Cream Premiere: Hear Raging Fire's 'Beware of a Man With Manners' Ahead of 30th Anniversary Comp [Fresh Track]

Raging Fire was one of the groups who kept Music City's Rock Block bumping from the post-punk days through the first Bush administration. Their song "Everything Is Roses" was chosen to open City Without a Subway, WRVU's seminal 1985 compilation of local artists, but their appeal spread far and wide: After touring the country in opening slots with The Cramps, The Replacements and others, a 1988 CMJ poll put them in the same boat as The Pixies as one of the best unsigned bands. 

After years of treading water while labels sat on the fence, the group finally dissolved, and their catalog existed on in the hands of a few dedicated fans and the footnotes of Goldmine — until now. On Oct. 6, Raging Fire is set to release Everything is Roses, a 30th anniversary retrospective compilation that includes all of the tracks from their two official releases, plus some outtakes and live recordings.

The Cream is pleased to premiere a track originally found on their 1985 debut EP A Family Thing (recorded by Mike Poole, who now mixes the music you hear on ABC's Nashville, and who is remastering the songs for the compilation). 

 Lyricist and frontwoman Melora Zaner tells the Cream that an article on the mysterious death of one of Jerry Lee Lewis' wives inspired her to begin writing "Beware of a Man With Manners," a fierce and agile punk boogie that questions the notion of "marrying well" trumping any other achievements a woman might have — not as quaint and dated as you might think. "I was 23 at the time and had friends concerned about marrying before 25 — and god forbid — before 30," Zaner says. "In the end, a flood of stories from women I’d known in Texas and Tennessee, as well as this article, filled each line in this story. After sharing this with you, I realize how personal this song was for me. Somehow magic happened when the band came together on this and the music really drives it home for me."