THIS SECOND VOLUME of Jerden Record’s History of Northwest Rock CD series is
an exploration of the secondary phase of that distinct regional strain of music
widely known as the original “Northwest Sound.” To backtrack: On the History of Northwest Rock Vol. 1 (JRCD 7002) of this series we
recalled how between about 1958 and 1963 a teen subculture had emerged with a
its own sound that was essentially an aggressive jazz-tinged offshoot of ‘50’s
West Coast Rhythm & Blues traditions. This largely instrumental music form
often highlighted sophisticated horn sections, squalling sax solos, driving
electric guitar leads, and the mighty oomph of the ubiquitous Hammond b-3 organ.
Now,
this disc tracks the development of the “Original Northwest Sound” into its
next significant phase by following
the musicians in their stylistic trek “Back to the Garage.” This was an era
when many of the scene’s earlier musical subtleties were willfully abandoned
resulting in a savage wild-ass school of rockin’ that has been credited with
representing the very beginnings of what later came to be known as proto-punk
Garage Rock.
Our
story picks up around 1962, a point in time when Pacific Northwest kids were
enjoying a truly vibrant teenscene that was fueled by Battles of the Bands events,
pushed along by pied-piper Top-40 DJs, documented by new mom & pop record
labels, and anchored around weekly dances. By this time the previously low-key
high school sock-hops had expanded into a regular dance circuit that included
old union halls, legendary ballrooms like Parkers, the Evergreen, and the
Spanish Castle, as well as roller rinks, roadhouses, armories and, eventually,
full-fledged Teen Fairs.
It
was late-’62, just about the time that the World’s Fair wound down, when
Seattle record promoter, Jerry Dennon, returned from a couple years in Los
Angeles and began preparing to reactivate his dormant Jerden label. Funds were
still tight so he kicked things off by issuing a couple 45s produced from a few
old masters that were still lying around from Jerden’s first attempt back in
1960. Dennon had just begun to ponder just how and where he would discover a
talent that had the potential to push his label into the big-time when around
April of ‘63 he was contacted by Ken Chase, a Portland DJ who owned a teenclub,
The Chase. The pitch was that Chase was managing a band called the Kingsmen, that the band had a readymade
audience at the club, and that Chase could guarantee radio airplay for the
band. All they needed was a record. Would Dennon consider releasing a 45 on his
label? Sure, that was a no-brainer.
Thus, within a week or so Chase had his band ensconced in Portland’s Northwestern
recording studio cutting their rendition of a song that the region’s top act,
Tacoma’s Wailers, had scored a huge local hit with back in 1961 – and a
song that has remained the region’s signature tune ever since – “Louie Louie”.
And,
well, the rest is history: As it happened, another Portland-based combo, Paul Revere & the Raiders, along
with their DJ/manager, also decided to record a version of that very same song, in that very same studio, that very same week.
The ensuing Battle of the Louies
has become a fabled event that eventually resulted in both bands getting signed
to contracts by big-time labels and launching successful careers. The
Kingsmen’s “Louie Louie” – a song whose wonderfully sloppy nature was instantly
understood by the international teenage underground to be of the highest virtue
– was (falsely) identified as having pornographic lyrics – causing it to face
media scrutiny, governmental bannings, FBI and FCC investigations, and the
like. A natural born promoter, Dennon poured gas on this fire by publicly
offering a $1000 reward for proof of the offending lyrics – a gambit that
brought even more press coverage. All of these factors, of course, ultimately
led to “Louie Louie” selling an estimated 12 million copies over the years. Furthermore,
to some rock historians the tune has come to signify the very beginnings of the
Garage Rock Era.
Jerden, meanwhile, had scored the initial hit it needed to
establish itself in the industry’s eyes as another (after Dolton Records’
amazing success in 1959-’60) savvy Seattle-based label. Over the next few years
Dennon expanded his efforts, launching two additional labels (Panorama and
Piccadilly Records) and dramatically increased his activity in general: In ‘63
he issued about 25 records total, in
’64 that grew to about 40 records, and by ’65 he produced over 60 records. Thus
decades before the time when Northwest rock would be known as Grunge and the
world associated that sound with Seattle’s Sub Pop label, Dennon had carved out
a wide reputation as the king of rock records in the region.
So: The stage is set, the crowd is stompin’ and
shoutin’, the steam is risin’, and the bands are ready to rumble once again….
Well, so what are we waitin’ for? Let’s get to the tunes!!!
By
1963 Northwest teenagers had become so loyal to their own scene’s distinct
musical soundtrack that we really didn’t have much time for imported pop
sounds. That mindset explains why California’s Beachboys’ wimpy Surfer Rock was
mercilessly booed at their debut appearance in Seattle in ’62. And too, why in
May of ’63 when the Beatles’ sappy “From Me to You” debuted on Seattle’s giant
KJR radio, the odd sounding British tune simply didn’t catch on and was
promptly dropped from the playlist after one week.
What
us Northwest kids did want to hear
was very simple: “Louie Louie.” This was
a clear marketplace demand that the Wailers, the Kingsmen, the Raiders, Don & the Goodtimes and about a
dozen other local bands who recorded versions were happy to supply. Even a
gender-modified variation like the Raymarks’
version, “Louise Louise,” was welcomed.
For
that matter, even well into the decade occasional stabs back at the earlier
instrumental rock tradition (like Don & Goodtimes’ “Turn On” – which was a
remake of the Counts’ huge regional radio hit “Turn On Song”) were appreciated.
Another few examples that illustrate the very tail end of that classic early
R&B-infused period are the Counts’
“Trick Bag”, the Bandits’ “Little
Sally Walker,” and George Washington
& Cherrybombs’ remake of the Raiders’ naughty early stage favorite,
“Crisco Party.”
The
local teenscene was going strong however by 1964 inexorable changes were
unfolding in pop: the Southern California Surf Rock craze’s popularity had
continued to increase, ultimately leading to the mass marketing of surf-related
tunes about hot rods, skateboards, stingray bikes, Honda scooters, etc… And, of
course, in February the Beatles landed at Kennedy Airport and the relentless
British Invasion of the American pop charts commenced in full. In no time it
suddenly seemed that bands everywhere were adopting new surfer or Anglo
identities to cash in on these pop trends. Washington’s coastal towns of
Aberdeen/Hoquiam produced the Beachcombers
who shared the bill with Beach Boys at a local dance. This disc reprises their
classic “The Wheeley” as well as offering their previously unreleased garage
pounder “Farmer John”. Meanwhile the Jesters
recorded “Alki Point,” a boss tune named for the beachfront cruising strip in
West Seattle.
But
even as the established Northwest rock esthetic was being diluted by these new
outside influences the teenscene prepared to retaliate with a secret weapon or
two. In 1964 lots of locals – especially other bands – began taking note of a
combo from Tacoma called the Sonics. Indeed, it was hard not to notice the band
given that they’d developed an highly aggressive sound that was simply
unprecedented in rock ‘n’ roll. The sum of their snarling vocals, demented
lyrics, scorching guitar, and whiplash drumming was a key precursor to punk
rock – long before anyone knew what
to call it. In the wake of the Sonics’ emergence, everyone from the Raiders to
the Wailers to the Kingsmen began toughening up their sound. For that matter British groups who heard the Sonics opening for their tours in
Seattle became big fans including the Kinks and the Who. This 1966 recording of
the fuzz-guitar basher “High Time” was from one of the Sonics’ final sessions.
With
the Sonics serving as the primary guiding light the Garage Rock Era was now fully
under way and Northwest bands were producing the tuffest rock music in the
land. By this point Oregon was proving to be a serious hotbed of proto-punk
energy: Portland’s Don & the Goodtimes struck again with their put-down hit
“Little Sally Tease,” Eugene’s Heirs gave fair warning with “You Better Slow
Down,” Salem’s Live Five snorted “Hunose,” and Portland’s Mr. Lucky & Gamblers wailed “(Stop) Take A Look At Me” – a plea
honored when big-time Dot Records took notice and licensed it for wider
distribution. Meanwhile Bremerton, Washington’s Raymarks kept the faith with “I
Believed,” Tacoma’s Galaxies kicked
out “Along Comes The Man,” and Seattle’s Dimensions
and Tom Thumb & the Casuals
offered up, respectively, “Knock You Flat,” and “I Should Know,”
Meanwhile
another Jerden 45 – James Henry & Olympics’ cover version of an obscure
tune (“My Girl Sloopy”) by an obscure LA-based R&B group (The Vibrations) –
had an interesting
fate. Marketed locally around April 1965, the Seattle band’s 45 was completely
overshadowed when a couple months later the (Chicago-based) McCoys’ rendition
(retitled: “Hang On Sloopy”) roared to #1 national hit status and, like the
song it is reminiscent of – “Louie Louie” – it too has been a Garage band staple ever since.
One of many bands that remodeled themselves in the wake of
the British craze was the Fabulous
Continentals, er, the Bards.
Though Dennon eventually cut a number of sizeable regional hits with this Moses
Lake-based combo, he initially had difficulty getting their career going. At
the time Dennon had scored enough hits that he was able to cut licensing deals
with various major labels, however the Hollywood-based Capitol Records simply
balked at his proposal that they issue the Bards’ new recording – a rocked up
take on Edward Leer’s classic olde poem, “The Owl & The Pussycat.” Problem
was, the tune wasn’t cut out of a deep sense of literary appreciation, or to
note their fondness for fuzzy house pets, but was rather obviously a chance for
the naughty boys to titillate their fans with the line “...oh what a beautiful
pussy you are.” Dennon pushed though and a deal of sorts was finally struck:
Capitol would press up a small number of test 45s with anonymous white labels.
Then if Dennon could secure airplay for the Bards on the basis of his clout and
the strength the song – in other words: without using the prestige of Capitol’s
logo on the label – they would then perhaps reconsider and market it
themselves. True to form, Dennon pulled it off; regional airplay was strong
enough that Capitol ended up issuing the 45 – with a picture sleeve no less.
Meanwhile,
KJR DJ Pat O’Day’s Teen Fairs were
doing well and adding to the growing sense of a seriously vibrant regional
scene. In 1966 the fair incorporated the First
Annual Teenage Fair Band Championships and all kinds of new bands performed
– some with a greater degree of originality than others as later noted by the UW Daily: "There are a lot of local
bands in the Seattle area that few people have heard of. In most cases it is no
loss. But in some cases it is. Case in point: The Famous Plums. Early this
summer, an amateur band contest was held at the Seattle Teenage Fair. Ninety
per cent of the bands in the competition fell into two categories: poor
imitations of Paul Revere and the Raiders, complete with their steps, routines
and song list; or poor imitations of the Rolling Stones, complete with 16-year
old Jagger-style vocalists and a blinding conglomeration of checked, striped
and houndstooth pants. …Anyway, somewhere between the 23rd version of
‘Satisfaction’ and a few versions of ‘Kicks,’ a most curious collection of
musicians formed on the stage….” Ah yes,
Jack Horner & the Plums: This
was a band who eschewed the usual band uniforms, synchronized dance steps, and
canonized set lists shared by many of their peer combos, and thusly were noted
as one of the first local bands that was a bit freaky – a harbinger of hippie
things to come. As one of the event’s top finalists the Plums’ solid take on Bo
Diddley’s classic, “Who Do You Love,” was included on one of Dennon’s resultant
Battle of The Bands compilation LPs.
Though
the spirit of Garage-Rock that was forged during the mid-60s was one that would
re-energize the rock world more than once in ensuing decades, by about 1966 its
initial influence on pop music was giving way. After the Brits conquered the
world and the Surfers influence ebbed, the folk/protest singers and psychedelic
bands soon found the spotlight.
One
local band that bridged these eras was Bellingham’s Thee Unusuals. After cutting the very hep “I’m Walkin’ Babe” for
Dennon the combo soon dropped all associations with the Northwest’s indigenous
“Louie Louie” culture and transmogrified into a full-blown hippie band.
Achieving levels of weirdness that most other bands could only aspire to – one
bandmember performed wearing a boa constrictor years before Alice Cooper was even a twinkle in Satan’s eye – they
soon were recording for a Chicago-based label, Mainstream Records, the same
firm that would soon sign a young Frisco band, (Janis Joplin &) Big Brother
& the Holding Company. Interestingly, after Joplin’s death, Big Brother
forged on after recruiting one of the Unusuals’ singers, Kathy McDonald.
So,
the Garage Rock Era – a joyfully primativistic period when Northwest Rock redefined
itself and won a fanbase around the world – drew to an inevitable close. Now
the Summer of Love awaited America’s youth. In the third volume of Jerden’s History of Northwest Rock (JRCD 7008) we
will take a journey back to the dawn
of that revolutionary era. Though a good number of Northwest musicians felt the
siren song calling from Haight-Ashbury and headed off – some finding positions
in such notable bands as Jefferson Airplane, Moby Grape, and Quicksilver
Messenger Service – many others stayed local and created great new music here
in the Northwest. The History of
Northwest Rock Volume 3 will showcase many of the finest and funkiest
recordings of Seattle’s peace-nik jug bands, mushroom-addled psychedelic
rockers, and Flower Power freaks. 'Till then…
[NOTE: This is a lightly edited version of an essay that was originally published as liner-notes for Jerden Records' THE HISTORY of NW ROCK VOL. II CD]