Sunday, May 16, 2010

Mark Gane and Martha Johnson from Martha and the Muffins

Henry Martinuk, Mark Gane and Martha Johnson

Henry Martinuk, Mark Gane and Martha Johnson


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MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Suburban Dream (Muffin Music)

ROXY MUSIC - Virginia Plain
MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Daytripper (Live)

THE DISHES - Summer Reaction (Regular)
THE CADS - Crabwalk (Live)

MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Primal Weekend (Live)
MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Paint by Number Heart (Live)

MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Love Began with Eve (Muffin Music)
MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Mess (Muffin Music)

MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - One Day in Paris (Virgin)
MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Swimming (Virgin)

THE CURSE - Shoeshine Boy
THE ANEMICS - Sick Boy (Live)

MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS - Jets Seem Slower in London Skies (Virgin)

Interview: Martha and the Muffins

Photo by Henry Martinuk, Edge - 1979

Martha Johnson and Mark Gane from Martha and the Muffins will join Henry Martinuk in conversation about the band’s early years. Henry is a filmmaker and a long time archivist of the Toronto punk scene, which includes going to high school with the drummer of M+M. Henry will discuss the early years of the band from the early days as a band from Richmond Hill to their OCA period. We hope to get into the nitty gritty of Oh Those Pants and Martha and the Muffins. Henry will be talking about shows at OCA, the Bev, the Horseshoe, and the Edge. And there should be some music from the era which may include the first Martha and the Muffins single to the Cads to the Government. Tune in from 10:00pm til midnight this Sunday on CIUT 89.5FM.

Zine - Smash It Up, December 1980

 

Smash It Up was a Toronto punk fanzine. This issue came out in December 1980. This issues starts out with a report about local bands by Randy Swagger, which included information on the Points, the Sharks, the Government, the Demics, Martha and the Muffins, the Civilians, Teenage Head, Blank Generation, the Spoons, the B-Girls, the Secrets, True Confessions, the Viletones, Tyranna, and the Bop Cats.

The first interview is with the Slits where they wind up talking about Sid Vicious death, which had just happened.

There is an interview with Martha Johnson at a Hamilton show, where she sheds some light on how crappy it is to be signed to major label. I wish she had more space to elaborate.

There is an article on Ultravox which was done around a show they played in Toronto supporting "Vienna". I didn't realize that Midge Ure was in the Rich Kids and was offered the guitarist spot for the Pistols when Steve Jones left. This all seems weird talking about him as a guitarist in light of Ultravox being a synth band.

There is a review of a Joan Jett and the Blackhearts show with lots of photos.

There is an amazingly designed piece on a Siouxsie and the Banshees show on November 18th, 1980 at the Music Hall.

There is part one of an interview with Bangkok who were a new band that featured Mickey Skin of the Curse on vocals.

There is a back page ad for Edge Records which I am guessing had something to do with the Garys and were reported to have been releasing the Sharks record.

 

Thinks appears thanks to the archive of Dhaibid James, host of Moondog Ballroom, also on CIUT 89.5FM.

 



Martha and the Muffins "Trance and Dance" LP

This is Martha and the Muffins second album released in October 1980. Although the album didn;t produce any hit singles like "Echo Beach" the songs on here are:

1. Suburban Dream
2. Luna Park
3. Was Ezo
4. Teddy the Dink
5. Symptomatic Love
6. Primal Weekend
7. Halfway Through The Week
8. Am I On?
9. Motorbikin’
10. About Insomnia
11. Be Blasé
12. Trance and Dance

Martha and the Muffins "Echo Beach" ep

This was the single for "Echo Beach". Martha and the Muffins recorded the song in 1979 and it came out in 1980 as a single to the "Metro Music" LP. DinDisc released the record. Dindisc was an indie label in the UK that was an arm of Virgin Records and was responsible for bands like the Buzzcocks, Human League and Ultravox. The beach referred to in the song is Sunnyside Beach and the song was inspired by Ultravox's "Hiroshima, Mon Amour".

The B-Side was "Teddy the Dink". This song was later released on the "Trance and Dance" which was the second

record that would come out also in 1980. The song was a huge hit and was re-released as a 30 year anniversary single with a different B-Side.

Martha and the Muffins "Metro Music" LP

This was Martha and the Muffins first full length. This was the first release by DinDisc. The band used a map of their hometown as the cover and it is of the water line, which made it perfect for a song like "Echo Beach", which was the first single from the record. There is a lot of great background found on M+M's site under the story section. "Paint by Number Heart" became the second single.

1. Echo Beach
2. Paint By Number Heart
3. Saigon
4. Indecision
5. Terminal Twilight
6. Hide And Seek

7. Sinking Land
8. Revenge (Against The World)
9. Cheesies And Gum

Flyer - Music Hall shows

I think these were the Gary's doing shows under the Edge and these shows were simulcast on Q107. Loads of people listened and recorded them. Iggy Pop, the Police, the B52's, Tom Waits.

Flyer - Tuesday September 11 - Sunday September 23, 1979

Martha and the Muffins "Insect Love" ep

This was the first single by Martha and the Muffins. The recording was done at Integrated Sound Studios in Agincourt in June 1978. The band recorded four or five songs. Keith Elshaw of CFNY went back to that studio in January 1979 and remixed these two songs which would become a double A Side release. The band put the single out by themselves on Muffin Music Records and sold the single at shows. The other songs were never released.  "Suburban Dream" was the B-Side but wound up having more staying power in the end. The back of the single is a photo of the band's old practise space at 4 St. Patrick Street, which was the original stable for the Rex Hotel. There is some other great material about this single on Canuckistan Music about this single. The single doesn't make it into official texts about the band but there is good information about the band history and the other releases on the official M+M site.

Flyer - Tuesday June 12 - Tuesday July 31st, 1979

Flyer - Friday April 20 - Saturday April 21, 1979

From the archives of Henry Martinuk.

Flyer - Thursday March 8 - Saturday March 10, 1979

Zine - The Pig Paper #10b

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This issue starts out wuith a piece on the Ugly Ducklings playing for the first time in a decade. There is a great piece on the Clash coming to town in support of "Give 'em Enough Rope" and self-promoting as how at the Rex-Danforth theatre. There is a gossip section which talks a lot about probelms with the "Last Pogo" LP getting released. There is gossip about the Poles being signed to John Cale's label, the Forgotten Rebels needing a drummer, and releases by Teenage Head, the Diodes and Martha and the Muffins. There was also a Pig Guide for shows back in March 1979. Lots of great bands played here including Ultravox, the Police and 999.

Flyer - Friday October 27, 1978

This flyer was sent to us from Henry Martinuk.

Flyer - Thursday October 19 - Saturday October 21, 1978

Thanks to Henry Martinuk for sending this in.

Flyer - Thursday August 31 - Saturday September 2, 1978

Thanks to Henry Martinuk for sending us this.

Flyer - Thursday July 13 - Saturday July 22, 1978

Thanks to Henry Martinuk for sending this in.

Flyer - Thursday May 18 - Saturday May 20, 1978

Three nights at the Colonial Underground. The last night is with Martha and the Muffins and this is the first show that Martha and the Muffins play.