PEZBAND - Cover to Cover

Being from Chicago, I am always on the lookout not only for new local bands to follow, but also great acts that came out of the city in past decades. One of my favorites of the latter ilk is Pezband, a little-known power pop band that began in Oak Park, IL, in the early 1970s.

Shortly after I began this blog I wrote an overview post about Pezband, which you can find here. In short, the band released three LPs, Pezband (1977), Laughing in the Dark (1978) and Cover to Cover (1979).

While all three records are excellent, Pezband never achieved the widespread recognition they deserved. The self-titled release and Cover to Cover rank as two of my favorite power pop LPs ever, and it's hard to understand exactly why they didn't catch on.

Cover to Cover is a perfect example of how the band could write spot-on melodies in the vein of Shoes, but also blend those melodies perfectly with a hard-edged, unpolished sound a la early Cheap Trick.

Infectious yet rough-around-the-edges tracks such as the anthemic opener Stella Blue, Meika and Back in the Middle rock hard. In fact, there's not really a single song on the album that doesn't rock hard, except for maybe Didn't We (which is still great).

See for yourself:

Pezband - Cover to Cover (LP, 1979)

Track listing:
1 - Stella Blue
2 - Meika
3 - Back in the Middle
4 - Full Power
5 - Didn't We
6 - African Night
7 - Make Me Happy
8 - Cover to Cover
9 - Hero Hero
10 - Unexpected
11 - Don't Look Back