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The Del Fuegos went from the grime of the Boston club scene into the MTV 80s, signing with Slash/Warner Bros. and touring with X, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, INXS, ZZ Top and others. Boston, MA, their 2nd album, made them a national and international act. Initially hailed as successors to Boston’s Real Kids and The Lyres, they became part of an American underground scene that helped birth Alternative Rock, which included REM, The Replacements, X, and others. The Del Fuegos offered an authentic back to basics alternative to the hair metal and overnight new wave successes aimed at a new generation raised on video.

This 2x7” record represents the start of it all, their first single and select demos never-before-released. Their debut 1982’s “I Can't Sleep” b/w “I Always Call Her Back” came out on their small hometown imprint Czech Records, only two-thousand copies in existence. It was recorded as a trio, with Dan Zanes on guitar and vocals, Tom Lloyd on bass and vocals, and Steve Morell on Drums. Soon after Dan’s younger brother, Warren, would join the band and appears on one of the previously unreleased demos that make up the 2nd 7 inch in this set. In the words of the Zanes Brothers:

I was standing on the periphery, still a kid in high school, but there when The Del Fuegos had their record release party at Cantones, another legendary shithole. The band played a set, people drank too much. It felt like the beginning of something, but no one knew exactly what. A very local band, one single out, every member working a day job. In some ways, it wouldn’t ever get better, no matter the adventures ahead.

Two thousand copies were pressed. It was clear that one would go into the jukebox at the HooDoo BBQ, located in Boston’s most celebrated punk club, The Rat. The question was, “What to do with the rest?” The record had a few plans of its own. One copy found a place in the personal jukebox of Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant. In a self-penned bio from the time, Plant named This Mortal Coil and The Del Fuegos as his two favorite bands. Shortly thereafter, Sam Phillips, the man who recorded Elvis, did the same thing in Rolling Stone, naming The Del Fuegos and The Blasters as his current favorites. That accounted for three records . . . but, at that point, who cared what happened to the rest. – Warren Zanes

These tracks are from a few different sessions. Boston had affordable 4 and 8-track studios. We’d load our gear in after work, record and mix a couple of songs, then go catch somebody’s last set at The Rat. There we’d hand the recording to our manager, Lilli Dennison, who would take it to the college stations. “Walk Alone” was the first one to get any play. “Lover’s Nights” was a follow-up “hit.” “That’s Right / That’s Good” is one of Tom’s vocals. Neither of us remember recording it, but the song shows how we tried to pack every idea we had into three minutes. - Dan Zanes

The Del Fuegos are an American rock & roll band. Formed in 1981, the group recorded for Slash Records & toured internationally w/ Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, ZZ Top, INXS. Since disbanding the various Del Fuegos have gone on to notable successes, winning Grammy Awards, writing best-selling books, earning doctoral degrees. Recently reformed, they toured Europe twice in 2026, w/ plans for more.