Cheap Perfume

By Chris Rocks On

 

The idea for Cheap Perfume began in 1977 when two waitresses working at CBGB's decided while watching bands on stage they could rock and roll just as well. With the girls having boyfriends in the Tuff Darts and The Sorrows, they had easy acess to equipment and rehearsal time. The girls quickly formed a band, named Cheap Perfume after a Rick Derringer song. They first auditioned at CBGB's and they packed the house and Hilly was thrilled!

Jane Friedman (Patti Smith Manager) took an interest in the band and helped the girls with their future gigs. While opening up for Eddie and The Hot Rods, the girls were approached by Ian Copeland from IRS records, who advised the girls they would have a future with a different guitarist... and voila! after several months Cheap Perfume formed a new line up with Bunny as lead Guitarist.

With members of the band being between the ages 17 and 22, the girls had built in following of crazed teenaged boys... Cheap Perfume soon was packing them in upstairs at Max's Kansas City and everywhere else they could! After opening up for The Dead Boys at Max's ,Cheap Perfume quickly became one the "regular" bands that you could catch at Max's Kansas City on weekends. They would either be holding up the stage or the other end of the bar. Its no wonder there was a wicked cocktail named "Cheap Perfume" on the Max's menu! Sharing the bill with Buzz and the Flyers, John Otway, Johnny Thunders and The Heartbreakers, Dead Boys, the Rattlers, the Senders, Ramones, the Revlons,The Waldos, The Tuff Darts and many, many others....Cheap Perfume rocked !

Cheap Perfume has recently gotten together once again and performed some gigs at CBGBS and Don Hills amongst others. With more NYC dates planned and a west coast show or two in the pipeline, and a new CD on the way, things are looking great again for the original Punk Rockers, Cheap Perfume!

I caught up with glamour-girl lead guitarist, Bunny, to talk about what's going on in their lives right now...Enjoy!

 

 

C : Hey Bunny! It's great to see you girls back on stage and rockin' out some powerful tunes again. How did your re-union all come about?

Hi Chris! Its  great to be back!!  We received a call from Hilly asking us to reunite for a benefit show to "Save CGBG". ..the response from the public was great and we had such a great time playing together again that we decide to do more shows and ..well here we are!

We just picked up right where we left off!

C : You were a regular feature on the bill sat both max's kansas city and CBGB. How does the scene today compare with the original scene in NYC?

 

Damn there's so many more bands now! With less venues to play and more music you definately feel the crunch.  We don't have the scene now with the "regular" crowds like at CBGB's and Max's...but that's what made those clubs~ the music and the people back then ~that was history.

 

C: Recently, you guys were all re-united with Lynn, your original singer, for a show in NYC. Does she plan any more trips out east to play?

Hell yea!! Lynn will be here in January and we plan on joining her in LA in the spring!

C: What about recordings? You have some new stuff in the pipeline?

Actually we're working in the studio now.  We are recording new material as well as the older tunes.

C : You played with all the great legendary punk bands from the original scene, opening for the Dead Boys at max's amongst many others. Who were your favourite band[s] from that era?

They were so many...think we would all say The Clash for sure. The Ramones, The Heartbreakers were a big influence. Watching Blondie and the Talking Heads at CBGB's was so inspiring...of course I loved watching Blondie due to my huge crush on Jimmy Destri...hahahaha. and Brenda was and forever will be a KISS fanatic!!

C : What about today's scene? Where do you see yourselves fitting in?

We've gained a lot of new fans though our recent shows and we believe once we out our CD out there the response will be even greater. There's a lot more opportunities available now to bands . Getting your music heard with the help of the internet being one them.

C : Cheap Perfume were the first all-girl punk band in NYC, and in a male dominated business, it must have been pretty tough to get established? 

It was... We had a lot of opportunities but we never had the right  management and think that's really what made it so tough.

C : Peter Crowley, max's kansas city's manager at the time, said that you could 'hold your own' against the guy bands. That's some compliment?

yeah!!...we kicked ass!! hahaaa we STILL do!! I dont think we ever thought of ourselves as "female" musicians...we just loved to rock and I think that's really the attitude that came across.

C : Ok, tell me about your stage set-up Bunny? I notice you play an old goldtop Les Paul....Is that the same one you've always played?

No, I used to play white 70s  Les Paul deluxe,,wish I still had that guitar! I play a 59 LP Jr as well. I used to play thru an Ampeg head /Marshall bottom...now I just use a Marshall,,damn we need a deal so we can get new equipment...some things never change,,,hahaha
 

C : Any plans on live shows outside of NYC?

Yeah...we have LA in the works. We have had some offers but we are really just focusing on finishing up in the studio. A new cd  is our priority right now. We have some projects at the moment ,,..just keeping our fingers crossed!

 

Ok, that's about it, you have a couple of upcoming shows in NYC this week at .......maybe soon, I'll come along and join you on-stage for a song or two?

Awesome!! Looking forward to it Chris!! Rock on!

You can check the girls out for yourselves, they have a Myspace site where you can also dig their tunes too!!!

They're not 'Ordinary Girls', and I love 'em!!

http://www.myspace.com/cheapperfumemusic