Intro
It's a familiar story in the record industry. A band overflowing with talent gets signed by a major label, yet despite writing two solid albums for said major, the music never really makes it into the greater consciousness of the record-buying public and band subsequently breaks up. Such is the case with The Rave-Ups. Both of their excellent Epic albums are now out-of-print, but they are not by any stretch of the imagination forgotten. The great news is that after more than a decade, a new album has been recorded entitled "Salmon In the Woods"! Release options are currently under consideration.

Latest News
05 DEC 02: Another Rave-Ups gig for you LA folks...again at the Mint.

    Sat, December 7, 2002 at the Mint in Los Angeles 8:00pm
    6010 W.Pico Blvd, just East of Crescent Heights.
    323-954-8241 (for dinner reservations and show info)

17 OCT 02: Another Rave-Ups gig for you LA folks...again at the Mint.

    Tues, October 22nd, 2002 at the Mint in Los Angeles 8:30pm
    6010 W.Pico Blvd, just East of Crescent Heights.
    323-954-8241 (for dinner reservations and show info)

21 JULY 02: How does a live Rave-Ups appearance sound? Jimmer and Terry are scheduled to play an acoustic gig in late August.

    Thursday, August 29th, 2002 at the Mint in Los Angeles 9pm
    (Please verify this closer to show date)

This will hopefully be the first of a few gigs. Also, Jimmer and longtime associate John Sutton-Smith are currently looking into options for releasing the latest CD "Salmon In the Woods" into the hands of the public. And speaking of the new album, here is another track from it. This one is called "Ain't It Funny (How Things Get)". As usual, it is in streaming RealMedia format.

03 JUNE 02: Sorry it's been so long since the last update. No real news to report, but I have sent a recent mail to Jimmer and will report back if I hear anything.

29 JANUARY 02: Just stumbled across IO Productions Rave-Ups page with vintage interviews and streaming RealMedia clips. You will definitely want to check it out!

12 DECEMBER 01: Okay...as promised, here is another new track from "The Salmon In The Woods". This one is called By My Side. I think you will hear some trademark Rave-Ups riffs and harmony in this one. Hope you enjoy.

07 DECEMBER 01: A new Rave-Ups track! Actually, an album of new Rave-Ups tracks is mastered and provisionally titled "The Salmon In the Woods". As yet, I do not have information on how or when this will be released and available for purchase. In the meantime, Jimmer gave permission to preview the first few tracks here on the site so we'll start with track 4 The WouldBe Plans presented here in streaming RealMedia. I think it's got a cool vibe to it and lyrically, Jimmer continues to write from the heart, in the case of this song from his son's perspective. Feel free to discuss on the message board. I'll add a couple other tracks in the next couple days.

16 NOVEMBER 01: Heard from Jimmer a few days ago. He says they have finished mastering tracks for the new album. It's been a long road and there are additional tracks remaining that may see release later on. Regarding the new album, it's not clear yet how or when it will be distributed and available for purchase. It's possible that I may have samples available here in the coming weeks, so check back. Congratulations Jimmer and Terry!

09 JUNE 01: Not much news to report. Jimmer is continuing to mix tracks for the new Rave-Ups album. I had the opportunity to speak with Jimmer a few months ago and put the main details into this message on the Message Board.

17 JANUARY 01: Happy new year! I don't have a lot to report, but Jimmer and Terry are continuing to fine tune the new Rave-Ups tracks. Hopefully we will get to hear them later in the year, fingers crossed.

14 AUGUST 00: Huge surprise...got a mail from Jimmer recently and he filled me in a bit. He's been working to pay the bills and be a good dad and he has also been getting together with Terry Wilson to keep his musical side happy. He said Terry has a small digital studio and they have been working on 20+ new songs...some with a familiar feel and some a little different. No firm plans on when the songs will come out but they will likely be released under The Rave-Ups name. So good news indeed, eh?

11 APRIL 00: Still no word from Jimmer, but I have added a couple samples from Class Tramp. They are "A Girl We All Know" (RealAudio G2, 212KB, 1:22) and "It's You" (RealAudio G2, 298KB, 1:55)

31 AUGUST 99: Wow...it's been pretty quiet. Too quiet. Since I haven't heard any news, I dug up an old Rave-Ups track that has never been released. This is from an early live tape of The Rave-Ups playing in Pittsburgh, PA at the Electric Banana in 1980 (I think). The tape is an audience recording and there are people talking and one fan singing along (thankfully on key for the most part). The name of the track is just a guess, but I'm calling it "Thought of You" (RealAudio G2, 168KB, 1:05)

25 MAY 99: Major news flash courtesy of Beth and Mike. According to Ash Adams, Jimmer is currently working on new material -AND- is reforming The Rave-Ups! No word on what the exact line-up will be, but I'll post more news as I hear it. So stop thinking about Y2K...start thinking about RU2K :-)

14 MAY 99: Just a quick note that CDNow is taking $10 off any order $14.99 or higher through May 17 if you enter through this link, so if you are looking for the Town & Country import CD, you can get a good price on it.

27 FEBRUARY 99: No news on Jimmer's current activities. I think "Lovin' Miserys" may be done with, but I'm not positive. If anyone has current info, let me know.

I created a new Rave-Ups 90210 page with screen grabs from their appearance on Beverly Hills 90210. There is also a mystery audio sample which I can't quite identify, if anyone knows the name and source of the track, let me know. Thanks!

2 NOVEMBER 98: The FX channel will rebroadcast the Beverly Hills 90210 episode "Spring Dance" on November 27th at 11am. The episode originally aired May 2, 1991 and features The Rave-Ups as the spring dance band performing tracks from their final album "Chance".

20 OCTOBER 98: Correction to my last mail...Jimmer is playing the Viper Room on the 22nd not the 27th. Sorry for the confusion. Wish I could be there!

18 OCTOBER 98: Wow...it's been awhile since the last update. First, the message board is experiencing problems...my service provider says there is an error in their software that inexplicably deletes files from directories with read/write permissions (which are necessary for the message board to function). I'm going to try to make back-ups on a more regular basis so I can be up and running faster when this sort of thing happens.

Second, Jimmer has a solo show coming up in LA at the Viper Room on Thursday, October 22th at 8:30. Contact the venue for more info. Wish I could be there!

18 AUGUST 98: Just noticed a recent post on the Message Board from Jimmer making a limited number of Lovin' Miserys CDs available. Here's the rest of the info:

Anyone interested in obtaining copies of Rave-Ups or Lovin' Miserys CD's records/tapes contact Ash Adams at ashadams@pacbell.net There are approximately 100 CD's of new Lovin' Miserys available, however they are going too fast. Also, interview CD's from Epic years and vinyl of Book of Your Regrets are also available in limited quantities. [NO LONGER AVAILABLE?]

10 MARCH 98: No updates recently because I haven't heard any recent news, other than Kimm Rogers posting a note on the Message Board. I'm trying to get an update on label and CD news regarding The Lovin' Miserys, and get some upcoming show dates. Stay tuned.

14 AUGUST 97: I've added Real Audio Samples of three Lovin' Miserys tunes. I've also disabled the Message Board until I can find out why the posts are disappearing.

21 JULY 97: Jimmer answered a couple questions I sent his way. If you're curious, check out the July 97 Q & A with Jimmer.

Listen for Yourself
If you are wondering what The Rave-Ups sounded like, here are some (non-streaming) RealAudio 3.0 samples (sorry for the slightly metallic low sound quality):
  Catching Moonbeams (1:13, 143KB)
  Train To Nowhere (1:37, 190KB)
  She Says (Come Around) (:26, 51KB)

And here are three by the Lovin' Miserys:
  Satellite (1:16, 149KB)
  Shoot the Moon (1:29, 174KB)
  Mrs. Cleaver (:47, 91KB)

In July 97, I had the opportunity to ask Jimmer a few questions regarding The Rave-Ups. If you're curious, check out the July 97 Q & A with Jimmer

Some interesting facts
The final Rave-Ups album was named after Jimmer's son, Chance, who was born in the summer of 1988. Chance's mother is Beth Ringwald (sister of Rave-Ups fan Molly Ringwald).

The Rave-Ups appeared in the film Pretty in Pink. They were the band playing in the club that Ducky (Jon Cryer) was trying to get in to.

The final appearance of the Rave-Ups was on Beverly Hills 90210. They were the band playing at Brenda and Brandon's junior prom. Jimmer was very briefly engaged to Shannon Doherty (who played Brenda on the show).

What's Jimmer been up to since The Rave-Ups disbanded?
A couple years back, Jimmer formed a band with former Concrete Blonde drummer, Harry Rushakoff called The Lovin' Miserys. They released a CD titled "Happy As Hell", but according to Jimmer's manager, John Sutton-Smith, it was essentially a calling-card for getting their name and music out there, as well as a tool to help them get signed to a label. It wasn't really intended for retail sale, although Jimmer made a few of the remaining copies available for sale through Ash Adams. As far as I know, there are no copies left and I haven't heard any news on whether it will be reissued. With that said, here is the pertinent info:

The Lovin' Miserys - Happy as Hell, 1996 CD album
US PRS Records
  Bittersweetheart
  Satellite RA30
  She Has Good Records
  Love
  Your Heaven or Mine?
  Shoot the Moon RA30
  About
  Dad, Let's Go Outside to Play
  Mrs. Cleaver RA30
  Automatic
  The Bike
  Half a Dad
  If
  I Think I Am
  Maybe Someday
  This Land

"Happy as Hell" was pressed in very limited quanities and was meant to be used more as a tool to secure a label deal, rather than a legitimate commercial release. Still, a very good collection of Jimmer songs.

The bad news is that, for whatever reason, The Lovin' Miserys were unable to secure a deal, and as far as I know, they are no longer together.

The good news is that the most recent rumors I have heard involve Jimmer reassembling The Rave-Ups to record again. I'm not sure what the line-up would be or any other details. If anyone hears anything, please let me know.

Rave-Ups Availability
So what stuff is still available? Class Tramp has been out-of-print for a long time and is very difficult to find. It has never been issued on CD. I believe Town & Country is still in-print on CD in Europe on Demon Records. It appears to be available from CDNOW. Book of Your Regrets has been out-of-print for some time, and Chance is now out-of-print but that one should be easy to find at used CD shops. Jimmer, Terry, and Tim appear on most tracks of Kimm Rogers' Two Sides (Island, 1992). The CD is out-of-print but fairly easy to come by in used shops.

If I like the Rave-Ups, what else would I like?
Probably a whole bunch of stuff, but one band in particular you might want to check out is The Clarks. Their album Someday Maybe is very much in keeping with the Rave-Ups' sound. They do a cover of The Rave-Ups' "These Wishes" which is a near dead-ringer for the original.

Thanks
Thanks to the following folks for their great contributions to this discography: Jimmer Podrasky, John Sutton-Smith, Matthew Kinsella (The CD List Guy), Rob James (The Clarks), Michael Dalvano, Teresa Wilson.