Date: Fri, 16 Jul 1993 23:59:03 CDT From: Bill Hayes <[IANR 012] at [UNLVM.UNL.EDU]> Subject: Comics and Music July 16, 1993 The Comics List Weekly Vol. 3 No. 28 This Week: Comics Criticism : From Sonic Verse - Comics and music +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | | | Sonic Verse Music Magazine | | | | Volume 3, Issue 7 (E-SI) | | | | Formerly Update Music Newsletter | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | | | +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Contents ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Sonic Verse Music Magazine (c) 1993 Christopher Vincent DeRobertis, except where noted. All articles and write-ups this issue (c) 1993 Dennis DeRobertis. Additional legal notices and other Sonic Verse related information are located at the end of issue, in Appendix A. Additional information covers publishing schedule, text conventions, addresses, etc. Columns/Features: Editor's Tangent/Introduction Comics And Music Miscellaneous Facts Recommended Reading ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editor's Tangent/Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editor's Tangent: Greetings! This is the ONLY time you'll be hearing from me this issue. This entire issue (except for this itty-bitty piece) is under the control of bassist and composer Dennis DeRobertis. Get ready for a fun ride, because this is probably something you haven't read about before. On to you bro! Introduction: Welcome to another Special Issue of Sonic Verse Music Magazine. As was promised a little while back, this issue is going to focus on comic books and music. We'll look at how these two artistic mediums have been brought together over the years. I'm especially interested in this topic since I am an avid comic collector and musician. I hope you enjoy it! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Comics And Music ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The first try to mesh music and comic books came in September 1954, with Marvel Comic's (which was called Atlas at the time) release of "World's Greatest Songs." The comic turned the lyrics of hit songs of the day into illustrations. The first and only issue sported an Eddie Fisher cover and a quote that read: "All the lyrics of 'Young at Heart' as popularized by Frank Sinatra." The comic wasn't a smash. Some years later Marvel would try again to fuse comics and music. On June 28, 1977 the company released "Marvel Comics Super Special". The magazine size comic featured the extremely popular rock band KISS. The band was at the height of their career in the late '70s, selling out stadium after stadium with their driving music and stage theatrics. Anyway, what better band was there to be the stars of a comic book; you had a Demon, a Star-Child, a Cat, and a Space-Ace. (Interestingly enough, KISS members patterned their early costumes after Marvel characters.) The story tells the origin of KISS the super heroes, not the band. During the story they meet and fight with Dr. Doom (who is one of the greatest villains ever created in comics) for the power located in the Box of Khyscz. The box stores the power that turns the story's four teenage misfits into fighting mad KISS super heroes. There are also brief cameo appearances by the Fantastic Four, Avengers, and Defenders. The comic is a hefty 66 pages and includes the main story, a KISS history (with complete discography up to that point), and a behind the scenes look at the creators of the comic. At the time of release, the book sold for $1.50. Now, the comic sells in excess of $100 in mint condition. Besides being the first comic to incorporate a rock-n-roll band as the stars, it has the unique distinction of being the first, and perhaps only, comic ever to be inked with blood. Before the comic went to press, each member of the band, Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Peter Criss, Ace Frehely, gave vials of blood to be used in the inking process. Not surprisingly, the comic sold extremely well, boasting a print run of 400,000 copies (a very impressive feat by 1977 standards, or for that matter, today's standards). Around the same time, KISS found themselves in another comic book adventure. This time they were teamed with that little orange-beaked, pistol carrying Anatidae -- Howard the Duck. (For those that are not aware, the fowl movie -sorry, couldn't resist- was based on the comic book "Howard the Duck". The series was created and written by Steve Gerber, published by Marvel Comics, and ran for 33 issues.) With the huge success of KISS' first appearance in "Marvel Super Special", it wouldn't be long before they appeared in another "Marvel Super Special". In January, 1978 issue 5 was released. This time our heroes found themselves battling Darklord, evil sorceress supreme. The issue also included a four page fold-out poster of the band and a behind the scenes look at the movie _KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park_. Like issue number one, this issue is very popular among collectors, boasting a price tag of up to $50 in mint condition. Another rock star to enter the world of comics was Alice Cooper. It was in Marvel Comic's series "Marvel Premiere" where Cooper made his comic debut in 1979. The comic was based on Cooper's Warner Bros. album, _From the Inside_. It's a light-hearted look at Alice's adventures inside an insane asylum, complete with his nervous breakdown. The comic sports good artwork and sells anywhere from $4.00 to $6.00 in mint condition. For the most part these early appearances of musicians/bands in comics portrayed the stars as heroes. It wasn't until Revolutionary Comics, an independent comics publisher from San Diego, California, published Rock-n-Roll Comics. Now, comic and music fans were able to read a biography about their favorite performer(s). The series covers the spectrum of music genres, from rap to metal to pop. For instance, Rock-n-Roll Comics number 18 gives an overview of Alice Cooper's music career. The comic covers the band's discovery by Frank Zappa, to the group's stage antics, to Alice's decision to go solo. The layout of the comic is good, but the artwork is poor. Although skeptics claimed Rock-N-Roll comics would never sell, there was a huge demand for the series. In fact, early issues now sell anywhere from $10 to $20. The first issue, which featured Guns-N-Roses, was so popular it had a second printing. It seems people want to and like to read about their favorite performers in comic book format. In fact, Revolutionary Comics is going to release "KISS Pre-History", a limited series based on the efforts of the band from their early years. There are also, though less traditional, ways in which comics and music have joined forces. Take for example the New York based company Today's Earforce. The company offers a musical compact disc tailored exclusively to the comic reader. The music is supposed to enhance one's comic reading adventures. The all-instrumental album contains some light music as well as some heavy, hard-rocking tunes. The hour long CD is titled _Super Sonic Flight_. The Baker Squadron (?) provides the music. Another recent example of fusing comics and music comes from one of comic's premiere artists and hard rock/heavy metal fan, Dale Keown. Dale, who is best known for his work on Marvel's the Incredible Hulk, has recently joined Image comics to produce his unique creation -- the Pitt. The Pitt, which is the name of the main character, deals with an alien race that is almost totally destroyed by a warring faction. The Pitt escapes the destruction by fleeing to earth. Once on earth he encounters bounty hunters that are determined to take him back to his world - dead or alive. Since Dale is also a musician, he has written a theme song to coincide with his creation. According to Dale, "I'd like to release it the theme song| with one of the issues...the| song sums up the whole mood of the book". Hmmm, a comic book soundtrack? I wonder? Well, there you have it, an essay on comics and music. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Miscellaneous Facts ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** John Byrne's artwork graces the cover of Joe Satriani's 1987 album _Surfing with the Alien_. The cover, taken from the interior artwork of the 1982 Silver Surfer one-shot, depicts Marvel's cosmic character the Silver Surfer. The music was written for the Silver Surfer animated movie which was never released. Gee, I wonder why? I guess they couldn't top _Howard the Duck_. *** The early '80s saw Marvel's creation the Dazzler. Alison Blaire, a.k.a the Dazzler, was a struggling disco singer, dressed in sequin disco attire and ran around on roller skates. She has the mutant ability to transform sound into light. She's still around, but has lost the disco wear and roller skates. *** Two of the comic industries best writers contributed short stories for the music horror book _Shock Rock_. The book is a collection of music-related horror stories by various writers. Comic legend John Byrne contributed "Hide in Plain Sight", where one of the main characters is a "typical" heavy-metal head. _Shock Rock_ also contains another short story by Bill Mummy and Peter David entitled "The Black '49". The story tells the tale of a murderer who uses different songs as models to act out his crimes. The book also has a forward by rock's most shocking front man, and sometime comic book star, Alice Cooper. *** Simon Bisely, one of the comic industries best four-color artists, has painted many heavy metal album covers. His artwork graces Danzig's _thrall-demonsweatlive_ album. Bisley has also recently painted a graphic novel titled "Judgment On Gotham". If you like the artwork on Danzig's album, you'll love this comic. *** Issue 195 of the Spectacular Spider-Man came polybagged with a promotional cassette tape. The tape, titled "Down to Earth", is a compilation cassette that includes ten various artists from Capitol Records. *** Members of Anthrax are big Judge Dredd fans. *** Lou Graham and Mick Jones of Foreigner fame are long time Marvel fans. They plan on using some of Marvel's characters in their next video. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Recommended Reading ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Since I am a serious comic collector I'd like to take some time to put in a good word about comics. Now is probably one of the most exciting times the comic book industry has ever experienced. New, independent companies are taking the industry by storm, proving to be a major threat to the established companies. Until about a year ago there were only two major players in the comic world: Marvel and DC. Now, independent companies like Image, Valiant, Dark Horse, and Malibu are eating into the once stable market share the Big Two have grown accustomed to. With all this fierce competition, the consumer will surely benefit. Below is a listing of my recommendations for a good comic read: "The Adventures of Superman", "Superman in Action Comics", "Superman: The Man of Steel", "Superman "(DC): All four titles are running the return of Superman storyline. *Great story. Good artwork* "Hardware", "Icon" (Milestone Media): Both titles deal with the struggles minorities face in this country. *A good story without preaching. Great artwork.* "Batman", "Detective Comics featuring Batman" (DC): During the current storyline Batman will have a major injury. After the injury he will don a suit of armor to keep up his fight against crime. This will mark the first time his costume has hanged in over fifty years. *Good story. Good Artwork.* "The Savage Dragon" (Image): A Chicago police officer with a unique appearance takes on the city's worst. *Good story. Great artwork.* There are many more good titles currently being produced. Check out the new universes by Dark Horse, Defiant, and Malibu Comics. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A - Additional Sonic Verse Information ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sonic Verse Music Magazine (c) 1993 Christopher Vincent DeRobertis, except where noted. This magazine may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, either in whole or part, without the express written consent of Christopher Vincent DeRobertis. All questions, comments, reproduction requests, and general inquiries can be sent to the following addresses: INTERNATIONAL POSTAL SERVICE: Sonic Verse Music Magazine, ATTN: C.V. DeRobertis, P.O. Box 219, Stormville, New York, 12582-0219, U.S.A. (NOTE: Sonic Verse Music Magazine can be replaced with its short form, Sonic Verse.) ELECTRONIC MAIL SERVICES for ADMINISTRATIVE QUESTIONS and COMMENTS should be directed to: [U--D] at [MARIST.BITNET], for Bitnet links, and [U--D] at [VM.MARIST.EDU] for Internet links. STAFF: Editor, owner - C.V. "Dero" DeRobertis. Writers, researchers - Dero, Joel Kraft, Jill Troseth; Financial management - Dero, Jill Troseth DISCLAIMER: The staff and owner of Sonic Verse take no responsibility and make no claims regarding the mail order items described herein, nor does Sonic Verse state or imply any guarantees regarding the merchandise and/or services of the companies and/or individuals presented and/or reviewed and/or as expressed by individuals interviewed. Advice columns or advice oriented write-ups are not to be taken as legal consultation or legal service, but as suggestions and examples of real-world or hypothetical models. Always consult a lawyer for legal and lawful guidance. The opinions and views contained in Sonic Verse reflect those of the individual authors. The opinions, content, organization, and management of this magazine are in no way connected with the faculty and staff of Marist College. TRADEMARKS: Kryden is a registered trademark of Christopher Vincent DeRobertis. All trademarks of products, company names, logos, and/or slogans are trademarks of the respective companies, where applicable. PUBLISHING/SUBSCRIPTION: Publishing takes place the first Monday of each month, unless that Monday falls on a holiday, in which case publishing will take place on the next available 'work' day. Supplement and Special issues are published between monthly issues as events warrant. Sonic Verse levies no cost for electronic subscription. Simply send electronic mail to a computer address above, and request a subscription. NOTE: Electronic subscriptions require access to computers and computer networks. 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Store sales, promotional products, and bargain bin or budget line music items must be considered as well. Prices listed herein reflect known instances of prices before publication, taxes not necessarily included. The reader should verify direct market items by contacting the company or agency whenever address, phone number, and/or fax number information is provided. TEXT CONVENTIONS: EP and LP length recordings (i.e., full-length recordings), books, magazines, newsletters, a collection of writings, video collections, etc. appear underlined using an uppercase dash before the first character and after the last character of the title. For example, Stryper's _Against the Law_ is a musical departure from their previous releases. Titles for individual songs, singles, video singles, text quoting, individual works of literature, etc. appear between an opening and closing set of double quotes. For example, "Shining Star" was the first single from Stryper's _Against the Law_. Emphasizing or highlighting parts of text take the form of: underlining, bold facing or italicizing, exclamation, plus combinations. Examples, respectively, are: A _strange_ release. A *strange* release. A STRANGE release. A _*STRANGE*_ release. Unless text is a direct quotation, the text will appear between an opening and closing set of single quotes to reflect an implied, pseudo meaning, or sarcasm. Examples: It's a 'great' recording. Some musicians try to live the 'star' fantasy. BITNET and INTERNET FAQs: Back issues may be retrieved from the LISTSERV nodes at MARIST (Marist College) and BITNIC. To find out what data retrieval and search commands are available at the various LISTSERVs, Bitnet users can send the following interactive message to receive a LISTSERV help display: TELL LISTSERV AT HELP. 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Sonic Verse reserves the right to publish, or not publish, the contents of the correspondence. Sonic Verse also reserves the right to edit letters for length and content. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of part 6, more to follow...