A Punker's Notes Featuring Mike Ness & Social Distortion!

Part One: Entry #8

(Los Angeles/Orange County Circa 1980)

Ryan and I sit in the kitchen at Mike Ness’ place, a tiny house which is located just off Harbor in Fullerton. From a small glass Mike repetitively draws water into a syringe and squirts it out. Then holding a butane lighter beneath a spoon he cooks up a concoction of heroin and water. He ties a rope around his left bicep and works his left hand in and out of a fist.

After plunging the dope into his bloodstream Ness walks from the small yellow kitchen into his dimly lit living room.

He sits in a worn-out brown fabric easy chair, pulls his knees up close to his chin, closes his eyes getting into Johnny Thunders’ acoustic version of I’d Much Rather Be With the Boys.

Later, the three of us exit Mike’s place out the backdoor into an alley where the Cutlass is parked. We get in the Olds and take the 5 Freeway up to the 101 and get off at Sunset Boulevard. I park on Gower outside of the Cathay de Grande.

“Put these two guys on the guest list,” Mike tells the doorman in a weak nasally voice.

Ryan and I head into the ground level portion of the bar. I order a couple of long-neck Budweiser’s while Mike goes downstairs.

We get into our first beer of the evening with Levi and the Rockats blasting on the bar’s sound system.

“That dude’s all strung out,” Ryan goes referring to Mike.

“Yeah..., he got really pissed when I asked ‘im ta get me some H a while back. He’s all, ‘You don’t wanna be doin’ this shit!’ Fuck...! Like I’ve never done it before.”

Jenkins and Frank show up and the four of us end up on the worn, wood tiled dance floor spilling our beers a bit while sliding around to the Stones’ Live With Me.

When things are about to start downstairs, Ryan, Jenkins, Frank and I sit near the floor level stage as Social Distortion gets ready to play.

“What kind of guitar is that?” I ask Mike after he finishes tuning.

“Oh just some piece uh shit,” he replies strumming the borrowed off-brand guitar which has replaced his trademark sticker covered Gibson SG which is probably now hanging in one of the several pawnshops on Harbor Boulevard.

The substandard guitar doesn’t keep Mike from putting on a good show as the band blazes through such O.C. punk classics as Mommy’s Little Monster, Mainliner, Another State of Mind and also a punk version of the Kinks’ classic Till the End of the Day. They blaze through number after number. It doesn’t seem to matter that Mike has a whole new line up the original members having quit because of his H problem.

I go for a piss and when I get back I join Ryan, Jenkins and Frank as they yell for a Creedence Clearwater Revival cover which the band has been known to do on occasion.

“C.C.R...! C.C.R...! C.C.R...!” we’re all good and drunk, yelling in unison between songs as the gig is raging along in high gear.

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Image by Clem Onojeghuo