Sept. 15, 1980 concert review: Iron City Houserockers at Stage One

 

I always thought these underappreciated guys from Pittsburgh deserved better.

Sept. 15, 1980 

Iron City's Thunder Draws Trickle of Fans

         Pittsburgh's Iron City Houserockers dropped in on their blue-collar cousins in Buffalo Sunday night, but less than 100 showed up at Harvey and Corky's Stage One in Clarence for a round of bar-mill boogie.

         Nevertheless, the Houserockers didn't skimp on their delivery. They blazed as hot as an open hearth with all the workingman's anguish of their highly acclaimed second album, "Have a Good Time (But Get Out Alive)."

         Like Bruce Springsteen, they want to beat the death trap while they're young, but they're beyond running. They stand their bitter ground, snatching liberation from the pain of love and wisdom from the daily grind of hard work and hard drinking.

         Some have compared them to Springsteen, but their six-man setup with keyboards and harmonica suggested J. Geils Band more. Geils with Graham Parker up front, in the person of singer-songwriter Joe Grushecky in sunglasses and black leather coat, bawling out the lyrics he wrote.

         Grushecky was a commanding figure, primed to browbeat the crowd into response, if need be. "Anybody alive out there?" he barked at one point early in the set. Had his vocals been more dominant in the mix, his command would have been complete.

         But it's hard to say if anything could have overcome the Houserockers' instrumental whammy. They segued from song to song like a well-oiled machine, ringing down the finales with the solid crunch of Marc Reisman's furious harmonica, Eddie Britt's stinging guitar and Gil Snyder's wild keyboard attacks.

         Snyder, in his sleazy gray sharkskin suit, proved to be an even more frenzied performer than Grushecky when he finally stepped forward to finish the two-song encore with an all-stops-out version of the Rolling Stones' "Brown Sugar," a souvenir of their bar-band beginnings.

         Opening were the Buffalo Blues Brothers, a septet of journeyman Queen City rockers dressed in sunglasses, hats and black jackets, a la John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.

         Though they lacked some of the manic glee of the real Blues Brothers, their copes of Blues Brothers R&B revival material were generally first-rate, from Billy Brite's gravelly vocals to the honking West Side horns. A particular standout was the guitar of former Spyro Gyra sideman Fast Freddie Rapillo.

* * * * *

IN THE PHOTO: The Iron City Houserockers in 1980. From left, Gil Snyder, Eddie Britt, Joe Grushecky, Art Nardini, Ned E. Rankin and Marc Reisman.

* * * * *

FOOTNOTE: Wikipedia tells us that Joe Grushecky was a high school special education teacher in Pittsburgh when he started the Iron City Houserockers in 1976. Their four albums were hailed as heartland classics but, sadly, they never managed to break through, even though they were signed to and supported by Cleveland International, the label that gave us Meat Loaf. 

        After they disbanded in 1984, Grushecky continued as a solo artist. He's co-written several songs with Bruce Springsteen and has appeared on stage with him. Bruce even produced his 1995 album, "American Babylon." He's still touring and recording.

        Setlist.fm misses a lot of the 1980 Houserockers gigs entirely and the only one with a song list was the Dr. Pepper Summer Music Festival at Wollman Skating Rink in New York City on July 11. Seems rather incomplete:

Blondie

Let Me In

Around and Around

Turn It Up

Pumping Iron

Hypnotized

Don't Let Them Push You Around

Have a Good Time (But Get Out Alive)

        Billy Brite, as his fans know, is actually Billy McEwen, one of Buffalo's most durable bluesmen. He performed with Posse and the Billy Brite Band in the area's leading clubs throughout the 1970s. The Buffalo Blues Brothers toured the Northeast and recorded a live album. He was a founding member of the Soul Invaders in 1986 and continues to perform regularly. He was inducted into the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame twice, by himself in 1989 and with the Soul Invaders in 2006. Freddy Rapillo, also a Buffalo Music Hall of Famer, died in 2021. 

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