Venus And The Razorblades - Songs From The Sunshine Jungle...Plus (Reissue) (1978)

Venus and the Razorblades — Songs From The Sunshine Jungle is the only studio album by the short-lived Los Angeles punk project formed by famed producer, impresario, and "godfather" of Californian outsider rock, Kim Fowley.

The original vinyl was released in 1978 on Visa Records (and also on Spark in the UK). An expanded CD reissue, Songs From The Sunshine Jungle...Plus, featuring all the singles and bonus tracks, was released much later, in 1996, by the British archival label See For Miles Records (SEECD 444).

After successfully launching and promoting the all-girl band The Runaways, Kim Fowley decided to create a new, even more radical and provocative project. In 1976–1977, he formed Venus and the Razorblades on the streets of Los Angeles. The band featured very young musicians (some as young as 14 or 15), including vocalist Venus DeMilo and guitarist/co-writer Steven T.

Fowley's idea was to fuse the fury of emerging punk rock, glam aesthetics, and hook-driven pop melodies aimed at a rebellious teenage audience.

The album Songs From The Sunshine Jungle is a wild mix of dirty guitar sounds, aggressive teenage lyrics, and Fowley's production flair for catchy hooks. The record is filled with anthems of Hollywood street life and the California punk scene of the late '70s. The band's most famous song was "I Wanna Be Where the Boys Are," which was later re-recorded by Cherie Currie of The Runaways, turning it into a major hit. Also notable are the five-minute punk manifesto "Punk-A-Rama" and the fast-paced track "Dog Food."

The project was short-lived and disbanded due to internal instability, leaving this album as a shining example of the "golden era" of the Hollywood rock underground. The CD version of "...Plus" is the most complete anthology of the band, featuring the 1978 album, rare single B-sides, and tracks previously released only on local compilations by Bomp! Records.