BOOTSEY X
See Also:● Robert Mulrooney
● Bobby Beyond
This month’s Under Appreciated Rock Band is THE LOVEMASTERS, also known as Bootsey X and the Lovemasters, that arose from the reliably high-octane world of Detroit punk rock; but the band’s music has soul and funk touches that rarely show up in hard rock of any kind. The music is loose and sometimes borders on the chaotic, though always with a defined groove; and Bootsey X has a powerful and ragged voice that fits it perfectly.
This is the second post in a row to feature a UARB where I only have an EP, but sometimes that is enough for a band to become a favorite of mine. As far as I know, Amanda Jones only ever released Amanda Jones; but I have another Lovemasters track on a compilation album, and they released two full albums (including a Bootsey X solo album) plus an early cassette that I don’t have.
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When he decided to try his hand at being a frontman, and using the moniker Bootsey X, Robert Mulrooney formed the Lovemasters in the mid-1980’s. There have been several line-ups of the band over the years, and Mulrooney believes that one of the later line-ups (around 2010) was among the best: Eddie Baranek of the Sights (guitar), drummer Skip Denomme (drums), and Ricky Rat of the Trash Brats (rhythm guitar).
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Writing in 2010 for the Detroit Metro Times, Bill Holdship writes that “the Ramrods [were] Detroit’s first ‘official punk’ band” and also gives a great overview of what the Lovemasters were all about: “Bootsey X & the Lovemasters were the best live rock ’n’ roll show in town then — sometimes approaching rock ’n’ roll carnivaldom. . . . [I]n the mid-to-late ’80s, a Bootsey X & the Lovemasters performance was akin to seeing Iggy Stooge fronting a James Brown and His Famous Flames Revue — that is, if both the Godfathers of Soul and Punk had even greater senses of humor . . . plus, everything else such a concept would involve (with flashes of George Clinton’s Funkadelic and Sly and the Family Stone, both of which were psychedelicized versions of the [James] Brown revue anyway). The act came complete with horns, keyboards, a jive-talking emcee (who doubled on sax), and the ever-present — and ever-hot — Sugarbabes of Soul. . . .
“And if that weren’t enough, the crew mixed it all with such perfect punk-ified covers as Neil Diamond’s ‘Brother Love’s Travelin’ Salvation Show’, Elvis’ ‘Kissin’ Cousins’ and ‘Suspicious Minds’, Roy Head’s ‘Treat Her Right’ (the instrumental that always announced Bootsey’s imminent arrival onstage), and perhaps the greatest cover of the O’Jays’ ‘Love Train’ of all time.”
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Preceding “I’m a Ramrod” on both the LP and the CD of Motor City’s Burnin’ is a terrific track by Bootsey X and the Lovemasters called “Pusherman of Love”. Credits given on the Discogs website give Bootsey X as the lead vocalist and also the record producer; Robert Mulrooney is listed as the drummer and also the songwriter – as noted, Bootsey and Mulrooney are the same person. Other players are Mark Kern (bass), Craig Peters (guitar), Gary Adams (guitar), Don Jones (saxophone), and “militant rap” by Valorie Dawn Moore.
For “Pony Down”, perhaps the slowest song on the EP (but just barely), the Lovemasters has a different line-up of musicians that is more like those who played on “Pusherman of Love”: Bootsey X (lead vocals, backing vocals, drums), Mark Kern (bass), Craig Peters (guitar), Gary Adams (guitar), Don Jones (guitar), and Mike Murphy (backing vocals).
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The final and probably best song on the album Hot Pants Zone, having the curious title of “(Santa’s Got a) Bomb for Whitey” is actually by Dark Carnival and is taken from their album Greatest Show in Detroit (1991). Bootsey X dominates the proceedings, and it sure sounds like the Lovemasters to me.
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Dark Carnival was sort of a Detroit punk supergroup that was assembled by Detroit music promoter Colonel Galaxy, whose name was a nod to Elvis Presley’s longtime manager, Colonel Tom Parker. Bootsey X was the first bandmember to be recruited; others included his bandmate in the Ramrods, Mark Norton, plus (as listed in Wikipedia): “Gary Adams from the Cubes [who was also a sometime bandmember in the Lovemasters], Mike McFeaters from What Jane Shared, Jerry Vile from the Boners, Sarana VerLin from Natasha, Greasy Carlisi from Motor City Bad Boys, Robert Gordon and Art Lyzak from the Mutants, Joe Hayden from Bugs Bedow, Pete Bankert from Weapons, [and] Larry Steel from the Cult Heroes.
“Later, Dark Carnival saw some turnover, with the ‘big’ names signing on: Niagara from Destroy All Monsters, Ron [Asheton] and Scott Asheton from the Stooges, Cheetah Chrome from the Dead Boys, Jim Carroll even came in from New York.”
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Credits for “(Santa’s Got a) Bomb for Whitey” by the Lovemasters / Dark Carnival are Bootsey X (lead vocals), Ron Asheton (lead guitar and backing vocals), Gary Adams (guitar), Joe Hayden (bass), and Ron Cumbo (drums). I have no idea what the song is about, but the infectious repetition of “got a bomb for whitey” that recurs throughout the song typically runs through my head for weeks every time I play this CD.
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Robert Mulrooney, a/k/a Bootsey X fell onto hard times when his apartment burned down, and he also developed a lot of health issues. In about 2007, he was offered the chance to tour with soul legend Nathaniel Mayer. Outrageous Cherry guitarist Matthew Smith, who was also along on the tour, recalls of their performance in Berlin in November 2007: “Bootsey X was happy to be in Berlin. We played a great gig with Nate [Nathaniel Mayer] at Bassy, a really nice club, nice vibe. . . . I do remember walking through the streets of Berlin with Bootsey, and noticing that he looked like an integral part of the whole scene. I remember thinking that Bootsey X makes sense on the streets of Berlin. He was a great friend, and a fantastic musician. Nate loved his drumming, and so did all of us.”
I have a CD by Nathaniel Mayer called Why Won’t You Let Me Be Black? that was released in 2009 on Alive Naturalsound Records. The cover shot was taken at the same time (and also with the Eiffel Tower in the background) as the above photograph showing Nathaniel Mayer with Bootsey X (middle).
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Bootsey X was determined to release his final album despite his failing health, and Women’s Love Rites came out on vinyl in June 2013; he was wheelchair bound by then. Musicians performing on the CD include many who had been in the Lovemasters: Mike Marshall, Gerald Shohan, Ricky Rat, Don Jones, and Steve King, plus Dave Hanna of the Ramrods and Matthew Smith, who had played with him in Europe during the tour with Nathaniel Mayer.
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Bootsey X died on Thanksgiving Day 2013. The John Perye post, which was written for the first anniversary of his death, concludes: “So on this day, let us remember the great times and music Bootsey X a.k.a. Bobby Beyond a.k.a. ‘Genius from the Waist Down’ a.k.a. ‘Pusherman of Love’ or for short just Bob, has left us with. He may not have sold a million records, but the mark he made on the Detroit music scene outweighs any statistics imaginable. Thanks for all the wisdom, Bootsey, you are sorely missed.”
(March 2016)
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