Daniel Amos Message Board | Print: Thin White Rope

Posted by tchandler on 05-02-2007 at10:23:

Thin White Rope

let's talk about unheralded bands, shouldn't we?

have any old geezers (like me) even heard of a band called Thin White Rope? they were formed in Davis, California, recorded on Frontier Records and their lead singer was a scientist!

I was a fan from the moment i heard "In The Spanish Cave". (this is another story but, the CD "in the spanish cave" brings back memories because it became part of the sonic backdrop to Marc Sercomb's rather disturbing bachelor party which featured, amongst other things, a
Dennis Hopper impersonator doing Frank Booth from "Blue Velvet" Smile

Thin White Rope drew thousands when they played places like Russia, but when i saw them at a club called Bogart's in Long Beach California, there were only 50 people there. on that night, they were touring behind "in the spanish cave" which was a strange mixture of western/desert/middle-eastern/mariachi music and the controlled guitar feedback and desperate, ragged vocals of Guy Keyser pretty much floored me. a criminally ignored band!

come on, tell us some of your favorites that we all should've heard of but haven't.

Posted by DwDunphy on 05-02-2007 at11:14:

I remember Thin White Rope, specifically The Ruby Sea. Title cut's really good, as is the disturbing "Bartender's Rag", as in "wring out that bartender's rag" when the liquor's gone, it'll do.

The band's name has something in common with Steely Dan, and in both cases I digress from explanation for the benefit of good taste and not taking this thread down a truly dark path.

DwD

Posted by baxter on 05-02-2007 at13:29:

i've never heard of TWR, but they sound interesting. i'll look into them...

i did hear Tonio play at Bogarts at least once, but i don't think you were with him that night (those nights), were you Tim?

My son's band is unheralded, probably because they still don't have a name (i'm pushing for Pin Head Angels), they have only had one gig in 7 months, and their lone recording has reached only about 13 people and is horribly produced. i still hope they'll play at Bogart's some day...

Good to hear from you Tim! Hope and pray all is well with the family.

Posted by Mountain Fan on 05-02-2007 at13:46:

I never heard of thin white rope either, although that stime hould have been prime listening territory in high school for me. The name reminds me of a clothesline.
http://moonhead.linklord.com/
http://guitarbands.de/thinwhiterope.htm
http://www.thinwhiterope.com/

Hope you and yours are well, Tim!

What do you think of Derri's beard? Did he ever have one before?

Posted by Mountain Fan on 05-02-2007 at13:57:

quote:

Originally posted by DwDunphy
I remember Thin White Rope, specifically The Ruby Sea. Title cut's really good, as is the disturbing "Bartender's Rag", as in "wring out that bartender's rag" when the liquor's gone, it'll do.

The band's name has something in common with Steely Dan, and in both cases I digress from explanation for the benefit of good taste and not taking this thread down a truly dark path.

DwD

you pique my curiosity and so I have to post the following (which will hopefully not take it down all that dark of a path) Smile

---------

The name "Thin White Rope" derives from a William S. Burroughs description of human semen.

----------

Being fans of Beat Generation literature, Fagen and Becker named the band (Steely Dan) for a steam-powered dildo in the William Burroughs novel Naked Lunch.

Posted by Crinklepot on 05-02-2007 at15:15:

quote:

What do you think of Derri's beard?

I love Derri's Beard! Can't wait for them to make a CD..

Posted by jiminy on 05-02-2007 at15:16:

reading a bit too much Burroughs it seems.

taint heard of TWR...

Posted by bereal on 05-02-2007 at23:48:

i haven't heard of thin white rope, either.

hope you are well, chandler! Wink

Posted by dennis on 05-03-2007 at19:01:

Thin White Rope ~Elsie Crashed the Party, in Davis 1988

Posted by bereal on 05-04-2007 at05:04:

this does not lead me to want to find any more of their music. it's just not my cup-o-tea.

Posted by NonProphet on 05-04-2007 at08:18:

Government Cheese

OK, back to "unheralded bands"...

Government Cheese was a band from Bowling Green, Kentucky that all of us at Western Ky University were all pulling for to go "big time" around 1986-89. Fun, rocking songs and a respectable following up and down the southeast US. They had lots of great original songs, but their show closer was a scorching cover of "People Who Died" (Jim Carroll Band).

Tommy Womack, singer and guitarist, has a blooming solo career down there in Nash now, and I uploaded some live footage to YouTube. Got to play with Billy Mack Hill, their bass player, a couple of shows. Great guys, and were called by some rock journalists "the best Athens GA band that wasn't from there."

Broderson

Posted by uvulapie on 05-04-2007 at09:29:

Toy Matinee

Although it has a bit of a late 80s sound Toy Matinee was another criminally underappreciated band. Music snobs like myself love them but the public at large ignored them. Great hooks, amazing musicianship, mature pop compositions, dour lyrics set against upbeat music... grand stuff! Their two videos are available on AOL music complete with big hair

http://video.aol.com/video-search/query/toy%20matinee

Posted by Mountain Fan on 05-04-2007 at11:31:

quote:

Originally posted by jiminy
reading a bit too much Burroughs it seems.

taint heard of TWR...

actually thin white rope made me think more of spermatic cords than semen Frown

Posted by Mountain Fan on 05-04-2007 at11:33:

I'm having trouble thinking of many great unheralded bands. Most all of the ones I like are at least well-known and "heralded" or recognized in some circles, even if they didn't sell a lot of records.

Posted by Mountain Fan on 05-04-2007 at11:35:

Does Eric Johnson make "mainstream" headlines enough to be considered "heralded"? I know he has been in guitar magazines a lot and won awards, received critical acclaim, etc. but he may not be that "popular" with the general public.

Posted by wayneb on 05-05-2007 at02:09:

Well, I would have liked to see 2 lb Planet get greater recognition. Or even Robert Vaughn (not my uncle) and the Shadows/Dead River Angels.

NZ band Straitjacket Fits should really have gone places internationally too.