The best 1970s CBGB band you’ve never heard of
It’s hard to imagine, given the state of musical archaeology, there are still bands to discover among the roots of the ‘70s New York punk scene. But this pop band remains surprisingly unknown, despite numerous performances at CBGB, Max’s Kansas City and the Mudd Club, and fanship from the likes of fellow travelers Blondie, the Ramones and New York Dolls. No doubt their obscurity is rooted in a lack of record releases – the band’s period catalog appears to consist of only a single track on the compilation Live at CBGB’s. There appears to have been no self-released cassettes with handmade inserts, no impossibly rare indie singles (or the requisite bootleg reissue of same), and most detrimentally of all, no record label contract.
But even without records, there were recordings; some made in the studio (and funded in part by Mercury Records) and some cut live. There was, forty years after the fact, a self-released CD collection of the band’s studio work that circulated primarily among those already in the know. But now, finally, there’s an expanded collection that presents a full picture of the band’s wares, with the international distribution that eluded the group in the ‘70s. So why did it take so long for the rest of the world to hear the Miamis? Why didn’t the band latch on to the gravy train that turned a number of downtown club bands into international stars? Though they weren’t the only ones from the scene that failed to click, they may have been the most fully realized act that didn’t catch a break. Why?
The A&R shorthand was apparently “too punk for pop, too pop for punk.†But the set’s title track is clearly pop enough for pop, and fits easily alongside contemporaries like Blondie and the Paley Brothers, and power pop exponents like the Raspberries and Knack. You can hear a bit of New York bravado – ala the Dolls and Dictators – in a few tracks, but by today’s post-hardcore standards, it’s hard to remember how punk this might have sounded at the time. The songs are playful and joyous, melding the puppy love vibe of Gary Lewis, Joey Ramone’s affection for the Brill Building, the Rubinoos’ harmonies and a touch of soul on “I Want a Girlfriend.†The titles and lyrics are clever, as in the group’s salute to modern art, “Dada Mama,†which manages to rhyme “brioche†and “gauche†without breaking stride.
The group’s ten studio sides are augmented by two demos, two alternate versions and nine high quality live tracks recorded at CBGB. The latter show off a polished, energetic and engaging stage show, with nary a hint of DIY punk in their instrumental chops and harmony vocals. Their set includes a generous helping of rock ‘n’ roll, R&B and blues, adding a bit of the ‘50s to their ‘60s, and recalling J. Geils on “Detente.†They get downright goofy with their remembrance of “Elvis, Groucho and Bing,†and together with titles like “Wang It†and “We Need a Bigger Navy,†may have simply distracted A&R reps from the high quality of their music. Hopefully this retrospective can dispel that confusion as it welcomes new fans into the fold. [©2016 Hyperbolium] 