For me, I discovered my uncles old stash of 50s/60s Hot Rods about the same time The Stray Cats came out, and it was like throwing gasoline on fire - I've built hot rods and played in bands for the past thirty years, and the Stray Cats had everything to do with it.
The Stray Cats came out and the songs were cool... I was a skater in the high-desert... I was into punk and new wave and Soul and Rap and Funk and Elvis and the Beatles and just about everything in between as long as it wasn't played on the radio that much... I never saw too much connection between the Stray Cats and cars... Music was always about cars... The Stray Cats weren't any different than Eddie and the Cruisers... I thought 'Grease' was a goof... I really did want a '*****in' Camaro' for a while though... My dad and I built a 67 GMC pickup, my best friend's dad had a 38 Coupe, he and I build a VW and a El Camino and eventually a custom Late Model Chevy truck. His dad's best friend was a big time flathead nut and into lakes racing at nearby El Mirage... I never realized how much sitting around, listening to the two of them talk, actually sunk in... Or how much it would shape me later.... Cars were life... Music made cruising funner... I never thought I was going to get into hot rodding because that's what the stray cats did... I loved Social Distortion but never made the connection to traditional customs... I took music at face value... I never tried to emulate the lives the lead singers projected... I never knew what 'Rockabilly' was... I listened to Bauhaus and Sisters of Mercy but never heard the term 'Gothic' untill much later... When I did, I thought it was stupid... I liked all kinds of cars, I loved the billet rods in the Street Rodder collection of my best friend's dad... I thought that one day, if I got rich enough, I'd build one. In the meantime, I'd build something cheaper and make it cool... As I got older though I started to look for something with a little more substance... In the meantime, I was going to Punk gigs all over so-cal, I was raising hell and destroying property... But always in a straight ahead manner... Always with an eye and ear to the meaning of what was goin on... The ROOTS of what I was listening to and the SOUL of the social ethic that surrounded it... I went to college... My customized truck was getting old... I sold it... I thought, wouldn't it be cool if I could cobble together an old car with soul? I had seen a few kids restore old cars with their dads... I knew I could do that myself if I found the right car... I started collecting my own magazines... I avoided the high-dollar world of Street Rodder in an attempt to stay realistic. I looked to American Rodder, Rod and Custom, and Custom Rodder for research materials. I found the hidden ROOTS and soul of old cars there... I created a wish list of 'dream rods' with a '49 Tudor at the top of the list and 59-60 chevys as the remaining dreams... I talked my dad into coming with me to the Pomona Swap meet to see what we could find because he can sell long-johns to a stripper... I thought I'd never find a *****in Shoebox I could actually drive while I fixed it up... But I did... I bought it the next day after the guy didn't get any better offers at the show and went and picked it up. Getting the car changed the music for me... The songs by the Stray Cats and Reverand Horton Heat took on new meaning... I always liked them but they seemed to speak to me more, after I got the old car... So in the world of which came first 'Cars (the Chicken) or Music (The egg)' it was cars for me... Music was always there... But so were cars... I've always listened to the same music I listen to today. But old cars just seem to complete the puzzle for me.......
I'm probably in the minority (or possibly the only one) who can't stand most songs about cars, regardless of artist.....
Your cousin is James Intveld? He's a bad***! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ny5CMpmkfWc That's the only reason I got into Brian Setzer, which led to Stray Cats and eventually hot rods for me..
Man them cats are skinny. Great write up. "Go Cats GO!!!" I thinks the kids and grand-kids of the WWII generation were rebelling against the complacency of the "Yuppy" movement. Come on, PASTEL. I like the Cats because of their great music but more because it respects American Tradition. (Damn Hooligans!) Hot Rods do that too. (Damn Rebels.) They're raw and tough and show that a few folks are still willing to bust their knuckles, get a little dirty and forge something of their own that can be used, abused, and appreciated for what it is. They're brash, they exude power, and, for the most part, they aint faking it. Nor do most end up on a trailer at the end of the day. (unless something big breaks.)
I had an early eighties New Wave, Rock, Punk Import record collection of almost everything you could think of- I ONLY kept my Stray Cats records. They mean that much to me. One of the many lights that we all navigated our lives to.
Thanks for the trip back. I was 23 and my 57 Chevy delivery was still my daily My date had a black 48 Buick with bias-ply whitewalls(I think I was in love) Some good times right there.Stray Cats were a breath of fresh air in the suffocating 1980's.
Man, you are my hero of the week ! saw them for the first time in 83'. They played with 14 karat soul and a band called Roman Holiday.
Those Cats were starving in 1980 as you can see from early vids. Dave Edmuns brought them to Europe (London) and produced their first album "Stray Cats" in -81. They got their first gold record in Finland. We had had other 50´s style bands on charts before but albums first song "Runaway Boys" was tough, almost punk kind of -billy song and it hit staight between our ears. I even like(d) more "Storm the Emb***y" with sharp and raw guitar solo and hypnotic back beat. The words on song were something different too. Even if I was 13 years old Johnny Burnette/ Eddie Cochran fan I loved them- they brought wild rocking feeling back to rockabilly. You could see young rocking cats on every town´s streets on late 70´s and early 80´s here. You can read more if you are interested somewhere in the middle of site: http://www.rockabillyhall.com/ray.html . Small undergroud army is still left and new soldiers have joined . I was amazed I didn´t see ductails in the streets in -82 when I toured USA and Canada for a mounth even If Stay Cats LP Built For Speed sold millions of copys on those days. I loved the cover of Rant´n´Rave but I had money to built my first hot rod years later. Actually I built my first british bike bobber not so many years later but reason for that is more my old man who was on those bikes in 60´s. The band always remembers us and gave us many sold out gigs before they splitted. Yes, I have seen them too on stage. Thank you guys. Ari
It's a weird thing, but when I first started watching live rockabilly in the mid 80's, there was a handful of zoobs who used to look sideways at anyone they thought didn't 'belong' or deserve to be there, in the opinions formed in their tiny minds. Saw one or two of the same ******s a year or so ago at a gig: exactly the same, except psychobilly was the new black. The car of choice? Yep, rat rods. And the term 'old school' was applied to everything from tatts to underwear. Say it with enough authority, and people think you know what you're talking about. Thank the good Lord Preacher Jack that hot rodders in Oz sit back with a beer and kill themselves laughing watching these twirps go by. Ahhh...feel better now. Matt
dang I guess I'm too young to have good memories of MTV hahah I was born in '83 and the only thing about MTV from the 80's I can remember is MC Hammer and for some reason the "Rock the Cradle of Love" video from Billy Idol. Now mtv just plays lame tv shows and no music.
Sorry to dig up this old post........but, we need more "Bleed" articles on the JJ.......now that he is famous and all. My wife said last night that 'Little Bobby Bleed' is growing up.......not sure what she meant' by that.......and the last time that she saw him was him playing a guitar on a 'wobbly' bar in downtown KC. Chris
I know it's an old post, but, damn that brought back some memorys. Like you bob, I was stuck in the 50's at an early age. We must be close to the same age. The first time I heard "The Stray Car Strut" it was like some one hit me in the *** with a cattle prod. Good read.
Wow. I remember when MTV showed videos ALL DAY and The Stray Cats were cool as ****. I wouldn't go so far as to say they started anything, but they were a big part of an under current that was going on. Those guys ROCKED! And as stated, it has gotten diluted over time. Someone needs to give it a jump start. This web site is in the same boat. There's a lot of threads that have gotten a p***, but Ryan got a hold of that situation. Hopefully, it will get back on track. Otherwise, we'll be like the Stray Cats. In a blog about cool times past.
Enjoyed the article. It brought back great memories. I loved and still love The Stray Cats. I don't have any vinyl anymore from them. Wonder where it went? But still have Some old tapes from the 80s of the Stray Cats. I still remember going over to a friends house the first time to see MTV when it started. Can't believe how young they are in the videos.
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