Ichabod's was a punk bar on the corner of State College and Chapman in Fullerton. It is now a Burger King (how depressing).
Baxter's band, Psychotic Fungus, was on a compilation record of Orange County punk bands called Clock Work Orange County: The Electrifying Cry of Today's Suburban Youth!
Big John's was another punk venue in Fullerton that, alas, is no more. The flyer below is my favorite, as it gives a fake history of Baxter's band. In 1964, they were the Fun Guys, in 1967 they were Psychedelic Fungus, in 1974 they were Platinum Fungus, in 1980 they were Pubic Fungus, and in 1986 they finally became Psychotic Fungus. Genius.
Apparently the Buena Park Elks Lodge once hosted punk shows. Go figure.
Spangler's was apparently a coffee shop in Anaheim that also had punk shows. Good luck doing your homework in that kind of environment!
The Cuckoo's Nest was a short-lived but very important punk venue in Costa Mesa. It got shut down, but apparently re-opened for a time as The Concert Factory.
I got to see 45 Grave play at a benefit concert this year for my friend Mike Atta, from the band The Middle Class. Their singer was like an awesome punk cougar.
Punk's weren't just about mayem and youth revolt. They also held benefit shows for the homeless and other social causes.
They even had an Anti-Klan benefit show. Fighting bigotry with punk rock!
Superheroes of Fullerton punk!
They also played in LA sometimes, at venues like Cathay DeGrande in Hollywood.
President Ronald Reagan was pretty much universally hated by punk bands in the 1980s, as the flyer below illustrates (that's Reagan's head).
It's been fun talking to Baxter and learning that there was a strong punk scene in Orange County stretching back to the late 1970s and early 80s. Whenever I ride my bike by Burger King, I now think of Ichabods, and imagine The Minute Men playing there. Wowee zowee!
