I was introduced to Walter Clevenger's music in a very curious fashion. Sometime in 1995, I received an out-of-the-blue e-mail from Mister C., who apparently had found my name in a random search for pop music fans on America Online. He described his music as being influenced by Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, The Beat (the Paul Collins variety, thank you) and Teenage Fanclub. I was intrigued. I wanted to hear more.

About 39 (or so) hours later, a cassette titled "PoPgOeStHeMuSiC" popped into my mailbox. I put it in the cassette player, where it resided comfortably for the next three weeks or so. To put it mildly, I was floored! And I had questions: "Whaddaya mean, this was done in you bedroom on a Tascam 8-track?" Yeah, right, are you SURE that's not Nick Lowe sing lead on "Angels"? Come on Walter, where'd you come from?

Here's the story…

It seems Walter Clevenger grew up listening to a passel full of country artists like George Jones, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, and Patsy Cline, as well as some group called the Beatles. After his dad gave the budding popster a gee-tar at age 14, it was off to the races.

Clevenger's first band was a Beatles tribute band called Norwegian Wood, where he filled the role of George Harrison (no word on whether that meant he had to convert to Krishna…). After NW went to that place where all Beatles tribute combos go to die, Walter played in a succession of cover bands until 1992.

Walter began writing songs seriously that year, after a friend introduced him to the music 'n' mirth of Nick Lowe. "I was instantly hooked," says Walter. "His music brought together so perfectly everything I loved. It was the perfect marriage of country and pop."

After sweating over his Tascam for three years (yep, it is in his bedroom!), Walter released the aforementioned, "PoPgOeStHeMuSiC" as a limited cassette in 1995. The tape alternated between pure, unadulterated pop magic a la Marshall Crenshaw ("X-ray Eyes," "Yesterday Come Back"), a little bar-room country (the hilarious "I Don't Like Your Face (Just Git)") and some Rockpile-like goodies ("Angels" and "Love You Like A King") where Walter asks himself the musical question "How Lowe can you go?"

And the critics went ga-ga: "When this guy's a star, remember where you heard about him first," gushed Carl Cafarelli in Goldmine. "A serious foray into the world of sugary sweet pop," said the Internet Music Review Service. BAM Magazine called Walter's music "quintessential power-pop," while The Orange County Register said, "There are a ton of things to admire about Walter Clevenger's 14-song debut." And lest you think that only we Yanks are hip to the Clevenger sound, Spain's Snap!! Magazine stated: "Verdaderamente magnifico, si señor." I think that means they dug it too.

After quickly selling out of the 250 copies of the tape, Walter decided to take his show on the road, so he formed The Dairy Kings with bassist Henry Clift, drummer Mike Fernandez (who used to bash the skins in Norwegian Wood) and newest member Steve Bancroft on lead guitar. They made their live bow at the first-annual Poptopia Festival in Los Angeles in January of 1996, and were met with an enthusiastic response. Since then, WC and the boys have played out in Los Angeles, Orange (the band's home), and San Diego counties.

One of the tunes from Walter's tape, the Nick Lowe-influenced "Angels," was included on a compilation of Los Angeles-area pop bands titled Closet Pop Freak - Guide To A New Music Underground on Pop-Psycle Records. Also included on the comp were such L.A. stalwarts as the Sugarplastic, Baby Lemonade, and the Wondermints.

1996 saw Walter contribute a cover of Badfinger's "Better Days" to Copper Music's Come And Get It: A Tribute To Badfinger. Appearing alongside Walter were heavyweights such as Adrian Belew, Dwight Twilley, The Knack, Aimee Mann, and Al Kooper.

After fielding offers from other labels, Walter found a home with Permanent Press Recordings (home of Klaatu, The VanDelecki's, Bob Segarini, and The Carpet Frogs), who will release his debut CD, The Man With The X-ray Eyes. Comprised of most of the tracks that were on PoP… along with four brand, spankin' new tunes (personal faves being the stately ballad "Cries of Desperation" and the absolutely BLISTERING "Love (A Misunderstood Thing)"), Walter Clevenger's debut disc should help propel him out of his bedroom and into your stereo, pronto.

John M. Borack

Goldmine Magazine

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