1979 Debut 12" Vinyl EP!
Mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio! Pressed at QRP!
Gravest Hits is the first 12" EP by American garage punk band the Cramps, compiling both sides of their first two 1978 Vengeance singles, "Surfin' Bird" and "Human Fly", with an added fifth track, a cover version of Ricky Nelson's "Lonesome Town". It was released in July 1979 on Illegal Records and I.R.S. Records. The tracks were all produced by Alex Chilton and recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis in 1977. Gravest Hits is one of the first records of both the rockabilly revival and the psychobilly genres. The photograph on the back of the original sleeve, of the band in performance, was taken at the Palladium theater in New York.
Part of the early CBGB punk rock movement that had emerged in New York, the Cramps were one of the first punk bands, and also widely recognized as one of the prime innovators of psychobilly. Their line-up rotated frequently during their existence, with the husband-and-wife duo of Lux Interior and lead guitarist and occasional bass guitarist Poison Ivy comprising the only ever-present members. The addition of guitarist Bryan Gregory and his sister Pam "Balam" Gregory on drums resulted in the first complete lineup in April 1976.
"This first release by the Cramps shows the group laying out many of the aspects of their curious style in rudimentary fashion. Raw, slashing guitar playing derived mostly from rockabilly and somewhat from psychedelic and 1960s garage pop (the group would have no bass player until the mid-'80s) and primitive drumming provide the platform for Lux Interior's eccentric singing, which is best described as a hyper-crazed, reverb-drenched, exhibitionist rockabilly style complete with groaning, shouting, growling, and hiccuping effects... This unpolished but effective release is worth hearing." - AllMusic
Features:
• 12" Vinyl EP
• 150g Black Vinyl
• Mastered for vinyl by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio
• Faithful, yet updated rendering of original artwork
• Pressed at Quality Record Pressings
Musicians:
Lux Interior, vocals
Poison Ivy Rorschach, guitar
Bryan Gregory, guitar
Nick Knox, drums
Selections:
Side I:
1. Human Fly
2. The Way I Walk
3. Domino
Side II:
1. Surfin' Bird
2. Lonesome Town
Mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio! Pressed at QRP!
Gravest Hits is the first 12" EP by American garage punk band the Cramps, compiling both sides of their first two 1978 Vengeance singles, "Surfin' Bird" and "Human Fly", with an added fifth track, a cover version of Ricky Nelson's "Lonesome Town". It was released in July 1979 on Illegal Records and I.R.S. Records. The tracks were all produced by Alex Chilton and recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis in 1977. Gravest Hits is one of the first records of both the rockabilly revival and the psychobilly genres. The photograph on the back of the original sleeve, of the band in performance, was taken at the Palladium theater in New York.
Part of the early CBGB punk rock movement that had emerged in New York, the Cramps were one of the first punk bands, and also widely recognized as one of the prime innovators of psychobilly. Their line-up rotated frequently during their existence, with the husband-and-wife duo of Lux Interior and lead guitarist and occasional bass guitarist Poison Ivy comprising the only ever-present members. The addition of guitarist Bryan Gregory and his sister Pam "Balam" Gregory on drums resulted in the first complete lineup in April 1976.
"This first release by the Cramps shows the group laying out many of the aspects of their curious style in rudimentary fashion. Raw, slashing guitar playing derived mostly from rockabilly and somewhat from psychedelic and 1960s garage pop (the group would have no bass player until the mid-'80s) and primitive drumming provide the platform for Lux Interior's eccentric singing, which is best described as a hyper-crazed, reverb-drenched, exhibitionist rockabilly style complete with groaning, shouting, growling, and hiccuping effects... This unpolished but effective release is worth hearing." - AllMusic
Features:
• 12" Vinyl EP
• 150g Black Vinyl
• Mastered for vinyl by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio
• Faithful, yet updated rendering of original artwork
• Pressed at Quality Record Pressings
Musicians:
Lux Interior, vocals
Poison Ivy Rorschach, guitar
Bryan Gregory, guitar
Nick Knox, drums
Selections:
Side I:
1. Human Fly
2. The Way I Walk
3. Domino
Side II:
1. Surfin' Bird
2. Lonesome Town
