Rapscallion - Rain And Shine / Just A Rapscallion. 1979 USA-Cleveland

Rapscallion were one of many great AOR / hard rock bands hailing from Cleveland, a mecca for the blue collar muscular sound. The A) side mixes some heavy riffing with acoustic guitars and harmony vocals. It's way too raw to make inroads into the corporate FM sound, but the attempt is admirable. B) side has a Rush meets Styx vibe. Features a killer guitar mid song break. These guys had the right sound at the right time, but didn't catch the break. Pity that.

1/9/25

Tail Gunner – Sassy / Ten Years. 1980 USA-Baltimore

Tail Gunner is a great example of the American hard rock sound from the late 70s going into 1980. A full album (which apparently was planned) would have been a revelation. Neither of these two tracks exceed two and a half minutes, but they do pack a few ideas into each. Which tells me an album would have fallen into the sophisticated hard rock category. 'Ten Years' eerily sounds like the great Micah, especially the way the vocals are handled. Keyboards are a nice touch. The YouTube video confirms these guys have the "look" to go with the chops.

3.5 / 3.5

1/9/25

Bill Stein - Where To Go, What To Do? / Come To Me. USA

Eclectic 45, but has elements of hard rock, psych, AOR, and prog. And how about that label name?

Own. From an estate sale in Castle Rock (2019).

I found two copies and we sold one of them. I suspect it may have been released in Colorado. 

9/12/19 (first listen); 3/27/20 (review); 1/1/25 (new entry)

West (West The Band) - Ghost Riders / Turkey Necks. 1980 USA-Wyoming

Best I can tell is that West started out as a hard rock band and evolved into a more typical country rock / pop group. They started in Powell, Wyoming which is way up north toward the Montana border. Eventually they moved to Cody, which is famous for its rodeo scene. And it's closer to Yellowstone / Jackson Hole, where I'm sure there were plenty of gigs to be had as well.

 'Ghost Riders' is indeed the known late 1940's track that was made most famous by The Outlaws in 1980. Interesting then, to find out this was copyrighted and published in 1977. But it may have been recorded in 1980 (probably was). Interesting in that it is also a wicked hard rock version of the song. Is this where The Outlaws got the idea? The 'Turkey Necks' side is more typical country rock/pop and is copyrighted 1980.  According to the back sleeve, these two tracks were recorded in San Diego. San Diego? That's a long way from home and couldn't have been cheap.

Own. Estate sale find (2020).

3/28/20 (first listen / review / new entry)

Just say weeeeeeeeeeee.

Racket - It's Our Night / Cruisin' (Down Main Street). 1981 USA-Pittsburgh

An older sounding 45 than the date suggests, while there is synthesizer, there's also Hammond organ and phased guitar. A better than average hard rock, and it looks to be related in some way to Poobah (Peppermint Productions). Good stuff.

Recent evidence places this 45 from 1981 and the band is from Pittsburgh.

Own. Online acquisition (2022).

12/22/22 (first listen / review); 1/1/25 (new entry)

The Whim of Arrow - 1800LBS of Grey / The Day Noah's Ark Sank. 1966-67 USA

A very bizarre 45. The first side is a mix of novelty folk and hard rock. There's a pretty heavy guitar lick about half way through. It's not psychedelic fuzz either. Like 70s hard rock. 45cat has confirmed the date of this song to be 1966, so way ahead of its time. Seems like it was made for children maybe? The second side is an instrumental organ driven number like Booker T and the MG's (confirmed to be from 1967). Absolutely one of the weirdest 45s I've heard. They were "Rollem" them that's for sure! A certain keeper.

No idea where they're from.

Own. Found at the Austin Record Show (2023).

5/25/23 (first listen / review); 1/1/25 (new entry)

Ground Attack - Red Lion / Every Mother's Son. 1981 England

Though associated with the NWOBHM movement. Ground Attack sound more like a standard issue early 80s hard rock band. Not very heavy or original, the two tunes here blow by without much notice. A little AC/DC can be heard on the B side. 

11/25/24

Lynx – Just A Friend / Woman Of My Dreams. 1970 USA-Texas

Just the fact that these guys are from Andrews, Texas is already a revelation for this Texas Tech graduate. How a hard rock band like this existed in the oil fields and ranches of 1970 is something amazing in of itself. Solid hard rock from the Grand Funk / Rare Earth school. This was their debut, but they managed to get out six 45s, which is incredible. They even covered early Yes on one of those. I'd keep that one if I ever find it...

7/21/20 (first listen); 9/15/24 (review / new entry)

Lance-Horizon - Rage / I Don't Like It. 1979 USA-North Carolina

From Chapel Hill. This 45 was released initially with the artist name as Lance, and later copies appended Horizon. A) side has a hard edged AOR bent to it. Love the guitar tone here. One can hear the Hendrix ghost of 'All Around the Watchtower' for sure, not a common sound for 1979. Though I suppose Frank Marino can be spotted here too. B) side is more radio friendly, though the guitar soloing is still excellent. Vocals kinda blow in that indie rock monotone way. 

4.0 / 3.0

8/2/24

Flyte - Movin' Faster / Don't You. 1983 USA-Michigan

From the Christian southern Michigan town of Hillsdale. This isn't that haha. Starts off in cock rock mode with light metal riffing and doesn't really develop. B) Tells us they "like to rock". No way, really? Boogie metal I guess. This song is really dumb. 

4/15/24

2.0 / 1.5

Sterling Cooke – Don't Need You Anymore / Tomorrow Never Knows. 1982 USA-Pennsylvania

From northeastern Pennsylvania. File Sterling Koch (real name) next to Uli Jon Roth as guys who had no intention of letting Hendrix's legacy become forgotten. A) side sounds like the first Electric Sun album, which gets you a gold star in my book. B) side obliterates the Beatles tune with more of that Hendrix goodness. Completely out of time coming around in the early 80s like this. Great two sider.

This would be the debut recording for Koch, and it looks like he went on to form The Sterling Cooke Force and released two albums* and one more single. He then recording under just the name Sterling Cooke and released two cassettes. Guessing they're shred, based on this 2009 RYM review comment from the same single above: "A few years later, Sterling would be aping Joe Satriani while playing in a hair-metal band with people half his age. Now he plays born-again blues on a lap steel, according to his MySpace page."

*- I since purchased both - the first is fantastic like this single, the second is hair metal and not so good.

4/1/24

Rapunzel - Mornin' Sunrise / The Riddler/Changes. 1973 USA-Massachusetts

From a commune in western Massachusetts. A solid hard rock riff opens A), nice organ and a good mid song solo. Pretty rockin' stuff here, in the early Grand Funk Railroad tradition. B) side picks up perfectly with a faster riff, and some 60's Batman-era Riddler vocal hysteria. This jams hard - more mid to late 70s sounding. Excellent two sider.

Lots of strangeness as for the release itself. There are four pressings (maybe more) - three on the Corn label, one on Nork. The three on Corn each have a different catalog number and one is from the UK. More data here about the artist and label. 

4.0 / 4.0

3/31/24

Wayne Hurst – Galaxies Of Love / Back Again. 1974 USA-North Carolina

From the Chapel Hill area. A delicious sounding hard guitar riff opens the A) side. Nice mid song break with a good solo. Only drawback is it fades out too soon! B) side recalls Lynyrd Skynyrd in song format. 'Sweet Home Alabama' comes to mind here. Southern rock at its most basic but with a nice solo. 'Galaxies of Love' sounds a few years ahead of its time, and 'Back Again' a few years before haha.

3/31/24

Iron Tongue - (Ride on Down to the) San Antonio Line / It Could Have Been a Real Love. 1976 USA-Chicago

Cool name for a band. Looks like a modern heavy group from Arkansas nabbed it as well. Guessing these guys are from the Chicago area because of the label base. Guitar tone is almost psych, but ultimately this is bar room dancin' hard rock n' roll music. Fist pump your Old Style bottle while trying to two step at the same time. B side is remarkably similar, though bordering novelty territory.

2.5 / 2.5

3/31/24

Golgatha - Dies Irae / Children's Game. 1972 Germany

An anomaly for the great experimental Krautrock Ohr label, as Golgatha are primarily a hard rock group, similar to how fellow labelmates Pilz got its start. 'Dies Irae' uses the familiar monkish chant combined with narration and horns. B) is more committed to the horn rock genre, recalling countrymen Round House, Emergency, and For Example. Nice Terry Kath styled guitar as well. A very good representation of the style.

2/14/24

Idlewilde South - Feel It / Pedro's Bar & Grill. 1980 USA-South Carolina

From the hinterlands of South Carolina. A) side is FM friendly bar n' roll. B) side features an opening cool hard rock riff that reminds me of Blackfoot when they catch a groove. Actually the whole song reminds me of Blackfoot.

1/23/24

Doug Mays & The Sticky Kids - Raining in My Heart / Part Time Lover. 1981 USA-Mississippi

From Biloxi. About as bad as you would expect. A) side is straight up early 80s dummy hard rock. B) side is worse with a bluesy angle that makes you want to forget the decade altogether. 

2.5 / 2.0

1/23/24

Wilderness II - Strange Kind of Woman / In Medley. 1972 USA-Oklahoma

From Tulsa. Both tracks are badly produced Deep Purple covers. B) side is 'Lazy' with some extending jamming. 

2.5 / 2.5

1/23/24

August - All the Time in the World / Old Lady. USA-Boston

Pop / Bubblegum psych with light hard rock touches. Has some decent distorted soloing. Mostly unknown. Label is from Boston, so likely a New England based group. 

1/23/24

Paraphernalia - Watch Out / Never. 1970 USA-Boston

I have the A) side on the Overdose of Heavy Psych comp. Good riffing hard rock with organ maybe like Sir Lord Baltimore, so it's slightly ahead of its time. Listening to the flip for the first time. Usually when only one side is featured on the comps, the other is to be avoided. But that's not the case here. This sounds more like its era, and is a wonderful dreamy psych piece. There's a slight Latin Soul Rock vibe I'm getting (think early Malo), which is entirely coincidental I'm sure (especially since they were from Medford, Massachusetts). Great two sider.

2/2/19 (first listen); 12/31/23 (review / new entry)