THE QUESTION MARK FIRE RELIEF BENEFIT
featuring Nathaniel Mayer, Fortune & Maltese, The Fondas, The Meltdowns, The Avatars, Outrageous Cherry, The Space Heaters and more!
Friday, March 30 – Doors 8 p.m. - $10

On the night of Friday, January 9, 2007 a fire destroyed Question Mark’s home, all of his belongings, 40 years of music memorabilia and four of his beloved dogs. Unfortunately, Question Mark had no insurance. So to help out an old friend, a batch of Detroit area bands are putting together for a special musical evening at the Magic Bag on Friday, March 30. Join Nathaniel Mayer, Fortune & Maltese, The Meltdowns, The Fondas, The Avatars, Outrageous Cherry, The Space Heaters and plenty of special guests for the Question Mark Fire Relief Benefit.

It only took one song, the organ-driven number one smash "96 Tears" to make Question Mark & the Mysterians into garage rock legends. Eccentric frontman Question Mark (actually spelled "?") cultivated an aura of mystery by never appearing in public without a pair of wraparound sunglasses; he frequently claimed he had been born on Mars and lived among the dinosaurs in a past life, and that voices from the future had revealed he would be performing "96 Tears" in the year 10,000. On a more earthly level, the Mysterians' sound helped lay down an important part of the garage rock blueprint, namely the low-budget sci-fi feel of the Farfisa and Vox organs (most assumed that "96 Tears" had featured the former, but Q later remembered using the latter). What was more, they were one of the first Latino rock groups to have a major hit, and Q's sneering attitude made him one of the prime suspects in the evolution of garage rock into early punk. The Mysterians were formed in 1962, taking their name from a Japanese science fiction movie. The band played its first gigs in the small Michigan town of Adrian in 1964, and soon moved its home base from Saginaw to Flint. Shortly afterward, Q wrote the lyrics a song he called "Too Many Teardrops" and showed them to the rest of the band; the title was changed first to "69 Tears", and then the less suggestive "96 Tears". The song became a hit at the Mt. Holly ski lodge/dancehall, where the band played regularly, and in early 1966 they recorded it for the small local label Pa-Go-Go, owned by the band's manager. It became a regional hit in Flint and Detroit, attracting interest from several major record companies; Q decided to sign with the Philadelphia-based Cameo-Parkway, chiefly because their label was his favorite color, orange. Now blessed with national distribution, "96 Tears" raced up the pop charts and went all the way to number one in the fall of 1966, becoming one of garage rock's all-time classics. The band's first album, naturally also titled 96 Tears, was released by the end of the year, as was its follow-up single, "I Need Somebody", which just missed the Top 20. Released in early 1967, "Can't Get Enough of You Baby" was a minor hit, but the group's second album, Action, sold disappointingly; moreover, Cameo-Parkway was experiencing financial difficulties, and was later taken over by ABKCO chief Allen Klein. The Mysterians departed, recording singles for Capitol in 1968 and Tangerine and Super K in 1969, to no commercial avail (during this period, bassist Mel Schacher served a short stint in the group prior to joining Grand Funk Railroad). The band also cut an album for Ray Charles' TRC label, that to this day, is unreleased.

The Question Mark Fire Relief Benefit is a heartfelt tribute by area bands that have played with, and have been influenced by Question Mark & The Mysterians. Stop by and help get one of rock and roll’s unique voices back on his feet on Friday, March 30 at the Magic Bag.


Willy Wilson
Magic Bag Publicity
22920 Woodward Ave.
Ferndale, MI 48220
Phone: 248-544-1991
Event Hotline: 248-544-3030
Fax Line: 248-544-1989
willy@themagicbag.com
www.themagicbag.com

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