Categories: Coronado, El Paso, Frogdeath, Texas

Danny and the Counts

November 19, 2010 Chris Bishop 32 Comments

Danny Parra – guitar and lead vocals
Javier Valenzuela – lead guitar and vocals
Eric Huereque – bass and vocals
Joe Huereque – drums
Joe Martinez – tambourine and vocals

Danny and the Counts “You Need Love” is a signature tune of the mid-60s, with its unforgetable buzzing guitar riff and opening “Oh, yeah!”. Not to mention the cool bending lick after the chorus, or the lyrics about seducing a rich girl. The b-side “Ode to the Wind” is slower and moody, again with good fuzz guitar.This was their second single, from 1966, on the Coronado label. Danny Parra wrote both songs. Chiyo Music BMI published many of Coronado’s releases at this time.

Their first 45 was more sedate. “For Your Love” is the Ed Townsend ballad, not the Yardbirds song, and on the flip is another mellow one, “It’s All All Over”. KELP DJ Steve Crosno’s Frogdeath label released this single.

The band consisted of Danny Parra, the song writer and lead vocalist, plus the Huereque brothers and (I believe) their cousin, Javier Valenzuela, along with Joe Martinez on tambourine and backing vocals. They were from the Clardy neighborhood in the east side of El Paso, along Delta Drive. The article by Susie Dominguez in the the KELPaper states that the band formed two years before “You Need Love”, though I’ve also read that the band formed as early as 1960, originally performing soul and Tejano music. The article also says that both Javier Valenzuela and Danny Parra played lead guitar.

After these records, Danny Parra went into the Navy and Ken Prichard joined on lead guitar. I’ve also seen two other members listed, but don’t know the accuracy of these: Javier Venisula – organ (same person as Javier Valenzuela?) and Irene Porras – vocals.

Ken Prichard later joined Brand X. Danny Parra moved to California. Eric Huereque passed away in 2003 at the age of 56.

Since first posting this I’ve heard from “Danny”, front man Danny Parra:

Although I was indeed interested in R&B type music back in the day, it was an absolute nightmare to put together and organize a large (8-12) R&B band in El Paso that could ever hope to compete with the likes of The Night Dreamers, The Valiants, The Premiers, etc. which were all fantastic bands in that genre of music in El Paso. One summer after a dismal year of trying to pull together R&B bandmates for rehearsals and even actual gigs to perform I’d pretty much gave up the quest for a large band with a powerhouse brass section.
My interests and my best friend Eric Huereque started to notice the music trends going on in England via the Beatles and Stones, etc. Not only was their music cool and different but their groups were usually only four or five guys! Much more attainable we thought ….. so we one summer Eric and I were jamming on guitars and we noticed Eric’s little brother Joe drumming in the corner of the room with a couple of yellow lead pencils …. and keeping pretty good time at that. We eventually enlisted (after much persuasion) him to try learning some basic beats for our jam sessions. Took a while but we encouraged him.
Spurred on by by his potential and the knowledge that at least we could count on him showing up for practice we realized Eric’s cousin Javier Valenzuela was also an aspiring guitar player and that we might be able to recruit him if an audition proved him viable. Note that at this time the big draw of the eventual band’s members was that most keys guys were Eric’s family and therefore more dependable in contrast to the people we had been trying to recruit and pull together as a viable band from all walks of life and all parts of sprawling El Paso!
Somehow, after countless hours of practice (weeks, months, lifetimes it seemed sometimes) and many horrible and worse experimental gigs we started to focus more on the “English sound” and less on R&B. To make a name for ourselves with this new image and music direction was a herculean task in El Paso because we were all latinos. If you were a band with latinos it was expected that you played only R&B style music back in those days.
Up to this time we had a first record under our belt which was recorded on Steve Crosno’s Frog Death label. We recorded “For Your Love” / “It’s All Over” in a single live take in Steve’s home without a drummer! Unbelievable! The recordings were meant to be a dry run but Crosno decided to put them on vinyl since he could promote them on KELP airwaves where he pretty much reigned as the biggest disc jockey around in those days.
Interestingly, our “For Your Love” was released at the same time the Righteous Brothers released the same song nationwide and the two records were being played back-to-back on KELP. In short order, both records made it up to number ten on KELP’s top 20. KELP published a brochure listing of popular records and music events found all over town that I wish I’d kept a copy of!
Although we got some modest notoriety because of his help on KELP and numerous appearance on his TV “Crosno’s Hop” show, we ultimately made it clear to him [Crosno] that we wanted to pursue the English music trends as a group and abandon R&B. He wasn’t happy about this because his whole market niche was R&B …. so we had an eventual parting of the ways. We produced and recorded our next record “You Need Love” / “Ode to the Wind” using the Coronado label and our own funds.
I’ve seen many comments & references of people who liked our music but were not impressed by the “production” and/or “sound quality” of the tunes. Guess what? These have been very accurate statements since the songs were recorded as live single takes in a dumpy downtown El Paso recording studio for the princely sum of $75.00 (included master tape). The fee was for an hour of recording studio time with a very bored, spectacled, bald geezer that was truly bored out of his gourd during our session. Did he kick up our audio or segregate the instruments and vocals for a sweeter mix? Hell no! What you hear on those tracks was raw, one take, wham-bam-thank-you-maam sounds. We didn’t know any better and the audio engineer simply didn’t care squat or know any more than we did! He might’ve even been the janitor for all we knew.
Q. Is that you playing the lead guitar line on “You Need Love” or Javier?
It was Javier. Many have assumed over the years that the sound was a sitar but I can assure you that we didn’t even know what a sitar was in those days. I recollect that he used either a small glass bottle or lipstick cover on his finger as a “slide” to get that sitar-sound you hear. The fuzztone sound was one of the few guitar effects available back then … made trendy by the Rolling Stones on “Satisfaction”.
Our tape was sent through Steve Crosno’s contacts. He was a bit reluctant to help at first because we weren’t following his R&B recommendation on his FrogDeath label, but he was still cool enough to get it pressed for us with Coronado.
Ironically, I am astounded and flattered that our music seems to somehow endured through other band’s interpretations on their albums and through some compilation albums that you can still buy today that showcased much of the music happening in those days in Texas. There have even been some interesting video efforts (YouTube) made to fit our music. Hmmm, wonder where that audio engineer dude ended up after all these years?
I was drafted in late 1966 (Vietnam) and ended up serving eight years serving my country (Navy) all over the world …. including London, England. Moved with family to California, worked for years as an electronics engineer. Due to a layoff (1985) re-invented and established myself as a much published fashion and beauty photographer in L.A. and authored a book “Model Mystique Unraveled” in 1995-96.
I regret that I lost touch with the band after going in the service after 1966. But I heard that Eric (bass/manager) perpetuated the band for years in spite that I was obviously missing as the frontman!

Article scan from Rick Kern’s El Paso Musicians site, used with permission. Photos of the Frogdeath single courtesy of Danny Parra. A special thank you to Oktay for the scans and help with this article, and to Sam Stephenson for letting me hear “For Your Love” and “It’s All All Over”.

Categories: Coronado, El Paso, Texas

Coronado discography

November 19, 2010 Chris Bishop 15 Comments

Coronado discography of El Paso, Texas
(possibly incomplete, any help would be appreciated):

The first release on the maroon Coronado label seems to be the Pawns / David Hayes 45 which was given the same release number, 127, as the original issue on Exeter 127. See my article for more on David Hayes and the Pawns.

Maroon label:

127 – The Pawns – “Lonely” (J. Watkins) / David Hayes – “Meet Me Here (in New Orleans)”
128
129
130
131 – The Beach Nuts – “The Last Ride” / “Surf Beat ’65” (with picture sleeve)
132 – David Hayes and the Pawns – “Lonely Weekends” / “What Do the Voices Say” (1965, produced by Calvin Bowls)
133 – Celtics – “Man That’s Gone Mad” (Chesshire, Gordon, Daniel) / “Wondering Why”
134
135 – The Starving Cats Combo – “I’m Hungry” (Jess Diamond) / “Mi Amor Se Fue”
136 – Danny & The Counts – “You Need Love” / “Ode To The Wind” (1966)
137
138
139 – Gene Willis & the Aggregation – “We Got It” / “Shing-A-Ling’s The Thing” (produced by E. Benevidas and Barney Krupp)
140 – El Paso Drifters – “Could This Be Love” / “For Your Love”

Yellow label with conquistador heads:

141 – The Motivaters – “Ode to Loneliness” (Doyle Young) / “Heart of Blue” (1968, produced by Charlie Russell)
142 – Doug Adams with Early Morning Traffic – “I Can’t Wait to See You” / “Hontusharaya”
143 – The El Paso Drifters – “All In My Mind” / “In The Midnight Hour”
144
145 – Mitch ‘n Gary – “Do I Ever Cross Your Mind” (Mitch Mosley) / “My Juarez Rita” (R. Sims) 1969, prod. asst. Kurt Roehm, guitar arr. Aquiles Valdéz
146 – Donald Ray & the El Paso Chessmen – “Shake” / “I Love You” (both arranged by Donald Ray and Danny Padilla, engineer Kennety Smith)
147 – Donald Ray & the El Paso Chessmen – “Can’t You See That I Love You” / “Cry Like A Baby” (arranged by Donald Ray & Larry Serrano, 1968)
148 – Charlie Russell & the Jones Hatband – “Love Gone Bad” / “Sometimes I Wonder” (both by A.L. Baker, Chiyo Music BMI, producer Johnny Dollar)
149
150 – Larry & The Knightsmen – “Selva” / “A New Acquaintance”

Charlie Russell & the Jones Hatband labels list Ron Martin bass, Conrad Morales drums, Allan Harvey steel guitar.

Beach Nuts and leader Tommy Elliot mentioned in the Herald Post in May, 1966

Leon Jones of the El Paso Drifters, August 1969

El Paso Drifters, Nite Dreamers, Preludes, El Paso Coliseum, August 31, 1963

El Paso Drifters opening for Sunny Ozuna & the Sunliners December 25, 1970

The El Paso Drifters are listed as appearing at a show with the Nite Dreamers and the Preludes at the El Paso Coliseum in 1963. They also appear on the Steve Crosno Day LP recorded on July 9, 1967 doing an upbeat version of the Five Keys’ “Close Your Eyes”. From 1969 until the late ’70s, the El Paso Herald Post lists them many times for live appearances, but only one article mentions a member of the band, Leon Jones. Other members were Carlos Flores, Martha Sifuentes (vocalist on “All In My Mind” and Danny Padilla, who also arranged the first Donald Ray & the El Paso Chessmen single on Coronado.

The Motivators 45 is interesting psychedelia. The group had an earlier 45 on Lin Jo Records, “Hold It” / “Soft Wind” as D-Y and the Motivators. D.Y. stood for Doyle Young, who wrote both instrumentals on the Lin Jo single and “Ode to Loneliness” for the Motivators on Coronado. Another member of the Motivators was drummer Gene Bailey. Doyle Young would have a third single as Doyle Young and Friends on Suemi Records, “The Middle of Love” / “Sunshine Love”

There was another, unrelated Coronado label from Odessa, Texas with a couple releases on a blue Coronado label, and connected to the Coronodo label:

111 – Jan Lessard – “I Just Met You” (J. Lessard, J. Wilson) / “Faithful Fool” (McNew Prod, 1964)
112 – Eddie Williams & the Sheiks – “You Left Your Happiness (Here in My Room)” (Eddie Williams) / “I Just Can’t Help Myself” (C. Gibson, Monte Mead) (McNew Prod, 1964)

Coronodo 001 – Johnny Wilson – “Twi-light Zone” / “Little Miss Fortune” (Expoloring in Sound, Coronado Recording Studios … Heart of the Hills Publishing).

Thank you to Westex, Laurent Bigot, Ken Prichard, Sam Stephenson and Michael Robinson for help on this discography.

Categories: Champaign, Madison, Midgard, Rantoul, Wisconsin

The Bacardis – The Light Brigade

November 18, 2010 Chris Bishop 54 Comments

The Light Brigade at the Illini Brown Jug in Champaign, Illinois clockwise from top: Chuck Miller, Tom Becker, Larry Walters, Charlie Leeuw and Bill Throckmorton

The Bacardis 45 on Midgard, “This Time” / “Don’t Sell Yourself” is one of the classics of mid-60s independent singles. “This Time” is a beautiful folk-rock original, very much inspired by the Byrds but with a haunting quality to the vocals that makes it stand out. The b-side gets more attention from garage collectors, for its unison bass and drum hook, great guitar break, and ragged lead vocal.

Incredibly rare, it is also one of the few ‘garage’ 45s from this time to sell for over $3,000 at auction.

The RCA mastering number TK4M-6763/4 shows Midgard Records owner Chuck Regenberg sent this tape to RCA’s Indianapolis plant at the same time as fellow Midgard release the Suns of Mourning which is TK4M-6765/6. Both are late 1966 custom pressings. The production listing “IPPRU” is just an abbreviation for “Div. of International Promotion Production and Recording Unlimited”.

For ages record collectors knew nothing about this band. There are no names on the label to help track it. The Midgard label was from Madison, WI, but the band most certainly was not. One source told me Bun E. Carlos of Cheap Trick remembers a band called the Bacardis playing around the Rockford area when he was young. He didn’t know any of the group though.

Then I received this photo of the Light Brigade from Illinois, and we found the group that had originally been called the Bacardis. The band members included Charlie Leeuw, Larry Walters, John Shaw, Bill Throckmorton and Chuck Miller. After changing their name to the Light Brigade, they eventually broke up sometime in the early ’70s.

Chuck Miller contacted me with this info about the group:

My name is Chuck Miller. I was the bass player in the Bacardis and Light Brigade. That’s me at the top of the Brown Jug clipping. I joined the Bacardis when I was stationed at Chanute AFB in Rantoul, Ill in 1966. At that time they were four guys who were also stationed at Chanute.
“This Time” was written by Larry Walters when we were living together in an apartment in Rantoul. It was recorded at the band rehearsal hall at Chanute AFB in 1967.
I believe “Don’t Sell Yourself” was written by Larry and Charlie. I think it was recorded at one of the places we played but not sure where. Both songs were band demos to get jobs and never intended to be made into a record.
I will dig through my attic to find any pictures I have of the group.
Chuck Miller

In Febuary 2013, Charles Leeuw wrote to me about the band:

Just thought I’d fill in some names to go with the flyer of the Light Brigade at the Brown Jug. “The Jug” was just off campus and a predecessor to the Red Lion and Chances R.
Chuck Miller – bass guitar, sometime lead guitar and vocals
Tom Becker- Hammond B3, Fender Rhodes, vocals. Tom replaced John Shaw our original keyboard player in the Bacardi’s
Larry Walters – lead guitar, originator of the band, vocals and songwriter
Charlie Leeuw (Chas) – lead vocal
Bill Throckmorton- drums, sometime keyboard
Jim Murn was our original rhythm guitar player and an original member, but our first keyboard player was John Shaw, who replaced Jim Murn and also played rhythm guitar and was backup vocalist. By the time of the Brown Jug billboard, Tom Becker was our keyboard player. I strongly believe John Shaw was keyboard on the Midgard record.

More info has come in on the comments below. Hopefully we’ll see more photos of the Bacardis soon.

Source: news clipping from Hollywood Hangover.

Categories: Astoria, New York, New York City, Queens

The Poor Souls

November 13, 2010 Chris Bishop 8 Comments

Poor Souls penny card Primates recording on the Marco label.

I grew up on 34th Street with Barry Bozzone though I was a few years younger. The Poor Soul’s covered many of The Primates’ songs including “Fate”. I don’t believe The Primates recorded a studio version of the song.

Earlier this year, our lead singer, Phil Borgia sent me The Poor Soul’s recording of the song, made in the late 60’s. It was put on tape by Phil’s uncle, using a guerilla recording technique during a rehearsal i.e., using a microphone placed in front of the room plugged into a reel-to-reel deck.

Unfortunately, no one has been able to find photos of the band though I know we had enough taken that some should still exist. I have the band rehearsing on converted 8mm film that was put on 1.2 VHS and then converted to digital media.

The Poor Souls business card [to the right] was very unusual. My father designed it, he was a graphic artist.

After our bands split up, Barry and I played together in a number of bands with only limited success. We also co-wrote quite a few songs though our careers in other fields short-circuited any chance for popularity. However, we have reconnected too after 40 years and we are making plans to reunite, at least on one song we think has a fighting chance in the Christian song market.

I’ve been living in Mahwah, NJ for the last 12 years or so. My former bandmates are all on the east coast – two in NY, one in PA and one in North Carolina. The five members of The Poor Souls (sans Mark) are reuniting for the first time in over 40 years this weekend. I’ve attempted to find Mark on several occasions but no luck.

Rick Grande, November 2010

Here is some great 8mm film of the band, with “Fate” and their version of “C.C. Rider” / “Jenny Take a Ride” added as a soundtrack.

2010 reunion, from left to right: Rick, Joe (Mac), Phil's daughter Lorissa, Vinny and John — 2010 reunion, from left to right: Rick, Joe (Mac), Phil’s daughter Lorissa, Vinny and John

Rick also sent two interesting photos of Hy Fenster’s Universal Rehearsal and Recording, a studio which is still in business at the same address, 17 W. 20th Street in Manhattan.

Universal Rehearsal and Recording, 17 West 20th St, NY — Universal Rehearsal and Recording

Universal Rehearsal and Recording, 17 West 20th St, NY. Tascam founded in 1971, so this photo must be no earlier than that year. — Tascam founded in 1971, so this photo must be no earlier than that year.

Categories: Frogdeath, New Mexico, University Park

Frogdeath Discography – Steve Crosno

November 12, 2010 Chris Bishop 13 Comments

Any help with this discography would be appreciated.

Frogdeath (sometimes listed as Frog Death) was run by Steve Crosno, a DJ on El Paso’s Top 40 radio, KELP. He also had a TV dance show Crosno’s Hop on the local Channel 7 that ran from summer of 1961 into 1970. He obviously had a sense of humor, from the logo to the messages on the labels like “Do Not Write in This Space”, or “for best results use riaa curve (whatever that means)”. Crosno passed away in September 2006.

Early releases like the Imposters have a University Park address, by Las Cruces, New Mexico, the same location as the Goldust label.

Froth 1 – The Imposters – “Wipe In” / “Tulsa”
Froth 2 – Cain & Able – “Creí” / “La Bamba” (arranged by Rick Young) / A Moment of Soft Headedness
Froth 2 – Four Frogs* – “Think I’m Losing You” / “Mr. Big” (both by Colin Flannigan) (some copies with picture sleeve)
Froth 4 – Danny & the Counts – “It’s All All Over” / “For Your Love”

Froth 66/1 – The Night-Dreamers – “Mr. Pitiful” (vocal Sunny Powell) / “I Can’t Help It (I Just Do)” (James Brown)
Froth 66/2 – El Paso Premiers** – “This Is the Beginning” (Bobby Rosales) / “Let Me Call You Darling” (vocal by James Patterson)
Froth 66/3 – Mike Reynolds and the Infants of Soul – “When Will I Find Her” / “It’s Judy” (both written by Mike Rosen)
Froth 66-4 – The Astros – “Amarga Navidad” (Jose Alfredo Jimenez) / “I Love You Dear” (Hector Luna)

Froth 67-1 – The Night-Dreamers – “I Take What I Want” (featuring “the amazing ‘Sonny & Sam'” / “Wisdom of a Fool” (vocals by Al ‘Mr. Tears’ Sanchez)

There are two releases labeled Froth 2, but I haven’t found a Froth 3 yet.

* According to Doug Neal, the Four Frogs were Bert Peters, Claude Perilli, Colin Flannigan, Billy Withers with one other member.

** aka Bobby & the Premiers, who also recorded for C.L. Milburn’s Souled-Out of Texas label.

An earlier version of “When Will I Find Her” was released on a Las Cruces label.

I’ve heard there’s also an LP on Frogdeath by Mike Reynolds, but I haven’t seen it.

More info on Steve Crosno can be found at Lone Star Stomp (which also discusses the Four Frogs release) and Borderlands.

There was also a very rare LP titled Steve Crosno Day, July 9, 1967, Recorded Live at the El Paso Coliseum, but I’m not sure if that was released on Frogdeath or some other label. Anyone have photos, scans or a transfer of it? A CD release may have additional songs but the track list seems to be:

The (Las Cruces) Starliners
01. Instrumental
02. The One That’s Hurtin’ Is You
03. It’s Not Unusual
04. Tramp

The El Paso Drifters
07 – 09 Featuring Martha Sifuentes
05. Intro / Sweet Soul Music
06. Groovin’
07. Respect
08. Close Your Eyes
09. All In My Mind

The Las Cruces Majestics
10. Band Intro
11. Instrumental
12. Intro / Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag
13. Goin’ Back To Miami
14. More

The Impressions
15. Let’s Go Steady / You Are My First Love
16. I’ve Been Lonely Too Long

The Gene Willis Aggregation
17. Instrumental
18. Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag / Instrumental
19. James Brown Jam

The El Paso Premiers (Bobby And The Premiers)
20. I’m A Practical Guy
21. I Dig Girls
22. Hello Stranger
23. Put Me In Jail

Sonny Powell And The Night-Dreamers
24. Kind Of A Drag
25. Mr. Pitiful

Bernard Tanchester
26. Steve Crosno Tribute Presentation

Thanks to Ken Prichard for the Cain & Able scan and to Sam Stephenson for the Mike Renolds scans.

Categories: Kaufman, Texas

Ab’soul’lutely Solid

November 12, 2010 Chris Bishop Leave a comment

The Ab’soul’lutely Solid came from the small town of Kaufman, southeast of Dallas. Unfortunately a live tape and demo recording seem to be lost now.Keyboard player Randy Williams wrote to me about the group:

Dennis Patterson – vocals
Charlie Roberts – vocals
Daniel Elzner – guitar
Randy Williams – organ
John Elzner -bass
Wayne Gillespie – drums
I was in Ab’soul’lutely Solid, a band out of Kaufman, 67-68. I didn’t live in Kaufman, but in Athens, about 40 miles away. The Elzner brothers and the rest of the band were from Kaufman. I was barely 17, the guitarist was barely 16…we were the youngest. I was a classical pianist before I got the Vox.
We were mainly a cover band, but we were really tight. We did rock and roll and soul…..thus the band’s name….Paul Revere, Animals, Hendrix, Wilson Pickett, Doors, etc.
If we rehearsed in the Elzner’s garage, half the town would show up in 15 minutes or less.
We did a battle of the bands in ’68 in Dallas. Also played a UT Austin frat party in ’68, and played around Kaufman, Terrell, Royce City, Seven Points, Athens, mostly smaller places.
We recorded one gig live, and John had the tape, but doesn’t know where it is. We did a ‘studio’ recording for a lady from New York, but never heard back.
Daniel, the guitarist, later played with Tommy Overstreet, the country singer, and lived in Nashville for a while. Still play piano after a 40 hiatus, and just got a Vox Continental, trying to get a British Invasion band together.
Randy Williams

Categories: Houston, Texas

Houston music clubs – The Act III / The What a Way to Go Go

November 11, 2010 Chris Bishop 50 Comments

Johnny Winter at Act III Houston Post, Nov. 30, 1966 — Johnny Winter at Act III, Houston Post, Nov. 30, 1966

A story on a Texas group The Valens / The Outcasts (not the Askel group) mentions the band trying out for a Houston club The Act III a Go Go. However a member of the Interns remembers there being two different clubs, “What a Way to Go Go” and the “The Act III”.

Andrew Brown provided the scan above and says there was also a club called “What a Way to Go Go”. The clubs might have shared the same location, but that’s still speculative. Act III’s address was 6663 S. Main, it seems its been torn down for a strip mall.

Does anyone have posters, photos or material from either club that would clarify this minor point about the Houston music scene?

Categories: Beloit, Hays, Kansas, Sully

The Dinks “Nina-Kocka-Nina” and “Kocka-Mow-Mow” on Sully Records

November 9, 2010 Chris Bishop 3 Comments

The Dinks photo — The Dinks, from left: Bob Bergmann, Bill Hollingsworth (seated with glasses, Dean Dietz, Bruce Brown, Mike Moran (seated) and Gale Scanlon. Photo courtesy of Bob Bergmann

Pat Waddell – lead vocals, replaced by Dean Dietz
Steve Kadel – lead guitar, replaced by Bill Hollingsworth
Bob Bergmann – rhythm guitar and vocals
Gail Scanlon – organ
Bruce Brown – bass
Mike Morrand – drums

The Dinks’ “Nina-Kocka-Nina” takes the repetitive nonsense of “Surfin’ Bird” and adds a bizarre parody of an Asian accent. The soft-spoken opening has the Japanese inflection down well, even if most of the words are gibberish. Once the song gets going the tone shifts to something that sounds like no real language except variations on “papa ooh mow mow”. The few lyrics in English, “get out your pencils, get out your books, try to catch all the teacher’s grubby looks” and “I’m taking English, History, Biology and Chemistry” imply that school is turning him into a raving idiot! Ironically, the writer of the song would become a teacher himself after leaving the Dinks!

“Penny a Tear Drop” is very different, and the contrast between the twelve-string guitar and organ sounds great. It’s something of a shame that the success of “Nina-Kocka-Nina” put the Dinks into the novelty category and ended their chances of making it as a sincere pop act. Song writing credits for “Penny a Tear Drop” go to Ray Ruffin (a variation on Ray Ruff’s name I hadn’t seen before) and Jack Dunham, whose name also turns up on the Dinks second 45.

Needing a follow up to “Nina-Kocka-Nina” they predictably cut another song in that vein. “Kocka-Mow-Mow” lacks the magic of the first record. Instead of being a band original, it was knocked off by two of Ray Ruff’s associates: Jack Dunham again, and Royce Taylor, a singer who had his own 45 for Sully as part of Gaylen & Royce, “I Can’t Stay” / “Modern Day Fools”.

Oddly it comments directly on their first disc: “all the DJs across the nation, thought we had a bad creation, they just thought we were up in smoke, but that’s kind of funny because we’re on all the charts” … “radio stations started getting calls, they said our band made their skin crawl, they didn’t like the music ’cause it made them sick, but everybody wanted to hear it, kids” … “they said ‘Nina-Kocka-Nina’ was the most … you better think twice before you put this one down.” On the flip is an incredibly insensitive song by Royce Taylor, “Ugly Girl”, sung in the sweetest voice.

Dink’s rhythm guitarist Bob Bergmann answered some of my questions about “Nina-Kocka-Nina” and the band:

I am Bob Bergmann, the writer and lead singer for “Nina-Kocka-Nina” on the Sully label. I played rhythm guitar for the Ragging Regattas and the Dinks back in the 60’s out of Beloit, Kansas.
The band was started earlier by Steve Kadel, from Beloit, Kansas. He was one of my best friends growing up in the 60’s. We graduated together in ’62. We learned guitars together during high school, by ear. We learned with 5-strings on our guitars–THANK GOD–there was no little E-string.
After graduating, Steve went to Fort Hays College which is now Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas and I went to St. Mary of the Plains College in Dodge City, Kansas. Steve started the band The Ragging Regattas in Hays. After two years, I transferred to Fort Hays State College and joined the band. Steve was the person who should be giving credit for starting the band.
I was in my froshmen year in college at Dodge City, Kansas and came up with the song “Nina-Kocka-Nina” and the jibberish language. We put the song together after a performance somewhere in Nebraska. We were sitting there on our amps, very tired, and I got up and started to sing the song which the band had never heard. They all plugged back in and the song was created. I had no idea what the jibberish meant, but at some performances, I was asked by orientals if I knew what I was saying and I think they agreed, I was saying some real words. Pat created his own background words during the recording. Pat’s name should have never been first on the record [writing credit] and he will admit that.
The reason we went to Texas to record, two different times, was our so call it manager had contacted Ray. We did not write “Penny A Tear Drop”. It was written by a person in the 30’s. The song was the reason we were asked to come to Texas to record. I would say it got us in the recording field. “Penny a Tear Drop” took hours. [We] needed a flip side and we did “Nina-Kocka-Nina” in a few minutes and it went over the best.
We were called the Regattas when we went to record, but Ray sent our contract back and changed our names to the Dinks because Ragging Regattas didn’t match the “Nina-Kocka-Nina” song. I did sign a contract with BMI in New York after “Nina-Kocka-Nina” came out. There was a nice writeup in one of the top record magazines in the US about the song. Full page showed a picture of the record and around the record were comments from DJ’s around the nation about the song.
We were mainly an instrumental band. The song list was very long and mixed between vocals and instrumentals. Our main songs were by the Ventures, and other instrumental groups, many from England. We recorded an album of instrumental songs at Sully Studio after the two 45s, but it never came out.
Somewhere I have one of the many sheets of songs we had taped to our our Fender Dual Showmans. We all had Fender instruments and amps. I did have a Country Gentleman at one time. I also played rhythm on a Fender 6-string bass that was owned by one of the guys in the Blue Things. It had a very funky sound and the frets were very far apart which made it tougher to play.
One of the hardest songs that I remember doing was “Slaughter on Tenth Avenue” by the Ventures. Our lead guitar, Bill Hollingsworth was the greatest, and I don’t think I could have learned the rhythm without his help. You mention “Surfing Bird” by The Trashmen: Bill was first cousins with their lead guitar player.
After a few years, Bill Hollingsworth replaced Steve on lead guitar, and Dean Deetz replaced Pat Waddel on vocal. I left the band in ’66. I got married in January 1967 and finished my teaching degree. I am a retired business teacher here at Jetmore, Kansas of 35 years.
If my memory serves me correctly, [the Dinks] went on a year or so before some of the guys were drafted. After that, they split company and two bands were started – I think the Beasts and another Dinks band. I was one of the junior high school sponsors and we hired the Beast for our high school prom. I remember joining the band for “Nina-Kocka-Nina”. The students and staff couldn’t believe it. One student came up to me and said “Mr. Bergmann, I didn’t know you had that in you”!
On March 7, 2009 the Dinks were inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame in Lawrence, Kansas. It was a gala celebration for our band who I had not seen for forty years. Steve could not make it to the induction ceremony.
Bob Bergmann

Thanks to Brian Kirschenbaum and Christian for scans of the Dinks original 45s.

Full page ad in Billboard, December 4, 1965

The Dinks – Bob Bergmann at bottom left of photo

Categories: Glenville, Schenectady, Scotia, Upstate New York

The Intruders

November 2, 2010 Chris Bishop 4 Comments

The Intruders were from the small towns of Glenville and Scotia, outside Schenectady, New York. They were students at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake and Scotia-Glenville High Schools and formed the band in 1964.

Carl Buell – vocals
Mark Hecker – lead guitar
Mark Ernst – rhythm guitar
Mike Collins – bass guitar
Snooky Mercoglan – drums, replaced by Warren Droms

They recorded their 45 at WRGB studios in Schenectady. The number RK4M 5992/3 indicates an RCA Custom pressing from 1964.

Mark Ernst has a very cool website on the Intruders and his later career, though he doesn’t say what happened to the group after releasing the single. Presumably, they broke up as members graduated school.

The A-side features the slower “What Kind of Girl Are You”, which starts out with a great bluesy riff and has some good soloing as the song fades.

The flip, “Hey Hey” is a good rocker.

“Hey Hey” was written by Marc Hecker, Mark Ernst and Carl Buell, with credits to AC Production and Intruders Music. “What Kind of Girl Are You” was written by Hecker and Buell.

Thank you to Brian Kirschenbaum for the scan and transfers of the 45.

Categories: Muza, Poland, Polskie Nagrania

Niemen I Akwarele

November 2, 2010 Chris Bishop 1 Comment

Vocalist and organ player Czeslaw Niemen was another huge star in Poland, so this record is hardly ‘garage’. Like the Skaldowie LP, there are great graphics on the cover, and Niemen’s outfit is classic Sonny Bono meets Carnaby St. His singing is also over the top, often trying to be James Brown-ish funky and Tom Jones-like soulful within the same line. I suspect he personified state-approved ‘rebellion’.

This LP is his second, from 1968. Of the songs I’ve chosen, I think “The Brazen Shout” (“Spizowy Krzyk”) may work best, though “Unwanted” definitely has a funky backing track and a familiar-sounding horn arrangement. “And If” uses the bass riff from Hendrix’s “Hey Joe”.

His band Akwarele (Watercolors) included Tomasz Jaśkiewicz (guitar), Paweł Brodowski (bass), Marian Zimiński (piano, organ) and Tomasz Butowtt (drums). He is supposed to have some other good singles and sides that I haven’t heard, like “Let’s Play Bo-Peep” (Baw Sie W Ciuciubabke).

Niemen continued recording into the late 1980s at least, and has since died. Dozens of videos await you on YouTube if you’re so inclined, including some cool live footage from ’67.

Garage Hangover