The Flamin Groovies are a classic example of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Formed in 1965, the Groovies came of age in San Francisco during the heyday of the psychedelic Fillmore/ Avalon Ballroom scenes dominated by hippie bands like The Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. With their backwards-looking mix of blues, rockabilly and country combined with a British Invasion sensibility, needless to say, the Groovies did not fit in with the hippie crowd. The early incarnation of the band had more in common with Michigan-based bands like MC5 and The Stooges (the Groovies actually toured with both bands in the early 70’s) who, along with The Velvet Underground, were setting the template for American punk rock. In spite of their oddball status within the San Francisco scene, the band did manage to survive, albeit with a few lineup tweaks, through the 1970s and is viewed by many as being one of America’s most influential cult bands, particularly in the development of the aforementioned American punk rock movement and, later, American power pop music.
The Flamin’ Groovies were the brainchild of Cyril Jordan and Roy Loney. Exhibiting an early DIY ethos, the band funded their own 7-song EP in 1968 titled Sneakers, which resulted in their signing with Epic Records. A year later they released their debut album, Supersnazz, which did not sell well prompting Epic to drop them. Immediately after being dropped by Epic, the Groovies signed with Kama Sutra (home to two of the band’s biggest influences at the time, Lovin’ Spoonful & NRBQ) and soon released a pair of records, Flamingo (1970) and Teenage Head (1971). And it is with the latter record, Teenage Head, where we arrive at the focus of this week’s feature.
I'm a monster, got a revved up teenage head. Teenage monster, California born and bred.
“I was on acid with Kim Fowley at the Big Sur Folk Festival for about eight hours backstage,” Jordan explains. “We were thrown out of one backstage area after another because we were so over the top. Fowley is one of the funniest human beings you could ever meet. He’s doing stand-up constantly! I was in hysterics that night – as a matter of fact, I laughed so much that night that the next day my mouth was wide open. I couldn’t close it because I’d been laughing for eight hours on acid. And all Kim was doing was saying he wanted to get some teenage head!”
Recorded at Bell Sound Studio in NYC and produced by Richard Robinson, Teenage Head is the Flamin’ Groovies’ third full-length record. Dripping with swagger and sleaze, Teenage Head is a drug and booze-fueled eclectic mix of blues, rockabilly, and country. Released the same year as The Rolling Stones’ Sticky Fingers, legend has it that Mick Jagger recognized the similarities of the two records but believed the Groovies did a better job of merging rock ‘n’ roll and the blues in a modern context. I’m not willing to go that far as I believe Sticky Fingers might be the greatest rock record ever recorded, but Teenage Head is an excellent recording that has stood the test of time incredibly well. Much of the blues-inflected boogie on the album is supplied by the signature piano of Jim Dickinson and Jordan’s bottleneck guitar. Sticking (no pun intended) with the Rolling Stones comparisons, former Cramps drummer and Norton Records co-founder Miriam Linna once semi-famously opined that the Ray Loney-era Flamin’ Groovies (1968-71) offered a glimpse into what the Rolling Stones would’ve sounded like if they’d sworn their allegiance to the sound of Sun Records instead of Chess Records. I think that’s a great way to describe the initial lineup of the band. The Rolling Stones influence, particularly how they sounded on Beggars Banquet, is certainly there. However, the Groovies, primarily through Loney’s appreciation of legendary Sun artists like Elvis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis, put their own spin on that vibe.
“High Flyin’ Baby”
Loney, Jordan & crew come out swingin’ hard. Raw, gritty rocker with some fantastic slide guitar in the mix. Loney sets the tone with his cocksure, sneering vocal delivery.
“City Lights”
Sounds like the ghost of Brian Jones lending some “No Expectations”-inspired bottleneck guitar to this country-blues beauty.
“Have You Seen My Baby”
Cover of little-known (at the time) singer/songwriter, Randy Newman, has swagger out the wazoo. Covered again several years later by Ringo Starr, but not as well as The Groovies.
“Yesterday’s Numbers”
Great riff accented nicely with acoustic guitars. Plenty of singing with fake British accents. Screaming, too.
“Teenage Head”
Punk rock template - Angry, sneering vocals; Overflowing with bravado; Hard-charging; Fuzzed-out solos. "When ya' see me, better turn your tail and run, 'cause I'm angry and I'll mess you up for fun.
I'm a child of atom bombs and rotten air and Vietnams. I am you, you are me."
“32-20”
Another nod to the blues with a Robert Johnson cover. Fantastic acoustic slide guitar buoyed by outstanding county-boogie piano.
“Evil Hearted Ada”
Loney doing his best Elvis impersonation complete with Sun Records-influenced echo vocal effects.
“Doctor Boogie”
Back-to-back rockabilly tracks. Basically a ripoff of a Doctor Ross song called "Boogie Disease," with new lyrics and kind of a new structure.
“Whiskey Woman”
Epic closer. Bears a striking resemblance to Bob Dylan’s “Knocking on Heaven’s Door” which came out a couple of years after “Whiskey Woman.”
Shortly after Teenage Head was released, due to subpar album sales and creative differences with Jordan, Loney left the Flamin’ Groovies. The Groovies continued on with more of a Beatles/Byrds influence which helped pioneer the power pop movement. Their most notable post-Loney record is Shake Some Action (1976) which was recorded in England with Dave Edmunds producing. After several years of working different jobs in the record industry, Loney launched a mildly successful solo career that leaned more toward his rockabilly roots. His debut album, Out After Dark (1979), is well worth checking out. Teenage Head was reissued by Buddah Records in 1999 with six covers and an original instrumental, "Going Out Theme," included as bonus tracks. That same year the SF Gate named the Flamin' Groovies #4 on its Top 100 Bay Area Bands list.
Needless to say – crazy night.