Are you in need for some Rockabilly? I mean REAL Rockabilly, the one that grabs you, moves you and sends shivers down your spine, the one that was played back in the fifties. Don’t look no further…
Here are two bands on Rhythm Bomb Records [COOL label specialized in 1950s music, Rockabilly, Rhythm and Blues, Hillbilly, Country, Western Swing] The Rockets from Switzerland and The Bird Doggin’ Daddies from the south of Germany with their 2013. slabs full of r-billy tunes [recorded analogue] as they came from some lost 50’s Sun studios sessions. No shit! These guys sound as they have shared stages with Johnny Burnette, Elvis, Carl Perkins or Charlie Feathers in their heydays.
”They got the bug but it’s just a question of time for you to get it too.
Now guys, about this time machine, could we find an arrangement? I’d really like to see Buddy Holly on stage…” [Fred “Virgil” Turgis]
”A uni-rhythmic blast of treble, the Metros’ sole album release personifies teenage garage punk. Although the album is slightly more produced than the rest of the Rip Off catalog, it still qualifies as lo-fi. Lead singer Dave Zonca’s masculine howl rages over a consistent rhythm and amped-up guitar wankery. This album’s topical relevance is aimed at the drunken and the horny mostly, but it is slightly intelligent. The opening track, “Black Leather,” is a convoluted cry for help, and a rockin’ punk number at the same time. Other standout tracks include the glammy “Lay It on Me”, the desperate “No More”, “Stop My Heart”, “Venus In Her Eyes” and “White Boy/ Black Love” which is reminiscent of the Dead Boys. Overall, a great album for garage punk fans, and a standout in the Rip Off catalog.”
Killer garage punk slab for Dead Boys fans… and others. Dig!!!
Subtitled “a collection of rare and unreleased surf and hot rod songs,” this 14-track compilation hits the intended target in a big way. Culling its contents primarily from the MCA/Dot Records vaults, one of the big tickets here is a bone-chilling unreleased moment when we hear the Surfaris attempting to take on the Rolling Stones with their swipe at “Route 66,” way cooler than it sounds. A couple of silly but great fun anyway P.F. Sloan sides, including a unreleased sloppy-as-hell song demo, compliment one-off instrumentals like “El Gato” by the Chandelles and “Tremble” by the Galaxies. And in true Dot Records tradition (the label that made their rep inflicting Pat Boone on an unsuspecting world) there’s even a “cover” version on here by a Milt Rogers of Dick Dale’s “Let’s Go Trippin'”!! Not the most essential set of tunes, but one hell of a fun compilation. [Cub Koda]
01. The Surfaris – Wax, Board And Woodie 02. The Chandelles – El Gato 03. The Blazers – The Masked Grandma 04. The King Pins – Door Banger 05. The Beachcombers – Lone Survivor 06. Willie & The Wheels – Skateboard Craze 07. The Rondels – On The Run 08. Milt Rogers – Let’s Go Trippin’ 09. The Surfaris – (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 10. The Galaxies – Tremble 11. Kay Bell & The Tuffs – (The Original) Surfer’s Stomp 12. Johnny Cymbal – (Surfin’ At) Tia Juana 13. Kenny & The Fiends – Moon Shot 14. Phil Sloan & The Fantastic Baggys – Dragon Lady
The Gurus Are Hear! was actually advertised in Billboard and Cashbox in 1967, but the album was canceled only a few weeks before its projected release. More than 35 years later, it finally emerged as this Sundazed CD, augmented naturally by five bonus cuts. So is it just as mysterious and exotic as psychedelic collectors suspected? Not exactly, but it’s a pretty interesting if slightly contrived and kitschy hybrid of psychedelic rock and Middle Eastern music. As it turns out, the best of their demented anguished-psychedelia-in-a-falafel-restaurant-bellydancing-room had already been issued on their two singles (both sides of which are included on the album). From those 45s, “Come Girl,” “Blue Snow Night,” and “Everybody’s Got to Be Alone Sometime” are genuinely fine and rather ahead-of-their-time songs. Singer John Lieto howls like a pained cantor while the band plays psychedelia fit for a harem, with oud trills, raga-rock electric guitar, bent notes, and tortured minor keys aplenty, though not bereft of some garage rock energy and hooks. The other songs aren’t quite up to that level, aren’t terribly varied, and are sometimes quite a bit more pop-oriented and normal-sounding, with “Contact” penned by the Bonner-Gordon team of “Happy Together” fame. But not all of those extra cuts are unmemorable, the band totally overhauling “Louie Louie” into a dervish-swirling dance that must rank as one of the weirdest covers of this covered-to-death song. And you’ve gotta love a song (“Shaker Life”) with the line “Come life eternal, shake it out of me, all that is carnal,” set to a tune and beat like “Twist and Shout” gone to temple. The less essential bonus tracks include another Bonner-Gordon tune, “They All Got Carried Away,” and alternate versions (one of them wholly instrumental) of four songs from the album. [AllMusic Review by Richie Unterberge]
”This cd basically rocks from start to finish but there are a couple of throwaways. The ones that aren’t strong are the more polished mainstream pop efforts which don’t bare much of a resemblance to their sound. But otherwise this band had a very innovative and interesting early psychedelic sound, which occasionally reminds me of The Music Machine. Their sound is characterized by banging bongos, fuzzed out guitar solos, Yelping vocals, strange middle-eastern instruments, and a hypnotizing overall vibe. THis is a nice breath of fresh air for all you garage/psych heads that have already bought everything else from 66-69. enjoy!” [Amazon Customer Reviews]
”The Louisville, Kentucky band which released 7 great 45s between 1966-1969 which just ring out with great fuzz guitar, Hammond Organ, Mellotrons, and hard-driving vocals. 20 tracks including unreleased material and a great Psychedelic sampler track from their later incarnation The Elysian Field. They take a tour named ”caravan of stars tour” with The Byrds, We Five, Paul Revere & The Raiders and Bo Diddly.”
”Soul. Inc, although displaying a magnitude of soul influences, diverged into practically every other mid-60s genre. Their name was not entirely apt! The 20 featured tracks trace the Louisville band’s musical journey from 1965 until ’69 via a number of 45s released on local labels, alternate takes and previously unreleased songs. “Stronger Than Dirt” (later covered by fellow garage bands the Daybreakers and Us Four) is a fuzz laden tune, with a soul tinged verse, a wild solo, pounding drums and a comical lyric, apparently inspired by an Ajax advert from the TV. Danceable 60s garage punk just doesn’t come any better! A few months later when the Byrds startled every young band with “Eight Miles High” Soul Inc’s reaction was to write “60 Miles High” on which they nearly managed to achieve the psychedelic zest of the Byrds. “UFO” which is so influenced by Dylan that it might as well be fellow imitators Mouse & The Traps, is another excellent example of garage band parody. The magnificent moog segment is uncannily like the whacky sounds on the Osmond’s hit “Crazy Horses”. Soul Inc an influence on the Osmonds? Maybe! Finally, the later proto-punk number “I Hate You” blends hard rock fret abuse with nihilistic singing. By the end of the decade the soul influence had completely gone.” [Jon ‘Mojo’ Mills]
“The Hondells were a west coast surf/hot rod band in the early 60’s that had songs on the Billboard Hot 100 and appeared in several movies like “Beach Blanket Bingo” and “Beach Party”. The band toured throughout the United States with the Dick Clark Caravan of Stars and played with a USO tour in Vietnam. They released several albums on the Mercury label under the name of The Hondells. The main members of the band also played on and released songs as “The Weird-Oh’s” and “The Super Stocks”. The band members were Richard “Ritchie” Burns, Wayne Edwards, Randy Thomas, Dennis McCarthy, Al Ferguson, Les Weiser and “King of The Fuzz” Davie Allan. Most of their material was produced by Gary Usher.”
Groovie 36 trax collection with their first two slabs + cool bonus stuff as Come On (Pack It On), You Meet The Nicest People On A Honda Bike, Freefall, Little Sidewalk Surfer Girl, and fine cover of Jody Reynolds’ classic Endless Sleep. Come along with me on a Honda Holiday!
Repost of this REAL COOL soundtrack featuring guitar hero Davie Allan along with members of the Riptides [as The Back-Wash Rhythm Band] and other West Coast studio vets as Harley Hatcher, Jerry Styner, Guy Hemric and Mike Curb. Fav tunes: What Turns You On, Coral Below, High Rise, Over The Falls, Waimea Bay, Surfers Paridise. Don’t miss this wave. Dig!
Brazilian 60’s group influenced by The Shadows and The Ventures. Pretty solid rockin’ instros and few funny vocal cuts. Included covers of classic instro tunes as Buldog, Night Train, Ginchy, Fugitive, Hot Pepper… and some fine original tunes as Bouddha or Twist Watch. Nothing special but it might be of interest for some instro freaks.
“Early in his career — right at the outset, in fact — 18-year-old Jim Messina was a devotee of surf music, enamored of the music of Dick Dale, the Champs et al. The Jesters was among his early professional efforts, a surf band that included, along with Messina, Bill Beckman and Ron House on guitars, Jim Sholstedt on bass, Dave Archuleta on saxophone, and Larry Cundieff on drums. They won a lot of local band competitions in California, where the competition in the field was still fierce in 1965 and 1966, and were good enough to get to record an entire LP for Audio Fidelity. It was re-released on the Thimble label in the mid-1970’s, to capitalize on Messina’s success as one half of Loggins & Messina”
”The original Jesters LP was released sometime in ’64 and was credited to “Jim Messina and his Jesters” (notice the copy of “Dick Dale and HIS Del-tones”) and it was called The Dragsters. This is the LP that was reissued on CD on the semi-legit Euro label Surf in the ’90s. It’s great stuff, 14 songs, 11 of them written by Messina. The covers are: an uptempo version of the Breeze and I, and surf-guitar-led versions of fifties instro hits Honky Tonk and Raunchy. Messina’s guitar work is truly exceptional, sounding like DD’s flashier doppleganger, with a lot of nimble fingerwork full of fast hammer-ons and pull-offs, and not as much double-picking as you may expect. (I only recently started noticing how Dick-Dale-ish Messina’s playing was. Listen to “The Thing” – it’s a total rip-off of DD’s “Surfing Drums” – which of course was a Bo Diddley rip-off itself! – and the licks he’s playing are completely DD. Messina also uses the pickup position #4 (neck and middle pickups) a LOT, which is also something that DD pioneered in surf music.) I HIGHLY recommend this CD. The highlights for me are “The Jester”, which is as good as any surf song I think, “The Cossack”, “High Voltage” (an apt title!), and “Yang Bu”. If there is one criticism I would have of the material is that it’s a bit light on melody, instead relying on groove, energy and improvisation. But it works most of the time. There’s a really nice jazz and even blues influence throughout, especially evident on “Suspense Run” and “Hollywood Sound” (both very jazzy in rhythm and featuring some tasty surf-blues guitar playing, with the latter obviously influenced by Mel Torme’s “I’m Comin’ Home Baby”). And as Messina mentioned in his interview, almost every song has a bunch of engine revving and tires skidding noises overdubbed. A lot of songs also have the noises of the band shouting along with the music, as if they’re really into it. I suspect these were overdubbed later, along with the car-related noises.” [IvanP. Originally posted on Surf Guitar 101, June 25, 2004]
Ok surfers! Here you gotta deal with two different versions of The Jesters 60’s stuff. The first is original ’64 ”The Dragsters” lp version with 14 trax + ”Hollywood Sound”, the other one is 10 cuts ’82 reissue with different mix. So, whatcha gonna do now?!? I think you must dig both, cause this is one of the best 60’s surfin’ instro slabs and it’s… pretty much A MUST!!!
