I remember that when L.A.M.F. by the Heartbreakers came out I was very hot to get it – earlier that summer in my overeagerness I’d even picked up the first Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers album by accident. Being a big New York Dolls and Johnny Thunders fan, it was with great anticipation that I slit the shrinkwrap, slid out the platter and laid it on my crummy turntable

But, boy, was I disappointed – you could sort of hear that there were some good songs and killer riffs (Chinese Rocks and Pirate Love are two that come to mind) that punched through the obscuring mix, muddled by too many hands and too many drugs, but basically it just sounded like crap. The Live at Max’s Kansas City LP came out soon after and made the case for the Heartbreakers’ genius much more forcefully, mostly because you could actually hear the songs clearly. I dug that all the time, which in turn led me back to L.A.M.F. Now that I knew what the music was supposed to sound like I started appreciating it more, to extract the subtleties and raw power of the song writing and playing from the muck.

Not that many people made the effort though, and with so much interesting new music coming out, even the quickly dismissive afficionados were disinclined to give it a second chance, and the bad mix managed to blow the Heartbreakers’ chance for success in the emerging New Wave scene.

I know there are plenty of vinyl purists out there, but there are also a lot of reasons to appreciate CD’s, one of which is that the format gives record companies the excuse to resurrect and enhance lost gems of the past. I could point to the amazing King Oliver: Off the Record collection, or, more to the point L.A.M.F.: The Lost ‘77 Mixes. In a labor of love Johnny Thunders fanatics painstakingly went over the original tapes, found the best performances, and re-mastered and re-mixed them, revealing the record as the work of genius it really is. Now you can hear Johnny’s yelp’s, Walter’s voice, and the incredible guitar interplay between them and Jerry’s absolutely brilliant drumming and Billy’s bitchin’ bass. The material is fascinating too, the product of the uniquely potent musical scene that was exploding, with the influences of The New York Dolls, Richard Hell, The Ramones and all the fertile craziness of Punk-era New York and London.

I guess the version I got, the ENHANCED/EXTRA TRACKS/IMPORT/LIMITED EDITION from Jungle records came out on CD about five years ago. I missed it, and I’m guessing it didn’t get much attention in the contemporary American Idol "music" scene, but I’m so grateful it finally came into my hands. I got it new from Amazon just a couple of days ago, but maybe I got the last one, because as far as I can tell it’s only available used now. But if you want to discover another great coulda been on Johnny Thunders’s star crossed resume or just a kick ass rock record, I suggest you find a copy.