Not really Hawaiian

Yeah, so another 12" ep kind of day.

Hawaiian Pups (1983)

I've seen this around for years. I've kind of avoided it. I remember that when I worked at a sandwich shop in Kenmore Square back in the early  80's and we got to make our own mix tapes to play while we worked, Greg put "Baby Judy" on one of his and it got played a bunch. 

And ever since the "Up up, Baby Judy" part from it has been one of those terrible things that bounces around my brain on occasion much to my own horror. Relentless and ever present. So I kind of ran from this thing. Eventually enough time passed and I found a cheap enough copy and the courage to try and exorcise this demon from my skull by some other method than trepannation. All the songs are the first side and then they get turned again into some kind of unholy medley in the "Baby Judy Extended Mix" that comprises side two. You don't need to listen to that. 

But now I'm somewhat free and now I bestow the curse of "Baby Judy" upon your skull. Good fucking luck with that.

Compilation again.

Radio Tokyo Tapes (1983)

–The Last	It Had To Be You	2:50
–Jane Bond & The Undercovermen	The Spy Movie	3:30
–The Long Ryders	Still Get By	2:50
–Bangles	NO MAG Commercial	0:36
–Choir Invisible	Hands Of Another	3:47
–The Three O'Clock	All In Good Time	2:18
–Rain Parade	Saturday Asylum	3:24
–The Spoiler Project	Made Of Stone	2:35
–Minutemen	I Felt Like A Gringo	2:03
–Savage Republic	Mobilization	3:17
–Alisa And The Nomads	Living Underground	2:39
–Michael James	She Said Yes	2:57
–Wednesday Week	I Hate Lying To Mom	1:53
–100 Flowers	The Long Arm Of The Social Sciences	3:13
–Würm	Modern Man	2:24
–Action Now	I Want You	2:47
–Harvey Kubernik's Attention Getting Device	Noh Comment	1:44

Harvard Bing Bongs

I'm not sure where I got this really. I just have it and it's recent in the pile.

Busload of Nuns (1982)

It's a 12" ep. From a sole contemporary review I could find in an online archive of the Harvard Crimson this band was apparently from Boston and featured a couple of Harvard students among its members. Whatever. I'd never heard of them. There's a certain amount of novelty value in what they were doing. Maybe that's why they never registered. I mean, it's going to be hard to taken seriously with something like the "Chicken Song", but they are redeemed by a really odd and dark new wave deconstruction of  the Bee Gees "Stayin' Alive". Let that be your guide as to its worthiness of a listen.

Lost then Found

I found a single that I wasn't aware I'd misplaced.

the Boys (us) (1977)

For whatever reason this had gotten itself stuck in a weird pile of terrible Polish new wave crap that I'd gotten in a package deal with a couple of singles that I actually wanted from eBay. I'm not sure how that happened. It just did and there it was. So here's Nebraska.

It's some really sweet Power Pop shit that probably got them laid a lot back in the day in Lincoln, Nebraska. They deserved it. This is good shit.

Europeans (1978)

A year later to just as little interest to the world in general Europeans released their namesake single "Europeans" which is a nifty little toe tapper with some expensive sounding synthesizer styles and a song that they had such hopes for that they rerecorded it for their only other single on a different label. It apparently didn't do much to lift their profile. They broke up shortly after.

Balloons & Emotional Cripples

So I went on a vacation in January. I had a layover in Seattle. I have a friend there I haven't seen in many many years. I met him for a quick drink at the airport. I missed my connecting flight. Shit happens. So I got an unexpected day to spend in Seattle. When I woke up hungover the next day I did what I do best, I went record shopping until it was time to go to the airport. I found this

Balloons for the Dog (1980)

They were apparently from Silver Spring, MD. There's precious little to be found on the internet. No Youtube videos. It's some quirky shit with an electric violin and probably more than a little bit of Zappa influence, but more New Wave. The songs are "Tuna Tonite" & "Assassination Candidate"

I just appreciated that sometime in the last few decades somebody took the time to draw some boobs on the cover girl.

 

Delphobics - Transylvanian Serf Music (1980)

Looking back I posted the other Delphobics single on February 9. This is their other one. The A-side is "Emotional Cripple".  I can relate.