Showing posts with label Skatt Brothers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Skatt Brothers. Show all posts
June 13, 2026
December 17, 2023
January 8, 2020
45 RPMs 38: Skatt Brothers ~ Don't Be Cruel (Disco Daze 4)
~
Prentice John Delaney Jr. was born on January 8, in 1945. Known as Sean Delaney, he was an American musician, producer, road manager
and songwriter best recognized for his work with the rock band KISS (link below) from the early 1970s until the early 1980s.
date & photographer unknown
After releasing his solo album, Highway, Delaney formed a band in 1979 called Skatt Bros (link below). The band was composed of Delaney on keyboards, Pieter Sweval on bass (a member of Starz), Richard Martin-Ross on guitar, David Andez on guitar, Richie Fontana on Drums and Guitar ( a member of Piper) and Craig Krampf
on drums. Delaney had known Fontana from when he had produced the band
Piper, who had opened for KISS on the 1977 Love Gun tour.
The band released two albums: Strange Spirits (Casablanca, 1979) and Rico And The Ravens (Mercury, 1981). The second album was only released in Australia, on the strength of the band's popularity there. In support of the first album, a Village People inspired video for Life At The Outpost was filmed, created by their record company (Polygram Records in Australia), using actors to appear in the video. The members of The Skatt Bros do not appear in the video.
Because of the Strange Spirits album the band was pegged into the disco category. However, this 1980 recording of their cover of the Elvis Presley song, Don't Be Cruel, clearly places them as a rock band. However, a "sledgehammer" version (link below) of the Presley song, (Casablanca NB-2258), backed with Dancin' For the Man, puts them back in the disco mode.
The band released two albums: Strange Spirits (Casablanca, 1979) and Rico And The Ravens (Mercury, 1981). The second album was only released in Australia, on the strength of the band's popularity there. In support of the first album, a Village People inspired video for Life At The Outpost was filmed, created by their record company (Polygram Records in Australia), using actors to appear in the video. The members of The Skatt Bros do not appear in the video.
Because of the Strange Spirits album the band was pegged into the disco category. However, this 1980 recording of their cover of the Elvis Presley song, Don't Be Cruel, clearly places them as a rock band. However, a "sledgehammer" version (link below) of the Presley song, (Casablanca NB-2258), backed with Dancin' For the Man, puts them back in the disco mode.
Elvis Presley recorded Don't Be Cruel on July 2, 1956 and, again, the rest is history. Many recording artists have covered the song: Connie Francis (1959), Annette Peacock, Barbara Lynn, the Bill Black Combo, Billy Swan, Devo, Cheap Trick, Merle Haggard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Neil Diamond, Jackie Wilson (links below) and even Daffy Duck, had a go at the song.
The interesting thing about this 7" 45 RPM record is the "A" side (Side 1) is a monaural recording . . .
. . . while the other "A" side (Side 2) is a Stereo recording.
Tracklist:
A Don't Be Cruel (Mono) 3:54
B Don't Be Cruel (Stereo) 3:54
Credits:
Producer – Lee DeCarlo
Producer, Arranged By – Skatt Bros.
Written-By – Elvis Presley, Otis Blackwell
Notes:
Logo on label: "Casablanca Records and Filmworks"
Skatt Bros. – Don't Be Cruel
Label: Casablanca – NB 2258 DJ
Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Single, Mono, Stereo, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1980
Genre: Electronic, Rock, Funk / Soul
Style: Disco
Label: Casablanca – NB 2258 DJ
Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Single, Mono, Stereo, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1980
Genre: Electronic, Rock, Funk / Soul
Style: Disco
Sean Delaney died on April 13, 2003, in Utah and is buried
in the city of Orem. A diabetic, he had suffered a
series of strokes before his death.
Viewfinder links:
Elvis Presley ~ Don't Be Cruel
Skatt Brothers ~ Don't Be Cruel
January 7, 2020
January 6, 2020
Sean Delaney articles/mentions
Connie Francis article/mentions
~Elvis Presley ~
All Shook Up & Otis Blackwell
Don't Be Cruel
Skatt Brothers ~ Don't Be Cruel
Connie Francis - 1960
photographer unknown
July 31, 2017
Gay Gaze 'n Daze
Beemer Memories
World AIDS Days
Books/magazines
Drummer Magazine ~ 1978
Tamotsu Yato ~ Young Samurai: Bodybuilders of Japan
Film
Death In Venice ~ 1971
Midnight Cowboy ~ 1969
Kiss of the Spider Woman ~ 1985
Music
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ~ 1893
Edith Piaf ~ Milord & the Paper Doll ~ 1959
Stephin Merritt ~ 1965
Jobriath ~ 1983
Klaus Nomi ~ 1983
Philip Glass ~ Mishima ~ 1985
Liberace ~ 1987
Van Cliburn ~ 2013
Misc.
Leatherneck bar, San Francisco ~ 1978
Yukio Mishima - A Man of Honor ~ 1970
Jim Stewart ~ 2018
photos by Styrous®
July 20, 2012
20,000 vinyl LPs 4: The Skatt Brothers - Disco Daze
I started the Vinyl LP series because I have over 20,000 albums I am selling; each blog entry of the series is about an album from my collection. Inquire for more info.
At the apex of the Disco rage, late in 1979, The Skatt Brothers issued an album entitled, "Strange Spirits". The title song was my favorite but it was "Walk the Night" and "Life at the Outpost" that were their big hits. "Walk the Night" reached #9 on the Billboard chart.
(click on any image to see larger size)
The Skatt Brothers was formed in Los Angeles by Sean Delaney. The group was similar to the Village People (remember them?) but never reached the same exposure (notoriety?). It was, however, extremely popular in Australia for some reason. The album was recorded in Toronto, Canada.
back cover detail
photo of album back cover detail by Styrous®
The line-up was:
Sean Delaney (keyboards)
Pieter Sweval (bass)
Richard Martin-Ross (guitar)
Richie Fontana (drums, guitar)
David Andez (guitar)
Craig Krampf (drums)
There is an animated interpretation of the song "Walk the Night" on uTube.
The original 1980 Australian music video for "Life at the Outpost" can also be seen on YouTube. The men dancing in the video are not the real Skatt Brothers but Australian male models (for some reason they did not want to appear in the video). It's fun watching it, however, from this vantage in time (30 years later) it is a bit dated.
The album was released by Casablanca Records; Casablanca was a major label for disco music in the late 70's.
The original 1980 Australian music video for "Life at the Outpost" can also be seen on YouTube. The men dancing in the video are not the real Skatt Brothers but Australian male models (for some reason they did not want to appear in the video). It's fun watching it, however, from this vantage in time (30 years later) it is a bit dated.
The album was released by Casablanca Records; Casablanca was a major label for disco music in the late 70's.
Standard record sleeve
used by Casablanca records.
photo of record sleeve by Styrous®
Casablanca launched the careers of KISS*, Donna Summer*†, Parliament, The Funkadelics*†, Angel and the Village People but also recorded Cher, The Sylvers, Buddy Miles, Giorgio Moroder*†, Santa Esmeralda*† and many others. The Casablanca film division produced the films, "The Deep", "Midnight Express"*†, "Foxes" and "The Hollywood Knights". Casablanca Records was purchased by PolyGram after which the label went into decline. Visit the Casablanca website to see more Casablanca Records videos. Be warned, however, it takes forever to get the pages to open.
The Skatt Brothers vinyl LP label detail, side 1
photo by Styrous®
Sean Delaney would go on to work with members of the hard rock band, Kiss, Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley, Gene Simmons and Peter Criss. David Andez would work with The Village People.
When I recently found the videos on YouTube, I wrote to a friend, "I just came across this song [Walk the Night] on YouTube. Although it was played in every gay bar in existence, it was the anthem of the leather crowd in 1979/80. I remember being totally ripped out of my mind with a friend in a bar somewhere and fiercely dancing to it like there was no tomorrow. It [the video] brings back wonderful memories of a new, free and exotic world that seemed to have no end; or so we thought at the time."
*† Another blog entry for this album may come in the future.
The Skatt Brothers vinyl LP label detail, side 1
photo by Styrous®
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 - Dancin' For The Man, written by Sean Delaney* - 3:46
A2 - Fear Of Flying, written by W. Morrison* - 3:44
A3 - Midnight Companion, written by Pieter Sweval, Sean Delaney - 3:25
A4 - Walk The Night, written by D. Andez*, Richie Fontana - 3:53
Side 2:
B1 - Strange Spirits, written by Pieter Sweval - 4:21
B2 - Someone's Taken My Baby, written by Pieter Sweval, R. Martin-Ross*, Sean Delaney - 4:29
B3 - Life At The Outpost, written by Pieter Sweval, Sean Delaney - 4:56
B4 - Old Enough, written by Pieter Sweval, Sean Delaney - 5:43
Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Phase One Studios
Mastered At – Sterling Sound
Manufactured By – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Distributed By – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Published By – Skattsongs
Published By – Ample Parking Publications
Produced For – Three Hats Productions
Credits:
Arranged By [All Arrangements, Vocals Arrangements] – Pete Pedersen, The Skatt Bros.*
Art Direction – Phyllis Chotin
Bass – Pieter Sweval
Design – Gribbitt!
Drums – Craig Krampf, Richie Fontana
Engineer [First] – George Semkiw
Guitar – Richard Martin-Ross
Guitar [Lead] – David Andez
Keyboards – Sean Delaney
Mastered By – George Marino
Performer [Auxialiary Musicians] – Barry Keane, Brian Russell, Carl Marsh (2), Errol Thomas, Michael Toles
Photography By – Dean Tokuno
Producer – Ian Guenther - Willi Morrison*
Producer [Produced With] – The Skatt Bros.*
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Other (Pressing Plant ID): 26
Rights Society (A1, A3 to B4): ASCAP
Rights Society (A2): CAPAC
Matrix / Runout (A-Side Label): NBLP 7192 AS
Matrix / Runout (B-Side Label): NBLP 7192 BS
Matrix / Runout (A-Side Runout Etching): NBLP-7192-A3-PRC-C-3RE 1-11 MUSIC FOR MISS THING STERLING
Matrix / Runout (B-Side Runout Etching): NBLP-7192-BS-PRC-C-3RE 1-1 I LOVE PAUL STERLING
Skatt Bros. – Strange Spirits
Label: Casablanca – NBLP 7192
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: US
Released: 1979
Genre: Rock, Funk / Soul
Style: Pop Rock, Disco
Side 1:
A1 - Dancin' For The Man, written by Sean Delaney* - 3:46
A2 - Fear Of Flying, written by W. Morrison* - 3:44
A3 - Midnight Companion, written by Pieter Sweval, Sean Delaney - 3:25
A4 - Walk The Night, written by D. Andez*, Richie Fontana - 3:53
Side 2:
B1 - Strange Spirits, written by Pieter Sweval - 4:21
B2 - Someone's Taken My Baby, written by Pieter Sweval, R. Martin-Ross*, Sean Delaney - 4:29
B3 - Life At The Outpost, written by Pieter Sweval, Sean Delaney - 4:56
B4 - Old Enough, written by Pieter Sweval, Sean Delaney - 5:43
Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Phase One Studios
Mastered At – Sterling Sound
Manufactured By – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Distributed By – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Casablanca Record and Filmworks, Inc.
Published By – Skattsongs
Published By – Ample Parking Publications
Produced For – Three Hats Productions
Credits:
Arranged By [All Arrangements, Vocals Arrangements] – Pete Pedersen, The Skatt Bros.*
Art Direction – Phyllis Chotin
Bass – Pieter Sweval
Design – Gribbitt!
Drums – Craig Krampf, Richie Fontana
Engineer [First] – George Semkiw
Guitar – Richard Martin-Ross
Guitar [Lead] – David Andez
Keyboards – Sean Delaney
Mastered By – George Marino
Performer [Auxialiary Musicians] – Barry Keane, Brian Russell, Carl Marsh (2), Errol Thomas, Michael Toles
Photography By – Dean Tokuno
Producer – Ian Guenther - Willi Morrison*
Producer [Produced With] – The Skatt Bros.*
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Other (Pressing Plant ID): 26
Rights Society (A1, A3 to B4): ASCAP
Rights Society (A2): CAPAC
Matrix / Runout (A-Side Label): NBLP 7192 AS
Matrix / Runout (B-Side Label): NBLP 7192 BS
Matrix / Runout (A-Side Runout Etching): NBLP-7192-A3-PRC-C-3RE 1-11 MUSIC FOR MISS THING STERLING
Matrix / Runout (B-Side Runout Etching): NBLP-7192-BS-PRC-C-3RE 1-1 I LOVE PAUL STERLING
Skatt Bros. – Strange Spirits
Label: Casablanca – NBLP 7192
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: US
Released: 1979
Genre: Rock, Funk / Soul
Style: Pop Rock, Disco
The entire collection is for sale. Interested? Contact Styrous®
Enjoy, Styrous® July 20, 2012
~
~
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)