Top Down - Teenage Head, 1979

When I attended York University in the late '70s, Teenage Head played at one of the colleges. The exuberant crowd got a little out of hand, and the administration banned them from playing there again. The next time I saw them play was at Healey's in Toronto; the year being 2004, if memory serves. The thing that struck me was this: even though they looked like middle-aged men, if I closed my eyes, they they were the same rebellious punk rockers from 1979.

In 1975, Frankie Venom (aka Frank Kerr), Gord Lewis, Steve Marshall and Nick Stipanitz borrowed the name of a 1971 Flamin' Groovies song, and the Hamilton-based group Teenage Head was born. In 1979, they released their self-titled debut album containing PIcture My Face and Top Down. They became an instant hit in the local Punk Rock scene. 1980 saw the release of Frantic City, and a performance at Ontario Place sparked another "disturbance"... you guessed it, they were banned for a few years.

The band soon caught the attention of a wider American audience, and the release of Tornado in 1983 included a name change to appease the bible-belt sensibilities: they were now to be known as Teenage Heads, to avoid the obvious sexual reference of the original name. Typical of the Regan era: try to take the anti-establishment, and turn it into a Walmart money-maker. None-the-less, they were back to Teenage Head by the next release.

On October 15, 2008, Frank Kerr lost his battle with throat cancer - he was only 51. As I write this, Teenage Head is set to receive a special lifetime achievement award during the 2008 Hamilton Music Awards in November, 2008.

Thanks for the memories, Frankie Venom.