Here’s a boppin’ lil’ single from some unlikely suspects who’ve resurfaced onto the rock scene after decades of plugging away, perfecting their pop and dodging the dustbins of history by derailing dormancy. The new Rubinoos release “From Home” just came out on Yep Roc Records, and I shot this video clip in San Francisco’s Tenderloin, literally just blocks away from where this underrated band cut their first single for Beserkley Records in the mid-70s.
Nearly 50 years since forming their first combo, and 42 years since appearing on American Bandstand, the Rubinoos have revitalized their classic pop sound and are making a go of it with their latest effort “From Home” on the Yep Roc label.
Taking their tried and true formula of vocal harmonizing with sweetly layered instrumental accompaniment, they teamed up with some production help at Hyde St Studios with longtime local fan Chuck Prophet and ace engineer Paul Q Kolderie (whose made some great records with everyone from The Go-Go’s and Dinosaur Jr to The Pixies, Radiohead and more). The results are finally garnering them their first serious 21st century press attention since getting embroiled in a lawsuit with Dr Luke and Avril Lavigne over their all too apparent uncredited copycatting of the 70’s era Rubinoos single “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend” about a decade ago.
The new song featured here, co-written with Chuck Prophet, pays tribute to the late Honey Lantree, a UK hairdresser who went on to become an iconic female drummer for the Honeycombs, a 60’s pop band produced by eccentric UK production wunderkind Joe Meek.
Despite having begun their career during the Nixon era when bubblegum rock was not yet a retro sound, and prevailing thru a decades long run with all the tawdry travails of show biz, the Rubinoos overall are actually in great shape and spirits, and seem way healthier (and far more talented) than many bands I know half their age.
To familiarize yourself with this amazing band and their past glories, you can visit a playlist on Spotify that will fill in all the blanks
Here’s to the mighty Rubinoos who I hope can provide us much needed inspiration for kids of all ages!
Jonathan Richman recently posted his story of meeting the band in 1974 and how they became the defacto Modern Lovers on the west coast after he moved out here from New England. https://dangerousminds.net/comments/the_rubinoos_by_jonathan_richman/
The Rubinoos upcoming shows:
November 1 – The Chapel – San Francisco, CANovember 3 – Harlow’s – Sacramento, CANovember 17 – Bootleg Bar – Los Angeles, CADecember 9 – White Eagle – Portland, ORDecember 11 – Sunset Tavern – Seattle, WA