Untold Rock Stories

Editors’ Notes The ravenous fans of The Quick who long for more early recordings can satiate their craving for Kim Fowley–mentored power pop with this outstanding 2003 compilation. Untold Rock Stories compiles a generous 22 tracks of mostly unreleased tracks from the heyday of independent Los Angeles guitar pop. Most of these gems were mined from the late-'70s demos produced by Fowley and David Campbell. “No No Girl” spotlights guitarist Steven Hufsteter’s uncanny talent for penning perfectly catchy pop laced with boyish vocal harmonies. “Teacher’s Pet” oozes the kind of sleazy weirdness that could only come from under the wing of Fowley’s direction, while “Rag Doll” rocks with a fevered teenage libidinousness that recalls his early contributions to The Runaways. The new wave ballad “Take My Life” spotlights singer Danny Wilde’s voice, which sounds so perfect for radio that it’s a wonder these songs never made it into heavy rotation following The Quick’s signing to Mercury Records. The compilation ends with two stellar live cuts.