Personal History | The Che Underground

Nostradamus, I’m not. Part 3: Punk rock sweeps America!

April 21, 2012February 17, 2009 by Paul Kaufman

(Here’s Part Three from Che stalwart Paul Kaufman on how his young self was Dead Wrong on some major issues of our time.)

In the comments following Dave Rinck’s recent “This We Dug: The Sex Pistols” post, Dave Ellison perfectly nailed how I felt about hearing those records for the first time: “the Sex Pistols album made all the rock music, clothes, hairstyles, etc. that were around at the time seem completely outdated.” It’s hard to cast your mind back to fully capture how revolutionary it felt.

It was so clear in 1977. The Ramones and Patti Smith at CBGB, the Sex Pistols, Clash, Wire, X-Ray Spex, 999 and all the rest in England. So vibrant, making commercial radio (and San Diego was ALL commercial radio) taste like a mouthful of ashes. As a 13-year-old, I envisioned all the old boring stuff would be swept away in a tide of cultural and political enlightenment in the US. The UK was actually having records in the Top 10 that you didn’t have to leave the room for — why not in the US, too?

Happy birthday, Che Underground!

January 1, 2011February 15, 2009 by admin

Exactly one year ago Monday, I posted the first awkward entry to Che Underground: The Blog. This tiny corner of cyberspace was originally intended as a little online gathering point for a few old friends who’d been chatting on e-mail to swap MP3s and photos and maybe tell each other stories about our salad days. My statistics software shows me we had a total of 28 people look at the blog in February 2008.

Fast-forward precisely one revolution around the sun: Our audience grew to more than 8,500 people in January ’09 — but a much, much more important statistic is the sheer wattage of joy and love generated by being all together, All Grown Up. (A little jolt of pain here and there, perhaps … But that’s just part of the refining process, right?)

Here’s a space for Che birthday wishes and reflection: What have you given and received here this past year?

Photo paydirt from the garage

January 1, 2011February 7, 2009 by admin

“Hi Matthew,” writes Greg S. “Maybe you remember me. … Toby Thunderbird/ Lifehater/ Gibson told me about your site.

“I’m visiting the US and thought I’d dig up some old photos to contribute, which have been sitting in a box in my mom’s garage. … Wasn’t sure how/where to post them, so here they are.”

Lux Interior, RIP

December 11, 2017February 5, 2009 by admin

(Dylan Rogers commemorates another painful loss to the rock-‘n’-roll underground and recognizes the Cramps’ California connection.)

“Lux Interior, lead singer of The Cramps, passed away yesterday due to an existing heart condition at Glendale Memorial Hospital.”

Holy shit! Not again!

The Cramps are one of my fave bands. I have seen them more than any other band. They really got me through some lean musical times (late ’80s -mid ’90s); for a while, they were the only decent bands you could go see with ties to early punk.

Yes The Cramps are associated with New York, but the true beginnings of the band started in the early- to mid-1970s in Sacramento, Calif., in a small apartment on the corner of 21st and H, where Lux and Ivy first lived together. (Rumor has it Lux picked up Ivy hitchhiking, and they had been together ever since.)

Creative outlets

December 18, 2017January 31, 2009 by admin

“It’s interesting that most everyone seems to be as creative (and in most cases, maybe even more creative) than in our formative years,” Toby Gibson observed in a recent thread.

“Definitely we need a topic on how everyone is venting their creative bent these days. I’ll leave it at that and save the long-winded rant for the actual thread.”

Abridging my own long-winded rant, Toby nails another great topic. Nostalgia is a rich vein indeed, but this group is more than the sum of its memories. From Toby’s own writing to Patrick Works’ and Dave Doyle’s photography to Todd Lahman’s tonsorial stylings to the welter of punk-rock chefs in the house — to the folks who are still making music, of course — there’s a lot of creativity here (both money-making and otherwise).

Then and now: Graveyard Park

January 1, 2011January 26, 2009 by admin

(Roving correspondent Kristen Tobiason revisits the scenes of our past glories. Today, we find out where the bodies are buried — or not.)

“You moved the headstones, but you didn’t move the bodies!” In the Stephen Spielberg film “Poltergeist,” a suburban family is attacked by malevolent spirits provoked by a relocated graveyard.

Calvary Cemetery, a k a “Pioneer Park,” (1501 Washington Place in Mission Hills) shares a similar history (tho’ the only spirits I’ve heard of there are those of the bottled variety). Historically, the area served as a Catholic graveyard “between 1875 and 1919, with burials continuing up until 1960.” In 1970 the cemetery was converted into a public park, and “the grave markers (but not the people) were removed. A group of some of the gravestones were clustered together and a central memorial was placed in the southeast corner of the park. The exact number of people buried there isn’t known, but research alludes to possibly 4,000 burials which have occured there.”

Kick out the jams, open your doors

March 29, 2019January 14, 2009 by admin

(A quick Che Underground public-service announcement: Manual Scan/Shambles guitarist Kevin Donaker-Ring files an update on a very rewarding career and issues a call to action for a worthy cause.)

What I have been doing, lo, these many years: high school student exchange. In late 1982, I got a job running the copy machine and performing odd jobs at a high school exchange program located in La Jolla, Calif. I devoted almost my entire adult life to that organization, learning most everything there is to know about student exchange at the high-school level. Yet after 21 years, everyone at our head office was suddenly out. The Board of Directors had decided to move operations to one of the satellite offices. In Arkansas.

After a day or so of panic, I realized that I had the opportunity to start my own program and founded AFICE, the Academic Foundation for International Cultural Exchange, in December 2003. We are a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization. (Yes, donations are tax-deductible, so if you’re feeling generous, please think of us.) We operate all across the country, with local representatives from California to Maine, from Washington to Florida, and we even added a rep in Alaska recently.

Right now (and always, it seems), we are in serious need of host families. Our deadline (imposed by the US Department of State) is almost here and two of our families backed out at the last minute. Two kids from Poland, a girl and a boy, are suddenly without a place to stay.

This We Dug: Laurie Partridge

March 29, 2019January 9, 2009 by admin

(Editor’s note: When asked whether guest columnist Patrick Works could add this submission to the “This We Dug” franchise, series founder Dave Rinck wrote, “Of course! Anything Pat says is automatically cool.” And so it is.)

Or were you secretly in love with Keith? Or perhaps you were a wannabe Reuben Kincaid just like me?

For some strange reason amidst the caca-phone of 60s/70s TV the Monkees begat all kinds of media attempts at duplicating pop super-stardom, and the rest is of course TV history.

RIP: The legendary Ron Asheton

December 13, 2017January 7, 2009 by admin

(Wallflower David Rinck remembers the man who pulled the Stooges’ strings.)

Everyone who grew up rocking to “T.V. Eye” and “No Fun” should pause for a moment of silence tonight: Legendary Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton was found dead in his Ann Arbor home. Another sad day for underground music. This guy was seriously one of its real giants, possibly the greatest underground guitarist of all time…

Okay, on second thought, forget the silence! Silence and Ronny Asheton do not go together. Instead, throw that dog-eared old copy of the first Stooges album on and reverently play “1969” with the volume turned up to 11!!! I think that’s way he’d want to be remembered.

Then and now: New Year’s resolutions

December 14, 2017December 31, 2008 by admin

(Roving correspondent Kristen Tobiason revisits the scenes of our past glories. Today, we take a cup of — non-alcoholic — kindness yet for auld lang syne.)

Making a list and checking it twice. … It’s that time again. Time to make the list we never keep — Empty promises to our inner selves: To get on the wagon; quit smoking; lose 10 pounds; leave the ball and chain; or finally quit the job at the factory and become a rock star, for real this time!

Having already quit smoking, I am finding that my resolutions this year are not groundbreaking attempts at reform but just some small quality-life tweakings. It’s pretty tame.

Here’s what my current list looks like:
1. Return to 5x/week yoga.
2. Get the turntable fixed.
3. Write more and maybe even get out the drawing pencils.
4. Remember to send out b’day cards and thank-you notes.
5. Quit freaking out about getting older.
6. Meditate regularly.

I can imagine what my resolutions would have been when I was younger! (Yipes.)
Maybe something like this: