The Quick were Right Place/Wrong Time personified. Appearing on the L.A. scene too late for glitter rock but too soon for punk, they played their crunchy and quirky power pop in a town dominated by bland singer-songwriters and pseudo country pretenders. Kim Fowley picked up on their scent and got them a deal with Mercury Records in short order. Not too surprisingly, things didn't quite work out--the label couldn't figure out how to sell the band and Fowley was already looking for the *next* thing. The band split up in 1978 with members going on to other projects (the Weirdos, the Dickies, the Three O'Clock, Cruzados, the Rembrandts, etc.)

'Untold Rock Stories' is comprised of the May 1976 demos that landed them their record deal (10 tracks), later demos ('77-'78) recorded in the hopes of a new signing (10 tracks) plus two early live recordings.

Upon a first, casual listen, one could be forgiven for thinking them not much more than a talented group of Sparks fans--the 1976 demos bear more than a passing resemblance to that band's seminal Island-era material. While the Sparks influence is undeniable, guitarist Steve Hufsteter was a spendid songwriter in his own right, crafting infectious, eccentric pop songs of substance. Even their recordings of established songs (the Four Seasons' Rag Doll and the Beatles It Won't Be Long) are rearranged in sparkling fashion, molded in the Quick's own style.

Some of the highlights include No No Girl, Don't You Want It, Hilary (one of the more blatant Sparks-influenced tracks), Pretty Please (later recorded by the Dickies as Pretty Please Me), Poison Polly, and an all-too-short take of the theme from Born Free.

As usual, Rev-Ola has done a top quality job with content and liner notes. A fitting tribute to a band that shoulda been big but for whatever reason disappeared into relative obscurity.