The Twilighters, from left: Bob Harbur, John Harbur, unidentified drummer, and Fred Palmer
When Bob Harbur left the Kirksville area and the Twilighters, he formed a new band in St. Charles, Missouri with his brother John, but kept the Twilighters name.
Members of the new Twilighters included:
Bob Harbur – lead guitar John Harbur – bass Fred Palmer – trumpet
I don’t know the name of the drummer. Bob Harbur looks to be playing the same Fender Jazzmaster he played with his earlier group.
They recorded at Premier Film & Recording Corporation in St. Louis for one single as Fred and Bob and the Twilighters on Palms Records 16125, released in 1967. On the A-side, the band does an original song by Bob Harbur, “That’s the Way It’s Gotta Be”.
The flip is “Twistin’ St. Louis Blues”, arranged by Fred Palmer, with the artist listed as the Twilighters.
After the band split, Fred Palmer opened Palmer Music Education in Valley Park. Bob and John Harbur have since passed.
The Twilighters came from Kirksville, Missouri, a small city about 165 miles from Kansas City and 200 miles from St. Louis. In 1967 they cut two originals, “Spellbound” / “My Little Angel” at Technisonic Studios in St. Louis.
“Spellbound” is a fast-paced rocker, driven by Dave Daniels’s fantastic drumming. There’s a great guitar break and a double-time ending, and it’s over in less than two minutes.
The chant of “Spellbound” has a distinctive sound that may come from some other song but if so, I can’t think of it. It reminds me of a later cut, Steve Miller Band’s “Living in the U.S.A.” where the group chants “Stand Back”. I’d be interested if anyone has heard something very similar in another song from the era.
The B-side, “My Little Angel” is a ballad with fine vocals, and good recording production.
Released on Red Flame Records 45-1005, the labels show a 1966 copyright date, but the U4KM indicates a pressing date in the first half of 1967.
The Twilighters, from left: Everett Cassidy, Gary Blurton, David Daniels on drums, Bob Harbur, and Randy Elmore. Photo courtesy of David Daniels.
David Daniels wrote to me:
The Twilighters band began in 1963 with Gary Blurton (rhythm guitar and vocals), David Daniels (drums), Everett Cassidy (bass), and Bob Harbur (lead guitar). Randy Elmore joined the band in 1964 because Gary was leaving to join the National Guard and the band would be needing a lead vocalist. Randy played lead guitar as well.
Eventually Bob moved to the St Louis area and Everett also moved away from the Kirksville area. At that point Richard Hudson, also a local boy and friend of Randy and David, came on to play rhythm guitar.
The Twilighters, from left: Everett Cassidy on bass, Randy Elmore on guitar, David Daniels with drumsticks, and Gary Blurton, guitar. Photo courtesy of David Daniels.
This configuration of The Twilighters (Randy, David, and Richard) placed an ad in the local paper seeking a keyboard player, to which Carl Foultz responded and that was the group that made the record “Spellbound” / “My Little Angel”. Carl Foultz was the song writer and organ player, and the bass was covered by the bass pedals on the organ.
Randy Elmore – lead guitar and lead vocal Richard Hudson – rhythm guitar Carl Foultz – organ (and bass pedals) David Daniels – drums (background vocals for “My Little Angel”)
There were no headphones to monitor in the recording room and “Spellbound” was recorded in one live take. The band could not hear the vocal work at all until listening to the playback in the control room. Likewise for “My Little Angel.” It was the first recording the band had made and their first experience in a recording studio.
Randy, Richard, and David were local boys, born and raised in the Kirksville area. Carl was from Pennsylvania and came to Kirksville to attend university at Northeast Missouri Teachers College (now Truman State University).
The band members changed off and on over subsequent years with a total of about 20 different players having done some time with The Twilighters during their run (1963 – 1971).
Randy and David continued to play in many other bands in the NE Missouri area from 1971 – 2011, often times together, other times not, under the names: Country Flavor, Fox, Survival, Loose Louie, Twilighter’s Rockin’ Reunion, BJ Allen Band, and Blue Voodoo.
These photos are of the original players. There are no pics with Richard or Carl, so neither of these are the exact group of players that were on the recording.
David went on to buy Circle M Music in Kirksville in 1974 and operated the music store and built his own recording studio where he recorded many local musicians and vocal groups. David mentored many young kids over the years, sharing his love of music and recording. He retired in 2014 after serving the NE Missouri music community for 42 years. As an honor to his Grandpa David, Black Daniels & The Bears did a cover of “Spellbound” live at David’s retirement party in 2014, the 3rd generation of musicians in the Daniels family, carrying on the tradition.
Randy retired from SW Bell and now lives in Columbia, MO.
Richard did not continue with music but went on to other employment, was a private business owner, and has retired to Lake of the Ozarks.
Carl graduated from NE Missouri Teachers College and moved away, the other band members having lost touch with him.
Gary is retired from local employment in the Kirksville area.
Bob and Everett are now both deceased.
Dick Lawrence (deceased) was owner of Red Flame Records and was an avid music promoter throughout the NE Missouri area his entire life.
Carl Foultz was also a member of an r&b group called the Del-Fis or Del-Phis with Ed Corte, Frank Gantt, T.J. Jackson, Mac Pendelton, Nick Romanetz and Gary Smyth, some of whom were students at Northeast Missouri State Teachers College (now known as Truman State University).
After Carl Foultz left the Twilighters, Bill Daniels joined on guitar and Ray Beets on bass, as Ray states in his comment below.
Dick Lowrance owned Red Flame Records which released three singles by the group he was a member of, the Red Blazers, usually with Ike Haley as leader.
In 1966 Lowrance released a single by Friar Tuck and the Merrymen’s “Peanut Butter” / “Try Me” (Mike Barger) on his Sherwood Forest Records subsidiary. That band may have been from western Illinois though I’m not sure which town. I’ve found newspaper ads for a “new Friar Tuck and the Merrymen” playing at the Wayside Inn in Moberly, Missouri, about an hour south of Kirksville; not sure if this is the same group.
The Blazers cut one fine single, “I Don’t Need You” (D. Hord) b/w the more ’50s sounding”Lovin’ to Do” (H. Halter) on Brass 306 in November 1965, produced by John C. Price.
I don’t know the band members, but in BMI’s database, both songs are listed as co-written by Dennis Hord and Harold Halter, published by Mantle Music (BMI).
Brass Records at 7807 Truman in Kansas City, MO also released three singles by the Fabulous Four.
Dennis Hord and Harold Halter wrote both sides of Melinda and the Misfits’ “Don’t Take Your Love Away” / “Forever and a Day”, on U-Nek Records 711, copyrighted in March of 1967 for Velcille Music, BMI. This has a very different sound than the Blazers, a pop production with lots of echo.
Hord and Halter also wrote Melinda & the Misfits next single “Sweet Love” and “My Kind of Man” on U-Nek 712, also produced by Don Price but published by Bill Roberts Music. Bill Roberts had his own single on Brass 307 “Shout It Out” / “Please Take”, and would also release “Kansas City Chiefs” with the Fabulous Four on Cavern 2218.
That’s as far as I can trace the careers of Dennis Hord and Harold Halter.
Melinda Mendenhall would have one more release on U-Nek Records 829 “You’re the One” (an original song by her) and “Two Big Birds” (Deb Dyer) with Tom Harrison and Craig Schuemaker on guitars and Lee Waterman on drums, then join the first incarnation of Morningstar in 1969.
Charlie Harrington on drumsBarry Elam sent in the photos of his band the Specters, and wrote the following about the group:
The Specters from Kirksville, Missouri were active from 1967-1972. They were a popular band in Northeast Missouri and played many area dances, fraternity parties at Truman State University, and private events. The band’s material covered originals as well as top hits of the day.
Band members were Randy Crowder on vocals and guitar, Barry Elam guitar, Randy Grissom bass and vocals, and Charlie Harrington, drums.
The Specters did not release any records but we were friends with another local band that did, Friar Tuck and The Merry Men. My original guitar teacher was Bud Porter who was the lead guitarist for Friar Tuck. They had a regional hit called “Peanut Butter” on Sherwood Forest Records, released in 1966.
The Statics are an obscure band from the St. Louis, Missouri area. In the spring of 1968 they cut their only single. “Again and Again” veers from a slow start to a hurried pace and back again, with some very gloomy organ playing and frantic drumming.
The Library of Congress catalog shows it was copyrighted in April, 1968 as simply “Again”, featuring words by Lanny McCormick and music by Bob Gleitze, who seems to have signed my copy of the 45.
The designated A-side was “I Can’t Hold It Back”, a sedate ballad also written by McCormick and Gleitze, but this side suffers from a constant high-pitched sound throughout the song.
Produced by Albert Gleitze, and with a credit to Leeander Productions at 2335 Weaton in the Hanley Hills section of St. Louis, a little north of Washington University. Seems to be the only release on the JB Leeander label.
The band had one further copyright for a song called “You Didn’t Believe Me”, again by McCormick and Gleitze, and submitted by Mark Schieferle in November 1968.
The Happy Return came from St. Louis, Missouri, releasing two very different 45s in the space of a couple years.
Members at the time of the Cadet single were:
Steve Noack – vocals, lead guitar Tom Noack – rhythm guitar Jim Cunningham – organ Jimmy Albright – bass Rich Carrell – drums
In November 1967 the Happy Return released a very good Steve Noack original in the Beatles style, “Longed For”, backed with another original “Maybe”, and issued Steve’s own Stack Records TS-XM510. The publisher, Country Stream Music BMI mainly handled country and gospel songs.
In July of 1968 Steve Noack had a light pop single as Steve Lee on the R.S.S.P. Inc label featuring his original “She’s Afraid to Answer” as the b-side to “Baby” (by G. Tomsco, B. Tomsco).
Missouri Music BMI published “She’s Afraid to Answer”. Missouri Music’s biggest copyrights seem to be on the Norman label, including “Rockin’ Little Egypt” by the Egyptian Combo and “Jerkin’ Time” by Bob Kuban with vocalist Little Walter.
The Happy Return next appear in June 1969 on the Cadet label with a great double-sided single featuring two more Steve Noack originals with great production by Norman Petty at his Clovis, NM studio. The plug side at the time was “I Thought I Loved Her”, a gentle ballad with keyboards making harpsichord and flute sounds. The Library of Congress registration for “I Thought I Loved Her” in April 1969 shows words by Rich Carrell and music by Steve Noack.
The flip is the very different and hard-rockin’ “To Give Your Lovin’”, full of crunching guitar and heavy drumming. Both songs list Steve Noack as writer and Heavy Music, Friedman-Collins Music BMI as publisher.
“I Thought I Loved Her” showed up as a “hitbound sound” in a weekly chart of Saint Charles, Missouri’s KIRL 1460 AM that August, but otherwise seems to have missed all radio charts despite being on Cadet. The band broke up the following year.
On the Cadet labels, the band’s manager Stan Friedman is listed as producer of the single. He was a booking agent in St. Louis with a University City address.
Skipper Records came from Springfield, Missouri and released at least eight singles in 1965-1966 before folding. It was a creation of Si Siman, a promoter, manager and part-owner (along with Ralph Foster and John B. Mahaffey) of Earl Barton Music, Inc., which published most of the songs featured on the Skipper label.
Everything I’ve heard on the label is snappy and well-produced. Half are upbeat country but there are two rock singles and a couple r&b. The releases by Tonky Tomson and David & the Boys-Next-Door are notable for featuring the earliest work of two men who would go on to have huge successes in the music industry.
Skipper Records announced, October 2, 1965
Tonky Tomson seems to be a pseudonym for Wayne Thompson, who wrote both “On My Way” and “I’ve Been in Love”, and probably sings on this single from October, 1965. I’d say he was listening to a lot of Hollies at the time. I wonder who was the lead guitarist on these tracks, as he did excellent work, with the country tinge that the Beatles and other groups were starting to reach for.
Wayne Carson Thompson is much better known as Wayne Carson, who would write “The Letter” a couple years after his time at Skipper and go on to write many other hits. Wayne Carson died on July 20, 2015.
Wayne Thompson also wrote the A-side of David and the Boys-Next-Door catchy party song “Land O’ Love”, and co-write “If I Was King” with David Kershenbaum, the leader of the group.
In 1967 David and the Boys Next Door released a second single on Del-Ray Records of Poplar Bluff, MO, “It Ain’t No Use” / “Spring Fever”, both originals by David Kershenbaum published by Earl Barton. I’ve heard the A-side and it’s good pop, with a nice guitar hook. David Kershenbaum had a solo single on Capitol Records in 1968, “White Velvet Cat” / “Forbidden”, both written by Bobby Lile. Kershenbaum would go on to a successful career as a producer starting in the 1970s.
Steve Sanders would sing “Land of Love” for a single on MGM 13475, a single I haven’t heard yet.
Skipper Records discography (probably incomplete – any help with this would be appreciated)
Labels for Skipper are gold with black print with the exception of the Clint Harrison 45. Some list Radio TV Bldg, Springfield, MO as the address, and the 828 prefix on these indicates their account with RCA custom pressings.
Skipper 828R-0773/4 – Lewie & the 7 Days – “Night Train” / “What You Never Had”
Skipper 828R-1240 – David and the Boys-Next-Door – “Land O’ Love” (Wayne Thompson)/ “If I Was King” (Kershenbaum & Wayne Thompson) (SK4M-1240/1)
Skipper 828S-1241 – Truman-Lankford – “Arkansas Man” / “Here-Comes-Heaven-Again” (both by Truman Lankford, Jim James, Prod. M.A. Box)
Skipper 828R-1408/9 – Tonky Tomson – “On My Way” / “I’ve Been in Love” (both Wayne Thompson, SK4M-1408)
Bobby & The Denos at a country club gig in Arkansas, 1961. Left to right: George Lynn, Billy Wilfong, Billy Jack “Bobby” Rogers, Gary Stamps, Roy Rogers, Toney Thompson
Jeffrey Harvey interviewed Roy Rogers of Bobby and the Denos and wrote this article on the group. Roy has a fantastic collection of photos which he kindly shared with Garage Hangover.
Bobby & The Denos were a Fort Smith, Arkansas based group that released just one 45 on Fayetteville’s Chance label in their five-plus years together.
“Just Like Me” is a super-tough outsider anthem penned by Billy Jack “Bobby” Rogers, lead singer of the group, and features lyrics such as:
I don’t want to be like Elvis Presley I don’t want to be like Jerry Lee I don’t want to be like Ricky Nelson Oh baby, I just want to be like me!
The flip is a solid take on Peggy Lee’s version of “Fever” that the boys didn’t even know how to play until they got to their recording session at Gene Sullivan’s studio outside of Oklahoma City.
I was able to track down Denos guitarist Roy Rogers (birth name), and speak with him about the band’s history.
GH: Can you tell me how the band was formed?
Roy Rogers, age 12 with custom lap steel guitar
RR: Well, I started playing lap steel guitar when I was 11 years old. After a couple years, a piano player (Tony) showed up at the music school where I took lessons. He had perfect pitch and total recall, and after a while the music school told his parents “Don’t bring him back, cause we can’t teach him anything he doesn’t already know!” We were 14 and 15 years old by then, and Elvis was jumping around and wiggling, and the girls were screaming, and I went; “Holy Hell, I gotta do that!” So I dug out an old Kay guitar my dad had in the closet and started asking around and learning chords. Well, pretty soon Tony and I were at a party, and we met a bunch of boys older than us who played. A few days later some of those boys came by my house to jam.
GH: What year would that have been?
RR: Probably ’58 or ’59. We just all started jamming out together and calling ourselves “The Satellites.” We added a bass player (George), drummer (Gary), and sax man (Billy), to round out the sound. Gary was our age and in the high-school jazz band, so he could really play the drums. We continued on until probably 1960, when we changed our name to “Bobby & The D-Notes.”
GH: What prompted the name change?
RR: Our original lead singer Gordon Jennings quit, and we had heard about this guy named Billy Jack Rogers – no kin to me – and we went out to the American Legion one night to listen to him sing. He was singing Elvis Presley’s “It’s Now Or Never” and he was just killing it! I was like “My God, you’re kidding me!” So we approached him on one of his breaks and told him that we needed a singer, and asked if he’d like to come over and jam with us. Well, he did, and he quit the other band real quick.
Bobby & the Denos: early 60’s promo photo
GH: How did the Denos name come to be?
RR: Well, just about six months after Billy Jack joined, someone told our sax man that “Denos” meant “well-liked” in Italian. I still don’t know if it’s true or not, but that’s the story we got from some guy, and it made for a pretty easy change!
GH: That is a great story! Where were you guys musically around this time?
RR: We were practicing all the time. I mean, we were playing so much that my damn fingers were bloody! We also started making real money playing dance halls and what not. My dad was an upholsterer who worked in a factory, and he kept telling me I was gonna be a bum if I didn’t learn how to upholster or something. By this time I was 15 or 16, and making more money in two nights than he was working a whole 40-hour week!
Bobby & the Denos: early 60’s promo photo
GH: What were your live shows like?
At the 2500 Club in Kansas City, MO
RR: We did choreography and all that stuff like The Temptations. Our piano man Tony would jack up the upright piano back in the day on two Coke cases, and he would stand up, play one-handed, and do the steps with us. We also really liked what the black artists were wearing. Very snug tailored jackets and pegged pants. We loved our “Beatle Boots,” and started having our jackets made out of red, blue and green, brocade material with the James West waistcoat look. Remember the Wild, Wild West series on TV? Maybe you’re too young for that. We were very sharp dressed. We didn’t think too much about politics because we were into being the coolest cats in town. Music and women… Typical band boy stuff, you know?
GH: What comprised your live set list?
RR: We were playing about 50% – 60% R&B and blues numbers that were popular at the time.
GH: Tell us about the recording of “Fever” b/w “Just Like Me”
RR: “Fever” and “Just Like Me” were recorded in Oklahoma City around 1961 in Gene Sullivan’s recording studio. A guy named Phil Eagle out of Fayetteville, Arkansas owned a small label called Chance. He was also a booker, promoter, and manager, and he approached us about recording. We said “Of course!!!” and did some demos before heading down to Sullivan’s to cut the record for real. The record actually got played on the radio in Oklahoma City, Dallas, Little Rock, and Fort Smith for a while.
GH: What was the music scene like in Fayetteville around that time?
RR: Oh boy, there were all kinds of bands going on. Ronnie Hawkins was on the scene around that time. He ended up marrying a girl out of Canada and moving there. His group went on to be The Band. We played in and around Fayetteville lots back then. We were playing sorority and fraternity parties, and this beautiful, two-story club called the Rockwell Club that looked like it just grew up out of a mountain! It looked like it was made out of all native stone, and we would open for Ronnie in there sometimes.
GH: What else do you remember about recording in Oklahoma City?
with keyboardist Toney Thompson’s 1959 Chevy at a motel in Bossier City, LA
RR: We were all 16 and 17 years old when we made that record. I remember we went down there, and realized that nobody in the band really knew the lyrics to “Fever.” We ended up going down to a drugstore and finding a Hit Parade magazine. Sure enough, the song “Fever” was in there, and that’s what we used to remember the lyrics! After that, we just went in the studio and did it. It was so dumb how we did it, but it was great!
GH: The lyrical content of “Just like Me” conjures up the image of an outsider essentially giving his girl an ultimatum that if she can’t take him for who he is, then don’t even bother. The anti-name dropping is also impressive for the time. Did you feel that you guys were making a social statement with that song?
RR: Right!!! That was it!!! When we played music, we did it our way. I didn’t learn the lead guitar parts exactly right for all the songs we covered or anything, we just jammed them out. I mean, of course we rehearsed them all and got it the way we wanted, but unless it had a really important lead part in it, Tony and I were, at that time, just good enough to play our own lead. We were playing a lot of black clubs back then too, and musically, we were kicking ass. Billy Jack (Bobby) was a lot older than most of the Denos, and he came to us and said “I wrote this song!” It was “Just Like Me” and it ended up perfectly fitting the way we played. We just did our own thing, you know?
Choreographed live show at the 2500 Club in Kansas City, MOwith unidentified bar patron at 2500 Club in Kansas City, MO
GH: Tell us more about the kinds of clubs you guys played back then.
RR: One of our first jobs was in Kansas City in September of 1962. We were all around 17 years old (except for Billy Jack), and had graduated high school earlier that May. We decided we were going out on the road, so we just took off. I had an aunt in Kansas City and I called her. She obliged us, and we slept on cots down in her basement. We got there on a Sunday, went out banging on doors on Monday, and landed our most lucrative job at the 2500 Club on 2500 Truman Road.
GH: What was that scene like?
RR: Oh man, it was your typical “knife & gun club!” You know, one of those places where you gotta give them your license in exchange for a knife or gun to go inside! (laughs). The crazy thing is that we ended up playing there, off and on, for the next three years!
The Denos with 2500 club owner Lee Webb
GH: Do any other clubs or acts that you shared a bill with at the time stand out in your mind?
RR: Well, we went down to Galveston, Texas – I think it was Pleasure Pier or somewhere – and just walked into a little club and told them we were good. There was a black band called Little Hot & The Volcanoes – or something like that – playing and Little Hot was a five-foot tall drummer who was a monster when he played. He would stand up and play the hell out of those drums! We worked there for a bit, and while we were down there, we got to open a show for Bobby “Blue” Bland out on the pier one night. We were just five white guys playing our damn hearts out, and they loved it!
GH: Wow!
RR: Yeah, and after that we headed over to New Orleans, to 426 Bourbon Street at a place called “The Dream Room,” which was later called “Your Father’s Mustache.” Well, The Champs – from “Tequila” fame – were playing there, and we had met them in Kansas City, and they told us to go up to The Peppermint Lounge in Shreveport because the owner – Mr. Mike – needed a band. We said “Hell yeah we’ll do it,” and it was actually in Bossier City, Louisiana. At the time back then, Bossier City looked like Vegas. It had more neon than you’ve seen anywhere! Dale Hawkins – from “Suzie-Q” fame – and his band were already playing there, so we just set up on the floor of the club and kicked his ass!!!
Bobby & The Denos with Conway Twitty & Band in Bossier City, LAwith keyboardist Toney Thompson’s 1959 Chevy at a motel in Bossier City, LA
GH: That’s a great story! Who were your main musical influences at the time?
RR: Bo Diddley, Bobby “Blue” Bland, Freddie King, B.B. King, The Ventures, Duane Eddy, Ronnie Hawkins, and Lonnie Mack.
GH: When did Bobby & The Denos finally go their separate ways?
Marquee at The Peppermint Lounge in Bossier City, LA
RR: Well, Billy Jack (Bobby) quit around 1964 after another run we had at The 2500 Club in Kansas City. We went back home and needed a singer. We found a guy named Jim White, who later changed his name to Jim Mundy. He went on to do commercials for Green Giant vegetables and some beer companies. He was married and only lasted a few weeks with the Denos. We were younger than him, and a lot wilder at the time. One night we were raising hell and Jim just said, “Boys, I can’t take this… I QUIT!!!” After that, we were still rehearsing at Tony’s house in Fort Smith and one day he said “I know all of Billy Jack’s (Bobby’s) songs. I said “Bullshit.” But man, he sang every damn song Billy Jack (Bobby) sang, and just as good too!!! We went back to The 2500 Club, and after the first week, had the place packed out. We were making $1200 a week at the height of our run, and they had to lock the doors on Friday and Saturday nights and do a one-in/one-out type thing! After our run at 2500 was up, we went back home to Fort Smith. The day we arrived, I found a letter in the mailbox that said: “Uncle Sam Wants You.” I called around and found out I wasn’t the only one. Two other Denos got the same letter on the same day, and that’s when we knew it was over.
GH: So essentially, by the time you guys were really up and running as a band, really hitting your musical stride, that’s the time the war put an end to things?
RR: Yeah, that’s right. We had picked up an agent – The Jackson Agency in Kansas City – and they were booking us around. The war ended all that, and we all went our separate ways.
Bobby & The Denos as a four piece in 1962
GH: What happened after Bobby & The Denos broke up?
RR: Well for one thing, I got married. This was around 1965 and I had been dating a girl for about a year. I also ended up flunking my physical for Uncle Sam. I had double-curvature of the spine, and they said “Get your ass out of here!”
GH: Did your music career end there too?
RR: Well, no. When everybody quit Bobby & the Denos, I just kind of took over. I had always done the majority of talking to the club owners and such, so when everybody left; I started up Roy Rogers & The Denos. I recruited some guys to play, and we continued traveling around. That lasted until about 1966 when my daughter was born. After that I joined a group out of Louisville, Kentucky called The Imitations. Can you believe that in early 1970 we toured the Far East? We were in Japan, Korea, Thailand, Okinawa, The Philippines, and Vietnam for six months. Dumbass me gets recruited for the Army, and ends up going over there anyway as a civilian without a gun! At some point The Imitations turned into Roy Rogers & The Internationally Famous Imitations, and that lasted until 1979.
GH: Are there any last words or memories you’d like to share about your time with the band?
RR: I’ve probably had one of the best lives of anyone you’ve ever met. I feel that we grew up in the best of times ever in the history of the United States – the late ‘50’s and early ‘60’s. When I got into music, it changed my life. All I ever wanted to do was play music, and whenever we got on the road I was just free, man. You know? We were five Arkansas hillbillies, and we would go into black clubs, play with the bands, and be welcomed. We could go wherever we wanted, and be accepted. It was just a great time to be alive. 1958 – 1965 were the best days of my life.
Bobby & the Denos: early 60’s promo photoBobby & the Denos: early 60’s promo photo
“Slimy Sue” by the Sounds, Ltd. featuring Phil Jackson is the kind of odd, non-commercial record of the ’60s garage era that I love.
These lyrics are bizarre, with plenty of humor in the masochism of the second and third verses.
I got me a woman, buddy, she’s got purple hair Ain’t no other woman, buddy, that can compare, that can compare To my girl, true blue, back alley Sue Slimy Sue, yeah, well alright now
When I want some lovin,’ buddy, Sue knows what to do She can kiss so gently, buddy, turns me black and blue My girl, true blue, back alley Sue Slimy Sue, yeah, well alright now
Hit it [guitar break]
When I get in trouble, buddy, with someone tough like you Me, I never worry, buddy, I call on Sue, I call on Sue My girl, black belt, weight lifting, Sue Slimy Sue, yeah, well alright now
Philip W. Jackson wrote this song as well as the flip, “Fly Away”, for Cookie Crumb Music, BMI.
The Sounds, Ltd. recorded at Midwestern Recording Studios at 3140 The Paseo, Kansas City, Missouri. The studio’s own Peak label released the single on P-108 in October 1966. I’d like to know more about the band, who maintain a rough but great sound throughout “Slimy Sue”.
The band was from St. Joseph, Missouri, about 45 miles north of Kansas City. “Fly Away” was the ostensible A-side at the time, a kind of folky almost hippie-sounding song featuring lead vocalist Kathy Helmick.
Midwestern Recorders operated a studio since at least 1952 if not earlier, originally releasing records on the Central label. I assume other garage bands must have used Midwestern but haven’t found evidence of that yet.
The Cholos put out their classic “Last Laugh” on the Farad label in May, 1966. The band was from Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, a rural area along I-44 between Springfield and St. Louis, MO.
Don Longfellow and D.J. Bohn wrote “Last Laugh” for Briebert Music, BMI, while Pete Starr and D.J. Bohn wrote the instrumental, “Whistling Surfer”.
I haven’t been able to find any other info about the band or a photo of the group. Their band name is a strange one, even for the ’60s. Their label name is also unusual and I can’t connect it to any other release.
This was considered a very rare 45 until at least 20 unplayed copies turned up in late 2014.
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
