That's a tough one, but I think I have to credit The Damned as Naz Nomad and The Nighmares, who put out a fake 60's psych film soundtrack called "Give Daddy The Knife , Cindy" of great garage covers: "Action Woman,"" She Lied,"" I Can Only Give You Everything" to name a few. I soon sought out the originals. Hearing The Shadows of Knight's "Dark Side,"  B-side of Gloria, on the quarter juke-box at the diner near my school was also pretty magical (yeah, I don't care if that sounds corny.)

 

"Bird Dance Beat" was preferreed over "Surfin' Bird" but hey I was only 3 or 4 years old.  After the Trashmen, it was "Last Train To Clarksville" by the Monkees, and The Standells "Dirty Water" Lp was given to me when I was six.  It was a pure joy to stumble upon the Ramones and Blondie when I was 17.  I never really felt the need to listen to the radio, so I never really have.  That's a good thing since living in Philadelphia, radio station's are really lame.  And they remain that way even now except for some college stations.  And, yes I still listen to the Trashmen and the Monkees et al.

you can still get many major label garage 45's reasonably cheap, Joey..most record shows should have a dealer who has a selection of this stuff for $5 and under..
Great thing is that with some diligence and perserverance you can still find many rare gems in the wild..

Yes, I too dig the Animals!  They were one of the reasons I would listen to oldies radio, because it was a given they would be played!  Oldies stations now only seem to want to play tons of disco and contemporary '70's tunes...The one we had here in Roanoke, VA basically forgot about the '50's-mid '60's stuff, and then only played the Top 40 hits of the late '60's, and all of the '70's....
km said:

There was a Foundation skate video called "Art Bars: Subtitles and Seagulls" that came out in like, 2001 and the soundtrack was awesome.  My favorite song on there was from some old  band I had never heard of called the Outsiders doing Filthy Rich, and I really loved their style, but never dug too deep to find more cause I didn't realize there was a whole genre out there.

 

I always craved more of what I called "raw, heavy oldies" but didn't make the connection that there would be more where that came from.  I was a big fan of the Animals and Link Wray too, that was the closest I really got to it before I discovered this website and really cracked it open.

 

There was a Foundation skate video called "Art Bars: Subtitles and Seagulls" that came out in like, 2001 and the soundtrack was awesome.  My favorite song on there was from some old  band I had never heard of called the Outsiders doing Filthy Rich, and I really loved their style, but never dug too deep to find more cause I didn't realize there was a whole genre out there.

 

I always craved more of what I called "raw, heavy oldies" but didn't make the connection that there would be more where that came from.  I was a big fan of the Animals and Link Wray too, that was the closest I really got to it before I discovered this website and really cracked it open.

 

It's amazing what the Cramps have done for us!  Isn't "Wild Zero" that really wild exploitation/grindhouse-type flick that came out a few years back that had zombies, maybe?  I thought I had seen it advertised in the pages of "Videoscope" and "Rue Morgue"...

electrocute your cock said:

Off The Bone/Songs the Lord Taught Us. That's where I'm pinning the blame for all this. Before that I'd only heard MC5, The Stooges and a few songs here and there so I knew I'd like this stuff if I knew who the hell anyone was, but it's The Cramps who showed me the way. Guitar Wolf get an honourable mention for their appearance in Wild Zero.

"Action Woman", for me, hands down, is probably one of my all time fave garage rockin' tunes...the Litter version, that is...
Dan said:

I think it was Pebbles Vol 1, sometime around 1990 - that skip in 'Action Woman' won me over straight away. Beaver Patrol, Potato Chip, 1-2-5, Going All The Way, etc...

It's amazing how much the Cramps have turned us onto so much great music, that otherwise, some of us had no idea existed!
BonzoB said:

I was a punk, and followed the line back. Clash, Pistols to Stooges, MC5, and then connections from there.THE one that truly hooked me had to Off the Bone by The Cramps. It took me a long time to track down the originals of their covers, but when I did Rockabilly Psychosis and the Garage Disease Vol 1 made another leap. For those who don't know it the record combined classics by The Trashmen, Sonics, Novas, Hazil Adkins, Legendary Stardust Cowboy etc, with tracks by The Cramps, Panther Burns, Jimmy Dickinson, Gun Club, and UK psychobilly pioneers Meteors, Guana Batz, Sting Rays and Milkshakes...The sleeve was a brilliant cartoon comic book cover, with the whole thing allegedly recorded in "Monstereo". The total package just rocked...After that my world exploded and like the Universe it continues to expand...I feel an honourable mention must also go the The Fuzztones Lysergic Emanations. First hearing for a load more garage covers that need tracked down.

Yeah, tunes with that organ really turned me on!  Plus that punky sneer you hear in the vocals of other tunes...Sadly, most oldies stations nowadays only play Motown and the top hits from back in the day, which does include some great gems, but overlooks way too many...

Jeremy Hall said:

That's easy. Surfin' Bird. When I first heard it as a kid in the 70's, I thought it was the best thing ever. It took a while to attach the sound to other records and find those records as a teen (oh to have had the internet). I'll also say 96 tears, because even as a kid I recognized that there were "oldies", and then there was strange shit on the radio that sounded like 96 tears.

That's easy. Surfin' Bird. When I first heard it as a kid in the 70's, I thought it was the best thing ever. It took a while to attach the sound to other records and find those records as a teen (oh to have had the internet). I'll also say 96 tears, because even as a kid I recognized that there were "oldies", and then there was strange shit on the radio that sounded like 96 tears.

I was a punk, and followed the line back. Clash, Pistols to Stooges, MC5, and then connections from there.THE one that truly hooked me had to Off the Bone by The Cramps. It took me a long time to track down the originals of their covers, but when I did Rockabilly Psychosis and the Garage Disease Vol 1 made another leap. For those who don't know it the record combined classics by The Trashmen, Sonics, Novas, Hazil Adkins, Legendary Stardust Cowboy etc, with tracks by The Cramps, Panther Burns, Jimmy Dickinson, Gun Club, and UK psychobilly pioneers Meteors, Guana Batz, Sting Rays and Milkshakes...The sleeve was a brilliant cartoon comic book cover, with the whole thing allegedly recorded in "Monstereo". The total package just rocked...After that my world exploded and like the Universe it continues to expand...I feel an honourable mention must also go the The Fuzztones Lysergic Emanations. First hearing for a load more garage covers that need tracked down.

I think it was Pebbles Vol 1, sometime around 1990 - that skip in 'Action Woman' won me over straight away. Beaver Patrol, Potato Chip, 1-2-5, Going All The Way, etc...

Yeah, that Bomp album was pretty bad, but it was more than an attempt to cash in on The Sonics name..I'll get the facts together in my head, and come back to it...As far as Greg Shaw, I think a pretty good case could be made that none of us would be talking about this stuff if it wasn't for him...Nuggets may have been the first big wheel to get 60's punk rolling, but no one championed the burgeoning 70's punk, 60's punk and whatever the hell else was going on back then than Greg...Bomp magazine was an essential ingrediant in an era was information wasn't at your fingertips. It was being spread out by an ever growing fraternity of rock and roll zealots mostly word of mouth..
That being said, lightning rarely strikes twice, and it's difficult for 60 year old men to resurrect the impulses that created the phenomenom that is The Sonics...

At least the Pogues are still in fashion. At least that song during the holidays.

Hideout Admin said:

Damn, it dropped to #21 this past week:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chart/update/singles

I like where you are going with this one.

YOU GOT GOOD TASTE said:

Justin Bieber for no.1

Now on the GaragePunk podcast, it's MAL THURSDAY'S TEXAS TYME MACHINE #1. The all-Texan garage/punk/psychedelic podcast is now officially spun off from THE MAL THURSDAY SHOW as its own 'cast.

 

Here's the pilot episode: MAL THURSDAY'S TEXAS TYME MACHINE #1: A Journey to Tyme

 

Hi, I'm looking for the lyrics to the song Born Loser by Murphy and the Mob.

also remade by great '80 bands like the Morlocks, Fuzztones and so on.

many thanks!

I agree, all their stuff is quite excellent, and very inexpensive. For us punks on a budget (by the sounds of it, most of us here at GP are anyway), you can get a great rig for a fraction of the Guitar Center costs.

Mardy Pune said:

They sell some great stuff. Their pickups are good value for money.

KK Dirty Money said:

Also, this company makes good stuff for cheap:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Pro-Delay-Classic-Vintage-Delay-Tones-E...

They sell some great stuff. Their pickups are good value for money.

KK Dirty Money said:

Also, this company makes good stuff for cheap:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Pro-Delay-Classic-Vintage-Delay-Tones-E...

Also, this company makes good stuff for cheap:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Pro-Delay-Classic-Vintage-Delay-Tones-Echoplex-Style_p_1081.html

These are all excellent recommendations. Surf Craigslist for good deals on used pedals. Look on ebay to see what the good price range is. Go to a couple music stores and just demo as many different pedals as possible. Take notes on what you discover. Once you do a little bit of homework, you can probably nab a good deal on a gently used pedal (patience is also a good ingredient). 

If you put in that little bit of extra work, chances are you'll find a happy deal.

But, Danelectro and Behringer (if you're really strapped for cash) are always good for the money. You may find everything you need in one of these pedals, in new condition, for under $50 (especially if you're not too picky). 

It is a good time to be playing guitar because there are so many choices out there for good prices.

Good luck.

* New Hope for the Wretched/Metal Priestess by The Plasmatics. I recently rented a DVD of the late Tom Snyder's Tomorrow Show interviews with "punk and New Wave" groups -- which also includes the performances of the bands and musicians, In fact, it includes the entire shows. The Rev. Rex Humbard, the world's first televangelist  was a guest on the show the night that Wendy O. Williams and the boys blew up a car in the NBC studios while performing the song "Masterplan.". The good Rev.was surprisingly mellow about the band. Less tolerant preachers would have condemned them as porn-rock demons from Hell.

And, oh yeah, they played music -- basically a metal edged punk rock -- or punk-edged metal. Undoubtedly they were more impressive live -- with all their explosives and chainsaws and Wendy wearing nothing on her breasts but band-aids, etc.-- than in the studio.

Still, The Plasmatics are a lot of fun on record.   I like "Monkey Suit," which reminds me a little of "The Electric Prunes' "Get Me to the World on Time" and "Black Leather Monster." And this album, which includes their 1980 album and a 1981 EP (Metal Priestess)  includes several live tracks, including "Sex Junkie," "Squirm" and "Masterplan," which unfortunately isn't the Tomorrow Show version.

* '50s Rockabilly Hellraisers. Here's another impressive rockabilly obscurities bargain from a mysterious re-issue label called Rock-A-Billy. Just a few months ago, I got another one from eMusic -- 1950s Rock N' Roll & Rockabilly Rare Masters.

That one had 56 tracks. Hellraisers has 70, for a mere $5.99. Sure, I already had a handful of these, but still, what a bargain!

Some of my favorites here include "Switchblade Sam" by Jeff Daniels, which tells a tale tale involving Stagger Lee and Charlie Brown (The Coasters' hero not the Peanuts character. I assume); "Boppin' Wig Wam Willie" by Ray Scott (Are these cartoonish  1950s depictions of Native Americans actually racist or innocent fun. Talk amongst yourselves); "Move Over Buddy," a space travel novelty by Billy Jack Hale a no-wonder-you-never-hear-this-on-the-radio rocker, "Quicksand Love" by Macy Skipper, which features the immortal line, "I'm like an elevator, I'm goin' down all the time." YIKES!

There also are hree tunes by Mississippi rockabilly Andy Anderson, who lived a few years in New Mexico, including "Johnny Valentine," "Tough Tough, Tough," and "You Shake Me Up."



* The 31 tracks I didn't get last month from  A Night On The Town With The Rat Pack. The sound quality's not great, but that's easily overlooked by pure entertainment quality

Back when I was a kid in the '60s, I considered music like this to be somewhat of a guilty pleasure. This was your parent's music. So here's a lesson for today's youth: Wipe your nose, junior. Your parents probably are a lot hipper than you thought.


Plus:

* Nine tracks from Cameo Parkway 1957-1967. I heard The Dovells' "You Can't Sit Down" for the first time in years in a supermarket a few days ago and I was shocked and ashamed that it wasn't in my collection. I looked it up on eMusic and found this four-disc treasure trove.

Cameo-Parkway was a Philadelphia label best known for hitmakers Bobby Rydell and Chubby Checker -- neither of whom I'm particularly wild about. But they also were home to Dee Dee Sharpe and The Orlons, two acts that twisted my head off as a youngster. In fact, in the early '60s, before Motown dominated the soul-pop market, Cameo-Parkway was the true "sound of young America." (And by the mid '60s, it also was the home to ? & The Mysterians -- though I already have all three of the songs on this collection.)

The Orlons always created a musical party that sounded like a lot more fun than most parties I've ever been to. "So Much in Love" by The Tymes still is one of of the most soulful doo-wop songs I've ever heard. And Dee Dee's "Gravy on My Mashed Potatoes" sounds as if it's based on a double entendre that I still can't quite figure out.

Among the other tunes I picked up are selections by Screamin' Lord Sutch ("She's Fallen in Love With the Monster Man"), Johnny Maestro ("I'll Be True," apparently from that period between The Crests and The Brooklyn Bridge) and Don Covay ("The Popeye Waddle," apparently a dance craze that never quite caught on.) And there's a great R&B version of Hank Williams' "Hey Good Lookin'" by a group called Billy Abbott & The Jewels. I'll be coming back for more here.

* Three tracks from Soundway Records Presents The Sound of Siam : Leftfield Luk Thung, Jazz and Molam from Thailand 1964 - 1975. I'll write in detail about this next month when I pick up the rest of the tracks. Let's just say for now that this is a step or two beyond the wild and wonderful Thai Beat a Go-Go series, two volumes of which I downloaded on eMusic years ago. And, judging from what I've heard, it's worthy of Soundway's collections of African funk and psychedelia I've loved in recent years.

And for the holidaze ...

* "Christmas in Las Vegas" and "Jingle Bells" by Richard Cheese. (Both from Silent Nightclub) and "Christmas Lights" by Wild Billy Childish & The Musicians of the British Empire (from Christmas 1979 I'm slowly acquiring the whole album.)

Big favorite of mine is Kid Congo Powers' post-Cramps band Fur Bible who released one towering 4-song EP then disappeared in the face of widespread derision. Wish someone cared enough to do a Kid Congo career perspective collection.

Well, of course, that's the purpose..

Mardy Pune said:

If you are using that as a live setup you could always get the engineer to throw a mic in front of the amp or just mic it yerself.

If you are using that as a live setup you could always get the engineer to throw a mic in front of the amp or just mic it yerself.

Teddy Jungle King said:

I still haven't bought any tube preamp but I did some tests with a setting inspired by what you all recommanded: Shure 55sh (basically a shure sm57, nothing fancy) into preamp/delay pedal into germanium overdrive into small vox amp (30 years old, the only controls are Tone and Volume, and I'm not even sure about the wattage but I think it's something like 15 watts).

IT SOUNDED GREAT! I used a 50ms delay, the echo having less volume than the dry signal, so you almost can't hear it in normal conditions, but when you turn on the overdrive you start noticing it, it gives a very good rockabilly vibe! It's the first time that I'm using an OD on a mike, but I instantly thought of this one: the Germanium OD by Electro Harmonix, I often use it in guitar because with an other OD before, and the nice setting of course, you can get a Sonics like sound (yes, it sounds like a cranked amp with a pierced speaker, just like the sound of Louie Louie, that made me fall in love with garage instantly). This OD doesn't have a lot of gain, and a very unique texture, very warm (like all effects equipped with germanium transistors), that's why it's perfect for vocals! I'm actually really impressed by this pedal, I usually don't trust big brands when it comes to effects, nothing sounds worse than Boss to my ears for exemple, but Ehx seems to manage to make great sounding pedals with a low cost.

I don't know what this setting will be like without a small amp, because I can't really bring the amp during rehearsals every week, but I'll try it straight into the console, if it doesn't sound well, I'll try to use a tube preamp to see if it helps.
I would recommand to anyone into garage to test the od I talked about, or at least to listen to some demo on youtube, because I've never been that much impressed by a pedal, considering it's price, and I own quite a few boutique pedals!
And no I'm not paid by ehx to do advertising (Though that would be a sweet job for a 18 years old like I am), I'm just very much in love with the sound I got :), I'll try to record something when I have some time so you can judge by yourself the tone you can get this way.