Buried Treasure: The Hooters - The Original Version Of "Fightin' On The Same Side" b/w "Wireless" (1981) & The Original Single Of "All You Zombies" (1982)

Before The Hooters signed with a major label in the mid-80s, before they opened the Philadelphia portion of Live Aid, and eventually became bigger stars in Europe than here at home, they were undoubtedly the most popular and best unsigned band performing in and around The City of Brotherly Love.

Having seen the quintet several times before they ever released an album I can assure you that they were definitely at their peak as a live act during those early years. They embraced their love of ska and reggae and mixed them with a heavy dose of power pop.

The second time I saw The Hooters they employed a horn section for their show at a now defunct Philadelphia venue, The Ripley Music Hall, in November 1982. The brass added a dimension to their sound that I never heard from them again. It was a long time ago but I remember it as a really great evening of music.

During these pre-stardom years The Hooters issued two independent 45 RPM singles. The first one was "Fightin' On The Same Side" (1981). A similar take appeared on their LP, Amore, another independent release that sold over 100,000 copies in Philadelphia in 1983. Then finally, it was issued in a very different version on their second Columbia LP, One Way Home (1987).

The flip side (remember them?) was "Wireless." It was "dedicated to the memory of Bob Marley" and was a real gem. It was a concert staple for The Hooters in those early days but once they hit the big time they completely abandoned it.

Both tracks were written by Rob Hyman and Eric Bazilian, the two main Hooters. Joining them was David Uosikkinen, the only drummer they ever had. Two other original members, both gone before the group's record deal was in place, were guitarist John Kuzma and bassist Bobby Woods.

A second single, a live version of "All You Zombies" b/w "Rescue Me," was subsequently released with the same lineup. A studio version of "Zombies" was also included on Amore. It was then redone and became an important track on their smash hit, Columbia debut, Nervous Night.

By the time The Hooters went national their Jamaican influences mostly disappeared and their pop side became dominant. Nevertheless, because Hyman and Bazilian are excellent composers they were able to hit pay dirt with their songwriting. The latter wrote "One of Us" for Joan Osborne while Hyman composed "Time After Time" with Cyndi Lauper.

The Hooters still play around Philadelphia today and all over Germany where they have always been very popular.

The group never made a bad record but listen to these early tracks and you can hear what you missed while they were strictly a local phenomenon.



Comments

  1. Unknown3:56 PM, August 12, 2018

    I hadn't thought of The Hooters for a while. I had actually liked the song Wireless and didn't know who it was from, now I do. I agree that they are great songwriters. Record labels are sometimes where creativity goes to die. You have to conform to what sells. However, And We Danced was and is a great tune. I also really like their song 500 Miles.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hooks and Harmony3:48 PM, August 20, 2018

    Wow - Never heard this before. Living in Georgia, I heard through trade magazines, "The Hooters are coming, the Hooters are coming," and was expecting them to rule the airwaves. But they didn't get as popular as I was expecting, and they deserved better.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Unknown8:40 PM, October 04, 2019

    I remember seeing them live at various venues in Philadelphia once they signed with a major label they lost all of the edginess that made them local rage. If they had kept their original sound I think they would have gone a lot farther.I also remember seeing them live at Ripley Music Hall the best thing about the place was they had a liqueur license.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Alby3:42 AM, October 14, 2022

    This original version of "Fightin' on the Same Side" was my favorite Hooters tune in their early days. Listen to that bass -- original bassist Bobby Woods gave them a ska feel that was lost in later incarnations of the band. An expanded, I would say overdone, version of the song appeared on "One Way Home."

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

WHAT'S HOT TODAY!

Slower Than Slow: 16 RPM Records

Image
Have you ever heard of a long forgotten vinyl format, the 16 2/3 RPM record? They were half the speed of the 33 1/3 RPM albums that were the traditional standard for recorded music. Most record players in the 1950s and 1960s came with a speed setting to play these long forgotten discs that were considered novelties even during the years they were available. Because most, but not all, 16s had big holes and were 7" in diameter many of them were mistaken for 45 RPMs and at that size the speed allowed for up to 20 minutes of playing time per side. However, there was no true standard size and they were also manufactured to be 9, 10, or 12 inches in diameter, and these larger records played even longer. Just like the other speeds and formats 16s could be played one record at a time or stacked on a changer for continuous play. Radio stations often used the discs for pre-recorded radio shows containing interviews, dramas, and documentaries. More frequen
Read more

Laurie London - He's Got The Whole World (In His Hands) (1958)

Image
Today we're going to discuss an almost totally forgotten hit record along with a little bit of related Billboard chart history. The inspiration for this post came about while sorting through some extremely old 45s that I didn't remember I owned. I've had "He's Got The Whole World (In His Hands)" by Laurie London - a rare, popular, gospel hit - in my record collection since my childhood, even though it wasn't really mine. The single belonged to either my mother or my grandmother who lived with us. I played it once in awhile because I was always allowed free access to their records, and it was eventually absorbed into my collection. Despite the name, teenager Laurie London (born January 19, 1944) was a boy singer who - at age thirteen - became a one-hit wonder in his native UK and in America the following year. Information about London is sparse. Details vary depending on the particular website you're reading, but according to Wik
Read more

Chicago: An Album By Album Analysis Of The Terry Kath Era (1969 - 1977)

Image
The original lineup of Chicago has always been one of my all time favorite bands. My affection for this great horn band is such that I want to discuss all of the albums they recorded before Terry Kath's unfortunate and accidental passing. Their debut album is now forty years old, and it's followup is not far behind, yet their music endures to this day. * * * * * Everyone Must Own * * * * Excellent * * * Good * * Fair * Poor * * * * * Chicago Transit Authority (1969) - Whether they were playing screaming psychedelic hard rock, jazz, blues, or love songs, everyone in the band proved they were worthy of the huge mass success that followed CTA 's release. The band's ability to play anything and play it well is the hallmark of their debut album. The stars are Robert Lamm, Terry Kath, and the horns, and even Peter Cetera demonstrates he can be a rock and roll animal when he wants to be. The standout tracks are Lamm's "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It
Read more

Louis Armstrong - Louis In London (2024)

Image
Louis In London is a live album of a concert Louis Armstrong and his All-Stars recorded for the BBC on July 2, 1968. It was first aired by the network on September 22, 1968. Armstrong died in 1971 and his health was already taking a a sad turn when this concert took place. It's often been called his last great performance because his health deteriorated significantly shortly thereafter, and his ability to tour was severely limited. When the great tumpeter and singer received a tape recording of his London show he marked it "for the fans" because he was so proud of it. He also made copies on his recently installed high-end Tandberg tape system for each member of the All-Stars. In 1970, nine of the thirteen tracks from this new CD were released on LP as  Louis Armstrong's Greatest Hits Recorded Live  on Brunswick Records in both America and in the UK. The CD was digitally transfered form the original BBC telecast recording and no
Read more

Why Do 45 RPM Records Have Big Holes?

Image
Today we're going to find out why 45 RPM records have much larger holes than 78s and 33s. Believe it or not I often wondered about this burning question when I was collecting hundreds of these little seven inch gems back the 1960s. According to several websites, including Answerbag , the reason for the large hole used by 45s was simple. It was difficult for the old 78s, with their smaller holes, to find their way onto jukebox spindles. The large hole effectively eliminated that problem. Strangely, seven inch 45s were often pressed with the smaller holes used for LPs in many countries outside the United States, especially in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. Overseas the inserts (commonly know as spiders) were manufactured into the large holes at the factories but they could be punched out if desired. The Beatles' British single of "Love Me Do," pictured here, is a typical example. Why were the spiders built into English 45s? I was unable to fi
Read more