August 9, 1987 was without a doubt one of the high water marks in Northwest music history. It was the “last blast” for Chicago’s Big Black, one of the most influential indie bands in the US back then. The band was led by Steve Albini who would go on to be the engineer/producer of some great records, including ones by The Pixies, The Jesus Lizard, Cheap Trick, Nirvana and The Stooges. In 2004 Albini estimated he has engineered or produced over 1500 albums. He’s done scores since then.
The setting for Big Black’s Last Blast was a century-old nformer steam plant near Boeing field in south Seattle. The steam plant had been abandoned so long ago that it no longer produced electricity-not even the facility itself was electrified. Generators had to be brought in to power the show. The audience stood on the large concrete floor in front of a large riser, or took to the catwalks high above the stage. James Husted and former member of The Blackouts Roland Barker-who would go on to play with Ministry -provided wafting, ethereal sounds as the crowd filed in. The show itself began with Stephen Jesse Bernstein doing a reading that ended with one of his best lines ever. The sound was set to echo his final words…This IS music, asshole…This IS music, asshole…This IS music, asshole.
Big Black played what woud (arguably) be it’s last show and they pulled no punches. They meant to go out with the kind of blast they were known for. None of this improbable scenario at this improbable venue could have taken place without Larry Reid (CoCA’s program director and Administrative director Susan Purves pulling the strings.Larry had somehow finagled his way to become the program director of Seattle’s Center On Contemporary Art (CoCA). Perhaps “finagle” isn’t the right term. Larry had been involved in music and art for years. He was an idea man…a BIG idea man. With one foot squarely in the art world and the other in punk rock, he managed to bring both together a series of events that included everything from Lydia Lunch and Jim Thirwell leading a discussion on the artist’s responsibiity to society (“none” concluded Ms. Lunch) an early appearance of GWAR-in their full anime- monster gear, “Failure To Discriminate” an animalistic robotic destruction derby by Survival Research Laboratories, the German industrial band Einstürzende Neubauten and notrious performance artists such as Johanna Went and Annie Sprinkle. The list goes on and on, including readings by William S. Burroughs more from Jesse Bernstien and a show dedicated to RE/Search magazine’s “Modern Primitives” which may or may not have begun the mass popularity of tattoo art by young Northwesterners. Along with the “big name” artists CoCA also provided a launch pad for hundreds of local artists and musicians.
Somehow Reid (and later CoCA director, Purves) were able to convince Seattle’s elite and CoCA’s board of directors to fund some of the most outrageous experimental, punk and underground-inspired performances of the decade. Big Black at The Georgetown Steamplant may have been the crown of Larry Reid’s achievements: and he’s had many acheivements.
The poster was a collaboration between Larry Reid and Susan Purves. There’s a bit of a backstory. The design is unapologetically stolen from the packaging of “Back Cat” a popular brand of Chinese firecracker. The design pays homage to the fact that the band, Big Black were notorious for ending their shows by blowing up a brick or so of firecrackers. The company’s by-line “Black Cat is the Best you can get” is changed to “Big Black is the Best you can get” and obviously “The Last Blast” (not part of the original firecracker packaging design) also refers to the use of firecrackers in the show. The Black Cat brand and it’s logo weren’t nearly as well-known then as it is today. Perhaps it’s use for the Big Black poster helped make it a bit more recognizable. We’d like to think so. A host of Seattle’s art and music personalities were on hand. A pre-Nirvana Kurt Cobain, the aforementioned Roland Barker who would go on to Ministry, Kim Thayil who was playing in an up and coming band called Soundgarden and Mark Arm (Mr. Epp/ Green River/Mudhoney) are usually mentioned as being there, but it’s certain that many unnamed attendees would go on to help shape the legacy Seattle art and music has left the world. Sub Pop’s Bruce Pavitt has called Big Black at The Georgetown Steamplant show his favorite. Reid himself says;
“In hindsight, this show marked a metaphorical passing-of-the-torch to Seattle as the center of the country’s counterculture”
The show was professionally shot, then edited by Steve Albini himself. This poster is for the screening of the video. Their is a similar poster that is similar to this photo except with screening dates at Seattle’s Scarecrow Video
It reads:
Today Larry Reid still has his hand in much of the nexus of Seattle’s art and music scenes. He also manages the flagship Fantagraphics Bookstore not too far from the site of Big Black’s Last Blast”. Susan Purves went on to be CoCA’s director into the early 2000’s and now works for Bellingham Washington’s Pickford Film Center, a dynamic, multi-dimensional arts nonprofit that is not only involved in film, but culture, education and a showcase for artists of all types.
“Zero dacus, mucho cracushallaballu-za bubThat’s the secret password that we use down at the clubZero-dacus, mucho-cracushallaballu-za fanMeans now you are a member of:KING’s TV club with Stan.”
Every baby-boomer who grew up within the broadcast signal of Seattle’s KING-TV knows the song. From 1954 until 1967, it was the theme for “King’s TV Club With Stan Boreson” and later simply “The Stan Boreson Show“. Boreson was only one of many kid-show hosts in the early days of Northwest. television. Others included the Ivar Haglund inspired “Captain Puget” (Don McCune), the railwayman “Brakeman Bill”( Bill McLain), Wunda Wunda-a sort-of Pixie Harlequin played by Ruth Prins and of course the most beloved of all; J.P. Patches played by the incredibly resourceful and hilarious Chris Wedes.
Although all local kids show hosts played a character, and focused on their kiddie audience in 1998 Boreson told April Chandler of the Kitsap Sun;
“We used to joke that the reason we’re not on (television) anymore is we were entertaining the parents instead of the kids,” he said. “I never talked down to the kids; we were just carrying on a normal conversation.”
The statement about the adults is probably true. Even though Boreson ran a cartoon or two during his daily broadcast,the bulk of his unscripted routine was a series of subtle “Scandahoovian” jokes and characters that were sure to go over the heads of most kids-especially the majority of his audience who had no first or second generation familiarity with the Scandinavian experience back home, or in the immigrant community. Not only that, Boreson was the master of cornball parodies of popular songs, sung in an addled English-Scandinavian dialect. The dialect itself was a large part of the joke, and even the parody must have seemed a bit too dense for small children.
This was the early days of television and cheap broadcasts of local artists allowed broadcasters across the country to fill time. In fact, it’s probable that not a single broadcaster across the nation didn’t have a kiddie show to fill in an afternoon time slot, or at least a comedy show that could please both the stay-at-home mom and her rowdy kids just home from school. Unlike most kiddie program hosts who had come from radio as announcers, weatherpeople or disc jockeys, Boreson had a leg up on all of them. He’d started his career as an entertainer and by the time he was hired he’d already performed his corny take on Scandanavian life and his accordian playing in front of thousands upon thousands of audience members. The start of his career goes back to his early days in Everett WA.
Boreson was born into a second generation family. His grandfather-a carpenter- had jumped ship from a Norwegian lumber hauler near Utsalady on Camano Island. After hiding out for several days the angry captian and crew of the gave up looking for him, he made his way out of the forest and eventually filed a land claim on Camano Island. Next he sent word to his wife to join him. By 1925, when Stan was born, his mother and father had settled in Everett WA, where a large Scandanavian population had congregated. It’s unclear if his grandparents remained on Camano Island, although later it would be a welcome destination for Stan and his wife to re-charge their batteries.
Stan grew up around first and second generation Norwegian immigrants who were stuck somewhere between stubbornly holding onto the ways of “the old country” and being bemused and a bit confused by the new American culture they’d found themselves in. In fact Boreson would use a running joke throughout his life that “this is a song my uncle Torvald taught me” before launching into one of his thick-accented parodies. It was both humorous to Scandinavian audience, but it also showed a sign of Stan’s well-meaning, genial attitude toward his audience and their backgrounds. Scandinavians who had immigrated were no less frowned-upon and subject to bias than any other ethnic group that has come to America in large numbers.
In the 2010 documentary “”Off The Air But Still In Our Hearts” Boreson recounted a story that’s become familiar with almost every one of his fans. He remembered that at age 12 his mother had decided it was time for Stan to start music lessons. The instrument originally assigned to him was the guitar. She sent him to a tutor, Mel Odegard who worked out of Buell’s Music on Hewitt Avenue in Everett. Odegard told him Stan “I’ll teach you some chords on the guitar and then you can sing the melody.’ Stan was too shy to sing at the time and objected. ” I was very bashful, so I sez ‘No way am I going to sing.’ So he said: ‘Well, then why don’t you trade-in the guitar on an accordion? — you play the melody on one side and chord on the other. That’s how I became an accordian player” Stan recalls.
He also recalls the accordion being so heavy that he hauled it from home to Beull’s and back in his wagon. Of course Stan often repeated this story and each time he was sure to insert the names and addresses-including his home address in Everett at the time. Even though he repeated the story often each time it sounded like the first time he’d told it. Apparently Stan was fighting his reluctance to sing when a cousin, Myrtle Lee, dared him to take part in a skit at one of Everett High School’s pep rallies. Stan would play accordion and sing the lyrics to the song “Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh”, an old, somewhat hackneyed standard written by Abe Olman and Ed Rose in 1917. The idea was for Stan to play and sing the song’s lyrics as written in English and Myrtle would “translate” the lyrics in an over-the-top, Norwegian display of comedic melodrama. The performance was a hit, and Boreson-and presumably his cousin Myrtle-would never be stage-shy again. In fact, Boreson clearly reveled in his ability to perform and entertain audiences. This revelry would continue throughout his entire life.
When US involvement in the Pacific and Europe broke out into war h tried to enlist in the Army but was rejected because of an arm injury that had kept him hospitalized for a year as a child. So having been turned down by the Army he chose to do his service by joining the USO. His USO deployment led him to Italy, where he sang on makeshift stages with musical greats The Andrews Sisters, Arthur Tracy, Allan Jones and more. This experience would lead Boreson to gain even more confidence performing in front of audiences. After the war ended Boreson returned to Everett and enrolled as a student Everett Community College…in those days “community” colleges were known as “junior colleges”, so Stan spent two years at Everett “Junior” College, before transferring to the University of Washington. His studies included accounting and personnel management. But study seemed to come second to his aspirations of becoming a comedian and porodist. It was at the University of Washington that his true ambitions as a performer blossomed. Boreson started out with amateur student comedy troupes, mostly among the University’s student entertainment groups. It was here that he honed his “Scandahoovian” persona.
In 1948 Dorothy Bullit purchased KRSC-TV , which had been the first television station to broadcast in the Northwest. The station was re-branded to KING TV shortly afterward to match the call letters of it’s sister station KING Radio. Bullit who was President of KING at the time hired Lee Schulman-a former NBC program director-to look for talent to fill the airwaves of KING TV. One of the targets of Schulman’s search for talent was the University of Washington. It was there that Schulman first saw Boreson and soon afterward he offered Stan a role co-starring with fellow U of W student Art Barduhn. The show debuted as a 15 minute slot each Thursday called “Campus Capers” Later, when the show found a sponsor-Clipper Oil-and the name of the program was changed to “Clipper Capers”.The show included music, comedy skits and occasional interviews. Still later Boreson and Burduhn were offered a half-hour show called “Two B’s at the Keys” (Boreson and Barduhn being the two “B’s. the keys being Stan’s accordion and Burrdun’s piano.) The show, like the previous “Clipper Capers” included comedy sletches, but Stan went even further into Scandanavian parodies of popular songs. It is on “Two B’s at the Keys” that Boreson debuted what would become one of his most beloved parodies “Valkin’ In My Vinter Undervear” set to the tune “Walking In a Winter Wonderland”. The show was a hit with the audiences as well as the sponsors. Boreson and Barduhn did their television show as well as work as featured and opening acts around the Puget Sound region.
Boreson also had a personal connection to band leader Lawrence Welk, another immigrant who’s accent was shaped by the adults he grew up around. Although Welk was born in Strasburg, North Dakota. His family were of German Catholic descent who’d fled Odessa, a city in what was at the time The Russian Empire. (Odessa is now in Ukraine).. Although they did not share a Scandinavian background it’s clear that Boreson had a special place in his heart for Welk and his orchestra throughout his life. Another tie was that Welk’s family had stubbornly held onto their traditions and accents during Welk’s early life. Welk’s accent became as much a part of his persona as the “Champagne Music” he conducted.
“When my cousin and I ran the 7 Cedars Dance Hall in Mount Vernon, we were able to hire him, his whole 16-piece band, and even the Champagne Lady for $750. And his wife sent us baked cookies. He wasn’t famous then, but I knew of him because he’d made some polka records. Later, when he got famous, he had me on his show (in 1957) in Los Angeles. I could never hire him again, though. His price had gone up to $30,000. Same band!”
During the early 1950’s Stan also became aware of comedian/singer/parodist from Tacoma, Harry Edward Skarbo (aka by his adopted name, Harry Stewart) and his alter-ego Yogi Yorgesson. Boreson had been doing his Scandinavian schtick for years, but Skarbo/Stewart/Yogi was far more successful. Boreson’s musical act emphasized comic Scandinavian dialect parodies. Skarbo/Stewart had created a somewhat dim-witted character (Yogi Yorgesson) portraying a naïve Swedish “Hindu yogi” who handed out absurd advice and divination in a thick Swedish accent. Aside form a successful nightclub act, Skarbo/Stewart (as Yogi Yorgesson) had charmed audiences across the country with his own parodies of the ever-confused Scandanavian immigrant and his somewhat backward ways. His first recording “My Clam Digger Sweetheart”b/w”I Don’t Give a Hoot had proved popular enough to land him a contract with Columbia Records. According to his bio Skarbo/Stewart/Yorgesson’s second recording (the first that debuted on Capitol) “I Yust Go Nuts at Christmas” backed by The Johnny Duffy Trio) was promoted as a special Christmas release. Advance orders came from all around the country, and sales soared.
Capitol realized they had a bona fide hit . The song debuted on the Billboard charts at number 24 on December 10th, 1949 , and by the next week, both “I Yust Go Nuts at Christmas, and it’s B-side “Yingle Bells” were both in the Top Twenty. By Christmas that year both were top ten hits. The song “I Yust Go Nuts” proved it’s legs at Christmas” and even reached number five even after the holiday. The single became one of Capitol’s permanent hits—being reissued virtually every year in one form or another since it’s debut in 1949.. Right after Christmas, “I Yust Go Nuts at Christmas” reached number five, and the single became one of Capitol’s permanent hits—being reissued or covered by other artists since it’s debut. It remains a seasonal hit on the Dr. Dememto show. As the 1950’s continued along Skarbo/Yorgesson continued to perform under his stage name, but largely abandoned his “Hindu mystic” character in favor of his act as a Swedish-American parodist and comedian taking advantage of an exaggerated accent. Sadly Skarbo died in an automobile accident in 1956 near Tonapah NV, on his way from a gig in Ely Nevada to his home in Los Angeles.
Between 1956 and 1979 Stan and his musical collaborator Doug Setterberg would record and release 18 songs that had been written by Skarbo/Stewart. In 1980 Stan recorded another 11 of his songs on the tribute album “Yust ‘Tinkin’ of Yogi” . Before. during and after Stan’s television career Boreson had worked closely with his collaborator Doug Setterberg writing and performing parodies together. They appeared onstage as a duo and recorded albums under the name and “Stan and Doug”, although it’s clear that it was Stan who held the spotlight. In all. Boreson (either as a solo artist or alongside Setterberg) recorded 16 albums during his career. Setterberg also collaborated on Boreson’s television show as characters “Foghorn Peterson”, “Phineus The Frog” and various sketch characters. Aside from Setterberg regulars included the voice of Mike Rhodes as the heard but never seen “Old Timer”, Boreson as “Grandma Torvald (his drag persona) a 1962 World’s Fair visitor from outer space, Space-Nick, played by Jerry Sando. The menagerie of animals (real and imagined) scattered the set that included Victor Rola, Pepita the Flea, Phineas the Frog , and “The Swedish Answerman” but none so predominant as the perpertually inert Basset Hound, No-Mo-shun, often shortened to simply “No-Mo” The name stems from a contest to name the mascot of Boreson’s show. The name is a pun on speed record holder (at the time) of“ Slo-Mo-Shun” a local favorite in hydroplane-mad Seattle. Later No-Mo-Shun would be paired with the equally immovable Basset Hound, Talulah Blankhead. I n 1967 Stan Boreson’s show became victim of changes in children’s afternoon programing and an emphasis of afternoon news, talk shows, syndicated sit-coms and soap operas. In fact Boreson’s show was replaced by the gothic themed “Dark Shadows” Sadly, Stan’s sidekick and collaborator, Doug Setterberg died shortly after the show’s cancellation. Still this didn’t keep Boreson from travelling the country or appearing locally to his fans and admirers who had dubbed him “The King of Scandanavian Humor”. His fame was so widespread among pockets of Scandinavians across the country, in Canada, and in Scandinavia itself that his albums, especially his Christmas albums, are regularly pulled out and listened to at large gatherings of Scandinavian friends and family. As corny as they are, they still bring a laugh, and maybe a cringe at their corniness.
Stan continued to record and tour during the 1960s and 1970s and continued to appear on television in the form of “The Stan Boreson Christmas Reunion” that ran every Christmas from 1991 to 2003. He also continued to work live all over the country as well as in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark. In 2006 Rick Anderson of the Seattle Weekly wrote:
“Boreson has been on an accordion world tour since, from the Norsk Hostfest in Minot, N.D., to the Little Norway Festival in Petersburg, Alaska, and every lutefisk fight in between. He appears regularly at local events; he’s also done six gigs on A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor. Wherever he goes, they ache to hear the Klubhouse theme song, “Zero Dacus” (“mucho cracus, hullaballoozabub “
While Stan kept performing the honors and accolades started to pile up. He was summoned by King Olav V of Norway to perform for him and hundreds of guests. In 2005 Olav V’s successor King Harald V awarded Boreson the St. Olav Medal of Honor, an award Boreson shares with only eight others. The Ballard Chamber of Commerce began giving out annual Stan Boreson Awards to various esteemed members of the community, and in 2007, Boreson was honored with two of the first Distinguished Alumni awards ever offered by Everett Community College. He also was dubbed the “Prime Minister of Sea-Fair” Seattle’s annual festival of concerts, parades and special events culminating in the anuual hydroplane races. The largest honor, of course, is the place in the hearts of his fans. Although his TV shows are long gone he’ll always be remembered for his genial mood and gentle humor. It’s important to remember that Stan spent more than 20 on television (12 of them as the host of “KING’s Klubhouse” and “The Stan Boreson Show) But the bulk of his nearly 70 year career was as a live performer, a recording artist and comic. was as a recording artist and live entertainer. Videos from the early days of television broadcasts video was re-used, so very little footage of the Stan Boreson Show,KING Klubhouse, Campus Capers amd Clipper Capers are left, but most folks outaside the Northwest know Stan through his revcordings and live routines. Consequently, there is a great deal of recorded music available.
In 2007 Boreson and his wife formed “Stan Boreson and Barbara Tours”. They took tourists across the US, Canada and Europe for several years by bus; Barbara was the gracious host and Stan, always with his accordian on hand, worked as the commentor, tour guide, and musical entertainment. Always self-deprecated and kind though extremely funny in his trademarked cornball banter. It was clear Stan had no desire to continue being the cut-up he’d been for decades. Stan and Barbara’s tour business lasted 25 years, and each tour provided an captive (but willing) audience for Stan to charm.
Stan’s final foray into recorded music came in 2007 with a cover of Sheb Wooley’s “I Just Don’t Look Good Naked Anymore” A self-deprecating, corny video of the song is available on you tube.
On January 27th 2017 Stan Boreson suffered a massive stroke in the presence of Barbara, his wife of over six decades. His obituary in the Seattle Times wrapped up his career and status as a Northwest icon. The obituary then goes on to say:
“In true Stan Boreson style, he would have wanted to end with a joke…so here goes”.
Lena calls the newspaper and asked to speak to the obituaries.
“This is the obituaries, what can I do for you?”
“I would like to put an ad in your obituaries.”
“What would you like to say?” ”
I’d like to say, “Ole died.”
“Just two words… “Ole died?”
“Yeah, well he did.”
“We have a special this week…five words for a dollar. For the same amount you can have three more words. Is there anything else you’d like to say?”
“In that case,” Lena said, “I would like to say, “Ole died boat for sale.”
Years ago Barbara Boreson said that she and Stan had made a pact that when one of them died the other would go on with life and promised to remarry. Sadly Barbara Boreson never got the change. She died August 20, 2017 just six days short of her 86th birthday. Although both Stan and Barbara and Doug Setterberg are no longer with us, it’s certain that Stan’s corny “Scandahoovian” comedy will last for generations.
-Dennis R; White. Sources; Peter Blecha “Borsen, Stan (1925-2017)” (HistoryLink.org Essay 8553); Barbara Boreson “Stan Boreson. The King of Scandinavian Humor” (http://www.stanboreson.com/index.htm); By Kaitlin Manry “Stan Boreson Can’t Stop Singing” (Everett Herald, December 23 2007); Rick Anderson “Most Resistant to Makeovers” (Seattle Weekly, October 9, 2006); Roger George “My Memoir of Growing Up in Seattle With Television” (Images of Television, September 3, 2014); “Stan Boreson 1925-2017” (Seattle Times Obituaries, January 27, 2017); “78’s fRom HeLL – – Listening in on Phone Chatter: Janette Davis – Hold The Phone, (and on line two) Stan Boreson & Doug Setterberg – The Telephone” (I’m Learning To Share, May 26, 2007); April Chandler “Stan Boreson: Fans Still Going Nuts Over Funny Norwegian” (The Kitsap Sun, January 7, 1998); Dawn Broughton “Remembering Stan Boreson of KING’s Klubhouse” (King TV, February 1, 2017); “How Was He Different?” Seattle Television History); Sherry Strickling “Yust the two of us: Stan and Barbara Boreson Have Kept Each Other Laughing For Nearly 50 Years” (The Seattle Times, July 15, 2001); Kari Bray “Stan Boreson, ‘King of Scandinavian Humor Dies at 91 (The Everett Herald, February 1, 2017); Melinda Bargreen “The Klubhouse Is Open Again” (The Seattle Times, December 15, 1991); “Barbara Jean Boreson” (Obituary, The Seattle Times, August 20, 2017); John Louis Anderson “Scandinavian Humor and Other Myths” Nordbook, 1986); Will Jones “Yorgesson? Yust A Phoney” (‘After The Last Night’ The Minneapolis Tribune, April 18, 1950); Will Jones “Smart Swede Fails To Click” (‘After Last Night’, The Minneapolis Tribune, June 22, 1950); ” ‘Yogi Yorgesson Killed In Car Crash” (The Minneapolis Star, May 21, 1956); Susan Paynter “Boreson’s Living Proof That Silliness is Good For Your Health” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, May 5, 2005
The F-Holes formed out of a jam session on Nov 21, 1984 at The Central Tavern near Seattle’s Pioneer Square. The original members were “Lucky” Tony Mathews, Douglas “Stringtie” Creson and John “Moondog” Mooney. The jam consisted of three songs. The booker was impressed enough to ask them to open for his band, The Alleged Perpetrators on Dec 14, 1984, and a band was born. Since that night The F-Holes have consistently been part of the Seattle music scene.
One night while Stringtie was playing pinball at a tavern with Kevin Heaven (a local musician and well-known scenester)’ Kevin said;“You gotta check out my new f-hole guitar!” Stringtie went home that night and made a poster. He brought it to rehearsal the next day. “We are the F-Holes” he told them. The newly-named outfit’s drummer, John “Moondog” Mooney asked;“What am I gonna tell my Mom?”
1985 brought a solid stream of bookings. The bookings continued. The first few years The F-holes played more shows than they rehearsed. Doug Creson recalls;
“We’d rehearse on Wednesdays and play shows Thursday , Friday and Saturday”.
Things changed in 1986 when the F=Holes added Otis P. Otis on lead guitar. He was a huge Johnny Thunders fan and brought a heavier sound that lead the band into the pre-grunge era. The original F-holes sound included generous heaps of Psychobilly, Cowpunk, Garage Rock, Punk, Acid Blues and 60s Psychedelia. They add they also play Country music, though they add
“we’re not sure which country“.
Along with Otis came a sound that brought the band to a new level and wider audience. They still played the same music as before-only heavier. Their look was still psychobilly with the big pompadours and cowboy boots and bolo ties. That would change in later years, but for the earlier part of their career the band was known for their appearance as much as their music. Both were fun, over the edge and a little bit retro as far as their dedication to punk.
“Promoters always had a hard time pegging our sound but we played with all kinds of bands. Punk, Alt Country, Grunge, Power Pop” says Creson.
The biggest misconception may be that the F-Holes are a rockabilly band. It’s a claim the band adamantly deny. Since the beginning they’ve always played a few rockabilly-tinged numbers, and they often dressed in a style associated with rockabilly. Still, it’s hard to listen to them without thinking they’re nothing less than a great punk-pop band with the talent to pull off just about anything they throw out to their audience.
Th band is also known for wicked sense of humor. In 2011 when the magazine Seattle Sinner asked them what their fondest Christmas memory was Creson told the interviewer;
“We played a Buzz Scooter Club party in an abandoned building with 64 Spiders. On the way to the gig we bought a sheet of windowpane acid, 100 hits. At the party we dissolved the acid into the punch bowl. People were drinking kegger cups full of this shit. By the time we finished our set everyone was just flying, wandering around lost on the upper floors like wide eyed zombies. I wonder how many bodies they found when they tore that place down. This was in 1984, back when you hipsters were still crappin’ in your diapers and sucking breakfast out of your mama’s knockers”. True story.
By the mid ‘90s band members drifted into other bands, failed marriages, rehab and dead-end corporate jobs. They played a few uninspired shows, now and again…not really breaking up, just not playing with the same passion and frequency as before.
In 2006 The F-Holes were invited to play Geezerfest at Seattle’s legendary Crocodile Cafe. It was a
showcase of bands that helped create the alternative sound and so-called “grunge” Seattle had become known for in the 1990’s. These were long-time workhorse bands that had actually developed the sound, others had built their success on, but despite their talent were overlooked getting signed to a big record deals. Along with The F-Holes, the line up included bands like Catbutt, Coffin Break, Swallow, Snow Bud and The Flower People, Blood Circus, Love Battery, and other worthy bands.
The F-Holes showcase was so well-received that it led to their playing steady ever since. Now in their 33rd year of rocking their fans remain rabidly loyal, and friends are bringing their kids (and grandkids?) to their shows.
The F-Holes recorded output over the years has been sporadic…in fact there’s been only a few recordings available; but the good news is that they’ll be entering into the studio with Jack Endino in 2018. They’ve also found a newer and younger audience while keeping the old-timers. An Endino-produced album looks promising.
The Stranger magazine’s Mike Nipper observed that after so many years;
“The F-Holes are, dare I say, a smart and (ahem) “songwriterly,” kickass punk group, and live they’re driving as a mofo”.
Even more fitting, on their website the F-Holes simply say “Totally Skankin’ since 1984”.
-Dennis R. White-Sources; Doug “Stringtie” Creason; The F-Holes (home page, http://fholesrock-blog.tumblr.com); Mike Nipper (The Stranger, February 23, 2016); The F-Holes (thatsdadastic.com, 2010); Chuck Foster (“The F-Holes Unmasked: F-Holes Celebrate 28 Years of Being Misunderstood” Seattle Sinner, December 2011)
Tacoma’s Ventures. They’ve lasted almost 60 years in one form or another. They’ve released over 250 albums. They’ve sold over 120 million records….more than any other instrumental band in history. Those records are unlikely to ever be topped by an instrumental band of any genre. During their career they’ve covered just about every kind of music there is. Most of their albums are largely covers of popular songs, but surprisingly they write about one third of their music. They helped develop the “surf sound” although they point out they didn’t invent it, and don’t consider themselves a “surf band” at all. In a 2015 interview with Forbes magazine co-founder Don Wilson told interviewer Jim Clash;
“One of our biggest sellers was a surfing album. I guess we got tagged with that – Pipeline and Wipe Out we are associated with – so suddenly we are a surf rock band! I see that written a lot. But I don’t care. I’m used to it. We’re not just surf”.
Band members have always denied their music being founded in the surf sound, but it’s certain The Ventures had a profound affect on it. It could be they’ve always refused to be labeled surf just as much out of deference to the artists who truly are surf bands as much as the facts. It’s also true that The Ventures went far beyond any one genre-expect being instrumental. They’ve also maintained keeping current with putting their sound to current music. Aside from their top-knotch playing it is these two other factors that have kept them in the world’ public eye for decades.
The story of The Ventures goes back to the day that Bob Bogle first met Don Wilson in 1958. Bogle was looking to buy a used car from a dealership in Seattle. The car lot was owned by Wilson’s father. Don was the salesman. During their conversation, they found out they both had an interest in music. They became fast friends, and soon Wilson began working with Bogle in the masonry field. Obviously carrying mortar and bricks was more lucrative than hawking used cars for small commissions. In 2009 Bob Bogle told The Seattle Times:
“And then we found out that we each knew a few chords on the guitar, you know, and we had a lot of free time on our hands. But neither of us owned a guitar.”
So off they went to a Tacoma pawnshop where both of them bought very cheap guitars. They say the guitars were less than $10 each. Over the next few months the two practiced every moment they had between jobs…and they were frequently out of work. Soon the two were making the rounds of local bars, house parties and any other gig they could find.
Meanwhile bassist Nokie Edwards had begun playing around Tacoma with Buck Owens’s band The Bar-K Gang. Owens also hosted the KTNT “Bar-K Ranch” TV show that gave Owens (and Nokie) even more local exposure. Sometime in 1960 Wilson and Bogle saw Edwards playing in a Tacoma club (possibly Steve’s Gay 90s where Owens’s band had a residency). After about a year Nokie left Buck’s band behind to join Wilson and Bogle This move had unknowingly helped spawn two superstar bands. Owens soon switched fiddler Don Rich to guitar in his newly formed band, The Buckaroos, while Nokie helped fill out The Ventures– a band that would later be dubbed as “The Band That Launched A Thousand Bands”, The Ventures.”
By the time Nokie had joined Owens band he was already a known as a regional virtuoso guitar player. He’d played professionally since he was 17 and managed to make a very good living with many gigs paying up the $350 a week. By the time Bob Bogle and Don Wilson lured him into with them he was certainly taking a big financial hit.
Originally Bogle and Wilson had chosen the name The Versatones, but as Don Wilson put it;
“We started out calling ourselves ‘The Versatones’. When we went to register the name, we found out that it was already taken. We were disappointed then, and my mom said, ‘You are venturing into something new, so why don’t you call yourselves The Ventures’?” I thought it sounded pretty corny, but anyway it stuck!’
This wouldn’t be Wilson’s mothers’ only contribution to the band. After The Ventures had shopped around for a recording contract (and failed) Josie Williams founded Blue Horizon Records, and arranged studio time at Joe Boles legendary West Seattle studio Custom Recorders. The Ventures recorded their first single “The Real McCoy b/w Cookies and Coke” with Boles. Josie wrote the lyrics to Cookies and Coke and produced both sides. The single was a flop, but it wasn’t long before Josie booked more time at Custom Recorders and Walk-Don’t Run” was recorded. Bogle played lead guitar with Wilson on rhythm, Edwards on bass, and Skip Moore on drums . The tiny label pressed up only 300 copies, and distributed them locally. Unfortunately for Moore, he had decided to leave the band and work for his father’s gas station. He agreed to be paid $25 for his work on the recording instead of a royalty sharing deal…a mistake that would deprive him of royalties even after a lawsuit a few years later. Moore was replaced by drummer George T. Babbitt, Jr., but at 16 he was too young to play bars and taverns The Ventures were often hired to perform in. Finally the band hired Howie Johnson in order to go out on tour in support of their major hit and new-found popularity. In the fall of 1961 he was involved in a car crash, causing him irreversible spinal damage. Johnson managed to play drums while wearing a neck brace. Beside touring he drummed on the first four Ventures albums and half of the tracks on the fifth LP. He ended up quitting in order to spend more time with his family and occasionally played locally throughout the rest of his life.
Josie Wilson pushed Walk-Don’t Run day and night to anyone who would listen. Out of the blue local entrepreneur, DJ and radio station owner Pat O’Day started using a portion of Walk-Don’t Run as a “kicker” (intro) to his newscasts on his wildly popular radio station KJR. Listeners wanted to hear more, so KJR put the entire song into rotation. Soon legendary Seattle label Dolton Records were beating a path to Josie’s door to pick up The Ventures’ contract. The irony was not lost on Josie and the band that they had previously auditioned for Dolton, but had been turned down. Though Dolton heads being a bit embarrased theywent on to re-release Walk-Don’t Run on their label. At the time Liberty Records was their distributor so Dolton licensed the rights to the much bigger and more powerful national label.
It’s well known that the band had been introduced to Walk-Don’t Run through Chet Atkin’s 1956 version of the song included on one of Bob’s favorite albums; “Hi-Fi In Focus”. Yet the song had originally been written and recorded by jazz-great Johnny Smith in 1954. The Atkins version is more syncopated than the very jazzy Smith version. Both are fine renditions, but The Ventures would put their own Imprint on it- as they did on other recordings-creating yet a third dynamic version of the song. Both Chet’s and Johnny Smiths are worth a listen. Both are as individual and inspiring as The Ventures’ forward-looking interpretation. In 2011 Don admitted
“He (Chet Atkins) played it in a classical jazzy style and we couldn’t play it like that. We weren’t good enough. So we decided to make our own arrangement of it and simplify it and that’s how that happened.
Having found a local label with national distribution propelled “Walk, Don’t Run” to number two on the Billboard pop chart and sold over a million copies. When the Ventures relocated from Seattle to Los Angeles in 1963, Josie Wilson remained the band’s co-producer in tandem with Dolton owner Bob Reisdorf. Years later she was also instrumental in getting fans to demand The Ventures be inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. During her life she became a savvy business person, a respected producer and one of the first to kick down the doors of the music industry to women. Surprisingly it was another woman-Bonnie Guitar-who grew up just a few miles north of Tacoma-who would also be instrumental in gaining respect for women in music circles. Josie Wilson remained a trusted insider of The Ventures until her death at the age of 91 in 2007.
Their second release was a re-working for a 1940 Xavier Cugat hit called Perfidia. It only reached number 15 in the charts, and was followed by a steady flow of singles that stalled in the nether end of the charts; but album sales were always a more important money-maker than singles. The band would never see such spectacular single’s success aside from their 1964 re-make of Walk-Don’t Run (it reached number 15 in the US charts) and 1969’s “Theme From Hawaii 5-0” which reached number 8 in the charts. Oddly enough the theme for “Hawaii 5-0” had been written by director Morton Stevens as a short opener for the show. It wasn’t until The Ventures full recording of the song that it became a fully-formed song. The addition of horns to the song may have seemed an odd move for the band, but they utilized brass sections on and off during their career…and fans love “Hawaii 5-0″. It also didn’t hurt that they’d get a short listen to it once a week on television.
Although The Ventures would have few hit singles, they made up that by releasing hit after hit albums. They may be the world’s first band that relied on album sales rather than singles. This was unusual for the 1960s and would only become more common in the 1970s with the advent of FM radio. When Dolton Records re-located their main offices to Los Angeles in 1963 it was to the detriment of Northwest artists, but an incredibly valuable move for The Ventures. It meant better studio facilities and closer contact with Liberty Records and their distribution executives.
The Ventures set the stage for a guitar line-up that has now become the typical formula; Lead, rhythm and bass guitars backed by a great drummer. The formula was not unheard of before but the band did a lot to popularize it. They’d also created “the big guitar sound” and although instrumentals were at the core of the late-50s/early 60s Northwest Sound, The Ventures were introducing a new approach that did not heavily rely on R&B and the ever-present organ. They were interested in technical advancements as well as new sounds. Over the years they would be pioneers in distortion, reversing tapes, bringing the Theramin to rock and heavy use of vibrato as well as a myriad of other effects.
Soon after Bob Bogle’s death in 2009, fellow guitarist Don Wilson told The Los Angeles Times;
“Any guitar player would tell you, Bob is the most unique-sounding guitar player ever. The way he used to do the whammy bar — that vibrato bar. He kept his little finger on it while he played it all the time. He’d make it sound, like at the end of a chord, Wow-wow.
Soon after the success of Walk-Don’t Run drummer Howie Johnson (a guitarist in his own right) suggested that Bob Bogle and Nokie Edwards trade places resulting in Bogle as bassist Edwards as lead guitarist. The formula worked, and the transition was amicable. It made the band more of an overall talented unit.
Howie Johnson left the band in 1962 he was replaced by Mel Taylor who had been a house drummer at the well-known Los Angeles club The Palamino. Taylor had already made his mark as a drummer for Herb Alpert and as a member of Bobby (Boris) Pickett’s band who had recorded the seasonally perennial hit “The Monster Mash”. On a side note, Mel’s younger brother, Larry, became the bassist for Canned Heat and before that had been a session bass player for Jerry Lee Lewis and The Monkees among others.
One of the reasons The Ventures deserve the moniker “The Band That Launched a Thousand Bands” was their release of several volumes of the “Learn To Play The Ventures” series. The learning process came to be known as “guitar phonics“. This was a completely new approach to learning guitar and bass. There had been written “how to…” books before The Ventures. There were also a few recorded tutorials. But there had never been a series of lessons by the bands players themselves to teach kids (and adults) to play specific parts of their own songs. There’s many a modern artist that proudly admit to having learned to play with The Ventures’ series. The first volume of the “Learn to Play….even showed up on the popular music charts.
The Ventures were also one of the first bands to take advantage of fuzztone. Ventures afficianado’s can’t seem to agree how the fuzz was first created. Some claim it was the Mosrite guitars’ pickups they were using at the time, the Mosrite Fuzz-Rite or The Maestro FZ-1 Fuzz-Tone. No matter the source, it would become one of The Ventures signature sounds. Musicians and fans have cited their 1962 single “2,000 Pound Bee” as the first use of the fuzz guitar, but it’s clear it had been used by Ike Truner as early as 1951, on the Memphis recordings of Howlin’ Wolf (1951-52), Johnny Burnette’s “Train Kept a-Rollin” (1956) and Link Wray’s “Rumble” (1958).
In 1963 the band had entered into a deal Mosrite to play live with a series of Mosrite guitars that were specially designed for The Ventures. Before the Mosrite period all three guitarists had played production models of the Jazzmaster, the Stratocaster and a Precision Bass. Mosrite founder, Semie Moseley had built a guitar that he lent to Nokie Edwards for some recording sessions. Soon Edwards had bought his own Mosrite and within a year The Ventures had an endorsement and co-distribution deal that made Mosrite a common name among guitarists. The deal lasted until 1968, and aside from the use of Mosrite guitars, there are some archival photos of the band using the Mosrite Award solid-state amps from the Ventures’ Mosrite Distributing Company. Despite their popularity with musicians this particular model would never go into mass production.
It was probably Nokie Edwards who had been the most instrumental in popularizing the well-crafted series. Along with the endorsement and use of the Mosrites the guitar manufacturer sold the series to consumers with a label “The Ventures” on the headstock. It began a mini-craze for the model that remains to this day. Guitarists from Jimi Hendrix to Arthur Lee to Kurt Cobain have all played Mosrite’s. Bands like the MC5 and The Ramones have used them. According to Mosrite’s promotional material, the company claims“Jimi Hendrix had two Mosrites. Jimi would commonly smash and burn his easily replaceable Fenders but the Mosrite’s were treasured and well taken care of. The doubleneck used on Spanish Castle Magic is today on display at the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame” They go on to say ” Virtually everyone who is anyone has owned a Mosrite at some time in their life”. This is probably closer to truth than hyperbole. Despite the quality of the instruments once the endorsement deal ended all three guitarists returned to the use of Fenders Years later, n 1996 Fender released a limited edition Ventures Signature Series of guitars consisting of their original Jazzmaster, Stratocaster, and a Fender Jazz Bass. This time the band had a hand in their design and specifications. When Nokie Edwards left the band in 1968 he reverted to his Mosrite During this hiatus Edwards was replaced by Gerry McGee and Edwards reverted to his Mosrite guitar for solo projects during this period. When he returned to The Ventures in 1973 he again played a Fender, though occasionally pulled out his Mosrite.
The Ventures had also made a very savvy move in licensing their music to Japanese labels that would include Toshiba/EMI. Japan is the world’s second largest market for recorded music-The Ventures popular appeal in Japan came just as electric guitars were first being marketed in Japan- Soon The Ventures and their use of the electric guitar were in such popular demand that they began to tour extensively in Japan. Throughout their career they have been a huge draw in Japan. The move to satisfy the Japanese market would provide a boon when The Ventures became less popular in the US during the 1970s. They also recorded and released about 50 albums specifically for the Japanese market, while continuing to tour Japan on a regular basis.After the 60’s their US output did modest sales and a dedicated fan base did not diminish in Japan. The very fact that the band had never been dropped by a major label until late in their career allowed them to record and release the vast number of albums they’re known for. . They also licensed their recording to labels all around the world. The Ventures were consistent sellers no matter what label was issuing or distributing. Even poor promotion would not detract from their strong fan base. But great deals with the Japanese and European markets brought in good royalties and a savvy approach to contracts and their huge audience outside the US (even to this day) was a large part of The Ventures success even as music fans at home were turning their backs on what was becoming considered dated artists.
At the advent of the 80s the Surf Sound, along with Rockabilly began to pique the interest of musicians and fans on the outer fringes of popular music. At first the interest was largely a novelty (who can forget the silly “poodle skirt” era of the 80s?) The Ventures became associated with post-modernism-a slightly jaded form of kitsch that was meant to be shared by folks supposedly “in-the-know” But as the popularity of bands like The Cramps and The Stray Cats became more serious, musicians and fans followed suit. An entire genre of “surf punk” music arose with bands like Agent Orange, The Forgotten Rebels, and of course The Surf Punks at the forefront. Many other bands would pepper their output with a surf or rockabilly song or two.Later film directorsused surf music in their film soundtracks. Quentin Tarantino was instrumental in this by including classic surf tracks in his movie 1994 film Pulp Fiction. Although their profile had been rising during the 80’s The Ventures were once again on top.
A new generation had found The Ventures…and took them seriously as masters of American pop culture. Sales of their old (and new) albums picked up. More and more live dates in the US and in Europe were being booked…at first in smaller clubs, but they were finding the venues were getting bigger. By the time the huge corporate-sponsored era of festivals became fashionable the band was playing in front of crowds in the tens of thousands…or even hundreds of thousands.
Finally in 2008 one of the band’s dreams would come true. It was also the dream of Josie Wilson, who had died a year earlier. The Ventures finally were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Artists become eligible only after the first 25 years of their careers. The Ventures had passed that mark by 22 more years. The night of their induction by John Fogarty (Creedence Clearwater Revival) two of the “classic era” members of The Ventures were on hand; Nokie Edwards and Don Wilson. Bob Bogle and Gerry McGee were unable to attend. Being ignored by the Hall of Fame so long had been a bitter pill for Don Wilson, but when asked “Why so long?” Wilson simply said “All we did was quietly sell millions of records.” In 2010 The members of The Ventures were also awarded The Order of the Rising Sun by the Emperor of Japan.The medal originated in 1875 and symbolizes “energy as powerful as the rising sun.” The ceremony took place at the Queen Anne consulate. During the ceremony Japan Consul General Kiyokazu Ota said”
“The Ventures’ unique ‘teke-teke sound’ … grabbed the heart of many Japanese young men and women. These young fans in turn formed groups of their own, thus creating a huge boom of electric-guitar sales in Japan.”
So what of the players that have been part of The Ventures?
In 1972 drummer Mel Taylor left the band to pursue a career because he felt The Ventures had become a “nostalgia act“in and was replaced by drummer Joe Barile. Taylor returned in 1979 and remained with The Ventures until his death in 1996 of cancer and heart failure. After his death his son, Leon Taylor took over his duties as drummer.
Gerry McGee also left the band only to return. He walked away in 1978 to work as a solo artist as well as recording and touring with Dwight Yoakum, John Mayall, Kris Kristofferson and others. He returned to The Ventures in 1985 and is the only active remaining member left from any of the 1960’s line-ups. During a subsequent tour of Japan McGee suffered a heart attack, but recovered and continues to play with the band.
Bob Bogle had belonged to the recording and touring outfit until his health began to deteriorate. He retired from touring in December 2004 and was replaced by Bob Spalding. He had lived in Vancouver, Washington, for years and died there on June 14, 2009, at 75 of non-Hodgkin lymphoma;
Howie Johnson, the neck-braced drummer that stayed with The Ventures for their first few tours and albums passed away in January of 1988.
Skip Moore who had been the actual drummer that had played on Walk Don’t Run had died in 1988. Some musicologists have argued that it was Johnson who played on Walk-Don’t Run using the pseudonym “Skip Moore”, but the evidence points a different direction.
Nokie Edwards left the band a second time in 1984 to work in Nashville with Country and Western artists including lead guitar on Lefty Frizell’s final album. Edwards re-upped with The Ventures for a short time in the late 80’s but soon returned to Nashville and began a very successful career with producer and fellow musician Art Greenshaw. The critically acclaimed collaboration of Edwards and artist-producer Greenhaw has resulted in Edwards being nominated for “Grammy Award for Best Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album of the Year” with 2005’s “20th Century Gospel” andSouthern Meets Soul”in 2006.
Bob Spalding has remained part of The Ventures while pursuing his own solo projects. In 2016 Bob’s son, Ian Spalding’ became The Venture’s bass guitarist. Bob now lives in San Bernardino CA.
In 2015 Don Wilson retired from touring and recording with The Ventures. Since then he continues to keep the memory of the original outfit in public view. He now lives in Sammamish WA.
And what of the young George T. Babbit Jr., who, at 16, was too young to play with The Ventures? Soon after his departure from the band he went to college and joined the ROTC. He then enlisted in the US Air Force and rose to the commission of 4-Star General. Between 1997 to 2000 he served as Commander of the Air Force Materiel Command (COMAFMC). On March 1, 1998, (while on active duty as 4-star general), he joined The Ventures onstage in uniform on drums. He is now living in retirement in Bremerton WA.
The current touring line-up of the Ventures is:
Gerry McGee – Lead Guitar (joined in 1968)
Bob Spalding – Lead & Rhythm Guitar (joined in 1981)
Leon Taylor – Drums (joined in 1996)
Ian Spalding – Bass (joined in 2016)
-Dennis R. White. Sources: Del Hartleman”Walk Don’t Run-The History of The Ventures ( Del Hartlman, 2011);Jame Bush. “Encyclopedia of Northwest Music” (Sasquatch Books, 1999); Jim Clash “The Ventures’ Don Wilson On His Big Hit Single Hawaii Five-O, More” (Forbes Magazine,
By the time the mid-60s The Northwest Sound has pretty much wound down. Many former teen-dance bands were moving closer to rock and the new psychedelic sounds coming out of L.A. and San Francisco. In some ways many local artists had begun to see Seattle as a northern outpost of San Francisco.
One of the bands that emerged in the mid-60s was Blues Interchange. David Lanz (future star of “new age” music) had been one of the band’s first members. The band began making the rounds of Seattle venues and became very popular with the tripped-out psychedelic crowd. Due to some of the members being drafted local boy Jeff Simmons signed on as bassist in 1967. Simmons was already an accomplished player with a gregarious, often comedic air about him Other members included Al Malosky on drums and guitarists Peter Larson (later replaced by Burke Wallace), and Danny Hoefer. Danny Hoefer would later go on to play in Tower of Power. After the change of personnel, Blues Interchange found even more favor with Northwest audiences. One result of the changes was re-naming the band to Easy Chair. The transformation caught the eye of Seattle’s emerging rock scene as well as other pockets of psychedelic blues around the country
In 2014 the website Clear Spot would look back on Easy Chair, writing;
“Their epic West Coast blues features the unique chemistry of psychedelic guitar leads, fluid lines and hypnotic chording”.
Around this time the band was emerging they met up with notorious San Francisco manager Matthew Katz. Katz had been the first manager of Jefferson Airplane and had ben fired even before the release of their first album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off. Seattle native Signe Anderson (September 15, 1941-January 28, 2016) did vocals, but soon left the band, handing over the task to Grace Slick. The firing of Katz would result in ongoing litigation over the release of original or licensed material by Jefferson Airplane. The litigation between Katz and Jefferson Airplane was not settled until 1987.
Katz was also involved in a dispute with Moby Grape beginning in 1968. Katz had sold the group members’ rights to their songs as well as their own name were signed away in 1973 to manager/producer David Rubinson without the band members knowing it. He retained rights to the name Moby Grape and a large part of their songs. Katz continued to send out various personnel under the name “Moby Grape” until 2005, the original members won back the rights to their name and started performing again as “Moby Grape” Even as late as 2007 Moby Grape (who’d won back the rights to their name) Katz threatened to file a lawsuit against Sundazed Records (licensed by SONY) claiming ownership of the album artwork and songwriting for the first three albums. The label was forced to withdraw the albums Moby Grape, Wow and Grape Jam. The albums have since been re-released.
Hooking up with Katz could have resulted in disaster but he remained a savvy (though untrustworthy) entrepreneur. In 1967 he opened the club “The San Francisco Sound” on Seattle’s Capitol Hill. The club was popular, but it lasted for less than a year. Katz’s real interest was to establish a venue for bands he managed.. The meeting between Blues Interchange and Katz gave the band more high-profile gigs opening for San Francisco bands he’d booked in his club including It’s A Beautiful Day, Tripsacord Music Box, West Coast Natural Gas and Black Swan. Katz also convinced Blues Interchange to change their name to Indian’ Puddin’ and Pipe. In yet another case of Katz’s dissembling, another band called Indian Puddin’ and Pipe already existed. Katz owned the names of several bands and could bestow them on any line-up he desired. Simmons’s Indian Puddin’ and Pipe dropped the name after severing ties with Katz in 1968. Fortunately neither the band nor it’s members walked away beholden to Katz except for the name he’d given them-not a very good one in the first place. Obtaining a new manager was painless. Glen Harmon was chosen to take on Katz’s job and endlessly worked to book and promote Easy Chair. Hammon had been a big fan who worked at Boeing, but from the start of his association with Easy Chair he proved to be a natural for the jobs of promotion and management.
Meanwhile Harmon andthe band sought to get a record deal Eventually they were forced to finance their own recording at Vancouver WA’s Ripcord Studio. The songs recorded there were produced by Rick Keefer-who would go on to found Sea-West Studio in Seattle. The result of their sessions was a single-sided 12′ EP that included only three songs, Slender Woman, My Own Life and Easy Chair. Both Slender Woman and Easy Chair were written by Jeff Simmons. My Own Life was written by Peter Larson. With a release of only 1000 copies, it did well in the Northwest. The songs show a slight reliance on the San Francisco Sound, but also retains a bit of the jazz-inspired R&B that successful NW bands of the 50s and early 60s had always imbued into their music. The recordings are sparse, but have an honest, almost innocent quality. The band would later go on to be much heavier, but their initial (and only) release is probably the most sought-after, and most valuable record by any Seattle band in the collectors market. In the past few years the EP has been re-released on CD by several foreign and domestic labels.
With some powerful gigs behind them and a popular regional hit, Easy Chair were on their way. An opening slot for Cream at Seattle’s Eagles Auditorium may have been their high point. They also opened for The Chambers Brothers who were then at the height of their success. These concerts, along with opening for Blue Cheer the early Led Zeppelin enhanced their reputation. They were offered a contract with Tetragrammaton Records but turned it down. The label which was co-owned by Bill Cosby, a fact Easy Chair did not know at the time they were approached by the label Soon Tetragrammaton released a worldwide hit with Deep Purple ( “Hush”) In 1968 the label also licensed the release ofJohn Lennon’s and Yoko Ono’s “Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins”in the United States. The album’s cover featured nude photos of John and Yoko on the front and back jacket cover. The Beatles and Lennon’s US label, Capitol Records, refused to release or distribute it, citing negative responses from retailers, and American audiences objection to nuditiy, so Tetragrammaton stepped in to distribute the album in the US.
Easy Chair under the name Ethiopia was slated to open for Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention at the Seattle Center Arena on August 24, 1968. During sound check, Frank Zappa and his business partner Herb Cohen listened to the band and were impressed enough to fly them to Los Angeles for an audition and possible contract with one of two new labels Zappa had created (Straight and Bizarre Records).The Zappa gig took place a week before the band (billed as Easy Chair) performed at the first Sky River Rock Festival. Easy Chair/Ethiopia played their booked obligations in the Northwest and were then on the way to L.A. Soon Ethiopia was signed to Bizarre Records and the band waited to record….and waited. Although they were signed as Ethiopia, the band once again reverted to Easy Chair for a handful of gigs with Zappa.
Their finest moment during their stay in Los Angeles was taking part in Bizarre Record’s legendary “Gala Pre-Xmas Bash” at Santa Monica’s Shrine Exhibition Hall on December 6th & 7th 1968. Easy Chair played the shows alongside The Mothers of Invention,Wild Man Fischer, Alice Cooper, and the GTOs. Ostensibly a pre-Christmas gig, it was actually Zappa’s debut of the roster of Bizarre acts that he, for the most part, had personally signed. This gig was definitely one of the most important shows of it’s day and possibly one of the most important gigs The Mothers of Invention ever played.
After months of living in hotels, recording negotiations and long periods of inactivity Easy Chair members became discouraged. It was clear the studio sessions were never going to happen. They decided to return to Seattle. Jeff Simmons and drummer Al Malosky stayed in LA. In 1969 Jeff Simmons (as a solo artist) was signed to Frank Zappa’s Straight Records to record two solo albums. Malosky went along for the ride as a sideman on the first album. Jeff’s assignment was to create the soundtrack for Naked Angels a biker/sexploitation film . Although it’s not meant to be high art, the film itself is fairly decent within it’s genre. Jeff”s soundtrack stands out as well executed psychedelia and is really the highlight of the film. The film featured Penelope Spheeris (who would later direct both Decline of Western Civilization documentaries) and Corey Fischer (one of Robert Altman’s stable of actors, and who appeared in both the film and the TV series M.A.S.H. The film got very little attention outside it’s intended audience but Simmon’s soundtrack album has long been a favorite among his fans.
Later in 1969 Jeff released what is universally considered his best solo work. The album Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up leans more toward the accessible music Frank Zappa had released. In fact Zappa contributed heavily to the album as a guitarist, wrote the title track and co-produced with engineer Chris Huston. Zappa wrote the title track and also co-wrote “Wonderful Wino” with Simmons. Zappa credited his work on the album under the pseudonym Lamarr Bruister. Later Zappa would work Lucille into an entirely different version for Joe’s Garage and “Wonderful Wino” later shows up on Zappa’s Zoot Allures. Zappa rarely co-wrote his music, so it’s apparent that he had high regard for Simmons during this period. On “Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up” a variety of players who are often heard in Mothers and Zappa’s bands show up. Simmons is featured on lead vocals, keyboards, bass guitar, and accordion. Craig Tarwater-former member of the legendary L.A. garage band Sons Of Adam plays guitar, Ron Woods (of Pacific Gas and Electric) on drums, Ian Underwood on Sax and fellow Seattle native John Kehlior, (who’d played with The Frantics and The Daily Flash) on drums for two tracks (“Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up” & “Raye“). The reception of Lucille was positive, but like all Zappa-related albums up ’til then, did not sell to the masses.
Instead of offering another contract with Straight Records, Zappa went a step further. He asked Jeff to join The Mothers of Invention. He had already played a one-off concert of the the album Hot Rats.
Around this time Jeff reminisced about his hometown to the U.K. Music journal Melody Maker, saying:
“There’s a lot of music in Seattle, a lot of clubs and musically it’s influenced by San Francisco and even more, Chicago. For instance when I started playing, the first people I heard were the Spoonful and The New Vaudeville Band. But it wasn’t long before I forgot them and got into Little Milton and Magic Sam”.
In 1970 Simmons appeared on Chunga’s Revenge, which was Frank’s third “solo” album…even though Zappa included his floating roster of musicians with himself as the main character. The album was largely a transitional one, retaining some of the satire and humor of earlier albums, though heading more toward the avant-jazz of future projects. It was also the first time Flo & Eddie (Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan, formerly of The Turtles) made a studio appearance with Zappa. Jeff Simmons had also stepped up his game with Chunga’s Revenge by playing alongside Ian Underwood again, as well as drummer Aunsley Dunbar, and keyboardist George Duke. Others who took part in Chunga’s Revenge was John Guerin, Max Bennett and Don “Sugarcane” Harris.
In 1971 Frank Zappa began to film his ambitious art film 200 Motels. It’s commonly held that Jeff Simmons had quit the band shortly before the shoot began, but it’s not entirely clear what happened. Simmons is seen in the documentary The True Story of Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels-though not credited. The actual film has large segments based on Jeff. There is a cartoon segment in which “Jeff”, tired of playing what he refers to as “Zappa’s comedy music”is convinced by his good conscience (played by Donovan) to “quit the group” There’s an ongoing (inside joke?) of characters saying “Jeff quit the group” throughout the film. “Dental Hygiene Dilemma” sees Jeff smoking a marijuana cigarette which had been dipped in Don Preston’s “foamy liquids” and Jeff’s imagining Donovan appearing to him on a wall-mounted television as his “good conscience”. “His good conscience” asks Jeff not to steal the towels. Studebaker Hoch appears to him as his evil conscience in the form of Jim Pons, tells Jeff to steal ashtrays and convinces Jeff to quit the Mothers of Invention, to “et your own group together. Heavy! Like Grand Funk or Black Sabbath.
Although it’s likely he was on set at least occasionally it’s claimed that had read the script of 200 Motels before the shooting and discovered it included things Simmons and others had actually said when they thought Frank was out of earshot. It’s claimed these negative comments were based on secret hotel-room recordings. Another version is that Zappa fired Simmons for smoking too much marijuana. This version would be in keeping with Zappa’s firm rule of not working with musicians using drugs…at least not if it affected their professionalism. But the former version would back up Zappa’s habit of taping discussions among band members (recorded with or without their knowing it). They were “anthropological field recordings” as Zappa liked to call them. It would be a more interesting story if Simmons had actually quit because he was angry about the secret recordings. But it’s just as probable that he was fired for his objection to the script. Many years later full songs, out-takes and interviews were included on Playground Psychotics. The album includes a track called “Jeff Quits” and further complicates the question of whether Simmons quit or was fired. Jeff probably was smoking too much pot and he may have well wanted to move on from Zappa. In 1972 Frank Zappa told Jip Golsteijn of the Dutch magazine OOR:
“Jeff Simmons is a great bassist, which will become obvious to everyone during the European tour, but I thought he had another talent. He was a comedian and I wanted to exploit it, especially because we use quite visual elements in our shows. I let (Jeff) play Rudolph the Reindeer which has always been a huge success. Initially, he had no objection, but I was told after a while that he considered himself a heavy bass player not a clown. I knew which way the wind was blowing since Jeff’s wife had recently said something like that to me. His wife, of course, complained that he should not be misused by me and should leave the group. Jeff told me in honesty that he was seriously considering starting his own band. I then said ‘can’t we play that conflict in 200 Motels that he wanted to quit’? Then at Pinewood Studios ( London), where we recorded the film, I thought we could show Jeff brooding in a hotel room and is torn by doubt. His good conscience tells him to stay in the group, but his bad conscience tells him that he will be made a fool by Zappa and that he has become the real heavy bass player he really is. When Jeff heard what this meant, he turned quite pale, because he took it as a dig, although he knew exactly what was intended. Shortly afterwards he quit the group anyway…precisely at a time when we could not afford to lose him, right in the middle of recordings. Eventually we decided to change Jeff’s portion of the film. Another part was created for Martin Liquort (Ringo Starr’s driver) that is reminiscent of Jeff. In the scenes where ‘Jeff’ is playing, it’s Martin in the background with a guitar in his hand. Martin can not really play.” (Zappa’s words here have been translated to English from Jip Golsteijn interview, originally written in Dutch)
Athough Jeff doesn’t appear in the film there’s an ongoing line of “Jeff has quit the group” sprinkled throughout the dialogue as an inside joke. One long animated sequence called “Dental Hygiene Dilemna” finds a very high Jeff struggling with his good conscience (who he believes to be Donovan on a wall mounted TV screen) and his bad conscience. Among advice Jeff’s good conscience gives him is”don’t rip off the towels, Jeff“. His bad conscience soon appears and says “Jeff, I’d like to have a word with you . . . about your soul. Why are you wasting your life, night after night playing this comedy music?” Jeff replies “I get so tense“. “Of course you do my boy” says his bad conscience. That’s why it would be best to leave his stern employ….You’ll make it big!” “That’s right” says Jeff. “And then I won’t be SMALL!” “This is the real you!” Jeff’s bad conscience tells him “Rip off a few more ashtrays. Get rid of some of that inner tension. Quit the comedy group! Get your own group together. Heavy! Like GRAND FUNK! or BLACK SABBATH “.”Like COVEN!” shouts Jeff.
Apparently it would take animation, in the absence of Simmons, to complete Frank’s vision.
Whatever the reason for Simmon’s leaving, by 1972 he was back in the fold of musicians Frank Zappa employed to record Waka/Jawaka • Hot Rats. He also continued to tour with Zappa’s band, and took part in the 1974’s Roxy and Elsewhere. The album includes a live performance at The RoxyTheater in Los Angeles (with some overdubs) recorded the 8th, 9th and 10th of December, 1973. The Elsewhere” tracks (“Son of Orange County” and “More Trouble Every Day”) were recorded on May 8th, 1974, at the Edinboro State College in Edinboro, PA. Sections of “Son of Orange County” were also recorded on May 11, 1974, at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago but does not contain overdubbed material. Jeff Simmons plays rhythm guitar on all tracks and adds occasional vocals. After Roxy and Elsewhere, Jeff played live with some of Zappa’s succeeding live performances. He’s also heard playing on some of the “official” live albums that were released after Frank’s death. Recordings Zappa probably wouldn’t have allowed to be released because of their poor audio quality.
Jeff Simmon’s recorded legacy with Zappa had included him providing bass, guitar, and/or vocal for Chunga’s Revenge, Waka/Jawaka, Roxy & Elsewhere, You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 1, You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 6, and Playground Psychotics; He’s also featured on the Beat The Boots series of bootlegs that were later released by Rhino Records. Disc’s he’s included on include Freaks & Motherfuckers, Unmitigated Audacity, Piquantique, Disconnected Synapses, Tengo Na Minchia Tanta, and At The Circus
Although Jeff’s history after saying goodbye to Frank is a bit sketchy, by 1980 he found his way back to Seattle. In the 80’s, Simmons was busy performing with such bands as The Backtrackers, The Shimmering Guitars, and Cocktails For Ladies and as his alter-ego l’il Bobby Sumpner and his band The Stump Blasters. He claimed in the 1990’s, he was writing a book (“I Joined The Mothers Of Invention… For The F.B.I.”) which is now in unpublished manuscript form. Given Jeff’s sense of humor it’s hard to know if the manuscript actually exists. It would be hard for a publisher or editor to pass up a book based on Jeff’s time with the Mothers…even the title is intriguing!
In 1982 Frank Zappa appeared as a guest DJ on BBC radio (UK). He played some of his favorite songs including “I’m in The Music Business” by Jeff.
In 1988 Jeff was featured in the psychotronic “grunge” inspired local film Rock and Roll Mobster Girls, directed by Rick Werner. Aside from being barrels of fun the film also includes more Seattle rock luminaries as well as local fans.
Over the years Simmons had worked on material for a potential new CD. He says it is the culmination of 20 years work. Finally, in 2004 he was able to release “Blue Universe” which got rave reviews.
In the webzine Jet City Blues Mark Dalton wrote:
“Jeff Simmons, a man with his heart in the blues no matter what he’s doing, has a hilarious persona as a performer that draws from this same well. Simmons has written a whole cycle of great tunes about “Treatment,” for example – with a couple such tunes residing on this CD. Simmons’ ne’er-do-well musician character is always one step ahead of those pesky treatment program guys – whether he’s “Breakin’ Out of Treatment,”or kicking back and enjoying the life of a “Treatmon’ Center Playboy” while he’s there, as he does on this CD.
In November 2010, Jeff Simmons took part in a Q&A session at the “Frank Zappa At The Roundhouse” celebration of Frank Zappa’s music in London. Jeff played with the Dweezil Zappa Played Zappa band at the same festival with special guests Ian Underwood & Scott Thunes as well. The celebration also included the UK premiere of “The Adventures of Greggery Peccary” an avant-symphonic work that is one of Zappa’s most epic and most popular classical pieces. Besides The Adventures of Greggery Peccary, the London Sinfonietta played Zappa’s “Revised Music for a Low Budget Orchestra”. The performance included a solo set by Jeff as a multi-instrumentalist and a long-time member of Zappa’s circle.
Archival footage of Jeff Simmons was included in Thorsten Schütte’s 2016 documentary Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words
IMDb credits Jeff Simmons for sound editor of several TV series during the 90s but I can’t confirm this is the same Jeff Simmons. Any information would be welcome. Also feel free to offer corrections or comments below.
-Dennis R. White. Sources; “Jeff Simmons” (Zappa Wikijawaka); Lemonde Kid “Its too late for them to get their due but Katz needs to get HIS!” (Love: The Message Board for Love Fans, October 12, 2011); Mark Dalton, (“Blue Universe CD Review” Jet City Blues, November 19, 2005); “Jeff Simmons” (spotify.com); “Jeff Simmons” (World in Sound, worldinsound.com); “Jeff Simmons – ‘Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up” ( The Day After Sabbath, Jan 23, 2015) “Jeff Simmons” (Melody Maker, December 5th 1970); Dean R. Hegerty,”A Guide To Straight Label Records & Compact Discs” (United Mutations, 2002); “Jeff Simmons” (lastfm.com) “Eagles Auditorium” (A Seattle Lexicon)callihan.com/seattle/pophist.htm); Jeff Simmons-Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up (allmusic.com); Alan J. Stein “Sky River Rock Festival and Lighter Than Air Fair opens a three-day run near Sultan on August 30, 1968” (HistoryLink.org, Essay 5425. March 15, 2003); “Easy Chair” (Clearspot, www.clear-spot.nl/item/410251/easy_chair_easy_chair.htm); “FZ and Secret Recordings” zappateers.com, July 20, 2010); Jip Golsteijn “De industrie wilde het Fillmore album ontzettend geil aanprijzen”(OOR Magazine, Issue 15. 1971); “Frank Zappa at The Roundhouse”(The 405, September 17, 2010); James Bush, “Easy Chair” (Encyclopedia of Northwest Music. Sasquatch Books, 1999); “Naked Angels” (IMDb.com); 200 Motels. film “Dental Hygiene Dilemna” sequence (directors Frank Zappa & Tony Palmer, 1971); “The True Story of Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels” film. (written and directed by Frank Zappa, 1988); “Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words” film. ( directed by Thorsten Schütte, 2016) Scott Hill “From Straight to Bizarre Explores Frank Zappa’s Freak Indies” (Wired Magazine, January 19, 2012); “Jeff Simmons” (IMDb.com)
Not surprisingly the bands of the 1950s and 60s that would define The Northwest Sound was mostly a boys game. There had been women who’d made it in their own right –Bonnie Guitar comes to mind- but even she was closer to country than the newer sounds. Bea Smith had made her name in rockabilly but The NorthwestSound relied on a hybrid of R&B and jazz. In fact most of the successful women performing were either coming out of rockabilly, hillbilly music or singing blues and early R&B among the many black venues surrounding Jackson St. Of course many of these clubs were avoided by whites, and those teenagers wanting to hear the real deal dare not venture into many of the mostly-black bottle clubs and dens of gambling and prostitution that some rightly were known as. Police raids were common along Jackson Street and door men were careful not to give entry to the kids that may be cause for even more raids. The musicians who had come to play R&B were the exception to the rule. Their fans may have been frightened off by what was collectively known as the (primarily black) Jackson St. Scene. The Birdland, The Ubangi Club, The House of Entertainment and especially The Black and Tan (which was largely integrated by the late 50s) were all clubs that attracted the young white practitioners of teen-dance R&B.
Very few of the early Northwest Sound bands ventured into vocals or women in general. This wasn’t a purposeful lock-out of women. It was out of popular demand. Audiences didn’t mind instrumentals, they simply wanted to dance. Girl Groups from across the nation were seen as a novelty acts. Very few bands had fully-fledged female members of their bands. There were exceptions, but this was mostly the face of the Northwest Sound during the mid-late 1950s. Enter The Fleetwoods.
Artist, label owner and producer Bonnie Guitar and her business partner Bob Reisdorff of Dolphin Records (soon to be re-christened as Dolton Records had taken note of the Olympia trio (Gary Troxel, Gretchen Christopher, and Barbara Ellis). The band did not fit into the girl group mold, nor was it the kind of rollicking R&B Northwest fans were used to… but Bonnie and Bob’s belief in The Fleetwoods and their signing them paid off in droves. The first two releases by The Fleetwoods rose to the number one position on the US Billboards charts in 1959. Their music did as spectacularly well in Britain, Canada and the rest of the world. “Come Softly to Me” by The Fleetwoods was Dolphin/Dolton’s very first commercial release. The label had pulled-off something incredible, even today…an independent, regional label releasing a bona fide, massive hit on their first outing. Fortunately the label was widely available due to distribution from Liberty Records in the US and with London Records almost everywhere else in the world. The second release by The Fleetwoods, Graduation’s Here, did well but it wasn’t until their third release that the band and label landed another number one single and worldwide hit. Mr. Blue was also released in 1959 and helped make The Fleetwoods one of the best selling trios in the late 1950s
Aside from Barbara Ellis and Gretchen Christopher-along with Gary Troxel-becoming stars arising from the Northwest, there were a few great female singers waiting on the sidelines until regional bands realized that featuring a female singer in one of two songs was a bright move. Among those waiting in the wings were Merrilee Gunst (later Merilee Rush) a very young and incredibly talented Gail Harris in Tacoma who had appeared on Buck Owens’ radio show and would later sing with Tacoma’s Fabulous Wailers. But a young woman from Kent, Nancy Claire, was the most sought-after female vocalist in the Northwest. She would end up singing and recording with the cream of the crop of NW music, notably as a featured vocalist for The Dynamics, The Exotics, and maybe the most popular Seattle white R&B band of the early 60s, The Frantics. The floodgates for featuring girl singers on a couple of songs at live gigs had opened. In 2009 Seattle Music historian Peter Blecha wrote:
“…scores of Northwest combos joined in the fun and some cool records were one result. In Seattle, Ronnie D. and the Valiants featured Pam Kelley on their “Cherry Darlin'” 45; the Duettes (with Bonnie and Ann Sloan) sang their teen-dream ode, “Donny,” and Barbara McBride and the Nomads cut “The Only Reason”; Walla Walla’s Frets featured Janie Hanlon on “Do You Wanna Dance”; Moses Lake’s Fabulous Continentals cut “I’m Not Too Young” with Marsha Maye Covey; Tacoma’s Cindy Kennedy cut “Skateboard” and Patty Q recorded “Help Me Baby”; Olympia’s Stingrays featured Cheri Robin on “The Dance”; and Wenatchee’s Linda Jo and the Nomads recorded “Stop Your Cryin’.”
And plenty of other Northwest bands with girl singers never issued records, including Tacoma’s Sonics (with “Miss” Marilyn Lodge), Solitudes (with Dani Gendreau), Regents (with Sandy Faye), Galaxies (with Andy Haverly), and Statesmen (with ‘Fabulous’ Juliette); Seattle’s Neptunes (with Melody and Merilyn Landon), the Dynamics (with Randi Green), and the Pulsations (with Darlene Judy); Bremerton’s Raymarks (with future country star Gail Davies); Aberdeen’s Beachcombers (with Jocelle Russell and/or Shirley Owens); Olympia’s Triumphs (with Janet Weaver); Tenino’s Hangmen (with Sandy Smith); Sequim’s Eccentrics (with Pam Clark and/or Nancy Warman); Winthrop’s Danny and the Winthrops (with “Miss” Tessie Thomas); and Spokane’s Runabouts (with Mickey Davis).
But it was Nancy Claire who was in most-demand. After playing dozens of gigs with an almost unbelievable amount of well-know Seattle bands, the owner of Rona Records, Nacio Brown Jr. took notice and flew Nancy down to LA in 1961 to cut a few songs for his label. Nancy was whisked off to Hollywood to pursue a solo recording career. Her initial route to wide exposure was propelled by the release of “Danny” b/w ” Y-E-S!”. She toured on the strength of that single and Warner Bros. took advantage of her popularity by licensing the single from Rona…Unfortunately her second release on Rona (Cheatin On Me b/w Little Baby) released in 1962 failed to catch fire among national radio stations, so Nancy returned to Seattle and continued to sing and hang out with dozens of then-important Northwest Sound musicians. After her return from California she expressed ambivalence about her time in Hollywood. She had done sessions with excellent musicians, producers and arrangers but the mold record execs tried to put her into didn’t comport with her natural instincts for R&B and Rock & Roll. It was, she said “not my bag”.
Nancy was approached to record in Hollywood again in 1963. It was also to record again with Nacio Brown Jr. but this time the label would be the highly regarded World Pacific Records. Nancy was put in the studio with a full orchestra and the sessions produced two more singles. (“I’m Burnin’ My Diary” b/w “The Baby Blues” and “Last Night” b/w “Charlie My Boy” In retrospect both are fairly interesting singles, but top 40 radio at the time all but ignored them, and Nancy headed back to Seattle where she was truly appreciated
Once back in place as the Northwest’s most sought after vocalist Nancy joined up with The Viceroys. In 1964 legendary radio personality and promoter Pat O’Day took notice. He put them in the studio to record two cover-songs (Death of An Angel and Earth Angel) and arranged to have the single released on the prestigious Imperial Records label. The Viceroys (with Nancy Claire) single went nowhere, and it would be the last attempt by Nancy to release a national recording.
Although Nancy used the name “Claire” she was actually born in 1943 as Nancy Claire Penninger. She used Nancy Claire as her stage name-and who could blame her? The name seemed so much more fitting for the petite, beautiful girl onstage. Years later Nancy would officially change her surname to “Claire” but most of her fans would never see her as Nancy Penninger in the first place. The name she chose to work under seemed so fitting.
Nancy’s earliest exposure to music wasn’t jazz, R&B or Rock and Roll. It was Country & Western, mostly influenced by KVI DJ, Buck Ritchey and her exposure to his radio program. Buck Owens also played a role. Buck did a show on a station he co-owned (KAYE) in Puyallup WA. As a young girl Nancy had played as an amateur with several C&W outfits, but it wasn’t until Nancy was invited to appear on a talent show televised by Tacoma’s KTNT that she got her break. A local Tacoma band The Versatones also appeared on the same show. The Versatones had been founded by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle two masonry workers. Their band would face adversity and challenges before emerging a couple of years later as The Ventures…the most successful instrumental band in rock history.
Del Halterman’s recounts in his book “Walk-Don’t Run: The History of The Ventures” that Nancy “strummed a guitar and sang cowboy songs under the watchful eye of her mother. When the TV show ended, the mother introduced herself to [the Versatones] as Nancy’s manager and described a problem that she hoped they could help solve. …[Clair’s] limited ability on guitar restricted the number of songs she was able to sing. Impressed with the Versatones, [she] proposed that they back Nancy on her show. There would be no pay, but [she] would bill the act as ‘Nancy Claire and the Versatones.’ Radio exposure being valuable and not easily obtainable, they accepted and proceeded to perform with her on KAYE each week for about two months”. (sited by Peter Blecha)
In fact Nancy occasionally reverted to her C&W roots as an adult and in 1965 she toured the west coast with some of the biggest country stars of her day-The Carter Family, Skeeter Davis, Marty Robbins, and Merle Travis.
As the 60s progressed and The Northwest Sound made way for more rock, folk-oriented and psychedelic music. Nancy spent more and more time raising a family, even though she drifted in and out of the music scene and kept up with old friends even though she was no longer in the public eye. She wasn’t exactly forgotten, but she was certainly seen as a figure from a different era-even if that era had only been 5 or 6 years earlier. As the 1960s wound down, Claire began singing with a hippie flower-power group, Paleface. The band found modest success around the Tacoma and South Seattle. She also sang with the bluesy band Easy Money, and later with a Top 40 band, The Royals.
Although Nancy appeared onstage less frequently she occasionally sat-in with some of her old pals, and from 1970 thru 1972 she made regular appearances with Jr. Cadillac, a loose aggregation of players of former 50s and 60s regional bands. The line-up often consisted of the late Buck Ormsby (The Wailers), Bob Hosko and Jim Manolides (The Frantics), Jeff Afdem (The Dynamics and Springfield Rifle) and Harry Wilson (The Casuals and The Dynamics), drummer Steve Moshier (The Turnabouts) Les Clinkingbeard and Ned Neltner (Kidd Afrika/Issac Scott/Mark 5), Tom Katica, who passed away in 2010, and a host of others. The band has played continuously since 1970 and plenty of well-known NorthwestSound artists have sat-in over those 47 years.
Nancy has also sat in alongside Merrilee Rush, Kathi Hart, Kathi MacDonald, Patti Allen as the Seattle Women in Rhythm and Blues, She continued to make occasional sightings during the 70’s and in 1980 she took part in “The Great Northwest Rock and Roll Show” put together by Jr. Cadillac gathering featuring Anthony “Tiny Tony” Smith, Little Bill Englehart and The Wailers with Gail Harris. Nancy also took part in Jr. Cadillac’s 12th Anniversary party at Parkers Ballroom on Aurora Avenue-one of the premier venues that hosted teen-dances in the late 50s and 60s.
Today Nancy sings with “Blues On Tap” featuring Steve Peterson, a 2013 nominee by the Washington Blues Society for Best Male Blues Singer; Bruce Ransom who’s shared bills with Taj Mahal, Elvin Bishop, Roy Gaines, Kenny Neal, Billy Branch, Jimmy Burns, Mitch Woods, Deanna Bogart, and Eden Brent; Ray Hartman who’s credits include a long stint with the Dick Powell Band who’ve opened for B.B. King and TheJames Cotton Band; and Jim Plano former drummer of the psychedelic-era Crome Syrcus among other gigs.
Over the past few years Nancy Claire continues to show up now and again, even though her audience has aged along with her. . Her singles, although ranging from modest hits to flops are worth a listen and various you tube vids of the music is online. As the one-time First-Lady of Seattle R&B she certainly deserves attention from a younger audience that can take a snapshot of Seattle’s original burst onto the national scene.
Nancy Claire is also a two time winner of The Northwest Music Associations Hall of Fame Award. Both awards are well-deserved.
-Dennis R. White. Sources; Peter Blecha, “The Great Northwest Rock and Roll Show reunion gig of local rockers kicks of on July 20, 1980″ (NWHistoryLink.org, Essay 10375, April 14, 2013); Steve Flynn,”The Music” (stevenflynnmusic.com, 2017); Peter Blecha “Nancy Claire (b. 1943)” (HistoryLink.org, Essay 10374, May 8, 2023): Del Halterman, “Walk-Don’t Run; The History of The Ventures” (LuLu Books, May 11, 2009); Peter Blecha, “Women of Northwest Rock: The First 50 Years (1957-2007)” (Essay 8935,HistoryLink.org); “Blues On Tap”, (bluesontap.net/bios.php); Photo courtesy of Nancy Claire.
Since it’s formation in 1973 the Total Experience Gospel Choir has travelled the nation and across the globe, from the Far East to Europe to Russia and a lot of places in between. Under the tutelage of Pastor Pat Wright, the Total Experience Gospel Choir has journeyed to Japan where they not only presented their ministry through song, but also delivered supplies to victims of the Tōhoku Earthquake and Tsunami who had taken refuge in Ishinomaki, Japan. In 2006 the Total Experience Gospel Choir also travelled to Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi to help victims of Hurricane Katrina and to rebuild and refurbish homes for hurricane victims in Gulfport, Mississippi.
Pat Wright was honored for her and the choir’s efforts by ABC News World News Tonight. In May of 2007 she was named one of that month’s Person of the Week, and later in a broadcast on December 27 2007, Pat was declared one of 2007’s “Persons of the Year”. It’s clear that the choir is not only one of the Northwest’s greatest musical assets, they spread their ministry through music, and actual, on-the-ground help.
Aside from performing for President Bill Clinton and President Obama, the Total Experience Gospel Choir have been featured at prestigious venues from the Sydney Opera House to The Mormon Tabernacle. Even though they’ve been ambassadors around the world, and won many prestigious awards, it’s clear the Pastor Wright’s greatest mission is to the uplifting of her own community, here in Seattle.
Pat Wright was born Patrinell Staten in Odessa Texas as one of eight children. Her father was a Baptist preacher and her mother taught school. Both parents urged her to pursue a career in gospel music. Having started to sing at an early age, Pat performed her first solo at the age of 3 and by the time she was 14 Pat had taught herself to play piano and was directing two choirs in her father’s church. Her parents saw to it Pat grew up in the church, but education also played an important part in her upbringing. Pat graduated as valedictorian of her high school class (Turner High School, 1961) and later attended Prairie View A&M College just north of Houston TX.
Pat first arrived in Seattle in October of 1964 to help her sister, who was then going through a divorce. Her intention was to be of assistance to her sister, and then move back home. She later explained her plan to return to Carthage, but then discovered she could make $7 a week in Seattle compared to $3 back home. She chose to throw her lot in and remain.
At the time Pat moved to Seattle, the nation was embroiled in the Civil Rights struggle. Pat had felt the sting of segregation and discrimination back in Texas, and on her bus trip from Carthage to Seattle. In 2014 Pat told local Seattle (and PBS) TV presenter Enrique Cerna:
“The bus ride took about four days. Being the only African American and the only female on the bus for the last 2500 miles was quite an experience. When she finally got to Seattle, after having survived just about every abuse on that long ride, she wanted to get back on the bus and go home. “But I’ve always had a bulldog tendency,” she admitted. “I decided to stay. The lessons I needed to survive…gave me a backbone that won’t quit.”, they’ve always told me that. And I decided that I was going to stay. But it was a very hard time for me because it was at the height of the civil rights movement, and I had participated in the civil rights movement personally, because I was in college at the time. A small college, A&M, now university…”
Having decided to stay in Seattle, Pat naturally gravitated toward the church and to gospel music in general. Her sister lived in Renton, but regularly visited a church in Seattle. On one of their trips into Seattle to attend church one Sunday Pat says she heard music coming from a church across the street. The church she was sitting in must have bored her and she was drawn to the other church. She walked across the street and entered the church. “I remember stumbling over somebody’s feet trying to get a seat because the place was pretty packed. And that somebody happened to end up being my husband” Benny Wright who became a preacher in his own right, has always been critical in Pat’s Total Experience Gospel Choir and her other endeavors. Benny also became teacher and football coach at Seattle’s Franklin High School and also served as head chaplain for the King County Youth Detention Facility in Seattle. Both his and Pat’s ministry have always revolved around helping at-risk youth.
Pat says she always knew the ministry was her calling, but for a brief period she walked away in order to pursue a more secular side of her life. She says she briefly gave up gospel back in the late ‘60s. “Actually decided I was tired of gospel, so I was going to try my hand at soul music.”
As music historian and author Peter Blecha wrote in 2013:
“In 1969 Wright was discovered singing in church by a recent Louisiana transplant, LaVera Clark, who took Wright under her wing, telling the songbird, as Wright recalled years later, “A voice like yours — the world needs to hear it and they’re not gonna hear it in church. They are not going to church to hear it! … Especially in Seattle”
The two began composing songs together and then making test recordings in Clark’s little home studio (2407 E Boston Avenue). Clark then matched the singer with a previously existing group, the Blenders, and they re-emerged as Patrinell and the Casanovas. Clark, who wanted to promote rhythm and blues music locally, then formed her own Sepia Records company to do so. After a trip to Vancouver, B.C., to record a few songs, Sepia released a single — “I Let a Good Man Go”b/w”Little Love Affair” (Sepia Records No. 8201). By September, Seattle’s soul station, KYAC, began pumping it up to hit status locally”.
The pressing on Sepia Records was small, but that didn’t stop it from being a regional R&B hit…but the story of Pat’s foray into R&B and soul goes much deeper. We’ll leave that story to a seprate, future post.
By 1970 Pat had been hired by the Seattle School district to lead a class in gospel music at Roosevelt High in the north end of the city. Pat initially led what was known as The Franklin High School Gospel Choir. It was later known as The Black Experience Gospel Choir The Seattle School District hired Wright to teach and conduct gospel music. She also began work at radio station KYAC as a DJ playing a gospel music program that lasted 13 years. She had begun her own gospel group, Patrinell Wright’s Inspirational Seven. The Inspirational Seven were guests of churches around town as well as taking part in organized events in support of the still simmering racial divide in the US and as a way to support self-determination among the black community at large, drives to fight sickle-cell anemia and to help raise funds for KYAC among other causes.
After two years teaching gospel choir at Roosevelt High, funds for her program dried up and Pat was left without a day job. But this set-back proved to be the birth of Pat’s Total Experience Gospel Choir. She began taking the lessons she’d learned in her gospel background, her secular experience and her ministry to young people through music. In the process she created one of Seattle’s longest-running musical outfits, based on Pastor Wright’s determination to help kids in her community. She wanted to offer a safe, positive environment at-risk youth could escape to, and allow them to take part in the world outside their own neighborhoods.
Soon after forming the Total Exerience Gospel Choir it swelled to over 100 students that she’d brought along from Roosevelt High and the Mount Zion Baptist Church. Soon Pat opened the choir to non-students and people of all ethnic background and race, even though the thrust of her work remained her ministering to black youth as well as other communities of color.
One of the most remarkable aspects of The Total Experience Gospel Choir is that there are no auditions in order to be a member. From the beginning Pat seemed to take the position “if you can’t sing, come on down-we’ll teach you”. Despite causing the Choir to become chaotic and unfocused, the opposite occurred-Pat’s Choir began to win awards and honors both in the Northwest and around the nation-and beyond. The Total Experience Gospel Choir would become one of America’s most famous and most beloved Choirs in the country. With more recognition the Total Experience Gospel Choir were able to raise the money it takes to take a large-scale choir on the road-both within the US and outside. The Choir has won numerous awards and traveled to 38 states and performed on five continents in 28 countries at last tally. They have been welcomed with open arms everywhere they’ve gone.
Pat worked ceaselessly and seemed capable of juggling the tasks to run the choir, to continue in her own ministry, plan tours, raise money, become a soloist in her own right, and finally to open and run her own store-front church. Granted, Pat relied on volunteers, but even the co-ordination of volunteers took a great deal of energy.
Eventually disaster-or divine intervention-came into Pat’s life. On March 18, 2001 Pastor Pat Wright was struck by a heart attack. Pat believes she died that day, but God sent her back to continue her work and her ministry. Pat had been born with a hole in her heart, but her family had no money for doctors growing up, and the condition went unknown until a medical examination when Pat was 23 years old.
Once healed from her brush with death, Pat went back to her hectic schedule-and also became an ambassador for the American Heart Association. In 2006 she told Seattle Times reporter Nicole Brodeur that sometimes her colleagues feel uncomfortable when she speaks of divine intervention and the gates of heaven.
“They don’t think faith should be a part of it,” she said of her survival story. “But how could it not be?”
As the Choir began to become more well-respected Pat recognized the need to bring of all ethnicities into the choir.This particularly hit home because, as she says, she grew up in the South where mixed marriage-at least during her youth-was very uncommon. As Seattle became more enlightened she noticed more and more children of mixed-ethnicity were becoming members of the Choir. She realized that they (and others) deserved to learn about their heritage no matter how Caucasian they might look. Besides, both Caucasian and kids-of-color were facing the same temptations and dangers.
Pat had also opened more opportunities for adults to take part. A good deal of them were white and they still remain an important part of the Total Experience Gospel Choir-both those who are married to people of color, and those who have married within their own ethnicity. But the goal she’s always worked toward is improving the lot in life of at-risk kids…who are more often found in the African-American community This is an attitude Caucasian and mixed ethnicity adults in the Choir also share.
The 1990’s and early 2000s saw the Total Experience Gospel Choir attract more and more attention and these years may possibly be the most successful of the choirs mission to date. Although Pat remained dedicated to her gospel roots she would make a very unusual move in during the early 2000s.. Seattle-based Light In The Attic records released the album Wheedle’s Groove: Seattle’s Finest In Funk & Soul 1965-75 in 2004. The album included artists who had been involved in the early Seattle Sound that developed in the late 1950s and into the 1960s. Pat Wright’s only soul single (I let a Good Man Go b/w Little Love Affair) was included in the boxed set of newly pressed 7″ singles. A reunion show and the release of the album was so well-received that almost immediately a follow-up album was planned. This newer release would include artists that had previously worked with one of the Northwest’s most important studio engineers, Kearney Barton. Barton had been instrumental in developing the Northwest Sound by recording The Wailers, The Ventures, The Sonics, The Fleetwoods, The Frantics, Quincy Jones, Dave Lewis, The Kingsmen and other artists that were responsible for establishing a regional sound that was every bit as important as the “grunge” coming out of Seattle in the 1990s. Paricipants in the new recordings did both originals and covers of current music. The tracks were recorded at Barton’s original studio, Audio Sounds, and fittingly as analog recordings.
Pat Wright and the Total Experience Gospel Choir chose the most audacious song of the collection on what would be released under the title Wheedle’s Groove: Kearney Barton. Their choice was a cover of Soundgarden’s Jesus Christ Pose. Despite the title, Jesus Christ Pose was a secular piece of rock music that was critical of celebrities, private and public figures that used religion in a false show self-aggrandizement. In short, it was critical of those who used religion as a hammer. In an incredible turnabout Pat and the Choir turned the tables on the meaning of the song. The point Pat was making was equally critical, but it was aimed at Christians believing themselves better than others, rather than the pretention of celebrities trying to criticize religion itself. Pat and the Total Experience Gospel Choir managed to turn what might be thought of as a cynical and non-religious song into a warning against intolerance and self-importance. Reports at the time indicated that the members of Soundgarden liked Pat’s rendition. It’s such a powerful version that it’s hard not to like! It clearly impressed music fans that had not given gospel music much of a listen. The performance was roundly praised by critics as the finest song in the fine collection found on the album.
Shortly after it’s release in 2009 Pat Wright told Dave Segal of The Stranger:
“I was asked to put my own personality on it. I thought that the music was great. Soundgarden is a very powerful group. I was already working with the gentleman [Matt Cameron] who played drums for them… on another project. So I felt very comfortable doing it. And besides, the words of the song epitomize what I try to say in my sermons and the way I live my life. [Light In the Attic Records] said, ‘You can put a little gospel twist on it.’ Well, I’m a gospel singer and a minister and a pastor, so therefore I put my little twist on it.”
For the last few years Pat Wright has continued to work with the Total Experience Gospel Choir, taking their ministry of song around the country, and lending a practical hand where they see they’re needed. Pastor Benny Wright has retired…a few years ago he had knee surgery. Pat continues to be the whirlwind she’s always been, but has had to slow down a bit. As of this writing (September 2017) she is working on a new album and continues to solo with the choir. Aside from their usual appearances the Choir has backed up artists as diverse as Barry Manilow and Dave Matthews. The majority of the current members of the Total Experience Gospel Choir are adults that have grown up in the Choir, or joined within the past decade or two. Sadly, gospel music has fallen out of fashion among younger people these days, and the black community’s roots in the church have become less important. But gospel music lives on despite it’s adversities….another total experience in the history of blacks in America. It is certain to make a renewal, the more that people understand it’s importance in itself, and to pop music.
Many music fans today ignore gospel music, probably because of it’s roots in Christianity. But the fact is that most of the great R&B and Soul artists of the past and present have deep roots in gospel and in the church. It was the secularization of the lyrics, not the music of gospel that gave rise to artists like Aretha Franklin, The Winans, James Brown, Ben E. King, Otis Redding, George Clinton, Sister Rosetta Tharpe and a host of other widely vaying artists. Even the Queen of Gospel, Mahalia Jackson has an important place in the development of popular music. It was Mahalia, more than anyone that brought gospel music into American homes through TV and radio. If you’re one of those who feel turned-off by religious music, have a listen to any good gospel choir. Let the sound and the passion roll over you. You will soon find yourself tapping to the music and experiencing the communal joy that gospel brings. At the very least Pat Wright and The Total Experience Gospel Choir deserve a listen. You might just see them for what they are; an important, but too-often overlooked part of Northwest music history.
For upcoming live performances of the Total Experience Gospel Choir see the schedule at http://www.totalexperiencegospelchoir.org/calendar
-Dennis R. White. Sources: Nicole Brodeur “Heartening Glimpse of Heaven” (The Seattle Times, February 23, 2006); Unknown Author “Pat Wright: Seattle’s First Lady of Gospel” (Northwest Prime Time, November 29, 2014); Peter Blecha “Wright, Pat b.1944” (HistoryLink.org Essay 10392, June 16, 2013); Interview with Enrique Cerna (KCTS, January 30. 2012); Misha Berson “Pat Wright’s Total Experience-Seattle’s Mistress of Music Lives The Gospel She Sings” (The Seattle Times, December 10, 1998) Terry Morgan (interview with the author, September 22, 2017); Dave Segal (Barton Funk in the Soundgarden of Eden: How Wheedle’s Groove Revived Old-School Seattle Soul, September 3, 2009); Jason Ankeny (Patrinell Staten Biography, allmusic.com); Total Experience Gospel Choir home page ( http://www.totalexperiencegospelchoir.org/ ); Photo: Christopher Nelson.
The Silly Killers are one of early 80s Seattle punk bands that would probably be forgotten years ago if it wasn’t for the fact that former Guns N’Roses’ Michael “Duff” McKagen was a member for a short time. One has to wonder what rabid metal fans would have felt if Duff had continued playing in a multitude of punk bands before becoming famous in one of the all-time most successful metal bands in history; after all McKagen, from a very young age, was one of the most prolific members of early Seattle punk. Most likely all of his hard work might have been little more than a footnote were it not for relocating from Seattle to Los Angeles-being a footnote is a fate he obviously would not deserve. But in spite of McKagen’s short time with the Silly Killers, they had already become stars in their own right among Seattle’s punk community. The Silly Killers’ reputation in recent years has also has been heightened by new-found interest in their only 7” recording of what’s usually referred to as the Knife Manual EP, and two other hard to find tracks that have only been “officially” released on the excellent 1983 cassette “What Syndrome” put out by local label Deux Ex Machina Records And Tapes in 1983.
Then there’s Slats (born Chris Harvey) founding member of the Silly Killers who died in 2010 after years of being an iconic figure not only in the punk community, but in the city at large. Despite his ongoing addiction and alcoholism Slats made the rounds two and a half decades as a highly visible character in both Seattle’s University District and on Capitol Hill. Some worried about him. Others made bets on how long he would live. Aside from that Slats was a genial, kind and generous person who had simply found himself in the grips of addiction. Some friends have reported that he was clean his last few years, but there’s no doubt he was not sober. You could often find him drinking in one of Seattle’s many musicians’ hangouts-always ready to talk and (what the hell) accept a free drink. However addiction is in no way a character flaw and it’s clear that many were touched by his legacy…friends who had known him for years, and strangers who had only sighted him from afar. He was much more than a cast-off.
From the mid 80’s onward Slats was well known for his “uniform”. Punk-rock (all black) regalia, including skinny jeans and ratted, longish black hair almost always topped by a wide-brimmed hat. If he never became a huge rock star he was always dressed as if he would be soon…perhaps as a re-incarnation of Johnny Thunders. But the legacy of the Silly Killers goes beyond an iconic figure or a member of rock royalty. The Silly Killers began as one of a handful of seminal second generation hardcore bands that arose in Seattle during the early 1980’s. It’s might even be misleading to call the Silly Killers “hardcore” since their music and performances did not follow the formula most early hardcore bands did. The singing of vocalist Eddie Huget could be nuanced instead of a constant, disembodied supposedly traumatized suburban scream. The songs were actually melodic at times…it might be more appropriate to call the Silly Killers a great little rock and roll band that found it’s place among punk rock.
The band was not above pissing off everyone, including their own fans. Instead of using the term “pissing off”“taking the piss out of” may be more correct. Often acting as provocateurs 0n several occasions the band used what seemed to be misogynistic images to promote their shows. The images drew the wrath of those who didn’t see it as funny or as a stunt to heighten the Silly Killers image in the public eye. Needless to say, they managed to anger Seattle’s feminist and lesbian communities often.
It’s been reported that in 1982 the Silly Killers were part of the very first punk-rock show in Tacoma, which is about 25 miles south of Seattle. The bill included The Fartz and Wad Squad (led by the equally iconic Chuck “Upchuck” Gerra). This claim could be argued, since punk was not new to Tacoma, but it’s also probable that this could have been the first, most visible show of important Seattle bands to do an all-ages show in Tacoma. Nonetheless the Silly Killers had already made a name for themselves in Seattle, although often found themselves as the opening act for more well-known local and regional bands. Despite being largely a support band the Silly Killers had a devoted following and it grew each time they hit the stage.
It was during this era that the Silly Killers recorded their now infamous Knife Manual EP for Kurt Bloch’s No Threes Records. Kurt was a founding member of The Fastbacks and another highly visible musician-even to this day- on the Seattle scene. Although the output of No Threes was sporadic during the early 80s Kurt managed to release some of the most classic (and consequently desirable) singles of any local label. His first four releases (Kill The BeeGees by The Accident, Man as Hunter by The Cheaters, The Fastbacks debut single It’s Your Birthday and “You May Not Believe In Vains But You Cannot Deny Terror” by Vains-which also featured the near ubiquitous Duff McKagen. No Threes went on to release several Fastbacks records as well as other bands, including Pure Joy, and more recently The Yes Masters and Full Toilet as well as an excellent compilation of the early Fastbacks recordings. No Threes is still active and has also re-issued many of it’s original releases-except, mysteriously, the Silly Killers.
The fact that Silly Killers tracks have been included in several unauthorized bootlegs over the years deprived the original members even a modest amount of royalties. One of the unauthorized compilations the Silly Killers can be found on is Killed By Death Volume 12 (1996, Redrum Records). In fact the cover art for this volume is based on the very same image the Silly Killers used on their Knife Manual EP…but then again, they had stolen the image themselves. The photo used on the cover of Knife Manual is that of wrestler turned Ed Wood actor Tor Johnson. Johnson is probably known best as the hulking figure in both Bride of the Monster (1955) and Plan Nine From Outer Space (1959) as well as a few other Ed Wood films. But, amazingly, Johnson was also featured in film and television from the big screen musical adaptation of Carousel to television’s Shirley Temple Theater to the Monkees psychedelic outing Head.
There have also been a few legitimate releases of the Silly Killers songs. Among them is a tip of the hat from later Seattle favorites Gas Huffer. They contributed their version of Knife Manual in 1992 on a split single with Mudhoney doing a cover of The Angry Samoan’s “You Stupid Asshole”.
The Silly Killers, like most early practitioners of punk never expected to make any money in the first place. They played and recorded for the hell of it, and knowing they’d be entertaining their fans. They probably never dreamed they would have the status and influence of later generations. After all, a review in the region’s premier music magazine The Rocket gave it a poor review, and sales of the 7” EP were modest at best. Today copies are highly prized on the collectors market, but practically impossible to find…one copy recently sold for $200.
The Silly Killers were exceptionally entertaining live. Slats thrashed on guitar while lead singer Eddie often Huletz feigned indifference when he wasn’t singing. Both Gary Clukey and Tim Gowell (now Steven Gowell) played with abandon. The shows could end in chaos (to the glee of audiences) and their set was filled with confrontational lyrics as well as the song titles on their EP which included Sissie Faggots and Social Bitch. More strident members of the public had no sense of irony and considered the Silly Killers to be misogynistic and homophobic. Of course it was all provocation as part of their schtick. It should be noted here that Duff McKagen was not with the band at the time of their recording Knife Manual, but he is credited with “backing vocals” on the song Social Bitch. By the time the Silly Killers recorded the two songs originally released on What Syndrome (Nothing To Say and Big Machine) Duff had replaced Gowell as drummer. The band would dissolve soon after that, leaving Eddie and Gary (as well as Tim/Steven) to follow other pursuits while Duff McKagen continued his path toward becoming a rock star-and Seattle hero. As for Slats, he would continue to be a well-known figure in and around the Seattle music scene as well as somewhat of a cultural icon in the city-for decades. He drifted in and out of bands, or made attempts at forming bands that never materialized and eventually went on to found Pain Cocktail, his final band. He became a sort of romantic figure of the archetypical rock junkie that became almost de rigueur in some circles…especially in Seattle during the late 80s and early 90s. Whether being taken seriously as a musician or simply “just another junkie” he was both revered and reviled by students University District where he was considered an “Ave. Rat” who was admired by others. Later he spent time on the ever-more gentrified Capitol Hill. “The Hill” still remained an important locale of the music scene and despite being written off by many who didn’t know him, Slats was always ready to talk to anyone who approached him. According to Ross Beamish a fellow member of Pain Cocktail
“I asked Slats one day if he had seen any of the bullshit people posted online about him. He just shook his head casually and continued with whatever he was doing. It really didn’t bother him.”
That was typical Slats…living in a world he’d built for himself but ready to engage with anyone and everyone with a respectful deference and kind heart. In other words Slats was a good guy, despite his failings…and what failings he had didn’t really affect too many others outside of his mother.
In the spring of 2010 Slats fell and had to have hip surgery. His lifestyle had done quite a bit of damage to his general health and he died from complications of the surgery on March 13, 2010. There was a more-than-usual outpouring of love from the community for a one-time punk rocker turned professional addict/alcoholic. His loss was mourned not only by his friends and family, but by strangers who had only had an occassional glimpse of him. He’s remembered as a kind eccentric, and probably will be referred to for upcoming historians of Seattle music in the future. But his lasting legacy will also be based on being involved in one 7” chunk of polyvinyl chloride pressed into a Seattle watershed moment.
The band that became known as Idiot Culture was the last project by reclusive Seattle guitarist Byron Duff. Byron began to make his mark in the 1980’s with the trio The Spectators. The Spectators were known for jaw-dropping, tight performances in the underground clubs that spawned the emergence of what would later be the 1990’s Seattle Scene. Bob Mould (Husker Du, Sugar) once called The Spectators “the best unreleased band in America”. Although the band lasted no more than a year they saw opening and touring spots with the Husker Du, The Dead Kennedys and The Stranglers among others. Although Mould’s comment was prescient, the band never landed a major record deal. They’re now one of the almost-lost treasures of early 80s Seattle rock.
In 1986 Byron Duff formed ’Dive’, the band that would later be called Idiot Culture, with bassist TJ West and drummer Steve Dodge. Duff had met TJ West in high school had played with him in the late 70s/early 80s band Klappenstompp, along with Randy Berry on drums, and Gary Bauder on lead vocals. Later Duff would play with The Envy which was comprised of Byron Duff on guitar and backing vocals, Rick Hill on bass, Gary Bauder on lead vocals and the late great Dave Drewry on drums.
Unfortunately Dive would be an unheralded band that helped define the new”grunge”sound and the more intense attitude coming out of the Northwest. Dive continued in the mid-80s, recorded an impressive set to be released as an album in 1986, but never got the attention they deserved. Eventually the three disbanded and spent several years out of the limelight due to Duff’s ongoing health problems. It was during these years that Duff first showed the signs of Multiple Sclerosis that would later end his career as a performer. It’s been noted that Byron Duff, at the height of his powers, was the best Seattle guitarist of his generation. It’s not hyperbole. Listening to Duff’s playing on their live-recorded debut it’s a difficult point to argue. Unfortunately his trying to shop his demo, Duff faced indifference. He even recalls approaching the local label Sub Pop (who would later popularize the kind of music Duff was playing) and being turned down.
Because Byron Duff had been missing from the Seattle music scene for a number of years, his reemergence and his last album was highly anticipated. Though the album had been recorded in 1986 and remained unreleased, it was mixed by the renowned producer Jack Endino almost two decades after it’s recording. Endino had seen the band during it’s life and had even shared a stage with them while he played in Skin Yard. At the time of the recording the band had called itself Dive, but too many bands had already used that name, including one particular pop band that had been signed by a major label. Idiot Culture seemed the natural name of choice since Duff had used the name earlier in some of his one-off projects and performances.
Endino’s deft hand took care not to detract from the original intention of the recordings, leaving it full of trance-like riffs and hypnotic hooks. This was proto-grunge that stood alongside the best-selling recordings of the 80s and 90s, and is still relevant because of it’s readiness to take on a varieties of rock and roll. One minute the sound may seem metallic or punkish. A few bars later the melody is overtaken by jazz chords. At times the prog rock guitar suddenly transforms into a surf riff. Duff may have been seen as the “star” of the band, but it’s clear he had sought-out the strongest drummer he could find and a bassist that could keep up with his musical demands. TJ West on bass and Steve Dodge were both top of the line players, and exactly what was needed to make the band as strong as it was.
Dive’s sound was heavy, but their music was still a hybrid of seemingly contradictory styles. Their only album takes on even more significance since it was recorded live in-studio without overdubs. The tight, challenging performance is extremely impressive given it being it recorded in one take at Seattle’s Electric Eel Studio.
According to drummer SteveDodge, who’d played with The Numatics, Alien Nation and The Harvard Surf Club as well as filling in on drums for many local outfits “Dive is the best band I have EVER played in. People were so shocked when we played. Byron Was GOD”…It’s true that Byron had an incredible talent but he was also driven to perfect his style. Byron was a very humble man, but he didn’t hold back onstage. Steve also recalls watching Byron’s former band, The Spectators playing before The Numatics while he was drumming with them It was a day-long gig at The Showbox in downtown Seattle. 1979. “Me and my Dad were watching them before I went on. He looked at me when they were done and said, “Good Fuckin Luck”.
Although the band did not shy away from other musical influences, it’s clear the band was pioneers among those who would later be christened “grunge”. Noted critic Everett True went further in writing a review:
“I have no idea who Idiot Culture are. I am sure I can look them up, and I’m sure I will, but right now I’m wallowing in the deep Gothic undertow of their brutal, traumatized grind. (Yeah, remind me. I’ll go back and sort those mixed metaphors out later.) The vocals sneer, all diffident and knowing and uncaring or rather caring but not caring to show it, like Richard Butler or Jim Thirwell or Tad Doyle or someone. The music is all jagged metal ends, relentless and pulsating, shards of Krautrock cutting through the gloom. Guitar solos are sheer torture, deliberately: the very nicest kind of grating. Man, it reminds me of my glory days back when I drank, back when I reinvented myself as some sort of music press god, back when grunge creatures stalked the earth. Nice”.
He went on to add; “Turns out I wasn’t so far off, at all. Mixed by my old friend Jack Endino – one of the most awesome grunge monsters ever to stalk the earth – and Idiot Culture hail from Seattle. Yeah, damn. This is so molten and heavy, and full-on fucking ROCK, it makes the term ‘grunge’ seem patsy-waist in comparison”.
The band, despite the tightly wound arrangements were not afraid to tread into the realm of momentary unrestrained chaos just for the joy of it. There’s always something unexpected to rise to frenetic levels, but the pace is leisurely enough to allow the soundscape to fully sink in. Idiot Culture used long hypnotic passages and favored guitar drums and bass as a way of delving deeply into compelling sounds rather than rely on solos. It’s even more ironic given the incredible abilities Duff processed. Duff, West and Dodge were all extremely talented on their respective instruments. In professional circles outside Seattle Duff has long been regarded as an extraordinary guitarist. He made good use of his ability to play several divergent guitar parts in unison as well as abrupt effects changes. The results always left audiences amazed.
Unfortunately Duff had to give up music just as he was gaining wider respect. He was struck down by Multiple Sclerosis. It’s unfortunate to have lost a musician who would probably have played a bigger part in the Seattle sound of the early-mid 1990s. Luckily there are a good deal of live and studio recordings from his days with The Spectators, Dive and Idiot Culture. The only full album he and his band mates is generally unheard and underappreciated simply because the band was not able to continue after Byron Duff became ill. But the music lives-albeit digitally rather than the analog recordings that are superior. Perhaps one day a label with a bit of sense will re-release one of the greatest unheard Seattle albums of the 1980s-1990s. In the meantime the tracks are available as downloads, and more than worth taking a chance on listening to. You will be left wondering why you hadn’t taken time to see or hear them back in the day.
Dennis R. White-Sources; Conversations with Byron Duff (1981-2005); Coversations with Steve Dodge (2005-2006); Everett True (Collapseboard, March 25, 2011, collapseboard.com); Gary Bauder; Special thanks to “Outa-Spaceman Being:52” for the sculpture ‘Awww, Bless’
The Center for Disease Control Boys was a loose-knit satirical Country, Western and Folk band formed in Seattle in 1986. Their performances included a mixture of original compositions and older songs written by such artists as Bob Wills, Asleep at the Wheel, and Woody Guthrie. Their stage show used an extensive array of props and costumes such as bales of hay, stuffed roosters, rubber trout, and wads of self printed ‘country currency’. Although the band was only in existence for six months, they are noteworthy for their ever changing lineup of musicians and performers which included Chris Cornell of Soundgarden Jonathan Poneman, co-founder of Sub Pop Records, and Ben McMillan, lead singer for Skin Yard and Gruntruck.
The CDC Boys was a design and musical collaboration between Dean Warrti and George Hackett. Warrti was manager and booking agent for the Ditto Tavern, which filled a void in the local music scene by providing a venue for folk, punk, art rock, and emerging grunge bands from the Northwest. Hackett was an accomplished guitarist who worked at Boeing and shared Wartti’s interest in cultural satire, diverse musical tastes, and leftist politics. Warrti had a background in theatrical performance and design. As they wrote the songs and assembled the props and graphics, the two realized that a diverse cast of band members could be found within the roster of Ditto performers. Rehearsals were held at the artists collective SCUD (Subterranean Co-operative of Urban Dreams). The building had previously been the very neglected Sound View Apartments, and before that an SRO hotel. SCUD became an incorporated collective and leased the building in Belltown where a plethora of bohemian artists that included Ashleigh Talbot, Art Chantry, Cam Garret, Arthur Aubrey,Steven Fisk and Willum Hopfrog Pugmire. All had at one time or another been residents. It’s been reported that Jack Kerouac stayed at The Sound View Hotel a short time during his stop in Seattle in September of 1956. He had spent the earlier summer at a fire watch look-out in the North Cascades. He later wrote about the underbelly of Seattle and it’s downtrodden waterfront in a short story called Alone On A Mountaintop. The building was at one time referred to Seattle residents as The Jello Building since the entire north side of the building was decorated with a multitude of Jello molds. It was a natural place for the CDC Boys to begin life. Eventually an opening performance was booked at the Rainbow Tavern as part of a KCMU radio showcase the began the band’s short but illustrious career. More bookings followed, as well as frequent appearances at Warrti’s Ditto Tavern.
The line up for the debut of the CDC Boys live show was:
Dean Warrti: vocals, washboard, accordion
George Hackett: Twelve string guitar, vocals, waders
Ben McMillan (Skin Yard, Gruntruck): vocals, cowbell
Tamara Jones (Brides of Frankenstein): Double bass, vocals
Bob Maguire (The Subterraneans): vocals, guitar
Gary Heffern (Penetrators): vocals, stage presence
Chris “Jake” Cornell (Soundgarden): drums, vocals, grunts, overalls
They were also joined onstage by the Americana instrumentalist Orville Johnson: fiddle, mandolin.
The CDC Boys shows also featured singing cowgirls who freely dispensed hay, empty Shake ‘N’ Bake boxes, and wads of ‘country buckeroos. They were Juliana Wood and Debra June Connor.
As the CDC Boys existed mainly as a comedic side project for all concerned, the band’s line up continued to change, and included the following at various times:
Jonathan Poneman (bass)
Artie Palm (mouth harp, saxophone, and guitar)
Tim Bowman (accordion and musical saw)
The CDC Boys concluded their brief career by releasing a 45 single “We’re The Center for Disease Control Boys” b/w “Who We Hatin’ Now Mr. Reagan?” on their own Fin De Siecle label. Their final performance was at Seattle’s annual Bumbershoot Festival, where they debuted a stirring opus to the Kennedy Assassination entitled, “Grassy Knoll“.
Throughout their career, The Center for Disease Control Boys played only nine shows, but they put out a 45 vinyl single on Fin de Siecle Records in 1986. They would have probably become a footnote if it weren’t that Chris Cornell had once been a member. There has always been rumblings of curiosity among his fans, but since Cornell’s death in May of 2017 the few copies of the CDC Boys single on the collectors market have skyrocketed. A long-awaited re-union has been anticipated for several years, but never come to fruition. In 2013 co-founder Dean Warrti recalled one of the band’s gigs and it’s aftermath in the blog Tales From The Bales.
EPISODE THREE: ‘A Bale of Hay and the Green River Killer’
Well. a Bale of Hay is a lot like Minnie Pearl in a corset; manageable when trussed, but a heck of a lot to handle once unbound. It was a rainy night in May, a Saturday. I think we had hosted our record release party the night before at the Ditto, As usual, the band booked for this night had asked us to leave the single bale in place for their use; nobody wants to scare up hay on their own….but if there’s a bale in place, what the heck?!?! In this case the Headliner was the Walkabouts, good friends of the Ditto and also of Hay.
After their set, the Ditto emptied out pretty fast, it was really pouring now. We sat at a booth downing pitchers of ‘low brow’ and making idle chatter…..I really wanted to go home. As the Walkabouts did have a van, I suggested that I buy them a couple of pitchers and that they, in return, would cart off the hay bale to parts unknown. The deal was made and I headed off, leaving the bartender to close up.
The next day, Sunday, I got a call from the Fire Department at 8 am. The Captain was quite stern. He informed me that there was a large amount of hay flowing from the dumpster in back of the club, trailing out onto the sidewalk and the street in front of the club. I couldn’t think of any road that led to ‘plausable deniability’, I mean, what could I say? He informed me that I had two hours to clean up all the hay or be cited and fined, well, a lot; about a month’s revenue at the time. I called Andrea and explained the situation and she came right down from Capital Hill in her compact car. I did have some large trash bags on hand and we began to stuff them with wet and heavy hay. Loose hay, man that takes up a lot of space….that’s why they bale it I guess. We must have had about five 30 gallon bags stuffed full by the time we were done. They barely fit in the trunk and back seat. Now…..where to get rid of them?
We figured we couldn’t dispose of them anywhere downtown as the SFD was wise to us and there were no promising empty lots to think of, so we headed up to the north end of Capital Hill. I remember we had the am news on the radio and there had been yet another victim’s body found; again the work of the Green River Killer. It was the height of the civic panic but no clues were forthcoming. At last we found a suitable hillside and pulled over. Now here are two caucasians, 30 something, trolling Capital Hill early on a Sunday morning and attempting to remove heavily stuffed trashbags from the trunk of a car, next to a wooded hillside. It did not look good, and soon the other traffic on the road seemed to consist only of single women in Accuras and Toyotas, slowing down and making note, and perhaps notes, of our activities.
This scenario was repeated at each stop we made, perhaps 4 in all. At last we figured the we did really have to start thinking like killers, so we headed off to the Arboretum, suitably deserted at 10 am. We made the drop unobserved, clenched our teeth, wiped away the sweat, and headed to the Deluxe for a beer….
-Dean Warrti
George Hackett, who worked at Boeing at the time of the CDC Boys, went on to become Andrea Hackett, founder of the Las Vegas Dancers Alliance, the most widely-known organization of strippers in Las Vegas. She now publishes an online journal called “The Flubug Journal, a satiric, fictional small-town paper.
Ben McMillan died in January 28, 2008 in Seattle from complications related to diabetes’
Jon Poneman is the well-known and respected manager/owner of Sub Pop Records
Gary Heffern now lives near the arctic circle in Finland. He continues to write and record.
Tamara Jones went on to perform in the band Brides of Frankenstein, and is now a real estate agent in the Seattle area.
Dean Warrti was last spotted in Boston. He continues to present satirical events and create general mischief.
Orville Johnson lives near Seattle and continues his life-long interest in teaching, recording and generally playing any instrument connected with traditional Americana. He has contributed not only to the preservation of traditional music across the US, but has forever established himself as a vital part of Seattle’s music history.
Chris Cornell died on May 18, 2017 of an apparent suicide
-Dennis R. White. Sources; Dennis R. White (facebook post 04/01/2013). Andrea Hackett. Dean Warrti; Tim Crowley, “SCUD Stories” (Orgone Research, 02/06/2010) Dean Warrti, “Tales From The Bales” (04/ 10/2013)
The band that would become 3 Swimmers rose out of the ashes of The Beakers-probably the first Olympia WA band that made the town the musical gravitational force it has become today. Other contributors to the early Olympia scene-and later contributors to the overall NW music scene- included DJ/editor/musician John Foster and the alarmingly underappreciated producer Steve Fisk. Both were early champions of the local scene, and had been students at The Evergreen State College just outside Olympia. TESC, as it’s often known was at the time a free-wheeling liberal arts college that pushed students to express their social and artistic endeavors to the maximum.
As well as Fisk and Foster, the college produced well-known graduates like Bruce Pavitt (Sub Pop) Matt Groening (The Simpsons) artist/cartoonist Lynda Barry (Ernie Pook’s Comeek, the illustrated novel The Good Times are Killing Me as well as the iconic image “Poodle with a Mohawk“). Later alum include Bill Hagerty (aka Macklemore of Ryan Lewis and Macklemore) and the pro-Palestinian advocate and martyr Rachel Corrie. A cadre of musicians, filmmakers, early video artists, writers, activists, idealists and excessively talented and motivated individuals emerged from the college. Many of them collaborate off and on up til this day.
The Beakers had had some great underground success based on the strength of only one single, the Bill Reiflin produced Red Towel b/w Football Season Is In Full Swing. Bill was the drummer for the near-mythic Seattle band, The Blackouts, and later worked with Ministry, Revolting Cocks, KMFDM, REM, Minus 5 as well as a myriad of other projects. He would also become a couple with-and marry Frankie Sundsten during the late 1980s. As of August, 2017 Bill is a member of the reconstituted King Crimson.
The Beakers label, Mr. Brown Records was a project of the Lost Music Network headed by the aforementioned DJ, chronicaller of underground music and founder of the influential OP magazine, John Foster A couple of inclusions (Figure 21 and I’m Crawling (on The Floor) appeard on Foster’s 1980 “Life Elsewhere EP and in 1981 The Beakers song What’s Important was incluced Pavitt’s Sub Pop 5 cassette release. A rather dull (for The Beakers) rendition of Lipps Inc. Funky Town is out there in the internet ether, but ultimately it doesn’t represent the sound of the motif of the band. The Beakers were angular, sometimes chaotic and sparse, with vocals by Mark H. Smith, drummer George Romansic, bassist Francesca (Frankie) Sundsten and the wildly manic saxophone of Jim Anderson who also shared vocals. This formula would transfer nicely when 3 Swimmers was founded. 3 Swimmers retained much of the angularity (especially in Smith’s vocals) but the sound was a bit more refined and not as purposefully caustic. Whereas The Beakers were shining lights among the underground, 3 Swimmers’ sound was more accessible to mainstream audiences, and the ever important college DJ’s who could break a band within weeks.
After a year of mostly success, touring and opening for major acts The Beakers called it quits. Each of the members would pursue projects of their own, but remain involved in one another’s projects. Frankie pursued her main love-painting, and became a member of Children of Kellogg along with Annie Mulcahey, a longtime fixture on the Seattle scene and experimental provacateur, Sue Anne Harkey who would later find success with one of her highly experimental ongoing groups, Audio Leter. Jim Anderson became involved in several music projects including Little Bears From Bangkok (with occassional drumming by Romansic. He also devotes himself to social justice and political causes. In 1981 George Romansic and Mark H. Smith would go on to be founding members of 3 Swmmers, eventually coelescing into Romansic on drums, Smith on Vocals, guitars and synths, Fred Chalenor on bass. Chalenor had worked with avant-garde artists like Wayne Horvitz, and after 3 Swimmers he co-founded The Tone Dogs with Amy Denio, and later included Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron. The original 3 Swimmers line-up also included Colin McDonell of Cinema 90 and The Macs Band (alongside brother Angus). McConnell had been label-mates with The Beakers earlier at Mr. Brown Records. After 3 Swimmers recorded their first EP, The Worker Works To Live (1982, Engram Records) McDonnell departed the band to pursue solo projects and production. Shortly after McDonell bowing out MacKenzie Smith was brought on to play keyboards and take on some of the vocals. Taylor Nelson Little shared drumming duties with George Romansic, and Craig Florey, another Seattle stalwart joined as the groups saxophonist. Mark H. Smith recounts “Taylor Nelson Little from Vancouver was just the best drummer we could find, we didn’t care that he lived in Canada. He and Fred really locked in together, which was critical because we were a groove-oriented band. We added Craig Florey on sax because he was irresistible”
A second EP-also on Engram-American Technology (also released by Engram Records in 1982) brought even more attention to the band and they ended up touring on their own and as opening acts for international headliners, most notably Gang of Four, with which they shared a socially conscious, perpendicular, jagged and jarring sound-and ideals…at least the sound and ideals found on Gang of Four’s first outing Entertainment. The sweeteners, back up singers and highly produced sound of later Gang of Four releases was not a direction 3 Swimmers would take.
“We were young” says Smith. We wanted to do things differently. We wrote the songs together. Made business decisions together. It was very much a collective. And I think the pressure of trying to do what we were trying to do caused some strain”.
Still the band weathered it out until Fred Chalenor yearned for a different direction for the band. According to Smith;
“When Fred, who is a genius bass player, decided he wanted to put his energy into more experimental music, the band fell apart. From the very beginning he was the key component to the 3 Swimmers sound. He was irreplaceable”.
Somewhere out there another full EP of completed recording remains. Smith believes it’s the best thing 3 Swimers ever recorded. It remains unreleased and will probably never see the light of day. That’s unfortunate. Despite some criticism of the band being derivative (they weren’t) and Mark’s vocals as somewhere between “a hysterical David Byrne or an illiterate David”(they were) 3 Swimmers still stand out even among the stratospheric talent found among 80s Seattle bands. After the band’s demise MacKenzie Smith would go on to become Associate Director for Technology at MIT. She’s recently moved on to teach at UC Davis. George Romansic passed away on Sunday January 25, 2015, after a months-long battle with cancer. He remained bright, generous and kind up ’til the end, and is still mourned by family, friends and just about anyone who ever met him. He will continue to be remembered, honored and missed for many, many years. In a tribute to her friend, Patti Smith dedicated the song “Beautiful Boy” to George at a performance she gave in Seattle the night after George’s passing.
Mark H. Smith now is an assistant professor in the MFA program for Writing and Writing for the Performing Arts at UC Riverside, Palm Desert Graduate Center. He’s a regular contributor to journals and newspapers around the country and an accomplished novelist. His newest book, Blown, is due in the summer of 2018. He still remembers the importance 3 Swmmers made in his life and career. He says:
“For an indie band playing slightly annoying music from the northwest corner of the country, we came close to some kind of success. We supported some great bands like Gang of Four, Duran Duran, and Bow Wow Wow. We played Los Angeles with the Gang of Four, we had meetings at Warner Bros and IRS records. But listening to the songs now, I really wish someone had suggested I take singing lessons. I am a terrible singer”.
Despite their short run 3 Swimmers were not just “could have beens“. They played intricate, but enthusiastic music to live audiences. There recorded output almost perfectly captures their sound. And despite what Smith has to say about his voice, I for one am very happy he never took singing lessons.
-Dennis R. White. Sources; Mark H. Smith interview (August 20, 2017). Clark Humphrey (Loser. The Real Seattle Music Story. Updated and revised 2nd edition, MISCmedia, Seattle, 1999). Gillian G. Gaar: History and Revolution: Two Timely 80’s Acts Resurface. (The Stranger, November 4, 2004) markhaskellsmith.com retrieved August 25, 2017; Rocket writer, Champion of Local Music, George Romansic dies at 58 (Northwest Music Scene, January 27, 2015); Photo by Kristine Larsen. The Worker Works To Live design by Robert Newman.
On March 25, 1923 Bonnie Buckingham was born in Seattle WA. As a youn child she was raised in Redondo Beach, a small community about 30 miles south of Seattle. Her family were farmers who were able to weather the depression, unlike many of those in the Midwest who’s crops had been decimated by dustbowl storms and drought. It was a bit later that the Buckingham family moved a short distance to Auburn WA and continued farming. Growing up Bonnie had a fascination with the family guitar, and took every chance she could to take it from it’s hiding place to practice when her parents were away. Her mother had told her that “guitars were for boys”. But Bonnie persisted learning what she could. She recalls regularly climbing trees and pretending they were broadcast towers and she was sending out signals of her miusic to the entire world.
Apparently her parent’s disapproval of girl’s playing guitars did not last long. By the age of 13 she had inherited her two older brothers’ flat top guitar and was appearing at talent shows throughout the Puget Sound region while gaining wider reception. During this period she took on her first stage name-Bonnie Lane. She also began tutoring by local musicians. At the age 16 she was allowed to tour the NW with a country revue and for the next several years she developed her skill at the guitar as well as finding her voice.
Eventually she began travelling to Seattle to be tutored by some of the best players in the city, including Paul Tutmarc. Not only did Bonnie receive lessons, she began to make recordings with Tutmarc in his primitive studio on Pine Street. Tutmarc was 27 years older than Bonnie, but their work had brought them close together. In 1943 Tutmarc divorced his first wife and married Bonnie the following year. They juggled their married and professional lives, along with caring for their daughter Paula (born in 1950) for the next few years, doing Seattle gigs as a duo and finally joining a well-known NW country outfit called the K-6 Wranglers as with a local country outfit called but the couple divorced in 1955, before Bonnie’s wider success.
Around this time Bonnie took on the name she would always be known as- Bonnie Guitar. Bonnie recalls that one day a songwriter approached her with a few songs he wanted her to do demo’s of in order to shop them to labels in southern California. The songs themselves never went anywhere, but an independent producer, Fabor Robison heard Bonnie’s voice and her by now exceptional playing. He immediately called her and convinced her to come to LA and work with his team. Robison was well-connected in the growing country music scene. He’d been involved in the early careers of Jim Reeves, Johnny Horton, the Browns, Mitchell Torok, Floyd Cramer along with Johnny and Dorsey Burnette. His original label, Abbott Records had been a success starting in 1951 Robison established Abbott Records with the financial backing of pharmacist Sid Abbott and the major goal was to record Johnny Horton who Robison had discovered in Texas. In fact all ten of Abbott Records first releases featured Johnny Horton. However, distribution problems led Robison to sell Horton’s contract to Mercury in mid-1952. Even so, Fabor Robison’s Abbott and Fabor labels would find a good deal of success with later artists.
By early 1957 Robison had been trying to produce a new composition written by another of his studio players, Ned Miller. Despite take after take with Dorsey Burnette he was dissatisfied with the outcome. In his book Seattle Before Rock: A City and It’s Music author Kurt Armbruster recounts Bonnies tale:
I had been working in Seattle, and a woman asked me to demo seven or eight songs she’d written. I recorded them, and she sent the disc to Fabor Robison, a producer in L.A. Fabor called ‘How soon can you get down here?’ I flew down and he hired me as a staff musician in his studio in Malibu Canyon. I played on and helped produce every hit record he had. One day Fabor said ‘I have a new song that I’m recording with Dorsey Burnette (brother of Johnny Burnette). I want you to hear it’. Dorsey had had a big hit and was on his way up the charts. Well, Fabor played me this song, Dark Moon and I was knocked out. I had to have it! I’ll forego all my royalties to record this song. It’s going to be a smash! So I recorded it and sure enough it hit big. But what I didn’t know was that Fabor had already recorded the song with Dorsey and didn’t like the result. He didn’t bother telling me that”.
Bonnie, was so taken by the song she convinced Fabor to allow her to record it, and hopefully release it as a single. In exchange she told Fabor she was willing to forego all of the royalties that would be due her just to have a chance at the opportunity. This was not a smart business deal, but it taught Bonnie lessons she would later be grateful for, and most of all it provided Bonnie with her first huge hit in 1957. The song would become her signature song, and in it’s has been covered by everyone form Elvis Presely to Chet Atkins & Hank Snow to Chris Issacs and beyond.
Bonnie had done what she calls “hundred of takes” on the song, accompanied by a backing band and larger production than the final version. It is this spare, haunting, ethereal and shimmering. Bonnie told the story in a later interview
‘Fabor recorded me on Dark Moon with as many as twelve musicians; we must have done it a hundred times, with different combinations, and still he wasn’t satisfied. Then one night Fabor and Ned Miller and I went into the studio to record it as a quartet. I asked Ned to play just a straight rhythm on acoustic guitar, I played lead, and we had a bass. That simple version was the one we ended up releasing’.
At the time Bonnie recorded “Dark Moon” Fabor was in search of a larger label to sell his company to, and found a taker in Dot Records who had the muscle and distribution to make Dark Moon a crossover hit on billboard magazne’s charts reaching # 14 on the country charts, and an amazing #6 on the popular chart.
At the height to Bonnie’s position in the charts another Dot artist
, Gale Storm (of My Little Margie fame) also recorded a version of Dark Moon. Storm’s version also raced up the charts and caused some confusion among the public. But there’s no doubt that Bonnie’s rendition was far superior. It was haunting and Bonnie’s crystal voice wasn’t muddied by the highly arranged and over-produced Gale Storm version. Although this would be the last hit record for Gale her producer Randy Wood chose to present a version that was akin to what Pat Boone had done with early rock and roll hits.
Even though Gale Storms’ version charted slightly higher than Bonnie’s, at #4 in the charts, it is Bonnie Guitar’s version that is clealy the definitive recording. Unfortunately Bonnie’s follow-up single Mr. Fire Eyes did well on the country charts but failed to make much of a dent on the pop charts. The single only reached the #71 spot on Billboard’s pop chart. Subsequently she was dropped from Dot Records. In the future Bonnie Guitar would continue to record albums, release singles, play as a session musician and produce even though she chose to move back to the Seattle area. She had a clear and dedicated base that weren’t interested in letting her go, despite her treatment by Dot Records. In fact, Bonnie would later be picked up by several major labels into the 1980. But for the time being Bonnie turned her eye to found her own record label and produce other’s records. In 1958 she paired up with former Seattle refrigerator salesman Bob Reisdorff to form Dolphin Records. Soon after the labels founding Bonnie and Bob discovered there was already a label and record store using the Dolphin name. The label (and store) was owned by John Dolphin a prominent black producer who had had great success in what were then called “race records”- R&B. Jazz and early Rock and Roll primarily aimed at black fans and among white teens and DJs that were more progressive. Bonnie and Bob changed the name of their label to Dolton Records but before they made the change Bonnie came across a vocal group from Olympia WA The group consisted of Gary Troxel, Gretchen Christopher, and Barbara Ellis .With Bonnie as producer and Reisdorff mainly in charge of finances the label had a hit straight out of the box with three vocalists from who went by the name The Fleetwoods . Come Softly With Me was a song the trio had written and it became an international sensation that was soon covered-and remains covered-by a multitude of American and British artists. The attention of the first Dolphin/Dolton single led to a distribution deal with Liberty Records which lasted until Dolton merged with Liberty Records in 1966. The Fleetwoods second hit (their third outing) with the newly-christened Dolton label was Mr. Blue. It quickly topped Billboard’s pop charts. Later artists that found success with Dolton were Vic Dana who was a solo artist that had also taken on vocals for live gigs when Gary Troxell was drafted into the military. Other groups that would get their first taste of success at Dolton were Seattle’s The Frantics, and a little combo from Tacoma WA named The Ventures. The Ventures were dubbed “The Band that Launched a Thousand Bands” and ended up releasing 12 projects with Dolton. Today The Ventures are considered seminal founders of what is considered modern Rock&Roll.
Bonnie herself released a few projects of her own on Dolton, the most intriguing being a song called Candy Apple Red, a self-penned song that she used to show off the virtues of her favorite car that she’d bought in 1956; a candy apple red Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner hardtop convertible. It was a first production model with a retractable top. Bonnie bought it in 1956 and had it personalized with red guitars stitched into its white leather seats and musical notes that were fashioned into its hubcaps by hotrod hotshot Dee Wescott. She still owns it.
Although Bonnie had been a co-founder of Dolton Records, there had been friction between herself and co-owner Bob Reisdorff, so in 1960 she left Dolton with another ex-employee, Jerry Denon to found Seattle-based Jerden Records. Unfortunately Jerden only lasted for about a year, and both Bonnie and Dennon returned to Los Angeles. Bonnie became a recording artist for Columbia and RCA records, and later returned to Dot Records, who had unceremoniously fired her only a few years before. Eventually Bonnie ended up being a vice-president at Dot.
Dennon worked in promotions until he was drafted into the army. Upon leaving the army Dennon revived the Jerden label as sole owner and re-released the entire Jerden catalogue-which featured several of Bonnie’s own recordings and others she had produced. This second iteration of Jerden Records was far more successful than the first. In 1963 Jerden released the single Louie Louie by The Kingsmen– a song which has become a high water mark in rock and roll history…and for better or worse on January 24th, 1986 Louie Louie was named the official song of Washington State.
Bonnie churned out recording after recording during the 1960s and although most were only minor pop hits she continued to have a strong country music fan base and gained more and more respect from both the pop and the country music establishment. By 1968 she had become one of the all-time biggest country solo artists in history. Later Bonnie released the successful country music hit I’m Living in Two Worlds which became Guitar’s first Top 10 Country hit and she released an even bigger country hit in 1967 with A Woman in Love which peaked at #4 on the Billboard charts. That same year, Bonnie won the Academy of Country Music’s “Top Female Vocalist” award. In 1968, she recorded another Top 10 Country hit I Believe in Love. And finally she teamed up with Buddy Killen in 1969 to put out A Truer Love You’ll Never Find (Than Mine). By that time Bonnie’s recording career had pretty much run it’s course, though she continued producing and became more and more involved with the business side of music, working as a talent scout, producer and an A&R representative…all positions she had previously involved herself in and was known for being very sharp at.
In 1969 Bonnie married Mario DiPiano and moved back to Washington State-Orting WA to be precise. She and her husband spent their time raising quarter horses, but the pull of Hollywood and Nashville was too great. She continued recording throughout the 1970s. After DiPiano died in 1983 Bonnie went into seclusion. A couple of years after Di Piano’s death -the man she called the love of my life-Bonnie received an invitation to perform one show at the Businessmen’s Club of the Notaras Lodge in the desert town of Soap Lake WA. That single performance led to a residency that lasted until 1996! Today Bonnie lives in Soap Lake and still tries to do a gig here and there. She is somewhat active on face book and is happy to share memories and update daily occurances as health permits.
It’s hard to say if Bonnie Guitar was the first female session musician, but she’s the earliest we know of. She’s certainly the first female artist to crossover from the Country charts to the Pop charts, and it’s near-certain that she was the first woman allowed to take on the task of music studio production. Again, we simply don’t know of any woman that had previously done that job. The world owes a great debt of gratitude to Bonnie Guitar, even though her accomplishments may seem over-shadowed today. But she is surely one of the all-time greats in American recorded music and in the business of creating hits.
On March 23rd 2917 Bonnie Guitar turned 94 years old. Her latest face book post (July 17, 2017) says:
It has been a little while but I have been working on getting stronger and ready to play some music for you all ! With kindest regards. BG
-Dennis R. White. Sources: The Herstory of Women in Rock N’ Roll, Vol 1. By Tia (Vashtia.com, March 15, 2017; Guitar, Bonnie (b. 1923) The Northwest’s Trail-Blazing Pop Pioneer, by Peter Blecha, (Posted 6/19/2008 HistoryLink.org Essay 8656); Womans Work-Bonnie Guitar, by Linda Ray, (No Depression, December 31, 2006); At Age 93, Northwest Music Legend ‘Bonnie Guitar’ Still Gigs Every Weekend by Gabriel Spitzer (KXPX.org, Nov 26, 2011); Before Seattle Rocked: A City and Its Music, by Kurt E Armbruster (University of Washington Press 2011)
August 9, 1987 was without a doubt one of the high water marks in Northwest music history. It was the “last blast” for Chicago’s Big Black, one of the most influential indie bands in the US back then. The band was led by Steve Albini who would go on to be the engineer/producer of some great records, including ones by The Pixies, The Jesus Lizard, Cheap Trick, Nirvana and The Stooges. In 2004 Albini estimated he has engineered or produced over 1500 albums. He’s done scores since then.
