Dennis and the Times of Norfolk, Virginia were three brothers on guitars and vocals, along with a couple friends playing bass and drums. The Burlage brothers’ father helped them record and release two 45s on the Trend label.
Denis Burlage – vocals
Guy Burlage – lead guitar
Dean Burlage – rhythm guitar
Skip Watts – bass
Paris Aiken – drums
The first from November of 1967 included their psychedelic masterpiece “Flight Patterns”. The song was certainly inspired by “Eight Miles High”, though I also hear some of “Have You Seen Her Face” in it as well.
The flip, “Just If She’s There” also owes a debt to the Byrds.
They found a harder sound for their second single, “Denis Dupree From Danville”, from 1969, released as Denis & the Times with only one ‘n’ in Denis. The b-side is a good ballad, “Whenever You Want Me”.
James Mrdutt sent in the photos of drummer Paris Aiken seen here, and other photos of Paris with an earlier group, the Mustangs, that I’ve posted to a separate page here. James reported that Paris passed away on December 24, 2009. He also informed me that Paris Aiken played drums on the recording of Billy Joe Royal’s “Down in the Boondocks”.
This band is every bit as good as the Dovers. I wonder why Denis’s records aren’t commanding a fortune. I also like how they changed the spelling of “Dennis” when they covered the Cryan’ Shames’s “Dennis Dupree from Danville.”
I’ve owned the Dennis Dupree single for 30 years and never even considered the flip. After all, it is weak and whiney for the first 30 seconds. Then it punches up and contains two fuzz guitar breaks not counting the fade. Has grown on me exponentially once I gave it a chance. Still their least song, I think, but it increases their relevant legacy from 3 songs to 4.
I’ll have to dig out my 45 and check that out
I remember seeing this band play several times when I was in my senior year at Hampton High. They were an energetic and exciting cover band, but they also did a few original tunes of their own. When so many other groups were doing covers of Led Zeppelin, Cream, or Hendrix, Denis & the Times did great renditions of songs by the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, the Easybeats, and other groups who specialized in vocal harmony and that 60s “English” sound. It was a tragedy when the youngest brother accidentally killed himself with his father’s gun. That was the end of the honeymoon for this band.
I would love to get my hands on either of the two 45s that they put out. Once upon a time, long long ago, I had these in my possession. But like so many of the artifacts of our youth, they disappeared. Thank you for keeping the memory of this very fine band alive on the web.
Hi, I’m looking for a copy of this superb record. Please drop me a line if you have one up for grabs. THANKS!
I found 2 of their songs on youtube, Dennis Dupree and Flight Patterns….They are loaded under Dennis and the Times…Wrong spelling,but right band. I used to visit all of the local Tidewater ‘teen clubs’ in the 60’s and love reading all of the info on Garagehangover!!
I looked further and found ‘Just If She’s There’, definitely has a ‘Bryds’ sound. Still under Dennis and the Times…..Oh, to be 16 again!
Wow-I went to school with these guys and just found single pictures of Dean, Guy, and Denis from ’67. My best friend Dianne and I did a go go dance with them as a fund raiser for a hospital-lost 5 lbs that night-didn’t want to dance for a while…
I remember this band when I was fifteen or sixteen playing at Hullabaloo in Newport News in Denbigh. Loved them!
My grandparents lived across Denbigh Blvd. from Hullabaloo on Pocahontas. The MC5 played Hullabaloo in 1970. Newport News was a magical place back then!! It’s nothing like it used to be, as with most things in the modern era. Miss it terribly…
I saw them at The Happening Norview in 1968 what happened to Bill Roberts ? He was the outlier Aragona kid.Nice guy .
In 68 they played the Lighthouse in Hampton. My brother was there and as they were leaving he noticed a bud had a tambourine.
“You steal that off the stage from Denis?”
“Yep”
Being the bully he was? He took it.
After he died in 98, I took possession and used it on stage with Archer’s Meadow.
Through the magic of the interwebs I made contact with Guy and 3 months later he played Williamsburg.
I was able to give it to him so he could return it to Denis in Pennsylvania.
Cycle complete. Good deed done.
Hello, I bought their house on Waylon Ave in 1998 with my wife. We heard many stories of them and their band. One of the sons stopped by while I was adding our addition and I gave him a tour of the house 12 years ago. I even spoke to their dad, Don when we found an envelope when we were first remodeling the house in 1998. Does anyone have any pictures of them at the house from when they lived here? I also heard that the house was featured in Better Homes and Gardens back in the 60’s