Tommy Keene: Shake Some Action

If you’ve followed the San Francisco band the Flamin’ Groovies, you’re familiar with the title cut from their 1976 album “Shake Some Action.” While it was not domestically released as a single, it came to be one of their best known songs from their most popular album. What most folks don’t know is that the familiar version was the second time the Flamin’ Groovies had recorded the song. A seminal version was laid down in 1973; and although released in the UK in 1978, it was finally issued in the US in 2002 on their CD “Slow Death: Amazing High Energy Rock N’ Roll 1971-73!”

Since “Shake Some Action” was a signature cut for the Flamin’ Groovies, who would have thought to cover this song – well, Tommy Keene did and he released his version in 1993. Keene, who originally hailed from the Washington, DC area, had played drums in one of Nils Lofgren’s early bands before striking out on his own as a multi-instrumentalist.

This particular cut comes from Keene’s “The Real Underground” – a collection of new and previously unreleased cuts. “Shake Some Action” features Keene on guitar and vocals. You’ll hear him shine on the first solo. Eric Peterson provides the second lead guitar solo. The tune also features Brad Quinn on bass and backup vocals and John Richardson on drums.

As with most of the cuts on the LP, “Shake Some Action” was recorded at Hit and Run Studios in Rockville, Maryland. Keene produced this power pop rendition that does justice to the Flamin’ Groovies’ album rock classic.