Ram Jam -

Ram Jam was an American hard-rock band known for the 1977 stomper “Black Betty.” Sixties svengalis Kasenetz and Katz produced the band’s debut album and 1978 followup, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram. Guitarist Bill Bartlett and bassist Howie Blauvelt hailed respectively from the pop-psych bands The Lemon Pipers and The Hassles.

Members: Bill Bartlett (guitar), Howie Blauvelt (bass), Myke Scavone (vocals), Peter Charles (drums), Gregg Hoffman (guitar, 1976, 1994), Sherwin Ross (vocals, 1976), Dennis Feldman (bass, 1976), David Beck (keyboards, 1976), Glen Dove (drums, 1976), Jimmy Santoro (guitar, 1978-79)

Background

Bill Bartlett played guitar in the Lemon Pipers, whose 1967 single “Green Tambourine” reached No. 1 in the United States. He later formed the Ohio group Starstruck and arranged “Black Betty,” a traditional work song associated with Lead Belly. In 1975, Starstruck recorded the arrangement with rhythm guitarist Tom Kurtz, bassist David Goldflies, and drummer David Fleeman. They issued “Black Betty” with the Bartlett original “I Should Have Known” on the group-operated TruckStar label. The single received regional exposure across Ohio.

New York producers Jerry Kasenetz and Jeffry Katz ran Super K Productions, which produced the 1967 Music Explosion hit “Little Bit O’ Soul.” The team subsequently handled Ohio Express and 1910 Fruitgum Company, with Crazy Elephant and the Shadows of Knight among their other acts. Kasenetz and Katz frequently issued studio recordings under newly assigned group identities, a method they repeated when they selected the Starstruck master, edited the recording, and secured its Epic release under the Ram Jam name.

Former Doughboys singer Myke Scavone was drumming on unidentified demonstration recordings for Kasenetz and Katz when the producers sought a lead singer for Ram Jam. They first approached singer Steve Tracey, who declined and recommended Scavone. The producers knew Scavone as a drummer and backing singer before his successful audition for the frontman role. Bassist Howie Blauvelt came from The Hassles (with Billy Joel) and El Primo, while drummer Peter Charles completed the quartet assembled for the first album.

Ram Jam

Ram Jam released their self-titled debut album in June 1977 on Epic.

The album combines nine recordings by the new quartet with the edited Starstruck master of “Black Betty.” Bartlett sings and plays lead guitar on the older recording beside Kurtz, Goldflies, and Fleeman. The remaining tracks feature Scavone, Blauvelt, and Charles. Four songs carry sole Bartlett credits. Ram Jam also recorded material by Tuff Darts members Robert Butani and Jeff Salen (“All for the Love of Rock ’n’ Roll”) and singer-songwriter Gerard Kenny (“404”).

“Black Betty” charges through a searing guitar figure, four-square beat, and shouted syllabic returns. “Let It All Out” stomps through hammer-heavy accents and blunt singalong phrases. “Keep Your Hands on the Wheel” rolls through a road-bound lyric and compact riff. “All for the Love of Rock ’n’ Roll” hammers repeated declarations over blocky accents.

“404” grinds through a fast-car lyric and gritty riff. “High Steppin’” unfurls through an instrumental lead sequence. “Overloaded” swings on one taut bassline and a cowbell-marked chorus. “Too Bad on Your Birthday” struts at midtempo through a broad singalong chorus.

A1. “Black Betty” (3:57) – Ledbetter
A2. “Let It All Out” (4:00) – Bartlett
A3. “Keep Your Hands on the Wheel” (3:35) – Millius–Graves
A4. “Right on the Money” (3:11) – Bartlett
A5. “All for the Love of Rock ’n’ Roll” (3:01) – Butani–Salen

B1. “404” (3:44) – Kenny
B2. “High Steppin’” (3:40) – Bartlett
B3. “Overloaded” (2:56) – LaPallo–Haberman
B4. “Hey Boogie Woman” (3:10) – Bartlett
B5. “Too Bad on Your Birthday” (3:10) – Resnick–Karp

Ram Jam recorded the album balance at K&K Studio City in Great Neck, New York, under Kasenetz and Katz. Studio engineer Barry Magaliff worked with assistant Steve Goldman, who became a principal composer on the second album.

Epic art director Robert Biro oversaw a cover by Polish graphic artist Stanisław Zagórski. His illustration places a ram-headed Egyptian monument on a stepped pyramid. Jungle foliage frames two small figures at the base, with mountains beneath a red sky. Zagórski also designed the Rolling Stones poster for the 1978 US Some Girls tour.

Epic issued “Black Betty” in March 1977 (b/w “I Should Have Known”). The single reached No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 7 on the UK Singles Chart. Boycott calls from the NAACP and Congress of Racial Equality followed interpretations of the lyrics as insulting to Black women. The July 1977 Time feature on punk rock pictured Infliktors singer Lee Ritter holding a scrawl sheet of the “Black Betty” chorus onstage at the Rat club.

Epic followed in September 1977 with “Keep Your Hands on the Wheel” (b/w “Right on the Money”). Ram Jam reached No. 34 on the Billboard 200.

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram

Ram Jam released their second album, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram, in June 1978 on Epic.

Lead guitarist Jimmy Santoro joins Scavone, Blauvelt, and Charles, while Bartlett shifts to rhythm and voice. Joe Strange and T.C. Love composed the first three tracks. Steve Goldman and Santoro wrote the next five, then all four composers shared “Runway Runaway.” Goldman contributed “Please, Please, Please (Please Me).”

“Gone Wild” barrels through a fast guitar figure and sustained lead breaks. “Pretty Poison” smolders beneath a heavy chorus and twin-lead exchanges. “The Kid Next Door” tears through continuous lead runs. “Turnpike” broods from a haunted keyboard figure into hard chorus returns, then breaks into an extended lead passage. “Wanna Find Love” lopes through a rolling riff and broad singalong chorus.

“Just Like Me” races on double-time accents, slashing riff turns, and a sustained solo. “Hurricane Ride” careens through double-time accents, rises after the bridge, feints an ending, and returns for an extended outro. “Saturday Night” settles into a broad chorus and cleaner lead line. “Runway Runaway” charges through nonstop lead work, hard chorus figures, and a high-strain break. “Please, Please, Please (Please Me)” bounds through bright chord figures and a compact singalong return.

A1. “Gone Wild” (3:23) – Strange–Love
A2. “Pretty Poison” (4:32) – Strange–Love
A3. “The Kid Next Door” (3:25) – Strange–Love
A4. “Turnpike” (5:42) – Goldman–Santoro
A5. “Wanna Find Love” (3:45) – Goldman–Santoro

B1. “Just Like Me” (4:14) – Goldman–Santoro
B2. “Hurricane Ride” (4:04) – Goldman–Santoro
B3. “Saturday Night” (3:34) – Goldman–Santoro
B4. “Runway Runaway” (4:50) – Goldman–Santoro–Strange–Love
B5. “Please, Please, Please (Please Me)” (3:00) – Goldman

Ram Jam recorded Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram across 1977 and 1978 at K&K Studio City in Great Neck with Kasenetz and Katz. Barry Magaliff returned as chief engineer, assisted by album composer Steve Goldman.

Designer Elena Pavlov conceived the sleeve amid work on the 1978 solo debut by David Johansen and the Derringer release If I Weren’t So Romantic, I’d Shoot You. David Wilcox painted a horned ram in dark formal dress against a brown ground, matching the title with a mock historical portrait. His contemporary work includes the Oregon album Out of the Woods. Melanie Marder Parks supplied the cover lettering, while Jim Houghton photographed the five musicians for the rear sleeve.

Epic issued “Pretty Poison” in August 1978 (b/w “Hurricane Ride”); a second US configuration used “Runway Runaway.”

Rock Candy released the first CD edition in April 2006, remastered by Who associate Jon Astley.

Postlude

Kasenetz and Katz later assembled singer Sherwin “Ace” Ross, guitarist Gregg Hoffman, bassist Dennis Feldman, keyboardist David Beck, and drummer Glenn Dove as a Ram Jam touring lineup. Hoffman, Feldman, and Dove continued into Speedway Boulevard. Keyboardist Jordan Rudess and singer Roy Herring Jr. completed the group for the 1980 Epic album Speedway Boulevard, which Kasenetz and Katz produced at K&K Studios.

Epic combined both studio albums on the 1990 compilation The Very Best of Ram Jam. The release retained the complete debut sequence but moved “Gone Wild” and “Pretty Poison” to the end of the second-album material.

Ben Liebrand remixed “Black Betty” for a 1990 single that reached No. 13 on the UK Singles Chart.

Discography: