"Action Woman" is a song by the American garage rock band the Litter, written by their record producer Warren Kendrick, and first released as the group's debut single on Scotty Records in January 1967 (see1967 in music). The song also appeared on the band's first albumDistortions. Although "Action Woman" never broke out on the national charts, it is now revered as a classic piece of the musical genre of garage rock. Accordingly, the composition has appeared on several compilation albums – most famously as the opening track on Pebbles, Volume 1, incorporating a skip in the recording – and has been the subject of cover versions.
The Litter formed in 1966 from the remains of two locally popular Minneapolis groups, the Victors and the Tabs.[1] Early into the group's existence, the Litter enjoyed tremendous popularity, particularly in Chicago where the band became regulars at the Electric Theatre as they performed alongside the Byrds and Jethro Tull, among others.[2] During this time, bass guitarist and keyboardist Jim Kane got the Litter in contact with record producer Warren Kendrick, who was a capable instrumentalist in his own right before an arm injury prevented him from performing. Seeing the group's potential, Kendrick signed the Litter to a recording contract to his self-owned record label, Scotty Records, to produce their debut single and subsequent album.[3]
"Action Woman", a Kendrick-penned composition about a man in search of a "woman who'll satisfy his soul", was chosen for the group's first release. Musically exhibiting heavy influence from the British Invasion bands the Yardbirds and the Who, "Action Woman" was marked by distortedguitar riffs and feedback provided by lead guitarist Bill Strandlof.[4] The fuzz-toned instrumentals evident in the song were regularly utilized in the Litter's later recordings, even prompting Kendrick to name their first album Distortions. In addition to Strandlof's motif, the composition was also highlighted by Denny Waite's authoritative and snarling lead vocals, coupled with a raw musical stance emulating from the band's relatively live-recording style.[5]
The song has been covered by multiple groups. The first release of the song was by the Electras, also on Warren Kendrick’s Scotty label. Because they also share Kendrick as their producer, many record collectors were led to wrongly believe the two groups contained some of the same members.[8]
Referencesedit
^. sundazed.com. Archived from the original on May 20, 2015. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
^"The Litter FACTS". thelitter-lightning.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
^Breznikar, Klemen (July 7, 2012). "The Litter, White Lightning & Lightning interview with Tom "Zippy" Caplan". It's Psychedelic Baby! Magazine. from the original on September 16, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
^Sheppard, Doug (1999). Distortions (CD booklet). Arf! Arf! Records.
^Shaw, Greg (1992). Pebbles, Volume 1 (CD booklet). AIP Records.
^Unterberger, Richie. "The Litter - Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
^Hann, Michael (June 2012). "Old Music: The Electras - "Action Woman"". The Guardian. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
January 01, 1970
action, woman, song, american, garage, rock, band, litter, written, their, record, producer, warren, kendrick, first, released, group, debut, single, scotty, records, january, 1967, 1967, music, song, also, appeared, band, first, album, distortions, although, . Action Woman is a song by the American garage rock band the Litter written by their record producer Warren Kendrick and first released as the group s debut single on Scotty Records in January 1967 see 1967 in music The song also appeared on the band s first album Distortions Although Action Woman never broke out on the national charts it is now revered as a classic piece of the musical genre of garage rock Accordingly the composition has appeared on several compilation albums most famously as the opening track on Pebbles Volume 1 incorporating a skip in the recording and has been the subject of cover versions Action Woman 2014 reissue picture sleeve Single by The Litterfrom the album DistortionsB side A Legal Matter ReleasedJanuary 1967Recorded1966 Dove Studios Minneapolis MinnesotaGenreGarage rockLength2 28LabelScottySongwriter s Warren KendrickProducer s Warren KendrickThe Litter singles chronology Action Woman 1967 Somebody Help Me 1967 Background editThe Litter formed in 1966 from the remains of two locally popular Minneapolis groups the Victors and the Tabs 1 Early into the group s existence the Litter enjoyed tremendous popularity particularly in Chicago where the band became regulars at the Electric Theatre as they performed alongside the Byrds and Jethro Tull among others 2 During this time bass guitarist and keyboardist Jim Kane got the Litter in contact with record producer Warren Kendrick who was a capable instrumentalist in his own right before an arm injury prevented him from performing Seeing the group s potential Kendrick signed the Litter to a recording contract to his self owned record label Scotty Records to produce their debut single and subsequent album 3 Action Woman a Kendrick penned composition about a man in search of a woman who ll satisfy his soul was chosen for the group s first release Musically exhibiting heavy influence from the British Invasion bands the Yardbirds and the Who Action Woman was marked by distorted guitar riffs and feedback provided by lead guitarist Bill Strandlof 4 The fuzz toned instrumentals evident in the song were regularly utilized in the Litter s later recordings even prompting Kendrick to name their first album Distortions In addition to Strandlof s motif the composition was also highlighted by Denny Waite s authoritative and snarling lead vocals coupled with a raw musical stance emulating from the band s relatively live recording style 5 In January 1967 Action Woman with a cover version of Pete Townshend s A Legal Matter as its B side was released and became a regional hit in Minneapolis The song received a broader audience when it was featured as the opening track to the highly regarded compilation album Pebbles Volume 1 in 1979 6 Music historian Richie Unterberger praised Action Woman saying it is an archetype of the tough 60s garage rock favored by fans of the Pebbles reissue series 7 Along with its inclusion on Pebbles the composition also appears on the 1998 reissue of Nuggets Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era 1965 1968 and Trash Box 6 The song has been covered by multiple groups The first release of the song was by the Electras also on Warren Kendrick s Scotty label Because they also share Kendrick as their producer many record collectors were led to wrongly believe the two groups contained some of the same members 8 References edit The Litter sundazed com Archived from the original on May 20 2015 Retrieved October 4 2015 The Litter FACTS thelitter lightning com Retrieved October 4 2015 Breznikar Klemen July 7 2012 The Litter White Lightning amp Lightning interview with Tom Zippy Caplan It s Psychedelic Baby Magazine Archived from the original on September 16 2016 Retrieved October 4 2015 Sheppard Doug 1999 Distortions CD booklet Arf Arf Records Shaw Greg 1992 Pebbles Volume 1 CD booklet AIP Records a b Unterberger Richie Action Woman Review AllMusic Retrieved October 4 2015 Unterberger Richie The Litter Biography AllMusic Retrieved October 4 2015 Hann Michael June 2012 Old Music The Electras Action Woman The Guardian Retrieved October 4 2015 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Action Woman amp oldid 1195060313, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
