For those not in the know, Mumps were not your ordinary punk rock band. For starters, they had a genuine TV star as their front man. Lance Loud and his family were chronicled in the PBS 1973 docuseries An American Family, widely considered the first reality TV show, set in Santa Barbara, California.

The show was also where Lance revealed his homosexuality — making him a television pioneer on two counts. Loud and his friend, keyboardist Kristian Hoffman, formed Loud, and performed on The Dick Cavett Show when Lances mother, Pat Loud, insisted on it, or she would not appear on the show to promote An American Family.

Driven by Lances fascination with Andy Warhol, the band moved to NYC. They were one of the first bands to play at the legendary CBGB and became regulars at Maxs Kansas City.

Warhol became a fan, calling them one of the greatest bands of their time. They even opened for Van Halen at the famed Whisky-a-Go-Go in West Hollywood.

While their live prowess was never a question, Mumps only released two singles before disbanding, 1977s I Like To Be Clean on Bomp! Records, and Rock & Roll This, Rock & Roll That on Perfect Records the following year.

Rock & Roll This, Rock & Roll That: Best Case Scenario, Youve Got Mumps combines the five tracks from those singles with nine tracks recorded between 1974–1979 compiled by the bands Hoffman and drummer Paul Rutner with co-producer Greg Allen.

The CD and Digital program adds an addition nine tracks, including previously unissued songs from the pre-Mumps band, Loud, which included future Patti Smith Group member Jay Dee Daugherty on drums.

1. I Like To Be Clean
2. Just Look, Dont Touch
3. Crocodile Tears
4. Awkward Age
5. That Fatal Charm
6. Scream & Scream Again
7. We Ended Up
8. Rock & Roll This, Rock & Roll That
9. Anyone But You
10. Forget-Me-Not
11. Muscleboys
12. Did You Get The Girl?
13. Not Again
14. Brain Massage
+ CD Digital Bonus Tracks:
15. Teach Me
16. Before The Accident
17. S.O.S.
18. Dutch Boy
19. Stupid
20. Dance Tunes For The Undergods
21. Photogenia
22. Cha Cha Cha (Loud)
23. Back In The Street (Loud)

This lively package opens on the rock hipsway of I Like To Be Clean and the pop rock of Just Look, Dont Touch and backs those up with the languishing vibe of both Crocodile Tears and Awkward Age, the storytelling of That Fatal Charm, and then we get the alt indie flow of both Scream & Scream Again and the angst ridden We Ended Up.

Next up is the fantastic, Rocky Horror-esque title track Rock & Roll This, Rock & Roll That and the lower tempo of Anyone But You, and they are followed by the pop hop of Forget-Me-Not, the more forthright Muscleboys, the foot-tapper Did You Get The Girl?, the rock swinger Not Again, and then comes the last regular track on the album, the AOR of Brain Massage.

We then get a wondrous bunch of digital extras on the CD, that kick off with the funky pop rock of both Teach Me and Before The Accident, which are backed by the quieter, Queen-esque fare of S.O.S., the fun pop of Dutch Boy, with the recording as a whole rounding out on the gently frenetic Stupid, the mournful recanting of Dance Tunes For The Undergods, the upbeat Photogenia, closing on the 20s Charleston-imbibed Cha Cha Cha (Loud), and the alt-rock of Back In The Street (Loud).

Kristian Hoffman recalls the bands origins: When I met my BFF Lance Loud in Mr. Bakers Art class in Santa Barbara High School, who knew we were going to besmirch the First Reality Show, American Family with our gayness when we thought we were just acting like rock stars?

Of course, our template was based on Sparks, the Kinks, and the Stooges, so no wonder people were confused! Fortunately, I worked at Cinemabilia with Richard Hell. Thus the band called Mumps that Lance and I were lucky enough to pull together with the help of Rob Duprey, Paul, and Kevin Kiely (ultimately to be replaced by the equally marvelous Joe Katz).

Mumps somehow stuck together for about seven crazy, marvelous and thrill-filled years! The tours! The fans! The two fabulous 45s! But now, here is the entire Mumps canon (if you will … or if you will not!) plus some classical pre-Mumps rarities with a band that only ever appeared on Dick Cavett and PBS, variously called Fork, and less felicitously, Loud!

Mumps complete ineptitude at ever grasping the capabilities of our heroes translated our efforts into something even more magical: a truly original crafty pop/punk sound. I still love Mumps, with or without the. Mumps drummer Paul Rutner says, I am over the moon about the release of Rock & Roll This, Rock & Roll That on Omnivore. To share a label with such heroes as Hank Williams, Mister Rogers, Big Star, Buck Owens and friends like the Continental Drifters, The Miamis, John Wesley Harding and the Muffs, to name just a few, is truly humbling.

To think that, 40+ years hence, people are interested enough in our own unique slice of the pop landscape is truly both very exciting and validating. And on an actual vinyl LP, to boot!

Packaging contains photos, ephemera, and the Mumps story told via contributions from Hoffman, Rutner, bassist Joe Katz, and Pat Loud. So rocket back to the 1970s and experience your new favorite old band: Mumps!

Official Purchase Link

www.omnivorerecordings.com