Action Swingers

The brainchild behind the Action Swingers incendiary garage punk was New Yorker Ned Hayden. His Stooges-like vocals, guitar, and primitive songs were the hallmark of the group throughout its various incarnations. When the band debuted with a self-titled album, the lineup consisted of Hayden, guitarist/singer Julia Cafritz (ex-Pussy Galore), bassist Peter Shore (ex-Unsane), and drummer Bob Bert (ex-Sonic Youth, ex-Pussy Galore). A couple of songs that ended up on the early tracks compilation Quit While You're Ahead featured J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. on drums. After their debut, the Swingers dissolved for about a year, but then Hayden resurrected the group without Shore and Cafritz and with new members Bruce Bennett (the A-Bones) and Howie Pyro (D Generation) on board. That lineup undertook a U.K. tour in 1992 and released an EP, More Fast Numbers, which included the infamous song "Courtney Love." With the departure of guitarist Bennett and drummer Bert, Hayden soldiered on with various sidemen, releasing Decimation Blvd. in 1993 on Caroline Records. The album, the group's most fully realized effort, was 20-something minutes and 14 songs-worth of garage punk fury and hardcore flourishes.