From the lyrics, the titles seem to be “Little By Little (Fallin’ Apart)” and “Have Faith”. Both songs are great mid-60s garage, I only wish the condition of “Have Faith” was a little better as it’s a quiet song so the wear is audible.
Thank you to Barry T. for the demo and transfers.
Karl Thaler plays acoustic guitar and sings doom-laden lyrics on his original composition “The Storm”, and plays guitar and harmonica on the instrumental “Phoebe”.
I had no info other than what’s on the label, which includes the deadwax stamp “45 202 385” / “45 202 386”. A comment, below, informs me that this single was included with the University of Scranton, Pennsylvania’s literary magazine Esprit in 1969, when Karl Thaler was a student there. Any further info on about Mr. Thaler or the University of Scranton music scene this came from would be appreciated.
The Sleepers were from Mansfield, Ohio, located in the northern part of the state about halfway between Columbus and Cleveland.
Tom Zinser lead the band so they were usually referred to as Tommy Z and the Sleepers, though not on the record label which simply says The Sleepers. The label lists the members by last name, but misspells more than half of them: Murry [sic], Crause [sic], Davis, and First. Tommy Zinser’s name is spelled Zinzer on the labels.
Tom Zinser wrote to me in 2016 with more info about the band:
Tommy Z and The Sleepers was the first band I was in that played out. We played some at a club in Ashland, Ohio called the Dugout. We also played fraternity parties at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. In the picture, that’s me on the top right. Next to me is Kim Murray, our lead singer, who went on to become an attorney in Mansfield. To the right of Kim on the first row is Bob First, our drummer from Mansfield who at the time was recently out of the Navy. In the center is Jim Krause, misspelled on the record label, played guitar and did some backup vocals. He went on to become a recording engineer in Cincinnati. Next to Jim and below me is Chris Davis, who played bass. Chris, Jim and I went to Mansfield Senior High together and graduated in 1963.
Zinser and Davis wrote both songs. The single was recorded at Audio Recording in Cleveland, produced by E.R. Thomas and E.R. Garnes, and released on the Marvy label in 1966.
Tom Zinser adds:
“Time Will Tell” and “I Want A Love” B-side, were my first efforts in songwriting and later on “Time Will Tell” was rerecorded in the Wildlife.
About 2011 we gave an interview to a guy in the United Kingdom who publishes a magazine called Fantastic Expedition. If you go to fantasticexpedition.com, we are in issue 5. That is the most complete story of the Wildlife and the subsequent band, Owen B.
Zinser and Van Auker went into Owen-B which had a self-produced LP recorded at Mus-i-col Studios in Columbus. Another member of Owen-B was Jim Krause on vocals and harmonica.
Confusingly there was another group with two earlier 45s on Columbia who are listed as the Wild Life (two words instead of Wildlife) which have similar credits, arranged by Chuck Sagle and produced by John Walsh:
“This Is What I Was Made For” / “Somes Times I’m Up (Sometimes I’m Down”) (Columbia 4-44213)
“New Games to Play” / “Where Do You Go” (Columbia 4-44285)
The Sugar Beats formed in Tampa, Florida and had the first release on the Knight label, which is much better known for 45s by the Outsiders, the Tropics and the Mods. The band members were:
Roland Kent LaVoie – guitar
Bill Ellington – guitar
Bill Denman – bass
Rick Emmert – drums
Both sides are upbeat pop cover songs, which may be why it was not included in Teen Beat Mayhem. Produced by Phil Gernhard and recorded at H & H Studios, though I’ve also read this was recorded at Charles Fuller’s studio – some overlap there? It dates from approximately 1964, with SoN #s 22541/2 in the matrix.
Roland LaVoie went into Me & the Other Guys who had two 45s, “Skinny Minnie” / “Crazy” on Hit Cat and “Runaround Girl” / “Everybody Knew But Me” on Boss.
There were several groups called the Citations recording in the ’60s including ones from Alabama, Maine, Ohio and, most famously, the band from Milwaukee who cut “Moon Race” / “Slippin’ and Slidin'”.
The Citations I’m featuring today were from Lawrence and Methuen, Massachusetts. Though obscure, their July, 1966 release on Pre-Sav Enterprises has two excellent original songs.
“Long Time Wanderin'” was the A-side, a good upbeat cut, but most garage fans prefer the flip, “The Day That She’ll Go”, a good example of the New England sound – moody and with a dense, almost murky production but plenty of atmosphere and emotion.
I had almost no info on the group until I heard from James DiResta, the brother of guitarist Mike DiResta. He sent in the photo seen at top and gave me the names of the band members.
Gino DiMaio – bass and lead vocals
John Grasso – lead guitar
Mike DiResta – rhythm guitar
John Fichera – keyboards
Bob Oreal, Mike Messineo – drums
James wrote to me, “My brother Mike is on the right playing the single cut-away Guild guitar, and wrote the songs on the record. The Vox amps were the original tube amps from England with adapters to play in USA. The club that they use to practice out of, and were the house band for, was the Raven on the Methuen – Haverhill line in Massachusetts. The record had its debut at Turn-Style in South Lawrence and later they showcased at the Hampton Casino.”
I’ll be spinning 45s at the next SmashCrashBash at the Half Moon in Hudson, NY on Friday, September 5, with bands the Luxurious Faux Furs and the Beech Creeps. It should be an insane night of crude garage rock!
The Mustangs in the photo above consist of:
Larry Hutcherson – vocals
Mike Johnstone – lead guitar
Paris Aiken – drums
Norm Lawrence – bass guitar
Rick Farrar – rhythm guitar
Brad Tinglehoff was the roadie for the group.
According to the Tidewater Virginia Hippies site, other members of the Mustangs included Steve Swenson and Ronnie Hall. I don’t believe this group released any records, and if there were any unreleased recordings, I haven’t heard them.
Mike Johnstone went on to play with Headstone Circus, whose recordings circa 1968 were eventually released by Shadoks. Paris Aiken joined Dennis & the Times, and later played drums with Billy Joe Royal on his recording of “Down in the Boondocks”.
James Mrdutt sent in the photos seen here and reported that Paris passed away on December 24, 2009.
Thank you to Mike Johnstone for correcting the mistakes I made in transcribing the IDs for the photo.
Mickey Ward – keyboards
Dan Walker – guitar
Glen Mikaland – bass and saxophone
George Neuhoff – drums
This is a 45 I’d been trying to track down for a few years, and finally found a copy through Buckeye Beat, whose website has the full story on this Lorain, Ohio band.
“Turning to Stone” has a sharp fuzz riff and gloomy vocals, with a shift to a bright chorus with tambourine. The flip, “I Need You” comes from a doo wop or vocal group era, it sounds like a different group entirely, though it is well done. “I Need You” is an original by Mickey Ward, “Turning to Stone” was a group original.
The Gladiators name was only used for this one single from September, 1966 on the Donnie label run by Donnie Barden. The group was actually known as Mickey & the Clean Cuts in live shows and on their first 45 from October, 1965, “Soapy” / “Static Electricity”, also on Donnie and picked up by Wand. I’m not sure why they changed their name for the release of “Turning to Stone”. They had a good sound on that song and I wish they cut more in that style.
Anyone have a photo of the group?
The band continued as Mickey & the Clean Cuts, and backed the other two artists on the Donnie label for their releases: Dave Charles’ excellent soul 45 “Ain’t Gonna Cry No More” / “My Love”, and Tillie Wow’s “I Wanna Tell You A Thing Or Two” / “The Sway”, but had no other releases under their own name. Mickey Ward kept the Clean Cuts act going with different members into the ’80s.
Cori Records was the house label for Continental Recordings studio in Framingham, Massachusetts. I discussed the studio in some depth in an article on the Balladeers, who had the first two 45s released by Continental. Max Waller and I put together this discography of the label. It’s incomplete, especially in regard to the LPs, so if you have any additional information please contact me.
All 45s after the first have matrix codes for Capitol Custom pressings. The first letter of the code refers to the year (T=1965, U=1966, W=1967).
Most publishing is either Hyannis Music Co, BMI or Donna Music Pub. BMI.
On “You’ve Got Me Cryin'” BOSS TODES is written below The Mauve but marked out on all copies I’ve seen. The band had a second 45 as the Boss Todes on the Sound City label in 1967, “Have Certainty” / “Sally the Pollywog”.
45s / 7″ EPs:
E.P. Scroggs CR-0001 – The Balladeers – “Cape Cod (Here We Come) / “Land of the Sea and Sun” (ZTSP-94612/3) (Summer, 1964)
Cori CR-31001 – The Balladeers – “Words I Want To Hear” / “High Flying Bird” (TB 631/2) 8/1965
Cori CR-31002 – The Royals “I’m All Alone” / “The Lady’s Bad” (June 1965)
Cori CR 31003 – The Valkyries “Love You Like I Do” (Curtis) / “Blues For Cookie”(TB 476) 1965
Cori CR 31004 – Al Gay “Soldier’s Last Letter” / “Over and Over”
Cori CR 31005 – The Riffs “Outside That Door” (Paul Iannazzo) / “Holy Ravioli” (UB 276) March 1966
Cori CR 31006 – The Mauve “You’ve Got Me Cryin'” (Ford-Weeks) / “In The Revelation” (Arranged by Eric Sample, UB 238) March 1966
Insegrievious CR 31007 – The End “Bad Night” / “Make Our Love Come Through” (IAM 45-UB-388/6-P1) 1966
Cori CR 31008 – Sole Survivors – “Love Her So” (D. Cormier) / “There Were Times” (R. Pieroni) PS (UB 423, both sides Hyannis Music BMI) 1966
Cori CR 31009 – Notations – “Mr. Ringmaster” (Bruce Chaput) / “I Need No Misery” (Bob Allain)
Cori CR 31010 – C.C & the Chasers “Two And Twenty” / “Hey, Put The Clock Back On The Wall” (WB 144/5) 1967
Cori CR 31011 – Shyres “Where Is Love” (Cox) / “My Girl” (Beckmann) (WB 218/9, both sides Hyannis Music BMI) May 1967
Cori CR 31012 – Jerry Seeco Sextet “That’s All” / “Teach Me Tonight”
Cori CR 31013 – The Kumbaya Singers “To My Brothers” / “Ruben Harte”
Continental Recordings CR-337001: Central Park Zoo – “Help Me Girl” / “Set You Free This Time” / “Louie Louie” / “Monkey Time” / “Painted Black” / “Mustang Sally” (1967)
Cori CR 222: Brownie Macintosh with the Harry Gronki Corale “Rye Whiskey Joe” (Bill Staines) / “The Call” (Gene MacLellan) – 1971
LPs:
Remnant Records RBA 3571 – The Rising Storm – Calm Before…
Cori CRLP 31002 – The Passports and the Tabooz – 66 (split LP – Bradford Junior College)
Cori CR 3101 – Bobby Orr – The Two Sides Of Bobby Orr
Cori CR 3111 – Paul Wayne – Live At The Garage
Cori CRLP 31007 – The Passports and the Tabooz – 1968 / Ragged But Right (split LP)
Cori CS 31009 – Endless Knights – Something For You (1971)
Cori CS 31016 – Endless Knights – Back For More (1975)
Cori CS 31017 – Brownie Macintosh – Coastline Brownie (1975)
Brownie Macintosh wrote to me about his recordings on Cori:
I met Dan at probably the most troubled time of my life. I was about 19 and had been kicked out of boarding school a year and a half earlier. I used to drive by the studio on my way from Wayland, MA to Hopkinton to see my then girlfriend. After about a year I got up the courage to knock on the door and Dan was very nice and showed me around. I was absolutely in love with the possibility of working in a studio, and after two or so years, Dan hired me to sing on two jingles … I was hooked.
I did first a single “Rye Whiskey Joe” b/w “The Call” which Dan loved and we had some action on radio, but could not get major Boston airplay, even though we came close. We did the single in 1971. It was exciting as Dan and Pudgie knew a lot of DJs and everyone who came through Continental was forced to listen to it. “Rye Whiskey Joe”, the A-side, was four minutes long, unheard of for an unknown at the time.
I have since produced countless recording sessions, commercial jingles, corporate pieces, records, etc, and written songs for and with The Kingston Trio, The Irish Rovers (which produced my first and only gold record) and many large music publishing companies.
Thank you to Brownie Macintosh, Max Waller, Erik Lindgren, C. Benanti, and Jeffrey Davison for their help with this discography.
The Passports were Linda Moody, Alice Haynsworth, Mimi Walz, Cibby Thomas, Mary Shartle, Carolyn Smith, Ann Detweiler, Elaine Dart, Nancy Byloff, Muff McDonald and Betsy Thurlow. The Tabooz were Margaret Bingham, Susie Grace, Suki Augenblick, Margo Jones, Sarah Miller, Sarah Williams, Muffy Gibson, Liz Thayer, Susan Paul, Bibi Kinney, Debbie Dent, Barb Davis and Robin Boak.
Musically I prefer the Passports side.
Richard Kuzniak sent me the photo above of the Private Collection, a band he used to see weekly at the El Patio nightclub in Yorkville. Ivan Amirault wrote to me with info on the band and the clippings seen below:
Dave Mouslaison – lead guitar, organ, vocals
Aldo Tarini – rhythm and lead guitar, vocals
Jacques Chartrand – bass, vocals
Dan Salhani – drums, vocals
The Private Collection were from Sudbury but relocated to Toronto. They performed regularly at The Flick and El Patio, managed by Mike Burak, a part-owner of the clubs. RPM magazine reported on October 2, 1967 that the band had just done a session at Sound Canada with Rick Shorter producing.
Ivan wrote to me “They were a very good harmony band. Dave Moulaison was later in Aaron Space who recorded a great LP on Warner Brothers only in Canada.
“Jocko Chartrand was also in Buckstone Hardware who had a 45 on Apex here in Canada. It also came with a picture sleeve. The core of that band was from North Bay, about 1 1/2 hours east of Sudbury. Joko also made a couple of fairly good solo singer/songwriter type LPs in the 80s.”
Ivan has over two hours of home recordings of the band, plus a few songs from their never-released studio sessions.
