About Me
1988-1990
The History of the Gibson Girls in a Fake British Accent (1991)
Soon not to be a major motion picture, the story of the Gibson Girls was one of tunes, telecasters, and tight trousers. From September 1988 to September 1990, these jewels of jangle-crunch rose from obscurity to become one of the loudest bands ever to get accidentally locked inside Drummers Collective practice studios. Bursting at the seams with talent, the seasoned lineup included Mike "Med" Anselmi, bass and band Kiss-torian; Tim "23" Broun, vocals/songwriting/guitar and noted Sylvain Sylvain impersonator; Mike "Cowbell" Krashes on drums and drum stick throwing, and Mike Oz "Slow-Mo" Oswald, on lead guitar and random background vocals if he feels like it and if the monitors are good.
Head Girl Tim talks about how the band was formed. "Well, I knew Mike, who also knew Mike. To keep things simple, we wanted to find a bass player named Mike." The boys spent the next two weeks searching under tables and behind bookshelves, until they finally found Mike Anselmi hiding in Tims guitar case after a show. They asked him to join the band and convinced him to change his name to Med to save time. Thus, The Gibson Girls were born.
From their humble beginnings at Mr. Rips, where they backed into and wrecked the owners car, the Girls went on to haunt dreaded nightspots in New York City such as Chase, the Wah-Wah Hut, and CBGB's canteen. Their first cassette, "Big Ass Cookie", was released in a limited edition of four. Big Takeover's "Rainy Day Reviews" praised it as one of the most limited editions ever.."
The Gibson Girls paid their dues playing the blues during many epic 25 minute sets in the basement of the The Pyramid Club. The impressed owner, Leggy Mountbatten Jr., saw the band and wasted no time in offering them a month long engagement at the club - dancing on the bar dressed in womens clothing. The band was eventually fired after fighting for space in front of the make-up mirrors. The Girls next big break came when they opened up for Sylvain Sylvain at the Continental Divide. They agreed to play for free, let the headliner use all their equipment, and had to buy Johnny Thunders, Jerry Nolan, and Duke Fame drinks for the whole night. The band filed for bankruptcy the next day.
However, the Gibson Girls are perhaps best known for not playing at CBGB's a record seven times. Tim called Louise 834 times to talk about these non-shows. AT&T's stock went up three and a half points during the second quarter and Tims dad went up through the roof when he saw the phone bill. The band eventually did get to play both at CBGBs and CBGBs canteen, but were mistakenly booked for a Guns and Roses Tribute with Sassy Lassy and then for a U2 tribute with The Last Tribe. Bono Broun was not amused. Next, it was up to Boston to play with local notables Egg and Uncle Betty, and fit in some quality wardrobe shopping at the exclusive "10 pounds of clothes for a Dollar" store. After their debut on a WNYU radio show, the band was attacked by sensitive skinheads who were offended by the bands remarks about Young Youth and Diaper Brigade, two nursery-school hardcore bands.
