CIA Records Releases New Tribute Video for As Strange As Mine (1983)

CIA Records releases new tribute music video for “As Strange As Mine” from the legendary Houston, Texas, punk band mydolls off their EP Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick, originally released by CIA Records in 1983. The video is dedicated to the memory of Kelly Younger, guitarist for Really Red, who passed away in June 2022.

The lyrics for this song were written by guitarist Trish Herrera as an homage to Kelly Younger of the equally legendary band Really Red, whose own powerful guitar mastery and encouragement inspired her to learn how to play *hard*, herself.

Trish writes, “In the 80’s and late 70’s, mydolls and Really Red toured together. Really Red had been playing longer than mydolls, and we looked up to them as mentors. I first started playing guitar when I was 12 and I learned classical and folk music. When mydolls formed and I began to play with the band, I felt like I needed to add power to what I was doing and learn how to play hard like Really Red’s guitarist, Kelly Younger. So I asked Kelly to ‘Teach me punk rock guitar.’ Kelly just gave me that sly look and said, ‘You already know how to play guitar, just turn everything up and play.’ One day we were traveling with Really Red to play somewhere in Texas and I was in the back seat of the van watching Kelly drive. That’s when I wrote the lyrics to “As Strange as Mine”, which later turned into a song. Sadly, Kelly has passed and the world is out a great person, a great artist and a great teacher. ‘You said it was easy. Anyone can do it. Play it Loud, Kelly.”

Kelly Younger is survived by his wife Linda of mydolls and a great tribe of loving family members and friends. The video was made by Heather L Johnson (https://www.heatherljohnson.com/), with photographs by Jessica Younger Field, Ted Field, Jessica Pledger, Ben DeSoto and others; with footage by Heather L. Johnson and others, including a recording of mydolls’ performance at Kent State University in Ohio, in 1983 (videographer unknown). It features drawings by Trish Herrera, and the music was written by mydolls.

mydolls are Trish Herrera (guitars, vocals, percussion), Dianna Ray (bass, vocals), George Reyes (drums, percussion, vocals) and Linda Younger (guitar, vocals). “Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick” was engineered by Andrew M. Bradley at Sugar Hill Studios in Houston.

Listen to the Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick EP in its entirety on the CIA Records Bandcamp page. To read about CIA Records and its near-5-decade-long history, visit https://www.cia-records.com/.