Hey, Kids!

[Spot the Drummer]

To reveal the rhythmatist, click on the face you suspect belongs to the tub-thumper. (Be advised that the "Theory of Beards" is unproved.)

For those who have become expert at picking the stick-slinger, we offer an additional challenge: After you spot the drummer, tell us who the band is. Stylin' Washington City Paper Web T-shirts to the cleverest.

LAST WEEK'S MYSTERY BAND: The rock scholars came out in force:

Tony Buckley chided us: "Well, the hint was a dead giveaway. It MUST be Harbison, Bond, and Goddard (and, apparently, two other guys). No? OK, then, the EASYBEATS."

Haha! Thanks for the HBG reference. Reminds us: Must get to the Round Table. Our knowledgable friend Brian D. Horrorwitz curtly noted, "It's the Easybeats. Duh. Shirt, please!" But then Mr. Horrowitz turned loquacious, adding,

I shoulda known that last week was the Dead Milkmen because we (Date Bait) opened for them years ago. They pranced around the dressing room like rock stars. Who'd they think they were, Norman Nardini? When our go-go dancers tried to get back into the dressing room for a quick change between songs, their road manager refused to let them back in there. They busted through anyways and just barely made the change, but the Milkmen's disgruntled road manager still had us get a royal butt-chewing by the club's manager. Please tell me their 15 minutes is up.

You know how it goes—if you're on this page, your 15 minutes is long gone. Prof. Horrorwitz continued:

About the Easybeats...they had the best backup vocal harmonies of any '60s rock band ever, in my opinion—made all the more difficult because they could really rock out and play fast, but still carry the singing. We (Date Bait) covered one of their songs ("Make You Feel Alright") and it wasn't easy! Their LP Friday On My Mind is one of the best of it's kind, but get the mono version if you can find it. (Yes. I am a garage geek.)

It was definitely garage geek week. inDCent eXposure's Thee Untamed Youth, late of the Lime Twiggs, among them:

Well, the band is easy...as easy as an Easybeat. Not many Spot the Drummers are right in my wheelhouse, but the Easybeats represent some of my favorite music. These guys were truly an international group. Born in Australia and populated by Dutchmen, a Scotsman, a Liverpud, and an Aussie...a veritable British Empire United Nations. Oh, yeah, the drummer? How appropo for today, Gordon 'Snowy' Fleet. Hell, if they hadn't moved to England after their biggest hits, they might be as revered today as the Beatles. Okay, mebbe not.
And the picture? Dunno where you got it from, but it's right in the liner notes of the Easybeats' Anthology two-disc set...recommended listening.

Absolutely. The always informed Tim Stutz commented that the Easybeats is "one of my favorite band names," and went on to elucidate...

Those 1960's legends from Down Under...featuring George Young and Steve Wright (later hitting the charts solo with that disco monstrosity, "Love Is In The Air"). The drummer was Gordon "Snowy" Fleet. Although they all met in the Albert Hotel in Sydney, none were native-born Australians—all were either from the Netherlands or UK. Big hit in 1966 was "Friday On My Mind," but my favorite tune is "Sorry." Great riff (hints of future AC/DC), thunking, churning guitars and spot-on sneery vocals; very cool. Also really dig "Falling Off the Edge of the World." After splitting up in early 1970s, George helped brothers Malcolm and Angus Young get the mighty and amazing AC/DC off the ground, and Steve Wright died years later of alcohol, drugs and general rock n' roll neglect. Rock On!

Brian Gray was certainly rocking on:
Oh, my god, I'm beside myself! I'm dancing around the office like some sort of loon. THREE YEARS I've been following this contest, but I'm just unable to associate names with faces. Oddly, I remember the running time of every song on hundreds of albums, but I can't remember what anyone looks like. Thank god for that TGIF hint.
But wait...now I have to be clever to actually score the T-shirt.
See, I met Vanda and Young once back in the early '70s. They seemed quite enamored of my trained guitar-playing monkey in short pants. They stuffed him in a suitcase and took off running. Never saw him again.
Wretched stuff, really. Sorry, best I could come up with at the moment. Hope it will do.

Of course it does, Brian. And no need to be extra clever—but thanks. Alabama's Kip Shepherd said, "Not sure who the drummer is, but I do wanna go dig out my Flash & The Pan records." And Doug Smith noted that the band was famous "for starting the career of a very young Huey Lewis (second from left)."
Could be...

Strike a nerve? Speaking your lingo? Keep the conversation going at inDCent Exposure, the online spot for discussing D.C.'s music scene— and anything else. No cover, open 24 hours.