Explain the asthetics of Punk

Bongofury,

Thanks for sharing your experiences. Man, that must have been fun. There is great anectdote in the Ramones documentary (referenced above) about their legendary 1976 London show. It is said that only about 20-30 people were at the show but they all started bands. Attendies at that show included Johnny Lyndon (aka Johnny Rotten) of the Sex Pistols, Deborah Harry (Blondie), Joe Strummer & Mick Jones (The Clash), etc.

Mark

It was more nuts than fun. Very polarized environment. Small core fan base against a skeptical Public. Crowds got very crazy after 1976, especially in London. Lots of fights and objects flying toward the stage. Not for the Meek or Weak. But the music was real.

I had a 11 year old son when the next wave of bands hit in the mid 1990s, bands like the Offspring, Rancid and Green Day. We had some great conversations about the good old days. I told him I felt we lost the battle by 1983, when most of bands were done and gone, but won the war a decade later. Much more connected community was there to embrace his bands. And it was great to see sales in the tens of millions. The Vans Warped Tour did a great job at breaking new bands.

Sadly, The Ramones never had a real pay day for their innovative work.

The thing I remember most was the shows were very small. In LA, The Dickies, The Circle Jerks, The Germs, X, the Alley Cats, and Fear all played to crowds that averaged 50 to 500, so despite what anyone says, this was music for outsiders.

In Southern Cal we had some great venues - First and foremost - The Masque in Hollywood which was a regular venue for X, The Germs, The Mau-Mau’s, The Weirdos, The Avengers, The Dils, The Skulls and others. The Go-Gos rented practice space there. Cathay de Grandem, Madam Wong's, The Starwood were other Hollywood haunts

The Golden Bear in Huntington Beach - home for Agent Orange, The Adolescents, TSOL, etc. Cuckoo's Nest was another. Fender's Ballroom in Long Beach

Sweetwater in Hermosa Beach and The Fleetwood in Redondo Beach - pretty much home for Black Flag

Dancing Waters in San Pedro - home of The Minutemen and Firehose

I told him I felt we lost the battle by 1983

The US Festival(Saturday, May 28, 1983) felt like the last gasp to me.

The Vans Warped Tour did a great job at breaking new bands.

I worked the Warped Tour in '97 for Gatorade, great time. 26 shows in ~30 days over North America. That, had the feeling of bands in it for the love of music. Just everybody piled in buses bouncing from city to city. There wasn't really any room or money for prima donas. Not to mention, no band was really big enough to think so.

I saw or worked all the seminal shows at the Masque, Madam Wong's, Cuckoo's Nest, Al's Bar, The Golden Bear and the Claremont Colleges (which hosted the Ramones and NY Dolls).

My business partners are the founders of the Warped Tour: "Fish" from Vans and Ray of RK Diversified. They can't believe it celebrated its 15th Birthday this year.

I forgot all the great Ska shows that took place at the O.N. Club in Hollywood. You also need to bring in the aspect that punk was also very much aligned with reggae and ska music in the early days. Lee Perry was used on a number of albums and Don Letts, the great London DJ, was instrumental in linking those two world together in 1976. Bob Marley commented on this in his single "Punky Reggae Party."