The Beets
The sojourn of The Beets begin, like so many stories do, many years ago, when the three men, and one woman, who would go on to form the band were but children, growing up in the mean streets of Liverpool.
The Beets
Monroe Yoder (Bassist and singer, The Beets): I grew up in a council estate with me Mum. Me Dad had been a lion tamer in the circus, and, one day, he died in a tragic elephant stampede. We were covered, insurance wise, for a lion-related death, but an elephant-related death wasn’t covered. That elephant really fucked us over.
Clyde “Chap” Lipman (Drummer, The Beets): Monroe and me lived in the same building as kids, but we didn’t even realize it for years. It was a shite place to live. I couldn’t wait to get out of there.
Yoder: Even though we didn’t have a lot of money growing up, my mom always bought new records. Music was the one indulgence she allowed herself. That’s where I first fell in love with music. I still remember the song that made me want to be a musician; “I’m the Urban Spaceman” by Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band. It didn’t influence The Beets’ sound at all, but it got me on my path.
Lipman: I first started playing the drums because my parents bought me a kit so that I would annoy the neighbors. That act of spite is the only reason The Beets exist. It’s also why our family dog was killed, but that’s a story for another day.
Yoder: One day, I hear this drummin’ from down the hall, and I decide to pop over there. I think I was, like, 12 or so. I start banging on the door, and, after a little while, this kid answers. It was Chap.
Lipman: A lot of people think they call me Chap because my last name is Lipman. It’s actually because I used to chew tobacco, which we called chap. I would never let my nickname be a pun. Give me a little fucking credit, mate, you know?
Yoder: I started talking to Chap and tell him I’m into music. He asks me, “You play an instrument?” I tell him I don’t, and he says, “Well, start.” That how I became a musician.
Lipman: At first, Yoder tried to play guitar, but he was terrible at it.
Yoder: Chap will tell ya I was a bad guitarist, but that’s rubbish. He just didn’t like my sound. Chap was always particular about the sound of his music. That ended up rearing its ugly head later on.
Lipman: I needed to convince him to pick up another instrument, because I didn’t have the heart to stop playing with him, so I recruited a new guitarist. The first fella we had was a bloke named Timmy Fronk.
Timmy Fronk (guitarist, The Chaps): I was a couple years older than Chap and Monroe. My band had just broken up, so I was looking for something new. I was trying to pick up this bird, and I mentioned I played guitarist. She told me her cousin was in a band, and they were looking for a guitarist. To me, this seemed like the best way to make sure I got laid. And it worked, but also I found a new band, so it was a win-win.
Lipman: My cousin introduced us to Timmy, and right away he blew Monroe and me away. It was enough to get Monroe to agree to get a bass.
Yoder: I bloody hated playing the bass, at first.
Lipman: Monroe hated the bass, but he could sing, so I threw him a bone and let him handle that as well. We became a power trio called The Chaps.
Fronk: Right away I knew we was in trouble when Chap said we were gonna call the band The Chaps. He was a cocky little bugger.
Lipman: People say I called our first band The Chaps to name it after me, but I just meant, like, you know, chaps. We could have been The Blokes or The Guys, but I liked the sound of The Chaps.
Yoder: If Chap tries to tell you the band wasn’t named after him, he’s full of shit.
I see all these cans that say “Pickled Beets” on them, and it just dawned on me what a good band name that was. I said right there, “We’re now The Pickled Beets.”
Lipman: The Chaps were a rubbish band, in retrospect. I mean, we were all kids. We hung together for a couple years, but then Timmy left.
Fronk: I was 16, and I was tired of being in a band with kids. Also, I was really into marijuana at the time. So I quit the band.
Yoder: After Timmy left, we bounced around for a little while. We hooked up with musicians here and there, and changed our sound. It wasn’t until we met Wendy that we really started to feel like, “OK, we’re on track.” This was when we were, oh, 18 or so.
Wendy Nespah (keyboardist, The Beets): I met Chap and Monroe down at a pub called The Squirrel and Pinecone. I was underage at the time, at 17, but it was the local pub so they didn’t mind. Monroe tried to pick me up, but I wasn’t interested. Then he told me he was in a band, and that interested me.
Yoder: Wendy told me she played the keyboard, and I figured, “Hey, we could use a keyboard,” so I told Chap.
Lipman: I had no interest in a keyboardist. I said to Monroe, “Bloody hell, why couldn’t you try and fuck a guitar player?” Of course, Wendy ended up proving me wrong.
Nespah: I was able to convince Chap to let me play something for him. We went back to my place, and I played him “96 Tears” by ? and the Mysterians. Right away, he told me I was in.
Lipman: Wendy totally changed my ideas of what our band could be. We still needed a guitarist though.
Nespah: I was sort of seeing a guitar player, we had been in a band called Paintbrush, and I suggested maybe we bring him in. That was Johnny.
Johnny Quimby (guitarist, The Pickled Beets): Wendy told me she knew a couple guys who were a hell of a rhythm section, and they needed a guitarist. I stopped by to see them play, and I liked their sound, so I joined. That’s how I became the original guitarist for The Beets. Or, I guess, The Pickled Beets.
Lipman: With a girl in the band, we couldn’t get away with The Chaps anymore, so we needed a new name. Monroe and I were living together at the time, it was a real rubbish bin but we had practice space, and one day, the bloody wanker comes home with an entire grocery bag of pickled beets.
Yoder: The pickled beets were on sale, and we weren’t making any money. Chap didn’t have a job, and I was working in a shoe store. Not even cobbling! I was just selling shoes!
Lipman: I see all these cans that say “Pickled Beets” on them, and it just dawned on me what a good band name that was. I said right there, “We’re now The Pickled Beets.”
Nespah: When Chap told me we were called The Pickled Beets, I groaned. I don’t like bands named after pickled food. It’s so cliché.
Quimby: I had a mate who was a bartender at a local pub. He got us our first gig.
Clyde Wexler (bartender, The Grinning Eggplant): Johnny was always bugging me about his band The Pickled Beets and how great they sounded. We needed some entertainment, and so I figured I’d throw him a bone and get him to shut up. I didn’t expect to be a part of history.
Lipman: Our first show did not go well, but it was enough to get The Grinning Eggplant to invite us back. Eventually, we became the de facto pub band.
Nespah: Our sound was different then, and it wasn’t just Johnny. Monroe was still finding himself as a vocalist.
Yoder: I had no training as a singer. I was just figuring it out as I went along. This was, by now, the early ‘80s. We were something of a Pink Floyd ripoff.
Lipman: We were getting work, and getting paid, but I just wasn’t in love with the sound. I like Pink Floyd, but I didn’t want to be Pink Floyd, you know? I wanted The Pickled Beets to be their own thing.
Nespah: Johnny was really driving the sound, and Chap didn’t like that.
Quimby: Chap is a great drummer, but he’s also a control freak. The problem was, so was I. It was inevitable we would come to loggerheads.
We were getting work, and getting paid, but I just wasn’t in love with the sound. I like Pink Floyd, but I didn’t want to be Pink Floyd, you know? I wanted The Pickled Beets to be their own thing.
Yoder: Tensions were running high, and it was obvious things were going to explode.
Wexler: I still remember the night Johnny and Chap came to blows right on stage. I don’t know if they remember it, though.
Quimby: I had had a bit to drink that night, admittedly. We got free drinks! How could I not indulge? I was feeling good, and decided to noodle around a bit. Apparently, Chap thought my guitar solo had gone on a bit long.
Lipman: Johnny was being a right prick, plain and simple. He thought he was bigger than the band, and I wouldn’t have it.
Nespah: The next thing I know, the drumming had stopped. I turned to see what was going on, and I see Chap storming out from behind his drumset and heading toward Johnny.
Quimby: Chap got up in my face and was spouting about this and that. Some bullshit, you know? I waved him off and that’s when he got mad.
Yoder: Chap and Johnny were nose to nose, screaming. Then, Johnny shoved Chap, and that’s where things went nuts.
Wexler: I had to get on stage to break up the fight. I ended up getting elbowed by Chap right in the nose.
Lipman: That was the last time we played at The Grinning Eggplant… and the last time we played with Johnny.
Quimby: I knew something was going to give, and that something was me. Chap and Monroe are lifelong mates. Wendy was my ex-girlfriend. What chance did I have? So I quit before they could kick me out.
Lipman: Now we needed another guitarist. Fortunately, I found myself at the right party at the right time.
Flounder (guitarist, The Beets): I was playing in a band with me mates called The Hospital Bombers. It was a heavy duty outfit, but that wasn’t the sound I really wanted to be a part of. So, in my free time, I would noodle around on my guitar, playing my own stuff.
Lipman: I walk into this party, and I see a goofy looking guy with a guitar, but he sounded great! I went up and introduced myself, and he told me his name was Flounder. I thought to myself, “This guy is mad,” but I didn’t care. I wanted him in The Pickled Beets.
Flounder: When Chap asked me to join his band, I didn’t have to think twice about it. At first, I considered it a side project, but after one practice with The Pickled Beets, I quit The Hospital Bombers on the spot.
Nespah: Flounder joined up, and The Beets were set. At the time, we were just hoping to find a new pub to play at. None of us had any idea what the future held.
