Jeff Conolly (organ and vocals) formed the Lyres in Boston in 1979 after his previous band, DMZ, had imploded in the wake of their sole Sire Records album release in 1978.
This time around, he made sure that his band was dedicated to the organ-dominated ’60s garage rock sound, but brought up to date by injecting a furious-and often unhinged-energy.
Jeff Conolly – also known as “Monoman” (partly because of his love of monophonic recordings of the ’60s and in part because of his monomaniacal obsession with vintage rock & roll) – has remained the only consistent member throughout numerous lineup changes over more than four decades.
The Lyres quickly became mainstays on the Boston rock scene, and in December 1981, the NMEpraised the band’s first EP – called AHS-1005 but often referred to as Buried Alive, after its lead track – and its “infectious rhythms”, writing that “what they do is too perfect to ever be out of fashion.”
The song Help You Ann was released as a single in 1983, taken from The Lyres’ debut LP, On Fyre (1984). This was followed by a second album, Lyres Lyres in 1986. The album was once again successful, and the band toured North America extensively.
Never the most prolific group, the Lyres let two years elapse before releasing their third studio album, A Promise Is a Promise (1988), which included guest appearances from Stiv Bators (of the Dead Boys and Lords of the New Church) and Wally Tax (of Dutch beat-era heroes The Outsiders).
In 1989, Conolly decided he’d grown tired of Boston and moved to San Diego, California.
On the West Coast, Conolly assembled a new edition of Lyres with three members of the group, The Nashville Ramblers – guitarist Carl Rusk, bassist Tom Ward, and drummer Ron Silva.
By 1991, Jeff Conolly had returned to Boston and re-formed Lyres with three former members of the group – Ricky Carmel on guitar, Rick Coraccio on bass, and Paul Murphy on drums.
This version of the group cut the 1993 album Happy Now.
Conolly continued to perform with the Lyres throughout the 90s, often in lineups featuring Rick Coraccio and Paul Murphy, but the group’s recording activities were limited to singles for various specialist labels, while a steady stream of reissues and collections of rare material also found its way to the marketplace.
Jeff Conolly
Vocals, organ Ricky “Little Man” Carmel
Guitar Rick Coraccio
Bass Paul Murphy
Drums Alex Kronos
Guitar Scott Parmenter
Bass Bob Mackenzie
Drums Peter Greenberg
Guitar Mike Lewis
Bass Howie Ferguson
Drums Dan McCormack
Guitar Johnny Bernardo
Drums Steve Aquino
Guitar Jack Hickey
Guitar Matt Milkos
Bass Carl Rusk
Guitsr Tom Ward
Bass Ron Silva
Drums Jim Janota
Drums
Video
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This time around, he made sure that his band was dedicated to the organ-dominated ’60s garage rock sound, but brought up to date by injecting a furious-and often unhinged-energy.
Never the most prolific group, the Lyres let two years elapse before releasing their third studio album, A Promise Is a Promise (1988), which included guest appearances from Stiv Bators (of the Dead Boys and Lords of the New Church) and Wally Tax (of Dutch beat-era heroes The Outsiders).
This version of the group cut the 1993 album Happy Now.
