"You Fascinate Me" by The Offs

One of my best friends owned this album, and as young skate punks we adored this track. It was catchy, a little funky, and although we didn’t have girlfriends, it would have been the perfect song for a mixtape. The trouble of course was getting that song from album to cassette…

The Offs were a fixture in the San Francisco underground music scene in the late 70’s, releasing a semi-controversial 7 inch single “Everyone's a Bigot” (1978) on the now defunct, but influential 415 Records. They then moved to NYC in 1980 and released this 7 inch on Max's Kansas City Records. Four years later "You Fascinate Me" would be re-released on David Ferguson’s CD Presents record label.  It was the lead track from The Offs First Record, and featured the cover art of Jean-Michel Basquiat.
 
Unlike former label mates Romeo Void who found some success with "Never Say Never" and "A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing)," this track fell through the cracks. I think it’s a classic 80’s song and one that deserves more attention.