Cruel You - Shoes

[lurch321]

This came out the same year as Steve Martin's Cruel Shoes (both book and album which has this routine)......................­.........coincidence?

[kingofpunk1977]

Lets face it this should have been the sort of thing John Lennon should have come out with in 1978 and if he did it would have been massive

[strace67]

freaking tremendous. just some punk ass publicist away from greatness

[nrk4u2]

In a just world, the Shoes would have been the Cars and the Cars would have been the Shoes.

[bicklesby1]

@nrk4u2 in reality  the shoes couldn't touch the cars--Ben Orr , Ocasek, Easton they ain't

[Zorsha]

wow, timewarp! they were so cute!

[mangansis1]

@KonoShunkan: Actually, there's a band bio coming out in early 2011 which explains a lot of what happened.

[TrickyTolles64]

Killer!! LOVE IT!!

[tryx33]

Best album ever. I bought this in 1979 because I thought the guys on the album cover were cool looking. This album got me through my teenage years, and has influenced me throughout my life. I love this band. Most underrated band of all time. I still identify with and love this music.

[48krash]

Yep, the best (and best-looking) power pop band hands down..."Black Vinyl" the album they put out themselves, was just THE most impressive release (and this at a time when other new wave acts of the day could manage a single at best...) Lee

[lostmyshu]

@48krash He's my lobster!

[kilts4u2]

These guys remind me of the Plimsouls who were around in the '80s at the same time. Both bands should have been much bigger successes. Simple songs but likable. Good to hear this music again.

[castertunes1967]

an awesome sound....just found out about them...rockin' power pop....I wish I'd known about them in the 1970s...they could open for Cheap Trick or The Knack and be show-stealers

[lostmyshu]

That's my sugar daddy!

[mileshye]

Todd Rungren meets the Yardbirds!

[conqueroo1]

Shoes rule. Period.

[bassettdaddy]

I haven't stopped listening to Shoes for 30 years, they are the best...

[MCFCTrick]

Power pop on a par with Cheap Trick...thats the greatest compliment I can give a band!!!!

[robodoll]

would you guys please reform and play the west coast!!

[kjpgs]

Jeff wrote a book about the making of Present Tense. Wonderful reading. Really nice guy. He has been wonderful every time I have contacted him through their website - BlackVinyl. They're doing a mini tour of Japan in April '09.

[geminibuzz]

Possibly the greatest of the under-rated bands of all time. I still can't understand why they weren't living on the top of the record charts.

[witchman1]

Cheers!!!

[KonoShunkan]

@geminibuzz Too right, mate. I fucking loved this band when I was a kid and it still pisses me off 30 years later that they sank into obscurity. How did that happen?

[mpc3po]

this guys snare tone is so great...i feel stoney just listening to it. so warm

[frankrfranklin]

fwiw they are from outside Chicago and a couple of them had a recording studio up until a couple years ago. My current girl and I met over these guys (5 years plus). They can venture into sugarpop, but they can rock out at any point. Boomerang, Shoes On Ice, Present Tense and Tongue Twister are all winners - what's 15 bucks to maybe be moved to tears? Or track down Too Late, Hangin Around With You or Curiousity on this site.

[KCVROCKS2008]

these guys should of had a ton of hits. so should have marshall crenshaw, though he had one top 4o hit, someday someway!

[ecosmart123]

I had a copy of Present Tense on 8-Track!

Great album. How cool it would be if there was something from Tongue Twister out there.

[witchman1]

Classy band.

[solimar95051]

Takes me back to a time when the midwest produced some fantastic (if unappreciated) power pop. Shoes, Spooner, etc. It's too bad that the record companies at that time were totally blinded by disco, Rod Stewart and the Knack. There was a lot of good stuff left on the shelf.

[eaglepoke56]

had the album , too. have never found anyone else who ever even heard .don't have the album anymore.i remember a really mellow song that was my favorite off the album .can anyone help me with the title?{think it was on side one}

[glamboy7373]

side 1: tomorrow night, too late, hangin around with you, your very eyes, in my arms again, somebody has what i had

side 2: now and then, every girl,i don't miss you, cruel you, three times, i don't wanna hear it

[grooviefan]

lets all e-mail them and ask if they couldn't see to coming out west and playing a gig or two. awesome live. have seen them twice on the west coast. master's of power pop

[frankrfranklin]

awesome awesome awesome

[boyspider7]

How amazing is that drummer!! They should have got more attention the (present Tense) LP this is from is a total classic- tho' the cover was a bit fey, sadly it ended up in the bargin bin shortly after release..

[bartlebybartleby]

i thought they were taking the piss a bit with the front and back, but i could be wrong. it was the 70's, i guess...

[lopergrad]

Awesome stuff!!!!!

Perhaps the drummer should have worn different shirts for the different tapings of the vidoes. I am guessing thay played at "The Manor" once or twice

[meyersd66]

DAMN! I remember hearing these guys for the first time on MTV's Basement Tapes way back in the day....

[hnklbn]

Thanks for posting these SHOES videos.

They truly are one of the great power pop bands. Too Bad so many people missed the Shoes, Game Theory, and Tommy Keene.

[jhrunion]

I agree with the previous statements! Thanks for posting this!!!

[dogtron]

Pop geniuses. It's sad that so few people were ever exposed to the greatest power pop band of all time.

[bluemulekicksass]

You know - SHOES were as no nonsense as any band could be. They were never flashy - just straight-forward "in-your-face" incredible. Their song craftsmanship is without equal - right up to present tense. Coincidence that their they named their release "Present Tense" decades ago? No. More like; they were/are WAY ahead of everyone else.

[monkeytrousers]

Great 70's ROCK/POP...