Co-founders Joyce 'Baby Jean' Kennedy and Glenn 'Doc' Murdock, along with producer Tom Werman, discuss the defining album of a multi-racial hard rock institution.
I saw Mother's Finest open for The Who in 1976, at the 17k-seat Seattle Coliseum. I remember them kicking ass and the crowd being pretty much indifferent. . .
Great post Michael, it's so interesting to learn about the band's history (I had no idea they've gone on for so long) and Tom Werman's recollections in particular. No question racism and misogyny kept them from going as far as they should have - a shame. Nice to be reminded of their music.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS. It is the best, most comprehensive overview of Mother's Finest I have ever read. And I'm SO GLAD to know they are so appreciated overseas.
I grew up in 70s ATL, listened every day to 96 Rock and/or WQXI. The first rock show I ever attended alone was Champagne Jam '79 at Grant Field in downtown ATL. I was 14. My mom dropped me off in the early morning, picked me up around 11 pm. The lineup was a mix of regional acts - a band called Whiteface (!!), the Dixie Dregs, Mother's Finest, and of course the Atlanta Rhythm Section - and out-of-towners The Cars and Aerosmith. MF went on in the blazing hot mid-afternoon - after Whiteface, if memory serves, making them Act No. 2. They TORE SHIT UP. I'd never seen anything like that. I'd heard them on the radio, and assumed, like a lot of ATL folks, that they were nationally huge. I was confused as to why they got the less-than-prime slot at Champagne Jam. Especially when The Cars, ARS, and especially a very stoned Aerosmith paled in comparison. (Aerosmith, in fact, was awful.) Nevertheless, they gave it their all, burned it down, and I was a fan for life. I saw them a couple times after that, once, I think, at the Agora Ballroom, and they absolutely killed. Wyzard was very influential on my funky bass playing. (I did not know he wrote Baby Love.)
Folks have lists of "coulda/shoulda been huge" bands: Big Star, Jellyfish, The Bus Boys, Fishbone, The Replacements, The Honeydogs, Specehog, et al. But for me, Mother's Finest will always be the most unjust, the biggest head-scratcher, the best reason to quote Walter Brennan: "The world was shaved by a blind barber."
What a fantastic memory/experience! And Aerosmith sucking in '79 (that would've been the perfect parenthetical title for 'Live: Bootleg', in fact) is the least surprising thing I've read in a while. Otherwise, sounds like a kick-ass lineup ('Whiteface' is cracking me up).
MF played up here in NC a lot back then and over the years since. I suppose I was remiss in not mentioning how many big acts they opened for over the years, but I had to stop somewhere, I suppose. (A band from NC the same vintage as MF, Nantucket - also on Epic interestingly - has a frustrating history as well. Opening for AC/DC on the Back in Black tour, KISS on the Destroyer tour, Meat Loaf on the Bat out of Hell tour...but still couldn't get over the hump...but they're still together, too!)
Thanks for the kind words - I've been a fan for most of my life, too. This was a just a labor of love in an attempt to spread the Gospel about the band from Funk-Rock, GA.
FYI: MF is playing the Buckhead Theatre in ATL on November 2nd if you get a wild hair!
Fantastic article!
Great to hear more 'bout them, Mother's Finest is one helluva band that never got the recognition they so rightfully deserved. Such a shame...
I saw Mother's Finest open for The Who in 1976, at the 17k-seat Seattle Coliseum. I remember them kicking ass and the crowd being pretty much indifferent. . .
Great post Michael, it's so interesting to learn about the band's history (I had no idea they've gone on for so long) and Tom Werman's recollections in particular. No question racism and misogyny kept them from going as far as they should have - a shame. Nice to be reminded of their music.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS. It is the best, most comprehensive overview of Mother's Finest I have ever read. And I'm SO GLAD to know they are so appreciated overseas.
I grew up in 70s ATL, listened every day to 96 Rock and/or WQXI. The first rock show I ever attended alone was Champagne Jam '79 at Grant Field in downtown ATL. I was 14. My mom dropped me off in the early morning, picked me up around 11 pm. The lineup was a mix of regional acts - a band called Whiteface (!!), the Dixie Dregs, Mother's Finest, and of course the Atlanta Rhythm Section - and out-of-towners The Cars and Aerosmith. MF went on in the blazing hot mid-afternoon - after Whiteface, if memory serves, making them Act No. 2. They TORE SHIT UP. I'd never seen anything like that. I'd heard them on the radio, and assumed, like a lot of ATL folks, that they were nationally huge. I was confused as to why they got the less-than-prime slot at Champagne Jam. Especially when The Cars, ARS, and especially a very stoned Aerosmith paled in comparison. (Aerosmith, in fact, was awful.) Nevertheless, they gave it their all, burned it down, and I was a fan for life. I saw them a couple times after that, once, I think, at the Agora Ballroom, and they absolutely killed. Wyzard was very influential on my funky bass playing. (I did not know he wrote Baby Love.)
Folks have lists of "coulda/shoulda been huge" bands: Big Star, Jellyfish, The Bus Boys, Fishbone, The Replacements, The Honeydogs, Specehog, et al. But for me, Mother's Finest will always be the most unjust, the biggest head-scratcher, the best reason to quote Walter Brennan: "The world was shaved by a blind barber."
What a fantastic memory/experience! And Aerosmith sucking in '79 (that would've been the perfect parenthetical title for 'Live: Bootleg', in fact) is the least surprising thing I've read in a while. Otherwise, sounds like a kick-ass lineup ('Whiteface' is cracking me up).
MF played up here in NC a lot back then and over the years since. I suppose I was remiss in not mentioning how many big acts they opened for over the years, but I had to stop somewhere, I suppose. (A band from NC the same vintage as MF, Nantucket - also on Epic interestingly - has a frustrating history as well. Opening for AC/DC on the Back in Black tour, KISS on the Destroyer tour, Meat Loaf on the Bat out of Hell tour...but still couldn't get over the hump...but they're still together, too!)
Thanks for the kind words - I've been a fan for most of my life, too. This was a just a labor of love in an attempt to spread the Gospel about the band from Funk-Rock, GA.
FYI: MF is playing the Buckhead Theatre in ATL on November 2nd if you get a wild hair!