Teaze: Tour of Japan (1978)

This album cover always reminds me of Spinal Tap ... maybe Nigel, David, and Derek rejected it before Teaze got hold of it?

In all seriousness, Teaze's rather obviously named Tour of Japan is something like the 'Bizarro World' equivalent to Cheap Trick's At Budokan: same concept, same year, same hysterical Japanese girls ... minus the record sales, critical acclaim, and immortality.

But hey, three out of six ain't bad (well, its exactly HALF bad, in'it?), especially for a band making its first major foray outside their Canadian homeland in search of a similar career spark from a country that similarly couldn't get enough of Western hard rock groups in the late '70s.

Indeed, whether they were packing the famed Budokan or, in this case, Tokyo's Nakano Sun Plaza, Japanese fans sure knew how to make a band look good -- and feel good, as Teaze members Brian Danter (vocals, bass), Mark Bradac (guitar), Chuck Price (guitar), and Mike Kozak (drums) no doubt relished their brief taste of Far East Beatlemania.

They also took no prisoners here, with a powerful performance that went a long way towards refuting any glam rock ties (their colorful wardrobe notwithstanding) via surprisingly heavy fare like "Lady Killer," "Baby Why Can't U," and "On the Loose."

Tellingly, the band's first and only hit, the love song "Sweet Misery," was intentionally omitted lest it sap any energy from their barnstorming set ... although Danter's vaguely religious "Open My Eyes" (*) almost committed the same error.

Luckily, Teaze quickly raised the energy level and kept the audience engaged with the infectious "Boys Nite Out" and thoroughly rocked them to the finish line with a pair of raucous encores in "Gonna Have a Good Time Tonite" and "Hot to Trot."

And then a familiar script played out, since, like Trick's Budokan, Tour of Japan sold well enough in Asia and Europe to secure Teaze their long-desired U.S. deal with Capitol Records, which promptly reissued it stateside, then financed its studio follow-ups, '79's One Night Stands (**) and '80's Body Shots.

Alas, Teaze obviously didn't benefit from the same strategy that took Cheap Trick to the next level, but who's to say that script wasn't flipped in an alternate dimension or two?

In more practical terms, if you haven't already taken any chances with the Teaze catalog, might I suggest getting started with Tour of Japan, as these live versions (surely enhanced by judicious mixing and overdubbing after the fact) largely trump the studio originals in terms of both energy and excitement.

* He would later quit the group to become a pastor.

** Disappointingly diluted by producer Myles Goodwyn, of April Wine.

Teaze: Teaze (1977)

One of several, overlooked and underrated ‘70s Canadian hard rock bands NOT named Rush, Teaze hailed from Windsor, Ontario, meaning they were close enough to smell the pungent fumes of Detroit’s automotive industry and to hear the echoes of its legendary rock ‘n’ roll breeding grounds.

What’s more, though their moniker screamed glam rock and band members Brian Danter (vocals, bass), Mark Bradac (guitar), Chuck Price (guitar), and Mike Kozak (drums) look sort of like The Bay City Rollers on that album cover, this modest but powerful debut was largely stripped of gimmickry or pretense.

To wit, fierce bar brawlers like “Flames Keep Growing” and “Come On, Hold On” contained extended instrumental passages indicative of their sweaty birth on small club stages, while no-fuss riff chuggers like “Rockin’ with the Music” and “Hot to Trot” embraced their own clichés for maximum, Saturday-night-at-the-club enjoyment.

On the few instances in which some commercial aspirations and glam rock subtleties did creep into catchier fare such as “Boys Night Out” and “Dirty Sweet Loving,” the implicit promise was of bad-boy behavior à la Mott the Hoople, rather than the fey androgyny of a Bowie, Bolan, or The New York Dolls. 

And, though you’d never mistake Teaze’s debut for a must-own, misfires like “Believe in Rock ‘n’ Roll" (which merely gave a harder rock slap to Bachman-Turner Overdrive's sugary boogie) and the lackluster “Open My Eyes” (with its oddly religious lyrics -- a sign of Danter’s future as a minister) were thankfully rare. 

All of which made Teaze’s first offering, shall we say, cautiously promising, except for the absence of a bona fide hit, which the band would carry on chasing to no avail (except in Japan, where this LP was obviously pressed) over the next few years.

What a Teaze ...

p.s. -- Some of these words evolved from my All-Music Guide review of Teaze’s first album.

Jerrie: That’d suck because you can’t microwave metal.

Teazer: *holds up note that says ‘I love you’ with a cat doodle*

Victoria: Oh that explains this then

Teaze ‎– One Night Stands

Sello: Capitol Records ‎– ST-11919, Aquarius Records ‎– ST-11919

Formato: Vinyl, LP, Album

País: US

Publicado: 1979

Género: Rock