Category Archives: US

Categories: Feature, Illinois, Janesville, Rampro, Rock Falls, Sterling, Wisconsin

The Inspirations and the 13th Precinct

October 28, 2008 Chris Bishop 48 Comments

The Inpirations, from left: Mike Murphy, Keith Newell, Bruce Jensen, Kenny Newell and Dennis Milby

Updated February 2011 with info from comments below and Gary E. Myers book On That Wisconsin Beat

The original lineup of the Inspirations included Keith Newell on guitar, his identical twin Ken Newell on bass, Dennis Milby on drums and Michael Murphy on keyboards. The band was from Rock Falls and Sterling, Illinois, two hours drive west of Chicago.

Bruce Jensen joined on guitar by the time of their 45 on the Feature label. At some point the Newell brothers left the band and Don Dowd came in on bass.

Both songs on their August, 1966 single were written by Jensen and Murphy, with (I believe) Murphy singing lead vocals. “That Girl” has a brittle guitar sound and a loping bass line, with good lead and backing vocals. The organ takes a fine, trebly solo before the last chorus. “Baby Please Come Home” has a moodier sound that works well.

This is possibly the Inspirations without the Newell brothers. Top left is Keith Pratt and bottom right with drum sticks is Steve King. Any help identifying the other members would be appreciated.

Feature Records was owned by Ken Adamany, a legend in the Madison area. Janesville, Wisconsin is about 25 miles southeast of Madison, just short of the Illinois border. Adamany also ran Rampro Records, then became a major promoter of bands in lower Wisconsin and owner of the Factory club in Madison, but he’s best known now as the first manager of Cheap Trick. In an interview with the band back in the 70’s, Rolling Stone described him as “the son of Lebanese immigrants …. a slight, swarthy fellow … with the cool, disinterested air of a camel trader.” Nice profiling RS!

Ken had himself played in a band callled the Nigh Tranes who had one release, “Hangover” (aka “Swamp Fever” / “Rockin’ Abe” on Cuca. That band included Boz Scaggs, Tim Davis, Ben Sidran and Steve Miller in later lineups (as the Ardells?).

The 13th Precinct from left: Mike Murphy, Bruce Jensen, Down Dowd and Tom Kurtz

In 1967 the group changed it’s name to the 13th Precinct, with a lineup of Mike Murphy, Bruce Jensen, Don Dowd and Dennis Milby, and cut some demos in Chicago.

Gary Myers wrote in On That Wisconsin Beat, “These caught the ear of New York producer Paul Tannen who took them to Nashville for sessions that resulted in the TRX release [“Junk Yard” / “You Gotta Be Mine”, January, 1968]. The 13th Precinct worked often in Oshkosh and Appleton, and as the house band at The Barn outside Sterling. Drummer Dennis Milby was forced to leave with an injury shortly before the band appeared on ABC-TV’s Happening ’68 with Paul Revere & the Raiders in Los Angeles.”

Michael Bryan Murphy left the band in 1969 to join the One-Eyed Jacks in Champaign, Illinois, and then went on to sang with REO Speedwagon on their third, fourth and fifth albums.

Tom Kurtz replaced Dennis Milby on drums, and then Tim Dowd joined on guitar and vocals as the 13th Precinct continued into the 1970s.

Thank you to Kevin McLaughlin for the top photo and to Heidi Dowd for the second photo.

Sources include: Gary E. Myers book On That Wisconsin Beat, the FolkLib Index and Like a Rolling Stone: Why Madison’s Music Scene Is Slightly Discordant.

Categories: Detroit, Michigan, Panik, Warren

The Rainy Days

October 25, 2008 Chris Bishop 26 Comments

Mogen David and The Grapes of Wrath at the DrumBeat

The Rainy Days are known for a great version of “I Can Only Give You Everything”. They regularly won battle of the bands contests over Bob Seger and the Last Heard, and appeared many times on the Robin Seymour TV show, Swingin’ Time. The members were:

Tom Brzezina – vocals
Gary Rozycki – lead guitar
Alan Hafeli – rhythm guitar
Paul Isaacson – organ
John Einowski – bass
Jim Nosakowski – drums

In early 1967 the Rainy Days released two 45s on the Panik label. Their first 45 was supposed to include a version of the Fugs’ “Dirty Old Man”, which I would love to hear. Though acetates were made, that song’s uncommercial lyrics may have doomed a commercial release, and the song hasn’t surfaced in the years since it was recorded.

“Go On and Cry”, an original song written with their manager is excellent, with a soulful sound at times very reminiscent of the Stones’ “Heart of Stone”, plus the vocals are full of attitude. The Panik label put “Go On and Cry” on the b-side of each of their 45s, once with “Turn On Your Lovelight” and again with “I Can Only Give You Everything”. I’ve seen “Turn On Your Lovelight” issued on red vinyl, with a plain Panik label.

When their third release “Without A Soul” was shelved the band slowly faded away. Tom Brzezina joined Target with Dennis Wezalis, who had written “Without a Soul”, while the other members stayed active in music for some time. As yet, “Dirty Old Man”, “Without a Soul” and their appearances on the Robin Seymour show seem to be lost, but until they are found we have their Panik releases to listen to.

Jim Nosakowski, Gary Rozycki, Alan Hafeli wrote this description of the band:

In the wake of the British Invasion, interest in forming bands to play live music was rampant in Detroit as well as across the country. In 1965, two groups of enthusiastic, budding musicians, The Brimstones and The 69ers combined to form Mogen David and the Grapes of Wrath which soon became The Rainy Days. This hard-driving six man group was noticed by PANIK Records and in the fall of 1967 they released ” I Can Only Give You Everything” backed by the original song, “Go On and Cry”.
The single charted in Detroit and resulted in several appearances on CKLW’s (Windsor, Ontario) popular show “Swingin Time” with Robin Seymour. The Rainy Days appeared with James Brown, The Contours, Bobby Hebb, and others. Recordings of “Turn on Your Lovelight” and an original, “Without a Soul”, failed to chart and the band broke up shortly after a three year run of good fun and great music. Alan and Jim continue to play together after 40 years in various blues and oldies bands.

I asked Jim Nosakowski some questions about the band, and he responded with Alan Hefeli:

The 69’ers were experimenting with a keyboard player, John Issacson, who could not really play. His brother, Paul Issacson, was a friend of Alan and Gary from the Brimstones and was a very good keyboardist. Through these brothers, the two bands became aware of each other and ultimately Tom (lead singer), and Jim (drums) from the 69er’s, Alan (rhythm), Gary (lead guitar), and Paul (keyboards) formed Mogan David and the Grapes of Wrath. John (bass) was a friend of Tom’s. Dan Bayer (Brimstone’s drummer) joined some of the remaining 69er’s to form Mother’s Little Helpers, a good British-type rock band.
We had been trying to find someone to record us. We wanted to record “Gloria” by Them sensing a sure hit, but the Shadows of Night beat us to it. One agent was interested in Tom but not the rest of the band. A soul recording studio called Big Mack Records, as we recall, was interested in us as their first white group but nothing came of that.
One day our bass player, John, was hitchhiking with his guitar and was picked up by Tony Printz of PANIK Records (he was driving a very cool pale blue Continental convertible). He came to a few practices and decided to sign us. Soon after the decision was made to record “I Can Only Give You Everything”.
We recorded ICOGYE backed by an original credited to our manager, Tony Printz, though we all worked on it. The recording studio was United Sound, a Motown studio near Wayne State University. Our producer was Danny Dallas and as I recall, PANIK was paying $60 an hour for studio time.
When we heard the master we were really disappointed. The lead guitar was out of tune but Tony said it sounded ok. After much pleading by the band, he agreed to go back and redo the cut. The second effort was much better.
Shortly after we recorded, Tony got a call from someone at United Sound saying that the MC5 had also recorded a version of ICOGYE at the same studio two weeks after we did. This motivated PANIK to release our record as quickly as possible.

Thanks to Jim, Gary and Alan for sending in the photos and history of the band, and to Don Rozycki for putting me in touch with his brother. One source for this story was Koen Goossens interview with Tom Brzezina and Jim Nosakowski on his site devoted to the song I Can Only Give You Everything. The link for that is http://icogye.0catch.com/icogyeinterview1.htm – but be warned of ugly pop-up ads that can crash your browser!

Categories: Allen Park, Detroit, Michigan, Palmer

The Satellites and the Blue Feeling

October 21, 2008 Chris Bishop 28 Comments

The Blue Feeling, formerly known as the Satellites

Dennis Girard of the Ruins sent in these great photos of the Blue Feeling, a band who had been widely known in the Detroit area as the Satellites.

Dennis writes:

These pics show the Satellites in 1968 when they changed their name to the “Blue Feeling”. Note that Ann Marston was representing them.
They were possibly the best group in the Downriver area. At any of their gigs, the front row of the audience was made up of local musicians.
You can see all of their Vox equipment. Several Beatle amps and the infamous Vox T-60 are visible. They even used two Vox Beatle amps for their PA. In fact I bought a Beatle chrome amp stand from them.
The Satellites did the sound track for Tim Tam and the Turn-Ons (“Wait a Minute”).
Dave Fero……lead guitar
Frank Schiavulli….drums (deceased 01-23-97)
Ken Sipos……guitar
Carl Sweets….bass
Frank Vargo….lead vocals
I had kept in touch with Frank Schiavulli up until his death. Dave Fero is still playing and lives in Ann Arbor.

The Blue Feeling, formerly known as the Satellites. Notice the Ann Marston Presents and Espial Light Company posters on wall

The Satellites were freshmen at Allen Park High School. They signed with Ann Marston in October, 1965, partly because she liked their wholesome appearance. Ann Marston was a former archery champion, TV personality and Miss Michigan of 1960, who started managing bands after promoting live concerts with WKNR’s Frank Sweeney.

Ann booked them into venues including the Chatterbox teen club in Allen Park, the Southgate Teen Center, the Harbor Theater in Lincoln Park and the Grosse Ile Naval Base, getting them regular work. Around this time Ann produced a demo of the band at Pioneer Studios, “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better” and “You Really Got a Hold on Me”.

Dave Fero and Frank Schiavulli had been part of the group backing Tim Tam and the Turn-Ons on their huge local hit, “Wait a Minute”, an unusual blend of doo wop with a contemporary rock sound. Tim Tam and the Turn-Ons were six vocalists who also met at Allen Park High. Rick Wiesend (Tim Tam) was lead vocalist, along with Danny Wiesend, Don Grundman, Nick Butsicaris, John Ogen and Earl Rennie. If you haven’t heard “Wait a Minute”, search it out on the internet and you’ll hear why it was such a sensation.

‘Wait a Minute” was released in February of 1966 on Palmer Records 5002, selling 30,000 copies in the first month of release. Frank was interviewed on the air by WKNR DJ Scott Regan about playing drums on “Wait a Minute.” Tim Tam and the Turn-Ons would release three more 45s on Palmer. Rick Wiesend passed away five years ago today (on October 22, 2003).

I’m not sure who is playing on the flip side, the fine surf instrumental “Opelia”, songwriting credited to Morton Patlow. Is this the Satellites?

Tim Tam & the Turn Ons next single was the very doo-wop sounding “Cheryl Ann” b/w a vocal with garage backing, “Seal It With A Kiss” (Palmer 5003)

On June 13, 1966, the Satellites went to United Sound Studios to record another demo of two songs, “I Believe” and “Midnight Hour”. These were mixed by Les Cooley who would soon engineer Bob Seger’s “Persecution Smith”.

The band won WXYZ-TV’s Talent Town competition, hosted by Rita Bell. The stereo console they won went into Frank Vargo’s basement where the band practiced.

The band clashed with Ann when they gave up their straight image, but nevertheless she continued to manage them into 1968. I’ve never heard any of their demos, I don’t know if they still exist or not.

“Ann Marston presents The Blue Feeling and the Espial Light Company”

Sources include: Shooting Star: The Amazing Life of Ann Marston by Alana Paluszewski, and the Tim Tam & the Turn Ons entry on myfirstband.com.

Special thanks to Dennis Girard for the scans of the photos and for sending me a copy of Shooting Star.

Ann Marston’s busy and unusual life is chronicled in Shooting Star. Those interested in her interactions with bands will find about seven pages on her time managing the very young MC5, a few pages on the Satellites, and mentions of other bands she worked with, like the Lower Deck, the Renegades, Julia, and Tom & the Fugitives. There are also photos of Ann with the Beatles and the Dave Clark Five.

Shooting Star lists Frank Vargo as the drummer on “Wait a Minute” and as the member of the Satellites interviewed on-air by Scott Regan, but this may be a mistake. Dan Wiesend, who was at the session, recounts Frank Schiavulli as the drummer.

Categories: Arthur Smith Studios, Georgia, Mark V Studios, Pyramid, Toccoa

The Avalons aka the Avlons on Pyramid

October 15, 2008 Chris Bishop 31 Comments

Sam Camp of the Avalons and later the Voxmen sent in this history of the band, who had a fine 45 on the Pyramid label, “Come Back Little Girl” / “Mad Man’s Fate”:

The Avalons was one of the first successful Rock and Roll bands from Toccoa, Georgia. The original members consisted of:
Lamar Collins – bass / vocals
Jimmy Sipes – keyboards / vocals
Roy Thompson – guitar / vocals
Sam Camp – saxophone / harmonica / vocals
Ronny Crunkleton – drums / vocals
Some time after the band began performing, Tommy Owens, a studio drummer from Greenville, South Carolina, joined the band.
The group appeared roughly from 1963 thru 1967 in Georgia and South Carolina. The Avalons gained much popularity as the house band at a local teen club called The Chicken Shack located in Seneca, South Carolina. It was not uncommon to pack a thousand fans in on Saturday night where records and pictures were sold.
During the band’s popularity, we opened for several national acts including such names as The Swinging Medallions, Billy Joe Royal, Sam the Sham and the Pharohs, Keith, and The Impressions.
The Avalons recorded in the late sixties and the songs were composed by Collins and Thompson. The recordings were done at Arthur Smith studios in Charlotte, North Carolina and Mark V Studios in Greenville, South Carolina.
The two songs, “Come Back Little Girl” and “Mad Man’s Fate”, received airtime on many southeastern radio stations. “Mad Man’s Fate” got the most air time and was the song that was #1 at WHYZ, a local radio station in Greenville, South Carolina. The record also received recognition in the Billboard Top 100 magazine.
Our manager at the time was Tommy Scott. He is still living and is some character. He has a book out, ‘Snake Oil, Superstars and Tommy Scott”. There is a write-up about our band and a very good picture on page 400. Tommy Scott knew a lot of people at the time and got us in with Arthur Smith.
James Brown “The Godfather of Soul” made a personal visit to Toccoa, where he once lived, to discuss the purchase of one of the songs. There were talks of the Avalons touring with James Brown as his opening act, but this did not materialize.
Q.: Why is the name on the record and photo the Avlons instead of the Avalons? Which name did you go by when you played live?
We went by The Avalons. There was another band out there called The Avalons. At the time of our recording, we may have not been able to spell it A.V.A.L.O.N.S, it might have been a legal thing.

Thank you to Sam Camp for sharing his history of the Avalons and for sending the photos seen here. Be sure to read about Sam’s next band, the Voxmen. Special thanks to Ben and Rich for label scans.

Categories: Bronx, Goldbug, New York, New York City, Suffolk County, Westhampton Beach

The Brotherhood of Soul

October 12, 2008 Chris Bishop 2 Comments

Brotherhood of Soul Goldbug 45 Save Me “Save Me” is a slow and intense psychedelic 45 featuring the anguished vocal of Richy Pecchio over the Brotherhood of Soul’s repetitive vamp. The flip is a shorter instrumental version of “Save Me”, retitled “The Morning After” with the bass guitar right up at the edge of the red on the meters.

The Brotherhood of Soul – Save Me
The Brotherhood of Soul – The Morning After

Released on the Goldbug label, the RCA custom press number ‘UK4M’ indicates this was released in 1967. Both sides were written by Rich Pecchio and B. Sell. The 45 was produced by Ron Gittman, who was the agent that brought the Magnificent Men to Capitol Records.

This session was engineered by Abe Steinberg at Abtone Recording Studio. Abtone was located at 1733 Broadway in New York City, and in 1966 had been the site of some sessions featuring Lonnie Youngblood, Jimi Hendrix, Lee Moses and Herman Hitson, as well as other r&b artists like Ronnie Forte.

I couldn’t find any further info on this record until Richard Pecchio himself contacted me:

I was recruited by an ex-DJ turned manager when he saw me singing at a nightclub. He was or still is the owner of a trucking company in Manhattan, New York, his name is Lonnie Kaufman. He eventually got me signed to a record label called Kip Records in ’61. At that time I did not write songs, so we went with a cover for fast results: “Dream Lover” a cover of Bobby Darin’s hit record. The other side was a song called “Cherrie” by Bobby Rydell.
He also signed Nate Bouknight, also known as “Little Nat” from the Shells. Their hit song was “Baby Oh Baby” (late 50’s fame). Nate wrote a real good song called “Do This Do That,” that made some noise. Certainly I learned a lot from him.
I also went on a tour and performed on television programs, one called Boston Ballroom – the other guest was Brenda Lee. Being only 17, I was thrilled. Our make-up was put on in the same room. Lonnie Kaufman also managed Tony Darryl, who was on the Ed Sullivan show. It was a great start to my recording career.
[For the next] four years I was with various different genre bands trying to find a fit for what type of music I wanted to sing: City Magic – “Going Back to Florida” [b/w] a slow cover of the Loving Spoonful’s “Do You Believe in Magic”, and the Minutemen “A Little Too Much.”
The Brotherhood of Soul was started by a Stan Summers, (real name of group: Stan Summers and the Unsual) who was in a group (don’t remember the name) that did the backups for Dion on “The Wanderer” and “Ruby Baby”.
I don’t remember my group’s last names, but I believe I remember their first names: another Richard: a B3 Hammond Organ player; Andre: bass & sax player, tenor vocals; Steve was the drummer; Stan just sang; finally, I played rhythm guitar, and sang lead and harmonies.
We played our first job on Long Island, NY, we only knew 13 songs at the start, needless to say, we played each song for a very long time. We progressed and the sax player’s father was a policeman who introduced the band to a club owner named Charlie Bates who owned clubs in Manhattan and Westhampton Bay, NY. The club owner liked our music and hired us in 1967 to play the total summer on the shore of Westhampton Bay.
He supplied the band with a large home to stay at, it was part of the package; it was called “Captain’s Lodge.” It was a sweet deal. The name of the club we played at was called “Charlie Bates”. The prior summer the Young Rascals came to fame at a club called The Barge. We played adjacent to a club called The Eye who was featuring the soon to be famous Leslie West. The crowds were enormous throughout the summer; needless to say it was a very successful summer and one to remember.
After that we went searching for “fame” and meet Ron Gitman, who produced the song (“Save Me”) and managed the band. Our tours were great, of course it all went down-hill after that. I still sing & write every so often, here is a link of a song that is on Youtube, called: “The Mojito Song”, also known as “Idle” www.youtube.com/user/rpecchio
PS: this was a long time ago, some of the facts might not be accurate.
Richard Pecchio

Sources: Info on Abtone Studios from Soul Source.

Categories: Fox Chapel, Ideal, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh

John Harrison & the Hustlers, Ideal Records discography

October 12, 2008 Chris Bishop 7 Comments

“Don’t Ask Why” is a solid garage number from John Harrison & the Hustlers, with a nice scream before the guitar break. “You Don’t Want That” is a lighter number for fans of that sound. Both sides were written by Johnny Harrison and Jim McMillen (or Jim McMillan) and produced by George Goodman.

I didn’t know anything about the group until Lloyd Stamy left his comment below, which I’ll repeat here in the main article for its useful information:

An outstanding and very popular mid-Sixties band from Fox Chapel, a suburb of Pittsburgh, that could “cover” any Beatles tune better than the Fab Four itself, The Hustlers comprised four guys who attended Shady Side Academy: John Harrison (lead singer and bass guitar), Jim “Bugsy” McMillen (lead guitar), Doug Harrison (drums and John’s younger brother), and Bill Bickerstaff (rhythm guitar).

Incomplete Ideal discography:

Vibra-Sonics – “Thunder Storm” / “Drag Race” (1964)
Four Challengers – “Love Me When You Can” / “Rayburn Street” (Ideal 11111, 1965)
7 Dwarfs – “Stop Girl” / “One By One” (the Blues Magoos tune) (Ideal 1168)
John Harrison & the Hustlers – “Don’t Ask Why” / “You Don’t Want That” (Ideal IR 10)
Al’s Dynamics – “Breakdown” / “Disappointed in You” (Ideal IR 20)

Augie Bernardi owned the Ideal label, it was located in Sharpsburg, PA

Bink Curti wrote to me:

The Four Challangers were from Kittanning, PA and included brothers Dale & Gary Bowser on rhythm and lead guitar respectively.

Thanks to Lloyd for the helpful info and to Robin for contributing to the Ideal discography.

Categories: Burbank, California, DYG, Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, Pasadena

The Disillusioned Younger Generation

October 12, 2008 Chris Bishop 19 Comments

Here’s an obscurity by the Disillusioned Younger Generation from Eagle Rock, California, in the hills of northeast Los Angeles, near Pasadena. Band members were:

Dennis Moore – vocals and lead guitar
Dave Lobrano – rhythm guitar
John McMullen – bass
Greg Lobrano – drums

The songs were recorded at Custom Fidelity Studios in Pasadena and released on the custom DYG label. The great track here is “Who Do You Think You’re Foolin'” while the flip “A Man” is good but drags a bit.

Rhythm guitarist Dave Lobrano wrote to me:

I started playing guitar in 1964 at the tender age of 14. About 2 years later, my brother Greg got interested in music and started banging on the drums. We would spend many hours together practicing and having fun.
In 1966, my sister’s husband John decided to try his hand at playing the bass guitar. Soon we formed a three-man band calling ourselves “The Stubs”. We played at parties and had a lot of fun. Then one day we got a call from a guy about our band. We met up with him and found out that he played guitar and would like to join us. He was a pretty good guitar player and he liked to sing. So, we continued to play at parties, dances, and for anyone who wanted to hear us play.
Dennis was a talented guy and wrote several songs. We decided to change the name of the band. We were contacted by a nice lady and her husband. They really liked the band, and asked us if we would be interested in someone to help promote our music. Well, we agreed to it and together they got us several gigs to play. They really liked the song “Who Do You Think You’re Foolin'” and set us up for a recording session. That was in 1967. The record was released somewhere in Texas. I guess it never really took off. A few months after the recording, the band broke up. Greg and I never heard from Dennis again, he moved away. I continued to play but only at home and with friends. I still enjoy guitar playing all these years later.

A blog called CoInside has a good story about finding 28 copies of this record for $5 and selling them off for a small fortune.

Dave tells me John McMullen has passed away.

Categories: California, Discovery, Los Angeles, Unknown

The Missing Links “You’ve Got Your Rosies On” / “They Say You Lie” on Discovery

October 6, 2008 Chris Bishop 6 Comments

The Missing Links have this one excellent 45 on Discovery Records, released possibly in October, 1965. The band is unknown. This record was erroneously listed as from Texas, but California is much more likely, as the Discovery label was from the Los Angeles area.

On the top side is “You’ve Got Your Rosies On”, a nicely produced tune where the singer makes it clear his girl shouldn’t expect much of him, while the girl’s voice chimes in asides like “too bad.” It was written by R. Jarrard and James Hilton and arranged by James Hilton, and published by Jarhill Pub. Co., BMI.

I never thought I’d make a record babe, but look at Sonny and Cher,
They had something to say, now I’ve got something to say to you,
Babe, you’re expecting too much, so take off your rose-colored glasses,
See me as I really am.
You’ve got your rosies on …
Spend all day writing songs, changing worlds, righting wrongs,
Everyday it’s ‘get a job’, but I can’t see this working hard,
Ain’t me babe, that ain’t me babe..
Wear those funny way-out clothes, my girl says ‘what are those?’
What I am, no I explain, cause your ideas can’t make me change
It’s me babe, ah it’s me babe.
Expecting things from a guy like me, causes problems can’t you see,
Wear my hair mighty long, need that hair to sing this song to you babe,
Just to you babe, oh yeah,
What I’m saying in this song, is maybe I’m right, maybe you’re wrong
And just because my pockets are bare, that don’t mean I ain’t going nowhere.
I’m going somewhere, oh yeah, I’m goin’ somewhere …
If you don’t want me you don’t have to come at all,
But if you want me, you better take off your glasses babe,
See me as I really am…

“They Say You Lie” is the opposite of the light-hearted top side. It’s a brooding song, with slashing guitar chords, pounding toms and self-pitying vocals that rise for the chorus “but they say … you lie, you lie”. The guitar solo has a matching intensity. It was written by D. Abrahamsen and N. Nissenson. Both sides were produced by James Becht.

Categories: California, Los Angeles, Miramar, Unknown

The Fellowship

October 6, 2008 Chris Bishop 1 Comment

Here’s an obscure 45 by the Fellowship, one side a version of Dylan’s “Just Like a Woman” with a full band, the other a more fanciful number with only acoustic instruments backing the vocals. “Palace of the King” was written by J. Treese, possibly Jack Treese, an american musician who had a long career in France.

One notable thing about this release is it’s on the Miramar label, most famous for releases by the Dovers. See the separate article on Miramar for more info.

Tony Cary produced all the Dovers 45s as well as the Road Runners, Nick Hoffman and Fellowship records on Miramar. He went on to produce the Alexander’s Timeless Bloozband Lp on UNI, released 1968 and Charles Lamont’s solo LP from 1969, A Legend In His Own Time.

This 45 came from a collection of 45s owned by Bob Buchanan, who co-authored “Hickory Wind” with Gram Parsons and played in the New Christy Minstrels for some time, as well as the International Submarine Band. Perhaps he played on this session? The other 45s in the collection were by the New Christy Minstrels, Brewer and Brewer, and Mike McGinnis.

Max Waller suggests there may be a connection to another Fellowship 45, “You Laughed At Me” / ? on Film Town 6169 from July 1969.

Thank you to Jason Sweitzer for help with information about Tony Cary.

Categories: Indiana, Petersburg, Skoop

Sanz, Incorporated on Skoop

October 2, 2008 Chris Bishop 26 Comments

Sanz, Inc released two 45s on the Skoop label, “My Baby’s Eyes” / “I’m Gonna Leave You” in December of 1966 and “I Just Want You” / “I’ll Never Forget” in May of 1967.

“I’m Gonna Leave You” starts with a catchy bass and drum rhythm, then the vocals and organ combine for a haunting effect. A fast organ sequence and a howling guitar riff open “I Just Want You”, which features a busy, popping rhythm. “I’ll Never Forget” is a slow ballad, very much an early ’60s doo wop vocal style.

Members were:

Steve Ficklin, vocals
Bob Ficklin, keyboards
Brent Ficklin, vocals
Dave Adams, guitar
Larry Adams, bass guitar
Ron Hale, drums

Keyboard player Bob Ficklin wrote to me about the band and sent in the great photos you see here:

I was part of a band called Sanz, Inc. from Petersburg, Indiana. Sanz, Inc. was a popular group that performed in the tri-state area (IN, KY & IL).
We all attended the same high school (Petersburg High). The name Sanz was derived as a word play on the Sands Hotel in Vegas. The “Inc.” was added later.
We played many local street dances and teen centers in the area. Some other venues were a prom at the Sheraton Hotel in French Lick, IN; area county fairs; a political rally in Princeton, IN; Chieftain Restaurant, Lawrenceville, IL; several gigs at Lake Lawrence, also in Lawrenceville, IL; Teen Center in Morganfield, KY; among others. We usually played top 40 hits of the day and original material. Although there were a few other area groups, we were not acquainted with them and were never in competition.
“My Baby’s Eyes”/”I’m Gonna Leave You” was recorded in Santa Claus, IN, home of the first theme park in the U.S. (Santa Claus Land, now known as “Holiday World”) in 1966. Santa Claus, being about one hour away was the best opportunity for recording. “I Just Want You”/”I’ll Never Forget” was recorded on the same label in 1967.
On the way to record “I Just Want You”, we didn’t have “I’ll Never Forget” completed. So, we finished it in the car and recorded it on the flip side. All four songs were written by Bob and Steve Ficklin.
When recording “I Just Want You” and “I’ll Never Forget”, after the music and vocals (Bob and Steve Ficklin) were completed on the first track, Bob and Steve also added background vocal parts. We paid for the session times and the records that were pressed. Both projects were completed in a very short period of time (a matter of a few hours).
The records were played on several area stations in surrounding counties. “My Baby’s Eyes” received air play on WLS/Chicago. We did sell records at performances, at school and at a local retailer.
As older members of the band graduated the band dissolved. Larry Adams played bass with another area group for a time. Steve Ficklin sang with various gospel groups through the years and continues today. While in the Air Force, I sang with a couple of bands. In recent years I have sung with a local group and continue singing with a duet partner. Thanks for keeping the memories alive; it was a great era.
Bob Ficklin