PUNK: Lonesome American Memoirs

Appendix II.

Errata:

a. What it really said was:
“Nibbled to death by an okapi”

b. What the other guy was saying:
Love crops up quite a lot as something to sing about,
Cos most groups make most of their songs about falling in love
Or how happy they are to be in love,
You occasionally wonder why these groups do sing about it all the time –
It’s because these groups think there’s something very special about it
Either that or else it’s because everybody else sings about it and always has,
You know to burst into song you have to be inspired
And nothing inspires quite like love.

These groups and singers think that they appeal to everyone
By singing about love because apparently everyone has or can love
Or so they would have you believe anyway
But these groups seem to go along with what, the belief
That love is deep in everyone’s personality.
I don’t think we’re saying there’s anything wrong with love,
We just don’t think that what goes on between two people
Should be shrouded with mystery.

c. Sloan Square:
Sloan Square is a London Tube stop between Knight’s Bridge and Chelsea. In the nineteen seventies and eighties, this was the gateway to King’s Road, where the Chelsea gear market, BOY of London, and many other punk rock landmarks were located.

d. Haratio Nelson:
Legendary British Admiral.

e. DOA
DOA was a band from Vancouver BC that traveled to San Francisco a lot between 1978 and 1981. At the time they were a trio: Joey Shithead (bass and vocals,) Randy Rampage (guitar and backing vocals,) and Chuck Biscuits (Drums and backing vocals.) They practiced for a while at the Vats, and could often be seen beating the shit out of each other during rehearsal in the hallways of the old Hams brewery. They produced unforgettable SF Hardcore classics as ‘zero,’ ‘world war three’ and ‘disco sucks.’

f. The Mab:
Actually a restaurant called the Mabuhay Gardens. Located on Broadway in San Francisco. From the mid seventies into the early eighties, Dirk Dirkson, Howie Klein and another partner destroyed this restaurant’s business of selling food by promoting punk rock shows in the bar. Blondie, Devo, The Go-Go’s, the B52’s, and many other popular seventies and eighties new wave bands played early shows in SF there. Great punk bands were born at the Mab, and a few of them died there.

g. The On Broadway:
The theatre upstairs from the Mab. Once the Mabuhay’s days were numbered, Dirkson with a new partner (Miller) moved upstairs and continued the excitement there. Early performances by The Gun Club, X-Mal Deutchland, Michael Franti’s first band The Beatnigs, Crucifix, Trial, Black Flag, The Cramps, DOA, The Misfits, The Pop-o-Pies, Negativeland, The Angelic Upstarts, and many other legends (or should have been legends) of punk rock played fairly informal and anonymous shows here in their early days.

h. Tenth Street Hall:
A huge church hall on Tenth Street in San Francisco. Not many shows were hosted here, but after Rat’s Palace and the Hell Hole, it was the rise of Paul Rat’s long run of low security, hight quality punk shows.

i. The Tool and Die:
An old Tool and Die works on Valencia Street in San Francisco. This was a speakeasy style club where you entered the small storefront, and climbed through a trap door, down some steep stairs into a basement. The Fuck-Ups, The Lewd, and a handful of SF faves were lucky enough to play in this very cool club.

j. Barrington Hall:
A student co-op living space on Dwight Way in Berkeley. Barrington was a bad blend of hippies, punks, and students who were immediately sorry they’d moved in. The TV Room was a popular crash pad for street people. 6 am was when you had to be out. However, many great punk shows were hosted here in the seventies and early eighties. Also hosted were the Rock Against Racism Series, and an excellent Reggae series. Not a great space, but a great community of people passed through those rooms.

k. Sproul Plaza:
At the gates of the UC Berkeley campus, located at Telegraph and Bancroft, there is a brick plaza where the student union resides. The location of much activity during the 1960’s and again during the anti-aparteid movement of the 1980’s. Basically a place to sit down and do anything you want (but no sleeping is allowed.)

l. Bart:
Bay Area Rapid Transit. The inter county metro system in the San Francisco Bay area.

m. MUNI:
San Francisco Municipal Transit System. Used to be a system of cable cars and street trollies. Closed for renovation, and reopened as a $3 tourist attraction with only four operational lines. Today, MUNI is an underground light rail system, and over ground electric and natural gas busses.

n. Zim’s:
An all night restaurant chain, native to San Francisco. Now defunct.

o. Merill’s:
A local San Francisco pharmacy chain. Similar to the bouquet of Rite Aid and Wallgreens we enjoy internationally today. Now defunct.

p. Kress:
Another pharmacy chain store, more like a “five and dime,” Kress featured a staff of senior citizens, a lunch counter, and mirrors on all four walls. Now defunct.

q. Jack Boots:
Black leather, steel toe, motorcycle boots from Sears.

r. Rig, Outfit, Kit, Hookup:
A syringe

s. Squids and Squirrels:
Someone in the military (squid) looking for fast hookup for drugs and sex. Usually someone out of step, or not connected, often looking for much younger people to party with (squirrel.)

t. Trendie:
Anyone not resembling an SF Punk. Anyone with a clean and fashionable appearance. Weekend Punks. New Wavers.

u. faggot:
Technical definition: worthless, a bundle of sticks
Practical use: A catch all for everything weird, strange, different, embarrassing, or homosexual in nature (everything.) The meaning of the word is entirely dependant upon the user’s intonation and facial expression. Further, the recipient’s feelings about homosexuality often change, mutate, or deform the intended purpose of the word. Very effective for antagonizing homophobes, and hyper-sensitive politically correct types.

v. Maimer:
One who easily maimes all things in their path (sarcastic.) Approximates (with equal sarcasm:) Groove machine, Swinger, Player, Bitch Magnet, Ladies’ Man.

Got any other questions about the terms or slang used in this book? Let me know and I’ll define it for you here in this section.

Note: are you in this book? Are you in contact with me? If you aren’t, please contact me and say hello.

Table of contents
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16, Chapter 17, Chapter 18, Chapter 19, Chapter 20, Chapter 21, Chapter 22, Chapter 23, Chapter 24
Musicology, Errata