THE HOLLYWOOD STARS – Kings of the Night Time World

Interview with Roben De Fuentes

1. How did you start playing music? Was your father an inspiration due to his music involvement?

Yes, my dad was an inspiration. He played guitar and he also sang on the original 1956 motion picture soundtrack of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The King And I. He was in the house band at the Tropicana Las Vegas in the 1960s and ‘70s.

2. What was Kim Fowley’s role in the formation and career of the band?

The Hollywood Stars was Kim’s brainchild. He handpicked each member to fit his grand vision.

3. Did you ever feel a type of competition with the New York Dolls due to Kim Fowley’s idea to form a similar type of band in terms of music and attitude?

Maybe we did have a bit of an attitude like them but there was never any feeling of competition on our part, except for when we did a concert with them at the Hollywood Palladium in 1974.

4. How did you sign with Columbia Records in 1974?

Kim Fowley did a great job creating a buzz for us in late 1973 which led to the Columbia contract the following year. By the time of our very first ticketed concert — at the Whisky a Go Go in December of 1973 — we were already a headlining act.

5. Do you remember any details of the record contract with Columbia? Did you feel it was a solid deal at the time?

I don’t remember too many details other than I felt there was initially good intentions on the part of Columbia records.

6. Why did the Sound City sessions at the Record Plant not result in a proper record and release of the album?

Sound City was not recorded at the Record Plant. You’re getting it confused with our debut album for Columbia, Shine Like a Radio, which was recorded at the Record Plant. Sound City was recorded at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys prior to the band being signed to Arista Records. To make a long story short, we signed with Clive Davis at Arista and he didn’t want to release the Sound City album. Instead, he booked time at Cherokee Studios in Hollywood and assigned us a new producer, Harry Maslin. Those sessions were eventually released in 1977 as our self-titled album, The Hollywood Stars.

7. Two of the band’s tracks, “King of the Night Time World” and “Escape” were finally recorded by Kiss and Alice Cooper respectively. How did it happen and did you ever get any royalties out of this agreement? 

Kim Fowley shopped songs around after the band first split up in late 1974. Kim and Mark Anthony — who were the songwriters — got a lot of royalties but I did not. Still, it was wonderful being part of it all, hearing Kiss and Alice Cooper doing our songs was very exciting.

8. Why did the band split up?

We actually split up twice, first at the end of 1974, then again in 1977. The 1974 split was due to changes in the West Coast A&R management staff at Columbia Records. Our second split had more to do with differing opinions regarding the direction of our band.

9. In 2013, your first album was finally released, what is the background story of that album’s release after all these years?

That was our first album with the original lineup. It was recorded in 1974. That was the record that we recorded for Columbia but it was shelved due to staff shakeups on the West Coast. After several decades, an independent music producer named Robin Wills resuscitated the project and released it in a limited edition gatefold vinyl edition on Last Summer/Light in the Attic Records.

10. What was the main reason behind your decision to reform as a band?

We reformed because of a lot of recent interest. It seems like this band refuses to die!

11. How do you feel about releasing the album Sound City?

I think it’s fantastic. It is a period time piece that was part of a scene that all ages will enjoy. 

12. What are your expectations for this album?

I expect it to help reestablish our name and to show the dynamics of the band.

13. Are we going to see you live for a series of shows?

Yes, there are shows planned. The first concert sees us returning to the Whisky a Go Go in Hollywood as a headlining act on July 18.  

14. What is next for The Hollywood Stars? 

We are already working on a new album which should prove to be interesting.

INTERESTING INFO
In addition to the Stars, De Fuentes has played with Blue Cheer (1975, 1987) and Steppenwolf (1979-1980). He was lead guitarist for Meat Loaf‘s first band in Hollywood in the late 1960s. Ruben recorded “King of the Night Time World” with The Hollywood Stars before Kiss recorded the song on Destroyer.Ruben’s guitar teacher in the early 1960s was James Spagnola of The Electric Prunes. By 1967, Ruben was gigging professionally on the Hollywood scene, despite being a teenager. He witnessed many of rock’s legendary performers at either the Hullabaloo or the Teen Fair (where he saw Jimi Hendrix). 

WEBLINKS
Pre-order the CD: https://burgerrecords.11spot.com/the-hollywood-stars-sound-city.html
Ruben’s website: https://www.rubendefuentes.com
Ruben on Discogs:https://www.discogs.com/artist/1404898-Ruben-De-Fuentes?filter_anv=0&type=Credits