Kim Fowley

• Genre: Singer-Songwriter
• Hometown: Los Angeles
• Kim Fowley Website

About

Before Malcolm McLaren, there was Kim Fowley; professional scenemaker and svengali behind such early 1960s hits like "Alley Oop" and "Papa Oom Mow Mow." He went on to write and produce material for the Byrds and the Beach Boys as well as record his own less successful, albeit more anarchic, music. His connections to the anti-establishment had him mingling and working with Frank Zappa, Sky Saxon, Gram Parsons, and the Soft Machine. He continued being a divining rod for the underground up until the late '70s when he founded the Runaways. His popularity has since waned, but as co-creator of everything from "Don't Bogart that Joint" to "Cherry Bomb," the man deserves props.

- Jon Pruett