I'm just goonna lay it on the line and say that Tim Kerr is a veritable punk rawk musical genius, and I shouldn't have to explain why...
However since he's a fairly obscure chap, that has no platinum discs under his belt, and we'll likely never see his face beaming on the MTV. Let's do a brief rundown...
I first became aware of his guitar squall via a combo called the Big Boys, an early 80's group outta Austin Texas. They were opening for Minor Threat at an abandoned furniture store in DC in Oct of 1983 when I was annointed properly and they were jamming outta control.
MP3'z ( suck em up kids )link to buy the full albums these are from below
Download Big Boys : We're Not In It To Lose
Download - Big Boys : Identity Crisis
Download Big Boys : No
Their blend of JFA-esque skater core and Kool & The Gang riffs paved the way for a legion of poorly executed punk/funk acts including some so-called Red Hot LA junkies and before I dare even suggest any other Limp imitators, let's just say the damn Big Boys were fronted by a dude named Biscuit if that ain't damning enough...
above: Biscuit & Mr. Kerr in action ( pic by Murray Bowles )
Later on Mr. Kerr gets lost in the post punk grunge years with his mostly overlooked sloppy funk act Bad Mutha Goose.
Bad Mutha Goose - Free Your Mind
Kerr tried to ride that shtick but somehow arrived too early in the funky punky scene to reap many rewards, so he later resurfaces for a stint in another obscure Grunge-Fusion-Bop act with Mudhoney's Mark Arm & Steve Turner known as The Monkeywrench.
Monkeywrench - Angelhead.
Kerr never fully laid low, but also never rose above the underground, contributing a slew of collectable and occasionally forgettable vinyl via outfits like The Lord High Fixers, Poison 13 and other groups noted on his website.
However fans of the Bellrays & southern fried soul will definitely wanna take note of the late Now Time Delegation...
I first heard this disc in a record store in a small town record shop, it was the type of record that I kept asking the clerk after every song "Who Is This" ... and then a few minutes later another killer retro-tastic soulful tune would ooze out of the speakers and I'd wanna know what band that was...oh, the same one...doh!
Despite the warm fuzzy analog tones & groovy organ, turns out they weren't some long lost act Stax era act from below the Mason Dixon line, but their material generally is...
Dig this clip of them doing a blissfully battered & fried take on Curtis Mayfield's - Keep On Pushing, a true anthem of the civil rights era.
Here's an mp3 of them ripping through Layin' On The Ground from the Watch for Today release on In The Red.
When I finally got a chance to see these kids perform a few months later it was the last night of a tour, and Tim and the gang were in fine form. Kerr's obviously in love with this special soulful music and pays tribute the golden age of crackly 45's with a vengeance bordering on gargantuan geekly psychosis. By Golly, he's a real nice Texas guy as far as i can tell from the couple brief interactions and emails we've had. I just basically wanna insist ya check the dude and his music out if ya have the time...
I got a chance to talk to Lisa K, the screamer from the Bellrays about her Kerr project at a gig and she seemed a bit aloof, stand off-ish and uninterested in furthering the fate or fortune's of the Now Time Delegation. It appeared that the Now Time Delegation was a moment in time, doomed to die a quick & ultimately quiet death. This fate was especially sealed when 40 something skatepunk Tim Kerr injured his leg badly in a 2000 skateboarding mishap on the eve of their Japanese Tour. The Bellrays have long since attempted take off for the rawk stardom stratosphere, and Mr. Kerr is working back at some edu-ma-cational insitution in Tejas...
So this lil' video I shot might be yer only chance to catch 'em in action, and I made one without Lisa singing since she gets plenty of facetime these days anyhow... and despite her vocal absence the band do a fine job shredding through an old T.S.U Tornados cut called "Getting The Corners"... Hope y'all dig it... I shot it live from Cafe DuNord in SF...
Now Time Delegation - Real Video file
To Buy The One and Only Now Time Delegation " CD for just $12.15 - click here
to check out the three Big Boys CD releases in print and onsale now for just $12.15 click here...
p.s
here's a bonus video clip of the Lord High Fixers from awhile back live in Austin
p.s you did get that MP3 right? It's ok Tim wants you to have it...
Now Time Delegation - Laying On The Ground
more Tim Kerr info at http://TimKerr.net
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