The Fleshtones are an American garage rock band formed in 1976 in Queens, New York. Their first gig was at CBGBs on May 19, 1976. In the early days they shared a rehearsal space with The Cramps on the Bowery in Manhattan. In 1978 they signed with Marty Thau’s Red Star Records and recorded their first album.
Throughout the 70s they earned a substantial local following playing at both CBGBs and Max’s Kansas City in New York. Later they found a favorite spot at Club 57 on St. Mark’s Place. They can boast they are the first band to be booked or to play at several famous venues, including Irving Plaza and Danceteria in Manhattan, Maxwell’s in Hoboken, New Jersey, and the original 9:30 Club in Washington, DC.
In the mid 80s, they regularly played the Pyramid Club on Avenue A in the East Village and were instrumental in helping to establish Wigstock, the drag queen festival that became a New York staple. In the late 80s they continued to tour America and Europe including shows with Chuck Berry and James Brown. In 1987 they appeared on the final episode of Andy Warhol’s Fifteen Minutes on MTV. The same year they recorded the title track for the camp-horror film I Was A Teenage Zombie.
Canadian Ken Fox joined the band on bass in 1990. Previously he had been in Toronto’s Raving Mojos, Jason & The Scorchers and Joan Osborne’s band. The Fleshtones lineup has remained stable since his arrival.
In 2001 The Fleshtones were one of the last bands to play Windows On The World atop the World Trade Center prior to the terrorist attacks of 9/11. The following year they played A Night Of Remembrance And Hope at CBGBs and CBGBs 30th Anniversary Show in December 2003.
In August 2004 they played Little Steven’s Underground Garage Festival at Randalls Island in New York City with 39 other bands including The New York Dolls, Iggy Pop, Bo Diddley and The Strokes. In 2016, they played China for the first time in a tour organized by Shanghai-based punk band Round Eye.
In 2008 Yep Roc Records released their 11 track Stocking Stuffer Christmas LP. Opening with Hooray For Santa Claus from the infamous holiday classic Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, Stocking Stuffer includes Australian Rolf Harris’ Six White Boomers in the style of AC/DC, Mr. Santa Claus by Detroit R&B wildman Nathaniel Meyer, You’re All I Want for Christmas by Brook Benton and Chuck Berry’s Run Rudolph Run. Originals include Super Rock Santa, I Still Believe in Christmas, Canadian Christmas and Christmas With Bazooka Joe. The entire affair clocks in at just under 27 minutes.
Despite having a large cult following, The Fleshtones have never achieved much commercial success. Their 1982 debut album Roman Gods peaked at 174 on Billboard’s Top 200 albums chart, the highest position a Fleshtones record would achieve until 2020.