By DONNA BALANCIA
Starting out, when The Motels, The DoGs and The Pop were trying to get gigs, no venue would book them. In 1976, it was hard to get a gig if you were an unsigned band, especially in punk and new wave circles.
So the bands formed a coalition, Radio Free Hollywood, and had a concert on Hollywood and LaBrea that kicked butt and drew hundreds of fans. And guess what? That paved the way for unsigned bands to start getting booked at places like the Starwood and The Whisky.
To honor that independent and trend-breaking spirit, band members will hold the Radio Free Hollywood “Family Reunion” on Sunday at The Bootleg. It’s the hot ticket in town for lovers of punk and new wave.
Carla Olson, Dean Chamberlain and Backstage Pass
Musicians like Carla Olson and Dean Chamberlain will be jamming, and even bands like Backstage Pass — which hasn’t been together in 40 years — will be there.
Olson’s band The Textones bring the rockabilly swag into the mix. The Textones have a new album out called Old Stone Gang.
Current Textones are the original drummer and bass player Marcus Cuff and Dave Provost and sax player who has been on the record (Carla: “Well everyone is on the record actually,”) Tom Jr. Morgan.
The ‘Watch’ DoGs Helped Forge New Territory
Led by Loren Molinare, The DoGs have been playing consistently over the last 40 years. Nowadays, the band often gigs in the hot venues in Los Angeles. But it wasn’t that way in the late 1970s and early 1980s. So things changed on their watch.
Working bands today owe a debt of gratitude to these musicians and the concert on Sunday is to pay homage to these pioneers on Veterans Day. The group is not disparaging the soldier veterans. But musicians also have their respected veterans.
“We want to honor our Radio Free Hollywood Family with this Reunion since these musicians are also veterans in the music world,” said Terry Moreland Henderson, producer of the event. “We will also specifically honor Charlie Quintana, Henry Peck and Don Waller who were very helpful with the inception of this idea.”
Henderson championed the cause with David Denkins, Marvin Etzioni and with special thanks to Dean Chamberlain and Loren Molinare.
All proceeds after production costs will go to Sweet Relief musicians charity.
For more information go to The Bootleg website.
