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(GI) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by the Germs | ||||
Released | October 1979 | |||
Recorded | 1979 | |||
Studio | Quad Teck | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 38:14 41:39 (cassette version) | |||
Label | Slash (SR 103) | |||
Producer | Joan Jett | |||
Germs chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
Mojo | [4] |
Pitchfork | 9.0/10 [5] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 9/10 [7] |
GI, stylized as (GI), is the only studio album by American punk rock band the Germs. Often considered the first full-length hardcore punk album, [2] it was released in the United States in October 1979 [8] on Slash Records with catalog number SR 103. The album was later released in Italy in 1982 by Expanded Music with the catalog EX 11. The album's title is an acronym for "Germs Incognito", an alternate name the band used to obtain bookings when their early reputation kept them out of Los Angeles-area clubs. After (GI)'s release, the band would only undertake one more recording session, for the soundtrack album to Al Pacino's 1980 film Cruising . On December 7, 1980, a year after the release of (GI), vocalist Darby Crash died by suicide.
The entire album was included on the 1993 compilation CD (MIA): The Complete Anthology. In 2012, (GI) was reissued on CD with "Caught in My Eye" as a bonus track, after "Shut Down".
After the Germs recorded for Chris D.'s Tooth and Nail compilation in late 1978, the (GI) sessions took place in 1979 at Quad Teck recording studio in Los Angeles. [9] [10] Lead singer Crash had originally wanted former Paul Revere & the Raiders vocalist Mark Lindsay to produce, but while Lindsay was willing to do the job, he turned out to be too expensive for Slash Records to afford. Joan Jett, a longtime friend and heroine of many of the band members since her time in the Runaways, was asked to produce the album. [9] [11] [12]
Recorded in about three weeks with audio engineer Pat Burnett, [9] the album's clarity redefined the Germs for California audiences, who had only seen the band thrash around onstage while an intoxicated Crash avoided singing into the mic as much as possible.
A lone outtake from the sessions, "Caught in My Eye", would later appear on the posthumous EP What We Do Is Secret and on the Warner Bros.-distributed cassette reissue of (GI), at the end of side 1.
The album's final track, "Shut Down (Annihilation Man)", was recorded live in the studio, using improvisation at the end of the lengthy track, which the band usually closed their concerts with. The posthumous Cat's Clause release included a live "Never Ending Version" which was pressed with a locked groove.
According to Bob Biggs, Slash Records founder, the album cost the label $6,000 to produce. [9]
NME placed G.I at number 90 on their "101 Albums to Hear Before You Die" list. [13]
In 2021, G.I was placed at number 430 on the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die book series. [14]
All tracks are written by Darby Crash and Pat Smear, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "What We Do Is Secret" | 0:43 | |
2. | "Communist Eyes" | 2:15 | |
3. | "Land of Treason" | 2:09 | |
4. | "Richie Dagger's Crime" | 1:56 | |
5. | "Strange Notes" | Crash | 1:52 |
6. | "American Leather" | Crash | 1:11 |
7. | "Lexicon Devil" | Crash | 1:44 |
8. | "Manimal" | Crash | 2:11 |
9. | "Our Way" | 1:56 | |
10. | "We Must Bleed" | Crash | 3:05 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
11. | "Media Blitz" | 1:29 | |
12. | "The Other Newest One" | 2:44 | |
13. | "Let's Pretend" | Crash | 2:34 |
14. | "Dragon Lady" | 1:39 | |
15. | "The Slave" | 1:01 | |
16. | "Shut Down (Annihilation Man)" (live) | Germs | 9:40 |
17. | "Caught in My Eye" (Only appears on the 2012 CD release and the cassette) | 3:25 |
On the Warner Brothers 1988 cassette reissue, "Caught in My Eye" was appended to the end of side 1, after "We Must Bleed".
The Germs were an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1976 to 1980. The band's "classic" lineup consisted of singer Darby Crash, guitarist Pat Smear, bassist Lorna Doom and drummer Don Bolles. They released only one album, 1979's (GI), produced by Joan Jett, and were featured in Penelope Spheeris' seminal documentary film The Decline of Western Civilization, which chronicled the Los Angeles punk movement. The Germs disbanded following Crash's suicide in 1980. Their music was influential to many later rock acts, and Smear went on to achieve greater fame performing with Nirvana and Foo Fighters.
Georg Albert Ruthenberg, better known by his stage name Pat Smear, is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead guitarist and co-founder of Los Angeles–based punk band the Germs and for being a rhythm guitarist for grunge band Nirvana, and Foo Fighters. After Nirvana disbanded following the suicide of its frontman Kurt Cobain, drummer Dave Grohl went on to become the frontman of Foo Fighters with Smear joining on guitar. Smear left Foo Fighters in 1997 before rejoining as a touring guitarist in 2005 and being promoted back to a full-time member in 2010.
Jan Paul Beahm was an American punk rock vocalist who, along with longtime friend Pat Smear, co-founded the punk rock band the Germs. He committed suicide by overdosing on heroin.
The Decline of Western Civilization is a 1981 American documentary filmed through 1979 and 1980. The movie is about the Los Angeles punk rock scene and was directed by Penelope Spheeris. In 1981, the LAPD Chief of Police Daryl Gates wrote a letter demanding the film not be shown again in the city.
Poison Idea was an American punk rock band formed in Portland, Oregon, in 1980.
Pink Flag is the debut studio album by English rock band Wire. It was released in November 1977 by Harvest Records. The album gained Wire a cult following within independent and post-punk music upon its initial release, later growing to be highly influential on many other musicians.
Bags were an American punk rock band formed in 1977, one of the first generation of punk rock bands to emerge from Los Angeles, California.
Gob is a Canadian punk rock band from Langley, British Columbia, formed in 1993. The band consists of Tom Thacker, Theo Goutzinakis, Gabe Mantle and Steven Fairweather. They were nominated for a Juno Award for best new group in 2000, and received another Juno nomination for best video in 2002. Gob's most successful album is World According to Gob. Their best-selling songs to date are "I Hear You Calling", "Soda", and "Banshee Song". They have been featured in movies, TV shows, and many sporting video games such as NHL 2002, NHL 2003, NHL 2004 and Madden NFL 2003 with songs such as "Oh! Ellin", "I've Been Up These Steps", "Sick With You", "I Hear You Calling" and "Give Up The Grudge". The band has appeared at several music festivals, the most well-known being the Vans Warped Tour. Thacker is also a lead and rhythm guitarist for fellow Canadian rock band Sum 41.
Singles Going Steady is a compilation album by English punk rock band Buzzcocks, first released on I.R.S. Records in the United States on 25 September 1979.
Lexicon Devil is a three-song EP and the second release by American punk rock band the Germs. It was also the debut output of Slash Records, and of Geza X both as a producer and as a recording engineer. The record was named after its leadoff song.
Yes L.A. is a six-song compilation EP featuring first-generation Californian punk rock bands. It was also the final release of the short-lived but influential Dangerhouse Records label.
Chris D. is a punk poet, singer, writer, rock critic, producer, actor, and filmmaker. He is best known as the lead singer and founder of the early and long-running Los Angeles punk/death rock band the Flesh Eaters.
Group Sex is the debut studio album by American hardcore punk band Circle Jerks. It was released on October 1, 1980, by Frontier Records. The album consists of 14 songs in 15 minutes and is considered to be a landmark album in hardcore punk. It was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.
What We Do Is Secret is a 2007 American biographical film about Darby Crash, singer of the late-1970s Los Angeles punk rock band the Germs. It was directed by Rodger Grossman, who wrote the screenplay based on a story he had written with Michelle Baer Ghaffari, a friend of Crash's and co-producer of the film. Shane West stars as Crash, while Rick Gonzalez, Bijou Phillips, and Noah Segan respectively portray Germs members Pat Smear, Lorna Doom, and Don Bolles. The film follows the formation and career of the Germs, focusing on Crash's mysterious "five-year plan", his homosexual relationship with Rob Henley, and his experimentation with heroin, culminating in his December 1980 suicide. It is titled after the first track on the Germs' 1979 album (GI).
The Darby Crash Band was a music project started by Darby Crash and Pat Smear, founding members of Los Angeles punk rock band the Germs, formed after the Germs split in 1980. They recruited bassist David "Bosco" Danford and Circle Jerks drummer Lucky Lehrer and began playing shows in Los Angeles. The group's setlists would include a number of well-known songs from the Germs' archives, as well as newly written material. The band never recorded and played only a small number of shows before Crash's death on December 7, 1980.
Germicide, also known as Germicide: Live at the Whisky, 1977, is a live album by the punk rock band the Germs. Performing live at the Whisky a Go Go in 1977, Darby Crash and the Germs were at the beginning of their career. At this time, Crash performed using the name Bobby Pyn. Darby and the audience feud constantly throughout the show. Disc jockey Rodney Bingenheimer appears at the beginning as master of ceremonies, and the band's former drummer Dottie Danger briefly takes the mic to introduce the band, who she describes as "sluts".
Celebrity Skin was a post-punk, glam-influenced, hard rock band from Los Angeles, California. They were active from the mid-1980s until the early 1990s.
"Forming" is the debut single by American punk rock band the Germs. Released on What?, an independent start-up label, in July 1977, it is regarded as the first true Los Angeles punk record.
RuthenSmear is the first solo album by guitarist Pat Smear. The song "Golden Boys" was originally written by Darby Crash, but never recorded by him before his death. Vagina Dentata, a short-lived punk band that Smear was in following the death of Crash, recorded and released a version of the song on the compilation Flipside Vinyl Fanzine Vol 2, released in 1985, prior to its re-recording for this album.
"Circle One / Shutdown" is a split single by the American alternative rock band Hole and the supergroup The Monkeywrench, released in November 1994 on the independent label Gasatanka Records. Both tracks are cover versions of songs by the Los Angeles punk group the Germs. On the single, Hole is credited as "The Holez," a nominal homage to "The Germs."
[A] crisp, vicious 1979 classic of LA punk...