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Washington DC's first wave punk band! Originally released in 1981, this is their 5th single. This single finds their band in their full stride and possibly their most aggressive track on the A-side. Mastered off of a virgin vinyl copy. You've either owned this single for years, or about to be exposed to something really fun! This is one of my favorite tracks to come from the Washington area, and I couldn't be more thrilled to have the chance to re-release it!
Our take: The Slickee Boys were a band from Washington, DC that started in the mid-70s and continued until the late 80s. They first came on my radar around twenty-five years ago when I was reading everything I could get my hands on about the early 80s DC hardcore scene. That well-documented scene always gave the Slickee Boys props, noting that they were an early punky band on the scene and that guitarist Kim Kane was interested in and supportive of the younger hardcore bands. Growing up in Virginia, I’d see Slickee Boys records in the used bins from time to time and I’d always pick them up, but they never grabbed me when I was young and spinning out on hormones. They may have been an important predecessor of the original harDCore scene, but the Slickee Boys always struck me as a 60s revival band that was allied with the punk scene more than a proper punk band themselves. That said, I plucked their 1983 album Cybernetic Dreams of Pi out of Sorry State’s used bin a few months ago and it’s gotten many spins, my ear being a little more open than it was when I first encountered the Slickee Boys. I never came across the original pressing of their 1981 single Here to Stay, reissued here by Vinyl Conflict Records, and if I had, it might have been the record to push me into full-blown fandom. The a-side is a total punk scorcher, with the energy, drive, and hooks of classic UK punk. While it’s still built on a 60s garage foundation of lead guitar and vocal hooks, the Slickee Boys play the song with the speed and power of the Buzzcocks, and the track stands up next to any 77-era UK a-side you can throw at it. The b-side is similarly upbeat and built around an excellent lead guitar hook, making this single an essential 2-sider. Here to Stay may be an anomaly in the Slickee Boys’ catalog, but anyone with a taste for poppy ’77 punk should be glad to add these two bangers to their collection.
Our take: The Slickee Boys were a band from Washington, DC that started in the mid-70s and continued until the late 80s. They first came on my radar around twenty-five years ago when I was reading everything I could get my hands on about the early 80s DC hardcore scene. That well-documented scene always gave the Slickee Boys props, noting that they were an early punky band on the scene and that guitarist Kim Kane was interested in and supportive of the younger hardcore bands. Growing up in Virginia, I’d see Slickee Boys records in the used bins from time to time and I’d always pick them up, but they never grabbed me when I was young and spinning out on hormones. They may have been an important predecessor of the original harDCore scene, but the Slickee Boys always struck me as a 60s revival band that was allied with the punk scene more than a proper punk band themselves. That said, I plucked their 1983 album Cybernetic Dreams of Pi out of Sorry State’s used bin a few months ago and it’s gotten many spins, my ear being a little more open than it was when I first encountered the Slickee Boys. I never came across the original pressing of their 1981 single Here to Stay, reissued here by Vinyl Conflict Records, and if I had, it might have been the record to push me into full-blown fandom. The a-side is a total punk scorcher, with the energy, drive, and hooks of classic UK punk. While it’s still built on a 60s garage foundation of lead guitar and vocal hooks, the Slickee Boys play the song with the speed and power of the Buzzcocks, and the track stands up next to any 77-era UK a-side you can throw at it. The b-side is similarly upbeat and built around an excellent lead guitar hook, making this single an essential 2-sider. Here to Stay may be an anomaly in the Slickee Boys’ catalog, but anyone with a taste for poppy ’77 punk should be glad to add these two bangers to their collection.