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Sing 032 :: THE LEOPARDS - 'Kansas City Slickers' LP
By 1977, the year of Kansas City Slickers? release, most bands had happily ensconced themselves in one niche or another--one was either Punk or Power Pop or New Wave or ---- (fill in the trend of your choice), but The Leopards fell into no such handy category. Kansas City Slickers was unique for its time--certainly no other record of its day sounds remotely like it--and remains so today.
Back then its uniqueness baffled critics who, in the few places where the album was actually reviewed, did little more than point to the album?s Kinks influence. While the influence of The Kinks, The Beach Boys, The Easybeats and other Sixties groups is indeed evident on the album, such a superficial assessment does not begin to do justice to the cornucopia of sound on Kansas City Slickers. Herein rock n? roll meets ragtime, old Hollywood musicals and other forms of early 20th Century American music, a delightfully original melange you will not taste elsewhere.
Recorded and mixed at Moon Studios--ie, the basement of Dennis Pash?s parents? house on Maggie Lane in Kansas City, Kansas--the production and muscianship reaches a level of sophistication not often associated with basement recordings. Even so, protected by lack of technology from slick by-the-rote machinations of the professional studio, Kansas City Slickers retains its basement charm.
When Dennis Pash and Kevin Sanders first decided to release privately pressed records as The Leopards in 1975 it was quite a revolutionary strategy, the DIY ethos of punk still a few years in the future. The world would simply have to catch up at some point in time. Judging by the appreciative audience Kansas City Slickers has grown over the years--this despite its exceeding rarity (only 1,000 copies of the album were pressed)--that time may very well be now. (James Marinovich)
Release Country: USA
Release Year: 1977 / Reissue Date: 08.11
Original Label: Moon Records
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Sing 031 :: BRAD LONG - 'Love Me Again' b/w 'Come To Me'
In and out of unrecorded regional combos since the late 1960's, Logansport, IN music store owner Brad Long issued this, his lone single, on his own Music Stand label in the summer of 1977. Featuring a warm, lo-fi basement pop sound with stylistic roots firmly grounded in the mid 60's, both 'Come to Me' and 'Love me Again' evoke a hazy mood reminiscent of early Twilley. Also included with the release were a series of press releases, a section of which listed Long's heroes as Roger McGuinn, Paul Revere and the Raiders and Joe Meek. Greeted with positive reviews in the pages of ( Ballroom) Blitz and NY Rocker, Long later contributed a cover of the Rolling Stone's 'Tell Me' to the first VOXX ' Battle of the Garages' compilation. (Collin Makamson)
Release Country: USA
Release Year: 1977 / Reissue Date: 08.11
Original Label: No Label, Self-Released.
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Sing 030 :: THE ONION DOLLS - 'The Kids' b/w 'Hot Love'
The Onion Dolls, a four piece punk band from Belgium managed to release this lone 45 before changing their name to Crossfire and fully embracing the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal movement that was sweeping Europe in the early 1980's. Both tracks on this 45 are unsuppressed killers with shredding guitar lines giving up more than a hint of the NWOBHM influenced sound that was to come. Originally released in 1980 on the TWINKLE label in an edition of 1000 copies with a truly great picture sleeve this highly sought after single is one of Belgiums greatest Punk Rock gems.
Release Country: Belgium
Release Year: 1979 / Reissue Date: 08.11
Original Label: Twinkle
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