The SIDEWALKS [Milwaukee, Wisconsin]

7" « Natalie » b/w « Whoever Said That You Was Cool » (USA [Flying Scooter Records #FSR-001] 1981) Nice garage pop with a slight mod feel, even if it had nothing really peculiar to the early eighties style... nor to any other specific era either.

SILLY BOYS [USA]

LP « WANT YOU! » (USA [Rockin' Horse #RH4158] 1982) Undoubtedly, these Silly Boys were part of the powerpop hard core, otherwise how can explain they released this kind of record ... in 1982 ? First off, the sleeve showed two guys in vintage '70s (three-piece) suits...[pierre] Not quite a treasure perhaps, but sort of a buried... uh, silver dollar, this five-songer is pure new wave-era (but not new wave in sound) power-pop, which means Knack-like pounces of guitar, and gooey/lovey lyrics epitomized by the titles : "High School Crush","Corner Telephone" and "Subway Romance" (and two others). This two-man band had obviously spend some time listening to the great pop groups of the day (Shoes, Records, L.A. power-pop et al), and went about trying to recreate the magic of those bands without knowing exactly how the trick is done. And of course it wasn't a trick after all, but that other "t"-word talent, which wasn't in abundance in the Silly Boys' repertoire. Still, The EP is full of catchy hooks and the sort of specific power-pop fun -- early eighties style -- that can never, and will never, be created again.[jordan o., Yellow Pills #6]

SINGLE BULLET THEORY [Richmond, Virginia]

7" « Peggy Got Her Eyes Full » b/w « This Is The Boy » (USA [Artifacts #1122]1981/) 7" « Keep It Tight » b/w « Blink Of An Eye » (USA [Nemperor] )

The SINGLES [USA]

featuring D. StJames (ex-Romantics)

[Tr] « »« »[ on « The Roots Of Powerpop » (Bomp, 1996)](USA 198?/) [Tr] « »« »[ on « Waves : An Anthology Of New Music Vol.2 » (Bomp, 1979)](USA )

The SINGLES(2) [California]

EP 7" « Play It! » : « Lookin' Round For You »« Nicole » b/w « Sheena's Got A New Hero »« Just Another Girl » (USA [Big Cheese #EP-1008] 1983) Recreate wonderfully that pop'n'beat sound that was peculiar to the LA area in the early eighties (Beat, 20/20, Knack etc.). Feat. Rick Gallego who is Jiffipop/Cloud Eleven one-man band.

SKOOSHNY [California]

EP 7" « It Hides More Than It Tells »« Cakewalk » b/w « The Ceiling To The Lies »« Odd Piece In The Puzzle » (USA [Alien Records] 1978)

Stan SKORA [Chicago, Illinois]

EP 7" « Kind Of Girl »« No Class » b/w « You Like It » (USA [Din-key #2988] 1981) Powerpop from Chicago, with the help of ex-Pezband member, Mimi Retinis 7" « Hide From Yourself » b/w « Walk On You » (USA [Dk] 1982)

SKUNKS [Austin, Texas]

Someone once wrote "The Skunks were considered too mainstream to be genuinely punk".

7" « Can't Get Loose » b/w « Earthquake Shake » (USA ) LP « SKUNKS » (USA ) 7" « What Do You Want? » b/w « The Racket » (USA [Skunk Records] 1980) EP 7" « Cheap Girl » b/w (USA ) Although not straight-ahead pop, "Cheap Girl" still has this very special feeling of 1979 vintage rock'n'pop. Maybe a bit reminiscent of the NY sound of the mid-70S. LP « THE SKUNKS » (USA [Republic Recordings #RR-8201] 1982) vaguely 60s garage-influenced pop. [Tr] « »« »LIVE AT RAUL'S(USA )

SMART REMARKS [New Jersey]

The Smart Remarks cut a 45 on Criminal records, in 1982. The band contact is an address in Bordentown N.J. It was engineered by Tom Marolda of the Toms. The top side, "Mary's Got Her Eye On Me" is an uptempo number that relies more on jangle than power chords to make its point. I'm thinking of perhaps the Holsapple end of the early dB's minus any quirkiness. The song is a nice contrast to many of its hormonally-charged brethren; it has a priceless innocence that still sounds fresh to me years after I discovered it. The B-side is pretty good too, with a slightly arty edge maybe like the Individuals. According to E. McCauliffe's book "Pop Power" they also had an LP on Criminal, but I don't know anybody who has actually seen or heard it.[jon harrison]

7" « Mary's Got Her Eye On Me » b/w « » (USA [Criminal] 1982)

The SNEAKERS [USA]

EP 7" « Ruby »« On The Brink »« Love's Like A Cuban Crisis » b/w « Condition Red »« Nonsequitur »« Driving » (USA [Carnivorous #1] 1976) EP 12" « in the red » : b/w (USA [Car Records #0398] 1978) CD « racket » (USA [East Side Digital #ESD 80672] 1992)

The SNEAKERS(2) [USA]

7" « Lies » b/w « Things We Said Today » (USA [Bearsville] 1980) Not sure that the band hailed from the US (it was mixed in London). Although there were nothin special, both covers and especially"Lies" were enjoyable.

SORROWS [N.Y.C., New York]

The Sorrows were typical of a style – Beat'n'pop if not Powerpop -- somewhere between the Yardbirds of « Evil Hearted You » and the Plimsouls of « A Million Miles Away ». They trailed the same obsession the Groovies had around the same time, about this craving of epitomizing that improbable gleaming juke-box, stamped « Wall of Sound ».

LP « TEENAGE HEARTBREAK » (USA [Pavillion #JZ 36369] 1980) LP « LOVE TOO LATE » (USA [Pavillion #JZ 37015] 1981)

The SPEEDIES [N.Y.C., New York]

7" « Let Me Take Your Foto » b/w « No Substitute » (USA [Golden Disc #GDR1003] 1979) both sides make it a solid record 7" « Something On My Mind » b/w « Time » (USA [Speedy Delivery Music #MS2] 1981)

The SPOILERS [Santa Barbara, California]

7" « Greta Don't Come » b/w « Loose Words » (USA [White Lunch Records] 1980) Cool low-budget powerpop, with review hype sheet [jaylitch].

The SPONGETONES [Charlotte, North Carolina]

Someone once qualified them as the "North Carolina's answer to The Rutles, the difference being that the band from Charlotte wasn't in it for laughs". Of course, this comparison can't be taken too seriously, but yes, there's a bit of that in the sense that the early Spongetones might be considered somewhat of a Beatles revival band (anyway my personal theory is that there are more interesting things to discover in the Beatles revival bands history than a suspicious minded pop aficionado might conceive it). In fact The Spongetones didn't sound revivalist at all ; they carried the torch for the pop cause with a true genuineness, updating the Merseybeat style with exuberance and enthusiasm instead of imitating it. With their own repertoire of original "red album"-ish songs, it's hard to understand why these guys never found favour in every Beatles collectors' eyes (who carry on to be after The Rutles), probably because of the lack of promotion.

7" « Better Take It Easy » b/w « You're The One » (USA [Gear #007104] 1980) 7" « She Goes Out With Everybody » b/w « Here I Go Again » (USA [Ripete #R-119] 1982) LP « BEAT MUSIC » (USA [Ripete Music #392152] 1982) The Spongetones' first LP was the kind of record that totally claimed our favorite obsessions. Among the bands that devoted themselves to the "red album" cause, The Spongetones can be proud of having recorded one of the best things in the genre, with outtakes from a long lost `64 Beatles session that all the Fab Four fans wouldn't ever dare to hope. Even if actually it would be unfair to mention The Beatles as the unique reference bacause The Spongetones were true pop scholars... The B-side is purely and simply perfect. 7" « Now You've Gone » b/w « Torn Apart » (DK )