The Connection (band)

The Connection
Background information
Origin Portsmouth, New Hampshire, United States
Genres Rock and roll, power pop, garage rock, indie rock
Years active 2011 (2011)–present
Labels King Yum, Collectors Club Records, S-P Records, Mooster Records, Rumble Records, Ghost Highway Records
Associated acts The Guts, Kurt Baker Band, The Queers, The New Trocaderos, Wimpy and The Medallions
Website TheConnectionOfficial.com
Members Brad Marino, Geoff Palmer, Bobby Davis, Kris "Fingers" Rodgers, Rick Orcutt
Past members Andy Casey, Chris Faulkner, Zack Sprague, Craig Sala, Adam Taylor
Notable instruments
Gibson SG, Fender Telecaster, Vox Amps with Monster Cables

The Connection is an American rock and roll and power pop band, formed in Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 2011[1] by singer-songwriters Brad Marino and Geoff Palmer. Other current members include Bobby Davis on bass, Rick Orcutt on drums, and Kris "Fingers" Rodgers on keyboards.

Goldmine Magazine placed the band's first full-length LP, 2013's Let It Rock!, on its "Top 20 Albums of 2013" list, stating, “A helping of punk energy, plenty of pop songwriting smarts and a whole lotta rock and roll attitude sums up these New Hampshire boys.”[2] A number of their tracks have been chosen by Steven Van Zandt and his Underground Garage radio station as "The Coolest Song in the World."[3]

History

Founding

Band co-founder Brad Marino on stage

The Connection was formed in Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 2011 by Geoff Palmer, 34 (as of early 2014), and Brad Marino, 27, both American singer-songwriter and guitarists,[1] who had discovered a mutual passion for the sounds of the British Invasion, Power Pop and pure Rock N Roll. The two began writing songs together in Palmer's Portsmouth living room.[1] They took the band’s name from the 1966 Rolling Stones song “Connection," just as the Stones had taken their name from "Rollin' Stone" by Muddy Waters.[1]

Palmer, formerly of The Guts and a professional musician since high school,[4] was a practiced lead, rhythm, and bass guitarist, and vocalist, by the time The Connection formed. Originally, The Connection was composed of Marino on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Palmer on lead guitar and harmony vocals, bassist Andy Casey, and drummer Chris Faulkner.[5] Faulkner left the band after the first EP, while Casey left the group after the second EP.[6] Faulkner was replaced for short periods by other drummers. Zack Sprague became the band's regular drummer in late 2012,[7] but was replaced by Rick Orcutt, formerly of The Guts, in mid-2014.

Studio Albums

New England’s Newest Hit Makers (2011)

The Connection’s first release, 2011’s New England’s Newest Hit Makers, is an eight-song EP with seven original songs written by Marino and Palmer. Track number six "Baby Doll" was written by Dee Dee Ramone and originally recorded by The Chesterfield Kings. The recording sessions used Chris Faulkner on drums and Andy Casey on bass. Like many of their other albums, it was released in Japan on SP-Records.[5] The EP’s title paid tribute to England’s Newest Hitmakers, the Rolling Stones’ first album, and the songwriting and production intentionally replicated the lo-fi sound of the early British Invasion era.[3]

New England's Newest Hit Makers was album of the summer on El Sotano Radio in Madrid, Spain in 2011.[8]

Seven Nights to Rock (2012)

The band with Steven Van Zandt

In early 2012, the group released its second EP, Seven Nights to Rock, a four-song record named after the classic rockabilly song. The title track featured Kris “Fingers” Rodgers on piano, while other covers on the EP included The Ramones' "Yeah, Yeah" and The Real Kids' “Bad To Worse”.[7]

The Seven Nights To Rock EP brought the Connection to the attention of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Steven Van Zandt,[3] founder of the Sirius XM radio station "Little Steven's Underground Garage" and original member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Also known as the character Silvio Dante from The Sopranos, Van Zandt became a prominent supporter of the group.[1] In the next 18 months, Underground Garage named five Connection songs 'The Coolest Song in the World,' and selected three other Connection originals to put into heavy rotation,[9] including the Seven Nights To Rock EP track, "I Think She Digs Me."[7] Van Zandt has stated, "The Connection gets it." [10]

Connection Collection, Vol. 1 (2012)

In December 2012, the band was named the "Best Indie/Pop/Punk/Americana Band" by its hometown newspaper.[11] That same month, the group released the eight-song EP Connection Collection, Vol. 1. The record combined the Seven Nights To Rock EP tracks with two cover songs and the newly released Comes and Goes EP, which included two Marino/Palmer-penned tracks “Comes ‘n’ Goes” and “Gonna Leave You."[3] The latter was co-produced, mixed and mastered by Ramones’ engineer and producer Ed Stasium,[12] who also played lead guitar on the song.[3]

Let It Rock! (2013)

In June 2013, The Connection’s first full-length LP Let It Rock![4] was released in the United States on King Yum Records and Collectors Club Records. By December 2013, the album was released in Spain.[13]
"Crawling From The Wreckage Of A Saturday Night"
Excerpt of "Crawling From The Wreckage Of A Saturday Night" from the band's full-length album Let It Rock!
Problems playing this file? See media help.

The record features two covers; “Connection” by the Rolling Stones, and Chuck Berry’s classic “Let it Rock."[3] The other tracks are original Marino/Palmer compositions, including the single “Crawling From The Wreckage Of A Saturday Night,” an up-tempo number that pays homage to Dave Edmunds and his 1979 Graham Parker-penned song, “Crawling from the Wreckage.”[7]

While all rock and roll, the songs on Let It Rock! are otherwise diverse in nature, and one of them incorporates touches of country music.[3] According to Marino, “Some of the songs are like the first album... that 1964 AM radio, three chord [sound], and then we have some other songs where they sound more like a 1972 Rolling Stones’ song. We have saxophone, piano...I tune my guitar to the Keith Richards tuning... we just let it rip.”[3]

Let It Rock! was album of the summer on El Sotano Radio in Madrid, Spain in 2013.[14] Goldmine Magazine named Let It Rock #14 on its Top 20 Albums of 2013, stating, “A helping of punk energy, plenty of pop songwriting smarts and a whole lotta rock and roll attitude sums up these New Hampshire boys…”[2] According to a review, "There is no one—no one—on the scene today that does rock ‘n’ roll better than The Connection. Their music takes us back to the early days of rock innocence and exuberance when people like Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry, The Rolling Stones and The Fab Four sang songs that affirmed the uncontaminated perceptions of youth... The Connection prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that rock still has its vibrance, its power and its relevance in the 21st century."[15]

A Christmas Gift For (2014)

In November 2014, the band released "A Christmas Gift For" on Rum Bar Records, all originals except "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" a Ramones cover originally included on 2011's "Rock 'n Roll Christmas" EP. Goldmine Magazine gave the album an "A-" stating that: "THE CONNECTION – CHRISTMAS COLLECTION (Rum Bar) Big faves on Little Steven’s Underground Garage, the Connection join the holiday-themed album fray with a super-strong nine-song EP composed (mainly) of originals that rock, roll, shake, pop and never resort to gimmickry. (Well, okay, maybe one of the hidden tracks does.) In short, these are really good songs that just happen to include lyrics about Christmas. Inspirational verse: 'I got enough socks, I got enough sweaters/This year I want some rock and roll records.' Amen." In December, the Underground Garage named "Christmas Time Again" a Coolest Song in the World.

Live Performances

The band often tours in the United States, especially in the Northeast, and has opened in Boston and New York City for bands such as The Flamin' Groovies, Mark Lindsay,[4] The Muffs,[1] The Real Kids,[16] The Figgs,[17] Dan Vapid and the Cheats, Paul Collins,[1] Low Cut Connie, Richie Ramone, and Muck and the Mires. The Connection also opened for the protopunk band The Standells in Dover, New Hampshire on May 7, 2014.[18]

The Connection has had two well-received tours in Europe in 2012 and 2013,[1] playing in Spain, Belgium,[3] France, and the Netherlands.[5] They've appeared on MTV.[1][19]

The band headlined two shows in New York City in late April, 2014,[20][21] Both gigs featured three supporting bands—Palmyra Delran, The Jellybricks, and John and Brittany—each of which has had one or more "Coolest Songs." The shows were co-sponsored by Little Steven's Underground Garage and Cavestomp!, and were hosted by Underground Garage DJ, New York City bar owner, and lead singer of the punk rock band The Dictators, Handsome Dick Manitoba.[22]

In November 2014, The Connection opened for Norway's all girl group The Cocktail Slippers, during a six date East Coast tour. In December 2014, the band opened twice for supergroup The Empty Hearts, the second time at B.B. King's Blues Club in New York City.

Little Steven's Underground Garage

The band was awarded its 5th Coolest Song in the World on June 30, 2014 for its cover of Honest John Plain / "The Boys" 1977 hit, "First Time", and its 6th Coolest Song in December 2014 with a Marino-Palmer original, "Christmas Time Again." The Connection's previous Coolest Songs are its cover of "Seven Nights to Rock," and Marino/Palmer originals "Comes and Goes," "Crawling From The Wreckage of A Saturday Night," and "Girls in This Town." Originals "I Think She Digs Me", "Wrong Side of 25", and "Don't Talk To My Baby" also have received substantial airplay at The Underground Garage.

Marino and Palmer are two-thirds of The New Trocaderos. The third member is Kurt Baker. On March 2, 2014, The New Trocaderos' song "The Kids" was named a Coolest Song in the World.[23] Van Zandt made the Kick Your Ass EP's track “Dream Girl,” on which Palmer handles the lead vocal, a Coolest Song in the World on January 4, 2015, premiering it on a show dedicated to The Beatles and in which he interviewed Paul McCartney.[24]

Best in Portsmouth, Best in New Hampshire

The band with The Spotlight Award

On April 24, 2014, for the second consecutive year, the band was given the Spotlight Award from the Portsmouth Herald after New England fans voted the group the Best Pop/Rock/Punk band in Portsmouth.[25]

In June 2014, in a statewide readers poll, The Connection was voted the best power pop/rock 'n roll band in New Hampshire, as announced by New Hampshire Magazine.[26] The magazine stated, "Portsmouth’s The Connection is a classic example of a band that has outgrown its hometown but still respects its roots. Widely acclaimed for a sound that harks back to the early Beatles and Stones, charged up with a dash of punk rock and a dose of sheer fun, the band has become a European sensation and was recently picked to perform for VIPs for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Spring Benefit (and for the 2014 Best of NH Party)."[26]

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum Event

In early 2014, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum selected The Connection to perform at its 11th annual “It’s Only Rock and Roll” Spring Benefit to "an exclusive audience of 1,000 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame VIPs."[10] On May 10, 2014, the event took place at Cleveland's Public Hall (Auditorium), the same venue at which the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction ceremony sometimes is held. Daryl Hall and John Oates performed later in the evening to a capacity crowd. Proceeds from the event went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum's music education activities.[27]

Collectors Club; Collaborations - The New Trocaderos

In 2012 Palmer founded Collector's Club Records with fellow New England musician Kurt Baker. The label has released albums and singles by The Connection, Baker, and Wimpy and The Medallions.[28]

The different musicians on the label frequently collaborate, and in November 2013, Marino and Palmer joined Baker to record a two-track CD as The New Trocaderos. On March 3, 2014, the New Trocaderos track “The Kids” was named a “Coolest Song In The World” by Underground Garage. In October, 2014, the band released a 3-song EP called Kick Your Ass. On January 4, 2015, a track from that EP, "Dream Girl", was named a “Coolest Song In The World” by Underground Garage.

While still playing with The Connection, Palmer also plays lead and rhythm guitar in The Kurt Baker Band.

While attending Spaulding High School in the late 1990s, Marino discovered and become a fan of Boston's Real Kids. Palmer and Marino later learned that Real Kids founder John Felice was a fan of The Connection after meeting him through an ex-drummer. They have written songs with Felice, and have opened in Boston for The Real Kids.[4]

Members

Geoff Palmer on stage
Current as of 2014
Rotating members
Past members
This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Discography

Studio albums

Year Album title Release details
2013 Let It Rock!
  • Released: June 25, 2013
  • Label: King Yum/Collectors Club (USA), SP (Japan), Ghost Highway/Rumble Records (Spain)
  • Format: Vinyl, CD, digital

EPs

Year EP title Release details
2011 New England's
Newest Hit Makers
  • Released: Sep 20, 2011
  • Label: Collectors Club Records (USA), S-P Records (Japan)
  • Format: Vinyl, CD, digital
Rock 'n' Roll Christmas
  • Released: Nov 3, 2011
  • Label: Collectors Club Records (CCR-003)
  • Format: 7" vinyl, digital
2012 Seven Nights To Rock EP
  • Released: March 13, 2012
  • Label: Collectors Club
  • Format: CD, digital
Comes and Goes EP
  • Released: 2012
  • Label: Collectors Club
  • Format: Digital, limited vinyl
Connection Collection Vol.1
  • Released: Dec 3, 2012
  • Label: King Yum/Collectors Club
  • Format: Vinyl, digital
2013 First Time EP
  • Released: Oct 21, 2013
  • Label: Collectors Club/King Yum (USA), Ghost Highway (Spain)
  • Format: Vinyl (45), digital

Singles

Year Song title Details Album
2012 "Rock N Roll Christmas"
  • Released: Oct 31, 2012
  • Label: Collectors Club
  • Format: Vinyl, digital
 Rock 'n' Roll Christmas
2013 "The Connection / The Cry"
  • Released: March 12, 2013
  • Label: Mooster (USA), S-P (Japan)
  • Format: Split 7” single
Single only
"Crawling from the Wreckage
of a Saturday Night"
  • Released: May 27, 2013
  • Label: Collectors Club
  • Format: 45 rpm Single
Promo single/
Let It Rock!
"Christmas Time Again"
  • Released: Oct 18, 2013
  • Label: Collectors Club
  • Format: Digital
Single only

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Hislop, Christopher (2013-10-24). "Well Connected: Local band finds an audience around the world". The Portsmouth Herald. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  2. 1 2 Borack, John M. (February 25, 2014). "Top 20 Releases of 2013". Goldmine Magazine. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Sullivan, Max (March 1, 2013). "The Connection: Local band going big". The New Hampshire. University of New Hampshire. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Witthaus, Michael (December 19, 2013). "Cool Connection: Portsmouth band a hit on satellite radio". Hippo Press. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  5. 1 2 3 "Album: New England's Newest Hit Makers". Bandcamp: The Connection. 5 August 2011. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  6. ↑ Snyder, David M. (September 22, 2013). "The Connection – Let It Rock!". PopDiggers. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "The Connection discography". Bandcamp. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  8. ↑ "The Connection: El nuevo grupo revelación | El Enano Rabioso Magazine". Elenanorabioso.com. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  9. ↑ "Show 588 - Fireworks A Go-Go!". Undergroundgarage.com. 2013-07-07. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  10. 1 2 "ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM Taps THE CONNECTION For Exclusive VIP Performance At Its Annual "It's Only Rock & Roll" Spring Benefit, Cleveland's "Party of the Year"". Prweb.com. 2014-03-11. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  11. ↑ "Winners of the 19th annual Spotlight Awards". The Portsmouth Herald. April 25, 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  12. ↑ "ed stasium discography". Edstasium.com. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  13. ↑ "Spin Down: Rothwell, Dreadnaught, The Connection, James Keyes, Zach Jones". Wire NH. December 11, 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  14. ↑ "El sótano - Disco del verano: The Connection, Let It Rock - 03/07/13". El Sotano Radio. March 7, 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  15. ↑ "Music Review: "Let it Rock" by The Connection". Altrockchick. July 5, 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  16. ↑ "Boston Legends The Real Kids". Boston Groupie News. December 30, 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  17. ↑ "The Connection and The Figgs". Songkick. February 21, 2014. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  18. ↑ "Standells at Dover Brick House". Songkick. 7 May 2014. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
  19. ↑ "Video: "Crawling From The Wreckage of a Saturday Night" by the Connection". MTV. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
  20. ↑ "The Connection, John & Brittany, The Jellybricks, and Palmyra Delran". Songkick. 25 April 2014. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
  21. ↑ "The Connection". Songkick. 27 April 2014. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
  22. ↑ "Palmyra Delran: Concert". Facebook. April 2014. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
  23. ↑ "Archived Shows". Undergroundgarage.com. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  24. ↑ Steven, Little (January 7, 2015). "Show 666 - Paul McCartney". Underground Garage. Retrieved 2015-01-25.
  25. ↑ Suzanne Laurent (2014-04-23). "Spotlight awards honor Seacoast's top artists". SeacoastOnline.com. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  26. 1 2 "New Hampshire Magazine's 2014 Best of NH Arts, Culture and People". Nhmagazine.com. 2014-06-01. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  27. ↑ "Hall & Oates, part of the Rock Hall's Class of 2014, to play show in the hometown of their new digs on May 10". cleveland.com. 2014-02-10. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  28. ↑ "Music | Collector's Club Records". Collectorsclubrecords.bandcamp.com. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
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