Flamin' Groovies
Teenage Head

THE REVIEW

Do you want to know one of the most underrated albums in the history of rock? In my opinion, it's "Teenage Head" by the Flamin' Groovies.

I still remember those 18 years of (pseudo)-rebellions and inner turmoil where I searched for many of my answers in music, particularly in rock. At that time, my only pastime was visiting less commercial vinyl stores and record fairs in my area. That was my mission. One day, the owner of the record store, seeing me there every week, approached me and said, "I see you really like the Stones... listen to this band and you won’t regret it!" And he showed me this "Teenage Head". I looked at the cover for a minute and without thinking twice, I bought it. Even today, almost 20 years later, the album remains one of my favorites. 

For those who know little about them, the Flamin' Groovies were formed in San Francisco in 1965 and after starting to perform in local venues, they released their first two works, "Sneakers" and "Supersnazz", in 1968 and 1969 respectively. Albums that were undoubtedly interesting but with a style still somewhat unripe and lacking in individuality. In 1970, the band shifted towards a rougher, more direct, and visceral rock 'n' roll and brought forth the beautiful "Flamingo", featuring one of the absolute masterpieces of '70s rock 'n' roll, the stratospheric "Headin' for the Texas Border". The following year, 1971, was the year of "Teenage Head", which, although not too well-known, can undoubtedly be counted among the pillars of rock. 

The album opens with the beautiful "High Flyin' Baby" that immediately sticks in your mind for its distorted riff and Roy Loney's debauched voice, as well as the catchy refrain. It is followed by the wistful and very intense Stones-esque ballad of "City Lights", then more good old rock 'n' roll with the lightning-fast "Have You Seen My Baby?"; then, with track 4, comes the masterpiece of the album: "Yesterday's Numbers", which remains to this day one of my rock manifestos. Raucous, rhythmic, with a final bravura: a final solo brazenly shouted by Loney. Unmissable. Side B remains nice without overdoing it, but I must note a gem, the slow ending of "Whiskey Woman", also borrowed from Jagger and company, but skillfully blended with their own style and sound.

Imagine, at that time it was even rumored that Mick Jagger, after hearing this album, claimed it was superior to their "Sticky Fingers". And honestly, even today I don't know which one I would choose if I had to take only one of the two to my desert island. The Stones and the Beatles were, after all (and the Groovies have never denied it), the two bands that inspired them the most throughout their career, yet they always managed to give their songs their own distinct flavor, made up of splendid sixties and seventies melodies combined with a far more powerful rhythm than that of their more famous predecessors. Even today, the Groovies’ bass/drum duo remains, in my opinion, one of the most powerful and precise pairs from the entire golden era of the seventies. Not to be missed.