Customer Reviews

School Punks

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SCHOOL PUNKS-BROWNSVILLE STATION: BROWNSVILLE STATION's semi-legendary SCHOOL PUNKS is every bit as rootsy, bloozey, ballsy, and bangin' as i remember it. Thanks to the hindsight of adulthood, or whatever it is i've grown into, i realize NOW that it's actually a concept album about...not so shockingly...high school daze (lust, juvenile delinquency, macho posing, the whole shindig). The stellar caricatures of CUB KODA and company as leather clad greasers hangin' in a graffiti-covered lavatory is the stuff that 12 inch LP covers were created for. Drummer H-BOMB WECK sings a rare and soulful lead vocal on DEE CLARK's RNB classic HEY LITTLE GIRL, proving that everyone in this power trio could carry a tune. Elsewhere, OSTRICH is titillating twang, LEADER OF THE GANG is GARY GLITTER glammed into high gear, and sorta-hit KINGS OF THE PARTY is a sludgy slab o' CHUCK BERRY crashing headfirst into garage rock and a garbage truck. If they'd tacked on their previous smasheroo SMOKIN' IN THE BOYS ROOM (i've seen other acts put the same hit on two consecutive albums), this puppy would be the PERFECT educational slam-o-rama!

RATING: FIVE FAILING GRADES

Originally released in 1974,with that oh,so familiar lp cover.I've never been THAT big of Brownsville fan. Have always considered them to be second rate boogie rock,but they do have their moments. Tunes that I thought made the grade were "Kings Of The Party"(their 2nd hit-you read that right),"Meet Me on The Fourth Floor","I Got It Bad For You" and their two covers,Geno Washington's "I Got So Excited" and Gary Glitter's "I'm The Leader Of The Gang". Line-up: Cub Koda(R.I.P.)-guitar,Michael Lutz-bass&vocals and Henry Weck-drums. Should appeal to most fans of J.Geils Band,Thin Lizzy,early Bob Seger and Foghat.

This is three man rock rebellion at its finest. Brownsville Station followed up their mammoth proto-punk hit "Smoking In The Boy's Room" with this slice of power-trio garage rock, and it solidified their reputation as a party band. Even the title of the album, "School Punks," caters to the image that the naughty-boy topic of "Smoking In The Boys Room" propagated. Then the first song on "School Punks" name checks it, "Meet Me On The Fourth Floor" rewrites it, and both "Fast Phylis" and "Mama Don't Allow No Parking" continue the projection of high-school hi jinks.

This album also has two BS classics...the band's statement of purpose "Kings Of The Party" (a minor chart hit) and the continuation of great cover choices with "I'm The Leader Of The Gang" by glam rock king Gary Glitter. The late Cub Koda also solidifies his place as the band's frontman, singing all but one of the songs here. Drummer Henri "H-Bomb" Weck takes the mike on the oldie "Hey Little Girl," but the band has really become the party-boy of the group's image. This is also the first BS album to prominently feature the band's songwriting. Six of the ten songs are by the band, all in the band's hard-rocking style.

That mix was between hard-rocking ("Kings Of The Party") and loving old 50's style rock (the medley of "I've Got Love If You Want It/I'm A King Bee") that predated The Ramones by a couple of years. Even though Brownsville's style of rock was closer to Foghat or J.Geils than the coming surge of punk to come, there is no denying that Cub Koda and the boys had an influence on garage rockers everywhere, and "School Punks" is probably their most consistent album.