| FORTUNE & MALTESE and the Phabulous Pallbearers - CD
(Get Hip!)
19 of the 21 tracks were originally released as an album on
Screaming Apple Records. Thankfully for me and other "connoisseurs"
of retro rockin', Get Hip has seen fit to make this collection
available again. If you get behind Untamed Youth in a big way,
Fortune Maltese and crew should get you just as excited. One
look at the cover, with the Paul Revere and the Raiders meets
the early Makers fashion statement and you gotta know that frat
rock is spoken here! Most of the songs are originals but sound
like '60s vintage pop/rock ala Sam the Sham, the Kingsmen and
any number of groups found on comps of the Pebbles variety.
The covers include the "Everly Brothers', "Gone, Gone,
Gone," Bobby Fuller's, "Take My Word" and "Let's
Dance" that I can't help but think of as a Ramones tune,
though it was a hit when they were in diapers the first time
around. Hell, maybe it will be a hit when they are in diapers
again some day... But getting back to the disc at hand, there
are lots of harmonies, organ fills, classic guitar work and
non-stop teen beat action on a veritable plethora of good time
punk/psych/pop music. Yeah, I like it.
P. Edwin Letcher, Flipside, Issue #116
FORTUNE & MALTESE and the Phabulous Pallbearers - CD (Get
Hip!)
Hoo whee! Raiders style Garage-Beat that is so powerful- YOU
CAN'T SIT DOWN! They probably get the crap beat out of them
for wearing those tri-corner hats and thigh high boots around
town but hey- that's half the fun! You'll probably only need
this record for your next barnburner. (21 tracks. 49:12 playing
time)
J.J., Mohair Sweets, Issue #4
It's almost summer, so treat yourself to some true surfer grooves
by Fortune & Maltese and the Phabulous Pallbearers! These
5 kool dudes from Michigan will have you counting the days 'til
school's out! With their "melodic sting of the organ and
string," Fortune & Maltese brings back the days of 1960's
frat rock. Who could forget those glory days? Praised by the press
as "The New Kings Of The Kampus," these guys make a
mockery of the American University environment in the most phabulous
way. Check out "Tappa Kegga USA" or "Pizza Party
Twist" from their famous albums, and you'll be surfin' high!
The
Happy Clam, Capitol Records' www.hollywoodandvine.com
FORTUNE & MALTESE - "Konquer Kampus" (Hillsdale)
There existed between the first Presley gyration and the first
flaming guitar a whole fraternity of squeaky-clean rock bands
populated by nice boys who knew how to harmonize as well as
accessorize (usually sweaters with ties). They weren't particularly
rebellious, but they liked having a good time as much as the
next guy. In an age when rebellion is prepackaged for Squirt,
we're luck to have bands like Michigan's FORTUNE & MALTESE
AND THE PHABULOUS PALLBEARERS, who treasure the spirit of "frat
rock." On Konquer Kampus -- an album of Peppy gymnasium
harmonies with bikini-taunt guitar riffs and a very groovy Farfisa
organ -- Fortune & Maltese use their Crest smiles to win
at things that matter most: school, girls, pizza and the science
fair. It's the perfect combination for the frug, the watusi,
the pony, the hully gully or the jerk...
Silke Tudor, SF WEEKLY
FORTUNE & MALTESE - "Konquer Kampus" (Hillsdale)
MID-SIXTIES ORGAN-drenched frat party hijinx run rampant on
Konquer Kampus. Just listen to "Tappa Kegga USA" and
these sweater-sporting college playboy wannabes will have all
those beer-guzzling slobs who worship 311 and Sublime bowing
to their spit-polished penny loafers begging for more of their
Beach Boys/Hondells surf-garage pop harmonies. The nebbish duo
of Freddy Fortune and Mike Maltese provide the wonderful harmonic
dynamics that hearken back to the innocent Brian Wilson/pre-Vietnam
era of flashy hot rods, fiberglass surfboards and buxom blondes
in polka dot bikinis"Cuttin' Class," "Study Break,"
and "Pizza Party Twist" embody the Phabulous Pallbearers
idea of higher education. "High Horse" is a flat-out
stroll gone haywire that sounds suspiciously like Tommy Tucker's
"High Heeled Sneakers." The uncharacteristically squeaky
clean instrumentation is dead-on 1963 frat rock - think the
Lettermen patterned after Human Beinz instead of Peter, Paul
& Mary...you could proudly file this record along side your
Paul Revere and the Raiders, Kingsmen, and Chris Montez albums.
Ron Bally, Tuscon
Weekly
FORTUNE & MALTESE - "Leave No Stone Unturned"
single/video (Get
Hip)
As zany as The Monkees and cooler than Batman's car, these
five guys from Michigan make it hip to be square. With their
bowl cuts and slim ties, you might mistake 'em for the early
Beatles, but they pack a modern punch (with lots of retro panache)
that will soon wipe those moldy oldies out of your mind and
replace 'em with "tomorrow's sound... today."
MTV
FORTUNE & MALTESE - "Konquer Kampus" (Hillsdale)
Freddy Fortune & Mike Maltese are responsible for the great
band that makes a mockery of the American University environment.
They just edited their second LP (the first one was put out
in Germany) and it is an invitation to the dance floor. The
beat sound including chorus and authentic garage sound, is thought
to be pure entertainment. Fortune & Maltese have made it
possible to make this LP a number one hit in all [Spanish] west
coast radio stations thanks to new songs such as Pizza Party
Twist.
Penthouse, Spain
FORTUNE & MALTESE - "Genie In The Lamp/Vampira"
7" (360 TWIST!)
This band sounds better with each listen. "Genie In The
Lamp" comes out over "Vampira" because of its
well-planned organ and guitar parts that complement each other.
The same applies with the guitar and bass lines in "Vampira,"
which equally rocks, just not quite as much as "Genie."
This record is a fast player that's guaranteed to have your
foot tapping. One of the best releases from 360 Twist that I
have.
Make Room Online Zine
FORTUNE & MALTESE - "Konquer Kampus" (Hillsdale)
At the head of the class this time is the pride of Kalamazoo,
Mich., Fortune & Maltese and the Phabulous Pallbearers.
This high-octane quintet boasts stacks of quality wax, the "Konquer
Kampus" album (Hillsdale) being the best yet. The matching
uniforms and tri-cornered hats recall Paul Revere & the
Raiders, but the grooves also spurt a combination of Jan &
Dean with the grit of ? & The Mysterians at their lustiest.
"My Baby's Hearse," "Cuttin' Class" and
"Cuz I Want You" help explain why the Fortune lads
are a wall of Vox amps ahead of the competition, and each are
highlighted by glorious back-up harmony vocals and expert playing.
Fortune & Maltese are one of the few modern garage combos
that often out-perform their '60s idols.
Timothy Gassen, Magnet
Magazine
FORTUNE & MALTESE - "Konquer Kampus" (Hillsdale)
Detroit via Kalamazoo outfit Fortune & Maltese (and the
Phabulous Pallbearers, of course) preach to the gathered keg-tapping
throngs tales of lust, Saturday night drag races and unspoiled
tales of hot dogs, miniskirts and pizza pie from their pulpit
center stage at Phi Tappa Kegga. Konquer Kampus is the band's
full-length manifesto of clean, hedonistic fun. F&M's three-part
vocal sunniness rides high atop Vox organ-driven musical savagery
(in the process upping the ante on Paul Revere & the Raiders
and entering territory reigned over by Tacoma, Washington '60s
frat rock monarchs the Wailers). Where other retro-fitted rockers
merely ape the music of yesteryear, Fortune & Maltese live
and breathe the sounds from a time when all you needed for a
good time was a hi-fi and a six-pack of Stroh's, and they let
the good times shine through every track. Hide your girlfriends
when you see them coming down the block and don't be afraid
to do the Freddy to "Truth Serum," "(She's a)
Blow Out" and the 12 other back-in-the-day AM radio hits
of Fortune & Maltese.
Chris Handyside, Detroit
Metro Times
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