Wild Honey, Lenny Kaye, Rhino to Celebrate 50 Years of ‘Nuggets’

URL SlugBenefit concert producers the Wild Honey Foundation, original compilation curator Lenny Kaye, and archival label Rhino Records will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the “Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968” double LP on Elektra Records by presenting a live concert at the historic Alex Theatre in Glendale on Friday, May 19.

Starting at 8 p.m., the live performance will feature songs from the legendary album of American garage rock classics plus bonus material from the mid-’60s. Kaye, Patti Smith’s guitarist for the past 50 years, is collaborating on the setlist and the performances with the Wild Honey Orchestra led by Rob Laufer and Andrew Sandoval.

According to Paul Rock, founder-director of the Wild Honey Foundation and producer of the concert, as of May 7, guest performers set to join them onstage include Susanna Hoffs, Peter Case (The Plimsouls), Peter Buck (R.E.M.), Wayne Kramer (MC5), Mike Peters (The Alarm), The Paley Bros., Scott McCaughey (Minus Five, Young Fresh Fellows, Baseball Project), David Aguilar (Chocolate Watchband), Paul Kopf and Daryl Hooper (The Seeds), Johnny Echols (Love), “Weird Al” Yankovic, Billy Vera, Ron Dante (The Archies), Mike Stax (The Loons), Evie Sands, The Three O’Clock, Tara Austin, Elliot Easton (The Cars), Kathy Valentine (The Go-Go’s), Carla Olson, Cindy Lee Berryhill, The Count Five, James Lowe (Electric Prunes), Jim Pons (The Leaves), Tom Kenny (SpongeBob), John Easdale (Dramarama), Nick Guzman, Owen Elliot, Cameron Dye, All Day Sucker, Peter Zaremba (The Fleshtones), Cosmo Topper, and more to be announced soon.

Led by Kaye, Laufer, and Sandoval, the Wild Honey Orchestra Nuggets All-Star Band will include Alec Palao, Jim Laspesa, Nick Vincent, Jordan Summers, Jim Mills, Willie Aron, David Nolte, Robby Scharf, Nelson Bragg, Derrick Anderson, Darian Sahanaja, Debbie Shair, David Goodstein, Michael Simmons, Kristi Callan, Kaitlin Wolfberg, Roy McDonald, Ronnie Barnett, Rob Bonfiglio, Chris Price, Eric KM Clark, Lyn Bertles, Steve Stanley, James Nolte, Emily Elkin, Bill Bentley, Paul Feather, Randell Kirsch, Peter Jacobsen, and Bill Bergman.

“Lenny and Wild Honey will celebrate this legendary LP with style, energy, and a fierce love for these classic songs,” Rock said in a Wild Honey press release. “This will be one for the ages!”

“Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era” is the influential 1972 compilation album of American psychedelic and garage-rock singles released in the mid-to-late 1960s, with songs like “I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night,” “Psychotic Reaction,” “Pushin’ Too Hard,” “You’re Gonna Miss Me,” and “Hey Joe.” Curated by Kaye, the original album included liner notes that included one of the first mentions of the term “punk rock.”

The “Nuggets” series has influenced many generations of rockers from the Ramones to the Lemon Twigs, with considerable help from the psych-rock fans at Rhino Records over the last 40 years.

The label released 15 volumes of “Nuggets” collections from 1984-1989, and Kaye and Rhino A&R chief Gary Stewart co-produced the massive four-CD “Nuggets” box set for Rhino in 1998. Andrew Sandoval, co-leader of the all-star Wild Honey band May 19, was an associate producer (as was Patrick Milligan, most recently noted for his work on the Joni Mitchell Archives box sets). The box included Kaye’s original 1972 collection in its entirety, augmented by another 91 tracks he and Stewart chose and extended liner notes. It spawned yet another four “Nuggets” boxes from 2001-2009 and five more single-disc compilations from 2004-2012.

Rhino released a limited Record Store Day version this spring, as “Nuggets” continues to influence young bands across the globe with its visceral garage/psychedelic power.

Reserved seats for the May 19 concert range from $40-$75; VIP tickets are $105 (price includes access to the event reception and soundcheck at 5 p.m., a meet-and-greet with the artists around 6 p.m., and a show poster suitable for autographs). As of May 7, the VIP tickets are sold out, but you can get on a waiting list via wildhoneyfoundation@yahoo.com.

Reserved seat tickets, selling briskly, will be available until the 1,400-seat venue sells out (Wild Honey events usually do). There will also be a silent auction.

Separately, Rock noted in a Facebook post, for a $100 donation, concertgoers may attend the dress rehearsal at the Alex on Thursday night, May 18, from 8-11. This donation includes automatic access to the presale (concertgoers will still need to purchase a ticket to the actual show). Dress rehearsal donations will go to cover show expenses. Donate at PayPal (send to wildhoneyfoundation@yahoo.com) or mail a check to Wild Honey Foundation, 1167 Kipling Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90041.

About the Autism Healthcare Collaborative

Proceeds from the “Nuggets” concert and silent auction will benefit the Autism Healthcare Collaborative. According to Rock’s release, it’s “an internationally recognized non-profit organization committed to facilitating the medical and psychosocial stabilization of individuals and families living with autism. AHC provides a multidisciplinary team approach to the identification and treatment of the complicated medical comorbidities of autism by connecting medical experts to families and physicians around the world through medical videoconferencing. AHC offers innovative solutions for individuals with autism, across the spectrum and throughout their lifetime, through comprehensive case management, community outreach, advocacy, and education.”

About the Wild Honey Foundation

“Since 1994, Wild Honey Foundation, a 501(c)(3), non-profit, has produced concerts, film screenings, online fundraisers, and live-stream events to benefit autism treatment/research and members of the music community in need,” according to the press release. Led by Paul Rock, David Jenkins, and Andrew Sandoval, Wild Honey is a “grassroots, volunteer organization dedicated to passing on the passion, creativity, and idealism found in rock, rhythm & blues, folk, classical, and pop music to future generations through cultural events of all types.”

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Here’s Lenny Kaye’s tracklist from the 1973 “Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968” double album (the May 19 concert’s setlist, though not yet announced, will likely include many of these):

Side 1
The Electric Prunes: “I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)”
The Standells: “Dirty Water”
The Strangeloves: “Night Time”
The Knickerbockers: “Lies”
The Vagrants: “Respect”
Mouse and The Traps: “Public Execution”
The Blues Project: “No Time Like the Right Time”

Side 2
The Shadows of Knight: “Oh Yeah”
The Seeds: “Pushin’ Too Hard”
The Barbarians: “Moulty”
The Remains: “Don’t Look Back”
The Magicians: “An Invitation to Cry”
The Castaways: “Liar, Liar”
The 13th Floor Elevators: “You’re Gonna Miss Me”

Side 3
Count Five: “Psychotic Reaction”
The Leaves: “Hey Joe”
Michael and the Messengers: “Romeo & Juliet”
The Cryan’ Shames: “Sugar and Spice”
The Amboy Dukes: “Baby Please Don’t Go”
Blues Magoos: “Tobacco Road”

Side 4
The Chocolate Watchband: “Let’s Talk About Girls”
The Mojo Men: “Sit Down, I Think I Love You”
The Third Rail: “Run, Run, Run”
Sagittarius: “My World Fell Down”
Nazz: “Open My Eyes”
The Premiers: “Farmer John”
The Magic Mushrooms: “It’s-a-Happening”

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Stephen K. Peeples is a Grammy-nominated multi-media writer-producer and award-winning radio/record-industry veteran raised in Miami and Los Angeles by career newspaper journalists and music lovers. Based in Santa Clarita, California, he wrapped a 45-year media career in 2021, and as of spring 2023, is co-authoring a new book with artist and pop-culture legend John Van Hamersveld commemorating the 60th anniversary in 2023-2024 of Hammer’s iconic poster for Bruce Brown’s epic surf movie “The Endless Summer.” Peeples is also conspiring with Cindy Johnson and Jeri Jenkins, founders of Home at Last, the Miami-based mansions-and-maids concierge service for rock stars recording at Criteria and Bayshore Studios in the 1970s and early ’80s, on researching and writing the dynamic duo’s memoir. And he is developing an art book/biography, “Boyd Elder, Artlaw: The Greatest Artist You’ve Never Heard Of,” about the artist who created the skull art for three classic albums by the rock group Eagles and much more (due in 2024-25). See the “Stephen K. Peeples” page on his website. More original stories and exclusive interviews are posted there and on his YouTube channel.

Article: Wild Honey, Lenny Kaye, Rhino Celebrate 50 Years of ‘Nuggets’
Category: News and Reviews
Author: Stephen K. Peeples
Article Source: stephenkpeeples.com