For the past week, I’ve been away, running around the Black Rock Desert in Nevada, enjoying the phenomenon that is Burning Man. I’d never been there before, and it was something far more special than I ever imagined. I actually came to this event to work on a documentary with some friends of mine, and the whole experience transcended whatever my expectations were. Sometime soon, I plan to create a photo comic strip about being overwhelmed by too many beautiful images and too many beautiful people.
Coming home, I faced 400 + emails that needed to be dealt with. As luck would have it, the best news I received was hearing that The Sonics are reuniting to play at the CaveStomp in New York. For fans of this legendary Northwest band, this is nothing short of astounding. I don’t know if I can type enough words to convey the significance of this event. The Sonics were one of the great architects of the raw style of rock music that evolved into punk, metal, and grunge. It was powerful rock and roll music unlike anything else you ever heard in 1964. Was it considered dangerous music that the parents hated? Absolutely…
And their version of LOUIE LOUIE? Unquestionably iconic. Like versions by Richard Berry, Rockin Robin Roberts & Wailers, the Kingsmen, Paul Revere & the Raiders, the version of LOUIE LOUIE by the Sonics was truly in a class by itself, leading the way for others to follow, including Iggy Pop, Motorhead, and Black Flag, to name but a few.
… and they haven’t played live in concert for over 35 years!
For more information on this show, click on:
http://www.myspace.com/cavestomp
Last month, I picked up a tasty “NEW” album by the Sonics. “Busy Body!!! Live in Tacoma 1964” is a recently discovered live recording of two live shows with the Sonics, performing on radio station KTNT as part of a Friday night “Teen Time” series. The source of this particular recording was not from any legitimate radio air check, but merely from an aspiring musician with a tape recorder that simply wanted to wanted to capture the performance. As far as I can tell, the radio station didn’t bother to save this recording, so this is all we’ve got. It’s a shame that you can barely hear Gerry Rosalie‘s voice, but the fact there’s ANY recording from this era is certainly cause for celebration.
LOUIE LOUIE is not on this recording, but the Sonics do perform Richard Berry‘s sequel to that song , “Have Love Will Travel,” which sounds great.
I recommend making a B-line to your local independent record store to buy this recording released by our friends at Norton Records. If you can’t do that, and want the convenience of internet shopping, a Louie Report-sponsored-link to Amazon will provide a little extra love to this website.