I discovered The Leaving Trains through the Enigma Variations compilation. Their track, taken from their 1984 Enigma debut Well Down The Blue Highway, was by far the best thing on that record. The band was centered around charismatic cross-dressing frontman, Falling James. Early incarnations of the band included the great guitar playing of the Hofer brothers, as well as future Circle Jerk, Greg Hetson. Well Down The Blue Highway is a brilliant piece of jangly Americana-rock/punk ala The Gun Club. Energetic at times, morose and brooding at others, but always soulful and sincere, this band should have been huge, but at the time of this recording people were more interested in Michael Jackson's Thriller.
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I was just lost in the internet, and I came onto an interesting bit of history, that years of substance abuse had obscured in my memory - This flyer http://www.yourmother.com/images/flyers/1_20losgatos.jpg
Just a Hickey flyer, yeah.
But, that show was on my sixteenth birthday. Los Gatos High School is a few blocks from my Mom's house. I remember being super pumped to see you guys play, along with the other bands. If I remember correctly, the cops were called because somebody was fucking with the power during the Your Mother set. Maybe it was further instigated by some clown throwing beer all over the place in a "teen center". Cops shut it down, and then arrested my friend Clint for doing cartwheels during his field sobriety test. Cock blocking pigs, man. Memories...
Hell yeah! I listened to, and still have, Kill Tunes. I listened to the shit out of that record while living hand to mouth in a shitty apartment with my fleabag cat. Got drunk to these guys so many times and pissed off the neighbors even more. You should post up this one, or Fuck, for these good folks if you have them. Cheers.
I'll listen to this now that i'm all grown up! This was'nt punk enuff for me when i was a lil punker!
This is great!!! You are correct-right along the lines of the Gun Club. A bit more twangy, country-ish. I'd recommend checking out Beat Rodeo if you like this!
Ya' I was a fan of Fuck and Loser Illusion Pt. 0...saw them live sometime ago...Falling James was still wearing a dress. Somebody in the crowd hit him in the face with a plunger,a fight ensued...the end.
holy shit, I have not heard this album in 2 decades! thanks!
I have a ton of Leaving Trains stories,too many but I will say that I saw them many times in the early-mid 90's sat places like Raji's, Hell's Kitchen etc. The days of Whitey Sims and 'Fuck You, God'. They did a very sloppy version of Always Betweeen Wars' once.
Man it would be great if someone could post a rip of 'Loser Illustion'
-anonymous jew
LOVE these guys! Thanks, Aesop!
It still amazes me to see/read people who actually appreciated the Trains...!
DD
Looking forward to hearing this classic Trains album, I only had "Sleeping Underwater Survivors" back in the day. Thanks
this is great. I spent most of the 90's listening to this kind of stuff. X, The Blasters, The Gun Club, True Believers, Rank and File, Giant Sand...
My band at the time had a distinct Americana sound. Too much Budweiser too loud too much Fender amp surfing those amber waves....
Thank you so much for this.
Thanks for posting this one Aesop! A friend of mine put the eponymous track on an excellent mix tape he made for me almost 15 years ago. The tape is long gone, but I always remembered the song, and I never figured out what album it was from, let alone finding a copy. Needless to say, I was stoked when I found this!
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