The Plural of Aggies

"That's how you did things before computers."

Las Cruces is the runt of the litter when compared to the El Paso/Juarez metroplex. Especially so in the early 1960s when Las Cruces had a population of just 30,000. Nonetheless, an eclectic cottage industry of studios, labels and bands trickled forth from Las Cruces. Granted, the bulk of this boom, was the work of two pragmatic local characters. Emmit Brooks, who established Goldust Records Co. in 1965 and iconic borderlands disc jockey Steve Crosno, who along with Manny Rivera, founded Frogdeath Records. One of the most highly sought after brands among vinyl collectors in the Southwest. Crosno, working with limited resources was forced to be more selective of whom he recorded and that meant that his personal preferences dictated to a large degree what was released on Frogdeath.

Frogdeath Records definitely reflected the personality of Steve Crosno. From the label imprint which depicted a bullfrog listening to a phonograph (ala RCA's Little Nipper listening to his master voice) with a heavy boot looming overhead, to the puns and mispronunciations printed on the label. It all added up to the work of a smart ass genius. Frogdeath had a limited run, probably no more than a dozen known releases. Working on the fly (and on the cheap) with Crosno wasn't easy as Danny Parra (Danny & the Counts) recalls: “ We recorded “For Your Love” b/w “It’s All Over” in a single live take in Steve’s home without a drummer! Unbelievable! The recordings were meant to be a dry run but Crosno decided to put them on vinyl since he could promote them on KELP”

After that initial haphazard session, Danny & The Counts butted heads with Steve over the direction their music was taking. “We ultimately made it clear to him, that we wanted to pursue the English music trends as a group and abandon R&B. He wasn’t happy about this because his whole market niche was R&B …. so we had an eventual parting of the ways.” said Parra. Crosno's radio show and “Crosno Hops” a mobile sock hop that hit every podunk burg within driving distance of El Paso, revolved around r&b/soul numbers. Fuzzy, hyper, garage be bop don't cut it on the dance floor when you're looking to rub up on a gal. The homies in Segundo Barrio pined for Tex Mex Soul, James Brown and golden oldies... Steve Crosno delivered the goods and in their eyes he could do no wrong.

Emmit Brooks on the other hand, designed and built a professional studio in Las Cruces. He started out with second hand equipment procured by Norman Petty. (shades of Bennie Sanchez and Hurricane Record) In the same manner as John Wagner of John Wagner Studios in Albuquerque, Brooks had tried his hand as a recording artist at Norman Petty Studios. Recording a split 7” (yeah, they had those back then) with Aggie Rambler band mate, Nolan Chandler in 1959. Emmit's side was “Peach Blossoms” a warbled country tune that withered on the branch. His solo shot stymied by a lack of success, Brooks stuck with The Aggie Ramblers, an epochal country western dance band from Las Cruces, as a vocalist and bass player until 1975, when he left the band to focus on his recording studio.

Brooks never stopped investing in equipment and Goldust Records remains a viable enterprise to this very day. Emmit recognizes that nowadays musicians use his studio simply to release their music on their own labels, stating matter-of-factly. “With the Internet, if you put out a CD, you've basically given it away to the world” Brooks made a go of it by adopting what amounted to an open door policy. How else would famed artist Peter Hurd (who could sing in Spanish about as well as Linda Ronstadt) get the opportunity to record an album titled “Peter Hurd Sings Rancheras” I kid of course, Peter already had one album under his belt, “Spanish Folk Songs of New Mexico” released on Folkway Records in 1957. "Music is music," says Brooks "If I can listen to it and I can understand it, I can record it."

Despite the encyclopedic breadth of the Goldust Records catalog (basically everything under the sun except jazz) it was 60s garage fuzz busters that brought the label worldwide attention. Brooks recalls how a man from Baer Records in Germany showed up and bought hundreds of 7” singles at $5 each and now they sell online for $75 each. Brooks also collaborated with reissue label, Collectables Records in 1996 to produce a compilation cd titled “From The Grass To The Outer Limits! The Goldust Records Story” which featured hip heavy hitters such as The Four Dimensions, The Outer Limits, The Grass, The Keymen, all from Las Cruces and The Morfomen from Española, N.M. plus the über square Pat & Dodie (Dodie Sierra & Pat Barrett) from parts unknown. 

 

Down in the wastelands of New Mexico, Where there's a definite lack of H2o

“The kids get their kicks on this barren land when they go surfing on pure white sand”

Sand surfing was a thing long before the Four Dimensions wrote a song about it. The joy of sailing down a dune on a piece of plywood can't be beat. Nowadays they actually rent sleds and somehow it's just not the same. The 4Ds like so many bands from Las Cruces sprang from the student body at NMSU. Keith Hackney and Phil Holmes started out as a duo, later adding Jack Starkey and Billy Conger. The Four Dimensions were primarily a cover band, although their sole single for Goldust Records consisted of two original songs. “Sand Surfin” was written by Keith Hackney & Phil Holmes while the flip“I Love You For What You Are” was a Keith Hackney composition. “Sand Surfin” as to be expected was a local hit.

The Four Dimensions played the few venues available in Las Cruces, The Cork & Bottle and The Palms Motor Inn and accompanied other musicians at Goldust recording sessions. They caught the California fever and headed west to Hollywood. The band landed an agent who put them to work on the club circuit for a year. Eventually the 4Ds ended up playing a Las Vegas lounge until Uncle Sam came calling. Jack Starkey, Keith Hackney and Phil Holmes returned to Las Cruces, playing a few local gigs before breaking up. Billy Conger signed on with another band while they were in Las Vegas. Keith Hackney was the only one of the Four Dimensions to serve in Vietnam and according to Phil Holmes “Keith didn't come back from Vietnam the same” Keith Hackney passed away on Jan. 26^th 2014.

The Grass from Las Cruces, started out as Stanley & The Grass. Lead singer Stan Stenner reportedly was related to Al Lewis, Grandpa on The Munsters television show. Funny thing is, Lewis did have ties to New Mexico (his two grandsons were equipment managers for the UNM Lobos basketball during Gary Colson's tenure) Lewis could often be found sitting court side at Lobo home games and invariably the play by play announcer would say “Hey! there's Grandpa Munster” Stenner a former child actor who grew up in Hollywood, had appeared in the Producers Showcase production of Peter Pan and Bob Cummings' Love That Bob. Stan already had a single under his belt “Teri b/w Angel of Mine released on Dynasty Records in 1959. when he met up with The Grass at a local talent contest.

Apparently Stenner had been drafted and was stationed at nearby Ft. Bliss at the time. Stanley & The Grass had a short run and once Stan left, he was replaced by Larry Lucero for the Goldust recording session that produced “I'm Getting Tired” The Grass (JT Archer, Lynn McIntyre, Dennis Finn & Tim Schaefer) had a friendly rivalry with another local band, The Outer Limits who recorded for Goldust Records. They revolved around Jim Westbrooks, Pete Hecker, Dennis Lucero and lead singer John Leduc, who was often compared to either Roky Erickson of The 13^th Floor Elevators or Sal Valentino of the Beau Brummels. Members of both bands had also been part of other Las Cruces bands, The Checkmates, The Shandells and The Hustlers (not The Hustlers from Carlsbad)

Originally known as The Fabulous Keymen, Emmit Brooks of Goldust Records refers to them as “the most popular band in Las Cruces in the mid-1960s” Yet another local band with an NMSU connection and much like The Four Dimensions, The Keymen were primarily a cover band, though their only single, released on Goldust consisted of two original compositions. Guitarist/vocalist Stan Lease, appears to have been the driving force behind the band, he was joined by keyboardist Van Lanning, drummer Dick Gambo and bassist/vocalist Phil Holmes (His landing spot following the demise of the 4Ds. Jack Starkey mentions meeting Keith Hackney in Los Alamos prior to joining the 4Ds and Keith being in a band called the Keymen)

The aforementioned single “What Am I To Do / Walkin and Talkin” was released in 1967 on Goldust Records. It showcases a tight group of musicians that was far from your average garage band. The Keymen work a farfisa driven, Memphis inspired groove, unlike anything their Las Cruces contemporaries were doing. The Keymen definitely had their own distinct sound, which went largely unexplored beyond the Goldust single. They seemed to have inherited the Four Dimensions' money gig, as evidenced by the Goldust album “The Keymen Live” recorded at The Cork & Bottle on Solano Drive in 1968. (reissued by Collectable Records as a cd) It's a perfect late 1960s radio fodder time capsule as the band works through a spirited set of covers, no originals.

The GUM label was based in Mesilla Park N.M.and shared a post office box number with Best Records (not the California label that issued surf records by The Pyramids) GUM Publishing was associated with GUM, Best and F-G Records (Frank Gonzales & The Palisades) It's possible that GUM and Best were subsidiaries of Emmit Brooks' Goldust Records, based in neighboring University Park. Though Brooks has never mentioned it. GUM Records was home for The Cavaliers, from Las Cruces N.M. featuring Lloyd Nash on lead vocals, who also co-wrote all their songs. Just don't confuse these Cavaliers with The Cavaliers from San Angelo, Tx. of J. Frank Wilson "Last Kiss" fame or The Cavaliers (aka Thee Kavaliers) of McAllen, Tx. fronted by charismatic lead singer Javier Rios.

The Man Who Never Let The Music Die.... Has Died

Alamogordo, located just outside the borderplex region, nonetheless became a big player on the El Paso/Las Cruces music scene. This was due to the efforts of insurance salesman/aspiring musician, Calvin Boles. Determined to make his mark in music if not the world, Calvin Boles set up a $40 Concertone reel-to-reel recorder in his garage and cut his first release “Rock Buster b/w You Blame It All On Me”.... Yucca Records 101, 1958. You can bet that the earth moved and the skies rumbled.... as fighter jets from nearby Holloman AFB flew over the Boles homestead. To quote blogger Paul Pearson of Dead Horse Radio “Bole's music was, on average, pretty good country, with some fluctuation across the pretty good range” Folks advised Calvin not to quit his day job and he paid heed to their advice.

Originally from Seymour, Tx. The Boles family migrated to Alamogordo, N.M. in 1932, during the depression. They settled south of Alamogordo in an area that is now a thriving semi-rural suburb known as Boles Acres. With the exception of never having worked with Norman Petty. Calvin Boles was cut from the same cloth as John Wagner (Delta Records) and Emmit Brooks (Goldust Records) Under Boles' direction, Yucca Records grew into a prolific and influential “hit making” machine. (with some fluctuation on the term “hit”) Calvin eventually moved his operation out of the garage and into KALG radio studios. At final count, Yucca Records released 237 vinyl singles. Boles himself authored over 500 songs and accounted for at least 32 of Yucca's single releases.

Prior to Yucca Records, Calvin Boles & The Rocket City Playboys relentlessly toured the breadth of Little Texas and West Texas. Calvin's wife Betty became the bass player by default. “He said if I was going to go with him, I was going to have to earn a living” Calvin showed her a few chords and gave her two weeks to perfect her technique. In Jan. of 1955, Billboard reported that the band had been signed for a sponsored 30-minute program “across-the-board” on KALG. Betty Boles (not to be confused with Calvin's sister Betty Jean Boles Johnson) would go on to record a few singles with Calvin (including a split single) The Rocket City Playboys recorded eight albums, none of which were released on Yucca Records. You'd be hard pressed to find any trace of the R.C. Playboys online.

Calvin had what folks around New Mexico refer to as a “smart ass” sense of humor. This showed through in many of his recordings. Boles, perhaps well aware of his limitations as a serious country musician always kept the mood light. (Alamogordo's motto is “The Friendliest Place of Earth”) Playing honky tonk, rockabilly and country swing with just enough crossover to keep music genre purists scratching their heads. Calvin kept 'em dancing with “If You Got a Lot of Dough” “Turn Back the Pages” “Doc Scurlock” “You Giggle Too Much” (which coined the term “gigglebilly”... which nobody in their right mind would ever use) Through it all, Calvin met the locals' insurance needs and marched a troupe of musicians through the KALG studio.

In the early 1970s, bags in hand and tongue firmly planted in cheek. Calvin Boles closed up shop in Alamogordo and took off to Nashville with the idea of recording and promoting country artists. He already had one client... his son-in-law, Robyn Young (Faron Young's son) To mark his arrival in the Mecca of country music, Boles released a novelty single that will forever rank as one of the rankest, musical endeavors of all time. First a little background info. Break-in records, were made popular by Dickie Goodman with his hit recordings of “The Flying Saucer, Pts. 1 & 2. The basic premise has an official sounding interviewer (Goodman) asking questions, which are answered by brief snippets of POPULAR songs (note the emphasis on popular) Even at its best, it's pure cornball.

For “Calvin Boles in Nashville” b/w “Calvin on Stage” Boles hired Johny (Single N) Caraway, who Paul Pearson of Dead Horse Radio points out “was no Dickie Goodman” Caraway in a serious “radio voice” asks a series of questions to which Calvin answers with break-ins from his own vast repertoire of “unknown to the world” songs. It's cringe worthy right up until Ernest Tubbs breaks in at the end with “Go on home, you don't belong here with me” followed by a round of canned laughter. Paul Pearson: “A break-in comedy record featuring nothing but Calvin Boles tunes as break-ins....probably wasn't the most effective strategy” Calvin's Nashville venture flamed out quicker than Kingsford Match Light briquets. A thousand guitar pickers in Nashville and Calvin wasn't meant to be one of them. 

A Confederacy of Aggies

Yucca Records wasn't much of a going concern after that. Calvin Boles, a true original, born in Texas, raised in New Mexico. Passed away on Oct. 25^th. 2004. He was 79 years old. . In 2006 State Rep. Gloria Vaughn of Alamogordo on behalf of Betty Boles, introduced a House Bill to have Calvin Boles' ballad “New Mexico” declared the state's official cowboy song. Rep. Vaughn cited Boles' accomplishment, declaring him “a local legend in the area” The proposal met with dissent (perhaps they were familiar with “Calvin Boles in Nashville”) State Rep. Candy Spence Ezzell of Roswell was miffed that the song failed to mention cowgirls. “I am a cowgirl, and I have not been surveyed on this and I think there are a lot of other cowboys who might want some input into this”

The bill moved to the State Senate and there it died. New Mexico was left without an official state cowboy song. The following year Rep. Vaughn again offered Boles' “New Mexico” as the official state cowboy song in a new House bill... she couldn't even persuade the House to vote on her bill. Rep. Vaughn then opened up the process, calling for a competition. The process would drag out for damn near three years before Wisconsin transplant Syd Masters was declared the last man standing, thanks to his western swing number “Under New Mexico Skies” A casualty of New Mexico's ugly North vs. South civil strife. “New Mexico” (Boles had actually co-written the song with R.D. Blankenship) fell by the wayside. Ultimately, what really burns my ass about this whole affair (besides Masters being a rootin' tootin' cheese head cowboy) is that Syd's song also fails to mention cowgirls.

A who's who of New Mexico and West Texas musicians passed through Alamogordo to record for Yucca Records. Bob Taylor and the Counts were among the first. Hailing from El Paso, Bob Taylor and his brother Glenn were joined by Jim Reese (future Bobby Fuller Four) and Willie Wilson. Calvin Boles obit mistakenly reported that a young Willie Nelson was a member of the Counts, having confused him with Willie Wilson (In 1958 Willie Nelson was peddling encyclopedias and songs in Houston) One of the tracks they put down during that first session “Thunder” was later reworked by Bobby Fuller as “Thunder Reef” Fuller released two singles for Yucca in 1961, “You're in Love / Guess We'll Fall in Love” (KALG studio) and “My Heart Jumped / Gently My Love” (Norman Petty Studios)

The List goes on: Don Guess & The Rock Kings, Al Sims, The Rhythm Heirs, Rex Rinehart, Big Lloyd Dalton (Thees Plane Ees Mine) Jerry Bell & The Original Rockets, Bill Chappell... the rockabilly madcap, recorded a pair of late period rockabilly faves “Down on the Farm Boogie” & “Big Mama Twist” Bill went on to become a regular opening act in Branson, Mo. Sonny Wallace, known for his version of the rockabilly classic “Black Cadillac” Long John Hunter, Texas blues guitarist who hung from the rafters and paced the sidewalks, electric guitar in hand outside the Lobby Club in Juarez, Mx. Sonny Guitar (not sure if this is Big Sonny Farlow who played in a post-Doug Sahm version of the Sir Douglas Quintet and Big Sonny & The Lo Boys with Jimmy Carl Black)

There's more: Jerry Bright and The Embers (which included Dalton Powell and Jim Reese of Bobby Fuller fame) Doo Wop groups: The Ravons w/vocalists Jenny Johnson and Dick Liberatore, a vocal group from Holloman AFB. The Fortunes known for their single This is Love/ Lonely Teardrops. John Caraway who beside being involved in the atrocious “Calvin Boles in Nashville” also recorded “Wallace Will Walk Again” his get well ode to George Wallace. Tiny Tim, who recorded for Yucca was not the Tiny Tim of “Tip Toe Through the Tulips” fame. He was Tiny Tim Knight, a precocious five year old from Oklahoma, who was believed to be the youngest country singer to sign his signature to a contract (a feat that some adult country singers may not have been capable of)

The only garage rock band that recorded for Yucca were The Pitiful Panics, included on El Paso Rocks Vol. 9. Norm Petty embraced psychedelic music. Emmit Brooks had no qualms about recording 60s garage beat. Norm even sat in on Mellotron with The Hooterville Trolley and Lincoln St. Exit. A comment on Bill Chappell's You Tube video for “Down on the Farm” speaks volumes “I had no idea they played this way in the 1960s” It also explains why Emmit Brooks and Goldust stayed in business while Yucca Records played out. Emmit and Norman Petty realized that longevity and success in the recording business were the result of accepting change as it comes about. Calvin Boles dug his heels in and got stuck in the past. Calvin's approach was old fashioned if not downright archaic.

It wasn't all bad. Yucca's releases do have an authentic feel to them, even if most came out well after the original rockabilly cats had distanced themselves from the genre. Sadly this was the product of Calvin's desire to reject modern music trends and not any artistic epiphany he may have experienced. There's two Yucca Records compilations out there worth mentioning, “Yucca Records and Other Things” released on Yucca in 1980, is a comprehensive collection of the label's rockabilly tracks. “The Yucca Records Rock 'N' Roll Story” released in the mid-1990s by Classics Records on compact disc, essentially duplicates the first release. Norton's El Paso Rock series cherry picked the best tracks from both. “Yucca Records and Other Things” is for hardcore vinyl junkies only.

The Yucca Records masters gathered dust until Norton Records, a New York City based independent record label founded by musicians Billy Miller & Miriam Linna (The Cramps drummer for a brief period in late 70s) swept in and licensed Yucca's entire catalog for re-issue. For that we are eternally grateful to both. Miriam Linna wrote a series of articles about Bobby Fuller for Kicks magazine, part of Norton's publishing division. Ms. Linna is considered somewhat of the ultimate authority on Bobby Fuller, having recently published “I FOUGHT THE LAW: The Life and Strange Death of Bobby Fuller” which she co-authored with Randy Fuller. Judging by the teasers and pre-release hype, it appears that we'll finally get to the bottom of this lingering who-dun-it murder mystery. 

“I can still remember vividly all the sensory data of driving to football practice at Cobre Hs. in Bayard N.M. and hearing Carl Perkins “Blue Suede Shoes” for the first time”

Growing up under the twin stacks in Hurley, N.M. Frank Thayer would sit in his parent's Buick mesmerized by the growling blues of Howling Wolf on KWKH in Shreveport, La. Bouncing of the stratosphere and slicing through the ozone, KWKH broadcast an unexpectedly strong signal to Western New Mexico from 840 miles away. It was enough to ignite a life long passion in Thayer, more so when he heard Elvis Presley's “That's Alright Mama” for the first time. “I knew I had to somehow play and sing that way... praying that if I could only play that rhythm and sing just that one song” Through the years Frank Thayer didn't stray far from that original vision. Frank's rockabilly quest was genuine, neither revisionist or revivalist... a blue suede time traveler, the last of his tribe.

A native of Grant County, Thayer shipped out from Hurley to Bryan, Tx. joining the Corp of Cadets at Texas A&M. It was in Texas that Frank became a musician. “I began to develop a rudimentary competence on the acoustic guitar” During the three years he spent at A&M, Thayer was the vocalist for The Jesters, a local band that played honky tonks across East Texas. Frank caught on quickly “We learned at that time (and nothing has changed) that inebriated patrons just want to hear “Kansas City” For his senior year, Thayer chose to matriculate with a less fervent form of Aggies, transferring to New Mexico State Univ. in Las Cruces. A journalism major, Frank had began writing songs when he met NMSU English major Dennis Adams, who also happened to be a DJ at KGRT in Las Cruces.

Adams was a budding producer and sound engineer, who had in his possession Ampex recorders and state of the art microphones. He also had access to the campus radio stations studio and equipment. Thayers first session (which produced “Long Grey Highway / Evening Shadows”) took place on the lawn of the NMSU radio station. Dennis got the right sound mix by positioning the musicians a certain distance from one another. Mike Wright of The Lyonals accompanied Frank on vocals. Released on Outlaw Records (essentially, Thayer's vanity label) it sold well enough to top out at #1 on KGRT's weekly poll. Inspired by their success, Adams and Thayer spent the next few months recording a batch of original songs with the help of musicians recruited from around the campus.

Frank's second Outlaw Records single, “The Troubled Streets / Lonely Before Dawn” was distributed to radio stations across the country. The Link Wray (ahem!) “inspired” a-side while catchy, raked in zero sales. “The Troubled Streets” received a form of belated redemption years later when Norton Records appended the song title to Vol. 5 of their “El Paso Rock Series, Bordertown Rock and Roll 1958-64” After graduation, Thayer and Adams took a road trip on Route 66 east intending to promote Frank's recordings. Once they arrived in Rochester N.Y. (Dennis Adams' hometown) the duo split up. Dennis Adams went to work for General Motors while Frank Thayer took a job with The El Paso Times as a cub reporter before joining the military.

Frank Thayer wound up teaching journalism in Canada. He returned to New Mexico and eventually became a professor in the Journalism and Mass Communications Dept. at New Mexico State. His recording days were well behind him, or so he thought. In 1977, Dennis Adams alerted him that there was renewed interest in his first Outlaw single ( “Long Grey Highway / Evening Shadows”) with this in mind, Adams convinced Frank that they should issue an album consisting of both Outlaw singles and two unreleased songs (Yes I'll be Blue / The Glory of Her Love) The six titles were combined in a 45 rpm extended play seven-incher titled “Frank Thayer Back in New Mexico” the response was positive, especially in Europe and Scandinavia where rockabilly was being rediscovered.

Their next project was more ambitious. Based out of Rochester N.Y. Thayer and Adams put together a group of sidemen to help them recreate an authentic rockabilly sound. Guitarist George Bedard was chosen for his ability to emulate Scotty Moore. Brian Williams, a stand up bassist was totally sold on the project. Jim Symonds on drums rounded out the group. Next, they sought out a studio that had some of the same acoustic properties as Sun Records. Al Wilcox Studios in Rochester fit the bill. To prep for the album, the newly formed group played a number of gigs in local clubs. They met with enthusiastic approval where ever they played. The album, recorded in 1980 was released on Outlaw Records and distributed in the U.S., Canada and Europe. It became a rockabilly revivalist classic.

Twenty six years later a journalism student at NMSU (one of Thayer's) discovered his professor's forgotten rock and roll past and wrote two feature articles about Professor Thayer's musical career. This led to a rush of interest in his music, which really started to peak with the rise of You Tube and the release of the aforementioned “Norton Records' El Paso Rocks Vol. 5”, which featured all six tracks from “Frank Thayer Back in New Mexico” (“Troubled Streets” & “Lonely Before Dawn” are credited to The Night People) Two student engineers at KRWG, the NMSU campus radio station, took on the digital mastering of Frank Thayer's 1980 album. The finished product resulted in Outlaw Records first and only compact disc release.

Please bear in mind that the internet is a vast nest of misinformation

which allows anyone to say anything

Not all the attention cast upon Frank Thayer has been because of his music, the former head of the Journalism and Mass Communication Dept. at NMSU came under fire in 2014 over forwards he wrote for a series of books by Gregory Douglas “Gestapo Chief” that some critics feel endorse or espouse Holocaust denial theories. In his writings Douglas pushes the theory that Heinrich Muller, head of the Gestapo, survived the war and was employed by the feds. In and of itself, the Douglas series is nothing more than right wing pulp trash. However, it's Gregory Douglas' ties (and Thayer's by association) to The Barnes Review, “one of the most virulent anti-Semitic organizations around” according to The Southern Poverty Law Center that are cause for concern. Thayer being a state employee and all.

When pressed to clarify his views, Professor Thayer stated “I believe that I have the right to be interested in the topics I'm interested in” NMSU refused to censure Thayer, citing his right to free speech. He did retire as the head of the Journalism department, though he remains at the university as a professor emeritus. Further questions concerning Thayer's views were raised due to an article published in The Barnes Review on the role of women in Nazi Germany (apparently it was all good) Also brought up was Thayer's “The Grand Order of Marbas” a fictional work that concludes with “the protagonist fighting off 'Mexican animal-men' in underground tunnels that criss-cross the border” If this ever gets made into a movie (again), I'm going to propose that Reb Brown be cast as the protagonist. Nobody and I mean NOBODY!, rocks Zubaz like Reb Brown does and he's 67 years old.

Thayer raised a few more eyebrows due to his questionable “creative liberties” “South El Paso, effectively re-annexed by illegal Mexican immigrants, was a sponge sucking up the poison of a hemisphere” no worse than anything Donald Trump dishes out on a regular basis. Thayer goes to the Steven Michael Quezada joke book to describe an Hispanic women's boyfriend “whose list of DWI charges and scrapes with the law were as long as a ristra of red chiles” I'm actually impressed that he didn't spell “chiles” as “chili” To me it sounds like Frank finds his muse in the scripts of Mexican wrestling movies. His trite racist pandering is dishwater bland, almost as if he wants to be racist but yet doesn't want to offend anyone. Milquetoast racism, America's preferred brand.

Frank Thayer's website would lead many to believe that the man may be one french fry short of a full order. The obvious giveaways being his belief in UFOs (specifically The Aztec UFO Incident, not to be confused with The Socorro UFO Incident or The Roswell UFO Crash) his love of snakes and his collection of Nazi memorabilia. I mean how else are you going to get Nazi memorabilia without hooking up with some Nazis? Ya'll lay down with Nazi dogs and ya'll get bit by Nazi fleas. Plus, you have to wonder why a sane man trained in academics would bother with a history of Aggie football. Let me spare you the trouble Professor Thayer... Aggie football, past, present and future can be summed up in one word: futility. Now go do that voodoo that you do, so well Professor.... write some more songs.

Text accompanied by music, Dirt City Chronicles

Don't Need You No More- The Outer Limits

And She'll Cry- The Celtics

You Need Love- Danny & the Counts

How Do You Feel?- The Chains

When Will I Find Her- Mike Renolds and the Infants of Soul

You Came to Me- Dave Caflan

Not Fade Away- Group Axis

Walking Away- The Outer Limits

Walkin' and Talkin'- The Keymen

Want to Be Your Loving Man- Dudley and the Do-Rites

I Love You For What You Are- Four Dimensions

Don't Leave Me- The Outer Limits

Someday- Apple Glass Cyndrom

Stop the World- The Chains

Silly Ants- Group Axis

Babe You Know- The Brentwoods

Shakedown- Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics

Begin Your Crying- The Outer Limits

Meet Me Here (In New Orleans) David Hayes & The Pawns

Think I'm Losing You- The Four Frogs

Ode to Loneliness- The Motivaters

Waves- The Outer Limits

Something's Wrong- The Wild Ones

Wine Wine Wine- Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics

Smokestack Lightning- Group Axis

Talk Talk- Terry Manning

El Paso Rocks- Long John Hunter

Sand Surfin'- Four Dimensions

Stringer- Bobby Fuller

Bogus- Scavengers

Surf Beat 65- The Beach Nuts

Surfer's Paradise- Counts

Wolfman- Bobby Fuller

Mr. Big- Four Frogs

Dance to the Palisades- Frank Gonzales & the Palisades

Vaquero- The Fireballs

Canutillo Stomp- The Embers

King of the Beach- Bobby Fuller

The Last Ride- The Beach Nuts

Moonbeam- The Knights

Rik-A-Tik – The Fireballs

El Gato- The Chandelles

Sky Diver- Steve Cooper & The Avantis

I'm Going Surfin'- The Embers

Our Favorite Martian- Bobby Fuller

South Bay- The Pawns

Tickler- The Sherwoods

Sweet Surfin' Little Girl- Frank Gonzales & the Palisades

Wipe In- The Impostors

Thunder Reef- Bobby Fuller

Jetster- The Chandelles

Podunk- The Sherwoods

The Chase- Bobby Fuller

Torquay- The Fireballs

Lonely by the Sea- The Knights

Lonely Sea/Lolita- Bobby Fuller

Dirt City Chronicles podcast episode 31

Las Cruces is the runt of the litter when compared to the El Paso/Juarez metroplex. Especially so in the early 1960s when Las Cruces had a population of just 30,000. Nonetheless, an eclectic cottage industry of studios, labels and bands trickled forth from Las Cruces. Granted, the bulk of this boom, was the work of two pragmatic local characters. Emmit Brooks, who established Goldust Records Co. in 1965 and iconic borderlands disc jockey Steve Crosno, who along with Manny Rivera, founded Frogdeath Records. One of the most highly sought after brands among vinyl collectors in the Southwest. Crosno, working with limited resources was forced to be more selective of whom he recorded and that meant that his personal preferences dictated to a large degree what was released on Frogdeath.

Frogdeath Records definitely reflected the personality of Steve Crosno. From the label imprint which depicted a bullfrog listening to a phonograph (ala RCA's Little Nipper listening to his master voice) with a heavy boot looming overhead, to the puns and mispronunciations printed on the label. It all added up to the work of a smart ass genius. Frogdeath had a limited run, probably no more than a dozen known releases. Working on the fly (and on the cheap) with Crosno wasn't easy as Danny Parra (Danny & the Counts) recalls: “ We recorded “For Your Love” b/w “It’s All Over” in a single live take in Steve’s home without a drummer! Unbelievable! The recordings were meant to be a dry run but Crosno decided to put them on vinyl since he could promote them on KELP”

After that initial haphazard session, Danny & The Counts butted heads with Steve over the direction their music was taking. “We ultimately made it clear to him, that we wanted to pursue the English music trends as a group and abandon R&B. He wasn’t happy about this because his whole market niche was R&B …. so we had an eventual parting of the ways.” said Parra. Crosno's radio show and “Crosno Hops” a mobile sock hop that hit every podunk burg within driving distance of El Paso, revolved around r&b/soul numbers. Fuzzy, hyper, garage be bop don't cut it on the dance floor when you're looking to rub up on a gal. The homies in Segundo Barrio pined for Tex Mex Soul, James Brown and golden oldies... Steve Crosno delivered the goods and in their eyes he could do no wrong. 

 

Don't Need You No More- The Outer Limits

And She'll Cry- The Celtics

You Need Love- Danny & the Counts

How Do You Feel?- The Chains

When Will I Find Her- Mike Renolds and the Infants of Soul

You Came to Me- Dave Caflan

Not Fade Away- Group Axis

Walking Away- The Outer Limits

Walkin' and Talkin'- The Keymen

Want to Be Your Loving Man- Dudley and the Do-Rites

I Love You For What You Are- Four Dimensions

Don't Leave Me- The Outer Limits

Someday- Apple Glass Cyndrom

Stop the World- The Chains

Silly Ants- Group Axis

Babe You Know- The Brentwoods

Shakedown- Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics

Begin Your Crying- The Outer Limits

Meet Me Here (In New Orleans) David Hayes & The Pawns

Think I'm Losing You- The Four Frogs

Ode to Loneliness- The Motivaters

Waves- The Outer Limits

Something's Wrong- The Wild Ones

Wine Wine Wine- Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics

Smokestack Lightning- Group Axis

Talk Talk- Terry Manning

Star Mountain Babylon

El Chuco: que transa por tus venas

There's few parallels to draw between El Paso's music scene in the 1960s and Albuquerque's. In the early sixties, El Paso was seemingly still under The spell of Buddy Holly/Eddie Cochran and early recordings by local bands reflected this trend. This El Paso era produced two musicians in Bobby Fuller and Terry Manning that would influence American rock/pop music well after the 60s gassed out. Fated for a macabre demise, Bobby Fuller established himself in West Texas/New Mexico before he moved to Los Angeles and broke out on the national scene with “I Fought the Law” in 1966. Terry Manning, had a modest run in El Paso with his band, The Wild Ones, but truly hit his stride once he relocated to Memphis, Tn. and started working with Stax/Ardent Records in the the early 1970s.

Due to the success of Norm Petty Studios, West Texas got off the starting line early compared to the rest of the region. In 1957, both Buddy Knox and Jimmy Bowen (who had played together in The Rhythm Orchids) hit the national charts with million selling singles. Bowen's “I'm Sticking With You” and Knox's “Party Doll” coupled with Buddy Holly's #1 single, “That'll Be The Day” set off a stampede of musicians headed to Clovis, N.M. As Goldust Records founder, Emmit Brooks put it: "After Buddy Holly and the Beatles, there was a feeling out there that anyone could get a hit and make a million dollars," El Paso caught the fever and before long a burgeoning local rock & roll scene was starting to bubble up from the dusty landscape.

The arrival in 1957 of itinerant blues guitarist, Long John Hunter (who set up shop at the Lobby Club across the river in Juarez) helped to kick things off. Much like Al Hurricane in Albuquerque, Hunter was grounded in another genre, yet still played a part in helping rock & roll gain a toehold. His single “El Paso Rock” released on Calvin Boles' Yucca Records in 1961 helped spark El Paso's pre-Beatles infatuation with instrumental rock. Countless El Paso musicians made nightly treks across the border to the Lobby No. 2 Cafe and Night Club to watch Long John lay down some rattlesnake moan. A disciple of the East Texas blues guitar tradition, Hunter would often allow young musicians who could work up the nerve, to take the stage with him (including a very young and nervous Bobby Fuller)

Then in 1963 a funny thing happened... El Paso went bonkers for surf music. No easy way to explain this. The Gulf of Mexico is 700 plus miles away (though the closest beach to El Paso is actually Puerto Peñasco in Mexico...about 500 miles) Almost overnight, every band worth a lick in El Chuco, started playing like Dick Dale and The Deltones. A period well documented by Norton Records' compilation series “El Paso Rocks” Having tossed aside his aspirations towards emulating Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran. Bobby Fuller planted himself firmly at the forefront of this curious turn towards instrumental surf music in the desert. “The Bobby Fuller Instrumental Album” compiled by Rockhouse Records (a label based in the Netherlands) adds further credence to this strange turn of events.

I realize that historically, El Paso has ties to Cali, specifically Los Angeles. But this is fucking nuts. If not for the British Invasion, who knows how far this “sand surfing” craze may have gone. One thing for certain, this odd mix of borderland bands produced instrumental surf music roughly the equal of what was streaming out of SoCal at the time. Bobby Fuller's “Thunder Reef” “Our Favorite Martian” “Wolfman” and “Stringer” The Pawns “South Bay” The Sherwoods “Tickler” The Impostors' Surfaris spoof “Wipe In” Four Dimensions “Sand Surfin” The Four Frogs “Mr. Big” The Chandelles “El Gato” The dichotomy of “surf in the desert” was resurrected in 1978, when for some strange reason “Big Wednesday” John Milius' coming of age surf movie filmed several scenes in El Paso. 

 

The Chains “El Paso's Beatles” weren't from El Paso, they weren't even from the Southwest. The band got its start in Las Cruces when Roy Pinney, Brian Kelly and Andy Woll, all formerly of The Dolphins, a surf band from Larchmont, N.Y. enrolled at NMSU. They added Ted Woods on drums and lead guitarist Ron Hillburn (a fullback on the NMSU football team) and called themselves Rasputin and the Chains. After a year at NMSU, Andy Woll left the group and the rest of the guys transferred thirty miles down the road to UTEP. The group's name was shortened to The Chains and they recorded their first single, a cover of The Young Rascals “Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore b/w Cee C. Roc” The b-side was actually titled “Crotch Cannibal Rock” an instrumental ode to an enthusiastic groupie.

“Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore” was an instant regional hit, topping the charts at El Paso's KINT “And NUM-BER ONE (echo) for the fifth week in a row-ow-ow-ow, THE CHAINS-AINS-AINS! Ohhhh, baby! I Ain’t ‘a Gonna’ Eat Out My HEARRRT Anymore-ore-ore-ore!” With Bobby Fuller gone from this earth, The Chains rapidly filled the void in the El Paso musical landscape. They signed with Pinpoint Records and received a radio push from KINT radio personality Sonny Melendrez who wrote: “The Chains were the Beatles of El Paso, I remember seeing them for the first time at Cathedral Hs. There was electricity in the air... the kids went wild for these guys” Not to be outdone, KELP El Paso's top forty front runner ran a “Win a Date with The Chains” contest.

1967 was a busy year for The Chains, as they toured relentlessly across the Southwest, opening for the Standells in Las Cruces and The Electric Prunes in Albuquerque. Yet, a breakout hit eluded them. Roy Pinney's brother Tor, had cut his teeth playing with several bands in upstate New York, the best known being Haymarket Square. When the drug scene in New York got too heavy, Tor bailed out, joining his brother in El Paso as The Chains second guitarist. Within a month or two, Roy quit The Chains, with Tor filling his spot. The Chains then embarked on a 1968, “40 shows in 40 towns” tour of the western states that included stops in Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Tor recalls that: “The audiences were appreciative and the groupies were downright heartwarming”

Back in El Paso, The Chains were offered a recording contract from a label in Dallas. Ultimately the deal fell through and they found themselves stranded and starving in a Dallas motel before landing a gig as the house band at a club called “Lou Anne's” Undeterred The Chains made their way to New York City in search of a record deal. Roy Pinney rejoined the band, personnel changes followed. They worked the club circuit in New York, cut some demos, but were unable to land the elusive major label contract that they sought. In 1969 The Chains called it quits. Later that year, following on the heels of the smash hit “Na Na Na Na Hey Hey Kiss 'Em Goodbye” Tor Pinney toured the U.S. as a member of Steam (this was strictly a touring band and not involved in the recording process)

Terry Manning played a bit part in El Paso's early rock history, yet his name still resonates in that border city. A nascent Terry & The Wild Ones (with Roy Moore & David Wood) can be heard at their raucous best, working through a set of diverse cover songs in 1963 on Norton Records' “El Paso Rock Vol. 7” Originally from Oklahoma, the Manning family only lived in El Paso for a few years before moving to Memphis, Tn. For Terry it was long enough to attend Austin Hs., put together an iconic local band and strike up a friendship with Bobby Fuller, after a performance by Fuller at a school dance. Terry is often referred to as having been mentored by Bobby and apparently his connection to Fuller helped open doors for him on the Memphis music scene.

Manning performed live with Bobby on several occasions “I ended up on several gigs sitting in and playing with him, or he'd let me sing a song here and there, it was usually "Oh Donna" or "Peggy Sue" Terry was also a frequent guest at 9509 Album Ave. the Fuller's home. He recalls the living room having been converted into a rudimentary recording space with a fully functioning concrete echo chamber added on just outside the house. This would have been around 1962-63, when Bobby started up Eastwood Records, which would later transition into Exeter Records. However, Terry admits that at the time he wasn't into the technical aspect of the recording process, so other than picking up a few pointers, it's not likely that the two worked together on any actual recordings.

In Memphis, a teenage Terry Manning convinced Al Bell to give him a job at Stax Records. Initially his duties consisted of sweeping floors and copying tapes. Eventually he became an assistant engineer and then an engineer and occasional producer. During this period Terry also played with Lawson and Four More, a Memphis band that featured Bobby Lawson as vocalist. Lawson and Four More recorded for Ardent Records (produced by Jim Dickinson) which led to a spot on The Dick Clark Caravan Tour of the Mid-South. It was on this tour (which included The Yardbirds) that Terry became friends with guitarist Jimmy Page. After Bobby Lawson was unceremoniously booted from the group, they changed their name to The Goatdancers and continued to record for Ardent under Jim Dickinson's direction.

At Stax Records, Manning was on the production team that produced The Staple Singers and Al Green. He also recorded a rather unexpected solo album, “Home Sweet Home” released in 1970 on Stax's Enterprise subsidiary. The brainchild of Stax Vice-President Al Bell, Terry's soulful, psychedelic, blues tinged rockabilly long player deserves serious consideration if only for the fact that it marked the first studio appearance for Big Star's Chris Bell. Manning also worked at Ardent Studios, first with The Box Tops and then with Alex Chilton. His continued friendship with Chris Bell led to his becoming a member of two of Bell's pre-Big Star bands, Rock City and Icewater. He engineered Big Star's “ #1 Record” (on which he played electric piano) and “Radio City” albums.

Manning's friendship with Jimmy Page also led to his working on “Led Zeppelin III” the crowning achievement of a career that would see him work with the likes of ZZ Top, Albert King, Leon Russell, Joe Walsh, Johnny Winter, Molly Hatchet, Ten Years After, Jason & The Scorchers, Joe Cocker, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, George Thorogood, Widespread Panic and Lenny Kravitz... just to name a few. In 1988 Manning opened his own studio in Memphis, Studio Six. Four years later Chris Blackwell of Island Records sought him out to revitalize Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas. where Terry worked for twenty years. Manning also started his own record label, Lucky Seven on which he released an album by Chris Bell's Rock City and his own tribute to Bobby Fuller “West Texas Skyline”

Bobby Fuller Died For Your Sins

Following Terry Manning's departure, Roy Moore, David Woods and a revolving cast (Frank Sotelo, Ty Grimes and Mike Ciccarelli) continued on as The Wild Ones. They recorded one single on Suemi Records “Something's Wrong b/w I Want to Be Friendly” in 1966. Produced by Bill Taylor and Kenny Smith, co-owners of Suemi Records and co-writers of both songs. Following the release of the Suemi single, The Wild Ones made the prerequisite move to Los Angeles. On the fateful day of July 18^th. 1966, Ty Grimes and Mike Ciccarelli, having just arrived in Los Angeles, stopped in at the apartment shared by Dalton Powell and Jim Reese of The Bobby Fuller Four. They asked if they could go see Bobby, who lived just a few blocks away. Powell and Reese agreed to take them to see Fuller.

The four arrived at Bobby's place, only to find his Oldsmobile gone. They went up the stairs and knocked on the door, nobody answered. After waiting a few minutes, they started back down the stairs when suddenly Lorraine Fuller, Bobby & Randy's mother, came running towards them. She had just discovered Bobby's lifeless body in his car, which had mysteriously turned up in an adjacent lot during the time that the four men had gone up the stairs. Ty Grimes would later state that he was almost certain he saw Bobby's car pull into the lot while they waited upstairs. Lorraine collected herself, called the police and then called Randy Fuller (he wasn't on speaking terms with Bobby and was staying at the home of a family friend from El Paso) Lorraine uttered “Bobby's Dead” and hung up the phone.

Bobby Fuller was almost certainly murdered. Theories abound, few stand up to further scrutiny. There's one theory that was brought to my attention by a man who claims he's the illegitimate son of Bobby Fuller. His version echoes a plot line from John Kaye's novel “The Dead Circus” Frank Sinatra, enraged over Bobby having slipped his daughter Nancy a hit of LSD (she had a bad trip) during the filming of “Ghost in the Invisible Bikini” (in which they co-starred) used his ample mob connections to have Fuller put on ice. Bobby was into acid and in fact it's rumored that he attended an LSD party the night he died. It's the most plausible of all the Bobby Fuller murder theories. It would take a heavy guy with dirty cops and mob hit men at his beck and call to pull this off. Was Sinatra that guy?

Jim Reese would later state that he and Dalton Powell fled Los Angeles after three mysterious armed thugs showed up looking for Bobby four days after he died. Apparently, the thugs hadn't read the newspapers. Reese and Powell, who were already scheduled to depart from Los Angeles, proceeded to do so, post haste. In Bobby's Oldsmobile no less... reeking of gasoline and death. Dalton Powell was desperate to return home to his wife in El Paso. He had rejoined the band on an interim basis following DeWayne Quirico's dismissal. Jim Reese had received his draft notice and was due to report for boot camp. Bobby, as he was wont to do, had dipped into El Paso's deep pool of talent for replacements. Ty Grimes and Mike Ciccarellli who were already in town being the obvious choices.

Bob Keane of Del Fi/Mustang Records was the type of guy that believed you could still race a dead horse run if you whipped it hard enough. After a brief period of mourning and with “I Fought the Law” still on the charts, Keane had DeWayne Quirico convince Randy Fuller to come back to Hollywood and put together another band. (Randy Fuller, DeWayne Quirico, Mike Ciccarelli & Howard Steele). A former member of Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics, Ciccarelli had been replaced by Billy Webb when he was unable to accompany the band to Los Angeles in 1963. A talented guitarist, he had just left The Wild Ones and would go on to join Swift Rain in 1969 (they released an album on Hi Records) Mike Ciccarelli also released a solo single on Hi Records “The Sun Rises/ Here” in 1971.

Bobby Fuller was a strict taskmaster, as evidenced by the long list of back up musicians he employed. Bobby loved to tinker with the lineup, trying out various drummers and guitarists. The only constant being his brother Randy. He damn near went through as many drummers as Spinal Tap. Accompanying Bobby and Randy on the fishing expedition to Los Angeles in 1963 were Billy Webb and Jimmy Wagnon (who had replaced Freddy Paz on drums) They played a few gigs and trolled for a major label, to no avail. The only bite they got was from Bob Keane, who always kept an open door policy and yet he initially turned them down. Keane advised them to go home and come back when they had a hit single for him. Advice that must have gnawed at Bobby's egocentric nature.

In late 1964, spurred on by the closing of the “Rendezvous” his showcase dance club in El Paso and his father's refusal to co-sign on a new club. Bobby left for Los Angeles. From that point on, Fuller had mixed feelings about his hometown. A big fish in a small pond, Fuller would soon find himself a guppie swimming among sharks. Accustomed to to their role as headliners, Bobby & The Fanatics (now rechristened The Bobby Fuller Four at Bob Keane's insistence) found themselves grinding out cover songs at The Ambassador Hotel, L.A. Rendezvous and PJ's. “Let Her Dance” a local hit in Los Angeles (released in June of 1965, it tanked nationally, failing to make the Top 100) finally broke the band regionally as control over his destiny and music slowly slipped out of Bobby's reach.

Bob Keane rushed Randy into the studio and had him sing over the original track for “It's Love, Come What May” Instead of dubbing in Randy's voice, Keane simply turned up the volume, in effect drowning out Bobby's original vocals. It's suffice to say, Randy was a much better bass player than vocalist. The resulting cluster fuck was rushed out as a single, credited to Randy Fuller and it flopped miserably. The faux four recorded a second single for Mustang, “The Things You Do/Now She's Gone” credited to The Randy Fuller Four, it went unreleased. Keane also re-recorded “Thunder Reef/Wolfman” which had originally been released on Mustang and credited to The Shindigs aka The Bobby Fuller Four (a blatant ass kissing attempt to secure the position of house band on the tv show)

It's the same arrangement, right down to Bobby's awful Wolfman Jack impersonation. But, it's clearly Mike Ciccarelli on lead guitar instead of Bobby Fuller. Keane updated the sound in the same manner that so many groups did back then, giving it a hyper speed freak boost. It's a miracle Bob didn't rename it “Wolfman '66” Ever the scoundrel, Bob Keane licensed (without Randy's consent) “It's Love, Come What May” to Show Town Records for release in the UK (a fairly common Bob Keane dirty deed) “1,000 Miles in Space / Revelation” would prove to be the last recording made with Keane. Cornball psyche guitar doodling with vocals as thin as Arby's roast beef, it amounted to nothing. Randy for the life of him, could not sing. Not that it stopped him from trying.

The well ran dry, Randy Fuller and Quirico were left to fend for themselves. This albatross of a rhythm section spent the next two years grinding out cover songs at the infamous PJ's. Eventually Randy Fuller found himself playing in Dewey Martin's ersatz version of Buffalo Springfield called “The New Buffalo Springfield” which wasn't even that, seeing how the first version of “The New Buffalo Springfield” had already tanked. In effect it was “The New, New Buffalo Springfield” but it was still the same old crap. This version worked with producer Tom Dowd on an album that was scrapped. After which, Randy Fuller and the others mutinied, fired Dewey Martin and carried on as Blue Mountain Eagle. Not long after that, Fuller left to join Dewey Martin's new band Medicine Ball.

Ty Grimes also had connections with Bobby Fuller. His older brother Gaylord Grimes was Bobby's first drummer, dating back to the Yucca Records period. Ty lobbied for the job when Gaylord opted to enroll in college, but Fuller considered him too young for the job and went with Googie Dirmeyer instead. (Dirmeyer wasn't with the band long before he lost a finger in an industrial accident while working his day job at an elevator factory) While Ty never had a chance to play with Bobby Fuller, he did go on to become a member of Rick Nelson's Stone Canyon Band (appearing on the “Windfall” album) Capt. Beefheart's Magic Band (during the “Bluejeans & Moonbeams” Tragic Band period) and was drummer for jazz/rock fusion flutist, Tim Weisberg in the mid-1970s.

The Nerve of Your Hometown...

The most striking difference between homespun record labels from Albuquerque and El Paso is the production quality. Duke City labels such as Lance, Space, Lavelle, Red Feather, Delta and Q.Q. all met high professional standards. This was due mainly to the state of the art equipment and professional standards set by John Wagner Studios, the primary recording facility used by all the labels mentioned above. Hurricane Records with their own recording facility and Tiny Morie at the control board didn't lag far behind. John Wagner was a major label quality engineer and producer working at the local level. Lindy Laskey and Tommy Bee were also top notch producers with a keen ear for quality production. Few recordings came out of 'Burque during this period that weren't “radio ready”

El Paso studios held to a lower standard. Live takes were often pressed directly to vinyl, equipment was shoddy and production values lax. Danny Parra (Danny & the Counts) having suffered through Steve Crosno's slapdash recording methods at Frogdeath Records, remembers the poor quality of studio recordings in El Paso at the time. “The songs were recorded as live single takes in a dumpy downtown recording studio for the princely sum of $75” production work was nonexistent “The fee was for an hour of recording time with a very bored, spectacled, bald geezer, bored out of his gourd during our session” Parra continued “Did he kick up our audio or segregate the instruments and vocals for a sweeter mix?... Hell No! He might've been the janitor for all we knew”

The recording session Danny Parra describes produced the single “You Need Love b/w Ode to the Wind” released on Coronado Records. This enigmatic label appears to have had two distinct production phases. The first is marked by the use of a maroon label and started with a split single, The Pawns “Lonely” and David Hayes “Meet Me Here (In New Orleans)” Early on Coronado Records was home to a handful of instrumental/vocal groups riding the sand surfing fad that swept through El Paso. (The Pawns, The Beach Nuts, The Celtics) David Hayes & The Pawns single “Lonely Weekends/What do the Voices Say” released in 1965 was produced by Calvin Bowls. Which is either a typo, Calvin Boles of Yucca Records going incognito or a totally different person altogether.

Signaling a change of direction for the label, the last two releases on the maroon label featured R&B artists with Gene Willis & the Aggregation and The El Paso Drifters. Coronado Records second phase “yellow label with conquistador heads” began with Coronado 141, “Ode to Loneliness /Heart of Blue” by The Motivaters (sic)  This period almost exclusively featured R&B/Soul acts such as The El Paso Drifters, Doug Adams, Donald Ray, The El Paso Chessmen. There's gaps-a-plenty in the Coronado Records discography and a thorough search of the internet failed to turn up any info as to who owned and operated the label. For what it's worth, Calvin Boles and Kenny Smith both associated with other labels, produced singles for Coronado. Not sure if their involvement went beyond that.

Kenny Smith and Bill “Sparks” Taylor were owner, operators of Suemi Records. Named after a popular 60s put down (So, if you don't like it... Sue Me!) Previously, they were both members of the Sherwoods. Often referred to as Bill Taylor and the Sherwoods, arguably to avoid being confused with The Sherwoods of Corpus Christi, a garage band with a much larger following. The El Paso Sherwoods released a handful of recordings, including “You Hold My Letters (Not Me) / Just As I Love Her” released in 1963 on Bobby Fuller's Eastwood label, reissued the following year on Bobby's Exeter label. Like so many of their clan, The Sherwoods got caught up in the surfing craze, recording “Tickler” “Black Out” and “Podunk” for Exeter in 1964.

Following the demise of The Sherwoods, Bill “Sparks” Taylor joined up with band mate Kenny Smith to form Suemi Records. Having been evicted from their original studio on Stanton Street, they set up shop at Tasmit Studios in the Upper Valley. Suemi started out with a diverse roster of local instrumental and vocals groups before evolving into one of those obscure American “soul” labels sought out by British Northern Soul aficionados. The highlights of the Suemi's early rock period include: The Scavengers - Bogus / Ghost Riders ’65, The Embers - I’m Goin’ Surfin’ /Why Am I So Blue, Dave Caflan - You Came To Me / You Must Me kidding, The Wild Ones - Something’s Wrong / I Want To Be Friendly. The majority of these tracks were licensed to Norton Records' and included on that label's awesome “El Paso Rocks” compilation series.

Suemi also went through a psyche rock period, that culminated with the release of “I Love You Gorgo” a cursory compilation featuring four tracks each from Truth, Lode Star and The Intruders. Not certain if Dalton Powell and Jim Reese had joined Rod Crosby in The Intruders at this point. After Bobby Fuller's death and their subsequent return to El Paso, they played with Murphy's Law. Lode Star (they had released a single on Suemi, “Glimpses / It’s Gonna Be Here”) included Andre Bonaguidi and Frankie Sotelo (ex-Wild Ones) The Intruders also included Paul West. All three musicians would later turn up (along with Mike Ciccarelli) in Swift Rain, an aborted psyche rock band that recorded an album “Coming Down" At Royal Studios in Memphis, Tn. released on Hi Records in 1969.

Suemi Records' last phase was dominated by Lou Pride, who's single “I’m Com’un Home In The Morn’un / I’m Not Thru Lov’un You” became a bonafied Northern Soul Monster. In fact Pride's entire catalog is revered by those wacky Brits, specifically his El Paso recordings with the Suemi imprint. Go figure? Lou Pride was a man possessed of “a smooth, uptown southern voice” Originally from Chicago, Pride was drafted into the Army. He met a gal, got married and upon being mustered from the ranks decided to call El Paso home. (he would eventually move to Albuquerque, where he recorded his debut album “Very Special” on the Black Gold label) Landing at Suemi Records almost by accident, Pride recorded seven singles for Suemi, all highly sought after by UK collectors.

Suemi also put out a single by The Groove Merchants “There’s Got To Be Someone For Me / We Are Only Fooling Ourselves” A group of Ft. Bliss soldiers, calling themselves the Funky Bunch, they were actually Lou Pride's back-up band. Kenny Smith was quite impressed with their horn section but not their name. Smith thought he overheard Lou Pride refer to himself as “The Groove Merchant” so he took the liberty to have “The Groove Merchants” printed on the label. All of which freed up Funky Bunch for Marky Mark's back up band to use in the late 1990s. Eventually Bill “Sparks” Taylor and Kenny Smith moved to Memphis and set up shop at Royal Studios, an eight track studio owned by Hi Records. Lou Pride soon joined Bill & Kenny in Memphis, recording a few more tracks in the process. 

 

As Steve Crosno would say, “My, My... will you look at the time” El Paso is a nice place, it's no Albuquerque mind you.... with that said, it's time to wrap this up. Bobby Fuller, as so many had before him, made the trip to Clovis N.M., and Norm Petty Studios. Recording two tracks “My Heart Jumped / Gently My Love” released as a single on Yucca Records. [05/1962] Bobby on vocals & guitar was accompanied by none other than Vi Petty (piano, backup vocals) The experience rubbed Fuller the wrong way and he set out to record his own music from that point on. To this end he set up his own studio in the Fuller's living room. Just a young man, two four-track Ampex recorders and a home made concrete echo chamber. From that humble studio sprang forth some truly iconic American rock & roll.

Naturally, a man with his own studio must have his own label. Bobby Fuller's first effort was Eastwood Records (named either for Eastwood Hs. or the Eastwood Heights neighborhood adjacent to Montclair where Fuller lived) Eastwood ran from 1962-63, releasing three singles “Nervous Breakdown” / “Not Fade Away” Bobby Fuller “Judy” / “I Can No Longer Pretend” The Chancellers “Just As I Love Her” / “You Hold My Letters (Not Me)” Bill Taylor & The Sherwoods (this single was also reissued as EXT 121 on Exeter, the only overlap between the the two labels) Eastwood essentially merged with Exeter Records which was active throughout most of 1964, ceasing operations shortly after Fuller relocated to Los Angeles. Exeter Records would issue seven singles and one album.

The album was an anomaly by Los Paisanos, a local trio comprised of “a businessman, a professor and a dentist drawn together by their mutual love for the traditional music of the Southwest and Mexico” The three, Don Dixon, Dan Richey & Clarence Cooper created a smashup of styles and genres, long before anyone even thought of such a thing. Traditional vaquero songs, modern folk classics, Irish Revolutionary ballads and Mexican folk standards. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. The album sold well and copies are still out there.... somewhere. Los Paisanos credited Mr. Bob Fuller of Exeter Records Co. 9509 Album Ave. El Paso, Tx. for having produced and directed the recording. “Los Paisanos are indebted to Mr. Fuller for his able direction and sound engineering.” Boy Howdy!

Three of the Exeter recordings featured Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics (“Fool Of Love” / “Shakedown” “She’s My Girl” / “I Fought The Law” “Wine, Wine, Wine” / “King Of The Beach”) including Fuller's original versions of “I Fought The Law” and “King of the Beach” (which was reworked in Los Angeles as “King of the Wheels” for the album “KRLA, King of the Wheels”) Other singles included, “Tickler / Black Out” The Sherwoods, “The Pawn / South Bay” The Pawns and “Meet Me Here / Lonely” David Hayes & The Pawns. “Meet Me Here / Lonely” was the final Exeter release, shortly thereafter Bobby informed The Pawns that he was leaving for Los Angeles and cleared them to reissue “Meet Me Here/ Lonely” on Coronado Records credited as “A Fuller Production” 

Text accompanied by music, Dirt City Chronicles

Don't Need You No More- The Outer Limits

And She'll Cry- The Celtics

You Need Love- Danny & the Counts

How Do You Feel?- The Chains

When Will I Find Her- Mike Renolds and the Infants of Soul

You Came to Me- Dave Caflan (Colin Flannigan of The Four Frogs)

Not Fade Away- Group Axis

Walking Away- The Outer Limits

Walkin' and Talkin'- The Keymen

Want to Be Your Loving Man- Dudley and the Do-Rites

I Love You For What You Are- Four Dimensions

Don't Leave Me- The Outer Limits

Someday- Apple Glass Cyndrom

Stop the World- The Chains

Silly Ants- Group Axis

Babe You Know- The Brentwoods

Shakedown- Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics

Begin Your Crying- The Outer Limits

Meet Me Here (In New Orleans) David Hayes & The Pawns

Think I'm Losing You- The Four Frogs

Ode to Loneliness- The Motivaters

Waves- The Outer Limits

Something's Wrong- The Wild Ones

Wine Wine Wine- Bobby Fuller & The Fanatics

Smokestack Lightning- Group Axis

Talk Talk- Terry Manning

Dirt City Chronicles podcast episode 30

 Sand Surfing

The arrival in 1957 of itinerant blues guitarist, Long John Hunter (who set up shop at the Lobby Club across the river in Juarez) helped to kick things off. Much like Al Hurricane in Albuquerque, Hunter was grounded in another genre, yet still played a part in helping rock & roll gain a toehold. His single “El Paso Rock” released on Calvin Boles' Yucca Records in 1961 helped spark El Paso's pre-Beatles infatuation with instrumental rock. Countless El Paso musicians made nightly treks across the border to the Lobby No. 2 Cafe and Night Club to watch Long John lay down some rattlesnake moan. A disciple of the East Texas blues guitar tradition, Hunter would often allow young musicians who could work up the nerve, to take the stage with him (including a very young and nervous Bobby Fuller)

Then in 1963 a funny thing happened... El Paso went bonkers for surf music. No easy way to explain this. The Gulf of Mexico is 700 plus miles away (though the closest beach to El Paso is actually Puerto Peñasco in Mexico...about 500 miles) Almost overnight, every band worth a lick in El Chuco, started playing like Dick Dale and The Deltones. A period well documented by Norton Records' compilation series “El Paso Rocks” Having tossed aside his aspirations towards emulating Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran. Bobby Fuller planted himself firmly at the forefront of this curious turn towards instrumental surf music in the desert. “The Bobby Fuller Instrumental Album” compiled by Rockhouse Records (a label based in the Netherlands) adds further credence to this strange turn of events.

I realize that historically, El Paso has ties to Cali, specifically Los Angeles. But this is fucking nuts. If not for the British Invasion, who knows how far this “sand surfing” craze may have gone. One thing for certain, this odd mix of borderland bands produced instrumental surf music roughly the equal of what was streaming out of SoCal at the time. Bobby Fuller's “Thunder Reef” “Our Favorite Martian” “Wolfman” and “Stringer” The Pawns “South Bay” The Sherwoods “Tickler” The Impostors' Surfaris spoof “Wipe In” Four Dimensions “Sand Surfin” The Four Frogs “Mr. Big” The Chandelles “El Gato” The dichotomy of “surf in the desert” was resurrected in 1978, when for some strange reason “Big Wednesday” John Milius' coming of age surf movie filmed several scenes in El Paso.

El Paso Rocks- Long John Hunter

Sand Surfin'- Four Dimensions

Stringer- Bobby Fuller

Bogus- Scavengers

Surf Beat 65- The Beach Nuts

Surfer's Paradise- Counts

Wolfman- Bobby Fuller

Mr. Big- Four Frogs

Dance to the Palisades- Frank Gonzales & the Palisades

Vaquero- The Fireballs

Canutillo Stomp- The Embers

King of the Beach- Bobby Fuller

The Last Ride- The Beach Nuts

Moonbeam- The Knights

Rik-A-Tik – The Fireballs

El Gato- The Chandelles

Sky Diver- Steve Cooper & The Avantis

I'm Going Surfin'- The Embers

Our Favorite Martian- Bobby Fuller

South Bay- The Pawns

Tickler- The Sherwoods

Sweet Surfin' Little Girl- Frank Gonzales & the Palisades

Wipe In- The Impostors

Thunder Reef- Bobby Fuller

Jetster- The Chandelles

Podunk- The Sherwoods

The Chase- Bobby Fuller

Torquay- The Fireballs

Lonely by the Sea- The Knights

Lonely Sea/Lolita- Bobby Fuller

Dirt City Chronicles podcast episode 29

An old fashioned “battle of the bands” takes center stage on this edition of Dirt City Chronicles, the podcast. The combatants in this instance represent New Mexico's polar opposites. North vs. South. It's an imaginary rivalry for the most part, made up by the state's broadcasters in order to drum up interest whenever the Aggies and Lobos face off in athletics. Other than that, it's doubtful that the average New Mexican gives the idea much thought. The very definition of what divides Northern and Southern New Mexico is not very well defined. New Mexico doesn't always lend itself to a clean North/South division. It's far more complicated than that. For instance, Clovis is further north than Socorro, yet Clovis is solidly in the southern camp and Socorro staunchly sides with the North.

When a community was first settled and by whom, plays a big part on what side these “border” communities identify with. Belen is firmly aligned with the north, though its located just a bit further north than Clovis. Vaughn, Duran and Yeso are south of Belen, yet are culturally Hispano communities that identify with the north. Fence Lake, Pie Town & Quemado are north of Socorro and they're culturally connected to the south. If I were to draw a boundary across the state separating the north and south, I would start at the Arizona border, north of Fence Lake, continue north of Alamo, jot down to include Magdalena in the south, skirt south of Socorro and San Antonio, swing north to include Corona in the south, northeast to Ft. Sumner continuing northeast to House and then east to the Texas border.

Now that we have a clear line of demarcation, allow me to muddy up the water once more by stating that in the spirit of fair play, I'm including El Paso, Tx. with Southern New Mexico. Reason being that Albuquerque has a huge advantage in both the number of bands that formed during the 1960s and in the number of recordings produced. Without El Paso, this battle of the bands would be akin to “Rice vs. Texas” as JFK once stated. The Northern half of the state is nonetheless poorly represented outside of Albuquerque. Nobody's Children from Gallup, The Morfomen & Era of Sound from Española and The Frantics (a band originally from Billings, Mt. that was briefly based in Santa Fe during the mid-sixties) being the only representatives from outside the Duke City that I could muster.

To avoid redundancy, no songs already posted on previous episodes of Dirt City Chronicles podcast were included. This favors the southern half of the state more than the northern. (the only band from Southern New Mexico previously posted being The Beckett Quintet from Portales by way of ENMU. While no Murderer's Row, it's still a strong line-up. A bunch of “fell through the cracks” tracks included here, though nothing that can't be found on YouTube. Most of these songs have found their way onto one 60s compilation or another (“From The Grass To The Outer Limits! The Goldust Records Story” “Chicago 60s punk vs. New Mexico 60s pop” “Norton Records, El Paso Rocks” “Sixties Archives Vol. 4 Florida & New Mexico Punk”) et cetera et cetera

On this episode, Lindy Blaskey lead off with Hank Ballard's “Annie Had a Baby” which he curiously renamed “Would You Believe” An inside joke perhaps? Ann Faught held the purse strings at Space Records, the label for which Lindy recorded and it's been insinuated that Lindy had a special business relationship with Ann. The two also hook up for “Meet Me Tonight in Your Dreams” for which Ann gets a co-writer credit, which in all likelihood was one of those “Norm Petty” arrangements to cop a few extra royalties. King Richard & The Knights weigh in with “That's the Way it Goes” a song garnished with sublime country rock flavor. In the 1960s, Española was well represented on the local scene, what with The Morfomen, The Defiants and of course, Era of Sound, led by the Naranjo Bros.

The Plague had a Dick Stewart/Knights connection. Their drummer was none other than Corky Anderson of the original Knights. Steve Erickson, Larry Shyrock and Billy Main rounded out the band, The Plague is best known for one song, “Go Away” a shameless Kinks ripoff released in 1966 on Epidemic Records. I didn't make any of that up, I swear. I know far less about Axis Brotherhood than I would like to know. Their sublime version of “Signed DC” by Arthur Lee & Love, is right on the money. Kartune Kapers were produced by Lindy Blaskey and recorded for Lavette Records. Their cover of The Seeds “On the Plane” is top notch and they give that old Eddie Floyd warhorse “Knock on Wood” a bubblegum pop makeover that brings The Ohio Express to mind.

The university experience has nurtured more than its fair share of musicians over the years. College deferment was a surefire way to avoid or at the very least, postpone the draft. As a result, Duke City garage bands revolved around musicians attending the U. of A. or UNM. Southern schools, NMSU and UTEP (Texas Western) also fostered their share of rock bands The Chains (originally The Dolphins from Larchmont, N.Y.) enrolled together at NMSU before transferring to UTEP. A surprising number of bands popped out of Portales N.M., home to ENMU. The Chandelles, The Apple Glass Cyndrom and The Beckett Quintet, who signed with Nick Venet's Gemcor Records and were in the process of recording an album for A&M with Herb Albert producing, when the draft dispersed them.

The Brentwoods, from Hobbs, N.M. recorded at Norman Petty Studios, self released a single “Yeah Yeah No No b/w Babe You Know” 1967 on Our Records. Both songs written by Alyse Paradiso. “Yeah Yeah No No” was included on the Big Beat compilation “Learning to Fly” a collection of psyche garage bands from the vaults of Norman Petty Studios. The Apple Glass Cyndrom from Clovis (Bill Aguirri-vocals, Dale Sills-drums, Jon Williams-lead guitar, Scott Rebtoy-bass, Johnny Mulhair-keys) also recorded for Norman Petty and released a single for Column Records in 1969, “Going Wrong/ Someday. The single also made it onto “Sixties Rebellion, Vol. 15 Psychedelia” A low budget compilation series. of unknown origin, that also includes Albuquerque's own Hooterville Trolley.

If you know country music, there's one member of the Apple Glass Cyndrom that immediately gets your attention. Having worked at Norman Petty Studios as head engineer, Johnny Mulhair started his own studio, Johnny Mulhair Recording Studio in Clovis, N.M. Mulhair produced and engineered LeAnn Rimes first album “Blue” which has since gone platinum an amazing eight times. Johnny was nominated by the CMA and ACM for his work on that landmark recording. An accomplished musician Johnny was nominated by Music Row magazine as one of the top ten guitarist in country music. He's toured with LeAnn Rimes, Chicago, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and Will Banister, who records for Mulhair's own Clovisite Records.

Group Axis also from Clovis, also recorded for Norman Petty. They (I have zero band info for these guys) started out as The Shi Guys and recorded “Mystic Magic Movements” at Norman Petty Studios, which may have been an album, but in all probability was a single... either way it went unreleased. In 1968 Group Axis covered Buddy Holly and Howlin' Wolf on their next single “Not Fade Away / Smokestack Lightning” picked up for national release by Atco Records. Yet another single “Silly Ants” (b-side unknown) was recorded in 1969 and would later be included on the “Learning to Fly” Big Beat compilation album. According to the Norman Petty discography, Group Axis also recorded an album in 1970 that was never released. 

Annie Had a Baby (Would You Believe) Lindy Blaskey & The Lavells Albuquerque

I Want to be Friendly- The Wild Ones    El Paso

Girl in the Mini Skirt- Era of Sound Albuquerque/Española

I'm Getting Tired- The Grass Las Cruces

On the Plane- Kartune Kapers Albuquerque

Ode to the Wind- Danny and The Counts El Paso

St. James Infirmary- Nobody's Children Gallup

My Love- The Things El Paso

Signed DC- Axis Brotherhood Albuquerque

It's A Shame- The Chains El Paso

Go Away- The Plague Albuquerque

Alone and Crying- The Outer Limits Las Cruces

That's the Way it Goes- King Richard and The Knights Albuquerque

Why I Cry- The Pitiful Panics El Paso

Meet Me Tonight in Your Dreams- Lindy Blaskey & The Lavells Albuquerque

What Am I To Do- The Keymen Las Cruces

Write Me a Letter- The Morfomen Española

Going Wrong- The Apple Glass Cyndrom Clovis

Relax Your Mind- The Frantics Santa Fe

Yeah Yeah No No- The Brentwoods Hobbs

Stay With Me- Era of Sound Albuquerque/Española

She's Still a Mystery- The Chains El Paso