max’s kansas city: 1976 & Beyond
The historic ‘Max’s Kansas City 1976’ LP from the pioneering NYC club on a double-LP with a selection of twenty-five tracks.
Includes many exclusive, rare and collectable tracks, from one of the birthplaces of punk.
Features WAYNE COUNTY, SUICIDE, THE FAST, THE HEARTBREAKERS, STILETTOS, NEW YORK DOLLS, CHERRY VANILLA, IGGY POP, NICO, SID VICIOUS & many many more.
max’s kansas city is the legendary New York City nightclub that became the focal point for the city’s hip artistic community from the late 60’s until the early 80’s.
In its initial period it was famously often populated by Andy Warhol’s Factory art crowd, and played host to new artists such as the Velvet Underground, New York Dolls, the Stooges, Bruce Springsteen and countless others. It became a base for jet-setters, glam rockers, and celebs, until the scene faded and it shut its doors at the end of 1974.
Reopened in 1975 under new management, Peter Crowley was hired as music director, and Max’s focus went to music. The new young bands he booked helped spawn, in tandem with CBGBs, the New York City punk scene.
In 1976 Peter compiled a studio album of acts associated with the club, ‘Max’s Kansas City 1976’, to help promote the club. It featured the first released recordings of Suicide, The Fast and Warhol-era veteran Wayne County, whose title-track gave a roll-call of many of the famous acts who’d regularly performed there. After a stint in London managing the Electric Chairs, Peter returned to Max’s and continued to book interesting up and coming artists. The success of the album meant a Max’s label was now viable, and more artists were recorded.
Now the original album is to be reissued as ‘Max’s Kansas City 1976 & Beyond’, greatly extended to a selection of 25 tracks. Additional tracks include many gems from the Max’s label and other releases of the era from both well known and unheralded Max’s scene bands.
As well as the aforementioned Suicide, Fast and Wayne County, the new extended album features the New York Dolls, the Stillettos, the Offs, the Senders, Philip Rambow, VON LMO, Iggy Pop, Knots, Cherry Vanilla, Nico, Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers and Sid Vicious amongst many others. It includes many rarities and previously unreleased tracks.
Compiled by Peter Crowley, who also contributes notes detailing the history of the album. Writer, musician and Max’s scenester Jimi LaLumia provides historical overview sleeve-notes along with biographies of the artists in a 20-page booklet.
Tracks: Wayne County & The Back Street Boys ‘Max’s Kansas City 1976’; THE FAST ‘Boys Will Be Boys’; HARRY TOLEDO ‘Knots’; CHERRY VANILLA & HER STATEN ISLAND BAND ‘Shake Your Ashes’; WAYNE COUNTY & THE BACK STREET BOYS ‘Cream In My Jeans’; THE FAST ‘Wow Pow Bash Crash’; WAYNE COUNTY & THE BACK STREET BOYS ‘Flip Your Wig’; THE JOHN COLLINS BAND ‘The Man In Me’; SUICIDE ‘Rocket USA’; THE FAST ‘Kids Just Wanna Dance’; PHILIP RAMBOW ‘Night Out’; SUICIDE ‘Ghost Rider’; NEW YORK DOLLS ‘Bad Girl’; THE STILETTOS ‘Pink Stilettos’; THE KNOTS ‘Heartbreaker’; THE SENDERS ‘6th Street’; JIMI LALUMIA & THE PSYCHOTIC FROGS ‘Death To Disco’; THE BRATS ‘First Rock Star On The Moon’; THE OFFS ‘You Fascinate Me’; TERRORISTS ‘Riis Park'; VON LMO ‘This Is Pop Rock’; ; IGGY POP 'Rock Action' (live); NICO 'Saeta' (live); ; JOHNNY THUNDERS & THE HEARTBREAKERS 'MIA' (live)*; SID VICIOUS & THE IDOLS 'Take A Chance' (live)* (* = previously unreleased). .