Raging Slab @ De Melkweg, Amsterdam, 1993

Everyone has a secret musical pleasure. One of mine has been the music of Raging Slab. Anyone who knows me, knows I have a definite soft spot for southern rock. Perhaps what I like about Raging Slab is the unique manner in which they combine such seeming contrasting musical influences (punk, progressive, roots, metal, southern rock, country) to create their own sound.
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Tunes, Treats & Torrents – The Muffin Men

Anyone who has followed my posts knows that I’m a avid downloader of torrents from Zappateers (and a fantastic bunch of freaks they are – I tip my hat to them for all the excellent Zappa torrents I’ve downloaded through the years). That said, I am also an avid collector of many exceptional Zappa tribute bands (far too numerous to name here, though). Periodically, though, I come across a particular group of musicians that I feel I just have to share. For that purpose, I’ve begun an irregular series entitled, “Tunes, Treats & Torrents” to highlight these groups and their exceptional covers of Zappa compositions.

The first of those bands in this series are The Muffin Men, an incredible group of musicians from Liverpool, UK. When I recently downloaded a torrent of an excerpt of their Kirchheim Tech, Germany show on April 24th, 1993 featuring guests Don Preston, Bunk Gardner, and Jimmy Carl Black I knew I had to share it (especially since live recordings of Bunk Gardner are so incredibly rare anyway). Give these covers a listen and decide what you think:

King Kong – The Muffin Men (Kirchheim Teck, Germany, 24 Apr 1993)
[audio:20100331_01 King Kong.mp3]

Don Whanks It Out – The Muffin Men (Kirchheim Teck, Germany, 24 Apr 1993)
[audio:20100331_02 Don Whanks It Out.mp3]

Son of Mr Green Genes – The Muffin Men (Kirchheim Teck, Germany, 24 Apr 1993)
[audio:20100331_03 Son Of Mr Green Genes.mp3]

Willie the Pimp – The Muffin Men (Kirchheim Teck, Germany, 24 Apr 1993)
[audio:20100331_04 Willie The Pimp.mp3]

The Muffin Men (circa Spring/Summer 1993):

Roddie Gilliard: guitar, vocals
Ian Jump: stunt guitar
Andy Jacobson: keyboard
Mike Kidson: sax, toys, vocals
Andy Frizell: bass, vocals
Steve Belger: drums

Download torrent from Zappateers here.

P.S. Denny Walley has confirmed he is joining The Muffin Men for their performance at Zappanale in August, 2010.