Photo by WALTER SMITH
The Judy’s are (left to right) bassist Jeff Walton, drummer Dane Cessac and vocalist David Bean
Photo by WALTER SMITH
TV static accompanies David Bean
Judy’s provide a
By WALTER SMITH
Music Rev’iewer
Hordes of music fans storm
Dr. G's with hopes of getting
into the concert. By mid-af
ternoon, a crowd mills rest
lessly about. The fans pay their
money and wait in the dim in
terior, eating and drinking to
while away the time. By 6
p.m., the 9 o’clock show is sold
out, but even the people who
didn’t make it on to the 175-
person guest list are allowed to
stay and party with their
friends who did.
As more liquor is consumed,
creative concert-crashing tac
tics are devised. When all but
the paid guests are asked to
leave, the desperate woman
crouched on the toilet is discov
ered, but the devious pair un
der a table remains unde
tected.
Who are these musical mar
vels? And why is everyone stop
ping just short of violence to
see them? They are the Judy’s,
and they’re one of Houston's
premier new music bands.
The Judy’s, whose name
exemplifies their glowing re
spect for social debs, have been
together in one form or an
other since childhood with the
exception of a brief break-up
while everyone pursued other
interests, ranging from solo
work to higher education. Da
vid Bean, the lead vocalist and
sometimes-guitar/keyboard
player, is a year older than the
other two members; bassist
Jeff Walton and percussionist
Dane Cessac both graduated
from Pearland High School in
1981.
Armed with this youthful vi
sion, the Judy’s address both
worldv issues and esoteric
ideas with their music. But
their subject focus varies less
than their diverse instrumental
styling.
David, stressing that fun was
the real reason behind the
band’s formation, says their
“minimalistic” sound origi
nally resulted from their lim
ited resources, but that the
band likes that sparse sound
and refuses to clog the works
by letting their instruments get
into the way of the music.
The Judy’s have been electri-
‘punch’
fying audiences across Texas
with their B-52's cum Devo
music since their reunion con
cert last fall and their show last
Saturday at Dr. G’s was no ex
ception.
The crowd grooved to all
their favorite tunes from the
“Teenage Hang-ups” and “The
Wonderful World of Applian
ces” EPs and the “Washarama”
LP. Whether it was “Zoo,” an
airy, acoustical number featur
ing only percussion and vocals,
or “Vacation In Tehran,” a
quirky keyboard-punctuated
song about the Iranian hostage
crisis, the Judy’s enliven the
music with their vibrantly en
ergetic stage presence.
Kitchen cookware and home
electronics are some of the ev
eryday gadgets that the Judy’s
have managed to incorporate
into their act. “Right Down the
Line” features Dane pounding
away on a row of pots and
pans hanging from a strand of
clothesline, while “Guyana
Punch” allows David to douse
the audience with pitchers of
liquid (in this case, water, but
in the original case...)A
i t #
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