Forty Years Young

Well folks...exactly 40 years ago today The Flying La Paz Brothers took to the stage for the very first time. The venue was the American Enlisted Men's Mess (The EM Club) in the US naval base at Dunoon (Holy Loch), Scotland.

We played three 40 minute sets of mostly cover songs to a mixed bunch of about 200 US Marines and "Bubbleheads" (American Submariners). There was a lot of whoopin' and hollerin'.

My recollection is that we took the place apart because we were rebooked there every month for the next 4 years!

And 4 amazing years of fun, madness and kick-ass rock they turned out to be. We knew we had it going on right away, just from the chemistry between us, but we also knew we were a little out of line with the kinds of bands that were being signed. Punk and the NWOBHM were only just fading, and record companies were signing Glam and "hair" bands. That wasn't us.

Then came Grunge, and we weren't that either.

We were (still are) all about playing good, tight, catchy rawk and, naively, we assumed that would be enough to cruise past the Style Police and close that record deal.

Of course when we got the first rejection letters (that's how old we are) we did try to flounce it up a bit...but you are either into that glam style (or can afford a stylist) or you're not. We weren't! And we couldn't afford a stylist either!

There are some frankly hilarious photos still around of us trying, and failing, to look like Europe or whoever had the bushiest perms that week. Style-wise we were probably closer to the Grunge boyz...but our music definitely wasn't.

It was Catch 22.

At the end of those 4 years, and after two self-released albums and lots of live shows, the dream ran out of steam. It happens.

So... the first time around it didn't work out, but we stayed friends and reformed to do the occassional live thing on birthdays and holidays, whenever windows in schedules aligned.

Then Doogie got a call to do an acoustic show in Glasgow, and he called Chic to play at it, and Paul and Andy showed up at the gig and they called Al after it...and suddenly we were all back playing live again as La Paz.

Doogie pitched a wild idea to Metal Mind Records and before any of us realised what was happening we had a record deal. Three studio albums followed over the next three years, and then a live album was in the can for a later release.

Forty years...how amazing is that? And of course, those forty years have encompassed all the ups and downs of life that everyone experiences...good and bad...and yet here we are...six albums and hundreds of shows later...still friends...still making music.

Being in La Paz is a bit like being in The Mob...you know there is a life outside but you just can't leave and every time you try it pulls you back in.

And what on earth do you do to celebrate and mark 40 years together?

Well...

For a start we have remastered Old Habits Die Hard and The Amy Tapes and they are ready to be released as Limited Edition CDs.

We have also remastered our live album - For One Night Only - and have it ready as a limited edition CD.

And! We have a DVD of our live show at Winterstorm in 2023 ready to go as a limited edition DVD.

How Limited is Limited? Why...only 40 copies of each are for sale...obviously!

Reserve your copy by using the Contact box below and we will add you to the line!