Yes L.A.

Yes L.A.
Compilation album EP by various artists
Released August 1979 (1979-08)
Recorded 1978 - 1979
Genre Punk rock
Length 13:26
Language English
Label Dangerhouse

Yes L.A. is a legendary[1][2] six-song compilation EP featuring first-generation Californian punk rock bands.

Overview

A one-sided picture disc released in the twilight of the early Los Angeles punk scene,[nb 1] Yes L.A. featured some of its most acclaimed bands:[1][4] Bags, Eyes, the Alley Cats, Black Randy and the Metrosquad,[5] X, and Germs.[3]

The record title makes parody of No New York,[nb 2][3] the seminal no wave compilation album issued a year earlier,[6] perceived as pretentious by West Coast punkers.[4] The EP even included a satirical disclaimer printed on the disc saying: "Not produced by Brian Eno".[6]

The compilation includes a rawer early version of X's song "Los Angeles", recorded in 1978, which is, in the words of David Brown,[nb 3] "a scathing, literal depiction of the scene which needs no explanation".[7] The record also features a rare alternate mix of Germs' "No God", which was originally produced by Geza X[nb 4] for the EP Lexicon Devil,[nb 5] previously released in May 1978.

The EP has become highly sought after by record collectors.[1][4]

Production and release

Yes L.A. was mastered[nb 6] by Jeff Sanders at Crystal Sound Studios in Hollywood, California.

All songs on the compilation were previously unissued, with the only exception of Black Randy and the Metrosquad's tune "Down at the Laundrymat", featured on the band's studio album Pass the Dust, I Think I'm Bowie[nb 7][10][11][12] from July 1979.[8]

Yes L.A. was originally released in August 1979 on Dangerhouse Records,[3][4] as a limited edition of 2,000 copies[6][8] pressed on 12-inch clear vinyl discs.[nb 8][1][4][13][14]

Artwork and packaging

Designed by Pat Garrett,[4][8] the record artwork was silkscreened by hand on the ungrooved side of each single disc,[1][4][6][8] with one of three different color combinations,[1] namely green/black,[15] green/blue,[16] and green/red.[17] Some of those copies were misprinted.[nb 9] Examples include discs with text only,[18] with the background image in front of the text, or the image and text on the side with the grooves, rendering such a record unplayable.

Some non-silkscreened black vinyl test pressings are known to exist.[8]

Original copies came without a sleeve, instead packaged in a clear plastic bag with a white cardboard backing.[6]

Reissues

At some point during the 1990s, the rights to Yes L.A. (and the entire Dangerhouse Records catalog) were acquired by Frontier Records.[1]

In June 2013, after 34 years out of print, Yes L.A. was reissued by Frontier in a one-time limited edition of 1,000 almost exact replicas of the original EP[nb 10][1][6][19][20] to commemorate the label's 100th release.[4]

Track listing

Where it is necessary, songwriting credits are listed in the format lyrics/music.

No. TitleWriter(s)Artist Length
1. "We Don't Need the English"  Craig LeeBags 1:13
2. "Disneyland"  Joe Ramirez, John Richey/RamirezEyes 2:00
3. "Too Much Junk" (Dangerhouse version)Randy StodolaThe Alley Cats 2:41
4. "Down at the Laundrymat"  Black Randy/Bob DeadwylerBlack Randy and the Metrosquad 3:26
5. "Los Angeles" (Dangerhouse version)John DoeX 2:12
6. "No God" (Dangerhouse mix)Darby CrashGerms 1:54
Total length:
 13:26

Personnel

Bags
Eyes
The Alley Cats
  • Randy Stodola - vocals, guitar
  • Dianne Chai - vocals, bass
  • John McCarthy - drums
Black Randy and the Metrosquad
X
Germs
Production

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Just as the scene was being split into harder-driving, superadrenalized extreme power metal-punk on one side and simpy new wave power pop on the other, the first L.A. punk compilation album, ... Yes L.A., was released..."
                                    – Brendan Mullen[3]
  2. ↑ Antilles #AN-7067
  3. ↑ Co-founder and co-owner of Dangerhouse Records.
  4. ↑ "... We [Dangerhouse Records] were kind of feuding with him [Geza X] about some of his production techniques, which at the time was squirrelly because he's such a creative guy and he'd try anything. So we had taken the tapes of the Germs that Slash magazine owned and remixed them the way we would do it — sort of the Geza way. It was interesting to compare..."
                                    – David Brown[8][9]
  5. ↑ Slash #SCAM 101
  6. ↑ Using the lacquer mastering method.
  7. ↑ Dangerhouse #PCP-725
  8. ↑ Dangerhouse #EW-79
  9. ↑ 20 or 30, according to David Brown from Dangerhouse Records.[8]
  10. ↑ Frontier #FLP 31079

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 MXV (August 18, 2013). "Yes L.A. vinyl reissue : The Punk Vault". punkvinyl.com. Retrieved September 13, 2015.
  2. ↑ Erich (October 27, 2006). "Yes L.A.- Compilation LP (Dangerhouse, USA, 1979)". goodbadmusic.com. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Spitz, Marc; Mullen, Brendan (2001). We Got the Neutron Bomb: The Untold Story of L.A. Punk. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 9780609807743. p. 181.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Neff, Joseph (August 13, 2013). "(Re)Graded on a Curve: Dangerhouse Records' Compilation, Yes L.A.". thevinyldistrict.com. Retrieved September 13, 2015.
  5. ↑ Lewis, Uncle Dave. "Black Randy & The Metrosquad: Artist Biography by Uncle Dave Lewis". allmusic.com. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Frontier Records: Yes L.A., 2013 reissue. frontierrecords.com. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  7. ↑ Various artists (1991), Dangerhouse: Volumen One. Frontier Records. #FLP 31039. Liner notes.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Richardson, Ryan. Dangerhouse Records, in-depth history and complete commented discography (page 2/2). breakmyface.com. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  9. ↑ Yohannan, Tim (August 1991). Interview with David Brown from Dangerhouse Records. Maximumrocknroll (99).
  10. ↑ Black Randy and the Metrosquad, Pass the Dust, I Think I'm Bowie. allmusic.com. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  11. ↑ Black Randy and the Metrosquad, Pass the Dust, I Think I'm Bowie. discogs.com. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  12. ↑ Black Randy and the Metrosquad, Pass the Dust, I Think I'm Bowie. rateyourmusic.com. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  13. ↑ Yes L.A.. discogs.com. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  14. ↑ Yes L.A.. rateyourmusic.com. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  15. ↑ Yes L.A., image of the green/black Frontier version. punkvinyl.com. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  16. ↑ Yes L.A., image of the green/blue Frontier version. punkvinyl.com. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  17. ↑ Yes L.A., image of the green/red Frontier version. punkvinyl.com. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  18. ↑ Yes L.A., image of a misprinted copy. breakmyface.com. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  19. ↑ Yes L.A., 2013 reissue. discogs.com. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  20. ↑ Yes L.A., 2013 reissue. rateyourmusic.com. Retrieved August 21, 2015.

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