When The Cramps released their 1980 debut album, Songs The Lord Taught Us, the psychobilly pioneers introduced garage rock to its future. By blending punk, rockabilly, and B-movie visuals, The Cramps’ garage rock transformation later influenced many artists, most notably The White Stripes.
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The band, led by the husband-and-wife duo of vocalist Lux Interior and guitarist Poison Ivy, made the most of its minimalist setup. On Songs The Lord Taught Us, they are joined by guitarist Bryan Gregory and drummer Nick Knox. The album, produced in Memphis by Big Star’s Alex Chilton, features “I Was A Teenage Werewolf”. With a shape-shifting character that helped define The Cramps before making recurring appearances in the Netflix series, Stranger Things.
About “I Was A Teenage Werewolf”
“I Was A Teenage Werewolf” shares its name with a 1957 horror film starring Michael Landon. In the film, a troubled teen named Tony Rivers (portrayed by Landon) is sent to meet with a psychologist after several fights. The doctor injects Tony with a serum while focusing on his patient’s childhood trauma, leading to Tony becoming a werewolf.
I was a teenage werewolf
Braces on my fangs
I was a teenage werewolf
And no one even said thanks
And no one made me stop.
Meanwhile, Tony begs the doctor for help after killing multiple people, including a friend. But the doctor, enamored with his own procedure, instead attempts to capture Tony’s transformation on film. Tony kills the doctor and his assistant before destroying the film.
Lux Interior delivers the story in a panicked voice. Screaming in desperation, though no one will listen. Poison Ivy’s guitar, swimming in amp reverb and tremolo, plays a cycling riff as the narrator spirals out of control. Ivy’s guitar part recalls the iconic and groundbreaking Link Wray instrumental, “Rumble”. (Wray’s distorted and choppy tremolo effect in 1958 helped shape the sound of early rock and roll.)
I had a teen land mind
I had to blow my top
And under teen full moon
No one could make me stop
No one could make me stop.
‘Stranger Things’
The Cramps’ classic track has also been a recurring song in Stranger Things. Without giving away any spoilers, “I Was A Teenage Werewolf” echoes the character Will Byers and his own transformation. Like Tony Rivers, it’s a change he didn’t seek.
You know, I have puberty rights
And I have puberty wrongs
No one understood me
All my teeth were so long
And no one made me stop.
Photo by Chris Walter/WireImage
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