Interviews with Women In Punk Rock

This website exists today only because courageous, intelligent and daring women

back

in the 1970's

decided to break the rules of society. They rallied together

under the

banner of the punk movement.

Many of them are no longer with us.

This page is dedicated to their memories.

Because many people have written to me to suggest other people to interview and wondering how I

choose the women I interview, I want to explain my criteria for inclusion in this section. They are:

1) You must be a woman - or have been one at the time.

2) You must have been active in the L.A. punk scene before 1980. By active, I mean actively participating

by frequently going to shows, taking photos, writing, being in a band, supporting the scene in some way.

This section was never intended to be a "celebrities only" section. It's an oral history of the early scene

from the female perspective.

3) You must be able to send me your answers via email. I don't talk on the phone. I have previously sent

interviews via email to women who would seem to be obvious choices for inclusion but they have either

not responded or have told me they are working on it and then they forget about it (you know who you

are). So if you know someone who belongs in this interview series, remind them to finish up their

interviews and send them in.

Everyone gets the same eight questions. No space or

time

limitations. Since I think that women's voices

have already been over-edited

by others, I

reserve the right to refuse to edit these women's responses.

Instead,

intend to publish

them in their entirety, raw and unexpurgated.

LET THE WOMEN SPEA

Backstage Pass was one of the bands

ho helped to

usher in

the era of punk rock

in L.A. back in the mid to late seventies. They were also one of the few rock bands

up until that time to feature female musicians. They rehearsed at and were one of

the first bands to play the Masque, which is probably where I saw Spock for the

first time.

Backstage Pass, as I've mentioned before, was one of the more musically

competent acts around at the time. They were also slightly more theatrical in their

performances than some of their punk co

temporaries

. The band's sound was

somewhere between power pop and punk and their presence at the Masque

proved that the label of "punk rock" in the late 70's had more to do with attitude

than musical style. The fact that these women were writing and performing their

own songs proficiently in an unabashed, sexually assertive manner made them

unique.

A bit of trivia: Spock

wrote and sang

"Legend (Come On Up To Me)"

with Redd

Kross on the soundtrack to Desperate Teenage Lovedolls

What was/is your contribution to the punk community?

I was the ONLY bass player in Backstage Pass (since we had more rotating members than any

other band!), and one of the singer/songwriters.

I always felt that Backstage Pass was one of the first bands to come out of the Punk Scene

(which we loved, of course), and move into the poppier "New Wave" scene, and others were

able to do the same thing.

We also were unapologetic groupies, and I think the fact that that was a big part of us, and that

we were proud of it, added to the band.

2. Which artist, band concert and/or show had the most impact on your

life?

Outside of the scene, The Beatles @ The Hollywood Bowl, inside the scene... The Germs, X, and

later, The Police's first gig @ The Whisky (is that the right order? My memory is baaaaaddddd...)

Oh, and The Damned @ The Starwood.

Even though we were on the bill, seeing Elvis Costello

nd The Attractions at The Whisky was

absolutely mind-blowing. EC and the band were so intense, non-stop, and great players. We've

stayed friends throughout.

A person involved in the whole scene, but not a player per se, was Jake Riviera, and he probably

influenced me more than anyone I'll ever meet. We met him in 1976 while he was on the road with

Dr. Feelgood, a blusey pub band from England, with a sound man named Nick Lowe. At the time,

Jake was extremely aggressive, scary, and brilliant. He brought The Damned over, the first

English punk band to play America, and the BSP girls put them up for a while. I was going out with

Rat Scabies, the drummer, and one night at The Whisky, Dave Vanian looked at me and said,

'Rat, she looks like Spock', and that's how I got my name. Later, as I got to know Jake better, I

learned more and more about the music industry, thanks to him. He co-founded Stiff Records,

and helped introduce to the world bands such as Elvis Costello & The Attractions, Nick Lowe,

Rachel Sweet, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, Wreckless Eric, and later on Squeeze. When Elvis

got signed to Columbia, I was working as a secretary in the LA office, and I was the only one at

the West Coast label that Jake would deal with. He was considered a madman to deal with, and

he really relished that. He is still mana

ging Nick Lowe.

3. What was the role of women in the early punk scene?

Women showed how creative and ballsy they were, and inspired both men and women to be in

bands.

4. What is the legacy of punk in your life?

Geez, I don't think I'd be me without having been part of the whole LA scene - it really gave me a

chance to take a chance. Being immersed in the whole punk scene when it started was an

experience I'll never forget. I remember so many great bands. I saw The Bags play ALOT. We

shared our rehearsal space at The Masque with Wall of Voodoo. I remember a really cool gig @

The Starwood with The Screamers and the Weirdos. We saw every show @ The Whisky;

eventually they just stopped charging us and let us in for free.

5. What are you listening to now?

Oh, gee, I still listen to lots of 80's rock - Def Leppard, Cinderella, Ratt, and newer rock like The

Darkness, and more recent stuff would be Louis IV, Killers, Kanye West, David Poe, Big & Rich,

Kelis, the new Mariah Carey, Black Eyed Peas, I am all over the place...

6. Do you have any funny or interesting stories to share?

I don't know, you'll have to ask Marina, Genny Body and Holly if I have any stories, as I really don't

remember an awful lot... (I kid, you not, I've had people tell me stories that I absolutely do not

remember...)

I did remember one. We were in San Francisco @ The Mabuhay, maybe opening for Devo, so it

was a 2 night thing. The first night, I remember walking into the bathroom, and finding some girl

harassing Genny and Marina, and I told her to leave them alone. (I was always the 'leader' in that

way.) The second night, the same girl comes up to the stage, and starts screaming and throwing

popcorn at me as we're onstage - hey, she probably just thought it was a 'punk' thing to do. Well,

I exploded. I threw off my bass, jumped off the stage and started pummeling her - I heard that

Rod came flying over the top of his drum kit to pull me off. I do remember that as I'm swinging

away, she's yelling

"I changed my mind, I changed my mind, I love your band, I love your band!"

7. Are there any punk women from the early scene that you feel have

not been been

adequately recognized?

...

8. What is something we should know about you that we probably don't

know?

I guess where I'm at these days... I spent 30 years in the business end of the music business.

I left LA in '90. Moved to NY, finally crashed and burned hard from it in 2002 and escaped to

Nashville, where I live in my little house with the dog and cat, and I am a photographer/image

manipulator.

If someone told me that I could be richer, healthier, etc., if I would go back and erase the Punk

Scene of my life, I would say fuck no.