Stu Richards: guitar, vocals, tea & sympathy.
Spontaneous: Bass, vocals, sarcasm.
Dan Reich: Drums, and, quite frankly, most of the good arrangement ideas!
Occasional guest musicians include:
Devitt"Make Mine A Double"Elverson on various stringed instruments which were custom-constructed for a small fortune, enriching several dodgy luthiers, craftsmen, and technicians in the process.
Joe "Are We Rolling Yet?" Albano playing the keyboards, imbibing imported beer; and is also the individual who was soley responsible for rendering rather believable samples of exotic instruments we simply cannot play or afford to purchase.
Jon Chaikin bass, background vocals and production on "Nothing Happens".
影響
We're under them right now, thank you very much, but for the record our individual heroes include
Stu: Bowie, Ronson, The Stooges, Thomas Pynchon, Richard Wagner, Philip K. Dick, Clive Barker, Frank Zappa. The case has been presented that I like the stuff I do because I have burned out my receptors and only the very finest, most elegant material will register. This could, in fact, be so.
Spontaneous : Hunter S. Thompson, Ralph Nader, Dee Murray, Marcus Miller, Norman Watt-Roy, Fernando Saunders, Noam Chomsky, Overend Watts, Jaco, The Ox, Harvey Brooks, Amy Goodman, Timothy White, Gary Giddins, David Zirin, Groucho Marx, Howard Stern, Bill Hicks, Dennis Kucinich, Daryl Jones, Bill Wyman, Mike Watt, Hugh Hopper, Jack Bruce, Flea, Mel Schacter, Klaus Voorman, Carl Radle, Billy Cox, Chuck Rainey, James Jamerson, Bruce Thomas, Chalmers Johnson, Juan Gonzalez, Martin Luther King, Ghandi, Patti Smith, among others
Dan: The Fabulous Ringo, John Bonham, Jim Gordon, Don Brewer, Brian Wilson, Big Star, The Ventures, Richard Thompson, Neil Young, Dinosaur jr., Ken Kesey, Joe R. Lansdale, John Ford, Orson Welles, Martin Scorsese...now don't get me started!
Covers we do
The Bells of Rhymney Pete Seeger/The Byrds She Twists The Knife Again Richard Thompson Wall Of Death Richard Thompson Sin's A Good Man's Brother Grand Funk Railroad Closer To Home Grand Funk Railroad Tomorrow Never Knows The Beatles The End The Doors Black Country Rock David Bowie Wah Wah George Harrison Whiskey Train Procol Harum Non-Alignment Pact Pere Ubu Hey Baby Jimi Hendrix
Special thanks to Abby Floden for the video of "Ghostland".
風格近似
Crazy Horse by way of Detroit with a dash of Husker Du, Richard Thompson, The Spiders From Mars and of course Grand Funk Rail Road. But that's just the music...
TEX'S PICK O' THE WEEK
A weekly discourse in which the assorted members of Tex Wagner get to wax ecstatic about any thing they feel like writing about. This week Spontaneous (bass, sarcasm) holds forth on one of his favorite records of all time. We welcome all comments.
The diVinyls THE DIVINYLS (1991)
I love myself I want you to love me / When I feel down I want you above me
I search myself I want you to find me / I forget myself I want you to remind me
I don’t want anybody else / When I think about you I touch myself
Ooh I don’t want anybody else oh no, oh no, oh no
I close my eyes and see you before me / Think I would die if you were to ignore me
A fool could see just how much I adore you /I get down on my knees I do anything for you….
My parents can tell you where they were when they heard that Pearl Harbor was attacked. Older brothers and sisters of my friends remember the instant they learned of JFK, RFK, and MLK’s untimely deaths. Or when they initially experienced the rush of “I Want To Hold Your Hand.” College mates of mine recall the shock of Lennon’s assassination. Today’s generation bore witness to 9/11. We all have our personal defining moments of world history that stay with us throughout our lives.
For me, it was the first sounds and sights of The Divinyls’ glorious paean to female self-pleasure entitled “I Touch Myself.”
As my ears caught the deliberate crescendo of the dominant chord folding into the tonic, I fixated my field of vision to a TV tuned into MTV. At once, I was dumbstruck by the alluring image of the voluptuous and petit sexpot chanteuse Christina Amphlett. She of the raspy howl was adorned in an unyielding black velour mini-dress, black high-heeled thigh boots, amber bangs barely covering her big brown eyes, a bee stung pout to die for, and arms caressing her own generous torso. I was immediately transformed…into a mongrel state.
Right then I knew what Iggy meant when he bellowed “now I wanna be your dog…”
The Divinyls were essentially the partnership of Amphlett and guitarist Mark McEntee abetted by hired guns. Unfortunately the duo’s career was plagued by managerial and record company shenanigans. However the Divinyls enjoyed success in their native Australia and were also staples on American alternative rock radio and mid-size venues from coast to coast despite the fact that the aforementioned composition, along with a previous mid-1980s single “Pleasure and Pain,” were their only domestic hits.
Respected amongst hipsters for their hard edged veneer combined with a love of Brill Building hookery, the Divinyls somewhat tempered their signature guitar driven modus-operandi with keyboards on this self-produced, self-titled outing in deference to the commercial times we were living in. Yet that element did nothing to impede their impeccable pop song-craft which can righteously be compared to the canon of the Pretenders, Blondie, Concrete Blonde, and Midnight Oil. Early Divinyls albums Desperate, What A Life! and Temperamental still sound vital today and are worth searching out in the used market.
Tracks on Divinyls such as “Make Out Alright,” “Bless My Soul It’s Rock ‘n’ Roll,” and “Need A Lover” frothed with hummable melodies and rock ‘n’ roll attitude aplenty. The first-call LA session cats on these dates – bassist Randy “American Idol” Jackson, drummer Charlie Drayton* (Keith Richards, Rolling Stones), and keyboardist Benmont Tench (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers) tore it up within the confines of the standard pop format – distinguishing this record from the standard slick pop fare of the late 80s – early 90s.
The massive success (and controversy) of “I Touch Myself” was a hard act to follow (pun somewhat intended). The Divinyls would render one more album in 1996 before calling it quits. Nowadays Amphlett is an accomplished television and stage actress in her homeland.
And it would not be a Tex Wagner Pick O’ the Week if we did not call attention to the album and single artwork which displays Ms. Amphlett in all her fish-net glory. As my rhythm section partner Dan Reich is oft to opine: “Va va va voom!”
Spontaneous
*Amphlett and Charlie Drayton were married in 1999
**In a 1991 episode of Saturday Night Live, Mike Myers and Dana Carvey rendered “I Touch Myself” in their Wayne’s World segment, substituting the lyrics “when I think about you” to “when I think Kim Basinger” as Basinger was named on their “Top 10 Babes List of 1991.”
Tex Wagner, that's pronounced VOG-NER, as in the German composer Wilhelm Richard Wagner (known for transforming musical thought via Gesamtkunstewerk - total art work - the synthesis of all poetic, visual, musical, and dramatic arts...never mind). Home base is Staten Island, however we lurk around all NYC boroughs. You have been warned.
Our story continues:
..Tex Wagner was formed in the late 20th Century by Stu Richards and Dan Reich. They met while both were employed in what most folks would consider a "clandestine profession". Dan was "retired" from music, having made his mark (he was lauded in print as superior to the mighty Clem Burke) in local New York bands including The Cyclones, The Mad Violets and The Corvairs.
Stu toiled in numerous ensembles and emptied many a room in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Arizona and New York. When Stu slipped Dan a cassette tape of his songs, Dan exclaimed "Hot damn, looks like I'm back in business!"
While writing material, the pair searched for a bass player (the underachievers of rock'n'roll according to Dan). After many auditions, Stu and Dan stumbled upon a colleague, Spontaneous , who also was employed at the aforementioned clandestine company.
The three formed a lasting bond based on friendship, Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Neil Young and a little pornography. Spontaneous , like Dan, was also a stalwart of the New York scene and had been an early band-mate of a Grammy Award winning Latino heart-throb, who shall remain nameless (we don’t want him cashing in on our name).
About a year after joining Tex, Spontaneous absconded to San Francisco...but not for the reason most men go there. He was briefly replaced by Jon Chaiken of Coloring Book and Non-Stop Inc. Stu and Dan kept Tex Wagner alive, continuing to write, record and play. Spontaneous returned to New York, Tex Wagner, and soy milk. The three have been together ever since – but sleep separately as Stu snores like all Three Stooges combined.
Tex Wagner 'The Rains Came'
Now hear the studio version of "The Rains Came" in our music player.
Profile edited with Thomas Myspace Editor V4.4 (www.strikefile.com/myspace)
“… AND THE CRITICS SAY…”
From AWE (Staten Island Advance Weekly Entertainment)
Thursday, August 21, 2008 by Ben Johnson
Staten Island music fans with MySpace pages might already know this alt rock trio -- since Tex Wagner's weekly reviews and picks of other music are always popping up on the group's social networking site. But Stu Richards, Dan Reich and "Spontaneous," as he's called, make up a review-worthy band in their own right. Visit the group's page and check out songs from the past and present, from 1996's chugging guitar rock cut "Really Real," to mid-tempo "Pay or Die," which starts with the confessional line "Since I got off drugs, things seem much more clear." The group has a knack for instrumental hooks and well-executed choruses that after a few listens will have you humming to yourself, and more importantly, they're big music fans who put their opinions out there for all to see. Check the Tex.
The following are some of the reviews of our ep "Rumble & Squawk" on its initial release in 1996:
Jersey Beat by Rich Q.
OK, picture this... a small, hot, smelly club, with a cloud of smoke so thick you barely make out the band playing on stage. Yet you don't need to see who's playing, you can
just feel what's going on. That's the kind of band Tex Wagner is. This Texas-meets-New York outfit bashes out some rootsy-cum Replacements rock n' roll with wild abandon.
The six songs on “Rumble & Squawk” have true appeal, with solid musicianship free from
any needless labels. The second song on the disc, “Really Real”, sums up the mentality of this band and their music. They cite people from Richard Thompson to My Bloody Valentine as influences, but don't even pay any attention to that… Just turn this sucker up loud! Stu Richards delivers great earthy vocals over the top of some pretty slick gultar playing.
The other songs simply rock, and you can just taste the Tex-Mex barbecue coming through your speakers on the last two tracks.
This will be mandatory listening for a while.
Good Times by Michele Duclos
Three member bands (Rush, Police) seem to command attention not because they're only three members but, because the members all display such a wealth of talent. Tex Wagner is among the three member bands.
Stu Richards (guitar/vocals), Spontaneous* (bass) and Dan "Big Daddy" Reich (drums) are a force to reckon with.
Their unique style of rock and roll lays nicely on these often "too pop" filled ears. With the likes of Husker Du and Neil Young as influences their music is compelling and raw with meaningful lyrics.
Tex Wagner are inventive, creative and refreshing. A definite purchase.
The Music Paper by Andy Glass
From the intersection of Boot Hill and Ave. A, guitar slinger Stu Richards and his band of urban outlaws blow a breath of fresh Texayorkan skronk into Manhattan's soot-clogged ears. Rumble & Squawk is a dirty, smelly, sprawling wonder. Y'all check it out, y'hear?
ROCKRGRL
Don't let the name fool you. Tex Wagner are not a good old-fashioned country band, but a good old-fashioned rock band. The New York based group seem to have garnered a pretty decent club following. Watch for them in the New York clubs.
The Island Ear by Ian D. Giff
“Rumble & Squawk” serves as the latest vehicle for Tex Wagner the NYC-based alternative/college rock power trio. These pseudo-indie rockers owe as much to the distortive mountain funk of Neil Young & Crazy Horse as to the post-punk fury of such early '80s alternative pioneers as Bob Mould and Husker Du. “Rumble & Squawk” is a studio concoction of discordant guitar, fragile melodies and gallow-humored, fatalistic songs. Stu Richards fronts this trio while operating the guitar, Spontaneous* mans the bass, and Dan"Big Daddy" Reich looms in the background as the drummer.
The Musician's Exchange Tex Wagner Funks Up
Tex Wagner, a three-member American band from NYC's Lower East Side received an official “thumbs-up” from the recently reunited Grand Funk Railroad for its version of the GFRR classic "Sin's A Good Man's Brother." The song appears as a bonus track on TW's new CD EP “Rumble & Squawk”, and features guest vocaiist Jennifer Amlen. The connection was made via America Online by the bands manager and a member of Grand Funk's road crew. In the meantime, Tex Wagner's currently working on its first full-fledged
album at Roof Top Studios.
Thanks for your support of the last NLO concert the photos are now viewable on our myspace site. We are currently mixing the last 6 songs on our 17 track project. Look for it in stores in December 2009
If you tell me exactly when you are playing Ill come down on the 12th Im not much for hangin around ya know!! And Im playing this Sat Sept 5 at Banjo Jims 7pm!! LL and her Demons
You guys are cool. Thanks for the add. Learned about you through a recent Recording Magazine article. Good luck with all. btw... the music reviews are as groovy as groove can be -- and so is The Viking.
First of all, please tell me that the photo below isn't really Rod, yikes. I remember when "Hot Legs" came out and I saw the video; I thought Rod had lost his mind. What a bunch of garbage. Love early Rod, Maggie May, brilliant... you wear it well and so many others. What a great voice...and then the disco dribble...he lost me for years. And now...heard him live recently and he has no voice left. God it was painful and he moves like he can barely walk. I really wish he would retire and leave us with the fond memories. Cool review...
Hi Tex Wagner, Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers & Chickenfoot) presents the Bombastic Meatbats, a sexy and loud, sonic funk experience that fuses together styles as diverse as funk, punk and 70's R&B! The CD will be in stores on September 15th and is available for PREORDER NOW, along with Free banner and wallpapers downloads! Please help spread the word and thanks for supporting Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats!!!
The Bells of Rhymney
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