Album Review: The Trip – Never Too Late for… The Trip

I’m a pushover for a musical act with an interesting back story. Of course, having a fascinating and/or compelling tale is no substitute for good music; to hit the sweet spot one needs both. And in the idiom of rock ‘n’ roll – a field strewn with near-misses, there exist relatively few of such. One of them, though, is The Trip, a late ‘70s – to early ‘80s quartet out of the Bay Area. The Trip’s story – comparatively brief as it was – includes connections to the Flamin’ Groovies, 415 Records and celebrated music journalist Jeff Tamarkin.

But I’m not here today to get into those details. Interested parties can (and should) closely peruse the gatefold booklet inserted in vinyl copies of Never Too Late for…The Trip, a newly-released collection of tracks the band cut in Queens, New York in 1983-ish.

I will point out that even if the band name doesn’t strike familiar, aficionados of power pop, garage revival and similar rock substyles may have heard at least one track by the band. That song would be “Stick Like Glue,” a number included on Battle of the Garages, Vol. 2: America’s Psychedelic Underground, a 1984 comp. It also appeared a decade later on a CD comp from the same label (Voxx), on a disc noted — confusingly enough — as Part 1.

The trashy sonic values so essential to ‘60s garage/protopunk are very much in evidence on “Stick Like Glue.” Not quite the lowest-of lo-fi (that honor goes to the Green Fuz), “Stick Like Glue” is nonetheless gloriously free of production nuance. Recorded in lead singer Tom Neale’s basement, it’s in monaural, for goodness sake. And Don Ciccone’s unhinged guitar solo is a thing of ramshackle beauty.

“Stick Like Glue” only shows one side of The Trip’s artistry, however. The seven songs that round out this LP offer up some jangle (“Little Girl,” not the Syndicate of Sound’s tune), sinister fuzztone rock (“Move”), and the requisite hypnotic combo organ (the album’s sorta-title track, “Never Too Late for Linda”). All will be held in high esteem by those well acquainted with garage rock and its related forms. Others may shrug and wonder what the fuss is about; it’s their loss.

Perhaps amusingly (and– okay – perhaps not), the signature organ that dominates “Never Too Late for Linda” is in fact uncredited on this LP. As listed, the personnel includes only guitarists Tom Neale and Don Ciccone, bassist Steve Balestra and Victor Gentile on drums. But hey: somebody’s playing that Farfisa-or-whatever.

Side Two opens with “So Goodbye Baby,” a catchy bit of jangle pop, and the closest The Trip come (here, anyway) to Byrdsy folk-rock. Like many of the songs on this disc, “The Love That’s in Your Eyes” has a familiar feel, a kind of have-I-heard-this-before vibe. But not too familiar, not in any plagiaristic sort of way. “I Wanna Make you Mine” has similarly solid pop values, still maintaining the garage aesthetic.

The closest The Trip come to ripping off another artist is on the intro to “Too Many Times.” The song’s riff and beat are suspiciously close the “Ticket to Ride” by a Liverpool combo of some note. But the song overall is original, in fact closer in spirit to what Brian Jonestown Massacre might sound like if they were a bit more well-adjusted.

In a fair world, The Trip would have made inroads during the Paisley Underground era. But that scene was largely centered in and around L.A., and this band was based a few hundred miles north in San Francisco. The band did have some impressive champions in their corner, including Tamarkin (who reviewed ‘em in Goldmine) and Bomp Records’ Greg Shaw. Fast-forwarding to present day, Flamin’ Groovies’ Cyril Jordan penned a brief but knowing and heartfelt liner note mini-essay extolling the virtues of The Trip.

None of that earned the band much in the way of success 40-odd years ago, so The Trip might have been relegated to near-forgotten status. That would have been an injustice, and as the title of this welcome record telegraphs, it’s never too late to appreciate The Trip. The time, dear friends, is now.