Shark Island (band)
| Shark Island | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Los Angeles, California |
| Genres | Hard rock, heavy metal, glam metal |
| Years active | 1979–1992 |
| Labels | Mystic Records, A&M Records, Epic Records, MCA Records, Frontiers Records, Manifest Music |
| Past members | Former members |
Shark Island was an American hard rock band from Los Angeles that played during the 1980s.
Shark Island was started in 1979 by singer Richard Black, whose name then was Rick Czerny, and lead guitarist Spencer Sercombe, under the name of 'Sharks'. Czerny and Sercombe met in high school and began writing original material and began playing music together. Sercombe, played and worked for B.C. Rich guitars. While working at B.C. Rich, Spencer has a hand in the designing of one their most popular guitars, The Warlock. The band practiced out of a small home in a commercial area in Arcadia on Santa Clara Street. The walls of the studio were lined with empty Mickey's Big Mouth bottles (the official Shark beer) and the inspiration behind the band's original logo. The band was completed by drummer Dave Bishop and bassist Jim Volpicelli.
The original band of Czerny, Sercombe, Volpicelli and Bishop released an independent album called Altar Ego in 1982. This album was produced by Jerry Tolman, and featured organist Mike "The Fin" Finnegan. Both had done work with Stephen Stills. Executive producer was Jeff Willmitt. It was recorded at That Studio in North Hollywood.
As well as Altar Ego, Sharks released three singles. The first was a unique "triple fin" shaped 45, that when inserted into the jacket, cut through the ocean image on the cover. Side A was "Kid Sister" and side B was "Your Car or Mine". Both were recorded at Mystic Studios in Hollywood. "Hey" was a live single recorded on May 10, 1981 at The Ice House in Pasadena, Sharks' home town. On the flip side was Mark Bolan's "Bang a Gong (Get It On)". Executive producer for both 45s was Jeff Willmitt. The artwork of "Hey" featured a black 45 rpm sleeve with LIVE SHARKS across the top in bold red letters with three USDA stamps saying, "Guaranteed Live" on the top of the stamp. "Packed in Its Own Juice" was on the bottom of the stamp. In the middle of the stamp it said, "U.S.D.A. SHARK MEAT choice" looking like an actual stamp from the U.S.D.A. The other single was "I'm Electric" which featured a drum machine rather than Bishop playing the real drums. On the backside of that single is "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town". The lyrics are substituted and recorded to the tune of the Judas Priest song, "Heading Out to the Highway". No artwork was created for this second single. This was considered a souvenir and was given out to the fans when Sharks headlined. Oftentimes Sharks made themselves available after their performances to the many fans wanted and somewhat demanded autographs to these same "souvenirs".
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