I'LL HAVE THE SIX PIECE NUGGET MEAL

Post-slack fest posts are always about righting the ship and getting back to meat and potatoes rock. At different times it's been punk rock, rockabilly or garage, in other words, stuff with dirt under the nails. Throw away the candy canes, garage is for dinner tonight. Fuzz and nasally vocals, you know the drill.

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Listen:
Count Five - Declaration of Independence mp3 at Internet Archive
Chocolate Watch Band - Let's Talk About Girls mp3 at Internet Archive
We the People - You Burn Me Up and Down mp3 at Internet Archive
The Woolies - Who Do You Love mp3 at Internet Archive
Kenny and the Kasuals - Nothing Better to Do mp3 at Internet Archive
Third Bard - I'm Five Years Ahead of my Time mp3 at Internet Archive

BOWL CUTS, FUZZ AND POINTY BOOTS

Man, I gotta say. Lenny Kaye did us a solid so many years ago. He put together the first Nuggets compilation, at the time a two record set. It was the first compilation of garage bands when compilations were a rarity and "garage band" a term only used by total music fiends. Released way back in '72 before he was playing in Patti Smith's band, when he was a writer that worked in a record store. It was followed by single LPs compilations of more nuggets and by the time the late seventies punk rock thing happened, a lot of the bands had added covers taken from the compilations. The cool thing was that the original 45s, recorded from 1963-68, were still to be found in thrift stores and dusty record racks.

All the Nuggets compilations would soon be followed by Crypt Records' Back From the Grave series. While drawing from the same idea, Back From the Grave compilations leaned towards the more obscure bands, most regional releases, like Nuggets mid-sixties garage bands every bit as wild, in most cases wilder, and as a result none drawn from hits. There was also a series of Pebbles compilations and Sundazed Records' Garage Beat '66 series which narrowed it down to a single year, 1966 being about the peak of garage snottiness.

Here's a handful I was buggin' out too back in the day, from the earliest Nuggets compilations. I think four of these charted, so, yeah, it's really like a beginners course. Most of you know these well but if they're new to you, this is really basic shit you should know. If you dig them, a heads up. It is a very deep rabbit hole. I'd start with the first Nuggets and then the first Back From the Grave and go from there. It's slippery. Beware the jingle jangle.

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Listen:
Music Machine - Talk Talk mp3 at Internet Archive
The Sonics - Strychnine mp3 at Internet Archive
The Barbarians - Are You A Boy or Are You A Girl mp3 at Internet Archive
Love - Seven and Seven Is mp3 at Internet Archive
The Seeds - Pushin' Too Hard mp3 at Internet Archive
The Count Five - Psychotic Reaction mp3 at Internet Archive
Chocolate Watch Band - Let's Talk About Girls mp3 at Internet Archive

DON'T NEED YOUR MILKCOW BLUES ANYMORE

Fuckin' Chocolate Watch Band, those sneaky sapsuckers. They recorded "Milk Cow Blues" and gave it a different title, "Don't Need Your Lovin'". That I knew. You know what else they did? They recorded a different version with the correct title. I can't believe I just noticed this, despite the fact that I've owned a greatest hits package that has both of them for years. Maybe because there were scant liner notes so I never bothered to look at the song listings as I was listening and it never registered the I heard the same song twice. They are slightly different, but the both sound like the Chocolate Watch Band. Who knows. But here's both versions a few other good songs by them.

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Listen:

The Chocolate Watch Band - Don't Need Your Lovin' mp3 at Mango Bongo (?)
The Chocolate Watch Band - Milkcow Blues mp3 at Mango Bongo (?)
The Chocolate Watch Band - Let's Talk About Girls mp3 at Mango Bongo (?)
The Chocolate Watch Band - Sitting There Standing mp3 at Mango Bongo (?)
The Chocolate Watch Band - Are You Gonna Be There (At The Love-In)? mp3 at Mango Bongo (?)
The Chocolate Watch Band - Nine more at Mango Bongo (?)

OKAY, LET'S

This is a good one. It's like a meeting of the He-Man Women Haters Club on Our Gang. With hair. Just the guys. Talk about girls. That is until the one guy slips up and gets all PC towards the end and says "Let's talk about women" thereby ruining the opportunity to defend the demeaning sassy talk with the ol' "it was a different time" defense. 

Dig the clip too, from "Riot on Sunset Strip". The dialogue of the actors was probably written by some pipe smoking screenwriter with an ascot. But it is the Chocolate Watch Band in the background, and that counts for something.

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Listen:
The Chocolate Watch Band - Let's Talk About Girls mp3 at Mango Bango (?)
The Chocolate Watch Band - Don't Need Your Lovin' mp3 at Mango Mango (?)

C'MON...EVERYBODY?

Right down the "Summertime Blues" rabbit hole tonight. All it took was hearing a crappy cover of the song. It was bound to happen, there have been so many covers of it. But it was a little disconcerting to realize that there are few Eddie Cochran covers at all, let alone of that one song, that have the sound or feel of their original version. Not to say some aren't good. Some are and some aren't. But it seems nearly impossible for anyone to cover an Eddie Cochran song without fucking with it. Only one of the assorted covers down there sounds even remotely like him, and I'm not going to tell you which one it is. Those of you familiar with his music will hear it right away. If you aren't familiar with his music, I'll bite my tongue.

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Listen:

Eddie Cochran - Summertime Blues mp3 at Rocky 52

Bobby Fuller Four - Summertime Blues mp3 at Bedazzled
Blue Cheer - Summertime Blues mp3 at The Setbacks
The Who - Summertime Blues mp3 at Bedazzled

Black Keys - Summertime Blues mp3 at ATumblr (?)
Other Cochran covers:
Billy Zoom - Hallelujah I Love Her So mp3 at Billy Zoom
Chocolate Watch Band - Milk Cow Blues (streaming) at YouTube
The Real Kids - My Way (streaming) at YouTube
The Sex Pistols - Something Else mp3 at 195.122.253.112 (?) Sid Vicious vocal
Video:
Eddie Cochran - Summertime Blues (Town Hall Party) at YouTube
The Who - Summertime Blues (Live) at YouTube
Visit:
Other covers of Summertime Blues at Second Hand Songs
Summertime Blues at Wikipedia Earl Palmer on drums. I did not know that.

WHO'S GOT THE SMOKES?

Here's another great band photo, this one, the Chocolate Watch Band. Can you tell they liked the Stones? It was from that era, roughly '64-'67, when American bands were getting deep in hairy. There always seemed to be one holdout in a lot of these bands, the guy who thinks, "You guys go ahead. Grow your hair like Brian Jones. I'll be right over here in short hair land waiting for you when the fad dies". These guys, while definitely having a little Stones thing going on, did so with an eye on their stateside competition. They were on Tower Records,  home to the Standells, and some of Dave Allan and the Arrows stuff. The label was run by Ed Cobb who was known to write songs for his roster of bands, and often substituted studio musicians during recording sessions, including lead singers. So, who's playing on what? Good luck.

You really can't go wrong with any of the cuts below, but definitely check out "Are You Gonna Be There?", a slower sinister sounding one with a very cool solo. It's hosted at DivShare, so it's a couple extra clicks, but it's worth it. Once you get to DivShare, click on the green "Download" button, and scratch your head for fifteen seconds. When the button reappears, you're good to go.

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Listen:
Chocolate Watch Band - Are You Gonna Be There mp3 (via DivShare) at On The Flip Side
Chocolate Watch Band - Let's Talk About Girls mp3 at Planet Mondo
Chocolate Watch Band - Don't Need Your Lovin' mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Chocolate Watch Band - No Way Out mp3 (via DivShare) at On The Flip Side
Visit:
Chocolate Watch Band at Wikipedia
Chocolate Watch Band Official site

GOING TO THE STORE?

Boy, this is a mixed bunch, with only the loosest of threads. I was puttin' around town today listening to an old mix that I made that had the Flamin' Groovies, the Blues Explosion and a few other bands that got me all riled up and wishing I was having one of those good ol' "Really, they said I was having a party tonight?" type impromptu what-the-hell, if you can't beat 'em join 'em type Saturday night throwdowns, just like the good old days. Problem is, that ol' gang of mine has, literally, moved on. Time was, there was a steady stream of drop-ins on just about every weekend night (and some during the week) that would give cause to hiding a few beers in the vegetable drawer. People get married, move away, buy homes where they can afford them, and start families. Not me. Just like John Milner said in the movie American Grafitti, "I'm staying right here, having fun, as usual." It is what it is, to use a phrase I hate to use. We all grow up in different ways and I suppose. now that I'm a little older, my way is leaving beer right out in the open. So I guess this is for the "Do you have a paper plate?' "Who pissed on the seat?" "Is that the last one?" "He's upstairs" "Can I play this?" friends. They know who they are. I have carpet stains named after some of you, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Love you more because of it. XO you loiterers.

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Listen:
Dirty Shames - Makin' Love mp3 at Beware of the Blog
King Khan - Treat Me Like A Dog mp3 at Obscure Sound
The Chocolate Watch Band - Don't Need Your Lovin' mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Flamin' Groovies - Teenage Head mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Jim Dickinson with the Cramps - Red Headed Woman mp3 at The Hound Blog
The Gun Club - Sex Beat mp3 at Eat This Grenade!
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Money Rock’n’Roll mp3 at Review Stalker
The Black Keys - Have Love Will Travel mp3 at Nine Bullets
Left Lane Cruiser - Big Mama mp3 at Nine Bullets

STILL ON YOUR FEET?

You're almost there. I know, I thought it would never end. I'm still kind of in the thick of it, but I couldn't pass up an opportunity to give you a little booster shot. So, make like the runner that crawls over the finish line; and to help you out, here's a baker's dozen of standbys. Thanks for being patient while I placated the holiday freaks.

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The Music Machine - Talk Talk mp3 at The Bomarr Blog
The Chocolate Watch Band - Let's Talk About Girls mp3 at Planet Mondo
Flash & the Memphis Casuals - Uptight Tonight mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Seeds - Pushin' Too Hard mp3 at Listen Before You Buy
The Sonics - Have Love Will Travel mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Pretty Things - Buzz the Jerk mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Love - 7 & 7 Is mp3 at Siblingshot on the Bleachers
Outsiders - Touch mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Groupies - Primitive mp3 at A Barrel of Nails
The Wailers - Out of Our Tree mp3 at Beware of the Blog
13th Floor Elevators - You're Gonna Miss Me mp3 at A Barrel of Nails
Them - Just a Little Bit mp3 at Beware of the Blog
? and the Mysterians - 96 Tears mp3 at Plain or Pan