t get released until May ’67, when the remaining Aztex pressed up 100 copies for friends and family, on STAFF RECORDS, label also to the GROUP INC and the GALLABOOCHES. (Hear the b-side o’ “I Said Move” on GRAVENr 5.)
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
NOMADS – “Be Nice”
This disturbance was created by a group of Fort Worth, Texas teens (14-yr-olds to be exact!) venting their pent up urges at full volume into a one-mic shack studio. Their moms drove them all over Texas to shows in cool teen hangouts like SWAMP A GO GO in Harlington, just north of the Tex-Mex border.
On a trip south of the border they were swarmed by crazed Mexican kids screaming “El Beatles! El Beatles!”, even tho’ the Nomads were SUAVE and covered Stones songs. At one gig some frantic chicks figgered the drummer for Ringo and tore off a chunk o’ his hair, as well as the usual clothes-rending. Anyhoo, crank this mofo WAY THE FUCK UP, and bug the shit outta yer square neighbours with the piercing SCREAM that precedes the git “solo”.
Frantic Mr Hill
BUNKER HILL – “The Girl Can’t Dance”
Keep the volume CRANKED up for dis ‘un, too! A SUREBET at buggin’ a lotta geeks! PRIMAL MUTHAFUKKIN’ SCREACH! In ’63 a mild-mannered (?) gospel singer approached Link Wray with this idea fer some wild-ass rock’n’roll songs.
Link gave his nod of approval, bought 23 cases of beer, fetched the Raymen from the poolhall, piled into a Chevy and headed for his famed studio shack in the hills, where they let loose with their wildest and tried to keep pace with the insane hollerin’ of the now-frantic Mr. Hill.
This session provided the world with 3 PRIME 45s: this ‘un, the berserk “Red Riding Hood &The Wolf”, and even a hit, “Hide And Seek”.
SLOTHS – “Makin’ Love”
UGH! GRUNTIUNGOWA! Keepin’ with the primitive noisesome bender this side has degenerated into, here’s some undistilled raunch recorded in the foothill caves of Los Angeles, where the Sloths practiced their musical “skills” by day, if they felt like it. By night they pillaged the Hills of Beverly, clad in their bearskin garments, finding nourishment and inspiration in abandoned bottles o’ Night Train.
WYLD – “Fly By Nighter”
Here’s a wild Diddleyin’ basher by the famed outcasts behind the punk ANTHEM “Lost One”. The group first went under the name o’ the ROOTS, issuing an awesome 2-sider, “Lost One”/”It’s Been A Long Journey”, for some strange reason on a Fort Worth, Texas label, BROWNFIELD, tho’ they were from SOUTH CAROLINA.
They then became the WYLD, and “Lost One” was issued with 3 different b-sides on CHARAY records: “Fly By Nighter”, “Alley Oop” , and “Know A Lot About Love”. Then in ’67, “Fly By Nighter” was issued again with “If I Had It” on the flip. Confusing, no?
Anyhoo, leader RUDY WYATT was a BIG Link Wray and Travis Wammack fan, and still digs crude 50s R&B , playin’ Jerry Lee-style piano in bars in South Carolina.
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
VECTORS – “What In The World”
Here’s a great harp-wailin’ punker from the northern Chicago burbs, featurin’ a YOUNG Joe Kelley, a year before he hit the BIG-TIME w/ the SHADOWS OF KNIGHT!!!! (And I’m guessin’ ya know who dey were . . . ) For the FULL story, order ish #3 of the great “Lost & Found “zine: P.Q Box 44002, Eden Prairie, MN 55344.
In brief: The band was formed in Macomb, IL in Sept ’64 by three freshmen (Joe Kelley, Don Mau, Rodney Hunter) at Western Illinois. In spring ’65 they cut four tunes, including an earlier version of this particular beastie, and had 125 waxed up on the Analysis label.
A honcho at the Chi-town label St Lawrence (mostly a soul & jazz label) approached the Vectors, so they re-cut a new version of “What In The World” and “It’s Been A Day Or Two” and 500 were pressed up on St Lawrence with pic sleeves and picture labels.
By this time the four-piece was a Chicago combo, playing all over, until the fateful day when Warren Rogers of the Shadows Of Knight asked Joe Kelley to join ’em on bass . . . and the rest be history!
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
HUNS – “Shakedown”
Most excellent teen punk from the TAMRONS local competition in Concord, North Carolina. This song actually started out as a Tamrons’ song, “Jeannie”, that was to be on their 45, but a couple of members of the Huns visited a Tamrons’ practice, heard the tune, rushed off to Charlotte making up lyrics of their own to the music they swiped, and recorded this cool tale o’ revenge set on a gal that’s done the singer dirt.
Football-playing big dude singer for the Tamrons made numerous threats toward the Huns, but things smoothed out when “Wild-Man” was released. If the Huns hadn’t swiped “Jeannie”, the world would be WITHOUT “Wild-Man”, so The Huns played a lot of shows in their area, even doing on-stage battle with the Tamrons at lotsa gigs, and appeared on a TV show called KILGOE’S KANTEEN”.
Back From The Grave | Volume 4 | (Crypt) 1984
LARRY & THE BLUE NOTES – “Night Of The Sadist”
When this alb first came out in Nov ’84, this cut was pretty much of a sensation, cuz it’s the UNRELEASED, pre-CENSORED version of the song on GRAVENr 1, complete with the risque lyric of “SADIST” instead o’ “PHANTOM”.
Liner notes taken from Volume 4. Read more Graves here.
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