In Dan's Garage...#30

Whoa. What a weekend. Thanks to some planning ahead, I was able to get this one out there today despite the fact I had a super crazy schedule this weekend. D.F.T.B. did a show last night at one of the local taverns, and we all got pretty inebriated. Afterward we did one of those things that we rarely ever do anymore. Go out to eat!!! There's a place down the street from the club that my wife and I like to go to quite often called Gitsi's, but at 2:30 AM, it's not exactly the safest place to be. Lot's of crazies frequent that joint after the bars close on Monroe Ave. here in Rochester. There are more bars per block on that street that anywhere else in the city, except for Alexander St. which is full of bars frequented by 20 somethings trying to get laid. So we decided to head to the "west side" (which is where I live by the way) to place called "Steve T's", an extremely popular place to eat. There's a story about Steve T's  but first let me begin by saying that Rochester has it's own "cuisine" much like Chicago has it's deep dish pizzas and New Yorkers have those nice steamed Sabrett and Nathans hot dogs on the street, Buffalo's got chicken wings, and the west coast has fish tacos, etc. Well here in Rochester we have these things called "white hots". They're basically knockwurst in a natural casing, and they are so delicious, and they absolutely have their "own thing going" so to speak, and white hots sit very well on top of what we in Rochester affectionately call a "Garbage Plate". The "plate" was invented at a local restaurant called "Nick Tahou's". The original Nicks is located in a pretty nasty part of the city, and on any given evening you would be confronted by various lowlifes, hookers, bums, crooks, muggers, you name it. This obviously did not deter local bar patrons as it was probably the busiest eatery in the city after 2:00 AM (they now close at 8:30 every evening). They then decided to open another location in Gates, a Rochester suburb. This was a great move because drunken suburbanites who were afraid to frequent the downtown location, could now ruin their digestive systems at the convenient Lyell Ave. location.  

 Back to the garbage plate... I'm not sure when it was invented, but it's one of the most popular "dishes" in Roch. Every hot dog joint has their version, and there are LOTS of hot dog joints in Rochester. It's a plate with a generous helping of macaroni salad and home fried potatoes. Then they take two grilled hots (white,traditional red,or cheeseburgers if you like) lay it on top of the mac salad and "patats", wipe 'em down with mustard, pour onions on top of everything, and then slather it in "hot sauce", a meaty concoction that is similar to chili, but where chili is a southwest style thing, "hot sauce" has a Greek flavor to it. Real spicy and tasty. Oh, yeah, I guess the Tahou family had some disagreement and Steve, one of the nephews who operated the suburban location decided to split and and since he was the owner/operator, he  named it "Steve T's Hots & Potatoes". For anyone out there who may travel through our humble city, I highly recommend Steve T's over Nicks. Nothing against Nick (who had passed on years ago), but Steve's hot sauce is way better. Much tastier and spicier. So my wife, my band mates, and I headed over for some late night grub. I'm paying dearly for this escapade today, but I still have it in me to get this blog out. So here it is friends....In Dan's Garage #30!

Boss Men - It's A Shame /  Take A Look (My Friend) (1964)

Dick Wagner was an extremely popular musician, songwriter, and producer from Flint, MI. The Boss-Men was his first group and as you can hear it's very British Invasion influenced. He would later form Dick Wagner and The Frosts who were a more transitional band, and then shortened the name to The Frost, who were a great hard rock style band. Wagner would later go on to play on the classic Lou Reed "Rock And Roll Animal" LP, and then join Alice Cooper in 1974.

Fairlanes - I'm Not The Kind Of Guy (That Gives Up Easy) / The Dagwood (1963)

Here's a nice example of what "pre-invasion" groups kind of sounded like. I don't know much about these guys, but I'm guessing they're from somewhere down south.

Seburg Spotlite Band -  Chicken Back (1965)

Here's another 45 that the Seeburg company issued to fill up their jukeboxes. What do you do when you want to cut costs??? Rename the song Hand Jive "Chicken Back"!!! This group is most likely the same as The Curiosities featured in #25

Two Halves - Golden Sands / But You Don't Want Me (196?)

A mystery duo from "parts unknown". Lots of invasion influence here....

Unit Four plus Two - Tell Somebody You Know / You've Never Been In Love Like This Before (1965)

This one here's the follow up to their big hit "Concrete & Clay".

Grand Prees - Heartbreak Hotel / Four Strong Winds (196?)

There were a few "Grand Prees" floating around during the sixties, including a do-wop group from Philadelphia. These guys may be from Florida, but I can't say for sure.

Pattens - Jump / You Should Know (1966)

This Chicago area group put out two 45 this being their second. "Jump" is basically a cover of the Toggery Five's "I'm Gonna Jump" from 1965 (that version is featured in #28). It looks like they were trying to avoid giving credits, because they shortened the name of the song, and instead of crediting it to Frank Renshaw, they credited "Ren Shawel"!!!!! This was produced by Mike Considine, the same guy who worked with the early Ides Of March.

Mickey Finn - Night Comes Down / This Sporting Life (1965)

Here's an awesome freakbeat nugget from a UK group that never quite made it big. Their claim to fame was the fact that Jimmy Page played on "Night Comes Down", the real winner here. The actual A side, "This Sporting Life" was later covered by Ian Whitcomb, and The Children whose insane version can be heard on #21. It should also be noted that "Night Comes Down" was written, and most likely produced by genius Shel Talmy.

Richard Kent Style - Go Go Children / No Matter What You Do (1966)

This 45 is MOD all the way! I can imagine throngs of well dressed mods in London, or Manchester where these guys were from, grooving on the dance floor to this one!

Road Runners - Do The Temptation / It's So Hard (1967)

As long as were grooving on some blue eyed soul, let's check out an obscure group from Wisconsin.

Sensations Of London - Look At My Baby / What A Wonderful Feeling (1966)

Apparently the only 45 issued by this UK group. It could be a Carter-Lewis studio thing...

Surprise Package - Out Of My Mind (1966)

A Pacific Northwest bunch that evolved from The Viceroys. Here's a sterling example of why Terry Melcher was perhaps one of the greatest producers of rock/pop music in the 60's. Brilliant.

Katz Kradle - Bad Case Of You / Bring It On Home (19??)

 I'm not certain, but this one's rumored to be collector/aficionado Erik Lindgren in disguise. Whatever. If it is, he's a total genius because he nails the 60s punk thing right on the head. If not, then this is one of the finest garage punkers out there.

Red Shepard & The Flock - She's A Grabber (1966)

I'm not sure who Red Shepard was, but he left us with this nutty 45 which features big production by Bob Crewe, the guy who gave us Mitch Ryder, The Four Seasons and...

Richard & The Young Lions - Nasty (1966)

Most fondly remembered for their hit "Open Up Your Door", "Nasty" was their second, and the fantastic "You Can Make It" their last. All three 45s have big production courtesy of Bob Crewe and crew. This one's not quite as "nasty" a tune as you might think, but it's great nonetheless.

Superfine Dandelion - People In The Streets (1967)

Great pop/psyche from a group out of Phoenix, AZ


Stained Glass - We Got A Long Way To Go (1967)

From San Jose, CA, these guys were one of those great groups who had so much commercial potential but never quite made it. They left us with 6 other 45s and two albums before riding off into the sunset....

Enjoy.