November 1978
CREEM
I want to thank Billy Altman for that really great article about David Johansen. I've been a fan of The Dolls (especially David) since I was 13 and it's good to see him back on the scene. One thing I really liked about the article was that personal touch, describing the evening and all, neat!! I'll conclude with, I hope everyone at CREEM keeps up the good work, and I wish David all the luck in the world.
CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
Robert Christgau
BOSTON: "Don't Look Back" (Epic):: Debut pomposities having been excised, a pure exploration of corporate rock remains. Pretty streamlined. Not only are the guitars perfectly received, but the lyrical cliches seem specially selected to make the band as credible in the arena as they are in the studio, and Brad Delp's tenor, too thin for nasty cock-rock distractions, leaves us free to contemplate unsullied form.
ROCK 'N' ROLL NEWS
From the Iggy desk comes David Bowie's professed reaction to Jimmy O's new band incorporating Fred "Sonic"Smithet al: "The most defiant band I've ever heard." with an uacances from touring Europe withlg, Sonic amused himeself back home in Detroit sparring with his ex-MC-5 band members; notably Ron Asheton.
THE BEST GOES ON
Rob Patterson
NEW YORK—Is Rick Wakeman boring? Old? Does he reek of excessive flatulence? Actually he's a rather animated and witty talker, sports shoulder-length hair with an almost teen impishness, and had nothing to do with the Sex Pistols being dropped from A&M Records, his label.
The Cars That Ate Aerosmith!
Stephen Demorest
The Springfield Civic Center is one of those snazzy glass-and-concrete exhibition complexes plunked down in the middle of decaying industrial towns to encourage the natives not to leave. In the case of the worn-out capital of Massachusetts, that's a tall order, but you have to admire their municipal bravado.
ENO=MC2
Lee Moore
It seems that Brian Eno is always seen set against blank, white spaces. His publicity photos, intentionally or not, show him leaning against these huge expanses of nothing with the enigmatic half-smile of a technological Mona Lisa, a model of cybernetic transistor cool.
ROBERT FRIPP: The Untold Story
Jim Farber
When Robert Fripp finally retired King Crimson to the home for aging mellotrons back in late 1974, he let out a string of Jeane Dixon-style predictions that promised nothing but' eye-gouging, entrail-splattering destruction for those foolish mortals left on earth who did not heed the word.
STRANGLERS VISAS REVOKED!
j. poet
Hugh Cornwell and Jean Jacques Bumel, guitarist and bassist for the Stranglers, recently made headlines in Britain by beating the shit out of a critic who wrote a bad review of one of their live shows. In a Melody Maker interview later that week, Bumel said, "I cannot abide personal criticism.
STONES TOUR MOP UP!
Features
THE BACK LINE
John Pidgeon
In a smoky cutting-room on Sunset Boulevard, the entire history of rock 'n' roll flashed before my eyes.
Letter From Britain
Living Up To Bowie
Penny Valentine
The punks turned out for David Bowie at Earls Court.
Creem Profiles
DAVID JOHANSEN
(Pronounced “Boy Howdy!”)
Rewire Yourself
An Even Dozen
Bill Kanner
On the following pages you'll find an even dozen audio items that may have escaped your notice.
CREEM DREEM
MEAT LOAF
Features
WHO’S WHO?
Barbara Charone
Deep in the back of my mind is an unrealized sound.
CREEMEDIA
Rick Johnson
Reading stuff you can't understand is always fun. Though some six-legged minds do it to look smart, the real kicks come in making mistaken connections and accidentally forcing your usual system-of-blunders onto something totally foreign.
Prime Time
Richard C. Walls
Sometimes, a lot of the time, when Stringer closes and me and some of the local mutants find ourselves standing on the corner at 3 o'clock in the morning full of this weird energy, all messed up and nowhere to go, we all head over to Johnny Eyes' place.
Stars Cars
ALICE COOPER
Confessions of a FILM FOX
You just know new material is at a premium when remakes abound: Some of the latest projects being run through the grist mill one more time are The Return Of Maxwell Smart ; the reunion of that great comedy team Funicello & Avalon in a Dick Clark-produced sitcom creatively dubbed Frankie And Annette, and a remake of Gypsy, featuring (are you ready?) Bette Midler as Mama Rose.
ADIOS EL KABONG
Richard Riegel
by Billy Altman Strange how some tilings just stick in your mind well after you'd hoped they'd be forgotten. I suppose that one of the most sobering moments in my life came during the second game of the 1973 World Series, as I watched with horror and sadness Willy Mays, who for over 20 years just about symbolized the essence of playing baseball, fall down trying to catch a fly ball that he'd already lost in the sun.
Records
High-Tech, Big Wreck
Mitch Cohen
She's the one dreams were invented for, and you've had her.
Does It Really Matter Anymore?
THE MAD PECK
ROCK • A • RAMA
Billy Altman
THE BOYZZ—Too Wild To Tame (Epic):: A biker band from the Midwest, the Boyzz are about as subtle as a squadron of choppers plowing through your parents living room. Good root awareness from the cover (Brando in The Wild Ones) right through to the music— more prototype 72 heavy metal/boogie riffs than you can shake an exhaust pipe at.
Backstage
BACKSTAGE
Where the Stars Tank Up & Let Their Images Down