Writers Wanted: Help bring DRRB to the next level…

If you’ve been visiting here watching for our infrequent posts, let me thank you for being so loyal. DRRB hasn’t been keeping up our end of the bargain lately, but I wanna try and give this blog a good kick in the ass to get it moving in the right direction.

My idea for this place has been to have a team of writers blogging about rock ‘n’ roll, past and present. I’ve set up another place for my own longer pieces (debuting soon, keep your eyes open for it!), but I want to keep DRRB alive as a hangout for rockers from across the globe. Our name comes from the Richard Hell and the Voidoids song “Down at the Rock and Roll Club”, and what I see DRRB being ultimately is a virtual rock ‘n’ roll club, where you can meet different people and hear all kinds of great music. To do that, we need more people posting here, so I’m putting out the word that DRRB is looking for dedicated, passionate, rock ‘n’ roll fans who want to get on “the list” to post to their hearts content here (and on the Facebook page). If you’ve never done anything like this before, that’s ok. You can post just about anything rock ‘n’ roll related, and posts can be anything from some random YouTube clips that you want to share to reviews of albums or live performances, interviews with people in rock ‘n’ roll, or even your own personal rants. I’d definitely like more focus on independent, working rock ‘n’ roll bands out there right now, but looking back at the past is always welcome here too. Good rock ‘n’ roll is good rock ‘n’ roll, no matter if it was recorded this afternoon or 50 years ago. Wanna reach out and share the music you love with readers from around the world? Then drop me a line either by leaving a comment below this post, my Facebook page, or email me at tedcogswell@gmail.com and I can get ‘ya all set up! Let’s get this party goin’ everyone!!

The 50 Greatest Debut Albums of All-Time, according to me, at the moment…

So far, I’ve been spending my day listening to KEXP’s countdown of their top debut albums of all-time (pledge drive on now). So, because “why not,” here’s mine too, at the moment. Be sure to let me know if you think there was anything I forgot, but remember it’s just one guy’s opinion. So don’t get too pissed off. And don’t get too hung up with the rankings either, the second half is just about a 25-way tie for all practical purposes (and there’s probably a 25-way tie for #51 too, but I need to get in the shower and do something productive with my day already).

1. Jimi Hendrix Experience, ARE YOU EXPERIENCED?
2. The Ramones, RAMONES
3. The Velvet Underground, THE VELVET UNDERGROUND AND NICO
4. Buddy Holly and the Crickets, THE CHIRPING CRICKETS
5. Pink Floyd, THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN
6. The Clash, THE CLASH
7. The Doors, THE DOORS
8. New York Dolls, NEW YORK DOLLS
9. Television, MARQUEE MOON
10. The Buzzcocks, ANOTHER MUSIC IN A DIFFERENT KITCHEN
11. The Heartbreakers, L.A.M.F.
12. Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, SAFE AS MILK
13. Gang of Four, ENTERTAINMENT
14. Little Richard, HERE’S LITTLE RICHARD
15. The Sex Pistols, NEVER MIND THE BOLLOCKS
16. The Beatles, PLEASE PLEASE ME
17. The Stooges, THE STOOGES
18. Roxy Music, ROXY MUSIC
19. Love, LOVE
20. Led Zeppelin, LED ZEPPELIN
21. The Sonics, HERE ARE THE SONICS
22. Rolling Stones, THE ROLLING STONES/ENGLAND’S NEWEST HITMAKERS
23. The Cramps, SONGS THE LORD TAUGHT US
24. The Monks, BLACK MONK TIME
25. Richard Hell & the Voidoids, BLANK GENERATION
26. Black Sabbath, BLACK SABBATH
27. The Who, THE WHO SINGS MY GENERATION
28. The MC5, KICK OUT THE JAMS
29. Them, THE ANGRY YOUNG THEM
30. Elvis Presley, ELVIS PRESLEY
31. Motorhead, MOTORHEAD
32. Leonard Cohen, SONGS OF LEONARD COHEN
33. The Ronettes, INTRODUCING THE FABULOUS RONETTES FEATURING VERONICA
34. The Jam, IN THE CITY
35. Blue Cheer, VINCEBUS ERUPTUM
36. Elvis Costello, MY AIM IS TRUE
37. Devo, Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO!
38. Buffalo Springfield, BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD
39. Dead Boys, YOUNG LOUD AND SNOTTY
40. The Oblivians, SOUL FOOD
41. Booker T. & the MG’s, GREEN ONIONS
42. The United States of America, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
43. X-Ray Spex, GERM FREE ADOLESCENTS
44. X, LOS ANGELES
45. The Small Faces, THE SMALL FACES
46. Funkadelic, FUNKADELIC
47. Patti Smith, HORSES
48. The Feelies, CRAZY RHYTHMS
49. Country Joe & the Fish, ELECTRIC MUSIC FOR MIND AND BODY
50. The Dead Kennedys, FRESH FRUIT FOR ROTTING VEGETABLES

DRRB Profile: The Okmoniks

Formed: 2002, Tuscon, AZ

Members: Helene 33 – vocals, organ
Justin – drums, vocals
Sammy – guitar, vocals
Trent – bass

Album discography: Party Fever! (2008, Slovenly Records)

Sounds Like: Organ driven bubblegum punk.

Current News: On tour in Europe in tha Fall, most shows with drummer Justin’s solo side-project NoBunny.

Videos:

“Teenage Timbomb” from the Party Fever lp…

“Sorority Club Song”….

Live at Budget Rock V!!!!

Links:

Okmoniks on MySpace

Okmoniks page at Slovenly Records

The Okmoniks at Grunnen Rocks

Okmoniks feature in Tucson Weekly

DRRB Profile: The King Khan & BBQ Show

Formed: 2002, Montreal, Quebec/Berlin, Germany

Members: Mark Sultan (aka BBQ) – vocals, guitar, percussion (ex-Spaceshits, Les Sexareenos)
King Khan – vocals, guitar (ex-Spaceshits, also leads King Khan & The Shrines)

Album Discoraphy: The King Khan & BBQ Show (2004, Goner [US]/Hazlewood [Europe])
What’s For Dinner (2006, In The Red)
The King Khan & BBQ Show (expanded reissue of debut) (2007, In the Red)
Invisible Girl (2009, In the Red)

Sounds like: soulful, high energy rootsy garage punk

Current News: New album, Invisible Girl, coming out in November. Both King Khan and BBQ are in The Mighty Defenders, a gospel-punk super-group also featuring the Black Lips, album coming out in September on Vice Records.

Videos:

The first two songs off of the KK & BBQ debut album, “Waddlin’ Around” and “Fish Fight”…

“Why Don’t You Lie”, from the What’s For Dinner lp…

Links:

The King Khan & BBQ Show on MySpace

The King Khan & BBQ Show on Facebook

Mark Sultan website

The King Khan & BBQ Show page at In The Red

The King Khan & BBQ Show at AllMusic

The King Khan & BBQ Show entry at Wikipedia

The King Khan & BBQ Show page at Grunnen Rocks

“Breaking Out” story at Spin.com

Kim Fowley – One Man’s Garbage, Another Man’s Gold

Just a heads-up, I was excited when I saw this. The great Norton Records will be releasing two albums of Kim Fowley’s 1960’s productions, to be released on elaborate vinyl editions in October. This is a must.. from the Norton blog:

ONE MAN’S GARBAGE IS ANOTHER MAN’S GOLD! Norton presents a Golden Decade (1959-69) of Kim Fowley’s elusive, previously properly unheralded mega genius escapades that reinforce the fact that Kim is… GODHEAD! Posh gatefold LPs feature extensive liner notes from Mr. Fowley, presented in his own inimitable MEGA GENIUS steeltrap-memory way. Stand now and salute the man, and each of these great records which blast right today as they did back when the chicken was the egg!

KIM FOWLEY – ONE MAN’S GARBAGE (Norton 355)

BRUCE AND JERRY – I Saw Her First/PATTERNS – Late Late Show/U.S. ROCKETS – Bodacious/RITUALS – This Is Paradise/DONNIE AND THE OUTCASTS – Big Fat Alaskan/RENEGADES – Charge/PLAYERS – The Rebel/KIM AND THE SKIPPERS – Daybreaker/MO AND JO – The Yo Yo Song/JOHNNY C AND THE BLAZES – Inferno/KIM FOWLEY – Music Is The Magic/BLUE BELLS – Moccasin/ALTHEA AND THE MEMORIES – Dedication Time/KIM FOWLEY – Underground Lady/KIM FOWLEY AND MARS BONFIRE – Surf Pigs*/ALTHEA AND THE MEMORIES – Worst Record Ever Made (* = previously unissued)

KIM FOWLEY – ANOTHER MAN’S GOLD (Norton 356)

RENEGADES – Geronimo/KIM FOWLEY – Big Sur, Bear Mountain, Ciro’s, Flip Side Protest Song/GAMBLERS – Teen Machine/VAQUEROS – Vaquero Beat/PLAYERS – Memories Of A High School Bride/ASTON MARTIN AND THE MOON DISCS – Fallout/COVER GIRLS – Gone But Not Forgotten/DAYWINS – Heartbeat/RITUALS – Surfers Rule/BONNIE AND THE TREASURES – Eleventh Commandment Of Love*/RENEGADES – Ghost Train*/ HOLLYWOOD ARGYLES – Long Hair, Unsquare Dude Called Jack/DONNIE AND THE OUTCASTS – Bounty Hunter/ALTHEA AND THE MEMORIES – Daddy Said/U.S. ROCKETS – March Of The Siamese Children/RITUALS – Gone (* = previously unissued)

Official Kim Fowley website

Kim Fowley’s Ten Commandments

Jim Carroll Has Died

The New York Times Reports that Jim Carroll died Friday night of a heart attack. He was 60 years old.

Happy Birthday Otis Redding

Otis Redding would have been 68 today. Here’s a great way to remember the King of Soul, with his historic 1967 performance at the Monterey Pop Festival.

The Beatles at the Star Club, 1962

Here’s the classic Beatles at the Star Club, Hamburg album on youTube.

First video here, follow the link for the rest.

Punk Rock 8-Tracks

When I was looking for a pic to use with the James Williamson post I came across this cool page that has collected up images of classic punk, proto-punk and new wave albums in their original 8-Track releases.

The page is part of a site called CollectorScum, which is a repository for a number of discographies related to punk rock, specifically ” late 70s and early 80s punk, ala the Killed By Death and Bloodstains type compilations.”

Here’s a link to the CollectorScum Punk 8-Tracks Page. Enjoy.

James Williamson and the Careless Hearts, Sept. 5, 2009

James Wiliamson, the once and future lead guitarist for Iggy & the Stooges, played with the Careless Hearts on Saturday night, his first public performance in 35 years. Williamson is rejoining the Stooges following the death of their original lead guitarist, Ron Asheton, earlier this year. James has been rehearsing with the Careless Hearts in preparation for his return and played with them at the Blank Club in San Jose, CA (with Stooges sax man Steve McKay sitting in as well). His first gig with the revamped Stooges will be in May when they perform the Raw Power album in its entirety at the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival in London.

Asheton joined the Stooges in 1973, playing guitar on and co-writing all of the songs on Raw Power. He stayed on until the group dissolved the next year. In 1975, he collaborated with Iggy Pop for the Kill City album, which went unreleased for two years, and then effectively retired from the music business, coming back just twice to contribute to the Iggy solo albums New Values (1979) and Soldier (1980). Following the sudden, unexpected death of Ron Asheton in January, Williamson was recruited to step back in and is expected to tour with Iggy & the Stooges following the ATP gig.

Here’s some video of James’ show with the Careless Hearts, starting with the opener “Raw Power”, and followed by “Search and Destroy”, “Cock in My Pocket”, “No Sense of Crime” (from the Kill City album, which has never been performed live), “I Got Nothing”, and “Louie Louie”. Enjoy!