Sunday, September 14, 2008

Barry & The Remains MOVIE PREMIERE 9/14/08 4 PM Kendall Square

MBM Exclusive!
BARRY & THE REMAINS FILM TO DEBUT IN BOSTON Sept. 14th
“America’s Lost Band”

The Boston Film Festival is unveiling the story of guitarist Barry Tashian, keyboardist Billy Briggs, bassist Vern Miller with Chip Damiani on drums, the four original and current members of The Remains. The legendary 60s band generated a buzz at Boston University's Myles Standish Hall over at 610 Beacon Street, becoming so popular they had to move across the road to 675 Commonwealth Avenue and pretty much create the iconic downstairs nightclub known as "The Rat". Directed by Michael Stich (Director - The Young & The Restless; The Bold & The Beautiful) and produced by

When Barry And The Remains sang the line "All good things don't have to end"*,I doubt that they would have ever imagined how appropriately that line would apply to the longevity of their friendship and music. The Remains also personify another favorite saying of mine-"No deadlines,just headlines!"When their debut album was released in 1966, I doubt they envisioned that their follow up, MOVIN' ON(Rock-A-Lot Records)would come 36 years later.

While my introduction to the Remains came in quite a cryptic way- noticing a homemade "Why Do I Cry?" t-shirt worn by Willie Alexander** at the Rat on the Bicentennial 4th of July, The Remains were also brought to my 70's consciousness by a Real Kids' song -"Better Be Good" which name checked the Remains and two other Boston bands from the 60's:"We were rockin' with the Ramrods/ We were shakin' with the Pandas/ And it don't seem the same/Without the Remains..."

I first heard the Remains music in the 80's via two unauthorized French bootlegs. When I reviewed these in my fanzines, I never dreamt that I'd have the pleasure of seeing them live close to 40 years from their musical inception. In addition to see Barry perform with his wife Holly at the Cantab in Cambridge, this writer has seen the Remains at the Paradise in Boston and at the Regent Theatre in Arlington. Here we are in 2008 and director, Michael Stich, and writer, Fred Cantor, have immortalized the Remains on an international level.

For me one of the film's highlights is a full color clip of the Remains performing the never officially released "Let Me Through" on the ED SULLIVAN SHOW complete with go-go girls. Cantor explains the poetic license used in employing the Remains HULLABALLO clip "Because of the copyright issues surrounding the song they performed, 'Diddy Wah Diddy',we used 'Over You'. Not only does it fit tone-wise,but lyrically it works well with the line about turning back the time."(note, dear reader:this is a very liberal paraphrase as I don't have his note in front of me)

For Remains' and Beatles' fans alike,it is a high point when Barry Tashian reads from his book,TICKET TO RIDE:THE EXTRAORDINARY DIARY OF THE BEATLES' LAST TOUR. This book was published by Doyle Publishing in 1996 and chronicles the 19 shows they did in 14 cities covering parts of the US and Canada.

AMERICA'S LOST BAND is a labor of love and as such is a breath of fresh air. Where as most of the documentaries and books about 60's rock 'n' roll bands are chock full of overdoses, lawsuits, and long festering resentments, ALB is a charming, heartwarming story about four close friends who enjoy making great rock 'n' roll together more today than ever before.

The film is narrated by Peter Wolf who was an early scenester at the Boston Tea Party DJ and a member of The Hallucinations, his pre J. Geils Band. Wolf states "The Remains stood at the door of stardom but never made it through."Yet Barry and company show no remorse. The film makes it clear that these four truly enjoy their camaraderie and waste no time or energy being bitter about what might have been.

One of the Remains' contemporaries, The Lost were another 60's band based in Boston. Their lead singer,Ted Myers, is quoted on camera saying that he always liked the "cleanliness and the tidiness of their arrangements" adding "live they sounded just like their records."

Because for me, Billy Briggs' cool keyboard stylings best personify the sixties' aesthetic ,hearing him describe his modus operandi was particularly fascinating to me-"Because I was not providing a second hard rock guitar" Briggs said "I made sure that I provided hard rock back up to complement Barry's guitar."Indeed, Briggs always succeeds in adding strength and interest to the Remains' sonic attack.

Since their demise in 1966, The Remains played in 1976 and Spoonfed records re-released their debut album on color vinyl produced by Bruce Patch. Over the next two decades,The Remains began to realize that the sixties' music scene was gaining steam worldwide and that they had acquired powerful international cult status. They reformed to play several garage festivals in 1998-the Purple Weekend in Leon,Spain and the Cavestomp in NYC. They played the Las Vegas Grind in 2000 and a tour of major European cities in 2006.

Despite their inclusion on Lenny Kaye's original NUGGETS release, the Remains were never one hit wonders. Their debut single was "Why Do I Cry" which was a top pick in Cashbox and was a huge regional hit in the Northeast.Their fourth and last single of the sixties was "Don't Look Back",written by Billy Vera of "Lady In Red" fame. Both their first and fourth singles are included on the NUGGETS boxset, introducing the Remains to new generations. Moreover, "Why Do I Cry" is also in the hilarious Hollywood blockbuster, SUPERBAD.

In one of the later scenes of AMERICA'S LOST BAND, the Remains are overlooking Dodgers Stadium where all members except drummer, Chip Damiani, opened for The Beatles. Then they are shown in practice, at an in-store performance,and at a club gig. When the Remains perform "Don't Look Back" , it is clear that they are at the peak of the power. In fact, The Remains are the best of both worlds as they retain the wild garage spirit of their youth adding a technical proficiency that eludes most who share their genre.

The most moving, heartfelt moment was as "Thank You" was played and a montage of clips were shown, shifting from black and white shots of the Remains of the 60's to color video of the Remains of today. This was the artistic zenith of the documentary. As the scene comes to a close, Barry leaves us with a thought that sums up the band's rock 'n' roll adventure so far-"Looking back now, there is no 'what if'. Everything takes its own course-the way it's supposed to be." --Nancy Foster

-A SESSION WITH THE REMAINS

reviewed by Alan Lewis and Nancy "Neon" Foster in

the NEW ENGLAND MUSIC SCRAPBOOK

http://www.geocities.com/nescene/arc2002.htm#tr

and MOVIN' ON reviewed by Alan Lewis and Nancy "Neon" Foster http://www.geocities.com/nescene/arc0002.htm#mo

The Remains are BARRY TASHIAN(vocals,guitar),BILL BRIGGS(keyboards,vocals),VERN MILLER(bass,vocals),and CHIP DAMIANI(drums,vocals)

Go to http://theremains.com/products for cool stuff you need:

*TICKET TO RIDE/BARRY TASHIAN(DOYLE PUBLISHING) $20

*A SESSION WITH THE REMAINS(SUNDAZED) $15

*THE REMAINS(EPIC/LEGACY)-CD $15

*MOVIN' ON/REMAINS(ROCK-A-LOT RECORDS)-CD $15

Keep your eyes open for Fred Cantor's critically acclaimed play about the Remains called ALL GOOD THINGS.

* "All Good Things" is the first rock 'n' roll song written by Remains' bass player, Vern Miller.

** Willie Alexander was in a Boston based band, The Lost who were contemporaries of The Remains. Willie has gone on to have a varied musical, literary, and visual art career of international note.

Currently listening :
The Remains
By Barry & the Remains
Release date: By 2007-05-15




NEW TIME, NEW DAY
Kendall Sq Cinema in Cambridge, Sept 14, time is 4pm.
This information came in at a few hours ago today, August 31
Nancy Foster planning previews for readers of MBM
Here's a link to Barry & The Remains site for info:
http://mbm-miscellaneous.blogspot.com/
Watch for a review by Nancy L. Foster (Nancy Neon) after the program airs on 9/14/08


RANDOLPH MUSIC CENTER CD & RECORD EXPO
Sunday 9/14/08 10 AM

The Original New England
Compact Disc & Record Expo
to be held at the
HOLIDAY INN in Dedham
Route 1, Dedham, Massachusetts
At the junction of Rte. 95/128 & Rte. 1
behind Joe's American Bar & Grille
Just 15 minutes south of Boston
(Exit 15A make U turn at first stoplight)
featuring thousands and thousands and thousands
of records, CDs, DVDs, videos & cassettes.
--------------------------
All Types Of Music
ADMISSION STILL ONLY $4.00
FREE PARKING
Sponsored by
THE RANDOLPH MUSIC CENTER
900 N. Main St., Randolph, MA 02368
for further information, call (781) 986-4538
or email: recordsusa@yahoo.com
http://recordexpo.blogspot.com/2006/02/april-2-2006-holiday-inn-dedam.html
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