Cappy and the Frenchmen

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WITR, Backseat Sally, The Press Tones, Delroy Rebob, Cappy & The Frenchmen (l-r)

WITR, Backseat Sally, The Press Tones, Delroy Rebop, Cappy & The Frenchmen (l-r)

 

The rarer shorter red cable Delroy Rebop button.

The rarer shorter red cable Delroy Rebop button.

Buttons seemed to be a cheap and easy way to promote bands and causes back in the day, and here’s a few from the collection. The top left is from WITR and reads “Rock N Roll Party,” although I can’t remember if that was a show, or just a promo button from the station. To the right of that is a Backseat Sally button, though the colors seem to have faded over the years. In the center is a Press Tones button, a personal favorite, as I always like the deco style text. I would have worn it to the reunion, but I just uncovered it the other day. Bottom left is a Delroy Rebop button, with an image of a microphone. Last time I saw Del was in NYC many moons ago. Finally there is a Cappy and the Frenchmen button, and though it didn’t scan too well, it reads “Th – Th – Th – There’s a Thing” across the top, a reference to a song of the same name, with “And It’s Called Rock’N Roll” across the bottom. Just to the right of the WITR logo on the button you can make out “89.7 fm”, and at the end of the word “Frenchmen” is a picture of the Eiffel Tower.

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From the J. Laben Archives. Enjoy:

What is with these weird hairstyles, this strange music? Are they serious? Are they poking fun? Or both?

Babe Gordon Of Rochester models one of her New Wave outfits

Babs Gordon Of Rochester models one of her New Wave outfits

The Ramones, a rock ‘n’ roll band of current popularity, have a song called “Teenage Lobotomy.” There are those who would suggest they sing from experience. Take, for example, the words to their song “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School”:

“I don’t care about history,
Rock, rock, rock ‘n’ roll high school,
Cuz that’s not where I wanna be,
Rock, rock, rock ‘«’ roll high school,
I just wanna have some kicks,
I just wanna get some chicks,
Rock, rock, rock, rock, rock ‘n’ roll hi-igh school.”

Appearance is another strike against any claims to great mental stature on the part of the band. Tight jeans, sneakers and leather jackets, a real greasy-mean look, tell you these are the kind of guys who need permission from their parole officers to go on high school field trips.

Kevin Patrick, Chris Yockel and Roy Stein of New Math

Kevin Patrick, Chris Yockel and Roy Stein of New Math

But believe the image and you’re the fool. They’ve suckered you with rock ‘n’ roll’s favorite gimmick, theatrics, to sell you rockers’ favorite message, irrever¬ence. The Ramones’ lyrics and looks are mostly suitable trappings for their brand of music — high-speed, high-energy and high-volume rock ‘n’ roll.
Boy, they’ve got their nerve. But boy, they have their fun.

The Ramones pale in comparison with some of the other music going on these days within what is called the “New Wave.”

There is Fad Gadget, the band that uses a Black & Decker speed drill as an instrument. There is CRASH COURSE In Science, whose members make music with kitchen appliances and, in one song, become robots reading a cake mix: “Extract contents for cakes in the home.”

(more vintage theorizing after the jump!)

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Caught up with scenester Jim Buhlman (a.k.a. Del Rivers) last week; he shared with me a smattering of his treasure trove. Here’s a Dave Stearns article from January 16, 1980. While it centers on Penny Arcade’s “New Wave Mondays” it highlights New Math, Cappy and the Frenchmen, Bowery Boys and King Juke. Paul, I didn’t know you were in a band that wrote songs about French Poodles!

The Music Wave of the Future

You hear the music of the New Wave. Some people feel it, too. They talk about it, in its own language. To them, New Wave is no longer just a fad; it makes the earth move. Short hair and functional clothing are taking the place of the sprayed coifs and disco suits of the ‘70s and the long hair of the ‘60s. New Wave is streamlined for people with little money and lots of energy. Is this a music, a lifestyle for the ‘80s?
By DAVE STEARNS

Click here to read the article.

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