Great RAY CONDO obit by CARL WILSON.

Photo from Maximum Ink

Norton Records releases for May:

Nervous Norvus - Stone Age Woo CD.
Massive first time collection of the stone age gristle of musical genius Jimmy Drake a/k/a Nervous Norvus! Includes privately pressed platters, demos and unissued melloroonie masters, all kibble kobblin' their way into the unsuspecting ears of the universe and beyond! Giant bio booklet filled with clips, snips, facts and photos make this an essential addition to every wild dog's collection. Be Zorch, Daddy-O... GO APE!

Fort Worth Teen Scene LP/CD vol. 1-3.
Gigundo wrap up of 1964-1967 Texas garage whomp from Fort Worth, based on Larry Harrison and David Campbell’s landmark article in KICKS #4. Includes famed five star killers by the Elite, Jades, Larry and the Blue Notes, rare uncomped singles by the Gnats, Mistakes, Jack and the Rippers plus unished rawness from the Barons, Rising Suns, Mods and much, much, mo’! Brutal sound, full color label shots, gatefold LP’s and detailed bios and photos of the groups that made up one of America’s most intense garage scenes ever! All this plus two photos of the Slobs!

Johnny Burnette Crazy Date & Wampus Cat LPs.
is pair of Norton LP-only releases delivers 36 unreleased 1957-60 rock n’ roll demos-- 27 on vinyl for the very first time! Includes the original demos of Believe What You Say and It’s Late, both smash hits for Ricky Nelson! Johnny was striving for commercial success but was still aflame with his native Memphis rhythm. Essential longplay enjoyment!

Gene Vincent Sounds Like Gene Vincent & Crazy Times LPs.

Triumphs - Surfside Date (EP-104) Surfside Date/Susie In My Hist’ry Class/Surfside Slave/Memphis Baby Dig the razzamatazz of Wisconsin’s answer to Gregory Dee and the Avanties! Crazed ‘64 single plus unished pair!

Randy Alvey & the Green Fuz - Green Fuz/There Is A Land (45-115) Legendary mega-rare crude Texas garage lament on fuzzy green wax with first time re-ish of tormentuously essential flip! Interview with Randy on bio-sleeve!

Jukebox 45s: Botumles Pit - 13 Stories High/Rising Suns – I’m Blue. Raw Texas garage double scorcher! Ultra rare GRAVE blast topside paves the loud way for the unissued flip from our FORT WORTH TEEN SCENE set!. KAI RAY - I Want Some Of That/Trashman’s Blues. Immortal lunatic ode by Minneapolis bird dance kult king and inker of Trashmen’s New Generation! By the way, the T-Men copped their moniker from the flipside!.

Rolling Stones tribute series: A-Bones - Miss Amanda Jones/Rotting Stumps - My Obsession. Talk about a Boogers Banquet! Topside’s the first new A-Bones recording in ten years! The magnificent Rotting Stumps (man)handle the B-deck in rip roarin’ style! Two over the top BETWEEN THE BUTTONS hammerings!. Andre Williams and The A-Bones - The Spider And The Fly/Greasy Chickens - Andre’s Blues. Dig the Rolling Stones greasy grind favorite Spider And The Fly once Andre grabs hold of it! Keith Richards recently picked Jail bait as one of his all time favorites and Andre tips the pimp hat back at him here! Speakin’ of paying homage, the Greasy Chickens honor Mr. Rhythm with Andrew’s Blues, a reworking of the Stones X-rated classic!. 5.6.7.8’S - 19th Nervous Breakdown/Church Keys - Who’s Driving Your Plane?. Tokyo’s frantic femmes make a quick return to Norton wax with a manic reading of one of the Stones’ finest hours! On the flip, an old boozy Stones b-side reaches new blood alcohol levels in the hands of Brooklyn beat butchers, the Church Keys!. Greenhornes - Sad Day/Shams - Under My Thumb. It’s a Cincinnati slugfest! Internationally established hooligans the Green-hornes give a sorely overlooked early Stones nugget a stompin’ three chord rebirth! Thee Shams deliver a prime pounder outta their five star repertoire!.

Attention Canadian Readers! (Thanks to Tina Cooper for the heads up)



GOLDIROCKS is premiering in Toronto Thursday May 27 at the Varsity (by special invite) followed by a big rock and roll party at Lee's Palace.

THE PARTY IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC!

Bands: Tijuana Bibles, The Chickens and Wayne Omaha (featuring one of the stoner guys from the film) will all play sets at the party AND... TEENAGE HEAD with guest singers FROM THE MOVIE - Sasha Ormond (GOLDI) will sing Let's Shake, Greg LeGros (MILES), Paula Tiberius (director of Goldirocks and guitarist of Sticky Rice), Robin Black, Dave Robinson (Chickens), John Borra - and hopefully Moe Berg and Ian Blurton schedules permitting.

The party will also serve as a CD release party for the official Goldirocks soundtrack which will be in stores across Canada (distrib: Maple Nationwide) May 25. It's 22 tracks of pure gold, baby! (distribution for the cd in the US is by Cobracide) Theatrical run of Goldirocks begins in Toronto Friday May 28th at The Carlton Cinema. It is especially important for people to go out that weekend as ticket sales that first weekend determine the run of Goldirocks in Toronto, and influence theatres in other cities as well. Goldirocks will be opening in other cities across Canada soon.

It's a great wee film. Support it already!

Looking forward to hearing the brand new AMY RIGBY composition, "DANCING WITH JOEY RAMONE". Word on the bush telegraph is that it's a cracker! They should have her perform it at Joe's Birthday Bash!!

OK folks let's get this show on the road. Onward and wherever the hell it takes us. When Frank Macdonald sent me some info on a band called THE THINGS from Dublin, I followed it up (Thanks Ruairi). After all, I've never been able to resist a combo that had a logo with a Famous Monsters-esque font. Apparently they've been doing demos for Sony UK but don't hold that agin them. They have energy to spare and are only wee. Their high octane garage-ing is spirited to be sure but I'm not sure if it's ready to be spread via a major corporation. They might wanna bone it up so it really splits some skullage some way down the line. On a more poptastic line, BRONCO BULLFROG have made an album which recalls Teenage Fanclub and The Autumn Leaves in equal measure. "WHAT PEOPLE DID BEFORE TV" is out now on REV-OLA and it's a slab of solid ent if I ever came across one. "The Savage Beat of THE SCREAMING TRIBESMEN" on SHOCK is a collection of all the bands recorded work and some live action on one of those cd things. As some of you will know "Igloo" is one of the finest 45's ever cut so if you don't got that then it's worth the price of admission alone. These Aussies are in a class of their own, always were and will be. Another country that knows what it's about when it comes to shakin' it is Sweden and CAPTAIN MURPHY are winging it aboot like the proverbial polaroid piccy. Their debut album has been produced by the great Chips K and therefore you just know its gotta swing because that guy has got the chops. The garage disease continues to sweep the globe. When THE CHESTERFIELD KINGS appear in the greatest programme on TV (The Sopranos, you twonk!) then maybe, just maybe mind, there's hope. But then again...
One other thing that flagged up some optimism was Fran Lisco's post (Reply #70) on the Muscletone website with regard to MC5/ATT. Much sense was spoken with regard to the film and beyond. This lassie knows what she's talkin' 'bout.

The wonders of technology: a Ramones Name Generator.

The Master Plan were invited to play at a wedding reception in Mexico over the Easter Weekend. Follow the link to the Dictators website for a couple a shots of the band enjoying the sun.

If things`seem rather slow 'round here, I can at least offer an explanation on my part as some kinda virus took hold of my pc in an ungaurded moment and completely wrecked the thing. In the mean time I have to make due with the wife's laptop...

RIP: Phyllis Dillon. Details are sketchy but it seems the Jamaican singer lost her battle against cancer last week in a NYC hospital. Not that it matters much, but her take on 'Perfidia' has been a long time fave of both Alice 'n me...

Hip new web-zine: Terminal Boredom.

The No-Goods - Hits Uit Het Noorden (Kuriosa 10"LP).
It seems like a good year for Dutch bands putting out cool 10" discs; first the Sack-O'-Woes (mentioned somewhere below), and now these guys. The No-Goods hail from Meppel (don't ask) and, after a couple o' CDs that didn't make any waves, put out a great 45 out last year. With this tho' it seems they're intend on claimin' pole position in the Dutch garage band stakes. If you're in anyway as much into Nederbiet as you should be, these are your guys. Forget the dull-beyond-words Waistcoats, the No-Goods deliver a sound that's somewhere halway 'between the Medway delta and age-old Op-Art 45s, not mere copyin' tho', but real inspiration.
(Available via Soundflat)

So long RAY CONDO. ERic (Mr. Rock-n-Roll) supplied this obit from Velvet Rope.com,

"It is with great regret that his close friends must report the sudden death of Rock and Roll legend Ray Condo. Ray was found dead in his apartment in Vancouver, April 15 from an apparent heart attack.

Ray did not have any immediate family but did have a family of friends that cared for him dearly; this family stretched around the world.

Ray had recently returned to an active music career after a three year break during which he worked for the Canadian National Railways. Ray was Canada's representative at the many international festivals he played and was preparing to tour the US, Europe and Australia this coming summer. His recent shows (including a sold out show in Los Angeles at the Derby) had shown Ray to be in fine form.

Ray became a country and rockabilly singer through the back door of punk, playing in Vancouver's The Secret V's. Exposure to the Cramps led him to revisit his Elvis roots and in 1984 he formed Ray Condo & The Hardrock Goners in Montreal. The group quickly became Canada's premier rockabilly act. Ray moved back to Vancouver in 1994, forming Ray Condo & The Ricochets, whose mix of western swing, rockabilly and jazz delighted fans around the world.

At the time of his death, Ray Condo was in the process of building a new group and sound with longtime guitar player Stephen Nikleva and fellow music veteran Ian Tiles. Ray was optimistic, and looking forward to the future. He will be sorely missed.

Edited by Gigliamo (04/19/04 05:50 PM)

I'm having a little trouble with the "Travis Bickle" in me. I've often been ready to snap but can't recall it ever being as bad as this. Not in a long, long while anyway. The logistical day to day operations are further hampered by the post office alleging to get "effcient" on our ass by making one delivery per day and shutting the collection office in the afternoon. In addition, they're eroding the morale of their staff and consigning a once flagship system to the dumper along with their service. I know that elsewhere, particularly in the US - people will say so what's wrong with that? It's like the hamburger to steak analogy, I dunno what that'd translate into for veggies but work with me on this willya? Another "institution", the trains now have to contend with barriers at the Glasgow and Edinburgh stations and that means that the already overcrowded, under-carriaged trains take longer to unload their cargo into the station. These London-style ticket barriers can't clear the folk like their English cousins and it's snarl up city. Nothing is easy, nothing flows and I can't be arsed with it. Things used to be better (didn't they?). Back when the scum hadn't seemed to have inherited the earth and infected every fibre of our being. Everything is so undernourished. I don't want to be a person like other people. I reserve the right not to have my back pissed up under the auspices that it might be raining and I won't. This may mean that soon, I never leave the house again but that doesn't sound too bad to me let me tell ya. I'm fast approaching the advanced "shut-in" stage and the thought divnae fill me with dread.

NO TOMORROW Records Presents THE BOWERY ELECTRIC EP

"It's three years since Joey Ramone left us and it's been a long time since we wanted to pay tribute to the greatest punk singer ever, but we wanted to do it right. It took three years but here it is at last.

A few days after Joey's death, the Ramones Creative Director, Arturo Vega heard a song that moved him deeply. The song had been written by a New York songwriter named Jed Davis to honor Joey and lamented his death while celebrating his connection with music, his fans, and New York City. Specially his own neighborhood around the avenue better known as "The Bowery" in the East Village. Arturo knew that SOMETHING needed to be done with it. But what?

Longtime Ramones/Joey producer Daniel Rey was a fan of "The Bowery Electric" as well. Daniel had heard the song while working with Jed's band, and he wanted to record it. Arturo played the song for Tommy, Marky and CJ Ramone - they all liked it and agreed to be part of the project. The idea of a tribute from "Joey's Musical Family" was born. Jed and Arturo decided to call the song "The Bowery Electric"

In March, 2002, two historic recording sessions took place in secret. Tommy, Marky, CJ, Daniel, Jed, and Arturo met at Loho Studios on Clinton Street and fired up "The Bowery Electric".

BOWERY ELECTRIC CREW - Tommy Ramone: producer, percussion, Marky Ramone: drums, CJ Ramone: bass, Daniel Rey: guitars, Jed Davis: vocals, keyboards, Arturo Vega: executive producer

The sessions were significant for many reasons (besides the obvious). This was the first time Tommy and CJ had ever worked together. Tommy's last Ramones-related production was 1984's "Too Tough to Die"; CJ joined the band six years later. "The Bowery Electric" is the first song to feature both great Ramones producers. Daniel is responsible for the best of the band's later work (plus Joey's solo album), and of course Tommy co-produced most of the Ramones' early recordings. It's also the first song Rock and Roll Hall of Fame drummers Marky AND Tommy both played on. Tommy produced "Road to Ruin," but here he plays percussion over Marky's drums.

"The song existed first," Arturo says. "The power of this song made it possible for all these Ramones to get together and pay tribute". DeeDee who couldn't attend the recording sessions, decided to create a series of four paintings for the packaging of the music. The paintings were based on a poem he had written when he heard of Joey's passing.

The next step was to get the fans involved in the tribute, and to achieve this officialramones.com organized "THE BOWERY ELECTRIC FESTIVAL" The event took place in CBGB and it was a song writing contest to honor Joey, with young non-profesional bands as contestants. Five judges voted for the winner song and band NEVER FORGET/GOINGPLACES.

No Tomorrow has the great pleasure to present this very special package containing both songs honouring Joey Ramone and also a new, exclusive song by No Tomorrow artists and much talked about punkpop sensation Suzy & Los Quattro remembering Dee Dee Ramone. Pressed on coloured vinyl (500 blue, 500 pink), contained in hard euro-sleeve style cover and including an insert with the story of how The Bowery Electric Crew came to be.

What about the music? Well, let's just say that all three songs here would have made Joey proud. "The Bowery Electric" is a Ronettes styled pop gem that is bound to be the definitive Joey tribute, with highly emotional lyrics. "Never forget" is a punkpop nugget a la Green Day's first album with great double lead vocals and a snotty ending part that is pure Dee Dee. Last but not least, SUZY and LOS QUATTRO show their constantly improving potential with their best song to date, a blast of melody, powerful guitars and hooks that is and will be exclusive to this release."

* * * * *

Thanks to Agent Heiko I got a preview of The Bowery Electric cut and it's a good song begging to be sung by Ronnie Spector. That would shred. The Suzy cut (I'm not Glad To see You Go) is utterly, gobsmackingly pure punk pop that I'm sure Joe would have been thrilled with. It all comes from the heart, what's not to dig...

Couple of cool Ebay Items you may care to check out... firstly this belter from Mr. B. Milne Esq. and another wee cracker from Mrs Stim.

I just about survived the first week in the Gervais-like new setting only it's not funny, just toe-curlingly embarrassing. The chatter/carping and the general trivial pish that (most of) the denizens partake of is doing my practically hairless head in. I can't switch off and thusly hear every twitter, every flesh creeping spurt of verbal diarhorrea and cackle. Emphasis on the cack here. Then there's the mobile phone ringtone that plays the James Bond theme, is there no end to the humiliation? I'm holding back here, can you tell? Not the best environment to be creative in then, no matter what the view from the window. In the bleak midwinter, driech will be the word and the lid may well come off this pressure cooker also. However, there is much going on outwith and some folks tell me that I'm lucky to have a job at all. Aye right, don't they know the world owes me a living? The cliche mongers are sapping my will not to explode alright but I shall overcome. For my homies.

TONY SLUG's long awaited compilation album... OUT VERY SOON !!!
"That's right party people, Tony Slug is BACK !, Late as fuck, drunker than shit, and about to bust open another can of whup-ass on you. No shit freaks, the man with a cynical approach to life, hipster rock and dumb motherfuckers brings you "Here's Fifty Bucks", the ULTIMATE SOUNDTRACK TO THAT ASS BEATING YOU TOOK AS A KID in one handy package, handsomely designed by amazing Dutch underground artist Vince Ruarus !!!!

Describing most compilations around today as ‘ leaving you thinking you need to wipe, but when you do, there’s nothing there", riff-meister Slug chose all selections on ‘ Here’s Fifty Bucks ‘ *himself* over four years ago and remastered the whole bunch with fellow Slugrock Super Villain, the amazing Inspector Gadget ! Rest assured that whomp levels remain maxed at all times as a truly international star-studded cast of action rockers deliver the goods, prompt and to the face, the way your sister likes it.

"This is *real* music that'll rock hair off your ass and make you cry like a man !!! It will satisfy the most jaded of you fartsucking flames and hotrod fools out there...And just like a trip up your sister's corn chute on Prom Night, it's well worth the money, cause the $7.00 you pay gets you inside."

Now on to the track listing :

GLUECIFER (NORWAY) - God’s Chosen Dealer, PLEASURE FUCKERS (SPAIN) - Electric Fence*, GEDS (USA) - Burnt City*, NITWITZ (HOLLAND) - Rock Pusher *, CANDY SNATCHERS (USA) - Run You Down *, UNION69 (USA/SWEDEN) - Mongo Magnet *, BIG PAULUS (HOLLAND) - Love Train *,SINISTERS (CANADA) - Captain Weirdo, PUFFBALL (SWEDEN) - Finger On The Trigger *, BOSS 302 (USA) - Failure *, CELLOPHANE SUCKERS (GERMANY) - Bust Riots, STREETWALKING CHEETAH’S (USA) - Inside *, DOWN’N’OUTS (USA) - Can’t go On, TURPENTINES (SWEDEN) - She Belongs To Jesus, PLUNGERS (USA/JAPAN) - Lost City Lover, POWDER MONKEYS (AUSTRALIA)- I like Pills *, SPEEDHOLES (USA) - City Of The Walking Dead *, JEFF DAHL AND THE FRENCH CONNECTION (USA/FRANCE) - I’m in love with the GTO’s, HELLACOPTERS (SWEDEN) - Hey*. (*Previously Unreleased)."

If you still have to make holiday plans for this summer you might wanna consider headin' for Rotterdam, where a big international garage fest will take place on July 1, 2 and 3. Want some names?, The Remains, Chesterfield Kings, Buff Medways and Solar Flares. More news as it comes in.

Went out last night to catch a couple of Dutch bands in action just a couple o' blocks down the road at the Helling club.
First up was local band the Riots who suffered from a complete lack of recognizable tunes. Not that their Motorhead/Zeke-brand o' rock requires something like an actual "tune", but let's just say that most of their songs sound rather same-ish. Next up were Green Hornet who delivered a fine set of what one could call "fucked-up blues". Main man here is Andre Dodde who almost effortlessly switches 'tween organ, harp, guitar 'n vocals. Me, I like it best when he pounds the keys of his battered Philicordia to lay down a solid soul groove. Be sure to catch these guys whenever they appear in your neck of the woods... Finally the Spades rounded things up with a solid set, but it is telling that their main asset is the talents of hired hand Tony Slug, who still seems out of place among these closet metal fans. The good news is that the Slugster told me he has rounded up a new batch of Nitwitz who are ready to conquer Spain in June, and that the long promised new LP will be out someday soon (now there's something to look forward to!).
Walking home from the show I constructed some kinda "point" around which I was gonna write this review, but now (24 hours after the fact and sober) I have no idea what that point was, so I'm affraid this 'll have to make do...