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tommykat1
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Tell Us About Your First Band!
I just read Snuffy's post in the performance showcase where he provided a link to the Ventures doing their version of the Surfari's "Wipe Out." It got me thinking of my roots.
So here's a new thread: Tell us About Your First Band!
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10/1/2008, 9:41 pm
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tommykat1
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
My first group was formed when I was in the 8th grade. It was 1966. Two guitarists--Rick and Bill--and me. We called ourselves the Prophet$. (A bass player, Dewey, joined us toward the end of our career.) I didn't want to paint the drumhead, so I cut out a piece of white, round cardboard, painted the logo, and taped it to the skin!
We played the Surfari's Wipe Out, the Ventures Walk Don't Run, Pipeline, and Endless Summer, and, of course, stand-bys like Louie Louie. We played the Monkees, a couple of Beatles songs, Hanky Panky (I had the lead vocal), Western Union, No Matter What Shape Your Stomach's In (the Alka Seltzer song), Winchester Cathedral, Long Tall Texan,the Rascals' Good Lovin, Jimi Hendrix' Purple Haze and Fire (in 1967) and a ton of others that I'm trying to remember.
I was a chunky kid and had no friends other than my band mates. We weren't athletes, we just practiced music at one of our houses on Friday nights and Saturdays, and had a sleepover. The plan was to see if we could do concerts for the other kids.
Bear in mind that nobody had seen or heard a live band at school yet. You were lucky if your parents had ever taken you to a concert of some sort, or even to a musical play. The Beatles and Stones were "It," baby.
We asked our social studies teacher if we could play at the end of class one day. She okayed it, and half the school showed up. (Our moms brought our gear over in the family station wagons.)
Unbeknownst to us, two other bands were practicing, too. So, the school holds an audition and the three main bands and three other wannabees show up at the gym one Friday afternoon for a "Hullaballoo!" We each played three songs for the throngs who showed up..
...And we got top prize!
The school had a concert of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners. We were honored with two sets, because we were number 1.
Next thing I know, everybody knows my name and the girls are passing me notes. Gee whiz!
So the YMCA throws a dance and we and the number two band do a concert--a battle of the bands. I had girls and guys lined up at my feet. The boys were swooning as much as the girls. One kid begged me to "teach me how to play the drums like you do."
Geez. I never could handle stardom.
But here's the best part. My Dad shows up at the end of the show to pick me up, and he's there for the last half hour, standing in the doorway with other parents. We were knocking them dead. The house went wild. My Dad was all smiles. He was so excited. All the way home he was telling me how proud he was, and how the other parents couldn't believe what they saw. And when we got home, he told my Mom, "Betty, you should have seen it. Tommy really can play the drums. He was wild!" He'd say over and over again, "He can really hold the beat, Betty! Really!" And he'd mimic a roll or two on the table. My Dad was (is) my biggest fan. (Thanks, Dad!)
The band broke up after about a year of successful playing at parties and dances. Girls and other interests got in the way, and eventually we went to different schools.
I'm lucky. I'm 55 years old now. I get to see my Dad in a couple of weeks. Can't wait! I know how fortunate I am. He likes to watch DVDs of Krupa and Rich, so we have a lot in common.
Oh, and I still use the 11" Zildjian splash cymbal that he got as a freshman in high school in 1935. 
Last edited by tommykat1, 10/2/2008, 1:18 pm
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10/1/2008, 10:00 pm
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JohnsRogers
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
I wish I had great stories like you guys, but my first band is my current band. I was a basement player in my teens but also a pretty good soccer player. It was not possible for me to play gigs on a Saturday night and get up for a game early Sunday morning, so the band thing took back seat. As it worked out my career came about due to my ball playing as I was hired on by an international airline (KLM) that needed a goalkeeper. I played all over the world with them, and spent a few years in the old NASL (North American Soccer League).
When my playing days ened it took a good number of years before I picked up the drums again and bought myself a set in my early 50's. I attended the Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp in 2006 out in Hollywood and met a guy who lived about a mile from me on Long Island !!! We agreed to get together back in NY and start a band, which I thought would never happen. As it turns out, here we are 2 1/2 years later preparing to play our debut album at The Bitter End in The Village this November. Amazing stuff...........we are Vintage6 4 old guys and a young babe.....yes, only 5 of us...we tossed a guitar player that showed up drunk evey practice and never was never prepared......that's it..... John
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10/2/2008, 7:43 am
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mainedrummer
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
Interesting thread - I'd almost echo what Tommykat's wrote. It was about '64 or 65 I got together with my first group of guys. For the life of me I can't remember the name we used, but we played all the surfing tunes, Beatles, Stones, etc. Our school had a teen club on Saturday nights and that was my first gig. We then progressed to playing at other school's teen clubs and sock hops. We took part in a couple of "Battle of the Bands" also. I do remember one that was big, several bands at a large school outside our area and I got one of my good friends to play his drums also - dual drummers. I can't remember who won but it was fun. My parents were always supportive of our music, which was good since we were all too young to drive ourselves around. By the time we were in ninth grade our band was playing a circuit of 5 school's teen club dances.
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10/2/2008, 8:16 am
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snuffyny
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
My first band...
Funny, I can't remember what we called ourselves.
There was me... then George on guitar and chordovox (an electric accordion), there was Ray on sax and lastly, there was Wayne on guitar and vocals.
We practiced in Wayne's basement... his father loved us.
(Wayne was a momma's boy and was the first person I knew to take drugs. His pupils were dilated at every gig.)
We dressed identically... beige blazers, black slacks, white shirts and maroon ties w/little maroon hankies in the blazer pocket.
We played a variety of music. George, Ray and I all were in one string band or another, so we'd just soaked up a bunch of polkas and other old-timey songs by reason of hanging around with the veteran players after parades. Wayne just knew the pop and rock stuff but we made sure he could play along.
(He did do a dynamite cover of Peter Noone, Herman's Hermits.)
Our venues were the Moose Halls, Elks Clubs, VFW's. These were places that paid well (and fed well too.).
This began in... maybe '63 and lasted until the summer of '67. That's the summer I'd made plans to join the army and was busy getting ready for that.
One summer ('66 ?) we had a contract to play "professionally" in Atlantic City. (This was long before the casinos.) The place was called The Green Door. It was on the boardwalk. They offered room and board plus $100 a week per man. There was the implied hint of girls and sun and surf and lazy days sleeping "under the boardwalk."
What it was was long days of 40 and 20 behind the bar from 2 til 2. Drunks and such yelling out requests and getting real hostile if we didn't know the song.
"Room" was 4 surplus army cots on the owners sun porch down the block and "board" was meal chits at a greasy-spoon diner around the corner. We were responsible for our own laundry and such. We ended the summer exhausted from doing those 12 hour shifts and returned home without tans or sand in our shoes. Never got to meet any of the pretty girls either.
Taught me to always be careful about what you sign.
I have no photos of us then... my first wife got to keep the albums from that time. She's probably thrown them all out.
Still... wouldn't change a thing. It was my first big adult "adventure." The fact that our parents put that much trust in us still makes me feel proud.
And... I was put in charge and had to telephone home and report once a week.
-Joe
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"...witness to gone times, and
To graces gone with time."
- Plath
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10/2/2008, 12:41 pm
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tommykat1
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
Snuffy, sounds like the Beatles in Germany!
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10/2/2008, 1:19 pm
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tommykat1
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
BTW, Snuffy, your avatar looks GORGEOUS! When do we get to see a closeup of those drums?
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10/2/2008, 1:21 pm
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snuffyny
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
Tommykat,
I'll post a bunch of pics soon.
That's my newest acquisition... a 20/12 combo, matched
with a 16 floor tom and a COB Powertone snare I already owned. It's become my favorite set.
I've continued shopping for cymbals and now have a nice
matched set of Zildjians... starting with my fav 21" ride,
there's a 20" crash, an 18" crash and 15" Quick Beat hats. I'm currently bidding on a vintage 10" splash too.
By the way... some of the dates/years are wrong in my
band story. We were together from '62 to '65.
By '67 I was already in the army.
Forgive me... my memory has some dents in it.
Everything else is accurate... I think?
-Joe
---
"...witness to gone times, and
To graces gone with time."
- Plath
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10/2/2008, 6:04 pm
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tommykat1
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Re: Tell Us About Your First Band!
Snuffy, you didn't mention your Paiste 2002 18" flat ride. You must not like it. Hmmn. I absolutely love mine.
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10/2/2008, 8:35 pm
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