Customer Reviews

Candy: Teenage Neon Jungle

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

WOW!! What else is there to say than that, this is a great, unexpected collection of Bay City Rollers-styled glam pop by a band that just never made it. Their only album "Whatever Happened To Fun" is far and away the best album of 1985, and only "American Kix" doesn't exist here in one form or another, which is a shame since that was one of the best tunes on the original album. Singer Kyle Vincent went on to tour with Barry Manilow and release some amazing solo albums, guitarist Gilby Clarke played with Guns N Roses, and bassist Jonathan Daniel and drummer John Schubert formed Electric Angels (good) and the Loveless (Great!). This album is totally worth snapping up for both the tunes and the great (if tough to read) liner notes.

Best Tracks:
"Whatever Happened To Fun" - Not as good as the original but with heavier guitar and a longer outro - hilarious fadeout to a radio spot.
"The Girl I Love" - A never before heard demo that reminds of me of one of Tommy Dunbar (Kyle Vincent's buddy from the Rubinoos) songs. Should have made the 1st album!
"Champagne" - Would like to hear this redone with better production...Great chorus and pretty good lyrics too.
"Lonely Hearts" - Better than the original album version due to its high energy vocals and slightly faster tempo.
"Electric Nights" - Another one of my faves from the 1st album, this may have the worst chorus lyrics I've heard in awhile, but somehow its a sweet, catchy, moving, rousing anthem - A+.
"Sound Of A Broken Heart" - Another unreleased gem that should have made the album, this one has hooks galore.
"Daddy Is A Jet" - Candy's first demo with hilarious lyrics and better than expected production. Kyle's voice is already pretty good at a young age, and the chorus is a keeper.
"The Last Radio Show '03/'85 Live" - This may be my #1 track from the original album, and the new version is pretty good too. Bittersweet lyrics, stylistic changes that keep it fresh throughout its 6 1/2 minute length, and above all a soaring, simple chorus make this one of the absolute gems for pop fans.

***The original album should be purchased in vinyl or cassette form if you can find it anywhere. It is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL.

Candy was the bastard child of the Bay City Rollers and Poison, all big hair, guitars and sugar-coated vocals. Chock full of New Wave/Power Pop nuggets, Teenage Neon Jungle is a must-have for fans of the early 80's L.A. sound. The liner notes alone are nearly worth the price of the disk. Now, where's that reissue of "Whatever Happened to Fun"?

I was under the impression that Kyle and the boys were going to re-release the "Whatever Happened to Fun" CD with a couple of extra rare tracks, so when I heard this CD I was really surprised to hear all differen't versions of the tracks that were on that album, some are live and some are demo's but they all sound great! Candy were an amazing little pop band that left you wanting more since they only ever recorded one album back in the mid eighties. Wonderful to finally have some of their music on CD, now if they would only re-release the complete "Whatever Happened to Fun" album I could die a happy man!

Candy was one of the most popular bands playing the LA clubs in the early 80's, and deservedly so. This CD, which contains demo/live versions of the songs from their long-out-of-print Polygram release "Whatever Happened to Fun", brings back those glory days vividly.

If remembered at all, Candy is generally referred to as the band Gilby Clarke was in before he joined Guns N Roses. But that isn't fair. Candy was always primarily Jonathon Daniels' band. Officially just the bass player/songwriter, Jonathon was the creative genius behind everything Candy. Just listen to tunes like "Weekend Boy", "The Last Radio Show" and "Kids in the City" to hear some GREAT songwriting: bouncy sing-along radio friendly tunes with lyrics that are about suicide & hopelessness. Great stuff!

The live cuts capture the energy and fun that epitomized Candy live. The demos of songs that later appeared on "...Fun" are not as polished as the final versions, but there are some songs that have never been heard outside live performance such as "Champagne" & "Daddy Is A Jet". Truly interesting are the later career cuts from Candy's members: Jonathon's bands Electric Angels & the Loveless were as good as Candy (no surprise, with him writing their songs too), Kyle Vincent (vocalist)has gone the AOR route, while Gilby's later work is probably familiar to anyone who picks this CD up.

Kyle Vincent is primarily responsible for putting this collection together, and props go to him for digging up old sound bytes of radio DJ's & Esther Wong (the doyenne of LA's New Wave scene & also Jonathon's boss when he worked as a booker for Madame Wong's West) that run between the songs. Thanks Kyle for bringing back so many great memories, and THANK YOU JONATHON for writing so many wonderful songs over the years. Now, how about re-releasing the 2 Loveless albums on Songtree??

Candy was an amazing 1980s power pop band whose one and only album "Whatever Happened To Fun" was a lost classic. In the absence of that being available, however, you'll have to make due with this.

"Teenage Neon Jungle" contains some great Candy songs, some demos, and some random weird stuff like audio clips from Rick Dees' radio show. While this album is worth it for those "great Candy songs", keep hoping for that reissue.