While record shopping in New Orleans, I found a cheap copy of Slim Dunlap's two LP set "My Old New Records," which is essentially his two solo CDs in a first time vinyl release. I don't recall where these records had recently been discussed, maybe over at Power Pop, or possibly on Instagram, but that must have been in my head when I grabbed my copy at Louisiana Music Factory.
Dunlap spent some time as a Replacement, before suffering a stroke in 2012. He has not performed since. There have been benefit records, including a 4 track E.P. from a reunited Replacements that features a cheeky cover of "Everything's Coming Up Roses."
I hadn't listened to Slim's records since they were released nearly 30 years ago, and I was pleasantly surprised by the rootsy Stones meets The 'Mats, ramshackle rock and roll found on both.
Here are a couple from his first, "The Old New Me."
6 comments:
Thanks Sal for giving Slim some air time. He was a secret weapon for The "Mats"
I didn't even know these records existed until Springsteen gave them a shoutout in an interview around the same time as the tribute EP. THey're great!
What? Only a few comments so far? And it was Simels who last brought Dunlap up recently. Dunlap is worth checking out. Well here goes:
In the fall of 1992 I bought the Keith Richards Main Offender record and was disappointed at initial listening. Even though I've warmed to it since, it still doesn't reach the level of Talk Is Cheap. Anyway, I had a friend who, like me, was moonlighting in the bootleg CD game at the time. He got most of his stuff through Charlie back east. But he got Scorpio and other exotic labels from me. He worshipped the Stones and Keith (he also worshipped Woody Allen & Martin Scorsese). We discussed the new Keith record and he suggested I check out the Izzy Stradlin release which came out around the same time. I did and I liked it. If the Ju Ju Hounds ever gigged in SoCal, I missed it. They didn't last too long. A shame, that was a good line-up. I think Izzy was too busy shooting up at Bob Welch's place. But they did do Europe. The live EP and the bootlegs are fun. I mean how many bands do you know who cover the Stones'Jiving Sister Fanny? Plus they did Wipe Out and Ronnie Wood's Take a Look At the Guy. With the dearth of L.A. gigs, Sandy and I flew to San Francisco to see Izzy open for Keith Richards at the Civic. As far as I know, that was the only time they were co-billed. Fun show. It was just before I had made the transition from cassette to DAT and I was using TDK MA-90's.
One of my high school boyfriends used to drive his mom and his grotesquely overweight sister to Vegas every time Elvis did his month-long stands there. Typically, twice a year. He'd always invite me along. His dad bought a new Toronado every year and we'd take it to Vegas. It was a three-hour trip to Vegas and his mom and sister were either sleeping, or oblivious, to the fact that I was doing more than resting my head in his lap. His mom and sister would catch two to four shows there per stand. Since the shows were pretty programmed, me and my boyfriend would only go to one or two. The two of us would roam around Vegas looking for something to do. By February 1973, he was 22 and I could pass for 21, though still 17 and a senior in high school. We could pretty much go anywhere we wanted. And we did. But, ultimately, we were so horny we just wound up in bed. That was where the real Jackpot hit.
In 1973 Elvis canceled one of the shows we were planning to see. Supposedly the flu:-) My boyfriend's Twinkie scarfing sister was beside herself. She started crying. I didn't care. He was doing two shows a night. They were bound to get a ticket for another Elvis show. In the meantime, his mom and sister elected to go see Bobbie Gentry at the Desert Inn. We dropped them off and cruised normal Vegas looking for some musical action.
First stop was the liquor store. We got a fifth of gin. The guy working the register looked pretty hip so I asked him if they had any happening rock venues in Vegas. He mentioned a couple. Then he said the guy that used to be in Gun's ‘N Roses was playing at someplace on Charleston Avenue. Izzy Stradlin? I asked. He affirmed. So that was the second time I saw the Ju Ju Hounds and they cranked.
They played in some rundown old theatre and afterwards access was easy, especially since I knew him from his early days in L.A. just before he quit Hollywood Rose and Skippy joined. He mentioned that he wanted to do something with Slim Dunlap after the tour was over. But junkies talk about a lot of shit. Like so much of what he said, I took it as bullshit. He had the sniffles, you know. But he was livin' the life he chose.
VR
Fast forward to fall 1973 and Izzy's trying to put a new band together. His new line-up played the Coconut Teaszer. I had to check it out. There were a couple of other bands on the bill, so during the wait I had some Courvoisier and chatted with Len and some strangers about the fires in Laguna Beach and the latest on Heidi Fleiss. Len knew her well. Once, at an Ian McLagan gig at the Teaszer, Heidi approached me about, you know. I told her I had three kids under the age of ten, an old man and four keys of coke to move a week. When she inquired about the blow, I told her I was kidding. But I wasn't. I just didn't want to deal with her. She was an idiot, not a mastermind.
So Slim Dunlap comes to order a drink. I told the very attractive bartender to double it and give me the bill. She did. We talked a little bit. He was flattered that I knew who he was. He had a good sense of humor about it when I said he was the guitarist that presided over the band's ruin. He was there to see Izzy. I never got around to asking if they had any plans to work together. Slim said he was gonna be playing a few gigs in Arizona and coming back to L.A. to play the Lingerie. I asked when it was. Turned out to be the same night that Westerberg was playing the Palladium. He couldn't believe it. The one night he plays L.A., and Westerberg has to be playing the same night. I laughed and said that sucks for you. I had tickets for Westerberg already.
But fate intervened. Paul Westerberg supposedly had issues with his back and the Palladium gig got postponed. So that's how I got to see Slim for the first time. I liked it and bought the debut LP.
Saw him a few more times, all after the second album came out. The good old Doll Hut in 1996; Spaceland in 1997. The best of all was in 1998 at my favorite club in Hollywood. Jack’s Sugar Shack. At that venue he was third bill to the Mojo Monkeys and Big Jay McNeely. What a gig!
VR
Saw A Giant Dog tonight. Interesting band. One of my daughter's picks.
Always thought Slim was under rated. I remember buying his first solo CD in the early 90s and really enjoying it. But haven't really listened to him in a long time (decades). I hope he's OK these days health wise.
Thanks for the reminder Sal. I'll add Slim to my Spotify library.
Not Yet-Ain't No Fair (In a Rock 'N' Roll Love Affair) is the one I wish the Stones would open with. I believe that song made it onto one of my Weekend Mixes.
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