Few groups have had as strong a second wind as the Rubinoos. After releasing two beloved albums in the late ‘70s (available together in a box set), the group went on hiatus for over a decade. But since their return to studio for 1998’s Paleophonic, they’ve dropped four albums of new material alongside numerous reissues, odds ‘n’ sods collections and live recordings. This latest album, their first since 2005’s Twist Pop Sin has been released initially in Spain (where the band has been warmly welcomed on tour) and features the longtime core of Jon Rubin (vocals/guitar), Tommy Dunbar (guitar/vocals/keyboard) and Al Chan (bass/vocals). Joining the trio on drums this time out is the album’s producer (and, yes, one time “Cousin Oliverâ€), Robbie Rist.
Dunbar’s nine original songs (including new versions of “Must Be a Word,†previously waxed by Vox Pop, and “Earth #1,†which appeared on the band’s Biff-Boff-Boing!) are complemented by a pair of covers: a sumptuous guitar-and-harmony take on Johnny Johnson’s soul side “Blame it on the Pony Express,†and a punchy run through Los Bravos’ “Black is Black.†The new tunes celebrate the basics of four-piece rock ‘n’ roll, the early days of the Beatles, and the superiority of our third planet from the Sun. There are garage rock riffs, kid-friendly horror and humor, and the sort of heartaches that make the band’s early records so memorable. The terrific “Same Old Heartbreak,†released several years ago by the song’s co-writer Kyle Vincent as modern pop on Sweet 16, resounds with the romantic urgency of the Rubinoos’ earliest gems.
Veil lifted from terrific mid-60s pop/garage hoaxers
Although the Strangeloves were reputed to be a trio of Australian brothers (Giles, Miles and Niles Strange), they were actually a successful New York songwriting and production team. Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer wrote and produced the Angels’ “My Boyfriend’s Back,†but in the British Invasion’s wake they opted for the mystery of foreign roots. The deception worked, as their debut single “I Want Candy†hit #11, and the rhythmic follow-up “Cara-Lin†cracked the Top 40. Their final chart success, the hard-driving “Night Time,†topped out at #30 and was selected (in its edited single form) by Lenny Kaye for the seminal Nuggets album. The trio played a few live dates, but the bulk of the Strangeloves’ touring was handled by the studio musicians who worked on the records.
Perhaps the most famous track recorded by the Strangeloves was their non-charting version of “Hang on Sloopy.†Written by Bert Russell (for whose Bang label the Strangeloves recorded) and Wes Farrell, the backing track was reused for the McCoy’s hit single. The version here includes the extra verse cut from the McCoys’ single (the uncut McCoys version appears on One Hit Wonders of the ‘60s, Vol. 2). The Strangeloves’ biggest hit, “I Want Candy,†was reborn with the 1982 new wave cover by Bow Wow Wow. The album’s cover songs, including Gary U.S. Bonds’ “New Orleans†and “Quarter to Three,†Johnny Otis’ “Willie and the Hand Jive†and the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction†are all sung in the group’s trademark style, heavy on the vocals and rhythm.
Sixty garage rock tracks from the ‘60s at a bargain price is not as great a bargain if (a) several of the titles aren’t garage rock tunes, (b) the songs aren’t all rooted in the sixties, and most unforgiveably, (c) some of the tracks are mediocre re-recordings. As with many such collections, they make an honest effort to recreate the original instrumental and vocal arrangements; and it’s possible that original artists are involved, but some of the remakes (such as Blues Image’s “Ride Captain Rideâ€) simply sound anemic. Remakes never capture the once-in-a-lifetime excitement that made the hit a hit. The combination of people, place and times can’t be repeated decades later. Worst of all, mixing remakes and original hits blurs the historical record, leaving those who didn’t log extensive hour in front of their AM radios to ponder what’s real, and wonder why these tracks were hits in the first place.
Psych- and garage-inflected Detroit rock nods to the ‘60s and ‘70s
