Wallace and Ladmo Show - "Soggy Cereal" (1970)

Hello Friends,

We first heard this song on the Pebbles: Volume 3 - The Acid Gallery LP as performed by a cat named Mike Condello.

A little further research showed that Mike Condello was the musical director on a kid's show out of Phoenix, Arizona called "The Wallace and Ladmo Show".   On the air from 1954 to 1989, it remains the one of the longest running children's shows in U.S. Television history.  We watched a few clips and boy-oh-boy did it look weird!  

Then, holy smokes, we stumbled upon this clip here and its Commadore Condello's Salt River Navy Band performing what song?  You guessed it, "Soggy Cereal", in all its propagandist glory!  Yowsas!

On a much sadder note friends, Mike Condello, who suffered from lifelong depression, took his own life in 1995!

Bummer!

Pebbles volume 3: The Acid Gallery

Pebbles, volume 3 aka "The Acid Gallery" (1979) - BFD Records 

Hello Friends,

Tiki T. and I have recently started collecting the Pebbles LP series courtesy of the BFD & AIP Record labels.  Awesome compilation records, first released in the late 70's, subtitled as "Artyfacts from the First Punk Era".  

They're a good companion to the more popular NUGGETS series-- records filled with 2 or 3 minute punk masterpieces mostly from the years of 1966 thru 1969.  Bands consisting of pimply-faced kids in basements and garages scattered throughout the country.  Some bands (and band members) would go on to bigger and better things, but most would only end up playing local teen centers, VFW Halls, dive bars and local college radio stations.  Only a few would be fortunate enough to open for a touring national act like Herman's Hermits, The Jefferson Airplane or The Animals.  A handful would be fortunate to record a 7" or two and then call it a day fading off into rock & roll obscurity.  

One-Hit and No-Hit Wonders. Footnotes in the Rock & Roll History Books.

Some of the greatest rock and roll songs ever written may have only been heard by a handful of ears. These records provide a time capsule into an honest and less-cynical past.  Behind every band, there's a story; some are triumphant; some are tragic; many are uneventful... but who doesn't love a good rock & roll story?    

Tonight we've got the third Pebbles LP on the turntable, also known as "The Acid Gallery".  Eighteen tracks that are out there!  Waaaaay out there! Enjoy!  

Side One
1. "Diamond Mine" - Dave Diamond & the Higher Elevation.  Dave Diamond was a rock DJ hailing from South Dakota who made his mark in the late 60's playing records by then burgeoning psychedelic bands.  (He was the first DJ to play "Light My Fire" by The Doors!) This spoken word psychedelic poem sounds a bit muddled and doesn't really make a whole lot of sense but it kicks the record off in quite the trippy fashion!  (Dave Diamond passed away in May of last year!  RIP Dave! We hardly knew ye!)

2. "Suzy Creamcheese" - Teddy & His Patches.  Great acid punk from San Jose garage band doing their interpretation of Frank Zappa & the Mothers. 

3. "Suicidal Flowers" - Crystal Chandelier. Awesome fuzztone on this Doors-inspired song courtesy of a little known garage band from either Texas or Providence, RI. 

4. "Swami" - William Penn V. Fucking fantastic San Francisco British Invasion-influenced acid rock.  Opened up for the likes of Jefferson Airplane, Them & Paul Revere and the Raiders. Mickey Hart played drums with them for a while before joining The Grateful Dead.  They were supposedly about to sign a record deal with Fantasy Records before disbanding and becoming another rock & roll footnote!

5. "I'm Allergic to Flowers" - Jefferson Handkerchief. What a band name!  We don't know a thing about the Jefferson Handkerchief except that they released this one novelty single in 1967 in order to poke holes in the whole "Flower Power" movement!

6. bonus track "Prana (excerpt)" - Unfolding.     

7. "Flight Reaction" - The Calico Wall.  Psychedelic garage punk from Minnesota band! Great trippy & paranoid song about fear of flying... Chorus: "And I swear I'll never fly again!"

8. "Loose Lip Sync Ship" - The Hogs.  Weird tune, heavily influenced by Zappa.  Starts out as a great garage instrumental, then moves into a druggy doo-wop spoken word section, before winding up as an abstract space jazz hymn!  Fun Fact: The Hogs were better known as The Chocolate Watchband!  

9. "The Reality of (Air) Fried Borsk" - The Driving Stupid. More whacked-out psychedelic garage rock, this time from the state of New Jersey.  The acoustic stomp-blues part is fine, but the screeching, screaming vocals seem to be a little overboard!  This band's biggest "hit" was called "Horror Asparagus Stories", included on Side Two!  Oh boy! 

Side Two
1. "I'm Five Years Ahead of My Time" - The Third Bardo.  Releasing just one single in their short career, New York's The Third Bardo were certainly about quality and not quantity with this killer psychedelic classic!  We're hearing more than a little Roky Erickson on this one!  

2. "Voices Green and Purple" - The Bees.  West Coast acid rock.  This time hailing from Los Angeles.  Not much else is known about The Bees.

3. "Spider and The Fly" - The Monocles.  This is the sound of good clean-cut neighborhood kids from Colorado forming a garage band and then discovering drugs! Yowsa! 

4. "Let's Take a Trip" - Godfrey.  L.A. Disc Jockey Godfrey takes on this Kim Fowley classic.  Sounds a little bit square compared to the original which was the original ode to psychedelics! 

5. "Faces" - T.C. Atlantic.  Minneapolis in the house!  Decent garage band that really never made it out of their home state of Minnesota. Nice fuzzy guitars and snaky vocals!

6. "Soggy Cereal" - Mike Condello.  Oh boy.

7. "Dom Kallar Oss Mods" - The Lea Riders Group.  Fantastic garage rock straight from Stockholm, Sweden and doing it up right!  This was the title track of the 1968 Swedish documentary about streetwise Stockholm teenagers, "They Call Us Misfits". 

8. "Horror Asparagus Stories" - The Driving Stupid.   "My father was a big ol' toad / He lived in a hole in the middle of the road"... it seems this collection is leaning a little too much to the Dr. Demento side of things!

9. "Like a Dribbling Fram" - Races Marbles.  Oh boy, Bob Dylan is turning in his grave! (and he's not even dead yet!) Canadian band with their take on Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" that sounds like an 1960's Weird Al on psilocybin.

And "Weird" would be the best way to describe much of this record!  But, like we always say, "Weird is good", friends, and there's plenty of weirdos on Pebbles volume 3! 

RATING: 3.5 commie cereal, soggy cereal, they're one in the same out of 5

Pebbles volume 4

Pebbles, volume 4 (1979) - BFD Records 

Hello Friends,

Tiki T. and I have recently started collecting the Pebbles LP series courtesy of the BFD & AIP Record labels.  Awesome compilation records, first released in the late 70's, subtitled as "Artyfacts from the First Punk Era".  

They're a good companion to the more popular NUGGETS series-- records filled with 2 or 3 minute punk masterpieces mostly from the years of 1966 thru 1969.  Bands consisting of pimply-faced kids in basements and garages scattered throughout the country.  Some bands (and band members) would go on to bigger and better things, but most would only end up playing local teen centers, VFW Halls, dive bars and local college radio stations.  Only a few would be fortunate enough to open for a touring national act like Herman's Hermits, The Jefferson Airplane or The Animals.  A handful would be fortunate to record a 7" or two and then call it a day fading off into rock & roll obscurity.  

One-Hit and No-Hit Wonders. Footnotes in the Rock & Roll History Books.

Some of the greatest rock and roll songs ever written may have only been heard by a handful of ears. These records provide a time capsule into an honest and less-cynical past.  Behind every band, there's a story; some are triumphant; some are tragic; many are uneventful... but who doesn't love a good rock & roll story?    

Tonight we've got the fourth Pebbles LP on the turntable, better known as "The Surf One".  Eighteen tracks that are a bit of a departure from the usual Pebble LP as these songs are all unified by a surf rock theme! Honestly, its not our favorite Pebbles LP thus far.  Its fun but not as weird or grungy or dangerous as previous Pebbles' entries! Surfs up kiddies!

Side One
1. "Summer Means Fun" - Bruce & Terry.  Sounds like an early Beach Boys record and there's probably good reason for that as "Bruce" was longtime Beach Boy Bruce Johnston and "Terry" was Terry Melcher-- producer extraordinaire, son of Doris Day, friend of Charlie Manson. 
2. "Anywhere the Girls Are" - The Fantastic Baggys. P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri's surf & hotrod L.A. studio band.  Sloan and Barri would write and sing backup on some Jan & Dean records in '63 & '64. 
3. "R.P.M." - The Four Speeds. A hoppin' little hot rod number by another L.A. studio band featuring Gary Usher.  Most notable because this track features Dennis Wilson on drums. (This was the B-Side to The Four Speeds only single, "My Sting Ray".)
4. (bonus track) - Jan & Dean Coca Cola commercial. Yawn!
5. "Masked Grandma" - The California Suns.  A sequel of sorts to Jan & Dean's "Little Old Lady from Pasadena" (but a little bit meaner!) We like the kazoo solo, I guess.
6. "Top Down Time" - The Dantes. More surf's up, hot rod doo-wop.    
7. "Custom Caravan" - The Pyramids.  Another Gary Usher-penned hot rod tune featuring some pretty good drumming!  Actually, The Pyramids were in reality a complete band and not just some studio geeks hanging out trying to record the next big hit (like a lot of the songs on this collection!)
8. "California Sun '65" - The Rivieras.  South Bend, Indiana's own, The Rivieras gave the world this jukebox classic complete with a driving rhythm section, twangy lead guitar, a fun organ.  Ramones did a decent cover of this.  You could almost hear Joey Ramone singing on this version.
9. "New Generation" - The Trashmen.  From the other Midwest surf capitol, Minneapolis, Minnesota.  This is probably the most Garage-sounding track on the LP.  I guess there's something to be said for landlocked surf bands!  This wins our pick for best on the album!  A true teen anthem! We especially like the sound affect at the end of the lyric, "You couldn't wake them Sunday with a hydrogen bomb..."   

Side Two
1. "Pamela Jean" - The Survivors.  Written by Brian Wilson.  Arranged by Brian Wilson.  Sung by Brian Wilson. But this is NOT the Beach Boys (actually, it probably is!)
2. "Sacramento" - Gary Usher.  Usher, who co-wrote a number of early Beach Boys hits with Brian Wilson, including the phenomenal "In My Room", co-wrote and co-produced this song with Brian.  Its no surprise that it sounds a lot like the early Beach Boys.  (But what the hell on this record doesn't?  I mean, come on, we're itching for something a little slimier, grimier and sleazy!  This is a decent song but where's the twang?  Where's the Dick Dale-sounding stuff?  Heck, at this point we'd settle for some second rate Santo & Johnny!)
3. "Thinkin' 'Bout You Baby" - Sharon Marie.  Oh hey, guess what kids?  This song was written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love in 1964 and recorded by Brian.  It was later reclaimed by the Beach Boys on their 1967 record, Wild Honey.
4. "Hot Rod High" - The Knights.  Another Gary Usher hot rod/surf rock studio band.
5. "School is a Gas" - The Wheelmen. More. Gary. Usher.  This one a re-working of The Hondell's "School is a Drag."
6. "Image of a Surfer" - Lloyd Thaxton.  Kind of a novelty, spoken-word song by L.A. fixture/disc jockey, Lloyd Thaxton aka the poor man's Dick Clark or the West Coast Murray the K.
7. "Beach Ball" - The City Surfers.  Co-written by Jim McGuinn.  Fun Spector-sounding beach song that wouldn't sound out of place in a Flintstones episode!
8. "London's A Lonely Town" - Dave Edmunds.  This seems to be a very un-Pebbles-like entry!  Overproduced, slick-sounding rockabilly from circa 1976.  Not a terrible song, but definitely doesn't fit in with whole Pebbles-theme! 
9. "The Fun We Had" - The Ragamuffins.  Bittersweet ending to the record written, arranged and sung (in glorious falsetto) by California impresarior, Gary Zekley, who wrote "Sooner or Later" for The Grass Roots and "Superman" for The Clique (later covered by R.E.M).

Like I said, a bit of a let down after some other great Pebbles' LPs.  That being said, the weather is great, the girls are in their summer clothes and we're headed down to the local malt shop for a classic car show.  Tiki... where's my Pomade?

RATING: 3 ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-bird-bird-bird-ba-ba-bird-is-the-word out of 5

Pebbles volume 2

Pebbles, volume 2 (1979) - BFD Records 

Hello Friends,

Tiki T. and I have recently started collecting the Pebbles LP series courtesy of the BFD & AIP Record labels.  Awesome compilation records, first released in the late 70's, subtitled as "Artyfacts from the First Punk Era".  

They're a good companion to the more popular NUGGETS series-- records filled with 2 or 3 minute punk masterpieces mostly from the years of 1966 thru 1969.  Bands consisting of pimply-faced kids in basements and garages scattered throughout the country.  Some bands (and band members) would go on to bigger and better things, but most would only end up playing local teen centers, VFW Halls, dive bars and local college radio stations.  Only a few would be fortunate enough to open for a touring national act like Herman's Hermits, The Jefferson Airplane or The Animals.  A handful would be fortunate to record a 7" or two and then call it a day fading off into rock & roll obscurity.  

One-Hit and No-Hit Wonders. Footnotes in the Rock & Roll History Books.

Some of the greatest rock and roll songs ever written may have only been heard by a handful of ears. These records provide a time capsule into an honest and less-cynical past.  Behind every band, there's a story; some are triumphant; some are tragic; many are uneventful... but who doesn't love a good rock & roll story?    

Tonight we've got the second Pebbles LP on the turntable.  Sixteen more tracks (plus one fun bonus track!) that are pure garage rock gems!   

Side One
1. "Makin' Deals" - The Satans.  WOW!  What a great song to start things off!  A 1966 fuzz-fueled rocker about selling your soul to the devil and told from the point of view of Satan himself!   It bears more than just a passing resemblance to the Stones' "Sympathy for the Devil" (released in 1968!) It even contains the repeated line, "Can you guess my name?"  Is it possible that Mick Jagger would have heard this song while touring the States in '66 or '67?  Maybe Keith Richards picked up the record in a West Coast record store and played it on the tour bus!  One never knows! The Satans hail from Fullerton, California.

2. "99th Floor" - The Moving Sidewalks. Have you ever wondered what guitarist Billy Gibbons was up to before he formed ZZ Top?  Well the answer, kids, is shredding guitar in the Texas psych-blues band, The Moving Sidewalks.  A Houston-based band that would gain a lot of local recognition touring the area with Roky Erickson and The Thirteenth Floor Elevators.  Great song!   

3. "Feathered Fish" - The Sons of Adam.  And we're three for three with great songs! This band started out in Baltimore, MD (where they were called Fender IV) but relocated to sunny, Southern California where they would frequently play clubs along the Sunset Strip and eventually be produced (and renamed) by Kim Fowley.  Guitarist & singer Randy Holden would later form The Other Half and join Blue Cheer. If you think this song sounds a little like the band Love, extra points for you!  It was written by Arthur Lee!

(Bonus Track) "Vox Wah-Wah Pedal Commercial" - The Electric Prunes.  Fun little nugget with the Electric Prunes shilling the Vox Wah-Wah pedal! 

4. "You Rub Me The Wrong Way" - The Road.  Not much is known about this band of Ohio teens (also sometimes known as The Hard Road) except for the fact they knew how to play their Fuzz!

5. "So What!!" - The Lyrics.  Great bluesy garage tune (with some killer harmonica) from Cardiff, California band.

6. "Lost Innocence" - The Buddhas.  Next we head North to Bakersfield for this fun, psychedelic garage tune.

7. "Bad Girl" - Zakary Thaks.  Good British Invasion rockin' blues tune from Corpus Christi garage band.  This single gained some national attention and the band even got to open for The Yardbirds (their heroes), The Jefferson Airplane and fellow-Texans, The 13th Floor Elevators!

8. "Green Fuz" - Randy Alvey & The Green Fuz.  What a lo-fi treat courtesy of this teenaged Texas quintet.   I'm sure most listeners in 1968 would have criticized this track as being poorly recorded, but its muddled, crude and raw sound predates the Punk movement of the late 70's and the indie DIY movement of the early 90's.  Primarily a covers band playing around the dance halls in and around the Dallas/Ft Worth area, The Green Fuz would, unfortunately, only record this one single (b/w their song, "There is a Land").  The Cramps would cover this little nugget on their 1981 record, Psychedelic Jungle.     

Side Two
1. "Go Ahead" - The Squires.  This B-side to the amazing, "Going All The Way" (from Pebbles Volume 1) is heavy on the Byrd's influence.  Nice song, not nearly as amazing as its A-side, however.

2. "I Can Only Give You Everything" - The Little Boy Blues.  Bunch of college kids from University of Chicago covering Them.  What they lack in blue-eyed soul, they make up for in fuzz!  (You might recognize that opening guitar riff, Beck sampled the Them version of this song for his song, "Devil's Haircut".)

3. "She's Gone" - The Dovers. Great, catchy, jangle pop song from Santa Barbara, CA garage rock band who despite recording a number of late 60's gems, never had any national exposure and only released 4 singles in 1965/1966.   

4. "I Must Run" - Phil & The Frantics.  If the Stones, um, borrowed some inspiration from The Satans for "Sympathy for the Devil" then Phoenix, Arizona's Phil & The Frantics probably owe some royalties to The Zombies for their song "I Must Run" which seems to be heavily inspired by the Zombie's 1965 B-Side, "I Must Move". No matter, The Zombies will be remembered as one of the architects of the British Invasion, while Phil & The Frantics probably played some pretty cool pool parties back in the day!  This track was produced by Waylon Jennings.

5. "What Am I Going To Do" - The Dovers. The B-side to "She's Gone".  More great harmonies and jangly guitars! 

6. "It's Cold Outside" - The Choir.  Amazing Brit-influenced pop song by The Pride of Cleveland, Ohio, The Choir.  The Choir started out in various garages around Cleveland in 1964 as The Mods.  After taking Cleveland by storm, the boys went up to Chicago to record some song and changed their name to The Choir.   In 1966, "It's Cold Outside" was released as a single on the Canadian-American label but it was re-released by Roulette Records in the Spring of '67 and actually charted (at number 68) on the Billboard Charts. The Choir would go through several lineup changes and would eventually disband in 1969. Some of the members of The Choir would recruit fellow Clevelander, Eric Carmen, and form the power pop band, The Raspberries, in 1970.  Our pick for best on the record!  

7. "Wine Wine Wine" - Bobby Fuller.  With a title like that, this could be Tiki T's theme song!  Great Texas Rockabilly by that Bobby Fuller ("I Fought the Law") who would die under incredibly mysterious circumstances less than 2 years later!

8. "I'm A Man" - The Litter.  Minneapolis, Minnesota's The Litter kicked things off for us on Volume 1 with the great "Action Woman".  Now they're back to close things out on Volume 2 with their version of the Bo Diddley classic, "I'm A Man" and boy do they bring it! Clocking in at 4 and a half-minutes, the entire second half of this song is a strange, feedback-fueled psychedelic frenzy.  Its tough to say, but their version gives the more famous, Yardbirds' version, a run for its money!   

RATING: 4.5 Things in my pocket keep a lot of folks alive out of 5

Pebbles volume 1

Pebbles, volume 1 (1979) - BFD Records 

Hello Friends,

Tiki T. and I have recently started collecting the Pebbles LP series courtesy of the BFD & AIP Record labels.  Awesome compilation records, first released in the late 70's, subtitled as "Artyfacts from the First Punk Era".  

They're a good companion to the more popular NUGGETS series-- records filled with 2 or 3 minute punk masterpieces mostly from the years of 1966 thru 1969.  Bands consisting of pimply-faced kids in basements and garages scattered throughout the country.  Some bands (and band members) would go on to bigger and better things, but most would only end up playing local teen centers, VFW Halls, dive bars and local college radio stations.  Only a few would be fortunate enough to open for a touring national act like Herman's Hermits, The Jefferson Airplane or The Animals.  A handful would be fortunate to record a 7" or two and then call it a day fading off into rock & roll obscurity.  

One-Hit and No-Hit Wonders. Footnotes in the Rock & Roll History Books.

Some of the greatest rock and roll songs ever written may have only been heard by a handful of ears. These records provide a time capsule into an honest and less-cynical past.  Behind every band, there's a story; some are triumphant; some are tragic; many are uneventful... but who doesn't love a good rock & roll story?    

Tonight we've got the very first Pebbles LP on the turntable.  Described on the liner notes as "a unique series of rare original recordings for the rock and roll connosisseur. Sixteen tracks that are pure garage rock gems!"    

Side One
1. "Action Woman" - The Litter.  Classic garage punk.  There's nothing not to like about this song.  Its got it all: raw, raucous lead guitar; a driving, punk rock beat; raw, raucous vocals with simple lyrics about giving your girlfriend an ultimatum-- you better put out babe or I'll find someone who does!  (coincidentally, its what my back tattoo says!)  The Litter are from Minneapolis, MN. 

2. "Who Do You Love?" - The Preachers.  Scorching version of the Bo Diddley classic by L.A. Quintet.  Hoodoo, indeed!

3. "Dance Franny Dance" - The Floyd Dakil Combo. Rockabilly treat courtesy of Texas guitarist, Floyd Dakil and his band circa 1964.  Interestingly, Floyd would later go on to become a guitarist in Louis Prima's band.

4. "I'm In Pittsburgh (and it's Raining)" - The Outcasts.  There were probably dozens of garage bands in the 1960's that named themselves, "The Outcasts".  These "Outcasts" dominated the local party and local band scenes in San Antonio, Texas in the mid-60's.  (Contrary to what the song's title implies, they are NOT from Pittsburgh!)  Fans of The Stooges would definitely be into this song!

5. "Going All the Way" - The Squires.  Not much is known about this band hailing from Bristol, CT except that they only recorded one single and its a shredder.  Punk Rock, at its finest.  We're forced to wonder, how was this song NOT a huge hit?  Our pick for best on the album!

6. "Going Away Baby" - The Grains of Sand.  We go from Going All The Way to Going Away Baby... such is the rock'n'roll life!  Fast, frenetic Bo Diddley-inspired raver from L.A. quartet.  Reminiscient of early Them.  Great, fast guitar playing and a very 60's-sounding organ (farfisa?) solo. 

7. "You Treat Me Bad" - The Ju-Ju's.  Sounds like the 13th Floor Elevators played at the wrong speed.  From Grand Rapids, Michigan, The Ju-Ju's recorded this single in 1965.  The band's singer, Ray Hummel, left the band after he got married in 1966 and other members would put their down their instruments when Uncle Sam came calling.  

8. "1-2-5" - The Haunted.  60's garage punk from Montreal, Canada.  I guess our Neighbors to the North could rock out with the best of them!  Funny, early pressings of the single misidentified the band's name as "The Hunted."      

Side Two
1. "Like A Rolling Stone" - The Soup Greens.  A three-piece garage band from Brooklyn, NY who destroy this Bob Dylan classic (in a good way, of course!)

2. "Crackin' Up" - The Wig.  Another hard-rocking band with some killer guitar playing.  Influential in the Austin, TX local band scene.

3. "Psychotic Reaction" - Positively 13 O'Clock.  Great name for a 60's garage band!  Also hailing from Texas, Positively 13 O'Clock was actually a side project for local rockabilly musician, Jimmy Rabbit, and the slightly more well-known garage band, Mouse & The Traps.  In 1967, they recorded only one single, a cover of The Count Five's "Psychotic Reaction."

4. "The Trip" - Kim Fowley.  Its hard to tell if Kim Fowley is cool or just a dick.  Son of a actor and model, Kim Fowley emerged as a prolific songwriter / producer / hustler in the early 1960's L.A. music scene.  He recorded and worked with with Spector, Zappa, Cat Stevens, Warren Zevon, Helen Reddy, etc.  In the 70's, his claim to fame was organizing and producing the all girl punk band, The Runaways.  "The Trip" is a novelty-sounding record about a psychedelic experience complete with "flying dolls and surfing cakes".  Weird song, especially by 1965 standards.  A real period piece!     

5. "Spazz" - The Elastik Band.  One of a kind psychedelic rock via the San Francisco suburb of Belmont.  The song itself is a "spazz" with its fuzzy guitar bursts, nonsensical lyrics and Captain Beefheart-y vocals.
  
6. "Rich with Nothin'" - The Split Ends.  Grimy garage rock from Tampa, Florida circa 1966 that sounds a little like Paul Revere and the Raiders.  Not to be confused with the 80's kiwi New Wave band, Split Enz.    

7. "Potato Chip" - The Shadows of Knight.  The greatest dance craze that wasn't, "Potato Chip" is a novelty recording by the British-invasion meets Chicago Blues band, The Shadows of Knight.  Formidable garage rock band, most famous for their cover of Them's "Gloria". 

8. "Beaver Patrol" - The Wild Knights. This ladies and gentlemen might be the greatest song in the history of mankind!  Unbelievable!  How did I get this far in life without ever hearing it before? "My favorite way of gettin' kicks / Go Downtown and hustle chicks / Beaver Patrol!"  Friends, have gotten our hands on a true classic! Sign me up for some Beaver Patrol!

RATING: 4.5 Beaver Patrols Getting Lots of Action out of 5
     

Pebbles Volume 10

Pebbles, volume 10 (1980) - BFD Records 

Hello Friends,

Tiki T. and I have recently started collecting the Pebbles LP series courtesy of the BFD & AIP Record labels.  Awesome compilation records, first released in the late 70's, subtitled as "Artyfacts from the First Punk Era".  

They're a good companion to the more popular NUGGETS series-- records filled with 2 or 3 minute punk masterpieces mostly from the years of 1966 thru 1969.  Bands consisting of pimply-faced kids in basements and garages scattered throughout the country.  Some bands (and band members) would go on to bigger and better things, but most would only end up playing local teen centers, VFW Halls, dive bars and local college radio stations.  Only a few would be fortunate enough to open for a touring national act like Herman's Hermits, The Jefferson Airplane or The Animals.  A handful would be fortunate to record a 7" or two and then call it a day fading off into rock & roll obscurity.  

One-Hit and No-Hit Wonders. Footnotes in the Rock & Roll History Books.

Some of the greatest rock and roll songs ever written may have only been heard by a handful of ears. These records provide a time capsule into an honest and less-cynical past.  Behind every band, there's a story; some are triumphant; some are tragic; many are uneventful... but who doesn't love a good rock & roll story?    

Tonight we're starting with Volume 10, on yellow-colored vinyl, with a sexy go-go brunette on the cover!  Sixteen tracks that are pure garage rock gems!    

Side One
1. "Talk To Me Girl" - The Next Five.  Holy shit, is this a Who outtake from the Who Sell Out era?  Amazing song from Texas garage band!  Ned's Pick for best song on the record!

2. "You'll Come Back" - The Moon Rakers.  Great Kinks-influenced, garage punk from Colorado. Members of this band would go on to become Sugarloaf (unfortunately).

3. "Baby What's New" - Peter Wheat & The Breadmen.  Shitty band name but great song with some great guitar work from this San Francisco garage band whose biggest claim to fame is that they almost opened for The Beatles at their legendary (and final) Candlestick Park concert.

4. "Since I Met You" - The Marauders.  More garage rock from San Francisco.  We dig the out-of-tune piano.

5. "Roller Coaster" - The Ides of March.  Great song from Chicago garage band!  Hard to believe its the same band that did the wretched, horn-laden "Vehicle" in 1970.

6. "Need A Little Lovin'" - The Foggy Notions. Some obscure punk via 1966 Chicago.  

7. "Just In Case You're Wondering" - The Ugly Ducklings.  Toronto's premier 5-piece garage rock band.

8. "My Group and Me" - Raga and the Talas.  Side One concludes with this rockin' & psychedelic tune penned by Miss Jackie DeShannon.  Her brother, Randy Myers, fronted this band-- which by all accounts was nothing more than a 1966 L.A. studio project.  This song is Tiki's pick for best on the album!  Good pick Tiki!

Side Two
1. "Tilt-a-Whirl" - Leo & the Prophets.  More fuzz-toned Texas punk, this time from Austin.  The band only released one 45 rpm and this song was the A-side.

2. "Love at Psychedelic Velocity" - The Human Expression.  Some nice fast-slow-fast-slow low budget garage rock (with indecipherable vocals) from Los Angeles.  Slightly reminiscent of Roky Erikson's 13th Floor Elevators.

3. "I'm On My Way Down the Road" - The Wig/Wags.  Great blue-eyed soul track!  (If you told me it was Alex Chilton singing,  I would believe it!)  Most likely from Hope, Arkansas. 

4. "Train Kept A Rollin" - Steve Walker and the Bold.  Raucous cover tune from a band of which little is know.  This speedy version gives the Yardbirds a run for their money!

5. "I'm Not Talkin" - Things to Come.  From Chicago and speaking of the Yardbirds... 

6. "Slippin' and Slidin" - The Five Americans.  Probably the most "famous" band on this compilation.  Known for their 60's pop hit "Western Union", we prefer this nerve-shattering cover of a Little Richard tune from this Dallas, Texas (via Durant, Oklahoma) quintet.  

7. "Primitive" - The Groupies.  Swampy, sleazy garage rock... just like we like it!  From New York City, of course.  Self-described as "Lower East Side Scum" and we'll gladly drink to that!  (Fun Fact: Wilco's Jeff Tweedy's first band "The Primitives" took their name from this here song!)

8. "Don't Shoot Me Down" - The Brogues.  From Merced, California.  This was the B-side to their slightly more well-known recording of the garage standard, "(I Ain't No) Miracle Worker".  Drummer Greg Elmore eventually joined the San Fran-based, Quicksilver Messenger Service. 

RATING: 4.5 Things That I Do That You'll Never Try out of 5