Rest in peace,
Frankie Venom

by JOHNSON CUMMINS

On Wednesday, Oct. 15, just before press time of the last issue of the Mirror, I sadly learned that Canadian punk legend and one of my childhood idols, Frankie Venom of the punk band Teenage Head, had passed away after a fight with cancer. He was 52 years old.

The very first rock ’n’ roll show I ever saw—at the tender age of 13!—was Teenage Head at the Ontario Place Forum on June 2, 1980. The venue was packed way over capacity, the audience completely soused and Teenage Head were just the fucking raddest thing ever. Rock ’n’ roll frenzy soon gave way to rock ’n’ roll mayhem when the audience began rioting during the Head’s last tune, “Disgusteen,” and the band had to flee backstage for their lives. I’ve been hooked on rock ’n’ roll ever since.

The next time I saw Teenage Head was at a bingo hall called the Etobicoke Lions Club on December 17, 1980 (still have the ticket stub!), where I saw Frankie pull the ultimate rock ’n’ roll move of all time. While they were in the middle of playing “Let’s Shake,” a roadie at the side of the stage flicked a lit cigarette from 20 feet away. Venom caught it between two fingers and then coolly took a pull with complete James Dean nonchalance.

ONTARIO IN STEREO:
Frankie Venom (2nd from R) and
Teenage Head in the late ’70s

Sadly, this ink will be lost on most of you tried and true Montrealers, as outside of Ontario, most people haven’t heard of Teenage Head. Despite releasing the greatest Canadian rock ’n’ roll record ever made (okay, along with Slow’s Against the Glass), Teenage Head, in 1979, they never really got their due, with too many misfired shots at fame to count. Although it’s rarely reported this way, Toronto was always plugged directly into punk rock, completing a geographical triangle with New York and London. The first time the Ramones ever played out of New York was in Toronto—same thing for the New York Dolls and Cleveland’s Dead Boys. Toronto bands like the Demics (from neighbouring London, ON, actually), the nihilistic Viletones (Teenage Head’s rivals) and the Scenics also held their own with the headliners, but Teenage Head were always regarded as the best of the bunch.

Most of these T.O. bands could barely play when punk rock came a-calling, but Teenage Head had already caught on to the power pop of the Flamin’ Groovies (from whom they nicked their name) and the New York Dolls in 1975, so they were way ahead of the game. It wasn’t until the blitzkrieg of the Ramones’ debut record hit that the band would combine speed with Flamin’ Groovies’ mastery of songwriting and Johnny Thunders’ slash and bash riffs, and really get their signature sound. Releasing their first single, “Picture My Face,” at the height of punk rock, it seemed like they could do no wrong. Unfortunately, Canada was still taking baby steps with punk and their debut record didn’t arrive until 1979, coinciding with the scourge of skinny ties and synth-driven new wave. By that time, punk was all over.

If you want to really hear Frankie at his peak and dig one of the greatest Canadian rock ’n’ roll records of all time, check out their debut record, reissued by Sonic Unyon in 2005, and the re-recording of their hits with Marky Ramone behind the traps, released earlier this year, also on Sonic Unyon.

SOMEDAY YOU’LL REMEMBER ME AND PICTURE MY FACE…JONATHAN.CUMMINS@GMAIL.COM