The Alarm Clocks - Yeah! (1966) (2000)

Formed in 1965 by Parma, OH, teenagers Mike Pierce (bass and vocals), Bruce Boehm (guitar), and Bill Schwark (drums), the Alarm Clocks got a lot of mileage out of one 45 single, although it would be 40 some years before they would really take advantage of it. The trio recorded two raw slices of garage punk, "Yeah!" and "No Reason to Complain," live in a studio in 1966 and released it on their own Wake Up label, and a month or so later recorded a live demo tape of their live set at Sound Ideas Recording Studios. Nothing much came of either venture, and the group disbanded in 1967. The single, though, took on a life of its own, gradually filtering through the informal garage band collectors network and becoming a highly sought-after item. Both sides of the 45 turned up on 1996's Back from the Grave compilation from Crypt Records, and eventually the bandmembers were tracked down. The A and B side of the single plus the complete demo tape and three tracks from Boehm's earlier band the Perceptions made up the album Yeah!, which was released by Norton Records in 2000. Perhaps sensing unfinished business, the Alarm Clocks re-formed in 2006 with all the original members on board plus a new fourth member, guitarist Tom Fallon. This second coming of the group recorded a new album in two days at Freddy Fortune's basement studio in Michigan in 2006. The album appeared as The Time Has Come later in the year from Norton Records. ~ Steve Leggett