I have often spoken of The Flashcubes, a power pop band from Syracuse that has meant a great deal to me. In 2014, it was my great honor to induct The Flashcubes into the SAMMYs (Syracuse Area Music Awards) Hall Of Fame:
Times change. Things
change. Years ago, after an early Flashcubes gig, a club owner said he
wasn't going to pay the 'Cubes because, whatever it was they had played, he
didn't think it was actual music. In the late '70s, even as the 'Cubes
were gaining followers, there were a lot of people around town that hated The
Flashcubes, or worse, thought that The Flashcubes were a joke. Well,
tonight, the joke's on them. Tonight, we induct The Flashcubes into the
Syracuse Music Hall of Fame.
I have three all-time favorite
bands: The Beatles, The Ramones, and The Flashcubes. You all know
The Beatles, and you probably know The Ramones. Well, I was just as
hooked on The Flashcubes. They were energetic, cocky,
irresistible--everything I ever thought a rock 'n' roll band could be.
And they were from Syracuse! The first time I saw The Flashcubes play,
they became one of my favorite bands in an instant, and nothing has ever
changed that.
The Flashcubes began in 1977, a
power pop band, inspired by punk rock but also influenced by The Raspberries,
Badfinger, The Beatles, and The Kinks. They were four separate forces
combined as one: bassist Gary Frenay was a pop guy, through and through;
guitarist Paul Armstrong was pure rock 'n' roll, a punk since way before Sid Vicious
ever saw his first safety pin; guitarist Arty Lenin was a six-string wizard, a
kindred spirit to the artier bands you heard on the fringes; and drummer Tommy
Allen was all of the above, a Partridge Family fan who played like Keith Moon.
Together, The Flashcubes were the Bomp! Magazine ideal of Shaun Cassidy + The
Sex Pistols = the power pop sound of the early Who. They wrote tons of
original songs that lived up to their influences, and they put on a live show
like no one else could.
The Flashcubes' original career
was brief. First gig was September 1st, 1977 at the Brookside, opening
with a super-charged cover of "Hold Me Tight" by The Beatles.
They did shows with The Jam, with The Ramones and The Runaways, The Police, The
Romantics, Joe Jackson. They played in Buffalo, Detroit, Boston, New
York...everywhere. They released two singles, "Christi Girl"
and "Wait Till Next Week," on their own label, Northside Records, and
a major label deal seemed certain. In late 1978, before a show at SU, the
announcer promised, "One day, very soon from now, you people are going to
be able to say, 'I saw this band before they were famous.'"
And then...they didn't become
famous. Paul Armstrong was replaced by Mick Walker in 1979, and The
Flashcubes broke up in 1980. Not famous. Not likely to be
remembered. But, oddly enough, destined to become legendary.
"Legendary?" Strange,
but true: During their long hiatus, from 1980 to about 1992 or so, an
international mystique grew around this obscure band from Syracuse, and
somehow--through cassette tapes traded hand to hand, through word of mouth,
magazine articles, and the sheer, growing devotion of people who just KNEW--The
Flashcubes became known as The Great Lost Power Pop Band. Rhino Records
included "Christi Girl" on a power pop anthology CD in 1993.
And The Flashcubes reunited: Gary, Arty, Paul, and Tommy, together again!
They've been together ever since. And each live show still earns them new
fans, every time, in every place. The Flashcubes even get called back for
encores when they play at IPO, the International Pop Overthrow pop music
festivals--and NO one gets an encore at IPO!
The Flashcubes have now released
six CDs, including a live album from their first Japanese tour.
Wait--Japanese tour?! Yep, The Flashcubes have toured Japan twice now,
playing for enthusiastic audiences that sing right along, because the Japanese
fans know every Flashcubes song. The Flashcubes' most recent album,
Sportin Wood, won the SAMMY last year for Best Rock Album. So I guess
that club owner--you remember him, the one that didn't want to pay these guys
because they didn't play actual music?--he was just another part of a familiar
story. In 1962, The Beatles were told that guitar groups were on the way
out. In 1976, a radio DJ ripped The Ramones' first album off the
turntable and threw it across his studio, yelling, "What is this? We
don't need this!" And The Flashcubes were dismissed because they
didn't play actual music. That all seems funny now, quaint...and on the wrong
side of history. Times change. Things change. Because in
1962, guitar groups were just gettin' started; because in 1976, pop music was
in dire need of a three-chord punk rock jolt; and because, right here in
Central New York, The Flashcubes did play actual music--actual, great,
unforgettable rock 'n' roll music--and that's why we honor them tonight.
And tomorrow night at the Palace,
we all get another chance to see The Flashcubes play live!
Music connects us. The music we
listen to, the music we love, is always there for us when we need it...and we
always need it. We've all had our hearts broken, we've suffered loss, we've
endured setbacks; but there has also been joy, occasional peace, and a
prevailing certainty that life can be wonderful, that life is worth savoring,
that life is love, and love can be all you need.
And life is music. The
Beatles. The Ramones. The Flashcubes. Times change.
Some things don't change.
I have waited over 36 years to say
this, and I say it now with pride and delight: Please join me in
welcoming The Flashcubes into The Syracuse Music Hall of Fame.
No comments:
Post a Comment