If you watched the Five the past 15 years, you'd heard perhaps unknowingly, the Cramps. I've played their songs hundreds of times, over the years - often my favorite songs of theirs repeatedly, hoping to create new fans of the greatest rock and roll band ever.
the band ended with Lux Interior's death - and since then most of the integral players have either expired or moved on. Guitarist Poison Ivy has led a fairly reclusive life, likely not getting much from the Cramps legendary status.
Maybe until now. Thanks to Henry Rollins - a massive Cramps fan - he's resurrected the Cramps old label Vengeance records, and released a collection of old songs from a late 70' studio session, done back during the recording of classic album "songs the lord taught us." Produced by Alex Chilton and done on a shoe-string in Memphis - its controlled madness. the record "Gravest Gravy" came out last week, so I picked up both digital and vinyl - knowing that Ivy is gunna see some of that dough.
if you don't know what the cramps are - for me they captured the entire culture Id been obsessed with as a teen.
born in 1964, i devoured custom car culture mags like Hot Rod, and the gruesome cartoon monsters of people like Ed “Big Daddy” Roth - who gave us Rat Fink. I spent every Saturday glued to KBHK channel 44, waiting for matinee of sci-fi b-movies featuring giant insects, atomic mutants and creatures from black lagoons. I was obsessed with Mad Magazine, and to a lesser extent, the EC horror pulp comics . Then there was rock and roll, inseparable from cars and youthful criminality. I had an older sister who introduced me to the stuff, but i later found my own faves in punk and garage rock.
in short, my imaginary life was full of hot rods, ghouls and monsters.
Which is why when the Cramps came along - they fit perfectly. Their music was primitive rockabilly, with lyrics that combined hot-rod culture, sci-fi obsessions and teen delinquency into a swirl of lurid chaos. All in under 3 minutes. Its like a Big Daddy Roth t-shirt came to life.
I had the rare moment of spending and evening with Lux and his wife Ivy at their home in Glendale, California - roughly 23 years ago. They lived, naturally, near the cemetery. we drank a lot, and i recorded the evening for a features article for a magazine I edited called Stuff. Sadly I was fired the following week for sending dwarves to a publishing event. my desk was cleared and that was that. i've spent forever trying to locate the tape.
anyway, to the album. its awesome. songs are great. and included is a legendary moment when Lux snaps at some dude in the recording session. but its like i found an old record that had fallen behind my bedroom dresser back in 1978. maybe that first cramps album was a double album, and i had only heard a single disc. it captures a moment in time, in my life too.
i think about how i'm listening to the cramps now, at 61 - given i was 16 when i saw them at the Old Waldorf in San Fran (pretty sure the Toiling Midgets opened for them, and/or the B-team).
So this isn't really a review of a fantastic record. its a reminder that i've been on this planet for 6 decades, and the Cramps were there for five.