AMAZING ROYAL CROWNS
As the San Francisco Examiner-Chronicle observed, "The Amazing Crowns are part of postmodern rock's punkabilly wing, (but they) understand that the roots of the Ramones were sown at Sun Records in the mid-'50s." Or, as Dicky Barrett, lead singer of the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, puts it, "They're everything I ever liked about rock 'n' roll, yet like nothing that's ever been before."
"Rockabilly, when it first started out, was punk rock," points out frontman Jason "King" Kendall. And the Crowns' seamlessly energetic mix of old-school songcraft, driving beats and infectious sing-along choruses make it clear how seriously he and his bandmates take the task of maintaining the standards of adrenaline rush and emotional commitment set by their punk forebears.
Although the Crowns dip into rock 'n' roll's history - from the unbridled iconoclasm of Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash to the deeply-rooted punk rock of the Clash and X - for inspiration, they're hardly a retro act. Indeed, the band adopts identifiable elements from the past, like the unmistakable rumble and twang of the hollow-bodied Gretsch guitar, the slapping thump of the upright bass and the hiccupy hellfire of Kendall's vocals, and uses them as the jumping-off point for a style that's wholly the Crowns' own.
The Royal Crowns formed April 1993 in Providence, Rhode Island. The original line-up featured Jason Kendall on vocals and maracas, Johnny Maguire on guitar, Jack Hanlon on standup bass and the band's friend Tina on drums. Their debut show was on April 15, 1994.
During Warped Tour 1997, the band shared stages with The Royal Crown Revue whose singer Eddie Nichols suggested they change their name as it was starting to cause confusion with booking agents. The band changed their name to the Amazing Royal Crowns, hoping that the added "Amazing" would be enough to clear up any confusion.
The band won the 1997 WBCN Rock & Roll Rumble in Boston and had returned from a nationwide tour when Nate (drummer) left the band. Judd Williams was added to the lineup and they went on to win four Boston Music Awards in 1998. The band started touring globally on their own and with other bands such as the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, The Cramps, Reverend Horton Heat, Tiger Army, Social Distortion and many others.
In 1999, as the bands popularity started to surge, they were hit with two major obstacles. During a tour stop in Florida, Johnny Maguire quit the band 2 weeks before the group was to leave for an Australian tour. They were also forced to change their name again mid-tour in response to a lawsuit brought by Los Angeles swing act Royal Crown Revue.
Now called The Amazing Crowns, The band lineup was cemented with the addition of guitarist J.D Burgess. They toured a bit with JD then got to work recording their follow up full-length record with Joe Gittleman producing. As a retort to the Royal Crown Revue lawsuit, they titled this album Royal. The cover for Royal was an original piece painted by artist and Mekons cofounder Jon Langford. The band signed to Time Bomb Records and Royal was scheduled to be released in June 2000.
The band released a live offering to fans in March 2000 as a way of thanking them as they waited for Royal be released. The Payback Live album was recorded over three nights at the bands yearly hometown festival "The Providence Payback".
The Amazing Crowns disbanded in late 2001 with one last performance at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel in Providence. Until December 31, 2012, when the band reunited as the Amazing Royal Crowns to perform a set during the annual Hometown Throwdown at the House of Blues in Boston, at the request of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. Since then they have played multiple shows.
