The Nite Walkers, 1965. From left: Rich Hernandez, Joe Stoddard, Ray Almonza and Robert Stoddard, with go-go dancer Linda Hernandez
The Nite Walkers cut two 45s at Russell Recording, a studio located (according to the liner notes to Teenage Shutdown vol. 6) above an air conditioning store in Downey, CA. Mop Top Mike tells me the studio basically disappeared when the owner skipped out without paying back rent.
All four songs they released are originals. Their first 45 has a cool guitar instrumental on the A-side, “Florence Ave”. The group yells an intro “Let’s meet at Al’s on Florence Avenue!”. It was backed with a dirge-like ballad “My Girl” (not the Miracles song by a long shot).
The second 45 has “High Class”, the singer alternates between a menacing spoken mumble and an intense shouting, sometimes within the same line of verse. The band creates a gloomy background through a droning riff and rolling drums for most of the song’s three minutes. The backing vocals are straight out of “Gloria” but the verse seems to have some awareness of “You’re Gonna Miss Me”, with the line “you’re gonna wake up one morning, you’re gonna start to cry, you’re gonna wonder why”.
The flip “You’ve Got Me” is another moody number, something similar to “My Girl” but it works better. I spent a lot of time with audio software taking out clicks from a bad scratch on the 45, but the result is excellent.
With no names or publishing on the label, it was nearly impossible to trace these guys so I thought we may never know the story of this group until Robert Stoddard contacted me:
The band was formed in 1964 I believe. Members are Richard Hernandez (bass), Ray Almonza (rhythm guitar), Joe Stoddard (lead guitar), and Robert Stoddard (drums). We were indeed from Bell Gardens and all songs are originals. What made this band unique at the time was their ages. I was 12 and the other three were 13.
My drumming was a direct result of the music scene of the time. I beat on couch pillows with sticks for two years to “Pretty Woman” and Beatle tunes. Christmas of ’64 brought me a cocktail drum and Joe a cheap electric guitar and super small amp. Richard and Ray were aquaintances of Joe’s from Bell Gardens Junior High.
The slicked back look in the hair was Mom’s idea, you know how Moms are. The mop cut was about a year later with the British Invasion in full swing and all. The girl in the one pic is Richard’s little sister, she was our occasional go-go dancer, her name was Linda.
We played mostly for school assemblies, grand openings of businesses, weddings. We used to play at a place in Hollywood called Pandora’s Box on Sunset and La Brea. Made a TV commercial in a topless bar. Came in 2nd place in the famous “Countdown ’65” battle of the bands at the Olympic Auditorium which was televised. It was sponsored by “the Royals” a British family of con artists who just ripped everybody off and never had any intention of awarding any prizes.
Other bands were the Cosmictones and the Velvetones. The Cosmictones tried to compete. The velvetones were a surf band and they were older and really good. their drummer Al Stigler taught me alot. Lead guitarist Gary Stovall went on to make a name for himself in the biz.
There was definitely a music scene in town. we played at the City Parks Dept. dances often, and every summer there was a Battle of the Bands at the yearly amusement park also held at the Parks Department.
The songs were written basically by all of us, we used to rehearse in the Toler Ave. garage next to my house.
Both [records] were done at the same time. Don’t remember much about the studio but I know I was behind a glass wall, no plexiglass yet. Music tracks were done first and vocals were done second with all of us circling one auditorium type microphone.
Russell recording I believe was affiliated somehow with Downey Music Center where we purchased all our equipment. I remember the man’s name was Nate. They were pressed somewhere on Melrose in West Hollywood, I remember because we all went there in the band car, a 1948 Cadillac candy apple red hearse. I believe we got it because the Monkees had a candy apple red dune buggy kind a thing.
I don’t really know much about those transactions, my Dad handled all that stuff. But I do know that only 300 copies were pressed due to the cost at the time. My Dad sent them everywhere, radio stations, etc, but to no avail.
Q. Is it Joe who yells “Let’s meet at Al’s on Florence Avenue”?
It was indeed Joe who yelled but he was just closest to the mike, we all had a hand in that. To this day I still think that was cheesy. Al’s however was a real place we used to hang out at. It was like a really good Greek hamburger stand built on the lot on the north west corner of Florence Ave. and Garfield. It was kitty corner from Toler Ave where we were based. I believe it’s a donut shop now, I don’t know.
I had to quit due to the war in Vietnam. Joe stayed in music and is still performing, check him out at joestoddardshow.com. Richard lives up north somewhere, and I haven’t heard from Ray since the 60’s. I returned to playing live and touring with several bands from ’76 through the 80’s and still occaisionally dabble in it.
Robert Stoddard
Russell RRC-43106: Florence Ave / My Girl Russell RRC-43107: High Class / You’ve Got Me
The Nite Walkers, 1966. From left: Rich Hernandez, Joe Stoddard, Rob Stoddard and Ray Almonza
clockwise from left: Doug Lubahn, Bob Seal, Dallas Taylor, Michael Ney, Cliff De Young and Robbie Robisoncounter-clockwise from bottom left: Robbie Robison, Doug Lubahn, Bob Seal, Michael Ney and Dallas Taylor
Cliff De Young (vocals) Bob Seal (lead guitar, vocals) Doug Lubahn (bass) Ralph Schuckett (keyboards) Dallas Taylor (drums) Michael Ney (drums) Robbie Robison (guitar)1966
Georgia-born guitarist Bob Seal teams up with Dallas Taylor (b. 1948, Denver, Colorado, US) during the summer when they meet in Phoenix, Arizona as Seal is heading to California. Taylor has already tasted the Sunset Strip scene while drumming with Lowell George’s Factory some months earlier.
They arrive in Los Angeles and set up camp in Manhattan Beach where they meet up with Robbie Robison (real name: Clyde Edgar Robison) and Michael Ney at a Peanut Butter Conspiracy gig. Robison is the husband of Barbara Robison (aka Sandi Peanut Butter), the Peanut Butter Conspiracy’s lead singer – and had recorded an album in 1964 as Robbie the Werwolf – Live at the Waleback Club.
Deciding to make a go of forming a group with two drummers they recruit Wanda Watkins as an additional vocalist and name themselves The Garnerfield Sanitarium.
In late 1966, Doug Lubahn (b. Colorado, US), who has spotted Seal and Taylor on Fairfax Avenue wearing signs reading “Seeking singing, writing bass player” joins on bass. Lubahn had moved to Los Angeles a few months earlier from Aspen, Colorado where he was working as a ski instructor and playing with several local groups. He is spotted by Mama Cass of The Mamas & The Papas and she encourages him to relocate to the West Coast.
They acquire Bud Mathis as manager and change name to the Brain Train – a name given to them by the Peanut Butter Conspiracy’s Alan Brackett. In the process they lose Watkins, who will turn up in another Bud Mathis outfit, The Joint Effort. Mathis finances a recording session at the Electro Vox Studios and takes the resulting demo recordings of Wolfang Dios’ “Black Roses” and Lubahn and Mathis’s “Me” to Elektra Records.
1967
Elektra snaps the band up but persuades them to ditch Mathis and be taken under the wing of producer Paul Rothchild. The Brain Train moves into a large house on Franklin Avenue in the Los Feliz area of Los Angeles, which has previously been the home of WC Fields and begin reheasing material for their proposed album. March (26) Renamed Clear Light, the band plays at Los Angeles’ first “Love-In” at Griffith Park on the same bill as The Steve Miller Band, The Grateful Dead and The Other Half. April The recording sessions for the band’s debut album begins. Two of the first tracks completed are a reworking of “Black Roses” and a Robbie Robison composition titled, “She’s Ready To Be Free”. Around the same time, the group lands a cameo role in the movie, The President’s Analyst starring James Coburn. Soon after filming, Clear Light adds lead singer Cliff De Young (b. 12 February 1945, Los Angeles, California, US).
Scene from The President’s Analyst
Barry McGuire cast as their singer, for some reason.
from left to right, back row: Ralph Schuckett, Dallas Taylor, Michael Ney and Doug Lubahn front row from left: Bob Seal and Cliff De Young
(30) The group performs at the “Freedom of Expression Concert” at the Hullabaloo, Hollywood, alongside The Doors, Canned Heat, The Poor and many others. May Despite having put down most of the tracks for the album, Elektra decides that Robison’s acoustic approach is incompatible with the group’s new electric direction and he is dropped from the group, although he remains part of the entourage, operating his own light show, set up at the group’s live appearances. After auditioning many guitarists as possible replacements, including Doug Hastings (ex-Daily Flash and soon-to-be Buffalo Springfield) they eventually decide to go with keyboard wunderkind Ralph Schuckett. Schuckett overdubs keys to several of the tracks already in the can as well as collaborating with fellow newbie Cliff De Young. June (11) The new line up performs at Cheetah, Venice, California with Kaleidoscope. (30) The band performs at the Oracle Benefit at the Valley Music Theatre, Los Angeles with Kaleidoscope and The Fraternity of Man (the Byrds cancel – McGuinn was sick). After this Clear Light embark on a cross country tour driving non-stop to Philadelphia where the band goes on strike, forcing Elektra to fly them to New York. The group is met by Danny Fields, who checks the musicians into Albert’s Hotel. The band initially plays at Steve Paul’s Scene East in the Delmonico Hotel but on the first night Schuckett lambasts the crowd for not paying attention to the group’s performance and it is fired. The next day, Steve Paul places the group at his main club, The Scene. July (6-23) Clear Light play at Steve Paul’s Scene, New York. While there, the group jams with various guests including Tiny Tim, Howlin’ Wolf and The Candy Men, formerly members of The McCoys. The band plays further dates in Boston before returning to Los Angeles. August (31) – September (3) Clear Light performs at the Magic Mushroom, Los Angeles with Kaleidoscope. Soon afterwards, the band’s debut single, “Black Roses” c/w “She’s Ready To Be Free” is released. (25) Lubahn participates in the sessions for The Doors’ Strange Days album. (30) Clear Light appears at the Earl Warren Showgrounds, Santa Barbara with The Quicksilver Messenger Service, Van Morrison and Blue Cheer. October (20-22) The band plays at the Cheetah, Venice, California with The Electric Flag. (26-28) The group supports Lee Michaels and Pink Floyd at the Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco. November The group’s eponymous debut album is released climbing to US #126. The band’s second single, “They Who Have Nothing” c/w “Ballad of Freddie & Larry” is issued to support the album. The debut longplayer is subsequently released in the UK, and although it is not a hit, it is greeted with interest, particularly on the underground scene. (Clear Light’s records are regularly featured on John Peel’s Top Gear). Bud Mathis licences The Brain Train demos to Titan Records in order to cash in on the release of the Elektra album. (8) Clear Light appears on Pat Boone’s weekly show Pat Boone in Hollywood. (17-19) They play at the Cheetah in Venice, California with The Nazz. (22) Clear Light performs at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California with The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, The Merry Go Round, The Hour Glass and others. (25) They appear at the Earl Warren Showgrounds in Santa Barbara, California with The Youngbloods, Canned Heat and The Merry Go Round. (30) – December (2) The band is joined by The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band for a series of shows at the Fillmore Auditorium. (8-9) They play at the Boston Tea Party, Boston with The Street Choir. (19-31) Clear Light perform at the Café Au Go Go in New York where they are joined by Tim Buckley on the 28th and 30th. After much behind the scenes manipulation and Svengali–ism by Rothchild, the band starts auditioning guitarists, including Kenny Pine and Jeff Jacobs, on the club’s stage to replace Bob Seal, who has come to blows with the producer. Danny Kortchmar, who has previously played with New York groups, The King Bees and The Flying Machine and recently returned from Los Angeles where he had tried out for Elektra’s project supergroup (later Rhinoceros) takes over lead guitar. Seal meanwhile relocates to the Bay area and, disillusioned with playing six string takes up the bass – gigging but not recording with Gale Garnett & The Gentle Reign. He later takes up the six string again, replacing the original guitarist in the Transatlantic Railroad. He subsequently teams up with former Salvation member Joe Tate in Redlegs, a popular Bay Area group.
1968
January (5-6) With Kortchmar on guitar, Clear Light play at the Grande Ballroom, Detroit with Gypsy and Children. February A third single, “Night Sounds Loud”, is only released in the UK, but is not a hit. (23-24) Clear Light support Jefferson Airplane at the Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles with the Ceyleib People. (26 & 28) Kortchmar, Schuckett, Lubahn and Ney appear on the recording of The Monkees’ “The Porpoise Song”, produced by Russ Titelman and Gerry Goffin. Also on the session are Leon Russell and British jazz pianist, Victor Feldman. March (17) Clear Light plays at Pasadena Exhibition Hall, Pasadena, California with The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, Iron Butterfly, Steppenwolf, Procol Harum and many others. (24) The group joins The Buffalo Springfield, Jefferson Airplane, H.P. Lovecraft, The Quicksilver Messenger Service and various others at a benefit for the Radio Strike Fund for disc jockeys at KPPC Pasadena and KMPX San Francisco. (29-30) The band appears at the Kaleidoscope with Bo Diddley and The Peanut Butter Conspiracy. April (13) Clear Light appears at the Salt Lake Coliseum, Salt Lake City, Utah with Blue Cheer and Jerry Abrams. (18-23) Clear Light plays at the Cheetah, New York with Harvey and The 7 Sounds. (26-28) The band appears at the Trauma in Philadelphia with The Mandrake Memorial. May (3-4) The group performs at the Boston Tea Party with Butter and Tim Rose. The group then returns to New York and plays some shows at the Electric Circus with The Chambers Brothers and Circus Maximus where they are a huge hit. (25) Clear Light plays at the “McCarthy Happening” in Santa Clara County Showgrounds, San Jose, California with H.P Lovecraft, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The Flamin’ Groovies, The Strawberry Alarm Clock, Crystal Syphon, Womb and others. (30) Kortchmar takes part in the recording of The Monkees’ “As We Go Along”. June (14-16) The band appears at San Francisco’s Avalon Ballroom with Frumius Bandersnatch and Buddy Guy. Sessions for a second album begin but after a few recordings Cliff De Young quits to return to college. He later pursues an acting career. Two tracks from the sessions survive – “Darkness of Day” (a Schuckett/De Young collaboration) and Kortchmar’s “What A Difference Love Makes”. August Kortchmar appears on The Fugs’ album, It Crawled Into My Hand Honest. September Clear Light unofficially splinters. Lubahn briefly becomes The Doors’ studio bassist, appearing on albums Waiting For The Sun and The Soft Parade before forming jazz/rock band, Dreams with ex-Blood, Sweat & Tears member Randy Brecker, while Schuckett and Ney (in the guise of Mike Stevens) join The Peanut Butter Conspiracy for a summer and winter tour of the Pacific Northwest. Schuckett also does session work for people like James Cotton. Dallas Taylor, who initially works with ex-Lovin’ Spoonful singer/guitarist John Sebastian is subsequently introduced to Stephen Stills. Around this time, Taylor, Lubahn and Schuckett do a recording session with Stills at TTG studio in Hollywood. Taylor strikes up a rapport with Stills and is chosen as drummer for Crosby, Stills & Nash. November Kortchmar and Ney join Carole King’s City, although the latter will soon be replaced by Jim Gordon.
1969
January Elektra’s news letter, Revelation announces that Clear Light have split up. February The City’s sole album, Now That Everything Has Been Said is released on Lou Adler’s Ode label. December Taylor appears on Essra Mohawk’s album, Primordial Lovers, released on Reprise Records.
1970
May (12) Taylor is sacked by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young after a gig in Denver and rejoins John Sebastian’s backing band. September Schuckett and Kortchmar reunite in Jo Mama, which signs to Atlantic Records. November Lubahn’s group Dreams release their eponymous debut album.
1971
March Debut Jo Mama album, O Sole Mio is released. Schuckett also appears on Carole King’s Tapestry album and follows this with two US and one UK tour with James Taylor in support. September Taylor appears on John Sebastian’s Four Of Us, before joining Stephen Stills’s Manassas. November Second Jo Mama album J Is For Jump is released, but is not a success and the band splinters. Kortchmar works for David Crosby and Graham Nash, while Schuckett does sessions for Todd Rundgren amongst others.
1972
Lubahn appears on the Everly Brothers album Stories We Could Tell. May Manassass’ eponymous debut double album is released. October After doing a multitude of sessions for people like Crosby & Nash, Kortchmar forms The Section, who release their eponymous debut album on Warner Brothers.
1973
Cliff De Young stars in the TV film Sunshine and subsequently releases a soundtrack album featuring songs by John Denver on MCA. September A second Section album, Forward Motion is released but is not a success. Kortchmar leaves to record a solo set Kootch. May A second Manassas album Down The Road is issued, but the group splinters soon after and Taylor moves into session work, appearing on albums by people like Bill Wyman and Sammy Hagar, before rejoining Stephen Stills’s backing group.
1974
Cliff De Young releases an eponymously titled solo album on MCA. He continues to be in demand as a film and TV actor. December After doing various sessions for people like David Blue, Carole King and Todd Rundgren, Schuckett becomes part of the latter’s Utopia. He will remain with the band for two years appearing on the albums Todd Rungren’s Utopia, Initiation and Another Live.
1975
September Kortchmar joins Crosby & Nash’s backing band, The Mighty Jitters, and subsequently appears on their albums Wind On The Water, Whistle Down The Wire and Crosby/Nash Live.
1976
June Schuckett appears on a recording by Free Beer, who release the album Highway Robbery on RCA. July Kortchmar forms The Attitudes, releasing an eponymous debut on George Harrison’s Dark Horse label.
1977
March Schuckett appears on a second Free Beer album, Nouveau Chapeau. Lubahn forms new a group, Pierce Arrow, with ex-Dreams member Jeff Kent and ex-Compton & Batteau guitarist/vocalist Robin Batteau. Schuckett fills in for Jeff Kent when he recouperates from a serious injury in 1978. October Pierce Arrow issue an eponymous debut for CBS. A second Attitudes’ album Good News is also released, but is not a success and Kortchmar returns to session work.
1978
July A second Pierce Arrow album Pity The Rich is released, but is not a success and Lubahn leaves to pursue other projects.
1980
Schuckett joins Ellen Shipley’s backing group and continues to do session work for such notable artists as Cher. Lubahn writes Treat Me Right for Pat Benatar, which appears on her album, Crimes of Passion. August Kortchmar meanwhile, releases second solo album, Innuendo, on Asylum Records.
1981
Lubahn forms Riff Raff who release the album Vinyl Future for Atlantic. He subsequently joins the Billy Squier band.
1982
Lubahn appears on Billy Squiers’ Emotions in Motion. October Kortchmar appears on ex-Eagle Don Henley’s debut solo album I Can’t Stand Still, which he also co-produces and co-writes several songs on. The pair will strike up a rapport and Kortchmar will become an integral part of Henley’s backing band for the next ten years.
1984
Schuckett produces an album for Clarence Clemons for Columbia Records. He also co-produces two tracks with Bruce Springsteen. Lubahn apears on Ted Nugent’s Penetrator and Billy Squiers’ Signs of Life. He also writes Talk To Me – recorded by Patty Smyth and Scandal on their album Warrior (which features Schuckett).
1987
September British indie label, Edsel issues Clear Light’s album with the bonus cut “She’s Ready To Be Free”. In 1991, Lubahn sings background vocals on Billy Squier’s album, Creatures of Habit.
Sources:
Einarson, John and Furay, Richie. For What It’s Worth – The Story Of Buffalo Springfield. Quarry Press Inc, 1997. Grushkin, Paul D. Art Of Rock – Posters From Presley To Punk, Artabras, Cross River Press Ltd, 1987. Hogg, Brian. Sleeve notes to Edsel’s reissue of Clear Light, 1987. Hounsome, Terry. Rock Record #6, Record Researchers Publications, 1994. David Peter Housden. The Castle – Love #9, page 63. Joynson, Vernon. Fuzz, Acid & Flowers, 1993. Long, Pete. Ghosts On The Road – Neil Young In Concert, Old Homestead Press, 1996. Sandoval Andrew. Sleeve notes to Rhino’s reissue of The Monkees’ album Head, 1994. Shaw, Greg. The Doors On The Road, Omnibus Press, 1997, pages 35 and 64. Village Voice, July 6, 1967, page 26, December 14, 1967, page 52 and December 28, 1967, page 39.
Thanks to Gray Newell for his extensive help in piecing this story together. Many thanks too to Marc Skobac for research on some of the live dates. Huge thanks also to Ralph Schuckett for filling in many of the gaps and Doug Lubahn for his input. Thanks to Marc Skobac for his corrections.
The Unidentified Flying Objects – what’s the story?! Clockwise from left: Lisa Kindred, Helena Tribuno, Ann Sternberg and Laurie Stanton.
Lisa Kindred was a New York folk artist with an LP on Vanguard in 1965. The story goes, cult guru Mel Lyman had his henchman David Gude, who was the engineer on the session, steal the master tapes for her second Vanguard LP. Warner Bros./Reprise unwittingly issued it in 1970 as The Lyman Family with Lisa Kindred: American Avatar.
Kindred became part of the blues scene in San Francisco in the late ’60s. What I didn’t know until I came across this clipping in KRLA’s Beat paper was that she was briefly part of a L.A. pop group, the Unidentified Flying Objects. They certainly didn’t make it big, as expected, but I wonder if they recorded any material – if so I’d like to hear it.
Happy New Year 2010!
I’ll be celebrating at the Roky Erickson show in Brooklyn on January 1!
The Portraits in New York, 1968, from left: Gary Myers, Jerry Tawney, Stan Ray and Phil Alagna
The Portraits, by Gary E. Myers
Milwaukee Roots
The Capitol, Liz, Nike, RCA, Sidewalk and Tri-Disc record labels all released singles by groups called the Portraits between 1959 and 1968; I was a member of the Portraits on Sidewalk.
The Portraits, 1967The roots of the band began in January 1964 in Milwaukee, when rhythm guitarist Duane Smith put together a new lineup for his band, the Cashmeres: singer/guitarist Doug Weiss, bassist Tom Hahn, and myself on drums. The new Cashmeres landed their first gig backing Tommy Roe in the Skyroom at Monreal’s on 16th & National, and soon moved into the regular six-night-a-week gig there. Hahn and I had recorded for Tide Records in Los Angeles the previous summer (’63) while working with Milwaukee’s Darnells in Orange County. Around April 1964 Tide contacted Hahn about cutting two more sides for them. The Kingsmen had placed Tide’s copyright, “Mojo Workout” on their “Louie Louie” album, and Tide wanted to put out a single with one of their signed artists. We cut the song and a B-side at Dave Kennedy Studios (augmenting our session with three members of the Skunks) and changed our name to the Mojo Men to help promote the record.
Nothing happened with the record, but the Mojo Men worked steadily in and around Milwaukee, along with gigs in Grand Rapids and Detroit. We backed Johnny Tillotson and Chuck Berry, and worked opposite Jerry Lee Lewis. In summer 1965 Doug Weiss was hit with a 30-day jail term (driving with a suspended license, I believe), so the Mojo Men had to make a move. Guitarist John Rondell (Beilfuss) and bassist Phil Alagna were looking for work, having returned from a Southern California trip along with singer Billy Joe Burnette. (Rondell and Burnette had also worked with Milwaukee’s Legends on their 1964 Florida trip). Duane Smith and Tom Hahn had begun to be at odds, so the Mojo Men let Hahn go and added Rondell and Alagna, expanding to five pieces when Weiss was released,
Move to Los Angeles
In August 1965 the Mojo Men relocated to the L.A. area. On the drive out we heard “Off The Hook” by another Mojo Men, but it didn’t chart nationally so we paid little attention to it. By October, however, that same San Francisco band did chart with “Dance With Me”. We were not happy about that, but the record only reached #61, so we took no action – except that an agent booked us on a few of their gigs. (We later learned that the record got airplay in Milwaukee on our reputation). Doug Weiss adopted the stage name of Doug Masters and left to join a Las Vegas style review. The Mojo Men briefly replaced him with Billy Joe Burnette and then Tim Welch, but Paul Stefan (Stefaniak), an excellent singer and another old friend from Milwaukee (where he had regional hits with the Royal Lancers and the Apollos), was also in the area. He joined around March 1966.
During a steady gig at the Tip Top in Inglewood we backed the Coasters, Penguins, Rivingtons, Dick & Dee Dee, and Jerry Wallace. The schedule included Friday and Saturday after-hours sessions where many musicians and music-biz people hung out, and we were getting a good local reputation. One of the frequent sit-in’s (possibly Bobby Mason) was a Mike Curb protégé and he convinced Curb to come and see us. Curb liked what he heard and we signed a record deal with him and a management contract with Clancy Grass, who had an office in Curb’s suite and some sort of connection with him.
This was not the most opportune time for the band to head back to the Midwest, but Smith’s wife was pregnant and wanted to be near her family back home, so off we went. By the end of the summer everyone but Smith was itching to be back in California; the four of us decided to make the move while Smith stayed. Phil Alagna became the new leader mostly by default, being the only one interested in handling the business aspect.
Name Changes
The Mojo Men went back into Curb’s studio, and returned to a five-piece lineup with the addition of another old Milwaukee friend, B3 player Pat Short (Cibarrich). John Rondell had written “Runaround Girl” and we cut it with Paul Stefan’s lead vocal. We also recorded the vocal for “Hiding From Myself”, a filler song for the Dr. Goldfoot & the Girl Bombs soundtrack LP. By this time (fall 1967) the San Francisco Mojo Men had hit Billboard’s top 40 with “Sit Down I Think I Love You”; now we needed to change our name. Stefan wanted it to be “Paul & the (something)”, so at a meeting in Mike Curb’s office, we began tossing out names. We thought it would be good to have another “P” word, and it got down to Paul & the Pack. I didn’t like it, but I was the lone dissenting voice so it won.
I had been a subscriber to Billboard Magazine for several years and, within a day or two of the Curb meeting, I discovered that “I (Who Have Nothing)” by Terry Knight and the Pack was edging its way up the Hot 100. This was no good! After our gig that night I began looking in the dictionary under “P” for another name. When I got to “picture” I noticed the synonym “portrait” and thought, “That’s it!” I called a couple of the guys at 3 AM (having just gotten off the gig at 1:45) and they agreed that Paul & the Portraits would be a good name. The next day I called Curb’s office and he understood, but said he had already ordered 20,000 record labels showing Paul & the Pack. So, the Dr. Goldfoot LP bills the Portraits as Paul & the Pack, while the photo on the back cover shows us holding a picture frame to go with the name Portraits. Members depicted (L-R) are Phil Alagna, Gary Myers, Paul Stefan, John Rondell and Pat Short.
Then came another typical 60’s setback – Paul got drafted. We did a few gigs, and even another recording session, as a four-piece band, but we were lacking a strong lead singer, and then Pat Short also left. Clancy Grass had previously managed singer Jerry Tawney, who had come to L.A. from West Virginia and released a 1966 single on Liberty. Tawney had since gone back to WV, but Clancy convinced him to return to the coast to join our band. We re-recorded “Runaround Girl” with Jerry and we did the vocal for “Devil’s Angels” (as “Jerry & the Portraits”) over the same track used for Davie Allan’s instrumental version. We also cut a remake of “A Million To One” along with one of Jerry’s songs, “Let’s Tell The World”.
Recordings
The Portraits always used much vocal harmony, influenced by the Four Seasons, the Happenings, the Buckinghams, Jay & the Americans, and others. Most of the band’s sessions began with a basic track of bass, guitar and drums (Phil, John and me), and then instrumental overdubs: Phil on piano or organ, John with a second guitar part, and I sometimes added acoustic rhythm guitar. On one or two sessions I added vibes, and we used studio horn men on a few songs. The four of us would lay down our background vocal parts and then double them before putting Jerry’s lead on top. Once, when John was gone, we used our friend Larry Carlton, who went on to become one of the top studio guitarists in the business. Phil Alagna and I also played on two sessions for the Mystic Astrologic Crystal Band, another group managed by Clancy Grass. The Portraits recorded several unreleased songs and we sang on a Curb-produced commercial that was never used.
The Four Seasons had hit with their update of Cole Porter’s “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” in 1966, and Jerry came up with the idea of re-doing “Over The Rainbow” in a similar fashion. We incorporated a bit of the arrangement from the Demensions’ 1961 hit, but added much of our own, along with the switch to the up-tempo rock beat. I did the group arrangement and studio guitarist/arranger Don Peake wrote the charts for the “sweetening” – French horn, chimes and strings.
The record was released December 1967 and everyone involved was excited about it. However, we were not happy about coupling it with “Runaround Girl”; we felt that both songs were A-sides. This turned out to be a valid belief, as each side got airplay in different areas. One or the other charted in several cities, but neither charted nationally. There was also some talk that December was not a good time to release it. Airplay was more limited that month because of Christmas music, and perhaps by January some stations would have already put it aside. The Portraits did a Beverly Hills show with Mike Clifford, Ian Whitcomb, Boyce & Hart, and Don & Goodtimes, and appeared on TV8 Dancetime in San Diego, but little else developed. The band probably should have toured, especially to the cities where the record was played.
In early 1968 John Rondell left to join a San Diego band and Stan Ray (Hartford) replaced him. Around March I saw a trade ad for the Schaefer Talent Hunt, a large advertising promotion seeking new talent to record the Schaefer Beer jingle in New York. Without even mentioning it to the other members, I filled out the entry blank and sent it along with our two Sidewalk singles. To my great surprise, a few weeks later I received a telegram stating that we were one of the 10 winners. We were flown to New York and, because our selection was based on our “Over The Rainbow” vocals (they didn’t know that we were a self-contained band), studio musicians (including noted drummer Mel Lewis) cut the tracks, which were arranged by Peter Matz in the style of our “Over The Rainbow” version.
At A&R Studios in New York, from left: unidentified, arranger Peter Matz, Stan Ray, Jerry Tawney, Gary Myers and Phil Alagna.
Beyond the 60’s
For the remainder of 1968 into 1969 the Portraits had a six-nighter at the Water Wheel in West Covina with little or no involvement from Clancy. However, we were still under contract to him and, when he learned of our beer commercial, he wanted a cut. We disagreed, but at some point, Jerry went back to him for more recording sessions without telling the rest of the band; the esprit de corps was fading. John Rondell had rejoined the band, but in August 1969 he and I left to join Duane Smith (original Cashmere’s leader from 1964), who now had a Nevada-based show group, the Cee & Dee Review.
The Portraits continued with more changes under Phil Alagna (now going as Phil Anthony). In December 1972, after I had left Duane Smith and worked many other gigs back in SoCal, I rejoined. The band had just joined forces with Sanetti & Rueda, a Stockton-based music/comedy team. Over the next few years we worked Reno and Lake Tahoe several times, along with Las Vegas and many other showrooms in California, Oregon and Arizona. I was replaced in March 1975 when a drummer who had previously worked with two of the other members was looking for work.
I continued playing full time in and around the greater L.A./Orange County areas until March 1982, and then joined a “casual” band led by Stan Ray, the guitarist from the Portraits’ beer commercial period. Phil Alagna kept the Portraits going through many more personnel shifts until that summer, when he disbanded the group and joined Stan and me on the casuals. By summer 1983 I was also doing occasional gigs as a leader, for which I exhumed the Portraits name. One day that summer, as a surprise to Phil and Stan, I called Jerry Tawney to see if he could come to our gig. He made it down and the four of us got together for the first time in 15 years.
Epilogue
Duane Smith, always a hard-working businessman, quit performing in the 80’s and opened a studio rental business in Portland, OR. That venture grew into West Coast Event Productions with major clients and a second office in Las Vegas.
Doug Weiss (Masters) gigged for many years in the Twin Cities and then returned to Las Vegas, where he was the Bobby Hatfield part of a Righteous Brothers tribute act. He died October 2007 (b: 8/3/42; Milwaukee).
Tom Hahn (b: 1939; Tipton, IN) had left the music business by 1970 and settled in Michigan.
Phil Alagna (b: 1943; Milwaukee) worked in piano sales and later as a piano tuner, while continuing to gig part-time. He was still playing in 2009 as the Phil Anthony Band, mostly for senior dances and functions.
John Beilfuss (Rondell) (b: 1945; Milwaukee) returned to Wisconsin in the 70’s and continued playing until 1996. He subsequently began a wedding photography business in the Eau Claire area.
Billy Joe Burnette had releases on many labels from at least 1965-79. He scored a big success in 1976 as the co-writer of Red Sovine’s “Teddy Bear” during the CB radio boom.
Tim Welch (b. 7/41; Wichita, KS and was shot & killed in W. Hollywood in 2/72) had previous releases on Edit and Reprise and a later release on Attarack.
Paul Stefaniak (Stefan) (b: 1941; Milwaukee) had rejoined the Portraits after his military duty, but left the music business by the mid-70’s. He was last known to be living in the Yuma, AZ area.
Pat Cibarrich (Short) had relocated to Louisville, KY in the late 60’s and subsequently returned to Milwaukee, continuing to play music. He died January 1998.
Jerry Tawney connected with writer/producer Jerry Fuller in the 70’s and had several solo releases on Bell. One of his songs appeared on Al Wilson’s La La Peace Song LP, and he was also in Yellow Hand on Capitol. Tawney left the music business in 1982 and became a mortgage loan consultant for Countrywide.
Stan Ray became a successful attorney in Los Alamitos, CA, specializing in estate planning.
Gary Myers (b: 1942; Milwaukee): I worked for a large music store in Arcadia, CA from 1985-2006, while continuing to play a variety of gigs in the greater L.A./O.C. area, including occasional work with Phil Alagna. As of 2009 I had written and self-published four books (see here for more information); still playing, and as recently as January 2008, had used the name “The Portraits”.
Sky Saxon (born Richard Marsh) passed away this morning, June 25, 2009. As any garage fan knows, he was singer for the Seeds, the prototypical ‘garage’ band of all time.
I saw him in concert a couple times, once circa 1994 at a free show in San Francisco. He had a pick up band and was pretty out of it. The band tried to get him to sing “Pushin’ Too Hard” but he would only repeat a chant “Happy Mothers Day to all the mothers out here”. Well, it was Mothers Day. A few years ago he came to Brooklyn, looking great in a white suit to match his beard and did a fine show with a new group that actually knew the material. I wish I’d taken the request to put him up for a few days.
Many of the Seeds early records on GNP Crescendo have been in print almost continuously since their release. Less well-known are two singles Sky made with a revamped Seeds lineup for MGM in 1970, the incredible “Bad Part Of Town” / “Wish Me Up” and “Love In A Summer Basket” / “Did He Die”. It’s a little vague who’s playing on these, but Patrick Lundborg gives a possible lineup of Sky Saxon, Daryl Hooper, and Richard Barcelona, with a few others only remembered by their first names, Chip, Rob, John.
Sky’s story is told piecemeal on the web. The ‘official’ skysaxon.com website is one place to start, but it lacks detailed info on his career. For info on his later recordings, including “Bad Part of Town” I recommend the Lama’s write up here.
“I ran out of gas one day, so I took Michael Jackson’s album in, and all I could get was a dollar” – Sky Saxon, ‘Rolling Stone’ #456, September 12, 1985.
Mastin and Brewer, Spring 1966. L-R: Tom Mastin, Billy Mundi, Michael Brewer and Jim Fielder. Unknown lady.
Following the overnight success of “Mr Tambourine Man”, a generation of folk musicians abandoned the traditional form to follow The Byrds’ lead and merge folk with rock elements. One of the most promising outfits was the little known, and decidely short-lived Mastin & Brewer, formed in the spring of 1966 by aspiring singer/songwriters Tom Mastin and Michael Brewer (b. 14 April 1944, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, US).
Both had been active on the nation’s folk circuit since the early ‘60s and had met at the Blind Owl coffeehouse in Kent, Ohio in 1964. With the folk scene on its last legs, the duo, abetted by Mastin’s friend and fellow singer/songwriter Dave McIntosh, decided to head out to San Francisco the following year to check out the emerging West Coast scene. Following a brief spell in the city, Mastin and Brewer, parted company with McIntosh and travelled to Los Angeles to visit some old folk friends working with New Christy Minstrel Randy Sparks and manager Barry Friedman (later better known as Frazier Mohawk). While there, they recorded a three-song demo comprising original compositions “Bound To Fall”, “Need You” and “Sideswiped”. Suitably impressed by the quality of the songs, Friedman (who had produced the recordings) took the recordings to Columbia Records, which immediately expressed an interest in signing the duo.
With a recording deal in the can, Friedman hastily organised a support band, so that they could take the songs out on the road, and duly drafted in ex-Skip Battin Group member Billy Mundi (25 September 1942, San Francisco, California, US) and former Tim Buckley bass player Jim Fielder (b. James Thomas Fielder, 4 October 1947, Denton, Texas, US).
During this period, the newly formed band rehearsed in an apartment on Fountain Avenue, sharing the accomodation with like-minded souls Stephen Stills and Richie Furay, then in the process of forming Buffalo Springfield with Friedman’s assistance. Shortly afterwards, Mastin & Brewer and Buffalo Springfield ventured out on the road together as support acts for The Byrds and The Dillards on a six-date tour of southern California.
Mastin & Brewer also played at the Ash Grove and the Whisky-A-Go Go on a few occasions, during which time, they went under the rather unusual name of The Elesian Senate.
Sadly, the group’s initial promise was shattered by internal problems; Mastin reportedly flipped out on a few occasions, and ultimately walked out of the group during sessions for the band’s debut album. With the group’s future uncertain, Mundi moved on to rival folk-rockers The Lamp of Childhood leaving Brewer to soldier on (abetted by Fielder when he wasn’t doing sessions for Tim Buckley or filling in for Bruce Palmer in The Buffalo Springfield) until late 1966.
Amid all this activity Elektra Records released Tim Buckley’s eponymous debut album (featuring contributions from both Jim Fielder and Billy Mundi) and when Mastin failed to turn up for a show at the Whisky-A-Go Go, Fielder decided to take up the offer to rejoin Mundi in Frank Zappa’s Mothers Of Invention.
With the group in tatters, Brewer recruited his brother Keith to replace Mastin (who later committed suicide) and the duo, abetted by Barry Friedman readied the Mastin & Brewer single “Need You” c/w “Rainbow” (45 4-43977) for release, with Keith Brewer overdubbing his vocals over Mastin’s. Columbia duly released the single, albeit in limited numbers, as Brewer & Brewer that autumn, but it failed to attract much interest.
Early in the new year, the duo began work on a new batch of material, including “Love, Love”, and for a brief period called themselves Chief Waldo and The Potted Mum, although they never performed or recorded under this name.
By the summer, Keith had moved on and Mike found work as a songwriter at Good Sam Music, an affiliation of A&M Records. He was soon joined by another old friend from the Blind Owl coffeehouse, Tom Shipley, who had just arrived in Los Angeles in search of work and together they forge a new partnership, Brewer & Shipley.
Working on fresh material at Leon Russell’s house, the duo also recorded “Love, Love” and Mike Brewer’s “Truly Right”, written about Tom Mastin. The latter song was also recorded by The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, while The Byrds recorded an instrumental version of “Bound To Fall” for their album ‘The Notorious Byrd Brothers’, but it was not used. Group member Chris Hillman later revived the song in Steve Stills’s Manassas.
Thanks to Mike Brewer for additional additional information on the group’s career, to Billy Mundi for use of the Mastin & Brewer photograph and to Carny Corbett for information on the Brewer and Brewer single.
Left to right: Fred Olson, Marty Tyron, James Hendricks and Mike TaniFeature in Teenset
The little known folk-rock group The Lamp of Childhood was the brainchild of singer/songwriter and guitarist James Hendricks (b. 10 February 1940, Atkinson, Nebraska), who organised the original band around June 1966 after working with The Big Three and The Mugwumps. Beside Hendricks, the group also boasted Portland, Oregon, born lead guitarist Fred Olson and singer/songwriter and Hawaiian born rhythm guitarist Mike Tani (aka Michael Takamastu), who were both relative newcomers to the scene. Indeed, it was the group’s drummer, Billy Mundi (b. 25 September 1942, San Francisco), who was by far the most seasoned member, having studied music at UCLA during the late 1950s and performed with a number of noteworthy groups prior to completing the band during the summer. His musical credentials included spells with future Byrd Skip Battin’s group and as a member of another intriguing folk-rock ensemble, Mastin & Brewer.
It was Hendricks’ connections, however, which led to a deal with Dunhill Records and the release of a handful of singles over the next year. Hendricks’ wife was none other that Cass Elliot of The Mamas & The Papas, who were also represented by Dunhill, and the fact that she and singer Denny Doherty had recorded with Hendricks in The Mugwumps probably helped to clinch the deal.
To assist the band with its recordings, Dunhill linked The Lamp of Childhood up with English expatriate Andy Wickham and Israeli immigrant and classical pianist Gabriel Mekler, who oversaw the sessions for the group’s three singles and numerous unreleased recordings. “The story goes that when [Mekler] arrived in Los Angeles he finds his way to Dunhill Records and tells them he can produce a hit record,” says Jim “Harpo” Valley, who got to know the group while he was playing with Paul Revere and The Raiders. “He had never produced before and wasn’t that familiar with rock ‘n’ roll or pop music. They give him the opportunity with a new group called The Lamp of Childhood.”
Mekler’s relationship with the group was somewhat similar to that of Brian Wilson in The Beach Boys, joining The Lamp of Childhood in the studio but not participating in live work. Mekler’s piano playing was employed for several tracks and towards the end of the group’s life he also assisted with the song writing.
Little is known about the sessions that produced the band’s three obscure singles, but what can be gleaned is that Mundi stayed around long enough to appear on The Lamp of Childhood’s debut release, a low-key reading of Donovan’s “Season of The Witch” backed by Tani, Hendricks and Olson’s “You Can’t Blame Me”. It was an impressive start but the single’s failure to register on the charts that September probably played a part in Mundi’s decision to defect the following month to join Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention (and later Rhinoceros and numerous sessions).
The group carried on, working largely in the studio, and only picking up a drummer for the odd live performance. As Jim Valley suggests, the trio of Hendricks, Olson and Tani were often assisted in the studio by The Mamas and The Papas session crew, drummer Hal Blaine, pianist Larry Knechtel and bass player Joe Osborn. That at least is his recollections of one session, which he was asked to participate in playing acoustic guitar, alongside a string section.
“At one point during my year with The Raiders, I moved into an old mansion that used to belong to Greta Garbo. In the downstairs apartment lived Fred Olson [and] we became pals,” explains Valley, who was approached to join the band soon afterwards. “Gabriel and James asked me to record on one of the sessions. My time with The Raiders was becoming strained, my tunes weren’t being recorded and the group just wasn’t evolving as I felt they would or could.
“My song writing was changing due in part to my association with musicians like Gabriel and Jackson Browne and Pamela Polland, who was with a group called The Gentle Soul,” continues Valley. “So one night, Gabriel and James came over to the house very excited. They had decided that I should leave The Raiders and join The Lamp of Childhood. It felt like the right thing at the right time.”
As it was not everyone was happy about the decision to approach The Raiders’ lead guitarist. “The rest of the group wasn’t in on the decision and as it turned out Andy Wickham, the publicist from Dunhill didn’t agree with the move. He felt that Harpo from The Raiders was not the right move. So it never happened but it did show me I was ready to leave The Raiders,” says Valley.
Despite his fleeting relationship with the band, the guitarist has fond memories of the Lamp’s songs. “‘Misty Morning Eyes’ and ‘I Look For Your Smile In A Thousand Faces’ were the first recordings I heard from the group. Since 1967, I’ve never heard those songs again. I’d love to hear [them] again. Their voices were like angels and I was knocked out with their arrangements.”
Of the two songs listed, “Thousand Faces”, to give it its correct title, is a co-write between Mike Tani, James Hendricks and Gabriel Mekler. The author of the other title, however, is not known unless of course this is just a working title. The BMI, which represents, songwriters, composers and publishers, lists a number of songs written by the band’s members during this period but whether these were meant for The Lamp of Childhood and were recorded in the studio remains a mystery (and Hendricks cannot remember any titles).
To start with Mike Tani and James Hendricks co-wrote one song called “Low Down Woman” and also collaborated on another entitled “Blues for Django” with guitarist Eric Hord. The BMI lists a number of Mike Tani compositions with interesting titles like “Maybe Again”, “Prayer for Julian” and “Sad Sad Memories” but whether these songs were solo tracks, group recordings or meant for other artists is not clear.
As it was, none of the above tracks turned up on the group’s second Dunhill single, released in March 1967. Gabriel Mekler penned the A-side – “First Time, Last Time” backed by Tani, Hendricks and Olson’s “Two O’Clock In The Morning”. Once again, however, the single failed to make the charts despite both being strong numbers and coming in an attractive picture sleeve. The single, incidentally, featured new member, bass player Marty Tryon from The Purple Gang who added a fourth voice to the mix.
Back in the studio, The Lamp of Childhood recorded one final track, and arguably their finest moment on disc, “No More Running Around”, a co-write by Mekler, Hendricks and Tani, which features some fantastic piano flourishes courtesy of Mekler. Coupled with a re-release of “Two O’Clock In The Morning” on the A-side, the single was issued later that summer by which point the band had undergone a major upheaval, resulting in James Hendricks’ departure for a solo career. Like the other singles, “No More Running Around” fell on deaf ears.
In his place, Tani, Olson and Tryon recruited guitarist and singer John York (b. 3 August 1946, White Plains, New York), who had previously worked with The Bees, The Sir Douglas Quintet and The Gene Clark Group and would subsequently tour with The Mamas & The Papas and record with Johnny Rivers before joining The Byrds in late 1968 for two albums. “I joined The Lamp of Childhood after James Hendricks left,” explains York. “His girlfriend [sic] Cass Elliot wanted the band destroyed because she was mad at James and possibly because it might have been a threat to The Mamas & The Papas.”
The new line up did only one gig with a borrowed drummer at the Mount Tamalpais Festival in San Francisco in mid-June 1967. “I do remember vividly our gig at the 1967 Mount Tamalpais Music Festival,” recalled Tryon in an interview in Misty Lane issue 19. “We had to follow The Doors our first afternoon. The last song of their set was ‘Light My Fire’. We played as the people walked out. Our second afternoon, we followed The Fifth Dimension. Their last song was ‘Up Up and Away’ as skydivers with purple trails parachuted into the venue. We played as the people walked out. Talk about feeling invisible. We knew that feeling.”
According to John York, the plan was that the group would erase James Hendricks’ vocal parts on the unreleased songs and he would sing them. Apparently that was not enough for Cass and “Dunhill ‘froze’ the band for seven years.” James Hendricks, however, denies that there was any friction with Elliot and the group.
Whatever the case, the individual members went their separate ways, although Mike Tani and John York did reunite years later to work as a duo act for several years. Marty Tryon meanwhile hooked up with the remnants of John York’s former band, The Bees, now going by the name The WC Fields Electric String Band. After missing out on a chance to join Steppenwolf, he later did sessions for Simon Stokes. He currently works with the Smothers Brothers.
Olson, who moved into session work, appearing on Brewer & Shipley’s Weeds and Mike Bloomfield’s It’s Not Killing Me albums in 1969 and Southern Comfort’s eponymous debut in 1971, sadly died years later from a heroin overdose. Gabriel Mekler sadly is also no longer with us. After the band’s premature demise, he landed on his feet and found the success that he had missed with The Lamp of Childhood in his next project, the multi-million selling Steppenwolf.
As for James Hendricks – he attracted the patronage of singer Johnny Rivers, who expressed an interest in covering the singer/songwriter’s “Summer Rain”. Released as a single, it became a top 20 US smash in January 1968, and Rivers also recorded a number of Hendricks’ compositions for his new album, Rewind. Hendricks later recorded a solo album, produced by Johnny Rivers, with whom he maintained a close working relationship and he continues to record to this day.
In the months that followed The Lamp of Childhood’s demise, one final piece of work emerged on The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s album, Pure Dirt – the previously unreleased Tani, Hendricks and Olson collaboration, “You’re Gonna Get It In The End”. And apart from the inclusion of “No More Running Around” on the Dunhill Records’ sampler, The Penny Arcade, that’s all that’s been heard from a group that promised so much but never achieved its full potential.
Many thanks to James Hendricks, Jim Valley, Brian Hogg, Mike Paxman, John York, Marty Tryon.
Randy Fuller with New Buffalo Springfield, Spring 1969. Clockwise from top: Dewey Martin, Bob Jones, David Price and Randy FullerWhen Texan rock legend Bobby Fuller was found dead in his car on 18 July 1966 in suspicious circumstances, those nearest and dearest were devastated, not least his younger brother Randy, who had also been bass player in the aptly named, Bobby Fuller Four. From the early 1960s up until his brother’s untimely, and yet to be solved, death, Randy Fuller was Bobby’s closest collaborator and during those frenetic years of recording and touring witness to his brother’s extensive talents as a singer/songwriter, guitarist and skilled engineer and producer.
In the first few months following his brother’s death, Randy Fuller came close to jacking in the music career he had so cherished when Bobby was alive. “I came home to El Paso with no idea what I was going to do with my life,” says Fuller. “I felt like I was going to go insane because my mother was having such a hard time over Bobby.”
Later that autumn, however, Randy received a phone call from Bobby Fuller Four member DeWayne Bryant (aka Quirico) and Bob Keane, who ran Del-Fi studios, to return to Hollywood and form a new group with some musicians that Quirico had been playing gigs with in the intervening months. “Keane said that if I came back he could get us back in PJ’s nightclub,” remembers Fuller.
To stimulate some local interest in the new group, prior to it playing live, Keane financed some studio time to record a handful of tracks in late 1966. For these recordings, the studio band consisted of Randy Fuller on bass, rhythm guitar and lead vocals; DeWayne Quirico on drums; Howard Steele on bass; and Mike Ciccarelli on lead guitar and vocals.
“The musicians on all the songs were from El Paso, Texas but [they] never stayed together long enough to promote them [the singles],” explains Fuller, who points out the recordings were all laid down in the final days of the studio’s existence.
The first single to be released (under Randy’s name only on the obscure Mustang label) was the catchy “It’s Love, Come What May”. “[That] is the original track from Bobby Fuller Four recorded at Del-Fi,” says Fuller. “Bob Keane and I recorded my voice on a separate track and remixed it a little louder than Bobby’s in the final mix.”
An infectious folk-rocker, “It’s Love, Come What May” should have been a smash hit but mysteriously did not attract many sales. Unperturbed, Keane prepared a second single coupling Randy Fuller and Johnny Daniel’s “The Things You Do” with another collaboration “Now She’s Gone” but it appears the Mustang release never hit the shops.
Interestingly, Randy Fuller reveals that two of soul music’s heavy weights had a hand in the creative process. “[On] ‘The Things You Do’, Barry White and Dionne Warwick threw in a line or two.”
Events meanwhile were about to take a dark turn. When Del-Fi was forced to close in early 1967, Keane, unbeknown to Fuller, began to issue the recordings through the Show Town and President labels. “Del-Fi went under and Bob kept the masters in a vault,” explains Fuller. “I [later] found out he had been selling these [singles] over in the UK for years!”
Perhaps the most fascinating of these releases are the trippy, Buffalo Springfield-influenced, “1,000 Miles Into Space”, which features some tasty lead guitar work and superb lead vocal by Randy, and “Revelation”.
While Keane was busy releasing the tracks on the sly, Fuller and Quirico began working back at PJ’s joined by guitarists Jim Fonseca and Jimmy Smith. The line up played at the club for nearly two years and according to Fuller, “We probably would have had a hit or two, but as usual ego destroyed the band.”
Left without a band, Randy hooked up with Dewey Martin’s New Buffalo Springfield in February 1969 and toured with this group for the best part of the year, before it morphed into Blue Mountain Eagle. Fuller’s new band recorded an excellent album for Atco Records in 1970 with the bass player’s “Sweet Mama” providing one of the highlights.
Unlike Blue Mountain Eagle’s album, which has been released on CD, very few of The Randy Fuller Four recordings have reached a wider audience via compilation CDs. Perhaps now is the time to rediscover the magic of this material, especially “It’s Love, Come What May” and “1,000 Miles In Space”.
Blue Mountain Eagle, December 1969, Randy Fuller second from left.
Solo releases:
It’s Love, Come What May (actually Bobby Fuller Four with Randy’s overdubbed vocals) c/w Wolfman (Mustang 3020) 1966 US (credited to Randy Fuller) The Things You Do c/w Now She’s Gone (Mustang 3023) 1966 US (credited to Randy Fuller Four but not released) It’s Love, Come What May c/w Revelation (Show Town 466) 1967 US (credited to Randy Fuller) It’s Love, Come What May c/w The Things You Do (President PT 111) 1967 UK (credited to Randy Fuller) 1,000 Miles In Space c/w 1,000 Miles In Space (Show Town 482) 1967 US (credited to Randy Fuller)
Many thanks to Randy Fuller for his invaluable input into this story.
Transfer and scan of “1,000 Miles in Space” courtesy of Colin (Expo67), transfer of “Revelation” courtesy of Bård H., scan courtesy of Freddy Fortune. “Wolfman” scan and transfer courtesy of JP Coumans.
The great b-side “Wolfman”, a Bobby Fuller Four recording originally released as by the Shindigs on the flip of “Thunder Reef”, Mustang 3003 and used again on Randy Fuller’s first 45.
Gemcor was a short-lived label based out of Bill Bell’s studio on Melrose in Los Angeles. It had one of the coolest label designs of the 60’s. There were only three releases on Gemcor, and two are very well known to fans of garage rock.
One of these is the Rumors 45, “Hold Me Now” / “Without Her”, among my very favorite 45s of the ’60s. (I still don’t have a copy of it. Anyone have a spare?) Another is the common and excellent Beckett Quintet 45, “No Correspondence”.
Billboard, July 31, 1965
The very first 45 on the label is almost unknown, however, with Eddie Burkey performing two of his original instrumentals. “Stepping Stones” is a melange of surf, brass and strings, but Eddie cuts loose some ripping guitar lines here and there. The flip is the lighter “Emerald Shadows”.
It turns out Ed Burkey is credited with arranging the Rumor’s “Hold Me Now”, and actually played lead and rhythm guitar on both sides, including the wild reverbed solo on “Hold Me Now”. That solo alone ensures his musical immortality in my book!
Billboard, September 11, 1965
I’ve read that Ed Burkey played with the Ventures but can’t find any confirmation of that. He did cut three instrumentals for the Downey label that went unreleased at the time, now compiled on the Ace CD “Intoxica! Strange and Sleazy Instrumentals From the SoCal Suburbs”. Two of these are loaded with overdubs and experimental sounds. Interestingly, the third is labeled “Dreams of Downey” but seems to be identical to “Stepping Stones”.
Eddie’s early groups included drummer Jim Lewallen, related to the Tucson, Arizona Lewallen Brothers who recorded for Splitsound Records.
Gemcor discography:
5001 Eddie Burkey – Stepping Stones / Emerald Shadows 5002 Rumors – Hold Me Now (Ben Turner) / Without Her (written by Norman Prinsky, credited to “Richards”) 5003 Beckett Quintet – No Correspondence (Tim Taylor) / It’s All Over Now Baby Blue
Sources include: Norman Prinsky’s article on the Rumors. Billboard mentions Herbert L. Sokol and Walter Nelson as other executives with Gemcor.
Since writing the above summary, I heard from Eddie’s longtime collaborator, Les Roberts, who kindly gave a fuller picture of their music and shared his personal photos:
“Eddie (with my Gibson), my Mom and younger sister”Tony Taylor, Les Roberts and Eddie BurkeyOur business cardAngelus 45 recorded at Whitney Recording, courtesy Jim LewallenLes Roberts onstageThe Del-Tones, circa mid-1970sLes Roberts and Dick Dale
Hmmm, don’t know where to start, except from the beginning!
Eddie was born 1945 in Akron, OH. I was born 1947 in Middletown, OH (between Cincinnati and Dayton). We are not brothers, but might as well have been.
We moved to Downey, CA in 1960. I had been learning guitar for a while and Eddie finally became interested when I learned to played “Bulldog” & “Torque” by the Fireballs. We only had the one guitar and to the surprise and wonderment of family and friends, we were both playing songs, simultaneously on the one guitar. We would switch off on lead and rhythm. It was pretty cool.
December of that year I bought a Gibson Melody Maker solid body ($89.00). Now we had two guitars!
We began playing for friends, BBQ’s and finally a “sock-hop”. Eddie and I were the GoldenAires. By 1964 we had incorporated a drummer (Jim Lewallen) and bass player (Tony Taylor), both from Twenty Nine Palms, CA. They had some connections in 29 Palm and we started getting Friday and Saturday night gigs in the area. Up to and including Disneyland. Most of our music was Ventures, Duane Eddy, Dick Dale, and lots of surf music. He became “Eddie Ladd” and I “Les Roberts”. It was fun, no big deal and we were getting paid to do what was easy! By this time each of us had bought custom made Fender Jaguars and Fender Dual Showman amps. His was Candy Apple Red and mine was Metal Flake Blue.
I had started a carpet cleaning business which was making a lot of money and spent a lot of time involved with that. I knew the Chanteys band members and the Rumblers because of some business I had done with Downey Records, which was run by an interesting individual Bill Wenzel. Bill had a record store, Wenzel Music Town, and in a backroom he had set up a small 6’ x 10’ sound room to record in. He had an Ampex recorder and the local groups would come in for $30/hr to record their music. Eddie had bought an Echo machine (tape loop-like that used by Jordan Ingman – “Apache”) and was doing some great licks. The Rumbler’s even used him in some of their recordings.
at Whitney Recording: (l-r) Tony Taylor, Les Roberts, Eddie Burkey and Jim Lewallen
The studio photo was taken at Whitney Recording Studio in Glendale, CA. around December 1964. Tony Taylor was the bassist. Eddie and I traded lead/rhythm. The studio was a gas! The main studio was almost 50’ x 50’. Great acoustics! At the time our manager, Herb Sokol, was financing the group: recording cost(s), uniforms, musical necessities etc. He had sold Scott Seely (Accent Records) on a recording contract. At the time we had finished recording “Madhatter”, “What He Said”, “Watermelon Man” and “Soundin’ Loud”.
The Goldenaires’ Angelus Records 45, recorded at Whitney Recording courtesy Jim Lewallen
Eddie and I were not yet of legal age to sign contracts, so the matter went to the parents and Herb Sokol. Being the fact Herb fronted the money for almost everything, the contract showed the greater percentage of “artist” royalties would go to him until he had recouped his investment (I thought this was reasonable). The parents did not agree. As a result, even though Scott Seely had already signed the contract, to our dismay, it later ended up being trashed.
Not a big issue with Scott Seely, as he had just signed Buddy Merrill. Man, what talent that kid had! He was recording pretty much in the same manner that Eddie and I was doing (Les Paul-type sound-on-sound recording).
Eddie and I were recording some various songs for “future” work. On a couple visits when I could not make it to the studio, Eddie would start laying down the tracks for “Emerald Shadows” and “Thunderhead”. “Thunderhead” was the song that Eddie later edited and called: “Stepping Stones”. (Years later he renamed it; “Memories of Downey”). I loved “Emerald Shadows” as I was a big Martin Denny and Arthur Lyman fan and thought we could edge our music more toward a “tropical” sound.
A few months later Eddie briefly teamed up with Gemcor Records and released the songs around 1965 (Stepping Stone & Emerald Shadows). Another piece of info: Eddie designed the GEMCOR label. If he was involved in any other aspect with Gemcor, I was not aware of the arrangement.
To my knowledge Eddie never worked for or played with the Ventures. They opened an office in L.A. next door to the Mosrite Guitar business office, where we met Semie Moseley, the owner and shortly thereafter Don Wilson and Jerry McGee (who did keyboard and backup guitar work for the group).
Eddy was drafted in 1965 and I enlisted in 1966. Eddie married his high school sweetheart Karen in 1966, while on leave and before going to Vietnam. He settled down in Monterey, CA after the Army and I, after my discharge, in the L.A. area. Eddie was doing some graphic arts design, I was unsure of what I wanted to do, but not too long after Karen gave birth to Brandon, Eddie and Karen moved down to the L.A. area where Eddie and I started Town & Country Apartment Care – something to finance our waning music business.
One Wednesday night we heard of a night club that had a talent contest and opted to go. The house band (which was country) asked if we would like to go to an after-hours jam. Sure! we said. There we met up with Dewayne [Quirico] (drummer for the Bobby Fuller Four), plus some other well know country entertainers who we ended up jamming with for the rest of the night and many times thereafter. It was as if we were an overnight success! We backed a young lady named Trudy Martin and another gent named Ralph Raymonds.
Within a few weeks we were Trudy and Ralph’s back-up band, along with Paul Crum on flat-top guitar and Bobby Fierro on drums. We became: “Rockin’ Country” and was hired as the house band for a nightclub in Azusa CA. We did this gig with great success, for about two years. Ralph and Trudy went in one direction, Eddie and I in another. We tried some gigs as a Trio but things had changed and the “sound” just wasn’t there. I was offered and accepted a job to go on the road with Dick Dale; Eddie took a job playing lead for Barbara Stanton.
Dick Dale’s producer/manager was a cool gent named Jim Pewter, who was also the producer for Jan & Dean, so needless to say we did appearances together. Dick Dale was under contract to perform in Las Vegas, Reno and Lake Tahoe, which is what I did up until I realized I was going nowhere. Making great money, but going nowhere! I had moved to Lake Tahoe because it was a reasonable commute between Reno and Las Vegas but had lost track of Eddie. Finally, in 1977 I decided (at 30), I was getting too old for this, and with the approval of my wife, stopped the music business (cold turkey) and went back to college, under the GI bill, finished my degree and took my life into a different direction.
I seldom play music, as I have left that to my two sons, both of whom are heavily involved with the trade. I now live in Madera County, just a few miles from Yosemite Nat’l Park (south entrance), and work as a Safety Consultant for Pacific Gas & Electric Company.
I ran into Eddie in 1983 (in L.A.), he had teamed up with a very talented young lady (Leslie) who played piano, wrote music and they clicked (so to speak). They had a lounge act that lasted for a spell and then, for whatever reason, dissolved. Eddie remarried and to my knowledge still lives in the L.A. area.
Eddie Burkey was one hell of a guitar player, with an imagination to go with it. I have hundreds of hours of recordings, we made between 1963-1974, which I sometime load on the old TEAC and listen. I had pictured him going far, but that was our teenaged dreams.
As I look back, it all seemed to have started with that one song: “Bulldog”.
The Darnells circa 1962, clockwise from top L: Tom Hahn, Mike Blattner, Bruce Wells, unknown (sax), center: Denny King (photo courtesy Bruce Wells).
These Darnells (unrelated to the ones on Gordy) began in Milwaukee as Denny & the Darnells circa 1959, with various musicians (including future Legends drummer Jim Sessody) passing through the band. The line-up that went into the Cuca studios to record the first single consisted of lead guitarist Denny King, tenor saxophonist Tom Fabre, singer Gary Lane, Bruce Wells on piano, Norm Sherian on rhythm guitar, and Jerry Sworske on drums. The A-side is their remake of Gene Vincent’s “Little Sheila”, while the instrumental flip is a Latin standard, featuring the jazz oriented sax-man Fabre.
Mike Blattner eventually replaced Sworske on drums, and singer Kim Marie was a member when they played off-night gigs at the Spa on 5th & Wisconsin in September 1962. Our Florida band, the Nightbeats, was touring through Milwaukee’s ACA agency, and they had booked us into the Spa for two weeks. We were looking for a different guitar man and King was looking for steady work, so he joined our band, putting a temporary end to the Darnells. However, five months later King and I left the Nightbeats to reform the Darnells as a trio, with bassist Tom Hahn. Hahn had already been out to Southern California with the Bonnevilles and he wanted to make another trip in order to obtain a Mexican divorce from his estranged wife. A SoCal trip sounded great to Denny and me, so in May 1963 we headed west and landed a gig for the summer at the Firehouse, a beer bar on 17th Street in Costa Mesa.
On the referral of the Nightbeats’ bass player, we connected with the Tide label in L.A. and recorded eight sides – two instrumentals and a pair of vocals by each of us. “Spooner”, the first instrumental, is an up-tempo, surfy, 12-bar blues guitar rocker. The flip is another 12-bar blues, this time a slightly jazzy mid-tempo swing. Denny King’s “She’s My Girlfriend” is teenish, while the flip has the flavor of Troy Shondell’s “This Time”. My own release is teen pop with added strings and voices. To my knowledge, Hahn’s vocals were the only cuts not released from those sessions.
We returned to Milwaukee that fall and, in January 1964, Hahn and I left to join the Cashmeres, bringing a final end to the Darnells. The Cashmeres metamorphosized into the Mojo Men (who later evolved into the Portraits with releases on Sidewalk). Hahn left the Mojo Men and did some work in Memphis with Ace Cannon (“Tuff,” 1962) before leaving the music business and settling in Michigan. After doing some club work with country singer Johnny Carver, Denny King returned to California and teamed up with the Canadian Beadles (sic), whom we had previously met in Ishpeming, Michigan. That combination recorded one single for Tide as the Mojo Men, but they had no connection with the Milwaukee Mojo Men. (It seems that Tide Records, having had their only national chart appearance with Larry Bright’s “Mojo Workout” in 1960, tried to capitalize on the “Mojo” name in every possible way).
After his solo recording for Specialty in 1972, King moved to the Sacramento area and formed a booking agency. He later imported medical supplies from Korea and had other business involvements before he died in 2000; Mike Blattner died in 2004. Gary Lane had gone on to work with the Mad Lads and the Saints Five, and later owned a club in Milwaukee. Besides the Darnells, Jerry Sworske had drummed with several other Milwaukee bands, including the Noblemen and Junior & the Classics. He later became a police officer. Tom Fabre moved to Los Angeles and continued in music until his death in 2007. Kim Marie has organized frequent oldies shows in Milwaukee since 2000. This writer has lived in the greater L.A. area since 1965, played full-time until 1982, and part-time since then.
Darnells releases:
Sara 1055: Little Sheila/Besame Mucho, 11/61 Tide 1090: Spooner/Sleepy, 9/63
Related:
Tide 1091: She’s My Girlfriend/Long Lonely Night (Denny King), /63 Edit 2005: Poor Little Baby/If (You’d Only Be Mine) (Gary Myers), 11/63 Tide 2000: Surfin’ Fat Man/Paula (Mojo Men), 2/64 Tide 2001: Mojo Workout/I Got A Woman (Tommy Hahn & the Mojo Men), 5/64 Specialty 726: Bessie Mae/Go Down Moses (Denny King), /72 Specialty LP 5003: Evil Wind Is Blowing (Denny King), /72
Gary E. Myers is author of two histories of Wisconsin music of the 50’s & 60’s, “Do You Hear That Beat” and “On That Wisconsin Beat”, as well as two instructional books, “Understanding and Using Chords and Chord Progressions” and “Understanding and Using Scales and Modes”. Check Gary’s website for more information.
Darnells in Appleton: Tom Hahn, Gary Myers, Denny KingDarnells 1963: Tom Hahn, Gary Myers, Denny King
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The Nite Walkers cut two 45s at Russell Recording, a studio located (according to the liner notes to Teenage Shutdown vol. 6) above an air conditioning store in Downey, CA. Mop Top Mike tells me the studio basically disappeared when the owner skipped out without paying back rent.
The second 45 has “High Class”, the singer alternates between a menacing spoken mumble and an intense shouting, sometimes within the same line of verse. The band creates a gloomy background through a droning riff and rolling drums for most of the song’s three minutes. The backing vocals are straight out of “Gloria” but the verse seems to have some awareness of “You’re Gonna Miss Me”, with the line “you’re gonna wake up one morning, you’re gonna start to cry, you’re gonna wonder why”.My drumming was a direct result of the music scene of the time. I beat on couch pillows with sticks for two years to “Pretty Woman” and Beatle tunes. Christmas of ’64 brought me a cocktail drum and Joe a cheap electric guitar and super small amp. Richard and Ray were aquaintances of Joe’s from Bell Gardens Junior High.
Both [records] were done at the same time. Don’t remember much about the studio but I know I was behind a glass wall, no plexiglass yet. Music tracks were done first and vocals were done second with all of us circling one auditorium type microphone.
