Teenage Head
Flamin' Groovies
1971
Album Summary
Teenage Head is the third studio album by the San Francisco rock band Flamin' Groovies, released in March 1971 by Kama Sutra Records.Released the same year as the Rolling Stones' album Sticky Fingers, Mick Jagger reportedly noticed the similarities between the albums and thought the Flamin' Groovies did the better take on the theme of classic blues and rock 'n roll revisited in a modern context.
WikipediaI'd like to say "Teenage Head is awesome" and leave it at that, but some people might mistake that review for R. Kelly's life motto.
Unless this is just one person's personal list, i dont understand how this album could be considered an album you HAVE to listen to.
At first I thought this was an album called Flamin’ Groovies by Teenage Head, which I was looking forward to. This is great. One of my new “I can listen to every track without skipping” albums. Looking it up on Wikipedia, Mick Jagger apparently said this was a better version of Sticky Fingers, and I agree. Rockabilly edging into proto-punk. I love this so much. Favourite track: “Whiskey Woman”
i love their refusal to jump on the bandwagon of the times, and instead just rip up some awesome bluesy rock & roll. fantastic album
For a band I've never heard of, this album was freaking great. It's everything I love about The Rolling Stones with a healthy dose of Violent Femmes sprinkled on top. This came out the same year as "Sticky Fingers" even. Apparently, after listening to "Teenage Head" Mick Jagger was like, "Oh yeah. That's what we were trying to do with 'Sticky Fingers' but they did it better." And he's not wrong. Put the two albums up against each other and "Teenage Head" just might come out on top. Absolute monster of an album.
These boys FUCK! Kinda like The Rolling Stones with a little of The Stooges thrown in. There’s almost no way they weren’t an influence on Eagles Of Death Metal and early Kings Of Leon. Pretty fun album!
Interesting albums with lots of blues and inspiration from other artists. Could hear hendrix, dylan, and elvis in a few songs. Liked the different vibes throughout the album
I've heard this band in the past, but never properly checked them out. This one apparently is the third and greatest album, just before one of the founding members left. It's quite pleasant. 30 mins of throwback rock n roll with a country tinge and some blues cover songs. If you are a big fan of 1950s/60s rock classics, you would definitely have a blast with this. I tapped my toes along to the whole thing, and there weren't any dull moments. But it's not a style I'm particularly enamoured with. 3.5
I enjoyed this bluesy early 70s rock way more than I expected to. The recording sounds fantastic and the music is really well done. The performances are so energized and visceral. These guys are really great here! Loved the rockin' tracks like "High Flyin' Baby" and "Have You Seen My Baby." "Yesterday's Numbers" has a fantastic vocal performance... one of my favorite tracks. The title track's rockin' blues vibe and supporting harmonica runs through this album like a freight train. Great stuff! There's a great bluesy vibe really evident in "City Lights" about a country boy headed to NYC to see 'the empire's tallest building where the plane shot that big monkey, and they killed him.' You also get a dose of the 50s in songs like "32-20", "Evil Hearted Ada" (which could be an early Elvis song) and "Doctor Boogie" (with a particularly fun performance by the lead singer). The last song of the original album release "Whiskey Woman" is a great closer to the album. Love this song. I prefer stopping there for the album listening experience and not playing the six additional tracks added in 1999. Not that any of the additional songs are bad - in fact I liked them - but the album really feels most complete in its original incarnation. Maybe I'm just getting tired of great albums feeling a bit compromised when bonus tracks are tacked on willy-nilly in their re-releases. I really dig this album... happy to welcome Flamin' Groovies aboard my musical library!
You can draw a direct line from this to my sweetheart Detroit 90s-00s rock scene. Hell yea
It's Been A While I guess, But Life Is Good, You're Doing Well. Keep On Focusing On The Process. And Go With The Flow That You Like.
Muy sorprendente disco. Quizá a ratos no suena de 1971 sino de 1964 o algo así, pero la verdad es que me gustó mucho. Combinación agradable de Rock psicodélico y Blues, transicional de la época. Le doy la razón a Mick Jagger, este disco es mejor que uno de los Stones. Y encima la versión de lujo trae unos covers que tampoco tienen desperdicio.
Amazing record from track 1 to the end - from pure party garage rock to acoustic folk blues. I can imagine that Evil Hearted Ada influencing the psychobilly Lux Interior of The Cramps with it’s circus mirror reflection of Elvis. As for comparisons, I’d listen to this before the Stones every time.
I love the Flamin Groovies.. They could have picked the album before or after and I would have been happy too. Dirty bluesy garage rock sound can't be beat.
I didn't know the band, but I was happily surprised. I know they are supposed to play many styles, but this album is a good rock album. It reminds me of newer rock bands like The Sheepdogs.
Great discovery, didn't know them at all, will certainly listen to it again.
american equivalent to Sticky Fingers is good, but not better than Sticky Fingers! come on, mick! fav track: whiskey woman
Favourite band name so far. This was a big fat Jam loved it all, especially Doctor Boogie and Shakin All Over. Whiskey Woman was my highlight though - surprisingly beautiful. Also a great rendition of Louie Louie.
Rockabilly surf-music, folded into some more mellow blues-y jams. Good stuff
This band reminds me a lot of the Rolling stones but maybe the band and the lyrics aren't as controversial? They have that 70's rock/blues thing going though I'm not sure if there is anything totally exceptional about this album. Maybe it's here because Mick Jagger thought they were better than the Rolling Stones?
Rockzinho lá de outros tempos né, bacana, acho que até conhecia alguma, mas nada que mds adoro ouvir não.
Ihan uusi tuttavuus tämäkin. Mielestäni kelpo rokkia tuolta aikakaudelta. Kivasti eri tyylisiä kappaleita levyllä, ei käynyt yksitoikkoiseksi, vaikka levy olikin täyden tunnin mittainen.
Flamin and groovy! Groovy 70's rock, nothing bad about it. Whiskey Woman is my fav
10th June 2021 Listened on my phone through the day - Jen still recovering from Covid and busy workday. Very hot. Had it saved on Spotify previously, I love the firdt half but not sure about the British invasion covers. Some total bangers on here though.
Hey this album whips ass. I enjoyed it from front to back and will be listening to it again. This is some great rock with an energy all its own.
Really cool bluesy style with a distinct 70's production and vocal style. Really fun to just put on and jam out to!
WHY HAVE I NEVER HEARD OF THIS BAND?! Funky slidey Southern Beefheart grooves. Makes Television make sense. Evil Hearted Eva channels Elvis through a rockabilly sound.
Thoroughly enjoyed it; some classic rockabilly tracks to lighten the mood. 4.5/5
One of the best albums the Stones ever put together was not actually by the Stones. Most excellent blues rock.
Really enjoyed this. Raw guitar sound is great. Simple, balls out rockin.
What a surprise this was. I was completely unsure what to expect. The band name and title made me a li’l nervous. But then there was some good ol' bluesy, old school rock 'n' roll sounds that I really liked from the first time through…the whole thing, in fact. The vocals are sometimes a little wonky, and I jumped when they started screaming in "Yesterday's Numbers," and I'm not a big fan of gun violence threats against girlfriends (which seem to be very common in several genres of popular music). But I love all the varied guitar sounds in this. I love the bass in the title track. Each of these songs is just a little jarringly weird, and I really like them.
According to wikipedia, Teenage Head was released the same year as the Rolling Stones' album Sticky Fingers, and Mick Jagger reportedly noticed the similarities between the albums and thought the Flamin' Groovies did the better take on the theme of classic blues and rock 'n roll revisited in a modern context. I tend to agree. it is like a rougher version of Sticky Finger s(one of my favourite Stones albums), so this is a revelation. Loved the slide playing, the rough boogie, and the grunt. Fabbo, and definitively going on my want list.
This.....is..... AMAZING! It’s like the Stones with a little kiss of punk. Love it so far Fav Tracks: "High Flyin' Baby" "Teenage Head"
Possibly their best album, either this one or Shake Some Action. I'm not usually a big fan of covers but these guys are really good at it.
This proves that The Rolling Stones are one of the most overrated bands ever. 7/10
Apparently, Mick Jagger said that this album was a better take on a modern updating of blues and rock 'n roll than the contemporarily released "Sticky Fingers". Mick is right.
They've got some really cool stuff going on in that 1970s bluesy rock space, which makes me wonder why they're not more well-known. Maybe their marketing department sucked? Maybe it's the dreadful band name? Maybe it's the ill-advised, super terrible Elvis impersonation? Best track: Whiskey Woman
Fun throughout Best song was Whiskey Woman. The chorus sounded a lot like knocking on heavens door but I think this song is older than that one
Loved it. Never heard of them and want to know more. Sound like a test tube baby of the Beach boys, early stooges, the Stones etc. 4*s
Cet album de rock gentil passerait presque pour un chef d'œuvre grâce à la bousasse qui l'a précédée (celle de Throbbing Gristle).
Thoroughly enjoyable rootsy/country-tinged RnR. Contemporary comparisons to Sticky Fingers are very apposite. Liked it a lot! bonus tracks are uniformly poor however
Initially I was hoping to find "Shake Some Action" on this album, since it's the only FG song I knew, but when I got into it I liked the bluesy, rockabilly-with-edge feel. The title track sounds very Howlin' Wolf. It's hard to tell from the Wiki notes if the lead vocals are shared, but if they're not, they certainly have one diverse vocalist. I guess you'd have to add FG to the list of the first (pre) punk bands, sticking to rock n' roll when hard rock and prog was all the rage.
Very hard rocking modern rock n roll, way better than I was expecting.
A band I was not familiar with at all. Really good stuff, will be listening to it again. Lots of comparisons to The Rolling Stones, but I think the Groovies did it better.
4.4 - I can see why Mick Jagger thought this was a more successful blues rock record compared to "Sticky Fingers." To Jagger's credit though, this record doesn't have the same "Wild Horses" level climax. Some great cuts including "32-20", "Evil Hearted Ada" and "Whiskey Woman."
It's pretty dang groovy. As much as I push back against horrible bluesy acts of the 60s-70s that can't seem to figure out how to do the blues right... I think this is very good.
This was unexpected as I had never heard of this band and didn't know what genre it would be. I loved the guitars but the vocals weren't completely up to snuff. The production also really sounded modern. Definitely will be adding some of these songs into my rotation since I enjoy me some old blues rock.
Fun fact: High Flyin' Baby is Robert Plant's favourite track from this album. He bangs babies. He also LOVES Have you seen my Baby? The man loves touching babies.
Mick Jagger was awfully nice and gracious when he praised *Teenage Head* as an album that was actually better than the Rolling Stones' own *Sticky Finger*, out in the same year. But as good as that Flamin' Groovies album is, it's still a notch under the Stones' magnum opus. Side 1 is almost perfect, but three tracks in the middle of side 2 make the album lose its momentum somehow. Those cuts are not horrible, but they are a little too derivative just as they go to older types of rockabilly and bluesy numbers. Fortunately, the record ends on a very high note with Whiskey Women. As already noted elsewhere, this album is also very interesting for Cramps fans: the title track and "High Flyin' Baby" have clearly inspired Lux Interior and Poison Ivy for their own twisted take on good ole rock'n'roll. Does all this make *Teenage Head* an *essential* album, though? The jury's still out on this one. Number of albums left to review: 724 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 135 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 66 (including this one) Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more important): 76
I broke this up over way too many days but the Flamin’ Groovies are a fun listen
Favorite quote off the whole album: “you’ve got to mow the lawn if you wanna get it on with me”. I mean at least he’s honest! For real though this was a fun one
Fun bluesy stuff, but nothing that really strikes me any more than the Stones typically.
For some reason, I did not think the band was so old. Even with the name Flamin' Groovies. At first the music sounds a bit dated. But I actually liked it because of that. The production being so garage-y worked for them, it became less dated if that makes sense. The actual album is only 30 minutes. Again, I keep forgetting that albums could be pretty short... The music itself reminded me a lot of a cross between the Who and the Black Crowes, actually. I liked it a good deal. I could tell they were having fun, particularly on the live bonus tracks, although they sounded sloppier there (I know they don't really count). Anyway, the opening and closing tracks I really dug. The stuff in the middle was good, too. But the opening grabbed me, and usually if that happens, that sells me a lot on the album. So yeah, it would probably be a high 3 for me, rounding up to a 4.
Great stuff, and I'm convinced this would have a higher overall rating if A) the band's name were The Rolling Stones, and B) the album art weren't so terrible.
One of the best albums the Stones ever put together was not actually by the Stones. Most excellent blues rock. (prior listen)
Solid album. I'm a little worn out with blues and boogie though. Still a good listen nonetheless.
I'd never encountered the Flamin' Groovies, these guys ROCK. Shades of the Stones and CCR. Good find.
If Mick Jagger thinks you did "Dirty" better then you are doing something right, It obviously sounds very much in the vein of the Rolling stones but I enjoy the energy and a strong showing for the first time hearing the band. Favourite tracks- High flyin' baby, Have you seen my baby, Teenage Head
Tasty, greasy, dirty rock 'n roll nestled somewhere between The Stooges and The Rolling Stones. Wonderfully rattling and rolling and played with style and knowledge of sound and instruments.