Marcus

1976 Record on United Artists. The band’s only record.

Marcus 1976/UA

There is a lot to like about 1976’s Marcus[pic]. The self-titled record from the Detroit 5-piece boasted three guitar players, and no bass. But it did not lack a full sound! What it lacked was promotion….And the correct way to categorize it.

Marcus Malone grew up in Detroit. Some things I read placed him as a singer for Mitch Ryder[pic] and the Detroit Wheels, but I couldn’t find any music credits supporting that. What I did find was that Malone’s musical youth consisted of singing in the church choir and listening to BB King records.

In search of something more, a grown Malone left Detroit for Ann Arbor, which is only about 70mi west, but musically and culturally completely different. Where Motown dominated Detroit, Ann Arbor, home of University of Michigan and other colleges, had a more diverse scene; folk, rock, punk. He joined the scene, and started a band “with a teen drummer who lived next to the MC5 house” and they began playing with other Michiganders like Iggy Pop[pic] and Bob Segar[pic].

Marcus, was made up of Marcus Malone[pic] on vocals, Dan Holmes[pic] on drums, and then Gene Bloch[pic], Randall David and [pic]Jack Weber on guitars. They cut their teeth playing shows and festivals from Chicago-to-Toledo-to-Detroit, and back again. I’m fairly certain, these guys weren’t in any other legit band prior to Marcus. I didn’t see anything from earlier, and for a couple of them even general info was non-existent. To tell you the truth, I still [pic]don’t know which one of these guys is Randell David!

In 1975, Ike Turner saw Marcus and flew the band out to LA where they signed a deal with United Artists. Which didn’t work out the way they envisioned it.

United Artists was a big soundtrack label; “Fiddler on the Roof,[pic]” “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World,” and the James Bond [pic] movies were all with UA. They did have bands! Traffic[pic], Manfred Mann, the Easybeats[pic], Gordon Lightfoot, and WAR were on their roster. They had a Jazz portfolio that grew through a Decca-EMI distribution deal which would require a [pic] chart to explain.

When the UK branch of Liberty Records shut down, those artists transferred to UA. So now there is Hawkwind, 999[pic], The Stranglers, and [pic] The Buzzcocks.

United Artists also had a healthy country music portfolio with Crystal Gayle and Kenny Rogers[pic]. Kenny would become the label’s biggest success.

That is a lot of diverse talent. And UA had access to equally talented support for their artists.

Stuart Alan Love[pic] was brought in to produce Marcus’ debut. Love had produced the Black Sheep [pic]records before Lou Grammatico changed his name and went off to join Foreigner. He also produced Michael Quatro’s [pic], as in Suzi Quatro’s brother… 1975 record, “In Collaboration with the Gods.” Which is a prog-meets-classical-piano record that featured Rick Derringer on guitar, and Flo & Eddie [pic] on vocals.

So, I think Love understood what he was hearing when Marcus got in front of him. This is a rock record. It is also a Prog record, a Glam record, a Brit Rock record, and a Jam record. They didn’t write new stuff for this, no one forced songs on the band. They had been playing these songs for years.

The record’s first song, “Black Magic” reminds you Marcus is from Detroit. The guitars are pointed, loud, and deliberate. When juxtaposed against Marcus’ high but powerful range, and the Deep Purple-ish keyboards, you’re thrown into their trip right away. Its a really good feeling.

“Gypsy Fever” is one of the 2 songs that someone brilliantly thought Tim Bogart [Cactus pic] should play on. The band’s three guitars in no way over-take the man [Vanilla Fudge pic], but rather, gives him the opportunity to remind everyone who the Hell he is [B,B,A pic]. Tim Bogart adds another layer to this Prog-Rock composition, different from ProgRock, which is one thing. This song just takes both genres separately and turns it into something that [Shimmer pic] that comes oh-so-close to over-the-top.

When the band does jump into the Prog Pool, you can hear Yes, ELP[pic], and King Crimson, with Queen[pic] splashing along the edge. Malone’s vocals can take a Steven Tyler-turn which coos you closer just to blow you away, and the band follows. They will go over-the-top, but they do it with a smirk on their face. It isn’t a rip-off. Its them putting Silly Putty[pic] on their influences and then playing with it.

Problems with the record?

Well, for one there are really no singles. “Black Magic,” maybe radio-able, but most of these songs are long. And I know they peeled off a good 5 minutes of “Round About,”[pic] but that was Yes. UA wasn’t going to bother editing Marcus for radio.

Also not a single, “Highschool Ladies, Street Corner Babies.”

The words don’t all come up with Closed Caption, and on some videos the button is totally blurred out. The last verse is the easiest to decipher, and it is gross, especially in a post-Epstein world.

It is another one of the misogynistic relics of 70’s rock that many bands, many good bands had. Look, I love Sweet, I don’t love the words to “Sweet F.A.” Everyone draws their own line. Regardless, “Highschool Ladies” is probably the weakest on the record, even with Tim Bogart.

“Salmon Ball.” [pic] Not a single. And I have to hang my head in shame when I say this has been my pet earworm for a while. Its a song about a one night stand, not a foreign topic in rock songs. It is just the stuff he sings about the morning after that’s just, yaknow….

I was hoping for more innuendo, I mean, it is called “Salmon Ball,” for Christ’s sake! It should write itself! They get some word-play in, but its no “Big Balls.[pic]” Unfortunately, Marcus trades clever for crass, but weirdly, only in the verses, which are channeling Jobriath[pic]….so I’m sitting here crossing my fingers hoping its going to go full-Glam, [Tubes pic] total tongue-in-cheek, and then the song switches gears.

And it turns into a rock jam! I love the chorus, the chorus is great fun, and that’s what echoes in my head for days. Its like, a little Lynyrd Skynard[pic] because we have all these guitars running loose, meets-Mountain[overlay pic]-meets-Spinal Tap[overlay pic]. Which is awesome! You know, until Marcus starts singing things like, “You’re just a bitch I met at a bar.” Outside of stuff like that, the song is great! I can’t deny that.

The other problem was that United Artists’ white guys didn’t know what to do with a rock band whose frontman [pic] was black. UA put Marcus in the Funk/Soul/R&B category like they did with War[pic]. Except this record isn’t that! Marcus isn’t War. This a Rock Record. That’s where it should be. As a matter of fact, In an essay for the 2000 Marcus [pic] re-release, Marcus Malone actually calls this a metal record. I think that’s a stretch but it has it’s heavy moments.

These reasons, and the coming of disco caused Marcus to languish at United Artists, and soon after they broke up. This was their only release.

Dan Holmes became the drummer for Sabu [pic], Gene Bloch who also went by Gene Black [pic], is a successful studio musician who’s played with Heart, Cher, Rod Stewart, and Joe Cocker. I couldn’t find anything else on Randell David, and this may-or-may-not be the same Jack Weber who played with [pic] Undisputed Truth. No clue.

Marcus Malone has been a successful musician in the UK and Europe, since he arrived there with the love of his life. Then she went back to California, and Marcus stayed to sing the Blues[pic].

You should be able to find this in the cheaps, there is also the 2000 CD reissue on Rock Candy that is available. And when you find either one, put on your headphones, and Not those wee-little-ear-nuggets, but headphones that take you somewhere when your eyes are closed and the record is turned all the way up. And do that! You’ll be glad for it.

If you’d like to hear about other records you may or may not have had back in the day, you can subscribe to Bands of the Lost YouTube channel, or check us out at BandsoftheLost.com.

Happy Digging

Bands of the Lost

Lynn@bandsofthelost.com