Brownsville Station (band)
| Brownsville Station | |
|---|---|
|
Brownsville Station, Charlotte, North Carolina, 1972 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States |
| Genres | Rock, hard rock |
| Years active | 1969–1979, 2012–present |
| Labels | Warner Bros. Records, Palladium Records, Big Tree, Wounded Bird, Private Stock, Epic, Rhino, Atlantic |
| Past members |
Cub Koda Mike Lutz T.J. Cronley Tony Driggins Henry "H-Bomb" Weck Bruce Nazarian Andy Patalan |
Brownsville Station is an American rock band from Michigan that was popular in the 1970s. Original members included Cub Koda (guitarist/vocalist), Mike Lutz (guitarist/vocalist), T.J. Cronley (drummer), and Tony Driggins (bassist/vocals). Later members included Henry "H-Bomb" Weck (drummer) and Bruce Nazarian (guitarist/vocalist).
They are remembered for the top-10 hit single "Smokin' in the Boys Room" (1973).
History
Early history
Brownsville Station was formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1969. Brownsville Station's early albums included song covers from bands which had inspired them.[1] In 1970, they released their debut studio album, No BS, on a Warners Bros. label. Their biggest hit, "Smokin' In the Boys Room", written by Michael Lutz & Cub Koda, from their 1973 album Yeah!, reached No. 3 on U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 27 in the UK Singles Chart. The track sold over two million copies and was awarded a gold disc status by the RIAA on 15 January 1974.[2]
Later history
In 1977, Brownsville Station recorded "Martian Boogie", one of their seven singles to chart on the Hot 100.[3] The song was also a feature on Dr. Demento's radio show. "(Lady) Put The Light On", their penultimate single, also charted in the Hot 100, at 46.
After drummer Cronley left the band, Van Wert, Ohio native Henry "H-Bomb" Weck was called on to fill the position left by Cronley.
The band's second-highest Billboard charting single was "Kings of the Party" which topped out at No. 31 in 1974.
Original members of Brownsville Station disbanded in 1979 and their final studio album together, Air Special, was released by Epic in 1978.
Lee Centracchio from Stubenville, Ohio played bass briefly with the band before leaving to join the Army.
Koda died of kidney disease on 1 July 2000 at the age of 51.
Lutz went on to produce many bands, including Ted Nugent's Spirit of the Wild album, and toured in the 1990s with Nugent. Lutz still resides in Ann Arbor, teaches guitar and bass at a local music store called Oz's Music, writes and produces many acts.
While still in Brownsville Station, Weck engineered and co-produced the Strikes album for Blackfoot, and then two more albums stateside as well as a live Blackfoot album with the Rolling Stones mobile in the UK. Weck continues to record and produce in Memphis, in Ann Arbor at Lutz's Tazmania Studios and is the co-driving force of the re-united Brownsville Station.[4]
After Cronley left Brownsville Station, he spent a career in the U.S. Marine Corps as a Marine Aviator, and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1992. He is currently a pilot for FedEx and resides in Yuma, Arizona. He is also an artist.[5]
Bruce Nazarian continued on to produce, engineer and perform with his band "The Automatix", who released their debut LP on MCA in 1983. He was the CEO of Digital Media Consulting Group and ran a popular digital media website "TheDigitalGuy.com". Nazarian also produced and hosted The Digital Guy radio show in addition to being a music producer, concert impresario and artist manager. His last band, "The Brotherhood" is slated to release their debut CD "(It's) All About The Groove" in early 2016. Nazarian died in October 2015.
Brownsville Station is Still Smokin' (2012 and beyond)
Through the band’s early days Weck captured over 500 hours of Brownsville demos, rehearsals, live shows and even some special events. In 2012, Lutz and Weck began sorting through the recordings in Lutz’s Tazmania Studio. The creative juices, always at the heart of Brownsville Station, were flowing and the result is the 13 tracks (12 brand new songs and the updated version of the band’s classic “Smokin’ In The Boys Room”) on Still Smokin’ (2012).
Augmented by new players Billy Craig, Arlen Viecelli and Brad Johnson, Brownsville Station returned to the road in 2013.
Influences
Brownsville Station's early influences included Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and other 1950s rock and roll musicians. Koda's onstage antics influenced many rockers including Peter Wolf and Alice Cooper.[1]
Band members
- Mike Lutz (1969-1979, 2012-Current) - guitar, vocals, bass, keyboards
- Henry "H Bomb" Weck (1972-1979, 2012-Current) - drums, vocals
- Billy Craig (2012-Current) - guitar, vocals
- Arlen Viecelli (2013-Current) - guitar, vocals
- Brad Johnson (2013-Current) - bass, vocals
Former members
- Cub Koda (1969–1979) - guitar, vocals
- T.J. Cronley (1969–1971) - drums
- Tony Driggins (1969–1972) - bass, vocals
- Bruce Nazarian (1975–1979) - guitar, vocals, keyboards, bass
- Andy Patalan (2012-2013) - guitar, vocals
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | US Top 200 |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | No BS | — |
| 1972 | A Night on the Town | 191 |
| 1973 | Yeah! | 98 |
| 1974 | School Punks | 170 |
| 1975 | Motor City Connection | — |
| 1977 | Brownsville Station | — |
| 1978 | Air Special | — |
| 2012 | Still Smokin' | — |
Compilations
- 1993: Smokin' In the Boys Room: The Best of Brownsville Station
- 2003: Smokin' In the Boys Room and Other Hits
- 2005: Smokin' In the Boys Room
- 2006: Rhino Hi-Five: Brownsville Station
Singles
| Year | Single (A-side, B-side) Both sides from same album except where indicated |
US Cashbox[6] | US Hot 100[7] | UK Singles[8] | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | "Rock & Roll Holiday" b/w "Jailhouse Rock" |
— | — | — | Non-album tracks |
| 1970 | "Be-Bop Confidential" b/w "City Life" |
— | — | — | No BS |
| 1971 | "Roadrunner" b/w "Do The Bosco" |
— | — | — | |
| "That's Fine" b/w "Tell Me All About It" |
— | — | — | Non-album tracks | |
| 1972 | "Rock With The Music" b/w "Country Flavor" |
— | — | — | A Night On The Town |
| "The Red Back Spider" b/w "Rock With The Music" (from A Night On The Town) |
85 | 96 | — | Non-album track | |
| 1973 | "Let Your Yeah Be Yeah" b/w "Mister Robert" (from A Night On The Town) |
60 | 57 | — | Yeah! |
| "Smokin' In The Boys Room" b/w "Barefootin'" |
2 | 3 | 27 | ||
| 1974 | "I'm The Leader Of The Gang" Original B-side: "Phyllis" Later B-side: "Meet Me On The Fourth Floor" |
26 | 48 | — | School Punks |
| "Kings Of The Party" b/w "Ostrich" |
31 | 31 | — | ||
| "I Got It Bad For You" b/w "Mama Don't Allow No Parkin'" |
— | — | — | ||
| 1977 | "Lady (Put The Light On Me)" b/w "Rockers N' Rollers" |
44 | 46 | — | Brownsville Station |
| "The Martian Boogie" b/w "Mr. Johnson Sez" |
45 | 59 | — | ||
| 1979 | "Love Stealer" b/w "Fever" |
— | — | — | Air Special |
References
- 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen. "Brownsville Station", Allmusic.com. Retrieved 19 August 2009.
- ↑ Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 325. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ↑ "Brownsville Station Songs: Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography". Musicvf.com. Retrieved 2013-03-24.
- ↑ Yvon Serre. "Official site". Henry Weck. Retrieved 2015-08-26.
- ↑ "Artist/pilot soars with aviation themes | soars, aviation, themes". YumaSun. Retrieved 2012-05-04.
- ↑
- ↑ "Archive". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-08-26.
- ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 83. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.