Legionaire’s Disease - Catch The Disease 10”

Legionaire's Disease - Catch The Disease 10"

Label: Lunar Lab; Year: 1995; Format: 10" Vinyl 

The sleeve notes on the back of this brilliant piece of vinyl and Texas punk rock history start of like this: Q: What do you get when you cross a pimp, a whore, a Ferris wheel operator, and a dog trainer? A: One of Houston's most infamous early punk bands - Legionaire's Disease. Whereas in today's world I would assume bands are often started through some ideas on some social media platform back in the late '70s Legionaire's Disease were pretty much an idea that originated while singer Jerry and guitarist Mike met in a jail cell and the conversation turned to music. But, not only did the two of them meet there but their original drummer Rick was also shoved into the cell for operating a Ferris wheel while being drunk and thinking it would be fun to keep it spinning for beyond 20 minutes. The Legionaire's live shows were said to have attracted more attention than any of their contemporaries such as the Hates or Really Red and one could always count on seeing outrageous outfits, some nudity, a bit of destruction, and almost always some boys in blue. It was actually a fan of the band that helped get the band into the studio resulting in the 1979 single "Rather See You Dead" b/w "Downtown". The eight tracks on this 10" are all from said studio session and the world is a better place and should be forever thankful to Lunar Lab for having released the material back in 1995. I will keep it simple and promise you that if you like your punk raw, primitive and with a good dose of humor and goofiness you will simply love this record. All eight songs are pure pogo hits and as stated in the sleeve notes "there's some obvious aping of the Sex Pistols and other well known punk bands of the era, but the Disease couldn't help but infuse the tunes with their sick sense of style. Hey Punk, you want some jailhouse rock? Drop the needle and turn it up!" Killer release.