There’s a great song called “The History of Rock n Roll” by The Supersuckers.  The song reels off the names of various bands that The Supersuckers clearly believe are great, but the song laments that these great bands will never get any recognition.  In fact, they’re barely even “a footnote to an anecdote in the history of rock and roll.”  It’s a killer song.  And it got me thinking about some very special bands that will never be known, but certainly they warrant more than a footnote, or a footnote to an anecdote, in the history of rock and roll.  Here are four such bands, and the footnotes I would write. 

1 The Nerves – The Nerves formed in California in 1974.  They were led by guitarist Jack Lee with Paul Collins on drums and Peter Case on bass.  Jack Lee wrote the song “Hanging on the Telephone” which The Nerves recorded and released independently on an EP.  The song was later recorded by Blondie and is well-known for that reason.  While Jack Lee faded into obscurity, Paul Collins became the frontman for The Beat, and Peter Case fronted The Plimsouls.  It is notable that this unknown band from the mid-1970’s spawned one great song, and two of the best power pop bands on the planet.  And yet, they’re just a footnote….. 

side note:  I just read a book by Paul Collins.  Even The Beat are largely ignored, and Paul himself was at one point playing acoustic guitar at a seafood restaurant just to get by.  There is so much great music out there that is criminally overlooked.

  “Hanging on the Telephone” – The Nerves

 2 The Razz – The Razz was a band formed in Washington, D.C. that played some of the earliest punk-rock in D.C. in the late 1970’s.  Punk rock is not the best description, as you could go as far as calling it power pop - but the point is - they were absolute pioneers.  The Razz had some noteworthy members, much like The Nerves that began our blog.  Most notably, one of the guitar players was Tommy Keene, an all-time favorite of mine.  Ted Nicely played in the band and went on to be an excellent producer who worked with many cutting edge bands.  One tidbit of note—The Sex Pistols were scheduled to play a roller rink in Alexandria, VA but Sid had a problem getting to America initially, so that show was cancelled. (I have a friend who still has a ticket.)  Anyway, The Razz was slated to open that show, or at least that’s what I’m told.  Another D.C. band from this era that is terribly underrated is The Slickee Boys.

 “You Can Run (but you can’t hide)” -The Razz

 3 The Factory – The Factory was yet another D.C. band.  They came oh-so-close to being more than just a footnote.  Vance Bockis was an incredibly talented musician who first played in a band called Pentagram that actually opened a show for Judas Priest when Vance was just 16 years old.  From Pentagram, Vance went on to play in The Obsessed, who were fantastic and opened for the Dead Boys, Bad Brains and others with Vance as its charismatic frontman.  Vance left that band when they began to morph into a doom-metal outfit, abandoning the punk/metal sound that they had with Vance.  Vance played in the art-punk band 9353 as the bassist, but his best efforts by far were in the band he led, called The Factory.  The Factory was an incredible band, full of swagger.  They had a great saxophone player, great guitarists, and the vocals of Vance Bockis were pure gold.  They were often compared to The New York Dolls.  The Factory garnered a ton of major label interest and were poised to sign with CBS Records, but it all fell apart due to heroin addiction and the trappings of big-time rock n roll.  They should have been huge, but they are indeed only a footnote.  The Factory made a comeback in 2010 with a clean and sober Vance and they still sounded fantastic.  Sadly, that too was cut short when Vance passed away from complications related to a surgery in 2012.  R.I.P. Vance.

  “Girl I Want” – The Factory

4 The Deal - The Deal was a stellar power-pop band from Charlottesville, VA, partly by way of Memphis.  The band seemed cursed at times and while every bit as talented as bands that “made it,” The Deal just seemed to get one bad break after another.  The story is long, but I will hit some highlights as found on www.deal-band.com.  Haines Fullerton was spending time at Ardent Studios in Memphis when he became acquainted with Alex Chilton (there could be no better power-pop influence, could there?).  He ended up in Charlottesville as a University of Virginia student where he connected with local musicians Mark Roebuck and Eric Schwartz around 1979.  They then added a couple of more members to become a five-piece. 

By 1981, The Deal had made some excellent demos which were being well-received.  Around this time, I began attending UVA and was fortunate to see The Deal play many times at local clubs and even at fraternity houses on occasion.  In 1982, the band signed a management contract with Linda Stein, who later brought her ex-husband Seymour (Sire Records) to see the band play at a tiny bar called The Mousetrap.  Stein suggested that the band record for Bearsville Records (an affiliate of Warner Brothers).  The Deal and Bearsville signed a five-record contract, but Warner Brothers subsequently severed its relationship with Bearsville and nothing recorded ever got released.  Dejected, some of the band members then quit.  Jody Stephens, formerly of Big Star, joined as the new drummer but then changed his mind and went to business school. 

In 1984, the band began recording again.  One of my personal favorite songs, called “5:45” features a guitar solo by Todd Rundgren.  The band had great material recorded, but no deal for distribution and broke up briefly in 1986.  However, they were convinced to go to Ardent Studios and record additional material, some of which featured Alex Chilton on background vocals.  Still unable to get a major label to bite, The Deal self-released their only full-length record, Brave New World.  The record is excellent, and Musician Magazine named The Deal one of the twenty best unsigned bands in the world.  The Deal broke up for good in 1988.  Mark Roebuck invited the young Dave Matthews Band, who he had been writing songs with, to play at the Eastern Standard bar where he was a bartender on Tuesday nights.  Haines Fullerton also co-wrote at least one Dave Mathews song.  Mark Roebuck has continued to play music.  Haines Fullerton sadly took his own life in 1996.  In 2001, Not Lame Records released an anthology of The Deal’s work.

The Deal should have been the first big band to come from Charlottesville, followed by the Dave Matthews Band. (Personally, I much prefer The Deal).  (editor’s note; Jesus, doesn’t just about EVERYONE?!?) Instead, they’re just a footnote to an anecdote in the history of rock n roll.

  “5:45” – The Deal

BONUS VIDEO

  “History of Rock n Roll” – The Supersuckers