March 1980
CONTENTS
BLAME IT ON THE CLEMMA? Could it be? Was it possible? My heart beat itself into a wild frenzy as I ripped out the preceeding twenty pages until—YES! There it was! Page 21, [CREEM Feb. ’80], at the top, photo—center, HIM, that luminiferous Pope-knower, that Garden City prince—John Amore!
CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
Robert Christgau
BOOTSY’S RUBBER BAND: “This Boot Is Made For Fonk-N” (Warner Bros.):: Bootsy sounds like a kiddie-show host at the end of his tether—trotting out sound effects, Steve Martin imitations, desperate appeals to deejays, anything he can think of Except a good riff.
ROCK 'N' ROLL NEWS
Backstage bashes make strange bedfellows: Mick Jagger and Billy Joel were spotted soaking up the suds at a recent Sports show at Hurrah’s in New York. Billy was probably scouting the rock scene in preparation for his next LP, one he promises will be a “rocker,” and Jagger was probably, uh, soaking up the suds... Engaged in more its was Keith Richards, who dropped by Blue Rock Studios to lend his two licks to Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ remake of his classic “I Put A Spell On You.”
THE BEAT GOES ON
Cathy Gisi
Until recently, only a small group of select music buffs had ever heard of David Werner. And even those few quickly allowed the name to slide back into obscurity. Why? Because despite two critically acclaimed LPs, Whizz Kid in ’74 and 1975’s follow-up, Imagination Quota, David Werner sensed a lack of label support and refused to tour.
GRAHAM PARKER: Discovering Élan
Nigel Burnham
LONDON—Graham Parker’s now 28, he’s barely begun his career in rock (less than four years ago, he was serving in a gas station), and he’s already been called “one of the decade’s great white R&B artists.” In recent months, nevertheless, much has been made of the fact that Parker has still not achieved the kind of record sales critics expect of a man of his caliber/reputation; much has also been made of Parker’s return on Squeezing Out Sparks to the horn-less simplicity of Howlin' Wind.
THE ROMANTICS MAKE IT TO THE MAJORS
Billy Altman
Talk about your bad luck. The first time the Romantics came chugging into New York to let us East Coasters know that yes, rock ’n’ roll was indeed alive and well so far as Detroit was concerned, they had no sooner taken the stage at CBGB’s and plugged in their instruments amidst the sticky haze of that July '77 night when, BAM!
SQUEEZING OUT SPARKS
What's most heartening about our annual readers' poll is that our readers are revealed—we don't get the trendies or the saving-up-for-the-Toyota college grads or the soft-core teeny-bops or the serious record collectors with armpit stains and the entire Stiff singles catalog in the original box.
Rock ‘n’ Roll Calendar
CALENDAR
Features
GIMME TEXAS BOP WITH Z Z TOP
Rob Patterson
Once you reach the top, there’s two routes open from the craggy pinnacle of success: down or out.
MOD REBORN, SKA REVITALIZED
Penny Valentine
Secret Affair’s second single, “Let Your Heart Dance," joins the charts in a week when the impact of Mod on the mainstream is so marked that the music stops being a sub-culture. Down at the Lyceum, The Specials and The Selector are joined by The Beat for a major excursion by the cream of multi-racial ska/ rocksteady bands.
Unsung Heroes Of Rock ‘n’ Roll
MERRILL MOORE: The Saddle-Rockin’ Rhythm Man
Nick Tosches
Merrill E. Moore was born in Algona, on the east shore of the Des Moines River, in northern Iowa, on September 26, 1923.
YOUR VINYL PANTIES HAVE ARRIVED
Dave DiMartino
The late great 70’s novelty disc fad.
CREEMEDIA
Dave DiMartino
It’s that time of year—when everyone from Rex Reed to Rex Humbard to Wreckless Eric is listing their ten best movies of the past twelve months. You’ve probably seen the lists already as the accolades pour in for the likes of Apocalypse Now, Norma Rae, Manhattan, China Syndrome and Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes.
Weird In The Afternoon
Richard C. Walls
Late last November, when the yuletide spirit was just beginning to slither over the far horizon, not yet noticeable enough to change anyone’s basic surly attitude but still making its presence felt, subliminally, via the piney green crowding the peripheral vision of hapless shoppers in department stores and the swift but deadly assault of the occasional Mr. Microphone commercial over the airwaves, I had the occasion, the extremely stupid painful opportunity, to drop a Christmas tree on my foot.
Confessions of a FILM FOX
Your million mile per hour mouth greets you this month with news that the Blues Bros., John “I'm Not As Fat As Tiny Tim” Belushi and Dan “Can You Say ‘Entropy’?” Aykroyd, are singin’ the blooz for sure since Willie Mabon is suing Atlantic Records and Republic Music for using his tune, “I Don’t Know,” on the Briefcase Full Of Blues LP without his permission.
CREEM DREEM
DAVID LEE ROTH
Stars Cars
ROCKPILE
STATE OF THE ART
Richard Robinson
The majority of audio manufacturers spend their time coming up with new products to replace the new products they came up with six months before. Japanese audio and TV manufacturers have turned this self-imposed one-up-manship into an art.
Records
MARIANNE FAITHFULL LETS IT BLEED
Rick Johnson
This album is no plea for tea and sympathy.
VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE DEPTHS
THE MAD PECK
ROCK • A • RAMA
Richard Riegel
THE CUSTOMS—“Let’s Get It On”/“Bring My Cadillac Back” (Shake It!); LINDA & GLINDA CONOVER—“You’re Gonna Miss Me”/“I Wanna Get Happy” (Fraternity):: Cincinnati was a hot town for R&B and rockabilly back in the days when King and the other local labels were flourishing, and every now and then the old fire breaks thru the placid surface of the Queen City.
WHAT PRICE, KEYBOARDS?
Allen Hester
For some strange reason, keyboard players are getting a break. During the 70’s, the decade that the electronic keyboard emerged in rock music, the keyboard players who sought to compete with the guitar players for stage prominence had to pay a dear price for equipment.
Backstage
BACKSTAGE
Where the Stars Tank Up & Let Their Images Down
Creem Profiles
TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS
(Pronounced “Boy Howdy!”)