The Lost and Found came out of Houston, and originally called themselves the Misfits. Members were Peter Black guitar and vocals, Jimmy Frost lead guitar and James Harrell on bass. John Kearney of the Spades played with them for a short while after the Spades had split up in 1965, and they went through a succession of drummers, first Norman Blythe, then Mickey Bishop, and finally Steve Webb.
The Misfits played shows at Love Street and La Maison, where, according to Jimmy Frost, they met the 13th Floor Elevators for the first time. The Elevators would have a huge influence on their sound, and their friendship with Roky Erickson and Stacy Sutherland would eventually lead to an introduction to the International Artists label. At the start of a six month residency at Scott Holtzman’s Living Eye in Houston, they became the first Texas group busted for LSD. Jimmy Frost remembers Peter, James and Mickey facing charges, and that one of the reasons the band signed with International Artists was because its owners, Bill Dillard and Noble Ginther, were lawyers who could help them with the bust. Supposedly the charges were dismissed because the drug was not yet illegal! However, the notoriety of the bust led to the name change to the Lost and Found, appropriate in any case for the increasingly psychedelic direction of their music.
The Living Eye ad with the Lost and Found, the Coastliners, Neal Ford & the FanaticsGeorge Banks, a friend of the band who took over management of the Misfits, remembers this time differently:
I spoke with James Harrell, just to confirm what I am about to list. First, the MISFITS was a name Micky Bishop came up with, as it was a group he played with in the Navy. He was the first drummer, and to James’ recollection, Kearney never played in the group. After Micky, his younger brother Steve also played drums in the band and as I recall then Webb. There may have been the other fella you mention [Norman Blythe], but I do not know him. We all met the Elevators in Austin, before they played the infamous Jade Room gig, and all remain friends to this day. I was maybe a try-to-be manager with the original Misfits, after leaving the military; and then later the Lost and Found, but I also assisted (I’ll describe it that way) Euphoria, which you rarely see any info about.
La Maison, second location, 319 McGowan at BagbyEuphoria did come into Houston about high times for the Elevators and others of the IA time frame. They were a sizzlin’ three piece group. Wesley Watt, David Potter, drums and Pat.. I forget his last name.. on bass (early on, in CA, Pat was with a surf group, pre-Beach Boys, and they were very successful in their locale.) Euphoria and the guys from the Misfits got along quite well and … through some differences .. all together left for LA, minus Frost, who having married early on and was with their first child, did not travel to CA with everyone else. We played around out there got a recording contract. I brought the first release [Hungry Woman / No Me Tomorrow 45 on the Mainstream label] back to Houston and presented it to Larry Kane. It didn’t really take off, Euphoria hadn’t stuck around town long enough to really develop any notoriety, or following.
The band in LA went through a lot of emotional changes in part due to the fact that Wesley and David were married (and drugs). The times got tough, to even feed ourselves. James, Pete and I headed back to Houston, the rest kind of picks up with the bust after we had been back a month or two. Micky was not included in the bust in ’66, it was his younger brother Steve and another fella, a writer, Roger Hamilton (deceased) aka William West, and James. Their arrests were dismissed, we each served 10 year probation sentences. I don’t believe that the signing with International Artists had anything to do with there being attorneys in the head office. If I am mistaken, well, I don’t know every minute detail of all these guys lives, but we did live and recreate together often. It was not the notoriety that changed the bands name (I don’t think). But having returned from CA and playing with/as Euphoria the group was rejoined with Jimmy Frost. So I felt the absence from and the reunion, as it were, with the whole band, it was .. well .. Lost and Found.
The Lost and Found at the Living Eye
Their first 45, “Everybody’s Here” / “Forever Lasting Plastic Words” shows the lighter side of their repertoire, and the band complained that IA toned down their sound. The engineer was Frank Davis who worked with other IA bands, like the Elevators and the Golden Dawn. Though at times sounding like the Elevators, their LP has many good songs such as “I Realize” and “There Would Be No Doubt”. George Banks did the cover art for their LP as well as the covers of the Elevators’ Easter Everywhere and Golden Dawn’s Power Plant.
By the time they recorded their second and last 45 in ’68, their sound was totally original and psychedelic. “Professor Black” is supposed to be about Pete Black, it was written by Black, James Harrell and George Banks. “When Will You Come Through” is just as good, with searing guitar work. This 45 was produced by Fred Carroll, an interesting figure in Texas garage history. Fred Carroll (real name Fred Courtney, Jr) founded International Artists in October of ’65, but sold it soon after, then returned as a producer after Lelan Rogers left. He also started the Solar label and managed the Coastliners. He passed away in late June, 2007.
There were other songs recorded around this time for a second LP, but before that could come to pass, International Artists booked them on a tour of Texas, Louisiana and Alabama with the Music Machine.
Jimmy Frost: “When we got back International Artists said we owed them money and that just finished the band off, we didn’t see any money from the tour, and we were all so broke that the band just split up.”
A demo tape of two songs exists. “25 MPH” showed up on Epitaph for a Legend, the other, “Girl with a One Track Mind” I haven’t heard. Still under contract from IA, Pete Black and James Harrell reluctantly played about a dozen dates with Stacy Sutherland and Danny Thomas in a ersatz version of the 13th Floor Elevators after the release of the fake “Live” album in July of ’68. This lineup of the Elevators may have included Steve Webb, who I’ve read was able to mimic Roky’s wailing vocals.
Pete Black joined Endle St. Cloud. I’ve read Steve Webb played drums with Potter St. Cloud and Euphoria, but that conflicts with David Potter’s account (and Potter certainly was the drummer on Potter St. Cloud’s album). Steve Webb passed away a few years ago.
George Banks continues on the connections between the Lost and Found, Endle St. Cloud and Euphoria:
Alan Mellinger (Endle St. Cloud) .. some how.. after we’d left LA.. wound up in LA playin’ around with Euphoria.. in fact they released an album – [A Gift From] Euphoria. James Harrell, after the bust here in Houston, returned to LA (he did studio work for a couple of years) and may have been on that album also (?). Euphoria later did an extensive tour with Blue Cheer. I visited Alan in Morrison, CO some many years ago where he and his wife and two children were doing quite well, as Alan was a partner in a Clinical Drug and Alcohol Re-Hab Practice in Denver. While there we called David Potter, who at the time was living in I believe, Wisconsin or Minnesota, working construction as a masonry contractor. A couple of years later I heard that Alan died of a heart attack.. and so ends my immediate and intimate association with the ‘Music World’ of the 60’s. As a footnote I think that Frank Davis, besides being one of Texas’s true hidden jewels as a performer, did all he could with the available equipment of the times.
Sources include: Interview with Jimmy Frost in Not Fade Away #4, Paul Drummond’s Eye Mind, and my correspondence with George Banks. Photos by their manager, Gary Iwers. Misfits business card from the collection of Andrew Brown. La Maison photo courtesy of Nancy Kuehl.
“I Need Love” was a song written by Tom Curley, vocalist with the Maryland group the Mad Hatters. The Mad Hatters cut the original version in late ’65. The Time Stoppers version wasn’t released until 1967. I’ve heard it called ordinary, but I’ve always liked it very much.
The band were probably from Pittsburgh, but I don’t know who was in the group. Jules Kruspir, publisher and co-producer of this disc, owned St. Clair records, which released great records by the Swamp Rats and Pat Wallace. The flip is a forgettable instrumental, “Fickle Frog”.
This also appears to be about the last record ever released on the eclectic HBR (Hanna-Barbera Records) label.
The Preachers were from Tuscaloosa, but other than David Keller, I don’t know who the members were. Keller seems to have been running the show along with producer and co-writer Steve Norris.
“Inspiration” shows a heavy Dylan influence, but though I’ve listened to it a dozen times in the last two days, I still can’t make out what he’s saying.
It was released twice on the Righteous Enterprises label out of Birmingham. The first release on RE-1001 had “Who’s That Hiding in the Closet” on the B-side, a good horn-driven instrumental.
The second release of “Inspiration” on RE-1003, backed the eerie “Hallowed Ground”, it made it all the way to #7 on WGNE in Panama City, Florida on Sept. 9, ’66, where Keller had a club called the Head Shop.
“Hallowed Ground” was also released twice, once with “What’s Happ’nin Pussy Cat” on the flip, as RE-1002.
There was a long-standing rumor that this label was run by the Righteous Brothers, but this seems to be completely wrong, and I can’t confirm any connection. It seems unlikely – the “Brothers” were from California, not Alabama anyway.
The Preachers had a fourth 45, a cover of the Everly Brothers “Girls, Girls, Girls” b/w “Dedicated”, from April 1966.
An unknown band from California, here they cover Them’s “Little Girl” retitling it “Pretty Girl”, with the singer substituting a head cold for Van Morrison’s soulfulness. Good shot anyway, backed with an unsuccessful cover of “Heatwave”.
This was the third release on the Two + Two label, it was preceded by The Menn “A One Way Deal” (Kenneth Johnson) / “Ian Fleming Theme” (Two + Two 101, produced by Gary Paxton for Limelight Music, BMI) and the Emperor’s “You Make Me Feel So Good”/ “Love Pill” (Two + Two 102).
One source gives the names of the Menn as Don Bagby (lead guitar), John Barnett (drums), Marvin Hale (lead vocals), Don Gray (rhythm guitar) and Fred Vanderheide (bass). Another stray sentence online lists Reynold Bagby as the owner of the Two + Two label, so maybe Donald Bagby of the Menn was his son.
The Vandaliers at Friendly Corners in Norwalk, OH, May ’66 from left: Harry Kerr, Wayne Van Doren, Whitey Gwinup, Garry Coleman and Tony Kowalski
The Vandaliers were a major live act in the northern Ohio region between Toledo and Cleveland. Although the band did not release any records at the time, they did record on three separate occasions. Their guitarist Whitey Gwinup later joined the Turfits, who recorded one song, “If It’s Love You Want”, that was originally a Vandaliers demo. Drummer Wayne Van Doren and second bassist Harry Kerr eventually formed Mail Order and recorded two more excellent demo songs. The following history, photos and recordings of the Vandaliers come from Wayne Van Doren, who was with the group from start to finish:
March ’63, from left: Walt Harkness, Wayne Van Doren, Herman Cesniros, Whitey Gwinup This is the lineup that recorded the Feb. ’64 demos
In August of 1962, The Vandaliers came together as a four piece garage band. The name Vandaliers came from the name VAN that was painted on Wayne’s base drum head. The original band members were Whitey Gwinup of Fremont, lead guitar, Walt Harkness of Fremont, bass guitar, Herman Cesniros of Hessville, saxophone and Wayne Van Doren of Clyde, drums. We spent many months practicing in Whitey’s one-car garage. The band played teen dances and at one dance in Tiffin, Ghoulardi (Ernie Anderson) was also there to entertain. Ernie was a very popular late night movie host from Cleveland.
On February 2, 1964, the band made a demo record at Courier studios in Fremont. The band was one of the first to record for Bob Brown at the new studio. On the record were two songs: “She’s Mine” written by Whitey Gwinup and “Office Party”, an instrumental written by Herman Cesniros.
In May of 1964, Herman left the band to travel with a road band. Garry Coleman of Fremont took Herman’s place on saxophone. In June of 1964, Walt also left the band and was replaced by Harry Kerr of Bowling Green on electric bass. The band continued to play as a four piece for a short time but wanted to add more fill to the sound. In late July of 1964, Tony Kowalski of Sandusky, B-3 organ, was asked to become the fifth Vandalier. With the addition of Tony, the band started playing much larger clubs.
Vandaliers outside Club 20 June ’64, Bellevue, Ohio from left: Harry Kerr, Wayne Van Doren, Whitey Gwinup and Garry Coleman Just before Tony Kowalski joined on organ
We played ten weeks at Club 224 in Tiffin to large college crowds and fans from the area. We played 12 week shows at Friendly Corners in Norwalk and had fans from Toledo, Cleveland and Columbus coming to Norwalk to see the show. The band also played 6 week shows at the Peppermint Club in Toledo and 8 week shows at The Circus Club in Bowling Green. The band played that four club circuit for over 2 years, playing 3, 4 and 5 nights a week plus other 1 night shows, and because Whitey, Harry, Garry and Wayne had families; they also worked 40 hour weekly day jobs.
Vandaliers at Friendly Corners, Nov ’64 from left: Wayne Van Doren, Whitey Gwinup, Harry Kerr, Tony Kowalski, Garry Coleman This lineup recorded the June and Sept. 1965 demos
On May 20, 1965, The Vandaliers opened a show for the Beach Boys at the Sports Arena in Toledo. They also played back-up for Glen Campbell who came on after our show and sang a few of his own songs. At that time, Glen was an up-and-coming star on the TV show, Shindig and was traveling with the Beach Boys to get more public exposure. Over 6,000 teenagers were there to enjoy the show.
Vandaliers from left: Harry Kerr, Garry Coleman, Whitey Gwinup, Wayne Van Doren, Tony Kolawski Opening for the Beach Boys at Toledo Sports Arena, May 20, 1965
In June of 1965, Bob Brown took the band to Audio Recording in Cleveland to back up 2 songs for Sandy Chapin, a young girl singer he was trying to promote. That same night, The Vandaliers recorded 4 demo songs of their own for Bob, with Don White engineering. The first 2 songs “Need Your Lovin” and “You Talk Too Much” were copy songs. The last 2 songs were originals “True Love I Found” by Whitey Gwinup and “If It’s Love You Want” by Whitey Gwinup and Harry Kerr.
The 4 songs were put on two 45 demo disks. The band did not receive copies of the two 45’s and after re-recording in September, the songs were forgotten about. On February 24, 2007, (42 years later), one of the demo disks was found in Issaquah, Washington. It was given to a collector of Ohio bands by a friend who bought it from a dealer in New York City who had bought it from Bob Brown in the late 1970’s. Also, in June of 2007, the second demo disk was found in Toledo, Ohio but it is now in San Clemente, California.
On September 2, 1965, Al Tolan, a businessman from Cleveland who was trying to become a promoter took the band to Cleveland Recording to cut another demo record. This time, the band recorded three songs, an instrumental, and then re-recorded “True Love I Found” and “If’ It’s Love You Want”, with new arrangements. Record companies were not interested in Cleveland music until the Outsiders hit with “Time Won’t Let Me”. By that time, the band had started to change and Al had given up the idea of being a band and record promoter.
Vandaliers at the Mixer in Bucyrus, Ohio, Oct. 1966 from left: Harry Kerr, J.J. Reinhart, Wayne Van Doren, Garry Coleman and Tony Kowalski
On July 9, 1966, Whitey Gwinup left the band to go on the road with a band called The Other Ones (later changing their name to The Turfits – see their entry). Whitey was replaced with J.J. Reinhart from Toledo.
On September 16, 1966, the band played the grand opening of a new teen club in Bucyrus, Ohio. It was called “The Mixer” and was billed as Ohio’s Largest Young Adult Nite Spot, and had an 11,000 square foot dance floor. The band was advertised on WKYC, Cleveland and WCOL, Columbus. The band returned to The Mixer for several lengthy engagements.
In March, 1967, Tony Kowalski left the band to enlist in the Coast Guard. Tony was replaced by George “Butch” Kelly, an organ player from Toledo. In May of 1967, Garry Coleman also had to leave the band. Garry was replaced by Larry Mann, a sax player from Toledo. Larry only stayed a short time, he had been playing on the road for over five years and was burned out.
On June 30, 1967, The Vandaliers, now back to a four piece band, played the grand opening for a new teen dance center in Danbury, Ohio. It was called “Harbor Lites” and would accommodate 2,000 people. With the loss of Whitey, Tony and Garry, the band lost that great sound that made it so popular. In October of 1967, The Vandaliers, one of northern Ohio’s best known bands through the 1960’s broke up.
A month later, Wayne and Harry put together a four piece band called Male Order. However, the band thought it would be too controversial and changed the spelling to Mail Order. For the full story on Mail Order click here.
Whitey went on to play with The Other Ones and other bands in the Fremont area. As of July, 2007, Whitey owns “Whitey’s Custom and Collision” (an auto body shop) in Clyde. He also plays dobro in a church band called “In Spirit”, and is working on recording a CD of gospel music.
After the Vandaliers, Wayne played in Mail Order, Mod Country Trio, The Sleek Brothers Band and Last Shot Country Rock Band. As of July, 2007 he owns a painting business in Clyde. He also works stage crew at The Ritz Theatre in Tiffin and The State Theatre in Sandusky. He still plays a few shows each year with musician friends.
Garry Coleman went on to play with Mixed Company and Night Watch. He also played in a band from Fremont called Robbie and the Ramblers. That band went on to play The Peppermint Lounge in New York City. On September 6, 2003, Garry was inducted into The Music Hall of Fame in Fremont, Ohio. As of July, 2007, he lives in Titusville, Florida and is a development manager for Allstate Insurance.
Harry Herr played in Mail Order and then put his electric bass in storage. He was promoted to sales manager for Brush Wellman and transferred to California. As of July 2007, he lives in San Clemente, California and is retired from Brush. He owns a DJ mobile music service called Music Ala Cart, and has started playing the electric keyboard.
After his discharge from the Coast Guard, Tony Kowalski taught music at the high school in Sandusky. He also played in We Three, New Pastels and other area show bands. As of July 2007, he lives in Sandusky and has retired from teaching. He is writing and recording his own songs and hopes to be published soon. The band stays in touch with each other and whenever possible they will meet, go to dinner and talk about the music.
At the Vandaliers June ’65 session, they also backed Sandy Chapin on two songs for a 45 that was released on the Empire label. Wayne writes, “Sandy Chapin lived in Fremont at the time and asked Bob Brown to produce this cut for her. Side 2 was guitar and voice only. Breath Taking Guy got air play in Toledo, Cleveland and Columbus, and also on a few out of state stations. Shortly after doing this recording, Sandy moved and Bob lost track of her, so we do not know how far her singing career went.”
I asked Wayne a few questions to expand on his history of the band:
Q. The Vandaliers were performing live before the Beatles hit in the U.S., and by the time you formed Mail Order, popular music was totally different. How did you adapt with the times?
Wayne: For the most part we were a copy band. Each week we would pick up a Top 10 list from the record shop and make sure we could play at least the top 6 or 7 songs. I don’t remember thinking the music was changing or we were adapting, we were just keeping up with the Top 10. I enjoyed playing pop music more than Motown, although the band played both. I was more aware of the big change in clothes. I liked the bellbottoms but could not find them in our area. I would buy oversized bib overalls and have them tailored into hip hugging bellbottoms.
Q: Who were the other bands you were in competition with?
Wayne: In 1962 there were not that many bands in the Fremont area. The band explosion happened after the British invasion but even then there were enough clubs in and around Fremont to accommodate all the good bands.
I never felt we were in competition with other bands for jobs. After our first year, we didn’t even have to audition. We were always working and most of the time the club owners came looking for us. We had a reputation of being on time, not drinking on the job, no smoking on stage and taking short breaks. The club owner got his money’s worth and he knew it. Besides, we just loved to play the music. The owner didn’t know this but we probably would have done it for free. When the five of us played together we were all in the same pocket or groove, it felt good.
Q. Were you friends with any other bands?
Wayne: We were playing every weekend and sometimes during the week so we didn’t have much time to make friends with other bands. Although when we were practicing in Whitey’s garage, Robbie Missler of Robbie and the Ramblers would stop by to visit. His band had played the Peppermint Lounge in New York City. Sometimes we would switch clubs with his band.
Q: What effect did the Beatles and other British Invasion acts have on your sound?
Wayne: I don’t think the British bands influenced our sound because we were copying so many different bands on the top 10. I always did play a heavy 2-4 rim shot with matched grip and would get looks from other drummers but when I saw the Brits playing the same thing, all was right with the world.
Q: It’s interesting to compare the June, ’65 recordings and the ones you made in September. The second version of If It’s Love You Want is at least as good as the Turfits version. I’d also say the Cleveland Recording studio did a better job of recording you in September than Audio Recording did in June. There’s better balance between the instruments and vocals, and crisper sound.
Wayne: Whitey would agree, he thinks the 2nd version is much better. Audio Recording was in the basement of WKYC radio station. It closed in the early 70’s. The head engineer was Don White. Cleveland Recording was on the 4th. floor of an office building on Euclid Ave. The owner was Ken Hammond, he invented the first version of Surround Sound in that studio. He called in Quadra Phonic Sound. He left Cleveland Recording and he and his son started Suma Recording outside Cleveland.
Q: What is the strange echo effect on the early version of True Love I’ve Found?
Wayne: That was a bark note Garry did on his sax and the engineer put the echo on it. Today we do not know why we did that. We did not play it that way in public.
Q: How was working with Ghoulardi?
Wayne: I watched Ghoulardi on a regular basis. He was a character. The night we worked with Ghoulardi he was about one hour late, so we had to keep playing. The crowd was all teenagers and after awhile they were getting restless and we were about out of songs. When he arrived he came on stage dressed in a long white meat-cutter’s coat with a rag hanging out of one pocket, a goofie looking hat, sun glasses with one lens missing and one red shoe and one yellow shoe. He had Max the Wonder Dog with him. Poor Max was terrified of the screeming kids and sat in the middle of the stage and wet himself each time Ghoulardi would point to him and scream “look kids, Max is going to do a trick”. He also had a squirt gun and knew how to use it. His favorite target was the back of my head. After the show we shook hands and I said “good show Ernie” he looked at me as if he should know me but quickly dismissed that and moved on. As fast as he arrived, he was gone. It was a fun night !!
Q. How did audiences change over the years?
Wayne: When we played the Beach Boys concert the crowd remained seated and did not rush the stage for the entire show. The kids were very reserved and polite, that all changed in a very short time.
Q: How did the band react when Whitey left?
Wayne: When Whitey announced he was leaving, our first reaction was,”yea right”, but after awhile we knew he meant it. We were all very disappointed but he wanted to go on the road, so we parted as friends. I feel that was the beginning of the end.
Q: As a drummer, how did you come to start writing songs?
Wayne: I didn’t start writing till close to the end of the Vandaliers. As a drummer it was difficult to write. I didn’t play any guitar or piano so I kept a small tape recorder with me and if I had an idea I would either sing, hum, or whistle it into the recorder. “The Things Before Me” [one of Wayne’s songs with the Mail Order] came to me one evening while riding to a club job. I was staring out the window watching the sun go down and the words and music came to me in about 15 minutes. I didn’t have my recorder with me and was surprised that after the show I still had that song in my head. Nothing was changed and no words were added. The more I went over it, the more a voice filter made sense and the wine glass and wind chimes made the fade out. The Beatles had one song with a wine glass ending. I can’t remember what it was or if it came out after I sent the tape to Apple.
The guitar player that helped me most was Jerry Pynckel. We wrote several songs together but after the Mail Order broke up he moved away and I stopped playing for several years. Jerry and I have reconnected by email. He is still doing some studio work and has talked me into getting a handheld recorder again. We’ll see what happens.
For more photos and memorabilia of the Vandaliers see their entry on Buckeye Beat.
Update: I am sorry to report that Garry Coleman, sax player for the Vandaliers, died on July 1, 2021. All my condolences to his family and friends.
The Shambrels, 1965, from left: Bruce Corvin on sax, Danny Sterling, Ronnie Bailey, Bob Gordon on drums, Don Skipper, and Danny Bradley
The Shambrels came from Oneonta, Alabama, about 35 miles northeast of Birmingham. I knew nothing about the group until Jerry Yancy commented below, so I’ve added his info to this post.
Members included:
Bruce Corvin – sax Danny Sterling – lead guitar Ronnie Bailey – lead vocals Bob Gordon – rhythm guitar and vocals Don Skipper – bass Danny Bradley – drums
Bob Gordon added these other members, not pictured in the photo:
Larry Coker – keyboard Dee Decker – drums
“Summer Girl” is the flip of the more pop-oriented “Girl, I’m Glad”. Both songs were written by Bob Gordon.
The Vaughn-Ltd label released at least eight garage 45s that I know of, including good records by the Bassmen and the Rockin’ Rebellions. Most bands on that label were from Birmingham.
The Shambrels were one of the last released on Vaughn-Ltd.
The Reddlemen of Angleton were one of three garage acts on the Custom label out of Tyler. They cut this one great 45, the amazing “I’m Gonna Get in that Girl’s Mind”, with the Byrds-influenced “I Can’t Go On This Way” on the flip.
Les Roberts of the Brym-Stonz Ltd. remembers the Reddlemen and their guitarist and songwriter, Michael Cotton:
You asked about the Reddlemen, they were great musicians. The lineup was Pat Harris vocals, Jim Howell Rhythm guitar and electric piano, Charles Smith bass, Gary Cotton drums, and Mike Cotton lead guitar. [Later,] Rick Hutchinson replaced Mike in the Reddlemen.
Mike was this incredible guitarist. He played a strat and used banjo strings to stretch and bend for his solos long before light gauge strings and unwound G strings came about.
Mike went out to California in the mid-sixties and was roommates with his cousin Keith Allison who played with Paul Revere and the Raiders on a show called Where the Action Is! Mike played guitar on the opening theme to the show. He auditioned for the Beau Brummels also. Tragically he was killed in Vietnam.
An old auction for their 7″ master tape reel mentions two unreleased songs by the band. I’ve never heard these and don’t know the titles.
An early photo of Billy and the Kids, with Mike Rice at top center.
Bob Gourlie – lead guitar Ken Laymance – rhythm guitar Mike Rice – keyboards and vocals Russ Wagner – bass Bill Burns – bass and vocals Bob Burns – drums and vocals
In the mid-60’s, twelve and thirteen year-old kids regularly recorded better music than most of what has been done since by groups of any age. “Say You Love Me” is such a song, featuring a tough rhythm, vocals tossed off without a care, and some wild high-pitched screams. It even has a good guitar solo! The a-side of their first 45, “It’s Not the Same” is definitely lighter pop, but will interest some listeners.
They recorded “When I See You” a year or two later, and the band is even sharper, with a fast bass line and frantic drum playing.
I’ve seen Loren Bolinger, who played guitar and keyboards for the Talismen also listed as a member, but I’m not sure if this is correct.
A local article wrote about the group:
‘Billy and the Kids’, five talented junior high school youngsters from East Wenatchee, Wash., make their professional debut on records with ‘It’s Not the Same,’ b/w ‘Say You Love Me.” Uniquely, this group is comprised entirely of 12- and 13-year-old boys who write all their own material. This group consists of twins Bill and Bob Burns on the drums and guitar, lead singer Mike Rice, lead guitar man Bob Gourley [Gourlie], and Ken Laymance on the rhythm guitar. An attractive and vibrant ‘go-go’ girl, Pam Cartwright, joins the group for public appearances. ‘Billy and the Kids’ demonstrated exceptional poise on their first professional recording endeavor. ‘They play the good hard rock as well as any group I’ve ever heard,’ was the appraisal made by veteran Wenatchee disc jockey Don Bernier, who helped launch the professional careers of these teenagers by recording ‘It’s Not the Same’ on the Julian label, a Bernier enterprise.
The band was managed by the twins’ father, Oliver ‘Ollie’ Burns, who was also a promoter of shows in the area.
In an interview by Oktay Gurbuz, Bill Burns wrote:
My father Ollie Burns (Jollie Ollie) booked and managed us at that time. My father was the Chief Juvenile Probation Officer of Douglas, County Washington. He also was a promoter. Every weekend he would rent halls, hire bands (Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Shindig Show, etc) and have dances.
I was able to hear live music and ask the musicians questions. There was a local band The Talismen. They were older guys and Bob Burns (my brother the drummer) and I would go watch them practice. They took us under their wing. I was the bass player. I played guitar but, we needed a bassist.
The first single was released between 7 and 8 grade so [it was] juvenile. The second record [“When I See You”] only a year later was a better recording, for 8th graders. The owner of the local radio station was in on the Julian Label. It was certainly exciting.
We played in Washington, Oregon, Idaho…for kids we had a following. Opening for the Wailers, Don and the Goodtimes, Billy, Dino and Desi, etc. The two records helped.
I have a tape (somewhere) of later incarnation of Billy and The Kids that was never released.
Bob and I formed Double Image, then News, recorded with Meredith Brooks, that album was released internationally. We have a project The Called. Bob Gourley I have not talked to since.
Don Julian Bernier owned the Julian label, issuing records by Wenatchee and Chelan acts the Aztecs (actually from Waterville I’ve since learned), the Talismen’s great “She Was Good” (Julian 105) and “I Know a Girl” b/w “I’ll Take a Walk” (Julian 108), the Chargers, Blane and the Julians, Linda Jo and the Nomads, and Judd Hamilton and the Furies. Don Bernier passed away on August 30, 2010.
Mike Rice and Bill and Bob Burns formed Double Image, a group that lasted until 1972 and had some lineup changes with members including Loren Bolenger, Steve Burdette (vocals), Don Gilbert, Doug Johnston (keyboards), Steve Nelson, Dave McKibbin (guitar) and Eric Peterson. For later photos of Double Image see PNWbands.com.
Russ Wagner went into Brand X, Inc from Portland, OR, with Jimmy Holt, Greg Johnson, Cliff Leisure and Scott Medler. Ken Laymance became a DJ in the Ukraine. Ken passed away in November, 2006. Mike Rice passed away of complications from lung disease due to smoking on February 25th, 2008.
Thank you to Paul Wentink for sending the top photo of the band on the slide and the poster, and for notifying me of Mike Rice’s passing. Bottom photo from the Pacific Northwest Bands site.
Very early photo of Billy & the Kids, courtesy of Bob GourlieBilly & the Kids, circa 1967
Billy & the Kids playing live, March 1967Billy & the Kids playing live, March 1967
The two photos above and four below, Billy and the Kids in the studio, September 1967
Bob Burns on drums
with the Fabulous Wailers in Walla WallaEarly photo of the Double Image, which featured Bill and Bob Burns and Mike Rice.Early photo of the Double Image
Until now I haven’t featured bands who didn’t record, but Bob Bass sent me these cool photos of his band the Bomarcs, and an interesting history of the group:
The Bomarcs were from northwest Florida in the panhandle part of the state and all of us were stationed on a radar site there that tracked the Bomarc missiles across the gulf.
We got our start at he NCO club on the site playing a regular gig there and then we started playing all over the area at all kinds of events.
We hadn’t been together long when we were sent to the Air Force “Tops in Blue” competition at Tyndall AFB Florida. We didn’t win in the competition, but it was a great honor to represent our radar site.
The early band was: Bob Bass guitar and vocals, Doyle Johnston guitar, and Johnny Joos drums. I think Johnny was the only one with any professional experience and was affectionately called “JIve Ass Joos”.
We played together for around a year and then Doyle was transferred overseas. We thought that would be the end of the band, but along came Carl Bender to play lead guitar. The Air Force kept us supplied with musicians like Carl. After Carl joined us the band really took off and we began to play professionally all over that part of Florida. Our big start was a regular gig at the Orleans Lounge in Gainesville. By then we had a bass player: Bobby Lindsey, another lead guitar: Clarence Jones and a sometimes saxophone player: Lester Hall.
Gainesville was a good town for us because it is a college town. We played several frat house parties at the University of Florida and there was a steady supply of night clubs in the area.
From a poster for the annual Forestry Day celebration held in Cross City, FL You can see Lester Hall, our sometimes sax player in the background.
I graduated from Biloxi High school, so New Orleans was just down the road from me. I went there as often as possible and my interest in blues was born there. We also played at Panama City Beach a few times.
The early Bomarcs featured a lot of R&B, Jimmy Reed, Clarence Henry, Screaming J Hawkins etc. and a mixture of country and contemporary rock. We were only a trio at first so our sound didn’t have a lot of bottom on it. In the “Tops in Blue” contest we did “Green fields” and I believe “Tom Dooley”. Both popular songs in their time.
As I mentioned before, after Doyle Johnston left us, the band really progressed. It wasn’t Doyle’s fault because he was an accomplished musician back then and still is. When Carl Bender joined us on lead guitar along with Clarence Jones, lead and rhythm, I quit playing guitar and did the vocals. Bobby Lindsey really added the bottom we needed with his Bass playing. Bobby was a fisherman from Horseshoe Beach Fl and Clarence was a high school student from Old Town, Fl. Clarence went on after the Bomarcs to play lead for Fred Bible and the Continentals, a Jacksonville band that was very big in the area.
With this group of musicians our repertoire of songs really expanded. We did rock of the day including all the Beatles, R&B, Country and even songs like “Misty” for what we called Romantic and Droopy Drawers music. We were now a variety band.
About the time we were really making it, the Air Force stepped in again. I was sent to Newfoundland along with my then new Fender Super Re-verb amp and Strat guitar. I continued to play while there with a Newfoundland group that was very popular at the time. After my career in the AF was over, 13 years, I kind of dropped out of music and spent time raising a family. Playing music and being a family man is hard to do. Often one has to choose between the two. I was a friend of John Taylor,”Big John and the Untouchables”, and ran across him where I live now in Lakeland, Fl. John was at a crossroad at the time and was having to decide between family and music. I hope I helped him make the right choice.
Doyle Johnston and I recently renewed old acquaintances and get together from time to time. He was a US postal employee at Zephyrhills, Fl for many years and didn’t know we were only a few miles apart. I live in Lakeland and am now a freelance writer and still a frustrated musician.
Carl Bender visited me at one time years ago. He was playing lead for a band at the Holiday Inn in Plant City. I understand from Doyle that Johnny “Jive Ass” Joos owns a resturant in Cross City. The others I have not heard from but would be real interested in doing so.
Here’s a fratty attempt at r&b called “Sweet, Sweet Soul” by the Dimensions 4 of Jackson, South Carolina. It’s not totally successful, but there’s no denying the funkiness of the opening beat and organ.
It’s probably their best song, though each has its moments. The flip “The Walk Out” is milder, and their second 45 on their own T-D-4 label, “Boogaloo King”, is not as exciting as the title suggests. All their songs were written by Melton Knight.
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
The Lost and Found came out of Houston, and originally called themselves the Misfits. Members were Peter Black guitar and vocals, Jimmy Frost lead guitar and James Harrell on bass. John Kearney of the Spades played with them for a short while after the Spades had split up in 1965, and they went through a succession of drummers, first Norman Blythe, then Mickey Bishop, and finally Steve Webb.
The Misfits played shows at Love Street and La Maison, where, according to Jimmy Frost, they met the 13th Floor Elevators for the first time. The Elevators would have a huge influence on their sound, and their friendship with Roky Erickson and Stacy Sutherland would eventually lead to an introduction to the International Artists label. At the start of a six month residency at Scott Holtzman’s Living Eye in Houston, they became the first Texas group busted for LSD. Jimmy Frost remembers Peter, James and Mickey facing charges, and that one of the reasons the band signed with International Artists was because its owners, Bill Dillard and Noble Ginther, were lawyers who could help them with the bust. Supposedly the charges were dismissed because the drug was not yet illegal! However, the notoriety of the bust led to the name change to the Lost and Found, appropriate in any case for the increasingly psychedelic direction of their music.
By the time they recorded their second and last 45 in ’68, their sound was totally original and psychedelic. “Professor Black” is supposed to be about Pete Black, it was written by Black, James Harrell and George Banks. “When Will You Come Through” is just as good, with searing guitar work. This 45 was produced by Fred Carroll, an interesting figure in Texas garage history. Fred Carroll (real name Fred Courtney, Jr) founded International Artists in October of ’65, but sold it soon after, then returned as a producer after Lelan Rogers left. He also started the Solar label and managed the Coastliners. He passed away in late June, 2007.
Jimmy Frost: “When we got back International Artists said we owed them money and that just finished the band off, we didn’t see any money from the tour, and we were all so broke that the band just split up.”
The Shambrels came from Oneonta, Alabama, about 35 miles northeast of Birmingham. I knew nothing about the group until Jerry Yancy commented below, so I’ve added his info to this post.
