Simon Stokes & The Heathen Angels

In 1973, Stokes released The Incredible Simon Stokes & the Black Whip Thrill Band on Spindizzy Records. The album was in a psychedelic blues vein and compaired to Captain Beefhart. The record's cover was reportedly the first banned album cover in the United States (see left). Featuring S&M scenes with woman being whipped, the controversy created a cult following for the musician, especially among biker groups. In 1977, Buzzard of Love was released. In 1993 The Cramps, in a rare session with Iggy Pop, recorded the Simon Stokes tune Miniskirt Blues for their record Look Ma, No Head. In 1996, he returned to music circles by releasing Right to Fly with '60s counter-culture icon Timothy Leary. Simon has placed music in over 25 films, spanning 3 decades. (Outlaw Riders, Jackknife, Under The Rainbow and Vice Squad to name a few). The list of TV series to use Stokes penned compositions includes The Shield and Mad Men. In 2002, Stokes released a stellar country-rock album titled Honky, featuring Wayne Kramer of the MC5, members of Bad Religion, the Bellrays and Clawhammer. The album was compared to outlaw singers such as Waylon Jennings, Roky Erickson and David Allan Coe. Simon's last release, Head, was produced by ex-BellRay Todd Westover and is an exercise in stripped-down, psych-freaky, outlaw country-rock that goes where no man has gone in a long, long time. It has been called a flat-out masterpiece by the L.A. Weekly. His New CD, Simon Stokes And The Heathen Angels, is an outstanding, timeless piece of American working class music that moves in and out of styles with ease. An instant Classic.