Posted on 09/30/2022 3:20:03 PM PDT by SamAdams76
Perhaps one of the most influential pieces of rock music of the 1970s to a certain band or two, this incredible song exploded on the airwaves on several FM stations in late 1976 and early 1977 on progressive rock stations across America.
I associate this song with Kelly's Roast Beef in Revere, MA. It was January 30, 1977. Jimmy Carter had been president for 10 days. Freddie Prinze blew his brains out in an apparent game of Russian Roulette a couple days earlier. A frigid blizzard moved across the Northeast, dumping multiple feet of snow in the Buffalo area. "Roots" was on the TV. And "Torn Between Two Lovers" by Mary MacGregor was the number one song in the country.
But let's get back to Kelly's Roast Beef and those fried clams. Back then, a clam plate went for $4.95. It contained a hefty paper plate of fried clams (bellies and all) topped with french fries and onion rings, wrapped in aluminum foil so that you could get it all home, still warm.
That same clam plate goes for $17.95 today and there are less clams and way more french fries and onion rings. Well, there you go.
But most of us parked diagonally at the beach in those days (plenty of spaces in winter) and ate them right there with the whitecaps rolling in and the squawking sea gulls that we would throw the occasional couple of fries or onion rings to (but never the precious clams).
Not many people will remember this song. It went into heavy rotation in Boston on WBCN for about a week or two.
It is not confirmed but it is said that the ticking noise in "Time Bomb" was a big influence on The Cars, who would incorporate a rather similar ticking sound in their breakout single "Just What I Needed" that would rule the airwaves just a year later.
This song brings back HUGE memories for myself and a few others.
A regular tune in my rotation of 5000+
Last time I stopped by Kelly’s there on Revere beach it was a bit of a disappointment. The area though has been built with a whole bunch of new construction to replace the dumpy old wood buildings.
Not the Revere Beach I grew up in with the arcades, the pizza joints, the biker bars and the roller coasters. Used to be referred to as the Coney Island of the north. But no longer.
Great tune, man. Thanks for sharing. Can’t remember ever hearing it before and WBCN was the soundtrack of my life in 1976. That was also the Bicentennial year, with the tall ships in Boston and the huge July 4th on esplanade.
***Freddie Prinze blew his brains out in an apparent game of Russian Roulette a couple days earlier.***
Depends on which web page you believe. NYTimes and NY Daily News says it was a .32 cal pistol, another says it was a .357 magnum revolver, and this one says it was a was actually a .380 Astra Constable semi-automatic. All agree it was suicide.
https://www.reelreviews.com/shorttakes-56/freddieprinze/freddieprinze
***A frigid blizzard moved across the Northeast,***
I remember that one! The weather turned brutally cold in Nov 1976, and January of 1977 the continental US had total cloud cover for the entire month of January. Extreme cold and snow all over the US(Except the Southern Rocky Mountains). This was used as PROOF we were entering THE NEW ICE AGE!
Exploded? I don't think it was more than a blip on the US charts and didn't get much play on the west coast. First time I heard the song, I thought it might be new Supertramp. One benefit of not being a big hit was it didn't get played to death.
I’d have the whole belly clams and would compare the sound to Supertramp or Yes. Remember seeing that album cover in the past but never got past assuming it was a Greg Lake solo album.
Of course this Chambers Brothers tune had a ticking motif. I like the Ramones’ version better than the original:
Never heard of the group or the song. And I only listen to rock.
Must be an East Coast thing, never heard in it Detroit or Miami and have heard everything else. It DOES sound like Supertramp.
They took Your Move by Yes and spun off a different little song out of the chord changes. Nice.
That was irritating from the first note😂
The only Lake I remember from that era was Greg Lake from ELP.I mostly remember him for his song C’est la vie. For anyone interested https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSaPyuVMTiU&ab_channel=AlexandreN.Machado
It took him 33 hours to die, so I’d rule out a .357. That makes a .32 ACP or .380 pocket pistol more likely.
really? man I wanna come to one of your parties!!
lol... agree...
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