- Included in the Other Music Posts List.
- I’m now listening to a terrific album, Cypress by an under-appreciated North Carolina band called Let’s Active that was led by studio wizard Mitch Easter.
Martin Winfree
September 13, 2014 ·
Hey North Carolinians (and others): I’m now listening to a terrific album, Cypress by an under-appreciated North Carolina band called Let’s Active that was led by studio wizard Mitch Easter (the other bandmembers were women). This was back when there were so many North Carolina bands on the record charts that The Village Voice actually complained about it. The opening track on Side 2 is a fantastic song called “Blue Line”; I just Googled the chorus line, “Living on a Blue Line” and got only FOUR hits!!! Are there any other fans of this fantastic group on there in FB land?
John Kovo
Joseph introduced me to Let’s Active back in the 80’s. Room With A View is the first song that comes to mind. Drummer Sara Romweber’s brother, Dexter, is a favorite of mine with his rockapsycho Chapel Hill band, The Flat Duo Jets.
Joseph Kovasckitz
Every word means no ho ho-oh!
Joseph Kovasckitz
Yes, Mitch goes heavy instead of his usual (also awesome) jangly on Blue Line… me likey.
George Konstantinow
Took a listen (Every Word Means No, and others) and could easily get on board. It’s fascinating, Martin, to track the bands you track. Where do you find this stuff?! Let’s Active has an eerily familiar sound to ’em — is there a distinctive “Winston-Salem” garage pop sound to bands from that era? (like what Village Voice may have been referring to?)
Martin Winfree
“Every Word means No” – I just heard that song earlier this morning! 🙂
Martin Winfree
John, I know of the Flat Duo Jets, but I have never found any of their records. I’ll keep an eye out for them and try to get to a record store the next time I get to the Old North State.
Martin Winfree
George, I can
Martin Winfree
George, I can’t remember exactly how I learned about Let’s Active, but I think I spotted Mitch Easter’s name in the bandmember list; the fact that everyone else was a woman was enough for me. I knew him mostly as a record producer and hadn’t even known that he had been in a band. Most of their albums I picked up down here, so those guys really get around. If I remember right, Mitch Easter’s studio is/was in Winston-Salem. I would love to track down that Village Voice quote; I will try to do that for a future UARB post. It looks like most of the old Rolling Stone mags have been scanned into Google, and I have spotted a lot of old Village Voice material as well on previous searches.
Actually there is a Winston-Salem garage rock sound, now that I think about it. I stumbled onto a great album not long ago that was a retrospective from Justice Records. It was started by a guy named Calvin Newton (he was evidently in the Oak Ridge Boys gospel group); he set up shop in Winston-Salem in the mid-1960’s and started making LP’s for area bands, not just 45’s. Remember the Barracudas? They had an album on that label, and that is one of those bands that I remember for sure. Others listed on the album include the Rockets, Skip and the Creations, Phantom Raiders, Stowaways, and Fugitives. It came out on the terrific Norton Records reissue label some years ago.
George Konstantinow
Hey, Bonnie Gillon, y’all pipe up here!