PROLOGUE:
"I'M A BELIEVER"
Salem da Katt: The album called THE SAVAGE YOUNG ARCHIES was first released in the year 2011. A compilation of live performances, it contains the oldest recordings credited to The Archies. There's no album of theirs that I like better, because it captures them when they were young, hungry and raw as fuck! If you've heard it, you know what I mean: Just listen to how Archie bears down on two Monkees songs, "Tear Drop City" and "I'm A Believer!" Or Jughead killing it with Billy Idol's "Dancing With Myself", or Gino giving Elvis a run for the money on "King Creole." Yet even in that early Punk Rock phase, and with just the three founding members, you can hear a spark of greatness. Right from the start, The Archies had something special!
REGGIE "GINO" MANTLE
The Archies started as a way for three guys to blow off steam. College classes can be intense, so what better way to wind down than with music? Both Jerome "Juggy" Jones + Reggie "Gino" Mantle had been high school "band kids," and they played multiple instruments. Gino had also had some private instruction. They'd been jamming together off and on since attending Riverdale High together. It was all but inevitable that they would start a band @ some point.
Juggy chose the bass guitar as his instrument, and Gino settled in behind a drum kit. Today, two people or even just one can make a band, but that isn't how it was done back in the day! They needed a lead guitarist. Gino had a few candidates in mind, but Juggy felt strongly that another high school buddy, Archie Andrews, would fit the bill. Archie never took band: Dude was self-taught, but he could really burn on guitar! They auditioned him, and . . . forget about it! Nobody else could touch him. Gino + Archie had never gotten along, but they resigned themselves to being bandmates. The price Juggy paid for teaming them up was having to play peacemaker; but musically, it was worth the aggravation.
BETTY JONES
They called themselves The Juggz! Juggy never considered himself the bandleader, but early on, he was singing most of the leads. @ one show, he, Gino + Archie switched off instruments. Jug felt more comfortable behind a drum kit, and Gino took to the bass like beef to broth; so the switch became permanent. The three of them had more music skills than the average garage band Punk, and truth be told, they were never Punk rockers! They just said they were. Hey, it was the Eighties, and if you played Rock music in college, that's how you identified.
Dilton Doiley Briseño definitely wasn't a Punk, and dude never tried to pass himself off as one. Tony's biggest love was Latin music, but he also loved the Blues, Jazz, Reggae, Rockabilly and Disco. He'd been a musical child prodigy, and he could play more instruments than Juggy, Gino + Archie combined; but dude was also exceptional @ science and math. Tony was chasing an engineer's degree @ MIT when he heard about about this Boston University band called The Juggz. First he became a fan, and then dude decided that he wanted "in"! But the guys weren't looking for a fourth member.
ARCHIE ANDREWS
Archie was looking for something else, though: A repertoire to distinguish them from other Punk bands in Boston, and Tony knew a lot of songs! His eclectic music knowledge was his ticket into The Juggz, and Archie used it to broaden the band's range. "Just because we're rockers doesn't mean we can't play a Soul song," he'd argue. "WTF? Are you afraid to try?" Hell, no, they weren't afraid: So they started adding Soul and Rockabilly and New Wave and Reggae to their set list. They even tried Gospel music on for size, performing an adaptation of a Negro spiritual; Tony called it "Standing In The Need of Love." Would you believe they passed it off as a Punk Rock tune?
Bookings improved after Tony became The Juggz's de facto music director and manager. People took note of their revamped sound and started diggin' it! In just a few months they had a solid fan base in New England. Standing ovations became routine, and that made them feel ambitious. "Why don't we get serious about this music thing?' Gino asked. By then, dude knew he wanted to be a Rock star! But Arch, Juggy + Tony wanted it just as much.
JUGGY JONES
Gino's family had different ambitions for their baby boy: They'd always wanted him to attend Yale, and he was able to transfer there from BU in his sophomore year. Keeping the band together was a challenge after that, but The Juggz were determined to do it! They started playing a lot of shows near Yale, in Connecticut, southern Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York. Their fan base grew, and they got bookings that took them even farther away from home.
In the summer of 1987, they accepted an offer to play a gig in Hamburg, Germany @ The Star Club; that's where The Beatles first tasted fame! Unexpectedly, the venue closed and the gig fell through; but while they were over there, The Juggz took advantage of a chance to cut a record. If they'd had any doubts about going "pro", they vanished once they heard themselves on a playback: Archie was in seventh heaven, hearing his power chords isolated on their own track!
REGGIE MANTLE + KEVIN KELLER
w/VERONICA
When the group got back to Boston, Tony put into words what they were all thinking: "We gotta bear down on copping a recording deal!" By that time, they were calling themselves The Archies. It made sense, because Archie had a grand vision for the band; but when he became the leader @ Juggy's suggestion, Gino sure wasn't down with it! That's when dude first set his sights on a solo career. However, he sensed that The Archies were gonna go places, and the sensible thing to do was ride along for awhile.
So . . . Archie had a rich girlfriend. Veronica Lodge urged him to use her family's name to his advantage! Being the ethical kind of dude he was, he refused; but she did convince him to make a demo tape for the band. Tony was the ideal person to supervise that record - he'd already begun taping performances that would appear on THE SAVAGE YOUNG ARCHIES - but dude had to cram for a big exam the day they cut it. Roni Lodge produced the recording, and not surprisingly, it sucked! In later years, she'd be a competent producer, but in 1988 babe didn't have a clue! Her primitive production values even made The Archies' boss version of "I'm A Believer" sound like shit!
DILTON DOILEY BRISEÑO
w/THE VIXENS
Roni begged her father, media mogul Ram Lodge, to circulate the demo amongst his music business friends. Dude had no intention of doing that; as you can imagine, promoting the music of his daughter's boyfriend wasn't exactly a priority! Then he happened to hear a copy of the record The Juggz had made in Germany; it was the soundtrack of an indie film that flopped.
One of the songs was the old Beatles tune "In My Life" with Archie on lead. Ram didn't dig Rock 'n' Roll, not even The Beatles; but dude was partial to ballads with a Latin feel, and he liked that one enough to tape it for his Walkman (remember those?). His golfing buddy Don Kirshner overheard him listening to it, and asked who was singing. That set off a chain reaction of events!
Kirshner was big-time: A Rock impresario, record label owner and song publisher with a track record stretching back to the late Fifties! He met up with The Archies and auditioned them. They got together on an artist's contract, and things started happening very fast.
THE ARCHIES, CIRCA 1990
RECORDING INSIDE THE CAPITOL TOWER
@ HOLLYWOOD + VINE
The first thing Kirshner wanted was Tony Briseño out of the band! Dude thought Dilton was too short, too pudgy, too ethnic-looking and much too opinionated; and he was cold-blooded enough to tell him so. Not wanting to jeopardize his bandmates' golden opportunity, Tony stepped aside. It broke his heart, but he stood it like a man!
The next thing Don Kirshner wanted was a girl in the group. "The Archies aren't visually interesting enough," he said. "You need some sex appeal!" Veronica was his choice; she was a gorgeous brunette, and it didn't hurt that she could play keyboards.
Her best friend, Mary Elizabeth Cooper came to watch her audition. Betty didn't sing and she couldn't play any instruments; but when Kirsh saw this buxom blonde shakin' her big, sexy ass to Roni's music, naturally he wanted to hire her, too! "She'll be your dancer on stage", he told the guys. Babe ended up being much more than that - she actually could sing, even better than she danced - but Kirshner never cared about the potential of individual group members. Dude was caught up in how he could mold The Archies into a New Wave Pop act!
KEVIN KELLER + TREVOR SMITH
w/MUSIC ARRANGER JUSTIN STRICKLAND
By the end of 1988, they were fitting his mold so perfectly, they were all but unrecognizable as the Punk band they once were. Name brand musical instruments! Top designer clothes! The latest in salon hair styles! Even minor plastic surgery to make Archie + Juggy look like teen idols! Don Kirshner gave them a sound that was just as contrived as their look: Songs written and produced by Jeff Barry, one of the unsung titans of Rock 'n' Roll. And to make sure the songs were sung right, voice coaching from Ron Dante + Toni Wine, two of Madison Avenue's top jingle singers. Kirsh also created an animated "Archie" TV series that aired on the Fox Network.
Word on the street was that The Archies didn't play on their records! They did, but Kirsh loaded their tracks with so many session players, it was damn hard to tell. Archie + Veronica were the only band members allowed to sing in the studio; Ron, Toni and Jeff dubbed in the harmonies. Needless to say, Gino was none too happy with this set-up but Juggy + Betty felt frustrated, too. @ least Kirshner allowed Tony Briseño to play keyboards on their sessions every now and then.
THE JUGGZ, CIRCA 1987
w/JUGHEAD'S PET, HOT DOG
The atmosphere was looser when the revamped band made personal appearances. One of their high school music teachers, Geraldine Grundy wrote concert arrangements for them, and a former classmate named Chuck Clayton taught Arch + Roni the basics of Gospel singing. Once they came off the road, though, Don Kirshner was back in control. Dude never allowed Deanie or Chuckii to take part in studio dates; but on stage, The Archies started sounding like Archie wanted them to sound: Gritty and soulful! Audiences heard a band that came across better than they did on their records, which isn't to say that the records weren't good; they were! The stripped-down live versions just left a stronger impression.
It wasn't long before Archies singles and albums were hitting the charts. When they released a song called "Sugar, Sugar" in the summer of 1989, everything exploded: Fame and fortune on a grand scale! Just what Gino Mantle had dreamed of; but it was so overwhelming, the group had to take leaves of absence from college! In the midst of all the sold-out live shows, interviews, video and photo shoots, product endorsements and TV appearances, The Archies were left wondering just who the fuck they were? These kids had been put through so many changes, they really didn't know anymore.
Four years into this rocket ride, engine trouble manifested in the form of creative differences. Repeated conflicts torpedoed the band's relations with Don Kirshner. Dude was irritated with them, and they were totally pissed off @ him - especially Archie + Gino! Things got so bad, they decided to fund their own album session. Kirsh refused to even listen to what they'd recorded! By then (early 1992), The Archies had all but stopped selling records, so he cut them loose and focused his attention on a replacement act. (Do you remember Nothing Painted Blue? Two babes and three dudes from the Canary Islands? No, I didn't think you would).
TONI TOPAZ
w/ROSCOE SHIRLEY + RALFI CHINGAS
Without strong management, the group found themselves @ loose ends and disbanded soon afterward. Juggy + Betty married up and started a restaurant chain. Archie + Roni got married, too, and joined Lodge Industries as executives. Only Gino stayed the course: Truth be told, dude had less singing talent than any of the other members but he had the most drive! He kept pushing toward that solo career he craved. As for Tony Briseño, who'd stayed on the periphery of the Archies scene, he wasn't done with music, either!
CALL ME HIS + CRYSTALS À GO-GO:
TWO LATE NINETIES ALBUMS THAT
FEATURE MEMBERS OF THE
ARCHIES AS BACKING
MUSICIANS
As it turned out, neither was the rest of the group. In December of 1999, Archie + Veronica quit Lodge Industries to concentrate on launching an indie record label. In January of 2000, they began renovating the former subway station that would house their offices and audio recording facility. The December opening of Archie Sound Studios (ASS) set the stage for a hella fascinating story! The Archie Express departs now from Blogger's Pop Culture Cantina. Climb on board for a dope-ass ride! It's a Rock 'n' Roll night train that's bound for . . .
DESTINATION: SUGARTOWN!
THE ARCHIE RECORDS STORY
A Journey Through
THE GREAT AMERICAN
ROCK ‘N’ ROLL SONG BOOK
starring the world's greatest recording artists:
ARCHIE + VERONICA,
BEAU JACQUES, BIG ETHEL, BINGO,
THE CANDYHEARTS, CHUCK CLAYTON,
LOS HERMANOS COCHINADA,
REY COCHINO + BIG-ASS BRASS,
DEB DELMAN, HARRIS GARDNER,
LES GIGOLETTES, DEANIE GRUNDY,
BETTY JONES, JUGGY JONES, JOSIE +
THE PUSSY CATS, JUNGLE BOOK,
KATZ + THE FIDDLES, KEVIN KELLER,
THE MACK DADDYS, MADAME AXE,
MARIACHI LOWRIDER, THE NASTY BOYS,
OLGUITA + REGINALD, TREVOR SMITH w/
SAVOY SOUND, POP TATE, TONI TOPAZ,
THE VIXENS
and featuring
THE ARCHIES
IN HOLLYWOOD MAKING A
MUSIC VIDEO, CIRCA 2012
SUGARTOWN TRAIN ROUTES:
ALBUM, EP AND SINGLES RECORDINGS
REMIXES
UNDERDUBS
OVERDUBS
SOUNDTRACKS
DEMOS
Engineer's notes written by
STUFFED ANIMAL
YOUR SUGARTOWN TRAIN CONDUCTOR:
SABRINA THE SORCERESS!
YOUR TRAIN ENGINEER:
LUCHA LIBRE SENSATION
SALEM DA KATT!
SUGARTOWN TRAIN STOPS:
A L L A B O A R D !
"THAT'S THE WAY WE GET BY"
ARCHIE + VERONICA STRUGGLE TO KEEP
THEIR RECORD LABEL AFLOAT IN
THE YEAR
2 0 0 1 !