Dominus Vobiscum

Dead Boys : (I Don't Want To Be No) Catholic Boy

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In August of 1978 The Dead Boys released their follow-up to their classic debut,  Young Loud and Snotty. Former Mountaineer Felix Pappalardi gives the Dead Boys a professional sheen on We Have Come For Your Children, and that doesn't seem to help their cause.  The highlight might be "(I Don't Want To Be No) Catholic Boy" which has both a double negative in its title and backing vocals from Dee and Joey Ramone. 

Robert Christgau gave the album a grade of B-, writing :

Because they're lovable little scumbags deep down, and sincere to boot, Hilly's punk purists have dropped the heavy misogyny and recorded five cuts that laid end to end would make a listenable side. But not even the rousing "3rd Generation Nation" has the power of sexist spew like "I Need Lunch" and "Caught With the Meat in Your Mouth." Makes you wonder what 3rd generation nihilists believe deep down.

August 9, 1978 is also the date of Bruce Springsteen and the E street Band's legendary three hour concert at the Agora in Cleveland. A popular bootleg for decades, it is now an official release sold as a three CD set. 

Ain't No Loser

Dead Boys : Sonic Reducer

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In October of 1977 The Dead Boys released their debut album Young Loud and Snotty, one of the best punk albums ever recorded in America. These Cleveland natives ( featuring Cheetah Chrome and Johnny Blitz of the seminal proto-punk band Rocket From the Tombs) moved to New York where CBGB's owner Hilly Kristal began managing them. Inspired by The Stooges and The New York Dolls, The Dead Boys played raucous shows full of hijinks, singer Stiv Bators turing up Iggy's act to 11. Their set lists were made up of covers, originals and more than a few songs from Rocket From the Tombs, including "Sonic Reducer" which contains the anthemic lines 

I don't need anyone
Don't need no mom and dad
Don't need no pretty face
 Don't need no human race
I got some news for you
Don't even need you too

From Robert Christgau's B rated review:

Despite Stiv Bators's mewl, which can get almost as annoying as Geddy Lee's falsetto, this is mostly well-crafted junk, tough and tuneful and in one case--the definitively deafening "Sonic Reducer"--positively anthemic. But the charm of good junk has always been its innocence, and if these fellows are innocent they're pretty perverse about it--emotional incompetents out of their depth. Alternate title (stolen from Mary Harron): Take My Life--Please

Reunited for a 40th anniversary tour, Cheetah Chrome told Blabbermouth the Genya Raven produced album wasn't supoposed to be released the way it was:

"The original album was actually a demo," Chrome says. "None of us had been in a studio before, and we figured we would go back in and do it right, but the label said no. It has stood up, but forty years later, we can do a 'What if?' What would it have sounded like if we could have gone back in? So that's what this is about. It's not better. It's just different." 

The tour had to go on without singer Stiv Bators who was killed  in 1990 when a taxi hit him in Paris.