Quick Takes 1 - Speed Queen

One of the goals I always had for my writing, whether it be my old print 'zine Sonic Ruin or here, was to create a scholarly type of publication. The idea was to always have articles that not only broke the songs and albums apart, but also maybe gave a little history of the bands. Treating the bands and the music with the proper respect, that has always been the dream.

Unfortunately the problem with that is the amount of time those articles take. The research can be fairly time consuming due to how obscure the bands are. Many times the information found was so light that nothing could be done with it, and nothing else could be found.

From time to time the information I would find were the bands themselves. It is always a weird thing contacting these people. A few of them seemed to not want to be associated with the bands I was calling about, even though they were still involved with music. Others seemed interested in talking, but then vanished and stopped correspondence. But whatever the cases, there was time involved.

This shouldn't be news to anybody. Any writing usually takes research and time, obviously. Problem for me was that I found the time fleeting. The problem I have is that once I get behind, I usually turn away from things. This is one of my great faults that I am working to correct. One way to correct this problem is to find a reasonable way of catching up.

This brings us to this article.

This article is basically going to be made up of a bunch of "quick takes" on items I have bought over the past half year or so of buying records. I will be giving a quick run down on certain records, but I will not be doing any deep research. Yes, if there is an interesting fact I have learned I will mention it. But for the most part these will just be discussing the albums and their positive sides and if they are worth your tracking them down, and what I decent price to spend would be on each item.This will not be how every new article is going to be, but these types will show up from time to time, and might be the standard for a little while. Just until I get caught up.

So, without further delay . . .

Speed Queen - Speed Queen (1980)

I was at a record convention recently and as I was walking out I stopped by one final booth. In the last crate I dug into I found this album. I looked it over. The band looked cool, the name was pretty good, and they thanked Lemmy and Motorhead.

Think about that for a second. This album came out in 1980 and they are thanking Motorhead. Motorhead was just starting to really lay their name down and become the band that would someday become en vogue to mention. This little band was tipping their hat to them in the early days. That should give you a little indication about what we have here.

So what do we have? Seed Queen were a five piece band out of France. They played a straight ahead Rock and Roll with possibly an extra kick to the gut. A little AC/DC meets Alice Cooper group in riffing, with a rough throat female vocalist named Stewy (real name is Stevie) who spews attitude in every single word.

The album consists of 8 songs, but each song is a powerhouse. They seemed to realize they were only putting down 8 songs so there was no time to get mellow. They had just enough time to rock the living hell out of the listener, and that is exactly what they were going to do. Don't expect anything fast as the name might imply to some folk, that name is obviously a tip of the hat to the other kind of speed. But every single song is that mid-tempo stomper that just gets to your heart and makes you want to live.

In all honesty this might be a band everybody knows about and I am just a complete sheltered idiot. The guy I bought this from was talking about it like it was a well known classic of hard rock. "Would you believe I just found out today that they actually released a second album!" He said to me as I was looking over the cover. "I could not believe I didn't know that!" I looked at him and was honest and said "Yeah, I have no idea who they are even." I almost felt like an idiot, but my quick research very much was pointing to a band that had slipped through the cracks. Every time I get a hit for them on the 'net it leads me to a French site. So my guess is that they are possibly known in France, and we can stop there.

I paid $15 for this. Might be a bit high for a band I was totally unfamiliar with, but I decided to risk it. After hearing it, I would have been happy paying $25 for it. They are really that good. They rock the hell out of the place and should have been much bigger than they are. If you like RnR ala AC/DC, Alice Cooper, or any other band that you want blaring through the speakers while drinking and raising Hell, then this should be an album in your collection. If you see it while out shopping, do be sure to exit with this one under your arm.

Someday I do hope to do a more detailed write-up on Speed Queen. They do deserve more coverage.

Quiet Riot - Quiet Riot 1 & 2!!!

On May 20 of this year I attended the Chicago Record Convention being held in Hillside, Illinois. I went down there with two albums as my intended score. My birthday was on the 19th and I was going in armed with a little extra cash and the intent to actually not caring too much about the cost of things (yet still not being an idiot).

My main goals were the 1974 release by the band Left End called Spoiled Rotten. A wonderful slab of all out ROCK by a band that gave it all they had and who have sadly become more or less forgotten by time.

The other, and main, purchase was going to be Quiet Riot II. I had seen it there previously but didn't have the money at the time that I was comfortable to spend on the one album. Granted, QRII isn't anywhere near the price of QRI, but it is still more than I have spent. But with a little extra birthday cash on hand, that puppy was going to be mine!

Getting to the convention I went straight to the spot where the dealer was the previous time who had QRII. Much to my horror he was not there! I scoured the room he was in previously, checking through crates, looking for his merchandise, as I could easily forget a face but not stock.

Sadly I could not find the gentleman. So then turned tale and went off to buy the Left End album. That dealer was in the main room and had a huge set-up, so I knew he would be back in the same place, and he was. Watch these pages for coverage of the mighty Left End at a later date.

I spent the next few hours searching for good stuff. Suddenly my buddy Todd ran up to me and pointed me in the direction of a dealer. He had found my QRII guy! Instantly the money came out and I walked away with the purchase I had been looking for, and the guy even took $20 off the sticker he had on the album!

So there I was, the two main items in my grasp. Little did I know that a few minutes later I would be finding another Holy Grail item (to be discussed in a future article). Then, just a few minutes after that Todd would again come and get me and bring me to another dealer. This one had QRI. This copy of the debut album from Quiet Riot was the strange black and white bootleg that I can't find any information on. All I have been able to find out is that it came out in the early 90s and that a bootleg of QRII was also released by the same mysterious company, Ravers. A real copy of QRI will set a person back around $300. The bootleg will set you back around $30 or so, but even  these are tough to come by.

For my money Quiet Riot is one of the sadder stories in Rock and Roll. If you don't know much about music history, but do know of Quiet Riot, you know them due to the two Slade covers, "Cum On Feel The Noize" and "Mama Were All Krazee." You also possibly know that the vocalist, Kevin DuBrow, became one of the most hated men in music, and that he was responsible for destroying the great career that they had forged out for themselves.

Those that do know of music history know that this is the launching pad for the mighty Randy Rhoads. A guitarist who, along with Eddie Van Halen, propelled guitar playing into a different realm. However, as most people know, Randy made his mark playing alongside Ozzy Osbourne. Randy has always been one of my guys. One of the guitarists I have always idolized. In fact, even though Queen was my first musical obsession, Randy was the first person I singled out and fell for. Queen was the whole band, whereas for me when Randy died my love of Ozzy also died.

Truthfully the Quiet Riot of Randy Rhoads and the Quiet Riot of the hits are two fairly different creatures. The Rhoads QR was a band based in British rock, with huge dashes of Glam. Whereas the hit machine QR, even though there biggest hits were covers of British rock, were more of a Metal band with a much harder edge.

The one constant between the two bands is Kevin DuBrow's fantastic voice. This is probably the saddest aspect about what happened to the band. Due to Kevin's actions later in the band Quiet Riot have kind of become a joke. Yes, there were a few things that just would not age well for them. Kevin had a receding hairline that was destined to be a joke, some of their clothing choices were going to be hurt eventually, the videos are of an early 80s MTV nature, so more than a little cheesy. But make no mistake, DuBrow could sing. His voice is actually somewhere in the style of a Noddy Holder from Slade, which explains the two covers.

So, are these two albums worth the price? That would depend on how much money you have. Both albums should be in the collection of any self-respecting fan of Rock. No matter what, you should have them. If you have the money to burn they are without a doubt worth the price.

Quiet Riot I is a little rougher than Quiet Riot II. This only makes sense due to it being the first time these guys got into a studio. Plus, I am guessing they were not given a massive budget, partially explaining the "Japanese only" nature of the release. The songs are also a little more juvenile with lyrics and delivery.

Quiet Riot II is really the gem. This is actually a massive plus for the collectors, as it can be had for a much cheaper price tag. But this is the album where Randy Rhoads becomes Randy Rhoads. One can hear the soloing that would be associated with him, including certain runs that would later show up with Ozzy. But his playing is much more refined here, and much more confident. Through out this whole album there are moments where one hears the beginnings of an Ozzy solo, or a bend here or there, or a slide, that we are all familiar with due to hearing similar things happening in the Osbourne material. It is pretty fascinating to hear these bits in such a different style song. They work in both the Glammy QR style and the evil Ozzy style, it just shows how versatile Rhoads could be, even with the same material. It all comes down to his style and technique.

In fact, that can be said for the whole band. They are comfortable here and have matured a thousandfold from the first album. From the classic "Slick Black Cadillac" to "You Drive Me Crazy," and "We've Got The Magic" then to the cover of Small Faces "Afterglow (Of Your Love)" the band proves how good they were. Trust me, "You Drive Me Crazy" is a high point for DuBrow. Plus, the fact that he pulls off a Small Faces tune and does it justice is another testament to how great he really was.

Heads up: The Ravers release of Quiet Riot I isn't without a few flaws. It seems to have been recorded, or transferred, a tad too hot. Towards the end the levels are going crazy and the sound kind of bounces in and out a little on the levels. This comes with a bit of added distortion. This is obviously a guess that this is a side effect of the bootleg nature. I kind of doubt I will ever be holding an actual copy of QRI to be able to do a side by side comparison with, so I will just stand by my gut instinct. If anybody has an actual copy I would love to know how "Demolition Derby" sounds and if things start to fall apart on your copy towards the end.

Do yourself (and the memories of DuBrow and Rhoads) a favor, one way or another add these two albums to your collection. Whether being able to afford the real things, the Ravers boots, or even a digital download. Any self-respecting Rock and Roll fan should have these and will more than likely enjoy the heck out of these two albums. Quiet Riot II is one of the best things to be released in the 70s.

So on May 20th, 2018 I had a record buying day that might never be matched. The amount of great stuff bought that day was ridiculous. I ended up with five albums that I had been chasing for a good long while, and I bought one that instantly landed in my "all-time favorite album" list.

The Plan Was . . .

I had a plan: summer hits and I nail down a ton of reviews. I'm a teacher by day, so summers will always provide me the time to write that I long for. This is how many teachers do things. The fantastic author Dan Simmons was an author before going full-time author. It seems many authors out there are teachers, and many of them do their writing during the summer. This was a fantastic plan.

Problem is I have had this plan before.

This plan has collapsed before. It sounds good, but then the summer hits and one thing leads to another and I don't write. I like to think I am still trying to accept my role in life (I am going on my fifth year of teaching), You see, when the summer hits and I think "I am going to write!" I am also consumed by guilt that I am thinking of being a little selfish and wasting time doing something frivolous.

So, with my final three weeks I am going to take a shot at writing a bunch. Over the next few days I am going to start writing up short little reports about what I have bought. I will add little bits of information and reviews to these. But I am going to race through a bunch just to try and get us caught up. Trust me, I have not stopped the quest for great vinyl, I have just fallen off the writing.

So keep your eyes peeled! Something will show up by later tonight or early tomorrow for sure.

Rock on!!!

Record Store Report - Flipside Records

Flipside Records

Location: 41 E. 14 Mile Road, Clawson, MI. 48017
Website:  http://shopflipsiderecords.com/
Facebook presence: Yes
Hours: Mon., Tues., Fri. 11-9, Wed. and Thurs. 11-7, Sat. 11-8, Sun. 12 - 5
Listening Station: I actually did not look for one here.

What is on offer? Are you ready for this? Again I am just going to list the back of their business card: CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays, LPs, Indies, Imports, audiophile, dreamcast, nin64, playstation, SuperNES, Genesis, electronics, TVs, stereos, camcorders, speakers, cameras, drums, guitars, amps, keyboards, toys, action figures, collectibles, XBox, Gamecube, XBox 360, wii, iPods, MP3 players. I am sure they have even more than what they listed on the card. This store had a lot of stuff.

Prices: Mid-range with some towards the higher end. There is a really good sized dollar section which does have some great material stashed between the usual suspects. Underneath all of the Rock vinyl the store has their merchandise that has yet to be priced. This is out for you to browse through. If you find something in there you bring the record to the counter and they will research the price and inform you how much it would cost. Hopefully they don't stick to Discog prices only, as there are many things on Discogs that tend to be inflated prices. Just like anything, rarity should not be an indicator of value all of the time.

So, honestly, how is the place: This was the second store I hit on my Marillion/record store tour. It took me a few seconds to realize I had found the place. As is visible in the picture, the sign is a little inconspicuous. I parked on the street, but once inside I realized there is a parking lot in the back. Please do me, the shop, and yourself a favor and park in back. Much easier to get to the store that way than running across busy traffic.

Flipside is, in a way, the opposite of UHF. It is a fairly dusty shop, but this can be forgiven and understood due to the sheer volume of merchandise in the store. If you like bin diving and you have a lot of time to kill, this is your store! It isn't just records that they have a lot of, it is everything on offer.

There is a lot of vinyl in the bins, but remember what I said, there is even more underneath all of the main displays. I didn't even realize it until I was about to leave. When I did notice the vinyl below I just figured it was doubles. Most record shops will put the doubles and triples below. I asked and the gentleman who was working on the underneath section informed me that it was indeed new stock that has not been priced. Much to my dismay I was running short on time by this point (I had a concert to get to) and was only able to do a quick browse, but there was some good stuff down there.

The help in the store was great. Super friendly staff. They were either helpful or just pleasant to speak to for a few seconds. It is also a regulars type of store, with people just coming in to hang out and chat.

So, what did I find?
FireBallet - Night on Bald Mountain

This is where I have to show my slight frustration. As I said, the store has a lot. They had quite a few things I was really excited to find. Sadly all of these items were in the $15 price range. This got in the way of the budget I was having to stick to during my trip. I was trying to set my budget around $20 a store, as I was planning to hit 6 stores during this trip. So due to the prices I had to try and decide what I was mainly chasing. All of the items I was walking around with were records by bands I love and I had some variation of the releases (cassette, CD, digital). So I decided to go with a band I had never heard of before, who I quickly checked out while in the store, and was lower priced than the others.

FireBallet was my purchase. The album itself was in mint condition. The cover and vinyl look brand new, and this thing is from 1975! So this thing was easy enough for me to decide as the one I left with. I love obscure 70s rock, I especially love obscure 70s symphonic progressive rock, the price was decent, and the thing was in mint condition. Yeah, I was all about this one. Turns out it was a great purchase.

Even though there are a few things that might not sound like I am raving about the store, I really did love this one. If I didn't have my budget set I would have left on cloud nine. If I lived closer I would have returned by now to buy one of the ones I left on the shelf, and I would be returning each week to pick up the others. It is a store I would love visiting every week. As the next record store report will show, this area is pretty much a definite destination spot. The three shops I hit in this area are all fantastic for different reasons. If you are in the Detroit area you must make a stop at Flipside. You will leave with something great, and possibly at a wonderful deal if it was in the massive dollar bin section!

Record Shop Report - UHF Records

UHF Records

Location: 512 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak, MI, 48067
Website: No site found.
Facebook presence: Yes
Hours: Mon. - Sat. 11-8, Sun. 12 - 6
Listening Station: Yes, at the front of the store.

What is on offer: (per their business card) LPs, 45s, CDs, Magazines, Books, DVDs, Blu-Ray, T-shirts, Posters, Stereo Components, Turntables, Accessories, Electronics, MORE!
That "more" includes things such as patches, pins, and other music related items. If you don't find anything to listen to (which means you didn't actually try to find anything) you will be able to find something to spend your hard earned money on).

Prices: Very fair prices, yet they do their research and you will pay more for the rarer item. The prices will be lower than most Discog prices, but you won't find that mind blowing deal or run out of the store snickering that you just struck gold. More than likely you will leave with a smile because you got a fair price and were not taken to the cleaners.

So, honestly, how is the place: Recently Marillion came to the U.S. for a short tour. They have been the band I call my favorite band for the past 34 years. UHF was the first stop on a whirlwind record shopping trip I did recently. Over the next few weeks I will be posting a few more of these record shop reviews. It was a thrilling experience.

UHF is a very much one of the fancier shops I have run across. The store itself is very appealing to be in and has a very nice aesthetic to it. We are not talking about white wall with everything being sterile. No, we are talking a shop that looks like you want a record shop to look, just fairly clean. When I first ran in there asking for change for the parking meter I thought to myself "oooo, I like this place" before I even started to browse.

The selection is pretty solid. There were all of the usual finds, with everything in good condition. I should state that I rarely dip out of the regular rock sections. Everything is broken down by alphabet and the there is a miscellaneous section.

There is a new arrival section at the front of the store with a good amount on offer. Stop there first for sure as looking over their Facebook page from the past and using this day as a reference, there are a lot of cool things that show up in there that probably are snatched up right away.

I should state that I rarely dip out of the standard Rock section. I might browse Metal and Punk from time to time, but I usually kill all of my time in the regulars. In this store I looked briefly into the Metal section, and I can confirm that they have a fine Metal section. Not huge, but there was some good stuff in there. But how the Jazz, Classical, Blues, etc. sections fair I am unsure.

As I found with all of the Michigan stores I hit local music is really pushed. UHF has a wall for local music on CD and bins for vinyl. They do cater to all local. This was a little bit of a tough spot, as there are a few Detroit bands I love and I did find their stuff on CD. Sadly I didn't see the vinyl represented or it would have blown my budget out instantly.

In the back of the store are music biographies and autobiographies and general music books. The selection is larger than what one would find at a Barnes and Nobel, so we are talking about a good amount of books. I could not find the Faces book I have been searching for, but that is OK. Saved my budget again.

So what did I find? 
Starz - Starz
The Babys - The Babys
Fanny - Rock and Roll Survivors
Dirty Angels - Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye

I could have walked out with a lot more, but it was the first stop of many and I had to consider my budget. At this stop much of what I put back were things I was taking a chance on. I used the listening station to decide which of those I would be putting back.One of my purchases, Dirty Angels, was a chance purchase, but it was still sealed and the description was Power Pop, one of the areas I do try to collect, so even being unheard I had to grab that one. Glad I did.

When I got back to my room later I noticed that the Starz had a bit of a large scuff on it. I returned to the store and was allowed to check the record for a skip. Their policy is that if it plays on their equipment then there is no return. This is understandable. It did play on their table and I have yet to check it on mine. I am holding off on listening to that one until I have made it through the rest of the stack that I came back with from my trip.

All in all UHF is a great shop. If you are in the Detroit area it is one of the shops I would say is a must visit. The selection is really good, the other merchandise in the store adds to your purchase temptation, and the workers are all friendly.

Fantacy Hill - First Step

Fantacy Hill - First Step
Released 1978 on Prodigal Records P7-10022R1

Looking back on the era, it is really hard to categorize bands out of the 70s. One starts to realize how close a lot of these bands ran to each other at times. Unless a band was so deep into a particular style, such as the era of Sweet or classic era of Yes, it is really hard to stick many of the bands of the era into a specific genre. Many of the bands were trying to break it through and would often sample with numerous styles.

So I sit here with an album by the band Fantacy Hill's second album, First Step. Kind of a confusing animal straight from the start. It is their second release, yet it is called First Step. The cover is fairly rough to look at and doesn't give anybody an idea of what to expect. I could only figure that the title came from them having a picture of some stairs and then tried to come up with a title. Musically it could hint to Progressive Rock, or it could also be a Funk. Plus we don't have any pictures of the band to help clue us in on what is to be found in the grooves. Now add to that it is on Prodigal Records, which is an imprint of Motown.

What Fantacy Hill were would be a 70s Hard Rock act that turns out a sound that mixes in a lot of different styles of the era. In fact, so much do they mix in other styles and bands that a few of the songs you would swear you have heard before. From the sounds to the titles, they borrowed from more than a few sources.

At one point Glam, at another Southern, and then at times almost a harder edged Doobie Brothers style rock. They really do cover quite a few grounds. One of my other problems I am having is that they use three different vocalists, so a definite sound and style is never cemented for the listener. I am thinking that the vocalist depends on the writer. So in a way we are given three different bands in this one band. All of these bands, by the way, are pretty good bands.

The album launches with one of our "I've heard this before!" moments, and you would be right if you are a fan of Sweet. Although, it isn't a cover, "Aphrodite" is just similar Sweet. It is almost a mix of "Sweet F.A." and "No You Don't." It is the vocal melody from "No You Don't" while using a part of the "Sweet F.A." riff.

"Lonely Bluebird" is Crosby, Stills and Nash. Or any other band of the sort from that era. Yes, they even have to use a species of bird for their metaphor. Not overly original, kind of so similar to the bands mentioned that it even again seems like one has heard the tune before. It is a nice song, just kind of nothing new.

The final song is the most confusing of all. A tune titled "Stay With Me," and an obvious stab at hitting that adult contemporary suave crowd. This song more than any other on the album sounds like a stereotypical 70s radio hit, complete with the sweeping strings associated with the era. It is without a doubt the most out of place tune on that album. But I do love it for its incredible 70s trappings.

Genre bouncing is understandable from the era. Radio in the 70s wasn't an all or nothing type of creature, nor were the charts. Remember that once upon a time it would not be unusual to hear Led Zeppelin on the same stations that would play Captain and Tennile, and they both stood on the charts. It is only now that people really lay claim to genres. In 1976 it wasn't unusual to listen to both Sabbath and Crosby, Stills, and Nash.

Searching the internet gives us very little information on Fantacy Hill. Even Discogs is very light on information, not even providing us a band photo on the band page. We know there were two albums, this being the second. For the band history the best I could turn up is a review on Amazon. The review tells us that Danny Mullins, one of the guitarists and vocalists, has since passed on. Searching Facebook it appears that other guitarist George Durbin and drummer Doug Golema are still out there. I am guessing it is them as they both look about the right age and both show their instruments. Not very in-depth investigative work here, but I do kind of hate bugging some of these people so for the time have chosen to not message the two gentlemen. Maybe in after finding the first album I will start digging further.

So even with the wacky and drastic bouncing of styles I would recommend Fantacy Hill if it can be found for a reasonable price, which it should be. My copy cost me $2, but it was lacking any kind of inner sleeve, so that may have contributed to the affordable price. But if you like hard rock that can be a little difficult to categorize at times, grab this one if you see it, it is surely worth the time.

Chopper - S/T

Chopper - Chopper
Released 1979 on Ariola Records SW-50049

While record shopping in Canada this one really caught my eye. The band is named Chopper. The cover looks like the backpatch worn by a biker gang. A search later would find that the band features a member of Steppenwolf. It was going to be a couple of days before I would be able to hear anything off of the album due to being out of town. But I mean come on, all of these signs pointed towards these guys being pretty hard rocking. Right?

That quick search of members also showed that the keyboardist was a member of Poco and future Elton John keyboardist. But nevermind that, biker name and biker looking cover! Steppenwolf member! These guys are going to be exceedingly hard rocking. No doubt about it!

Oh yeah, that Steppenwolf member would join Steppenwolf after leaving Chopper. But again, look at that cover! Wings spread, hard rock all the way to the biggest arenas with pyrotechnics all over the place.

With all of that then, Chopper, our possible biker band, actually plays AOR style Rock. AOR has always been a style of music I have tried to steer clear of due to it usually being associated with mellower bands. Bands that eventually became known for their ballads and after four albums would turn out nothing but ballads. Although AOR stands for "album orientated rock," I am not so sure why mellow music seems to be associated with the style. I'm not a fan of shmaltzy ballads, so AOR and I have never been friends.

So obviously I hate Chopper, right? I bought it expecting some great 70s HARD Rock. Something that would tear my face off, something possibly harder edged than The Godz. Obviously these guys are in my list of biggest disappointments. Right?

Well, I really like Chopper. For my money these guys do it all right. They never get cheesy, they never get too melodramatic, and they keep enough energy in the music to make it all work. They throw in just enough spots where the music kicks in and they stop being a wimpy ballad band. The album is full of great hooks, great playing, and a solid production.

Gary Link, our future Steppenwolf bassist, turns in a killer performance on "Blue Winter." Heck, he does on the entire album. But this song is close to being exactly what one would expect from an AOR band. Mellow, with some overly dramatic turns, but the bass is killer on this song. Link adds the perfect accents and gives us a little more than just a bass line. Perfect notes added here and there, just the right amount of a run here and there. The bass actually propels the song along and takes what could have been a mediocre tune and transforms it into a great track.

Songs like "Beggars Day," "Don't Cry" and "Be Ready For Me Tonight" keep the album from being too mellow. Solid 70s guitar driven radio friendly rock numbers. Yet these are really the only two numbers that show teeth. But really, this is fine, and they are far from the strongest cuts on the album.

The standout tracks for me are the aforementioned "Blue Winter," "I'll Hold Onto You" and "Eddie." "I'll Hold Onto You" features a guitar riff and tone that is just incredibly warming to the heart. It is one of those songs that you can put on, and once you hear that riff you would be fine with nothing else from the song. The riff and production on the song is that good.

Chopper was a really good band. Regardless of the image and name, they are without a doubt worthy of your time and attention. The album can be found for decent prices. It doesn't appear to be on the streaming services and it was never given a CD repressing. If AOR or solid Pop is your thing then this should be added into your want list.

Gary Link is still playing with Steppenwolf is appears. Kim Bullard was with Poco for a time. As of 2009 he has been a touring player with Elton John. Drummer Brad Seip is a bit tougher to track down. It doesn't appear that he moved on to anything else from Chopper.

Searching for lead guitarist Peter Bunch bring us to the law offices of divorce attorney Peter Bunch. Looking at the picture on the sleeve for Chopper, and the picture of the attorney, there is no doubt Mr. Bunch is now an attorney. This is further confirmed by the Record Robot blog.

So, what about that image? Why did they take on an image and name that is so out of place? According to the Record Robot page it appears that they were re-tooled by the label into an attempt at a biker band image. Which seems an absolutely ridiculous move considering the sound the band turned out. It isn't like people would be fooled once they actually heard the band. There is no way a group of bikers, looking for an evening of debauchery, are going to see this album cover on a poster outside the club, go in and be happy with the resulting music. Well, they might be, after being a little irked that the band isn't really rocking the heck out of the place. It was this over-handling of the band lead to the break up, which is a great shame. They were a really good band that could have been so much more than just the minor footnote that they are now.

Sources:
Record Robot: http://recordrobot.blogspot.com/2005/08/cautionary-tale-of-pete-and-george-and.html

Teazer - Hard As A Rock

Teazer - Hard As A Rock
Released 1980 on ROKO Records DRRC 133

Hawaii, not a place many people would think to mention when discussing the great Rock and Roll scenes of the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, or really any era. As I write this I am even hard pressed to come up with any bands out of Hawaii that play any form of Rock and Roll. Obviously they exist, but have any of them made it off of the islands?

Let's just cut to the chase. Let me introduce you to Teazer.

So who was Teazer? According to keyboardist Stanton Hoffman they were based out of Honolulu in the late 70s. They play a fairly straight-up 70s Hard Rock and carried a no frills image.

Vocalist Tookie Dauzat sounds a little like Gary Mielle from Tattooed Love Boys. Yes, nothing better than using an obscure reference for an obscure band. I would have to figure that a lot of people still have no idea what we are getting at here. So how about this, at times Tookie sounds fantastic. Other times, such as the opening number - - - his voice can be a little grating. Falsetto is not his strong suit. But the attitude is there and he is a pretty good vocalist when staying within his zone.

The guitar and drum production is a little soft. I would imagine in the studio the band had a great sound, then after mastering everybody sat around trying to figure out where the bite went. Solos sound good, but everything else is more or less on a level playing field.

As mentioned at the beginning, song-wise we are talking 70s Hard Rock with a blues angle. Discogs carries a "glam" tag on the album. I would have to disagree there. There isn't anything outright Glam about the band. The band would be better suited opening for bands ranging from Boston, Ted Nugent, Foghat, and other big Rock acts of the sort. The fans would also be much more appreciative of them than fans of, say, Bowie, T-Rex, or Sweet.

Songs like "Money, Women and Guns" and "Bad News" almost walk a line that would be at home with a Lynard Skynard or Allman Brothers. Slight Southern bend to the songs. This is also explained by the dedication to Ronnie Van Zant on the sleeve. The album also features a song entitled "Louisiana" which is also a find touch of Southern Rock, complete with a brilliant chorus that would probably get clear plastic cups full of cheap beer raised in the area as an audience sang along.

Yet songs like "Hard as a Rock" and "Electrified" would almost be just as happy being played by early 80s Metal acts. "Electrified" would almost be perfectly done by Wrathchild, with Tookie's voice almost even carrying a touch of Rocky Shades at times. "Electrified" and "Rock Out" might be the two songs that create the Glam tag. I think "Rock Out" even features the chorus of "Rock out with your cock out," so I would probably have to give them the award for stupid Hair band lyrics before the time. The song also features a nice guitar break where the production works nice and the guitar is really crisp sounding.



I do have one skipper song, but it is due to personal preference and not a fault of the band. Final song "Logan Avenue Blues" is what the title implies. A Chicago electric Blues style number. Solid performance all around, but just not what I would hope for on a closing number on an album that rocks fairly steady.

In a message from Stanton Hoffman I was told that the band only made 1,000 copies of the album. Of those he says only around 500 probably made it to the streets. So this is a fairly rare find. The album can be found on Discogs for $50 or so, which then begs the question "Is it worth it?" At this point you have to ask what you are in the game for. It is a solid record with some mediocre songs and a few really good. Nothing jumps out as to being a "you have got to hear this!" song. If it was to be found up to $10 I would say it is worth your money.


I am trying to find out where the rest of the band is. Did they continue on, or what happened with them? I appears that Mr. Hoffman is still involved in music, though no longer based out of Hawaii. It would seem he is now mainland U.S., so one had to wonder if that is a sign of the scene in Hawaii for music, or were there ties to the mainland. Obviously the only way any of that matter is from a historical context as to the Hawaiian Rock and Roll scene. But as my shelves of music are not overflowing with Hawaiian Rock and Roll bands quite in the same way it is with Scandinavian, Sunset Strip, Austin Texas bands, the curiosity starts to win out in my brain.

So yes, Hawaii had some solid Rock and Roll in the late 70s/early 80s. How many bands existed? I have no idea. But I do know of one who was waving the flag and doing what sounds like a pretty solid job. I would have to guess that if there were not a lot of bands doing it down there, then these guys were either kings or they could never get booked, but either way it was due to them being pretty dang good at what they were doing.

edit: Almost to prove my point some website just ran an article on the most popular band from every state. For Hawaii they listed some band named "Pepper" I have never heard of. I guess they are from 2000 and are still going. The picture shows them on stage at a 2007 Warped Tour show. I guess they are a Reggae style thing. I am standing by my assumption that Hawaii has not turned out a lot of Rock and Roll.
http://247wallst.com/special-report/2017/08/30/most-famous-band-from-every-state/4/

Merry Christmas and check this out!

Just a quick post to wish folks a merry Christmas! The past month saw a pretty big rise in readers. The Demons article has over 1200 reads on it, which shocked me. So thank you to whoever you are that is taking the time to read this blog. Even my print 'zine (Sonic Ruin) never saw anywhere near those numbers. Even the other articles, averaging around 100 reads, are more than my 'zine ever saw.

Christmas was fairly light this year. I will be following Marillion for three shows in February, so that was pretty much my gift. My mom, on her way to my house, stopped by the previously reviewed Rochester Records and grabbed me Sweet's Level Headed. In a quick review of the store, Mom conformed that the owner was incredibly nice. Still lacking a full alphabetized store, but oh well.

Some of these reads are possibly coming from the Shabby Road Record Show. Shabby is one of my favorite podcasts. For music it is easily the best. A.D. Adams and Ryan McKay are incredibly fun to listen to and their friendship is infectious. If you scroll through this site and listen to their show you will see notice similarities. They have been instrumental in my finding vinyl and finding great bands.

I recently dropped a link to my blog on their Facebook page in response to a post. Ryan then read the blog and decided to recommend the blog to their readers. So, with that being said, I am going to run wild with his saying this is a "Shabby Road Approved Blog"!!! Yes, I will be creating a meme that says that and I will be plastering it all over this blog. When I site you love throws a little love your way it kind of causes a rush of excitement. This was an early Christmas present without a doubt.

If you are unfamiliar with the Shabby Road, do yourself a HUGE favor and stop by and check out the most recent episode. Part of the beauty of the show is that you can listen to any one of them and know if it is your thing, as they have been consistent in high quality from day one. But if I were to recommend any episode, I would have to say track down any of the ones that had Mikey Bones (RIP) on them. That man was a gem.

http://www.shabbyroadrecordshow.com

Rex - S/T

Rex - S/T
Released 1976 on Columbia PC34399

Every generation has its share of teen heartthrob and teen idol superstars. From Ricky Nelson all the way to recently Justin Beiber (and whoever is slowly gaining momentum and about to make us forget about Justin). The people have always been here. When people complain about the modern version and start to claim how today's fads are crap and all the real music and stars were in the past, gently remind people that this is the way entertainment has always worked.

One thing that has always been a constant with these teen heartthrobs is the desire by these people to be taken seriously. I can still remember hearing tales of how Shaun Cassidy really only wanted to rock like the hard rocks acts of the early 70s. I believe these desires were also shared by Leif Garrett. David Cassidy strove to just be recognized as a serious artist, which lead to Broadway and the stage in general.

This desire also lead to The Monkees to take control of their musical output and release their strongest album, Headquarters. They had no desire to be stuck as a centerfold spread in the teeny-bopper magazines. They wanted the Pop stardom, but they wanted it on their own terms.

But what happens when the opposite happens? When you have a person who is a credible, serious, brilliant hard rock performer. A person who is fronting a brilliant, hard hitting rock act. What happens when that person leading the band, a band on the rise (but maybe not rising fast enough), is also teen heartthrob in appearance?

If you, fine readers, are unfamiliar with them, let me introduce you to Rex!

Rex were a early to mid-70s five piece hard rock act that rocked just as hard as anybody else out there. Any questions about how hard they could rock is answered within the first 30 seconds of the first song on this, their debut album. The song is "Trouble" and it features a killer riff with an even better vocal melody. Yes, the intro riff is a little disjointed and awkward feeling, but it all works and comes together in a glorious song for fighting.

The band featured dual guitars, bass and drums with a vocalist who had the abilities to rival Robert Plant and Steve Marriott. Maybe not as soulful as those guys, but without a doubt brave enough to chase the staggering heights those two would chase. Buy he was also better looking than those two guys, and he seemed to be more than happy to be front and center.

Make no doubt about it, the star of the show is vocalist Rex Smith. The band is named after him for this very reason. If this was a band decision or a label decision, there is no doubt he was the star. This is also obvious songs like "Stay With Me," a slow blues-ish burner which is designed in execution to show off Smith's vocal abilities. The guitars do nothing but strum a chord and hold it out to ring while Smith throws his voice all over the place. No guitar fills getting in his way, and drum fills are held off until Smith is out of the way. As long as he is in verse or chorus, everything is there just to back him up to let him do his thing. It is admirable, and also a little frustrating. Aside from a pretty dang good solo to end the song, it is Smith.

The song could have been a masterpiece if everybody was allowed to step in and shine. Yes, songs need to have room to breathe, but every song should also fill gaps where feelings should show up, and the only feeling in an actual band should not only come from the vocalist.

Something about Rex makes me think of a hard edged Silverhead. Smith and Michael Des Barres even share a few vocal traits in tone. Both can really lead a song. Smith has more range, and Des Barres has more attitude.

With the exception of "Stay With Me," which is not the Faces tune, the album is all about rocking the hell out of your house. But remember, even that song will blow your roof off with Smith's vocal wailing. That song closes out side one, and it almost has to just to give you a chance to catch your breath.

The album does feature two covers: the aforementioned "Stay With Me," which has been covered and recorded numerous times. Again, this is not the song that was a hit for Faces. This is a slower Bluesy number that allows Smith to belt out the voice. The other cover is The Who's "I Can't Explain." An admirable cover that sticks close to the original.

Closing out is the great one two punch of "Rock And Roll Dream" (which is a classic 70s hard rock number) and the brilliant "Violent Playground." Killer guitar riff and wonderful vocal track on "Violent Playground" make the listener want to go back in for a second round with the album and leaves you with the exact memory you need. Opening with "Trouble" and closing with "Violent Playground" is a brilliant move.

Rex Smith is the brother of Starz vocalist Michael Lee Smith. So Rex had something to prove right away if his brother was fronting the brilliant Starz. There are similarities, but I do think that the band Rex does hit harder than Starz did. Starz had a little more Glam and party atmosphere. Rex is a little more down and dirty. "Dead End Kids" has a darker vibe and content. This is not to say that Rex was a better band than Starz, they were just went more towards that gutter angle on this release.

So what happened with Rex? What were they? In a video interview with bassist Orville Davis we get an idea of some of what happened. On the surface one can make the obvious assumption that Smith followed the money. Davis makes the claim that the whole band were hired guns. He states that the first time he met Mike Ratti, the drummer, was at the first rehearsal. If the band was a truly organic band, formed from the ground up, one would guess they would have met at a party, a bar, or anywhere other than the first rehearsal. This points to a product.

So the band may have been hired guns, but a look at the credits tells us it was meant to be more. This isn't a Monkees style hiring with professional song-writer provided songs. The songs on the album are mostly written by the members, with two outside helpers and two covers. So the attempt of a real band was at play. This works as the whole thing does sound like a band that had been working together for a time. While Rex Smith is the show, the whole band is contributing and is a vital component. These present days are not like that, and an album of hired guns sounds just like that and only carries the face of the person the band is assembled around.

That being said, it was obvious just from the covers that this was all about Rex Smith. He is the only one on both the Rex album covers. Although, he is not very photogenic on this cover and he looks downright terrified on the back of the cover. But it would seem this was all assembled around him.

For as great of a record this one is, and everything leads me to believe the second is just as good, the times were tough for hard rock bands. The competition was really thick back during the mid-to late 70s for these bands. Most hard rock acts had to have more than one "ace in the hole" during this time. Bands like Led Zeppelin had a Plant and a Page, and behind them they had Jones and Bonham. Styx eventually had De Young and Shaw. KISS had the two voices, Frehley AND the image. Bands like Rex, Starz and Angel struggled against these other acts. Great bands, but they were missing that one thing that could throw them over the top. Plus during this time if a hard rock audience sniffed a corporate act it could kill the band. Bands like Boston, Foreigner, Supertramp, while becoming big were torn apart by the crowds who believed in keeping it real. So while Rex was a great band with solid musicians, nobody jumped out at you, so the competition was going to be that much tougher, especially in a band formed around the vocalist.

This is speculation, but I think in hindsight we can kind of see what went on. The label hired Rex Smith, formed a band of what was popular. They hired a backing band made up of people who were real musicians who had slugged it out. They gave it a shot and they did OK, but they seemed to never go far beyond opening act for big bands. The labels possibly decided that the band was not worth the money or time, and that Smith would be easier to work with if they gave him true hired guns, people who just played and didn't act like a real band.

1977 saw the second Rex album released, the first Rex Smith album came out two years later. If I was a betting man (and I am) I would say the label pulled Rex and gave him a make-over and took those two year to help redesign him. On the cover for the second Rex album, Where Do We Go From Here (heck, even that album title is a bit prophetic), we see Rex Smith with black hair and looking fairly rebellious. On the first Smith solo album, Sooner or Later, his hair has blonde highlights and is poofier. There was a definite style change.

And that was that. Rex the band was gone, Rex Smith the teen heartthrob was born. He would eventually go to being an actor first and foremost.

Davis went on his way and joined Starz. I guess it only makes sense. Before Rex he was in the band Hydra, and according to him they still play every now and then and have remained friends (Off The Record). He is still playing and releasing music. He currently does Country and is solo as a vocalist and guitarist.

Mike Ratti, the drummer, can be found in a quick 1:22 second video online (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br4hkUMEW3o). According to Discogs he has worked with a couple of other bands (Heavy Balloons pre-Rex and The Nails post-Rex). Watch the video, it is short but very much worth it. He confirms he has merch from Rex still. He and Davis also confirm that somewhere out there is an unfinished third Rex album that was more in light with the band that they truly imagined Rex could be. If this is true, then somewhere out there is a lost Rock and Roll masterpiece, as both Davis and Ratti say they were held back on the first two.

My copy of Rex was found at a Half Price Books for the outrageous price of $0.50! At that price it is possibly the single best music purchase I have made. I would easily pay $15 for this one. Front to back it is a brilliant slab of Hard Rock. An album that walks a fine line between Hard Rock and actually touches on some Punk sensibilities. It is a true shame that we don't have more from these guys. There are some live bootlegs to be found on You Tube and one really gets the idea that these guys should have been much bigger. Grab this one if you see it without hesitation.

Sources: Orville Davis interview with Off The Record https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01tPoe30vQ0

The Demons - S/T

edit: If you are just reading this for the first time, please take the time to visit the comments section. Guitarist Martin John Butler has been chiming in with some wonderful details about the history of the band. His input is priceless!

The Demons - S/T
Released 1977 on Mercury SRM-1-1164
Promo copy without inserts

For a few years now I have really wondered how many times bands that are credited with a certain sound are truly the creators of the sounds, and how many times they are just a product of the environment. We all know that AC/DC spawned thousands of imitators. We can figure this because after the enormous success of Back In Black we were suddenly faced with bands from the US and the UK that sounded very similar. In that case those bands were taking what made them a hit and using it to their own advantage.

But was the sound something they created? We can go back to Australia around the same time and find bands such as Rose Tattoo and The Angels. Both of these bands had similar sounds to AC/DC. So was it AC/DC or just the environment and trends in Australia during this time period that created more than a few bands with the same sound? AC/DC obviously being the most successful, due to management, song quality, or maybe pure determination (or all of the above), but bands like the aforementioned Rose Tattoo and Angels not being copy-cats, but actual peers running down the same roads.

One can even go back into the mid 60s, just as The Beatles were blowing up. The sound and style was not exclusive to them. They were a part of a scene. But when people look back now they tend to give The Beatles credit for what happened in music.

This brings us to The Demons. A band that is so set in their scene that without any form of knowledge of the band I knew exactly where they hailed from by the time the first chorus hit. For many people it might be thought that they are a copycat band, but a little research shows that they are very much a product of a time period in a location and a part of their scene.

Before we get too much further, and before people started getting ready to type in the comments that I am an idiot. Yes, The New York Dolls are without a doubt a cornerstone of that scene. It is hard to argue that they were not the catalyst for the underground scene in New York, and that spawned the Ramones. But there was shortly after a definite Rock and Roll sound that came about, with a lot of bands popping up doing almost the same thing. Whereas the Ramones had that 50s things going, they were relying on power chords. Bands like The Heartbreakers, however, were using full chords. A pretty big difference in the sound and impact.

So here we meet The Demons. The Demons were very much a part of the scene. Founding member of the aforementioned Heartbreakers Walter Lure was an early member (according to lead guitarist Martin John Butler's website). Vocalist Eliot Kidd was close friends with Johnny Thunders and Jerry Nolan (in his own words as can be read in the Legs McNeil book Please Kill Me). Kidd recounts many stories between himself and Thunders in the pages of Please Kill Me. This only helps add to it that this was not a copy of style, but rather contemporaries experiencing the same world.

The Demons were a five piece early Punk act out of New York in 1977. By my typing that sentence, if you know your music scenes you know exactly what The Demons sound like. The sound is text book on how to be a New York Punk/RnR band from the formative years of the mid to late 70s. Light on distortion, heavy on attitude, with a touch of the 50s and early 60s AM Rock and Roll founders added into the mix. The type of band that will sing a heartbreaking song about missing somebody ("What a Shame"), but then deliver a song about how much hate they have for somebody, with some pretty brutal lyrics. In fact, in Please Kill Me Kidd speaks about how the big difference between the 50s songs they loved and punk is in the lyrics (p. 260). He mentions that their material takes the songs to areas that were never approached before. In Eliot Kidd's own words ". . . basically punk rock was just rock and roll. We weren't taking music anywhere new . . . we were all at the age where we had grown up with pop radio: Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, Little Richard and Chuck Berry." (McNeil, p. 263)

So remember, we are talking about 1977 here. Don't think Punk of the hardcore variety that is now associated with the word "Punk." This is Rock and Roll with extra danger and attitude added. There is nothing here that couldn't be played on that radio. It is all just Rock and Roll. It doesn't even have the bite that would show up that same year from The Dead Boys or the Sex Pistols. The guitars are light on distortion, but just as dangerous.

The debut album, and only album, from The Demons, is a wonderful addition to the New York Punk / Glam scene. An album that should be in the collection of almost anybody who has an interest in 70s Glam or 70s Punk. Songs like "It'll Be Alright" and "She's So Tuf" are brilliant tracks that should be considered classics. "She's So Tuf" is textbook New York Rock and Roll. The dang thing should be one of those songs that everybody has covered.

The album features two cover tunes, one being a version of Gene Pitney's "She's a Rebel." The other being the band beating The Clash to the punch by delivering a blistering cover of "I Fought The Law" of its own. A notch down from the intensity of The Clash version, but still a wonderful version of the song.

The cover of the album is what caught my eye. It was actually Martin John Butler and Robbie Twyford that sold me on the album. Then the song titles. But in all honesty, I still am a little surprised by the sound every time I look at Robbie Twyford. He looks more like he should have fallen out of a British band circa 1967. The styles are a little mixed on the cover, but the dang guys still look incredibly cool.

The Demons were through and through Rock and Roll, and they were through and through New York. Musically they featured solid guitar work with those trademark flourishes from the area. Solid drumming and vocals that could have fit right in with The Dictators (Shernoff and Teeter).
A band that seriously needs to be preserved, and luckily one that at this moment in time can still be had from the used stores for a good price. But if the world begins to catch on, this thing is going to skyrocket in price. I think I paid around $5.00 for it, which is a steal.

So what became of The Demons? It seems that they met with some rather terrible fate. According to the website for Martin John Butler (lead guitar), the band was enjoying the success for this album, selling 250,000 copies even! But then tragedy struck and drummer Mike Rappoport was killed in a car accident. I don't know the details, and even that knowledge comes from a post on his guest book. He mentions the loss of Rappoport, but a friend chimes in mentioning the car accident aspect.

Eliot Kidd, the brains and voice behind the band, had also met with tragedy. This is according to the website Dead Punk Stars. According to them Eliot had done time due to dealing and eventually passed away in 1998.

Thankfully Martin John Butler has created a Facebook page for The Demons. It appears that Bob Jones, the other guitarist, is doing well and is still involved with music. Obviously his name would be a little bit harder to search on the internet, so as of this writing this is as far as I went in my research.

Mr. Butler's personal site seems to be a little out of date, but he appears to still be active. As I mention though he is running the Demons Facebook page, which can be found by searching Demons/NYC or by clicking https://www.facebook.com/The-DemonsNYC-101777063232690/. His personal site, with some newer music, can be found here: http://www.martinbutlermusic.com/home.html

As for Robbie Twyford, I have not been able to find anything. A search for Robbie turned up nothing. Scanning the Demons Facebook site also didn't show me anything. But who know, maybe one of the Demons will see this and give a little information.

sources:
McNeil, Legs. McCain, Gillian. Please Kill Me. Penguin, 1997.
Dead Punk Stars website - http://www.deadpunkstars.com/browse/153/eliot_kidd.html