Happy Birthday Chris Houston!

Cheers to singer/songwriter and story teller deluxe Chris Houston – still kickin' in the Hammer! Check the clips below. 

LINKS

Listen to Chris Houston's albums via Spotify... "Evil Twang" right here and "One Mania To The Next" right here.

R.I.P. drummer Jack Pedler, 1953-2025

Sadly, Jack Pedler – who played with Teenage Head, Dave Rave Conspiracy, Buxton-Kastle & others – has died. He'll be greatly missed.

Jack's friends are getting together for a celebration of life event at the Corktown (175 Young St) in Hamilton on Feb. 15 – info here.

Chris Houston's latest album "Rapid Detox" gets a limited vinyl release

Just in time for holiday gift-giving, Chris Houston's latest release, "Rapid Detox" is out now on vinyl. Get it at Neurotica!

LINKS 

Spotify – Chris Houston's Rapid Detox

Into The Abyss (257 King St. E, Hamilton) record shop

Dr. Disc (20 Wilson St, Hamilton) record shop

Neurotica (567 College, entrance on Manning Ave, Toronto) record shop

Gord's Back Room (2227 Dundas St. West, Toronto) record shop

Kire Paputts new film "Junkie Run" screens @ Hamilton Film Fest, Sunday

"Junkie Run" – feat. the music of Teenage Head & Chris Houston – premieres at Hamilton's Playhouse Cinema on Sunday at 1 pm.

Kire Paputts' micro-budget Steeltown epic Junkie Run – being called "The most 'Hamilton' film you'll ever see" – will be screening at the Playhouse Cinema (177 Sherman Ave. North) on Sunday (October 26) at 1 pm as part of the Hamilton Film Festival. Junkie Run was shot entirely in Hamilton with a cast of local talent. The cast and crew will participate in a Q&A after the screening.

Junkie Run is a dark comedy caper film centred around a community of misfits at a local dive bar. When the regulars get word that Foggy, a local junkie, is on the run with a bag full of money from a botched drug deal, they each scheme, backstab and claw at one another to be the first person to find Foggy and take the money.

Says filmmaker Kire Paputts "About half the roles in Junkie Run were written for specific people. Many of these actors I’ve worked with in the past. For some it’s our first collaboration. I’ve spent years building a roster of characters. Consisting of friends, family, and muses. And I’m constantly adding to my Rolodex. Always looking for new talent. The idea of building a community is very much inspired by John Waters Dreamlanders and the trailer park community of Giuseppe Andrews films. I’ve slowly been gravitating towards that idea for the last 10+ years."

The soundtrack and a soundtrack featuring songs by Teenage Head and Chris Houston. Sez Chris "Some of the movie was shot in my house... Mickey Skin did a scene in my bed which she thought was going to collapse!"

"Junkie Run is packed with music," continues Paputts. "Both original score and licensed recordings. All original songs were written and produced by Devon Goldgerg. Performed by Morricone Youth. Our third collaboration.  We ended up licensing 16 songs. This allowed me to showcase some of my favourite local artists, either from the Hammer or Toronto. Working on The Last Pogo Jumps Again with Colin Brunton was a great education in Southern Ontario punk/new wave.

"When it came time to find songs for Junkie Run I had a pretty good selection of artists to pick from. We didn’t have a lot of money so I’m grateful to all the artists who helped us out: Teenage Head, The Ugly, Chris Houston, John Borra, Handsome Ned, Jelly ToofLy, Chris Haight, Screamin’ Sam, Man Crush, Dildoniks, ACR, Kimbo Red Splizz and Wayne Larabee (The East End Sensation).

"I really wanted to get an early Forgotten Rebels song in the film but the individual who controls the master recordings wasn’t very helpful. I also had a particular song for the opening credits, but it was gonna cost me as much as all the other songs combined. But I’m thankful. I stumbled across another song which works a million times better. Sometimes the universe does that.

"A special thank you to John Borra for producing and wrangling some great musicians for “Last Man In The Bar.” A song that was written by John Hamlton and my father in the 70’s, but was never properly recorded until now.  Maybe we’ll release a soundtrack in the new year. Until then you’ll be able to toe tap along to these great artists at the upcoming Junkie Run screening."

Advance tickets are $12 available right here. Watch a snippet here.

The first 20 people who show up for the Junkie Run screening at the Playhouse get a swank t-shirt like Liz Worth is wearing. 

Chris Houston's new Paranoid Bubble album boasts stellar support cast

Chris Houston's great new Paranoid Bubble album has contributions from Mary Margret O'Hara, Randy Bachman, Michael Fonfara, Herbie Spanier & other pals.

Chris Houston's latest album release Paranoid Bubble is a collection of recordings made over a period of years in various cities with an enormous cast of celebrated musicians including Guess Who and BTO guitar god Randy Bachman, Toronto vocalist extraordinaire Mary Margaret O'Hara, session keyboardist Michael Fonfara, jazz trumpeter Herbie Spanier and Sun Studios rockabilly guitar slinger deluxe Roland Janes! And how the heck does Chris Houston get all these credible singers and players to record his often unhinged experiments in unpopular song? Well, they each happen to be a close personal friend and have been for ages. And when Houston calls them for a session, they know it'll involve something they probably wouldn't try recording themselves and also that whatever goes on, it'll be a good time. Here are a few of Chris Houston's memories of recording with the people who helped create the music you'll encounter on Paranoid Bubble which follows below.   

Mary Margaret O'Hara 

 "When recording Mary Margaret I always do multiple takes so there's a Sea of Mary's voice. She naturally orchestrates the song in her mind as she goes so when all the takes are used – with no editing – it makes sense. You don't mess with genius from planet Mary Margaret – you're just grateful. She would do these crazy chicken sounds and created a barnyard of insanity. Once a week, my late father would ask me when are you going into studio with Mary Margaret. Daddy always had good taste in music." 

Michael Fonfara, Herbie Spanier and Terry Wilkins

"We recorded 'Hello Satan' at Elvis Monday downstairs at the Drake Hotel before renovations. The acoustics of the room were stunning. Terry Wilkins nailed all his parts on the first take. We were on the road so we were tight Herbie's horn really galvanized us. I think it was last time I played with him. Michael Fonfara did his dubs playing Curly Bridges' Hammond organ. Everything was very rushed. I can't believe the results. Thank you William New!"

Randy Bachman, Charlie Haas, Robbie King

"Recording with Randy Bachman is always fun. Trying to figure out different ways of tapping into his genius is challenging. Randy can send lighting bolts down your spine but to get that on tape can be a challenge. I usually try to set up series of accidents. For whatever reason, nobody showed up on time for this session so I had to reinvent everything. I ran some of my drum machine patterns and rolled the tape without giving Randy any direction. He thought we were on acid and wanted to check our eyeballs. But eventually he got into it and suddenly proclaimed, 'this is genius! This how Miles Davis works!' 

"When Charlie Haas came in, his hyperactive approach to steel guitar actually saved the day. Randy would pump out a lot of different melodies just to see how the Charlie would react and each note Randy played, Charlie would answer with his steel guitar. Robbie King showed up later on and overdubbed his organ parts on the tracks we had cut while Randy sat off by himself reading a magazine. As soon as Robbie King started tearing into the Hammond organ, all the jaded engineers jaws dropped. The Robbie demanded that I get Fonfara to play Hammond too. After we finished up for the day, I apologized to Randy for all the confusion early on, he said 'Chris, it doesn't get any better than this!'"

Famous & Betty salute Hamilton icon with "Chris Houston Downtown Streetwalking Blues"

Check out Famous & Betty's tribute to Chris Houston of the Forgotten Rebels and One-Eyed Jacks below. 

When in Hamilton, get a copy of Famous & Betty's new album "Be The Light" at Dr. Disc (20 Wilson St). 

Whaddya mean you don't know the One-Eyed Jacks

Forgotten Rebels' bassist Chris Houston joined Demics' guitarist Steve Koch in T.O. rockabilly crew One-Eyed Jacks. 

Here's the scoop...

During the Toronto rockabilly scare of the early 80s – when Jim Cuddy and Greg Keelor were done as The Hi Fi's and trying to make it in NYC for three years prior to forming Blue Rodeo – Demics guitar ace Steve Koch formed a short-lived band with Forgotten Rebels bassist Chris Houston called the One-Eyed Jacks which I saw tearin' it up at various clubs on the Queen West circuit like the Beverly Tavern, Cabana Room and the Cameron House. There was one particularly memorable gathering of the tribes at Ontario College of Art  – where Chris was momentarily seeking higher education – involving The Sidewinders (featuring Handsome Ned with pals Ronny Azzopardi of The Next and J. D. Weatherstone of The Demics), The Paladins and The Bopcats with Teddy Fury. 

Check out a rare audio clip of the One-Eyed Jacks' song "24 Hour Cafe" right here. And watch the video for "Someone's Gonna Get Kissed" below. Seems like some sharp archival label owner should get in touch with Steve Koch & Chris Houston about releasing a 4-song EP of One-Eyed Jacks recordings from their 1982 session. 

Writes Chris Houston: "When the One-eyed jacks formed, it was radical statement – a rejection of what was the norm. We felt punk rock was a spent force and we wanted to be what's next. To us that meant clean guitars so you could hear the voicing of the chords. We were picking up on that great swing of the bands of the 1950s. How could you top The Demics, The Viletones, Forgotten Rebels and Crash Kills Five? We had to move ahead in different direction by embracing what had been done by the musical gods who invented this shit called 'rock n' roll.' There were others on the Queen St scene who embraced this too but this would be our own scene because the other scenes were collapsing in their own self-importance. After the original punk explosion, the survival of Queen St scene was tenuous. 

"The One-Eyed Jacks rehearsed continuously in a basement space on Queen St. West near Bellwoods that was so small – about the size of six telephone booths – if I leaned too far forward I would fall into Alex's cymbals. When the new TTC street cars came rolling by, they would rattle our brains but we kept playing. We knew we had to work hard but it was fun learning a whole new style of music. I think what makes '24 Hour Cafe' so great was that it was about a real place on  Peter St. along with our joy in learning to play a classic form of rock 'n' roll.  Steve Koch is a great musician and composer. Each year he's grown better and better. His latest work with He Mistook Her For A Swan is fantastic! 

"The One-Eyed Jacks recorded four songs at studio called The Grange. Back in 1982, it was not cheap to record in a real studio and it was a crap shoot if the engineer got what you're doing. We were lucky it stands the test of time. We played once in London, Ontario opening for Carl Perkins. The guy behind the bar at the venue treated us like shit. This upset Mr. Perkins who demanded we be treated the same as him – right down to making the same dramatic gestures when serving us drinks. If the pour wasn't just right, Mr. Perkins would make him do it again. WOW! I learned a lot being in his presence of Mr. Perkins. His guitar playing was mind blowingly great. I always knew he was a hot picker but seeing him up close was incredible – like the Charlie Parker of rockabilly!  For some reason, each member of the band was wearing a different cologne with a very distinct scent. It seemed kinda odd but when they got on stage, you could easily pinpoint where each player was at any given moment so I guess it worked for them. The next night, Mr. Perkins didn't go to Toronto to play The Horseshoe as scheduled because the paper work for immigration wasn't done properly. Mr. Perkins spent an hour telling us he would never do anything that could put his sons in jail and wanted us to convey that message to the people of Toronto when we got back. 

"There was also one freezing night that The One-Eyed Jacks opened for the Legendary Blues Band at the Club Without A Name... and with no heat either! I still remember seeing these Muddy Waters' sidemen in the manager's office all standing around the one heater in the place. They said, 'it gets cold in Chicago too – but not like this! Willie "Big Eyes" Smith drumming that night was pure voodoo with Pinetop Perkins on piano! Yow! – boy, they made us feel very white!"

Those interested in further listening can hear Jim Cuddy discussing The Hi-Fi's, playing ska, reggae and funk in New York and the early 80s Queen West scene on the Turned Out A Punk podcast right here. 

Steve Koch & Colleen Hodgson aka He Mistook Her For A Swan will be playing songs from their latest album Lady Isobel at The Mezz (1546 Queen St. West) on Sunday (January 26) from 3pm to 6 pm. Adds Steve: "We're going to be doing an acoustic set and then we'll be joined by Derrick Brady and Larry Graves Grier Coppins Musica and Brian Stillar for a more electric eclectic set. Come on down for your fill of murder ballads!" 

 

One For The Weekend: Chris Houston

Listen to Chris Houston's pandemic classic "Doing Nothing" off his Steel City homage, One Mania To The Next.  

That time Chris Houston played a Lori Yates guitar pull

The one and only Chris Houston fondly recalls his Hamilton roots at a backyard soiree chez Lori Yates on August 4, 2013. 

Here's the scoop from Lori Yates...

I used to have these “guitar pulls” a’la Johnny Cash in my backyard on Queen St. Hamilton.

This one features the punk icon Chris Houston on his song “Fuckface City”.

Check out the late great Brian Griffith ripping up my little Harmony guitar - he is absolutely on fire!! with Nick Burson on snare & Mike Hickey on bass, Sue Leonard, Linda Duemo, on back-ups. Check out the end where Gavin comes in and Chris starts to flub the words...priceless! – Lori Yates

R.I.P. Michael Fonfara, 1946-2021

Sadly, Canadian keyboard great Michael Fonfara – who frequently recorded with Chris Houston & Lou Reed – has passed away.  

LINKS

FYI Music News R.I.P. Keyboard Maestro Michael Fonfara by Kerry Doole

Watch Chris Houston sing and chat about Hamilton with Lori Yates

Hamilton's own Chris Houston joined Lori Yates for a recent FB livestream you can view here. 

Chris Houston confronts Hamilton on One Mania To The Next

Chris Houston presents the Hamilton he knows on his new album, One Mania To The Next. Listen to a couple of tracks below. 

Here's the scoop...
Chris Houston's new album, One Mania to the Next – out now – is the official follow up to Hazards of Glitter. A few of the songs first appeared in demo form on 2018’s Today’s Temperature mini-album, (Now deleted at Chris’s request – ‘These are better versions’). Everything on One Mania to the Next is 100% Houston standard full-on.

Acting as a companion piece to Houston’s acclaimed guided tour of home town Hamilton, Ontario’s punk-rock landmarks, his credentials are that not only was he there, but he remembers it all.

From the opening (I Need) Lloyd D Jackson Square Energy, the album documents, celebrates and immerses the listener in an era when a town that didn’t have a musical identity first strapped on a guitar and walked out into the world, unashamed and entirely unafraid.

Get a copy of Chris Houston's One Mania to the Next via DW Recordings right here. Check out a few tracks below.





Chris Houston – One Mania to the Next
1: (I Need) Lloyd D Jackson Square Energy
2. Complaint Department
3: This Ain’t Hollywood
4: Too Nervous for Kung Fu
5: People Food
6: Her Book of Evil
7: Toronto AuGoGo
8: Beverly Tavern
9: Doing Nothing
10: Hamtronic Brain Virus
11: Leaving Mapleside

Those involved:
Chris Houston – lead vocals, bass guitar, drum machine
Michael Fonfara – keyboards
Danny Weis – guitar
Jack Peddler – drums
Mickey DeSadist – guitar, vocals on "This Ain’t Hollywood"
Cleave Anderson – drums
Steve Koch – guitar
Larry Electrician – drums, congas, tambourine
Lori Yates – vocals on "This Ain’t Hollywood"
Cover – Fuzzy Mall
Dedicated to Allan Caperol Houston – The coolest man in the World

The stars come out for Chris Houston's Hazards of Glitter album

Chris Houston's Hazards Of Glitter is out now on DW Records. Check out his cover of Tommy Ramone's Mean To Me. 

Forgotten Rebels great Chris "Baby Jesus" Houston is back with an all-star support cast of longtime pals – including the amazing Mary Margaret O'Hara, Teenage Head's Gordie Lewis & Jack Pedler, Blue Rodeo's Jim Cuddy, Bazil Donovan, Greg Keelor and Cleave Anderson, Michelle McAdorey, Harold Nix, Michael Fonfara, and his former One-Eyed Jacks bandmate Steve Koch – for his latest epic Hazards Of Glitter (DW Records).

Recorded with Tim Vesley at Toronto's Woodshed studio, the 10-track album of rough-cut gems is split between Houston's own streetwise revelations and well-chosen covers like the Robert Calvert-penned Captain Lockheed and the Starfighters ripper The Right Stuff, Lou Reed's Vicious Circle and Tommy Ramone's Mean To Me featuring fellow Hamiltonian Lori Yates of Rang Tango and Last Resorts infamy (listen below).

Chris Houston's Hazards of Glitter album is available now from DW Records right here. Incidentally,  DW Records also has copies of Houston's previous album Today's Temperature released last March and his Evil Twang album from 1997 which features many of the same suspects involved with Hazards of Glitter, namely Mary Margaret O’Hara, Jim Cuddy, Greg Keelor and Michelle McAdorey.

'B' Girls 40th Anniversary @ The Rivoli, Saturday

A new version of Toronto's legendary 'B' Girls is joined by Chris Houston, The Trash Bags and Pale Lips tonight.