There is no other band more legendary or more inextricably linked to Lucy’s than the Fun Girls From Mt. Pilot. Chris Fox, Troy Pigue, Charles “Cat” Tidball, and Donnie Kendall dressed in women’s clothes when they played, which caught people’s attention, but it was their songs – short bursts of frenetic pop-punk energy and clever lyrics – and their “mind-blowing” stage antics that earned them a devoted following.

To really understand how incredible they were you have to talk to the people who were at their shows. They say things like “mind-blowing,” “transformative,” “the s**t” and “the Fun Girls changed my life.”

In this episode we cover the band names that could have been, what happens when you ask a highly skilled drummer to join a band with “the worst guitar player he’ll ever play with,” shopping for their outfits, the award winning box set, why they’re hated in a couple places in the southeast, and of course their onstage antics, including the infamous 328 Performance Hall show (think confetti, flying toast, a fake security guy, 2 french maids, and a couple of dancing donut-eating stripper cops who ended up rolling around on stage in their underwear). The best.

Show Notes

For full show show notes, visit the Lucy’s Record Shop site.

Fun Girls – “Hold a Grudge“
Fun Girls – “Your Girlfriend Hates Me“
Fun Girls – “Monkey Flips“
Fun Girls From Mt. Pilot – “Billy Dee Williams“
Fun Girls – “Janelle’s At the Mall“
Fun Girls – “Rocketcycle”

Travis Howell started playing the drums because his dad told him he couldn’t. His first band, No Remorse, was the first metal band to grace the Lucy’s stage and the first and only to be mistaken for a neo-nazis. Sloppy, a punk-metal hybrid kind of thing, came next and then Adrenaline Hammer, which went on to become 12V. When 12V sold out Lucy’s, Travis realized a long-held dream.

Travis’ time at Lucy’s included seeing bands like Javachrist, Impetuous Doom, Teen Idols, and the Wesley Willis Experience (“Rock over London! Rock over Chicago!”), judging Green Day’s choices, and some bad behaviors. The last would lead to his decision to quit playing drums cold turkey. He didn’t touch a stick for 14 years. Then he went to church.

Show Notes

For full show show notes, visit the Lucy’s Record Shop site.

12V Negative Earth – “Shout“
12V Negative Earth – “So Demanding“
12V Negative Earth – “Lowest Common Denominator“
Teen Idols – “Nightmares” (Live at Lucy’s 1994)
Lambchop – “So I Hear You’re Moving (Intro)”