Lenny Kaye & Nuggets

I have wondered if Lenny Kaye's working in a 2nd hand record shop in the early 70s had contributed to his idea of compiling a set of mid 60s One Hit Wonders. Like, was it something that he was recognising a market for that lead to him compiling Nuggets which otherwise was a bit out of the blue in terms of releasing in the early 70s. Think I heard about Kaye being asked to compile something along somewhat different grounds that wound up becoming the Nuggets set once he got his hands on it.

So, was there a group of people already seeking out music similar to what Kaye compiled for the original 2lp version of Nuggets in 2nd hand record shops that triggered or inspired Kaye to compile the set?

interview w/lenny about nuggetx

the inspiration came from LK's own experience in garage bands. there was a subset of rock critics, including lester bangs and his proto-punk bros, who championed garage band sounds at the start of the seventies. this is when the term "punk rock" was coined by - according to some accounts - billy altman in his college paper.

lenny worked at a shop called village oldies but i don't think it was a used record store

I thought I'd read that Patti Smith met him when he worked in a 2nd hand recordshop and they bonded over doowop.

huh good interview -- would be interested in hearing Kaye's Reggae Nuggets comp...

Has anyone gone to the Nuggets 50th anniversary shows? I went to night one (of two) in NYC and it was a lot of fun, almost like a college rock version of The Last Waltz. I got there early to get a good spot, and it was fun spotting Marshall Crenshaw, Bob Mould, Peter Buck and others peering out from the side every few minutes, either looking for someone or scoping out the room. Must've been a fun party back there. Given the nature of the show, it was a very fun, loose and relaxed show, and everyone was having a good time. Even a brief and otherwise ordinary gesture like Peter Buck putting his hand on Bob Mould's shoulder as he exited the stage was pretty awesome: one guitar god acknowledging his friend and peer who was the OTHER guitar god of '80s indie rock.

FWIW, besides Lenny Kaye, people I recognized included Patti Smith, Vicki Peterson of the Bangles, Steve Wynn of Dream Syndicate, Eric Ambel (of many things, including Joan Jett's original Blackhearts), Richard Lloyd of Television, Juliana Hatfield, and Ivan Julian of the Voidoids (without a guitar, which they joked about it, but even then he was AWESOME). The house band included Kaye, Dennis Diken of the Smithereens, Styx's Glen Burtnik, guitarist Jack Petruzzelli and bassist and bandleader Tony Shanahan, and each of them got to sing a number as well. There were quite a few others there but I did not recognize them.

I caught the second night’s show. Quite the entertainment value I must say. Many highlights. Steve Wynn from Dream Syndicate was really good, I thought. And Marshall Crenshaw. Had never seen Joan As Police Woman before but she was impressive.

Ivan Julian was great, and closing with Bob Mould doing 2 Minneapolis classics (Liar Liar and Action Woman) was perfect.

Yes to both… that Mould segment was fun

other folks included John Cowsill (up there with his wife, Vicki Peterson), Tammy Faye Starlight, Mary Lee Kortes, and Tom Clark doing a really nice Do You Believe in Magic? and playing autoharp. not Smithereens fan, but Dennis Diken was fantastic.

I was surprised it didn’t sell out (or at least it didn’t seem to - I think they were still selling them the day of the show). Tickets weren’t really expensive - the signed posters ($50 each) cost more than a GA ticket.

Patti Smith was great too - even without the false starts on the second night, I’d say first night was even better. Regardless of which night you went to, the reading of the passage from Queer was a perfect intro into “Hey Joe.” Mould was great on both nights but he took it even further on the second night, especially on “Action Woman.” Surprised he looked so nervous both times as he was getting ready because he really nailed it. Richard Lloyd’s guitar was buried too low in the mix, I kind of wondered if he had trouble hearing himself, but his playing came together on the second night with “Psychotic Reaction” - excellent solo that time. I ran into him after the show the first night and he was very nice to everyone. Second night someone I know left early and ran into him waiting for a cab - again, was very nice to his fans.

Observer Highway Stage
• 12:15 p.m. - Karyn Kuhl Gang
• 1:30 p.m. - Lenny Kaye's Nuggets Golden Jubilee Band
• 3:00 p.m. - The Bongos
• 4:45 p.m. - The Feelies

https://www.hobokennj.gov/events/hoboken-fall-arts-and-music-festival-2023

Karyn Kuhl is great, haven’t kept up with her activities in far too long