Garage rock is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is characterized by basic chord structures played on electric guitars and other instruments, sometimes distorted through a fuzzbox, as well as often unsophisticated and occasionally aggressive lyrics and delivery. Its name derives from the perception that groups were often made up of young amateurs who rehearsed in the family garage, although many were professional.
Pebbles is a compilation of US underground and garage single record releases from the mid- to late-1960s. It had a limited original release in 1978 and a more general release in 1979. It was followed by several subsequent Pebbles compilations and albums. This album is nowadays known as Pebbles, Volume 1 and was originally issued in 1978 as Pebbles, Volume One: Artyfacts from the First Punk Era, an obvious riff on Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, a similar, groundbreaking compilation from 1972.
Pebbles, Volume 8 is a compilation album among the CDs in the Pebbles series; it is subtitled Southern California 1. The next CD in the series, Pebbles, Volume 9 also feature bands from Southern California; while Highs in the Mid-Sixties, Volume 1, Highs in the Mid-Sixties, Volume 2, and Highs in the Mid-Sixties, Volume 3 showcase music from Los Angeles specifically.
Evil was a garage rock band from Miami, Florida, active between late 1965 and early 1967. They were known for a hard–driving, sometimes, thrashing 60s punk sound that combined elements of blues, rockabilly, and British invasion influences. They recorded several songs, amongst which “Always Runnin' Around” and “Whatcha Gonna Do” were released as a single on Living Legend Records in 1966. The band would eventually be signed to Capitol Records, but broke up shortly thereafter. In more recent years they have become particularly noted for several previously unreleased songs recorded in 1966, which have been released in recent years on various independent labels from acetates, such as "From a Curbstone," "Short Life," and especially "I'm Movin' On," which is now regarded as a garage classic.
The Savages were a garage rock band from Bermuda that were active in the mid-1960s. They are best remembered for their album, Live 'n Wild, which was composed largely of self-penned tunes and recorded in front of a live audience, has been mentioned as a seminal work in the genre, and features the song, "The World Ain't Round It's Square". This song has become regarded as a classic 1960s anthem of youthful defiance.
The Gentlemen were an American garage rock band from Dallas, Texas, who were active from 1964 to 1968. They are best known for their 1966 song, "It's a Cry'n Shame", which has been recognized as one of the greatest songs in garage rock. The band is noted for the contributions of guitarist and songwriter, Seab Meador. Jimmie Vaughan, later a member the Fabulous Thunderbirds and brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan, served a brief stint for several months in the Gentlemen in late 1965 and early 1966, but did not appear on any of their recordings. He went on to play in another Dallas garage rock band, the Chessmen.
"It's a Cry'n Shame" is a song written by Seab Meador and Mike Kelley and was recorded in 1966 by the Gentlemen, an American garage rock band from Dallas, Texas who were active between 1964 and 1968. It was originally released as the B-side to "You Can't Be True" but has become by far the better-known song. "It's a Cry'n Shame" has been included in several garage rock compilations and is now recognized as one of the greatest songs in the genre.
Teenage Shutdown! is a series of garage rock compilation albums assembled by Tim Warren of Crypt Records, best known for his Back from the Grave series. Most of the volumes in the Teenage Shutdown! series, gravitate towards the more raw and aggressive examples of the genre, but some volumes also reflect different aspects of garage rock, such as frat rock, soul-influenced rock, as well as folk rock and psychedelic. The series currently consists of fifteen LP's and CD's, which unlike the Back from the Grave series, are identical in both formats. The first ten installments were released in 1998 and the remainder in 1999 and 2000. The first volume Jump, Jive and Harmonize, was culled from the collection of 45-rpm singles owned by Mike Markesich. The series tends to follow the packaging format employed by other garage compilation series such as Pebbles and Back from the Grave: each volume includes detailed liner notes, for this series written by Mike Markesich, which include basic information about each song and group, such as origin and recording date. The information that they present reflects thorough research, including information about the circumstances of the recordings and brief biographical sketches of the groups. The various albums in the series occasionally include photographs of groups not actually included on the track listings, sometimes even going as far as to have such bands pictured on the front sleeves. Currently, there are fifteen volumes in the series.
Teenage Shutdown!: The World Ain't Round, It's Square, sometimes referred to as "Volume 10," is the tenth installment in the Teenage Shutdown! series of garage rock compilations put out by Tim Warren of Crypt Records, which is available on both LP and compact disc formats. This volume was released on December 29, 1998 and is composed largely of harder rocking fast-tempo material as indicated in the sub-heading below the title which reads, "17 Paint Peeling Garage Punk Monsters!!!" Like all of the entries in the series, the collection was compiled and mastered by Warren, using original 45 rpm records selected from the collection of noted garage rock archivist, Mike Markesich. The packaging includes liner notes providing information about the songs and bands.
Teenage Shutdown! I'm a No-Count, sometimes referred to as "Volume 4,'" is the fourth installment in the Teenage Shutdown! series of garage rock compilations put out by Tim Warren of Crypt Records, which is available on both LP and compact disc formats. This volume was released on October 6, 1998 and is primarily composed of harder rocking fast-tempo material as indicated in the sub-heading which reads, "19 Teen Punk Stomp classics!" The collection takes its name from the twelfth track, "Im a No-Count," by Ty Wagner & the Scotchmen, from the Los Angeles area. Like all of the entries in the series, the collection was compiled and mastered by Warren, using original 45 rpm records selected from the collection of noted garage rock archivist, Mike Markesich. The photograph which appears on the front cover is of? & the Mysterians, but none of their songs are included on this compilation. The packaging includes liner notes providing information about the songs and bands.
The Bees was an American garage rock and psychedelic band from Covina, California, that was active in the mid-1960s, and was best known for the 1966 paranoiac anthem "Voices Green and Purple". The song has been mentioned as an innovative example of early protopunk.
"Voices Green and Purple" is a song by the Bees, an American garage rock and psychedelic band from Covina, California who were active in the mid-1960s. It has been mentioned as an innovative example of early protopunk and has become highly prized by various garage rock collectors and enthusiasts.
"The World Ain't Round It's Square" is a song recorded in 1966 by The Savages, a garage rock band from Bermuda and was written by Howie Rego and Bobby Zuill. It was recorded live at the Hub, a nightclub at the Princess Hotel in Bermuda and appeared on their live album taped from the event, Live 'n Wild. The song has been mentioned as a landmark anthem of 1960s youthful defiance and is ranked #4 in the list of the 1000 greatest garage rock records in Mike Markesich's Teenbeat Mayhem. It has been featured on the Teenage Shutdown! The World Ain't Round, It's Square! compilation as well as included the reissue of Live 'n Wild.
Larry and the Blue Notes were an American garage rock band formed in Fort Worth, Texas in 1962. The group is one of the more notable musical acts to emerge from the flourishing Fort Worth teen scene, and one of the few that had the opportunity to release a nationally distributed record. They are best known for the song "Night of the Sadist", which has been revived on several compilation albums.
T.C. Atlantic was an American garage rock/psychedelic rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota who were active in the 1960s. They were one of the most popular groups in the Twin Cities, but failed to break nationally. In the intervening years since their breakup, their recordings have attracted the interest of '60s music collectors and enthusiasts, and they are particularly remembered for their 1966 fuzz-tinged song, "Faces", which has been mentioned as one of the earliest garage rock songs to display psychedelic characteristics.
No No No is a compilation of garage rock recordings from the 1960s issued by Arf! Arf! Records, and is available exclusively on compact disc. In keeping with the sub-heading that reads "28 Moody, Somber and Tragic '60s Garage Rock Sagas", the set features mostly somber and downcast examples of the genre, many of them ballads in contrast to Arf! Arf!'s subsequently released companion piece, Yeah Yeah Yeah, which instead features upbeat, driving, and hard-rocking songs. There are no liner notes included, but the cover artwork nonetheless displays photographs of the labels of the original singles from which the tracks were taken.
The Breakers were an American garage rock band from Memphis, Tennessee who were active in the 1960s. They became one of the most popular bands in the Memphis area and enjoyed considerable success with their regional hit "Don't Bring Me No Flowers ". There has been a resurgence of interest in the Breakers amongst garage rock collectors and enthusiasts in recent years.
From Keflavík, With Love is a retrospective anthology issued in 2001 by Big Beat Records consisting of twenty songs by Thor's Hammer (Hljómar), a 1960s garage rock and beat group from Iceland who were one of the best-known Icelandic groups during the era. Though they worked with different producers on various labels, Thor's Hammer sound is best-typified by the tough, aggressive fuzz-drenched rockers they recorded in London for Parlophone Records in 1966, such as "I Don't Care," "My Life," "Better Days," and "The Big Beat Country Dance", and "If You Knew". While the lyrics to most of their songs were sung in English, several tracks were recorded in their native Icelandic, such as "Fyrsti Kossinn", "Ef Hún Er Nálægt Mér", and "Ertu Med", which was covered by the Savages on their Live 'n Wild album. Some of the tracks from Thor's Hammer's final period in the late 1960s, such as "Stay", show the group stretching their sound stylistically, augmenting certain arrangements with keyboards and horns. At his time, Thor's Hammer moved into a more eclectic direction, but they broke up in 1969, with several of their members going on to join the progressive rock group, Trubrot.
The Chessmen were an American garage rock band from Denton, Texas, near Dallas, who were active in the 1960s. They were one of the most popular bands in the region and recorded for Bismark Records, where they recorded three singles including, "I Need You There", which is now considered a garage rock classic. The band is notable for including several members who went on to greater fame. Jimmie Vaughan, brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan was briefly a member, joining after the death of original band leader, guitarist, and vocalist, Robert Patton, who died in a boating accident in 1966. Drummer Doyle Bramhall later played with and wrote songs for Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Bill Etheridge later played bass with ZZ Top. Following the breakup of the Chessmen, several of their members, including Jimmie Vaughan, went on to form a group that would come to be known as Texas Storm, which eventually included Stevie Ray Vaughan on bass.
Eddy DeMello was a popular Bermudian entrepreneur, businessman, music promoter, record label owner and record producer. He has also made a notable contribution to the garage rock genre.
