Category Archives: Falls Church

Categories: Fairfax County, Falls Church, Virginia, Washington DC

December’s Children “Signed D.C.” on Domestic Sound Records

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December’s Children at the Alexandria Roller Rink, November 22, 1967, Jerry Burke holding the mic, photo courtesy of Bud Becker

December's Children photo cardDecember’s Children came from Falls Church, Virginia, and part of the same Washington, D.C. music scene as the Telstars. Bud Becker managed both bands, and the photos here come from his collection.

I don’t have the lineups down exactly but I believe members included:

Jerry Burke – lead vocals
Clay Staples (J.C. Staples) – lead guitar
Pete Kahn – rhythm guitar
Steve Gilles
Matt ”Red” Kilmer – organ
Mike Martino – drums
Mick Coiner (Mic Coiner) – lead vocals (replaced Jerry Burke)

Dick Alfers was a roadie for the band.

December’s Children at the Alexandria Roller Rink, Jerry Burke with tambourine, November 22, 1967

Ad for the December’s Children supporting the Turtles at the Alexandria Roller Rink, November 22, 1967
December’s Children biggest show may have been supporting the Turtles on November 22, 1967 at the Alexandria Roller Rink with Bobby Howard and the Sweet, the Plum Beach Incident, the Hounds of Baskerville, the Fantastic Plastic, the Seeds of Life, the Rokz, the Kings Row, the Gnu Generation, and the Yorkshires. WPGC “Good Guy” DJ Jack Alix presented the show.

December's Children, Ltd. Domestic Sound 45 So Long Ago

December's Children, Ltd. Domestic Sound 45 Signed D.C.

Also in 1967, the group made their only single, featuring a cover of Love’s “Signed D.C.” backed with an original “So Long Ago” by Burke, Gilles, and Staples.

On the record the group is listed as December’s Children, Ltd., released on Domestic Sound Records DS-123, with an address at 133 South Washington Street, Falls Church, VA. M.A. Becker and December’s Children and DSP Music published “So Long Ago”.

After Jerry Burke left for Vietnam in 1968, Mic Coiner took over on lead vocals.

I don’t know if the band’s members continued in music. Jerry Burke passed away in 2007.


Bud Becker’s silent footage of December’s Children at a VFW hall with Jerry Burke on lead vocals, followed by Jerry Burke’s haircut shortly before going into the Marines, ending with a short clip at a Hullabaloo with Mic Coiner on vocals.

Thank you to Bud Becker and Paul Burke for their help with this article.

For some reason I had the band listed as from Fredericksburg, which seems to be incorrect, unless certain members started out there. Thank you to Bill Pooten for pointing that out.

December’s Children at the Alexandria Roller Rink, November 22, 1967
Categories: Columbia, Falls Church, Virginia, Washington DC

The Telstars “Hold Tight” on Columbia

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Tel Stars Washington DC photo and business card
The Tel Stars, from left: Jimmy Carter, Ronnie Wilson, unidentified – can anyone ID? and Terry Gorka

Telstars Columbia 45 Keep on RunningThe Telstars were a big draw in the Washington DC area, playing at the Bayou among other venues.

The band was based in Falls Church; members included:

Jimmy Maddox – guitar
Gary Johnson – guitar
Jimmy Carter – guitar
Terry Gorka – bass
Ronnie Wilson – drums

Bud Becker sent in the photo seen here, and remembers two vocalists with the band, Jerry Burke, who went into the Army, and a second named Mick. He also remembers Terry’s wife Cherrie Gorka was a seamstress who made costumes for December’s Children, and that Barry Siedel managed the band.

The Telstars put a lot of fuzz behind “Keep on Running”, a song written and originally performed by Jackie Edwards, and made famous through the Spencer Davis Group. It’s a good version, but I like their take on “Hold Tight” even more. Sylvia Fricker of Ian & Sylvia wrote “Hold Tight”, registering copyright in September, 1966.

“Hold Tight” appeared on Ian & Sylvia’s 1967 album So Much for Dreaming, which I don’t have a release date for, but I believe it shortly precedes the Telstars single on Columbia 4-44141 in May, 1967. I’d be curious if the Telstars heard “Hold Tight” on the album or from a songwriting demo.

The production credit is interesting. Bob Wyld and Art Polhemus of Longhair Productions created many great singles with the Blues Magoos, including “Tobacco Road” and “(We Ain’t Got) Nothin’ Yet”; the Magicians (“An Invitation to Cry”, “About My Love” and more), the Blue Beats and others, usually on Columbia Records.

Barry Seidel (with Tom Traynor) produced records by the Mad Hatters and the Fallen Angels. The Telstars record is the only time Seidel worked with both Wyld and Polhemus, but Bob Wyld would later produce albums for acts that Seidel managed, Steel Image and Exuma.

Bud Becker thought the Telstars recorded at either Rodel Studios in Georgetown or Edgewood Recording Studios. Bud managed various groups, such as the Winds of Change and the Yorkshires.

Terry Gorka would go into the Reason with Tommy Dildy, Bill Manning, and Billy Windsor, releasing an album Age of Reason on Georgetowne Records.

Thank you to Linda Shekan for correcting some errors in this article with her comment below.