By DONNA BALANCIA
Backstage Pass, one of the all-girl anchors of punk rock in Los Angeles, has reunited for a few shows and has a new cassette out called Backstage Pass 77.
There’s a lot of good punkers on this record who together comprised one of the first “almost all-female” bands of the 1970s punk era in LA.
“We think it’s one of the most punk rock things you can do, we’re like the Golden Girls of Punk rock or something,” said Genny Schorr of Backstage Pass.
She said the band released Backstage Pass 1977 on Cassette Day a few weeks ago.
“Spock lives in Nashville now and guy there wanted to do a cassette with download,” Schorr said.
Holly Vincent (holly and the Italians) guitar vocals singer songwriter, Genny Schorr lead guitar, vox singer songwriter, Joanna Spock Dean bass singer songwriter, Marina del Rey keyboards songwriter, Che Zuro guitar singer in second lineup and Rod Mitchell is the drummer.
“It’s a limited run with a digital download also includes the Backstage Pass song, ” Schorr said ‘Legend Come on Up to Me.'” One of the songs on the recording is “Legend Come on Up to Me.” Redd Cross did it, rerecorded it for Desperate Teenage Lovedolls in the 1980s. The new cassette is out on Semi Pro Records.
“The Rock N Roll Hall of Fame bought a copy of the casette Backstage Pass 77 and put with our archive,” Schorr said. “Our bass player spock donated jeans covered with backstage passes.
“We’re just marking our place in history and having fun with all this,” Schorr said. “We helped build The Masque and we just wanted to start a band.”
Schorr said she witnessed a lot of historical music events.
“We had a front seat for all that old punk era,” she said. “I think i’ts really important to show women’s roles were in the punk scene. We had a lot of connections int he San Francisco punk scene, it was a different vibe from New York and England. We thought it was a different vibe, I think we were having more fun than the New York and London people.”
They get their share of mentions in the books, they’re in a new book by Brenda Perlin called “Crime and Punkishment” and a mention in the Tom DeSavia book.
“There weren’t a lot of female guitar players at that time we were one of the first mostly all girl bands,” Schorr said.
The band’s‘Legend (Come on Up to Me)’ is on the Rhino Records punk anthology Saturday Night Pogo, and was covered by Redd Kross in the cult movie “Desperate Teenage Lovedolls” with Spock singing lead.
Backstage Pass broke up in 1979. but the band members went on to ther ventures. Marina Del Rey formed Vivabeat, which was signed by Peter Gabriel to Charisma Records. Holly Vincent created Holly and The Italians and had a hit record with ‘Tell That Girl to Shut Up.’ Ché’ Zuro became part of The Orchids which was formed by Kim Fowley.
Genny Schorr went on to be in the original lineup of cow-punk band The Screamin’ Sirens with Pleasant Gehman. Spock later played with a number of local bands as bass player and percussionist.
In January the band plays the Corbin Bowl in Tarzana.