The Del Fuegos
photo by Arthur Elgort
Did they burn out or did they rust? Did they jump or were they pushed? Did they sell out by cashing in? When it comes to The Del Fuegos’ fast-forward rise and slow-motion fall, the answers to those questions are debatable, but one thing is not: During their 15 minutes of fame in the ‘80s, they were among the most rollickin’ examples of bare-bones power pop at its punchiest.
A no-frills cocktail of irresistible melodies, rockabilly-twinged riffs, cocksure stage presence and raucous live shows, the tight-as-a-fist quartet was a short-lived next-generation J. Geils Band of sorts, flipping the proverbial bird at other garage-born acts of the era like The Romantics (Detroit), The Plimsouls (Los Angeles), The Hooters (Philadelphia), BoDeans (Milwaukee) and The Del-Lords (New York City) while screaming, “Boston kicks ass the hahdest!” The band cut four studio albums and one live disc between ‘84 and ‘89, headlined tours of North America, the UK and Europe, opened for Tom Petty, INXS, The Replacements, The Kinks and ZZ Top and – in what some thought was a money-grubbing move that killed their street cred – starred in a 1985 television commercial for Miller High Life beer.
FORMATION, THE LONGEST DAY, BOSTON, MASS., SPIN RADIO CONCERT
The band formed in 1980, spearheaded by New Hampshire-born, guitar-playing brothers Dan and Warren Zanes, then ages 19 and 16 respectively; rounding out the original lineup were bassist Tom Lloyd, Dan’s high-school classmate, and drummer Steve Morrell. The group built a strong local following by gigging in warehouses, art galleries, barns, dining halls, frat houses, gyms, auditoriums, bars and clubs – anywhere they could, really – before gaining much broader attention in June 1983 when they reached the semifinals at the WBCN Rock ‘n’ Roll Rumble, held that year at Spit and The Metro in Boston and won by ‘Til Tuesday.
In 1984, after beginning to record an album on Boston-based indie label Ace of Hearts, The Del Fuegos signed with LA-based indie label Slash, which released their debut disc, The Longest Day, to almost unanimous critical acclaim for its ripping riffs, raw emotion and snidely acerbic attitude. Rolling Stone magazine gave the group its “Best New Band” award that year, putting them on the national map and the launch pad to major stardom.
In 1985, after Woody Giessmann of Kansas-based punkers The Embarrassment had replaced Morrell on drums, the group recorded its sophomore LP, Boston, Mass., which – despite glowing reviews and decent radio and MTV airplay of the singles “Don’t Run Wild” and “I Still Want You” – fell short of Slash’s rather aggressive sales expectations. Later that year, the group recorded a live album, Spin Radio Concert, recorded at The Spirit Club in San Diego and issued by BBE Sound.
MILLER HIGH LIFE COMMERCIAL, STAND UP, TOURING WITH TOM PETTY
Also in 1985, the quartet starred in a television commercial – famously or infamously, depending on your perspective – for Miller High Life beer. In the ad, band members narrated over clips of them on and off stage, ending with the slogan “Miller: Made the American way,” which some fans – “rock ‘n’ roll purists” or “pretentious hipsters,” depending on your perspective – saw as selling out to corporate interests.
The band toured North America throughout ‘85 and ‘86, making appearances across New England at venues including The Rathskeller and The Channel (Boston), Comnock Hall (Lowell), Providence Performing Arts Center, Providence College, Providence Civic Center, the Music Hall (Portsmouth), Cumberland County Civic Center (Portland) and the Palace Theatre (New Haven).
In 1987, the group recorded their most ambitious album to date, Stand Up, which featured an expanded musical range – and a guest appearance by self-confessed Del Fuegos fan Tom Petty – but which received harsh reviews and minimal support from fans. Slash axed the group from their roster and they spent the next two-odd years without a label. To support the LP, the band toured the US and Europe as an opener for Petty and headlined shows across North America with New England concerts at Riverfront Park (Manchester, NH), The Living Room (Providence) and Massachusetts venues Great Woods (now Xfinity Center, Mansfield), Babson College (Wellesley) and The MacPhie Pub (Medford).
LINEUP CHANGE, SMOKING IN THE FIELDS, DISBANDING, REUNION, SILVER STAR
In 1988, Warren Zanes and drummer Giessmann left the group, replaced by Adam Roth and Joe Donnelly respectively, and the revised lineup played at the WBCN Rock of Boston Festival in December. In 1989, they signed with RCA, which issued The Del Fuegos’ fourth and final LP, Smoking in the Fields, which was a commercial nonevent. The band wrapped up a six-city European tour in early 1990 and broke up shortly thereafter.
In June 2011, they reassembled to perform in public together for the first time in 21 years, playing a two-night stand at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston to raise money for Right Turn, a rehab program Giessmann founded in 2003. The shows’ success prompted them to record the eight-song EP Silver Star on the February Records label, and in early 2012 they did a 10-city tour which started at the Paradise and ended at the Capital Center for the Arts in Concord, New Hampshire.
Asked in 2012 if making the EP and doing the short tour felt like the group’s early days, Dan Zanes nodded and laughed. “Absolutely,” he said. “The not knowing what’s going on, the making a recording where we don’t know what we’re doing. All that stuff feels like the early days of the band. Those were the fun days since it was the most fun when we hadn’t figured any of it out.”
(by D.S. Monahan)
