The history of the Party Platters reads like the synopsis of a bad soap opera. Lots of cheesy plot twists, continually revolving main characters, amnesia, and recycling old material again as if it were new. I was around when they originally formed in 1956 or so. Back then, they were like a frat band for art students. The first song I remember was their version of "Country Roads"—actually, I forgot completely about it until I got involved in the project to archive and promote the best songs of the Party Platters in 1999. The Party Platters were originally about having a good time. They had no money, no brains, and I think it's fair to say, no talent either. But they kept trying. In the beginning, they covered other peoples songs, to try to impress the audience. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Later, they realized that they didn't actually have to “read” music to write songs, so they did their own material. This was much easier for them. They had a little studio in the attic of a dingy group house in Arlington, Virginia. No air conditioner, bad wiring, and bugs everywhere. That was when I wanted to join the band. Joe (Jones) told me I didn't have the right “aura” or something which hurt but I respected him and didn't make a scene. Instead, they let be become their roadie and studio engineer which turned out to be even better in some ways because my name is mentioned in more Party Platters songs than anyone else! If you listen to “Country Roads” carefully, about two-thirds the way into it, the phone starts to ring. Any other band would have stopped the tape—but not us, (Jones) picked up the phone and answered it, then hands it to me and kept singing.

In the summer of 1989, the group started performing in Alexandria, Virginia, and Jersey Pete took over singing for a while. It seemed like every song the Party Platters did was about the Party Platters doing some mundane thing—“The Party Platters Camping Song,” “The Party Platters Phone Song,” “The Party Platters Talking Song,” etc… I think you can really feel the energy of their live shows in “Meet the Party Platters,” their opening number for many years. About this time, Jersey Pete was secretly working on material for his solo career as another member, Mr. Dave, fronted the band more often.

Mr. Dave initially kept the Party Platters grooving in their silly way but gradually introduced more disturbing and serious material. It wasn't until much later that we realized he wasn't always joking—as when he penned the lyrics to songs like “The Cool Hum of Your Heart” or “The Truth About Sundays.”

“I think the Party Platters became a kind of confessional for Mr. Dave,” recounted Mope Jesus, who concentrated mostly on the instrumentation of the Party Platters studio epics. “His personality began to shift right before our eyes. It was exciting, but it was also frightening. We were hoping that it was just one of those rock–star–drug–and–alcohol abuse problems but we weren't exactly rock stars so he couldn't blame that.” As the early ‘90s approached, the Party Platters were losing their popularity in the United States to other more mainstream groups. Original bassist Betty Salad-of-the-Week said in an interview with The Face, “We were always being unfairly compared to The Residents and Negativland. They were a bunch of sell-outs. They actually released albums and had distributors. We didn't sell anything!”

The period from 1989–1992, was, in my humble opinion, the most creative for the Party Platters. They were each pushing their limits artistically and personally. I think their musical approach evolved from the open–mike–nite–karaoke party to personal story telling. Though many original recordings are lost, some gems remain such as “No#4 Boy,” “Circus of the Skies” and “My Body Divine.” Sadly, personnel tensions and waning audience interest foundered the band and almost broke them up for good. It was then that keboardist Mope Jesus remarked, “Our problem isn't pleasing audiences—it's getting them to acknowledge that we're even there!”

The lack of stateside appeal prompted the Party Platters to tour Europe. Without much organization or planning, they decided to each separately go to Italy, England, Russia, Ukraine and France. Looking back, it was probably a poor decision not to bring any instruments or book venues before leaving because the tour only led to frustration and trouble once abroad. During this period, the band split into several versions of the Party Platters, each with their own style and focus. This is why there is such a difference between the sound of “Ginger Snap,” “The Friendship Song” and “Too Many Soldiers.” As a matter of fact, probably the only unifying element to all the music in this Party Platters collection is that I meddled with each piece by recording, mixing, or mastering.

By the mid-90’s all the Party Platters factions had run out of energy, money and/or patience and had gone on to other things. Some desperate attempts at reconciliation were made but nobody wanted to reform the original group. Jacques Vlimpf's French Party Platters had the best chance to continue the legacy with their two singles “Tangier” and “The Party Platters Present the French Revolution” but Jacques hit his head on a stage mike in Nantes and completely lost all memory of the lyrics and his involvement with the band. Needless to say, that group soon disbanded.

The last official Party Platter song was the previously unreleased “Joy to the World” which again featured Mr. Dave's vocals. It's a tad bitter and cruel like much of the lyrics penned by Mr. Dave but that's what gives it it's charm.

I feel like I probably know the Party Platters better than anyone else and I feel very lucky to have been part of their inner world even though I was never an official member of the band. That is why I am contributing to this effort to remember and celebrate the Party Platters. They deserve a prominent place in the pantheon of music history. They predated the current trend for lounge music although their lounge style wasn't retro at all. They were also way ahead of the “I don't need the music industry” attitude that many stars are exuding these days. The Party Platters never overtly released even a single. They never promoted their shows nor toured their new material. That is why this enterprise is so important. If we don't spread the word about the Party Platters, who will?

I've tried repeatedly to get many of the original members back together to contribute to this project and maybe even create some new material, but I guess they just don't have the heart anymore.

Get something bracing to drink, listen to the songs and I'm sure you will experience a little of the magic that we all shared when the Party Platters performed.

George Fox
George was in the band Turing Machine but they changed their name to Tourmaline and we're not sure if he was allowed to keep his job. He readily admits to learning everything he knows about the recording studio from working with the Party Platters—which explains a lot of things…