Happy birthday, Che Underground!

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?

89 thoughts on “Happy birthday, Che Underground!”

  1. finding kristen, shawna, bobo/cricket, hearing from you, matthew, reading posts by ray and kevin d.r., o, and reconnecting with kevin chanel. seeing photographs of the old days and hearing stories about all our lives and events i was at but from a different perspective. basically, this is the reunion i have been waiting for. high school reunions? never attended them. no thanks. most of those people i couldn’t stand back then, so why would i want to see them now? but most of you i have such fond memories of that i feel like may is the reunion i will actually enjoy. and of course, the music. ahh, the music. reading the stories of all you fabulous musicians has made me very happy and appreciative. appreciative of the work you have all done and continue to do.

    seeing how well we have all turned out is another plus. we, this bunch of misfits who all met because of commonalities and mutual disdain for the conformity of the reagan era has led us all to lives which are far from the norm and yet perfect in their display of individuality. i am proud as hell of all of us. truly.

    ok, sappy post over. carry on.

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  2. Ah geez- aside from all the happy reunion stuff- reuniting with the legendary Bobo/Cricket, collaborating with Matt, getting the many stories (and names) I had wrong for the last twenty years finally explained to me, and hearing from SFG, Terry Marine, and Lou Skum all in one year is a little more than I expected.

    Thanks Matt!

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  3. Thanks for a way to find out Kristen’s OK.

    I have fabulous memories of that time. It was also the scariest, most difficult, painful time of my life- a time when I displayed my worst judgment. It’s good to have a forum to express appreciation for the friends I had and how significant they remain, regardless of whether we are in touch now.

    Jerry- I am forever in your debt. You did a very good thing for me in 1987. I will never forget.

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  4. This blog is amazing. Through this I have reconnected with several people that have always been a huge part of my life. The memories from all the bands that I was lucky enough to be involved with such as everybody violet ( part of me always wants to write or say everybody violent), noise 292 and the Injections and the other side projects such as Your Sister and my one day in FONO are all such a huge part of me.Truly. I really thought that those memories and happenings from that time period would for always and forever be hidden and a forgotten and I always wanted to reminice and compare notes with others regarding that period of time, to no avail. I am so excited that this slice of our collective lives is being gathered and shared from everyone and that we get to catch up with each other once again.

    It also makes me remember the casualties and the tragedies that occurred with some folks. Those remind me of the movie Betty Blue in the way that I felt watching it. Giddy and laughing in the beginning and extremely shocked and sad by the end of it.

    It has just been amazing to read and take all of this in.

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  5. PS…That cake looks good but I shouldn’t really have a piece since I am now officially fat and fifty. I hear Lou and Bruce arent.

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  6. And on a side note- Matt M’berg has been pure genius at collaboration, idea swapping and editing my unconventional writing and helping me make it make sense.

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  7. Through the existence of this blog, I’ve

    *been briefly (and befittingly) bawled out by a Beat Farmer, which left me befuddled;

    *gotten back in touch with a handful of friendly ghosts from the past, whom I’d despaired of ever hearing from again;

    *listened to lots of great music (my wife can tell when I’m listening to something from here, either from the sound or the look on my face, and always asks, “It’s that San Diego thing again, isn’t it?”);

    *heard lots of good news and, alas, some bad (which I guess is still better to know) about some dozen or so other ghosts;

    *shared dinner with my oldest friend in the world after more than 20 years of not seeing each other;

    *received untold wealth by mail including boss toy soldiers and a kickass CD made by what I remember as squirrelly kids in their putatively adult incarnations;

    *been graced with not one but two of the deepest compliments I can imagine from a timeless sage…

    And that’s just off the top of my head! What have I given to receive such gifts? Precious little, as far as I can tell. Happy Birthday (my 42nd was Friday)! Happy Valentine’s Day! God bless us, everyone. And thank you!

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  8. I finally got to get that “dropping the zoo” incident out in the open after all these years.

    Matt -thanks for being the ringmaster

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  9. Thanks CHE -- I was around before most of this stuff so I am thankful that people have been so helpful about restoring the past.
    I have been able to hook up w/original injections, hear about long forgotten shows and parties, listen to great music, start a reunion dialogue, and most importantly, meet Robin !

    Thanks
    Bruce Injection

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  10. Aw- Bruce…I like you. I liked you even before I knew you were a Hindemith fan. And not even just because you engaged in a present-tense conversation with me in a dark room full of ghosts.

    I want to compare our duet arrangements on that Vivaldi movement. Mine incorporates a couple of measures of Led Zeppelin’s “10 years gone.” And yours?

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  11. The Hindemith, the Carpenters, it’s really too much…I already knew this somehow, in a dark room full of ghosts.

    bruce

    I still shape my nails in reference to an ancient inquiry.

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  12. I’m glad that other punk rock aficionados are giving due praise to “The Carps”… man did they make good music! They developed hauntingly beautiful melodies that could send chills. Hey Bruce, thanks for posting the link to Sonic Youth covering “Superstar” from the ā€œIf I were a carpenterā€ tribute compilationā€¦ Iā€™ve never seen it before, and that Sonic Youth cover is one of my favorite songs. Also thanks for providing Injections fans with an opportunity to hear Dave Stamponeā€™s band, The Free*Stars doing ā€œPrison Wallsā€ā€¦ nice job Dave! Back again to the topic of a possible Injections reunion showā€¦ Iā€™m sure it would be a great success! Since I donā€™t recall any local Lions Clubs renting out there halls for shows, maybe the Casbah would be a good venue. Hey wait just a minute, the Masonic Temple in Ocean Beach rents out its space for bands and private parties on occasion. Having not mentioned anything to the following guys, I canā€™t speak as to their availabilities to do such a show, but my personal recommendation for an excellent drummer would be Cody from ā€œThe Widowsā€ and ā€œWild Weekendā€, and on base guitar Scott Harber from 5-0-5-1, if theyā€™d be interested. Maybe The Injections could polish up on some Carpenters coversā€¦ ā€œThe Carpsā€!

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  13. John you are one cool dude! Anyone that admits to getting chills from Karens voice is OK with me.

    We would need a great venue and some rehearsal time/space. Also looking for great band to partner with for celestial gig.

    keep in touch.

    Bruce Injection

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  14. “Not according to the rules that you learn in music schools,
    But the folks just dance like fools/
    They sure go for goofus…”
    Oh, lovely Karen and Richard, you were always part of us.

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  17. Happy Birthday Che & Simon!
    Matthew thanks for letting me crash the party….again… and also editing my posts!!!!

    I always wanted to know the back story of bands from my home town, some of whom I had seen, others I had just missed.
    Still waiting to hear and read about “The Wild Desires”(hint, hint,nudge, nudge).

    Dylan Rogers
    (the kid puknig all over himself @ 517)

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  18. I’m sure this isn’t the place, but….My situation is no different than yours. Yet, I can’t stop thinking about it. I’ve never met a classical guitar loving, injection listening, Karen worshipping, Ziggy knowing soul like you.

    Bruce

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  21. Hugs to Matt- this one’s dedicated to you:

    For Bruce:

    Interesting product placement, Mr. Injection. Toast: to not growing up to be big jerks! (clink), to Paul Hindemith! (clink), to continued slam dancing and giggling! (clink)

    I think you’re right about Ziggy. I’m going to integrate that into my party chatter.

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  23. Dylan Rogers: “(the kid puking all over himself @ 517)”
    What percentage of the scene would that describe- like 1/4, give or take a couple points? If not at 517, then at Kings Road or Fairmount or outside some party or out the car window on the way home from TJ.

    I once stepped into a bedroom at a party and vomited inside a cheap nylon string guitar. At the time it seemed hilarious.

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  25. Mr rothenberg -- your are a gracious and generous man, especially with the paremeters of your threads and the use your virtual space.

    Thank you so much for giggling. I have butteflies in my stomach.

    Bruce Injection

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  31. That is why I love this site. There is really only one truth, aside from the artifice of youth, ego, etc.. We all are still who we were then in large part. Reconnecting with older versions of people we loved, or liked, or didn’t even know.

    I would always have talked about classical music, thoreau, Hindemith, sid. I always new where I was going….

    priceless.

    bruce Injection

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  33. Misty Miss Kristi,
    Your enthusiasm is contagious. I cannot wait to see you in a few days along with some of the other crew.

    To all the others: Thank you all for inspiring me to hit the rowing machine.

    Much love.

    J

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  34. Thank you for the personal birthday wishes as well, folks. Without hyperboling you all over, this place has been a rebirth of sorts for me — and I’m very humbled and happy to have every one of you around to celebrate! šŸ™‚

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  36. From The Carpenters to Angry Samoansā€¦ good music is just that, good music. At age forty-five I can now readily admit to liking some bands that might not be in acceptance with the hipstersā€™ ideal. Nonconformity was part of the early punk rock ear anyway, and itā€™s said that diversity is the spice of life. Iā€™ll have to admit that back in high school, I went to see The Ramones at Montezuma Hall in ā€™79, and shortly thereafter I gave away all of my ā€œZeppelinā€ eight tracksā€¦ wouldā€™nt want anyone thinking I liked that dreaded dinosaur rock.
    Hereā€™s a link to Redd Kross covering The Carpsā€™ ā€œYesterday Once Moreā€.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zogq9L1EknY

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  41. Jeremiah- You do know he wrote the Carpenters hit “Close to You,” right? How apropros, Rose is a rose: “On the day that you were born the angels got together and decided to create a dream come true. So they sprinkled moon dust in your hair of gold and starlight in your eyes of blue.”

    Have you listened to the Carpenters lately? They feel different from our late childhoods, when they permeated radio, primetime TV, and PAs. They’re subversive. Passion and pathos in mass market packaging.

    Did your pounding the square peg story really happen, or were you making a metaphoric point?

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  42. I love the story of how the song “We’ve Only Just Begun to Live” started life as a Crocker bank ad:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVGmdwHTP1I

    --the bass-playing on the Crocker version is phenomenal too. It carries the whole tune along.

    Paul Williams and Roger Nichols tagged on the rest to complete the song for the Carpenters…the ‘new’ middle section (with all those amazing harmonies) being an example of their masterful songwriting/arranging.

    Happy Birthday Che and Matthew!!! I heartily agree with what’s been said already….Matthew it is such a gift to be able to reconnect with everybody, and this blog has been one great surprise after another… I remember around December ’07 you talking about this wild idea you had for a site/blog, at the time I couldn’t envision the scope of what you were imagining or what would be possible. Thank you.

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  44. happy birthday, matthew. thanks, again, for this. and for other things, too. it will, indeed, be good to see you in may.

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  45. Robin hit the nail precisely on the head when she said previously that the Carpenters are subversives. To see just how correct she is, just study the true meaning behind the lyrics to the Carpenters ā€œSuperstarā€.

    Long ago, and oh so far away

    I fell in love with you,

    before the second show

    Your guitar, it sounds so

    sweet and clear

    But you’re not really hear

    it’s just the radio

    Don’t you remember you told me

    you loved me now baby

    You said you’d be coming

    back this way again, baby

    Baby, baby, baby, baby, oh baby

    I love you,

    I really do

    Loneliness, is such a sad affair

    And I can hardly wait

    to be with you again

    What to say to make you come again

    Come back to me again

    And play your sad guitar

    Don’t you remember you told me

    you loved me now baby

    You said you’d be coming

    back this way again, baby

    Baby, baby, baby, baby, oh baby

    I love you

    I really do

    Please accept my apologies for going on and on about the Carpentersā€¦ I know that they never played at Che CafĆ©ā€¦ Iā€™m just am glad that people are talking about the Carps. This will be just about it from me on the subject, so hereā€™s another link to Sonic Youth paying tribute to Karen in their song ā€œTunicā€.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9ii-Tquf4o

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  47. John- “Tunic” clarified something for me. The Carpenters were the punks who said what we were trying to say in a voice our parents could hear, in a voice that even spoke for them. Poor Karen.

    So glad you confessed your love for them, Bruce.

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  48. Toby, Yes I was not the only youngin spewing into music history, but that moment in my life is as close to being a true part of this Che Underground…. I really do not see myself as a true member of this group, but more of a byproduct.

    Any ways thanks again!!! Happy Birthday!!!

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  49. My life in the blog of ghosts.

    where do I begin? “I’ve only just begun to live. White lace and promises.” I am trying to connect the words in this thread and see how the topic evolved into Karen Carpenter. That’s what I love about you guys. Your mercurial wit and savvy for non-sequitars.
    i discovered this blog through bruce hammerle, who had mentioned it on myspace….i tiptoed in quietly at first -- terrified! there were times back then when I wore out my welcome with you. i thought that many people “hated” me still….. that I was branded somewhere with this Yoko stigma….such is the power of the mind. i’m an egotist with an inferiority complex! my past loomed larger than life in my brain. participating on the blog has popped that inflated view and has allowed me to reconnect with all of you from a place of confidence and appreciation of your qualities.

    thank you matthew! besides the amends I’ve been able to make with old friends, i’ve actually been able to make lots of new ones, like cricket, matthew, ava, karl irving, megan shade and lori stalnaker-belivacqua, dylan, mike s. and toby! you guys are brilliant and my life is rich with your presence, your creativity, your imaginations. oh -- and Robin. you are like a sister-- somehow. a bright star.
    i love hearing the stories of your lives and seeing where everyone has landed from over the oceans of time. ok. pass the tissue kristi. i’m getting steamed up. wow. i’ve talked on the phone with kristi maddox -- had coffee with david rinck…and alena. who’d have thunk? very cool. very strange….

    and I get an opportunity to write on a regular basis. you know, before the “Then and Now” write-ups I didn’t have the confidence to put myself out there but was encouraged by matthew and cyndi (where’s cyndi? i miss her) to take the tiger by the whiskers, so to speak….

    didn’t mean to get so heavy guys.
    and Jerry-- love burt. even better:dionne warwick doing burt. walk on by.

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  50. Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft…kind of astounded me when I first heard it.

    Carl Rusk’s been listening to Bread…so I bought a copy of that once-ubiquitous “Best of…” for $3 at Folk Arts while visiting San Diego in January, and yes, there is one really incredible song on there that I had not known. Not the really big hit of theirs, but a lesser known one, the initials of which are IDMTM.

    You can probably still find this thing for 99 cents at thrift stores across the nation, but I was happy to give Lou Curtiss a few bucks after so many years. Get it and then you may be reminded that David Gates also did the music under the credits of “The Goodbye Girl,” a great film from the post-Sixties hangover era as you may recall….

    Happy Birthday to the blog, and to Matt R.!

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  51. Wow Kristen,”iā€™m an egotist with an inferiority complex!” you just descirbed me to a TEEEEEEE! Well you could have thrown in fatalist to…

    Reading your post Kristen along with Simon, Dave Ellison,Toby, Mike Stobbe, David Rinck, Matthew and everyone else I gotta say “filled a void” for me and helped me to go ahead and revisit my own past and ghosts.

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  52. I inadvertently started the Carpenters renaissance on CHE because I wanted to make a confession. I didn’t know if there would be any takers -- I thought I was going out on a limb, yet everyone has been so nice.

    Bruce Injection

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  53. LOVE album GOO by Sonic Youth. Saw that tour in 1990. They opened with Tunic. Neil Young was headlining. It was a weird audience. Broken strings were flying everywhere from Thurston Moore’s guitar and people booed. They just didn’t get it. They were there for “Sugar Mountain” not “Dirty Boots”.

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  54. Dude! I saw that tour at the Meadowlands. It was surreal. I think Sonic Youth didn’t care all that much about the rest of the audience because Neil Young was loving them.

    Kristen, I don’t recall anyone holding a gun to John Lennon’s head when he met Yoko. You are a beautiful, intriguing, affectionate person. Neither of us will make peace with the past through minimizing or excuses. Still, it’s clear that some people got close to you because your recklessness was like candy to them. Treasure what remains. Your essence of Turkish coffee and peppermints.

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  55. Happy Birthday to both Matthew and the Che Underground! This is “the little website that could.” It’s funny how much all of our expectations for the blog, the reunion and each other have increased exponentially over the past year. Who would have guessed there were so many of us out here, longing to reconnect?

    I can thank the Che Underground for allowing me to make new friends (Toby and Matt in particular), find old friends (Jerry, Pat, Dave Ellison, Tom Ward for example) and most importantly for helping me to finally get to know some people I was either too intimidated or too oblivious to get to know back then (Kristen, Dave Flem, Paul Allen among others). I can also thank the site for giving me a forum and a purpose for my research and writing, for entertaining me daily, and renewing my faith in the goodness of people. May this site bring us many more riches in the coming year.

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  56. Ray: We hardly spoke to one another back then but I feel like I know you a little now. Who could have guessed that you were a bigfoot enthusiast, sci-fi geek? And a daddy! And a wonderful writer. Thank you for all your contributions.

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  57. I guess I would be remiss in not sharing my Carpenters memories as well. Long time readers of this blog will remember I have confessed my love of seventies AM radio (Ben Fong-Torres once called our obsession with the music of our childhood “the Puberty Principle”). When I was young, my family had the self-titled Carpenters’ album, the one with “Rainy Days and Mondays,” “Superstar,” and “For All We Know.” Karen’s voice always sent chills up and down my spine--it was unusually deep for a woman, and incredibly expressive--although I must admit Richard always creeped me out a little in his TV appearances. It wasn’t until years later, after Karen’s death that I learned about the strange family dynamics and personal demons the two siblings were wrestling with. On the surface, they were an upper middle class, god-fearing whitebread Orange County family, much like the Beach Boys, but like the Wilson family, the parental oppression led to some powerful inner rage and ultimately some pretty serious mental and emotional problems. That in and of itself makes me appreciate them all the more.

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  59. Good comment Ray -- Richard sometimes seems a little creepy but he was the total Brian Wilson of the band -- good call. Listen to how perfect the instrumentation and vocals are. I also like the way he always watches Karen with a kind of indefinable look. It’s part love, part awe, and part, almost disappointment??

    Bruce Injection

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  63. Happy birthday Matt and congratulations to being the proud papa of the Che Underground.Thanks for putting light on a little scene that sat in shadows of others like it, Los Angeles in particular. I’m so happy you had the inspiration to do this and followed through with it. Thank you.

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  65. I have to admit, I’ve been unplugged from the blog lately. But strangely enough, I felt this “pull” today.

    A bounty of belated birthday wishes to ChƩ and most importantly you, Matthew, the esteemed mastermind behind it. For without your inspiration and tireless dedication to this site, there would still be a whole lot of lost souls out there. Great to be reunited with old friends and also meet some new ones: Kristin & Ava.

    Looking forward to many years of ChĆ©dom & the Games in May. There are a whole lot of hugs to be given…

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  68. Happy Born Day Matt, and thanks for making it look like I was full of foresight back in the 80s when I took a million pictures of a bunch of people just sittin’ around or playing music.

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  69. John, Its Jason from Poway. Long time.
    Matt congrats, Id bake a cake but my oven is cold.
    The last year has been one of the hardest of my life, Thanks for the memories and conects long lost.

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  71. Its funny, most every song I remember from being a kid reminds me of some particular time and place. From that memory, I can usually remember what year (and what time of year) song was on the radio. But none of the Carpenters’ songs remind me of anything… probably because they were EVERYWHERE for practically the entire decade. I could sing along with most of their hits, but I have no idea when any of them came out.

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  72. I cannot tell you the title of a carpenters song. Must have missed me entirely. I recall some Karen Carpenter jokes my dad made when I was a kid, but truth be told have no idea if they were funny. Was Karen a thin lass?

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  74. When were you born, Toby? Either you were so surrounded by the Carpenters that you took them for granted, like the air, or you were robbed by being born too late.

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  75. my mom cried when kc died. she kept saying that the thin ideal is the biggest killer. and indeed it is.

    jerry, you have to do your tom in may. lou, we can throw our underwear at him simultaneously.

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  76. “surrounded by them…like the air” That about sums it up. Don’t know that not being familiar with them amounts to being robbed, though.

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  85. Hey Jason,
    Recently Iā€™ve seen a few advertisement shots of you as head chef at some the areaā€™s finer restaurants. Congratulations on your successful achievements in the culinary arts field. After I saw the advertisements it had occurred to me to drop in to one of your restaurants and cause a ruckus like from the movie ā€œThe Blues Brothersā€ā€¦ donā€™t worry Iā€™m not ā€˜gonna do that. We sure had some good times back in Poway in our younger days. There were near weekly trips to the storage unit in San Marcos to watch the Rockinā€™ Dogs practiceā€¦ Tuesday nights was itā€¦ ā€˜hm! Was it you who drew the smiley face in the circle on the bathroom door?ā€¦ actually I remember that smiley face and I think that it made the place look much better. It seems that the Rockinā€™ Dogs had a smaller unit also in San Marcos before that larger space. One particular thing I found interesting about the storage unit was the vintage photograph of a young Keith Moon that was tacked up on the wall. Moon was dressed in a nice shark skin suit and smiling strangely while playing the drums. Someone blackened out one of Keithā€™s front teeth making him look even more like a demented ā€œUncle Ernieā€. Since I liked that Keith moon photo so much, it seems that when the Rockinā€™ Dogs moved out of the unit I asked to have it. Perhaps if I dig around in some old boxes Iā€™ll find that picture and maybe some other good stuff.

    Jason you were one of the few punks in Poway circa 1980, and Iā€™m happy to have been hanginā€™ around with you during those fun times. Oddly enough even to this day I sometimes think about your pet rat ā€œscabiesā€. He was a good rat, who takes the award for having the best pet name Iā€™ve yet to hear of. Another fun time we all had together was at the party for your sister when the Rockinā€™ Dogs played. John Mullen was on drums during that line-up of the band. If I recall correctly someone, maybe John himself, poured water and other liquid refreshments onto his drum kit that night. When The Rockinā€™ Dogs played that stuff started flyinā€™ all over the placeā€¦ it was a fun time, indeed.

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  86. Thank you Matthew--for transporting me me back to when I was 15, so I could finally make peace with it! I’ve been able to reconnect with so many people from my past and make some new friends along the way. I can safely assume that your blog has affected people in ways you never thought of. Megan

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  89. Karen Carpenter…singer drummer…first and original muse of all time for Ron Silva?

    We used to razz Keith about Liberace a lot…how could we have let this one go by so long?

    I have heard Jerry do Tom Jones. I threw underwear. Bobo’s I believe. Kinda used. Bobo used to leave those everywhere. Handy bio-projectiles just in case of Welsh crooners (and those who impersonate them) and San Diego cops.

    Thanks for all the electrons Matt…kinda takes the place of some of the dead brain cells.

    Patrick Works
    Brief Hurler

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