lyrics, back story and song listings
I think I first came up with the name and decide to
start a band called the Have Nots around 89 or 90. I came to me after a night
of heave drinking and realizing that the Gas at my house had been turned off.
It just seemed to fit the way I was living at the time. At the time I was
reading to have or have not. It wasn't until a couple months later when my
friend Jett brought up the fact that there was X song named the same. So either
it came from the saying, "To Have or Have Not, the book or the X
song.
The name quickly became a little bit of an obsession and when I look back at old journals and stuff I wrote from that period it kept coming up. It started to more and more become less of a band name and more of an expression of my mind set. I think it was around this time that I got it tattooed on my arm over a sacred heart.
So, here I was writing like a Henry Miller
on crack. lyrics, pose and etc... and before long I had well over 200 set of
lyrics with no band to use them with. I did what everyone who ever wanted to be
in a band ever did, I put up flyers. I did get a few responds but most didn't
pan out. One that did was from Gil Bavel. Gil worked at a local used record
store called Archives. At the time I was unemployed, and had sold a lot of
records there and was working on buying a few of them back. One lesson learned
is never ever sell your records cause you'll never see half of them ever again.
Anyway, I began working with Gil on Guitar. Gil was a transplant from Lawrence,
KS and had been active in the scene down there since the early 80s. We did nail
down about 4 or 5 pretty good songs but couldn't seem to find a bassist or
drummer. After Gil quit/got fired(depends on who you talk to) from Archieves,
he moved back to Lawrence and that was that. He was in a band called Wayback
Machine that played a few times at the old Mary's and a show I did at the
Runway. We still keep in contact to this day.
Shortly after that I met a guy named Brian DuBay who lived on the
west side. Brain had just started playing bass and his parents were loaded and
had this huge practice space. Also this kid named Pat Douglas. I'm not sure
when we first jammed but it would come back to this combination off and on over
the next couple of years. After wasting a few nights I decide to step away
because it didn't seem to be going anywhere.
Around 92 or 93 I met this punk named Dave Gitman. He was a bright talented guitarist with one main problem he was way into drugs. It really started to take over he's life after a while and I'm unsure just what the hell happened to him. I lived with him for a while and we started playing a little off and on. He brought in his friend Trevor Powell on bass, who actually has been in a few touring bands from Souix Falls, SD like resin and his friend Brian Seamann on Drums. What came out was a very aggressive and odd mix that was at times along the lines of Big Black. I often wonder how it would worked out if Dave could just put the pipe down long enough to focus on the band. Everyone abounded this project like rats from a sinking ship. Dave did play with a local heavy band for a while but it didn't last.
I had met Jay Burmett back in 88 when he had moved up here for a summer. We met through my then girlfriend after she hit on him. It's funny but we started hanging out after that pretty heavy. I lost track of him over the years until he transferred to drake in late 93. Originally from Dallas, he took over guitar duties and we began working with Brian again. We did lay down a number of track and even made an 8-track demo of about 3 or 4 songs in 94 but we just couldn't find a steady drummer. so like all the others, this project also failed to be realized. Jay was greatly influenced by Johnny Thunders and kinda gave the sound a more Glam sound. Not really what I was looking for but still equally good. He did write the music to the song Reaction. The only song that did live on to the final line up of the band and on to the demo. Paul sat in on one of the practises or heard the tape and dug Reaction. I think this went on and off for until 95 when he finished college. We also had a few different names including Naked Lady Mud Flaps and Physco Girl(named after a girl that would fallow Jay home every night while he was in Dallas and often turned up in Des Moines unannounced. I think we wrote a song about her too with the same title).
By late 95 me and Paul were talking about starting a
band. I met Paul in late 94 and by mid 95 we were hanging out every weekend.
Paul is of course in the huge metal band Slipknot. He grew up in Venice, CA and
the LA area and had moved out here when his mother moved here. So one of the
reasons we hit it off was we both loved the early LA Hardcore punk like Fear,
Black Flag and the Circle Jerks. I think one of the first songs we tried was "I
Just Want Some Shank" by the Circle Jerks. So with the Guitarist set, we began
to look for the rest of the band. I think we may have jammed one or two nights
with Greg and Brian before Greg moved back to Colorado in 95.
I met Greg one week night at 2nd Ave Foundry in the Summer of 95.
One of the Owners, Eddy introduced us. We spent the night talking about the OC
scene. Greg had been part of the OC scene for a number of years in the early
80s and had played with Mad Parade, Organized Crime, claimed to have played a
few gigs with CH3 and claimed to have the finial cut trying out for Agent
Orange. He moved out here with his pregnant girlfriend and got caught cheating
shortly after she gave birth. She throw him out and he went back to Steamboat,
CO.
When I was in need of a tattooist, Greg moved back out here and
started drumming for us. When we first started writing the line-up was Paul on
Guitar, Brian on Bass, Greg on Drums and me on vocals. The first song we wrote
was Decay, Destroy Madame Wongs and relearned Reaction. Most of the lyric I
used during this period and throughout the time the band was together was cut
and pasted from older songs and Idea I had written down as far back as
91.
About this time we started talking about adding a
second guitarist. Paul really wanted to add Joey. For some reason Greg was
against this. I'm not too sure why but I always figured it had to do with the
fact that Paul and Joey were in Slipknot, Slipknot was a metal band, you do the
math. I was for it, I had heard the Reject demos and even though the guitar
solos were too long and the lyrics were stupid, I liked them. Hell we already
had one long hair in the band aka Brian and one more wouldn't hurt. I think I
had met him in passing at one point but I'm not sure. He came to practice and
in one practice we wrote Character Assassins and I believe Bury the Rage. We
also laid the ground work for Chicken Hawk. Paul and Joey just work so well
together.
With the line-up complete we
began working on Chicken Hawk, Dancing on Graves, Forget Yesterday and working
on a cover. At first we went through a number of ideas for a cover but settled
on Johnny hit and Run Pauline. Before long things started to really come
together and we hooked up our first gig at Safari in the summer of 1996. The
weekend before the show we went up to Junior's Motel in Otho, Iowa and recorded
the Demo. Of course we drove up the night before got a hotel, over slept and
got to the studio late. We recorded the demo, 8 songs in roughly 5 hours all
live. Most of it was in one or two takes with very few dubs. We added the
backups and went home. One of the odd things about the demo is that Paul had
broke the top two tuning pegs off his guitar and did the whole thing, including
the solos on Johnny Hit & Run Pauline with only the bottom four strings.
All the track were recorded with Paul and Joey on guitar, Brian on Bass, Greg
on Drums and me on Vocals, except Johnny hit and run which had Joey on Drums
and Greg singing the first two verses and me singing the last.
Our first gig was a 21 and over show with Mercy Rule and Going to Grandma's. The show was rough and quickly I began to notice the week spots. Brian was not the best bassist and at times got out of time and Greg was getting old and having problems keeping up. Then Paul after fighting with equipment problems through the whole show shattered he's guitar. At that time, we were the new comers and outsiders and a lot of our focus was shoving ourselves down everyone's throat. At the after party a fight broke out with Greg and local scenester Tom(Total Passover, Del Stars and the Chezwicks) and by the end of the night, our being was well know.
We continued to play out and started to go in what I have to say
was a bit of a Social Distortion direction. Joey wrote most of these and out of
it came The trail and Alcoholic Rebounds. I thought both were great but they
were definitely a new direction. Also around this time Paul wrote Justin which
was definitely in a more Harder direction. I liked it because it mixed things
up. We were definitely not hitting a rut yet. I think around this time we did a
radio show on the local high school station 88.1. It was fun but sounded
terrible, a while back I came across a copy of it and cringed at the mix. I
also began booking all ages shows and in October we began to play all ages
shows. The all ages crowds were a +far cry from the stand there and watch crowd
of the 21 & over.
I felt it coming but I just didn't know when it would happen. Slipknot was starting to take a lot of Joey and Paul's time. Also, Joey who didn't drink was growing tired of Brian forgetting songs and Greg needing breaks between songs. Two shows that stick out are the Souix City show which was one of our better shows with this line up mainly cause there was no booze and the show a few nights later in Des Moines the night before Thanksgiving. The Thanksgiving show everyone but Joey showed up early and began drinking around 8. We didn't go on till after Midnight. We thought no one would be there but after drinking myself into a good stumpier, I turned to check out the opening band and realized there was well over a hundred people there. By the time we hit the stage, I was drunk, Brian was drunk, Greg was drunk, Paul was drunk and Joey was dead sober. So we hit the stage and spent about 45 minutes playing a set that should have taken 30 minutes. I have the video tape and it amazes me that people stood not sat but stood through it. Joey was pissed by the end of the night. We did a couple other shows under a no drink before we play rule but by February(the first show after Shawn bought the bar) Joey Quit.
I was kinda upset at first but figured it was because of Slipknot
more then anything. Then when he started up the Rejects again I was pissed but
I quickly got over it. Hell, if I would have been sober during some of those
shows I would have more than likely quit. So for a while we just took some time
off. Greg moved some where and left us without a drummer(I had fired him from
the Axiom).
We began to search for replacements and by April we had found two. On guitar we brought on a local punk kid by the name of John and on drums a transplant from Boston named of all things John. To keep them apart, guitarist John, I think because he was 16, became little John(a name that stuck) and drummer John became big John or one footed John(he liked to play with his high hat shoe off. Don't ask.). Big John sounded great in a basement with no PA but had a completely different drumming style from Greg and it struck me as odd that he would take off his high hat shoe. Anyway, we got this last minute gig opening and we debated as to weather big John was ready. We decide no and Joey agreed to drum for us. The day of the show Big John threw a fit and it almost came to blows between him and Paul. So we told him then play but if you blow it you're out. He agreed and played the worst show we ever did. We gave Brian the responsibility of firing him with the "You found him, you get rid of him." Policy. I don't think Brian ever told him anything and he didn't even know he was out of the band until he showed up at the next show.
Joey played drums at the next show we did and it was by far the best show we ever did. It wasn't my favorite show but by far it was our best. Low and behold in the audience was Greg and against my wishes he was back in the band. We played a number of shows that summer but only wrote one new song NLNF. We had hit a rut. There's a lot of reasons I guess but with a lot of Paul's focus on Slipknot, Joey gone and Little John not being able to come up with anything we liked, it all stopped being fun. The other thing was with Slipknot practicing 3-5 times a week, we never seemed to be able to practice. Also, there was internal problems, I wanted to get rid of Greg for personal reasons and Paul was growing tired of Brian's mistakes and drug problems. I decided to call it quits in October of 97. Our last show was with Blank 77 and The Quincy Punx. I made up t-shirts for that show with spray paint the night before. They had a Have Nots logo on one side and on the other side "Hippy Killer". Every once and a while, I'll see one of them around. At the end of our set Paul broke his flying V and Greg pulled me back into the drums. We went out with a bang like we started. It was good to be over. At the time we had talked about starting a new project but with Slipknot become more and more a demand on Paul's time it never happened. he did do a short stunt in the Rejects after we folded but that would be put to death by the rise of SK(though the Rejects just played this weekend).
The Have Nots was a great time. I wouldn't trade it for anything and as I look back after 3 years and everything that happened, I can't help but wonder when me and Paul will get drunk enough to really want to do this thing again. It would be fun but so much different. Plus who the fuck wants to relive the past. Like the first time you have sex with a girl it's never as good again Or is it? Viva La Have Nots.
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1.) Destroy Madame Wong's
Wrote the lyrics to this song after seeing Gold Finger in Ames. It's more about the changes in the scene I saw happening back in 1996 and the lack of control the kids had over their own scene. The whole idea of a project band coming out of nowhere selling out a club. Need I say more. It changed a little every time we did it live depending on my mood. I took the title from the war between the Hong Kong club and Madame Wong's in Hollywood in the early 80s.
- Fat ass bouncers, Ticketmaster
- MTV, the corporate scene.
- Boy scout punks, squeaky clean smucks
- and all the bands and their week ass fans
- Chorus:
- Let's go back to the good old day, when the kids ran the show
- Let's go back to the good old days, of DIY and halls
- Let's go back to the good old days, Destroy all the clubs(Destroy Madame Wong's)
- Let's go back to the good old days, and make it like it was
- Destroy it with over exposure
- just like they did before
- See what happens to your heroes
- when fame knocks at their door
- Come one, come all to the Punk Amusement Park
- located off highway 69, just one hour out of town
- remember Tuesday and Thursday is Epitaph day
- receive $5 off admission with just 3 proof of purchases
- This is for your enjoyment
- we ask for no involvement
- just sit safe on the couch
- just fun, fun, fun for the whole family.
2.) Bury the Rage
I got the start of this song from this lady in this Store back in 93 complaining about the manager not wanting to take responsibility for the price of milk. She just kept saying over and over, "Pass the buck, pass the Blame." The song to me is more about the level of anger in this country over no one taken responsibility for their own action.
- There's a billion people out there
- with broken hearts and stories to tell
- but just living day by day
- telling everyone there doing swell
- chorus
- Pass the Buck, Pass the Blaim(2x)
- & bury the Rage
- The Air in utopia is poisoned
- The streets are filled with drugs
- Murder rules the world
- and your kids are raised by thugs
- Everyone you know is lost
- tip toeing to a silent death
- all in search of new escape
- or a cheap trill to help you forget.
3.) Decay
This was the first song we wrote and I got the virus and the chorus mixed up and didn't figure it out until we hit the studio. At the time there was a great deal of talk about saving the children with the V chip and other state supported methods. It's about the reduction of freedom of speech in the name of saving the children.
- Big Brother knows best
- got a V-chip in his Chest
- Cultural genocide, freedoms suicide
- death society no identity
- anger droms with nothing new to say
- chorus:
- It just rots away, more, more, more Decay(4x)
- IRS date rape wrapped in red tape(2x)
4.) Reaction
To download right click and "save target as"/ With Macs click and holddownload-MP3 download-wma
I wrote this song in my car coming back from a show in Iowa City. I'm not sure why it struck me at that point but it did. It's about the passive crowd that always seems to be quick to judge but thinks too much and never does anything. Really it was kind of a up yours to the Alpine crowd but that a bitch in itself. This song was written by Jay Burmet and myself in 94 or 95.
- Like the partisans of yore
- and the generations before
- content but wanting more
- as your life become a bore
- chorus
- It's the self indulgence express
- that's what you represent
- your only carnal need is to impress
- and lie about your success
- They March dress like fools
- to a bar fly world
- to the dumps on Innersole
- where they'll drink until last call
- Getting sick of contentment
- finding room for improvement
- but there's no need to repent
- when you live a life so bent
- Bridge:
- There you are sitting in the back. Arms crossed mind a blank. What are you going to do?
- I need a reaction.
5.) Forget Yesterday.
I wrote this song a long time ago I think in like 92 or 93. It is basically about looking back on one's life and realizing you had the time of your life but it's over and you have nothing to show for it. And that things never seem as good as you remember them. It's like an old punker anthem thing. I had the melody of this song in my head when I wrote the lyrics and after singing it to Joey & Paul a few times and they wrote the music.
- We were the kings of the scene
- kids just barely 19
- fucking away are dreams
- we were punk rock rebels
- looking for trouble
- at home in the rubble
- chorus;
- but all that's left is a pile of broken glass
- and a lot of memories
- so I'll sit here tonight
- and have another pint
- and try to forget yesterday
- we were at our best on self destruction
- living in excess
- we were living in hell
- distend to fail
- with time to kill
- bridge:
- But in this day and age the kids lack the rage
- and fails by comparison
- I lived on the edge
- and I've kept what I pledge
- and I'm still here
- even though-chorus
6.) Character Assassins
The lyrics are a combination of about 10 other songs I wrote. It's about shit talking when your wrong to make yourself look better. The old tear down someone to make yourself seem better.
- Alcoholic loop wholes
- filled with self denial
- deadend heroes
- suspension complied
- chorus:
- Who needs salvation?
- who needs compassion?
- who needs realization?
- when you've got character assassins
- beat me with kindness
- rip me off with soft praise
- manufacture truth in a realistic haze
7.) Chicken Hawk/Dancing On Graves
Ahh, the Have Nots love songs. Chicken Hawk was about Greg, plain and simple. At the time he was 31 or 32 and messing around girls still in high school. Joey wrote the music and we thought the short cover of TSOL's Code Blue in the center because Joey wanted to have a slow part but nothing seemed to be working. Dancing on Graves was Paul's masterpiece. At first known as the hoppin song and often was mistaken for Stepping Stone. It's about falling in love with what you think is the most beautiful women in the world and then finding out she a lying cheating cunt.
- Sure I love you
- but you can't get into the bar
- so I'll swing by your house
- and we'll fuck in my car
- Come her little chickie, here's a candy bar
- Come her little chickie, I'm twice your age
- Come her little chickie, hell, I might be your dad (hell, Greg might be your dad)
- Come her little chickie, cause I'm a chicken hawk.
- Come home with me
- we won't go to far
- we'll play spin the bottle
- and naked movie star
Chorus then TSOL's Code Blue
- Soon I'll get sick of you
- then I'll start in on your friends
- of course I'll lie about
- and you'll fuck me in the end
Dancing on Graves
- In a winter of discontentment
- with the music out of key
- I fell into a state of destruction
- and the arms of impurity
- She's a picture of perfection
- keeps every tiny thought in place
- While my mind is a cluttered
- with emotions she'll never trust
- chorus:
- She's-Fucking Strangers
- while I'm-sleeping alone
- She's-dances on graves
- while I'm out of her life
- At 2 O clock in the morning
- she looks like a train wreck to me
- wrapped in the arms of a new
- in his eyes I see the innocence I lost
Johnny Hit and Run Pauline
This is a cover of the mighty X. I always loved this song. It's amazing what John Doe can paint in just 12 lines. Joey played drums on this, even when we did it live. This was to try to give the old man Greg a break. Greg would sing the first two verses with me on back up and then we'd switch on the last one.
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