Saturday, May 28, 2011

The Untouchables vs. Repo Man


A two-fer, as I was looking to post something by The Untouchables and up pops a little video of them in Alex Cox's Repo Man. Cult classic LA cinema with the boys playing Vespa riding thugs; Rudy gangsters! They were a sick band with loads of energy and style. Check 'em out getting down with 'Free Yourself' originally released on their 1984 Live and Let Dance EP. Repo Man came out the same year.

Poster by Zach Hobbs (Check his gig posters!)









Album cover from: Album Cover Art Gallery

Friday, May 27, 2011

THREE O' CLOCK: JET FIGHTER


How no one has posted this on youtube is beyond me. Maybe it gets pulled or something. I've played this record over and over for years. And their first EP, Baroque Hoedown. Footage of them on MV3 floating around. Rodney on the Roq jam for sure.

The Three O' Clock: Jet Fighter by Clark Quente

THE TARGETS - UNITY BEAT


Pamona College students circa 1981. Was the number one seller at Rhino Records in Claremont. I remember my friend's older brother had this record, along with The Purple Hearts. Senses Working Overtime by XTC. The Jam, going to Moby Disc to buy the first Style Council EP. The Question, Merton Parkas, The Untouchables, The Specials... Going to The Key Club, Timbers, Green Door, Fenders. Seeing Dance Craze at The Rialto. The whole mod vs ska thing opened my eyes and ears musically because to me there was no difference what-so-ever as it was all great music.

The Targets: Unity Beat by Clark Quente

MOD WORLD (THE QUESTION-DADDY ROLLING STONE)

Picked this EP up way back when at Fender's Grand Ballroom after a scooter rally. I can't remember who else played that day, but I remember the Question killing the Yardbirds "For Your Love". The Question were one of the best bands out of the LA Mod revival scene in the early 80s. Like a lot of the LA bands from that scene, they sort of slipped through the cracks and never really got their due. This was the last track on the EP. Great cover version.



The question daddy rolling stone by Clark Quente

Yrz truly back in the diz (Big ups to Dave Maxwell)

Listen to some more mod chunes from the LA scene. From http://www.mistersuave.com/

CAL JAM


300,000 fans at the old Ontario Speedway. April 6, 1974







Thursday, May 26, 2011

KMET Rocks LA with Bob and George



I used to listen to Dr Demento on KMET when I was a kid. I would record it on cassette and listen to it while I delivered newspapers. I met him at the Pamona Fairgrounds. I got a custom t-shirt with "I'm Demented" printed in iron on letters. It was bitchin'.


The KMET logo was designed by Neon Park, who designed Zappa's Weasels Ripped My Flesh album.


Need more wax - Reggae Promo record. Bob Marley + Toots!


The Hawt DJs... Heavy feathering action here.

This was just on e bay. Kicking myself for not buying it even though I already own it. Just for the sticker. If you will suck my soul I will lick your funky emotion.



70s magazine ad



fish and 'stache


http://www.socalradiohistory.com
http://posterscene.com

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Wheels

Roller Derby Chick Van. Tres Swank

Hott Javelin!

Super Bird, biatch!

Sniffin' Glue too

My dream sled.


Marlin is Now
MARLIN AUTO CLUB
The King of Ontario

Dollar A Shoe. Man, I need Vans.


When I was real young my dad used to take my brother and I to hit the sidewalk sale. Big ol' pile a Vans out on the sidewalk. All lost soldiers in need of a match. At that point you had two colors; white or black. Maybe Navy. So we'd tear into the piles looking for our size. It was a buck-a-shoe...
Later on we had the two color lace-ups, slip-ons, and high-tops. Custom kicks and all that. We collected the 'Off the Wall' stickers and covered an entire door with them. They are OG skate shoes. Good in earthquake weather.

Company History - From Wikipedia

On March 16, 1966, at 704 E. Broadway, in Anaheim, California, Paul Van Doren and three partners opened up their first store. The Van Doren Rubber Company was unique in that it manufactured shoes and sold them directly to the public. On that first morning, 12 customers purchased Vans deck shoes, which are now known as Authentic. The shoes made that day were ready for pick-up in the afternoon.

The company continued to grow into the 1970s. During this period they also produced wool lined canvas and rubber mukluks under contract to the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Air Force. Skateboarders who liked Vans rugged make-up and sticky sole were seen sporting Vans all over Southern California in the early 1970s. In 1975, the Vans #95, known today as the Era was designed by Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta. With a padded collar and different color combinations the Era became the shoe of choice for a generation of skateboarders. In 1979, Vans introduced the #44 shoe, and with the help of skateboarders and BMX riders the Vans Slip-On became all the rage in Southern California.


Alva Rockes 'em!

Sweet Tim Kerr painting (More on him later..)

By the end of the 1970s, Vans had 70 stores in California and sold through dealers both nationally and internationally.

As the 1980s rolled around, Paul Van Doren began to take a lesser role in the companies’ activities. Over this period, Vans started to create shoes for a number of sports from skateboarding, wakeboarding, motor cross, to surfing in an effort to compete with large athletic shoe companies. Vans Slip-Ons gained international attention and appeal when they were worn by Sean Penn in the 1982, iconic youth film Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Although Vans core shoes were selling well, the wide range of products that the company now offered had drained the companies’ resources, and with Vans not able to overcome its debt they were forced to file for bankruptcy in 1983.



After three years, Vans had paid back all creditors and emerged from bankruptcy. In 1988 Vans original owners sold out to an investment banking firm. The company has been sold several times since; most recently for $396 million in 2004 to Greensboro, N.C.-based VF Corp. Steve Van Doren, the son of co-founder Paul Van Doren, is still with the company, as is his sister Cheryl and his daughter Kristy. Vans closed their Orange, California factory and began manufacturing footwear overseas in 1994. In 1994, Vans sponsored the Inaugural Triple Crown series which developed into the Vans Triple Crown series. In 1998, Vans opened a 46,000-square-foot (4,300 m2), indoor-outdoor Vans Skate park at the Block in Orange County and in 2002 an enclosed skatepark was opened in the Festival Bay Mall on International Drive in Orlando, Florida. In 2000 and 2001, Forbes recognized Vans as one of "America’s Best Small Companies." In 2004, Vans launched the Vans Customs on their website. This allowed customers to log onto the Vans website and design their own pair of Vans Slip-ons, mid-cuts, or high-tops. Nowadays, it allows for the design of custom Era, Slip-On,Old Skool, and 106 Vulcanized shoes.

Old school ad


"Isn't it OUR time?"