Fri 7 Nov 2008
Terrible Lizards – Demo
Posted by admin under Misc Music
[16] Comments
I was cruising through my bro Jason’s Flickr site, checking out the wide variety of images he had and came across this one. The deck is hanging up in the office at his work, DLXSF (a major skateboard distribution company). How cool is that deck? A combination of two of my favorite things, martial arts in the form of the godfather Bruce Lee and skateboarding. I had a deck very similar in terms of shape and accessories back when, the kind you could get from Kmart. Now a days it’s all about Jet Li and Jackie Chan, along with new deck Jason got me, but this one is just too cool. What was your first skateboard like?
That’s my rendition of a terrible lizard from doing an image search. This one goes way back for me into the late 70′s. A band I’m sure you’ve never heard of and you might think that’s because they suck. Let’s call it a period piece. I always thought of them as a mix of Bowie and Devo, with a little rock and roll thrown in from that era. I’ve metioned my friend Alex Wallace from elementary school on a few occasions and this band is linked to him. His mom’s best friend was a lady named Kitty who was a total trip. She was young, 30ish, and married to this old guy Dwight who owned the Carnation company. Super rich old dude with the trophy wife. She had her own place somewhere in the hills of Studio City and would sometimes go visit her husband Beverley Hills. In fact the most money I had ever seen at one time was a check for $250,000 he had written her that she had stashed in a cookie jar. Kitty had this boyfriend, I think his name was Steve or something like that and this is his band the Terrible Lizards. If I remember right this was the demo they had made to shop around to the record companies looking for a contract. I really dug this when I was a kid and listening to it now I sort of have a soft spot for it still. Martian Bastards is my favorite but Pants Are Too Tight is kind of cool too. You might not appreciate this the way I do but let them take you back to the late 70′s popular but on the edge sound. Kind of a new wave, punk, pop, rock thing going on. If anything the lyrics are pretty funny so they might be good for a laugh. Let me know.
my first skate was a santa cruz “special edition”, kinda shaped like that one, with the bird and the rails and all that. i skated the shit out of it. I dont know what was so “special” about it. it wound up breaking in half just like all the boards i got after that, my current deck is a Tony Alva, it has been in the storage shed for months.
we gave the terrible lizards a listen martian bastards reminds me of Mr Roboto….70′s pop punk/new wave..definetly different from anything we have heard in quite some time. these guys hang on the edge of cheezy…but they were probably pertty edgie in the way back.
thanks for listening.
Some funky tunes Justin, thanks. I was ignorant to the existence of this group. You and Sang have always expanded my musical menu, I am glad for that. Hope you are doing well my country livin’ amigo. You listen to much Johnny Cash? His song “country trash” reminds me of when I used to live in the “country” side of Mckinleyville back in 1990. Hound dogs, banjos, dirt roads and 22 rifles. By the way my first skateboard was a plastic banana shaped board that I got at Zody’s in 1981. My non english speaking ass would ride that on one knee at first because I did not know how to stand on it yet. When I finally learned how to ride, I would barrow my friend’s Dogtown bullet-we were too poor to afford me having a real skateboard.
what exactly is that thing in the picture?
I cant make out what it is. it seems like a pretty terrible lizard, but im not sure.
The songs sound really interesting!
Nice decks Brian, you need to gwet that deck out of storage and share with the kids. Glad you and Olivia gave those tunes a spin. Cheezy yes, but so much was back then.
Alex, yes I used to borrow a banana board when I was a kid to. Zody’s, is a store I haven’t heard for a long time. remember the one across the street from high school? Ah the kneeboard style, a classic way of moving a skateboard along. Not too much Johnny Cash these days, there is just a flood of music coming at me through the internet.
Brian that was the carcass of a basking shark and what the article was saying was that ancient people may have mistaken something like that for a dragon. A Terrible Lizard.
Erich thanx dude, I know you are very busy but don’t be such a stranger
Justin,
I like this just about as much as I like it when you say “Kim cut my hair” I say no, you say again “Kim cut my hair” so I start cutting then you say “what r u going, I say “shut-up” then you say “b careful” and I stomp in the other room pissed saying dont ever ask me cut your hair again. But, I still love ya.
the deck is too fucking cool! Zody’s… that where I got my shitty plastic skate board too!
Alex, congratulations on becoming a citizen!
Personally, I think its way better than anything that comes in second….how can i get a copy of “Pachuko in the forest?” thats pretty cool, where can i see newer art? Thanks in advance!
Sang and J. never heard of Zodys, wish i did, but i was not quite so cosmopolitan as all you all. if we couldnt get it at old town skate, (that old drunk dude that owned it fukin hated me) me and my bros went down to a skate shop on haight street. i think it was called skates on haight. i was always one for simplicity….this goofy group kind of grows on you. Justin and Kim, sounds like you all kneed to get this haircut thing together. UI think we should all at one appointed time just go ahead and get our med head on and do a collective baldness. we could do a timezone thing. wadda ya think?
Kim, you know those damn clippers are so cheap and even with my receding hairline, the hair is so think it bogs them down. You take that guard off and one slip up and it ends up a lot shorter than you want it. It turned out perfect though didn’t it?
Sang, another Zody’s shopper. We had one across the street from the high school where we would smoke cigarettes and the stoner gangsters would smoke green. Do they even have that store anymore?
Brian I don’t know if you missed much it was a sort of Kmart, Target, Pic N Save (Big Lots) all wrapped into one. A screeming kid down every aisle. Don’t worry about us dude, she loves it when I have a fresh buzz of the hair. I like your idea, maybe we should all do a collective circle jerk type of thing with the buzzing of our hair. From Korea to Florida to Kansas to Cali.
Brian believe me, there is nothing cosmo about Zody’s. It’s where poor folks like us shopped for cheap shit before Walmart. I think the skate shop is still there off Haight. I never got good because I always got jumped whenever I had a skate. I had to settle with looking for shiny objects on the sidewalk.
Justin, I used to go to Zodys at the corner of Sunset and Western. They’re all gone now. I think there is some shitty 99 cent store now along with Pollo Loco.
We’re all losing hair. I got the yamacha pattern baldness. you should see Alex man…
How ’bout you Brian?
Thanks for the compliment Brian, you can get a print direct from me. My e-mail is ohanaescudero@yahoo.com, drop me a line. I heve some new art but it is not online yet, sorry. If you are around Arcata you can stop by Ritas Mexican Restaurant to see original pieces.
I definatelly got the Franciscan monk thing going on, my daughter draws some pretty funny versions of me.
Zody’s was the first place I got to see a live naked woman. I was in the dressing booth and this young border sister goes into the one across from me (they had no doors or drapes) and begins to strip down to nothing, then she starts trying on underwear and bras. Aparently she did not realize there were separate dressing rooms.
Zody’s will always have a special place in my heart. I actually got my first album there, AC/DC for those about to rock.
You guys are studs and even though we are seperated by thousands of miles, I look forward to talking to you guys here. Thanx for sharing yall.
Zody’s man. I remember for 7th grade clothes shopping my mom and Grandpa took me there because “they’ve got great prices on dungaree’s”. I ended up with these Wolfman jeans, and was horribly embarrassed everytime I wore them.
Brian, you didn’t miss out on a thing by not having one near you-as previously said, it was like a low class K-mart.
My first skate was a piece of plywood with clay wheels that we scavenged off of an old pair of roller skates. From there I received a wood-deck GT for Christmas one year, but the trucks broke within like 3 months. Later, I stole my neighbors Powell with the tank graphic on it.
Damm I miss Ritas, I knew she had resturants in Eureka, hadnt heard about the one in Arcata. She makes the best street tacos, just a little steak and some cilantro…damm, thats good food.
first Live naked woman, is still first live naked woman no matter who was mistaken. when your a kid it all counts.
Wolfman jeans? ???? sorry bro.
Sorry to disapoint brothers, I still got all my hair, its 2 feet shorter than when we last stood face to face, but that comes with the military.
I havent even started going grey yet.
Sang you still spend your time looking for shiny objects don’t you.
Alex your artwork does kick ass, I still have a couple of originals.
Match with Wolfman dungarees huh? Even the stuff that was in style then we wouldn’t have now. Super short OP cordouroy shorts come to mind.
Brian no balding and no gray. I got gray and my 4head that was a 5head has now turned into a 6head. Keeping the clippers on an 1/8 of an inch helps.
ah so you were from l.a? that’s where i’m trapped in i mean live in. ok actually not bad. i don’t know if that store is still around. if you have any more questions about la now ask and i’ll try my best to answer. being blind i don’t get around to much skating. my first board was one that i bought at some big store. can’t even remember. wound up breaking the shit out of it (and my arm too) by well i don’t want to get into it. this is actually pretty good. and this alex guy sounds pretty cool. i ran his name by a friend and he says that he’s a fan of his art.