The Groovie Ghoulies
Encyclopedia
The Groovie Ghoulies were an American
pop punk
band from Sacramento, California
whose music took inspiration from horror
movies. They released numerous albums, EPs
, and singles, and toured internationally. The band's name was taken from the 1970s animated television series Groovie Goolies
, a spinoff of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
(itself a spinoff of The Archie Show
).
Though the group's lineup fluctuated significantly throughout their career, bassist
/vocalist Kepi remained a constant fixture. Guitarist Roach (and lead singer Kepi's wife) was also a longtime member. The Groovie Ghoulies' music is best classified as pop-punk and is heavily influenced by early punk groups such as the Ramones
and The Dickies
, 1960s garage rock
and bubblegum artists such as The Troggs
and The Monkees
, and 1950s rock and roll
artists such as Chuck Berry
and Jerry Lee Lewis
. Throughout their career the Groovie Ghoulies recorded cover versions of songs by several of these artists as well as other influences including Daniel Johnston
and Neil Diamond
.
The Groovie Ghoulies announced their breakup on May 9, 2007, just days prior to the release of their ninth studio album 99 Lives. The main reason for the breakup was the difficulty of having kept the band together after Kepi and Roach had divorced.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pop punk
Pop punk
Pop punk is a fusion music genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. Allmusic describes the genre as a strand of alternative rock, which typically merges pop melodies with speedy punk tempos, chord changes and loud guitars...
band from Sacramento, California
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
whose music took inspiration from horror
Horror fiction
Horror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...
movies. They released numerous albums, EPs
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, and singles, and toured internationally. The band's name was taken from the 1970s animated television series Groovie Goolies
Groovie Goolies
Groovie Goolies is an American animated television show that had its original run on network television between 1970 and 1972. Produced by Filmation, Groovie Goolies was a spinoff of Sabrina the Teenage Witch...
, a spinoff of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
Sabrina the Teenage Witch is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a teenage fictional character named Sabrina Spellman. The character was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo. The comic's characters have also appeared in various other media...
(itself a spinoff of The Archie Show
The Archie Show
The Archie Show is a Saturday morning cartoon animated series produced by Filmation. Based on the Archie comic books, created by Bob Montana in 1941, The Archie Show debuted on CBS in September 1968 and lasted for one season. A total of 17 half-hour shows, each containing two 11 minute segments,...
).
Though the group's lineup fluctuated significantly throughout their career, bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
/vocalist Kepi remained a constant fixture. Guitarist Roach (and lead singer Kepi's wife) was also a longtime member. The Groovie Ghoulies' music is best classified as pop-punk and is heavily influenced by early punk groups such as the Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
and The Dickies
The Dickies
The Dickies are an American punk rock group formed in San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, California, U.S. in 1977.-History:The Dickies were among the first punk rock bands to emerge from Los Angeles...
, 1960s garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
and bubblegum artists such as The Troggs
The Troggs
The Troggs are an English rock band from the 1960s that had a number of hits in UK and the US. Their most famous songs include, "Wild Thing", "With a Girl Like You", and "Love Is All Around"...
and The Monkees
The Monkees
The Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
, and 1950s rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
artists such as Chuck Berry
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
and Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...
. Throughout their career the Groovie Ghoulies recorded cover versions of songs by several of these artists as well as other influences including Daniel Johnston
Daniel Johnston
Daniel Dale Johnston is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and artist. Johnston was the subject of the 2006 documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston. He currently lives in Waller, Texas....
and Neil Diamond
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....
.
The Groovie Ghoulies announced their breakup on May 9, 2007, just days prior to the release of their ninth studio album 99 Lives. The main reason for the breakup was the difficulty of having kept the band together after Kepi and Roach had divorced.
Former members
- Kepi - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, lead vocals (original and final line up) - Roach - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, backing vocals (final line up) - Scampi - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, backing vocals (final line up) - Rudge - guitar (original line up)
- Geolyn Carvin - guitar, backing vocals (original line up)
- John (Vetty) Vetter - bass (original line up)
- John Phillip (Johny) Sosa - drums (original line up)
- John Harris - drums
- PanicDan PanicDan Sullivan, also known as Dan Panic or Danny Panic, is a punk rock drummer from Chicago.-Career:Dan Sullivan began his musical career with Ivy League, a quartet from Chicago's western suburbs who released one 7" EP in 1990. He then joined Screeching Weasel in 1991 and remained with the band until...
- drums - Wendy Powell- drums, backing vocals
- B-Face Rat- bass
- Matt Shrugg - drums
- Jaz - drums
- Danny Secretion - drums
- Jason Patrone - bass (quit after 2 weeks)
- Skid Jones - guitar
- Amy - Drums
- Brian - Drums
- Dave - Drums
Albums
| Year | Title | Label | Format | Other information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Appetite for Adrenochrome Appetite for Adrenochrome Appetite for Adrenochrome is the debut album by the Sacramento, California punk rock band the Groovie Ghoulies, released in 1989 on their own independent label Crimson Corpse Records. It was recorded at Enharmonic Studios in Sacramento with the band's original lineup of Kepi Ghoulie , Rudge , Vetty... |
Crimson Corpse Records | LP Gramophone record A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove... /CD |
First album. Re-released in 1996 by Lookout! Records Lookout! Records -History:Larry Livermore and David Hayes formed the label in 1987. From the start, Lookout released punk rock records, but over time expanded its scope to include various types of pop rock, reggae fusion, acoustic rock, pop punk, and indie rock... and in 2003 by Springman Records Springman Records Springman Records is an independent record label founded in 1998 by Avi Ehrlich that was run out of his parent's garage in Cupertino, California until late 2005, when Ehrlich moved the label to Sacramento... . |
| 1994 | Born in the Basement Born in the Basement Born in the Basement is the second album by the Sacramento, California punk rock band the Groovie Ghoulies, released in 1994 by Lookout! Records. It was recorded at Egg Studios in Seattle with producer Conrad Uno and engineer Mark Guenther... |
Lookout! Records Lookout! Records -History:Larry Livermore and David Hayes formed the label in 1987. From the start, Lookout released punk rock records, but over time expanded its scope to include various types of pop rock, reggae fusion, acoustic rock, pop punk, and indie rock... |
LP/CD | Re-released in 1996 by Lookout! Records and in 2004 by Springman Records. |
| 1996 | World Contact Day | Lookout! Records | LP/CD | Re-released in 2002 by Springman Records. |
| 1997 | Re-Animation Festival | Lookout! Records | LP/CD | Re-released in 2003 by Springman Records. |
| 1999 | Fun in the Dark | Lookout! Records | LP/CD | Re-released in 2003 by Springman Records. |
| 2000 | Travels With My Amp | Lookout! Records | LP/CD | |
| 2002 | Go! Stories | Stardumb Records Stardumb Records Stardumb Records is an independent record label based in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.-History:Stardumb Records started its operation in 2000. Their first release was a 7-inch by local band The Apers, and releases by similar pop punk bands inspired by the... |
LP/CD | Re-released with bonus tracks in 2002 by Green Door Records. |
| 2003 | Monster Club | Stardumb Records | CD | Re-released in 2004 by Green Door Records. |
| 2007 | 99 Lives | Green Door Records | CD | Final album. |
EPs
| Year | Title | Label | Format | Other information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | "Planet Brian Jones" | Supersonic RefrigeRecords | 7" | Italy Release |
| 2001 | Freaks on Parade | Stardumb Records Stardumb Records Stardumb Records is an independent record label based in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.-History:Stardumb Records started its operation in 2000. Their first release was a 7-inch by local band The Apers, and releases by similar pop punk bands inspired by the... |
CD | |
| 2001 | Summer Fun with the Groovie Ghoulies | Green Door Records | CD | 2001 tour CD with Fanzine |
| 2002 | Summer Fun 2002 | Green Door Records | CD | 2002 tour CD with Fanzine |
| 2005 | Berry'd Alive | Green Door Records | CD/10" | Covers of songs originally performed by Chuck Berry Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B... . |
Singles
| Year | Title | Label | Format | Other information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | "Flying Saucer" | Crimson Corpse Records | 7" | Groovie Ghoulies first release |
| 1988 | "Don't Go Out Into the Rain" | Crimson Corpse Records | 7" | Side B: Dead Moon/Child of the Moon |
| 1988 | "Armageddon 2000" | Crimson Corpse Records | 7" | |
| 1990 | "Hello Hello" | Crimson Corpse Records | 7" | |
| 1992 | "Lost Generation" | Gift of Life | 7" | |
| 1992 | "Christmas on Mars" | Crimson Corpse Records | 7" | |
| 1995 | "The Beast with 5 Hands" | Green Door Records | 7" | |
| 1996 | "Island of Pogo Pogo" | Lookout! Records Lookout! Records -History:Larry Livermore and David Hayes formed the label in 1987. From the start, Lookout released punk rock records, but over time expanded its scope to include various types of pop rock, reggae fusion, acoustic rock, pop punk, and indie rock... |
7" | Lookout #146 Side B:"Gates of Steel" |
| 1997 | "Magic 8 Ball" | What Else? | 7" | |
| 1997 | Running With Bigfoot | Lookout! Records Lookout! Records -History:Larry Livermore and David Hayes formed the label in 1987. From the start, Lookout released punk rock records, but over time expanded its scope to include various types of pop rock, reggae fusion, acoustic rock, pop punk, and indie rock... |
CD/ 7" | Lookout #177 |
| 1997 | "Graveyard Girlfriend" | Lookout! Records | 7" | Side B: Trick or Treat (Chuck Berry)/Devil Town (Daniel Johnston) |
| 2000 | "Vampire Girl" | Supersonic RefrigeRecords | 7" | Picture Disc Italy Release |
Splits
| Year | Title | Label | Format | Other information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ?? | Cake Spirit | 7" | 4 way split Groovie Ghoulies/The Spazzys/Dazes/Mach Pelican | |
| 1997 | 3 for the Price of One | Sell Out | 7" | Groovie Ghoulies/Wankin' Teenagers/Receivers split |
| 1998 | Chronic for the Troops | Delmonico | CD/7" | Split with Chixdiggit! |
| 1998 | "Funny Funny" | Gearhead Records Gearhead Records Gearhead Records is an independent record label that started in San Francisco, California. It was later co-run out of Davis, California and is now totally run out of Woodland, California . The label was formed in April 2000 by Michelle Haunold and Mike LaVella. In 2006, the company was split in... |
7" | RPM #007 - b/w The Donnas The Donnas The Donnas are an American all-female rock band from Palo Alto, California. They draw inspiration from The Ramones, The Runaways, AC/DC, Bachman–Turner Overdrive and Kiss. Rolling Stone has stated that "the Donnas offer a guileless take on adolescent alienation; they traffic in kicks, not... "Wig-Wam Bam" |
| 1999 | Wedding Invitation | What Else? | 12" | heart shaped vinyl made for a wedding invitation. Lynrd's Innards/Groovie Ghoulies/Slingshot Episode split |
| 2004 | 'Til Death do us Party | Springman Records | 7" | Split with the Secretions |
Compilations
- Tantrum-1990 LP/CD
- Gabba Gabba Hey-1991 CD
- Groin Thunder-1992 CD
- Heide Sez-1996 CD
- Team Mint-1996 CD
- Back Asswards-1996 CD
- More Bounce to the Ounce-1997 CD
- The Last Great Thing You Did-1997 CD
- Psycho Sisters-1998 CD
- Forward Til Death-1999 CD
- Built For Speed-1999 CD
- Short Music For Short People-1999 CD
- Runnin' On Fumes-2000 CD
- Lookout! Freakout-2000 CD
- 3 Chord Rocket Science-2001 CD
- A Tribute to NOFX-2002 CD
- A Punk Tribute to AC/DC-2002 CD
- Third Strike Punk Rock Strike Volume Three-2002 CD
- A Fistful of Rock N Roll Vol. #10-2002 CD
- Pop Punk Loves You-2002 CD
- The Rocky Horror Punk Rock ShowThe Rocky Horror Punk Rock ShowThe Rocky Horror Punk Rock Show is an album featuring the soundtrack of the 1975 cult film The Rocky Horror Picture Show as performed by modern punk rock bands...
-2003 CD - Punk Rock High School Int.-2004 CD
- MolokoPlus #26-2004 CD
- Volume 4: Pop Punk-2005 CD
- Backyard City Rockers 3-2005 CD