The Cynics - "Sweet Young Thing" - Dionysis, 1985

Today it's a mid-80's garage rocker from Pittsburgh! So who are The Cynics?

They formed in '83, with Gregg Kostelich on guitar and Michael Kastelic on vocals the constant driving force over many years and lineup changes.The influence of 60's garage punkers and RnB is definitely apparent in this record, their first outing.

“I was maybe 4 or 5 when I started collecting Garage records, and I’ve been listening to that type of music ever since." - Gregg Kostelich

Cynics '92 lineup

These guys are still going strong after 25 years, now on Gregg's "Get Hip" label.

Dionysus Records was based out of California and hosted the Cynics first two outings. Interesting, not only was this The Cynics' first release, I believe this was the label's first 45 release. From the label website:
"Dionysus Records was started by me, quite haphazardly and from scratch at the tail end of 1983 because I wanted to release a 45 by my then band Yard Trauma. The label was actually an extension of a cassette-only label run I ran out of the Roads to Moscow record store on Park Ave in my hometown of Tucson, AZ between ‘81 and ‘83. In 1984, I moved to Los Angeles and became pals with Greg and Suzy Shaw at Bomp who helped me to establish the label here in Southern California and distribute the first two albums (by Yard Trauma and Thee Fourgiven) and a couple of singles (by The Cynics.)"
And of course, the clip!

The Barbarians - "Hey Little Bird" - Joy Records, 1964

Today I've got one of my favorite garage tunes for ya - The Barbarian's "Hey Little Bird".
The Barbarians formed in 1964 and were based out of Cape Cod. There's no denying their roots - listen to one of their tunes and the accent is heavy and unmistakable. "Hey Little Bird" was their first tune, and it flopped badly. I think it's a pretty rocking little number and a heavy guitar drone/gong at the end of each verse really makes the song for me.

The Barbarians' big hit was "Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?", which peaked at around #55 on the charts. Also, I'd recommend checking out "Moulty" - a silly ballad about how the drummer lost his hand, that was later included on the infamous "Nuggets" compilation. The Barbarians split by '68 but I'm glad they left us with a few gems. Here a clip of them performing today's 45 on the TAMI show.

Joy Records was active between 1958 and 1965. Based in New York, it was run by Hal and Mariam Weiss. I also know that the producer of this tune, Al Ham, was the A&R chief at Joy. That's really all I've got on Joy.
And the clip:

Love - "My Little Red Book" - Elektra, 1966

Can Burt Bacharach rock? Well, this week I'll say "yes" - but only if someone like Love covers him.
Love was an LA based Rock outfit active in the 60's and 70's. I have them under the "garage" tag but they're actually hard to pigeonhole in a specific genre with their diverse sound.
The group coalesced around Arthur Lee, who had been gigging and recording with various bands since the early 60's. Love hit the scene in '65 and quickly became popular. Random tidbit: the band initially lived in a house once owned by horror movie legend Bela Lugosi.

Originally penned by Bacharach, Love had a decent-size hit with today's 45, their first single with Elektra. A few moderately successful albums followed: self-titled "Love", "Da Capo" and "Forever Changes". Unfortunately, drug problems (the Legosi heroin curse?) and internal conflicts started to splinter the band in '68. Several more albums were released with a radically altered lineup. Many of the original members have since passed away or faded into obscurity, but a reformed version has toured as recently as 2009. There is a rumor that a lost album from '73 called "Black Beauty" will be released soon, I believe there are bootlegs already floating around.
And...the clip:

Underdogs - "Judy Be Mine (a/k/a Friday At The Hideout)" - Hideout Records, 1965

The week I've got a Midwest Garage burner from The Underdogs! So let's talk mid-60's Michigan for a minute.
Harper Woods is a city on the outskits of the east side of Detroit. Incorprated in the Fall of 1951, Haper Woods ended up become a suburban oasis of music, mostly due to a small club called The Hideout.
Opened in May of 1964 by Dave Leone and Ed Andrews in a VFW hall, The Hideout quickly became a hit with the local teens. Says Dave Leone: "It was the first teen club in the state of Michigan that featured live music. Up until that time there had been teen dances with recording artists, mainly black, lip-syncing to records".
Adding a record label to the club enterprise, the first release was a limited run LP featuring local house band The Fugitives. One song on it, "Friday at The Hideout" was penned by Leone. When members of The Fugitives split for college, The Underdogs took over as the house band at The Hideout. The Underdog's performance of "Friday at The Hideout" ended up being the first proper release on the fledgling label.

The Underdogs - I think..

My info on the Underdogs is pretty sparse. I know the members included Tony Roumell and Chris Lena on guitars, Mike Morgan on drums, and ???? on vox???. I belive this single was recorded at Underground Sound Studios. This particular single was also issued on Reprise once a national distribution deal was worked out. If you see a copy of The Underdog's "Get Down On Your Knees", definitely do yourself a favor and pick up this classic cut, my favorite from the band.
Guys like Bob Seger, Mitch Ryder, Ted Nugent, Glenn Frey and MC5 were involved with the club and/or label over the years.  For an introduction to Hideout Records and plenty of info on the scene, check out the compilation "Friday at The Hideout" on Norton.
And now, the clip!

The Cramps - "The Way I Walk" - Vengence, 1978

I thought I'd mix it up this week with something more current (only 30 years old!).  This is The Cramps' very first release, b/w "Surfin Bird".  In my eyes that makes it a pretty epic 45, I just wish mine was in better shape!
What can be said about the Cramps that hasn't already been said? Some record collector art geek from the Midwest picked up a fellow record-nerd hitchhiker in California sometime in 1972 - and those two went on to become Lux Interior and Poison Ivy, the core of The Cramps.

Their fusion of Garage, Rockabilly and Punk sounds took NYC by storm and inspired too many musicians to count.   The Cramps are REQUIRED listening, people.

My own personal Cramps experience is pretty limited. I remember seeing a "punk" in the goofy 80's movie "Back To The Beach" wearing a "Bad Music for Bad People" t-shirt and I thought "this sounds like music I should check out". Luckily, my uncle Marcos and my cousin Maria were huge Cramps fans and were happy to sort out a few tunes.  They actually took me to my only Cramps show: March 7, 1991 with the Reverend Horton Heat at Chicago's Riviera Theatre.  I had just turned 15 and I didn't really know what to expect, I just knew these guys had a really crazy and weird rocking vibe.  I think the "wildest" shirt I had was a very hippy tunic kinda thing I got in Jr. High for a costume so I wore that.  Obviously I was pretty clueless and probably looked like a huge asshole.  But the show was amazing, of course.  It was defintely a turning point in the creation of the music-geek degenerate you see before you today.
Back to the song.  If you're a hardcore Cramps fan or record nerd, then you're aware that many of The Cramps best songs were either covers of older tunes or borrowed liberally from them.  "The Way I Walk" is a great example.

The original is a belter of a tune from Detroit-rocker Jack Scott released in 1959. Check out the original in this YouTube clip:

Note the difference between the Scott and Cramps versions. The Cramps take the original version, strip it to its raw rock essence, then drag it through a dirty alley and soak it with booze until it's a lean, mean, attitute machine.  Crampsified!
I strongly feel that The Cramps' deep knowledge of great old music is what enabled them to make great new music.  That's one of my main motivators in DJing these days - trying to educate folks on gems from the past so they can make the gems of tomorrow! It makes me crazy when I hear new music sampling other music that was only produced only a few years prior. Really, is that as far back as most these days are willing to look for inspiration?
As far as the "Venegence" label, I believe this was an imprint started by The Cramps for releasing their own material.  This first issue was cheekily numbered "666".  There were a few more issues on this label before it disappeared, but I believe it was resurrected later for some reissues and one new album.
And finally, the clip!

Mercy - "Fire Ball" - Sundi Records, 1968

Today I've got a groovy late 60s instro fuzz blaster for ya! I'd compare it to something from Davie Allan and the Arrows (if you don't know them - they are the kings of 60's fuzz rock instros, and you should get to know them!)

Mercy was Jack Sigler, Brenda McNish, Debbie Lewis, Ronnie Caudill, Ann Sigler, John Hudson, Roy Schultz, and Lou Vasenda - mostly former students of Brandon High in Brandon, near Tampa, Florida.

Mercy is ready for their close-up

Singer Jack Sigler's father managed to hook up the group with a movie producer in town to film crash-and-burn flick Fireball Jungle.

Scene from "Fireball Jungle"
Mercy performed two songs for the film, which are the two songs on this 45 - "Love (Can Make You Happy)" and "Fireball". "Love" ended up being a hit, but unfortunatly, by the time this song was a hit Jack Sigler had joined the military and the band was falling apart. So there was scrambling to put together a touring group and other assorted nonsense.
Sundi Records was owned by Gil Cabot (Gilbert A. Cabot, who was also responsible for the Paris Tower label), and was based in Tampa, Florida, until about 1971, when Cabot moved the company to Hollywood, California.

Mr. Cabot himself

The label seems to have been active between 1967 and 1972. For a super detailed look at the history of Sundi Records, check out the BSNPubs site here. It turns out "Love" was the only hit the label ever had, and it was responsible for a distribution deal with Jamie/Guyden, a copy-cat group from Warner Brothers, and plenty of legal troubles not resolved until the 90s. All of the juicy details are available on the aforementioned site.
"Love (Can Make You Happy)" is pretty easy to find on "One Hit Wonder" kinda comps, but the flip side seems to have been forgotten for some reason, which is a damn shame. Listen to this clip and decide for yourself:

I decided to try to do a series of posts here about some of my favorite 45s. A few things:

• These are all 45s I own and are near and dear to me
  
• The purpose of this is to educate you on good older music
  
• I will NOT post full songs - don't ask. Please find some way to buy if you can.
  
• Hope ya enjoy and are exposed to a new bit or two
  

That out of the way, let's proceed. For my first 45 I selected: The Balloon Farm - "A Question Of Temperature" - Laurie Records, 1967 In my book this is a garage CLASSIC. Right now this one is basically a constant in my sets. Balloon Farm was from New Jersey, but apparently they didn't have a ton of NJ pride as they named themselves after a NYC club. This was the only hit Balloon Farm ever produced, topping out at #37 on the Billboard Top 100. After that, the band fell back into obscurity. Mike Appel of The Balloon Farm went on to become an early manager for Bruce Springsteen. Laurie Records, named after the founder's daughter, lives on in NYC and is currently owned by EMI-Capitol Special Markets. If you want to learn more about Garage, you MUST buy this: Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era 1965-1968 I own the original vinyl issue from the early 70's, but the new versions are expanded. This is the Garage Rock BIBLE. Great, great music! And here's the clip!