The U-Men
Encyclopedia
The U-Men were a Seattle-based post-punk band active in the early to late 1980s. They toured extensively across America
and even had a song by the Butthole Surfers
named in their honor. Their musically "dirty" sound was a forerunner for the later grunge
bands to come out of Seattle.
which could best be described as "swamp-o'-billy". Together with Northwest contemporaries Girl Trouble
, the U-Men emerged to fill the void left some 16 years previous with the disappearance of Northwest garage rock
legends The Sonics
, The Wailers
, and The Ventures
. They updated this traditional Northwest sound with more modern punk rock
and post-punk
influences most notably The Cramps
and Nick Cave
's original group The Birthday Party
.
Largely through word of mouth, rumor, showmanship and the occasional alcohol inspired dust up, the U-Men quickly acquired a dedicated cult following and well-deserved reputation for mayhem, both on and off the stage. Perhaps their most legendary antic was when Bigley set the front of the Seattle Center
Mural Amphitheater stage on fire during a Bumbershoot
festival performance, and the band played on.
The U-Men were managed at different times by Susan Silver (who later went on to marry Chris Cornell
and manage Soundgarden
, Screaming Trees
and Alice in Chains
), Bruce Pavitt
(co-owner of Bombshelter Records, pre-dating his Sub Pop
Records foray into vinyl), and Seattle's legendary punk art gallery tastemaker, Larry Reid.
Through it all, the U-Men managed to survive largely intact (the exception being bass players) until early 1989 when the core of the group (John, Charlie, and Tom) decided that the experiment had run its course.
Tom Price moved on to form Gas Huffer
, and also play in supergroup The Monkeywrench, while John and Charlie would co-found The Crows. Jim Tillman, whose work with the band included the self-titled e.p. "The U-Men" (1984), the indie classic "Stop Spinning" (1985), and the Deep Six
compilation (1986) track "They" resurfaced to play bass for various other local bands most notably Love Battery
. Tom Hazelmyer who had briefly considered the idea of relocating to Seattle join the band in Tillman's absence, chose instead to remain in his hometown of Minneapolis (performing live just once with the band when they opened for Big Black
at the Showbox Theater in March 1987) to promote his record company (Amphetamine Reptile Records
) and band, Halo of Flies
. The last member of the group, 19-year-old Tony "Tone Deaf" Ransom, who in his short stint with the band managed to appear on the single "Freezebomb"/"That's Wild About Jack" (1987), the album "Step On A Bug" (1988), and the "Dope,Guns,and Fucking In The Streets Vol. 1" compilation track "Bad Little Woman" (1988), would disappear from the local music scene entirely, relocating to (as speculation would have it) Anchorage, Alaska.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and even had a song by the Butthole Surfers
Butthole Surfers
Butthole Surfers is an American alternative rock band formed by Gibby Haynes and Paul Leary in San Antonio, Texas in 1981. The band has had numerous personnel changes, but its core lineup of Haynes, Leary, and drummer King Coffey has been consistent since 1983. Teresa Nervosa served as second...
named in their honor. Their musically "dirty" sound was a forerunner for the later grunge
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
bands to come out of Seattle.
History
Fronted by the enigmatic vocalist John Bigley, the U-Men (whose members also included Tom Price, Charlie "Chaz" Ryan, Robin Buchan, Jim Tillman, Tom Hazelmyer and later Tony "Tone Deaf" Ransom) pioneered their own unique brand of alternative rockAlternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
which could best be described as "swamp-o'-billy". Together with Northwest contemporaries Girl Trouble
Girl Trouble
Girl Trouble are a punk rock band from Washington, USA, formed in 1983, when three musicians from Tacoma, WA and one from Spokane, WA joined forces.-History:...
, the U-Men emerged to fill the void left some 16 years previous with the disappearance of Northwest garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
legends The Sonics
The Sonics
The Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington, originating from the early and mid-1960s. Among The Sonics' contemporaries were The Kingsmen, The Wailers, The Dynamics, The Regents, and Paul Revere & the Raiders...
, The Wailers
The Wailers (rock band)
The Wailers, often credited as The Fabulous Wailers, were an American rock band from Tacoma, Washington. They became popular around the United States Pacific Northwest around the late 1950s and the start of the 1960s, performing saxophone-driven R&B and Chuck Berry rock and roll...
, and The Ventures
The Ventures
The Ventures is an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington. Founded by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle, the group in its various incarnations has had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. With over 100 million records sold, the group is the best-selling...
. They updated this traditional Northwest sound with more modern punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
influences most notably The Cramps
The Cramps
The Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...
and Nick Cave
Nick Cave
Nicholas Edward "Nick" Cave is an Australian musician, songwriter, author, screenwriter, and occasional film actor.He is best known for his work as a frontman of the critically acclaimed rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, established in 1984, a group known for its eclectic influences and...
's original group The Birthday Party
The Birthday Party (band)
The Birthday Party were an Australian rock band, active from 1973 to 1983.Despite being championed by John Peel, The Birthday Party found little commercial success during their career...
.
Largely through word of mouth, rumor, showmanship and the occasional alcohol inspired dust up, the U-Men quickly acquired a dedicated cult following and well-deserved reputation for mayhem, both on and off the stage. Perhaps their most legendary antic was when Bigley set the front of the Seattle Center
Seattle Center
Seattle Center is a park and arts and entertainment center in Seattle, Washington. The campus is the site used in 1962 by the Century 21 Exposition. It is located just north of Belltown in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood.-Attractions:...
Mural Amphitheater stage on fire during a Bumbershoot
Bumbershoot
Bumbershoot is an annual international music and arts festival held in Seattle, Washington. One of North America's largest such festivals, it takes place every Labor Day weekend at the 74-acre Seattle Center, which was built for the 1962 World's Fair. Seattle Center includes indoor theaters,...
festival performance, and the band played on.
The U-Men were managed at different times by Susan Silver (who later went on to marry Chris Cornell
Chris Cornell
Chris Cornell is an American rock musician best known as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for Soundgarden and as the former lead vocalist for Audioslave. He is also known for his numerous solo works and soundtrack contributions since 1998...
and manage Soundgarden
Soundgarden
Soundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...
, Screaming Trees
Screaming Trees
Screaming Trees was an American rock band formed in Ellensburg, Washington in 1985 by vocalist Mark Lanegan, guitarist Gary Lee Conner, bass player Van Conner and drummer Mark Pickerel. Pickerel had been replaced by Barrett Martin by the time the band reached its most successful period...
and Alice in Chains
Alice in Chains
Alice in Chains is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1987 by guitarist and songwriter Jerry Cantrell and original lead vocalist Layne Staley. The initial lineup was rounded out by drummer Sean Kinney, and bassist Mike Starr...
), Bruce Pavitt
Bruce Pavitt
-History:After briefly attending Blackburn College in Carlinville, Illinois and subsequently transferring to The Evergreen State College in Washington State, Pavitt started a fanzine entitled Subterranean Pop in Olympia, Washington in 1980, about American independent rock bands. Three cassette...
(co-owner of Bombshelter Records, pre-dating his Sub Pop
Sub Pop
Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman in Seattle, Washington. Sub Pop achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the Seattle music scene...
Records foray into vinyl), and Seattle's legendary punk art gallery tastemaker, Larry Reid.
Through it all, the U-Men managed to survive largely intact (the exception being bass players) until early 1989 when the core of the group (John, Charlie, and Tom) decided that the experiment had run its course.
Tom Price moved on to form Gas Huffer
Gas Huffer
Gas Huffer was an American garage rock band from Washington state. They were known for their formal and comical lyrics and their antic stage presence.-History:Gas Huffer classified themselves loosely in the Garage punk genre...
, and also play in supergroup The Monkeywrench, while John and Charlie would co-found The Crows. Jim Tillman, whose work with the band included the self-titled e.p. "The U-Men" (1984), the indie classic "Stop Spinning" (1985), and the Deep Six
Deep Six (album)
The Deep Six compilation was released March 1986 . It was the very first release by C/Z Records, a few months before the release of Sub Pop 100 from Sub Pop Records. It was also arguably the second record to influence the later "Seattle sound" that would be known worldwide as grunge...
compilation (1986) track "They" resurfaced to play bass for various other local bands most notably Love Battery
Love Battery
Love Battery is an American grunge band from Seattle, Washington.For the most part Love Battery was an unusual group in the early '90s Seattle music scene, blending intense swirling psychedelic guitar work, pulsating rhythms, driving beats and heartfelt vocals derived from '60s garage/psych, '70s...
. Tom Hazelmyer who had briefly considered the idea of relocating to Seattle join the band in Tillman's absence, chose instead to remain in his hometown of Minneapolis (performing live just once with the band when they opened for Big Black
Big Black
Big Black was an American punk rock band from Evanston, Illinois, active from 1981 to 1987. Founded by singer and guitarist Steve Albini, the band's initial lineup also included guitarist Santiago Durango and bassist Jeff Pezzati, both of Naked Raygun...
at the Showbox Theater in March 1987) to promote his record company (Amphetamine Reptile Records
Amphetamine Reptile Records
Amphetamine Reptile Records is a nationally renowned record label which was founded in 1986 by then-US Marine Tom Hazelmyer in Washington State, US The label is best-known for its roster of noise rock artists, and its Dope, Guns 'n' Fucking In The Streets series of compilations.-History:Hazelmyer...
) and band, Halo of Flies
Halo of Flies
Halo of Flies was a noise rock band from Minneapolis. Named after an Alice Cooper song from Killer, Halo of Flies was formed in 1986 by Tom Hazelmyer, John Anglim and Tim Mac. Over the next 5 years they released a series of 7 inch singles and mini LPs starting with a limited edition, hand...
. The last member of the group, 19-year-old Tony "Tone Deaf" Ransom, who in his short stint with the band managed to appear on the single "Freezebomb"/"That's Wild About Jack" (1987), the album "Step On A Bug" (1988), and the "Dope,Guns,and Fucking In The Streets Vol. 1" compilation track "Bad Little Woman" (1988), would disappear from the local music scene entirely, relocating to (as speculation would have it) Anchorage, Alaska.
Band members
- John Bigley - vocals
- Tom Price - guitar
- Robin Buchan - bass (1981–1982)
- Charlie Ryan - drums
- Jim Tillman - bass (1982–1986)
- Tom Hazelmyer - bass (1987)
- Tony Ransom - bass (July 1987-1989)
Singles/EPs
- U-MenU-Men (album)- Track listing :# Blight - 2:33# Flowers D.G.I.H. - 4:17# Shoot 'Em Down - 4:00# Gila - 2:18...
EP (Bombshelter Records, 1984) - Stop SpinningStop SpinningStop Spinning is the second EP by the band The U-Men released in 1985.- Track listing :# Clubs# The Fumes# Cow Rock# Green Trumpet# A Year And A Day# Ten After One...
EP (Homestead Records, 1985) - "Solid Action" b/w "Dig It A Hole" (Black Label Records, 1987)
- "Freezebomb" b/w "That's Wild About Jack" (Amphetamine Reptile, 1988)
Compilation/Soundtrack contributions
- "They" on the Deep SixDeep Six (album)The Deep Six compilation was released March 1986 . It was the very first release by C/Z Records, a few months before the release of Sub Pop 100 from Sub Pop Records. It was also arguably the second record to influence the later "Seattle sound" that would be known worldwide as grunge...
compilation (C/Z RecordsC/Z RecordsC/Z Records is a Seattle-based record label that was established in early 1985 by Chris Hanzsek and Tina Casale with the release of the now-legendary, Deep Six LP, which collected the earliest recordings of the real pro-genitors of what later came to be known as grunge...
, 1986) - "Shoot 'Em Down (live)" on the Woodshock '85 compilation (El Jefe Records, 1986)
- "Gila" on the Sub Pop 100Sub Pop 100The Sub Pop 100 is a rock compilation album, released in July 1986 by the Sub Pop label.There were only 5000 of the compilation made, making it extremely popular amongst collectors.-Track listing:# "Spoken Word Intro Thing" - Steve Albini...
compilation (Sub Pop Records, 1986) - "Bad Little Woman" on the Dope-Guns-'N-Fucking In The Streets, Vol. 1 compilation (Amphetamine Reptile, 1988)
- "Bad Little Woman" on the Dope-Guns-'N-Fucking In The Streets, Vols. 1-3 compilation (Amphetamine Reptile, 1989)
- "Dig It a Hole" on the Hype!Hype!Hype! is a documentary directed by Doug Pray about the popularity of grunge rock in the early to mid-1990s United States. It incorporates interviews and rare concert footage to trace the steps of grunge, from its subversive inception in neighborhood basements, to its explosion as a pop culture...
soundtrack (Sub Pop Records, 1996)
External links
- [ The U-Men @ AllMusic.com]