Anyone else here Kix (Steve Whiteman) fans?

[CCdrums]

Back in the 80's we had the pleasure of doing a show with Kix at Sir Skate. There were three bands, Nitro, then us (The Front), then Kix to headline. I had never seen Kix before, but I heard "Bodytalk" on the radio and really liked it. We were still riding the wave of our hit recording "Girl like you", so we thought we'd get to the show, hold our own and kick some butt.

Yeah...right. Nitro was pretty good, I thought we came out and had the crowd happening and turned it up a notch...then Kix came out and just COMPLETELY blew us away. Steve Whiteman was incredible and the entire show was just as professional and as cool as could be. They had everything down pat... the look, the sound...huge kick drum sound... and they just tore Sir Skate up. I went to see them in Harrisburg at the Metron a few months later for the first night of their "Midnight Dynamite" album tour with the hit song "Cold Shower". Again, they completely blew me away and had the crowd whipped into a frenzy.

On a personal note, Steve Whiteman was my favorite singer from that era and they are one of my all time favorite bands. I emailed him recently and we had a nice chat about the Sir Skate show and some other memories from back in the day. Anyway, I saw that "Songsmith" sited the KIX self titled album as an influence and I just wondered if there were any more Kix fans around. Anyone?

[DrumAndDestroy]

damn they had shows at sir skate?

[CCdrums]

damn they had shows at sir skate?

Yeah, do you remember that place? They had alot of shows there actually. We played there a couple times a year for different benefits and such. It was a cool place to hang for younger people but alas, like everything else cool for the younger crowd, it vanished.

[BDR]

Still love Kix.

r:>)

[313]

Back in the 80's we had the pleasure of doing a show with Kix at Sir Skate. There were three bands, Nitro, then us (The Front), then Kix to headline. I had never seen Kix before, but I heard "Bodytalk" on the radio and really liked it. We were still riding the wave of our hit recording "Girl like you", so we thought we'd get to the show, hold our own and kick some butt.

Yeah...right. Nitro was pretty good, I thought we came out and had the crowd happening and turned it up a notch...then Kix came out and just COMPLETELY blew us away. Steve Whiteman was incredible and the entire show was just as professional and as cool as could be. They had everything down pat... the look, the sound...huge kick drum sound... and they just tore Sir Skate up. I went to see them in Harrisburg at the Metron a few months later for the first night of their "Midnight Dynamite" album tour with the hit song "Cold Shower". Again, they completely blew me away and had the crowd whipped into a frenzy.

On a personal note, Steve Whiteman was my favorite singer from that era and they are one of my all time favorite bands. I emailed him recently and we had a nice chat about the Sir Skate show and some other memories from back in the day. Anyway, I saw that "Songsmith" sited the KIX self titled album as an influence and I just wondered if there were any more Kix fans around. Anyone?

I'm a Kix fan, and I was at the Sir Skate show that you referenced. I had seen them many times before that show though, so I was not surprised as you were! Their shows at the Old Mill and Shiley Acres near Hagerstown MD were legendary.

[EyesOfAnguishbassist]

I heard they used to play in Lewistown. Is this true?

[313]

I heard they used to play in Lewistown. Is this true?

Funny Money (basically Kix without Donnie Purnell and Brian Forsythe) played Lewistown just last year. Back in the 80s, they regularly played in both Harrisburg and Sunbury as well as their home turf in the Hagerstown area, so I don't doubt that they have played Lewistown back then too. I think they played in Altoona at least a few times as Kix and 2 or 3 times as Funny Money.

[313]

...then Kix came out and just COMPLETELY blew us away.

I think you're being too hard on yourself (the Front) there! All 3 bands (Nitro, the Front, & Kix), though much different in style, were great at that show.

[nightcrawler_steve]

The Kix.

Man, so many great songs from that band. Im thinkin mostly of the early stuff before they really hit with their MTV ballad, "Dont Close Your Eyes". "Kix Are For Kids", definitely "Body Talk", "Blow My Fuse", "The Kid". My favourite, Dont tell me, no , no no, tell me "Yeah, yeah, yeah". Their first album was my favourite. They were heavily influenced by ACDC but had their own sound. I think Donny Purnell was the main songwriter for them.

Man this is bringing back serious memories...its a wonder I even remember that "time" - ha ha. One of my exes use to date Steve, another sister lived with Brain Forsyth??, and yet another sister lived with their soundman. Joe Procopio....that guy was an awesome soundman! Ummmmm, those sisters were all HOTT HOTT HOTT One of my old bands, NV, played with them at Slammers once forever ago. I remember days at places like The Mountain View and The Rabbits Foot in Maryland where they and Wrathchild (Souls At Zero)started it all out. Those places are legendary for 80s metal bands. I was maybe 16-17 sneakin into those places. Steve is a great frontman! Man, effin Shannon Larkin was GOD back then....I couldnt take my eyes off of that guy.

I know Jimmy more than I know any of the others. Jimmy is a great guy and likes really BIG DRUMS. I got to play his Maryland Drums at a show we all played together for his brother, and close friend of mine, who was killed in a car accident.

Wow, Clint, thanks for that. Is anyone else doing the time warp today or remember places like Mountain View, Rabbits Foot, The Paragon (MD),Slammers (WVA), Swizzles , Peppermint Beach Club (VA Beach), The Bayou (DC), Hammerjacks (Baltimore)??????? Theres more, I just cant remember. I know wwe played all those places back in the day except for Mountain View.

Man those were the wild days of my youth.

[nightcrawler_steve]

I'm a Kix fan, and I was at the Sir Skate show that you referenced. I had seen them many times before that show though, so I was not surprised as you were! Their shows at the Old Mill and Shiley Acres near Hagerstown MD were legendary.

OMG.....Metron, yep! Played there and Shileys with Wrathchild. The Old Mill.....man oh man, Im trippin today. I think that palce fell into the stream before I was old enough to get in there What was that place eveyone use to go to in WVA just over the Maryland line??????? Its not Slammers.

Youre right though.....legendary is a great way to describe some of those places and shows.

Man I gotta dig up some pics.

[songsmith]

I'm a Kix fan, and I was at the Sir Skate show that you referenced. I had seen them many times before that show though, so I was not surprised as you were! Their shows at the Old Mill and Shiley Acres near Hagerstown MD were legendary.

Oh, yeah. Huge events... you never saw a club so packed, and Shiley Acres used to routinely put 10,000 kids in what was basically a giant kegger with bands. The legal drinking age in MD and WV was still 18 then, and even after it changed, they didn't prosecute like they do now. I've seen Kix in both places, and it really helped mold my "frontman" thing. I hadn't yet seen a PA bar band, so it set the bar pretty high for professionalism, and showmanship. Steve's one of the best frontmen in any genre of music. I knew the rest of the band pretty well, and saw them dozens of times, but Steve and I never really got on. That's probably my fault, I was pretty green around bands. Anyway, he's a force of nature onstage, and a huge influence.
I was really lucky to hang out with some of the people I met around that time. I used to go see Souls At Zero when they were Ratzalad, which was even before Wrathchild. Shannon Larkin was freaking 12 years old! In a rundown theater in McConnellsburg... the place looked like 1939. From them, and radio, I heard Kix, and got to experience them getting bigger and bigger.
Oh, I was at that Sir Skate show, too. I remember I had just had knee surgery a little while before, and while standing in line, the knee tricked out and I landed in an awkward heap on the floor. Everybody was like, "Whoa, he's wasted!," and I NEVER so much as drank a beer before a show like that... I was there to learn as much as listen. I remember thinking The Front sounded like Saga a lot to me. Nitro was awesome, I remember John Hazel played his Carvin LP-copy with the little round mirrors all over it, and he was jumping around doing direct EVH-ripoff licks and EVH was so new and influential at the time that all the guitar players in the room were jealous. John's a helluva guitarist... I eventually recorded with that band as the singer, and it was some of the best experiences of my career. I remember Steve Whiteman was off-the-hook, even for him. It was an amazing show, and I had made the mistake of standing in front of what remains to be the loudest PA system I have ever heard. It was crushing for about 4 hours, and I was almost completely deaf when I got home. My dad asked me a question from his bedroom, and when I ignored him, he got WAY pissed-off, and got up to give me a whoopin'. I didn't even hear him come into the room. I turned when I saw something from the corner of my eye, and it was my old man, attempting to grab me and shake the living sh*t out of me because at this point, he later said, he thought I was on drugs. It scared the living hell out of me, but we ironed it out when I still couldn't hear a word he said, and explained myself, apparently at the top of my lungs. My family loves that story, so that show really takes me back there.
BTW, I know for sure Kix played Lewistown several times. At another old movie theater, by the diamond; at the Rec Park in Reedsville; at the skating rink near Mifflintown; and possibly the Roller Roost, though I couldn't confirm that one.-------->JMS

[xero380]

kix is def. an awesome band...wasn't the one guitar player from McConnellsburg? I'm pretty sure and then he's gone on to do mastering and recording for some various ACDC albums and most previously a few Linkin Park recordings. Brad Divens I think is his name..

[nightcrawler_steve]

[Oh, yeah. Huge events... you never saw a club so packed, and Shiley Acres used to routinely put 10,000 kids in what was basically a giant kegger with bands.

Ha ha ha! Yessir! More like snow storms in the heat of summer. Those were the days and thats what a lot of us did. Greg Shiley made a shit ton of $$$ from those shows.

Its been fun thinking back to those crazy times. Does anyone remember a chick named Lana Spence from Hagerstown?

[nightcrawler_steve]

kix is def. an awesome band...wasn't the one guitar player from McConnellsburg? I'm pretty sure and then he's gone on to do mastering and recording for some various ACDC albums and most previously a few Linkin Park recordings. Brad Divens I think is his name..

Brad was in Wrathchild.

[CCdrums]

I remember alot of those places and bands. There were some seriously talented bands from our region back then. I feel really bad that Kix was just starting to crack when the whole grunge thing started to happen and just wiped out the big hair 80's scene. I loved alot of Kix songs like "She dropped me the bomb", "The itch", "Girl money" "Same Jane"."Loco-emotion"...so many great songs. Donnie Purnell was the writing force behind that band. I think he and the rest of the band had somewhat of a falling out. Not sure though...For some great eighties rock vocals, check out "She dropped me the bomb" by Kix off of the blow my fuse album. You'll hear a little Bon Scott, some Geddy Lee, some Steven Tyler all wrapped up into one amazing voice from frontman Steve Whiteman. Great, great frontman and vocalist.

[CCdrums]

kix is def. an awesome band...wasn't the one guitar player from McConnellsburg? I'm pretty sure and then he's gone on to do mastering and recording for some various ACDC albums and most previously a few Linkin Park recordings. Brad Divens I think is his name..

Brad was in Wrathchild.

I think Brad Divens was one of the original guitarists in Kix, before Brian Forsythe, and played on the first album. Am I right?

[Jim Price]

I remember that Sir Skate show as well; it was one of the first concerts I ever saw. Summer of '83. I had just graduated from Penn State, and a couple of my frat brothers made the roadtrip to Altoona to check it out. We were big Nitro fans at that point, and I knew of the Front at that time from hearing "Girl Like You" and "Battleground for the Brave" on WFBG's "All Night Album Rock." (I wasn't really heavily into the local music thing yet at this point.) I remember Nitro doing a good job, and especially remember The Front's version of "Battleground" that night, with Bob Gates wearing the hard hat and flashing the spotlight. (I think I even have a recording of this performance of "Battleground," that Rick Claar gave me as part of a VHS tape of old Front footage; I've played it on the "Backyard Rocker" a time or two. Harold's keyboard solo at the beginning kicked total ass, and John lit it up on guitar towards the end.) And then Kix. I already knew every song on that first album by heart, and then to witness Steve Whiteman and company do it live, what a party! What I remember most about their set was that I turned my head to talk to one of my accomplices, and when I turned back around, there was Steve, standing right next to me and singing to my face!

Steve was an entertainer back then, and he's still doing it now in Funny Money. When I saw Funny Money with Naked Beggars at Mojo's in Clearfield last November, Steve still had the voice, personality, charisma and ENERGY - this guy hasn't lost a step since 1983!

[EyesOfAnguishbassist]

kix is def. an awesome band...wasn't the one guitar player from McConnellsburg? I'm pretty sure and then he's gone on to do mastering and recording for some various ACDC albums and most previously a few Linkin Park recordings. Brad Divens I think is his name..

Yeah I heard someone in Kix was from Mcconnellsburg too, thats pretty crazy if he was.

[nightcrawler_steve]

kix is def. an awesome band...wasn't the one guitar player from McConnellsburg? I'm pretty sure and then he's gone on to do mastering and recording for some various ACDC albums and most previously a few Linkin Park recordings. Brad Divens I think is his name..

Brad was in Wrathchild.

I think Brad Divens was one of the original guitarists in Kix, before Brian Forsythe, and played on the first album. Am I right?

I think you are right Clint. I wonder if it was Kix or the earlier The Shoes or Generators.

Girl Money: "Long legged Rosie from Baltimore.....took me father than Ive been before" Classic! Those Baltimore girls....mmm, mmm

I remember after a show we played at Hammerjacks and Im sittin at the bar talkin it up with this chick. She is in a fishnet catsuit. She spins around on the bar stool spreads her legs and asks me if I want to go outside. She had nothin on under that outfit! I think I was maybe 21 and was completely floored. So we........

That was a Baltimore chick

[songsmith]

Brad Divens played on the Cool Kids record, and a bunch of high-profile shows, while Ronnie Youngkins was briefly out. I hear he's Linkin Park's house sound guy, now, and Shannon drums for Godsmack, last I heard. Ask 313, he knows all this stuff.

Oh, and I think the club in Martinsburg WV, you're thinking about Steve, was The Old Mill. Awesome club with a lot of local talent, both on and off stage. Scene of the worst ass-whoopin' I ever saw anyone take, you didn't mess with people there. ------->JMS

[nightcrawler_steve]

Brad Divens played on the Cool Kids record, and a bunch of high-profile shows, while Ronnie Youngkins was briefly out. I hear he's Linkin Park's house sound guy, now, and Shannon drums for Godsmack, last I heard. Ask 313, he knows all this stuff.

Oh, and I think the club in Martinsburg WV, you're thinking about Steve, was The Old Mill. Awesome club with a lot of local talent, both on and off stage. Scene of the worst ass-whoopin' I ever saw anyone take, you didn't mess with people there. ------->JMS

Nope, Johnny, not the Old Mill. Its on the tip of my tongue.

You aint a kiddin bout some a dem bad ass rednecks in West Virgina! I saw a guy get his mouth opened and placed on the edge of a concrete step. A guy then kicked him in the back of his head. I actually screamed!!! He turned around and told me and my friend if we didnt leave right then, we would be next. Ive never seen anything in my life like that and I hope I never do again. I honestly, dont even know if the guy lived....he couldnt of had any teeth left after that. I might of been all of 17 or so then.

Shannon is still with Godsmack. Sully and some of the roadcrew stopped down at the Phyrst while we were playing last year. I told him I was an old friend of Shannons, so he hooked us up with back stage passes to the next nights show at BJC. It was like my high school reunion backstage.....it was great! Sadly, I didnt get to see Shannon play though because we had a show later that night.

[songsmith]

Okay, now you have me curious about that club... I'm thinking there was one other place we went to really early on... I never saw Kix there, but a band called Cracked Actor, I think. South of Hagerstown, or maybe Frederick. We roadtripped a lot because of the drinking age, and booze was way cheaper. Likely the reason I cannot remember this. --->JMS

[nightcrawler_steve]

Okay, now you have me curious about that club... I'm thinking there was one other place we went to really early on... I never saw Kix there, but a band called Cracked Actor, I think. South of Hagerstown, or maybe Frederick. We roadtripped a lot because of the drinking age, and booze was way cheaper. Likely the reason I cannot remember this. --->JMS

Yup, Cracked Actor use to play there a lot, but I didnt reference them because I didnt think anyone would remember. Duh. It was the place everyone went to when the bars would close because WVA was open later at that time and the drinking age I guess. I was too young to catch the lower drinking age thing. South of Hagerstown and I think one of the 2nd or 3rd WVA exits off of I-81. All those areas are my old stomping grounds. I only moved up hear in the late 90 for college.

Cracked Actor and my band at the time use to play a lot of the same clubs. I also did some shows with Jeff and Dave from CA at Seacrets in Ocean City. Jeff actually hooked me up with an awesome gig in St. Croix. I think thats pretty much all he does last I heard....travel back and forth between the big ski resorts, Florida and the Islands doing acoustic shows. I havent seen him in years.

Anyone remember James Turner Productions and Cellar Door?

[ChaosRisingRice]

Saw Steve whiteman and the bass player from kix i think his name is Mark Schenker in the band funny money. They are very entertaining. If you haven't heard them give them a shot. Not bad tunes and they are def really good live.

[witchhunt]

Kix are O.K. except you have to put your own sugar on. Cinnamon Toast Crunch is the way to go.