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Obscure bands

Does anyone know a band called City Boy? (70's/80's)Very obscure and very original. It's beyond Me how such great talent goes so unnoticed! Also please chime in on other obscure talented musicians.

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bdp24's avatar
bdp24
4,908 posts
 

Straitjackets bassist Pete Curry was the leader/guitarist/songwriter in The Halibuts, and LS record in his home studio, a pretty nice one with a 2" 3M recorder, Manley tube mic pre-amp, and Neuman, Sennheiser, and AKG mics. Pete and I grew up together in San Jose, I learning to play on his drumset (his first instrument, which he now plays in a side-project band when not on the road with LS). We were in a great little instro-band together, The Hillbilly Soul Surfers, but Pete had left to play with LS when we backed Evan Johns in the studio for his Moontan album. Evan Johns, a not-so-obscure guitarist who played with Danny Gatton, The Leroi Brothers, Wayne Hancock, and hundreds of others. He had three albums on Rykodisc, about a dozen others on various labels. He’s in Austin now, though not on stage anymore. The drinking has taken it’s toll.

Historical footnote: On the day of The Chocolate Watchband’s debut gig (fall of ’65, iirc), drummer Gary Andrijesivich took sick, and Pete subbed for him. Here’s more: in the Spring of ’65, Gary was in a Frat Band (look it up ;-) named The Squyers, and I was in my first Teen Combo ("Faux Pas". Oy.). Gary left The Squyers to join the just-forming Watchband, and they stole the two older guys (in college. I was in 9th grade.) from Faux Pas before we had a chance to play out even once! Ironically, I took Gary’s place in The Squyers, and Pete moved to Santa Cruz (to avoid having to cut his hair to meet Cupertino High's dress code. Santa Cruz High didn't have one.), major surfing town (as immortalized in The Beach Boys "Surfin' U.S.A.") and perhaps the impetus for his deep interest in Surf (though we already loved The Ventures). This was all over fifty years ago!

rwwear
2,692 posts
 
Thanks Arcam. It's a rather eclectic mix. It's almost a curse loving so many types of music. Anekdoten is a Crimson type band where Unknown Hinson is a little country and comedic. Sanguine Hum is a lot like Haken. Andy Jackson is probably best known for his role as Pink Floyd engineer and co-producer. The music is similar.
rwwear
2,692 posts
 
Bdp, Wild Turkey is a good one as well Klaatu and Can added by others. And Box of Frogs as well.
There's a few on the list that are great but I wouldn't consider obscure though.
bradwbradley
12 posts
 
More entries for the list (quotes are from All Music); please forgive where not truly obscure but more like forgotten or under-recognized):

- Frozen Ghost ("every track is rock-solid and probably gone forever, further adding to the mystique of one of the all-time should-have-beens.").
- Died Pretty
- The Adventures ("Soothing harmonies, ringing guitars, and lush synths ... shimmering, hummable pop").
- The Silencers ("consistently melodic and occasionally breathtaking...unfailingly pleasant and sometimes inspired...the band's consistency went unrewarded and ... was largely ignored").
- Propaganda
- Concrete Blonde (yes, they did have hit MTV videos).
- Willi Jones ("Almost every song is a winner ... why wasn't there at least one more album?")
- Bill Lloyd ("essential addition to the collection of any fan of melodic, unflashy, guitar-based power pop").
- The Records ("undeniably made some of the best singles of the [70's] era...definitive proof of the band's generally overlooked brilliance. Anyone interested in power-pop should start here").
- Antena ("chanteuse-whisper vocals provide one of the clues to the group's uniqueness, as do the pencil-thin synth lines and genteel bossa nova drum machine patterns...the wonder of this rediscovery").
- Zero 7 ("chiseling textured aural atmospheres...accomplished slice of soulful genius").
- Air ("electronica ... ideas wrapped up in music that was engaging, warm, and irresistible").
- Art of Noise 
- Juno Reactor ("Art of Noise for the 21st century coupled with atmospheric merging with world music elements from all over the planet...mammoth sounds at hand -- deep, dark moods, moments of widescreen cinema").
- Run Lola Run movie soundtrack ("fast-paced techno...one of the most cohesive soundtrack albums in recent memory, and the music is excellent").
- Twin Peaks ("borders on fever-dream jazz...dark, cloying, and obsessive -- and one of the best scores ever written for television").
- Donnie Iris (maybe not so obscure and too pop for some, but nevertheless a fun rocker with great song hooks and harmonies; per Allmusic "Donnie Iris is one of the classiest rock singers who deserved widespread stardom but never achieved it".)


martykl
3,563 posts
 
Bdp,

I couldn't help chuckling a bit as I read your most recent post.  It almost reads like a scene from "Spinal Tap".  That must have been a fun time and it sounds like a few of those guys have had a decent run in the music making business, which is always good to hear.
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