Sunday, April 4, 2010

The Secrets

             

PSSST!

                      IT'S A SECRET

THE NEWEST BAND TO HIT THE STREETS OF TORONTO HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE THE BEGINNING.
COMPOSED OF THREE EX-VILETONES AND ONE EX-DIODE THE SECRETS ARE -- FREDDIE POMPEII (LEAD VOCAL), CHRIS HAIGHT (GUITAR), MIKE ANDERSON (DRUMS) AND BUDDY SEVEN NEE JOHN HAMILTON (BASS).

POMPEII, HAIGHT AND ANDERSON RELEASED TWO E.P.'S AS THE VILETONES WHICH SOLD WELL AND RECEIVED FAVOURABLE REVIEWS IN PUBLICATIONS AS DIVERSE AS ANDY WARHOL'S INTERVIEW AND MELODY MAKER.
HAMILTON WROTE AND ARRANGED ON TWO CBS ALBUMS FOR THE DIODES AS WELL AS PLAYING DRUMS, SAX, KEYBOARDS AND DOING BACKING VOCALS.

THE SECRETS PLAN A SERIES OF LOCAL DATES TO TIGHTEN UP AND KEEP BODY AND SOUL TOGETHER.  NEGOTIATIONS HAVE BEGUN WITH A LOCAL LABEL AND AN ALBUM IS DUE IN THE SPRING.  AN AMERICAN EAST COAST TOUR IS PLANNED
THIS FALL WITH A POSSIBLE ENGLISH OR WEST COAST VISIT ALSO IN THE
WORKS. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION
CONTACT MARGARITA PASSION
368-0325

(From the original Secrets press release.)


After about a year spilling blood and leaving broken beer bottles on the various stages of Toronto's punkiest clubs, the original Viletones imploded in 1978.

According to an uncited newspaper clipping from the time, it wasn't the prettiest sight when the backstage standoff took place at the city's Hotel Isabella: Haight, Pompeii and Anderson (along with "Screamin'" Sam Ferrara from The Ugly -- who, presumably, had been on stage with them that evening) on one side; Steven "Nazi Dog" Leckie on the other.  Evidently, they decided to fire Leckie from the Viletones.  Despite reported emotional protestations from the former Nazi Dog, the other members just stood in stone silence.  Reportedly, Leckie returned fifteen minutes later more defiant than ever:

"Fuck ya!  Fuck each and every one youse!  I AM The Viletones! You guys are nothin' but my backup band!  Fuck you!  You can't fire me -- I QUIT!!!"

(The preceding quote was reported in an (unnamed and seemingly biased) entertainment publication, which was  reproduced in the liner notes of the now-out of print Secrets retrospective, Teenage Rampage.  I'm further reproducing it here from a scan.  I don't know Steven Leckie, so I cannot attest to the veracity of said quote.)




Subsequently Chris Haight, "Motor X" Mike Anderson and Philadelphia-born Freddie Pompeii join up with John "Buddy Seven" Hamilton, formerly of The Diodes, to form The Secrets.  In the process, they shed their stiff Punk ethos to adopt a more Rockabilly and Doo-Wop sound.



In 1979 The Secrets play the infamous Last Pogo festival, to formally close the Punk Rock chapter of Toronto's musical history.



In 1980 the band release their 12" EP Success Without College and leave behind a smattering of rehearsal tapes and demos that wouldn't see the light of day until 1997. 

In 1980 Pompeii is busted for drug possession and flees the country...

The band splits. 

The Secrets' approach to music came at a time when many bands were tiring of the whole "Punk Rock thing", at least in Toronto; much like the titular club in that city, the movement had Crashed and Burned.  Subsequently, many bands were returning to a (then) retro sound of the late 50s/early 60s. 






Success Without College (1980):

1SecretsSuzie Peroxide2:16






2SecretsTeenage Rampage1:51






3SecretsPretty Woman2:49






4SecretsAll The Girls2:26






5SecretsZoom2:20






6SecretsTattoo City4:20






7SecretsRock Music1:51






8SecretsCough Syrup1:47






9SecretsNew Blood2:02






10SecretsTake Another Look3:14










Teenage Rampage (1997):

1SecretsLittle Sister2:33





2SecretsMarie2:42





3SecretsShout3:03





4SecretsI'll Cry Tomorrow3:10





5SecretsAll The Words2:51





6SecretsGuitar Boogie2:14





7SecretsDiddy Wah Diddy (Live At The Last Pogo '78)2:48






Friday, April 2, 2010

(VA) Punk: F.U.B.A.R.!


RELAX, DUDES!!!

It was an April Fools' Day Joke. 

Okay, onwards and upwards...


The third in the series of 3 discs that I made a few years ago.  This one gets back on track and dispenses of the filler material I used on Snafu'd Again.

Anyway, I hope you like it.

(VA) Punk: F.U.B.A.R.!

1The CrampsHuman Fly2:15






2Talking HeadsPsycho Killer4:21






3BlondieRip Her To Shreds3:20






4Adam & The AntsDeutscher Girls2:26






5The GermsLexicon Devil2:05






6DevoJocko Homo (original single version)3:18






7Elvis CostelloPump it Up3:15






8Nick LoweHeart Of The City2:01






9The DictatorsTwo Tub Man3:33






10The MisfitsCough Cool2:14






11Pere UbuFinal Solution5:00






12Black FlagNervous Breakdown2:04






13Rich KidsGhosts Of Princes In Towers3:34






14XDevil Doll3:11






15The DishesGhidra4:32






16The CureKilling An Arab2:23






17Subway SectAmbition3:06






18The FallBingo Master2:24






19The RunawaysCherry Bomb2:19






20Wire12XU1:56






21SqueezeTake Me I'm Yours2:48






22MagazineShot By Both Sides4:01






23The Boomtown RatsRat Trap4:52






24The Soft BoysI Wanna Destroy You2:53






25Tuff DartsShe's Dead2:32






26Martha & The MuffinsEcho Beach3:30






Thursday, April 1, 2010

So Long...And Thanks For The Visits.


After I don't know how long, The Model Citizen is waving goodbye. I've been getting a number of complaints from people and threatened with "legal action" regarding my site.  I really don't have the wherewithal to fight it, so I'm gonna shut her down. 

Effective midnight tomorrow (Friday) MCZD will be no more. 

Thanks for all your kind messages and all your support. 

Cheers!