Doug Stokes (Vocals)
Greg Carducci (Bass)
Ray Rychlewski (Drums)
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Josef Chirowski (Keyboards)
Larry Leishman (Guitar)
Singer Doug Stokes formed The Power Project in mid-1967 with former Roy Kenner & The Associates members Carducci and Rychlewski.
Former Mandala member Josef Chirowski and ex-David Clayton-Thomas & The Phoenix and Jon-Lee Group guitarist Larry Leishman joined around November 1967.
The band never recorded but did open for James Brown at Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens. The Power Project played during the evenings only as Chirowski was working for Canadian Pacific Railways during the day.
After a few months of playing live, the group changed name to Freedom Fair in January 1968.
The band reverted to The Power Project name in mid-1968. Chirowski joined Grant Smith & The Power at the end of 1968, before becoming a member of Crowbar, while Leishman ended up with Rhinoceros after a stint with The Duke Edwards Cycle and Bobby Kris & The Imperials.
Advertised gigs
10 June 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
30 June 1967 – North York Centennial Centre, Toronto with Mandala, The Spirit and Livingstone’s Tripp
30 June 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
14 July 1967 – Balmy Beach Club, Scarborough, Ontario
15 July 1967 – Broom and Stone, Scarborough, Ontario with The Ugly Ducklings and Trayne
26 July 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
28 July 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
6 August 1967 – Port Carling Surf Club, Port Carling, Ontario
8 September 1967 – The Thing, Toronto with The Jon-Lee Group
15 September 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
23 September 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
Chirowski and Leishman joined during November
4 November 1967 – Hawk’s Nest, Toronto with The Tiffanies
11 November 1967 – The Pavilion, Orillia, Ontario
19 November 19 1967 – Maple Leaf Gardens with James Brown (this may have been May 1968)
25 November 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
2 December 1967 – Inferno, Toronto
9 December 1967 – The Bunny Bin, Toronto with The Counts and Bunny Band
30 December 1967 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
31 December 1967 – Broom and Stone, Scarborough, Ontario with Jackie Shane, Frank Motley The Hitch-Hikers
26 January 1968 – The Hawk’s Nest, Toronto
28 June 1968 – Port Carling Surf Club, Port Carling, Ontario
5 July 1968 – Port Carling Surf Club, Port Carling, Ontario
The gigs were taken from the After Four section in the Toronto Telegram. Thanks to Larry Leishman for some background information.
It is my understanding that Bob Horne (Lords of London, Nucleus and A Foot In Coldwater) was at one point the keyboardist for The Power Project .
Yes, Bob Horne was the original keyboard player.
Doug Stokes
Hi Doug
Happy to amend this entry if you can provide more info about the band.
Nick
My late father, Walter Cholowski was in the Power Project as well. I still have his’67 Telecaster and a massive Traynor amp/speaker combo from the Hawks Nest. We also have showbills, newspaper articles and ‘fan trading cards’ of my father with the Power Project. They were recorded but not released, I have a demo 45. I don’t remember the songs names but side 1 is an R&B cover, side 2 is a ‘ballad’.