Exclusive "DEAD-STOCK" Feature: Little Dutch
In mid-2013, my pal and fellow garage sale die-hard, John Miner,
came by Permanent LA and told me about a couple of records he picked up
on a whim at a random garage sale one of the many long and windy
mountain roads in Eagle Rock. The records both included lyric sheets
and well airbrushed black and white picture sleeves with a man dressed
up in a little dutch boy costume, one with his finger in the hole of a
record like it was a dyke and the other with him floating a record raft
with no land in sight. The little dutch boy costume was explained by
the artist's moniker, Little Dutch. The first EP was entitled "Water On
The Brain" and the other "More Water" so I assumed these were probably
comedy records, but had to hear them anyhow. I was stunned when I
dropped the needle on "More Water" to find some Powerpop/AOR sounds that
weren't comedic at all, in fact, I found the songwriting quite
endearing and, like the best privately pressed records, full of passion
and a complete lack of pretension. Immediately, I went to the internet
for more information, which it usually provides in these sort of
situations, but there was nothing to be found on Little Dutch or his
little EPs, so I went back to the source. I asked Mr. Miner to take me
to the house where he'd purchased these records and he agreed to try,
even though he didn't have the address and he only had a vague
recollection of the facade of the house and a general idea of the
neighborhood where he'd picked up his copies of the Little Dutch EPs.
So one weekday morning, John and I went on a wild goose chase to find
the garage where these records were being sold. We wandered around the
hills of Glassell Park and Eagle Rock in Northeast Los Angeles for about
a half hour, driving up and down dead-end streets, and back to the main
drag for another jaunt or ten before we stumbled across the house that
John was sure was it. Out front, there was a gigantic robot mailbox,
but otherwise the house seemed fairly unassuming for the neighborhood,
no reason to believe a unknown pop savant to be living inside. We
parked, rang the doorbell, and waited for Little Dutch to present
himself. Instead of Little Dutch, we were greeted by a woman. When we
asked for Little Dutch, she didn't seem to know who we were talking
about. My heart sunk. Just as I was about to apologize and walk away, I
went into the story about John having been up there the previous
weekend for a garage sale and buying records by an artist named Little
Dutch. Luckily, this is exactly what it took to trigger the memory in
the woman's mind about who we were talking about...her husband, real
name John Nathan. She said that John was out, but she'd call him to see
when he'd be back. She disappeared back into the house and we waited
on the curb. She returned about ten minutes later saying that John
would be back shortly and that we were welcome to wait, outside (can't
say that I blame her), if we wanted to. We waited, of course, and
shortly thereafter John pulled up in front of the garage. He hopped out
and seemed excited that we were there to find out more about Little
Dutch. I explained to him how John had played the records for me and
I'd been blown away and wanted to know more about how these records came
to be and the whole story behind Little Dutch. John happily sat with
us and shared his story (which can be read in it's entirety below) and
we worked out a deal (one that would be mutually beneficial) for the
remainder (just a handful) of the Little Dutch records. That week,
while working at the shop, a serious record collector pal of ours,
Geoffrey Weiss, came by and I played the Little Dutch records for him.
Geoffrey is a man of impeccable taste and also a man who doesn't shy
away from paying top dollar for a record he wants, that he doesn't
already have (as far as I can tell, there aren't too many of 'em) or
know of (again, he seemingly knows everything). Geoffrey is like the
Johan Kugelberg of the west coast, if you know what I mean, and he
hadn't previously heard of Little Dutch. Anyhow, Mr. Weiss was really
into the EPs and offered me $75 for the pair. Geoffrey is a fair dude
so I gladly accepted his offer (without having any Ebay sales or
previous history to base this price on). Hindsight may prove this price
far off base, but I hate selling records on Ebay and I figure if I'd
put these up online for sale, that's what a collector like Geoffrey
would've paid for 'em anyway. Like I said, I could be naive for not
just going that route, but whatever. I'm here to share finds with y'all
and if $75 is what one of the heaviest collectors in the world offers, I
figure that's what their worth. (For your piece of mind, I've since
had a few other collector's offer the same rate.)
Geoffrey also had this to say about the records after full digestion:
"Like the best private press LP's, these songs conjure an entire world. Here, it's one that includes '70's soft rock, AOR and sci-fi moves, but also a truly lonely and lost perspective. Oh Lonely Man is a low-self-esteem Space Oddity, Two Minded Woman is a homeless Tom Petty, What You Find is a desperate Dan Fogelberg. A whole album that sounded like Smile would be an Acid Archives monster. Even the bar-rockin' Mean, Mean Margie has a great twilight zone aura to it. All of it works because it's using familiar approaches to get to a much realer place than pop music usually goes; this is not all hot tubs and reaching for the stars, there's a lot of real life around these corners."
"Real People" is what Paul Majors would've called it. So here we are. Two completely unknown privately pressed EPs available exclusively through Permanent as a pair for $75. Listen to the tracks (I recommend dipping your toes in the "More Water" EP (my favorite of the two) and then immersing yourself in "Water On The Brain") and then decide if this deal is for you. I realize this isn't a deal for everyone, some of you may not even like the records, but for those who read Acid Archives religiously and know how valuable this kind of stuff can be, intrinsically and extrinsically, you know it's an incredible opportunity. A very limited amount of these EPs remain and I don't expect them to last long.
The Little Dutch Story
By John Nathan
“My whole start in music was just from picking up a guitar…and in my head I came up with these melodies and would then strum them out on the guitar. Then I put lyrics to the melodies, as I know I had somewhat a streak of romantic poet inside me. I always had this feeling inside that I could express myself in words and music and was really inspired by the writings and music of such legends THE BEATLES, GORDON LIGHTFOOT, and JIM CROCE. Wow, Jim Croce! His writing was incredible, unfortunately short-lived!
I always loved melodic melodies. I love melodies that are catchy, pleasant to the ear and stick with you in your head. So I started writing, with nothing in mind, but to write. As a relationship flourished or died, or a war played on, I’d take those themes and just start writing from my gut, my heart and my feelings at the moment. I really enjoyed the time writing.
My thoughts, at the time, were to be an actor not a songwriter. Songwriting was just sort of a hobby of mine although I kept prolifically writing and singing to anyone who would listen. And eventually I became a Mime (like Marcel Marceau and Shield and Yarnell), which overshadowed my acting and songwriting because I made my entire living as a Mime…but my desire, more than anything was to be an actor. But I can’t complain, because being a successful Mime allowed me to make a living in the entertainment business and allowed me to pursue other creative avenues as with my songs.
As it turned out, being a Mime, one day I got an audition where they were looking for someone with mime ability that could sing. I knew I had the mime ability and I figured I could fake singing in rock n’ roll (This was late 70’s) so I decided to give it a try. All they could do was say PASS! It turns out that the producer who was working out of the ABC building, and a manager, was trying to put together a country/rock n’ roll mixture type group. He needed somebody up there with a presence and he felt that the mime ends of things, like with Kiss, all the action, was the up and coming thing. I had the ability and the energy to really bring that out. This manager, who had nothing to do with ABC, he just rented an office there, at one point, wanted us to sign a contract…a pretty binding contract. I was a member of AFTRA at the time. It was a recording/managerial contract, but it had nothing to do with or included AFTRA as a signatory. I was a big union buff at the time and wasn’t willing to take that chance as I had just gotten into the union only a couple years before. I told him if he didn’t become signatory with AFTRA, I could not sign. All the rest of the band did sign the contract and I was replaced. The manager somehow got investors to invest in the project and from what I was told, the money disappeared and the band became responsible for paying the loan back to the investors, which I would have been a part of.
Unfortunately, the band members, who were a great group of guys, one of them being Tommy Hawk-fabulous guitarist, Dennis Mitchell – a tremendous drummer and Johnny Gizmo – fantastic Bassist, got mixed up in this total fiasco. I escaped it, but still managed to remain friends with the guys in the band.
After that whole thing…I came to Tommy and said, “I’d really like to do something with these songs I wrote”. Tommy said “Yeah sure, let’s lay down some tracks”. So I went his home studio. He had a really nice studio with four-tracks, a booth, and everything. Tommy had just recorded an EP with his band (the original members put together by that manager), called “ONE”, which continued to record and play venues. I guess they did pretty well until they decided to disband. After they recorded for Dynamic (his Manager’s label), I asked Tommy if he could ask his manager if I could put out my EP that we just recorded out on Dynamic Records label. His manager said yes and “LITTLE DUTCH” was born!
My father’s nickname as a General Contractor was “Dutch”. Whenever I’d go on a job with my Dad, everyone would say, “Hey, Here comes “Little Dutch!” Being the sentimental, romantic person that I am, I kept that name. I thought it’d be good to have a persona, so I had my friend make me a Little Dutch Boy costume, bought some wooden Clogs, and thought, what would this Little Dutch Boy do with a Vinyl record and how can I make this cover look interesting enough for people to want buy my record and to want to investigate further to hear what the music was that was inside. So I went into Glendale, CA, a neighboring city and found this wall on the side of a newly constructed and abandoned building. It was all brick and the brick looked faded because of all the dust around. A really good friend of mine was a photographer and a great airbrush artist, so I asked him if he would shoot the cover. This concept was my idea. I wanted to have the vinyl record there to look like a hole in this wall which is supposed to be a dyke and my finger is in the little spindle hole of the record trying to keep the water out, but the water actually goes through my finger through my body and out my ear. He said “That’s fantastic! That’s a great idea!” Being the comedian that I have always been, that was the way I thought.
I think I cut 500 to a 1000 copies of the EPs. I have absolutely no idea what it cost me, but I know it was a bundle at that time. I did all the singing – BIG MISTAKE in 20/20 hindsight – don’t get me wrong, I don’t think I did a bad job, especially for that time era of rock n’ roll, because you really didn’t have to be an excellent singer, you just had to have the energy, drive and persistence. Now that I look back on it, I think a professional singer might have done a better job, but I was producing it myself and I was cheaper to pay. At that time, I was still an artist living from paycheck to paycheck. I was always taking the money earned and putting it back into my career. That’s the way my life has been up until recently, now that I have a child and a severe hearing loss, I have to start thinking differently and for the future of my health and family. My soul won’t let me abandon my creative fervor but I certainly have learned that I need to slow down and just let whatever happens happen. In this town, it really is all about luck, right place, right time and who you know. It’s definitely been a roll of the dice, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love the creative process and I love to share it with as many people as I can.
So, we grabbed a hose, there happened to be a working water spicket, and we placed it up the back of my neck and made it look like the water was coming out of my ear, then he airbrushed it, cleaned it up and it looked perfecto. Remember, this was not a time of Photoshop or any of today’s new technology where anyone can do anything with photos. We took painstaking hours to get it just right.
Then I thought Wow, that’s terrific, how are we going to follow up on the following EP?…well doggonit…how about…the dyke breaks, and he’s sitting on a record floating around in the middle of nowhere in a sea of water, which was all airbrushed, and he had this little bi-plane up there doing this sky writing of the title from the next “Little Dutch” EP. All this was from my imagination. I’ve have always been into promotion. That is how I became a successful Mime, Actor and Artist.
Unfortunately promoting yourself has a lot to do with hearing and recently when I ended up with this devastating loss of hearing, it has been rough. That’s why I’m telling all of you concert goers and musicians…please protect your ears. Musicians, no matter how invulnerable you think you are, protect your ears. Anything over 85 decibels is going to start slowly degrade your hearing. Remember that: 85db. We only hear speech at 60-65db. And prolonged periods of time, like concerts, can be pretty bad on the ears.
So, back to promotion, I got the vinyl records and started promoting them. I took a record out to KLOS and they really loved “MEAN, MEAN MARGIE” and they played it on the air. I went to Hawaii and they played “MEAN, MEAN MARGIE” on the air as well, but they also wanted to play “SMILE”. “SMILE”, to me, probably is the one song, that, if somebody like Celine Dion or Frank Sinatra, ever sang, it would most likely be a chart topper and stay around as long as songs like “YESTERDAY” and “LET IT BE”. Unfortunately there was something technical in the recording that allowed it to be played on any recording table, but no on the air. My luck!!!
Everybody I’ve played “SMILE” to, in the music industry, publishers, music supervisors, they all say the same thing. “It’s just going to take the right person, and the right vehicle, and if it ever does get properly recorded, it will most likely really stick around for a long time.
I remember in Hawaii, one time, I got into my Little Dutch outfit (hot as heck!), standing in the middle of the a main highway outside the radio station, where they just interviewed me, on the island, while the DJ on the radio said “Come on down, to whatever street it was called, where Little Dutch is…and if you mention the station ID he’ll give you a special price on his new record containing the Song we just played on the air.” And people came down and they bought my records. It was fun and it was different and it was unique. One of my biggest regrets is that I never took to the performing end of it. I never became an accomplished musician. I love music and I love playing music, but I just never became a really accomplished musician, where I could go play on the road or venues and really do a number with it. I always wanted somebody else to do my music, because I always felt if somebody else did my music, they would do it better and my own life aspirations were really to be an accomplished actor.
I was fortunate enough to get some feedback and help from a friend of mine I’ve known for some years, Mars Bonfire (wrote “BORN TO BE WIDE” for Steppenwolf). He helped me tremendously in the beginning, in my writing, my music, and even helped by transposing my music so I could get others to play the melodies by reading the written note.
I am pretty proud of what I did, but again, in hindsight, I wish I had the knowledge and the people behind me. I was, at one time, a manager of child and adult actors for many years and I actually made a star, a quadruple threat (actor, writer, producer and director), out of one of the child actors and, of course, now I realized how important that is and if I had someone behind me at that time, the right kind of management, I might have gone farther in my career, even as a songwriter, much early on. But that’s all history man, so you have to look forward and hope for a brighter future.
So I continued on with my acting career, and my mime career, which was very successful and I was very happy there. And then I found out that I was starting to lose my high-pitched hearing at an early age from being around too much loud music (I performed in a lot of Discotheques at the time). It made it difficult for me to really hear what was going on. I was going to auditions having to ask the casting director “What?” So I had my hearing checked and discovered that I’d lost about 80 percent of my high-pitched hearing which was pretty devastating. I went through two years of hearing nothing but tinnitus. I hear it now even as we speak. At that time, I wasn’t able to get used to it, so I couldn’t sleep more than two hours at a time and I became very sleep deprived because of it. I thought my whole acting career was over. Whatever I had, I thought it was over. Fortunately, through the strength of God and whatever force be out there, I managed to overcome that and eventually learned to cope with the tinnitus, before it got to the point of devastation.
I got hearing aids and I managed to re-train myself to learn to act again with this new handicap. Granted, I wasn’t getting the guest starring roles I used to get, but I was getting some nice little roles and a few larger meaty roles here and there. But just performing makes me happy, as long as the people on the other side, the casting people, the producers, the directors, understand I have a hearing problem. My acting is no less. I just have to do things a little differently and if they’re willing to have the patience with me they will get a great performance. And I know that, I’ve seen it when I do my mime shows. When I can’t understand the little children’s words, I do something to keep the entertainment there, they enjoy the show and you can tell because there’s laughter and smiles. I’m still the same performer that I was; same writer, creator, only I’m a little more handicapped. It’s just getting a blind sighted industry to understand that. There’s still the same person there, they just have to be a little more patience and I can guarantee that they’ll get what they need from this person and performer.
When I originally lost my hearing in the late 90’s, I decided to slow down on the acting side of things, while I re-trained myself in acting. At that time, I decided to plunge myself into my music again. So I started taking some singing lessons. My singing teacher told me that a really good friend of his, Jeffrey Mark Silverman, who had conducted Les Miserable on Broadway and was an arranger for Yanni might be interested in helping me to produce my songs for a new CD. Jeffrey and I hit it off. Jeffrey has a keen ear and since I had a hearing deficiency, that’s something I really needed. Jeffrey was able to take my music, arrange it as well as help me gather bands, singers and musician for the songs. When we recorded the song, “Be What You Want”, which I wrote for my son, the reggae song, my very young son was actually in the studio with us and if you listen very carefully at the end of the song they say “little one”, speaking to my son, which makes it a very personal memory for me each time I listen to the song.
On my new CD, I recorded some of the English tunes in Spanish as well. At the time I was promoting and recording the CD, the Latin Sound and Latin artists were really BIG! Boy, even in Spanish it’s beautiful, not to mention, even more romantic sounding. As a matter of fact, I took it to Sony Records Latina in Miami and when I was at Sony, they played it over and over and over again. The A&R person pushed a button on her console and in came the CEO of Sony, followed by the publisher. They asked me if I wrote the song and I said “Yes”.
They said, “Can we hold on to this?” Of course I said yes and was excited and expected to hear something, but then internet bubble and Napster hit at the same time. Did I mention something earlier about LUCK??? And the music industry started feeling the pain. I don’t know if that really had anything to do with it, but I’m sure it didn’t help. For all I know, my song could be playing in South America somewhere, a hit and I don’t know about it. Seriously! If it does, great! I’ll be like the artist, Rodriguez, where his music is being played somewhere and he’s a legend in that place and doesn’t see a darn cent of it!
To be honest with you, I think back to all the stuff Tommy and I had done together and I almost wished that the thing back in the 70s had happened successfully. It was a whole lot of fun.
The least I can say is that I love the songs I made and I’m glad I did it. A lot of money, but to me it was money well worth spending because it was something I did and I can say, “I did it”. I may not have become Billy Joel, Elton John, or Paul McCartney, but I can say I didn’t go through life with all these creative ideas and never do anything with them. I managed to do something and I’m glad I did. Make it or not. We all want to make it, but I guess we all don’t have the same luck.
Music is fun, music is life and music is happiness. Even in times when the dyke is breaking, you have to find some humor in life. My ears are breaking, but I still try to find a little bit of humor even now as we speak. Even if I can’t hear you that well!
SMILE,
Little Dutch aka John Nathan
Website: www.johnnathan.com
CD purchases can be made at CDBaby.com and Itunes.com or by going to www.johnnathan.com
Vinyl records are currently being sold exclusively at PERMANENT RECORDS in Los Angeles and Chicago. Limited supply.
Geoffrey also had this to say about the records after full digestion:
"Like the best private press LP's, these songs conjure an entire world. Here, it's one that includes '70's soft rock, AOR and sci-fi moves, but also a truly lonely and lost perspective. Oh Lonely Man is a low-self-esteem Space Oddity, Two Minded Woman is a homeless Tom Petty, What You Find is a desperate Dan Fogelberg. A whole album that sounded like Smile would be an Acid Archives monster. Even the bar-rockin' Mean, Mean Margie has a great twilight zone aura to it. All of it works because it's using familiar approaches to get to a much realer place than pop music usually goes; this is not all hot tubs and reaching for the stars, there's a lot of real life around these corners."
"Real People" is what Paul Majors would've called it. So here we are. Two completely unknown privately pressed EPs available exclusively through Permanent as a pair for $75. Listen to the tracks (I recommend dipping your toes in the "More Water" EP (my favorite of the two) and then immersing yourself in "Water On The Brain") and then decide if this deal is for you. I realize this isn't a deal for everyone, some of you may not even like the records, but for those who read Acid Archives religiously and know how valuable this kind of stuff can be, intrinsically and extrinsically, you know it's an incredible opportunity. A very limited amount of these EPs remain and I don't expect them to last long.
The Little Dutch Story
By John Nathan
“My whole start in music was just from picking up a guitar…and in my head I came up with these melodies and would then strum them out on the guitar. Then I put lyrics to the melodies, as I know I had somewhat a streak of romantic poet inside me. I always had this feeling inside that I could express myself in words and music and was really inspired by the writings and music of such legends THE BEATLES, GORDON LIGHTFOOT, and JIM CROCE. Wow, Jim Croce! His writing was incredible, unfortunately short-lived!
I always loved melodic melodies. I love melodies that are catchy, pleasant to the ear and stick with you in your head. So I started writing, with nothing in mind, but to write. As a relationship flourished or died, or a war played on, I’d take those themes and just start writing from my gut, my heart and my feelings at the moment. I really enjoyed the time writing.
My thoughts, at the time, were to be an actor not a songwriter. Songwriting was just sort of a hobby of mine although I kept prolifically writing and singing to anyone who would listen. And eventually I became a Mime (like Marcel Marceau and Shield and Yarnell), which overshadowed my acting and songwriting because I made my entire living as a Mime…but my desire, more than anything was to be an actor. But I can’t complain, because being a successful Mime allowed me to make a living in the entertainment business and allowed me to pursue other creative avenues as with my songs.
As it turned out, being a Mime, one day I got an audition where they were looking for someone with mime ability that could sing. I knew I had the mime ability and I figured I could fake singing in rock n’ roll (This was late 70’s) so I decided to give it a try. All they could do was say PASS! It turns out that the producer who was working out of the ABC building, and a manager, was trying to put together a country/rock n’ roll mixture type group. He needed somebody up there with a presence and he felt that the mime ends of things, like with Kiss, all the action, was the up and coming thing. I had the ability and the energy to really bring that out. This manager, who had nothing to do with ABC, he just rented an office there, at one point, wanted us to sign a contract…a pretty binding contract. I was a member of AFTRA at the time. It was a recording/managerial contract, but it had nothing to do with or included AFTRA as a signatory. I was a big union buff at the time and wasn’t willing to take that chance as I had just gotten into the union only a couple years before. I told him if he didn’t become signatory with AFTRA, I could not sign. All the rest of the band did sign the contract and I was replaced. The manager somehow got investors to invest in the project and from what I was told, the money disappeared and the band became responsible for paying the loan back to the investors, which I would have been a part of.
Unfortunately, the band members, who were a great group of guys, one of them being Tommy Hawk-fabulous guitarist, Dennis Mitchell – a tremendous drummer and Johnny Gizmo – fantastic Bassist, got mixed up in this total fiasco. I escaped it, but still managed to remain friends with the guys in the band.
After that whole thing…I came to Tommy and said, “I’d really like to do something with these songs I wrote”. Tommy said “Yeah sure, let’s lay down some tracks”. So I went his home studio. He had a really nice studio with four-tracks, a booth, and everything. Tommy had just recorded an EP with his band (the original members put together by that manager), called “ONE”, which continued to record and play venues. I guess they did pretty well until they decided to disband. After they recorded for Dynamic (his Manager’s label), I asked Tommy if he could ask his manager if I could put out my EP that we just recorded out on Dynamic Records label. His manager said yes and “LITTLE DUTCH” was born!
My father’s nickname as a General Contractor was “Dutch”. Whenever I’d go on a job with my Dad, everyone would say, “Hey, Here comes “Little Dutch!” Being the sentimental, romantic person that I am, I kept that name. I thought it’d be good to have a persona, so I had my friend make me a Little Dutch Boy costume, bought some wooden Clogs, and thought, what would this Little Dutch Boy do with a Vinyl record and how can I make this cover look interesting enough for people to want buy my record and to want to investigate further to hear what the music was that was inside. So I went into Glendale, CA, a neighboring city and found this wall on the side of a newly constructed and abandoned building. It was all brick and the brick looked faded because of all the dust around. A really good friend of mine was a photographer and a great airbrush artist, so I asked him if he would shoot the cover. This concept was my idea. I wanted to have the vinyl record there to look like a hole in this wall which is supposed to be a dyke and my finger is in the little spindle hole of the record trying to keep the water out, but the water actually goes through my finger through my body and out my ear. He said “That’s fantastic! That’s a great idea!” Being the comedian that I have always been, that was the way I thought.
I think I cut 500 to a 1000 copies of the EPs. I have absolutely no idea what it cost me, but I know it was a bundle at that time. I did all the singing – BIG MISTAKE in 20/20 hindsight – don’t get me wrong, I don’t think I did a bad job, especially for that time era of rock n’ roll, because you really didn’t have to be an excellent singer, you just had to have the energy, drive and persistence. Now that I look back on it, I think a professional singer might have done a better job, but I was producing it myself and I was cheaper to pay. At that time, I was still an artist living from paycheck to paycheck. I was always taking the money earned and putting it back into my career. That’s the way my life has been up until recently, now that I have a child and a severe hearing loss, I have to start thinking differently and for the future of my health and family. My soul won’t let me abandon my creative fervor but I certainly have learned that I need to slow down and just let whatever happens happen. In this town, it really is all about luck, right place, right time and who you know. It’s definitely been a roll of the dice, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love the creative process and I love to share it with as many people as I can.
So, we grabbed a hose, there happened to be a working water spicket, and we placed it up the back of my neck and made it look like the water was coming out of my ear, then he airbrushed it, cleaned it up and it looked perfecto. Remember, this was not a time of Photoshop or any of today’s new technology where anyone can do anything with photos. We took painstaking hours to get it just right.
Then I thought Wow, that’s terrific, how are we going to follow up on the following EP?…well doggonit…how about…the dyke breaks, and he’s sitting on a record floating around in the middle of nowhere in a sea of water, which was all airbrushed, and he had this little bi-plane up there doing this sky writing of the title from the next “Little Dutch” EP. All this was from my imagination. I’ve have always been into promotion. That is how I became a successful Mime, Actor and Artist.
Unfortunately promoting yourself has a lot to do with hearing and recently when I ended up with this devastating loss of hearing, it has been rough. That’s why I’m telling all of you concert goers and musicians…please protect your ears. Musicians, no matter how invulnerable you think you are, protect your ears. Anything over 85 decibels is going to start slowly degrade your hearing. Remember that: 85db. We only hear speech at 60-65db. And prolonged periods of time, like concerts, can be pretty bad on the ears.
So, back to promotion, I got the vinyl records and started promoting them. I took a record out to KLOS and they really loved “MEAN, MEAN MARGIE” and they played it on the air. I went to Hawaii and they played “MEAN, MEAN MARGIE” on the air as well, but they also wanted to play “SMILE”. “SMILE”, to me, probably is the one song, that, if somebody like Celine Dion or Frank Sinatra, ever sang, it would most likely be a chart topper and stay around as long as songs like “YESTERDAY” and “LET IT BE”. Unfortunately there was something technical in the recording that allowed it to be played on any recording table, but no on the air. My luck!!!
Everybody I’ve played “SMILE” to, in the music industry, publishers, music supervisors, they all say the same thing. “It’s just going to take the right person, and the right vehicle, and if it ever does get properly recorded, it will most likely really stick around for a long time.
I remember in Hawaii, one time, I got into my Little Dutch outfit (hot as heck!), standing in the middle of the a main highway outside the radio station, where they just interviewed me, on the island, while the DJ on the radio said “Come on down, to whatever street it was called, where Little Dutch is…and if you mention the station ID he’ll give you a special price on his new record containing the Song we just played on the air.” And people came down and they bought my records. It was fun and it was different and it was unique. One of my biggest regrets is that I never took to the performing end of it. I never became an accomplished musician. I love music and I love playing music, but I just never became a really accomplished musician, where I could go play on the road or venues and really do a number with it. I always wanted somebody else to do my music, because I always felt if somebody else did my music, they would do it better and my own life aspirations were really to be an accomplished actor.
I was fortunate enough to get some feedback and help from a friend of mine I’ve known for some years, Mars Bonfire (wrote “BORN TO BE WIDE” for Steppenwolf). He helped me tremendously in the beginning, in my writing, my music, and even helped by transposing my music so I could get others to play the melodies by reading the written note.
I am pretty proud of what I did, but again, in hindsight, I wish I had the knowledge and the people behind me. I was, at one time, a manager of child and adult actors for many years and I actually made a star, a quadruple threat (actor, writer, producer and director), out of one of the child actors and, of course, now I realized how important that is and if I had someone behind me at that time, the right kind of management, I might have gone farther in my career, even as a songwriter, much early on. But that’s all history man, so you have to look forward and hope for a brighter future.
So I continued on with my acting career, and my mime career, which was very successful and I was very happy there. And then I found out that I was starting to lose my high-pitched hearing at an early age from being around too much loud music (I performed in a lot of Discotheques at the time). It made it difficult for me to really hear what was going on. I was going to auditions having to ask the casting director “What?” So I had my hearing checked and discovered that I’d lost about 80 percent of my high-pitched hearing which was pretty devastating. I went through two years of hearing nothing but tinnitus. I hear it now even as we speak. At that time, I wasn’t able to get used to it, so I couldn’t sleep more than two hours at a time and I became very sleep deprived because of it. I thought my whole acting career was over. Whatever I had, I thought it was over. Fortunately, through the strength of God and whatever force be out there, I managed to overcome that and eventually learned to cope with the tinnitus, before it got to the point of devastation.
I got hearing aids and I managed to re-train myself to learn to act again with this new handicap. Granted, I wasn’t getting the guest starring roles I used to get, but I was getting some nice little roles and a few larger meaty roles here and there. But just performing makes me happy, as long as the people on the other side, the casting people, the producers, the directors, understand I have a hearing problem. My acting is no less. I just have to do things a little differently and if they’re willing to have the patience with me they will get a great performance. And I know that, I’ve seen it when I do my mime shows. When I can’t understand the little children’s words, I do something to keep the entertainment there, they enjoy the show and you can tell because there’s laughter and smiles. I’m still the same performer that I was; same writer, creator, only I’m a little more handicapped. It’s just getting a blind sighted industry to understand that. There’s still the same person there, they just have to be a little more patience and I can guarantee that they’ll get what they need from this person and performer.
When I originally lost my hearing in the late 90’s, I decided to slow down on the acting side of things, while I re-trained myself in acting. At that time, I decided to plunge myself into my music again. So I started taking some singing lessons. My singing teacher told me that a really good friend of his, Jeffrey Mark Silverman, who had conducted Les Miserable on Broadway and was an arranger for Yanni might be interested in helping me to produce my songs for a new CD. Jeffrey and I hit it off. Jeffrey has a keen ear and since I had a hearing deficiency, that’s something I really needed. Jeffrey was able to take my music, arrange it as well as help me gather bands, singers and musician for the songs. When we recorded the song, “Be What You Want”, which I wrote for my son, the reggae song, my very young son was actually in the studio with us and if you listen very carefully at the end of the song they say “little one”, speaking to my son, which makes it a very personal memory for me each time I listen to the song.
On my new CD, I recorded some of the English tunes in Spanish as well. At the time I was promoting and recording the CD, the Latin Sound and Latin artists were really BIG! Boy, even in Spanish it’s beautiful, not to mention, even more romantic sounding. As a matter of fact, I took it to Sony Records Latina in Miami and when I was at Sony, they played it over and over and over again. The A&R person pushed a button on her console and in came the CEO of Sony, followed by the publisher. They asked me if I wrote the song and I said “Yes”.
They said, “Can we hold on to this?” Of course I said yes and was excited and expected to hear something, but then internet bubble and Napster hit at the same time. Did I mention something earlier about LUCK??? And the music industry started feeling the pain. I don’t know if that really had anything to do with it, but I’m sure it didn’t help. For all I know, my song could be playing in South America somewhere, a hit and I don’t know about it. Seriously! If it does, great! I’ll be like the artist, Rodriguez, where his music is being played somewhere and he’s a legend in that place and doesn’t see a darn cent of it!
To be honest with you, I think back to all the stuff Tommy and I had done together and I almost wished that the thing back in the 70s had happened successfully. It was a whole lot of fun.
The least I can say is that I love the songs I made and I’m glad I did it. A lot of money, but to me it was money well worth spending because it was something I did and I can say, “I did it”. I may not have become Billy Joel, Elton John, or Paul McCartney, but I can say I didn’t go through life with all these creative ideas and never do anything with them. I managed to do something and I’m glad I did. Make it or not. We all want to make it, but I guess we all don’t have the same luck.
Music is fun, music is life and music is happiness. Even in times when the dyke is breaking, you have to find some humor in life. My ears are breaking, but I still try to find a little bit of humor even now as we speak. Even if I can’t hear you that well!
SMILE,
Little Dutch aka John Nathan
Website: www.johnnathan.com
CD purchases can be made at CDBaby.com and Itunes.com or by going to www.johnnathan.com
Vinyl records are currently being sold exclusively at PERMANENT RECORDS in Los Angeles and Chicago. Limited supply.
This Week's Featured Items
LIMITED TO 500 COPIES - EXCLUSIVELY AVAILABLE IN THE U.S. THROUGH PERMANENT!
WOAH! Pack the pipe and lend your ears to The Sleeping Shaman website as they up your learns on Portugal's psychedelic mind fryers Black Bombaim:
"In Greek mythology, Titans would clash before the gods to win the power of an empire that went beyond the supersonic. Gladly, in 2012 BLACK BOMBAIM don’t have those periled paths to cross. This because “Titans” – double LP, released in May by Lovers and Lollypops – screams scorchingly by itself.
The constellation of guests playing in BLACK BOMBAIM’s sophomore record, with Steve Mackay (The Stooges) leading the pack, is the first triumph of a forgotten Atlantis that is Portuguese heavy psychedelia. Noel V. Harmonson (Comets On Fire), Adolfo Luxúria Canibal (Mão Morta), Jorge Coelho (ZEN, Torto), Tiago Jónatas (Surya Exp Duo), Isaiah Mitchell (Earthless/Howlin Rain), Ghuna X, HHY, Tiago Pereira (Aspen), Guilherme Canhão (Lobster/Sunflare) and João ‘Shela’ Pereira (PAUS, If Lucy Fell, Riding Pânico) complete this necklace of precious stones, divided in four parts, that is “Titans”.
Coming from the unexpected musically prolific small city of Barcelos, BLACK BOMBAIM are three guys that grew up together exchanging records, amidst bucolic landscapes of Portuguese countryside and excessive drug experiences, playing outer-space jams, from planets yet to be discovered.
Taking Sleep’s Dopesmoker as a reference, today’s BLACK BOMBAIM are more than just heavy drugs. A little like medical marijuana, the trio formed by Tojo Rodrigues, Paulo Senra and Ricardo Miranda knows the origins of the word “psychedelia”, after sharing the stage with the likes of Kyuss Lives, White Hills, Radio Moscow, Electric Wizard, Russian Circles, Gnod, Notorious Hi Fi Killers or more recently, the Catalan psych act CUZO.
If “Saturdays and Space Travels” (Lovers and Lollypops, 2010) already foreseen great journeys, “Titans” – recorded in Meifumado Studios and mastered at Golden Mastering (Melvins, Sonic Youth, Om) in California – is the confirmation of a band that lives from the strength and determination of surgical improvisation, the ambience of a doped up bass, the power of reckless drumming and wailing fuzz-wah drenched guitars and keys.
For that, and after massive road experience, including tours in the UK, France and Spain, BLACK BOMBAIM are here to stay. And slay."
"Titans" is a jaw dropping heavy psych journey with its 4 side long cuts of extended hesher space jamz! A bone breaking rhythm section lays down the heaviness as swirling fuzzed guitars and spiraling sun scorched keys proceed to peel paint off the wall. Some demonic vocals creep into the mix making things all the more terrifying, but fear not these tasty jams are A+ sonic destroyers fer sure. Black Bombaim duders know who to dial in a freaking amazing guitar tone, when to let up for a breath making the moment the heaviness drops that much more effective and some down right jazz drum interludes spice up this crushing album of near non-stop intensity. And holy shit look at that list of guests up there!... Freaking Steve Mackay!?!? And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Black Bombaim are bringin' the Sleep, Earthless, Sunflare, Mugstar style heavy psych with touches of classics like Hawkwind and Pink Floyd peppered throughout but with a distinct flavor all their own. Stoner Rock for the bong brained hydroponic hesher in all of us, peel yourself away from the couch long enough to grip this monster record, you will not be sorry. This shit is the score of the century! Severely Recommended.
Look out! The mighty Pop. 1280 have returned to induce terror and menace with their Sci-Fi noise rock fury and the always sublime Sacred Bones Records has the gory details thussly:
"Imps of Perversion, Pop. 1280’s second full-length for Sacred Bones, finds the four-piece shaking off the hangover that was their critically acclaimed LP The Horror, and diving back down into the basement to enjoy the depravity. Recorded at BC Studio with legendary producer Martin Bisi (Sonic Youth, Cop Shoot Cop, Swans), Pop. 1280 have created their most cohesive and powerful statement to date. Woven together with stories of lust, sexual confusion, temptation, and debauchery, Imps forms a tight web of manic synth-punk, bad-trip acid jams and bludgeoning industrial beats. This is the sound of a band having fun and pushing the limits of their brand of industrial-punk with tighter songwriting and more dynamic musicianship. On Imps of Perversion, Gary Numan-esque analog synths bubble across acrid, blistering guitars, driving bass lines and crushing rhythms. From the opening noise-rock blast of “Lights Out” to the industrial groove of “Human Probe II” through to the synth-punk ripper “Do the Anglerfish,” this new album is a celebration of making bad decisions again and again. Pop. 1280 knows the party’s going to have to end, but they’re going to get their kicks before the drones lock in for the finale."
We've long time Pop. 1280 fans here at Permanent Records, so we're always stoked to crack open a box and find a new release by these NYC gents. "Imps Of Perversion" is yet another stellar outing of paranoia stricken weirdness and we've had this beast on constant rotation round the shops. Pop. 1280 always seem to be moving forward with their sound, subtly enhancing the experience while upping the insanity and "Imps Of Perversion" is fixing our jones just fine! Thanks for another great record to add to the ever-growing Pop. 1280 odyssey! Supremely Recommended.
Austin,TX/Ithaca, NY unit Soft Healer dropped by the Chicago shop to lay out their haunting tunes for us live and dropped off a stack of their latest EP out on the one and only Monofonus Press label. We'll let the MP folks fill you in on the details behind this 4-song adventure:
"Soft Healer seem to take their time between releases, but the payoff is worth the wait. EP, their longest recording to date, travels on thick, web-like bass lines and sub-Hazel guitar licks. Impressively economical drumming anchors these songs, organ/wah, no wave workouts try to pull them free, all while the vocal harmonies and sax punctuations vacillate along this spectrum. This a heavy record, emotional and capable of inducing survivor’s guilt."
Soft Healer are supplying dark and textured sonics with bouncing basslines, hypnotic female/male vocal interplay, cinematic soundscapes, bleating heartbreaking saxophone and desert-tinged sun baked tales of woe. Monofonus Press never leads you astray and this latest offering is yet another stone killer to add to all discering collections. Here's hoping a full length is in the works, cuz this crafted EP leaves us wanting more more more! Super Recommended.
LP - Various Artists - Michigan Meltdown Vol 2.: Twelve
More Non-Hits From Pleasant Peninsula Preternaturals And Water
Wonderland Weirdos - $16.99 - LISTEN 
TEMPORARILY OUT OF STOCK IN CHICAGO, EMAIL IF INTERESTED
TEMPORARILY OUT OF STOCK IN CHICAGO, EMAIL IF INTERESTED
FOR FANS OF: BONEHEAD CRUNCHERS AND GETTING' LOOSE!!!
YES. The killer sequel to the best out-of-nowhere compilations of recent years - Michigan Meltdown - has arrived and we couldn't be more stoked! Vol. 2 kicks even more ass, so have a listen to what the wise sages over at Coney Dog Records have to say for themselves while we wipe these crumbs out of our beards...
"While volume one of this series was highly acclaimed by tastemakers the likes of Julian Cope and the audio aesthetes at WFMU, volume two manages to ratchet up the intensity. More weirdos. More outcasts. More dudes who did not smell good. Meltdown chronicles the darker side of the post-garage and pre-punk era ('68-'75) in the Great Lakes state. An overabundance of fuzz guitar, primitive riffing and overall outré vibes permeate this collection of nobodies, malcontents and general black sheep of society. No doubt you've NEVER heard any of the groups here, but if songs about space flight, mental health problems, substance abuse or having absolutely no money are your thing, there's plenty to sink your teeth into here. All songs are previously uncompiled and mastered directly from the original 45's (NO MP3's!) coupled with full-color label scans and insightful, hysterical liner notes. Much in the same manner second volumes of compilations from the same family like Michigan Mixture and Michigan Mayhem, this edition of Michigan Meltdown only further cements the solid reputation of this collection. Giddy-up."
DUDES. Seriously what the fuck was in the water in Michigan in the late-Sixties/early-Seventies??? This collection is TOTALLY BONKERS from the rooter to the tooter - we're talking serious gonzo, destructo-rock'd proto-punk and post-garage madness! The levels of ineptitude from the performers are about as equally matched to the accidental brilliance of every cut on here, from the Stooges-esque riffage on TNS's "Time's Up" to the hard-rockin', fuzzed-out blitzkrieg of Space Rock's (yeah - the band is called SPACE ROCK, how are you gonna fuck with that?) "Going Down The Road", to the stumbling, barely-in-time neanderthal-stomp of Truth's "Being Bad" - ALL SONIC GOLD... and that's just on SIDE ONE. If you dig this kinda stuff, then this compilation is undoubtedly the Yin to your Bonehead Crunching Yang. WELL DONE, Coney Dog Records.... well done. Unequivocally RECOMMENDED. Get this to your turntable, STAT! We grew a moustache just LISTENING to this one!
KILLED BY DEATH IS THE PUNK COMP TO END ALL PUNK COMPS!!!!
Much like what Nuggets, Pebbles and Back From The Grave did for garage rock and psych, these first three Killed By Death comps defined DIY angsty punk rock for future generations and probably spawned more bands that you can even imagine! Compiled by Redrum Records in '89, KBD Volumes 1 through 3 collected RARE and IMPOSSIBLE AS FUCK TO FIND punk singles from '77 to '82 from groups that all deserved to be legendary, many from bands that disappeared as quick as they appeared. Really, there's no need to go on and on about a series of classic comps that we timelessly reference in and around the shop, other than to say KBD is LEGIT "all-killer, no-filler" must own punk rock!!! We know there's gotta still be folks somewhere, out there, yet to embrace the world through the bent KBD lense.
From the moment the needle drops on Mad's "I Hate Music" you'll never be the same (this kinda of rock n roll will certainly lead you astray). Volume 1 is jammed packed with instant hits from the Wipers to FU 2. This is easily the one comp you need for yer next rowdy house party. Redrum Records knocked it outta the park on the first LP, and that's why they couldn't stop with just the one volume. KBD 1 IS ENDLESSLY RECOMMENDED AND LIFETIME FUCKING ESSENTIAL. Seriously, just ask around!
Tracklist: Mad - I Hate Music, Hollywood Squares - Hillside Strangler, Slugs - Problem Child, Vox Pop - Cab Driver, Controllers - (the original) Neutron Bomb, Dogs - Slash Your Face, Gasoline - Killer Man, Kraut - Matinee, Child Molesters - (I'm The) Hillside Strangler, Cold Cock - I Wanna Be Rich, Authorities - Radiation Masturbationi Nuns - Decadent Jews, Users - Sick Of You, Wipers - Better Off Dead Vicious Visions - I Beat You, FU 2 (aka Downliners Sect)
KILLED BY DEATH IS THE PUNK COMP TO END ALL PUNK COMPS!!!!
Much like what Nuggets, Pebbles and Back From The Grave did for garage rock and psych, these first three Killed By Death comps defined DIY angsty punk rock for future generations and probably spawned more bands that you can even imagine! Compiled by Redrum Records in '89, KBD Volumes 1 through 3 collected RARE and IMPOSSIBLE AS FUCK TO FIND punk singles from '77 to '82 from groups that all deserved to be legendary, many from bands that disappeared as quick as they appeared. Really, there's no need to go on and on about a series of classic comps that we endlessly reference in and around the shop, other than to say KBD is LEGIT "all-killer, no-filler" must own punk rock!!! We know there's gotta still be folks somewhere, out there, yet to embrace the world through the bent KBD lense.
Volume 2 is perhaps THE best KBD comp of them all, including such smash hits as "Bummer Bitch" by Freestone, "Gacy's Place" by Chicago misfits, the Mentally Ill and "Just Head" by the Nervous Eaters. The second installment of Killed By Death is 16 tracks of pure hateful, drunk punk rock debauchery, like you'll find nowhere else!!!!! Many of us won't be music junkies if it weren't for this comp, that is for sure. Get ready to break some furniture! KBD 2 IS ENDLESSLY RECOMMENDED AND LIFETIME FUCKING ESSENTIAL. Seriously, just ask around!
Tracklist - Freestone - Bummer Bitch Freeze - I Hate Tourists Chain Gang - Son Of Sam Mad - Disgusting Machines - True Life Vains - The Loser S'Nots - So Long The Sixties Rude Kids - Absolute Ruler Nervous Eaters - Just H--- Dentention - Dead Rock and Rollers Eat - Communist Radio Chiefs - Blues Mentally Ill - Gacy's Place Really Red - Crowd Control Psycho Surgeons - Horizontal Action Child Molesters - Don't Worry Kyoko
KILLED BY DEATH IS THE PUNK COMP TO END ALL PUNK COMPS!!!!
Much like what Nuggets, Pebbles and Back From The Grave did for garage rock and psych, these first three Killed By Death comps defined DIY angsty punk rock for future generations and probably spawned more bands that you can even imagine! Compiled by Redrum Records in '89, KBD 1 through 3 collected RARE and IMPOSSIBLE AS FUCK TO FIND punk singles from '77 to '82 from groups that all deserved to be legendary, many from bands that disappeared as quick as they appeared. Really, there's no need to go on and on about a series of classic comps that we endlessly reference in and around the shop, other than to say KBD is LEGIT "all-killer, no-filler" must own punk rock!!! We know there's gotta still be folks somewhere, out there, yet to embrace the world through the bent KBD lense.
From Lewd's "Kill Yourself" to the Queers "I Don't Wanna Work", KIlled By Death 3 is oozing with punk rock anthems for you to shout along with at the top of yer lungs. Instant mosh pits, spiky hair, disdain for society and more riotous fun than you can handle all await you as soon as the needle hits Volume 3. Another killer comp in the legendary KBD series, and after grabbing the first two LPs, you will certainly need Volume 3. This is some highly addicting rock n roll insanity! It doesn't matter which one you grab first, but you'll certainly need all three. Find out for yerself why "Killed By Death" is the standard for all other comps, punk or not. KBD 3 IS ENDLESSLY RECOMMENDED AND LIFETIME FUCKING ESSENTIAL. Seriously, just ask around!
Side One Lewd-Kill Yourself Defnics-51 Percent 84 Flesh-Salted City Plugz-Mindless Contentment Eat-Doctor TV Eat-Kneecappin' Shock-This Generation is on Vacation Sods-Television Sect Ambient Noise-I Was There at the Texas Chainsaw Massacre Side Two Queers-I Don't Wanna Work Queers-I'm Useless Queers-At the Mall Ebenezer and The Bludgeons-Oh I Love This Weather NY Niggers-Headliner Screamin' Mee-Mees-Hot Sody Violators-NY Ripper John Berenzy Group-Vice Verses
Chicago labels Notes and Bolts and Eye Vybe Records have teamed up to bring you this brash flexi of punker jams from LA's Endless Bummer and Chicago's Basic Cable. Read on for more on this adventure direct from the label peeps:
"The latest in our ongoing series of flexi-discs is a split label release. In cooperation with Eye Vybe Records, we're bringing you a split single between LA by way of Chicago, Endless Bummer; as well as newly formed booze trashers, Basic Cable. Formed by Permanent Records founders, Liz Tooley and Lance Barressi, Endless Bummer mine the budget rock end of the modern garage rock spectrum, coming up with a jammer that sounds like it's straight out of the Mummies' catalog. Basic Cable, formed by ex-Loose Dudes, Heavy Times, and current Running members, is a thrashing two minutes of caterwauling vocals, and instruments that sound like they're going to fall apart at any moment. This is the single you've been waiting to hear to tie out the end of the (bummer) Summer!"
Do you like caterwauling scuzzoid garage punk? How bout a hefty back beat, rubbery bass grooves, some griptape scrape guitar and feral yelps? Of course you do!! And so do we! So plop this little scamp of a flexi on your turntable, turn up the volume and get to know two of today's thrilling new groups. Endless Bummer finds P-Rex head-honchos Liz and Lance joined by their tight buddy Greg Bummer laying down a quick fix of agitated caveman stomp that'll infect you with the dancing bug while you find yourself uncontrollably grabbing the person next to you at the show whilst Basic Cable, comprised of some Chicago's assorted noteworthy maniacs from various other quality acts metioned above, lean in thick and mean with a paranoid rocker that pummels a riff into the ground while some terrifying laser sound sets its sights for your soul. It's all over waaaay too soon, so here's hoping we're getting more material from BOTH acts in the near future. Savagely Recommended.
