SOTW 7-13-09: Before Jason Jesse

While I was (supposed to be) in college, I lived in a house with a bunch of ne’er-do-wells, skateboarders and musicians. Actually, most of the guys ended up being do-wells after all. This particualr shot was the front yard of a house I lived in from 1987-1988. At least 14 people lived there. That’s my glorious 8 foot wide miniramp in the front yard. The platforms butted up against the front porch on one side and the sidewalk on the other. The chopper belongs to a roommate we called Mr. Grubby, who was otherwise known to the punk rock world as Doug “joe” Evans, the bass player for one of the top five most badass band to come out of Illinois, or the whole midwest for that matter, the Didjits. (OK, the rest of the list is Naked Raygun, Big Black, Cheap Trick, Husker Du…) Doug’s chopper had some sort of rebuilt BSA, or possibly Indian, engine on it. It wasn’t a Harley, I remember that much. He had the stereotypical, but awesome Iron Cross side view mirror. This thing was loud as fuck, a fact that did little to endear us to our rich, sorority girl neighbors, especially when Doug had to drive to work for his 6 am shift at a diner. He never spared the throttle. I got to drive it once, and it was impossible to steer. Not my scene all. I couldn’t pull it off, but Doug’s estranged father owned a pool hall in rural Illinois during the 50’s that was home base to a nefarious motorcycle club, so it fit him like a glove. Doug was also a skateboarder. What he lacked in skill, he made up for in enthusiasm. Eventually, he had to give it up due to an unrelated knee injury and all the touring he was doing. I just talked to him recently, he’s living in Texas and fronting a new band. He’s the guy in the back with the chrome plated German infantry helmet and the shark mouth tattoo covering his entire neck. I almost forgot, that’s House of Neil working the tranny in the background. Check out the Shot of the Week.