Pavlov's Dog

20th November 2019

Courtyard Theatre, London

I am unsure exactly how geographically precise Performing Rights Society royalties information is.  I mean, I am sure that, along with one's cheques (not that I have ever received one or, indded, ever will), one receives a reference to whichever country's sales it refers to.  But is it able to pin things down to individual towns?

If so, I have no doubt any of the recipients of monies from the 1975 sales of Pavlov's Dog's, debut album Pampered Menial, would have been more than a little surprised to learn of a seemingly random cluster of sales around an insignificant former mining town in the Scottish central belt.

To explain: at my school, Bathgate Academy, in the early Seventies, we had a resident musicologist by the name of Robert (or Boaby) Parker.  A congenitally-cheery and endearingly dishevelled-looking individual, his main claim to fame was as the font of all knowledge with regards to Led Zeppelin.  But he also appeared to house an encyclopaedic knowledge of music generally - he is the only person in my life, for example, with whom I have ever had a lengthy discussion on the rise and fall of Brinsley Schwartz.

Anyway – towards the end of 1975 or so, I think it was, he began spreading word of this utterly unique album he had got a hold of: the aforementioned Pampered Menial by Missouri band Pavlov's Dog.  Such was the high esteem in which his opinion was held, that pretty much half the males in our school year of fifty or so bods ended up buying a copy.  I should not be surprised if we accounted for the majority of that year's Scottish sales of the album.

And what a remarkable album it was; due in no small way to vocalist David Surkamp's high-pitched vocal range.  Sparks' Russell Mael had already sung way up there amongst the high letters, as had Rush vocalist Geddy Lee.  But neither matched the power of Mr. Surkamp. 

But, something I swiftly realised, was that even without Surkamp's vocal acrobatics, Pampered Menial would still have been a wonderful album, for the songwriting was just so strong.  Julia and Episode, embellished by flute and violin respectively, were each divinely beautiful compositions, and whilst Song Dance and Fast Gun relied on a bit more bombast, they were no less special for all that.  

Once and Future Kings had the band flirting with Prog (no bad thing, back in the day), but the collection's high-point was Theme From Subway Sue – a killer guitar intro heralding in a poignant lyric of loss and breakup.  Surkamp hitting that high C in the outro, certainty tested the limits of any listener's acceptance of his vocal style....and probably also the recording facilities at the time.

Listening to the album these days, still leaves me breathless.  

The band, regretfully, would never reach those heights again.


The follow-up At the Sound of the Bell, featured both Bill Bruford and Andy Mackay as guest musicians, but was a rather more lightweight affair, even though it housed a pair of pleasingly busy Prog outings in Valkyrie and Did You See Him Cry.  Standing Here With You and Early Morning On, were each standout cuts, but much of the rest was pleasant rather than essential listening.  

It was hard really to work out just who the band's target audience was at this point.  Surkamp's vocal style was never going be embraced within the mainstream, whilst we Proggers were never going to go in a big way for the stripped-back poppy approach to the likes of Try To Hang On and She Breaks Like the Morning Sky.

This dichotomy probably had much to do with Pavlov's Dog's third album being rejected by their record company, effectively stalling any momentum the band may have built up.

And thus began a slow decline of the band, I suppose.  There were a couple of break-ups over the following decades, and group members came and went (including Surkamp for a spell).  At the time of writing three of the original members of Pavlov's Dog are no longer with us: Siegfried Carver (died in 2009), Doug Rayburn (2012) and Rick Stockton (2014).

Only Surkamp remains of the original members, in the present line-up.  Although, as if in recompense, the current Pavlov's Dog appears a bolt-hole of marital bliss.  For not only has Surkamp's wife Sara been a part of the line-up since 2005, but bassist Rick Steiling and violinist Abbie (formerly Hainz) are a loved-up matrimonial item.

For the record, the rest of the current band members are Steve Bunck (drums), David Malachowski (guitar) and Mark Maher (keys).

David Surkamp

David Malachowski

Sara Surkamp

Abbie Steiling

Mark Maher 

Rick Steiling

Steve Bunck

But before the main event, we (and I assume a significant number of the other elderly bods in the audience) enjoyed a pleasant surprise in the shape of support act Before Sunday – a four piece built around the talents of guitarist Nik Basis and vocalist Stella P; both from Greece originally, but now based in London.

Their brand of R&B influenced alt-pop had a number of the greying/bald heads around us bobbing appreciatively.  And I did wonder if many of the rather more youthful faces in the venue this evening, had perhaps primarily come along to catch the support act.

Their songs Godless and Living in London were particularly fun, and a debut album arrives in the New Year, we learned.

Stella P - Before Sunday

Before Sunday

The bass player was the coolest guy in the room - even with his body warmer and woolen beanie!
His big hands danced over his strings, effortlessly caressing all manner of funky grooves from his instrument.

After all these years I did wonder how ravaged (or otherwise) by time Mr Surkamp's unique vocal cords would be.  But when the band opened with strong renditions of Late November and then Fast Gun, it was clear he still had it (or much of it).  Three songs from the new album Prodigal Dreamer were then fired out in quick succession, none of which I have to say (upon first hearing admittedly) stood out.  In all honesty, each were a bit of a dirge.

In fact most of the new songs performed had a slightly plodding, overwrought feel to them, and they soon began to merge in my head.

It was, ironically, the two songs sung by Sara Surkamp which worked best: Hard Times rocked along in fine style, whilst Aria benefited from a military-style drum beat over which was layered both Sara's breathy vocal and Abbie Steiling's violin.  I also enjoyed Breaking Ice, and the surprisingly funky Heart of Mine – this latter, a relic from Surkamp's short-lived dalliance with Iain Matthews in the band Hi-Fi.

But, of course, it was those tunes from the debut album that most of us (I would guess) had come to hear.  And we were not disappointed, for the whole album was eventually performed.

Although, from Of Once and Future Kings onwards in the set, I felt Surkamp's vocals began to wobble just a touch.  And there was as much shouting as singing going on by the time we reached the first encore, Song Dance.  Not that anyone in the venue (me included) cared a jot.

A few minutes into the set one of Mark Maher's keyboards fell off its stand, and the two
ladies (sort of) helped put it back together again,
whilst David Surkamp kept us entertained with the story of the autographs on his guitar. 

Whilst hubby Rick was performing his bass solo, Amanda discreetly brought out her phone to record things
Which I thought was rather sweet.

DS raises a sweat.

Pavlov's Dog - London 2019

The Courtyard Theatre itself is a collection of small rehearsal rooms/venues hidden away north east of the city centre, just off Old Street.  Their website states their Studio Theatre (where this gig took place) holds 230 folks.  But I would hazard a few more than that had been squidged in this evening, for oxygen was certainly at a premium.

Sara Surkamp in particular looked more than once as if she was about the keel over in the heat, Abbie once concernedly enquiring of her well-being.

Rock'n'Roll stars have a reputation for treating their wives dreadfully, but whilst DS should be applauded for incorporating his missus into the band (a la Linda McCartney), to subject the poor lady to such inhospitable working conditions did appear to me to represent a particularly insidious form of domestic abuse.  
(I am joking – Mrs S appeared to enjoy a whale of a time, but boy was it hot).


Set list

Late November
Fast Gun
Shaking Me Down
Hurting Kind
The Winds Wild Early
She Came Shining
Breaking Ice
Wrong
Suzanne
Heart of Mine
Preludin
Of Once and Future Kings
Paris
Winterblue
Hard Times
Canadian Rain
Standing Here With You
Aria
Natchez Trace
Episode
Theme From Subway Sue

Encore
Song Dance
Julia