Cyndie Jaynes’ amazing gift to Che Underground: The Blog continues giving with this wonderful series of photographs from a late-era Wallflowers concert featuring Todd Lahman on guitar and Matt Johnson on drums. As always, Paul Howland (pictured in these photos) and Dave Rinck loomed large in the lineup.
MC/guest vocalist Jerry Cornelius, Tony Sanchez, Kristi Maddocks, and Audrey Moorehead also make the scene. What was the venue? The little picket fence and trellis evokes a freaky ice-cream parlor vibe. Who can ID this magic moment?
(Note the winos on Paul Howland in the photo with Jerry.)
That’s an easy one. Picket fence onstage can only be Jimmy’s Place, aka JPs, aka the Syndicate on Chatsworth and Voltaire in Point Loma. Great pictures, once again!
By the way, that’s Tony SANCHEZ, with Teresa Salazar in the background.
(Ray just set me straight on my Tonys … I misidentified the Tony Sanchez as Tony Suarez … Damn haircuts! The post is now fixed — thanks also for the Teresa Salazar ID, Mr. Brandes!)
Besides my Tony-stigmatism, I am dismayed at my own senile inability to spot the Syndicate — but I will say that a couple of other old-timers were also stumped when I passed these around. Curse these cataracts! 🙂
i once had a girlfriend write me a check, and she wrote “sanchez” on it. Ha!
I see Theresa Salazar quite often these days. She haunts the whistlestop bar on Sunday afternoons (1st and 3rd ) for the knitting event my wife throws together.
Tony
Of COURSE that’s where it is -- honestly, I couldn’t remember. Apparently the 18 year old me expected the 41 year old me to remember all this stuff and neglected to write anything down.
Seriously Matt, you don’t have to preface these posts with my name, I’m glad to do it 🙂 I’ve had a blast scanning all these photos and I’m glad now other people get to see them as well. I took a ton of pictures hanging around Murphy’s house on Normal St. I remember there was a Thrifty’s or a Longs right across the street and I was always taking rolls of film over there to get developed.
Tony, where do you live now? We should have a post on who sees who on a regular basis. I saw Jill Ruzich in the mid 90’s but other than that, I haven’t seen anyone from those days in over 20 years.
I dont think the Syndicate was the place with the fence. We played there and there was no fence there at the time…in fact there’s a picture of us playing at the Syndicate on here somewhere.
I remember seeing Matthew’s second band, Three Guys Called Jesus, playing at this place with Hair Theatre, and I think the Nashville Ramblers… Sergio leaned on the fence while performing and knocked it down. I thought it was in North County somewhere (?) …or, who knows, maybe there was more than one venue with white fences.
Great pictures! This show looks like a blast.
Isn’t that Michell Kroen in back of Kristi dancing as well?
Dave R.: Yeah. That’s Michelle -- with Carina Burns in the back. Carina -- as she mentioned on the board -- was the source of Todd Lehman’s black Gibson.
I completely don’t remember doing this!
I remember Rock Palace, with Armando on trumpet -- this is close to that time, right before you and Tom G split fro Asia, and I went to SFO. At the RP show, I did a bit on “Security” -- the Otis Redding tune -- with you. I dimly remember something like “House of the Rising Sun” segueing into “Hotpants”. Gotta find the shots with you in front!
Security. Somehow, Todd and Paul were referencing the Thane Russal version.
Cyndie’s got an awesome headshot of Dave Rinck at the mic — he looks atypically serious, like a young Adonis — but it’s from a different gig. (Cyndie thinks the Che, in fact.) And the style’s quite different from this set. So in the interest of coherent historical narrative, I saved it for another installment that will also feature some wonderful offstage portraits of the Wallflowers.
So it must have been been given the fences, etc. when it became JPs…when it was the Syndicate, Im pretty sure it was just an empty room with a stage and PA speakers propped up on banquet tables… and folding chairs set up in rows. That’s my dim memory of it, anyway.
Let’s see some of those photo’s from Murphy’s house,I only remember the Liquor Barn being across the street,with a well worn path between the two.
Ok,so I hadn’t read part one yet and now I have.Sorry to be redundant,lets see some more though,they’re great.
Has anyone heard from John Murphy lately?
I saw him in SF 5 years ago at a Discharge show where Battalion of Saints was opening,mine and John’s high school homeboy,Marty Sandman is in contact with John and has told me in recent months that John is doing well.Let’s hope we hear from him soon,he is a good friend.
hi Cindy,
I am back in San Diego. Living it up in Normal Heights with the wife and two dogs.
I thought I saw murphy a few months ago at a Target. It turned out to be his younger doppleganger gone suburban.
Tony
Wow! We only played a few shows as the Wallflowers with this lineup. I believe the last couple were at Safari Sam’s and the Cavern. Dave Rinck and I hitchhiked to L.A. from wherever Safari Sam’s was, after a very crowded, and rambunctious night at the hotel there (Long Beach?). Everybody else was lagging so we thumbed some very interesting rides (the blond bikini hottie in the convertible, the bikers who were thinking about robbing the gas station/liquor store with us in the car, the religious cult who took us to their house (Dave wanted to go in), which culminated in me getting a jaywalking ticket in Hollywood, cuz I really had to pee…. I never took care of that ticket, so I spent two weeks in L.A. County the next time I got in trouble in L.A., some years later (not a good candidate for bail). These are the things that led to my illustrious career as a Federal Public Defender, among others. It’s nice to get the recognition, tho’, I remember reading something by Chris Gast (R.I.P.) some time ago, about the origins of the Morlocks & Gravedigger Five, where he recalled the lineup of the GDV precursor band, The Shaman (Shamen?) as having “some guy named Matt” on drums. I’m still rockin’. Somebody help me set up a link to my myspace page, my name there is gueroranchero. Thanks to John Nowell and Sean McMullen for leading me here. And to everybody else who’s posted here,…Whatup, foo?
Matt, you are added to the blogroll on the front of the forum. Good to see you!
Hey Matt!
Great to hear from you. Are you still practicing law? Did you ever finish that book you were going to write about your experience in New Orleans? Please share your story here--it is fascinating . . .
Hey Dave-
The highway between Gila Bend and Yuma is a notorious speed trap. The Tell-Tale Hearts got a ticket in the same place on our way back from our midwest tour in ’85.
I’d love to hear from both Bert and Paul Hokeness--as well as any of the other Mira Mesa kids we used to hang out with: Dave Acampura, Beth Harris, Jenny Bescher, etc.
i saw Bert at one of teh Pink Panter Bar renuions at the Casbah. He had married shauna who I remember from the Pink Panther. Bert Huerta. He depleted Dave Andersons cookie stash of goodness on many an afternoon in 1983.
Chris Squire is all about Che Underground, Matt! Check out his blog in our blogroll and revel in his wit and wisdom throughout this site.
Hey Matt Johnson. How goes it ? Do you still have all those hip hop 12″‘s I lent you in your van out in front of the Ken Cinema. I remember . I wasn’t THAT drunk. Hope you are well.
Paul Howland. Ken Cinema. Reminds me that you went as my mother’s “date” to the Ken, ’round ’82. 🙂
Hip hop disks? You came over to my place in ’84, with the Tommy Boy 12”: Afrika Bambaataa & James Brown “Unity.” It was a mind blower. Thanks for that, still.
That school is so old, that old-school fo’got ’bout it.
OK, time to share my Howland-family-Ken-Cinema-punk-satori story …
It was 1977, I believe, when I accompanied my parents to the Ken, my nose buried in “The Man Who Gave the Beatles Away,” a memoir by the band’s first manager, Allan Williams. I lined up for popcorn served by a tall, bespectacled fellow who years later I’d realize was Paul’s older brother.
He took my order and asked in a conversational tone, “What’re you reading?” So I showed him the book.
Without missing a beat, he leaned in close and muttered, “The Beatles were whores, and Brian Epstein was their pimp!” Then handed me the popcorn, totally as if nothing had happened.
It was completely awesome! I love the Beatles to this day, but those ten words were like some kind of underground message designed to subvert the rock establishment … Like I was supposed to grab someone else and whisper, “The Beatles were whores, and Brian Epstein was their pimp!” And that person would pass it on, too, and on and on down the line.
I’m sure he was just messing with little kids to kill time at work, but to me it felt like some kind of punk-rock portent! LOL
If I was looking for heroes, this is as good a place as any. 😉
That was one of our funnest shows. I remember people hanging from the rafters at the Che that night. We played inside and it was nuts (b-a-n-a-n-a-s). Who put that show on? Remember he refused to pay us (until I threatened to throw a chair through the plate glass window) because of all the mayhem! Is that the show that Bobby did the great flyer for, with Eve (from the waist down) and the serpent?
Where was the show at that I had soaked all the cow guts all day in gasoline and arranged them over my cymbals. we came out and I bust a 40 bottle over the cymbal and lit the guts on fire. When they fell on the wood floor, still burning like napalm, the proprietors were trying to stomp out the flaming guts in their Birkenstocks (No. It wasn’t the Che), while Leighton was rolling around in the broken glass and smoking guts, reveling in the Iggyness of it all, no doubt.
And, finally, that stupid “Loudspeaker” show on 91X where some audience member says “I was having a great time ’til my girlfriend got hit in the head with a drumstick”.
Goodness.
Um, question about the Purple Turtle thing… Did the Wallflowers play there more than once?
I know I drove most of (if not all) the band there for a show and we stayed at some girl’s house that night and driving back my car blew out a tire and we spent hours at a gas station in the middle of nowhere getting it fixed.
Hey Matt,
I just got a new turntable. Can I have my Damned Black Album back?
Thanks much!!
Bert Huerta--Is that you?
BBBB is in the house.
And I want my damn Damned album back!
Is that Bert Juerta? Hi Bert if that is you!:)
Woops! sorry if I spelled your last name wrong!<3 Who loves ya?
Hey Ray if your still on here, what is the name of that band that played with the TTH’s at the end? 3 guys sort of like the Unknowns and the base player his name was Sam (I think)?
Hi Alena,
Doesn’t ring a bell. Can you give me some more details? Where did we play with them?
Hi Ray, Let me see if I could jot your memory. It was in OB, 21+ bar and one night vice went in and picked out a few girls they thought were under 21 (I was one of the girls they picked:( and the other was Dans girlfriend). Sorry I called him Sam above (lol). His girlfriend had purple hair, later they got married. Dan Played the upright bass. The TTH’s played a few shows where they opened,I believe it was every Friday for a while there.
Alena,
Based on your description, I am positive it was NOT the Tell-Tale Hearts that you are speaking of. This sounds like the Barons, Mike and Bill’s short lived post TTH band, which also included Paul Carsola and Eric Bacher. I saw them once, in a little place in Ocean Beach, probably at the place you are thinking of.
Ray: We’ve been projecting the Tell-Tale Hearts into all sorts of locations (e.g., playing “Hey Joe” at the Distillery East.
I’m becoming convinced you guys were the Zeligs of SD rock ‘n’ roll! (Was that Eric Bacher dancing the Charleston with Zasu Pitts in “Hollywood Follies of 1928”?) 🙂
“Where was the show at that I had soaked all the cow guts all day in gasoline and arranged them over my cymbals. we came out and I bust a 40 bottle over the cymbal and lit the guts on fire. When they fell on the wood floor, still burning like napalm, the proprietors were trying to stomp out the flaming guts in their Birkenstocks”
I believe that was a benefit show for Zendik Farms which took place at a ballroom in … I believe it was Serra Mesa. I believe the gut stomper was one of the high mucky mucks of Zendik. I got a ride home that night from a rather fetching female attendee but decided not to try and “close the deal” when she started making all manner of racist comments at Rudfords.
Piggy Gargoyle never used cow guts