This little 7” record was a big hit amongst a small group of my friends when it came out back in the early ‘80’s. The performances are completely unhinged and the production values are low, but it is perfect – a wild, garage quality ride from beginning to end. Hearing the opening feedback often caused us to spontaneously push and shove…err…dance!
It claimed to have been originally released in the 60’s (on the Hava Banana label, no less) and hinted that The Cramps had “borrowed” a lot of their act from the Bananamen. It was obviously intended as a joke and homage, and we loved it. The record included three fairly well known garage rock songs: “The Crusher“, “Love Me” and “Surfin’ Bird.”
(Larger photos can be found on my Facebook page.)
It took me years to discover who was behind the record (and let me just say “thank you again, internet!”); the band was called The Sting-Rays. They were apparently a rockabilly influenced punk group from Bristol, England. Adding to the confusion, there are several bands using the same name. I’ve looked up their music and am never sure I have the correct Sting-Rays… I’m not even positive the hyphen belongs in their name!
What I do know is these three tracks can now be found on their “From the Kitchen Sink” compilation. My heading for this entry references how the whole record kicks off. The lead singer, in kind of a nerdy sounding voice, says “OK Bananamen, let’s go,” and the mayhem ensues. For some reason this line is missing from the download I purchased (grrrr…). But you can hear it at the beginning of this YouTube clip.