I saw "NEEDED: Fan Tribute and Memories (web)".
I made a "SMOKING POPES cover song".
song called "Missing Out".
yes,this is old my favourite " smoking popes" song.
This is "mp3" URL!
Download Missing Out
however,I am "terrible singer..".
please hear it.Thank you!
my english is bad..sorry.
regards.
-Shin(Japan)
added January 18,2004

It was 1995 in Toledo, Ohio and for some odd reason I was listening to the radio. I guess because I was only 17 and still had some interest in modern rock radio (or alternative radio, whatever we called it back then). A song came on that was like nothing of the time, with fast pop-punk flavor but with a voice far from the Green Day imitators that were currently running rampant. I tried my best to remember some of the words the next day. I had just started working at a Harmony House record store and by my description of what I heard the previous night, one of my coworkers referred me to an advance cassette we had received from our Capitol rep, Diane. The song was "Need You Around," and the tape dominated my car stereo that summer. Diane also sent us a Born To Quit t-shirt after we made an endcap for the record.

Within a month of my discovery of the Popes, they came to Toledo with You Am I from Australia. They played at a venue called the Underground to an audience of six, all of whom I could name. I remember being very impressed with Josh's guitar work at this show. Given that I only had an advance cassette, I didn't even know the singer played guitar - let alone that he handled all the lead work. I was a little disappointed that Josh improvised with most of the melody lines, as I was trying to sing along; but don't get me wrong, this show was kick-ass (even though I'm sure the bands considered it a flop).

I'm not sure of the exact date of that show, but I am pretty sure it was the first weekend of August 1995. This is based on an interview that my friend, and Harmony House coworker, Tim Bueter did with the You Am I singer Tim Rogers for the Toledo monthly Glass Eye music zine. In the interview (http://www.youami.com.au/articles/art25.html), Mr. Rogers recalls eating meat for the last time in Toledo at the annual Rib-Off downtown, which is always the first weekend in August. Tim Rogers eventually released a song called “The Smokin' Popes,” which reminisced about this tour and mentions the Rib-Off. The song was released on a limited edition bonus disc entitled The Temperance Union that came with their Dress Me Slowly record.

I saw the Popes three more times; a year later, 1996, at the Shelter in Detroit with The Figgs and Jimmy Eat World, and twice on the Winter Dance Party tour in 1998 with Triple Fast Action and Menthol. It has been quite a while, but I remember hearing the song “Paul” for the first time in Detroit.

My friend Keith, who worked at a CD Warehouse down the road, received an advance copy of Destination Failure at least three months before it came out. He dubbed me a copy and again, the tape was in my car for the entire summer (1997). I didn't think it could get better than Born To Quit, but they truly outdid themselves. This album spoke to me. Several of us at Harmony House submitted top-ten lists for 1997 to our Capitol rep, who assembled them together into a small mailer. I left the store on New Year's Day 1998 to start an internship. A week later I got a call from the store saying that Capitol had sent me a 10" single of “I Know You Love Me” for including Destination Failure as my #1 for 1997. Later that day, I got another call saying that the district manager was there to close the store forever, so I needed to come down and pick up my last check and the record. My two and half year stint as a record store employee started and ended with The Smoking Popes. (Harmony House is a Detroit based chain that only carries music, not movies, books etc. We were store #32 and there are now only two remaining stores, one of which only sells classical.)

The Winter Dance Party Tour was powerhouse. I was really into the self-titled Menthol CD. Their new songs were equally great and I specifically remember hearing “Strange Living” for the first time at the show in Cleveland. Their record Danger: Rock Science, containing this and many other great songs, wouldn't be released for another four and a half years, another example of Capitol dropping the ball on a great band.

Strangely enough for me, Frankie's in Toledo was the last leg of this tour. My friend Tim, who I mention above, interviewed Josh and Eli before this show for the Glass Eye (he's trying to track down a copy of this interview for me. I'll send it to Smokingpopes.net as soon as I can). He remembers it not being that great of an interview, but the show was fantastic. I remember hearing the Popes play “Writing a Letter,” which I'd never heard before and loved, and wouldn't hear again until 1991-1998 came out, as well as their cover of Jack Wagner's “All I Need” as an intro to “Need You Around.” My mother was a big General Hospital fan in the 80's so I was very familiar with “All I Need” and found this tremendously amusing.

Being the last city of the tour, the Triple Fast Action guys pulled some pranks on Menthol and the Popes. Tim recalls seeing the Menthol drummer hitting his snare for the first time of the night and a cloud of talcum powder rising into his eyes. My friend Josh also recalls a member of Triple Fast Action running up on stage naked while the Popes were playing; either he hallucinated, or I blocked that out. They also put hot sauce on all the vocal microphones which aggravated the Popes and Menthol. A week later, my band at the time played at Frankie’s and the sauce residue was still apparent. In true fanboy fashion, I was happy to share a mic used by the Smoking Popes.

So far, I've only seen Duvall once and they were equally rocktastic (although the show was in Detroit and my car window was smashed while we were inside). I love their releases with the same passion that the Popes records ignited. I am glad Josh has decided to continue writing and playing music and that he is now satisfied that what he is doing has true meaning. As I'm sure anyone who makes it this far into this account would agree, his music means a great deal to me.

A few weeks after that, they were playing at McGregor's again. I had been toying with the idea
of starting an indie record label, and approached the band about releasing some material. They
had already recorded some tracks, and were thinking about doing a cassette. I convinced them
that it would be better to do a 7" EP release. I put up most of the money, with the band wanting
to put some of their own money in as well. We had the records pressed at United, down in
Tennessee, and the sleeves and inserts were printed at a local AlphaGraphics. I remember
when I received the test pressings in the mail, we all gathered at The Felumlee home and listened
to it over and over. Each of the band members kept one of the test pressings. When the final
EPs arrived, we spent a number of hours putting everything together.

I sent two EPs to MaximumRockNRoll, one for review and one for their syndicated radio show.
The review was good, but even better was the reaction from the radio people. They liked it so
much, that it ended up in the MRR year-end best of 1991 show; they played "Brand New
Hairstyle" in that program.

I remember bringing the EPs to shows all the time, selling a bunch at each one. At one show, I ended
up trading one to Ben Weasel for a Screeching Weasel "Punkhouse" 7". Ben wrote a review of "Inoculator"
for Jersey Beat magazine, in which he says it was "the best trade I ever made." The last of the 500 "Inoculator"
EPs was sold at a show at the SKRAP skatepark in Hoffman Estates (at a show the Popes weren't playing).

Paul Silver
formerly Radius Records
Added July 4, 2005

I'm not sure how, but a half hour later we found ourselves standing outside
Small Planet. Smoking Popes would happen afterall, forget about the car.
Except...we weren't 21. Sorry, guys, not going to happen tonight. Suck it
up. The Small Planet had a huge bay window. We'll watch through glass.
Whatever. Turns out, there wasn't really anyone even there to see the Popes.
There was one drunken fool up front spazzing out without reason. Everyone
else was seated, talking about the weather. The band picked up on this right
off. Josh wasn't playing to the crowd, he was playing to my girlfriend and
I, watching from the sidewalk. He crooned and gestured to us. "Days just
wave goodbye..." We were very happy.

After the show the tour manager came out to chat with us. He then brought
out the band to say hello. I could barely talk and sound silly, I'm sure.
After talking a little while we told them about the car. Next thing we knew
we were sitting in the backseat of Josh's tan station wagon on our way back
to Burger King. Too cool. Too surreal. Too nice of a bunch of guys.

They tried to give us a jump start. Nothing. This was not good. "Well, you
guys could come back to our hotel and stay with us, while you figure out
what you want to do."...Ho.ly.Cow.

The Smoking Popes hotel scene was much liked we'd hoped. Them just sitting
around reading and making fun of the lousy tv shows. They gave us a sleeping
bag and blankets and pillows and a place to sleep. Josh wore a full
long-john outfit. I remember laughing about that..So we tried to sleep. But
were a little too excited to even close our eyes.

The next morning they took us to Bob Evan's for breakfast, then gave us a
ride back to the car. Josh even gave us a couple of homemade cassettes for
the ride back home...Jennyanykind and YouamI. Both totally rad, as I
remember. We thanked them again. And again. Then the Popes drove off for
Detroit.

God bless the Popes.

(epilogue: turns out my dad knew a nice guy in the area who replaced the
alternator for us..happy endings all around)

Joel Potrykus
Added July 4, 2005