The GC5 - The Long Goodbye

 
  Top notch street punk today from The GC5.

  The Grady Coffee Five, or GC5 for short, formed in Cleveland, Ohio, back in 1996. They were made up of Doug McKean (bass/vocals), Pete Kyrou (guitar/vocals), Chris Yohn (guitar) and Dave McKean (drums). Writers of socially concious, working class anthems they were compared with the likes of Rancid, Swingin' Utters and The Clash.

  1997 saw the release, on Guttersnipe Records, of the cd, A More Agressive Approach Towards Peacekeeping and this was followed by a trio of 7"'s (Buy American, Takin' It To The Streets and The Price Of Security) before the 2000 album Kisses From Hanoi.

  It was around this time that Paul Weaver replaced Chris Yohn on guitar but this didn't stop their upwards momentum. The Horseshoes And Handgrenades ep and a split album with kindred spirits Hudson Falcons (67,104 Miles Later...) was followed by what many people consider to be their best release. Never Bet The Devil Your Head came out in 2002 on Thick Records and saw punknews.org saying "This is a great cd, every song on here just is what punk should be, you should get this if you like any sort of street/Oi/hardcore/punk. This is one of my favorite albums of this year, and will probably be near the top of my top ten albums of this year. If you consider yourself a punk you should be listening to this right now, and until you do I will continue to be more punk than you."

 

  Thick also released a cd containing Kisses From Hanoi/Horseshoes And Handgrenades whilst The Singles Collection (1997-2000) surfaced on Cosa Nostra.  2003 saw them split, Doug and Dave McKean went on to form the short lived Motel Blonde with former Dropkick Murphy Ryan Foltz, the man who produced Never Bet The Devil Your Head. From that album, this is The Long Goodbye.....

Another time, a different page,
when ignorance was all the rage,
I used to count my blessings to know you.
It's mouths like yours that spread disease,
and everyone in your sight is weak at the knees,
waiting for your true intentions to show through.

Call in the exterminator, 
this place is full of bugs. 
Rats show their faces later, 
when you've already pulled the plug.

Boys like you don't wear no crowns,
and girls like you don't wear no frowns,
they're only jesters in someone else's court.
Discontented but entertained, 
dangerous but easily contained,
looking to someone to hold their fort.

Call in the exterminator, 
this place is full of bugs. 
Rats show their faces later, 
when you've already pulled the plug.

Nowhere to run, nowhere to turn,
after all your bridges burn,
got no shoulders you can cry on,
and no one you can rely on.
Apologies, the most that you'll admit

Another time, a different page,
when ignorance was all the rage,
I used to count my blessings to know you.
It's mouths like yours that spread disease,
and everyone in your sight is weak at the knees,
waiting for your true intentions to show through.

Call in the exterminator, 
this place is full of bugs. 
Rats show their faces later, 
when you've already pulled the plug.

You and I can meet 
where the avenues hit the streets,
and we'll settle our score of problems once and for all.
I'll meet you in the park,
an hour after dark,
and I'll try to talk but you'd rather see a brawl.
When your heroes and villains converge,
another picture will emerge.
Did we ever think that this would end with such a long goodbye?