Zebra, from left to right: Jerry Beasly, Noe Cruz, Bob Silvert, Timo Laine and Bruce Bordon
10″ acetate from Gold Star Studios with both songs from the 45One of the final releases on the Miramar label was Zebra’s “Helter-Skelter” released in 1969. The b-side was an original by Bruce Bordon and Timo Laine titled “Wasted” that in my opinion is the better side.
Zebra’s guitarist Timo Laine sent me the photos above and told me about the group.
Zebra members were:
Timo Laine: lead guitar Noe Cruz: bass Bruce Bordon: vocals Jerry Beasley: drums Bob Silvert: keyboards
Zebra was together for about 5 years. Everywhere we played there would be a line around the building to get in. We were loved by the dance crowd, and the club owners kept us busy.
Zebra opened for the Rolling Stones and the Byrds in the late ’60s in Fresno. We also played with B.B. King, Ballin’jack, Zephyr, Ike and Tina Turner and many other name acts, but I don’t remember them all. We were a full time club band, 5 nights a week.
Our main clubs were Pier 11 (Newport Beach), Finnegan’s Rainbow (Newport Beach), The Interlude (Santa Cruz), Odyssey Theatre (Phoenix, AZ), Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Ichabods (Fullerton), Saint George and the Dragon (Tustin), and the Forum in Fresno.
We met Tony Cary at the Forum, where he first saw the act. He kept coming in every night and buying us drinks. Finally he said he was a record producer, and wanted to produce Zebra. Tony had a lot of industry contacts, and radio station friends like the Drake-Chenault radio station owners.
He moved the band to the Marriott in Studio City, and started recording the act at Pat Boone’s Lion and the Lamb Studio. We were almost finished recording the album when we got a telegram that Tony had died. We were told he had overdosed. This was a huge loss for us.
The album was never mixed or mastered, except the single “Helter Skelter” and “Wasted”, that was done first. I don’t know whatever happened to the masters.
After his death, I was offered a recording contract to record an album I wrote called Space Rangers with Neil Merryweather. It was recorded in Capital Records studio, and released by Mercury Records out of Chicago. After Space Rangers, I signed to A&M Records and released Symphonic Slam.
I had a new release this year, and another in 2011. I’m currently working on a new production: Jimmy Haslip (Yellow Jackets, Alan Holdsworth, Robin Ford) will be on bass, Mark Stevens on drums, me on guitars and guitar synths. Talks are in the works that Mark Stein (Vanilla Fudge) may do the keys.
Q. Was your band the same Zebra who released “Christmas Morning Parts I & II” on Blue Thumb in Nov. 1969, written, produced and arranged by Sean Bonniwell of the Music Machine.
Timo Laine: No, we were before they came out.
Thanks to Timo for his help with this post. See the page on Just Us for info on Neil Merryweather’s first bands in Ontario.
Here’s a real oddity, two anonymous and unrelated cuts packaged on one 45. For Miramar label completionists only!
The A-side has the Miramar Soul Band doing a bossa-nova. sax-led instrumental version of “Mr. Tambourine Man”. Somehow I couldn’t get a very good transfer out of this side, but it could be ’cause the cartridge I use for transferring needs to be balanced, and my old Thorens is picking up all kinds of hum in my new house.
I did better on the flip, “Party a Go Go”, labeled as by Friends of the Miramar Soul Band. It’s not bad listening, a fair instrumental along the lines of “Off the Hook” overdubbed with fake party goers cackling and pretending to be hip. Publishing on this one is by Carjone, BMI, which appears on other Miramar releases produced by Tony Cary (real name Tony Luton).
Though given a release number of Miramar 127, “Party a Go Go” has master number 111-B, suggesting it was mastered much earlier, likely meant for release just prior to Tony Cary’s one-sided 45 of “She Belongs to Me”.
It turns out “Party a Go Go” also appears on Miramar 110 by Glenn & the Good Guys, with master number 111. Perhaps it’s not the same take, as I haven’t heard it yet. The writing credit on that label reads Burton, Jones, Osborn, so it’s likely James Burton was playing on this 45.
“Party a Go Go” also appears on Nick Hoffman’s 45 for Roman Records, this time titled “Christmas Party”, backing “Santa Claus Is Back in Town”.
I wonder if the version of Mr. Tambourine Man here is the same as the flip to Sonny Firmature’s single “Love Lost” (Miramar 128)?
If anyone has good transfers of some of the early Miramar releases by Jimmy Burton, the Memphis Men and Tony Cary, please contact me. Also please take a look at the list of Miramar releases I’ve posted and see if there are any gaps to be filled.
Miramar Records of Hollywood, famous for its releases by the Road Runners and the Dovers.
Tony Cary produced all the Dovers 45s as well as the Road Runners, Jimmy Burton, Nick Hoffman and Fellowship records. He went on to produce the Alexander’s Timeless Bloozband LP on UNI, released 1968 and Charles Lamont’s solo LP from 1969, A Legend In His Own Time. Mike Markesich tells me Tony’s real name was Tony Luton, whose family was involved in radio or TV in Santa Barbara.
Tony Cary had two singles on Miramar. The first, “Dream World” / “One of These Days” was from August, 1965 (Monarch delta # 55804). Both songs are by Jones-Osborn and published by Alborn Music. The label reads “Produced by Miramar Prod.”
As far as Tony’s vocal talents go, I think he eventually took his own song’s advice to “stop living in a dream world”! Still, one can’t help but admire the impressive series of singles he produced on this label. His second is a countrified version of “She Belongs to Me” that was only released as a one-sided white label promo.
Alborn is the other producer name on many of these 45s. Alborn seems to be a mix of Alton Leo Jones (Al Jones) and Joe Osborn. They wrote a number of songs together, the most notable of which may be “Johnny Come Lately” for Billie Jean Horton. Joe Osborn also wrote with Dorsey Burnette and Dale Hawkins.
Other Miramar records have “a C/A production” on the label. The publishing info is usually on of these three: Alborn Music BMI, Carjone Music BMI, Fabyan Music ASCAP. Labels read “Miramar Records of Hollywood” up through the Dovers’ “The Third Eye”.
Jimmy Burton is of course James Burton, and Jimmy’s Blues” is an excellent piece of fuzzy riffing. It’s possible that’s him playing the lead guitar on Tony Cary’s “One of These Days”.
The Spellbinders version of “Casting My Spell” features a rough lead vocal with clipped lead guitar lines. I haven’t heard “To Take a Heart” yet. That 45 was produced by Joe Osborn, and this is not the same Spellbinders who recorded for Columbia (“Chain Reaction”).
Incomplete discography (any help would be appreciated!)
45s:
Note that releases 101 and 103 come from the end of Miramar’s run, in 1967 or later.
Miramar 107 – Tony Cary – “Dream World” / “One of These Days” (August 1965) Miramar 108 – Jimmy Burton – “Jimmy’s Blues” (J. Burton, M. Jones, J. Osborn) / “Love Lost” (James Burton) (a Cary-Alborn Production) Miramar 109 – Memphis Men – “Act Naturally” / “Oh What A Night” (Jones-Osborn) (Produced by AFC Enterprises Inc.) Miramar 110 – Glenn and the Good Guys – “Party a Go Go” (Burton, Jones, Osborn) / “Only In My Heart” (J. Seals, G. Adams)
Miramar 112 – Tony Cary – “She Belongs To Me” (one-sided promo)
Miramar 115 – The Spellbinders – “Casting My Spell” / “To Take a Heart” (produced by Joe Osborn)
The Road Runners’ first single
The following have the guitar label design:
Miramar 116 – Road Runners – “I’ll Make It Up To You” / “Take Me” (released in Aug. ’65, also released on Reprise 0418, Sept. ’65) Miramar 117 – ? Miramar 118 – Dovers – “She’s Gone” / “What Am I Going To Do?” (Sept. 1965) Miramar 119 – Nick Hoffman – “King of The Moon” / “Blind and Leaving Blues” (Nov. 1965) Miramar 120 – ? Miramar 121 – Dovers – “I Could Be Happy” / “People Ask Me Why” (Nov, 1965, also released on Reprise 0439) Miramar 122 – ? Miramar 123 – Dovers – “The Third Eye” / “Your Love” (April 1966)
Another great song by Timmy Granada
Miramar 124 – Dovers – “She’s Not Just Anybody” / “About Me” (May 1966) (plain label without guitar logo) I’ve seen an acetate demo of this 45 from Western Recorders, 6000 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood 28
The following have the winged angel type logo:
Miramar 125 – Fellowship – “Just Like A Woman” / “Palace of the King” (Sept. 1966), also released in stock copy with older guitar logo Miramar 126 – ? Miramar 127 – Miramar Soul Band – “Mr. Tambourine Man” / Friends of the Miramar Soul Band – “Party a Go Go” (this side has master #111-B) Miramar 128 – Sonny Firmature – “Love Lost” / “Mr. Tambourine Man” (could this be the same version of Mr. Tambourine Man as above by the Miramar Soul Band?) Miramar 129 – ? Miramar 130 – Zebra – “Helter-Skelter” / “Wasted” (produced by Fabyan Enterprises, 1969 or later)
Miramar 101 – Alexander’s Timeless Bloozband – “Horn Song” / “Love So Strong (Guitar Song)” (Charles Lamont, A&R by Tony Cary & Fritz Ashauer) 1967 Max Waller writes, “This is the same pairing that would appear on their 1st 45 for UNI (in December 1967) so, despite the number, came after the other Miramar 45s.”
Miramar 103 – Charles Lamont – “Poems of Carole Ann” / “Maybe Baby” (soul, also a later release)
LPs:
Miramar 1002 – Sonny Firmature – Love Lost (blue winged logo)
Sonny Firmature was a tenor saxophonist from Omaha, NE, who played with Harry James.
Nick Hoffman had another 45 produced by Tony Cary, “Santa Claus Is Back in Town” / “Christmas Party” on Roman Records 101, issued on half-green half-red vinyl. There also seems to be a connection to a 45 on Shindigogo Records 777 by Ron Roman and the Livin’ End with a song written by Steve Hoffman (any relation to Nick Hoffman?) “Won’t Have a Merry Little Xmas” b/w “A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall”. The address on this one is 6201 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood. I don’t know of any other releases on Shindigogo. I’d like to know more about Ron Roman, he had a 1963 release on Daani “Tell Me” (Kenny Williams) / “Love of My Life” (Dave Aerni and Frank Zappa).
“Party a Go Go” by Glenn & the Good Guys shows up again (or a part B, I’m not sure yet) on the Friends of the Miramar Soul Band on Miramar 127. More on that release including sound clips can be found on this page of my site.
I still need good scans and transfers of the 45s by the Memphis Men, Tony Cary’s “She Belongs to Me”, Nick Hoffman’s “Blind and Leaving Blues” and Glenn & the Good Guys “Only In My Heart”. I also need scans of the Sonny Firmature and Alexander’s Timeless Bloozband 45s. If you can help with any of these, please contact me.
I notice as of September 2012 the Spellbinders has been bootlegged in a nearly identical reproduction.
Thank you to Jason Sweitzer for help with the discography and Tony Cary info. Thanks to Todd, Dudley, Mike Markesich and Max Waller for additions to the discography. Thanks to John Hagelston and Mikael for transfers of the Tony Cary and Jimmy Burton 45s, respectively.
Here’s an obscure 45 by the Fellowship, one side a version of Dylan’s “Just Like a Woman” with a full band, the other a more fanciful number with only acoustic instruments backing the vocals. “Palace of the King” was written by J. Treese, possibly Jack Treese, an american musician who had a long career in France.
One notable thing about this release is it’s on the Miramar label, most famous for releases by the Dovers. See the separate article on Miramar for more info.
Tony Cary produced all the Dovers 45s as well as the Road Runners, Nick Hoffman and Fellowship records on Miramar. He went on to produce the Alexander’s Timeless Bloozband Lp on UNI, released 1968 and Charles Lamont’s solo LP from 1969, A Legend In His Own Time.
This 45 came from a collection of 45s owned by Bob Buchanan, who co-authored “Hickory Wind” with Gram Parsons and played in the New Christy Minstrels for some time, as well as the International Submarine Band. Perhaps he played on this session? The other 45s in the collection were by the New Christy Minstrels, Brewer and Brewer, and Mike McGinnis.
Max Waller suggests there may be a connection to another Fellowship 45, “You Laughed At Me” / ? on Film Town 6169 from July 1969.
Thank you to Jason Sweitzer for help with information about Tony Cary.
Denver Cross playing in Bakersfield in 1977. Photo courtesy of Diane.
Updated 2014
The Road Runners were a great band from Fresno, California who released seven songs on four singles in a short period between August of 1965 and April of 1966.
Band members on the 45s were Denver Cross guitar, Dale Samuelian keyboards, Bob Trippell sax, Randy Hall lead vocals and bass, and Steve Heitkotter drums. Other members of the band at various times included Ozzie Georgener, Larry Karagozian, and Dave Mendoza and Bruce Conte on guitars.
Their first single is my favorite, “I’ll Make It Up to You” / “Take Me” on Miramar from August of 1965 (released nationally on Reprise in September).
Randy Hall’s original song “Goodbye” was released in Jan. 1966 with red labels on yellow vinyl with “Tell Her You Love Her” on the flip side. I’ve seen one copy with beautiful flaming yellow and red vinyl, also with red labels, and one with almost all red vinyl. Second pressings were on black vinyl.
“Pretty Me” was released twice in 1966, once with a slow, bluesy cover of “Baby Please Don’t Go”, and later as the b-side to another Randy Hall original, “Sleepy Friend”.
The Morocco label was located at 1415 W. Scott in Fresno, and judging by label numbers seems to have put out 20 or so records, but I don’t know of any other releases. Dig the different spelling of Morocco between the first release and the later!
“Pretty Me” was written by the band’s drummer, Steven Heitkotter, who a few years later recorded a free-form psychedelic jam LP that has been reissued first by Time-Lag and then by Now-Again. Steven was institutionalized by 1972 and remains so today. See Greg Youngman’s blog for the full story on Steve Heitkotter’s album.
There are also a few unreleased studio recordings, and a well-recorded live set. Randy Hall had a solo 45 on a purple Morocco Records label, his original song “Don’t Stop Now” b/w “Baby Please Don’t Go” also from 1966. Judging from the release numbers (M-124/M-121), “Baby Please Don’t Go” is probably the same take as the Road Runners release. If anyone has clips of this release please let me know.
Xian (who left a long comment below) sent this photo of Randy Hall taken in 1977 when Randy performed at the West Hills Music Club Variety Show.
Discography:
Miramar 116 – “I’ll Make It Up to You” / “Take Me” (August 1965, also released on Reprise 0418 in September)
Morrocco 001/002 – “Goodbye” / “Tell Her You Love Her” (December 1965)
This site is a work in progress on 1960s garage rock bands. All entries can be updated, corrected and expanded. If you have information on a band featured here, please let me know and I will update the site and credit you accordingly.
I am dedicated to making this site a center for research about '60s music scenes. Please consider donating archival materials such as photos, records, news clippings, scrapbooks or other material from the '60s. Please contact me at rchrisbishop@gmail.com if you can loan or donate original materials
The Spellbinders version of “Casting My Spell” features a rough lead vocal with clipped lead guitar lines. I haven’t heard “To Take a Heart” yet. That 45 was produced by Joe Osborn, and this is not the same Spellbinders who recorded for Columbia (“Chain Reaction”).
One notable thing about this release is it’s on the Miramar label, most famous for releases by the Dovers. See 
Updated 2014
