THERE WERE DEFINITELY SOME CHANGES MADE IN THE GRUELING FIVE YEARS WE HAD TO WAIT FOR THE CRAMPS TO PRODUCE A THIRD ALBUM , AND , WHILE I THOUGHT THE "SMELL OF FEMALE" EP CONTAINED SOME OF THEIR BEST MATERIAL TO DATE , I NEVER THOUGHT THAT THE CRAMPS EVER DID A BAD ALBUM .SOME WERE BETTER THAN OTHERS , BUT , "A DATE WITH ELVIS" AND "STAY SICK !", IN PARTICULAR , CARRIED ON IN THE SAME DIRECTION AS BEFORE , THOUGH WITH MORE HUMOR AND BETTER PLAYING , IN GENERAL. THE CRAMPS REJECTED THE PSYCHOBILLY MOVEMENT IN ENGLAND , WHO , IN TURN , REJECTED THE CRAMPS. IT'S TRUE , THEY GOT INTO MORE JACKED - UP ROCKABILLY TEMPOS ON LATER ALBUMS , BUT , I WOULD'NT SAY WHAT THEY CAME UP WITH WAS COMPARABLE TO THE METEORS OR DEMENTED ARE GO , AND DEFINITELY THE MORE METAL - BACKBONED , VIRTUALLY FREE OF 'BILLY INFLUENCE , "PSYCHO" BANDS OUT THERE , NOW. THE CLOSEST THING TO A BAD ALBUM , I THINK , WAS "LOOK , MOM , NO HEAD !" , AND THAT WAS MAINLY BECAUSE IT WAS OVERPRODUCED , AND THE LATTER DAY VERSION OF THE BAND HAD'NT BEEN GIVEN AMPLE TIME TO REALLY BECOME A BAND. JIM SCLAVUNOS WAS ALREADY GONE BY THE TIME THEY WENT OUT ON TOUR IN SUPPORT OF THE ALBUM. NICKY BEAT , WHO DID THE TOUR , IS A FINE DRUMMER , BUT , HARRY DRUMDINI MADE MORE SENSE AS THE DRUMMER FOR THE CRAMPS. TO BE FAIR , PEOPLE LIKE NICK , BRYAN , AND KID DID'NT JUST SHOW UP AT THE DECIDEDLY LOW - KEY LUX AND IVY'S DOORSTEP (OK . KID THREW A ROCK IN THEIR WINDOW TO GET THEIR ATTENTION.) , PARTICULARLY NOT AFTER THEY MOVED TO L.A. BUT , THEIR STRENGTH WAS ALWAYS THEIR LIVE SHOW , AND , AFTER WAITING NINE YEARS TO SEE THEM FOR THE FIRST TIME , I WAS GLAD THAT I STILL HAD MANY MORE CHANCES TO SEE THEM AGAIN. WOULD HAVE LOVED TO HAVE SEEN THE EARLIER VERSIONS OF THE GROUP , BUT , THEY ALWAYS MADE AN ASS OF VIRTUALLY ALL THEIR CONTEMPORARIES AS A LIVE ACT.
Spencer said:
As much as I love them, I'd argue that the Cramps really took a nosedive after Smell of Female. At least to me, that's where they began to lose their "sound" and started to move closer to a typical psychobilly style.