Flamin’ Groovies

Reissues

MVD Snapshots from the Groovies’ late-70s lost years.

Flamin’ Groovies might never get the recognition they deserve in rock’n’roll’s thorny pantheon, but these two welcome reissues might inch up their legend a notch or two.

The SF band’s first incarnation formed in ‘65, but they only fully arrived with the release of their remarkable third album, Teenage Head, a Stones-y rock’n’roll riot released in 1971, anchored by the pure menace of the title track, one of the more seminal slices of early-70s proto-punk. As the 70s wore on, the band took on a more power-pop direction. They are probably still best-known for the essentially perfect Shake Some Action album, but the two lesserknown (and under-promoted) follow-ups also contain some rich rewards.

Now (’78, 5/10) was produced by Dave Edmunds and is largely a covers album (Stones, Beatles, Cliff Richard), but there is a handful of originals and they are solid power-pop nuggets that lodge firmly in the brain, particularly the Monkees-esque jangler All I Wanted and melodramatic garage ballad Between The Lines. They followed it up a year later with Jumping In The Night which is tighter and tougher, but no less riddled with covers. It does contain their last late-career classic, though, the snotty 60s rave-up that is the title track. Neither album is essential, but both are pleasant, breezy joyrides that power-pop fans should eat right up. Sleazegrinder