Smell of Female

• Artist: The Cramps
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1983
• Genre: Rock

Review

One gets the feeling from the title and cover art alone that if the Cramps could have released this live document in Glorious Smell-o-rama they would have jumped at the chance. Even without it one can almost sense the whiffs of perspiration and energy the group was cooking up; recorded at New York's Peppermint Lounge with Powers on guitar, the quartet slams out a then mostly entirely new set of songs with, as expected, appropriate covers as needed. The wonderfully profane take on Hasil Adkins' "She Said" surfaces here, with Interior sounding like he's about to die more than once. The Count Five's "Psychotic Reaction" and the perfectly appropriate "Faster Pussycat," taken from the legendary Russ Meyer film of the same name, also give the band more than a little something to chew on. As for the originals, the usual mess of swampy rockabilly and industrial strength noise comes together in just the right way from the start. "Thee Most Exalted Potentate of Love" gives Interior the chance to do his undead but still wired loveman thang right from the start, while Ivy and Powers hit the twang hard and Knox keeps everything going just right. "Call of the Wighat" is another highpoint, with Knox showing that he's up to more involved pounding and percussion when the need arises. A studio cut, "Surfin' Dead," surfaces as a ringer at the end; if not quite the Cramps go Beach Boys, it arguably forecasts the Jesus and Mary Chain's "Kill Surf City" just enough. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Thee Most Exhalted Potentate of Love	Lux Interior, Ivy Rorschach	The Cramps	(3:03)
You Got Good Taste	Lux Interior, Ivy Rorschach	The Cramps	(3:26)
Call of the Wighat	Lux Interior, Ivy Rorschach	The Cramps	(3:47)
Faster Pussycat		The Cramps	(2:47)
I Ain't Nuthin' But a Gorehound	Lux Interior, Ivy Rorschach	The Cramps	(3:16)
Psychotic Reaction	Craig Atkinson, Sean Byrne, Roy Chaney, Kenn Ellner, John Michalski	The Cramps	(3:54)
Beautiful Gardens [#]	Lux Interior, Ivy Rorschach	The Cramps	(3:07)
She Said [#]	Hasil Adkins	The Cramps	(5:18)
Surfin' Dead [*]	Lux Interior, Ivy Rorschach	The Cramps	(4:12)

Credits

The Cramps (Producer), The Cramps (Main Performer), Lux Interior (Vocals), Poison Ivy (Guitar), Nick Knox (Drums), Paul McKenna (Engineer), Tom Goodkind (?)

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