Whatever became of Steve Simels

I think I've sung Simels' praises here in the past. He is a man who properly appreciates a jangly guitar. And I'll always be grateful to him for convincing me to buy my first Richard Thompson albums in the 1980s.

I remember finding the man vaguely annoying - maybe for being too self-promotional- but I was a rabid reader of his magazine.

 

I remember Steve back in the seventies making an enlightened Neil Young comment that has stuck with me all these years. It went something like: "Yes, Neil Young may indeed be a bozo, but he's a great bozo!"

 

Exactly ... ditto here. CD REVIEW and ICE were my go-to magazines back in the '80s. It was a great day when either one (or both!) appeared in my mailbox.

 

Mr. CD Review? Yes ! Loved the magazine when he ran it but man ! I think that guy was a bit nuts ! And more than a bit proud of it ...

 

Well....she was !

Yeah. Read Stereo Review back in the day. And Simels was one of my favorite critics...

 

Back in the late 70s, a subscription to Stereo Review was $5 per year. I was 15 or 16 and got it pretty much only for the record reviews.

I remember his stumping for Tonio K and he had some great line about Bonnie Raitt that he would ditch his entire life and go with her on tour forever if only she would ask.

 

He totally dissed Television's Marquee Moon when it first came out, saying something like it was a production triumph only that made the songs sound better than they actually were. And because I believed in Simmels reviews, I passed as well.

But when Television's second album Adventure came out, he not only praised it but admitted in print that he was totally wrong about Marquee Moon and now loved it . A critic who publically admitted that they were wrong? That impressed me.

I bought both.

So, I can say that Steve turned me onto Television, still one of my favorite bands ...

P.S. Love Dreamtime and Shoot Out the Lights as well...

 

Steve mailed me a copy of Big Star's "Radio City" back in '74. I still have it.

 

Exactly ! ...

 

LOL I remember both of those ....

 

This forum dweller knows these posts to be ancient scripture, but of the cognoscente. Reading Steve's stuff is an adventure amounting to mental hang gliding. One never knows quite where the currents will take you, but the scene below is always a treat. As a drummer who played with him for many years, I want to spill a few beans about his activities, past and present. Steve is a talented guitarist, but humorously modest. It is like gigging with Groucho (or Woody) with a well-tuned, versatile, fluid ax, and a great ear. He has had a number of bands--notably, The Weasels and The Hounds. The Hounds (not those Hounds--they came after us) did a bunch of gigs at CBGB where Debbie Harry (with The Stilettos, late called Blondie) opened for us one night. Our recording began during college circa 1970 in the Brill Building, then a small Brooklyn studio, an NJ community college radio studio, and then Electric Lady Recording Studios. Steve got all this remastered recently and gave it to somebody to send to some radio stations. As of January 8, 2018 we were #2 of the Radio Indie Alliance network and, subsequently, two of our tunes made the #29 of the top 30 most frequently played indie works on 365 Radio Network. "The Album We Never Made" by The Hounds will get you past the later groups on Youtube, Discogs, iTunes, and the other major outlets. Hope you enjoyed the update on just a little of what Steve has been at these years.
PS I know this forum because I am on the audiophile end of the spectrum!

 

Surely a sarcastic review right there

 

Steve is my RL friend. I just emailed him a link to this thread, though I'm guessing he was already aware of it.

P.S. And why is everyone spelling his name name wrong? Is that some kind of thing?

 

I really miss Stereo Review, had good tight record reviews in classical, rock, and jazz, and you could read the damn thing.. try reading Rolling Stone (though the political stuff is very sharp and Peter Travers, the movie reviewer, is worth the price of the magazine).
I REALLY miss it, especially since you could read about all three in the same magazine, now is it Gramophone and Mojo/Shindig for me, and don't get exposed to a lot of jazz reviews at all...

 

Steve Simels turned me on to Procol Harum's Grand Hotel. Called them The Finest Band in Christendom.

Then again, he correctly called Something Magic by the proper name; Something Tragic.

 

Isn't he the one that did that famous two word review of Shark Sandwich?

 

Those words being... ?
(I am guessing eat shark?)

 

Yeah, but...whatever happened to him...? Joined the service? Selling Amway? Won the Publishers' Clearing House Sweepstakes? Moved into Don van Villiets' old single-wide out in the desert...?

...became a Monk, and took the Vow of Silence...?