# Any Crack The Sky fans out there? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 23, 2012, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347 "2012-08-23T03:37:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/1 "2012-08-23T03:37:04Z")
Never heard of 'em, right? šŸ˜› Their first album was hailed by Rolling Stone as the best debut of 1975. They had a ā€œprog rockā€ sound with a ballsy dual lead guitar attack, combined with witty lyrics and a live set that stood up Styx and Kansas. Some people thought they would be the next big thingā€¦ > [@](#): > > The areaā€™s rock station WKTK was playing the album heavily. Still, the group didnā€™t expect much. From the second they stepped onstage, though, they were dumbfounded. For the first time anywhere, people knew the songs, sang along, and even called out their names. > > ā€œThey were fanatics,ā€ Palumbo recalls. ā€œThey knew every move and responded to us. It was one of those magic moments. This is it. This is what is supposed to happen.ā€ That week they were known in Baltimore; soon, they knew, they would be everywhere else. > > Except it never quite happened that way. ā€“from the article [Pie In The Sky](http://www.joabj.com/CityPaper/950712-CrackTheSky-01.html) Nowadays, they get back together in one form or another a couple times of year to put on a kick-ass live show. There have been threads about ā€œbands you wish you could see liveā€ā€¦Crack The Sky would definitely be on my list. [Hereā€™s a 2008 performance of ā€œLighten Up McGrawā€](http://youtu.be/g9oU2kEV-Bk?t=1h7m39s) ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/2 "2012-08-23T03:41:09Z")
Oh Dad, Itā€™s almost cruel I got another letter from Ronnieā€™s teacher at schoolā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/3 "2012-08-23T06:03:22Z")
Love ā€œIceā€ and ā€œVirginā€¦No.ā€ ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/4 "2012-08-23T06:41:53Z")
Bet you guys were into City Boy too, werenā€™t you? ---
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/5 "2012-08-23T13:04:19Z")
ā€œHot Razors in My Heartā€ You know ā€˜heā€™s a big, big manā€™ by the way she walks. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/6 "2012-08-23T14:23:12Z")
> [@Washoe](#): > > Bet you guys were into City Boy too, werenā€™t you? No, but I guess I should check them out. Is _The Day The Earth Caught Fire_ a good place to start? I kind of ā€œrediscoveredā€ Crack The Sky and itā€™s cool to hear those first three albums again with fresh ears. Despite the departure of John P. in the middle of making _Safety In Numbers_, I think itā€™s my favorite. I think [Nuclear Apathy](http://youtu.be/F6grbYyQNIA)would slip nicely into a King Crimson album and [A Night on the Town (w/Snow White)](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FETDihEIR_I) always makes me smile with that great catchy doo-wop chorus. ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/7 "2012-08-23T18:13:54Z")
Actually, for some unknown reason Iā€™ve never listened to it. I have the entire album on my hard drive; I think Iā€™ll have at it during lunch. Supposedly youā€™d like it if you liked _Book Early_ (if you give any credence to [amazon.com](http://amazon.com) reviewers). Iā€™d start with _Book Early_ā€”itā€™s the closest they ever came to commercial success. Hereā€™s a sample: [Cigarettes](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mozTcnUJ40Y&feature=youtu.be). ---
**Author:** ![kirk1168](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/45deac/32.png) [@kirk1168](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kirk1168)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/8 "2012-08-23T20:59:32Z")
I was introduced with _From The Greenhouse_, which is odd, because Iā€™m from Pittsburgh and should have heard about them earlier, but I guess B.E. Taylor had his own band as I came of age. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2012, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/9 "2012-08-24T02:40:07Z")
_Hey, whitey, here come the spadesā€¦_ I donā€™t know if you could do THAT these days šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2012, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/10 "2012-08-24T02:55:39Z")
Maybe John can blame those lyrics on his dietā€¦for a while he ate mostly twinkies and salad. He ended up getting sick and was hospitalized before finally quitting the band. ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2012, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/11 "2012-08-24T20:01:59Z")
I grew up in Baltimore in the 70s and 80s, so yes, big Crack The Sky fan here. _Ice_ is one of my favorite songs of all time. I live in L.A. now, but just happen to be on vacation with my family at the moment on the east coast, next to Surf City, NC. I canā€™t get that song out of my head. ---
**Author:** ![Rampant\_Coypu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/439d5e/32.png) [@Rampant\_Coypu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rampant_Coypu)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/12 "2012-08-25T03:07:25Z")
I saw the once when I lived in Maryland in the late 80ā€™s. Pretty good. I had no idea they were still around. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2012, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-crack-the-sky-fans-out-there/632347/13 "2012-08-25T04:09:33Z")
Reading around it looks like they had some new material and were going to do some shows starting on Labor Day, but John Palumbo needed some coronary stents put in so thatā€™s off 'til further notice.