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Mother Neff

Members: Clark Crawford, Corbin Supak, Kent Metschan, & Simon O’Leary

​Ex-Members: Scott Robertson, Suzy Ferguson, & Lana Williamson

Years: 1989-1991

Biography

When I started attending Westwood High School in the fall of 1989, I was still very much into heavy metal bands like Metallica and Megadeth. Shortly after my arrival, I was approached by a Junior with blue hair named Corbin. Someone had told him that I played bass and he asked me if I would be interested in joining his band. When I asked him what type of music they played he simply gave me a cassette tape of songs he wanted me to learn and the address where they would be practicing the following weekend. The cassette contained songs by The Smiths, The Cure, REM, Joy Division, and U2. With the exception of U2, I had never listened to any of these bands and was a bit skeptical. My skepticism quickly vanished after my first listen, as I was immediately struck by how great the bass lines were. I promptly learned how to play all of the songs and met them for practice the following Sunday. The rehearsal went very well and I was asked to join Mother Neff (aka The Hedge Animals, Stained Glass Statues, et al). I spent the next two years practicing and playing with the group but more importantly, my taste in music would never be the same.

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While we did pen a few original songs, the majority of our efforts were focused on playing covers for our friends at various parties.

The Peppermint Lounge (1990)

On May 27, 1990, we played a bar in Temple, TX called the Peppermint Lounge. This was the biggest show we ever played and our only recorded performance. During this period, we were in a state of ever-changing band names and were billed as the Hedge Animals. The venue was quite reminiscent of “Bob’s Country Bunker” from the 1980 film, The Blues Brothers. The place was filled with roughly 100 of our friends and about half a dozen locals. The locals spent the evening sitting at the bar, chain-smoking, pounding Budweisers, and occasionally looking towards the stage with very perplexed looks on their faces. We had a blast and frankly, i guess that is all that really mattered.

 

We played two sets divided by a short intermission. Here is a listing of the tracks we played along with videos of some of the highlights.

 

Set 1

I Will Follow (U2)

Jumping Someone Else’s Train (The Cure)

Orange Crush (R.E.M.)

Girlfriend In a Coma (The Smiths)

Warsaw (Joy Division)

Three Imaginary Boys (The Cure)

Suedehead (Morrissey)

Begin the Begin (R.E.M.)

A Strange Day (The Cure)

  1.  

Intermission

Black Boys on Mopeds (Sinead O’Connor)

There’s Only One [excerpt] (Tones on Tail)

Linus and Lucy

Theme from The Muppet Show

  1.  

Set 2

A Forest (The Cure)

Colony (Joy Division)

Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before (The Smiths)

Primary (The Cure)

Blues From a Gun (The Jesus & Mary Chain)

The One I Love (R.E.M.)

Killing an Arab (The Cure)

Ceremony (New Order)

Begin The Begin (R.E.M)
Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before (The Smiths)
Ceremony (New Order)
Miscellaneous Debris
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