The GRODES

Without question, Tucson, Arizona’s Grodes deserved a national hit. While probably best known for the original version of the classic garage punk opus “Let’s Talk About Girls” (released as by the Tongues of Truth), the Grodes were equally as adept with ballads - as “Love is a Sad Song” and “It’s True What They Say” clearly demonstrated. The group’s versatility resulted in numerous local smash hits but could never pave the way for national recognition. As the band continued to progress (even recording a single using the name Spring Fever), they added a female vocalist but, unfortunately, it did little to assist in their break through. Today, however, the band is highly revered by collectors and fans of 1960’s music, and they on occasion still continue to perform to delighted crowds.

For more information on Manny, check out his new website...

An Interview with Manny Fresier

60sgaragebands.com (60s): How did you first get interested in music?

Manny Freiser (MF): I started writing songs to serenade girls in late high school and early college. The English Invasion groups like the Beatles, Stones, Pacemakers, Zombies, and Dave Clark 5 inspired me.

60s: Were you in a band prior to joining the Grodes?

MF: No. I recorded in Los Angeles as a solo (artist), produced by Jerry Kasenetz (later of Kasenetz/Katz fame). It was never released and, when Kasenetz left Tucson, he asked his college roommate, Jerry Bruckheimer, to find me a band. Yes, it was Jerry Bruckheimer who introduced me to a band named the Hustlers - soon to be renamed the Grodes.

60s: Okay - Is the band's name pronounced like "Gro-dees"?

MF: Nope - it's 'Grodz' with a long O. Rick Lust and I came up with the name one drunken evening in a Los Angeles motel.

60s: Were you familiar with the Hustlers prior to joining the group?

MF: I just told you the logistics of how we met. But the reasons that motivated us: I was looking for a band to play my songs with; they were looking for someone who wrote original songs. I had never heard of them prior to the first meeting - and honestly can't recall how Jerry Bruckheimer found them.

60s: How did you get the opportunity to go to Los Angeles in '64 to record "I Won't Be There"?

MF: Before I ever met The Grodes - in October '64 - Jerry Kasenetz took me to Sunset Western in Los Angeles to record "I Won't Be There", my first master. The brash Kasenetz kept reminding me that he was spending $2,000 on me to record, and that I was gonna be a big star. That night, I met drummer Mike Friedman's friend, Mike Borchetta, and his friend, Joe Saraceno (producer of The Ventures, Marketts, and Sunshine Company), who would later produce Patti and me as Fire & Rain in the '70's. Studio musician, Gary Paxton, (aka Hollywood Argyles and Skip & Flip) played bass and lead guitar. We took a break during recording. The guys all went into the next studio and came back to report that my record was much better than the recording being done next door. They told me, "Some guy who says he's Jerry Lewis' son is recording some song about a 'diaming ring'; it'll never make it." Of course, "This Diamond Ring" went to the top of the charts. It's an understatement to say that "I Win't Be There" didn't; in fact, it was never released until it was inaccurately included on the Bomp/Voxx reissue collection.

60s: Whatever happened to that version of "I Won't Be There"? Why was it never released?

MF: There were two versions of “I Won't Be There”. To me, the first is by far the best. It was recorded at Western on Sunset before I ever met the Grodes. Jerry Kasenetz produced it. We used the legendary Gary Paxton (“Cherry Pie” and “Alley Oop”) as a studio guitarist (we chose him over another studio guitarist, Glenn Campbell - both were $50 for the day). Ii was to be called by 'Randy Buckingham and the Palace Guard' because Kasenetz thought I had an English sound. He shopped it, but we never got a deal. I thought it should be included on the 'reissue' albums even though it was not technically a reissue. The other, rushed and frantic version was the flip of “Uh Huh Girl”.

60s: What was the usual inspiration for your songwriting? Did you have one?

MF: Usually love gone badly, doesn't it seem? I was never political and was usually into…well…girls - maybe 'into' should be replaced with 'obsessed.' I wrote to girls I wanted but couldn't have, to girls I was going with or married to (I'm currently married to my third wife), I wrote a lot to girls who left me - and even to girls I dreamed up...

60s: Which one of the songs you wrote for the Grodes is your favorite?

MF: I don't know about one favorite but I liked “Uh Huh Girl” a lot as well as “It's True What They Say” and “Give Me Some Time” and “Sand”. I hated (the recording values of) “Love Is A Sad Song” (too dry), “Let's Talk About Girls” (too tinny).

60s: Where did the Grodes typically play?

MF: We played loads of fraternity parties at the University of Arizona (including 'Spring Formals', where students dressed in nothing but loincloths partied until they puked out in the desert); we played all of the notable local clubs at the time: the Dunes, the Embers, the Cedars; we played for any private party that people would hire us for...

60s: How far out did the Grodes usually play?

MF: The furthest I recall traveling was to a high school graduation gig in Silver City, New Mexico. Basically, we had a very limited 'touring territory' – Tucson and the small surrounding towns like Eloy and Marana. We may have played a gig at a club (the Red Dog?) in Phoenix but it may have been an audition...

60s: How popular locally did the Grodes become?

MF: It seemed that the Dearly Beloved (more similar to Beatles in their approach, as you know) were the top band. They certainly thought so - and I'll give 'em that. The Grodes (more in a Stones mode) were probably the number two group - although I like to think we gave 'em a run for their money. Both groups had strong following and lots of records on the local charts. The Lewallyn Bros (similar in style to Four Seasons) were in the top four as was the Five of Us.

60s: The Dearly Beloved were "competitors", yet they were able to snag the Grodes’ Rick Mellinger to play drums for them. How did that happen?

MF: Mellinger - aka Cable von Marr (named that by fellow Native, Paul Malanga long before he was with either the Dearly Beloved or the Grodes) - was without a doubt the strongest drummer in town (with the possible exception of a legendary guy named Rusty Terry - who never recorded that I know of). He joined the Grodes because we were comin' up; we had some records on the radio and mainly because we had a pretty good amount of work by then. I'll never forget his 'audition' with us. After some back and forth at the rehearsal about which song we would jam on, we all agreed on “Summer In the City”. As you know, it starts with the keyboards and when Cable hit that first drumbeat, it was like thunder! Of course, when the 'number one' band, the Dearly Beloved, needed a drummer, it was a pretty easy choice for Cable (that traitor) to go with the band that seemed to have a national record contract with Columbia just heating up. Keep in mind that we (including the Dearly Beloved) were all 'friends' - that is, we all kept good relationships even though we grumbled a bit.

60s: Where did the Grodes' record your singles?

MF: We recorded some at Duane Eddy's Audio Recorders in Phoenix (“Uh Huh Girl”, “Love Is A Sad Song”, etc.), a couple in Emperor Hudson’s ridiculously inadequate studio in Los Angeles (he recorded vocals on Sure PA mikes, for god sake!); “Let's Talk About Girls” was recorded there. Our last single, “Sand”, featuring Patti Grode, who had just joined, was recorded at Forster Cayce's Copper Sate Recording Studio in Tucson.

60s: The first two Grodes' release was on the Tri-M label. How exactly were you involved with that?

MF: That's a good one. Our friend and drummer on the original “ Won't Be There”, Mike Friedman (later producer of Todd Rundgren, manager of Bob Dylan and Clive Davis' assistant; at the same time I was Gil Friesen's assistant at A&M) knew a fast talker named Mike Borchetta, who told us he worked for RCA. We of course were excited. We later found out he worked for the appliance division of RCA (he has since become a major country executive in Nashville). Borchetta had a brainstorm for “Uh Huh Girl”: "Let's put it out ourselves!" He got his friend, unemployed actor Cass Martin, to 'go in' with us and we decided on the name Tri-M. Borchetta told me the cost of pressing the singles was $300 - and we'd each contribute $100 each. I paid my $100 - and found out later that the entire cost was $100.

60s: The Grodes backed the Stumps on a single. Do you recall anything about that band?

MF: This one is fun. The Stumps were apparently a band from Ohio. Dan Gates, our manager and local deejay, liked their song and their vocal abilities, but asked the Grodes to 'be the Stumps' instrumentally. We did so at Audio Recorders in Phoenix, even adding background harmonies. We never met the guy(s) who sang lead.

60s: At the risk of asking a question that you’ve probably answered a thousand times previously…what is the complete story on the Tongues of Truth?

MF: Dan Gates used to preview our records on KTKT the minute we finished recording. The day we returned from recording “Let's Talk About Girls”, he told us "listen to the radio at six tonight. I'm gonna play your record." As we listened, Dan introduced a new single '"from a mysterious new band called the Tongues of Truth." Our jaws dropped…in unison. We wanted to strangle the jerk. Of course, now we thank Dan for the name. But at the time, we simply threatened his life - and went back to being the Grodes. “Let's Talk” was the only record from us as the Tongues of Truth.

60s: What is your opinion on the Choclate Watchband's version of "Let's Talk About Girls"?

MF: I loved it! I thought it was a better version than ours. I liked our version but I really hated the sound from Hudson's studio. We were obviously doing a kind of Stones-style version and I thought it could have been great if it hadn't been for the dinky, tinny, thin sound. The Chocolate Watchband version had power, I thought; I liked the vocal a lot. None of the other versions of the song match the Chocolate Watchband’s in my opinion.

60s: Were you aware in the '60's that the Watchband recorded the song, or did you find about it much later?

MF: I was working at A&M Records in 1980, when a co-worker who had been a record collector asked me, "Are you the Manny Freiser?" I answered, "Why? Do I owe you money?" I had no idea about any of this but he brought in the Nuggets LP and I was blown away. There was my song with my name under it - and I had no clue. I eventually remembered that, after “Let's Talk” quickly tanked in Tucson (most of our records went Top 10 but “Let's Talk” topped out at #37), Dan Gates told me that the Standells wanted to record the song. Already a cynic, I just signed over the publishing and said, “Whatever." I later heard that the Standells recorded the song but then broke up. Apparently Ed Cobb then took the song to another one of his groups, the Chocolate Watchband.

60s: Why was your last single released as by Spring Fever?

MF: We thought we ought to change the name to set a new tone for the band when Patti McCarron joined. She was sexy - and we thought the name was kind of…well, sexy.

60s: Why did you feel the need to add Patti at that time?

MF: Dan Gates called me one day and said, "There's this kid I saw singing with a terrible band but she’s amazing and you've gotta hear her.” I told him, "We don't want any chicks in the band - that's not our sound." He convinced me to listen. Demure Patti showed up at my apartment with her dad. I heard her sing. I was amazed. We added her immediately.

60s: Did the Grodes make any local TV appearances?

MF: Yes - one or two but I can't recall the names of the shows. I just remember bad lip-synching.

60s: What year and why did the band break up?

MF: August 1968. Two basic reasons: difference in goals: Patti and I thought we should go to Los Angeles to try to 'make it'; the rest of the band thought we had more chance to break out of Tucson because Los Angeles was such a rat race with so many others trying to make it. The other reason was strife over leadership of the band. When the band was bad in the early days, we were best buddies; when we started getting good, and there was something worth fighting over, we did exactly that. I won't tell you who was on which side - except to say that I was right. (laughs)

60s: Did the Grodes continue on after you and Patty left for Los Angeles?

MF: Not really. They played one gig after I left - with Val Valentino as lead singer - along with Patti, whose last gig it was. It was a disaster. The insane father of the boys whose band Patti had left to come to the Grodes showed up and threw Dale Smith off the stage, injuring him.

60s: What keeps you busy today?

MF: I'm a business owner. My wife's a veterinarian and we own a vet hospital in Chatsworth, California. I also still write and record; I just finished a ProTools CD with 18 new songs.

60s: Why do you think the Grodes weren't able to break out nationally?

MF: It takes so many things in addition to the music itself coming into synch at exactly the same time in order to break out: timing, luck, politics, connections, etc. Apparently we didn't have all of those ducks in a row.

60s: How do you best summarize your experiences with the Grodes?

MF: It was a most important and formative part of my life. There is no feeling on earth like being onstage - or in the studio - when everything is going right musically. It's like flying. I love every one of those guys - even and especially ex-wife Patti Grode. It was like we went through the war together, and so we'll always share that bond.

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