The Hazards “Hey Joe”, Groove 45-502Here’s one of the all-time great versions of “Hey Joe”, cut by a group of high-schoolers in Richmond, Virginia.
Band members were Andy Hrabovsky vocals, Sonny Salisbury lead guitar, Alan Sidenburg guitar, Greg Ellison bass, Stanley Bernstein organ, and David Moore on drums.
Andy Hrabovsky added some specifics about the band members in a comment below:
David Moore and Stanley Bernstein went to Thomas Jefferson High, Greg Ellison and Alan Sidenburg went to Douglas Freeman, and Sonny Salsbury and myself went to John Randolph Tucker High.
Stanley left the band not long after the release of “Hey Joe”, and was replaced by Steve Bassett from Freeman, who has gone on to some degree of notoriety. He and Robbin Thompson [of the Tasmanians] did “Sweet Virginia Breeze”.
Sonny Salisbury really distinguishes their take on “Hey Joe” by alternating staccato picking high up on the frets with fuzz riffs on the bass strings. Hrabovsky delivers some of the best shouting on vinyl and the rest of the band is solid as well.
The flip is the milder “Will You Be My Girl” by Stan Bernstein and Andy Hrabovsky. The record was produced by Martin Gary.
My copy seems to be from a radio station, dated June of ’67, and though both sides have “keep in regular play” written on them, “Hey Joe” is also marked to be played only after 6 PM!
The Groove label was owned by Marty Gary. Radio play on local WLEE led to a second pressing on a blue label. I’ve seen the band referred to as the Hazzards, with two ‘z’s, but on the label it’s just Hazards.
l-r: Tom Minga, Dale Roark, Ronny Williamson, Ron Gorden and Bennie Kisner.
The Escapades were among the dozens of working teen bands in Memphis in the mid-’60s. Vocalist Tommy Minga had been part of the Jesters, who cut “Cadillac Man” for Sun Records. Though Minga was the primary songwriter for the Jesters and is given songwriting credit for “Cadillac Man”, the song was actually written by Jesters guitarist Teddy Paige. Paige disliked Minga’s vocal arrangement on an early take of the song and forced Minga out of the band soon after the session. Jim Dickinson was brought in to play piano and sing on the released version.
Within a couple months of leaving the Jesters in late 1965, Minga formed a new version of the Escapades with Bennie Kisner guitar, Ron Gorden keyboards, Dale Roark (not Rourke as has been listed before) bass and Ronny Williamson drums.
They released their first 45, “I Tell No Lies”, on the local Arbet label in January of 1966. The band moves seamlessly from verse to chorus, with swirling organ playing from Gorden and solid bass playing from Roark propelling the rhythm for Tom Minga’s strong vocal. Bennie Kisner provides a neat sitar-like solo on his Rickenbacker.
“She’s the Kind” is a little slower in tempo, and reminds me of the Zombies, Minga at times sounding very much like Colin Blunstone. Ronnie Gorden and Ron Williamson wrote “I Tell No Lies”, while Minga, Gorden and Roark wrote “She’s the Kind”.
This record was picked up by the XL label, but it’s unfortunate that Verve didn’t re-release it when they signed the band soon after its release, as “I Tell No Lies” should have had some chance at chart action.
Despite Kisner’s hard riffing fuzz sound, their second 45 doesn’t quite capture the magic of the first. Released on Verve in May of 1966, it failed to ignite the charts and the band was dropped.
The flip, “I Try So Hard” may be the band’s most ordinary composition, but Bennie Kisner’s interesting guitar picking is a highlight, and sounds great with headphones. Both sides are credited to the entire band, and produced by Stan Kesler.
The draft broke up the group in 1967. Ron Gorden joined the Bar-Kays and later worked as an artist for Stax.
Keyboard player Ron Gorden contacted me with the photos you see here and his story about the band:
Our first release “I Tell No Lies” was on a small independent label in Memphis. As it had success regionally, we were signed by Verve Records, a subsidiary of MGM Records, through Phillips Recording Studio (Sam Phillips of Sun Records/Elvis, Jerry Lee, etc. fame) with Stan Kessler producing us. For some reason the decision was made to not release I Tell No Lies nationally on Verve, but to record another song. So “Mad, Mad, Mad” was the result. I agree with you that it is unfortunate that “I Tell No Lies” did not have a chance to go further. I see it sell on E-Bay these days for as much as $350 for a 45rpm. I wish I had stashed a case of them!
The band wasn’t actually dropped by the label. We split up due to the draft, as you said on your site. Williamson, Roark, and Minga all entered the service. I continued in music for several years, ending with the Bar-Kays (1968-1970) before going to work for Stax Records where I eventually became Advertising Manager. During my tenure there, I was directly responsible for coordinating the development of more than 130 album covers and the trade and consumer advertising that accompanied those products. We did great work and won numerous awards including a “Grammy Award” nomination for package design (“Isaac Hayes Live at Sahara Tahoe”).
Benny Kisner died sometime in the late Seventies. Tom Minga died in approximately 2000. Williamson now lives in North Mississippi and does not play drums anymore. I am in Northwest Arkansas, where I own an insurance agency. I do not play professionally any more, but sometimes play in church.
Thank you to Ron Gorden for the photos and story on the band. The Ace/Big Beat CD Cadillac Men: the Sun Masters includes Minga’s vocal take of the Jesters’ “Cadillac Man” along with some great Minga originals and an unreleased Escapades track, “What You Know About Love”. I highly recommended it.
Caesar & His Romans, from left: Dan Cook, Bill Burt, Chuck Vicario (seated), David Burt and Karl Durant.
Caeser & His Romans were from Buffalo, recording two 45s on the GJM label in late ’67 and 1968 before signing to Scepter for two more singles. I hadn’t been able to find much about the group but some emails and comments have helped.
Vocalist Chuck Vicario stayed with the group throughout its career. Bassist John Sia co-founded the band with Chuck in 1964, and left for college in ’67. Joe Hesse replaced John and then Vinny Parker replaced Hesse. Joe DeSantis was the original drummer with the group. Other members of the group included Joe Hesse’s brother Jim Hesse on keyboards, Bill Burt and David Burt, and Dan Cook on lead guitar.
Both songs on their first 45 were written by Charles Vicario and J. Hesse, recording supervised by Jerry Meyers and Rich Sargent.
Rich Sargent wrote to me about his work with the band:
Jerry owned GJM Records, I worked for him, we used a few different studios. I produced “Leavin’ My Past Behind” at Audio Recording in Cleveland, the same studio wher Jerry produced the Joe Jeffries gold single “My Pledge Of Love” … great studio in downtown Cleveland. I am a long time friend of Chuck (Caesar/Big Wheelie) and his late manager Fred Caserta. We met in ’64 … my band and Chucks finished 1 & 2 in a number of “battle of the bands” back then.
I haven’t heard “When Will I Get Over You” in about 15 years… my favorite may have been “Leavin’ My Past Behind” (sure wish I could remix it) and “Baby Let’s Wait”. That one came close to breaking, but the Royal Guardsmen put out a version and we were done.
There was a core of players that was consistent but also a number who left, came back, left again. Dan Cook was the guitar player through all of the incarnations of Caesar and Big Wheelie. The keyboard player on “Green Grass…” was Jimmy Hesse who left to join The Road and was part of that band when they had a mid chart dingle on Kama Sutra with a cover of the Zombies “She’s Not There” which was produced by Joey Reynolds (now doing late night talk radio on WOR 710 NYC and also carried on over 200 stations).
Caesar & His Romans became Caesar & THE Romans, [then] evolved into Friendship Train which was a successful club & lounge act. During one set each night as part of the act they became Big Wheelie & The Hubcaps. This became so successful that Friendship Train was dropped in favor of a full night of Big Wheelie. Their final album was released on Amherst Records in 1976. Chuck stlll performs as Big Wheelie about 10-12 times per year. He was brilliantly managed by the late Fred Caserta who went on to found Kingdom Bound which is one of the largest concert events in the Christian Music field.
“Green Grass Makes It Better” is one of their catchiest numbers, and sure seems like a drug reference to me: the world is “going psycho” but “good green grass makes it better.” “Why Make a Fool of Me” on the flip is denser but excellent as well.
Their second record is one I haven’t yet heard, “Baby, Let’s Wait”, backed by the great “Black Lantern”, a bass-driven lament written by Vicario and Hesse. The A-side has the credit “Arr. by Beaver”, while the flip says “Arr. by Breezy” and “(from the movie ‘The Atomic Grandmother’)” – a real production or another joke?
Instead of publishing through GJM Music like the first single, Darshen Music published “Black Lantern”.
Moving towards a much more commercial direction, they signed to Scepter Records as Caesar and the Romans, releasing two 45s in 1969, both minor hits in the Buffalo area. “Baby Love” uses some fuzz guitar and heavy beats on the Supremes song, but I prefer the upbeat flip, “When Will I Get Over You”, written by C. Vicario, Jr.
The A-side of their next Scepter 45, “Leavin’ My Past Behind” / “Jailhouse Rock” continues their pop sound. Mike Dugo sent me photos of two more Scepter recordings by the band, “Come Little Girl” and “Come Live With Me” that were never released to my knowledge. Both are funky soul numbers.
Thank you to Diane Burt for the photo of the group at top and additional info, to Mike Dugo for the Scepter acetate photos, the promotional flyers and ads, and to Ryan Lalande for the scan of “Black Lantern”. Thank you to Mary Durant for help with identifying Karl in the photo; Karl Durant played drums with the group.
I wrote about the Impression label back in 2006, but at the time I didn’t know the full story behind the Intercoms record, and had not yet heard the Mark Five or C-Minors 45s. As it turns out, the Mark V of Redlands, California was responsible for all three of these releases, and a few members also backed Jimmy Robins (aka Jimmy Robbins) on his soul classic, “I Just Can’t Please You”.
The Intercoms’ “Unabridged, Unadulterated, Unextraordinary, Ordinary, Mediocre Unoriginality Blues” (Impression 107) is a cynical parody of protest songs, and one of my favorite Dylan send-ups. Opening verse: “Well I sit right down to write myself a protest song/and I try to think about something particularly wrong/but I couldn’t think of nothing that hadn’t already been said/ I couldn’t get the Siamese cats out of my head.” It was written by Danny Faragher of the Mark Five and M. Fouch. The flipside, Please Try And Understand was written by Dave Kelliher.
I asked guitarist and vocalist Dave Roberts (Dave Kelliher) of the Mark V about the band:
The Mark V (Redlands, CA) was basically a dance combo (piano, drums, bass, trombone, sax, and trumpet) but we dabbled in guitars, harmonicas, and tambourines. The Mark V band members were:
Brad Madson (piano) Steve Hauser (sax, clarinet, flute, vocals) Dick Owens (drums) Danny Faragher (trombone, harmonica, vocals) Jimmy Faragher (bass, guitar, vocals) Dave Kelliher (aka Dave Roberts) (trumpet, guitar, vocals)
We had recorded an instrumental at Universal Studios at 5539 Sunset Blvd. in 1964. Instrumentals (particularly surf tunes) were hot. But also you had songs like Wonderland By Night, Midnight in Moscow, The Lonely Bull, The Theme from Mondo Cane, and all of that Al Hirt and Tijuana Brass stuff on the charts in the early 60’s (a lot of trumpet solos there…). Also, novelty songs were big (“No Matter What Shape Your Stomach’s In” from the Alka Seltzer commercial).
Well, there was a fairly new corn chip on the market called Wampums so…we came up with this little gem on our own…and believe or not, it was a big hit at dances and proms…girls in huge prom dresses, dancing like Indians and doin’ the Wampum battle cry…it wasn’t pretty. And Steve Hauser was one helluva saxophonist, as you can hear. Steve, by the way, was the leader of the band and probably has more (and perhaps more accurate) accounts of all of this.
We went back a year later to get our masters but Universal was out of business, replaced by Impression Records. We had some other demos we were shopping around on our own–recorded at Wm. Locy Sound Studio in Riverside, CA. in 1964. No producer, just us and whatever studio time a hundred bucks would buy.
Now, to my ear, it’s got more “soul” to it [than the remake on Impression], as rough as it is. Brad Madson’s piano work is really featured here, with a kind of haunting Gerry & The Pacemakers sound. (Okay, and I like my trumpet solo better.)
We were greeted by Sonny and Al Jones who want to hear our stuff. In no time we signed with Impression and cranked out a couple of things under Mark V, the one record as Intercoms, and another under the C-Minors. But it was the same six guys. It was heady…I was the youngest at 15 and the oldest was 17. Al and Sonny were country guys…Dorsey Burnette used to hang around there all the time.
Al and Sonny needed something quick and probably had a narrow window in which to work with John Fisher, who was riding high with “Suspicion” by Terry Stafford. (Fisher loved to tell the story of how they got that strange sound in “Suspicion” …they put a paper bag over a the organ’s Leslie speaker.) And you can’t underestimate how the British Invasion really fired up the band scene in L.A.
So, they threw all against the wall to see what would stick. We did hear “I’m Through With You” on local radio (KMEN, San Bernardino; KASK, Pomona) and it apparently got a little action in various small markets around the country. I don’t think the other stuff modulated many transmitters out there. They all came out at the same time.
By the way, we hated those other names but we figured they knew what they were doing.
The Mark Five’s first Impression release [is] “I’m Through With You”. They brought in a session guitarist for this and it was either James Burton or Jerry McGee. Both were on one of our recordings and I’m pretty sure it was the former. You could probably tell by listening…at 15 I had no idea I was in the presence of a phenom. Even though I didn’t get to play guitar on it, that is me on the trumpet.
The flip side – “I’ll Keep On Trying”. Again, I’m pretty sure this is Jerry McGee on guitar (think Rita Coolidge riffs). By the way, both were produced by Al Jones, Sonny Jones, and John Fisher.
A Mark Five record released as the C-Minors – “Just A Little Feeling,” / “Don’t Go” Impression 106. That is me on guitar and of course, trumpet, back up vocals, nail biting, etc.
The Intercoms
I wrote “Please Try and Understand” (okay, so my English was bad…not as bad as my singing or guitar work for that matter), the song on the flip side of “Unabridged, un…” I also sing lead and lead guitar. I owned only one copy of it (I was 17) and it warped (and subsequently cracked) in my car trunk.
Three of us did play on “I Just Can’t Please You” by Jimmy Robins: Dick Owens (drums), Danny Faragher (trombone), Dave Kelliher (trumpet). Jimmy Robins is on keyboards and that string-stretching is Sonny Jones on guitar. It was originally on the Impression label.
We left Impression in 1966 to be managed by Dan Dalton (Back Porch Majority). He changed our name to Peppermint Trolley Company (did somebody say 1910 Fruitgum Company?), got us a gig at Disneyland, put us in red-striped pants, blue blazers, and red ties.
“About a month into our new name on a big photo shoot at Knott’s Berry Farm. These handsome lads are (l-r): Danny Faragher, Dave Kelliher (Roberts), Brad Madson, Dick Owens, Jimmy Faragher, Steve Hauser.”
We signed with Valiant, recorded at Moonglow studios, and did get some serious airplay with “Lollipop Train” (P.F. Sloan/Steve Barri; Grassroots had done it on one of their albums) in September of 1966.
“Bored to Tears” – written and sung by Jimmy Faragher; we got the chance to go back to our Dixieland roots. It actually had some relevancy given the popularity of “Flowers on the Wall” by the Statler Brothers about a year before. Buzz Clifford (“Baby Sittin’ Boogie” from the early 60’s) also released this song in about 1967 (he was a Dan Dalton act). We were wildly received with songs like this at Disneyland…a Mickey Mouse gig, but it was Union scale.
Back to “Lollipop Train” … Dan couldn’t get the kick drum sound he wanted at the beginning of each verse so Dick Ownes (drummer) overdubbed the beating of the kick drum case with a tympani stick.
Considering that this was just months after the stuff we recorded at Impression, I think this really does speak to Dan Dalton’s talents as a producer. Valiant Records’ biggest star was The Association, they played right behind us — literally across the alley — at Disneyland that year. We were in the Carnation Pavilion and they were starring in the Pepsi Theatre in FrontierLand.
We disbanded in early 1967. Our break-up was very gentlemanly. We had been playing together since the 8th grade and now we were freshmen and sophomores in college…all at different colleges. We all needed to stay in college or be drafted. Lollipop Train didn’t “pop” (Valiant was purchased by Warner Bros. and phased out; they really only wanted the Association).
I was the one who started it, leaving the band to go off to be a disc jockey. The others decided that their interests, strengths, and weaknesses all differed and they decided to disband. As noted earlier, Danny and Jimmy Faragher took the Peppermint Trolley Company forward with a lot more fame with two other guys we all knew from Junior High/High School. Both good guys and very talented. Danny & Jimmy then formed the Faragher Brothers with two other family members. Very talented family … little brother Davey Faragher is bassist for Elvis Costello.
Now, as I understand it, but grist for revision: Steve actually worked the rest of his way through college and law school playing with bands in Vegas. Brad graduated from the prestigious University of North Dallas School of Music and is a professor of music (jazz) at Jefferson College in Jefferson, MO. Dick went on to become an executive at Broadway Department Stores. I stayed in radio, earned a PhD in Communication, was a VP at RKO Networks and CBS Radio, and became a research consultant. I still have a guitar, drums, trumpet, and my voiceover studio (and this big smash hit in my own mind and about 15,000 “internet hits”: “Armadillos In Mourning” (A parody of Amarillo By Morning by George Strait, written by Terry Stafford).
It’s hard to believe that 40 years later it is this much fun!
– Dave Roberts, February 2008
In August of 2009 Danny Faragher wrote to Garage Hangover:
Here’s a bit more information concerning my song, “The Unabridged, Unadulterated….Unoriginality Blues”. We had recorded “I’m Through With You” / “I’ll Keep On Trying” in August of 1965. In September, I started attending San Bernardino Valley College as a music major (one of my classmates was Jimmy Webb). It was hard for me to focus on my studies. All I could think about was making rock and roll records. A couple of weeks into school, I sat down at the piano in the commons, and performed Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone” to a packed room of lunch eaters. I sang every verse with all the inflections, and got a rousing applause, which of course I dug completely. In fact, I wanted more, and I wanted it SOON!
A couple nights later I got the idea for a song which would kind of riff off the “Dylan protest thing”. My good friend Michael Fouch sat next to me as I composed the tune, acting as a sounding board and cheering squad (I don’t think I’d have written it without his being there. Hence the writer credit). The next day I performed the song for the lunchtime crowd. Of course, as people didn’t know the tune, they didn’t respond with the same enthusiasm, but a lot of the students dug it. At the next band rehearsal, we worked it up. In February of 1966, I believe, we recorded it for Impression. Incidentally, I have just recently reconnected with Michael after thirty plus years.
My brother, Jimmy, and I are going to attend a reunion party for the Inland Empire bands of the Sixties on August 29th. It should be interesting.
The six Impression sides have now been included as bonus tracks on the CD reissue of the Peppermint Trolley Company’s 1968 album, entitled “Beautiful Sun”. The CD is selling well.
I have a website up (www.dannyfaragher.com) up with bios of all the bands I was in, including the Mark Five. The bio fleshes out the story even more.
Special thanks to Dave Roberts for his history of the band and audio of their demos. Dave has his own voiceover business, www.DaveRobertsVoiceover.com. Also thanks to Danny Faragher for adding more to the story – check out his site, www.dannyfaragher.com/markv as there’s a lot more information there.
The Ruins, 1968, l to r: Paul Turchetta, Paul Ferda, John Menadrysa on drums, and Dennis Girard.Tim Phillips, 1952 -2008
The Ruins were from Lincoln Park, Michigan, with only this one excellent 45 as their legacy. “The End” is an original song written by singer and guitarist Dennis Girard. “Take My Love (And Shove It Up Your Heart)” is a good cover of the Blues Magoos song.
What follows is Dennis Girard’s account of the Ruins, in his own words:
I come from a musical family (both parents had been involved with music and performed on local radio in Detroit, my father was a professional piano player), so it was natural to grab an instrument. The Beatles appearance on Ed Sullivan created my interest like many Americans in the guitar. My uncle was a professional guitar player and helped in selecting my first instrument.It was early 1965 when my cousin Tim Phillips was playing drums. His neighbor across the street was Randy McMillan and he played guitar. So the band started and we called ourselves the “Mysterions.”
We were fortunate to have Tim’s older brother Harry Phillips enter the scene. Harry was a few years older (we were only 13 years of age) and played with some of the bigger names in the Detroit music scene (Mitch Ryder and Catfish Hodge to name a few). He played the Hammond B3, and offered advice as we practiced.
The Ruins went through several changes in personnel. What is amazing is that these changes were never as a result of any disagreement or argument. It was a family in the true sense of the word, perhaps because it started out with cousins and close friends.
Early in 1966 the name of the group became a problem. Question Mark and the Mysterians had the hit 96 tears, there was confusion when we played out. I came up with the name, “The Ruins.” I had found a reference to the name in a Beatle tune (Think For Yourself).
We needed a bass player, Paul Ferda was a friend from junior high school and he had a bass guitar. 1966, The Ruins are created including the following members:
Dennis Girard – lead singer and rhythm guitar Tim Phillips – drums and backup vocals. Randy McMillan – lead guitar and backup vocals. Paul Ferda – bass guitar and backup vocals.
clockwise from left: Dennis Girard, Paul Ferda, Randy McMillan, and seated Tim Phillips
We played top forty tunes and were influenced by the Beatles, The English Invasion and the Motown sound of the Detroit Music scene. Our early outfits included Beatle collarless jackets and bright blue Nehru jackets. Our parents forked out the money for some big time equipment. At the time we made around $75.00 to a $100.00 dollars a night. This was immediately given to our parents to help defray the cost of more guitars, amps, and PA equipment. We were one of the few groups in Detroit to have not one, but four Vox Beatle amps. The group was enjoying popularity and playing every weekend. We hit the teen clubs (Chatter-Box, By-Pass, Hullabaloo, and the Club in Monroe Michigan) and local high schools.
In 1965 I had written a song called, “The End.” I was thirteen when I wrote it. We started including the song in our live performances. It was sometime in 1966 that we made contact with Mutt Records. As I recall Randy’s father had taken over the role of manager, and he put us in touch with Nate Dore. Nate Dore was the owner of Mutt Records located at 27316 Michigan Avenue in Inkster, Michigan (the studio was only 15 miles west of Detroit). Nate was a bondsman and the studio was located in the rear of this business. His sound engineer was Bill Williams.
From the beginning we were treated like family. Nate and the rest of the staff were African American and we were called, “the blue eyed soul boys.” Nate never charged us for studio time. He was convinced that The Ruins would allow him to break into the new sound that was being influenced by the English Invasion.
We signed a contract with Mutt records (well it was our parents who signed) and began to spend nights after school working on the two songs for the 45 record. My cousin Harry Phillips added the Hammond B3 and helped with arrangements for both songs. Harry because of other musical commitments, only performed a few times with the group. It was around this time I added a Farfisa organ to my instruments. Even with hours of practice, I never came close to the sound and skills of Harry. The record did not sell very well because of distribution problems or lack of. Nate Dore did stick with the group till the end.
Dennis Girard – a late night at Mutt RecordsJohn Menadrysa
1968: I cannot recall the exact details of why Tim Phillips left the band. I know he had a steady girlfriend (Jackie would become his wife) and started working with his brother Harry and Randy McMillan on another musical project. There was no argument or hard feelings.
Now Paul Ferda and myself set about trying to save The Ruins. It was in 1968 that Ann Marston approached me about helping to form a new band. Because of our record and local success, Ann wanted to manage the band. Again there were high hopes and dreams. Ann Marston was a well known band promoter at this time (you can read about her life in the book, “Shooting Star” by Alana Paluszewski). She introduced John Menadrysa as the bands new drummer.
There was a lot of competition during those years between bands. For the most part it was not malicious, it often was over your equipment status. Things were often territorial in those years. You had the East Siders (east side of Detroit), Ann Arbor bands, and the Downriver Groups. We were in the later. Downriver included the middle class blue collar suburbs located south of Detroit and near the Detroit River. These groups were often called, “The Downriver Rats.”
There was a unofficial tier system for groups. The highest tier would have had bands like Bob Seger, MC5, Stooges, Scott Richard Case (SRC), Mitch Ryder and the Rationals as examples. These guys played The Grande Ballroom and often left the state to perform.
We made it into the second tier. These groups would often open for the above listed and had a 45 record released. I would include The Unrelated Segments, The Satellites, and of course ourselves as examples. The third tier was made up of groups that had no management and often poor equipment. They were lucky to grab a high school dance.
What hindered our group was the fact that we were so young. We had to have our parents drive us to many gigs. That was the beauty of having Ann Marston take over. Ann would pull a rented trailer around with her 1965 Plymouth Fury.
When a second tier group opened for on of the main acts, there was not much contact. The big groups had their roadies and stuck to themselves for the most part. The one exception I can remember was Scott Richardson (SRC). We opened for them at a gig on their side of town (St Clair Shores). Scott offered his PA (which even had a guy mixing and was huge compared to ours) to our group. He went out of his way to make us feel relaxed, even inviting us to a party in Ann Arbor after the gig (all the parents present vetoed that invite).
The Ruins, 1968: l-r: Paul Turchetta, Paul Ferda, Dennis Girard, John Menadrysa
Again there was a good chemistry and now we searched for a lead guitar replacement for Randy. Ann brought Paul Turchetta to my basement for an audition. Paul was the first and only lead guitar player to try out. The three of us (Paul Ferda, John Menadrysa, and myself) knew after the first song that Paul Turchetta was the one. I had never seen anyone fit into a group as fast as Paul Turchetta. The group began to practice and within a week started playing clubs.
Paul Turchetta: “Would you believe I still have the Epiphone Riviera and the Sunn amp and the jacket. Dennis’s mom made us those.”
The Ruins were once again together, and working closely with Ann Marston and Nate Dore. But more changes waited around the corner.
Paul Turchetta after only eleven months announced that his family was moving to Arizona. The band was devastated. Ann wanted Paul to stay behind and offered to have him live with her parents. Paul’s parents were not fond of this idea (he was only 16). The group almost broke up, but Ann and Nate convinced us to stick it out. As I stated before, The Ruins were an extended family, and one phone call to Randy McMillan found him back in the group.
By late 1968 The Ruins were Dennis Girard, Paul Ferda, Randy McMillan, and John Menadrysa.
The Ruins with their manager Ann MarstonOn the Robin Seymour TV Show, l-r: John Menadrysa, Vic Grasso, Randy McMillan, Dennis Girard
In September, 1968 found the group again playing gigs and Ann Marston got what we hoped would be our big break. We were scheduled to perform our two songs (The End and Take my Love) on the popular television show, “Swingin Time” with Robin Seymour. Robin Seymour could make or break any group in the Detroit area.
The Ruins with Robin Seymour
This was our big chance, but another change was about to take place. Paul Ferda decided he wanted to quit music and take a real job. On the eve of appearing on Swingin Time, we found ourselves without a bass player. A good friend of mine from high school Vic Grasso appeared with the group on The Robin Seymour Television Show (broadcast from Windsor Canada).
Ann Marston quickly brought in Mike Monday as the permanent replacement for Paul Ferda. The one photo of me in the studio was taken when the final version of the Ruins went back to record a follow up record (late 1968). In the studio at this time was Randy McMillan, John Menadrysa, Mike Monday and myself. It’s a shame but several tracks were recorded of new songs, but I have no idea where they are.
The final version of the Ruins, l-r: Randy McMillan, Dennis Girard, John Menadrysa and Mike Monday
Again this version of The Ruins enjoyed success and began playing some major venues. A quick story: the night we played in Southgate Michigan with Teegarden and Van Winkle their song “God, Love and Rock & Roll” was big on the charts. the place was packed but they arrived with no equipment. Their trailer had been impounded by a local police department for improper plates.
They were not “hip” on using our equipment (they needed a Hammond B3, my small Farfisa was not a match). Enter Nate Dore the bail-bondsman. Nate was able to drive to the police department and get all of their equipment released in time for the show. We did a longer opening set and the show was a success.
Ann Marston was beginning to become upset with the many changes that The Ruins were going through. She began working with other bands. Randy’s father again stepped in and started booking the band. The Vietnam war would bring “The End” to the Ruins. John Menadrysa found himself drafted into the Marines. After the many changes and loss of Ann Marston, the group disbanded. The magic of the Ruins had ended. It had been an amazing experience with great memories and many friendships that would last a lifetime.
In 1969 Randy McMillan and myself entered the studio again with a band called “NRG” or “ENERGY.” The group lasted only a few months. I can only recall the first names of the bass player (Frank) and the drummer (Tom). We did record an album under that band name. None of this material was ever released. I exited the band scene as a full time musician in 1970.
I still talk daily with Paul Turchetta and have visited him in Arizona many times. Paul owns Cave Creek Guitar has provided me with many guitars and advice. The one member who continued in music full time was Harry Phillips. He played with Mitch Ryder, John Cougar and did studio work with the Rolling Stones.
– Dennis Girard, Feb. 2008
The Ruins single was released on Mutt Records M 27319, mastered at Nashville Matrix and pressed at Archer in Detroit in 1967. Mutt Records owner Nate Dore usually copyrighted original songs with his Mutt Music publishing, but I can’t find an entry for “The End”.
Thank you to Paul Turchetta and Dennis Girard for their help with this article and use of their photos.
The 40 Fingers began playing in the middle sixties in Springfield, New Jersey. The original group consisted of Teddy O’Connell, lead vocals and keyboard, Bruce Colandrea, lead and background vocals, lead and rhythm guitar, Bruce Gerstein (officially called the Slug), bass guitar, and background vocals, and Wayne Massiello, drums and background vocals.
The 40 Fingers appeared on such TV shows such as Clay Cole, and Zacherley, along with appearing [billed as the Forty Fingers] at Summit High School with Lou Reed’s Velvet Underground and the Myddle Class.
On or around 1968, the group decided to add high school friend Al Fridkis on B3 Hammond organ, and have Ted O’Connell on stand up vocals. Al does not appear on this 45 for the Venture label. The single has the 40 Fingers version of the Myddle Class and Blues Project’s “Don’t Let Me Sleep Too Long”. The flip “Low Sunday” has a “Stormy Monday” kind of thing Bruce put lyrics to.
Thanks to Arnold for sending in the sound clips, scans and history of the band, co-written with Lenny.
This is a classic garage LP, even though it’s a real mixed-bag of styles and quality. All the bands culled from Westchester County and the northern Bronx. Judging from the songs the bands cover it probably dates to sometime in 1967. A note on the back cover says the label auditioned over 100 groups. Jimmy Carpenito of the Mystics tells me Renvell’s studio was next to Gun Town on Central Ave in White Plains.
I thought it was likely Ren-Vell advertised for bands then asked them to put up some dollars to get their cut on the album. However, since first posting about this record, a sibling of one of the members of “The” wrote to me: “there definitely was a Battle of the Bands in Westchester County to compete for participation in the album. The guys didn’t pay to have their song on the album.”
The best original song on the record is undoubtedly the Traits’ “High on a Cloud”, an antisocial ode to chemical escape written by their singer, Mike Carroll.
The Traits on the Ted Mack Amateur Hour
I got a nickel bag, my eyes are drooping, they’re starting to sag Since you left me girl, well I think that life is a drag I’ll show you girl that you can’t keep on running around Because I’m high on a cloud and I ain’t never coming down
Well you left me girl, with two feet down on the ground I’ll show you girl that you can’t keep on running around I’ll get me a bag and I’ll show you just what I can do I’ll get so high I’ll wave goodbye to you
Cause I’m high on a cloud, high on a cloud, High on a cloud, and I ain’t comin’ down no more
With lyrics like those, it would be no wonder that Ren Vell buried it at the end of the second side, but the band said they chose to be last on the album. I wonder how many listeners made it all the way through the LP! About the time this album was cut, the Traits appeared on Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour (taped at CBS studios on Broadway – sponsored by Geritol!) doing Paul Revere & the Raiders’ “Just Like Me”. Mack introduces them as “high school students and a machinist from Pelham, NY!” In 1969, they recorded “Nobody Loves the Hulk”, an interesting attempt to capitalize on the Marvel Comics hero that I’ll feature soon.
The other great original is the Henchmen’s “Say,” written by their guitarist and vocalist John Wallin. The drummer bashes away behind a leaden fuzz riff, segueing to a relatively complex bridge. Andy Porter lays down a good, crude solo, with nice tremolo at the end.
The Henchmen also cut a number of demos at Bruno-Dean Recording Studios in New Rochelle and at United Recording including “Strangers”, “Jack of All Trades”, “Walk With Me Baby”, “Sad Clown” and “Stepping Stone”. Hear some of these on the new comp “I’ve Had Enough!” on Norton.
Of the cover songs, my favorite is “Respect” by “The”, followed by the Gyration’s take on “Stepping Stone” and the Night Rider’s version of “Jenny Take a Ride”.
Raunch’s version of “Hungry” is good, but my copy has a skip in it. Their bassist Frank Taxiera told me, “Joe Renda asked us to submit a song from about fifteen that we recorded at his studio between ’66 and ’67.” I’ve since posted more on Raunch here.
As for the rest, there are a couple light pop numbers, like “Lolly Pop Train” by the Mystics and “The Glass Toy” by the Reptiles, but they’re not bad. The most out of touch with the times is “Angel Baby” by the Vectors of the Bronx, where Carol Pecchio’s fine vocal performance is buried in echo behind the drums and bass. Some of the covers are unremarkable, but the Orphans out-of-tune vocals on the Byrds’ “Feel a Whole Lot Better” dooms that cut despite good instrumental playing.
I spent far too much time typing out the credits in the interests of ah, history. What follows is a complete list of songs and band members on the album, and links to a few of the better songs.
A1. Hungry – Raunch, from Ossining and Briarcliff Manor
Sandy Katz – rhythm guitar & vocal Jay Manning – lead guitar Frank Taxiera – bass Tom Walker – drums
A2. Jenny Take a Ride – The Night Riders, Portchester
Henry Lopez – lead guitar Cheno Lopez – guitar Dominick Gabrieli – rhythm guitar Tony Ojeda – bass Mike Lopez – drums
A3. Angel Baby – The Vectors, Bronx
Louie Glattino – drums Ronnie Salotto – organ Doug LoPresti guitar Charlie Pecchio – guitar Carol Pecchio – vocal
A4. Out of Sight – The Night Crawlers, White Plains
Geof. Greenburg – drums Bob Bloomfield – guitar & vocal Gary Kemp – guitar Rodge Altman – bass Otis Moore – vocals
A5. The Glass Toy – The Reptiles, Ossining
Mark Worthy – guitar & vocal Ron Macera – drums Paul Slavin – bass Steve Worthy – guitar & vocal
A6. Say – The Henchmen, Pleasantville
Ray Greene – organ Jimmy Porter – drums Mark Zvonkovic – bass Andy Porter – guitar John Wallin – guitar, vocal
B1. (I’m Not Your) Stepping Stone – The Gyrations, Yonkers
John Soares, 3rd. – guitar, vocal Ronnie Christmann – bass John Karlsson – guitar Nick Vitulli – organ Robert Karlsson – drums
B2. Lolly Pop Train – Tne Mystics, Valhalla or White Plains
Jimmy Carpenito – vocal & guitar Charlie Sinerate – guitar Dan Liberati – bass Mike Mruz – drums Bob Fresta – organ
B3. Didn’t Want to Have to Do It – The Hangmen, Eastchester
Joe Montclare – vocals Art Sammartino – Cordavox Jim Miranti – drums, John Bruno – bass Joe Manganiello – guitar
B4. Respect – “The”, Yonkers
Richard Kudelka – bass Sal Del Bene – drums Bill Connors – guitar Bob Kolachik – vocal & guitar Frank Longo – organ
B5. Feel a Whole Lot Better – The Orphans, White Plains
Vinny Leonardis – guitar & vocals Joe Gangemi – bass & vocal Mike Saland – guitar and vocal Ricky Pelpzman – drums
B6. High On A Cloud – The Traits, Pelham
Don Chicherchia – guitar (I believe Dom Chicerchia is correct) Bob Creaturo – guitar Mike Carrol – vocal Bobby Williams – drums Jim Klieforth – organ
Recording engineer: Ernie Rivellino A&R: Joe Renda Supervision: Pete Iarussi Renda-Rivell Studios 317 Central Ave, White Plains
There are also at least two singles on Ren-Vell, best of which may be the Mystics (covered here):
RV-318 The Sherwoods – Third Summer (That I Loved You) (by Joe Lanza) / Lonely for You, supervised by Ken Luttman.
RV-320 The Mystics – This Is What I Was Made For / Ride My Pony (Come) – not the Lee Dorsey song but an original by James Carpenito and B. Fresta
Updates:
Since writing this I’ve heard from Vinnie Leonardis of the Orphans:
I was the founder of the Orphans out of White Plains High School. We played school dances around 1965 tru 1967.
How did we get on the album? Joe Renda belonged to the same church. He had a band that played for one of the church dinner dances. They played for the older crowd. They let the Orphans get up a play a few songs for the teenagers. As I remember it about three seconds into the first song, the priest ran up to the stage waving his arms frantically to TURN THAT NOISE DOWN! Well, we got tru it. At the end of the night Joe told us about the album he was making and were we interested in being on it. Of course we gladly accepted. Thanks to father Julius for letting us finish the set.
Not sure how that song got picked for the album. We surely had better songs than that. And YES the vocals on our cut of the album were humorous.
There actually was a battle of the bands around the time that album was cut. I still have the third place plaque. I think Jimmie Carps Mystics took first place.
Unfortunately the other three members of the band have all passed on. I still have my 1964 Rickenbacker guitar that I use on gigs once in a while but nothing can replace the excitement of that era.
Doug LoPresti wrote to me with some info about the Vectors:
Although we were billed as being from the Bronx, I and three others were from Yonkers! And White Plains was part of the community of interest. I was guitar with Ron Salotto on keyboard for many years. We hooked up with Carol and Charlie and Louie later. We were a classic garage band … Louie’s basement! We called it the “Cellarino” Geez! I’m sorry we got such bad reviews for that recording! That version of “Angel Baby” was a huge hit wherever we played. It was Carol in person that made it so … without seeing her, it loses impact!
We continued through the 70’s as an active group, switched to the wedding scene as everyone did. By the 80s we all had kids and not enough time to continue. I reconnected with Carol about ten years ago, she’s in North Carolina now. I’m still friends with Ron (keyboard) but can’t find Louie. Actually there were many times when we couldn’t find him then either!
Thanks to Rockin’ Rex for info on the Ren-Vell 45s and Raunch single.
Joe Renda of Ren-Vell correction: Ernie Rivellino tells me this is not Joe Renda or Ren-Vell Studio
“Kaiser” Frank Maier – anyone have a photo of the entire group?
A young Ed McNamara learned to play guitar when his family moved to Holland for a time, having no American TV to distract him. After returning to New Orleans, in 1965 he and bassist John D’Antoni were playing a set of surf instrumentals at a sweet sixteen party when they met vocalist Steve Sklamba, lead guitarist Mike “Mange” Mangiapane and keyboard player Frank Maier. Together they formed the Avantis, soon finding Tommy Hartdegen to play drums.
Since Frank couldn’t play with the group full-time due to high school commitments, Ted Genter joined on Farfisa. The band started rehearsing at Ted’s house on Bonnabel Street. By December of ’65, Rickey Moore replaced Tommy Hartdegen on drums. Rickey had been with the Coachmen, who later became Yesterday’s Children.
Ed describes the Better Half dozen as “a horn band without the horns!” They played live shows all over the area, including frat parties and socials, but more usually at clubs, with regular gigs at the Beaconette and at Gerald’s Key Club on St. Charles. Known for playing at extremely loud volumes, they inspired a dedicated following.
The band would buy instruments on layaway from Tippett’s Music, which allowed the band to take the instruments for the weekend, but they had to return them the following Monday until their balance was paid off. Ed played a Gibson ES 335, with Fender Dual 12″ Twin Reverb and Dual Showman amps.
Required to join the musicians’ union, one rule was ten union members had to be employed when playing the ballrooms in the big hotels. For rock bands without horn sections this was an antiquated regulation dating back to a time before amplified music. To skirt the rule, any band without a gig on a particular night would have some of its members attend another group’s live show. If a union rep showed up there’d be ten guys there able to present union cards.
Another way to make up the union numbers was to hire a second band to play during the headliner’s breaks. The Basement Wall (who Steve Sklamba considered to be one of the best groups in Louisiana at the time) hired the Better Half Dozen to play the breaks at a formal; the Better Half took the opportunity to steal the show! Ed remembers Barrie Edgar of the Basement Wall coming up to congratulate them afterwards.
In August of 1966 they met Steve Montagnet, a law student who was promoting live shows under the name Splendor Enterprises. The band had changed their name to the Forces of Evil early on, but at this point were still called the Avantis, a name out of touch with the times. According to Ed, Steve came up with the name the Better Half Dozen.
The band recorded four songs at Cosimo Matassa’s Camp Street studio, two originals that were part of their live set, and two covers. Steve Montagnet financed the session, and the group produced it with Cosimo engineering.
“I’m Gonna Leave You,” written by Steve Sklamba and Mike Mangiapane is an unrelenting two minutes of garage. “I Could Have Loved Her”, an original by Steve and Eddie, starts out slow before revving up, with fine harmonies over the driving rhythm.
The other two songs recorded at the session were covers of “Mister, You’re a Better Man Than I” and, interestingly, the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band’s “Transparent Day”, featuring the group’s harmonies. These were never released, though an acetate of the songs may exist.
The 45 was released on the U-Doe label, run by Frank Uddo, who wasn’t much older than the band. Ed estimates they pressed up maybe 500 copies, and for the most part gave them away. Except for a little play on WNOE the single received almost no radio exposure, though I’m Gonna Leave You was a popular song at their live shows.
Ted Genter played organ on the session, but eventually left the band and Frank Maier became the full-time keyboardist. In January of 1967, Rickey Moore left to join the Zoofs, recording a 45 produced by Allen Toussaint, “Get to Know Yourself” / “Not So Near”, both originals by Mike Presti. The Better Half Dozen found a new drummer, Jay Guernsbacker, but when the Zoofs fell apart soon after the single was released, they took Rickey back into the band.
In 1968 Steve Sklamba left the band during a set break. The remaining five continued as the Better Half, but pressures of work, military service and college eventually finished off the band. Mike Mangiapane and Rickey Moore went on to record with Bobby Fonseca of the Palace Guard.
When the Better Half Dozen reunited in 1991, hundreds of people showed up. There was talk of them reuniting again for a gig at Ponderosa Stomp, but that hasn’t happened yet.
I recommend checking out the excellent interviews with Rickey Moore, Frank Maier and Steve Sklamba. Additional sources include my interview with Ed McNamara from July, 2007. Photo of Frank Maier from Brown Paper Sack.
Mike Lewis and Craig Weidenheimer had been playing with a largely instrumental group at their high school in Monroeville, Alabama, a town about halfway between Mobile and Montgomery. Mike was lead guitarist and Craig played bass and sang. When the older members graduated, Mike and Craig brought in friends Lee Howington (keyboards), Jim Harper (rhythm guitar and sax), and Mike McMillon (drums) and started playing Beatles-influenced rock, first as Robin and His hoods and then as the Seeds of Time.
At shows they played alongside the Rubber Band, the K-Otics, the Phaetons and the Rockin’ Gibralters. Although they gigged regularly, without a manager or and ties to promoters, the band never had a footing in radio or large club bookings. In an interview with Mike Dugo, Craig Weidenheimer spoke about live shows: “We played fraternity parties, bars (even though we were under age), and school dances but mostly we went from town to town with our record and paid the local DJ’s to play our record. To get them to do it sometimes we would go in and play live to help promote the record. It was something to get on the radio and then everyone wanted to hear live bands. So we would rent an Armory or VFW hall and put up posters that we were coming to town (like the circus) and sometimes we could get large crowds. There was not much else to do. We were referred to as The Seeds by most people, so when the band called The Seeds came out with ‘Pushin’ Too Hard’ there was some confusion. We actually played the song, so as not to disappoint.”
In 1966 they went into a studio in Montgomery usually used for recording jingles. The band cut two original songs by Mike Lewis, recording live with two vocal mics and doing about three takes for each song. The sound is primitive but each instrument can be heard, if distantly and with some distortion on the vocals. “She’s Been Travelin’ ‘Round the World” is the standout due to Mike McMillon’s quick drum beats, thumping bass playing from Craig, Mike Lewis frantically bending the guitar strings into odd note combinations, and a queasy organ sound. Shouting the lyrics in unison, the vocals drive the needles into the red and make it hard to decipher the lyrics.
The flip, “Gina” has a melancholy quality from the organ and the distant vocals that has grown on me. The next year the band recorded a second 45 at a studio in New Orleans that I haven’t heard: “Twelfth’s Night Indication” / “Shadow In My Mind”, two more originals by Mike Lewis. Other demos cut at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals have been lost. By this time they had added Mike Tatum on trumpet.
With members going to college the Seeds of Time broke up. Craig Weidenheimer and Mike McMillon had a college band called Mfinger with Jere Ellis of the Rubber Band. Mike Lewis stayed in the music business for good. After college he moved to Atlanta and formed Brick Wall, with one 45 on Capitol, “Poor Mary Has Drowned,” then joined the Devil’s Brigade (one 45 on Mainstream) and moved to LA. Dick Dodd asked him to form a band to tour as the Standells opening for the Grassroots. When that ended, the band, without Dodd evolved into Joshua (an LP on AVI). He started subbing for Nicky Hopkins in Quicksilver Messenger Service, joining the band full time in 1972. Later on he produced successful disco records and soundtracks.
Sources include: Photos and info from Mike Dugo’s interview with Craig Weidenheimer, and John Barthel’s interview with Michael Lewis.
The 5 Rising Sons at Burlington Central H.S. circa 1965
The 5 Rising Sons came from Burlington, Ontario. Members were:
Ron Canning lead guitar Mike Kotur guitar Pete Davidson organ and vocals Dave Best on bass Robin McMillan on drums.
Bruce Ley later joined the group on organ and bass.
“Annie Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” is the catchy pop A-side. I like the flip even more, the fine downer ballad “She Just Likes Me” was written by John Sharpe. It’s the ultimate teen complaint – I love her but … she just likes me! This was released in 1966.
They have a second on Columbia (“Land of 1,000 Dances” / “Don’t Look Away”) that I haven’t heard and another as the Willapus Wallapus on Yorkville, the interesting psychedelic pop number “To Jone”.
They played the Toronto Sound Show at Maple Leaf Gardens sponsored by CHUM in ’66 and toured with Terry Black in ’67.
The 5 Rising Sons at Canada’s largest Ford dealership on Bay Street, 1965
Robin McMillan of the Rising SonsDrummer Robin McMillan sent photos and wrote to me about the band:
We all went to different schools in Burlington and played the Hamilton and Burlington areas for approx. one year. My dad was the sales manager of Elgin Ford on Bay Street in Toronto and he had a three day extravaganza at the dealership in Toronto for the new Mustang, hot rods, dragsters and lots of other fast cars from Ford. He hired us to play all the music in the afternoons for the Friday, Saturday and special Sunday shows as well and bought a lot of commercial time on CHUM, CFRB and all the major newspapers and included us in all the ads.
5 Rising Sons at CHUM’s Toronto Sound Show, 1966Before you knew it there were over 30,000 people at the shows and of course to see the cars and we didn’t look back. We got bookings from all over.
With all the hype we were invited to make a couple of records which helped up quickly up the ladder from a local Burlington group to huge jobs in Toronto … the Hawks Nest, Club 888 and many others, and one of the thirteen bands CHUM picked to play at Maple Leaf Gardens.
“Annie” was in the top ten in Winnipeg, the Maritimes and CFOX in Montreal as well as CKOC, CKPC and tons more stations in Canada and played although not charted on CHUM.
Bruce joined the group the day after the Toronto Sound Show in Sept 1966. Peter on organ left to go to college in London but still kept in touch with us.
We recorded under the name of Willapuss Wallapuss just for the fun of it. Yorkville’s idea because we were a very young group and they thought it was cute I guess but it got play. “To Jone” written by Bruce Lee, who actually has done quite well writing songs for kids TV shows. Actually her name is Joan but spelled Jone don’t ask me why.
Another 45 by the Five Rising Sons on Amy (“Talk to Me Baby” / “Try to Be a Man”) is a different band, being a Shel Talmy production. The US Columbia 45 of “Candy Man” / “The Devil’s Got My Woman” by the Rising Sons is no relation to this band. Robin McMillan and Ron Canning of the 5 Rising Sons with Mick Jagger
Update: Robin McMillan writes in to say that on Friday, August 21, 2015 the 5 Rising Sons will have a reunion for one night only. For more information check out the Facebook page for the group.
Sources: Thank you to Ivan Amirault for the sleeve scan, promo sheet and photos of the band on the van and at the Toronto Sound Show, and also for correcting the mistakes in another source, The Canadian Pop Encyclopedia. Special thanks to Robin McMillan for the photos and info about the group, and the Willapus Wallapus 45 scan and transfer.
The 5 Rising Sons at Elgin Ford on Bay Street, 1965 in foreground with glasses: Brenda Gordon from Burlington who became the successful singer Brenda Russell
Part of a 3 page article written in a Canada-wide Ford MagazineCHUM Toronto Sound Show, Billboard, Octobe 15, 1967RPM, June 6, 1966
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
“Annie” was in the top ten in Winnipeg, the Maritimes and CFOX in Montreal as well as CKOC, CKPC and tons more stations in Canada and played although not charted on CHUM.
