Bobby Strete (a.k.a. Werner or R.A. Werner), (born Robert Werner Ahrendt on June 29, 1966), is an American musician who is best known as the bass player in New Jersey pop-punk/garage band Mod Fun and, later, with the industrial combo Crocodile Shop.
Strete began playing bass in 1979 at the age of 12 when he formed the band that would eventually become Mod Fun with childhood friends Mick Hale and Chris Collins. He initially learned the standard 4 string electric bass and, later, stand-up bass (which he occasionally played with a jazz combo at a local restaurant) as well as the electric guitar which he continues to play to this day. He grew up in Lodi, New Jersey and met and played in bands with Eerie Von Stellmann and Steve Zing both from Samhain and Danzig fame, while he attended Lodi High School
In the mid-1980s he and Mod Fun drummer Collins also did a brief stint as the rhythm-section of an otherwise all female pop-rock outfit known as The Vertical Smiles.
Bobby Strete contributed bass lines and backing vocals to the entire recorded output of Mod Fun from 1983 to 1987 after which he became known as "R.A. Werner" and continued working with Hale in Crocodile Shop until 1997. [1]
He departed from Crocodile Shop soon after their European tour in the summer of 1997. Strete/Werner then became one of the driving forces behind New Jersey punk band X-Breed, in which he played bass, guitar, sang backing vocals, and contributed to the song writing. They released a full-length CD entitled "Reduced To Nothing" and a 3-song EP on their own.
In 2004, Bobby Strete re-emerged as the bassist in Crocodile Shop (now known simply as "CrocShop") and participated in the reunion of Mod Fun which has continued unabated to the time of this writing. [2] Since reuniting, Strete and his friends in Mod Fun have released a new double-length CD entitled "Now...and Again" and they have performed at a wide variety of venues in New York, New Jersey, and in major cities around the U.S. Between 2004 and 2006 he also served as the bassist in reformed New York power-pop group The Punch Line, which put out an album during his tenure. In 2007, he contributed a good deal of guitar work to bandmate Chris Collins' debut solo album. [3]
He continues to write, record, and perform with Mod Fun.
Parliament-Funkadelic is an American funk music collective of rotating musicians headed by George Clinton, primarily consisting of the bands Parliament and Funkadelic, both active since the 1960s. Their distinctive funk style drew on psychedelic culture, outlandish fashion, science-fiction, and surreal humor; it would have an influential effect on subsequent funk, post-punk, hip-hop, and post-disco artists of the 1980s and 1990s, while their collective mythology would help pioneer Afrofuturism.
The Misfits are an American punk rock band often recognized as the progenitors of the horror punk subgenre, blending punk and other musical influences with horror film themes and imagery. The group was founded in 1977 in Lodi, New Jersey, by vocalist, songwriter and keyboardist Glenn Danzig, and drummer Manny Martínez. Jerry Only joined on bass guitar shortly after. Over the next six years, membership would change frequently with Danzig and Only being the two consistent members. During this time period, they released several EPs and singles, and with Only's brother Doyle as guitarist, the albums Walk Among Us (1982) and Earth A.D./Wolfs Blood (1983), both considered touchstones of the early-1980s hardcore punk movement. The band has gone through many lineup changes over the years, with bassist Jerry Only being the only constant member in the group.
The Dave Clark Five, often called The DC5, were an English rock and roll band formed in Tottenham in 1958. In January 1964 they had their first UK top ten single, "Glad All Over", which knocked the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" off the top of the UK Singles Chart. It peaked at No. 6 in the United States in April 1964. Although this was their only UK No. 1, they topped the US chart in December 1965, with their cover of Bobby Day's "Over and Over". Their version of Chet Powers' "Get Together" reached No. 8 on the UK Singles Chart retitled as "Everybody Get Together".
Slapping and popping are ways to produce percussive sounds on a stringed instrument. It is primarily used on the double bass or bass guitar. Slapping on bass guitar involves using the edge of one's knuckle, where it is particularly bony, to quickly strike the string against the fretboard. On bass guitars, this is commonly done with the thumb, while on double bass, the edge of the hand or index finger may be used. Popping refers to pulling the string away from the fretboard and quickly releasing it so it snaps back against the fretboard. On bass guitar, the two techniques are commonly used together in alternation, though either may be used separately.
Shonen Knife is a Japanese alternative rock band formed in Osaka, in 1981. Heavily influenced by 1960s girl groups, pop bands, The Beach Boys, and early punk rock bands, such as the Ramones, the trio crafts stripped-down songs with simple yet unconventional lyrics sung both in Japanese and English.
Thomas Eugene Stinson is an American rock musician. He came to prominence in the 1980s as the bass guitarist for The Replacements, one of the definitive American alternative rock groups. After their breakup in 1991, Stinson formed Bash & Pop, acting as lead vocalist, guitarist and frontman. In the mid-1990s he was the singer and bassist for the rock band Perfect, and eventually joined the hard rock band Guns N' Roses in 1998.
Nathan Harrell East is an American jazz, R&B, and rock bass player and vocalist. With more than 2,000 recordings, East is considered one of the most recorded bass players in the history of music. East holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from the University of California, San Diego (1978). He is a founding member of contemporary jazz quartet Fourplay and has recorded, performed, and co-written songs with performers such as Bobby Womack, Eric Clapton, Michael Jackson, Joe Satriani, Peter Gabriel, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Phil Collins, Stevie Wonder, Toto, Kenny Loggins, Daft Punk, Chick Corea, and Herbie Hancock.
Eric Goulden, known as Wreckless Eric, is an English rock/new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single "Whole Wide World" on Stiff Records. More than two decades after its release, the song was included in Mojo magazine's list of the best punk rock singles of all time. It was also acclaimed as one of the "top 40 singles of the alternative era 1975–2000".
Purple Hearts are an English mod revival band, formed in 1977 in Romford, eastern Greater London. They were often considered one of the best English mod revival groups, the NME calling them "one of the few mod bands to actually cut it on rock 'n' roll terms".
Jason White is an American musician and singer best known for his work as a touring guitarist with punk rock band Green Day. He has worked with Green Day in the studio and on tour, and has appeared in various music videos with the band, including "Last of the American Girls" and "Wake Me Up When September Ends". He was briefly credited as an official member on the group's 2012 trilogy ¡Uno!, ¡Dos!, and ¡Tré!. Prior to working with Green Day, he was a member of the punk band Pinhead Gunpowder, which also featured Green Day vocalist Billie Joe Armstrong. White has also been a member of a number of Green Day side projects including Foxboro Hot Tubs, The Network, and The Coverups among others.
The Beat is an American rock and power pop band from Los Angeles, California, United States, that formed in 1979. Paul Collins' Beat resurfaced in the 1990s and continues to tour and record new material. Front man Paul Collins has released several projects with his alternative country group The Paul Collins Band, who play Americana music inspired by country rock and folk rock.
Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein is an American guitarist best known for his material with the horror punk band the Misfits and his own band eponymously named Doyle.
Dan Schafer, better known by his stage name Dan Vapid, is a punk rock musician from Chicago, Illinois, United States. He is best known for his participation in Screeching Weasel, The Riverdales, The Methadones, and various other punk rock/pop punk bands. His current band is Dan Vapid and the Cheats.
David A. Immerglück is an American multi-instrumentalist who is best known as a guitarist in the alternative rock bands Counting Crows, Camper Van Beethoven and the Monks of Doom, as well as for his tenure with American singer songwriter John Hiatt. A versatile musician, Immerglück plays mandolin, pedal steel guitar, bass, slide guitar, electric sitar, keyboards, and sings.
The 4-Skins are an English working class Oi! band from the East End of London, England. Originally composed of Gary Hodges (vocals), 'Hoxton' Tom McCourt (guitar), Steve 'H' Hamer (bass) and Gary Hitchcock (drums), they formed in 1979 and disbanded in 1984 – although new line-ups formed in 2007 and 2008. Many of their songs dealt with violent topics, but the band has claimed they were discussing the realities of inner city life, not promoting violence. Other 4-Skins song topics include police harassment, political corruption, war and unemployment.
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Mod Fun are an American power pop/garage punk band from New Jersey. Mod Fun were originally active in the early to mid-1980s, and played an integral part in New York City's burgeoning garage rock revival scene at the time. By mid 1986 they were widely regarded as one of the best known indie rock bands in NYC and New Jersey. After disbanding at the height of their career in the late 1980s to pursue other projects, the three original members reunited in 2004 and have been active since.
Mick Hale is an American musician, songwriter, producer, remixer, DJ, and graphic artist. Credited on over three dozen commercial releases, his body of work spans 30 years from 1984 onwards.
Chris Collins is an American musician, recording engineer/producer and technologist. Collins' work in the New Jersey/NYC music scene has spanned three decades.