I meant to write this piece three months ago but the
holidays and stuff got in the way.
Blue Cheer
bassist-vocalist Dickie Peterson died last October at the age of 61. Tonight I
pulled out my copies of the first two Blue Cheer albums and gave them a spin
for the first time in years.
The San
Francisco band's 1968 debut, Vincebus Eruptum, despite leading
off with the Top 20 hit deconstruction of Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues,"
is a failure on almost all levels (I know the diehards will accuse me of not
having "ears").
The
recording sounds like it was made on a four-track tape deck, devoting one track
to all the drums (panned to the right!), another to the bass (panned to the
left!), one for the guitar and one for the vocals, and the occasional overdub.
It was recorded in a small Bay Area studio in what sounds like a single
session. In other words, it was a quickie done to capitalize on the success of
"Summertime Blues." Apart from parts of the hit single and a cover of Mose Allison's
"Parchman Farm," there is no trace of melody on the record. Instead, Vincebus
Eruptum is 32 minutes of thin drums, tinny bass, and howling
psychedelic guitar freakouts. The only time this LP ever sounded psychedelic to
me was when I listened to it while on acid in college. Now it just sounds like
freeway pileup. Whether you play Vincebus Eruptum frontwards or backwards, it
sounds the same!
I like it.
But I don't
like it nearly as much as I do its late-'68 follow-up, OutsideInside (sic).
The album's
title gives some insight as to why this was Blue Cheer's masterpiece. "Outside"
refers to the fact that some of the tracks were recorded outdoors, in places
like Muir Beach and a pier on the New York waterfront, while the rest were laid
down "Inside" various recording studios. The thinking was that Blue Cheer were
so LOUD that their sound couldn't be adequately captured in a recording studio,
so it had to be captured in the relatively echo-free air of the outdoors. Among
the recording engineers was (long-time Jimi Hendrix associate) Eddie Kramer.
This album
is much better recorded. The drums are more spread out, the bass is fatter, and
the guitar tones and FX are crisp and clever.
This is the
real metal rock prototype. Blue Cheer were nothing if not powerful. The special
foldout cover on the original release contained a two square-foot black and
white shot of the band onstage, with Peterson and guitarist Leigh Stephens each
plugged into three Marshall amplifiers with 24 speakers. Drummer Paul Whaley is
a blur on his full double bass drum set. (I had that picture on the wall of the
trailer I rented at Southern Illinois University!)
Standout
numbers include the locomotive "Just a Little Bit," which was released as a
flop single, "Come and Get It," "Feathers from Your Tree," and a hilarious
cover of "Satisfaction," which goes from zero to 78 rpm in just over five
minutes.
When my
wife hears me playing OutsideInside, it's usually a matter
of minutes before she lets me know how much she HATES it.
That's when
I know it's awesome!