 |
Nick Venet | |
|---|---|
 Davie Allan Live at Red Planet Records | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | United States |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, guitarist |
Davie Allan is an American guitarist best known for his work on soundtracks to various teen and biker movies in the 1960s. Allan's backing band is almost always the Arrows (i.e., Davie Allan & the Arrows), although the Arrows have never had a stable lineup.
Allan grew up in the San Fernando Valley in Southern California, and learned to play guitar as a teenager. His career as a musician began when he teamed up with Mike Curb, a friend he met in the choir at Grant High School in Valley Glen, California, to form an instrumental surf combo. In 1963, Curb founded Curb Records, the first of many labels he would run, and released the first Davie Allan single, “War Path”. Allan participated in recording a number of other singles for Curb's label, under group names like the Sudells, the Heyburners, and the Zanies.
In 1964, Curb founded Sidewalk Records (which was distributed by Capitol subsidiary Tower Records), brought Allan with him as a session musician, and secured a recording contract for the newly formed Arrows. Curb had also made a deal to supply Roger Corman's American International Pictures with soundtracks. Allan had come to Corman's attention from his playing on the soundtrack of Skaterdater . [1]
Early Davie Allan and The Arrows tracks were stereotypical instrumental surf numbers, with clear-as-a-bell guitar sounds and light, crisp drum work. Though these sides were good musically, and modestly successful commercially (“Apache '65” became a local radio hit), Allan would find his greatest success when his sound mutated soon thereafter.[ citation needed ]
When Curb assigned soundtrack duties for biker film The Wild Angels to Allan and the Arrows, it would prove a breakthrough success. The song from the film's opening, "Blue's Theme", an aggressive, repetitive and very catchy instrumental showcasing Allan's new fuzz (heavily distorted) guitar sound became their biggest hit (it was also one of the first songs Eddie Van Halen learned to play on brother Alex's guitar). The song stayed on the Billboard charts for 17 weeks (it peaked at #37) (#36 in Canada). The single, backed with “Bongo Party”, and the soundtrack album both sold well. Rumors have stated that the melody in "Blues' Theme" was stolen from Louie Shelton's guitar lick in "Last Train to Clarksville", but "Last Train to Clarksville" was recorded on July 25, 1966, while The Wild Angels debuted in the theaters on July 20, 1966. [2]
Davie Allan & the Arrows went on to record a number of other soundtracks for similar AIP films over the next few years, like Devil's Angels , Thunder Alley , and The Born Losers , as well as several studio albums. All contained quality material, but none would prove as successful as "Blue's Theme".[ citation needed ]
By the time Tower Records and Sidewalk Records were dissolved in 1968, Allan had his name on some 14 albums and a prolific string of singles. Allan cut a few singles for MGM Records in the early '70s, continuing his association with Curb, but after that his career faltered.[ citation needed ]
Beginning with the Loud, Loose and Savage album in 1994, a compilation of tracks recorded over the previous 10 years, Allan (with all-new Arrows in tow) began a bid to revive his career. The album was well received by critics, and since then he has released several more albums, including a collaboration with the Phantom Surfers, Ramonetures, an album of instrumental versions of Ramones songs, done Ventures-style. A follow-up album by the Ramonetures features Ventures-infused instrumental covers of songs by X. Featuring the playing of DJ Bonebrake and Billy Zoom of X, the album's title Johnny Walk Don't Run Paulene is a portmanteau of well known songs by X ("Johnny hit & run Paulene") and the Ventures ("Walk don't run"). [3]
The band Danzig recorded a cover of "Devil's Angels", which is the lead track on the covers album Skeletons. Singer Glenn Danzig has said he had been wanting to cover the song since 1979, and so the version is in the style of his band of that era, the Misfits. [4]
Allan's most notable contribution is from popularizing the fuzz guitar sound using the then recently invented fuzzbox which made its popular debut on "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction".[ citation needed ] While Link Wray was the pioneer of guitar distortion, Allan pushed it to a new level, distorting his signal so much as to give his guitar tone a buzzing, grinding quality: "fuzzy".[ citation needed ] Guitar sounds along similar lines would become a staple of 1970s rock and Allan's penchant for extreme, heavy, noisy guitar work displayed on tracks like "Devil's Rumble", "Cycle-Delic" and "King Fuzz" presaged 1980s acts like Sonic Youth.[ citation needed ]
Davie Allan & the Arrows were covered by FUZ issue #1, a zine by Seth Wimpfheimer. It contains a history of Allan's career, as well as a discography.[ citation needed ].
All singles by Davie Allan & The Arrows except as noted
| Year | Titles (A-side, B-side) Both sides from same album except where indicated | US Billboard | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | "War Path" b/w "Beyond the Blues" Davie Allan solo | Non-album tracks | |
| 1965 | "Apache '65" b/w "Blue Guitar" | 64 | Apache '65 |
| "Dance the Freddie" b/w "Moon Dawg '65" (Non-album track) | |||
| "Baby Ruth" b/w "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover" | Non-album tracks | ||
| "Space Hop" b/w "Granny Goose" | |||
| 1966 | "Theme From The Wild Angels" b/w "U.F.O." (Non-album track) | 99 | "The Wild Angels" soundtrack |
| "Blue's Theme" b/w "Bongo Party" | 37 | ||
| 1967 | "Devil's Angels" b/w "Cody's Theme" | 97 | "Devil's Angels" soundtrack |
| 1968 | "Blue Rides Again" b/w "Cycle-Delic" (from Cycle-Delic Sounds) | Non-album track | |
| "Shape of Things to Come" b/w "Wild in the Streets" | Wild in the Streets music from the film, not to be confused with the original soundtrack | ||
| 1972 | "Little Big Horn" b/w "Dawn Of The 7th Cavalry" | Non-album tracks | |
| 1976 | "White Man Beware" b/w "Where Do We Go From Here" Davie Allan solo | ||
The Misfits are an American punk rock band often recognized as the pioneers 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. Over the next six years, Danzig and bassist Jerry Only were the group's main members through numerous personnel changes. During this 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.
Instrumental rock is rock music that emphasizes instrumental performance and features very little or no singing. Examples of instrumental music in rock can be found in practically every subgenre of the style. Instrumental rock was most popular from the mid-1950s to mid-1960s, with artists such as Bill Doggett Combo, The Fireballs, The Shadows, The Ventures, Johnny and the Hurricanes and The Spotnicks. Surf music had many instrumental songs. Many instrumental hits had roots from the R&B genre. The Allman Brothers Band feature several instrumentals. Jeff Beck also recorded two instrumental albums in the 1970s. Progressive rock and art rock performers of the late 1960s and early 1970s did many virtuosic instrumental performances.
Danzig is an American heavy metal band led by former Samhain and Misfits singer Glenn Danzig. Formed in 1987 in Lodi, New Jersey, the group early on became a unique voice in the rock scene, playing a bluesy, doom-laden metal with Glenn Danzig crooning in the style of Roy Orbison and Elvis Presley. Danzig's openly satanic lyrics and image stirred controversy. After a major hit with a live version of its 1988 song "Mother", the band experimented with industrial music but later returned to heavy metal. As of 2023, Danzig has released 12 studio albums, two EPs, one live album, and one compilation album.
The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in Tacoma, Washington, in 1958, by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle. The band, which was a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar across the world during the 1960s. While their popularity in the United States waned in the 1970s, the group remains especially revered in Japan, where they have toured regularly. The classic lineup of the band consisted of Wilson, Bogle, Nokie Edwards, and Mel Taylor (drums).
Danzig 5: Blackacidevil is the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Danzig. It was released in 1996 on Hollywood Records, and was reissued through E-Magine Records in 2000 with three extra tracks. The album sees the band shift to a largely industrial-based sound.
6:66 Satan's Child is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Danzig. It was released in 1999 on E-Magine Records.
Circle of Snakes is the eighth studio album by American heavy metal band Danzig. It was released on August 31, 2004. It is the first studio album by the band since their debut recording not to have a number incorporated into its title.
"Cavatina" is a 1970 classical guitar piece by British composer Stanley Myers based on music originally written for the soundtrack of the film The Walking Stick (1970). After Myers expanded the piece and it was recorded by guitarist John Williams, "Cavatina" was popularized as the theme from the 1978 film The Deer Hunter.
Max Frost and the Troopers were a fictional rock music group created for the exploitation film Wild in the Streets, released in 1968. The film featured Christopher Jones as the highly influential singer Max Frost. The songs performed by Frost and his band, a group that was never formally named in the film, were credited to Max Frost and the Troopers in the subsequent singles and album. The band name "Troopers" is based on the term "troops," the designation Frost used in the film to refer to his friends and followers.
Sidewalk Records was a record label based in Hollywood, California that was started in 1963 by Mike Curb at the age of eighteen. The company was first formed as Sidewalk Productions and later became a subsidiary label of Capitol Records. Many recordings by Sidewalk Productions appeared on the related label Tower Records, also a subsidiary of Capitol Records.
Tower Records was an American record label active from 1964 to 1970. A subsidiary of Capitol Records, Tower often released music by artists who were relatively low-profile in compared to those released on the parent label, including artists—such as The Standells and The Chocolate Watchband—later recognized as "garage bands". For this reason Tower is often associated with the garage rock phenomenon of the 1960s.
The Lost Tracks of Danzig is a compilation album by American heavy metal band Danzig. The set showcases a number of previously unreleased Danzig songs, ranging from the band's first recording sessions in 1987–88 until the sessions for Danzig's 2004 studio album, Circle of Snakes.
"Back in the Saddle" is a song by American hard rock band Aerosmith. Written by Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, it was the first track on Aerosmith's popular studio album Rocks, which the band released in 1976. "Back in the Saddle" was also released as the third single from the album in 1977.
"(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below, We're All Going to Go" is a funk/soul song originally recorded by Curtis Mayfield for his album Curtis (1970). The song was meant to serve as a warning regarding the state of race relations and the tempest growing in America's inner cities.
"You Light Up My Life" is a ballad written by Joseph Brooks, and originally recorded by Kasey Cisyk for the soundtrack album to the 1977 film of the same title. The song was lip synced in the film by its lead actress, Didi Conn. The best-known cover version of the song is a cover by Debby Boone, the daughter of singer Pat Boone. It held the No. 1 position on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for ten consecutive weeks in 1977 and topped Record World magazine's Top 100 Singles Chart for a record 13 weeks.
"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" is a 1963 single by Elvis Presley. It was written by Bill Giant, Bernie Baum, and Florence Kaye and was published by Elvis Presley Music in June 1963. The song peaked at No. 3 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 on August 10, 1963, and No. 9 on the Billboard Rhythm and Blues chart, becoming his final top-ten single on the Rhythm and Blues chart. The song also topped Japan's Utamatic record chart in the fall of 1963. The single was certified gold by the RIAA for sales in excess of 500,000 units in the US.
"Apache" is a song written by Jerry Lordan and first recorded by Bert Weedon. Lordan played the song on ukulele to the Shadows while on tour and, liking the song, the group released their own version which topped the UK Singles Chart for five weeks in mid-1960. The Shadows' guitarist Hank Marvin developed the song's distinctive echo and vibrato sound. After hearing the Shadows' version, Danish guitarist Jørgen Ingmann released a cover of the song in November 1960 which peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US.
Skeletons is the tenth studio album by the American heavy metal band Danzig, released on November 27, 2015, and consisting entirely of cover versions of songs from the 1960s through 1980s, selected by singer Glenn Danzig.
Larry Brown is an American musician, composer and recording engineer.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
