Frederick Lee Cole (August 28, 1948 – November 9, 2017) was an American rock singer and guitarist who played with several bands from the 1960s until his death, most notably The Lollipop Shoppe,

Dead Moon Dead Moon was an American punk rock band active from 1987 to 2006, formed in Portland, Oregon. History Fronted by the singer/guitarist Fred Cole, the band also included the bass guitarist Toody Cole and the drummer Andrew Loomis. Veterans ...

, and Pierced Arrows. He was associated mainly with the

garage punk A garage is a covered structure built for the purpose of parking, storing, protecting, maintaining, and/or repairing vehicles. Specific applications include: *Garage (residential), a building or part of a building for storing one or more vehicle ...

genre though he was also influenced by hard rock, blues,

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

, and

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

. The majority of his recorded output was self-financed and independently released on his own record label.

Early career

In 1964, Cole began his recording career in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

with his band, the Lords,Barr, Brian J. (2006)
Never Say Die
, ''

Seattle Weekly The ''Seattle Weekly'' is an alternative biweekly distributed newspaper in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded by Darrell Oldham and David Brewster as ''The Weekly.'' Its first issue was published on March 31, 1976. The newspaper ...

'', September 20, 2006, retrieved 2010-01-22 at the Teenbeat Club, releasing a single titled "Ain't Got No Self-Respect." His next single, from 1965, was a promo-only called "Poverty Shack" b/w "Rover," with a band named Deep Soul Cole.

The Weeds

In 1966 Cole's band The Weeds gained notice in garage rock circles, and their only single, a 1960s punk track called ''It's Your Time'' (b/w ''Little Girl'', Teenbeat Club Records), has become a collectors' favorite. The A-side appeared on one of the

Nuggets Nuggets may refer to: Music * ''Nuggets'' (series), a series of compilation albums by Elektra Records, continued by Rhino * '' Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965–1968'' * '' Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from ...

anthologies. The band was promised an opening slot on a Yardbirds bill at the Fillmore in San Francisco, but on their arrival found that the venue hadn't heard of them. Angry at management and fearing the military draft, the band decided to head up to Canada, but ran out of gas in Portland, Oregon. There, they started playing at a club called the Folk Singer, where Kathleen "Toody" Conner worked. Cole and Toody soon fell in love and were married in 1967, although The Weeds' manager insisted they keep the marriage secret.

The Lollipop Shoppe

Another manager required The Weeds to change their name to The Lollipop Shoppe because he also managed

The Seeds The Seeds were an American psychedelic garage rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1965, best known for their highest charting single " Pushin' Too Hard". The band's classic line-up featured frontman Sky Saxon, guitarist Jan Savag ...

and thought the names were too similar, and to fit the current

bubblegum Bubble gum or bubblegum is a type of chewing gum, designed to be inflated out of the mouth as a bubble. Bubble gum flavor While there is a bubble gum "flavor" – which various artificial flavorings including esters are mixed to obtain – it ...

trend (although their 1968 LP on UNI Records (a now-defunct subsidiary of MCA), titled ''Just Colour'', is more a mix of garage rock and the

psychedelia Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic ...

of bands such as

Love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of meanings is that the love o ...

). The album and its single "You Must Be a Witch" didn't chart, but remain underground favorites. The band also released another single, "Someone I Knew" b/w "Through My Window," played many shows in San Francisco with performers such as Janis Joplin and

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

, and had two tracks on the soundtrack LP to the film ''Angels from Hell''. The Lollipop Shoppe broke up in 1969, but reappeared as The Weeds with another single in 1971.

Whizeagle and Zipper

Frustrated with the music business and still of draft age, Cole headed for Alaska with Toody and their two young children. They got as far as the Yukon, where they homesteaded for a year. Upon their return, Cole tried unsuccessfully to secure another record deal in Los Angeles. He settled in Portland and opened a musical equipment store called Captain Whizeagle's. Taking his musical career into his own hands, he formed the hard rock band

Zipper A zipper, zip, fly, or zip fastener, formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding together two edges of fabric or other flexible material. Used in clothing (e.g. jackets and jeans), luggage and other bags, camping ...

and released an LP in 1975 on his and Toody's label, Whizeagle.Mosurock, Doug (2006)
Dead Moon ''Echoes of the Past''
, Dusted magazine, September 7, 2006, retrieved 2010-01-22

King Bee, The Rats, Western Front

Cole's next band, King Bee, saw him playing guitar for the first time in addition to singing. A last-minute invitation to open for

The Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United S ...

introduced them to the

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

sounds of the time. They released the "Hot Pistol" single on Whizeagle in 1978, but soon broke up. In an attempt to find a stable lineup, Cole taught Toody to play bass and they formed The Rats. Their self-titled debut was released in 1980 on Whizeagle. ''Intermittent Signals'' followed in 1981, and 1983 saw the release of the third LP, ''In a Desperate Red''. After losing three drummers, and tired of the macho direction the punk scene had taken, Cole disbanded The Rats and began an old-time

band called Western Front. They released only two singles, "Orygun" b/w "Clementine" and "Stampede" b/w "Looking Back at Me" in 1985, but they influenced many local punkers to develop an interest in country-rock and

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and blu ...

The Range Rats and Dead Moon

Toody, who had occasionally performed with Western Front and recorded a single with them, rejoined Cole for another country-influenced project, The Range Rats, in 1986. Drummer Andrew Loomis auditioned for this band, but it didn't work out, so Cole and Toody carried on with a drum machine. In 1987, while returning from Reno (their favorite vacation spot), Cole and Toody decided they wanted to play rock 'n' roll again. They called Andrew Loomis, who was a better fit for this project, and

was born. Dead Moon's music is a blend of dark '60s garage with punk rock; It was described by Robert Christgau as sounding "like the 13th Floor Elevators without the clinical dementia".Christgau, Robert (2006)
Dead Moon ''Echoes of the Past'' Review
, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'', November 30, 2006 (reproduced at his website), retrieved 2010-01-22 Their early records, ''In the Graveyard'', ''Unknown Passage'', and ''Defiance'', appeared on the band's own Tombstone Records, named for the music store Cole and Toody operated in Clackamas, Oregon. Cole mastered these records on a mono lathe from the 1950s that had been used for

The Kingsmen The Kingsmen are a 1960s rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States. They are best known for their 1963 recording of R&B singer Richard Berry's "Louie Louie", which held the No. 2 spot on the '' Billboard'' charts for six weeks and ...

's version of "Louie Louie". These releases helped them gain cult followings around the United States and in Europe, especially in Germany, home of their European record label Music Maniac.Zorn, Alex " Dead Moon Biography, ''

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

'', retrieved 2010-01-22

Pierced Arrows and documentary

After releasing "Dead Ahead" and touring Europe, Dead Moon broke up in 2006, and, with a new drummer, Kelly Halliburton, Fred and Toody formed the band Pierced Arrows."Pierced Arrows (ex-Dead Moon) Return!"
, ''Blurt'', May 11, 2009, retrieved 2010-01-22 In 2004 U.S. documentary filmmaking couple (Jason Summers and Kate Fix) produced ''Unknown Passage: The Dead Moon Story''.

Death

Fred Cole died in November 2017 at the age of 69, from

liver disease Liver disease, or hepatic disease, is any of many diseases of the liver. If long-lasting it is termed chronic liver disease. Although the diseases differ in detail, liver diseases often have features in common. Signs and symptoms Some of the si ...

References

External links

Dead moon

Official Pierced Arrows-site
* (see bottom of page)
Fred Cole (Dead Moon etc.) turns 60!

The Rats
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, Fred 1948 births 2017 deaths Musicians from Nevada Musicians from Portland, Oregon American male songwriters Songwriters from Oregon Western High School (Nevada) alumni