Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs
Encyclopedia
Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs were a rock and rhythm and blues band that emerged out of the Los Angeles
punk/roots music scene of the late 1970s and early-mid 1980s. This scene also produced bands such as The Blasters
, X, Los Lobos
, The Gun Club, Phast Phreddie & The Precisions, The Knitters
, and The Plugz
.
nightclub (formerly a Chinese restaurant) at the corner of Argyle and Selma in Hollywood for 3 years, and was an important part of the Los Angeles rock scene. Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs concerts often featured guest appearances by such artists as Tom Waits
, David Lee Roth
, Stevie Ray Vaughan
, members of X, The Blasters
, The Gun Club, The Circle Jerks, The Plugz
, The Fabulous Thunderbirds
, and many more. D.J. Bonebrake, who appeared on Pigus Drunkus Maximus, was a member of X. The band was saluted in the Van Halen
song "Top Jimmy"
, and mentioned in The Call of the Wreckin' Ball, on the The Knitters
album, Poor Little Critter on the Road
and the X album, Live at the Whisky a Go-Go.
Live, Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs usually consisted of Top Jimmy (James Paul Koncek), vocals, Carlos Guitarlos: guitar and vocals, Gil T.: bass and vocals, Dig The Pig: guitar, Joey Morales, drums and either Tom Fabre or Steve Berlin on saxophone. On their only record, Pigus Drunkus Maximus, released in 1987 (Down There Records, distributed by Restless), D.J. Bonebrake
and Tony Morales contributed drum parts, while Gene Taylor
added piano.
Top Jimmy got his nickname because he at one point worked at a fast-food stand called "Top Taco", located across the street from the A&M studios in Hollywood.http://www.cosmik.com/aa-june03/carlos_guitarlos.html At some point after that, he got a job working as a roadie for X, and at the end of a soundcheck one day, he sang a version of the Doors "Roadhouse Blues", which garnered the attention of the band and Doors member Ray Manzarek
and led to Top Jimmy performing an encore version of the song with X and Manzarek during a May 1980 X show at the Whisky-A-Go-Go.http://db.etree.org/myshows_detail.php?showid=6782903
Koncek died in 2001 in Las Vegas, Nevada
from liver failure.
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
punk/roots music scene of the late 1970s and early-mid 1980s. This scene also produced bands such as The Blasters
The Blasters
The Blasters are a rock and roll music group formed in 1979 in Downey, California, by brothers Phil Alvin and Dave Alvin , with bass guitarist John Bazz and drummer Bill Bateman. Phil Alvin explained the origin of the band's name: "I thought Joe Turner’s backup band on Atlantic records – I had...
, X, Los Lobos
Los Lobos
Los Lobos are a multiple Grammy Award–winning American Chicano rock band from East Los Angeles, California. Their music is influenced by rock and roll, Tex-Mex, country, folk, R&B, blues, brown-eyed soul, and traditional Spanish and Mexican music such as cumbia, boleros and norteños.-History:The...
, The Gun Club, Phast Phreddie & The Precisions, The Knitters
The Knitters
The Knitters are a Los Angeles-based band who play country, rockabilly and folk music. At the time of their formation they were pioneers of country punk, cowpunk or folk punk, the genre which gradually evolved into alternative country...
, and The Plugz
The Plugz
The Plugz were a Mexican-American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California that formed in 1977. They and The Zeros were among the first Chicano punk bands, although several Latino garage rock bands, such as Thee Midniters and Question Mark & the Mysterians, predated them...
.
History
Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs had a residency playing "Blue Mondays" every Monday night at the notorious Cathay de GrandeCathay de Grande
The Cathay de Grande was a nightclub on the corner of Argyle Street and Selma Avenue in central Hollywood, which featured mostly punk rock bands but also other styles of underground/alternative rock in the 1980s. It was almost as well known for rockabilly, cowpunk, the Paisley Underground bands,...
nightclub (formerly a Chinese restaurant) at the corner of Argyle and Selma in Hollywood for 3 years, and was an important part of the Los Angeles rock scene. Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs concerts often featured guest appearances by such artists as Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth is an American rock vocalist, songwriter, actor, author, and former radio personality. Roth was ranked nineteenth by Hit Parader on their list of the 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Singers of All Time....
, Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stephen Ray "Stevie Ray" Vaughan was an American electric blues guitarist and singer. He was the younger brother of Jimmie Vaughan and frontman for Double Trouble, a band that included bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton. Born in Dallas, Vaughan moved to Austin at the age of 17 and...
, members of X, The Blasters
The Blasters
The Blasters are a rock and roll music group formed in 1979 in Downey, California, by brothers Phil Alvin and Dave Alvin , with bass guitarist John Bazz and drummer Bill Bateman. Phil Alvin explained the origin of the band's name: "I thought Joe Turner’s backup band on Atlantic records – I had...
, The Gun Club, The Circle Jerks, The Plugz
The Plugz
The Plugz were a Mexican-American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California that formed in 1977. They and The Zeros were among the first Chicano punk bands, although several Latino garage rock bands, such as Thee Midniters and Question Mark & the Mysterians, predated them...
, The Fabulous Thunderbirds
The Fabulous Thunderbirds
The Fabulous Thunderbirds are an American, Grammy-nominated Blues rock band, formed in 1974.-Career:After performing for several years in the Austin, Texas blues scene, the band won a recording contract with Takoma/Chrysalis Records, and later on signed with Epic Records.Their first two albums,...
, and many more. D.J. Bonebrake, who appeared on Pigus Drunkus Maximus, was a member of X. The band was saluted in the Van Halen
Van Halen
Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...
song "Top Jimmy"
1984 (Van Halen album)
1984 is the sixth studio album by American hard rock band Van Halen. One of the band's more popular albums , 1984 is to date the final album featuring singer David Lee Roth before he left the band in the spring of the following year.-Background and recording:Eddie Van Halen,...
, and mentioned in The Call of the Wreckin' Ball, on the The Knitters
The Knitters
The Knitters are a Los Angeles-based band who play country, rockabilly and folk music. At the time of their formation they were pioneers of country punk, cowpunk or folk punk, the genre which gradually evolved into alternative country...
album, Poor Little Critter on the Road
Poor Little Critter on the Road
The debut album from X side project The Knitters, "Poor Little Critter on the Road" contains original compositions and covers of songs by X as well as established Country music performers.-Track listing:#"Poor Little Critter on the Road" – 1:43...
and the X album, Live at the Whisky a Go-Go.
Live, Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs usually consisted of Top Jimmy (James Paul Koncek), vocals, Carlos Guitarlos: guitar and vocals, Gil T.: bass and vocals, Dig The Pig: guitar, Joey Morales, drums and either Tom Fabre or Steve Berlin on saxophone. On their only record, Pigus Drunkus Maximus, released in 1987 (Down There Records, distributed by Restless), D.J. Bonebrake
DJ Bonebrake
Donald J. "DJ" Bonebrake is an American musician from California who first emerged as the drummer of the punk rock band Eyes...
and Tony Morales contributed drum parts, while Gene Taylor
Gene Taylor (musician)
Gene Taylor is an American blues rock and boogie-woogie pianist.-Biography:Taylor began his musical training as a drummer at age eight but two years later he had picked up both the guitar and his initial piano skills from boogie-woogie pianist-neighbours...
added piano.
Top Jimmy got his nickname because he at one point worked at a fast-food stand called "Top Taco", located across the street from the A&M studios in Hollywood.http://www.cosmik.com/aa-june03/carlos_guitarlos.html At some point after that, he got a job working as a roadie for X, and at the end of a soundcheck one day, he sang a version of the Doors "Roadhouse Blues", which garnered the attention of the band and Doors member Ray Manzarek
Ray Manzarek
Raymond Daniel Manzarek, Jr., better known as Ray Manzarek , is an American musician, singer, producer, film director, writer, co-founder and keyboardist of The Doors from 1965 to 1973, Nite City from 1977–1978 and Manzarek-Krieger since 2001.Manzarek is listed #4 on Digital Dreamdoor's "100...
and led to Top Jimmy performing an encore version of the song with X and Manzarek during a May 1980 X show at the Whisky-A-Go-Go.http://db.etree.org/myshows_detail.php?showid=6782903
Koncek died in 2001 in Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
from liver failure.
Discography
- Pigus Drunkus Maximus (1987) - Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs (only actual TJ & Rhythm Pigs release)
- Long Distance Call (1994) - Top Jimmy Lineup
- The Good Times Are Killing Me (1996) - Top Jimmy solo