Su Tissue (Sue McLane) Vex Billingsgate (Bill Ranson) John Gleur (John McBurney) Frankie Ennui (Richard Whitney) Chuck Roast (Charles Rodriguez) EJ Emmons (producer)
"Janitor" LIVE on New Wave Theater
"She seems to be in some sort of pain and stands so still that the smallest gesture becomes loaded with power. Minimalism at it’s finest." LA Times 1981
Here’s Su in her drum dress. This photo was taken at the Hope Street Hall show (also feat. The Fall, Germs & X). Courtesy of legendary photographer Jenny Lens. Check out this and other great punk photos for sale at
JENNY LENS.COM
Influences
Promotional napkin insert from Su’s solo album Salon de Musique. Thanks to Viir from Biomechanic for sharing this rare item.
This is a video collage for X’s WE’RE DESPERATE. Full of great images from the early LA punk scene. So many bands & personalities are referenced. See if you can find Su’s picture in the rapid-fire barrage (hint: it’s near the end)
We’re Desperate
From Suburban Lawns producer EJ EMMONS:
"Chandler,
Thank you for once again showing the balls to put this site up. As their producer and possessor of the recorded works, I fully and heartily endorse your efforts. Band members have been my friends for ’bout half my life, and I know they’ll be jazzed to hear of this. I will happily supply you any needed materials.
My Very Best To You,
ej emmons"
Check out EJ’s website which showcases his fantastic studio’s & services @
Imagehaus
"One of my favorite punk records was "Gidget Goes To Hell" by the Suburban Lawns. I thought that was good." Frank Zappa 1991
SUBURBAN LAWNS were a seminal new wave/punk band hailing from Long Beach CA who gained notoriety in the late 70’s & early 80’s for their jagged, quirky pop confections & surreal live performances. The brainchild of CalArts students Bill Ranson & Minneapolis transplant Sue McLane the Lawns formed in 1978 out of the ashes of previous incarnations Art Attack & The Fabulons, recruiting Huntington Beach natives Richard Whitney on rhythm guitar & Charles Rodriguez on drums. Guitarist John McBurney rounded out the group with his distinctive, surf-drenched leads that became part of the band's signature. Embraced early on by the burgeoning LA scene centered around legendary clubs such as The Masque & Hong Kong Cafe, Suburban Lawns shared the bill with acts as diverse as Fear, X, The Motels & The Bags to name just a few. In keeping with punk’s DIY ethos, the band started it’s own indie label & hosted many great live shows at their studio (including one of the first appearances of the pre-Minutemen outfit The Reactionaries). Along with producer/collaborator EJ Emmons they self-produced their first single:
The song immediately caught the attention of KROQ DJ Rodney Bingenheimer who put it into regular rotation on his Rodney On The Roq radio show. It also made waves with the creators of the original Gidget who threatened legal action (the suit was later dropped). Nevertheless "Gidget" was an instant hit and spawned a promotional video shot by future "Stop Making Sense" director Jonathan Demme. The video exposed the Lawns to a national audience thanks to it’s inclusion on an episode of Saturday Night Live. Demme would later give Su her first and only acting role in his feature film Something Wild. With an increased profile the band toured the states establishing it's reputation as a must-see live act known for their high energy & Su’s unique vocal stylings. Not to mention her penchant for outrageous costumes: parlor hats, inflatable dresses, day-glo stockings & platform shoes shot up with nails were typical of her fashion oeuvre: "I had those platform shoes when everyone did, and I looked at them and just felt kind of, ’Kill, kill!" She was a walking anachronism and audiences adored her. Not long after the success of "Gidget" Miles Copeland signed the band to his influential IRS record label and it seemed only a matter of time before greater success would come.
A second single, "Janitor" was inspired by a misinterpreted conversation
Su had with friend Brian Smith: "She asked me what I did for a living. I said "I’m a Janitor" and she thought I said "Oh my genitals". Frank
overheard this and wrote the song." It became a classic of the genre and cemented their appeal to a growing legion of fans. The eponymous debut LP followed with cover art designed by the band. It was well-recieved by critics who began to tout them as the west coast equivalent to art-damaged bands Talking Heads & Devo. Smart, silly and slanted toward the avant-garde (but still not afraid to dance). In addition to Su-ccentric cuts such as "Anything" & "Gossip" it fleshed out the band’s other personalities, in particular Ranson’s laconic, hilarious "Not Allowed" and the frenzied, ska-injected highlight
"Mom And Dad And God" sung by guitarist Whitney. The LA Times called the album "Weird, exhilaratingly rushed, funny and scary...frenetic and menacing." Su Tissue went from sometime singer to reluctant frontwoman, gracing the cover of Slash magazine and becoming the focus of interviews & concert reviews alike, albeit uncomfortably: "People don’t understand what’s behind this band. It’s a collaboration," she told a reporter, "There are four other people. What they want to get across is important, that’s why we’re doing it this way." A prime slot opening for U2 during the filming of URGH! A Music War seemed poised for big-screen exposure but footage for either band was never used. Amidst all this attention a proposed third single ("Green Eyes") never materialized and support from IRS appeared to recede. While label-mates The Go-Go’s & Oingo Boingo saw their fortunes grow, plans for a sophomore release (with rumors of a possible Eno involvement) were prolonged and thus began to lay the seeds of the bands premature demise.
Sessions for the album (titled "Baby") were contentious as both their producer
and lead guitarist left before completion. Richard Mazda, who was helming Wall Of Voodoo’s "Call Of The West" at the time, was brought in to resume production duties. Deadlines & creative differences prevented Baby from becoming a fully realized work and wound up a 5-song EP instead. Not without it’s merits however, it showcased Su’s more subtle and, as in the stunning "Cowboy", even operatic qualities. At best, the band’s musical direction explored avenues of experimental dance music with some ambient textures, but McBurney's absence is felt. The UK’s Trouser Press summed up Baby as "a batch of muscular syncopated dance creations that evade rhythmic pursuit."
Baby was released in 1983 with little fanfare and even less support. Only the lead track "Flavor Crystals" got some airplay. Shortly thereafter Su Tissue left the band to study classical piano at the Berklee School Of Music. Save for an ambitious solo LP (Salon de Musique also produced by Emmons) which surfaced the previous year, it would be Su’s final foray into recorded music. She would vanish from the scene entirely following Demme’s film. The remaining members continued briefly as an abreviated version of The Lawns before finally calling it a day. Bassist Bill Ranson went on to play in The Roulettes and currently records with John McBurney under the name Pulsator. Richard Whitney became a teacher and can now be seen performing with Johnny Mark and The Ricks. EJ Emmons built his own successful production company. No information yet on the whereabouts of drummer Charles Rodriguez.
As is the case with most of IRS’s early catalog, Suburban Lawns (with exception of their two singles) have never been given a proper release on CD. The records have since gained a cult stature and are highly sought after by collectors. Such a shame that at a time when the likes of Gang Of Four, Joy Division & The Cure are enjoying a renewed interest among young musicians today that american post-punk visionaries such as the Lawns aren’t given a similar treatment. This page is dedicated to help disseminate what’s been criminally ignored by the music press and celebrate the intense creative force of these "lost pioneers" who, to use the words of novelist Richard Brautigan, seemed to "disappear in their becoming".
We had great fun opening for the Lawns a couple of times at the Nugget-A-GoGo in Long Beach when I was in the band Sofa Music. Always a packed house. Sue's piano music you posted is way ahead of it's time and sounds just as fresh today. Here's something you might enjoy...Greetings from the Kustomonsters and Friends! Enjoy! ...... Add The Kustomonsters and Friends's channel to your page......
on behalf of a chunk of folks in orange county, ca, thank you so much for posting the "Gidget Goes to Hell" viddy. we had a woman here who was a huge part of the community, and her nick name was Gidget Goes to Hell, as was her screen name. shortly after her untimely death last year (a horrible blow), her profile song (3 guesses which one) was deleted by the artist. today i commented her page with the viddy. thanks again from the bottom of our still-broken hearts. cheers!
It's great to finally see lots of video footage of Suburban Lawns on youtube these days. And great to have a music box of them on myspace. good work. BTW, I still have that same crush on Sue that I had when I was 15, now isn't that sad?
Tux Dentist was a band that did a few shows with the Lawns. Their drummer is now playing with Rick (Frankie Ennui) Whitney. The band is Johnny, Mark and the Ricks. JMR2 have a MySpace.
