DBLITY - D.B.L.I.T.Y

By the early 1970's, all the teen clubs in the Lehigh Valley area of Pennsylvania had disappeared, giving way to night
clubs just across the border in New Jersey. The drinking age was now 18 in the garden state and was somewhat loosely
enforced, opening the door for thousands of eastern PA high school and college students to head for Jersey every Friday
and Saturday night. The Red Rooster in Alpha, New Jersey, was probably the most popular spot with live entertainment
on weekends and even some weekdays. The Huckster (which eventually burned down), The Lemon Tree and, up north
a bit east of the Poconos, "The Jabberwocky" and Vitale's were popular clubs where bands played until 4 o'clock in the
morning.

This is the scene in which D.B.L.I.T.Y. (Dress British Look Irish Think Yiddish) thrived. A splinter group from the soon
to be popular Daddy Licks Band, D.B.L.I.T.Y. was led by former Daddy Licks bassist Dave Peifley. Peifley (19)
received a phone call from a sixteen year old Parkland high school student Andy Green who said his band D.B.L.I.T.Y.
was looking for a bass player. At their first rehearsal the band listened to the Daddy Licks recording of Peifley's song
Shades of Heaven and the D.B.L.I.T.Y. sound was born. Little more than six weeks later, the band headed for the same
studio where the Daddy Licks sessions had been recorded and produced "Go West Young Man," "Life," "33 Years
Past" and the ferocious seven minute "Get Down or Get Out."

During the next 12 months the band played at dorms of Eastern PA and NJ night clubs, college frats and high schools.
Booking was through Sam Lasagio entertainment and Media 5, headed by Dave Sestak who many years later would
take the band "Live" to great success.

D.B.L.I.T.Y. was a supercharged powder keg of a live act performing several hard rocking originals and a Who medley
that was a high point of each night's show.

The band's equipment set up was so large that most club stages provided only enough space for the raised drum platform
and maybe an amplifier or two. The rest of the band took up whatever dance floor space was available, surrounded by
light towers, keyboard set ups, flash pots, laser lights and a black curtain behind the band. Some club owners loved it
and some vowed the band would never play their venue again (Tanglewood Ski Resort). For several months
D.B.L.I.T.Y. was managed by Dale Schneck who had managed bands like the Shillings and Dooley Invention in the
60's.

D.B.L.I.T.Y. was originally a five piece band with Greg McCoy (16) on vocals, Andy Green (16) on guitar, Jay Redman
(19) on guitar, Terry Gross (19) on drums and Dave Peifley (19) on bass. But Jay Redman was never satisfied with Greg
McCoy as lead singer and decided to leave the band after a disastrous performance at Scarsdale NY High School, in
which one of the vans carrying members McCoy, Green and Redman broke down on the way. The result was the first
half of the show being nothing more than a jam session with future Daddy Licks guitarist Scott Schneck A.K.A. Scott
Hot, Dave Peifley on bass and Terry Gross on drums. It was more professional than personal; Jay simply wanted a
different vocal sound, but ultimately lost the battle and called Andy Green to tell him he was quitting. A slightly frantic
Andy Green called Peifley to tell him the bad news but by the end of the call was convinced by Peifley the band could go
it as a foursome, with McCoy playing rhythm guitar when necessary.

And so D.B.L.I.T.Y., as pictured, was born. The band gave each other playful nicknames based on a caricature of their
personalities, or in Terry's case, his real last name. McCoy's simple melodic songwriting style gave him the moniker Iggy
Norant, Andy was Obby Noxious, Dave was Arro Gant, and Terry was known as T.L. Gross. Ignorant, Arrogant,
Obnoxious and Gross. "Cut My Hair Today" was recorded in Los Angeles, which was the end of the line for
D.B.L.I.T.Y. Having to write hit-type pop songs was not enough to derail the band, but when would-be producers
wanted to give them a more modern updated sound, that was the last straw. "Cut My Hair Today" was D.B.L.I.T.Y.'s
rebellious punk anthem which chronicles the band's battle against the record industry, and is, thus, their swan song. "They
wanted us to record it using strings," reported Andy Green later. "It didn't sound like us at all."

While in L.A., the band had interest from Arista Publisher Billy Meshel who wanted the Bay City Rollers to record early
D.B.L.I.T.Y. songs "Out On The Road" and "Rock n' Roll Magazine." Also a representative of Mick Fleetwood's
Penguin management took one of the bands recordings of the aforementioned songs to Warner Bros. A & R personnel,
but by then D.B.L.I.T.Y. had left California in disgust, stabbing with their steely knives and making far less than a pin
prick in the flesh of the beast.

Separately, in the spring of 1978 in Beverly Hills, the band taped its first music video extravaganza entitled "Rock & Roll
Magazine" created by the brilliant and multi-talented young producer/director Jordan Bernhard. Many interesting clips
from this black & white production are viewable on this website and others like YouTube.com and MySpace.com.

Guitarist Andy Green has been working with velvet underground member John Cale as an associate producer and sound
technician in New York since the late 80's. In 2003 he toured Europe as a member of Cale's five piece touring band.
Dave Peifley has owned several Allentown area record stores since 1981, most notably Positively 19th Street Music &
Video. Greg McCoy launched a country music career in the early 90's to include songs co-written by Peifley with Green
producing, and resides in the vicinity of Nashville. Terry Gross has been found alive and well, and near Allentown, too.