PiTunes-Big Boys

Austin, Texas in the early 80s was an incredible place for music. All of the various scenes were exploding with ideas that had never been heard before. The one band that almost everyone liked was the Big Boys. The Big Boys were an oddity for a punk band at the time. They were inclusive. They wanted you to be a part of the show. Big Boys shows would end up with the crowd up on the stage. Every show ended with their singer Biscuit saying "Y'all go out and start your own band".

bigboys Originally uploaded by pi22seven.

When the Big Boys played, they killed. There was no holding back for them. And nobody could touch them. Touring bands learned about having the Big Boys open for them.

"The concert was at the Ritz, the shell of a theater in the middle of the nightlife strip of Austin. The Dicks opened up and I immediately realized that we were in trouble. Here on stage was this enormous man with his head completely shaved except for a baby curl sticking out from the front of his head, with him were three guys who looked like they had just escaped from some chain gang, a different league altogether. I knew that we would have a difficult time getting up there after them, but nothing compared to the way I felt when the next band went on stage... the almighty Big Boys. I felt humiliated, how could we play after this? The Big Boys pulled out the stops. More enormous men, decorated in jump suits, food props, great songs, a horn section, 200 friends on stage singing and dancing... we were fucked. We made it through our set, maybe it was a good one, I can't recall. I only remember the other bands. The next year we came back to Austin and did it right ­ we opened for the Big Boys. The way it should be."
--Ian MacKaye / Minor Threat

The iTunes link is to the Big Boys anthology "Wreck Collection" with 34 tracks for only $9.99.