If it weren’t for some enthusiastic foreigners, Green On Red might be little more than a footnote in the history of ’80s American roots-rockers. But thanks to foreign record labels such as China in London and Normal in Germany, latter-day Green On Red releases and solo records by band members Dan Stuart, Chuck Prophet and Chris Cacavas have been made available to fans. What Were We Thinking? comes from an Australian label and is composed entirely of unreleased demos and radio sessions tracking the band from 1980–1987. (The one exception is “La Vida Muerta”, from the first Green On Red self-released vinyl EP.)
Starting with an early take on the song “Green On Red” when they were still known as the Serfers and based in Tucson, Arizona, the compilation tracks a band progressing from meager garage rockers to much-hyped members of the Los Angeles paisley underground scene. The earliest recordings are crude, but Cacavas’ keyboard work adds a melodic element uncommon to your average garage band.
The addition of lead guitarist Prophet in ’84 not only added musical punch to the band but allowed singer and principal songwriter Stuart to develop as a lyricist and frontman. Three tracks — “Cheap Wine”, “Hair of the Dog” and “Sixteen Ways” — from a Swedish radio broadcast in ’84 are alternately menacing and playful, and among the best material the band recorded. A couple more tracks from another European radio session in ’85 find the group taking on a sweet country ballad, “Mighty Fine Day”, and delivering a blistering version of “Down To The Bone”, later recorded for the side-project Danny & Dusty LP (featuring Stuart and Steve Wynn).
But the real finds on this compilation are the 11 demos recorded during two different sessions in ’86 and ’87, prior to the recording of The Killer Inside Me. The tracks find the band experimenting with several different styles, from the psychedelic musings of “Can’t Go Home” to the flat-out rockers “Can’t Drive Texas” and “Illinois Central”, to the playful rave-ups “Loves To Play The Fool” and “Paint Your Wagon”. Though none of these tracks found their way onto any album, they’re all top-notch songs that deserved to be released at some point. The Killer Inside Me turned out to be the last album featuring the original Green On Red lineup; only Stuart and Prophet are on later releases. But that’s a story for Volume 2 of this collection.
As compilations go, this one lacks cohesion, and the fidelity leaves a lot to be desired (“La Vida Muerta” sounds like it was mastered off an original vinyl record, scratches and all). If not for the outstanding demos from the ’86-’87 period, it would be hard to recommend this to anyone but devoted collectors.
