micki-steele-net exists to pay tribute, and to document the wide-ranging musical career of Michael Steele, as a musician, singer, and songwriter. Please read our full welcome page here. This is strictly an unofficial site, and neither we nor the siteâs other contributors have contact with Michael Steele. Please be respectful.
The Continental Drifters at Raji's, Hollywood, circa August 1992. Photo courtesy of Peter Holsapple.
Michael Steele peformed with the Continental Drifters in Summer 1992. We have just added these details (courtesy of @banggothebangles to our site). Check them out here.
In August 2003, Michael took part in a live web chat and detailed a list of songs, aptly titled âInspirational 1960sâ. Here are those songs, and a few others of her personal picks, neatly tidied in a Spotify Playlist.
Originally submitted by Pal Shazar on March 5, 2010.
Please contact us if you have a memory to share.
I was living in the Hollywood Hills, near the reservoir, with Jules Shear at the time I met Micki. Andrew and I were looking for a bassist. We had advertised in âThe Recyclerâ (!) I do not recall how it is that Micki found out about it but she did come to my house one evening. Andrew recalls that she was wearing a floppy hat which I requested she not wear when we played! My first impression was that in profile she resembled the actress Candice Bergen. She was so into what we were doing so naturally I was happy.
Jules and the Polar Bears had a manager who took Slow Children under his wing. He paid for rehearsal space in West Hollywood. We had a few drummers but only Micki on bass. She always showed up right on time. I know she was playing in other bands at that time but she was dedicated to us. Slow Children did not do many gigs before the English record deal came our way. By then we were down to just Andrew and myself.
Years passed and when I encountered Micki again at the time the Bangles were doing a TV appearance which included Jules, Micki told me, very sweetly, that Slow Children had been the most satisfying music for her, as it was challenging. I thought that was a very kind thing for her to say to me.
After a long solo career, Pal Shazar is again working on Slow Children with Andrew Chinich.
Lisa Fancher has lived a life in which music has always been central. Beginning as an occasional writer for the influential fanzine Bomp!, Lisa saw numerous early Runaways gigs and was hired to write liner notes on their first album, all while still in high school. From here Lisa moved on to become an early fan of the LA punk scene, and in 1980 founded her record label Frontier Records. Eventually moving beyond its punk origins to release albums by varied bands such as Heatmiser, the Long Ryders and American Music Club, Frontier continues to exist and distribute music to this day.
RIS = RealInspectorShane
LF = Lisa Fancher
RIS: How did you first get interested in the Runaways?
LF: I knew Greg Shaw because, you know, I was a big fan of his various magazines and he was the editor of a magazine called Phonograph Record and then he had a fanzine called Who Put The Bomp?, so he and Kim were obsessed with finding the ultimate way-out girl band, so they had this big coast-to-coast hunt, and they put an ad in Bomp, its probably in the Bomp Book, I donât know if youâve seen itâ
The Runaways, 1975
RIS: No. Thatâd be a pretty fun thing to see.
LF: Yeah, anyway, they didnât get any responses, they literally didnât get one girl band to write them or send a demo or anything, so thatâs when Kim went about putting it together. I had nothing to do with it, I just knew they were doing it. So thatâs when he started hitting the clubs. Its not like he didnât already go to Rodneyâs and like young girls, uh you know, he foundâKari Krome, Kari was actually the first one that he found but she wasnât *supposed* to be in the band, she was like the âgenius songwriter girlâ or whatever⊠So then they just started, I dunno, only books can tell you where Micki was found or whatever, I donât know if there was an ad placed⊠so anyway, my involvement was once the band was together, then Kim decidedâKim and Greg decided for me that I was going to write a story about them, like whether they were genius or not I was going to write about how genius they were. I was like âohhh, OKââ
RIS: âYou may say theyâre brilliantâ.
LF: Yeah, so as the band got solid and was rehearsing.. I mean, this all moved really fast, I canât tell you what the period of time was but it was like *fast*, because the whole record and everything out, and with Cherie happened, Iâm gonna say, just within a year, the whole thing gelled. So anyway, Kim, Iâm in high school, canât remember what year I was, first or second year of high school, then Kimâs making meâyou know, dragging me all over the city to see various shows, there was the first show at Phast Phreddieâs house⊠wouldnât it have been good for the movie? Oh, thatâs right, Micki isnât in the movie.
RIS: [laughs] Didnât exist.
LF: They kinda made this hybrid of the living room show, but it was âI donât know what youâre talking aboutâ cause I donât know one like that with the full band, you know, I mean, I think they were already playing clubs with Cherie, I donât think they played any more house parties, so its all a little hybrid of events. Anyway, so I saw a lot of weird shows, like, you know thereâs Hollywood where obviously all the nightclubs are, but I live in the San Farnando Valley which isnât far away, but they mostly played movie theaters, like all kinds of weird crap.. and I thought they were great. Like I thought, you know, Joan had a lot of charisma, I thought Micki did, Sandy was a real rocker. I didnât like hang around them personally, I wasnât âbestiesâ or weâd call each other on the phone, Iâd just kinda be loitering around⊠and um, so, somewhere along the line, I wasnât privy to super-insider information, but you know, I know that they made the demo tape, and all that kinda stuff, (and uh, so if you have any follow up questions on thatâŠ) I know that they made those demos, you know, Kim always had access to studios and everything.. Iâm sure I heard those at the time, I donât know if anybody made me a copy or anything, but Iâm sure I had heard them at the time.. They were in a big rush to make this thing like *move*, I donât know what it was but me and Greg were like you know, âthis girl band thing *had* to happenâ, it had to happenâŠ
RIS: âsix months or elseââ
LF: Yeah, so I donât know what it was but these was this mad dash so.. You know, its cool on a Malcolm McLaren level, you know, if you canât find something then put it together, and smash it together.. you know, they more or less wrote those songs, or helped or whatever it was, he just put the words in their mouths⊠which was good. It wasnât like The Monkees where other people played their instruments, and sang on the demo tape, I mean, at least they were competent enough to be in a bandâŠ
RIS: I read somewhere that on the first album they had the bassist from I think, Blondie [Nigel Harrison] playing on it.
LF: Yeah, they were like in between things, with the Jackie Fox thing. She wasnât quite in the band yet, I guess they just didnât have a solid, without Micki in the band they didnât have a solid bassplayer, and obviously she wasnât going to play on it seeing they gave her the *boot*, so that would have been rude to even ask⊠Somehow I found out about it down the line, you know, nobodyâs going to bother, I wasnât important enough in the organisation to call up and find out, but like âoh, thereâs another show, and we have a whole new singer, how exciting!â and I was like âwhat the hell?â And uh, the story that I always heard, I canât quote anybody verbatim, but the story I always heard was that Danny Rosencrantz didnât think Micki was sexy enough, or jailbait enough, or whatever, Lolita enough⊠he wanted a blonde, he didnât care who it was but he wanted a blonde teen, a sexy blonde teen. And uh, so I guess Kim had to go out and start scooping all over again and you know, he dragged Cherie, and he must have found her pretty quickly because there was you know, like no super downtime while they were hunting around the country. I guess they just went to Rodneyâs and said âhey, can you sing?â and its ânot *really*, not so muchâ, you know, or âOKâ, she wasnât great.. [after a couple of words I had trouble making out] I did think Micki was really cool as a person, and good for the band cause it seemed more authentic with her.
RIS: That reminds me of something else I was wondering⊠what did you think of her as a person back then?
LF: Uh, you know, I didnât really⊠I canât even tell you that you know, I spoke to her more than a couple of times, but she seemed, you know, less outgoing than Joan, but perfectly nice and sane and pleasant and everything, but I didnât ever really hang out with her separately, or go out with separately, or any of that stuff, it was kinda âhi, how are you?â, she wasnât a jerk or aloof or anything like that.
RIS: Uh, what do you recall of the concerts you saw that year?
LF: That year? Oh god, I saw *everything*. I saw everything from the Hollywood Stars at nightclubs, yeah, I definitely would have seen Bowie or Roxy Music, the bigger bands that I liked werenât super famous, but you know, whatever, bands like 10CC that could play to a thousand people, but I saw a lot of club shows. I wasnât âsposed to, but I always made my way into Hollywood and you know, I just *had* to go and see whoever⊠but there was a lot of bands playing the Starwood, you know, the gamut of everything, you know, like Keith Relf, the singer of the YardbirdsâŠyou name it, I found some way to get into Hollywood, and either get in free or use Gregâs name to get in on the guest list.
RIS: Nice work!
LF: Yep, it was a blast though! Sure, I paid for it by not doing well in school, but you know what? Who cares.
RIS: You got your own label, you donât need school.
LF: Yeah, exactly. You know, it would have been *nice* to have a real education and succeeded in college, but, I got through high school. It was far more important to me to see The Ramones than it was to move on, so yeah, that was the path I took.
RIS: Looks like it worked out well for you OK anyway. Do you remember anything about the Runaways shows you saw, or not so much?
LF: [Just barely]⊠they were extremely not well attended, and usually a bunch of guys that were like âoh my god, girls!â, but I canât even remember if there were other females in the audience other than me, you know, maybe someoneâs girlfriend⊠Um, I saw them in weird places. I distinctly remember a movie theater in the Valley, like a really old, decrepit movie theater and um, there was just a smattering of humans, and uh, I remember that Whisky show that I have a tape ofâ
RIS: Oh wow.
LF: If Iâm not mistaken, I think Lita was supposed to be the second guitar player in the band even when Micki was there, maybe I got my wires crossed, but Iâm gonna say, did you interview Phreddie or not?
RIS: Yeah, I did.
LF: Cause he has a much better memory of these years than me, cause he knew Lita pretty well. but I am gonna say, I thought Lita was supposed to join the band while Micki was still in itâ
RIS: You know, I saw a photo of Lita and Micki both on stage, so it must have briefly been the caseâ
LF: Yeah, cause there was a time I remember a show where they were supposed to play together but uh, Lita got the shit beaten out of her by a gang or something probably because Litaâs a bit of a smartass and she didnât play a show that I was going to see, and everybody was like âwhereâs Lita?â because I had heard all about her and everything, that she played like Richie Blackmore, whoâs *not* my favourite.. and um, but anyway I mostly, I always saw, I donât even remember seeing them with Lita, I might have but 90% of the shows I saw were with Micki, and that wasnât even a lot⊠but you know, a handful. The ones I could make without getting into too much trouble, that werenât too far away from my house cause letâs face it, I had to go to school in the morning. Those were fun. It make me feel like I was super important, âIâm in high school, Iâm on the high school paper, and Iâm followinâ the Runaways!â.
RIS: Didnât you get them to play your high school, or was that later?
LF: Indeed I did! They played my high school, I canât remember if it was before the album came out or after the album came out, but within a month either way⊠cause I graduated in June, so it was some time in Spring. I had flyers, like these really crappy mimeographed flyers, for fifty cents.. and oh god, I donât know, the auditorium held probably five or seven hundred people and thereâs one hundred people there, and everybody *hated* them, it was with Cherie of courseâŠ
RIS: [laughs]
LF: [with even more emphasis] hated them. So, but a little bit of my article from Bomp was in the liner notes, so I was like, I just thought I was *way* too cool for all that, and thought I was really happening. But anyway, everybody hated them so you know, what few people did like me in high school, that was prettymuch the end of that, they were like âthis is *terrible* musicâ, and they didnât get Cherie and her whole thing⊠but you know, everybody at that time, they were super into prog, like Yes and Genesis, all that crap, or else the stoners just listened to Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, nobody liked the bands I liked at all.
RIS: Its like, âwhereâs my twenty minute drum solo?â
LF: Yeah, exactly! Yeah, they just wanted to get stoned and listen to Jethro Tull or whatever the hell it was. So I was a total 8-ball because Iâd be like âwait until you see Televisionâ and theyâd listen to it and go âthis is terribleâ, you know, whatever it was, and thatâs all I ever heard. I never made any converts to any of those bands⊠that was pretty neat that Kim, you know, let me⊠you know, you canât really call him a manager cause he doesnât know how to manage, but more or less, he was their svengali than anything else. He was their Phil Spector guy even though heâs not very talented in that department, he just put the whole thing together, and wrote a whole lot of their lyrics and all that kind of stuffâŠ
RIS: I was also gonna ask, did you see much of the shit he did? Like, you read about it, but did you see any of it at the time? Harassment, sexual crap, you knowâŠ.
LF: I never saw any of that stuff. Iâm not saying it didnât happen, because obviously they saw him a much closer wayâyou know, I just saw him out in the public place, but um, his type was more like the victim, the victim type of person, you know, like the actual runaway kind of personâ
RIS: Yeahâ
LF: Like someone that actually ran away from their parents or homeless. Uh, anybody that was stable or sane, like Joan or anything, would very much not be his type. But considering it came from several of them, I donât doubt that its true, but I never witnessed anything.
RIS: I was just saying cause you know, you read the story and like, thereâs the one about Micki saying that he was basically just trying to crack onto her the whole time, and being a creepâ
LF: Oh really! So she said it too.
RIS: Yeah, and then her refusing toâ
LF: So thatâs another type of person, cause Mickiâs a real no-nonsense kind of a chick, sheâs not going to put up with that at all, so uh, wowee.. and you know, him and Rodney had no lack of underage girls at that point because everybody wanted to âget into a showâ or meet rockstars or whatever, so it surprises me that he would even pull something so unprofessional, but *thatâs what people do*.
RIS: I think it was like she said that she hadnât had enough experience to just know to tell him to fuck off at the time, so it was like some big pressure thingâŠ
LF: Thatâs the exact same story Cherie had, so *howw weird*. You know, thatâs what the casting couch is all about, how do you think Marilyn Monroe or anybody, how do you think Madonna got somewhereâ
RIS: Yeah, it wasnât just for her musicâ
LF: Yeah, but anyway they never got anywhere one way or the other, so its good that they [MS/Cherie etc:] didnât cave in. Joan had the same story, even Jackie Fox, but from personal experience, I did not witness any of that. And its really yucky considering they *were* sixteen years old. You know, its funny⊠I kept getting older but they stayed the same age, or theyâd be like two years younger than me so I never figured how that really worked, but interesting how that works.
RIS: Did it change the band much live when Micki left and Cherie came in?
LF: Um⊠you know, it was a bigger sound for sure, like adding the whole another guitar player. I mean, Joan is definitely a rhythm guitar player, not a lead, so there really wasnât any leads, she wasnât that far along in her guitar playing, and then you have Lita, and then you have a singer whoâs just singing and able to work the stage because obviously Micki had to play bass at the time, so yes, definitely, I suppose it was, I donât know if it was more âprofessionalâ or whatever, but more, I guess, commercial, maybe thatâs a good word for it?
RIS: Hmm, yeah.
LF: You know, easier to sell to a whole roomful of guys, you know.. I mean, I think Mickiâs really attractive and talented and pretty and that kind of stuff, but thereâs a certain guy who likes a girl, a blonde girl in lingerie more.. so thatâs who youâre trying to sell records to instead of somebody whoâs an actual, real musicianâ
RIS: It [with Micki] might have been less about the you know, sexualised image.
LF: Mmm-hmm. Yeah, exactly. If youâre going for the whole sexualised, jailbait thing.
RIS: Hmm, I was gonna say, did you ever see any of the many other bands Micki played in?
LF: Oh, ah, I saw her a lot with the Bangles, and Iâm sure we talked about the Runaways situation at some point, but even *that* was in the early 80s, so uh, she obviously joined the band after Annette Z. left, so Iâm gonna say this was 83, early 84?
RIS: â83, mid â83â
LF: So that was a *hell* of a long time ago. but Iâm sure we had a laugh at the whole Runaways thing. She was super cool. I remember she had an apartment right off the Hollywood Freeway and stuff like that. And uh, she wasnât exactly like *them* either. She was apart from the Bangles. She wasnât exactly the same type, if they had a type, she was kind of more her own island. And obviously the Petersons were sisters, and Susanna had known them for a long time, obviously they had formed the band and Micki joined but you know, as a latter member it probably felt hard for her, Iâm gonna guess.
RIS: Yeah? You mean like on a personality level?
LF: No, Iâm just saying she came on board down the line, so its not like being the original member of a band, its probably like being a hired hand, or somethinâ.
RIS: As opposed to the Runaways.
LF: Right. [pause] But yeah, thatâs about all my Micki stories⊠my entire brush with greatness. ( If thereâs anything else, like more recent⊠I didnât see, what was the new wave band, Toniâ
RIS: Toni & The Movers?
LF: Yeah, never saw, at least, I donât remember, letâs put it that way. I may have but I donât have a photographic memory, but I donât recall ever seeing them.
RIS: Hmm.. I was gonna conclude by asking if you have any thoughts on the LA scene in general, this far on? Like how you look back on it?
LF: HmmâŠgosh.
RIS: I know, its a deep one.
LF: I know, exactly.. any big momentous thoughts about it, no. But you know, I think it was a really good endeavour that Kim tried to put together a good band even though it was just to hit on chicks or whatever his purpose was⊠but yeah, I think its, considering that you had, I donât know, your Ronettes or something, they were all fake bands, so it was nice to put together female *musicians* and play that kind of music where they werenât just trying to be pretty girls and not sweaty girls, and stuff.
RIS: Yeah, who actually play instruments, you know...
LF: At least he tried, you know, what are ya gonna do. But as far as part of the scene, it didnât even feel like it because they kinda jumped in and out of it so fast it almost didnât even seem like they were a LA band, you know, it was such a short period of time and then they were immediately running off to uh, Japan, none of the things that any local bands ever got to do. It was like they were in garages one second and then they were outta here⊠so for me it was just yeah, a really short period of time. And then after Cherie left, I didnât even pay attention. the whole Vicki Blue and â, Iâm sure I saw them a few more times, butâŠ
RIS: The fun was gone maybe?
LF: Yeah, but it was just like nobody *cared*, you know what I mean?
RIS: Yeahâ
LF: Everybody was so immersed in punk by that point. It was almost like they were quaint or something, âoh the Runaways, yeah, I remember themâŠâ
Note: LFâs first Bomp! article on the band (âAre You Young And Rebellious Enough To Love The Runaways?â, Bomp!, Spring 1976, pp.12-13, 16.: Cover, Page 1, Page 2, Page 3 [Scans originally posted by Stereo Sanctity]
The Corona Del Mar High School band, 1972, featuring Mike Hamilton (guitar) and Susan Thomas (vocals, flute) among others
An interview with Paul Reed - March 2015
RIS: How did you first develop an interest in music?
PR: My parents were both very interested in music and were amateur musicians. My father had the ability to play organ and piano by ear and played a lot of âstandardsâ on a Hammond organ that was purchased by him for therapy after he was hospitalized for an ulcer. My mother played woodwinds and was a member of an all girl band (sound familiar?) during the 30âs. They were called the âMelody Maidsâ. My uncle, George was a piano tuner and worked on the organ a the Mormon Tabernacle in Utah.
When the time came, my parents suggested I learn how to play the trombone. This was during the sixth grade when I was 12 or 13. That instrument is very difficult to play well and quite large for a child, so I lost interest in it and it was sold. At the time, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass were very popular and I started to listen to them. I constructed a âdrum setâ from a hat rack, pots, pans and other items I found to be able to play along with the TJBâs music on a monaural phonograph!
This led my parents to buy me a series of more and more sophisticated drum kits and allowed me to join various bands as I attended Junior and Senior High School. I am still using the Ludwig set they purchased for me in 1971. I believe that I auditioned for âGood Questionâ around 1977 with that kit augmented with more cymbals and toms.
RIS: Did you have any early influences or inspirations as a drummer?
PR: As I mentioned, I was a fan of the âTijuana Brassâ and therefore their drummer, Nick Ceroli. He inspired me to play the drums at that time and I admire his playing in that group and as a big band drummer to this day. My other main influence has to be Buddy Rich. I dressed like him set my drums up like him and tried to play like him! Then, as my interest in prog rock increased, I became a huge Carl Palmer fan. My senior recital in college consisted of myself and 2 other classmates performing âTake a Pebbleâ. I wish I had a copy of that recording also!
RIS: What was your drum set-up in those days?
PR: I will give you some background on the drums I used on both the G Q recording sessions;
The basic kit was a 1971 Ludwig Super Classic model in white marine pearl. This was the set my parents purchased for me when I entered High School. The drum sizes are as follows, 14X22 bass drum, 9X13 mounted tom, 16X16 floor tom and an L M 401 Supra Phonic snare drum, 5X14. I augmented the kit with 6, 8, 10, and 12 inch melodic toms (single headed), 14 and 15 inch Roto Toms, a large cowbell, and Chinese blocks. The cymbal selection was as follows: 20 inch Paiste ride, 18 inch Paiste crash, 14 inch Paiste hi hats, 22 inch Zildjian China type, 20 inch A Zildjian crash,8 inch Zildjian splash and a 16 inch Zildjian crash. Hardware was mostly Ludwig including a Speed King bass drum pedal.
This set was my homage to my then idol, Carl Palmer. I tried to incorporate as many of the items he used with ELP on my meager budget. It took some time to set up, but the music demanded an elaborate array of percussion, which is one of the reasons I was chosen for this band over the garden variety rock drummer.
Today, I primarily play jazz so my original set has been returned to itâs simple arrangement. I also have a Gretsch Be Bop kit with a 14 X 18 bass drum and smaller toms. I use Bosphorus cymbals with that rig.
RIS: How did Good Question come together?
PR: âGood Questionâ was the brainchild of Phil Sweetland, our keyboard player. He was very influenced by âThe Niceâ, âGenesisâ, âELPâ, âYesâ and âKing Crimsonâ. He wrote all the music as well. He was joined by his friends, Ross Harris on bass and Mike Hamilton on guitar. Scott Kirby, a friend of Ross became the vocalist, Scott could be as flamboyant as Peter Gabriel. No one seemed to be able to fill the drum chair to Philâs liking , so I was asked by a friend of all the current members (Nick Burton) to audition. Since I was in my Carl Palmer phase, I fit right in. Playing melodically with more of a symphonic vibe than a rock and roll vibe, I was able to complement the music in a positive way. We would rehearse in Philâs parents garage in Corona Del Mar, Calif. several times a week working on a core set of about 8 tunes.
Some of the vocal harmonies were too high for a male voice, so I believe Mike Hamilton suggested we ask our girl (M.S.) to sing them. She was both available and willing, so off we went to a home studio in Newport Beach owned by Jerry Shirer, who later owned International Automated Media studios with Stevie Wonder. On a Tascam 8 track we produced our first demo tape which included four songs.
RIS: Did you know any of the other members before the band was formed?
PR: Until I was introduced by Nick Burton to the band, I had not met any of them. There was a group of people, that today one would refer to as âhipstersâ that I associated with after I graduated from High School. They all lived in the Newport Beach, Corona Del Mar area of Orange County, CA. Included in this group was Marc Soden, a bass player and son of a prominent Judge. He drove a 1964 Chevy Impala low rider and had a band called âTypical Lizardâ. He was a big Frank Zappa fan and wrote some very strange music. I met Mike Hamilton and Sue Thomas (M.S.) through Marc. We played some very strange gigs together, but playing songs like âDonât I look like Heinrich Himmler When I Danceâ, was a little to bizarre for me, so I stayed with âGood Questionâ. By the time we recorded our second demo tape at âSun Westâ studios, Micki was with âThe Runawaysâ and unavailable.
The music business was strange back then as well, and after our agent played the demo for several record labels, including RCA, he was told that progressive rock was no longer selling and punk was the new fad. After that let down, our keyboard guy, Phil, went off to college at Brown University in Boston and the rest of us all went our separate ways. Most of us still live in California, with the exception of Phil Sweetland who moved to Nashville to write reviews of country music! Ross, Scott, Mike and I communicate on Face Book but we all have lost touch with Miss Steele.
RIS: What songs did Good Question perform on their demo tape?
PR: Our demo consisted of 4 songs each time we recorded. We recorded the same 4 at both the recording sessions we did. I can remember titles for three out of the four.
1. âGhost Town Tangoâ (instrumental) This piece reminded me a lot of ELPâs version of Aaron Coplandâs âHoe Downâ.
2. âFree in My Mindâ A simple ballad on which Sue sang the harmony with Scott.
3. âTwo Worlds Beyondâ This one was very ambitious, having a medieval sound with stylistic bits of âGentle Giantâ and âGenesisâ woven in against a martial cadence. Again Sue is singing back-up.
4. The title of this last one alludes me now, but it was the rocker of the set. Tempo, time signature and mood changes made for a very dramatic closer with Sue again on harmonies.
The songs averaged 5 to 6 minutes in length.
RIS: What do you recall of Good Questionâs gigs?
PR: As far as gigs is concerned, we played a few private parties and some dances for the public. Doing mostly covers of classic rock tunes with some prog stuff thrown in. We did more rehearsing than live playing because the music was technically difficult.
RIS: What were your first impressions of Sue Thomas?
PR: I met Sue when I first played with Marc Sodenâs band âTypical Lizardâ. She was quiet and unassuming yet very worldly and intelligent. We seemed to have similar interests and the same sense of humor, so we hit it off well. She lived by herself in an apartment on the Balboa Peninsula and drove her grandmotherâs 1968 Thunderbird. I just remember her as quiet, introspective, mysterious and very attractive. Sue always dressed in a way one would associate with someone out of the past (think Stevie Nicks) and had a flair for the unconventional.
L to R: Susan Thomas, Sandy West, Joan Jett, 1975
RIS: Would you care to expand on the similar interests you shared?
PR: We both liked British humor and were die hard âMonty Pythonâ fans. Both of us were fans of the cinema and attended revival house showings of classics. We appreciated art and classical music, although she had a better understanding of art and I, music.
RIS: Iâm intrigued by your mention of classical music. Would you care to say a little more about this, or which classical artists you and her most enjoyed?
PR: She seemed to prefer the Avant Garde such as Phillip Glass, Edgar Varese, George Crumb, etc. Where I prefer the more pedestrian composers, Mahler, Beethoven, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, etc.
RIS: What were your and Susanâs thoughts on prog rock?
PR: At the time, we all were fond of progressive rock in itâs various forms. Be it âPFMâ, âYesâ, âGenesisâ, âELPâ, âTriumviratâ, or âGentle Giantâ. Sue seemed to enjoy the the theatrical aspects of the genre. To me, she always seemed to be the type who would have been right at home during the Renaissance Period.
RIS: You mentioned Sue joining the Runaways in an earlier response. Did you have any thoughts on the Runaways at the time?
PR: I never had any interest in punk or new wave music, so I had no opinion about âThe Runawaysâ except that I had heard from another girl bass player I also used to date later on that Kim Fowley was a creepy jerk.
RIS: What musical/artistic projects did you move onto after Good Question?
PR: For me, after âGood Questionâ I got involved with an Elvis tribute group and toured southern and central California until our backerâs money ran out. After that, I was involved with a Gino Vannelli want to be by the name of Jerry Dalton. We recorded two demo tapes again at Buddy Kingâs âSound Castleâ studio and later at âInternational Automated Mediaâ. The highlight of that band was doing a showcase at Doug Westonâs âTroubadourâ in Hollywood. Concurrently, I played in a college big band and was lucky enough to record an actual CD at Capitol Records. Since 1976, I have been in a trio called âThe Associatesâ. This group played gigs all over Orange and L A counties for community dances, private parties and corporate events. I am 58 years old, living by myself in Fullerton, Ca. after being married for 24 years to Carol Lynn Reed who passed away last April.
Phast Phreddie is a notable figure in the history and promotion of music in 1970s Los Angeles. Perhaps best known for his founding of the influential fanzine Back Door Man, he was also a scenester with numerous contacts within the scene. His house in Torrance, CA, paid host to the very first Runaways concert. He continues to regularly work as a DJ under the name Boogaloo Omnibus.
RIS = RealInspectorShane
PP = Phast Preddie
RIS: How did you and Michael first meetâprior to the Runaways?
PP: I met Michael the first time I went to see The Runaways rehearse, at the invitation of Kim Fowley. Â They rehearsed in a studio above a drugstore on Santa Monica Blvd and San Vicente Blvd. in West Hollywoodânot a trailer in the Valley as in the movie!! Â (I saw the movie twice, and it pissed me off both times. NOTHING is factual in it.)
RIS: What were your impressions of Michael as a person and musician?
PP: This is a very hard question to answer like this. It would require a book about her. The impression I got of Michael Steele as a person, when I knew her back in the mid seventies, then again in the mid eighties was this: She was a complicated and sensitive person interested in truth and beauty. When I met her as a Runaway she was young and pretty and talented and perhaps naive, or at least new to the games that Hollywood tends to play on people. Ten years later, she was still young, even more pretty, even more talented but she showed signs of having been snake-bitten, so to speak. My impression was that she had gained quite a bit of life-experience in betweenâsome of it not very positive. She wasnât as bubbly and she no longer seemed to trust people she didnât know.
As for musically, she was a very fine bass player when she was in The Runawaysâand would have been the groupâs best if it had worked out that way. She was most definitely much better as a Bangle. Ten yearsâ experience has a way of doing that. Plus, I really enjoyed the songs she wrote for The Bangles, although they donât really seem like Bangles-like songs. I always hoped she could have made a solo record where these kinds of songs could really shine on their own.
RIS: I find the description âa complicated and sensitive person interested in truth and beautyâ quite interesting. It reminds me.. not that I know her, but from interviews and what other people have said about her Iâve always got the impression sheâs highly intelligent. Whatâd you think of her intellect?
PP: I donât know if Iâm qualified to discuss her intellect. Â She certainly seemed intelligent to me. That, plus her talent, charm and beauty was very attractive to me at the time.
Phrast Phreddieâs House: Venue for the first Runaways concert, August 12 1975
RIS: What are your memories of the first Runaways gig? (what the setup was, what songs were played, how the night was, any amusing stories etc:)
PP: The first Runaways gig was in my parentsâ living room in Torrance, of course. I really donât remember a lot about the gig. I think I got rather drunk that night. This is one gig I have tried to remember for a long time, but it just wonât come back. Thereâs a photo somewhere of me introducing the band in my living room, so it must have happened. The group was a trio, Lita Ford having joined, then quit (as I remember, some time after the performance in my living room, the group played two weekends in a row at the Whisky Aâ Go-Go. After the first one, Lita was back in the band). I remember seeing Michael in the band when The Runaways played crappy little bars and discos in Orange County and San Fernando Valley. One was a movie theater opening for some local heavy metal band. Â She was the lead singer and bass player, of course, and a damn fine one. I hated to see the group get watered down with Cherie Currieâa good pop singer, but not really a rockânâroll singerâjust because she was blond (well, thee were other mitigating circumstances, too, of course, but thatâs another story). Â In those days, Michael could sing the rockânâroll stuff quite well.
RIS: Did she ever mention what music she was really into back in the Runaways days? What she was listening to, what influenced her etc:
PP: I canât recall anything other than the usual: Beatles and Stones. She seemed to like much of the stuff that was popular in the late sixties and early seventies.
RIS: Did you ever see any of the many bands (Slow Children, Elton Duck, Snakefinger, Nadia Kapiche, Boys Ranch, Toni & The Movers, Greg Best, Bird Mountain Larry etc:) Michael played in between the Runaways and the Bangles? If so, any memories?
PP: I saw Slow Children and Elton Duck, but I think before she was in the respective bands. Â I did see Nadia Kapiche and Toni and the Movers with Michael. Â I especially liked Toni & the Movers and was saddened when I saw that Toni Childs cut her solo record without Michael. Â Nadia Kapiche didnât seem to me to be a very serious effort, although I thought Toni & the Movers was quite goodâmuch better than the Toni Childs solo record. Â Toni has an incredible voice and I thought it suited the more rock-oriented music of The Movers better than the over-produced pop of her solo record (thatâs how I remember it, but I havenât heard the solo record in a REALLY long time).
RIS: What else do you remember about those Toni & The Movers gigs? Was Michael singing much (I know she sings on the chorus of âAfricaâ) then or focusing more on her basswork?
PP:Â I really donât remember a lot about it. Â The performance I remember most was at the Cathay De Grandeâa dark and dingy little club in Hollywood. Â The main things I remember about it is that Toni had a great voice and Michael was in the band.
RIS: As someone who had the perspective of seeing her play in both groups, what did you think of her growth as a musician between the Runaways and the Bangles?
PP: Michael was most definitely a better bass player by the time she joined The Bangles. Â Thereâs a story I heard that the producer for The Bangles records often used session musicians to play the other womenâs instrumental parts, but that he could not find a bass player to play the parts as well as Michael. I believe this. She was that good.
RIS: Do you remember seeing/hearing Michael play any instruments besides bass? Iâve heard in addition to her basswork sheâs also a pretty accomplished guitar player, so more info would be great.
PP: I vaguely remember her strumming an acoustic guitar at a party or something, but that would be it. Â She seemed like a real musician to me. Â I donât remember having seen her play another instrument in a serious manner.
RIS: Also, I found that tidbit about El Pollo Loco quite cool, so I thought Iâd ask a little about that too. Â -Do you remember more of the story behind it? Iâm especially curious if it was based on a true story (so to speak) or had a particular inspiration.
PP: Â Itâs all very true. Michaelâs spoken word piece is rather explicit, but this is what I remember of it. Michael had just joined The Bangles and she and I had recently reconnected when I saw her play with the band. Â I saw her at parties and such and we would chat. We got to be friendly and I asked her out to see a very hip band called The Crawdaddys. I always had a crush on her and I was hoping that this date would go well. The show was somewhere near downtown. Â On the way, Michael said she was hungry so we stopped for a bite to eat at a place called El Pollo Loco (Spanish for The Crazy ChickenâI thought it was a basic Mexican restaurant but it turned out to be a sort of Mexican style chicken place).
In the parking lot of this fine establishment we were approached by a late middle-aged, weather-worn Hispanic man who asked for money so he could by some food. He said he was hungry. I didnât want to give him money, but if he was hungry I thought I should help him out. Â I invited him into El Pollo Loco to buy him some food.
The idea was for him to get a meal and be gone. I did not think he would sit with us, but he did. He sat across the table from us. At first it wasnât that big of a deal. Then he started saying he was a good man. He pulled up his shirt and showed us some scars on his stomach and on his arms where he had been tortured in El Salvador, where he was from.
Michael Steele is a very sensitive person and this really upset herâ well, it was an upsetting turn of events, thatâs for sure. Needless to say, we never saw The Crawdaddys. Michael asked that I take her home and I did. I didnât realize it had such an effect on her until I heard her piece âEl Pollo Loco.â
RIS: El Pollo Loco also strikes me as a very well-written piece. Do you recall if Michael was writing other prose pieces or songs at that time?
PP: If she did, I was not aware of them or do not remember them. My guess is that she did because the music thingâas talented as she isâdidnât always seem to be a good outlet for her, mostly due to circumstances beyond her control. Â My guess is there may be a boxâor there was a boxâof excellent writing somewhere that I hope sees the light of day some how.
RIS: How will you remember Michael?
PP: I will always remember her as a wonderful example of a human being.
Iâll end with a little story that I just remembered:  Around the time The Bangles put out their first albumâit may not have even been released yetâMichael and I attended a party for The Motels in the San Fernando Valley. Marty and Jeff Jourardâmembers of The Motels at the timeâare good friends of mine. The Jourard brothers are from Gainsville, FLâsame as Tom Petty and his band, who were also at the party. I came with Michael Steele. At this party, she was introduced to Tom Petty. Iâll never forget, because we briefly discussed it on the way home afterward, that she was very excited that Tom Petty knew who she was and spoke with her as if she were an equal. It may have been the first time someone she admired and respected looked upon her as a fellow musician. He wished her luck and sort of welcomed her to the fold.
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