Monday, September 6, 2010

These Cookie Crumbs Are Making Me Itch



For whatever reason, I still have the original Beastie Boys "Cooky Puss" 12-inch that was released on Ratcage (the same label that put out "Victim In Pain"), which I first bought back in the mid-80's. I used to own almost all of the early Beastie Boys stuff back then, which put all together would probably worth about 10 bucks now: "Pollywog Stew" of course, and "She's On It" (which I posted a while ago), and the "Rock Hard" 12" (which I wish I still had-- the AC/DC sample got that one deleted), and even "Hold It Now Hit It", which was their first actual 45. Not that any of their early stuff was all that crucial, but this was back when rap still represented something very New York and underground, and the number of NYHC straight edge kids (as well as people in the NYC Gerard-metal/noise rock scene) back in '85/'86 who were also into rap was very sizeable. I myself used to scour the stores that sold hip hop 12"-ers, looking for stuff like Just-Ice, Doug E. Fresh, Schoolly D, and Eric B & Rakim, and if it also meant buying some Beastie Boys records along the way, so be it.

Outside of "Cooky Puss" (which is a very localized/tri-states reference, some people might have to look it up in order to "get" it), the other tracks on this record are mostly crap. I guess that was one advantage to owning a 12" instead of a CD-- you could either tape the one song you liked, or just don't bother flipping the record over.


Beastie Boys -

"Cooky Puss"

"Bonus Batter"

28 comments:

Lightning Baltimore said...

Kinda weird . . . I've been aware of this record for 27 years, but didn't realize I'd never heard it. Sounds like I wasn't missing all that much.

:-D

Carvel exists outside the tri-state area, btw, 'cause I know what Cookie Puss is.

Brushback said...

Actually, I think Carvel at one point (and maybe still is) was headquartered in Atlanta!

But as far as the old-school Tom Carvel TV commercials and the Cookie Puss "floating through outer space" commercials, I think that's something you had to be in NY/NJ/CT back in the '80s to be aware of. The "new" Carvel just isn't the same.

Lightning Baltimore said...

"How about this bee-yu-tee-ful Cookie Puss?"

I can still hear his grating, unpleasant voice . . .

He and Earl "I'll paint any car for ninety-nine dallahs!" Scheib (?) could've tag teamed for gravel.

Lightning Baltimore said...

Now that I think about it, neither came close to the greasy slime of the voice of Mr. Ray, of Mr. Ray's Hair Weave, from the DC area.

Brushback said...

Oh, yeah-- Earl Schieb! There's another one! Though I only remember his newspaper ads (with his big head in silhouette), not the TV ones.

Tom Carvel's TV commercials were legendary if you grew up in CT, because of his awful voice. Not only did he sound like he was choking on his own spit, but the pitches were always so non-sensical: "We use less air!" "The round flying saucer cookie that everyone tries to simulate!"

Bruce said...

This is a prime example of the sub-genre of underground music I have named WOR-TV CORE (or PIX punk).

Brushback said...

WOR-CORE!!

I remember when I first got 2, 9, and 11 on cable TV in Connecticut, and I could finally watch the Mets and Yankees games...

Jere said...

Every time I meet someone from Jersey, I'm like, "we probably have nothing in common except for growing up with '2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13'."

Brushback said...

Yeah, I mean, how else were you supposed to find out about (Nobody Beats) The Wiz and P.C. Richard.

Bruce said...

The Dictators were totally WORcore. The Ramones (goes without saying), The Misfits, (they hadda watch them spooky movies somewhere before cable)...

Brushback said...

I think the Dictators even had a song lyric about "watching Channel 2"...

handsome Bruce said...

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

"Smoking marijuana
Watching channel five..."

Lightning Baltimore said...

"New York, New York" - first verse

Smokin' marijuana
Watchin' channel five
Got to get my strength up
In this struggle to survive


It's a Dictators song, but the studio version was recorded by Manitoba's Wild Kingdom, who were essentially The Dictators under a different name.

Brushback said...

"Watching Channel 5", somehow I thought there was one about watching channel 2 (which is channel that you used to only be able to get in New York, since most older cable systems couldn't handle anything below 3), but maybe I'm wrong...

I'd never actually heard the song-- it was something I'd only read about in Sick Teen.

handsome Bruce said...

I'd highly recommend that live ROIR dictators release, Dave. It packs quite a punch.

Lightning Baltimore said...

The ROIR thing is pretty great. The more recent live album, Viva Dictators!, was a bit of a disappointment, I thought.

Brushback said...

I've never heard the ROIR tape (though I guess it's a CD now), I think "O, Canadarm!" did a post on it a while ago though...

I was always sorta leery of ROIR stuff. They sent me a UK Subs tape once as a promo, and it just wasn't my style.

Lightning Baltimore said...

ROIR tapes I can heartily recommend:

MC5 Babes in Arms
Suicide ½ Alive
Flipper Blow'n Chunks
Bad Brains Bad Brians
The Lounge Lizards Live 79-81
Glenn Branca Symphony #1 - Tonal Plexus
Human Switchboard Coffee Break!
Einstürzende Neubauten 2 x 4
Buzzcocks Lest We Forget

The above have all been reissued on CD except the Human Switchboard tape, unfortunately.
There was a Three Johns tape, as well, so it's likely good, and I have no idea why I didn't get it.

Brushback said...

Yeah, you think I would've figured the Flipper tape and the Bad Brains tape were good. I think I have some of the Bad Brains material on another release...

You didn't mention the NY Thrash cassette that 'handsome Bruce' was on!!

Lightning Baltimore said...

I never owned a copy, though I had one or two friends that did. What band featured HB?

Fun Fact: Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo wrote the liner notes for the Bad Brains tape.

Brushback said...

handsome Bruce Wingate = Adrenalin O.D., the tri-state area's finest ever non-jock hardcore band...

Lightning Baltimore said...

Oh, cool! My old band, The Landlords, got a number of comparisons to AOD in reviews of our album.

I was worried you were gonna say it was one of the crap bands on there.

Brushback said...

You mean like Jack Rabid's band?

Lightning Baltimore said...

He was in a band? Did they suck as hard as his "writing?"

Brushback said...

HA! Yeah, which sucks worse -- Springhouse, or The Big Takeover?

Jack's been in a couple of bands: Even Worse (which Thurston Moore was in, for about a week, and Tim Sommer too I think) and Springhouse (who were like some Britpop shoegaze thing). Maybe one or two more.

handsome Bruce said...

ah, yes the landlords "teenage house party"! I must have read some of those same reviews.

zippin' my lip about jack rabid...he was an early AOD proponent and instrumental in gettin' our name out there. (as was Jim Testa, natch).

Brushback said...

Jack Rabid Ain't Got Nothin' On Mike McGonigal (unreleased Ciccone Youth track, 1988)

Brushback said...

The mp3 files on this post are now inactive.