Bob Pittman
Santa Rosa, California, United States
Music
Press
It is refreshingly easy to become completely beguiled by the homespun charm of Bob Pittman’s recent CD, 10 Totally Catchy Songs by Some Guy You’ve Never Heard Of, released on Your Record Company Here, 123 Happy Ln., Anytown, USA. Whether through the Lou Reed talking-singing of “Waiting For My Ship To Come In,” the Erasure-esque synth-pop of “Pit Stop” or the 'Being There' era Wilco twang of “The Hard Line,” Pittman has made an utterly unpretentious record, despite the back cover’s declaration that it’s “the only album you’ll ever need!” Lighthearted humor and subtle social commentary surround poignant stories, such as “The Palm of Her Hand,” and even though it bears no resemblance to the accepted genre, it is truly an indie rock record. - Gabe Meline, North Bay Bohemian
Though he’s far from a household name (but hopefully that will change on account of this great record), Bob Pittman is no stranger to rock and roll. The late seventies saw him flee the mean and seedy streets of Chicago and head to San Francisco. It was there, in the city by the bay, that Bob became Bob Pitiful and joined a punk band called The Delusions. In 1984, he put out a single, “Wanderer” backed by “I Do,” which attained a good amount of regional airplay. But Bob soon gave up the rock and roll life in favor of marriage and a family. After a twenty-five year hiatus, the man has returned with a vengeance, armed with an album celebrating a diverse selection of rock and roll fashions. From the rockabilly flavored “Sorry Charlie” to the jaunty new wave nuances of “Every Tear” and “A Million Plus X,” here’s a disc that leaves no stone unturned. A little bit country, a little bit rock and roll, a little bit pop and a little bit hip hop, “Waiting For My Ship To Come In” bristles with quirky hooks, and then there’s “The Palm Of Her Hand,” which could pass as a long lost Lou Reed treasure. A run of cool guitar licks arise on the Tom Petty styled “The Hard Line” and “Summer Of Discontent” sounds like Bob Dylan on a woe is me bender. Lighthearted and fun, “10 Totally Catchy Songs By Some Guy You’ve Never Heard Of!” may be all over the map, but still hangs together in a most splendid way.
- Beverly Paterson, TWIST AND SHAKE REVIEWS:
Discography
"10 Totally Catchy Songs By Some Guy You've Never Heard Of!" 11 song CD. 2009.
"Hostile" and "Hangin' On" 2 Song cassette single. 1997
"I Just Do" and "Wanderer" 2 Song 45rpm single. 1984.
Additional songs now streaming on MySpace site include "The Roman Polanski Blues," 2009, and "Storebought Paradise," 1990.
Photos
Bio
In early 2009 with the release of his first complete album, "10 Totally Catchy Songs By Some Guy You've Never Heard Of!" Bob began public performances for the first time in over 20 years. Though once an active participant in San Francisco's punk rock scene in the late 70's and early 80's, in more recent years his musicianship was mostly a private affair. During this hiatus he continued to write songs, record, and hone his skills, but remained on the sidelines.
Beginning in the summer of 2009 Bob Pittman started appearing again in the San Francisco Bay Area nightclubs most notably at the now defunct Black Cat Bar in Penngrove, CA. It is also at the Black Cat where he first heard the Cocktail Lounge Tusslers who were essentially the bar's house band, and he began performing with them in late 2009.
The Tusslers are led by Robin Pfefer, who is also the former owner of the Black Cat. She is an inspirational and dynamic performer, and a phenomenal guitarist, who has been in many successful bands since her punk days in the early 80's. Bassist Linda Hutchinson has been playing with Robin for decades and is also the bassist for the band Gator Beat. Drummer Ralph Elliott, aka Ralvis Parsley, has been a Sonoma County mainstay for 20 years performing in his own bands as a guitarist and vocalist, and has played drums for many Sonoma County artisits, most notably Richie Blue.
In early 2010 the Bob Pittman Band was formed. Joined by well traveled local artists, Nazar Eljamaily (formerly of Gator Beat) on guitar, Elvin Duncan (currently in the Stragglerz) on Bass, and Demetri Katzoff on drums, the Bob Pittman Band played shows at the Black Cat and San Francisco's Retox Lounge in the past year.
EXTENDED BOB PITTMAN BIO:
Bob Pittman: Prince meets Buddy Holly. Liz Phair meets ELO. Just how do you describe this one of a kind innovative artist? Handsome, sensual, sexy? Smart, shrewd, ingenious? Coy, modest, humble? Any way you slice it, one thing is certain. Bob Pittman is bitchin’.
Born in Chicago nearly a half century ago the mulatto son of a white Wisconsin farm girl and a black CPA, Bob Pittman grew up fast on Chicago’s badass back streets during the rough and tumble 60’s. Constantly harassed for not being black enough by warring street gangs, Bob Pittman, “Oreo” they taunted, was shaken down for spare change and beaten senseless on a routine basis. And then when he wandered past the arbitrary borders that separated black from white in America’s most segregated city he was once again accosted. Now it was the sons of Irish and Polish immigrants that dubbed him “Sambo” as he was beaten to a bloody buttery pulp.
Bob Pittman’s only solace during these tumultuous times was the wondrous music emanating from his AM radio. Rickey Nelson, Sam Cooke, Chuck Berry, the Beatles, the Supremes, the Beach Boys, the Four Tops – They were his shining light guiding him out of his desolate condition. It was listening to these artists that he learned not only his musical chops, but valuable life lessons that enabled him to overcome obstacles that had been piled before him. Bob learned that he did not have to stay put, that he could “get around” and become a “travelin’ man.” He learned “all you need is love” and that if he stopped in love’s name, hearts would not be broken. He gradually learned that if he “reached out” someone would be there and that this was indeed a “wonderful world.” And finally, though “Midwest farmers’ daughters really make you feel all right,” at the age of twenty-three, guitar on his back, he headed for the sun and surf of California, “the promised land,” “where the girls all get so tanned.”
Bob Pittman arrived in San Francisco in 1979 during the height of Punk Rock mania and immediately felt at home among the outcast and forsaken youth of that generation. Dubbed, ‘Bob Pitiful’ by nefarious punk promoter and manager of San Francisco’s punk palace Mabuhay Gardens, Dirk Dirksen, Bob enjoyed a brief stint as a solo artist before joining his first band, the Delusions.
The Delusions were a short lived power pop new wave band that played several gigs at Mabuhay Gardens and its offshoot, Aldo’s, before disbanding in 1980. Bob’s next band, The Good Samaritans had two incarnations. First it was a loud punk cabaret noise band, then, with a shift of personnel, became kind of a funk punk soul band. The Good Samaritans lasted a couple of years and played several gigs at San Francisco’s The Sound of Music as well as Mabuhay Gardens. In both bands Bob Pittman was a guitarist, as well as songwriter and lead singer on about half the material.
In 1984 Bob Pittman released a 45rpm single, “Wanderer/I Just Do,” which received airplay on several San Francisco Bay Area college radio stations and charted on one radio station in Sweden. Then Bob put his career on hold for 25 years to get married, raise children and live a normal life. During this extended absence from the public
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